Karl Edwards presents Working Matters

Blog

  • Thought Leaders Unpacked -> The Answer to How is Yes #2: Yes is the Right Answer

    thought-leaders“Ready or not, here I come!”

    I think this could be my personal catch-phrase this year. Bold, exuberant, playful, comfortable, audacious, and free from the self-diminishing constraints of playing by someone else’s rules, requesting someone else’s permission, or asking someone else for directions.

    My key to Block’s second chapter is realizing that, “we name the debate by the questions we choose.”

    I am central to what sort of opportunities are available to the unfolding of my own story. If I frame the plot as linear and scripted by the system, then I have prejudiced and limited my own possibilities.

    If I frame the plot as open and not fully imagined until I contribute myself to the process, then the possibilities are unlimited.

    If I am looking for the rules, or permission or instructions then I have given away my birthright, so to speak, without anyone even having to steal it from me.

    How can anyone else answer whether there is a place for me at the table? The longer I wait for an invitation, the longer I wait.

    The second insight from this chapter that resonated deeply with me has to do (more…)

  • Karl Shares Six Words… #30


    His fake promises reassured no one.


    Karl Edwards

  • Listen In -> Fake Goals #4: Goals That Are A Dangling Carrot

    Some goals can be outright mean-spirited.

    One of the more underhanded methods is leading an employee to believe that a salary increase or a promotion will accompany the achievement of a particular goal.

    When the time to follow through arrives, you find yourself, more often than not, backing down on the promise by blaming human resources, budget constraints or some other factor outside of your control.

    In this week’s show, Claudia and I discuss the pitfalls of dangling carrots just out of reach in order to secure some extra element of effort.

    Even though this method is easy to see through, works only once, and costs far more in terms of broken trust and forfeited credibility than was ever saved by reneging on the raise, it remains surprising popular.

    Why do you think this “fake goal” is so tempting to leaders?

    Listen in.

    Just now joining the conversation? Catch up on the entire series here.

  • Loving Monday: Fighting June Gloom

    loving_mondayJune gloom is what we here in Southern California call the coastal phenomenon of having our mornings blanketed in clouds and fog. They eventually burn off about midday to unleash the sun’s warm glory that we love so much.

    But until then it is chilly and grey.

    If it were winter, then we’d probably not give the cloud cover another thought.

    But at the beginning of summer?! Right on the heels of a beautiful spring?! It depressing. It shouldn’t be.

    Ever come to work ready to dive in and find an unexpected mess waiting for you? It’s depressing. It shouldn’t be.

    It’s also partially a matter of perspective.

    We expect it to be summer and the cloud cover becomes an unwelcome intruder.

    We expect things to run smoothly or pick up where (more…)

  • Quote to Consider: The Chief Requirement of Life

    quote-to-consider“We act as though comfort and luxury were the chief requirements of life, when all that we need to make us really happy is something to be enthusiastic about.”

    Charles Kingsley

  • Karl Shares Six Words… #29


    When words don’t come, she yells.


    Karl Edwards

  • Listen In -> Fake Goals #3: Goals That Are A Moving Target

    Want to be a hero in your client’s eyes?

    Try making irresponsible promises that you can later blame others for not being able to keep.

    You most likely know what we’re talking about…

    • The client calls and wants the deadline moved forward. You know the new deadline is unrealistic, but feel it would be disastrous to refuse or negotiate.

    • The scope of work on a project keeps expanding, but you decline to increase the fees involved so that you don’t discourage future business.

    Two realities that confront leaders all of the time.

    What do you do when the schedule or budget for a project changes?

    In this week’s show Claudia and I discuss how counter-productive and demotivating it is when you create a moving target by forcing your team to deal with the ramifications of a change in deadline or budget.

    Listen in for a constructive alternative.

    Just now joining the conversation? Catch up on the entire series here.

  • Thought Leaders Unpacked -> The Answer to How is Yes #1: How is the Wrong Question

    thought-leadersFirst assumptions can be the most difficult to recognize. Beginning assumptions that guide one’s thinking before one has even had a chance to begin thinking.

    What if such assumptions were to trap one’s thinking? To mislead and ensnare one in a labyrinth of well-meaning but ultimately self-defeating dead ends.

    Peter Block begins his reflections in chapter one of The Answer to How is Yes with just such a survey of fallacious starting points.

    If you are new to Thought Leaders Unpackedâ„¢ we are not summarizing or reviewing content when we explore these books one chapter at a time.

    We are learning, each one of us in particular. We are responding to what challenges us personally.

    I am stunned by the insight that asking “How?” assumes that I don’t know and that someone else does know.

    I am stunned to witness how easily I denigrate my power, my experience, my wisdom, my expertise and my ability to solve problems by how I frame the question. How I frame the question in terms that assume I am not a crucial part of the answer.

    The second personal challenge I encountered was the possibility that my “How?” questions were helping me to miss or avoid more significant questions like, “Is (more…)

  • Loving Monday: Choosing Self-Confidence When Struggling

    loving_mondayNothing beats a vote of confidence in yourself.

    Sure the confidence of others is impactful and inspiring, but it pales in comparison to the lift and strength and sheer power of believing in oneself.

    My reflections today are not the frothy overflow of a series of easy successes. (If I hear one more consultant talk about where they are vacationing, I’m going to scream.)

    On the contrary, these thoughts arise from having to reach deep into the well of courage, character and inner strength when instead of riding on the crest of the wave I feel like I’m being crushed underneath it.

    The problem with relying on others to undergird one’s confidence is that it risks assuming that their estimation of you matters more than your own.

    The thinking goes something like this: While believing in oneself is “nice”, it’s others’ positive opinions that truly validate your value, competence, or performance.

    Do you see the irony? While receiving a feel-good of sorts from the positive feedback, you have inadvertently ceded authority of your own worth to others. A small emotional lift at an exorbitant personal cost.

    In tough times, when reality seems to conspire against you and confidence flags, it’s important to find ways to assert, nurture, and/or muster a word of confidence to yourself before turning to others.

    When turning to others (of course we need a supportive network of friends and colleagues), you want their support to build and corroborate your confidence, not replace or overrule yours.

    The distinction may seem subtle, but it is significant.

    Give yourself the gift of a vote of confidence today!

    On your side,

    – Karl Edwards

    Loving Monday is a weekly column designed to encourage us to step into our weeks with an intention to show up authentically, engage fully, and choose to make it a good week for ourselves. Explore past columns here.

  • Quote to Consider: Real Friends or Ideal Friends?

    quote-to-consider“How often we find ourselves turning our backs on our actual friends, that we may go and meet their ideal cousins.”

    Henry David Thoreau