Our daily Field Notes email is just the kind of jumpstart you need. A fast read. Maybe less than a minute. Because sometimes it just takes one insight to change the trajectory of the day.
Search Field Notes
-
Silence at the Wrong Time Can Send a Powerful Message
Good leaders use silence to encourage more dialogue and openness from others. By not filling the void of immediate response, leaders encourage others to offer their candid views and opinions. Too many leaders can’t stop themselves from offering a quick opinion or position, which can discourage competing views. More silence and restraint from response normally…
-
Outcome Goals Are Overrated
One of the more creative acts of leadership is setting goals that inspire performance. Setting goals is easy, but crafting goals that narrow attention, build excitement, and motivate people to achieve is artful. The best leaders are masterful goal setters who think long and hard about the targets they place in front of others. They know
-
The Difference in Salespeople With an Affluent Mindset
Thinking as if they don’t need a sale to make ends meet makes them more aggressive and confident in attaining one. The most successful salespeople don’t always have a better style, approach, or strategy. Sometimes, they simply have a different mindset.
-
People Who Rush Through Tasks and Assignments
Some team members work fast. Sometimes too fast. Despite being highly skilled, their work is full of errors, and the quality of their output is lower than it should be. They might value speed over accuracy and quality for a variety of reasons.
-
Leading Team Members With an Adversarial Edge
Some colleagues are testy with everyone and on any topic. They take an adversarial stance as their default position and style. This makes them more argumentative, resistant to competing ideas, pessimistic about plans and strategies, and disrespectful of others. In many cases, team members with an adversarial edge have no idea about how they come…
-
Agreeing to an Operating Principle Before a Difficult Discussion or Debate
A leader who extends their authority or influence beyond acceptable limits is said to be “overreaching.” This often happens when a leader makes decisions outside of their purview, takes control over situations or people with whom they have no authority, or takes actions well beyond their expertise.
-
The Danger of Overreaching as a Leader
A leader who extends their authority or influence beyond acceptable limits is said to be “overreaching.” This often happens when a leader makes decisions outside of their purview, takes control over situations or people with whom they have no authority, or takes actions well beyond their expertise.
-
Colleagues Who Take Everything Personally
The more consistent the leader is, the more likely the evidence will demonstrate that they are engaging and operating in good faith and without a desire to harm, harshly judge, or offend the easily slighted colleague. This requires real patience and can test even the best of leaders. Some tests a leader faces are bigger…
-
The Ingredients of an Effective Performance Improvement Plan (PIP)
Sometimes, team members need a highly structured approach to perform more effectively. Leaders often require team members who are underperforming in a critical area to agree to such a personalized map for self-improvement. For those in Human Resources, such a structured plan is typically called a PIP (Performance Improvement Plan).
-
The Map Is Not the Territory
The strategic plan requires in-depth analysis and a plethora of details to support its soundness. But only the most senior leaders need to know and understand the strategy at that level. Everyone else does not. What team members want is a simple explanation of the big picture, the initiatives involved in execution, and what it…