Rodger Dean Duncan's Blog, page 10

In a World of Bad Behavior, a Call for Personal Accountability

When I was a boy of about five, I loved thumbing through my grandmother’s nature books.

One day I came across a full color photo of a butterfly emerging from its cocoon. I was fascinated by the image, and my grandmother gave me a brief tutorial on metamorphosis. It was the biggest word I’d ever heard.

Later that day I was introduced to another big word: conscience.

When my grandmother left the room, I carefully and quietly tore the photo out of the book.

Something inside my five-year-old brain a...

How to Care, Coach, and Connect in Your Workplace

What object is several times larger than most homes, can comfortably accommodate enough people to populate a small town, weighs more than 400 tons, and can fly?

The answer, of course, is a jumbo jet. By employing laws of physics discovered by Newton, Bernoulli, and others, the jet is able to overcome its own mammoth weight and create the lift that allows it to soar.

When it relates to human performance, the airplane metaphor is apropos. Many “people programs” that manage a promising takeoff even...

Character Is a Muscle. Are You Exercising Yours?

If it seems that the business news is jammed with stories about churn in the C-suite, you’re not imagining things. In fact, CEO turnover is at an all-time high.

If that simple fact were not troubling enough, consider this: for the first time in history (as of 2018), CEO firings for ethical lapses exceeded dismissals for things like financial performance or board struggles.

Granted, running an organization can be a day-after-day onslaught of. In fact, getting caught up in the constant demands of ...

Take a Fresh Look at Your Work, Focus on What Fulfills

You get what you work for, not what you wish for.

That truism is no longer just a motivational poster. It’s the mantra of virtually every industry on the planet.

Thanks to the pandemic reality check, people everywhere are reassessing virtually every issue associated with work.

The adoption of technology has been accelerated (hello Zoom, Skype, Dropbox, Google Drive and a host of other tools).

The structure and management of meetings have been re-evaluated. For many people, business travel is onl...

How Can You Be Sure Your Work Really Counts?

As the great philosopher Forrest Gump once postulated, “Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.”

That seems to be true with so many things. Ordering a meal at a new restaurant comes to mind.

Or hiring someone to repair that gizmo you bought online.

Or trying out the weight loss regimen that’s incessantly pitched on that infomercial.

But with some things in life, mindful attention to certain human behaviors really can produce predictable results.

Take work, for exa...

Are You Really a Team, Or Just a Group of People?

“None of us is as smart as all of us.”

Yes, that’s a cliché. But like a lot of clichés, this one is often true.

Much has been written and even more has been said about teamwork. A large percentage of the rah-rah “motivational” posters stuck on the walls of employee lunchrooms promote teamwork.

Trouble is, just cheerleading for teamwork doesn’t make it happen.

In fact, a lot of what passes for teamwork doesn’t really—well, it doesn’t really work.

Scott Tannenbaum and Eduardo Salas want to change ...

Can ‘Doing Less’ Be Smart for Your Business?

We live in a world of change. That’s nothing new. It’s always been so. And the only way to make sense of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance.

That’s not to say that change is easy or without risk. Most studies show a 60% to 70% failure rate for organizational change projects. That disheartening rate has stayed fairly constant since the early 1970s.

Fortunately, some smart practitioners have figured out how to beat the odds. One of them is Dr. Michael Canic. He’s presid...

Can ‘Doing Less’ Be Smart For Your Business?

We live in a world of change. That’s nothing new. It’s always been so. And the only way to make sense of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance.

That’s not to say that change is easy or without risk. Most studies show a 60% to 70% failure rate for organizational change projects. That disheartening rate has stayed fairly constant since the early 1970s.

Fortunately, some smart practitioners have figured out how to beat the odds. One of them is Dr. Michael Canic. He’s presid...

Proactive Thinking During a Time of Pandemic

“Be Proactive”

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve no doubt heard that admonition. And you may even recognize that two-word mantra as Habit 1 of Stephen Covey’s classic book 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.

That habit is about taking responsibility for your own life. It’s about refusing to blame genetics, circumstances, or conditions for your behavior. It’s about deliberately choosing to take charge.

In today’s Covid-obsessed world, being proactive is more timely than ever.

On the...

Even During a Pandemic, It’s Possible to Thrive

While the Covid pandemic has brought heartache, disruption and a sense of overwhelm to millions, others seem to be managing unscathed. In fact, some people seem to be thriving.

It reminds me of an economic downturn years ago. At a business conference I talked with executives from dozens of companies.

Some of them said things like “These times are really tough. Sales are down, our market share has shrunk, and we’ve having to lay people off.”

At the same conference, leaders from companies in the s...