Navigating Uncertainty as an Awesome Leader
Dear Leaders Navigating Uncertainty, It’s your job to acknowledge uncertainty outside of your control and guide employees back to focusing on work. It’s not your job to fix things for them. Love, Leila That’s a version of the note I send to each executive I’m coaching when they tell me they’re bogged down helping someone […]
Laying Off Employees is Hard
Laying off employees is hard but sometimes unavoidable. While some leaders are scrambling to retain employees, others realize they’re overstaffed. Their business needs are changing, and that means laying off employees. I don’t think anyone likes laying people off. I don’t think anyone feels good about it. (If you do, you’re not a leader. You’re […]
The Power of Recognition
Are you harnessing the power of recognition? Why is recognition so important anyway? Does it really impact the bottom line? You might be surprised, so come on, managers, let’s talk about the power of recognition. Providing recognition in the workplace is a must, especially during tough times. Here’s why: #1: Recognition is free. Need I […]
Admitting Mistakes the Right Way
Are you admitting mistakes the right way? We’ve all made mistakes at work. We’ve experienced that moment of panic when you realize you messed up. Hot face, racing heart, pit in your stomach. Yeah, it isn’t fun. No one likes to mess up or fail, yet we all do it fairly regularly. The important question […]
Managing Change
Managing change in the workplace can be tricky. Your brain doesn’t want to change. Your brain is lazy. But guess what, so is mine. Maybe now you’re thinking, “Ahhh, wait a second. I thought the goal of reading your messages was to inspire me–not insult me!?” I want to get your attention–not insult you. And […]
What Does a Coach Do?
What does a coach do? And what does that have to do with Awesome Leader? When someone sends me an email and says, “I’m looking for an executive coach,” I do three things: Ask them to watch this 6-minute video about how I coach—and why, Send them a 4-page PDF that speaks to my coaching […]
The truth about your managers: the good, bad, and ugly
I want to share with you the truth about your managers. I’ll share the good, the bad, and the ugly truth. First, the good truth about your managers. Great managers aren’t born. It’s not something they “get” by accident–the ability to understand people and how to lead them. It’s not luck. They’re not born with […]
The basketball coach is once again the honest leader
Written the morning of May 25, 2022 (if you’ve forgotten, that’s the morning after the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas) I could say I have “nothing to say” but that would be like doing nothing. Steve Kerr, coach of the Golden State Warriors, displays profound and necessary raw emotion in this 3-minute video. No matter what […]
Insults or excuses? What do you say to that struggling employee?
Tell Me Your Excuses. What’s the story you tell yourself—when you have a struggling employee on your team? You hired them. You manage them. They’re a member of your team. And they’re not performing. Not meeting expectations. Losing you customers. Alienating peers. Making costly mistakes. Maybe it’s a skills gap. Maybe it was a hiring mistake. Maybe you sold them […]
Managing Negativity: What to Do with the Complainer
As a manager, a huge part of your job is to work with all kinds of people, with all kinds of temperaments. An amazing manager is able to recognize and use the strengths of each employee, finding a way to make the varying skills and personalities that make up their team work in harmony. It […]
