The Thoughtful Leaders Blog
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 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 Robyn McLeod on March 25, 2011
Last week we blogged about the benefits of hiring an executive coach and offered a tool for assessing whether you are ready for coaching. As you probably are aware, we believe strongly in the power of coaching as a tool for achieving your goals, going for what you want, and being an even better you. Who wouldn’t benefit from that?!
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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 Chatsworth Consulting Group on November 22, 2010
“Listen a hundred times. Ponder a thousand times. Speak once.” Anonymous
When we talk about leadership, we can never speak enough about listening…maybe because no one really listens when we do! It’s so hard to listen. We’re driven to share something, to contribute, to show our intelligence…or to fight against an idea, to refute, to push back…or simply to get away to focus on what is truly important to us in that moment, whether it be another topic, another person, or even lunch.
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Posted by Robyn McLeod on October 21, 2010
I attended the TEDxGotham conference last week at Cooper Union and left inspired and motivated by the wonderful speakers and wave of ideas and new ways of looking at how we work and live. For those of you unfamiliar with TED, it is a nonprofit founded in 1984 devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It began with sharing knowledge and ideas from thinkers in the areas of Technology, Entertainment and Design – and has broadened to a range of topic areas.
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Posted by Lisa Kohn on July 23, 2010
My brother and I almost broke up over email. Well, instant messenger and then email.
We IM all the time. We joke. We play. We tease. It’s what we do. Only I joked with him one day, while we were discussing a tough family issue, and he misconstrued it and it went outrageously, quickly downhill from there. The IMs got tenser. The emails got curter…and meaner.
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Posted by Robyn McLeod on July 16, 2010
I learned a new acronym today – WAIT. It stands for “Why Am I Talking?” I have it up on the bulletin board in my office to remind me to talk less and listen more during my coaching and other important conversations. I am naturally more of a thinker than a talker, but there are times when I get so excited, passionate or incensed about something that I talk way more than I listen. I may even talk over or interrupt the other person as I look to get my point across or share my Very Important Bit of Knowledge.
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Hi Robyn,
This is one of my favorite acronyms, great to see it reinforced! I reference it in my coaching, and think about it with personal interactions too. Thanks for raising up!
Best,
Randi Raskin Nash
Randi,
You’re welcome! It’s one of my favorites too. It certainly serves as a great reminder that you have two ears and one mouth for a reason – and it’s amazing what happens when we use them accordingly.