Articles

Last year I gave a seminar on “leadership presence” for the executive team of a high-tech company in Northern California. The next day, the president of the company telephoned: “I have an administrative assistant who is the brightest, most creative person I’ve worked with. The problem is, we are relocating and she can’t move her […]

Body language plays a key role in your career – from your first job interview to the ongoing process of building professional relationships to being perceived as having leadership presence. But not everything you’ve heard about body language is accurate. Don’t limit your success by buying into these ten myths: Using body language to make […]

A customer-centric culture is not just about offering good service. It’s a way of doing business that provides a positive customer experience before, during and after the sale in order to drive repeat business, customer loyalty and profits. Elements of customer centricity include: Employees understand what customers want. They capture customer insights and share this […]

I’ve been speaking on change leadership for over 25 years, but only recently have researchers been able to use technology like functional magnetic resonance imagery (fMRI) to look at the brain and see what actually happens when we’re facing a major organizational change. Most of our daily activities including many of our work habits are […]

With flatter management structures, increased outsourcing, the move toward collaborative cultures, and the ongoing formation of cross-functional teams, the criterion for the job of leader is changing. More and more people are assigned to leadership roles in which they have no positional authority. The goal of leadership without authority is to get others to willingly […]

One my most popular speaking topics is “The Power of Collaborative Leadership.” The topic’s popularity stems from corporate clients around the world realizing that “silo mentality” and knowledge hoarding behaviors are wasting the kind of collective brainpower that could save their organization billions. Or lead to the discovery of a revolutionary new process or product. […]

There are two sets of body language cues that followers look for in leaders: warmth (empathy, likeability) and authority (power, status). Although I know several leaders of both sexes who do not fit the stereotypes, I’ve also observed that gender differences in body language most often do align with these two groupings. Women are the […]

Let’s face it, in business dealings, charisma counts. A lot. And charisma is as much about body language and impression management as it is about issues and substance. I’ve seen many qualified people get passed over for promotion (or lose a sale or fail an interview) simply because they couldn’t project a sense of professional […]

Most workplace lies are discovered after the fact—after you’ve signed the faulty contract, hired the wrong person, or agreed to work on that career-limiting project. But wouldn’t it be a great New Year’s resolution (and professional advantage) to spot liars in action, before the harm was done? To sharpen your lie detection ability, follow these […]

Have you ever wondered how Santa Claus determines whether to leave you a present or a lump of coal on Christmas Eve? How he knows if you’ve been naughty or nice? I don’t have any hard evidence to back me up, but I’m pretty sure that he must be a first-class lie detector. And, if […]

I was recently asked to coach a senior-level manager from a technology firm in Silicon Valley. I learned that this man’s work was of the highest caliber and that his advancement had (up to this point) been fast-tracked. But now his career was stalled. When I asked why this high performing manager needed coaching, here’s […]

If I am dropping eye contact or checking texts messages or rotating my shoulders away while you are speaking, you don’t feel heard — even if I tell you I’m listening and can repeat every word you just said. Here’s why . . . Most explanations of human behavior assume that people are strongly influenced […]

Leadership presence, that illusive but “we know it when we see it” quality, is a blending of personal and interpersonal skills that when combined, send all the right signals. It’s how we show up, how we make others feel, and how effectively we communicate both verbally and nonverbally. It’s the “wow” factor that sets you […]

Two seconds – thirty seconds, tops – that’s all the time it takes to assess your confidence, competence, status, likeability, warmth, and trustworthiness. That’s how much time you have to make a first impression. In fact, it’s impossible for us not to make these snap judgments about one another. Human beings are wired that way. […]

Last year, I spoke on “The Power of Collaborative Leadership” to business audiences in The United Arab Emirates, Scotland, England, The Netherlands, Belgium, Canada and four states of the U.S. Audience members represented industries including engineering, manufacturing, retailing, construction, shipping, technology, energy, utilities, printing, pharmaceuticals and consulting – plus a range of government agencies. After […]