Share what you know with millions of people

Focus is the best place to turn what you know into remarkable content

×

Barry Zweibel

Follow Following Unfollow

Executive Coaching | Leadership Development | Career Acceleration, LeadershipTraction

396 points

Even the smartest, most capable, people get stuck or stymied at times. Barry Zweibel, MBA, Master Certified Coach, helps them regain their focus, clarity, and perspective – quickly, and meaningfully – so that they can attend to what's been holding them back.

WEB: LeadershipTraction

May 7, 2012

2 people recommends this answer by Jim Watson

Why do employees in an organization often resist changes?

Hi Barry,
You said...
" The onus is on management to articulate why the change is compelling and necessary. If they can't, then it's not.""
I fully agree with the first half: Management is indeed responsible to articulate the benefits of changing.
But I disagree ... more

Human Resources

Change Management

Company Culture

Dec. 16, 2011

Barry Zweibel and 5 other people answered this question

How do you know if you have a clear vision for your company?

You know if you have a clear vision for your company if you overhear staffers talking about it when you're not right there beside them ... and can recognize your message/vision in what they're saying!
Similarly, you know you do NOT have a clear vision ... more

Entrepreneurship

Dec. 14, 2011

Barry Zweibel and 5 other people answered this question

What are the defining characteristics of digital era leaders?

zeroes and ones! :)

Human Resources

Information Technology

Dec. 2, 2011

Barry Zweibel and 43 other people answered this question

When is it acceptable to "bend the truth" on one's resume?

Lots of interesting consensus on this one. So much so, that I decided to actually look up the word "embellish" in Websters' dictionary:
From http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/embellish
em·bel·lish verb \im-ˈbe-lish\
Definition of EMBELLISH
transitive verb
1: to make beautiful with ornamentation : decorate
2: to heighten the attractiveness of by adding ... more

Human Resources

Nov. 22, 2011

Barry Zweibel and 3 other people answered this question

What are the best tactics and strategies to keep office gossip at a minimum?

My experience is that gossip tends flows from soft deadlines, lax requirements, and low expectations on the part of the boss – coupled with boredom and/or fear.
So refocus their attention by giving the gossipers MORE WORK and TIGHTER DUE DATES. Then let them self-select ... more

General Management

Human Resources

Nov. 22, 2011

Barry Zweibel and 4 other people answered this question

How do you get people from outside of your organization to adhere to deadlines?

Simply ask this: "Is it that you don't WANT to help me or you don't know HOW to help me? If it's the former, then I need to talk with your boss; If it's the latter, then we need to talk to your boss together."
Works ... more

General Management

Customer Satisfaction

Nov. 22, 2011

Barry Zweibel and 4 other people answered this question

Does having your CEO engage on Twitter encourage trust/ loyalty with customers and employees?

In that it likely won't be the CEO who's tweeting as much as his/her admin doing it "on behalf of," better the CEO stick to running the business and let whoever's handling social media tweet sans obfuscation. Otherwise, customer and employee trust/loyalty will likely trend ... more

Human Resources

Customer Experience

Employee Engagement

Nov. 15, 2011

Barry Zweibel and 7 other people answered this question

Does technology in the workplace allow us to be more human or does it make us less human?

Okay, just to be contrary, I think that technology makes us MORE human:
» The humanness of our frustration peaks when we get stuck in "voicemail jail."
» The humanness of our respect and regard for others peaks when we get heart-warming email, text message, poke, ... more

Human Resources

Aug. 30, 2011

Barry Zweibel and 14 other people answered this question

What are the most common challenges managers face?

Nice thread. I see many leaders struggling with Role Clarity – for their work group, individual direct reports, and even themselves. Who is supposed to do What? Why are THEY doing that instead of me? Why is that MINE to do instead of someone else's? ... more

General Management

Human Resources

June 12, 2011

Barry Zweibel and 11 other people answered this question

"Leadership" has become a popular issue. How do you define "leader"?

