The Thoughtful Leaders Blog
Posted by Robyn McLeod on December 1, 2011
Over the last several weeks the topic of multitasking has come up multiple times for me in discussions, articles, and television shows. Everyone seems to be talking about the implications and effects of trying to do several things at one time – and the impact of technology on this issue. Most experts and opinion-makers on the subject lament the destructive, stress-inducing effects of multitasking. They cite studies that show how productivity is negatively impacted by trying to complete a task while reading email and participating in a conference call.
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Posted by Robyn McLeod on September 22, 2011
Early in the development of our business we had a big meeting with a Vice President at a major bank whom we desperately wanted as a client. We created a well-organized presentation deck, thought through all that we wanted her to know about us, and set an intention to walk away from the meeting with a proposal opportunity. As the meeting progressed, we noticed that she was not saying much and did not seem fully engaged. So in wrapping up we asked if she had any questions for us and whether there was anything that would make her hesitant to work with us. Her response made me cringe. “It was great to hear about your work,” she said. “But you spent way too much time talking about yourselves and very little time finding out about me, my work, and what I need.” It was one of those palm slap to the forehead moments.
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Posted by Robyn McLeod on September 8, 2011
In teaching a program on Managing Conflict recently I asked participants to name some of the sources of conflict in their organization. They offered many suggestions about the things that cause conflict to arise, and the strongest sources of conflict, the ones that seemed to generate the most nods of agreement and emphatic responses, centered around communication – lack of communication, miscommunication, conflicting messages, and misinterpreted messages.
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Posted by Robyn McLeod on July 14, 2011
In the new movie, Horrible Bosses, three very frightening managers make life miserable for their employees – lying, abusing, harassing, berating, and manipulating them – so much so that three friends band together to take matters into their own hands and end their misery. Now while I certainly never had a boss with the over-the-top behavior Hollywood created, the premise of the movie did bring to mind my own Horrible Boss experience.
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Posted by Chatsworth Consulting Group on June 27, 2011
“It takes two to speak the truth – one to speak and another to hear.” Henry David Thoreau
Usually when I think about this quote, I envision myself in front of a classroom, emphasizing the importance of listening and truly hearing in building effective relationships. These are both important; that is an undeniable truth.
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Posted by Robyn McLeod on May 19, 2011
The other day my daughter and I were discussing the challenges and rewards of working at a large corporation. As someone who is relatively early in her career, she is learning how to navigate the political landscape within her company and how to deal with the wide variety of personalities and characters she comes across in the workplace.
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Posted by Chatsworth Consulting Group on May 2, 2011
“Listen to everyone. Ideas come from everywhere.” Tom Peters
I have a client whom I challenge to listen more fully to people – even people, and especially people, in whom he has no interest. “Go ahead,” I urge, “See what you can learn from them, especially since you expect to learn nothing.”
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Posted by Chatsworth Consulting Group on February 28, 2011
“Listen to your life. All moments are key moments.” Frederick Buechner
The other day a colleague stopped me to share his news. It seems he had been recently going on “auto-pilot,” simply moving from moment to moment, and person to person, issue to issue, trying to get everything done, and then a snow storm stopped him.
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Posted by Robyn McLeod on February 11, 2011
Thoughtful leadership – it’s a term we have coined to describe the skills and principles of “thought-centered” leadership – personal reflection, self-awareness, strategic thinking, focus, and commitment. It’s moving from an “I’m so busy, I can hardly think” multi-tasking, rush-to-the-next-meeting mentality to one that says “I’m so busy, it’s time to slow it down, sharpen focus, and think.”
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Posted by Ben Dattner on December 1, 2010
In many organizations I have encountered during my consulting career, people have complained about “Cobbler’s Children Syndrome”. Like the proverbial children of the shoemaker who go without shoes, I have consulted to technology companies that have outdated computer systems, marketing firms that don’t market themselves in any way, and consulting firms that fail to put into practice for themselves a single theory or model upon which they have built their businesses.
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View Robyn McLeod's profile
I have always felt like I was an outsider because I wasn’t able to focus for long periods of time. I would always end up with the office where the most traffic passed or other ways to be around people. Now I see that the ability to multitask can be beneficial, not the detriment that people for years had attempted to make me believe. Thank you for this insight.
Thanks for your comment, Dwight! I found Cathy Davidson’s research and viewpoint very insightful as well. It’s so important to hear many perspectives on a topic and she offers a new way of thinking about multitasking. I’m happy it resonated with you and affirmed your need for regular task breaks.