Not advice. Mostly notes from the middle of things.
“I don't have a choice” is almost never true. It's a story — and the moment you name it as one, the fork in the road appears.
6 min read
You can't give people the feeling of ready. But you can give them permission to move before it arrives — and once they move, they get the information they were waiting for.
5 min read
Resilience training fails when it treats a structural problem as a personal one. If the issue is workload, unclear expectations, or constant change, no workshop fixes it — here's where to start instead.
The wrong speaker for a hard moment can make it worse. Four capabilities to look for when a team is navigating restructuring, loss, or change — and the one question to ask every speaker.
The people who worry me most don't look like they're struggling. They look like your strongest employees. What the Good Trap looks like inside a team — and what actually helps.
Being ready is a circumstance. Feeling ready is an emotion. Most of us wait for the feeling — and the feeling usually shows up after we move, not before.
Sometimes the people in that room are already incredibly resilient. They've got receipts. What they may need isn't someone telling them to be stronger — it's permission to stop waiting until they feel ready.
Reaching out about a keynote starts a conversation, not a sales process. What the first call actually covers, why I want to know about Claire in row 30, and the talk I turned down that I was fully qualified to give.
You don't end up in the Good Trap by failing. You end up there because you're very good at doing what you're supposed to do — and somewhere along the way, without any dramatic moment, you stopped asking whether it's still what you want.
Science Nerd Corner
It's not weakness. It's neuroscience. When the amygdala hijacks your prefrontal cortex, waiting for clarity is the worst possible strategy. Here's what the research actually says — and it's more actionable than you think.
7 min read
On frameworks
Every speaker eventually gets asked to turn their keynote into a framework. Five steps. A wheel diagram. An acronym. I keep saying no. Not because frameworks are bad. Because the people I'm speaking to have already tried six of them this year.
2 min read
On listening
The most honest conversations at any corporate training happen in the parking lot afterward. Not in the breakout sessions. Not at the catered lunch. In the parking lot, where someone catches up to you and says the thing they couldn't say in the room.
A short list
Resting and hiding. / Sitting with it and being stuck in it. / Patience and avoidance. / Acceptance and giving up. / Discernment and overthinking. / I keep these on a sticky note. I look at it most days.
The Avocado Files
The avocado has been sitting on the counter for three days. I keep meaning to do something with it. I keep not doing something with it. This is the same week I'm supposed to be making a decision I've been putting off for two months.
4 min read
.png)
.png)