FieldNotes
Our daily Field Notes email is just the kind of jumpstart you need. A fast read. Maybe less than a minute. Because sometimes it just takes one insight to change the trajectory of the day.
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Inject New Information Into Troubled Relationships
When we find ourselves in a troubled relationship, we are often given the advice to work harder at the relationship to repair whatever damage has eroded trust or respect. Unfortunately, working harder at a relationship usually results in more dysfunction, not less. When it comes to the complexity of emotions, expectations, and relationship history, the
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Show Gratitude in Ways That Don’t Decay
Leaders who pride themselves in making others feel special think differently when they consider showing their appreciation with gifts, mementos, and thank-yous. They know that any expression of gratitude is best when it serves as a special reminder for weeks, months, and years — rather than for hours and days. Any gift that is fleeting
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Reject the Trap of Reflected Glory
The contemporary obsession and fixation on celebrities and the ultra-wealthy is a curious example of what should — and should not — really matter to leaders. Society regularly bestows great value upon particular individuals for the success and notoriety they have achieved. Some are great innovators or thinkers. Others have amassed great fortunes. They may
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Express a Palpable Confidence
How we expect others to perform has a surprisingly oversized impact on how they actually perform. Leaders naturally develop expectations for how team members will perform on any given task or assignment. Unknowingly, these expectations influence how the leader treats these team members. We speak differently, use different language, and offer different kinds of feedback
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Keys to Influencing Without Authority
The status leaders hold in a social or organizational hierarchy gives them the legitimacy to direct action and compel people to perform. Teachers, parents, and leaders all benefit from this legitimate status as others defer to the authority imbued in the position they hold. However, leading peers, as well as others who do not directly report
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State Weaknesses in the Past Tense
Knowing yourself as a leader necessarily includes an in-depth understanding and acknowledgment of your weaknesses. If you can’t state your weaknesses with the same clarity and detail as you can for your strengths, you aren’t self-aware enough to create the personal change necessary to become better. Leaders who want to grow and make strides in
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Informal Conversation Is Not Optional
The downside of the rise of virtual meetings is the further reinforcement of the impersonal nature of the workplace. Working virtually has many advantages, but it comes at the cost of informality. Much of the feedback, relational connection, and creativity inspired by in-person interaction is lost in virtual calls. This is not always obvious to
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What a Player-Led Team Really Needs
The best teams on the planet, athletic and corporate alike, are player-led teams. On these teams, it is the players or team members who engage in many of the leadership functions normally reserved for the team leader. Team leaders, by necessity, articulate the values, set the standards, create strategy, and measure results. On player-led teams,
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The Artful Creation of Appropriate Distance
Effective leaders strive to strike the right social distance with the people they lead. The social distance between leaders and followers refers to the emotional closeness experienced in the relationship. Too much social distance between a leader and those they lead can create a sense that the leader is unapproachable and unconcerned with issues not directly affecting them. A
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Retain Talent With the Glue That Binds
Why do talented people remain committed to a leader and an organization when they have attractive offers elsewhere? One reason is that the best leaders give those followers opportunities that they can’t get anywhere else. Truly talented colleagues love to learn and look forward to new challenges that will stretch their skills and expand their