Every company wants to do things as quickly as possible. But there are times when you ought to hit the brakes.

"If you guys don't give me a chance to repair my instrument, I'm not going back."

Over the past decade, as a result of the pandemic, political and economic instability, social movements such as Black Lives Matter, and changing workplace technologies, what people expect from leaders has changed. Executive presence (EP) is typically perceived as consisting of three elements in descending order of importance: gravitas, skillful communication, and the “right” appearance. The author’s new research shows that while confidence and decisiveness are still paramount for gravitas, pedigree has become less central, and new weight is given to inclusiveness and respect for others. On the communication front, superior speaking skills and the ability to command a room still lead the list of desirable attributes, but comfort on Zoom, a “listen to learn” orientation, and authenticity are on the rise. Projecting authenticity is also key to the appearance component of EP; so are dressing for the “new normal,” having an online image, and showing up in person. This article offers a playbook for developing six attributes that increasingly factor into executive presence, citing the examples of a dozen leaders who have cracked the code.

A leader so furious with his self-absorbed boss, considers quitting the company. He asks his coach to help him manage himself & defuse his triggers.

A collection of the most downloaded culture design canvas and teamwork tools for creating better workplaces.

Why you’ve probably never heard of the most popular Netflix show in the world

Following years of investor backlash, a number of business leaders are now making a conscious effort to avoid the once widely used term.

Looking to send an email to expense The Pragmatic Engineer? Feel free to use either of these two templates, below. If your company uses Learnerbly, you can request the newsletter with one click. (There is also a Google Doc with the same content as below) For Software Engineers and Individual

In a Field Notes post from 2014, LeadingAgile consultant Andrew Fuqua considers Brooks' Law in the context of the Theory of Constraints. Brooks' Law is

Being a CEO can be a lonely job–there is no obvious person in whom to confide. Keeping a journal can fill that void, by giving a new leader a chance for structured reflection of recent past events and decisions, and mental rehearsal for future ones. Despite the time and discipline it takes to keep a journal, it should be part of every new leader’s toolkit.

‎Show Extraordinary Creatives, Ep Designing Work Around Your Strengths with Dave Stachowiak - Dec 10, 2023

Colleagues’ calorie-dense temptations are part of an age-old bonding ritual.

The internet’s go-to legal analyst, Emily D. Baker, walks us through the ins and outs of fair use and copyright law.

organizational health, teams, teamwork, teambuilding, online assessment, team assessment, team effectiveness, team survey, team field guide, executive team, offsite facilitation, executive consulting, Lencioni keynote speaker, team video

No, I didn’t memorize the entire dictionary. The spelling bee demands much more than that.

He was working three full-time jobs at Meta, IBM, and Tinder. His bosses didn't know.

Books are an anomaly when it comes to how "bestsellers" are ranked. Movies are judged by their total box office numbers.

“I don’t want to send this pitch to a list of every single podcaster in the world, but we have to get the word out.”

Many moths are attracted to light. That works fine when it’s a bright moon and an open field, but not so well for the moths if the light was set up as a bug trap.

54 seconds

We live in a time when “bigger is better” is the prevailing assumption when it comes to, well, just about anything. So it’s only natural for us to want to supersize our network of connections — both online and off — because the more people we know, the greater our chances of being exposed to opportunities that may lead to professional advancement, potential mentors, material success, and so on. But in fact, being what we call a “superconnector” has nothing to do with supersizing your network. Rather, it’s about surrounding yourself with a carefully curated group of people who you admire and respect and with whom you share common beliefs and values — people who will set the tone for the foundation of your larger network filled with people who provide value to one another. And that core group should be a lot smaller than you think.

If it were up to you, where would you opt to work? As of August 2023, over half (54%) of American employees work mostly onsite, only a quarter work remotely… | 332 comments on LinkedIn

Curiosity is a powerful practice to infuse into a company’s culture. But managers often limit their definition of curiosity to simply a way to get information. Curiosity, though, can be a more expansive practice — it is a force for connection. We need to move away from “shallow curiosity” and embrace “deep curiosity,” where you unearth stories, values, experiences, and feelings. When conversations go beneath the surface in this way, it can strengthen work relationships, foster a better understanding of yourself as a leader, and help you to navigate conflict or anxiety in the office. Curiosity is an exceptionally effective tool that leaders have to lead diverse teams in an increasingly complex time filled with technological advancements and an ever-changing cultural pulse. But they need to do so intentionally. Four key phrases can help in this pursuit: “I don’t know,” “Tell me more,” “I understand that you’re more than your job,” and “Who else?”

Chief executives say they understand what marketing chiefs do. Not all CMOs agree.

With a little structure, you can impress audiences with your ad-libbing all day.

What exactly is psychological safety? It’s a term that’s used a lot but is often misunderstood. In this piece, the author answers the following questions with input from Harvard Business School professor Amy Edmondson, who coined the phrase “team psychological safety”: 1) What is psychological safety? 2) Why is psychological safety important? 3) How has the idea evolved? 4) How do you know if your team has it? 5) How do you create psychological safety? 6) What are common misconceptions?

Showing humility by honestly admitting our limitations and displaying a rightsize sense of who we are becomes more challenging as we move into higher or more visible positions.

Remote work is not going anywhere.

Three years into a mass workplace experiment, we are beginning to understand more about how work from home is reshaping workers’ lives and the economy.

Stanford lecturer and public speaking expert Matt Abrahams reveals one simple phrase that the best conversationalists use to make successful small talk.