A co-founder, at odds with his partner (also his best friend!), reaches out to his coach for help saving the business and the friendship.  The episode introduces The Conflict Resolution Wheel. it for free from our Essential Tools bin along with other communication tools like the Feeling Words Grid. The Wheel is based on a tool in the Couple Communication course, a program to help you understand and connect with your partner better. The course’s workbook, Talking and Listening Together, is meant for self-study. It’s available for purchase online.  Another book Tom references in this episode is the classic Crucial Conversations. This episode is in our podcast library in three categories: Communication Skills Managing Yourself Relationship Building Five episodes that will help you continue to develop your conflict resolution skills are: Conflict The Conflict Conversation Creating Safety for Hard Talks A Difficult Conversation Resolving Conflict Every month our Essential News email provides links to even more resources. You can sign up here. Thank you thank you thank you to those of you who post reviews. You make such a difference to us. Thanks for ing the show! Let us know how we can you. Until next month, from Tom and everyone at The Look & Sound of Leadership, be well! And thanks!  

A senior leader, having risen through the ranks, ends her coaching engagement by comparing notes with her coach about the skills that have helped her most.  This episode identified seven essential leadership skills: Conquer catastrophic thinking; Use fewer words; Value relationships as highly as results; Don’t take anything personally; Commitment to Development; Reflection; Speak for Yourself. Resources to develop those last three: Commitment to Development The Executive Executive – an episode with a different list of essential skills Four Factors Executives Need to be Successful – another list of essential skills [email protected] – my email address if you want help thinking about your own development The Ability to Reflect Mindfulness Resources Building Self-Awareness Speak for Yourself The Four Agreements – Agreement #1: “Be Impeccable with Your Word” Episodes to build assertion: Showing Teeth The Voice of Authority Assertion v Aggression  This month’s episode lives in our podcast library in these three categories: Executive Presence Leadership Self-Talk Five episodes to help you with different skills are: Building Empathy “Don’t Take Anything Personally” The Executive Executive Personal Connections Short Sounds Confident Our monthly email has links to more resources. You can sign up here. All our infographics are available to you for free in the Essential Tools bin. Let us know how we can you. Until next month, be well! From Tom and everyone at The Look & Sound of Leadership, thanks!

At the end of her rope, a leader asks her coach for help managing a direct report who, she says, is the most defensive person she’s ever met.  This episode was packed with tools. We’ve put them into an easy-to-understand infographic. it for free here.  Kim Scott, the best-selling author of the electric book Radical Candor, wrote a short, friendly guide with tools for handling defensive employees. Find it here. Harvard Business Review’s Amy Gallo talked with Dave Stachowiak on this episode of the Coaching for Leaders podcast. As with every episode of Dave’s, this is indispensable.  To work on “deserving” dive into The Four Agreements.   To dig deeper into tools for taming defensiveness, search our podcast library in these three categories: Communication Skills Management Skills  Relationship Building Five specific episodes on this topic you could listen to are: 7 Steps to Stop Emotional Hijacks Be Impeccable with Your Word  Handling Defensive Behaviors Managing Bad Behavior Managing Disruptive Executives Sign up to get our monthly email with links to resources that each episode. Calling all COACHES! Come our Executive Coaching special interest group (SIG) sponsored by the Los Angeles Chapter of ICF. Check out our SIG and all the others here.     Or shoot me an email with your questions. I’m at [email protected]. All our free infographics are in the Essential Tools bin. Your reviews ing the show help us continue as an ad-free podcast.  Let us know how we can you. Until next month, be well! Thanks from Tom and everyone at The Look & Sound of Leadership.

During her first C-suite years, a leader burned a lot of bridges. Her boss, who’d traveled a similar path, gets her a coach and sets only one goal: repair relations through emotional intelligence. Lots and lots of tools and resources this month: Free s: The Feeling Words Grid EQ Model Books and papers to sharpen your skills “Executive Presence: The Missing Link between Merit and Success”  “The EQ Edge: Emotional Intelligence and Your Success” “Thanks for the : The Science and Art of Receiving Well” “Executive Presence” from Center for Talent Innovation This episode is tagged in three categories in the Podcast Library: Executive Presence Managing Yourself Personal Growth & Self-Development Five episodes to help you command a room: 109 Building Emotional Intelligence  146 Building Empathy 155 The Human Element 69 Leadership & Self-Deception 17 Speaking for Yourself  Please help yourself to any (or all!) of our free infographics in the Essential Tools bin. Our deepest gratitude to those who post reviews. Thank you!!!  Let us know how we can you. Until next month, be well! Tom and The Look & Sound of Leadership team. 

