The Thoughtful Leaders Blog

Slow and steady can get you somewhere

Chatsworth Consulting Group — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 13:30:15 +0000

“Be not afraid of growing slowly, be afraid only of standing still.” Ancient Chinese proverb Truth be told, my perfectionist days are not all over… There are still many times when I slip and realize that I have been, once again, beating myself up for not getting, doing, or knowing something fast enough, well enough, [...]

Tell other people what you want them to think about you

Lisa Kohn — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 13:00:03 +0000

I wish I could say that I thought of this leadership approach myself, but I can’t. One of my clients a few years back shared this with me, and I’ve been passing it on ever since. It is an adage to live and lead by. So often what we tell others about ourselves is exactly [...]

Stop trying

Chatsworth Consulting Group — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 13:00:18 +0000

“Doing more of what doesn’t work won’t make it work any better.” Charles J. Givens This quote made me laugh. It’s so true. Yet somehow we seem to forget and we continue to operate on the belief that if we just try harder, even if it’s not working, we’ll somehow figure it out and push [...]

7 questions you must answer to strengthen your great idea

Robyn McLeod — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 14:40:47 +0000

There’s nothing I love more than learning something new from one discipline and applying it to something different. Such was the case recently when a client of mine, a thermal scientist, shared Heilmeier’s Catechism with me. George Heilmeier was an engineer who headed the research group at RCA that developed the first liquid crystal display [...]

Professional Development on a Shoestring

Chatsworth Consulting Group — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 09:00:07 +0000

For many of our clients, this is not only the start of a new calendar year but also the start of a new budget year. And while some organizations are rebuilding their investment in people development, others have budget line items that are still woefully lean for the kind of professional and leadership development necessary [...]

Building with thrown bricks

Chatsworth Consulting Group — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 13:30:09 +0000

“A successful person is one who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks that others throw at him or her.” David Brinkley I was speaking with a colleague recently who told her tale of woe about a large project she was heading up at work. She shared a litany of roadblocks and obstacles. “Every [...]

What hospital janitors can teach us about wisdom

Lisa Kohn — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 14:58:03 +0000

Someone forwarded me another TED video – they always make me think, and I always want to share them. Barry Schwartz speaks about our loss of wisdom. He argues that our society, businesses, and lives are becoming increasingly stuck on rules and incentives, and that what we need in order to thrive is instead practical, [...]

How do you get unstuck?

Chatsworth Consulting Group — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 13:30:23 +0000

“Everything has its wonders, even darkness and silence, and I learn, whatever state I may be in, therein to be content.” Helen Keller I’ve noticed a pattern in my life, and sometimes in the lives of others. Something will go “wrong” for me, or something will happen that I don’t like or don’t want, and [...]

Ask these questions for a better performance appraisal experience

Robyn McLeod — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 13:30:30 +0000

This is the time of year when many of us are in performance appraisal mode – writing our self-appraisal, preparing documentation for giving appraisals to others, reflecting on what went well in 2011, and remembering what did not get accomplished that we expected to achieve. While it is certainly important to look back and assess [...]

No pain, no gain?

Chatsworth Consulting Group — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 13:30:33 +0000

“You don’t have to suffer continual chaos in order to grow.” John C. Lilly We have been taught since we were young, “No pain, no gain.” I no longer adhere to that approach. The world is filled with organisms that grow without pain and chaos. People grow, cities grow, businesses grow, flowers grow – all, [...]