Talking About Death and Happiness Death—and its relationship to life—has been pushing onto my agenda in the past month, so much so that when I sat down to write this month’s post, I found it impossible to not write about it. “But Jim, “you are possibly thinking, “isn’t this site about happiness and leadership?” Well, … Read more
I love to play with tight language, which is why Haiku has always been my favorite poetic form (17 syllables and rigid rules, yet infinite possibilities). I also love the brutal simplicity of six-word essays, a format over which I obsessed in high school (see https://www.sixwordmemoirs.com for more) Since January I have attended 28 … Read more
Some of my best ideas emerge from challenges posed by my clients. I was recently asked to create a keynote for a client’s All Staff retreat to tie Positivity into their overall theme, Speaking About What Matters. The final product blended my Happiness work with my core teachings on Conversation as Action. “What if,” I … Read more
Everyone deserves to be happy. That means you, too! It’s also super hard to remember that when you’re feeling out of balance and it’s affecting your ability to lead. So I’m pleased to offer you an abundance of resources to help you shift into happiness gear, and to keep exercising the muscles that enable you … Read more
Do The Holidays Make You Stressed? Next week in the United States we celebrate Thanksgiving, a holiday rooted in our agricultural past, when all would gather to give thanks for a good harvest that would see the community through a harsh winter. I confess that, for all the holiday’s focus on gratitude, I am not … Read more
Happiness is Noticed for its Absence… Picture this: I am sitting in a room with a leadership team who are frustrated with high levels of behavior often associated with employee disconnection: turnover, absenteeism, gossip, backbiting, lack of discretionary effort, cliquishness, zero input during meetings, constant griping about even the tiniest things, and a pervasive sense … Read more
The story you tell yourself about WHO you are has a huge impact on your leadership style. For example, if you declare yourself to be Efficient, your personal filters may zero in on deadlines and use of resources. Decisive may show up as moving fast and being in control. The more your work outcomes depend … Read more
Dear tribe members: If you celebrate the Great American Holiday of Thanksgiving, you will soon gather round a meal and give thanks for your blessings. Enjoy that moment. Know also that I appreciate you; Thanks for being part of this conversation. AND that’s not what this quick note is about. This is about the workplace, … Read more
In the past eight weeks I’ve spoken at conferences in six states, slept in ten different beds, flown four different airlines, negotiated three different time zones, and lived in two different homes. Yes, it happened. We finally moved into our new home… …and a new, multi-generational living arrangement. For over a … Read more
There are moments when Life Sucks, when failure is the only option, or when it’s easier to blame your problems on everyone else… because it’s just too damn exhausting to take personal responsibility. I get, I’ve been there. Just last week, in fact. BUT if you find yourself living in those spaces a lot, it’s … Read more