Yes, it pays to be nice! I recently returned from a 10-day silent meditative retreat. Now, “silent” is a bit of a misnomer, to be sure. Just because I am not talking for that period in no way means I am fully silent. It simply means I am more present than […]
Finding fault is not leading. Assigning blame is not correcting the issue. Over the years I have noticed the common response to mistakes or breakdowns in organizations is “whose fault is it?” Punishment is to follow. Over time people learn to: Avoid mistakes over taking calculated risks Hide their mistakes, so nothing […]
That’s why they are called blind spots! “If you knew it was there, they wouldn’t call it a blind spot.” […]
Science speaks of elegance as something in its essential and simplest form. In humans, awareness is clearing away of the continuous disruptive chatter in our brain, wherein we see something clearly, obviously, and elegantly. It may start with recognizing that “chatter” as a function of external input. Awareness comes with a quality […]
A few years back I was in a program that was led by an aeronautical engineer who had been a Project Manager on the Challenger Space Shuttle. As you may recall, 73 seconds into launch the Space Shuttle exploded. The cause ultimately was reported to be the “O” rings inability […]
What’s the Big Deal about Culture? We have been dealing with culture and its impact on organizations for some 25 years. It’s interesting to us, after so many years of culture mostly being relegated to the “soft stuff” in organizational consulting, that all of a sudden, companies are paying attention. […]
We All Have Fundamentals This newsletter is usually a recap of Momentum’s Fundamentals, which is part of “the Fundamental process”, our approach to building High Performing Cultures. We have 26 Fundamentals, behavioral practices, at Momentum and we feature one every week, not just for you, but for us also. We […]
While thinking about what to write for the monthly Newsletter, which typically recaptures the last four Momentum fundamentals of the week, I was looking at those last four FOW’s to see if I thought there was a common denominator. There was, in fact, I realized it was there for all […]
Address issues by discovering the root cause rather than focusing on the symptoms or the consequences. Continually seek improvement by developing long-term solutions. What is the most common response to a sudden crisis, breakdown or problem? Like seeing flashing lights in your rearview mirror, it’s usually followed by some four-letter […]
Honor the trust others give us. Be rigorous about keeping all information in confidence and be vigilant to safeguard it. In my professional life, I find it essential to keep my private conversations with others confidential, unless I have explicit permission to share what we discussed. This has trained me […]