Here we are a year and ½ later since the start of the pandemic and no one ever expected we would still be dealing with pandemic related issues. If you thought you were stressed and burned out a year ago, I can only imagine what you are feeling now!

As leaders I’m sure it has been incredibly difficult to hold it all together with so much uncertainty for so long, a challenging business environment and all the people issues you’ve had to deal with.

Maybe if you (like many) haven’t gotten it totally right this last 18 months, as organizations bring their employees back to the workplace slowly, now may be an opportunity to review and revise your approach and there’s good reason to do so right now.

In 2020, over 40 million people lost their jobs and now all of a sudden we are in the middle of ‘The Great Resignation’, people are looking outside their organizations for new work in record numbers and there are lots of open positions. (In fact 2.7% of the US workforce quit in April 2021, and a survey from Microsoft found that 41% of the global workforce is considering leaving their current employer within the next 12 months.)  Many employees have realized they don’t love what they do and many are not going to put up with it if the environment they find themselves in right now is lacking.  People don’t leave organizations; they leave their managers so there is a lot you as a leader can do to stem this potential tide of resignations.  And it is so much cheaper (and rewarding) to keep an employee than having to recruit and hire a new one, especially if a few little changes in your leadership style might make all the difference for them. Read more

Some people love to network, others do not.  And especially now in the time of Covid, in the middle of a worldwide pandemic, people are worried that it might not be ‘appropriate’ to network, especially if you are looking for a job, or want to pivot your career.  But if you think about it, the worst thing you can do if you have not talked to someone for a long time and now need a favor, is to reach out in the guise of asking how they are doing, and then ask for something for yourself, instead.  People will see right through you.  So for that reason alone, it is critical to network on an ongoing basis, no matter what is going on in your life, and how hard you think it might be.

Most people equate ‘networking’ to sticking a name tag on your jacket and bravely entering a room of strangers. And while we can’t do that anymore anyway (silver lining!) networking is really more about building meaningful relationships, about serving people and earning their trust and respect. Because humans are social beings, and I think we’ve discovered now more than ever, that we need to feel deeply connected to others to thrive. We want to be seen & heard by others, so essentially ‘connecting’ is vital for our overall wellbeing.  And connections start with communication which is what networking is all about. Read more

A few months ago, the economy was going strong and there were tons of job openings. You may have been contemplating a job or career change or were perfectly happy with what you were doing. And then everything changed in the blink of an eye. Who could have predicted the scenario we now find ourselves in worldwide, or the fact that millions of people have suddenly lost their jobs? It is a tough time for everyone having to deal with this pandemic and my heart especially goes out to those who now don’t have a job as well.

But always in crisis there is opportunity and while hard to think of it that way, now could be a time to take a fresh look at your job and career prospects, short and long term. Consider taking a consistent combination of focused actions every day to do this. Think of it as a journey and you’re taking incremental steps each and every day to get to your destination. There will be hurdles and roadblocks, but you will overcome them.

Whether you need a new job just like you had before, or wish to change or pivot to something different, here are 4 steps you can implement now to get going on that journey: Read more

In 2013 when Sheryl Sandberg wrote her book Lean In, she talked about how ‘sluggish’ the progress was in regards to women’s compensation in the workplace. She reminded us that “in 1970, American women were paid 59 cents for every dollar their male counterparts made.” By 2010, 40 long years later, that had grown to only 77 cents. 8 years later, in a most recent Lean In study in 2018, that’s rocketed up by 3 cents to where women in the US are now making 80 cents for every dollar that a man makes in a similar role. And while white women in America are making 20% less than men, Black women are making 39% less and Latinas 47% less. Some countries in the world are a little better than the US but overall worldwide, women are paid 23% less than men in similar roles.

It’s hard to believe that when this conversation started all those many years ago, more hasn’t been done to close this gap. But perhaps in the 3rd decade of 21st century with awareness at an all-time high (see Fortune’s article in October 2019 on the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team), the time is finally ripe for some real changes. Read more