Kristin's Blog

How To Negotiate Compensation Without Losing Yourself
I recently coached a newly promoted executive through negotiating the raise that should have come with it. He was talented, successful, and had grown his unit to over $150million in just a few short years. Yet, he was struggling with how to ask for what he wanted. I get it…. don’t you? We have all…
Is This Seat Taken?® What Famous Partnerships Teach Us About Building a Career
A few weeks ago, I gave a keynote on how to stand out in your career. We talked about personal branding, visibility, and how to communicate your value with confidence. But one idea sparked more questions afterward than anything else: that one of the most powerful ways to market yourself is to build a truly…
Miranda Priestly - On Point or Not?!
Miranda Priestly would struggle in today’s leadership world—and that’s the point. Not because she lacks standards. Not because she lacks brilliance. But because the rules of leadership have changed. The old model of leadership rewarded control, urgency, and fear-based compliance. It worked—until it didn’t. Today, that approach breaks faster. High performers no longer stay just…
What REALLY makes a good listener?
Have you ever been talking to someone and felt they were not really listening to you? Perhaps their eyes glaze over, they are constantly checking their iPhone or they are frantically writing something down so they will be prepared to ‘interject’ and interrupt with their own juicy bit of insight or knowledge. To say this…
Control with No Responsibility....A Nightmare
One of the most frustrating workplace dynamics is dealing with someone who wants all the control but none of the responsibility. They want to approve every decision. Direct every conversation. Influence every outcome. But when it’s time to do the work, solve the problem, or own the results, they disappear. The solution isn’t to fight…
What PINK Taught Us at the Tony Awards
When Pink stepped onto the stage to host the 2026 Tony Awards, many people asked a simple question: “Why Pink?” After all, she isn’t a Broadway performer. She hasn’t starred in a Tony-winning production. She wasn’t the obvious choice. And yet, she may have been the perfect choice. What stood out wasn’t simply her opening…
#1 Tip for Negotiation - and It is not what you Think
Walk into any negotiation seminar and you’ll hear the same advice: know your BATNA, anchor high, use silence as a weapon. Good tactics, all of them. But after years of watching deals get made and deals fall apart, I’ve come to believe there’s one skill that separates truly exceptional negotiators from everyone else. It has…
Collaboration Without Alignment Is Just Noise
“Let’s collaborate.” It sounds right. Inclusive. Productive. Forward-thinking. But here’s what most leaders get wrong: Collaboration without alignment doesn’t drive results—it creates confusion. More voices. More meetings. More input. And somehow… less progress. Because collaboration, on its own, is not the goal. Alignment is. Alignment at Work® is what gives collaboration a foundation AND a…
Alignment Isn't a Buzzword
It is the work. Everyone loves to talk about strategy. Vision decks. Growth plans. Big, bold goals. But here’s the truth most leaders don’t want to admit: None of it matters without alignment. Of late, I am astonished at how many of my colleagues (and competitors) have globbed onto the concept of Alignment. I remember…
US Times Highlights Alignment at Work Approach!
What a thrill to have an exclusive interview with US Times about my Alignment at Work™ approach and how we are creating lasting leadership transformation with this approach. The link to the article is here.
