• You’re unhappy with your job, but please don’t do this

    Not a week goes by that someone doesn’t pull me aside at a coffee shop to confess they hate their job. I’ve noticed shortly after sharing their discontent, they say some version of I really need to update my resume and start looking. No, no, no. It seems like a good impulse. You’re unhappy with […]

  • Mini mission—Ask for what you need

    It’s amazing how often we expect others to read our minds about what we need. And then get upset when they don’t. Listen versus problem solve You want your friend to listen when you talk about the problem you’re having at the office, not problem solve. But you don’t tell her this upfront. Instead, you […]

  • It’s not the job market that will get in your way. It’s you.

    I was talking to a great guy recently about his job search. He has an impressive resume of top jobs with organizations familiar to all of us. He’s smart, articulate, a master problem solver, and someone who doesn’t just say the words “team” and “collaboration”, but truly lives these concepts. His skillset is impressive, and […]

  • I’m just not one of those creative types

    I’m just not creative.  My job isn’t creative. I’m not one of those creative types. I don’t make anything, so I’m not really creative. Creative is not just painting a picture or developing a product. It’s not only being a photographer or writer. Creativity isn’t for some special group of people—a group to which you […]

  • 5 whys can help you get to the root cause of your problem

    As a coach, I typically avoid using “Why” to start a question because it tends to put people on the defensive. Why is this so hard for you? Why can’t you make a decision? Why are you afraid to change careers? Why didn’t you follow up with your prospects? Why react so negatively? Asking these […]

  • You’ll have some good ideas and some bad ideas

    Are you faced with a challenging situation and it seems like there are only a couple possible solutions? Well, think again. There are almost always more possible solutions than you can count on both hands, but we often stop after the most obvious ones. As a result, we deprive ourselves of the creative problem-solving that […]