Why Organizational Culture Matters

Fortune magazine recently came out with a list of “The 100 Best Companies to Work For” (Fortune magazine, March 2015). In each of these companies, there is evidence of a strong corporate culture that creates clarity of who the organization is and how it wants to treat...

Do I Need a Coach or a Mentor (or Both)?

When people think of getting career development guidance from others they’ll often describe these resources by use of the terms “coach” and “mentor” as if they’re the same thing. In reality, these are two very different resources. I explain the primary differences...

Showing Courage as a Leader

I often find myself thinking about the importance of courage when I meet with leaders or their teams. Although it may not be recognized as such, fear often prevails as an undercurrent in many organizations, and it takes courageous leadership to counteract those forces...

It’s Time to Kill the Entitlement Mentality

We’ve gone too far. As hard as it is to believe, as an employer I don’t owe you free snacks, lunch, dinner, dry cleaning, day care, or guaranteed salary increases or bonuses every year. It seems that what used to be unusual, welcome and differentiating perks have...

What I Learned about Loyalty from Big O Tires

Over the past few weeks I’ve had three flat tires. Yep, you read that right. Up until this point, I can probably count the number of flat tires I’ve had over 20 years on one hand. Why so much bad luck? I can think of only one reason: there have been a lot of roofing...

What’s Your Unique Value?

How many times have you heard it stated that you should just “follow your passion” or “do what you love” and you’ll never have to work another day in your life? While this sounds wonderful, I don’t think it’s very realistic. The flaw in the statement above is that...

The Three C’s of Trust

If we want people to follow our leadership direction, there has to be more of a reason for them to do so than, “because I said so.” A recent McKinsey & Company research study stated that building trust (as part of "Supporting Others") is a key differentiator of...