The sixth in a monthly series of 11 posts. Karina has two bosses. Most young managers wouldn’t prefer that, but Karina relishes it. She likes that each of her bosses offers her a different perspective. When Karina encounters a knotty problem, she presents it to Boss #1 or Boss #2 depending on which perspective she values most for that particular problem. Not long ago, one of Karina’s top performers, Damian, announced that his wife, a breast cancer survivor, had suffered

The fifth in a monthly series of 11 posts. I know a few people who are natural listeners. These individuals seem to possess an inner stillness and natural curiosity that enables them to intuitively grasp another’s content, meaning and feelings. They listen not only with their ears, but with their eyes, heads and hearts. When in the presence of an exquisite listener, a speaker is likely to feel tremendous freedom, greater clarity and emotional relief. In a relatively shor

The fourth in a monthly series of 11 posts. When a problem or issue is brought to us as coaches, our job is to understand the problem or issue as fully as possible, and to help the coachee do the same. On those rare occasions when the issue is unfamiliar to the coach, it’s comparatively easy for an interested coach to pay attention, explore and discover something new. But most of the time, coaches either possess intimate familiarity with the problem or issue, or think they