If you ask, most leaders know what they need to do to improve their well-being. They’ll tell you they need more sleep or to reduce their stress or eat healthier or get more exercise. But many struggle to do those things consistently. In this fourth article in my series on The Leadership Long Game, I explore the knowing-doing gap and how we can bridge it. Why is knowing not enough? Typically, leaders tell me they don’t have enough time to take care of themselves. Sometimes, they say they just aren’t wired that way – “I’m not a morning person” or “I’m…

“The quality of your mind determines the quality of your life.” Author, neuroscientist, meditation teacher Sam Harris. If we’ve learned one thing through this last year, it is that leadership and life require what sports psychologists call, a strong mental game. But what does that mean, really? Is it something you are born with or is it something you can cultivate? In 15 years of coaching leaders, I’ve observed in clients and colleagues a set of common mental habits or mindsets that seem to support their ability to weather unpredictable challenges like the ones we are facing now. With advances…

Last week, I received a link from a client to a Globe and Mail article entitled Working from home is causing breakdowns. It echoed a conversation we had just had about a general sense of creeping malaise he had been experiencing. As I read it, I thought, “This is how a lot of people are feeling right now.”  In the article, Tim Kiladze and Tamsin McMahon cite a number of troubling trends. According to Statistics Canada, there was a sharp increase in stress leaves in 2020, while hours spent on vacation dropped 20 percent to a nearly 40-year low. Insurance company,…

Are You Ready for the New Normal? What have you learned from this experience of a global pandemic so far? What has it revealed to you about what is and isn’t working in your life, your organization, and your community? What needs to change and what is the resulting new normal you want to see? These are the questions we’ve been asking in conversations with leaders in our community and here is some of what they are telling us. People want a new normal There is something about getting yanked out of your life that has you see it with…

“The dark does not destroy the light; it defines it. It’s our fear of the dark that casts our joy into the shadows.”  Brene Brown. I have found these last few months profoundly disorienting and I know from talking to clients, colleagues and friends that I am not alone. COVID-19 has been shockingly revelatory. It is as if it has shot dye through the organism of our planet and revealed all the organs and structures that are wounded, diseased or broken.  Many of us are seeing with new eyes what has been present all along and are feeling shock and…

This pandemic is challenging us on multiple fronts. It challenges our need to know what is happening and what is going to happen; it challenges our desire to be, and feel, in control; it challenges our sense of safety and security; and it challenges our confidence in what to do next. Most profoundly, it is challenging who we are, and who we see ourselves to be.

I have been struck of late – in awe really – of extraordinary leadership shown by an uncommon breed of leaders I have the privilege of witnessing in my personal life and as a professional coach. Their brand of fierce leadership has inspired me to write about them as a way of understanding and sharing their recipe. I’m talking about educators, civil servants and business leaders I observe everyday, navigating an unprecedented and increasingly complex terrain of inadequate budgets, politics, an increasing prevalence and awareness of mental health issues, or all of the above! Our world is filled with seemingly…

Next month, my grandson Liam, will turn two. In the last 23 months, he has undergone an incredible transformation. He looks, sounds, acts like a completely different human being than the little bundle of flesh and blanket I held in my arms the day he was born. His language skills are coming on line and he is now able to call me by name and tell me which storybook he wants me to read him. Yesterday, we were playing with building blocks in front of the TV. It was on mute, but behind Liam’s head, I could see pictures from…

Saying no with authority and grace is a lost art in leadership. It can lead to better results, better decisions and an improved quality of life. It also goes hand-in-hand with two other vital leadership skills – focus and discernment. Few of us do it well. If you struggle with saying no, here are 10 tips for putting it back in your vocabulary in a way that garners respect. Find a more compelling yes. When I meet with clients for the first time, I ask, “If you could spend your time any way you wanted, what would you do more of?…