Managing a Toxic Star
Not every organization has a toxic star — but if you haven’t encountered one yet, chances are you will. A toxic star is the high performer who delivers impressive results while damaging the culture. They may be a charismatic leader, a top salesperson, or a brilliant project manager. On paper, they look like a hero. In practice, they drain morale, drive away talent, and leave behind long-term costs that outweigh their contributions. This is the person you can’t afford to lose…
The New Literacy: Finding Clarity in the Noise
A parent I know came home to hear her 13-year-old daughter fretting over something she'd read online: a thread predicting environmental catastrophe within a decade. The girl had taken it as gospel. No context, no filters. Just fear. About that same time, a client —an HR director and mother of two—reported that her teenage daughter was overwhelmed by social media posts about college admissions, and the endless stream of “perfect” lives online. Flooded with data, but starvi
Lessons from a Morgue
Lately, I’ve been thinking about how easy it is to lead and live at a distance. Related to this, a story that has stayed with me—one I...
"Hitching" - Lessons for Discerning Leaders
How do you make a wise decision when there are no easy answers? What do you do when you’re not sure what to do? Careful discernment is...
Delivering Uncomfortable Messages: Six Guiding Questions
Whether you are a supervisor, project manager, team leader, executive team member, or even the president, delivering uncomfortable...
Jumping Off the Emotional Pendulum
A 33-year-old woman who goes by the pseudonym, “Aella,” is one of the Internet’s most popular sex researchers. Aella’s X bio describes...
Sweet Spots and Trade-offs
I have a friend who just turned 90. “I find myself thinking about dying,” he said. “But I also want to keep thinking about living.” ...
The Witch and the Cobbler
Once upon a time, in a land not so far from here, a cobbler, mired in misery, inquired about who might help to allay his anxiety and...
Loneliness and Connection: A New Year Reflection
Loneliness is sometimes out in the open, where we can see it, sometimes not. Noah John Rondeau, the Adirondack hermit, chose isolation....
The Debts We Cannot Repay
Thanksgiving Reflection As a high school junior, I was required to meet with my guidance counselor, Richard Thompson. My middling grades,...