HR Insights
I’d Rather Eat Glass
Some calls are painful.
In the middle of a conversation, the desk phone rang. The HR director I was talking with looked at the number and frowned. "Go ahead and take it, I'll wait." I said. "I'd rather eat glass." She responded, still frowning. She said it was a constituent with a reputation...
Loving the Idea of Leadership
It’s often a loving-living gap.
How many pretenders do you know or have met who love the idea of leadership? They know all the right buzz words, talk about frameworks, models, and expectations. They constantly talk ABOUT leadership… but don’t live it much. That’s the loving — living gap. They manage...
What are my options?
Help people choose a path forward.
An HR director was referred to my consulting team by a happy client. We did the normal things of listening and understanding her problem and agreed on how to solve it together. We started with a two-phase approach to train their principals who do most of the hiring to...
Are you teaching content or people?
Help people connect with content.
When I start a Live Session in our interview workshops, I usually ask what ideas have stuck with my adult learners from the online missions. One person nailed it in a simple observation. This week one principal said, “Our focus is shifting from applicants who teach a...
Defending the Toxic Marketing VP
Is the talent of one worth misery of many?
I’m very curious to know the rest of the story in Pat Lencioni's team building website video about trust. One person, the VP of Marketing, could not be vulnerable in any way as a leader. The effect was to squash the creative talent of the entire team. In the end, this...
Freedom and Responsibility
One without the other is not enough.
I hear managers talk about giving responsibility without really including freedom. True leaders understand they must give a voice AND a choice in how people live and learn to lead. Without both, it’s not really freedom nor responsibility… just compliance. It’s easy to...
Better isn’t around the corner
Don’t wait, make peace with today.
People with a positive mental mindset tend to believe that in most situations good will prevail. That’s healthy. If it’s true optimism, the person also acknowledges real or potential problems that may stand in the way. There is a thin line however that is easy to...
Be Curious, Not Interesting.
Get out of the spotlight and let others shine.
It’s tempting to take the lead when you meet someone for the first time, run a meeting, or try to resolve a problem. Of course, you want to be interesting and show why you’re in charge, right? It depends on who you want to be the Hero — you or those with you. If you...
The problem with probing and prodding people.
It’s better to listen carefully than dig for fool’s gold.
“If you have to probe, probe, probe with an applicant, and you hire them, it will become prod, prod, prod.” - Tom Chambers, Principal, Greenville County Schools This genuine gold nugget of interviewing wisdom came from a principal in one of our many interview...
Beware of answers with a pretty bow.
Cues can help you filter out the fluff.
Some job candidates and co-workers are really good at answering questions that sound good. But when you ask about how they handle a situation or about their experience, is it real? Listen for a few cues to empty or vague answers. For example: • You messages: “You...