*Mavericks can come in many shapes and sizes but if you have spent enough time in the workplace, it is difficult to avoid bumping into one at some point. Your view of the maverick may be decided by the first time you encounter one and they roast your sacred cow over a spit. In which […]
Tag Archives: honesty
August
24
It’s Bigger Than You
posted by Jeffrey Thomason
The other day I had the opportunity to have a discussion about conflict. The conflict itself was fairly vague and hard to define but the net effect was a professional relationship was now being challenged. Like many workplace conflicts, the likely starting point was not a clearly visible event or definable issue but rather a slow drip […]
June
13
Accountability
posted by Jeffrey Thomason
I was recently fortunate to enjoy a vacation in the Federal Republic of Germany. For those who missed some big goings-on about 25 years ago, Germany was divided into two countries from 1949 to 1990 following the conclusion of World War II. The city of Berlin was also divided following the conflict and jointly occupied […]
April
05
The Secret To Leadership Isn’t A Secret
posted by Jeffrey Thomason
There is a saying that goes “Three can keep a secret if two of them are dead”. While this may be the creed of the professional intelligence officer, in the world of the leadership of human beings by other human beings, the goal is the opposite. The temptation to keep secrets can often be the undoing of […]
March
16
The Power of Perception
posted by Jeffrey Thomason
The late Steven Covey has long been considered one of the more important voices in the self-help genre over the past few decades. His signature work, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, was first published in 1989 and has sold over 15 million copies in 38 languages. These numbers suggest that Dr. Covey’s observations […]
March
07
How (and When) To Disagree With The Boss
posted by Jeffrey Thomason
There are several common pieces of DNA in every person who tends toward the leadership path in life. One of those common elements is a confidence in one’s own opinion or abilities that under the best of circumstances, can translate into the courage to seize opportunities as they occur, or make bold decisions when others hesitate. All good, […]
March
03
The Hard Truth About Interviews
posted by Jeffrey Thomason
One of the frequent actions a leader must undertake is the autopsy of a failed promotional interview. Leaders strive to achieve and upgrade their seat from coach to business class when opportunities present. As the saying goes, “nothing ventured, nothing gained”. However, taking a positive step of trying to make a vertical move in your organization brings with […]
February
01
The Natural Order of Things
posted by Jeffrey Thomason
It would not be a stretch to say that if you asked many people what the “natural career progression” would be at work, you would get many answers. This is a topic that is different with every team and is a product of organizational economic stability, culture, experience, and potentially even the dominating personality of the […]
November
09
What’s Your Story?
posted by Jeffrey Thomason
It is a human experience to tell stories to communicate between each other. Psychologists and neurologists see this as the quintessential human behavior. From Homer’s Iliad to the most recent popular fiction, humans using the power of story is a staple of nearly every culture and community that has graced the earth since recorded time. […]
October
27
You Keep Using That Word – Communicating Effectively
posted by Jeffrey Thomason
Resolving communication problems can appear to be simplistic when written as a five-step action plan. In the real world, the causes for miscommunication between yourself and another, or your entire team, may be a much more difficult issue to tackle. Depending on your emotional IQ, or your teams, no one may be even willing to […]
October
17
Your Own Kobayashi Maru – Leadership in a Crisis
posted by Jeffrey Thomason
For the Trekkie‘s amongst you, the K-Maru scenario has been fodder for uncountable arguments. In the fictional Star Trek universe, the Maru is a training simulation every Star Fleet cadet is put through. In essence, the decisions available to the student are all “no-win” and the entire exercise is about how you come to terms with […]
The Truth, and Other Things
posted by Jeffrey Thomason
There are two possibilities about your team that you can contemplate from your position of leader. The first possibility is that they will follow you because they want to. Or, they will follow you because they have to. Despite the apparent differences that each of these realities suggest, there is one important similarity. You have […]
Is the Interview Started? – Leading Self
posted by Jeffrey Thomason
The point at which you make a decision to attempt to advance your position in your current job can come at many points. It may have been when you were first considering joining an organization in the first place. It may have been after you started (at the bottom) and having put in some time and […]
June
21
Defining the “Rogue”
posted by Jeffrey Thomason
Webster’s defines “rogue” as a “scoundrel, scamp, or generally mischievous person”. In Nachbar and Lanse’s work “Popular Culture”, the tension between the hero as Rogue, and the hero as Citizen is represented in American popular culture in numerous ways. Americans admire their Citizen heroes and carve their faces and names in granite. Americans love their Rogue […]
When Leaders Make Mistakes – Leading With Maturity
posted by Jeffrey Thomason
The art of the apology is one that has had a lifetime of practice given that it has a well stocked and steady stream of imperfect humans making error after error. The relationships of family, marriage, work, business, and society provide numerous opportunities to offend, enrage, sadden, or otherwise damage the connection. It could be between a business […]
Iceberg, dead ahead!
posted by Jeffrey Thomason
In this era, public service organizations devote significant time and energy to identifying and developing mission and vision statements. They also devote time to creating strategic plans that seek to translate those statements into goals and practices. What frequently proves to be the biggest barrier to carrying this out successfully, especially when the plan represents […]
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