Today is National Online Learning Day—a celebration of virtual education for school-aged children. When this was established in 2016, no one could have imagined the dramatic surge in online learning for both kids and adults. Fast forward to 2021 and the pressures of an ongoing pandemic. Leaders have discovered that a good majority of professional development opportunities are [...]
Prickly discussion topics have been rippling through workplaces since 2020, and today’s leaders are getting plenty of industry advice about how to handle them. Just check out these business journal headlines: “How to moderate the work-from-home debates that are dividing companies nationwide.” “How to facilitate conversations with your team about social unrest and lapses in [...]
Most people would agree that 2020 was a rough year, but there’s one group that felt the pain in a unique way: leaders. While they were personally struggling to process the uncertainty of the pandemic, they were also bombarded with information about how to help their team members navigate the situation. They felt responsible for monitoring [...]
If you want to play a bigger role in the evolution of your company’s growth and success, there’s a mandatory step in the process: shake up your own thinking! Steve Miller, former CEO of Shell Oil Co., was well known for shaking things up. As Shell was rebranding in Europe, he invited a group of employees [...]
It happens all the time. I introduce myself in a social setting and share my name. Seems pretty straightforward, right? Unfortunately, no. Here’s how the exchange usually goes: "Hi, I’m Sara Canaday.” “Sara Kennedy?” “It’s Canaday with a C.” “Are you from Canada?” (usually accompanied by a chuckle and a wink) “Well, no. But it’s [...]
Last week while having dinner with a group of friends, our discussion turned to work. What came next was an interesting conversation about why anyone today would even want to be a leader. One friend shared that she was utterly exhausted by the endless cycle of new demands and the constant flood of in-box messages. [...]
I recently listened to a Harvard Business Review podcast called “The Anxious Achievers.” (Wow, there’s a phrase I can relate to!) Besides loving the title of that program, I have been drawn to the idea that we need to change the way we think about managing our stress and anxiety. Steve Cuss, author of “Managing [...]
While speed and efficiency are necessary leadership traits in our always-on, do-more world, there’s also a point of diminishing returns. If we let agendas and clocks dictate all of our meetings, we could be undermining our own efforts to encourage meaningful collaboration and innovative thinking. Consider the unfortunate impact. Many people are reluctant to speak [...]
I’ve noticed something interesting lately in my conversations with corporate leaders. Naturally, there are a few common themes: increasing demands and endless meetings that suck up valuable work time. (I’m guessing you can relate to that.) But when I ask these leaders how they personally contribute while in meetings, I almost always get an answer [...]
Sometimes we get into the habit of doing the same things we’ve always done. Personal and even workplace habits that once served us, can become stale and even obsolete. I’ll use my own father as an example. Since I can remember, Dad has kept a handy little logbook in his glove compartment to document the [...]