Blog
7 Strategies to Address Team Infighting
Would it surprise you to know that having conflict with your team is healthy? It’s true. Having healthy, respectful disagreements where everyone expresses their point of view is important and allows the best ideas to emerge. When handled well, conflict can actually make a team more cohesive. However, when disagreements become dysfunctional when they explode…
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Leadership Lessons From a Mother Who Righted Her Wrongs
Before becoming a speaker, author, and leadership coach, I was a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. This role gave me the privilege of helping individuals, couples, and families share their stories, learn new skills, and turn around the unresolved conflict in their lives. I often think of a woman named Jane who came to me…
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Change Your Workplace Culture By Being Vulnerable
Would it change the way you think about your co-worker if you knew they were the oldest of five kids and they grew up in a single-parent home in a rural area? They became like parents themselves at a very young age and have little patience for child-like behavior or goofing around at the office.…
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A Nurse’s Courageous Approach to Workplace Conflict
My brother-in-law is a nurse anesthetist. He told me recently how frustrated he gets when colleagues talk about one another instead of talking to one another. This is a man who isn’t afraid to speak up and “rock the boat” if needed. So, what did he do? Instead of fuming to another colleague or complaining to a superior, he…
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Removing Uninvited Guests at Your Thanksgiving Table
This Thanksgiving is like none other. Perhaps people are missing from your table because they don’t feel comfortable meeting in person due to the coronavirus pandemic. On the other hand, there may be people present at your table who have completely different views about the handling of the pandemic. Whether you are sitting around the…
Read MoreHow to Transform Your Conflict Management Pattern
The last several blogs have addressed various conflict management patterns that show up in business relationships and the workplace. These are patterns learned in childhood that are learned by age six or seven to cope when things got tense. You may identify with a couple patterns and based on the circumstances use each one at…
Read MoreHow to See the Humanity in Your Employees
This is the final part of a three-part series on setting the tone in your work culture. “Sometimes people are jerks. They are rude, abrasive, and selfish. They may say the right things, but the way they behave makes my guard go up and it’s hard to see anything good about them.” Do you feel…
Read MoreHow to Keep Calm and Set the Tone for Your Work Culture
As a hostage negotiator, George Kohlrieser has been held hostage four times. Even when a pair of scissors was against his throat, he chose to talk rather than call for force against his captor. In those tense moments, he chose his words carefully in order to build a connection from the hostage taker’s despair to…
Read MoreHow To Address Substance Abuse In The Workplace
We’ve all been there. In conversation with employees exhibiting unacceptable behavior. Are you ready to get off of the merry-go-round?
Read MoreThe Mental Mindset For Difficult Conversations
As a leader, Ben knew he needed to address Bob’s abrasive behavior towards co-workers, but found every reason to avoid it. He anticipated Bob being defensive instead of taking responsibility for his behavior and the impact on the work culture. Perhaps you have a “Bob” in your work setting that you need to have an…
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