7 Practices That Will Make You A Respectful Leader
A lot has happened in the world since my book, The Respectful Leader was first published in 2016. At that time, employee surveys were giving us early warning signals of disrespectful behavior increasing in the workplace. Leading up to the U.S. presidential election, the political climate and the amount of incivility in public discourse continued to heat up. Shortly afterward, it appears that...
A Healthy Company Culture Starts with a Blueprint for Success
In my 25 years of experience working with top industry and government organizations, I know one thing is true: a company with happy employees and a healthy company culture didn’t get there by accident. Its leaders have carefully nurtured and curated their work environments to develop a sustainable foundation of responsive, respectful leadership that significantly improves their chances of...Modeling Respectful Behavior: Whose Job Is It?
When I’m working with a new client and making a case for modeling respectful behavior in the workplace, there is an inevitable hurdle to clear first: acknowledging there is a problem, so leaders stop passing the buck on accountability. If I’ve heard this complaint once, I’ve heard it a thousand times. Every time I show managers and leaders the data that clearly demonstrates our workplaces are...
The Late, Late, Late Disrespectful Show
I have a personal habit that drives some people nuts: I’m always early for meetings. It doesn’t matter if I’m going to a business meeting, a training presentation, or even a dinner date; typically, I show up at least 15-20 minutes before I’m expected. As you can imagine, this can be problematic, because often as not, the people I’m meeting with just aren’t ready for me. Believe me, when I was...
Advocating for Respect: Overcoming Skeptics Who Claim We’re Oversensitive and Too Politically Correct
Hearing about Donald Trump’s recent meeting in which he made disrespectful comments about immigrants and other countries reminded me of an incident I witnessed over 20 years ago, while facilitating a corporate leadership strategy session. I watched – paralyzed – as the CEO of a global company literally screamed obscenities and personal abuse at his direct reports for failing to meet their...
To Be a Great Leader, Learn to Delegate
One of the greatest challenges for many new managers lies in a self-transformation from task master to leader. This transition involves the ability to effectively delegate responsibilities to other team members and empower them to succeed. Harvard Business Review Contributor Jesse Sostrin discusses this common management dilemma and offers strategies to help streamline your workflow, build...
Diversity and Inclusion Aren’t the Same Thing
“Diversity” and “inclusion” are often thought to be the same thing, but they’re actually different concepts. Diversity advocate Verna Myers explains the difference between the two terms well: “Diversity is being invited to the party. Inclusion is being asked to dance.” An organization can easily hire employees with different backgrounds, but making sure these employees feel included can be...
Embrace Diversity Outside of the Office
Embracing diversity in the workplace doesn’t necessarily begin in the workplace. According to diversity experts Paolo Gaudiano and Ellen Hunt, there are a number of things leaders can do outside of work that will help them to better understand and support diversity initiatives in the office. Diversify your resources. Dig deeper during your daily dose of news and information. Do some research...
Tackling a Disrespectful Remark
What would you do if a coworker said something that you found disrespectful? Studies show that how people predict they would react in a situation differs from what they actually do. Amy Gallo, contributing editor at Harvard Business Review, outlines a few options. Decide if you’re going to say something. If you stay quiet, you might be sending the message that the comment or behavior is okay....