“Leaders are readers.” You’ve probably heard that before. But is it true for reading fiction? A long-time reader sent this article from Harvard Business Review: “The Case for Reading Fiction.” Why is reading literature showing up in a respected business journal? This is ground we have covered before: The ancients were so good at culture-building that we are still living …
Please argue with your customers
I have observed a lot of sales professionals over the years. There are three kinds: If you want to know if you are dealing with a thriving sales professional, look to the long-term outcome. Some salespeople are charming, some are not. Hot spells and cold spells come and go. Many have long careers. But over time, the thriving sales professional …
How is working with you better than working with AI?
We used to ask customer-facing team members, “How is working with you better than going online?” Now the question for everyone is, “How is working with you better than working with AI?” Mark taunts our future AI overlords. Mike has further treasures to reveal from his experiments with AI. It’s impressive–and scary. Are all of our jobs in danger? In …
Conversation: Even more important in an AI world
If you enjoyed our podcast about artificial intelligence (more to come soon!), consider this a complement to it. Carey Nieuwhof is a thoughtful Christian pastor. I bookmark his items occasionally, including this one from a while back: “Why All Future Leaders Will Be Great Conversationalists.” It’s obviously geared for pastors, but interestingly enough, his illustration is a car salesman–a decent …
Common fallacies: Seeing through what’s not true (part 3–”Statistical” errors)
Some informative new episodes related to our series on “Crucial Conversations:” This latest series focuses on “common fallacies,” arguments we make that, if you stop to think about them, just can’t be true. Identifying and naming these statements can keep you from losing focus on what truly matters. We encourage our listeners (both of you) to use these fallacies to evaluate …
Common fallacies: Seeing through what’s not true (part 2–Propaganda)
Some informative new episodes related to our series on “Crucial Conversations:” This latest series focuses on “common fallacies,” arguments we make that, if you stop to think about them, just can’t be true. Identifying and naming these statements can keep you from losing focus on what truly matters. We encourage our listeners (both of you) to use these fallacies to evaluate …
Common fallacies: Seeing through what’s not true (part 1–Avoiding the question)
Some informative new episodes related to our series on “Crucial Conversations:” This latest series focuses on “common fallacies,” arguments we make that, if you stop to think about them, just can’t be true. Identifying and naming these statements can keep you from losing focus on what truly matters. We encourage our listeners (both of you) to use these fallacies to evaluate …
Podcast 109 – Crucial Conversations: Start with the heart
When you identify a high-stakes, emotional issue with strongly opposing views … how quickly do you discuss it? Or do you resort to “silence or violence?” As promised last episode, welcome to our series on how to have difficult conversations. We are using the excellent “Crucial Conversations” as our inspiration. Whether you have to tell somebody they smell bad, discuss a …
Good managers ask more questions
I’ve had this article bookmarked for some time now because it’s so practical: “Why the best managers ask the most questions.” The author has four practical suggestions for asking more questions. Given our recent posts about listening to sell, listening to receive feedback, listening as a part of wrestling to grow … well, you get the idea. We think listening …
Would Mother Teresa have approved of coaching?
If you are like most people, you probably want clarity in some aspect of your life. But maybe you shouldn’t, unless you spend time answering two questions. Do not pray for clarity I think there is a healthy skepticism of businesses that go to market as a faith-based or social cause. It can feel like a rubber stamp: “We care …
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