Most “leaders” at organizations: Don’t understand that organizational breakthroughs can come from anywhere Aren’t really that comfortable with ideas outside of their own This varies by organization, of course, but most managers/leaders I’ve worked with fall into those camps. If you don’t believe me, look at how promotions tend to…

You ever get into discussions with people at work and they invariably say something like, “Well, if I ran stuff…” We’ve all done this. I have, probably more times than I can count. For a frame of reference there, I’m 34 and have been a manager maybe once or twice…

This is probably one of the more f’ed up stories of the last decade. You can read about all over the Internet, although the basic story is as follows: 14 year-old student murders 24 year-old teacher, presumably with a box cutter. He uses a recycling bin to move the…

I like Stowe Boyd in general — one time we got in a fight about me supposedly lifting a quote from him without attribution — and his new newsletter is solid. Here’s a good section about “corporate culture,” which has now been discussed roughly 25M times since 2016, without any…

I once sat down and tried to write a post called “Leadership Is Dead.” Admittedly it was a major click-bait headline in a lot of respects, and I was having trouble writing it. The trouble came from two places: (a) I was honestly kind of depressed at work, because birthdays…

In the grand scheme of writing this blog, one of the most interesting things that I think I’ve ever written is this whole idea of “micro” vs. “macro.” Basically, you can get consensus among one group (say, a senior leadership team) and that’s at the macro level. When that team…

I’m all for chasing mani/pedis and the like, but there is a functional disconnect around the idea of “self care.” In the last 10 or so years, it’s become a thing you say not only in the “drinks after work?” or “spa day?” sense, but to justify the removal of…

Here’s another absurd article from Harvard Business Review about “the pillars of effective organizations.” The 10 they identify are: Encourage cooperation Organize for change. Anticipate the future. Remain flexible. Create distinctive spaces. Diversify and be inclusive. Promote personal growth. Empower people. Reward high performers. Foster a leadership culture. This is…