You remember those days…back in junior high and high school, when most of us had an ever-open eye out for what was cool or interesting or compelling. During that time we were actively scanning people, behavior, clothing, activities, interests, attitudes—looking for what lined up with out mostly unconscious objectives, be they social, physical or vocational. How those around us acted and appeared, mattered. That environment was a powerful sculptor of behavior and mindset. In those years, we referred to it as “peer pressure.” More persuasive oftentimes than parents, teachers, media or even our own good sense. This particular field of energy possessed an enormous ability to direct action and thought. Like the wind, invisible to the eye, but no less real and profound. This amazing energetic resource lives on and with constructive intention, can catalyze remarkable results. Today, as grown ups in the world of business, we refer to it as peer accountability. The difference between the “pressure” and “accountability” factor is a product of awareness and elevated consciousness. Whereas in school, we were more less unconscious about the influence and implications of peer pressure, in business we are conscious about both. Peer accountability is invited in as an instrument of support, ownership, co-creation, expanding potential, deeper fulfillment and responsibility. Whole Foods knows it, Costco knows it, Trader Joes knows it…and so do Google, Facebook and Southwest Airlines. Plus many, many more companies that have broken free and moved beyond the limitations imposed by less evolved methods. A well-designed, implemented and communicated peer accountability format is a game changer. Moreover it can free managers up to pay greater attention to coaching/facilitating their team members as well as addressing any organizational or process related obstacles to their team’s performance. Those that participate in healthy, constructive peer accountability groups get to determine group ethics, set goals, establish and measure action, contribute value, support one another and stand for both their own excellence as well as the needs of the group. The unique attributes inherent in the peer accountability instrument form a tour de force unmatched by the influence of most existing management methods. Implemented well, it’s the secret sauce—perfectly blended to stimulate vitality and enrich performance. Stimulate engagement and accountability through the unique process of Peer Accountability. Learn how...

  Money is one form of energy. It’s the form of energy that most businesses tend to focus in on. Financial reports, profitability statements, quarterly earnings—all are valid and important. But the focus is almost exclusively on this one form. The truth is, businesses are comprised of multiple energy sources and the most potent of these is the human being. This proposition can be easily proven…humans created money. We are the energy that created money. No business has ever sprung up from the earth untouched by human beings, and simply generated money. We humans, as the creators of money, are the more powerful energy source. But, business paradigms oftentimes reverse the pecking order and place financial value squarely ahead of human value. That’s a big mistake. It’s “the cart in front of the horse” kind of mistake. And, while it is largely unrecognized and unrevised, is proving untenable. When energy is tamped down and controlled, it first causes stagnation, and decay. From there it can move into disorder and chaos. We’re talking universal law here. Energy is not something you want to dominate, it’s something you want to invite in and let flourish and flow. Ebenezer Scrooge well illustrates how keeping a closed fist on money can backfire. But, how does keeping a tight fist on human energy show up? It shows up in plummeting worker engagement, deteriorating health and chronic illness, eroding relationships, diminishing enjoyment of life and the negative attitudes many people hold regarding their job. When companies recognize and welcome the remarkable energy that people are and bring forward, they become energized and expansive. The potential of any human being is inexhaustible. The potential of many is unparalleled. It is exactly the great energy source that is available for the forward thinking organization. We have the tools, the knowledge and the ability to unleash human potential like never before. This awareness moves us to the brink of the greatest business opportunity in our history. Now is the time to bid farewell to the tired, cramped paradigm born of the Industrial Revolution and open up to the bountiful, extraordinary possibility of the Human Evolution. Are you ready to seize the opportunity? Your company’s number one asset and energy source are your people. Download “8 Powerful Ways to Energize Your People” to learn how to turn your company into a people and potential...

  It’s easy to be yanked forward and backward in business. Let’s face it, the areas that demand a leader’s attention are vast and ever changing. Technology, forever promising greater efficiencies, has largely added to the already impressive heap. Communicating used to be straightforward, demanding very few choices. You simply built a fire, grabbed a wet blanket, and sent your message. Now, there are so many various channels of communication, it becomes a question of which channel, for what reason and for who. Added complexity. Now, I’d like to be clear… I have nothing against complexity. Complexity is amazing and fascinating—it’s naturally tied to evolution and I’m all for it. However, as a business leader navigating multi-faceted efforts and relationships as well as energetically guiding the company forward, added complexity is not always helpful. In fact, it can seductively rob attention, hijack energy and eventually wear a good leader down. Getting clear on the complexity that actually serves your performance as a leader and releasing that which doesn’t, can be profoundly valuable. Part of this “complexity awareness” includes exploring your relationship with the past and the future. In business, we have both learned and inherited this notion of placing enormous value on the past and the future via voluminous reports and forecasts. Unfortunately, this can prevent us from taking a good long gaze upon what’s actually happening right now. “Now,” is the playground of life and business. The rest are either stories or dreams. Both the story of what we’ve done and who we’ve been, along with the dream of what we are becoming and where we are going, are vital to the healthy operation and growth of a business. But, a reticence to clearly observe and act in the “now,” is a liability. The truth is, the only place things get to happen is now. Being present to what is going on right now in the company, can become a leader’s most valuable “action.” Observing, listening, interacting—becoming aware—have the power to reveal insights greater than any story or dream ever could. When leaders expand their ability to be present-minded at work, they are opening up a huge opportunity for themselves and the company. Practicing mindfulness in concert with a keen awareness of past and future, can be a powerful trinity for business building and business leadership. Interested in getting clear on where your company is right now? Discover the New MBA and sign up for a Needs Discovery...

