Listen Carefully

June 23rd, 2014 by Kelly Kienzle

How many workshops on listening and speaking have you attended in your career? How many books and articles have you read on how to be more effective in your communication skills? If the number is something greater than the number of vacation days you’ve had in

An Unlikely Source of Inspiration

March 4th, 2014 by Kelly Kienzle

I always have cheesy wall calendars.  Every year, I don’t remember until January to buy a new wall calendar.  And then I’m left with paltry options like “Rainbows!” or “Justin Bieber Unleashed.”  And 2014 was no different. Sometime in mid January I trekked to our local

Do You Judge Behaviors or Intentions?

August 1st, 2013 by Kelly Kienzle

  We tend to judge ourselves based on our intentions and we judge others based on their behaviors.  Similarly, others judge themselves based on their intentions and they judge us based on our behaviors. Here’s how that plays out at work:  A colleague did not get

The Forgiveness Vitamin

October 5th, 2012 by Kelly Kienzle

What if you were to forgive yourself once every day?  What if you allowed yourself to make at least one mistake for which you would not beat yourself up?  What if you held yourself to the same reasonable standard that you hold others? Here’s the scenario: 

Begin.

September 5th, 2012 by Kelly Kienzle

 A client recently sent me an interesting manifesto, “How to Be Legendary” about how to develop new habits and get things done.  One of its central points was that if we want to start following our dreams, then we need to begin.  The author put it

The Two Key Ingredients for Your Best Performance: Simplicity and Certainty

July 31st, 2012 by Kelly Kienzle

We are constantly called upon to give our very best performance.  We face questions such as: How will I give my very best interview?  How will I deliver my very best marketing pitch?  How will I swim my very fastest time? I would offer just two

Servant Leadership in Service to You

June 27th, 2012 by Kelly Kienzle

The philosophy behind servant leadership is a humble one: help others do what they need to do. Yet, as a leader, adopting this philosophy can also help you. The reason is this: In difficult situations, you can overcome your fears if you think first about what

If Leadership is Keeping a Vision, Then Everyone on the Team Must Be A Leader

March 30th, 2012 by Kelly Kienzle

Every person on a team or in an organization needs to be a leader.  Yes, an individual leader needs to be identified to organize a team and assign responsibilities, yet each person also needs to embody a few key skills of leadership as well. One of

Becoming a Workplace Coach for Your Team

February 29th, 2012 by Kelly Kienzle

If I asked you to choose between attending a 5-hour training session in a windowless room with a soggy sandwich for lunch, or… holding a meaningful dialogue with members of your team on a highly specific and profoundly important topic, which would you choose? If you