It was the first day of school. Mr. “J”, a first-year elementary physical education teacher, was ready. He had his “Rules for Our Gym” spiel down pat, including the always-important “If you have to throw up, don’t do it on the gym floor.” Sure, he was nervous but he had a plan. Each hour, a…
Expectations
SmartBlog on Leadership – Can Your Team Say No?
Twice a month, Lead Change Group authors write a blog post on the SmartBlog on Leadership site. Today it’s my turn with a post called How to Get Your Team to Speak Up. It’s based on my observation that many team leaders create a culture where saying “no” is unacceptable, thereby causing their team…
A Vision is a Promise. Are You Keeping Yours?
Are you a person of your word? As a leader, when you lay out a vision, you are creating a promise— that the future state will be better than the current one. People buy in to that vision based on their trust in you to get them there. It’s up to you to deliver. Making…
Do You Have a Career Bucket List?
The kids and I were on our way to a Little League game the other day when I mentioned, “Hey guys, what do you think about making a list of things to do during your summer break?” “You mean, like a Bucket List?” asked my son. “That’s a great idea!” I exclaimed so on the…
Leaders: Maximize Employee Training
“How do we begin to change the culture of expectations in our organizations where instead of being held accountable for participating in learning and development activities, people will be held accountable for applying and using and changing their job performance?” —Robert Brinkerhoff This quote appeared in the August 2010 issue of T+D magazine. Brinkerhoff…