Marcie White

The key is to make time for team building activities BEFORE there are issues. This builds a foundation of trust & understanding amongst a team. Also facilitating a discussion utilizing personality profiling so the team understands what motivates & demotivates can give tools for conflict resolution based on individual dynamics. Lastly... work with your team to assume positive intentions & practice active listening. Disagreements are often based on assumptions... not real time information. Everyone has a struggle that no one else knows about. As Stephen Covey says... "Seek First to Understand...and then be understood". A team is a collection of individuals with diverse points of view and needs. This can be the team's superpower or demise.

ACTIVE LISTENING Don't take Yourself or anything too seriously It's all about THEM NOT YOU! Get to know others...celebrate them...genuinely care about them... especially in moments where no one else is looking! Have THEIR BACK even if it means YOU need to take some heat!

All the resume advice is blah blah blah. The chances of a cold submission getting you an interview is slim to none - no matter how... - well formatted it is - how much you quantify your accomplishments - impressive your degree is - impressive your experience The bare minimum is to tailor YOUR resume as much as you can with key words that match the job description so the bots give the match a good score. Critically important is finding someone in your network who can connect you to the recruiter AND hiring manager preferably with a warm introduction. If they know you well - also putting in a referral in the HR system. Without those connections it doesn't amtter how impressive YOUR resume is.

YOU don't need another special project... degree... on-line course.... you need visibility and sponsorship! So often we all fall into the trap of "hard work is rewarded by a promotion". Hard work and knowledge is the bare minimum expected. In the PIE model for success - Performance only counts for 10%... Image (your personal brand) - 30% and Exposure (who knows YOU and who YOU know) - 60%. So get yourself an executive sponsor and coach/mentor. Switching gears from SME/hard-worker to Networker will get you your promotion faster than all the other advice anyone will ever give you!

Many times over the years... I have seen in myself...and others... what I describe as being "outta gas". Some of the tell-tale signs are: - Activity over productivity. Working long hours...nights...weekends...yet things don't seem to be getting better - Over Scheduled. Constantly being double or triple booked and not rescheduling or making choices about what is most important. - Travelling Non-Stop. Not building in time for personal rejuvenation or time with family & friends - Showing signs of being overwhelmed... frustrated...no sense of humor... venting constantly As leaders we not only have to fill OUR gas tanks but we are called upon to be role models and help those around us fill up their tanks too.

I carry with me from early in my career...Stephen Covey's..."7 Habits of Highly Effective People". The chapter on "Seek first to understand and then be understood" is key. Specifically the illusion picture of the "old woman vs the young woman". It is a prime example of how we can all be looking at the same thing...yet see it differently. Through active listening... asking questions... keeping an open mind... we can come to see what the other person sees to create shared understanding which ultimately reduces conflict towards more productive solutions. Check it out and let me know your thoughts in the comments below!