Revive

    As a leader, have you ever experienced the weight of keeping a story of failure or weakness to yourself? The pressure of maintaining a perfect image, the fear of losing authority, and the shame of admitting that you don't have it all figured out. The weight can be too heavy to bear. And, what’s more, is that by keeping these experiences to yourself, you harm your team and organization. "By hiding your failures, you send the message that perfection is the only acceptable standard and that mistakes and setbacks should be swept under the rug." By hiding your failures, you send the message that perfection is the only acceptable standard and that mistakes and setbacks should be swept under the rug. This creates a toxic culture where team members feel afraid to take risks, share their failures, and learn from them. It can also make you seem unapproachable, leading to a lack of trust and connection with your team. On the other hand, sharing stories of failure and...

"I'm not the same person I used to be." Call him Ismail.   He’s a leader of a small business. He's in his 30s. I’ve renamed him after one of my favorite authors, Ismail, to protect his identity. "Josh, I'm not same person I used to be," Ismail said when he first asked me to coach him. We began working together. Here's what happened over the next few months: Ismail started with goals for himself as the head of his organization. He opened up and told me about work and personal challenges. Ismail made himself accountable to me—the changes he wanted to make were changes he had initiated. When we met, our sessions involved work performance progress, and the impact personal relationships had on work. A few months later, he told me, "Josh, I'm not same person. The new Ismail is better than the old one."  Ismail had returned with compassion and empathy to care for the people in his organization. What about you—what benefit might an ongoing acco...

At the opening of the 4th Leadership Forum on April 25, I told a story about Gordon Anaple, a mentor in my teenage years who inspired me to live with integrity.  At the next session, Mark Crawford referenced a quote attributed to Warren Buffet and others. It goes something like this, “An ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure. A pound of cure now is better than a hundred pounds of cure further on down the road." Mark emphasized the importance of taking proactive measures in management rather than hoping a problem will go away and then facing the need for a more involved intervention.  "That's it!" I realized. Gordon had offered me "a pound of cure" when he addressed my attitude that night about 30 years ago. And he'd helped me avoid needing 100 pounds of cure further down the road.  In this post, I'll tell the story about Gordon and I'll challenge you to consider what a pound of cure now would look like for you. An Apple a Day There...

Have you ever been called out for dysfunctional behavior in the middle of a meeting? What was your reaction? Did you feel embarrassed or defensive? While such conversations can be uncomfortable, they can also be powerful tools for growth and improvement. It's no surprise that it takes work to function well. We love the feeling of the Boeing 747 taking off to soar. Guess what? It took over 14,000 individuals to put together over 6 million parts to make the plane soar! In this post, we will explore the importance of accountability in teams and organizations. Accountability conversations don't have to be long. Even a 30-second exchange can lead to significant improvements in team dynamics. When these conversations are done well, they lead to teams functioning well together - like a Boeing 747. Called out for a circular argument "That's a circular argument."  Jeff called me out.   He was right.  Without Jeff’s intervention, I likely would have continued to use poor lo...

A number of readers have written me questions. I read all emails sent to me, and I am responding to a few questions below.  Basketball - What Happened? Reader : In your story you talk about your basketball career. What happened? Why didn’t you go down that path? Josh : Interestingly, these days, some my favorite hours of the week are being on the court with my son. Some of my best memories are playing basketball in high school. I just found  this video of the Chicago Bulls Championship season in 1991 . I used to watch as a kid when I still dreamed of being the next Michael Jordan. Should I Speak Up? Reader : I find myself sometimes, to just be quiet, or i don't have enough arguments to speak up. Josh : Speak up. That's my short answer. The longer answer is that it can take a lot of work to get to the point when you speak up. You've already taken one important step which is to ask for help. If you want, you can practice with a response to a blog post. Email me after you get ...

Is "Done" all that matters? Boss: “Did you finish the report?” Employee:  [No response] [10 minutes later] Boss: “Just checking. Did you finish?” Employee: “Sorry. In a meeting.” [10 minutes later] Boss: “The Division Head needs this ASAP.” Employee: “DONE!” How many times have you received the reply “DONE?” Is that a good thing? Being responsible is a good thing. So what’s not so good about this exchange? A colleague, who leads a non-profit in the health sector, was on a search committee with me. He told us, “What you don’t want is the leader whose every interaction sounds like this: ‘did you it?’ ‘Yes, did it!’” Stuck in the Trees? Have you fallen into the myopic approach that my colleague warned about?   Have you convinced yourself that this is simply “holding others accountable?”  Certain people gravitate towards this type of dysfunctional behavior.  I know I do. As a 10-year kid, I remember a counselor saying something like, “You can miss the forest out t...