How to Take Control When You Have No Control
More than ever, success in the workplace depends on your ability to influence others. Others you do not control. Others who have different priorities. Others who may have no interest in your success. Welcome to the wonderful, intensely frustrating world of matrix management. In this world significant work must be done among teams of teams […]
Ready to March on Your CEO’s Office?
The future of our world will not improve unless the future for women improves. It’s that simple. I am simmering with anger. The good kind. The kind that motivates action. The kind that insists on disruptive, radical progress. My new level of anger is due mostly to my private conversations and public interview with the […]
Why Bravery Is Your Greatest Power
I just interviewed Oscar winning activist Patricia Arquette on stage at the Women in Technology Summit in Silicon Valley. If you don’t know, Patricia is the powerful and appropriately radical voice for equal pay and equal opportunity for women. She won an Oscar for her role as a mother in the movie Boyhood. I will tell you more about […]
Everything You’ve Been Taught About Leadership is Obsolete
I just completed another SMART Power Academy for 25 inspiring women leaders. In the few days since it ended one of our graduates who works for large tech company applied for, interviewed, and got a significant promotion in a career area that exactly aligns with her passion. Another participant quit her good job with an […]
Please Don’t Give Your Money to Your Children
Dad was swindled out of his sizable net worth before he passed. It was truly heartbreaking for him but a blessing to me. Study after study shows that inheriting a sizable fortune has a terrible effect on the vast majority of the unearned rich. It seems that what makes us strong is self-reliance. What makes […]
15 Cringeworthy Minutes With Mom That Could Save Your Career
It’s natural to want to be liked. People who say they don’t care what other people think are generally lying. And that’s good because people who really don’t care are sociopaths. But people who care about the feelings of others have a difficult time managing performance. We tend to put the warmth of our relationships […]
Beauties and the Beasts – Why I Advocate for Women
A lot of people ask me why am I such an advocate for women in leadership. My answer is “science.” For over 30 years I have worked with inspiring mentors and partners like Stephen Covey attempting to convert the world’s leadership class to becoming conscious capitalists. It didn’t work. Oh, I know that efforts such as […]
One More Thing Men Have Stolen from Women
As I continue to crusade for women’s voices to be heard in some of our largest businesses I nearly always come across the common complaint that women feel unheard and undervalued. This isn’t a new problem. You find it in the earliest writings by women beginning around 1000 BC. The first novel written by a […]
Do This to Feel Fulfilled Every Day
When I train leaders at the SMART Power Academy we get into some very deep stuff. One of the major sources of leadership power is confidence. Many leaders mistake arrogance for confidence. This is not good. Once an arrogant leader makes a mistake he or she loses support. You can only get away with arrogance […]
Does Your Work Make You a Better Person?
Over many decades I’ve helped, directly or indirectly, thousands of people discover their purpose in life. One night long ago I was awakened by a voice that said, “Your purpose is to help others find theirs.” That’s pretty clear and it’s made for a very interesting career. I have worked with, and spoken with many, many […]