A highly effective leader finds herself in the middle of a terrible mess, not of her own making. When her coach marvels at her ability to stay calm amidst the chaos, she shares a lesson she learned from her dad. In addition to the tools discussed during this episode, Tom also talks about: “Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes are High.” Conversations with Coaches – Episode #184 Executive Coaching Special Interest Group The Feeling Word Grid This episode is tagged in three categories in the Podcast Library: Managing Yourself Perception – How You Perceive Yourself Self-Talk Five episodes to help you manage during difficult times: 109 - Building Emotional Intelligence 52 - Coaching versus Therapy 152 - Combating Emotional Hijacks 75 - “Don’t Take Anything Personally” 171 - Taming the Wild Child All our free infographics are in the Essential Tools bin. Your reviews ing the show help us continue as an ad-free podcast.  Let us know how we can you. Until next month, be well! Tom and The Look & Sound of Leadership team. 

Wanting to command rooms with her voice, a team leader turned to her coach for exercises. She learned the secrets of “RVP.” In this episode, five practices to help you develop a voice that will command a room are discussed: Vocal variety Expect resistance Rhythm Volume Pitch This episode has multiple tips and tools for each of those five development areas. The Zootopia clip that gets so much attention is here:    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HHKwnUa3txo This episode is tagged in three categories in the Podcast Library: Communication Skills Executive Presence Presentation Skills Five episodes to help you command a room: 186 Video & Executive Presence 120 Captivate Your Audience 77 The Power of Rehearsal 64 I  Talk Too Fast! 34 Keeping Repeated Material Fresh All our free infographics are in the Essential Tools bin. Thanks for ing us with your reviews. Let us know how we can you. Until next month, be well! Tom and The Look & Sound of Leadership team. 

In conversation with her coach, an executive explores whether leaders and managers use language differently in order to be effective in their roles. There are lots of ideas in this episode. To help you sort the tools and put them into practice, we’ve created an infographic for you to . It’s in the Essential Tools bin along with all the others. Help yourself! This episode is tagged in three categories in the Podcast Library: Leadership Management Skills Perception – How You’re Perceived Five related episodes you might listen to are:  139Engagement & Performance 138Managing Disruptive Executives 140 Showing Teeth 148Taming Meetings 156The Voice of Authority Much gratitude to the folks who post reviews. We appreciate your and all your kind words. Let us know how we can your growth and development. Be in touch with us here.  Until next month, be well! Tom and The Look & Sound of Leadership team. 

An executive, in conversation with her coach, wonders if leaders and managers are different. And whether it matters. This episode has lots of ideas flying around. To help you sort the tools and put them into practice, we’ve created an infographic for you to . It’s in the Essential Tools bin along with all the others. Help yourself!  This episode is tagged in three categories in the Podcast Library: Leadership Management Skills Relationship Building Five related episodes you might listen to are:  139Dynamic One-on-Ones 138How Teams Fight 179 Managing Former Peers 148Taming Meetings 156The Voice of Authority We are so grateful to those of you post reviews. It only takes you a minute or two, but it makes a world of difference for us.  Our purpose is to your growth and development. Let us know how we can help. Be in touch with us here.  Until next month, be well! Tom and The Look & Sound of Leadership team. 

A leader, stuck in an unhealthy cycle, searches for a way out. In conversation with his coach, he learns a four-square tool that just might work. A new free Essential Tool illustrating the four-square model is available for in the Essential Tools bin. No required. Help yourself. The model in this month’s episode is a variation on The ACT Matrix. Here’s our favorite YouTube video about The Matrix. The creators of The ACT Matrix wrote a book to help practitioners use the tool. This current episode is tagged in the library in three categories: Developing New Behaviors Managing Yourself Self-Talk Here are five episodes to help you get unstuck:  7 Steps to Stop Emotional Hijacks* Blind Spots How to Build Self-Awareness* How to Grow your Self-Management* How to Show Up * Indicates there’s a PDF in the Essential Tools bin to the ideas in that episode. We are so excited to dive into the new year with you all!  All the best, Tom and The Look & Sound of Leadership team. 

A team leader had a habit of jumping to conclusions. His most recent leap landed him in hot water. In conversation with his coach, he learns a tool for making better choices. We created a new free Essential Tool illustrating The Ladder of Inference. It’s in the Essential Tools bin along with all the others. Please help yourself. The “Don’t Judge Too Quickly” ads are on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UP8NRgWtPaE&t=18s This current episode is tagged in the library in three categories: Managing Yourself Perception – How You Perceive Yourself Personal Growth & Self-Development In addition to the various episodes listed above, five that will help you think about your thinking are:    102 – Getting Unstuck 210 – How to Grow Your Self-Management 63 – Positive Opposites 154 – Self-Limiting Beliefs 190 – Thinking Errors Safe and sane holidays, everyone. See you in the New Year!  With gratitude, Tom and The Look & Sound of Leadership team. 

