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Browse every published article connected to Marshall Brown, with exact attribution and full-archive search.
Articles
Browse every published article connected to Marshall Brown, or search within this exact expert archive.
Had it not been for failure, humankind may never have known the magnificent Audubon bird paintings that gave rise to the Audubon Society, the inspiring music of Handel’s Messiah or the electric light bulb.
Another day, another deadline. You gulp caffeine and forge ahead, like the steadfast worker you are. A good soldier never gives up the fight, right? Only if you view work as a battleground. There’s a decisive difference between soldiering on, gamely shouldering the workload you’re assigned, and becoming a workplace warrior. Soldiers take orders; warriors take responsibility. While it’s wise to be a team player and complete projects to the best of your ability, even executives can push the envelope so severely that instead of helping the company, they’re hurting themselves.
Without a doubt, coaching is the hottest approach to enhancing the performance of the people in an enterprise—whether it’s teams of coaches working with managers in a Fortune 500 company, transition coaching for new C-level executive hires, or coaches working with the owners of small businesses or sole proprietorships. It is clear from the increasing acceptance and investment in coaching, among the broad spectrum of business in many countries, that we believe coaching works. But how well does it work? And how hard is it to measure?
When it comes to work, are you a lone ranger? See if you identify with any of these statements: "I can do it better myself." "The more people involved, the less control I'll have." "I like MY ideas and MY way of doing things." The truth is, going it alone can lead to overwork and burnout for you, and can create unnecessary stress and tension in your workplace. It can breed competition, fear, dishonesty, tunnel vision and inefficiency.
Are you overscheduled? Fixated on financial success? Fantasizing about lolling on an exotic island beach? You may be overdue for some rest. As the pace of modern life accelerates, the need for rest sometimes gets pushed to the bottom of our to-do list—when rest is exactly what we need to perform at our peak. The Value of Restr
Too often, the workplace is an entirely too serious place. And yet study after study shows that a lighthearted approach aids career advancement, reduces turnover and absenteeism, and enhances productivity and work performance. Here are just a few ways to inject brightness into your day and/or your workplace. 1. Smile. Doing so actually short-circuits rising anger and stress, and can trigger gentler, more humorous views of a situation. 2. Dress up. Wear a goofy hat while at your computer, or keep a pair of red Wizard of Oz shoes to slip on when the stress is getting thick.
When it comes to work, are you a lone ranger? See if you identify with any of these statements: "I can do it better myself." "The more people involved, the less control I'll have." "I like MY ideas and MY way of doing things." The truth is, going it alone can lead to overwork and burnout for you, and can create unnecessary stress and tension in your workplace. It can breed competition, fear, dishonesty, tunnel vision and inefficiency.
Whether you’re learning to swing a golf club, baseball bat or tennis racquet, coaches always emphasize the importance of follow-through. It’s not just hitting the ball that matters, it’s how you continue your swing once contact is made. The same thing applies in job interviews, networking, sales and almost any work situation: without purposeful follow-through on your actions and interactions with others, you won’t really be able to reach your professional potential.
Have you ever noticed how GOOD it feels to be really listened to? It’s impactful, particularly when the listening goes beyond just the words you’re speaking. That kind of artful listening conveys respect and value to the speaker, and promotes positive relationships of all kinds. And, like any art, it takes practice.
Without a doubt, coaching is the hottest approach to enhancing the performance of the people in an enterprise—whether it’s teams of coaches working with managers in a Fortune 500 company, transition coaching for new C-level executive hires, or coaches working with the owners of small businesses or sole proprietorships. It is clear from the increasing acceptance and investment in coaching, among the broad spectrum of business in many countries, that we believe coaching works. But how well does it work? And how hard is it to measure?
Congratulations! After great effort and focused energy, you’ve finally landed a fabulous new position—one that is sure to advance your career and meet your work and personal goals in a way your old position never could. But don’t stop there. Getting hired is just the first step. You’ll need to spend as much effort and energy—and maybe more—preparing for and making the transition. And this is where it really counts, for the first three to six months in any new position is a period of extreme vulnerability.
Chattering away inside the heads of most human beings is an internal monologue that goes on and on at about 45,000 words per day. It consists of a variety of voices—the cheerleader, the worrier, the taskmaster and a whole gallery of others, some uplifting and cheery, others nagging and mean. Sadly, for many people, chief among this cast of characters is the Inner Critic.
Taking Risks What could be riskier than diving out of an airplane at 18,000 feet or climbing a glacier-covered peak or accelerating a racecar past 120 mph into a curve at the Indy 500? For one person it might be quitting a secure, well-paying job to go back to school. For another, it could be deciding to leave a marriage after 18 years, or reporting that the company they work for is endangering the environment or people’s lives.r
“If you don’t believe in the messenger, you won’t believe the message.” —Jim Kouzes, co-author of Credibility: How Leaders Gain and Lose It, Why People Demand It When people trust and believe in you as a leader, they’ll follow you far and without much question. But without credibility, that critical foundation of leadership, you face an uphill battle, because you’ll have the extra strain of trying to pull people along with you. And whether you’re the one pulling or the one being pulled, pretty soon you’re both weary and ready to give up.