  Aha! There it was, staring me straight in the face. For months I had been on the look out for a word to replace “Manager.” I had Thesaurus-ed it like crazy, finding all sorts of possibilities, but nothing new ever hit the mark. Meanwhile, I had been reading study after study lamenting the critical rise of disengagement in the workplace—52%, 68%, and, Gallup’s most recent number, a whopping 87%! The creep towards greater disengagement was in full swing, and I had no replacement word for Manager. If you’re wondering why I was so keen on replacing the word manager, the reason is this: When it comes to people and their performance, “managing” is not the best tool for the job. If you’re interested in boosting performance and fortifying the company culture, a lot of time and energy will be expended trying to tighten a bolt with a screwdriver. Here’s why—if you ask a hundred people if they believe traditional business management brings out their best, you will hear a resounding NO. People, by in large, don’t respond positively to being managed. One of the key reasons is that management itself tends to establish the parameters of what needs to be done and how to do it. A sort of “jump this high” mindset. It leaves little room for creativity, authenticity and aspiration—the juice of higher-level action and performance. Secondly, it is oftentimes steeped in a “command/control” legacy-based marinade that people naturally resist. Nobody likes to be commanded or controlled. They may put up with it, they may inure themselves to it, they may grit their teeth and soldier on… but they’ll likely never move into their potential. Managing is simply the wrong tool for the job. On the other hand, management is an ideal instrument for the non-living aspects of business. Numbers, metrics, technology, automation and process are perfectly suited for management. But for living things like people, a different approach is needed. Something in better alignment to humans and our potential for remarkable action and performance. It’s important to remember, that remarkable performance is an inside job born of trust, support, commitment and inspiration. It’s fostered, not exacted. Which brings us back to my search of a new word for manager. Strangely enough, it had been staring up at me all along, partly contained in all those studies regarding workplace (dis)engagement. If engagement is what’s missing in business, isn’t that what’s needed? Eureka! Behold the Engager—people dedicated to engaging others to shine. Helping others to create powerful ways to move into their potential—to excel, to innovate, to exceed. The Engager is connected to the people in their charge and intentional about bringing out the best in each...

  Try as you might, you won’t find that intersection on Google Earth, Bing or Tom Tom—these technologies simply aren’t programmed to know it exists. But interestingly enough, many companies operate from that location just the same. To be fair, this isn’t simply a phenomenon of the business sector. It’s also true for people, cultures, governments as well as our educational, medical and religious institutions. The pull towards the symptomatic and the desire to quickly fix that symptom is both seductive and habitual.  Add to that, that examining and considering things as a whole is rarely modeled. We have become conditioned to view and interact with much of life from the perspective of its separate parts. When it comes to business, that tendency can generate chaos. Issues arise that are deemed problematic and if they are attended to, the issue is likely dealt with or “fixed” in isolation of its root cause. Disconnected from the true source of the problem, these “fixes” are oftentimes short lived, with the added liability of creating new symptomatic problems in a different area or down the road. It becomes a vicious cycle: like pulling a weed whose root is really part of an underground network. You can pull and pull and pull those weeds and never impact their spread. Enduring solutions require intention and time. Time to examine and explore beyond the superficial and nearer the core, time to identify, weigh out and administer the solution. Unfortunately, we often feel time is in short supply. It’s important to remember, that problematic “quick fixes” can generate their own time-consuming consequences. That, in itself, is worth a moment’s thought. Beginning to see things in a business systemically, as a whole, is critical to identifying cures and not just fixes. Such a perspective has the power to broaden and deepen both understanding and awareness. It helps connect the dots. Companies can begin by first gaining a sense of what the internal stakeholders of each business area are experiencing, both good and bad. When this feedback is laid out, connections and patterns will emerge. These patterns are the bellwether, they will tell a story, they will give clues and point in a needed direction. In most cases, discovering a root cause and its cure, need only be done once. The need for quick fixes, however, can go on forever. Sign up for a Needs Discovery Conversation to get the vital feedback you need to grow your...