In the real world there are no gold stars for effort or report cards to gauge your progress. Yet a common mistake is treating work like school. As CEO and author, Sallie Krawcheck points out: Let’s not confuse what made us successful in school for what can make us successful in our careers. While an honor roll mindset can translate into a drive to succeed that lands you deals and accolades, it can easily...

Once upon a time, a prince and princess lived in stressful palace, surrounded by a stressful village, inside a stressful land. They knew it was stressful because everyone said it was. Their parents, the king and queen, worked from sunrise to sunset hearing issues from their kingdom, weighing the requests, and appropriating the collective harvest to the people of their land. The people also worked from sunrise to sunset,...

Her name is Mallory. At least it is for now. She’s the amateur sleuth in my new cozy mystery — or technically I should say my first cozy mystery. While I’ve written non-fiction books on leadership, trust, and self-development topics, and hope to write more, I’ve started a few mysteries over the years but never finished them. Mallory’s story might just be read by me. Who knows? But, I’m...

Have you ever wanted to hit the “pause” button at work – getting away for longer than your allotted vacation time allows? University professors have traditionally taken sabbaticals to recharge and refresh, and now more and more American workers are doing the same. Many employers, including MeetUp, McDonalds, Pantagonia and Morningstar, to name a few, offer sabbaticals – allowing their employees th...

Recently, I asked you (my readers!) to take a survey so I can learn more about what you struggle with when it comes to mentally and emotionally thriving in your career. I like to do this because it’s one of the best ways to get real, helpful feedback from the people I care about serving the most: you. This year I decided to do things a little differently. Instead of asking you boring, surface-level demographic ques...

The Stress Doc begins a series of essays on a leadership tool not always recognized: the capacity for purposeful and playful (and, yes, sometimes provocative) humor. The series begins by placing humor within the context of his “Passion Power” Model. The Doc begins to lay the ground for the motivating power of psycho-humor, followed by a definition of humor. Finally, the essay begins to flesh out two new concepts...

Recently I spent some time with my great friend Dr. Steven Berglas. Steven is an executive coach and management consultant who spent twenty-five years on the faculty of Harvard Medical School’s Department of Psychiatry and had a private psychotherapy practice in Boston. He is the author of five amazing books, including his most recent Stay Hungry and Kick Burnout in the Butt. Fascinated by Steve’s unique take on...

Are you wondering whether you should make changes in your career - and life? Are you satisfied with your job? Responding “yes” or “no” to the following questions, may help you get a clearer picture of whether you should consider a job shift. 1. Is your body sending you messages? Do you have lingering colds? Trouble getting out of bed on a work day? 2. Are you constantly thinking, “I can...

My great friend, Chris Cuomo, journalist and news anchor on CNN’s Cuomo Prime Time, has some ideas about a concept I use in my coaching. I call it “showtime.” What it means to me is exemplified by some of the greatest leaders I’ve ever met. These great leaders show up rain or shine. They don’t complain and whine, but like a kid on Broadway show up and do their part. I was curious to hear wha...

The summer is over. School is back in session. Business is picking up again. If you feel a renewed sense of motivation right now, you’re not alone. There’s mounting evidence that “September is the new January” when it comes to setting goals. In fact, studies find that enrollment in weight loss programs rises in the Fall, along with online searches about career development. It’s clear c...