Perspectives on theWorld we Work in

Let’s face it. Most of us are terrible listeners. As we fought our way up the corporate food chain, our conversations were opportunities to prove our intellectual prowess. We wanted to get ahead and stay ahead, and that meant convincing others that our ideas were the best....

Picture this. The CEO needs to make a decision about a cost-saving measure, and has turned to your team for advice. In support of the initiative to go paperless, she wants to eliminate either pens or pencils from use by employees across the organization. The program will...

Over the past 10 years, I have been honored to explore and debate the essence of power with Dr. Tony Baron, Co-Founder of Center for Executive Excellence. Specifically, how power impacts leadership, how leadership impacts culture, and, ultimately, how culture impacts...

In 1992, neuroscientists in Parma, Italy, were studying cells in a monkey’s brain that fired only when the monkey raised its arm. One day, a research student walked into the lab with an ice cream cone. When he absentmindedly raised the cone to his mouth, the monkey’s brain...

We’ve done a great deal of work in the past five years on the intersection of neuroscience and leadership. It’s something that I’m particularly geeky about. With new technology like MRI scans, we can actually map connections between what today’s leaders navigate and the...

Unfriend anyone on Facebook lately? Avoiding someone because you’re afraid that the subject of politics, religion, or even the weather will come up? In a world that is growing more polarized by the day, there may be no more important skill than being able to hold a...

The CEO’s eyes were filled with tears. I was sitting across from him in his office, bracing myself for the news he was struggling to share. “I just made a deal to sell the company, and most of my team will be replaced” he said. “They’re going to take this very hard. I feel...

"The social responsibility of business is to increase its profits.” That statement was part of an article written by economist Milton Friedman for The New York Times Magazine 50 years ago this past weekend. In the article, Friedman argued that the more profits that were...

This year, the whole world was handed a life lesson in how to let go of control. Doing that requires embracing life as more of an improv act than a well-rehearsed Broadway play. While it’s always gratifying to see a play come to a neat close in the final act, it’s equally...

Last week, I attended the 11th Annual San Diego Women’s Week Leadership Conference. Since 2009, the full-day conference has capped off a week of events hosted by the North San Diego Business Chamber designed to inspire, empower and connect women of all ages and professions...