A senior executive worries that his lieutenants are not being taken seriously by the senior leadership team. He discusses with a coach how to help his rising leaders accelerate their growth. This is that conversation.      We created a new free Essential Tool for you called “Executive Thinking.” It illustrates the “altitude” analogy Tom told during the episode. It also s one of the four exercises you can do with your team. Additional Essential Tools that other exercises are “Before You Write Your Presentation” and “Sorting & Labeling.” Liberating Structures is the free resource Tom was raving about. The specific exercise he mentioned was TRIZ.  Tom has talked about Liberating Structures in the episodes “How to Re-engage a Team” and “Leading Offsites.” If you’re approaching year-end performance reviews, there are tools to you – no matter which side of the review you’re on! – in Performance Reviews.  Tom referenced two shows that can help you learn Sorting & Labeling. Coaching For Leaders with Dave Stachowiak: The Way to Make Sense to Others. The Everyday Innovator with Chad McCallister: How Product Managers Look & Sound like Leaders. This current episode is tagged in the library in three categories: Executive Presence Leadership Perception – How You’re Perceived In addition to the various episodes listed above, five that relate specifically to executive thinking are: 180  Becoming Expert 193  Branding Yourself 202  The Executive Executive 178  Executive Presence – Three Pillars 11  Sounding Executive As we hurtle in our year-end traditions, stay mindful! Tom and The Look & Sound of Leadership team. 

A leader causet among her people is given a coach. In conversation, they examine what might be triggering people to be upset with her. The exploration leads to a simple, yet difficult, idea. Transcripts of every episode are available for in our library.  Tom mentioned two episodes with mindfulness tools. They are:  The Mindful Executive The Focused Executive. This episode is filed in three categories in the library: Managing Yourself Personal Growth & Self-Development Self-Talk In addition to the mindfulness episodes, five other related episodes are: 204 Blind Spots 119 Creating Devoted Followers 171 Taming the Wild Child 190 Thinking Errors 96 The Many Parts of You Listen to Tom’s conversation with Kim O’Hara on “You Should Write a Book About That.”   Listen to Tom’s conversation with Marcel van de Hoef on “The Happy Investor.”   Gratitude to those who POST REVIEWS. You are life-sustaining! Thank you! Got a question you think a coach could help with? We’re happy to talk! Get in touch with us here.  Until next month, stay healthy and be well. Tom and The Look & Sound of Leadership team. 

A team leader is tired of kerfuffles. In conversation with her coach, she learns to use a simple chart that generates almost miraculous results. The chart is available to you here. Please, help yourself. Other tools for leading your team that Tom mentioned in this episode include The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni.  You can a sample of the team development tool based on the book that Tom mentioned. The Five Behaviors of a Cohesive Team assessment is available to you here. If you’re looking to pick Tom’s brain a little more, all his interviews are available to you in Conversations. His conversation on Keys to the Shop is available here. His conversation on Next Gen Leadership is available here.  This month’s episode is tagged in the Podcast Library under  Leadership Leading Teams Management Skills  Related episodes you might listen to are:  91   Facilitating Open Dialogue 149 How Teams Fight 181 Inviting Dialogue 175 Leading Offsites 148 Taming Meetings 195 The Intentional Leader   As ever, we cannot give enough thanks to those of you who post reviews. Thank you for your and kind words. Got a question about your career and how coaching might help? Get in touch with us here.  Until next month, stay healthy and be well. Tom and The Look & Sound of Leadership team. 

What’s helpful to say when you’re in an argument? How can you prepare to have an argument? This month’s coaching conversation dives deeper into the topic of “Conflict” which began last month. This episode has scripts and concepts for mastering The Conflict Conversation.  We’ve created another PDF to your leadership development. It’s a model detailing actions and intentions for you. If you’re serious about your leadership, you have to be serious about mastering the art of . Grab this Essential Tool and dig in. It’s waiting for you in our Tools bin.  This month’s episode is tagged in the Podcast Library under  Communication Skills Relationship Building For Women Related episodes you might listen to are:  #61  A Difficult Conversation  #73  Disagree Agreeably  #72  Getting Agreement  #27  Repairing Damaged Relationships  #88  Resolving Conflict    Thanks this month, and every month, to those of you who post reviews. We are so grateful for your and kind words. If you have a question about your career and how coaching might help, be in touch with us here.  Until next month, stay healthy and be well. Tom and The Look & Sound of Leadership team. 

