Dear Madeleine, I am a director-level leader in a national insurance organization. The culture here is that things get done slowly, and only when everyone agrees with the change. I have been tasked with spearheading a ton of change, which is desperately needed. I have not made any friends with my approach and my boss…
When a person goes through leadership coaching it often includes some kind of evaluation, such as a 360-degree assessment. Debriefing the assessment results is typically done during one of the first coaching sessions. This debrief helps the coaching client identify strengths they can leverage as well as potential areas for development. I’ve noticed a trend…
Dear Madeleine, I am a new manager. I have twelve folks reporting to me and it is going perfectly, except for one person (I will call him “A”). There seems to be a fundamental disconnect between how he sees his own performance (superior) and how others see his performance (subpar). I am continually confused by…
Dear Madeleine, I lead a business unit in a global services company. Our sector is highly competitive and it is “go go go” all day, every day. Our company recently instituted an internal survey designed to measure employee experience and asked business units and departments to give feedback on each other. Our business unit got…
Not everyone benefits from being coached. It is not a one-size-fits-all methodology—you need to have the right mindset. Here are six warning signs that working with a coach might not be right for you. If you believe others control your future If you hate to learn new things—especially about yourself If you believe you have…
Dear Madeleine, Can you clear something up for me? I have been told by a former coach and others that I need to be more “authentic.” But I have also just received feedback in a performance review that I am too brusque, condescending, and cold. And if one more person tells me they are intimidated…
A lack of self-awareness combined with an overactive ego can trip up an otherwise great leader. When leaders allow their ego to go unchecked it can erode their effectiveness, says Ken Blanchard, co-editor of the new book, Servant Leadership in Action. “When that happens, leaders see themselves as the center of the universe and they…
Best-selling business author Ken Blanchard believes leadership is an inside-out proposition. “It begins by asking yourself a tough question: ‘Am I here to serve or be served?’” he says. According to Blanchard, the answer to this question will reveal your fundamental approach to leadership. “If you believe leadership is all about you, where you want…
As a science geek I read up on a lot of different things. Admittedly, some of it goes over my head. I couldn’t honestly say what a Bosun-Higgs particle does, or is, but I recognize one when I see it. (That’s a joke—they are too small to see.) I share this because I’ve been reading…
In this episode of the Blanchard LeaderChat podcast, Chad Gordon interviews Dr. Travis Bradberry, researcher and author of the best-selling book, Emotional Intelligence 2.0—which has sold over one million copies! Bradberry shares how emotional maturity is absolutely critical for success as a leader, and how emotional intelligence is a capacity that can be learned and developed.…