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This is your source for principles to communicate, engage, and lead with greater impact. The Engaging Leader podcast, blog, videos, and more will help you inspire trust, passion, and action!

149: The Power of Beliefs in Business | with Ari Weinzweig

December 15, 2016

In 1982, Ari Weinzweig, along with his partner Paul Saginaw, founded Zingerman’s Delicatessen with a $20,000 bank loan. They opened the doors with two employees and a small selection of specialty foods and exceptional sandwiches. Today, Zingerman’s Delicatessen is a nationally renowned food icon, and the Zingerman’s Community of Businesses has grown to 10 businesses […]

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148: 9 Ways to Thank Your Employees

November 15, 2016

“Employees who report receiving recognition and praise within the last seven days show increased productivity, get higher scores from customers, and have better safety records. They’re just more engaged at work.” – Tom Rath Recently, one of my team members communicated heartfelt gratitude to another team member named Jenny for her consistently outstanding performance. And […]

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147: 8 Tips for Communicating Bad News to Your Workforce

November 1, 2016

Communicating bad news — we all hate to do it, wish we never have to do it again, and yet recognize that there will inevitably be times when we need to do it. Whether it is announcing a reduction in force, a negative change in employee benefits or compensation, a discontinued strategy or product line, […]

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146: 3 Ways to Optimize Your Energy and Culture in the Moment of Truth | with Anese Cavanaugh

October 15, 2016

Culture eats strategy for breakfast. -Peter Drucker Many leaders and aspiring leaders think their skills and strategies are what create impact, and that perks and parties are what create culture. But in reality a much larger part is created by the leader’s energy in every moment of truth. When you kick off a meeting or […]

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145: Rethinking Accountability — How to Use It to Help Your People Unlock Their Strengths | with Jonathan Raymond

October 1, 2016

Leaders everywhere talk about accountability, but nobody is defining what it really means — and more importantly, breaking it down into a set of skills that people could learn and apply. Accountability is about helping people unlock their strengths.

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144: Best Communication Tools for Teamwork

September 15, 2016

On Engaging Leader, we share a lot of principles about leadership communication, but what about collaboration communication? In other words, what’s the most effective and efficient way to talk to the colleagues and clients you work with most closely in order to do great work together?

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143: Lessons from Starbucks on Leading with Values First | with Howard Behar

September 1, 2016

“We’re in the people business serving coffee, not the coffee business serving people.” ~ Howard Behar As the president of Starbucks North America and Starbucks International, Howard Behar spent over 20 years helping grow the company into a worldwide phenomenon. During those years, he was integral in establishing and nurturing the Starbucks culture.

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WHE30: Millennials and Healthcare: How They Experience the System | with Hector De La Torre

August 22, 2016

They’re supposedly young and healthy, but a new study shows that more than half of Millennials report having a chronic health condition. In addition, Millennials struggle how to navigate the health care system, starting with choosing an appropriate health plan in the first place.

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142: That’s Not How We Do It Here! — How to Stay Agile and Innovative as a Mature Company | with John Kotter

August 15, 2016

Increasingly, large organizations are finding their competitive landscape changing so quickly that they’re unable to respond fast enough to survive and thrive. Most mature organizations have a built-in tendency to kill off anything agile, innovative, and entrepreneurial — which often is exactly what’s needed to stay ahead of today’s ever-increasing pace of change in the […]

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141: Hire, Develop, and Keep Great Employees | with Paul Falcone

August 1, 2016

People power your business — and success can hinge on your hiring, inspiring, and keeping the right ones. As a leader, are you cultivating this vital resource? Is there more you could be doing? Are you just winging it? Every HR executive has a laundry list of things they wish managers knew: best practices that […]

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140: Cross-Generational Communications — How to Bridge the Gap to Engage Multiple Generations

July 15, 2016

We are in the early years of a fundamental demographic shift. What worked in the past will no longer be enough. In order to attract and keep top talent — and to influence their actions — you will need to change how you engage people.

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139: How to Speak the Truth to Your Boss and Team (Even When It’s Hard) | with Mindy Mackenzie

July 1, 2016

“Learn what is true to do what is right.” ~ Thomas Huxley The thing that companies and individuals need most they often get least. What is this thing? The truth. Why? Because people don’t have the courage to say what they’re really thinking. But no company or individual can survive, let alone thrive, without the […]

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