Someone misses their deadline. People routinely show up late and cut out early. Your direct reports fail to adopt the new project management tool. The list goes on. These are just a few of the everyday challenges of a team leader. I know because I am one.

How do you address envy or jealousy in the workplace? To be specific, what can you do when a colleague reacts negatively to another colleague’s success? Or, even worse, what do you do when it progresses from the occasional nasty comment to outright sabotage?

Leadership is intentional influence. It isn’t the vacuous or mystical thing that so many writers claim. It is a systematic process of influencing human beings to achieve important results. It’s about mobilizing behavior in the service of valued goals. At the end of the day, if behavior isn’t changing, you aren’t leading.

On the main thoroughfare in my hometown is a greasy spoon called Callie’s Café. Like all greasy spoons, it specializes in comfort food, which is why I took my daughter there for a serious conversation. I thought the fare might make the dialogue more palatable.

How can I use the Six Sources of Influence to improve patient satisfaction scores at our hospital? Our scores average in the 70s, but when I talk to patients they tell us we are wonderful. I’d like patients to put that on the survey. We often see scores of 8 but get comments that suggest they think we deserve a 10. Any ideas?

For years I have used LEAN to improve the work my healthcare lab does. But I still have people who respond poorly to feedback and who only want to hear about chronic or dire issues, and I’m often met with “I’m only human.” How can I hold my team members to high standards and validate them so they don’t become disgruntled?

I have an employee who speaks up regularly and voices their opinion and proposes changes to the organization, but if those suggestions aren’t implemented, they get angry. What can I do?

How do I get my team to accept change? The changes I am trying to implement ensure we stay compliant. We went over these changes to processes well in advance, yet several of my team members are now resistant, passive-aggressive, and have ignored the changes. One person is especially difficult. She expressed her dislike for me and my personality in a one-on-one meeting. When I asked her if she can at least be professional, she shrugged her shoulders.

I’m a new manager of a team that previously had a leader that yelled, used demeaning methods of motivation and control, and often humiliated individuals. The leader was removed for these behaviors and the role was given to me. I can see signs that the team is broken. They work in silos, performance is poor, and there’s a general lack of effort. I’m struggling to unify the team and “right the ship.” I feel like clarifying expectations would help get everyone back on track, but I worry that doing so will further divide the team, as it could be seen as me pushing my agenda. Any advice?