Was the initial point that leaders simply HAVE followers, or that leaders are people who are so compelling in what they do, how they do it, and why they're doing it that others WANT to follow them?
Then, it's the leaders job to insure that ... more

General Management

Human Resources

June 10, 2011

Barry Zweibel and 3 other people answered this question

Why aren't more people comfortable with conflict in the workplace?

Being able to engage naturally, easily, respectfully, and constructively in the midst of a conflict is something we all can learn – and is something that can serve us all well, once learned. That we can then help others improve their own conflict competencies raises ... more

General Management

Human Resources

Conflict Resolution

Feb. 25, 2011

Barry Zweibel and 30 other people answered this question

What is your favorite music to listen to while working on a big project?

http://radiotuna.com/ providers my "big project" music of choice. From their web site: "Radio Tuna is the first real-time search engine for online radio, and we’re the only radio search engine that profiles stations based on the music they play, rather than what they say they ... more

General Management

Feb. 25, 2011

Barry Zweibel and 15 other people answered this question

What is your least favorite corporate buzzword/consultant-speak?

Nice 'verbification,' Tiffany! tee-hee.

Human Resources

Boiling the Ocean

Feb. 23, 2011

Barry Zweibel and 9 other people answered this question

What are your 3 best practices for fostering employee engagement?

Here are my "3" suggestions:
1a) Ask for their recommendations, and then authorize several of them -- not because YOU think they're good ideas, but because THEY think they're good ideas (and you DON'T think they're 'dangerous' ideas).
1b) If you've already made up your mind as ... more

Employee Engagement

Feb. 22, 2011

Barry Zweibel and 4 other people answered this question

What's the toughest call you've ever had to make as a professional?

Telling my employer's Board of Directors that, as an officer of the company, I would not implement an initiative they were considering, even if approved, because of the ethical and potentially legal exposure it would subject my staff to.
"We don't care if YOU go to ... more

General Management

Business Decision

Feb. 22, 2011

Barry Zweibel and 4 other people answered this question

How would you coach an executive who wants to confront and overcome mediocrity in his team?

You can always coach him on the situation he's grappling with, Chad, but you might want to try coaching him on his own ATTITUDES and BELIEFS, first -- that's where the brightest light bulb moments typically come from.
So I might start by asking something ... more

General Management

Feb. 22, 2011

Barry Zweibel and 4 other people answered this question

What is the best leadership book, and why?

ONE *best* leadership book?! No such thing, if only because what's likely a *best* for one person is quite likely not even on the short list of must-reads for another. And vice versa.
Plus, given the right set of circumstances, can't pretty much *any* book ... more

General Management

Leadership Coaching

Leadership Communication

Feb. 12, 2011

Barry Zweibel and 13 other people answered this question

Do you think HR needs to take up the role of the "coach" to the organization?

Howard, I think you misunderstood what I was saying.
My point had very little to do with “the innate skills and abilities” that HR personnel (or external coaches) possess – or any coaching competencies that HR personnel (or external coaches) have or could learn or develop ... more

Human Resources

Performance Management Process

Talent Management

Feb. 7, 2011

Barry Zweibel and 12 other people answered this question

How do you respond to "That's not how we do things around here"?

If I were you, I'd discretely ask each nay-sayer if you could sit down with him/her sometime in the next few days to tap into his/her understanding of things and to get some feedback on what you've been thinking about. Not only will you likely ... more

General Management

Innovation Strategies

Feb. 3, 2011

Barry Zweibel and 11 other people answered this question

Is it possible to become good friends with your staff while maintaining your position of leadership?

If in your Moments of Truth you choose to be a friend first (who happens to be the boss), you'll likely run into problems with your own boss about your decision-making, and judgement.
If in your Moments of Truth you choose to be a boss first ... more

General Management

Human Resources

Jan. 23, 2011

Barry Zweibel and 2 other people answered this question

What is your biggest challenge when it comes to delegation?

Here are some ways to think about WHAT to delegate:
+ if it's something you already know how to do, delegate it
+ if you know how you'd mop up if things went wrong, delegate it
+ if someone cares more about it than you, delegate ... more

Jan. 23, 2011

Barry Zweibel and 1 other person answered this question

Why are tweets only 140 characters?

