Guest Blog by Laura Scott When I hear something described as a guilty pleasure it sounds to me like an oxymoron. I understand the feeling. It’s the feeling I get when I’ve just polished off a big bowl of ice cream or a bag of salt and vinegar potato chips or I’ve spent two hours […]
We are told by people in our workplace, the media, our culture and other sources of external information that if we imitate what’s “in,” work hard to earn “enough” (position and money) and save for retirement, we will be happy – eventually. Going from the “outside in” doesn’t work. I’ve interviewed many hard working leaders […]
As a trusted advisor and executive coach, I often hear from clients complaining that they have some negative employees who don’t take responsibility for their actions. “Our CFO has a victim mentality and feels entitled to the benefits of his job,” asserts one. “She is skilled at what she does but her attitude sucks,” states […]
Saturday Night Live’s most recent sketch where the Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton characters do a dance to avoid shaking hands makes an important point. If things get vindictive enough, neither party will respond and total communication is lost. In the real debate, neither candidate acknowledged each other by shacking hands initially. Why did they […]
Gratitude appears easy enough to practice. It can be as simple as throughout the day asking yourself the question, “What am I grateful for?” It can also be more reflective like daily journaling the 5 -10 things that you are most grateful for and why. So much has been written substantiating the benefits of expressing […]
Life crises can teach powerful lessons. The first lesson I learned through my health crisis was about letting go. This second lesson was a reminder of the power of forgiveness. I didn’t recover after my first open heart surgery, even though I was “supposed to.” My initial heart surgery was successful in that my mitral […]
In my last blog, I shared with you my experience after open heart surgery. There are three key lessons that I learned or re-learned in the process of healing. These are personal lessons as well as leadership lessons. Today, I want to share the first one on the power of letting go. What does “letting […]
“Breathe, breathe” shouted the group of green suited people surrounding my bed. As I gasped for air, I felt like I was drowning. My lungs couldn’t fill up and I began to choke. I tried to breathe but couldn’t. I looked to people in the room desperate for them to do something. They did nothing […]
When “Susan” came to me for coaching, I saw a capable and effective leader. She was intent on pursuing her own development and had a plan that would make her department more effective. Susan had a strong track record and was anticipating a promotion. But then she was assigned a new boss. He questioned her […]
As humans, the old portion of our brains still influences how we feel and what we do. The fear that gets generated to protect us resulting in our “fight or flight” tendencies is the same fear that keeps us from growing. The antidote, although difficult, is to rise above our demons and look at ourselves […]
