By Michael Holland - Your boss is an okay guy but there are so many things about the way he leads that drive you nuts. He's the one who never received the training needed to get a clue on how to lead. He taught you all about leadership through an oft-experienced yet little known methodology called [...]
Most everyone I work with is looking to improve their communication skills – and for most of us it’s effort worth making. How effective we are in our work and personal lives is often a factor of how well we communicate with others. So what to do? Step outside of yourself! Rather than thinking about [...]
This past week I had the opportunity to talk with two 30-something sisters and their brother from Pakistan. They talked about the violence in their city; the discrepancy in wages earned by Christians and non-Christians; the common practice of woman having a “relationship” with their boss in order to be paid more; and the night [...]
by Michael Holland Focus, focus, focus. Focusing is difficult in today’s world with so many distractions and opportunities to multi-task. But when does multi-tasking become ineffective? When will you hit the overload critical mass point? At what point is your productivity decreasing? Just say NO! No to that extra project. No to reading every email [...]
There are a few keystone behaviors that once established as habits make a significant difference in your leadership effectiveness. One of these habits is to have regularly scheduled 1-on-1 meetings with your direct reports. Managers consistently say, “But I talk to my staff all the time, why do I need a separate meeting?” In [...]
By Michael Holland I ran a red light yesterday. Not intentionally, mind you, but clearly I did run the light. I was in a new area and looking for my next turn when I found myself coming up to an intersection with a light that was already yellow. It’s that moment in time, the split [...]
by Michael Holland I could feel the controls with my left hand on the side of the big leather seat. Touching each lever made the seat move: I could scoot the seat up, tilt it back a bit, and raise up my legs. Soon enough I had a full reclining lounge chair which would’ve been [...]
by Michael Holland When we hear the word Amish, the stereotype most people imagine is a horse and buggy driven by a bearded man in a wide-brimmed hat. We think of people who live without modern advances and adhere to strange customs like the excommunication of young adults who venture away from the community. But [...]
by Michael Holland Within a span of several weeks in early 2014, Governor Chris Christie of NJ (with his potential involvement with Bridgegate), and Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning(with his horrific Super Bowl loss) were both faced with a vivid reality. One moment they were almost invincible, perched high on great pedestals that were rising toward [...]
by Michael Holland As I drove from one executive coaching session to another, I had a 30-minute window of windshield time with an email and 4 text messages I wanted to take care of… but didn’t. Later, while I pondered the missed opportunity, I thought about my high school aged son who had recently utilized [...]
