A friend of mine sent me a powerful piece last week, which I felt compelled to share. As busy mothers, fathers, leaders and professionals, it is often easy to get lost in the hub-bub of the holidays and lose the real meaning…which, to me is love. A group of people posed the question “What does ‘love’ mean?” to a group of 4- to 8-year-old children. Their answers are amazing…and can remind us of the basics and their relevance in life AND business.
One aspect of my work at Alignment, Inc. consists of working with individual leaders and their teams when they face uber challenges and obstacles. For the most part, my clients show a tremendous level of resiliency and tenacity when navigating rough waters. We may be learning from these hard times, yet that does not make them any easier to endure. So, today, a little over one week after the devastation of Hurricane Sandy, I wanted to highlight a few heroic stories of everyday people from which we may muster new hope and inspiration. Many unsung heroes inspire me – especially when we are all facing tough economic challenges.
Most everyone in business knows the importance of having a vision. I have never led a strategic planning session that did not include creating a common Vision for the company, organization, or team. So, why is it that we often ‘lose the plot’ after we begin the journey? What can we do to insure we stay focused in our direction and where we ultimately want to go?
Confidence can be attractive – even magnetic. I am not referring to false bravado or pious smugness. I mean real confidence – centered and fully aligned self-assurance. We have all met and worked with those individuals who exude power. While we are growing and coming into our own as professionals and leaders, how can we look and sound powerful while we are getting there?
Recently I was reading one of my favorite weekly columns, The Corner Office, where Adam Bryant interviews CEOs from virtually every industry to cite leadership principles learned from their experience. In this week’s interview, I was intrigued with one CEO’s perspective on beauty in the workplace.
I work with many clients who are struggling on how often to tweet, post to Facebook, or even what to include in their LinkedIn profile. Many wonder how to ‘align’ their public persona on the Internet with who they are, what they want, and how they wish to be perceived; especially those senior executives in large Fortune 500 companies who are unsure if they even need to have an online social presence, and if so, what should they include and how should they move forward? Me too…it can be daunting and a real time-sink.
With all the everyday pressures of our careers, some wonder why even hire a leadership coach? It may appear to be ‘just more thing’ on a long list of ‘to do’s. In fact, not too long ago, executives who hired an executive or leadership coach were looked down upon as ones that were on their way out.
That was, and still is, obsolete thinking.
There are many reasons that have helped raise the profile of the leadership development industry. Yet, what can a person really hope to gain from work with a leadership consultant or coach?
Being ‘in the zone’. You know exactly what I am talking about. Being in the ‘zone’ or in the ‘flow’ could be described as a state of being where our attentions, our motivation, and our situation intersect creating a state of productive harmony. We are at our peak – in every way. It is a state […]
Many of my clients have voiced concern relative to lack of accountability in their company, school or non-profit organizations. They lament to me about lack of ownership, true buy-in from their teams, and taking responsibility for the end game throughout the organization. What’s up with that?
A friend of mine recently wrote an interesting and compelling column revolving around her perspective on the role love plays in business. So, in light of the Valentine’s Day holiday, we explore the power of passion and love in the workplace – and what does this have to do with Alignment?!