Aligned, Never Compliant: Handling Workplace Requests That Don’t Feel Right In this article series, I explore how Relationship Friction (RF) and Relationship Wisdom (RW) shape career satisfaction and progression through apparently innocuous, yet critical, workplace moments. We began with the Direct Contributor, whose RF risk was misreading their task. The First-Time Manager’s RF risk was […]
Read MoreFlight as Relationship Wisdom, not cowardice: in praise of avoidance. When I was 16, philosophy entered my life to feed a hunger I didn’t even know I had: I wanted meaning. Often confused, I also wanted advice: not my parents’, biased, nor my friends’, just as clueless as I. I appreciated philosophy’s variety of […]
Read MoreWhen crisis hits at work, reach for your purple crayon 🖍️💜 Are you in crisis right now? If not, have you ever experienced one and can you remember it? In the book Harold and the Purple Crayon*, a boy escapes catastrophe thanks to a magic crayon. In the grip of calamity, do you wish you […]
Read More“My manager is toxic. Can you really help?” I hear this far too often from prospective clients. Don’t despair: Relationship Wisdom can help even with toxic people 🤛 When it comes to toxic people, very little helps. That’s true. But it’s not nothing. I had three toxic managers over the course of my 24-year career. […]
Read MoreWhen You Drive a Cross-Functional Initiative, You’re Putting Your Organizational Credibility on the Line In this article series, I explore how Relationship Friction and Relationship Wisdom shape career progression through apparently innocuous and yet critical, often recurring workplace moments. We began with the Direct Contributor, examining what happens when a task is assigned and misunderstood. […]
Read More“You will function better. It might not be at your current workplace though.” This is what I told a prospective client the other day. Three main blocks hinder ambitious professionals from thriving and advancing in their career: 1️⃣ fear – of reputation damage, loss of opportunity, and even rejection/marginalisation 2️⃣ lack of clarity – confusion […]
Read MoreWe obsess over labels when all we really need is presence. My truth: coaching is not a doing thing. It’s a being thing. It’s me with you. I am being me, and I help you be more of you. The other day someone asked me about the difference between coaching and therapy. I get that […]
Read MoreWhat experiences are you allowing that rewire your brain to make you less than you could be? Your brain can’t tell the difference between a blessing in disguise and a poisoned chalice. It just adapts. Last month, I shared with you my conviction that Relationship Friction shapes us into who we can grow into. Its […]
Read MoreWhen You Delegate a Task as a First Time Manager, No Less Than the Future of Your Entire Team Is at Stake Last month, we looked at a defining moment in the career of a Direct Contributor: the moment when a manager entrusts them with a task or project. For the employee receiving the […]
Read MoreYou are being let down by a ghost 👻 Not by your manager. Or your colleague. Or your team member. Rather: you are being let down by the version of people that exists ONLY in your head. When I was in Australia recently, everyone called us “you guys.” Waiters, guides… everyone. At first I found […]
Read MoreNow you know AI is an ineffective coach, be careful you don’t hire its human equivalent 🤖 I am concerned the coaching industry is increasingly defaulting to a standard of polite validation over rigorous challenge — unwittingly mimicking the AI sycophancy I deplored the other week. There is a dangerous misconception that high-impact coaching is […]
Read More“Alexandra, you’re already out of a job,” an AI creator warned me recently. AI has several PhDs in psychology. As such, it can give you well-meaning advice. It will list relationship skills, explain active listening, and offer tips to resolve conflict. It will write you a long recipe about how to influence. It knows all […]
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