Angela Franklin, the President of Des Moines University, spoke at 90 Ideas back in September, and urged leaders to acknowledge the power that doubt and fear can have over a team. The techniques she recommends are based in part on “The Butler Way.” The Butler Way is the idea that selflessness and commitment to the … Read more
When Mary Coffin of Wells Fargo spoke at September’s 90 Ideas event, she shared this nugget: Measure more than the average. She pointed out that when we take measurements, we do a lot of looking at trends and averages and norms to make decisions. But averages only tell us so much. We also need to … Read more
Two weeks ago, I wrote about Scott Raecker’s water obsession. I also said there were two big things he shared at 90 Ideas. Here’s the other, and it’s timely, because New Year’s resolutions are coming in just a few weeks… To make change stick, you need four ingredients. None of these are optional if you … Read more
Beware the 30-minute meeting—or the 60-minute meeting. Setting up time blocks that go straight into the next block’s beginning have these results for the heavily-scheduled: But we love the tidy time block. And—there’s always more to talk about. So we all-too-rarely end a 30-minute meeting early; instead, we fill the time. Tej Dhawan, speaking at … Read more
At the Business Record’s “90 Ideas in 90 Minutes” event from September 2017, Miriam De Dios of Coopera made a case for organizations of any size to implement “Personal Development Plans for All.” Most organizations do some kind of development plan for people in, or preparing for, leadership roles. But what if everyone had a plan? People on … Read more
People who analyze in-depth tend to perform a thorough examination of facts and details. The alternative is to act on the gut – relying on initial feelings and views to move forward, and simply follow first impressions. This is very common among those who suffer from The Success Deception; when you are smart, and successful, … Read more
People who plan tend to develop an organized course of action, setting clear expectations and deadlines. The alternative is to improvise – figure things out as you go, without much planning and preparation. I used to teach jazz. I assure you that I was nothing like the guy from “Whiplash“. But improvisation is important. And … Read more
People who explore implications show patience in evaluating ideas to determine potential benefits and drawbacks. I stayed in a brand-new hotel recently, and noticed something odd; the bathroom door was spring loaded to swing shut. Furthermore, when I checked in, the bathroom light and fan were on and running. This meant that when I entered … Read more
Non-profits often have the challenge we explored last week: constraints. Constraints include lower budgets, impact of economic downturns on funding and volunteer efforts, and cycles driven by major programs. For these reasons, they come up with creative ways to maintain success and engagement. Even if you don’t lead in a non-profit, many of their ideas … Read more
When I was a band teacher, we experienced a staff cut. In 10 years, the department went from 7 teachers serving about 500 students to 5 teachers serving 600. The superintended gave us that left-handed compliment that’s supposed to reassure us while also keeping us quiet: “If anyone could do this, you can. We believe … Read more