Keith E. Webb's Blog, page 16
March 16, 2015
How To Follow Your True Calling, Not Someone Else’s
Following your true calling is an ancient problem. In Greek mythology, the beautiful songs of Sirens lured sailors to wreck on rocky shores. Today, Sirens lure us to abandon our calling with promises greaterhappiness elsewhere. There’s a powerful way to stayon course withyour true calling, one that the Greeks used.
Homer’s Odyssey follows theheroOdysseus on his epic journey homefrom the Trojan Wars. In one adventure, his shipneared the dangerous islands of the Sirens.The songs of...
March 9, 2015
How To Get People Into Action With One Simple Question
One of the toughest things in leadership is getting people into action. Idiscovered one simple, yet profound, question that motivatespeople to get into action.
People work hard. It feels like we are in action. We havemeetings, plan, write proposals, andconsult with others.These activities are one type of action. I think of them as planning-action.It’s easy to let planning-actionkeep us from the actions that produce something tangible: launch a product or service and generate revenue. I call th...
March 2, 2015
Risk Can’t Be Avoided, But Risk Can Be Reduced
There’s no getting around it, everything involves some risk. It’s easy to be paralyzed into indecision and non-action when faced with risk. Smart leaders don’t avoid risk, they reduce it. Here’s how.
I don’t think of myself as much of a risk-taker, but I have taken a lot of risks.
For five years my family and I lived in post-911 Indonesia, the largest Muslim country in the world. The whole time, the United States has a non-essential travel warning in place. There were terrorist threats and bomb...
February 23, 2015
How Leaders Can Be As Observant As Sherlock Holmes
“You see, but you do not observe. The distinction is clear,” said Holmes. Many people see just fine, but are observation-blind. Leaders need the ability to observe. Leadersmustrecognize patterns and understand the significance of what we see. Observation can be learned, asSherlock Holmes willteach us.
“My name is Sherlock Holmes. It is my business to know what other people don’t know.” –Sherlock Holmes inThe Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle.
I’m a big fan of Sherlock Holmes. I love the original...
February 17, 2015
The Shocking Mistake I Made About Time and Money
If you want breakthrough, to really multiply your impact, not to just double but go 10x or 100x, then you’ve got to changeyour mindsetregarding time and money. The problem is wecommonly view time as flexible and money as fixed, when it is actually the opposite! A time-rich, money-poor mentalityholds us back, and keeps us fromfully living out our calling.
When I was younger it seemed I had a lot more time than I did money. The shocking mistake I made was to mix up scarcity and abundance regardi...
February 9, 2015
How To Add Coaching To Your Organization
Ten years ago, many organizations were wary or evensuspicious of coaching. That sentiment has changed. Coaching has become apreferred learning tool in corporations, nonprofitsand in the public sector.You might be surprised who is doing the coaching!
There remains a lot of confusion in the marketplace aboutwhat exactly is coaching, but organizations, by and large, are attracted to it.And embracing it. A 2014 UK study showed76% of organizations offer coaching ormentoring.
Why the change of heart...
February 2, 2015
How To Stop Procrastinating And Get Done What Matters
“TheOvercoming Procrastination workshop has been postponed,” read the notice on Facebook. I think the organizers missed the irony! Procrastination is a huge problem. One that costs you money, credibility, and more importantly, opportunity. Here’s how to stop procrastinating and get thing done.
For 3 years, I’ve wanted to expand and publish a reflection journal for coaches that we now print ourselves and provide to our coach training participants. The journal would be betterwith more instructio...
January 26, 2015
7 Tips to Quickly Overcome Jet Lag
Afteryears of traveling across a lot of time zones I’ve learned a few tricks to overcome jet leg more quickly. Inthis article I’llshare 7 tipsto quickly overcomejet lag.
I just returned from a trip to Singapore where the time zone is 14 hours different than mine. Which means night and dayare switched. I was immediately busy leading a 5-day workshop, so I had no time for jet lag. I’ve tried many methods, schedules, and even a few apps to beat jet lag. I’ve settled on the most productive ways to...
January 20, 2015
12 Keys to Increasing Volunteer Engagement
Volunteer participation is the engine that runs our society. It’s not just churches and nonprofits who need volunteers, it’s every professional association, school, fire department, library, sports team, hobby group, and community pea patch. Everyone needsto increase both the number ofvolunteers and theirengagement. Here are 12 keys to help you do that.
I recently wrapped up my time as president of the International Coach Federation Washington State Chapter, a professional coaching association...
January 12, 2015
Shorter, More Frequent Coaching Conversations Are Better
You can be a great coach, but be lesseffective because your conversations are too long or too short or not frequent enough. This applies to anyone helping people grow: coaches, managers, parents, and ministers. What length, frequency, and delivery methods producethe most effective coaching conversations? Several studies point us to answers.
A study byCoaching Research Institute LLPpolled clients aboutthe behaviors and structures their professional coaches used and the resultingeffects on clien...
