Have you ever met someone who doesn't give you a straight answer? Do they have a way of saying things that leave doubt in your mind about whether they will deliver on their promises? When this happens, listen to their words carefully: they often will use conditional words to express [More]
While some might disagree, the truth is - especially when you are pitching for a role - that your boss (or the prospective client) doesn't care about you. They only care about how you can solve their problems. In fact, the only way that you will get chosen for the [More]
Graphic designers know that if you have one element on the page, and lots of white space around it, the eye is drawn to that one element. Professional speakers know how to use a pause - silence - to emphasize a point. And musicians know that a break in the [More]
Have you ever booked a meeting with others, only to have them show up late? Or started a meeting, only to have some of the participants spend half the time checking their Smartphones? Or watched as a few attendees leave early because of other commitments? Putting aside the rudeness of [More]
How often have you been in a meeting, and felt that your colleagues' ideas were... poor? The natural reaction is to argue the point, shut them down, and then present your own solution. Yet if you do this, you will not see any support for your ideas, either during the [More]
A pilot does a pre-flight check. Musicians tune their instruments. Radio announcers do a sound check. But what type of prep do you do before your performance? Your performance can be anything from going to work every day, to a keynote speech, to an important sales call, to delivering a [More]
Times have changed indeed! This post was originally written in 2008 - eons ago in tech terms. Enjoy the archeological look-see into the past, along with my current editorial comments... In a departure from my usual analysis and perspective, I thought that I would comment on some of the most [More]
Have you ever had the feeling that the person you are speaking to really wasn't paying attention to your conversation? Maybe they are pre-occupied with a personal matter? Or they might not care about your message (or about you)? Or perhaps they are focused on an impending deadline? Whatever the [More]
It can't be done. We'll look bad if it doesn't work. We've tried it and it didn't work. So-and-so said that we shouldn't do it. That's not the way we do it here. That's not your job. That's not my job. You'll tick off so-and-so if you do it. You'll [More]
Doesn't it feel good when someone recognizes the great work that you do each day? And conversely, doesn't it feel awful when your faults are publicly exposed? Too often, we jump on the "fault" bandwagon, and don't give credit to others for the great things that they do. Yet, there [More]
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