There's nothing quite like a sloppy email to undermine your authority. Rationally speaking we should be paying attention to the message and not the mistakes but realistically we do. Once you see them, it's all you can see. It's particularly damning when you're telling someone what to do. An email littered with spelling mistakes is … Continue reading Sloppy emails →

Sometimes it's not best to be authentic. Say for example when you're tired and irritable, for you to be authentic then, would be very unpleasant for everyone else. In this case it would be better to be a pro. A pro doesn't let their foul mood affect others. They can execute a controlled explosion so … Continue reading Authentic v a pro →

The object of feedback is there basically to understand what the problem is.You may have a feedback problem if: If you leave the receiver more confused about what the problem is. If it takes you an hour and 20 minutes to make one point. If you do 99% of the talking. A great way to … Continue reading Clear and concise feedback →

"Ah we'll be grand we have loads of time. Let's watch another YouTube video." A few hours later... "Oh my god we've so much to do. We're never going to get it all done in time" Has this ever happened to you? When you have ample time the easy thing to do is just push … Continue reading Loads of time →

Raising your voice in an argument to me is a big red flag. It indicates the following: You've lost control of yourself. You don't have a valid argument. You feel like you're going to lose. If you actually had a valid argument you wouldn't need to drown out the opposition. Another factor to keep in … Continue reading Raising your voice →

Is it any wonder that busywork becomes so attractive when the hard work beckons? That when you should be studying you're finally cleaning your room. This isn't a wondrous thing, this is a textbook tactic of the lizard brain. The sabotage gene who wants the road of least resistance. This phenomenon affects everyone but people … Continue reading Attractive Busywork →

In your travels whenever you asked for help did you ever come across a person who's go to response was 'I'm too busy' but then later on you see them very clearly lounging about and just killing time? As someone watching, this looks like very rude behaviour, they appear to have been lying. But before … Continue reading I don’t have the time →

If the answer is yes then you shouldn't be having this meeting. If the answer is no, then the purpose of the meeting should be clearly stated and everyone in the meeting should be on the same page. If you're looking to bring optimal brainstorming power to the meeting then you should provide all of … Continue reading Could this meeting be replaced by an email? →

Can you hear me? What about now? Can you hear me? Have you ever had a meeting that started like this? How long did it go on for? Everyone's very busy these days, as some people say time is money. Often you have to work very hard to get certain people to attend your meetings. … Continue reading Can you hear me? →

If you spend just a small amount of time answering this question before you start, you can save a lot of time fumbling in the dark. I've just started doing this practice and it has made a world of difference with my productivity. You can ask this question before a meeting, a research project, or anything really. … Continue reading What are you looking for? →