Perspectives on Change

Exploring the Human Side of Change

The Meeting Got Better After It Ended

Years ago, I was finishing up some work at an aerospace company when a group of managers invited me to sit in on a meeting they were having with some union members. It wasn't a contractual meeting or anything particularly tense. It was simply a group of people getting...

Three People. One Question

Every once in a while, I come across something that I simply want more people to see. Last week, I saw a LinkedIn post by Adam Lawrence that really caught my attention. I was taken with the simplicity of the idea — and with how that simplicity could lead to some...

Five Slides Were Enough: What Happens When We Leave a Little Space for People

I once worked with a scientist who was preparing to present an idea to other scientists in his organization. He had an hour, and everyone expected him to use slides. I asked him why. He laughed and said, essentially, “Because if you don’t have slides, people think you...

Empty black box theater stage with a single chair illuminated by a soft spotlight, representing space for reflection and possibility.

Decisions Make Themselves — If You Let Them

“We do not make decisions, decisions make themselves, but only if we’ve allowed ourselves to pave the ground by passionately exploring all of the options.” — Peter Brook, theater director Lately, I’ve been thinking about space. That thinking eventually led me back to...

Before You Make the Plan, Talk to the People

Early in my consulting career, I got a call about a department in a state government where management and labor were at odds. Important work wasn’t getting done. Tension had been building for a long time. Someone decided it was time to bring everyone together. They...

“I Hear You’re Having Fun. Stop It.”

There’s a story from the making of the 1945 film The Big Sleep that I’ve always loved. Apparently, Jack Warner, head of Warner Brothers, heard that the cast and crew were enjoying themselves while making the film. So he sent a memo down to the set: “Word has reached...