Q. How can the Crucial Conversations skills help me be more prepared and less reactive in sharing my thoughts about COVID-19, racial equality, and other intense social topics in moments of friendly fire from peers? I read a quote by J. Kehaulani Kauanui, professor of American studies and anthropology at Wesleyan University, which said, “Racism …
Dear Emily, Leaders at my company announced they would like employees to return to the office in July. After working at home in quarantine, what should my company be doing to help employees feel more comfortable about coming back to the office? Signed, Wary Dear Wary, Like you, for many of us, re-opening the door …
Dear Scott, COVID-19 work from home conditions have thrown my routines into chaos. I feel like I am constantly trying to keep up and the more I try, the more overwhelmed I feel. How can I get myself back on track? Sincerely,Overwhelmed Dear Overwhelmed, Frustrating. Confusing. Challenging. Unprecedented. Restricting. Troublesome. Sad. These are just some …
by Melanie Parsons Gao NPR Moth Story Slam Champion, TEDx Fellow, Passionate Developer of People My laptop was on the kitchen counter, the oven was pre-heating and I was just starting to crack the eggs for my muffins when suddenly I heard my name. The teacher was calling on me! “Melanie, I didn’t see you …
I am a trainer in a non-profit organization. Because we are a close staff, we tend to avoid accountability discussions around inefficient patterns rather than discussing solutions for improved performance. People arrive late for meetings, fail to complete time-sensitive tasks and spend a lot of time talking. I do have plans to introduce Crucial Accountability …
We sat down with journalist Charles Duhigg, author of Smarter Faster Better and The Power of Habit, to talk about chocolate chip cookies, the science of habit formation, and what he’s learned from both. Why did you decide to research and write about habits? I was good at a lot of stuff. I viewed myself …
“How would you describe the kind of manager you most like to work for?” asked Steve. He was interviewing applicants for an administrative assistant role on our team. The role reported directly to me. Steve and I had worked together for many years at this point and he had a really good sense of my …
I found myself in an interesting conversation a few months ago with a fellow trainer. They shared with me that while they love what they do, they have good and bad days just like anyone else—and that sometimes, on the not-so-good-days, showing up the way we want to or feel we should in the classroom …
The introduction to the facilitator manual for Master My Stories suggests that facilitators should not feel bad “if participants don’t give up all their stories by the end of the session. Your goal should be to help people question their assumptions. You want them to assault their stories with questions. You want them to remain …
Music is a big part of my training experiences. Anytime I’m laying out the flow for a training design, or stepping in front of an audience, I have a song playing in my head. Setting the tone, driving the pace, bringing everything together. I’ve used music as a pre-session and break filler, and even, on …
