Marcella Bremer's Blog: Marcella Bremer's blog, page 6

The Golden Rule says, “Do Unto Others As You Would Have Them Do Unto You.”

Guest post by Brian Fulghum. In a recent discussion, some people said that the “Golden Rule” is wrong or at least misguided. As the argument goes, people like different things, like things differently, and disagree about everything. How can we expect that treating people as we want to be treated will lead to any sort of agreeable outcome? If I’m ... Read More

Mindfulness and agile leadership

Guest post by Gareth Wilson. The challenges of modern leadership are growing and complex. The good news is that many leaders already have several of the key traits needed to overcome them – a desire for self-improvement and the will to succeed. However, will and motivation cannot be truly effective without direction. That’s why I’d like to discuss mindfulness; what ... Read More

Eileen Fisher: “We Need To Figure Out How To Get Free”

Eileen Fisher is an American fashion designer and founder of the women’s clothing retailer Eileen Fisher Inc. The company celebrated its 30-year anniversary and has over 1,000 coworkers. For these last thirty years, Eileen Fisher has looked at clothing through the lens of confidence and empowerment. Eileen has always been passionate about using her company as a voice for change ... Read More

Cultivating Organizations – Background to The New Ecology of Leadership

Guest post by David Hurst. What if people were like plants and organizations were like gardens? Would managers and leaders realize that they can’t grow either people or organizations directly: that they can create only the conditions for growth? Would they begin to cultivate their organizations? David Hurst gained many insights when he started to think more like an ecologist ... Read More

Becoming Whole at work: Personal Development to Change the Organization

Most organizational development and change programs start in a top-down way and focus on the “what” and “how” for the organization. But as we’ve seen in earlier articles about Theory U: the “who” of change makes the difference. The level of awareness of the participants of a system defines the outcomes of that system. It matters “who” you are: it defines ... Read More

Book Review: Business Secrets of the Trappist Monks

Ora et labora: the twin pillars of monastic work are of equal importance. For a Trappist monk work is a form of prayer and prayer is a form of work. They practice mindfulness. August Turak, an American salesman and serial entrepreneur, went to Mepkin Abbey, South-Carolina, when he needed time to think – and he kept coming back for years. ... Read More

Does Your Team Understand What You Say?

Guest post by David Dye. Recently, I dropped off a friend at the airport. As I pulled away, a man in a traffic-control vest stood in between lanes of traffic, waving his hand. His index and middle finger were extended as he made eye contact with me, waved his hand repeatedly up toward my car and then down, pointing at ... Read More

Christian Felber and the Economy for the Common Good

What is the role of a company in the universe? When an organization is founded, the question is Why? Is the answer: to produce clothing so people can stay warm – or whatever they create? Or to maximize profits for the founders and the investors? Christian Felber shows the audience in Vienna at the “Evolution of Organization” conference (organized by ... Read More

Breakaway from Workplace Bullying

Guest post by Leslie Yerkes. One of the ways in which people try to effect change is through bullying. The act of bullying can be physical, emotional, psychological, or sexual. There are three aspects of bullying: being the bully, being bullied, or stopping bullying when you see it. Bullying may be common and a common part of living but it ... Read More

Improving and innovating With Ideas From The Bottom

Guest post by Jehan Joy Tandingan Gesta. There’s usually a natural rate at which organizations improve. It’s 2 to 2.5% per year but if you manage it – if you think of how to improve and innovate and you take action, you will have a different result. If you manage improvements consciously the rate ranges from 12% to 17% over ... Read More