Nobody decides to be a poor communicator. They become ineffective through neglect. Instead of mindful, intentional communication, they adopt clichés and … Read more

Nobody decides to be a poor communicator. They become ineffective through neglect. Instead of mindful, intentional communication, they adopt clichés and … Read more
The standard line among professional speakers about the importance of humor, even in serious business or technical presentations, goes like this: Question: … Read more
We’ve just come through a political season where we heard (or saw?) speakers reading their scripts — during the conventions, during Supreme Court … Read more
Cyberbullying has received increased attention during the last few years, focusing primarily on children and teens. But adults can be bullying victims as … Read more
HR often plays the parental role within an organization, particularly in sensitive or crisis situations like mergers, natural disasters, layoffs, or … Read more
At a SHRM mega-session years ago while speaking on the topic of executive presence, I included an audience demonstration about the body language aspect of … Read more
You have 60 seconds to name all the movies that include a scene like the following: The heroine (or hero) is standing in front of a gathering of … Read more
A boss’s offhand comment, “Be sure to leave time for Q&A,” often causes great concern among presenters. Maybe they have flashbacks of presidential … Read more
An employee at a large oil company submitted a suggestion that netted him $18,000 from his company’s incentive-awards program. Although I can’t share the … Read more
Eggs and rejections should be done over-easy. Turning down applicants with class pays off in your long-term recruiting efforts and reputation as a great … Read more
When you have yet another email hitting your inbox with an invitation to an online meeting, how do you react? Eager to take part or irritated at the … Read more
Let’s assume an angry reporter doesn’t confront you every day to ask why your organization has committed some scam or why you’re improperly handling … Read more
You run into ramblers everywhere: On a Zoom webinar. In the boardroom. In your training class. The reasons vary: They have extensive experience. They want … Read more
The old “Have you stopped beating your spouse?” dilemma captures this problem well: “Yes or no?” Either way you answer, you’re in trouble. During a … Read more
Suppose you’re in a staff meeting or rolling out a new policy in an all-hands meeting, and Rani, an employee, poses this question to you: “You say that … Read more
Early in my writing career, an executive assistant to the CEO of a large oil-tool company astounded me with her business acumen — and how she got it. More … Read more
Envision the last time you presented new information to a group of employees in an extended session of one to three hours: Rolling out new software and how … Read more
As an HR leader, you get questions every day; some serious, some trivial. “What else is the company going to do to protect us from COVID?” “What did you … Read more
You’ve probably heard of Basecamp, the popular project-management tool for team collaboration. The company, 37Signals, that produced this software hit the … Read more
When you think of great leaders, what image comes to mind? You might envision a well-known CEO granting a TV interview or a politician taking tough … Read more