Over the years when mentoring aspiring women, I’ve recommended humour to find common ground, create bonds and relieve tension after establishing a boundary or standing up for oneself. I’ve also discussed presence, belonging and resilience as the three major impacts for career success and humour helps there too. Laughter makes us more effective executives while … Read more
Tom Corley spent 5 years interviewing 233 millionaires and reported the 6 habits that made them ultra-wealthy on CNBC Oct 9, 2022. The second habit is, “Self-made millionaires listen more than they talk.” One strategy that came up many times during his interviews was the “5:1 listening rule. In group settings, for every minute they … Read more
From a young age girls are told to sit quietly by and listen so it should be no surprise that listening skills are considered a feminine attribute. This subconscious programming can be to our advantage allowing us to gather information while gaining the favour of others. Yet, sometimes we are just going through the motions- … Read more
Recently, a thirty- something woman reached out to ask me how she could transition from a follower to a leader in her company. What she was really asking was, “how can I be perceived as a leader?” As a student of leadership I was delighted to discuss my thoughts with her and a summary of … Read more
I recently heard from a young man who works in a start-up. He enthusiastically described the company’s free-form, conversational, and informal culture. However, despite everything that senior management was doing to achieve this creative atmosphere, he could see that they had blind spots that were preventing them from reaching their highest performance. And it revolved … Read more
There has been a lot of talk lately about toxic masculinity, that domineering bullying behaviour void of empathy or concern for others, which is exhibited by some (but not all) men. Now the focus is turning to women. People are starting to realize that if masculinity can be dialed up to the extreme and become … Read more
When facing motherhood many women withdraw from their careers fearing they can’t do a good job of both. Meanwhile others continue to work and carry guilt that it is detrimental to their children. Recently, Harvard Business School researchers studied two international surveys of more than 100,000 people and found almost nothing to reinforce these concerns. … Read more
A number of years ago I attended a presentation hoping to learn how to incorporate more humor in my speeches. What I learned astounded me: female comediennes have more trouble getting laughs than men. That recognition stirred my desire to support women stand-ups and was part of the reason I started watching the series, ‘The … Read more
Entering a new year is typically a time when people consider what they would like to change about themselves and their lives but it is not enough just to know, they must take action. As Johann Wolfgang von Goethe said, “Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do”. Therein … Read more
Do you seek to be part of the group or do you like to set yourself apart? Some see the advantage of ‘safety in numbers’ while others would rather rely on their own instincts. Neither is wrong and there are advantages to doing both. We need to be recognized for our individual contribution, but we … Read more
