Category Archives: Soft skills
Handle a Painful Experience With Skill and Tact
Several years ago I had a fall rock climbing and caught my foot on a ledge. I didn’t break it, but it hurt like I did. It wouldn’t have been such big deal except that I was planning on climbing two … Continue reading
Do You Have Emotional Courage?
I heard this from a friend not too long ago, “I’m just so unhappy, I don’t think I can do this job anymore.” When I asked her what was up she told me that she was totally stressed out and … Continue reading
How to Behave in Your One-on-one Meetings with Your Boss
Over the years, I have sat through hundreds of one-on-one meetings with employees. Most were great, but too often staff would come unprepared. When that happened, all we could do is talk about what they did for the past two … Continue reading
Why Being Responsive will Make You Successful
How many people are you waiting on to get back to you with something you need so you can do your job? Someone to an answer an important question, approval on proposal, data for a report? I currently have six. … Continue reading
The Simplest Way to Advance Your Career? Talk!
Early in my career, I had a job where I wasn’t feeling very challenged. So I gave my notice. When the CEO of the company found out, he approached me and the asked if I would be interested in staying and running a department. I was taken aback because … Continue reading
Simple Strategies to Run an Effective Meeting
How many meetings have you been to where no decisions were made, no agreements, no next steps, no assigned tasks? A few? A bunch? Most of them? I have attended a lot of meetings over the years. I would say most were run pretty … Continue reading
Why We Should Stop Judging Our Coworkers
People have been judging each other at work since we were prehistoric hunters. Cave Dude 1 – “What was up with Grog today?” Cave Dude 2 – “Yeah no kidding, he was all up in our faces all day telling … Continue reading
How to Start a New Job
Over the years, I have had the chance to work with a lot of new employees on their first day. I coordinate new employee orientation so I have witnessed the good, the bad, and the ugly. Some just nail it. … Continue reading
How to Have a Difficult Conversations
We all have them, or at least we should be having them. Difficult conversations are essential for a successful manager but they can be the last thing we want to do. I had a long history of avoiding difficult conversations. Like most, … Continue reading