Honking and Yelling and Leadership
This is when I think you should use your car horn: when you are about to smash into someone and/or someone is about to smash into you. Full stop. Unacceptable uses for car horns: laying on it when someone is…
Category Communication
When Scripts Go Wrong
There is a time and a place for everything. Well, for most everything. Scripts, be it for your customer experience team, your sales team, or your presentation to the board, have a time and a place. The beauty of a…
Struggle Sessions
The weekend was a FIELD HOCKEY EXTRAVEGANZA. My bro was at the field from 7:30 AM to 7:30 PM Friday. That’s four games of field hockey fun spread out over 12 hours! (Math is my specialty.) Except there was something…
Hot Take vs Molehills and Mountains
Last week, I was in front of a room of 100 nurses and nurse leaders, facilitating a feedback workshop. I was overviewing Feedback 411–the basics–before we got into the framework. “If you see something, say something.” That’s the general vibe…
Less Anxious, More Joy
It was debrief call time. I’m all about reflecting, and am happy to report that I reflect more and ruminate less these days. I also like to hear from my clients about their experiences, because you know, feedback. “The people…
When Everyone Knows But Them
“Can you pause the recording?” OFC, I replied. We were mid Coaching Clinic — implementation sessions held after workshops where participants get real one-on-one feedback — when the request came in. Turns out the requester knew where the conversation was…
“Start asking questions…”
We’re two episodes into the latest season of True Detective: Night County. Episode one was a bit…we’ll say whacky, but I was hooked. Episode two had me sit up and take notice multiple times. One of those times inspired this…
Authenticity and Contexts
Two years ago, I worked with a stylist. “Work with a stylist” had been on my wish list for a long time. We’re talking years. Rationals, excuses, and reasoning finally got forgotten when Nicole Otchy came into my world. Not…
How do you Start a Hard Conversation? Clumsily.
She made a comment that set off an internal cringe. Her explanation of the comment, with full confidence and determination of proving her theory brought the slow rise of the internal double middle-finger. Then she asked a question…and that set…
Defending feedback
I spent a few days in Minnesota last week with a group working on their communication skills. There were two stand-out moments; one predictable, one not. The group was mid “skill-practice” (which yes, is a euphemism for role play) when…