Conflict is inevitable, but most of us were never taught skills to help us find our way through the dark corridors of this house called “Conflict.” This month’s coaching conversation illuminates predictable patterns and practical tools to navigate successfully through Conflict House.  If you’re looking to develop your executive presence, our latest PDF is for you. It talks about the four factors every executive needs to be effective. It’s free. You can find it in our Tools bin.  Help yourself.  This month’s episode is tagged in the Podcast Library under  Relationship Building Related episodes you might listen to are:  61  A Difficult Conversation  73  Disagree Agreeably  72  Getting Agreement  27  Repairing Damaged Relationships  88  Resolving Conflict    Tom references the book “Difficult Conversations: How to Discuss What Matters Most” by Stone, Patton and Heen, from the Harvard Negotiation Project. As always, thanks to the folks who post reviews. We are so grateful for your and kind words. If you have a question about your career and how coaching might help, be in touch with us here.  Until next month, stay healthy and be well. Tom and The Look & Sound of Leadership team.   

A leader, often reticent to speak up on her own behalf, learns tools to help her ask for what she wants without worrying she’ll incite a battle. This month we’ve created another free PDF for you in our Tools bin. This one is to help you use video playback to achieve The Look & Sound of Leadership. This month’s episode is tagged in the Podcast Library in these three categories: Assertiveness Communication Skills Managing Yourself Related episodes you might listen to are:  188 Boundaries 164 Conflict 165 The Conflict Conversation 86 Intimacy in Business: Setting Boundaries 88 Resolving Conflict We send gratitude to the people posting reviews. Thank you for your and kind words. If you have a question about your career and how coaching might help, be in touch with us here.  Until next month, stay healthy and be well. Tom and The Look & Sound of Leadership team. 

Kindness is killing a leader’s ability to set and hold effective boundaries. She works with her coach to find her voice and along the way discovers an empowering image about boundaries. We’ve put lots of free PDFs in our Tools bin to help you achieve The Look & Sound of Leadership. This episode is tagged in three categories in the Podcast Library: Assertiveness Managing Yourself Self-Talk Five related episodes you might listen to are:  216  7 Steps to Stop Emotional Hijacks 204  Blind Spots 188  Boundaries 210  How to Grow Your Self-Management 190  Thinking Errors Much gratitude to the folks who post reviews. We appreciate your you’re your kind words. Let us know how we can your growth and development. Be in touch with us here.  Until next month, be well! Tom and The Look & Sound of Leadership team. 

A worried leader seeks help finding balance between going with the flow and giving himself a larger voice. Visit our Tools bin for free PDFs to help you achieve The Look & Sound of Leadership. This episode is tagged in three categories in the Podcast Library: Assertiveness Managing Yourself Relationship Building Five related episodes you might listen to are:  21Eliminating Distractions 59  Focus in the Face of Distractions  30Self-Knowledge as Leadership 184    The Focused Executive 142    The Mindful Executive Tom also talked about two books in this episode: “Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience”by Mihaly Csikszentmlhalyi “The Trust Advisor”by David Maister, et al  Thanks to everyone who posts reviews, and thanks so much for your kind words!  Let us know how we can your growth and development. Be in touch with us here.  Until next month, be well! Tom and The Look & Sound of Leadership team. 

A missed promotion prompts a leader to complain to her CEO. The CEO responds by getting her a coach, which results in explorations of authenticity, self-awareness and self-management. Visit our Tools bin for free PDFs to help you achieve The Look & Sound of Leadership. This episode is tagged in three categories in the Podcast Library: Managing Yourself Perception - How You Perceive Yourself Perception - How You’re Perceived Seven related episodes you might listen to are:  #71 – Act “As If” #204 – Blind Spots #110 – Creating New Behaviors #103 – Self-Awareness & Self-Management #85 – Stop Giving Away Your Secrets #190 – Thinking Errors #51 – When Learning Makes Things Worse Thanks to everyone who posts reviews. And thank you so much for your kind words!  Let us know how we can your growth and development. Be in touch with us here.  Until next month, be well! Tom and The Look & Sound of Leadership team. 

A leader, ashamed of hurtful words she spoke to a colleague, explores what happened with her coach. She learns seven techniques for keeping herself from future emotional hijacks.       a free PDF about the seven steps to help you stop emotional hijacks here. This episode is tagged in five categories in the Podcast Library:     Managing Yourself Perception - How You Perceive Yourself Perception - How You’re Perceived Personal Growth & Self-Development Self-Talk Seven related episodes you might listen to are:  #109 Building Emotional Intelligence #147 Conquering Fear #74  Dealing with Emotional Responses #142 The Mindful Executive #22  Negative Self-Talk #103 Self-Awareness & Self-Management # 171 Taming the Wild Child Post a review and help us cross the 1,000 review mark! As we hurtle into 2022, all of us here at The Look & Sound of Leadership wish you a wonderful year of health, growth, and curiosity. Tom and The Look & Sound of Leadership team.