What is the Result of Perfection on Future Generations?

Yesterday’s post focused on perfectionism and the fear of failure.  This is another perspective on how perfectionism is playing out in the younger generations today.  In this article by Thomas Curran and Andrew Hill called Perfectionism is Increasing and That’s Not Good News, studied 41,641 American, British and Canadian college students between 1989-2016 to look at perfectionism in a few different ways.  Their findings determined that “recent generations of young people are more demanding of themselves, perceive that others are more demanding of…
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Why is Everyone So Afraid to Fail?

Brene Brown who is an author and research professor found that so many people are hiding behind this mask of trying to be perfect in order to avoid failure, shame and vulnerability.  It can be scary to show the “real” you vs the one that you let them see.  This realization really struck home with her when she read this quote from Teddy Roosevelt, “When we spend our lives waiting until we’re perfect or bulletproof before we walk into the…
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Monday Morning Leadership Q&A – 2/5/18

Client Question: “I know that I am only 1 month into this new role, but I just feel overwhelmed with all that I have to learn.  I think I may be in over my head when I compare myself to everyone else who seems to know so much.”  It is very common to have self-doubt at the beginning of a new role.  Everyone goes through this same feeling.  You knew so much in your old role and people came to…
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Fantastic Leadership Resource Summary – 2/2/18

Resources to inspire you in your leadership journey!    Video Playlist Topic: Ted Talks on How to Love Work Again (click on this link to watch all the videos) The Happy Secret to Better Work by Shawn Achor How to Find Work You Love by Scott Dinsmore A Kinder Gentler Philosophy of Success by Alain de Botton Grit: The Power of Passion and Performance by Angela Duckworth Why It’s Time to Forget the Pecking Order at Work by Margaret Heffernan How to Make Work…
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When Did You Learn How to Collaborate?

I just read a thought provoking article in LinkedIn about culture and how Kindergartners collaborate better than MBAs.   Author Daniel Coyle shares that “at some point, we exchange our willingness to experiment and jump into new projects for the need to size each other up. But great organizational cultures focus on action rather than posturing.” Does the willingness to collaborate change as you move into grade school?  Is it when you start to see that there is competition among each…
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I Think it is Time for Some Inspiration

I wanted to share something that I thought was very inspiring today from Octavia Spencer.   This partial video and link to her speech at the Kent State Commencement last year has so much great advice from someone whose life could have taken a much different path.  Her life differed in ways that she couldn’t even have predicted for herself.  She is an amazing actress who has won an Academy Award, SAG awards, a Golden Globe and many others for her…
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Do You Have a Dream That You Want to Make a Reality?

Would you leave your full time job to go start a business in the recession?  Would you hire people that many other companies would never even consider?   For most people the answer to those two questions would most likely be a “no.”   People who would say yes to these two questions would be defined as big risk takers.  The kind of people who don’t let anything stand in the way of their vision to not only build a business, but…
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Monday Morning Leadership Q&A – 1/29/18

Client Question: “I don’t like dealing with workplace politics.  I know that I have to do it to get things accomplished.  How can I do this while still being true to myself?” Workplace politics has traditionally been seen as something that has a negative connotation.  Politics happens in most every job no matter where you work.  There are people that seem to navigate politics with little to no effort at all, while others have the internal struggle that you are…
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Fantastic Leadership Resource Summary – 1/26/18

Welcome to the Fantastic Leadership Resource Summary!    Share your feedback, ideas and suggestions here: take this quick survey This week’s summary includes:  leadership trends, what predicts how long you will live, values of great leadership, making employees feel valued, finding a business mentor, career advice, skills of the future, asking for feedback Articles/Ted Talks/Quotes: Don’t Let This Year’s ‘Leadership Trend’ Hurt Your Overall Professional Growth by Nathalie Salles ​​​​​​​  No one leadership tool is the holy grail, one-size-fits-all solution   The…
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What Can You Learn From Someone Else?

I truly believe that you can learn something from everyone that you meet.  They may share some lesson or a piece of advice with you during a conversation over coffee.  Maybe there are just sharing some plans that they want to execute and you realize that is something that you could apply to a project that you have too. It is about being open to learning and improving yourself.  Trying new things and measuring the  success by whatever outcome you…
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