Latest Blogs
Breathe Before You Send: A Better Way to Handle Heated Emails
We’ve all been there. You open your inbox and there’s an email staring back at you and your hair is instantly on fire. Before you know it, you’re typing out a reply that’s so righteous it may actually burn the screen. You know you’re right – you...
The Gen Z “Problem” at Work Isn’t Gen Z
Let’s cut to the chase – no matter where I look, someone has an opinion on Gen Z in the workplace. They’re “lazy” or “entitled,” or they “don’t get it.” A Fortune article from earlier this year claimed that bosses are firing Gen Z employees just...
Context is Key In Driving Clarity
When I started my career, “because I said so” was the standard delegation mode. We all know how inefficient—and infantilizing—that is. Honestly, what’s more frustrating than getting a task without context? It’s like being asked to assemble an IKEA...
The Tough Conversation: Resolving Conflict, Clearing the Air & Moving Forward Together
Misunderstanding and conflict between and among people is part of the human condition. We think we’re clear and the other person doesn’t understand the purpose or the process of what was just said. Someone doesn’t do what they’re supposed to do,...
What Ghosting Says About You (P.S. It’s Not Good)
Ghosting is a convenient non-action now that removes you from future opportunities.
Language Is The Start to Operationalize Inclusion
Language and behavior make up the fabric of a work culture. These are the words and actions that leadership allows, encourages, propagates, and mandates for its people and practices. Bottomline, the more inclusive your language, the more equitable your behaviors and procedures can be, and the more diverse your organization can and will be. If you want an inclusive organization, start with the language that you use.
Predictability Drives Clarity
Positive Predictability Drives the Clarity People Need to Be Productive
Precise Deadlines Improve Team Dynamics
Nothing kills a positive team dynamic faster than when one or more team members miss a deadline. Our personal and team schedules are dependent on everyone completing their work “on time” so that other members can do their parts. And of course, we...
2024: Being Clear
Life is a series of new beginnings. Every first day of the week, of the month, and the year—every birthday, every important anniversary, every Labor Day (who doesn't like new pencils?), every day. New starts allow me to start as I wish to move on,...
Showing Up Matters
Keep showing up and know that it matters.
When Employees Are Caregiving or Grieving For A Parent
I started Double Forte in 2002 after my mother was diagnosed with Stage IV Lung Cancer. My parents lived in Wisconsin, I lived with my family in the San Francisco Bay Area. The plan had been to take a high level communication job, but that position...
Create White Space: Let Some Air Out of Your Tires
I am not a cyclist, but I’ve been using a cycling term, “let some air out of the tires,” a lot in the last couple of months. Brought to me by avid long-distance cycler Greg Avis (also a client), it refers to easing the ride by softening the tires;...
Building a Collaborative Process At Work
Welcoming, even requiring, input from lots of different people is vital in working well with modern, collaborative work teams. (The definition of team: A group of people, nations, etc., who are associated in a particular action or endeavor.) So,...
4 Steps To Managing Up When You Have More Than One Boss
It all begins with an idea.
9 Behaviors Women Can Fix Now To Help Break Down Bias At Work
It all begins with an idea.
Want to Be the Office Hero? Stop Being Deadline-Vague
If I had a dollar for every time I’ve heard the deadline “end-of-day is fine” or “tomorrow” or “later” or “next week”in the workplace I would no longer need to be in the workplace. I am convinced that fully one half of workplace conflict can be...
Priority #1: Build Your Company Alumni Network
The fight for talent never wanes: in good economies or bad, the best people are always in demand. And if you are regularly mining your company alumni for new hires, you are way ahead of the pack. Your big, medium or small company’s ability to...
Men In Leadership Should Double Down On Meeting With Women: The New Rules
“I’m not going to meet with women alone until I understand what the new rules are,” said a male friend the other day after a meeting we both attended (with over 20 other men and women). This middle-aged man, CEO of a venture-backed company, with...
Leadership and the Duty To Know Oneself
Google “Leadership” and you will be faced with sorting through 824,000,000 entries; you can make it more manageable by narrowing your search to “news” and then have a just 3% of the entries to navigate at 27,900,00. It’s a bit daunting. This...
Why It’s Important To Listen To Women Leaders
Listen to learn, not reply. This is a fundamental rule of active listening. It’s also a key tenant of effective leadership. Female leadership and male leadership. Unfortunately, not enough women leaders are consistently recognized when offering...