how to identify your revealed values
ask for the edges of the venn diagram
one night only instead of a farewell tour
questions to ask your interviewer
nearby utopias
re-hiring in your new landscape
a good time to act like a teacher
the anti-romantic approach to the good life
minimizing the chance of triggering defensiveness
mechanics of a monthly half-day observation
to grow your people faster, change weekly 1-1's to monthly half-day observations
more on tutoring: for resistant coaches
more on tutoring: let’s try that right now
meetings as tutoring: bias toward action & practice
human teams are biased against introverts
decision rights for decision throughput
name the hidden x-th value
what if it’s all volunteering?
what if it’s all practice?
what my best bosses had in common
archive of all posts
-
January 2025
- Jan 23, 2025 essence and maintenance Jan 23, 2025
- Jan 23, 2025 getting it in, part 2: parents Jan 23, 2025
- Jan 23, 2025 getting it in, part 1 Jan 23, 2025
- Jan 16, 2025 shaping your culture with “always” and “never” rules Jan 16, 2025
- Jan 16, 2025 critique your boss (like you’re politically naive) Jan 16, 2025
- Jan 16, 2025 how to trigger (and increase) your emotional intelligence Jan 16, 2025
- Jan 9, 2025 don’t get too precious about your templates (in the messy middle) Jan 9, 2025
- Jan 9, 2025 show up with a draft (for proficiency, politics, and pace) Jan 9, 2025
- Jan 9, 2025 you have a struggling new leader Jan 9, 2025
- Jan 2, 2025 use a 50-person list for squishy problems Jan 2, 2025
- Jan 2, 2025 MVPs vs 11-star reviews Jan 2, 2025
- Jan 2, 2025 write a local lexicon Jan 2, 2025
-
December 2024
- Dec 19, 2024 tell the story of your signature challenge and your (meta) superpower Dec 19, 2024
- Dec 19, 2024 the “no complaining” rule Dec 19, 2024
- Dec 19, 2024 setting the overton window of complaint Dec 19, 2024
- Dec 12, 2024 write each sentence on its own line Dec 12, 2024
- Dec 12, 2024 three moves for successful delegation Dec 12, 2024
- Dec 12, 2024 what culture has taken root? look at your median and mode. Dec 12, 2024
- Dec 5, 2024 to escape jargon, ELI5 Dec 5, 2024
- Dec 5, 2024 when you’re worried you’re forgetting something Dec 5, 2024
- Dec 5, 2024 when you don’t know where to start Dec 5, 2024
-
November 2024
- Nov 28, 2024 mercy and sobriety Nov 28, 2024
- Nov 28, 2024 your power may be making you hard to read (or worse!) Nov 28, 2024
- Nov 28, 2024 ask “who is doing this better than anyone right now?” Nov 28, 2024
- Nov 21, 2024 correlation isn’t causation even when you worked hard and made it good Nov 21, 2024
- Nov 21, 2024 focus as stupefaction Nov 21, 2024
- Nov 21, 2024 cosplay to get unstuck Nov 21, 2024
- Nov 14, 2024 who will you be working for? Nov 14, 2024
- Nov 14, 2024 free coaching from Claude Nov 14, 2024
- Nov 14, 2024 emotional support [calendar] Nov 14, 2024
- Nov 7, 2024 two radical questions when you’re in the middle Nov 7, 2024
- Nov 7, 2024 avoid ambition as a mask for cynicism Nov 7, 2024
- Nov 7, 2024 relationships built through doing things together Nov 7, 2024
-
October 2024
- Oct 31, 2024 an artifact worth having: shorthand for minor, just-double-checking, having-your-back feedback Oct 31, 2024
- Oct 31, 2024 history vs hypocrisy Oct 31, 2024
- Oct 31, 2024 you have to tell people that the work speaks for itself Oct 31, 2024
- Oct 10, 2024 rote work as a chance to use an aspiring leader’s imagination Oct 10, 2024
- Oct 10, 2024 a question to avert data debt Oct 10, 2024
- Oct 10, 2024 choosing anti-values Oct 10, 2024
- Oct 3, 2024 quotation as eloquence Oct 3, 2024
- Oct 3, 2024 how to identify your revealed values Oct 3, 2024
- Oct 3, 2024 ask for the edges of the venn diagram Oct 3, 2024
-
September 2024
