New Year, New Vision
The first few days of January offer an excellent opportunity to take time to think through your vision for the year. Your vision can be for your company or organization, your team, your career, or even your life overall. What would you like to be able to say on 31 December as you look back over the year? Before you get too caught up in the day-to-day, before your calendar fills up with back-to-back meetings, block out an uninterrupted two hours that you can dedicate to this essential work.
21 Ways to Make 2021 A Better Year
The challenges and complexities of 2020 have been a good reminder that future outlooks can change dramatically with unforeseen situations. The same is true for many of our annual goals, the things we plan to do more or less of, and the outcomes we want to achieve.
We can, however, control our aspirations and commitments. If unexpected circumstances arise, we can still stay true to those commitments, even as we make necessary adjustments to the way we work. We can still find ways to better the world in line with our belief systems and values.
As a thought leadership strategist for financial services and fintech clients, here’s my list of things I want to commit to making and doing better.
Strategic Planning for Company You
Can one person go on an executive retreat? Absolutely! Setting aside dedicated time to think through your vision and strategy makes sense no matter what your role may be. Taking an executive retreat for yourself can be an excellent year-end activity as you start to consider what will define success in the year ahead. Your strategy sets the contours for action, for change, and for why and how you respond to what happens. Just as with companies and other organizations, Company You needs a reliable mechanism for creating that strategy. The executive retreat approach accomplishes just that. Follow this six-step process to set aside time and ask yourself the questions you should be asking.
10 Traits of Successful Thought-Leading Organizations
To achieve thought leadership at the organizational level takes some work. But there’s good news. Much of this work does not require a huge outlay of capital or high levels of effort. Instead, it requires simply stopping dysfunctional processes and changing mindsets. Here’s what thought-leading organizations do to stay ahead of the pack
Thought Leaders and Gatekeepers
Operational effectiveness in creating and publishing thought leadership is essential in competitive, ideas-driven industries. But when organizations do not clearly map out who can make which decisions and under what circumstances, every gatekeeper ends up with veto rights. That messiness is exacerbated by the natural human inclination to have opinions and preferences and the difficulty of preventing those from spilling into bias.
What Free Means to Me
Earlier this month, I started offering a free hour of consulting to anyone in the world of fintech or financial services. It’s a free offer where I sit with people and help them work through complex communications challenges. This is why I’m doing it and what free means to me.
Better Meetings Put “Better” on the Agenda
Meetings waste time and energy when the concept of “better” is left off the agenda. Every participant needs a clear idea of the agenda and their role. No meeting should take place without a clear set of decisions and outcomes that will be formed and agreed during the meeting’s timeframe. These are the basics of […]
Train Your Chihuahuas
Chihuahuas are notorious ankle-biters. Some owners and trainers attribute it to the small size of the breed. Others cite (probably) apocryphal stories that chihuahuas were bred to harass opponents in battle, keeping them distracted with a frustrating pack of nipping animals. Those of us more focused on the twenty-first-century workplace have our own chihuahuas to […]
Planning To The Power Of Three
While it’s not a replacement for detailed, methodical planning, I use a simple “Power Of Three” approach to keep my work and my goals aligned. Its purpose is to prioritize and create a framework that shapes detailed planning. It works because it highlights meaningful outcomes alongside finished work. And it works as effectively for work […]
The Consultative Dilemma
This piece by Jared Spool offers some of the most helpful insights I have ever read about the dilemmas of being a consultant and being passionate about results and outcomes, working with clients, and managing one’s own expectations as a strategic advisor. And with a good dose of surreal humor, too. Beyond consulting, it applies in any […]