In recent interviews with team members from three different teams, a similar comment came up in each conversation “I don’t think any of us really like conflict.” When I asked follow-up questions,...
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AI Adoption Starts With Forming: Treat AI Like a New Coworker
Most HR leaders have lived through more “new tool rollouts” than they can count. New platform. New login. New training. A few weeks of confusion. And then (eventually) it becomes part of how work...
How to Create Momentum When You Don’t Feel Ready
Michelle didn’t come into our coaching session saying, “Darcy, I’m avoiding a hard conversation.” She came in saying, “I don’t know what to do.” Except that she knew exactly what she needed to do....
EOS Visionary Integrator Conflict: 3 Tensions That Create Friction (Even With Traction)
Visionary and Integrator conflict isn’t always easy to see, especially if the business is doing well. The business has traction, the scorecard tells a mostly positive story, rocks are getting done,...
When High Performers Become Toxic Co-Workers
On paper, it looks great. Two peers. Both smart. Both reliable. Both are delivering strong results. If you were building a team from scratch, you’d hire them again without hesitation. And yet, it’s...
The Cost of Not Talking: Repairing Business Partnerships After a Breakdown in Communication
They arrived in my home office at the same time, but I could feel the distance between these two business partners not communicating immediately. As they stood in my kitchen pouring their coffee, it...
Executive Coaching Topics: What Leaders Bring to Coaching Sessions
If you’ve never been inside an executive coaching conversation, it’s easy to imagine it’s all big, dramatic moments. A leader storms in, confesses a career-ending flaw, and the coach tells them what...
Compassionate Leadership in Action: How Care Creates Results
Five years ago, I wrote about bringing compassion to tough family conversations over Thanksgiving because of COVID-19. After a number of difficult conversations, my husband and I spent the holiday...
The Hidden Cost of Skipping the Storm: Why Conflict Is Essential for Team Development
I was coaching an executive leadership team that got along really well. Maybe too well. Every meeting was polite, efficient, and pleasant. They complimented each other’s ideas and avoided stepping...
The Stronger the Trust, the Bigger the Leap
This past weekend, I volunteered at the Ironman Wisconsin. My job was to stand at the edge of the lake and help athletes out of the water after their 2.4-mile swim. It was one of those moments where...
The Vulnerability Dilemma
Have you ever sat in a meeting with your chest tight, heart racing, and wondered, Should I say this out loud? I know I have. More times than I can count, I’ve held something inside because I didn’t...
Six Difficult Conversations That Are Rarely Easy But Can’t Be Avoided
A few years ago, I had to have a difficult conversation. I had to confront a vendor who completely missed the mark on a big project. The work was a mess, they hadn’t honored their contract, and I...