Blog
Take a look at recent insights in leadership, strategy and more.
We do our best stuff when we’re uncomfortable
A well-known and respected author on marketing is noticeably apologetic in places in one of his books. He's worried that it's too "out there" and challenging for his readers, but I think it's his best book and, so, he says, do a whole lot of other people. What we...
Where’s the people part?
Noticed my own reaction to a demonstration of management software... A great tool, but without a strong people dimension hand-in-hand, it seemed a flat experience, crying out for a personal story to be told. How many of us focus our attention on the more familiar...
In any situation, there is leverage. The question is where…
The meeting isn’t going very well. Agreement looks as far away as ever. In fact, the participants look like they’ve lost sight of their ultimate purpose entirely. On one side, we have a preference for sticking to rules combined with a sharp eye for what’s wrong with...
Would you like to participate in the virtual blog tour for my new ebook?
We're organizing a virtual blog tour, from the dates May 18th-31st, highlighting my latest ebook, Relationships Made Easy for the Business Professional. (A virtual blog tour is a set of "tour" stops via various blogs where each day a blogger will share a review about...
What’s on
Discussing behavior change and simplifying complexity in orgs with Marie Pijanowski on The Power Connection Apr 12 http://bit.ly/hXIZ7a
Want to make rapid progress? Get into the “deep” stuff
It’s dark outside. The train is fast and quiet. It only stops at the major stations. It covers a lot of ground in a short time. In contrast, the train to connect with this one stopped more often and took a comparatively long time to cover a short distance. It also...
Personal reflections on relationship skills 1
The CEO (my boss) called me into his office. The room was airless, the atmosphere tense... Hang on, I’d better explain: I’ve decided to tell the story of how I got involved in the subject of interpersonal skills, and introduce the 12 Relationship Skills for Success,...
12 Relationship Skills for Success in 12 Weeks – on Twitter
If you’re on Twitter (and even if you’re not), you might like to know that I’m tweeting about (i.e. sharing) the “12 Relationship Skills for Success”, one per week starting this week (Mon 17th). You’ll find me at http://www.twitter.com/drdavidfraser and the hashtag...
If what happens isn’t what you expected
A mistake we sometimes make is expecting people to act in a way that isn’t aligned with their interests. They won’t do that. Not ever. You hear people saying things like, “They should do such and such”. What they really mean is, “It would suit me very well if they...
What I took away from the Gerard Kelly tribute
Glaswegian actor Gerard Kelly put everything into what he did.
Best wishes, and how to keep your relationships sweet in the holiday period
Here you can view my notes on Relationship Skills for Success at the holiday time. As 2010 draws to a close, it’s time to wish you all the best for 2011. Whether or not Christmas is part of your culture, you have my best wishes. I'll be making the Relationship Skills...
What can we learn from Aung San Suu Kyi’s continuing appeal?
Aung San Suu Kyi’s continuing appeal demonstrates the power of grace, courage, good humour and integrity.
“Flexibility and weakness are completely different” – Aung San Suu Kyi
Aung San Suu Kyi exemplifies the difference between flexibility and weakness.
North Korean leadership – irrational or just not understood?
North Korean leadership’s actions seem bizzare, but may not be irrational when seen from their perspective. So it is with others’ whose behaviour seems irrational – better to understand things from their point of view, then look for a solution.
Where should our cash go – retaining people or training people?
How is it that organisations are content to go on spending £100ks or $100ks or more per month on salaries of people doing their jobs badly, but not a few £k or $k teaching them how to do their jobs well?