Fordelm

1) Stop. Listen. Enjoy the silence. 2) Lead, do not be entirely responsive. 3) Stay on mission in spite of the urgent. 4) Communicate clearly. Consider your words carefully (do not fill up the space). 5) Be relevant, by being authentic and constantly searching for meaning. 6) Focus on health: physical, emotional, psychological, relational, and spiritual.

Adaptive leaders are seeing the opportunity to switch up their game. Rapidly. And nimbly. The new normal is emerging, but it's going to be wobbly for awhile. I feel comfortable predicting that the old normal is not going to return, anywhere, ever.

I attended two meetings in the last 16 hours and neither had clear objectives: the reason we were meeting was unclear even as the meeting began. I would have been of more value as a participant if I'd called ahead and asked the delicate questions, "Why are we meeting, what do you hope to get out of the time invested?"

One board member said tentatively at the end of our marathon (3 hours) planning session, "I think I'm starting to see the new vision & mission forming." Another said, "I'm glad you're writing this up." Looking at this snapshot of our discussion, I'm not surprised. A little daunted, but not surprised.

See you at the Home Show Saturday (between noon and 2:00 pm when I'll be co-manning the Northumberland Business Group's booth).

Northumberland Business Group, a cohort of exceptional businesses, will be at the Home Show Saturday and Sunday see you there!

In the planning work I do with organizations, relationships end up being the greatest asset (or impediment if relationships have been ignored, or harmed). Group...s can't plan effectively if they're not engaged, feeling safe & valued. Relationships deepen - and become more productive - if conversation is effective, supportive, and guided to work through conflict that is inevitable when people are together. And a productive work-group is a beautiful thing! See more

I didn't want to say anything to my business owner customer, but when she emailed me after I joined her staff planning meeting, I was secretly smiling when she said, "I also feel that my feet are held to the fire to ensure that the process is tracked". I don't know if I'm holding her feet to the fire, her staff is, or she is but it's GREAT!

Merry Christmas and Happy (and prosperous and healthy) 2019!

Change leaders need to see the small changes as they happen, help others see them, and draw the links between the outcomes and the actions taken. People are often hesitant to try new ways because they're uncertain. This isn't always resistance to change.

Are you worried your employees won't enjoy the Christmas party? Is there an elephant in the room? Is someone not carrying their weight and people need to sort it out together? Give your team a pre-Christmas gift of a facilitated conversation: safe, effective way to restore work relationships and build workplace engagement. And enjoy the Christmas party!