8 Ways to Love Your Volunteers One of my favorite opportunities is a regular volunteer gig I do here in my hometown. I have been a guest for a local nonprofit with an incredible mission, and the staff do a superb job of making me feel valued and welcome. I Read more…
Finding the Coach that is Right for You What is a professional coach? Short answer: A coach is someone who helps you make decisions about what to do next. Wordy answer: A professional coach works with clients either individually or in group settings to assist in the client’s personal development. Coaches Read more…
Rituals, Routines and Innovation Innovation is a sexy word. When we imagine ourselves as an “innovator,” we might see a creative captain of our industry, solving the gnarly problems that have vexed leaders of the past. Innovators are solution-finders and forward-thinkers. As a leader-boss, of course you want to foster Read more…
Nobody is born good at conflict resolution. NOBODY. It’s not uncommon for a client to use our time together to process a situation with a coworker. After they share the issue, I often ask: “So when you went to talk with them about this later, how did it go?” I’m Read more…
Boundaries, limitations, and the power of supportive accountability When I was a very new professional, back before fire or the Internet was invented and chai latte wasn’t yet in fashion, I had a student come to me for some help planning a conversation she hoped to have with her supervisor, Read more…
Want to grow in your leadership? Practice. I frequently have new clients who share that their number one goal is to improve their leadership skills – and they are hopeful that together that I will impart lessons they can apply – sort of like a recipe they can follow. That Read more…
Share Your Expectations There is a conversation your staff wish you’d have with them. (Actually, there are a few, but let’s just take it one at a time!) I’m sure about it because I hear about it from them. They wish they knew your expectations for success. If you just Read more…
Alphabet Soup: What’s with all those letters behind my name? Sometimes people ask me about all the letters at the end of my name – which usually is followed by a few questions about the coaching industry in general. Nerd that I am, I really enjoyed learning about the profession Read more…
Conference Season Conference season is here! As reliable as the leaves turning colors, invitations to professional development meetings are in our inboxes: regional and national conferences, in-state seminars and professional development meetings are upon us! These gatherings are a hallmark of people-serving industries and since so many of us find Read more…
Unintended Consequences My local gym has a new key checkout policy. It seems that some members (and maybe kids bored between basketball games) had become a bit lax in how the equipment in a particular room was being treated and there was some ongoing damage. Hoping to solve the problem, Read more…