- Sep 26, 2024 one night only instead of a farewell tour Sep 26, 2024
- Sep 26, 2024 questions to ask your interviewer Sep 26, 2024
- Sep 26, 2024 nearby utopias Sep 26, 2024
- Sep 19, 2024 re-hiring in your new landscape Sep 19, 2024
- Sep 19, 2024 a good time to act like a teacher Sep 19, 2024
- Sep 19, 2024 the anti-romantic approach to the good life Sep 19, 2024
- Sep 12, 2024 minimizing the chance of triggering defensiveness Sep 12, 2024
- Sep 12, 2024 mechanics of a monthly half-day observation Sep 12, 2024
- Sep 12, 2024 to grow your people faster, change weekly 1-1's to monthly half-day observations Sep 12, 2024
- Sep 5, 2024 more on tutoring: for resistant coaches Sep 5, 2024
- Sep 5, 2024 more on tutoring: let’s try that right now Sep 5, 2024
- Sep 5, 2024 meetings as tutoring: bias toward action & practice Sep 5, 2024
-
August 2024
- Aug 29, 2024 human teams are biased against introverts Aug 29, 2024
- Aug 29, 2024 decision rights for decision throughput Aug 29, 2024
- Aug 29, 2024 name the hidden x-th value Aug 29, 2024
- Aug 15, 2024 what if it’s all volunteering? Aug 15, 2024
- Aug 15, 2024 what if it’s all practice? Aug 15, 2024
- Aug 15, 2024 what my best bosses had in common Aug 15, 2024
- Aug 1, 2024 i look for “the lean” Aug 1, 2024
- Aug 1, 2024 choosing useful friction with legal Aug 1, 2024
- Aug 1, 2024 a bet you shouldn’t hedge Aug 1, 2024
-
July 2024
- Jul 25, 2024 slack and bloat are not the same Jul 25, 2024
- Jul 25, 2024 a simple story might be smarter Jul 25, 2024
- Jul 25, 2024 write a breathless history Jul 25, 2024
- Jul 18, 2024 murakami as vocational guide Jul 18, 2024
- Jul 18, 2024 beware, ye idealists Jul 18, 2024
- Jul 18, 2024 the pragmatist book club Jul 18, 2024
- Jul 11, 2024 students over geniuses Jul 11, 2024
- Jul 11, 2024 a good interview question Jul 11, 2024
- Jul 11, 2024 you’ll trust them faster than you expect Jul 11, 2024
- Jul 4, 2024 two reframes of gratitude Jul 4, 2024
- Jul 4, 2024 a path out of quagmire Jul 4, 2024
- Jul 4, 2024 wingspan as a guide to onboarding Jul 4, 2024
-
June 2024
- Jun 13, 2024 how to focus your performance review on the most important change Jun 13, 2024
- Jun 13, 2024 a list of belonging cues Jun 13, 2024
- Jun 13, 2024 “even over” strategy Jun 13, 2024
- Jun 6, 2024 reputation as thoreau’s butterfly Jun 6, 2024
- Jun 6, 2024 how to develop someone who’s doing pretty dang well already Jun 6, 2024
- Jun 6, 2024 3 ways excellent founders strategize Jun 6, 2024
-
May 2024
- May 16, 2024 lights, camera, awkward role play May 16, 2024
- May 16, 2024 the only three things you can do May 16, 2024
- May 16, 2024 are you in good hands? it makes a big stinkin’ difference. May 16, 2024
- May 9, 2024 how to build your team’s cheat sheet for excellence May 9, 2024
- May 9, 2024 two cheap ways to keep your top performers May 9, 2024
- May 9, 2024 using frequency to fix flakiness May 9, 2024
- May 2, 2024 the belief-energy cycle, or, why you shouldn’t watch tv if you have allergies May 2, 2024
- May 2, 2024 hacks for using the growth cycle to improve performance May 2, 2024
- May 2, 2024 what colonoscopies teach us about boosting morale May 2, 2024
-
April 2024
- Apr 25, 2024 brass tacks for turning morale boosters into culture boosters Apr 25, 2024
- Apr 25, 2024 recognition frequency trackers Apr 25, 2024
- Apr 25, 2024 reveal & remark: a leader’s version of the sunscreen song Apr 25, 2024
- Apr 18, 2024 a quick activity for teeing up a leader’s most important task Apr 18, 2024
- Apr 18, 2024 what’s the difference between morale and culture? let’s talk about pizza. Apr 18, 2024
- Apr 18, 2024 do this every time you’re about to give feedback on a document Apr 18, 2024
-
March 2024
- Mar 14, 2024 communication as maintenance Mar 14, 2024