Leadership As a Way of Life Too often, we believe that leadership is the domain of those with recognized authority, and the title to go with it: CEOs, presidents, conductors, mayors. "In a world that is changing as rapidly as this one, we need to think differently about leadership," said Susan Collins, author of Our Children Are Watching: Ten Skills for Leading the Next Generation to Success. "Leading is not done by those few in high places, but by parents and teachers and managers and those governing - all working together to create the world that we want."
The world of work is changing at an extraordinary pace. The old rules no longer apply, and new rules are being written and rewritten all the time. These changes can be unsettling, whether they’re potential or actual, positive or negative. You may be gearing up for a promotion, staring at a wide open field of new prospective clients or launching new products and services. Or you may be hunkering down in the face of outsourcing, downsizing, mergers, takeovers, and local and global competition. How We Respond to Change
Do you value being seen and heard? Do you want to have truly successful relationships? Do you want to make an impact on others? Then speak up! Of course, for some people, that’s easier said than done. You might prefer to train wild lions than tell another person what’s really on your mind. But it is possible to develop an assertiveness connected to head and heart that clears the way for honest, empowered living—without being rude to others or surrendering to “nice-itis.”
Anger is the unannounced visitor that keeps dropping by, again and again. Some of us hide, hoping this troublesome guest will go away. Others of us let it take over, turning our home into a nightly rage-fest, one that leaves us even angrier, friendless and with the police on our doorstep. There is another way. We can greet our anger like a welcome guest and try to understand what makes it tick. In doing so, we can learn a lot about ourselves and make real, lasting changes in our relationships.
Improving your email habits can drastically increase your productivity. Like any new approach, these take focus and practice. But after awhile, they will become habits that support you. 1. Check email only at scheduled times for a specified amount of time. Twice a day for 30-60 minutes works well for many. Unplug until the next scheduled time. 2. Unsubscribe relentlessly. Make sure you receive only the things you really want to—and do—read. 3. Reduce the amount of routed email (i.e., cc’d from coworkers) to only that which is essential.
Today's work world is full of uncertainty, and the jobs available now and in the future will be very different from the past. Whether in good times or bad, you must take charge of your own career, because no one else is going to do it for you. Here are eight steps to help you survive in today's changing world of work:
Whether you work with others, or alone, you may still suffer from the “Lone Ranger Syndrome”—that managerial malaise that causes folks to work excessively long, hard hours because only THEY know how to do something right. Whoa, Silver! There is a cure. Effective delegation is a learnable time management skill that can dramatically increase your effectiveness at work. To find out how well you delegate, take the following Self-Quiz. 1. In most cases, I can do tasks quicker and better myself than if I delegate.
“Good fences make good neighbors.” So goes the old proverb from the well-loved Robert Frost poem. Likewise, good personal boundaries make for good relationships. Boundaries are those invisible lines of protection you draw around yourself. They let people know your limits on what they can say or do around you. Healthy boundaries give you freedom in relating to others. Make them too solid and you build walls, too weak and you allow other’s actions to harm you.
There’s no getting around the news—foreclosures, bailouts and breathtaking stock market swings. It’s real. It’s upon us. It can be scary. Though we can’t control the economy, we can control our perception (and reaction) to it. Every crisis creates a positive by-product—opportunity. It’s more important than ever to think creatively and adapt “on-the-fly” to seize those opportunities. Companies that do so will thrive, even during the most challenging times. Here are some survival strategies for tough times: Don’t Panic. Be a Leader.r
Pay, praise and promotions may have some effect on motivation levels in the workplace. But these three Ps pale in comparison to more personal factors, such as the Top 5 of the oft-cited research by Rewick and Lawler: job challenge, accomplishing something worthwhile, learning new things, developing skills and abilities, and autonomy. Take this Self-Quiz to see how you’re doing in lighting and kindling the fire of enthusiasm in your employees. True or False
“My candle burns at both ends/it will not last the night.” Edna St. Vincent Millay Burnout resists simple definition because it affects so many aspects of an individual’s life. In their book, Beyond Burnout, authors David Welch, Donald Medeiros and George Tate, describe burnout as a condition that affects us physically, intellectually, emotionally, socially and spiritually.
“If you don’t believe in the messenger, you won’t believe the message.” —Jim Kouzes, co-author of Credibility: How Leaders Gain and Lose It, Why People Demand It When people trust and believe in you as a leader, they’ll follow you far and without much question. But without credibility, that critical foundation of leadership, you face an uphill battle, because you’ll have the extra strain of trying to pull people along with you. And whether you’re the one pulling or the one being pulled, pretty soon you’re both weary and ready to give up.
Some people swear by the efficiency of multitasking. Recently, however, some suggest that, not only is multitasking inefficient, it’s counterproductive. Whatever theory you ascribe to, humans seem “wired” to try to accomplish multiple tasks—ever since that first, Type “A” cave-dweller tossed a tuber on the fire next to the roasted woolly mammoth to cook meat and potatoes at the same time. Nowadays, you don’t have to look further than the drivers next to you to see how multitasking has evolved, as they try to negotiate traffic, consume coffee, and work their PDAs all at the same time.