How Employees Lead With Emotional Intelligence
Leadership at work isn’t reserved for high positions alone. It’s most effective in the emotionally intelligent, no matter their title.
Getting The Visit
True story. Earlier in my fundraising career, I was working in Virginia and putting together a trip to Boston to visit some donors and prospects we had there. I still remember one particular telephone conversation like it was yesterday: I want you to read it and think of three things I did wrong.
Know Your Volunteers
People volunteer for many different reasons, which mean they also have different motivations for lending a hand. Regardless of the reason, if someone is willing to lend his or her time and talents to your organization, you should take the time to get to know them as individuals.
Your To-Do List
I’m glad you’re here – please, take a seat. There’s something we need to tell you.
The Next Chapter
“Instead of wondering when your next vacation is, maybe you ought to set up a life you don’t need to escape from.”
The Powers of Youth and Aging
When I ask most people what image arises when I say the word wisdom or ask them to picture a wise person, the most frequent characteristic is old age. This makes sense, because we assume by the end of a lifetime we will have seen and done enough to have wisdom.
Genuine Gratitude
I’ve never been happier to spend $300 on a flight in my life.
Several days ago, I boarded a Delta plane from Raleigh to Atlanta, the first leg of a two-segment flight home. I’d just been consumed with four consecutive days of client and senior team meetings, and as I hustled through the airport to my gate and into the aircraft, follow-ups and to-dos ran through my mind. Like we all do, I gave my “small portable electronic device” and its e-mails, texts and alerts all my attention until takeoff. The flight attendant’s and pilot’s announcements were just background noise.
Joy to the World
Many of us interact through social media, which can be a great tool to stay in contact, but it doesn’t foster deep connection. For example, I might see on Facebook that my cousin Sara just had a baby. I find myself thinking “Oh wow, cousin Sara just had a baby, how nice.” Now I feel connected to her since I am informed about her situation. I also might reach out and say, “Congrats” on her Facebook page.
Is It Nap Time?
One of our clients called me last Friday and said: “I’m tired.” I assured her that I could relate – after all, it was the end of the day and the end of a long week.
“No, I don’t mean just ‘tired,’” she continued. “I mean, I’m spent. I’m fatigued. I feel like every morning when I wake up, there’s less gas in the tank than there was the day before.”