- Mar 14, 2024 the case for the case against Mar 14, 2024
- Mar 14, 2024 magic wand before local context Mar 14, 2024
- Mar 7, 2024 parents > punks Mar 7, 2024
- Mar 7, 2024 pace and vibes in core values Mar 7, 2024
- Mar 7, 2024 executive thinking and operational thinking Mar 7, 2024
-
February 2024
- Feb 29, 2024 clarity: subtext becomes text Feb 29, 2024
- Feb 29, 2024 clarity: a license for good risk Feb 29, 2024
- Feb 29, 2024 clarity: even now and “even over” Feb 29, 2024
- Feb 22, 2024 name the next way to be great Feb 22, 2024
- Feb 22, 2024 of principles and preferences Feb 22, 2024
- Feb 22, 2024 anonymity and naming names both have their place Feb 22, 2024
- Feb 8, 2024 a rationale for rampant shout outs Feb 8, 2024
- Feb 8, 2024 the mighty crossroads question Feb 8, 2024
- Feb 8, 2024 intrinsic and extrinsic rewards Feb 8, 2024
- Feb 1, 2024 rejection on the job market Feb 1, 2024
- Feb 1, 2024 seek clarity rather than authenticity Feb 1, 2024
- Feb 1, 2024 values as tools for equity Feb 1, 2024
-
January 2024
- Jan 26, 2024 apologies, reconsidered Jan 26, 2024
- Jan 26, 2024 what this is; what it isn’t Jan 26, 2024
- Jan 26, 2024 a useful mindset for speech-giving (that might serve you well elsewhere) Jan 26, 2024
- Jan 18, 2024 when self-deprecating jokes don’t work Jan 18, 2024
- Jan 18, 2024 a vibe check as feedback for safety Jan 18, 2024
- Jan 18, 2024 write your stuff and share it Jan 18, 2024
- Jan 11, 2024 against ellipses Jan 11, 2024
- Jan 11, 2024 ride-alongs are often underestimated Jan 11, 2024
- Jan 11, 2024 your values have shadow sides Jan 11, 2024
- Jan 4, 2024 when the goal is crucial, “overdo it” Jan 4, 2024
- Jan 4, 2024 connect, construct, clarify as a holy trinity for meetings Jan 4, 2024
- Jan 4, 2024 want rizz? get reps. Jan 4, 2024
-
December 2023
- Dec 28, 2023 communicating values before data in a coalition Dec 28, 2023
- Dec 28, 2023 constraints leading to abundance, e.g., your tochas Dec 28, 2023
- Dec 28, 2023 do you expect this to be life-changing? Dec 28, 2023
- Dec 21, 2023 consider splitting a hard conversation into several conversations to make them all easier Dec 21, 2023
- Dec 21, 2023 hire yourself a chief clarity officer (you) Dec 21, 2023
- Dec 20, 2023 using dcyde.com for team interviews and decision hygiene Dec 20, 2023
- Dec 14, 2023 a permission slip to defy data Dec 14, 2023
- Dec 12, 2023 zoom out and then in to pick your first move Dec 12, 2023
- Dec 12, 2023 managing a transition to virtual work with unapologetic corniness Dec 12, 2023
- Dec 7, 2023 building morale through extraordinary moments Dec 7, 2023
- Dec 7, 2023 find the meeting’s purpose by asking: what’s the downside of canceling it altogether? Dec 7, 2023
- Dec 7, 2023 instead of covert change, co-create change Dec 7, 2023
-
November 2023
- Nov 30, 2023 backpocket constitutions as change management Nov 30, 2023
- Nov 30, 2023 run your 1:1s more like tutoring than office hours Nov 30, 2023
- Nov 30, 2023 micro-move: replace adverbs with single digit numbers Nov 30, 2023
- Nov 23, 2023 what all-star teachers do after holiday break that we all should, part 2 Nov 23, 2023
- Nov 23, 2023 what all-star teachers do after holiday break that we all should, part 1 Nov 23, 2023
- Nov 23, 2023 why we shouldn’t “refrain” from refrains Nov 23, 2023
- Nov 16, 2023 five steps to reveal and remark like a pro Nov 16, 2023
- Nov 16, 2023 reveal + remark: the simplest way to improve employee performance (that you probably aren’t doing) Nov 16, 2023
- Nov 15, 2023 “reading to do”, part of the Parenting & Epistemology series Nov 15, 2023
- Nov 9, 2023 how to inspire without eloquence, ego, or training Nov 9, 2023
- Nov 7, 2023 mindsets and moves that make “not taking feedback too seriously” work out Nov 7, 2023
