Too Much to Do? Take on More
I know how to handle stress. I know that each day I need to get seven or eight hours of sleep and an hour or so of exercise. I know I need to meditate for a few minutes and eat normal sized, well-balanced meals. I know I need to take deep, calming … [Read more...]
The #1 Killer of Meetings (And What You Can Do About It)
"That was dreadful. Not only was I bored, everyone else was bored too. Disengaged. I'm terrible at facilitating these kinds of meetings. But they're so important. I've got to get better at it. I need to find a better way." I wrote that in … [Read more...]
A Simple Communication Mistake to Avoid
Eleanor and I were fast asleep at my parents' house in upstate New York when my five-year-old daughter Sophia came running in. "Look out the window!" she screamed, as she pulled on our shades. I looked at my watch: 6 a.m. Not bad. Sophia … [Read more...]
Solving Your Organization’s Open-Faced Sandwich
I stepped up to the counter and ordered a bagel with smoked salmon and cream cheese. I asked for the sandwich to be open-faced, "with salmon on both sides of the bagel so my friend and I can share it." "No problem," Andrea*, the … [Read more...]
Visualize Failure
This post is part of HBR's special issue on failure. Several hours into the first day of our paddle down the Grand Canyon, we came to our first significant rapid of the trip, House Rock Rapid. To give you an idea, here is a 25-second YouTube video … [Read more...]
Don’t Be Nice; Be Helpful
Ron* was up next. As a senior analyst in this investment firm — and a good one — he knew a lot about the company he was about to pitch to the management committee. He paused for a minute as he sorted through the pages of numbers in front … [Read more...]
The Right Way to Respond to Failure
My wife Eleanor and I were visiting some friends on a Saturday when their nine-year-old daughter, Dana*, came home. She was close to tears, barely holding it together. "Oh sweetie," her mom said. "What happened at the swim … [Read more...]
What To Do With Your To-Do List
Last week, in A Better Way to Manage Your To-Do List, I wrote about the importance of using your calendar — not your to-do list — as your main tool to guide what you do in a day. Transferring items from your to-do list to your calendar … [Read more...]
