If only more people spoke this honestly — Here’s the hard truth nobody will admit: unless you were fortunate enough to join Medium in the 1960s — back in its true heyday — you’ll never achieve the success to which several people have laid claim. Instead, you’re here now, stuck writing what I call “margarine articles.” (In the…

Remember that character from Office Space? — “FYI, we’re going to cancel the weekly Wednesday client meeting from now on,” said the email. This didn’t seem like a big deal at the time. Meetings come and go. But then I learned the meetings weren’t canceled. I was simply un-invited from them. I also realized I was “excused”…

Use systems thinking to figure out if a company is worth it — If you’ve never heard of the organizational theory “systems thinking,” let me tell you something: it’s a fantastic way to assess a business by looking at events, patterns, and structures. Like every organizational behaviorist out there, I’ve been thinking a great deal about the aspect of hiring in the workforce…

I miss my old self, but this is how it must be — It’s my own fault, really. I have a deep baritone voice, and sometimes when I speak, the sound doesn't carry as far or as loudly as I’d like. As it was in May 2019 when I visited my favorite Mediterranean restaurant for take-out. I approached the counter to order the…

Female colleagues claim the behavior is ‘distracting’ and ‘unprofessional’ — Women have always had an issue with the seductive way men dress in the workplace, as far back as guys were actually allowed into the workplace. Over the years, men have donned provocative and inappropriate clothing items like short socks, fedora hats, and brightly colored neckties. Such expressions have often…

Whether in sacred spaces, at work, or in life, all we need are decent humans — Organizations aren’t complicated. They’re simply places where human beings gather for some common purpose. In our personal lives, these places might be houses of worship like churches or mosques, or even places we volunteer like the YMCA or Big Brothers Big Sisters. In our professional lives, these are the places…

Equitable hiring goes beyond the initial job screening — “What do you expect to accomplish?” Hands down, this is usually the question I ask clients when we talk about some plan, procedure, or process they intend to activate. One such recent conversation was under the theme of equitable hiring. The organization wanted to try “blind” hiring, a practice long…

We don’t know who you are anymore — I consider you a friend, a mentor, a confidante. Or, at least, I did. That was until the coffee shop no longer required you to wear your face covering. My world has since been turned upside down. When this all hit the fan 27 months ago, we all began to…