Hi Reader, Last summer our family spent a week on Vancouver Island. We took several hikes through old-growth rain forests, and the thing that struck me most wasn’t the size of the trees. It was the canopy. I don’t know that I’d ever been in a forest with such dense, connected coverage. At times there didn’t seem to be much light coming through, and yet the forest below was incredibly lush - even more vibrant than rainforests I’ve hiked in Costa Rica. That felt counterintuitive and made me...
14 days ago • 4 min read
Hi Reader, In training, we regularly ask people to reflect on the leader behaviors that make them feel unwilling to speak up or share their opinion. The answer we hear most often is simple and sobering: “I felt dismissed.” That single phrase reminds us of a significant reality: people leaders have an outsized influence on whether others will share their best thinking with the team, or quietly hold it back. The way a leader responds in everyday moments shapes whether people feel safe to...
21 days ago • 3 min read
Hi Reader, Think about the last time someone brought you a problem. A teammate shared frustration about a peer. A direct report voiced concern about a decision. A colleague described something that felt stuck, unclear, or unfair. How quickly did you move to trying to solve it? Most senior leaders do not pause to fully absorb what they are hearing. They diagnose. They optimize. They offer solutions. They move the conversation forward. That instinct has probably served you well in your career....
28 days ago • 4 min read
Hi Reader, Last week we used a clip from Ted Lasso to explore the power of grace in building relationships. That moment showed us how unexpected compassion and empathy, especially when it feels undeserved, can become a turning point in trust and connection. As much as we love that clip, the reality is this: Most bids for connection won’t be that dramatic. They will be much more subtle. And yet how we respond to them still carries every bit the potential that Ted’s response carried for...
about 1 month ago • 3 min read
Hi Reader, Human beings are wired with a negativity bias. When something goes wrong, our brains naturally give it more weight than everything that has gone right. A single disappointment, missed expectation, or awkward interaction can begin to color our entire view of a person. Over time, we stop describing behaviors and start defining character. “They have always been this way.”“They don’t take feedback well.”“They’re impossible to work with.” When we let those stories take root, we quietly...
about 1 month ago • 3 min read
Hi Reader, There is no shortage of conversation about artificial intelligence right now. Executive teams are investing heavily in new tools, platforms, and infrastructure. Boards are asking about AI strategy. Leaders are under pressure to “do something” so they do not fall behind. But there is a critical investment area that very few leadership teams are talking about. To make the most of AI, you don't just need better technology. You need stronger teams. A recent Deloitte insight shared by...
about 2 months ago • 4 min read
Hi Reader, One of the most encouraging things we see at the beginning of each year is leadership teams doing the hard work of clarifying their shared focus. They step back and they commit to a small set of strategic objectives that will guide the year ahead. And then something predictable happens. The calendar fills up and urgent issues take center stage. Meetings become reactive. And without meaning to, teams drift away from the very goals they worked so hard to define. This is not a failure...
about 2 months ago • 3 min read
Hi Reader, There is something uniquely energizing about the beginning of a new year. Leadership teams re-enter the work hopeful, motivated, and ready to make meaningful progress. But hope without intention rarely leads to alignment, and it rarely leads to meaningful results. One of the most common patterns we see in executive teams is this: they begin the year with a lack of clarity on what their most important shared goals are. Sometimes the CEO has it in their head, but it's not nearly as...
2 months ago • 3 min read
Hi Reader, As the year comes to an end, our team has been practicing something we encourage all our clients to do: slow down long enough to reflect on what went well, what could have gone better and what you learned on a regular basis. The wins, yes, but also the moments that stretched us, revealed something new, or reshaped the way we think about our work and personal lives. Below are our favorite memories from the year, and one lesson each of us is taking into 2026 to guide the way we lead...
3 months ago • 4 min read