Three Leadership Agility Lessons from Canada Basketball’s Superclinic
A few weekends ago I joined players, coaches, and referees from across the Greater Victoria Area at a “basketball superclinic” that was delivered by Canada Basketball’s Mike Mackay. The coaches spent the morning learning about a practice we would be…
A Team Chemistry Haiku
Unlocked with safety. Trusted hoopers, friends at work. Have team chemistry. – A haiku about how psychological safety, connectivity, joy, and opportunities for learning unleash team chemistry; it is a delight to notice chemistry on the basketball court, soccer pitch,…
Three Things You Can Say to Enhance Collaboration
Language is an amazing thing. What we say and how we say it reflects who we are and what we value. Whether you are speaking out of habit or stepping out of your comfort zone to make a point, the…
Three Examples of Cooperative Dystopia in the “Alien” Universe
Analyzing and sharing what popular culture can teach us about career development, leadership, and the cooperative enterprise model is something we do really well on this website. My contention is that the Alien universe is probably a cooperative dystopia from…
How to Spread Kindness in Your Community
Many years ago I presented at the University of British Columbia’s Student Leadership Conference (it’s one of the largest conferences in North America). I focused on straightforward tips on how to spread kindness in your community at school, at work…
Total Football and Generalism
I’m reading Tribal by Michael Morris (it’s good) and the book begins with an analysis for “Total Football”. In the 1970s, the Dutch national soccer team transformed the sport with a philosophy where any outfield player could seamlessly assume the…
Two Cool AI Prompts that Support Collaboration and Development
Artificial Intelligence, particularly generative AI and large language models like ChatGPT and Copilot, have arrived. These chisels and calculators of their time are being met and used with curiosity, inspiration, worry, and pretty much all the gamut of sensation. I…
How Language Creates and Erodes Interdependence
I agree with Batman that our actions matter more than who we are underneath because actions reveal our true character. I also notice how much language influences who leaders are and what we stand for. I notice this the most…
How the Economics of Friendship Shape Work and Life
Friendship is a fundamental and universal human need. This form of social connection cultivates mutual affection, trust, interdependence, and joy. According to one of modern social science’s longest ongoing studies, the social connections of friendship enrich and even extend our…
Three Ways to Rebalance Power in Meetings
Meetings are a necessary evil in most workplaces. Even though meetings are supposed to enable information sharing, facilitate decision making, and foster meaningful connections, we probably feel the soul-destroying experience of poorly managed meetings at least once a week. According…