“The universe is made of stories, not atoms.” – Muriel Rukeyser, American novelist, poet, biographer, and screenwriter “Wherever a story comes from, whether it is a familiar myth or a private memory, the retelling exemplifies the making of a connection from one pattern to another: a potential translation in which narrative becomes parable and […]
Read post »Improvement Points is a free service providing a key thought or quotation from one of my articles, provided three times per week, directly to your e-mail inbox. Each complimentary Improvement Point links directly into the full article on our web site that spawned it. If you’d like to read more about that day’s Improvement Point, […]
Read post »An early Moose on the Table reader e-mailed me that she quite liked the book. But she bitterly complained about not being in a position of power and authority as Pete Leonard (the central character) and the other characters in the book. She was very right about this book being directly applicable to those in […]
Read post »A day after long time Improvement Points subscriber, Larry Beckon, received the following Improvement Point he sent me the e-mail below: "A thirty-eight year old man was at his parent’s home for Sunday dinner. He mournfully turned the discussion to his many problems, ‘I’ve just left my third failed marriage, I can’t hold onto a […]
Read post »In the November Leader Letter I announced we were building a Moose Gallery and asked for stories and photos (see “It’s Moose Hunting Season”). Within a week of that issue hitting inboxes, I had three readers send me the following photo and story: Pogo Moose Incident – Fairbanks, Alaska "They were laying new power cables […]
Read post »Way too many teams – and often entire organizations – are trapped in the communication maze. This results in waste and rework, reduced productivity, workplace accidents, and plummeting morale. Of course, turnover also increases as frustration leads good people to look for more rewarding work elsewhere. As you can read in the Preface to Moose […]
Read post »Since the fictional approach of Moose on the Table is such a big change from my previous books (although Growing the Distance and The Leader’s Digest have fictional elements with fables and stories sprinkled throughout) I’ve been quite keen to get feedback from readers. So Curwin Friesen, President of Friesens Corporation, made my day when […]
Read post »The following are a few “personal application ideas” I pulled together in an extensive redesign I have just completed for a practical implementation workbook based on Growing the Distance for my Practical Leadership Strategies for Peak Performance workshop. Search out/collect stories of inspiring people who have overcome large obstacles in their lives (see examples from Growing […]
Read post »There are many reasons people work. Here are what I think are the three main categories: Job A means to some other end Providing financial support I don’t expect much else from my work Often little loyalty or emotional commitment (“work is a four letter word”) Move on if a better job (usually more money/benefits) […]
Read post »In The Leader’s Digest, I wrote the following about the kind of culture or environment created by management teams: If you buy a little goldfish and keep it in a small bowl, it will remain no bigger than a few inches long. Move that same fish to a large aquarium and it will double or […]
Read post »Improvement Points is a free service providing a key thought or quotation from one of my articles, provided three times per week, directly to your e-mail inbox. Each complimentary Improvement Point links directly into the full article on our web site that spawned it. If you’d like to read more about that day’s Improvement Point, […]
Read post »“Hi Jim, I have two coordinators and 10 staff ranging from a financial officer to HR assistants and records clerks. Would this book be suitable for all staff or just the coordinators?" Bev Hi Bev, I actually wrote Moose on the Table (and we’ve priced it) to be purchased in bulk for everyone in an […]
Read post »Nearly three hundred readers responded to our survey regarding The Leader Letter. The ratings and feedback has been very useful and gratifying. Eighty-five percent rated The Leader Letter’s overall quality an eight or more out of ten. Other insights about which sections or regular features are most useful, along with the newsletter length, and why […]
Read post »A respondent to our Leader Letter survey question around what feature he or she would like to see added to the newsletter wrote: “I’d like to see a fable corner…perhaps a variation on the Moose on the Table book. It could be a fable with a ‘moral to the story’ component or it could be […]
Read post »As we track the patterns of growing traffic to our web site, we continue to see the vast majority of visitors come to read through my archive of nearly three hundred articles, book excerpts, and columns . Comments like this one from Luís always make my day! His feedback also lets us know that our […]
Read post »For those who don’t know, Toronto’s hockey team, the Maple Leafs are having a terrible year…again. Recently there has been a lot of talk about the future of the team’s General Manager and Coach. In this morning’s Globe and Mail, there’s a story in the Management Section, where I’m quoted in regards to the situation. […]
Read post »“A good rule of thumb from examining human history, the role of parables, and the influence of the Christian Bible: Never under-estimate the power of a good story.” – John P. Kotter and Dan S. Cohen, The Heart of Change: Real Life Stories of How People Change Their Organizations “When executives need to persuade an […]
Read post »I have used the moose-on the-table analogy for nearly ten years in my workshops, articles, keynote presentations, and The Leader’s Digest. As you can read in the Preface to Moose on the Table: A Novel Approach to Communications @ Work, I have an office full of moose stuff. I’ve also been collecting plenty of creative […]
Read post »One of the sections in the Courageous Leadership for Health and Safety training program we designed Barrick Gold (see July 2006 and December 2006 issues for more details) revolves around initiating courageous conversations using our moose quiz and moose hunting tips from The Leader’s Digest: Practical Application Planner. Recently their Health and Safety Director, Bruce […]
Read post »“I have coined the term ‘Discuss the Undiscussabull’ ™ which is the bull in the middle of the family business living room, and no one wants to talk about it. As a coach, I use the talking stick, a beanie baby bull which family members pass around at random when they wish to speak. The […]
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