Thinking Out Loud

Those Dreaded Words: Anxiety and Depression

Anxiety and depression are not feelings, they are states. That may sound like mincing words, but it’s an important distinction, especially when we’re talking with children about their feelings and concerns.  Read More

Highest and Best Use

Article after article and guru after guru promise us success if we become more innovative or entrepreneurial or demonstrate more grit or allow our inner creativity to flourish or become more strategic.  The list could go on, but you get my point.  Of course, there is nothing wrong with this list and endeavoring to improve along any of these lines.

The accompanying discussion about these approaches usually includes the question: Are you born with ____ or can you develop it?  The answer is almost always that you can develop it. There is truth in that, which is encouraging, but I’m concerned that it’s not the right focus and inadvertently distracts us from another more practical and productive angle. Read More

Mentoring Managers

I read an interesting article the other day about creating an appealing workplace. The focus was on the physical environment, defining spaces conducive to working comfortably and productively—open areas where people can easily connect and have access to one another, readily sharing information and collaborating.

While reading the article, I also reflected on what has become a common refrain in the work world:  approximately 70% of workers don’t feel engaged at work and/or dread coming to work.  (This is from a frequently cited 2015-2016 Gallup study.) Read More

Talking About Each Other

It’s what we do. We talk about each other, yet we don’t like it when we know that others are talking about us, “talking behind my back.” Sometimes we worry that what someone might be saying is something they wouldn’t say directly to us. This may well be true and that thought makes us feel bad. Read More