Strategic Serendipity

I learned something the other day watching my 20 month old son learning how to climb a small rock climbing wall.  There is a reason it is good to start at the bottom - you have less room to fall and it is so much easier to get back up when you do. The same can be said about the business world.  I hear people talking about younger generations in the workforce "wanting to run the organization their first week."  Suffice it to say, they simply feel like their skills are not being fully utilized, but that is for another article. This article is for people of any age starting a new career.  Appreciate the fact that you get to learn from the ground up.  Just like a child playing on a rock climbing wall, you are going to slip every now and then.  In the business world, it is called "failing forward" and it is a legitimate form of adult learning.  In fact, on-the-job experience is actually the most effective way for adults to learn. Experiment with new...

There are many books, courses, blogs, and podcasts out there that can help you become a better leader. So why aren't we a world of master leaders?  Simply, because the business of leadership development is not easy.   When I took a developmental rotation from my position as an attorney to my position in as a leadership development professional I had many people tell me that I had sabotaged my career.  To this day, I am constantly asked if I am having fun or when I am going to go back to my "real" job.  In other words someone with a law degree is only at their highest and best use if they are doing legal analysis.   I would like to point out two things... First, the work I do on a daily basis as a leadership development professional is harder than any legal analysis I have ever done.  Legal analysis goes something like this.  You have a rule, you have a set of facts, you apply the rule to the set of facts and determine whether the facts ar...

When I signed up for the 31 Day Blogging Challenge  my main objective was to train myself to write every day.  I found so much more.  The challenge leader has provided daily support, encouragement, and tips that I look forward to reading every morning.  The challenge also includes reading and commenting on other participant's blogs.  I have found some wonderful bloggers and am thoroughly enjoying sharing this process with them. I think sometimes when we take on a challenge we may anticipate some of what we will gain, but often, we learn so much more than we ever expected.  If we can keep that in mind as we begin challenges maybe it will push us a little harder? Twelve days into the challenge, I have already topped my previous high monthly views.  For those bloggers who have posts with views in the millions, the activity on my blog may not be earth shattering.    For me, it is truly inspiring. If you have a blog or want to start one, I r...

How can one small word strike fear in the hearts of many.  I applied for a independent contractor position teaching yesterday and received an e-mailed rejection today.  At first that little gremlin that lives in my head said "See, I told you so!" But seriously, it is just an e-mail.  From someone who probably knows nothing about me because 10,000 other people probably applied for the same one job.  (Shhh, that is the story I am telling myself tonight.) Mia Hamm said "Failure happens all the time.  It happens every day in practice.  What makes you better is how you react to it." So once I got through the disappointment and the rationalization, I realized how quickly they both passed.  Why, because then I got to the point where I realized I had put myself out there for something I was interested in and now had a contact.  So I wrote another e-mail (one I hope will be answered) about what skills I could enhance to be competitive for future open...

I recently gave you one way to use a journal in your personal and professional development process but there are many more.  Journals are important because the exercise of writing things down gives you time to reflect, process, make connections, and plan future courses of action.  I know it seems like this is the last thing in the world that you have time to start, but I know it will make a huge difference if you commit to it.  My challenge to you is to journal for the next 30 days and decide for yourself whether it is indeed worth your time.  For those taking the challenge, I will post journaling prompts on my Facebook Page everyday that you can use if you don't have something to write about.  (Like the Facebook Page while you're there and select Get Notifications if you want to receive the daily journalling prompts automatically.) The first question you face sometimes seems the hardest - where will I keep my journal? If you go to your local book store ...