Per Twitter - http://bit.ly/c3oFPU:
"Why 140 characters? We like to keep it short and sweet! It also just so happens that 140 characters is the perfect length for sending status updates via text message. The standard text message length in most places is 160 characters ... more

Jan. 19, 2011

Barry Zweibel and 3 other people answered this question

i want to become a storage consultant

Great ideas for taking things to the next level, Reda. I stopped where I did in my initial answer because it wasn't entirely clear to me if Vinay knows enough about what a consultant (or junior ... or trainee) actually does on a daily basis ... more

Information Technology

Jan. 19, 2011

Barry Zweibel and 1 other person answered this question

Do you allow your employees to take personal calls & texts during work hours?

Three thoughts on this:
Thought One: Do you call and text your employees AFTER work hours -- or while they're on personal/vacation days, at conferences/seminars, during their lunch breaks, etc. -- about work-related stuff?
Thought Two: When you -- or customers, clients, co-workers, Big Dogs, etc. -- ... more

Business Policy

Jan. 19, 2011

Barry Zweibel and 1 other person answered this question

What are some good ways to increase employee bonding?

Here's an exercise I like to call "What I Like About YOU, Parts I and II"
1. Schedule an 'extended' staff meeting so no one is rushed.
2. Pick someone of your choosing and ask the group, "What do you particularly like about [this person]? Remind ... more

Human Resources

Jan. 19, 2011

Barry Zweibel answered this question

If I want to Tweet to a certain keyword, what's hashtag protocol?

Here's a nice summary of what hashtags are all about, from our friends over at Mashable.com: http://mashable.com/2009/05/17/twitter-hashtags/.
Seems like you might also be interested in creating/following a Twitter List: http://mashable.com/2009/11/02/twitter-lists-guide/.
And as long as we're in the neighborhood, here's a nice article titled: "What Makes ... more

Jan. 19, 2011

Barry Zweibel answered this question

What are your favorite "lifehacks," and how have they boosted your productivity?

I like to refer to the 13 Maxims in the book Improv Wisdom, by Patricia Ryan Madson:
1. Say Yes
2. Don't Prepare
3. Just Show Up
4. Start Anywhere
5. Be Average
6. Pay Attention
7. Face the Facts
8. Stay on Course
9. Wake Up to the Gifts
10. Make Mistakes, Please
11. Act ... more

Human Resources

Employee Motivation

Jan. 19, 2011

Barry Zweibel answered this question

What are some good ways to overcome workplace distractions?

One of the best antidotes for workplace distractions is working on meaningful work. So go ask your boss for a new assignment that really resonates for you.
Special Secret: To maximize the chances of getting a project that really 'works' for you, tell your boss ... more

Employee Productivity

Personal Productivity

Following 6 Topics

Customer Service

General Management

Human Resources

Following 0 People

Followed by 11 People

Knowledgeable in 52 Topics

Human Resources

#40 of 1481

General Management

#57 of 1194

#63 of 1456

Talent Management

#34 of 470

#269 of 2156

#438 of 2984

#9 of 123

#63 of 466

#4 of 59

#4 of 87

#55 of 372

#3 of 21

Career Advancement

#3 of 23

Employee Motivation

#4 of 30

#8 of 41

Career Development

#64 of 311

#74 of 356

#92 of 386

#347 of 1429

Information Technology

#587 of 2263

Human Resource Management

#9 of 35

Performance Review

#12 of 41

#17 of 42

#22 of 66

#21 of 80

#29 of 103

#46 of 105

#35 of 126

Small Business Advice

#13 of 21

#9 of 22

#14 of 22

#14 of 28

Employee Morale

#14 of 30

Time Management

#15 of 34

Events and Trade Shows

#21 of 36

#29 of 40

Leadership Development

#31 of 44

#17 of 47

Work Life Balance

#29 of 51

Small Business Strategies

#36 of 52

#29 of 56

#50 of 59

#42 of 67

#47 of 74

#86 of 159

Employee Engagement

#130 of 175

#139 of 194

#228 of 339

#234 of 341

#243 of 419

#382 of 466

#407 of 822