A few days ago I received the gift of generous listening from a friend and colleague. It changed my perspective and lifted me out of the winter blues. She listened to my concerns without judging or trying to fix anything. She acknowledged me in a way that left me feeling valued and believing that my contributions make a difference. Our conversation reminded me that generous listening can change lives. Generous listening is more than a skill, and...
Finding Freedom from Self-Limiting Mindsets
Recently, while facilitating a workshop, I handled a participant’s question in a way that was experienced negatively by the participant and others in the group. My immediate reaction was that I had really blown it, harmed another person, ruined my credibility and damaged trust. My fall blog is about making a difference by choosing our “mindset” in responding to our circumstances. In this situation, I wished I could turn back...
When Expectations Aren’t Met: Responsive Employee Feedback
Greetings and Happy Summer! Recently, several people have asked for training or support for supervisors on giving feedback to employees. My summer blog shares some ideas and principles that I have found to be valuable in responding when employees don’t meet expectations. While the focus is on feedback from supervisors to employees, the principles apply in other situations. Rick Bowers, Mediation Consultants, LLC, shared valuable insights...
Transformation and Multicultural Organizational Development: What’s the Connection?
Greetings and Happy Spring! Today’s blog was inspired by a conversation with a potential client. The potential client was grappling with how to support organizations that have already done some work around cultural competence and want to engage in multicultural transformation. I hope you enjoy reading and welcome your feedback! How can leaders who want to build transformed, multicultural organizations conceptualize and approach this...
Responding to Tensions in the Community
Dear Laurin, Our organization serves people from different ages and backgrounds in the same facility. Cutbacks in services have resulted in increased tension in the community we serve. Recently we have had some conflict over the use of space for program activities. In one incident, an older white male community member told a group of male youth of color to leave a recreational space so he could use it. When they did not leave immediately, he...