- Nov 6, 2023 seriously, don’t take feedback so seriously. Nov 6, 2023
- Nov 2, 2023 curbing catfights part 2: existential risk and existential rationale Nov 2, 2023
-
October 2023
- Oct 31, 2023 the unexpected inclusive power of an exclusive culture Oct 31, 2023
- Oct 27, 2023 converting a ceo v coo catfight into a collaboration Oct 27, 2023
- Oct 26, 2023 write the dangerous memo. share it. Oct 26, 2023
- Oct 26, 2023 what my daughter’s disability taught me about human growth Oct 26, 2023
- Oct 24, 2023 talk your people through your own emotional processing of hard things Oct 24, 2023
- Oct 19, 2023 get stationery. write thank you notes. with your dang hand! Oct 19, 2023
- Oct 19, 2023 a clapback on “toxic positivity” Oct 19, 2023
- Oct 18, 2023 is your culture built for creators or consumers? Oct 18, 2023
- Oct 17, 2023 spa v. sparta: another busted binary good leaders avoid Oct 17, 2023
- Oct 16, 2023 work and culture: the false binary that screws up both Oct 16, 2023
- Oct 12, 2023 a great coach’s four favorite words Oct 12, 2023
- Oct 12, 2023 if someone’s struggling, consider “re-hiring” them Oct 12, 2023
- Oct 12, 2023 to be a baller, be a shot caller Oct 12, 2023
- Oct 5, 2023 history nerds are more likely to inspire their teams. be that nerd. Oct 5, 2023
- Oct 5, 2023 fixing the busted math of trust Oct 5, 2023
- Oct 4, 2023 why you want many “i”’s in “team”: the "I"-shaped teammate Oct 4, 2023
-
September 2023
- Sep 28, 2023 build your culture on the backs of butterflies Sep 28, 2023
- Sep 27, 2023 use the “shitty-shabby-shiny” spectrum Sep 27, 2023
- Sep 26, 2023 three myths about sparking growth in your people Sep 26, 2023
- Sep 20, 2023 “strategy” is a sexy distraction. Sep 20, 2023
- Sep 15, 2023 how good do you think i can be? or, “excuse me, ma’am, your ontology is showing” Sep 15, 2023
- Sep 14, 2023 you asked for it. they’re not doing it. what to do next. Sep 14, 2023
- Sep 12, 2023 make a lot of cheap mistakes Sep 12, 2023
- Sep 11, 2023 “we can’t get any wetter” as sobering “inspiration” Sep 11, 2023
- Sep 7, 2023 motorcycling 101 and toddler dinner as guides to performance improvement Sep 7, 2023
- Sep 6, 2023 use orders of magnitude to unlock possibilities and find the priceless core Sep 6, 2023
- Sep 5, 2023 the gift of scarcity Sep 5, 2023
- Sep 1, 2023 “Let’s solve this together!" vs "ugh what a nightmare - THIS again" Sep 1, 2023
-
August 2023
- Aug 31, 2023 that crummy stuff? yeah, we’re the champions of that. Aug 31, 2023
- Aug 30, 2023 the magical muffin cart, or, optimize upstream, ya knucklehead Aug 30, 2023
- Aug 29, 2023 find the question marks. turn them to periods or exclamation points. Aug 29, 2023
- Aug 28, 2023 “tradecraft”, or, how to lead like an international spy. Aug 28, 2023
- Aug 25, 2023 you can’t do “the inside job.” embrace it. Aug 25, 2023
- Aug 24, 2023 you are awkward. embrace it. Aug 24, 2023
- Aug 23, 2023 you are counter-cultural. embrace it. Aug 23, 2023
- Aug 21, 2023 simplifying the problem, or, how one Tyler Cowen question can take you to a new dimension Aug 21, 2023
- Aug 18, 2023 the power of a “commonplace book” Aug 18, 2023
- Aug 17, 2023 That expensive consultant you’re considering? They may already work for you. Aug 17, 2023
- Aug 16, 2023 “decision throughput” as a magic metric to spark your team Aug 16, 2023
- Aug 14, 2023 the top 5 people-development mistakes to avoid Aug 14, 2023
- Aug 10, 2023 hidden threats and opportunities in personality tests Aug 10, 2023
- Aug 8, 2023 are you building or defending? Aug 8, 2023
- Aug 4, 2023 a two-question toolkit Aug 4, 2023
-
July 2023
- Jul 31, 2023 “Never let a gracious thought pass” Jul 31, 2023
- Jul 27, 2023 Micro-management, reconsidered and recommended Jul 27, 2023
- Jul 6, 2023 Welcome! Jul 6, 2023