Managing Expectations in HR and Beyond

I have a working theory that 92% of an HR leader’s job is managing expectations. People bring their issues to work. Whether it’s a stage-of-life problem or a money problem, nobody ever shows up to a job without their personality quirks. When those irregular characteristics manifest themselves in the form of conflict, HR is often…

Learned Helplessness in HR

There is a weird phenomenon happening in human resources departments around the globe. Far too many people in HR are suffering from learned helplessness. Learned helplessness is a psychological condition that commonly describes victims of abuse and neglect. Those poor souls give up on themselves. They see themselves as perpetual victims — even when they’re…

Marathon Monday: Running and Travel

Let me make a quick recommendation: if you’re running a marathon, try not to travel. If you’re going to travel, try to stay healthy. And if you can’t stay healthy, don’t catch a cold with a thick cough. But if you have a cold and cough, try not to catch it while you’re also recovering…

Giving Up Giving Up

My sweet kitty, Emma, is allergic to the world. This poor boo has been on shots and meds over the past few years to decrease her sensitivity to pollen. Emma’s personality is sweet, though, and she doesn’t give us a hard time about taking medicine. (Well, it’s no more complicated than any other cat. We…

ruettimann commencement

Inspiring the Next Generation of Adults

Last month, I delivered a speech to the 2016 graduating class at Regent’s University London. They have eight colleges under the larger university, and I spoke to the American College (which I attended) and the school of fashion and design. The ceremony was at St. Marylebone Parish Church where Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Robert Browning…

growth innovation

Process Can Kill Growth and Innovation

A friend of mine recommended a book called Traction. Have you heard of it? He thought that my consulting company and my software company could benefit from implementing The EOS Model™. What is the EOS Model™? Well, it’s a framework to help founders and CEOs understand everything from people to internal processes. Very simply, it’s…