Why is Professional Development Important?

So you have a title that carries some authority, not to mention more than a fair amount of responsibility; what do you need to do now?

I can’t count the number of times that I’ve seen someone land themselves a position with a fancy title, be it fresh out of school or after several...

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Soft Skills that Make a Hard Impact

I closed the last post by bringing up one of the biggest challenges I’ve seen organization’s struggle with in determining whether or not they make an investment into the new skills someone will need as they transition into a role with leadership responsibility. When we’re...

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The Secret to Consistently Moving Forward

In James Allen’s As a Man Thinketh he shares, “People are anxious to improve their circumstances but are unwilling to improve themselves; they therefore remain bound.” 

When this quote comes to mind, entire periods of my life do as well because these are times I (Cindy)...

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It Won’t Just Magically Happen!

We started defining leadership development in the last post by looking at the importance of truly serving our team members rather than barking commands. While that’s quite the noble concept, it’s far from natural for almost anyone moving into their first position with leadership...

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Can We Afford Not To…?

I closed the last post by mentioning how many organizations view “soft skills” training as something that’s nice to do when there’s time but far less critical to the day to day operation of the business than any technical training tying directly back to their specific...

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I Don’t Have Time for This!

Be honest, how many times have you muttered “I don’t have time for this!” under your breath, or even said it directly to someone on your team as you were showing them how to perform a task one more time? To be completely transparent with you, I’m not even going to try to...

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Why is Leadership Development Important?

Picture this.. Joe is offered an entry level position with a company as he begins his career. In the months that follow, he works as hard as he possibly can to develop the skills necessary to excel in his new role. Joe is extremely dependable and is outperforming most of his peers by the end of...

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The Hard Truth About Tough Decisions

“Wanting everyone to be happy and making tough decisions were incompatible tasks.”

 - John Maxwell

I (Cindy) remember reading this quote early in my leadership journey and realizing there’s my problem!  I was attempting to keep people happy while making tough...

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Don’t Make Jack a Dull Boy...

Through the last several posts, we’ve been working through the importance of enjoying each step of the journey rather than resting on the hope that fulfillment will come once we reach that ever so important goal we’re chasing. I even used the last post to share an example of just how...

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A Firm Grip on an Empty Sack...

I had worked hard, doing all I could to hone the skills I needed to become truly effective in the role I held. I had really studied some of the most effective trainers, both within and outside of the behavior-based safety world, so I could excel in something that was incredibly difficult for me...

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Identify the Destination and Love the Journey

Through the last few posts and the LinkedIn article that set the tone for them, we’ve looked at some of the most pressing issues that cause so many of us to lock onto a goal and lose nearly all focus on anything but that goal. In many cases, that can suck the joy out of just about...

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It’s a Choice We’ve All Got to Make!

Abraham Lincoln has been quoted as saying, “Folks are usually about as happy as they make their minds up to be.” While I’ve also seen him credited for saying things like “You can’t believe all the quotes you read on the internet,” I’ve actually heard that...

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