Hey Reader - Do you have a case of the mid-month blahs, leaving you doomscrolling? Are you looking for a quick fix so you can jump into the New Year, New Rules game? Upping your step count or adding green smoothies makes you feel productive, but they're rarely life-changing. So, if you're going to have a turnaround year, counterbalance short-term, instant-gratification goals with bigger intentions, such as increasing your people flex. If adding people skills to your Goals List gives you a...
14 days ago • 2 min read
Hey Reader - It's only January 6, but are you panicking because you haven't created The List? Scratch that. You might be right on time. You may feel your enthusiasm nose-diving for pre-dawn side hustling and workouts, but that's ok. Setting goals sounds easy, but there's plenty that gets in the way. So, in the January series, 4 Power Moves to Jumpstart Your Intentions, we'll discuss how you can overcome common blocks to success with soft skills. Block #1 is lack of motivation. But here's what...
21 days ago • 2 min read
Hey Reader - Are you looking at your calendar with the best of intentions? Do you envision a neat, cozy finish to projects, full of insights, post-mortem documentation, and good feelings all around? It's a nice dream, but let's be honest. Most of the time, the end-of-year reality is much closer to the airport mad dash in "Home Alone"! 😁 That's why some things will need to hit the "We do not care" bin. Have you seen the Shorts on social media, where a woman addresses everything from too much...
2 months ago • 2 min read
Hey Reader - Tech executive Dametra Johnson-Marletti built her reputation on being a no-nonsense leader of high-performing teams. But along the way, she began to rethink the all-gas, no-brakes approach. On a podcast Dametra reflected, "You gotta be yourself. That being said, I have learned over the years to be more effective in who I am. People will say, 'This is who I am, and you can take it or leave it.' Well you know what? A lot of companies are gonna leave it today because there's 10,000...
2 months ago • 2 min read
Hey Reader - Recently my friend Billie was taking a walk down memory lane, reliving war stories from her jump into retail ownership. She laughed, "'I don't know what I don't know' was an understatement!" Have you had a similar year? Billie had built quite a reputation in her friends' circle for flower designs. So, owning a flower shop seemed like a natural match. There were two bonuses: She could leverage the store brand's goodwill, and she negotiated a hand-off period, where the owner would...
3 months ago • 1 min read
Hey Reader - I know a guy who has a love/hate relationship with feedback. He always hates getting it, but after talking with his wife, he usually admits there's something there. Or as he laughed and confessed, "Ok—I do do that thing!" Leveling up is no simple feat. But here's why it matters: When you learn from this year's mistakes, you're creating a foundation that will not only transform where you are today, but it may just set you up for the next 5-10 years. In the November series, Pass...
3 months ago • 2 min read
Hey Reader - I ran into one of the busiest, most productive people I know last week. I was on my way back from a meeting, but she was taking a walk. She grinned, "I saw the sunshine during my last call and knew I had to get out for 10 minutes." The run-in made me remember the days when bossing up meant pushing yourself to burnout. Working with intensity is inescapable, but my colleague understood an equally important principle: Sometimes even top performers need a break. In the October...
3 months ago • 2 min read
Hey Reader - Several years ago, my manager tasked me with building a contract intake tool. I thought, This is a snap—I know exactly why we need it. Sure enough, I met with a developer and rattled through the long, painful background that brought us there. Jumping into building made me feel like a boss. But after listening to my 15-minute monologue, he rolled his eyes and said, "Don't automate a broken process." Ouch! In the October series, Survive Grind Mode with People Skills, we're...
3 months ago • 1 min read
Hey Reader - A new word is in the lexicon: Workslop. If you haven't heard the term, Social Psychologist Kate Niederhoffer describes it as, "AI generated content that masquerades as good work, but lacks the substance to meaningfully move a task forward." Have you seen it in action? Workslop is a Cred Killer Kate Niederhoffer's idea has hit the zeitgeist, so she was flattered to see a speaking invitation in her in-box. But trouble started when she found herself reading and re-reading. She said,...
3 months ago • 1 min read