Insights
Field notes from the arena
Short reads on the pressure, politics and hard calls of leading at scale, drawn from years inside Fortune 100 leadership teams.
Featured · Under pressure
The Blame List Is a Symptom
I sat with a client I’ve worked with for years while he went through his version of that list. When he finished, I said: “You know the next name on that list is going to be mine.”
Blame is what pressure does when it has nowhere left to go.
All pieces
Bring this thinking into the room
Every piece here grew out of work with real leadership teams. A keynote, workshop or consulting partnership takes it further.
Start a conversation →The Fear Isn’t Failure. It’s Irrelevance.
Irrelevance means the game moved and nobody thought to tell you.
Earn the Permission to Change It
The fastest way to fail is to start changing it before you understand what you’re changing.
An Introvert in a Culture of Speed
Under pressure, puffing up or shrinking back can feel like the only options.
Two Warring Leaders, the Same Two Values
Each side had assumed they were the only stewards of those two important values.
Candor Is a Chess Game
The hardest part about Compassionate Candor isn’t the conversation.
Learn the Language of the System
Because every system has its own distinct language—a way that things get done.
The Power of Being an Outsider: Turning Doubt into an Edge
Being an outsider can make you question everything. But the people who don’t fit in are often the ones who change the game.