Four Myths About Mentoring
When people think of mentoring, they often think of an older executive counseling a young upstart. The senior leader advises the junior employee on his career, how to navigate the world of work, and what she needs to do to get ahead. But mentoring has changed a lot in the last few decades. The traditional mentor-mentee relationship is not necessarily a thing of the past, but it's no longer the sta... posted on Jun 11 2011, 8,345 reads

4 Reasons To Keep a Work Diary
What does Oprah have in common with General George S. Patton? Being an avid diarist. Recently, Oprah offered her readers glimpses into her diaries, along with encouragement to keep their own. Many well-known figures throughout history, from John Adams to Andy Warhol, have faithfully kept records of their daily lives. Aside from a place in history, are there any personal benefits of keeping a diary... posted on May 20 2011, 11,014 reads

Leadership Lessons from Everyday Life
"Leadership is a capability that each of us has within us. It is formed as we take on the opportunities and challenges of everyday life, and it is measured by our successes and failures. It is my belief and experience that the leadership lessons we learn in our everyday lives can and should be carried with us into our work environments, and that they can help us become better leaders of our people... posted on May 12 2011, 9,566 reads

Retailing With Heart
Venture into a Panera Cares cafe and you'll see the same menu and racks of freshly baked breads that are staples at the 1,400 Panera Bread restaurants across the United States. The only thing missing is the cash register. Instead, there's a donation box where customers pay on the honor system. Since opening its first "restaurant of shared responsibility" last May, Panera Bread is poised to take i... posted on Apr 29 2011, 5,678 reads

The Sharing Economy Emerges
Peer to peer exchange of goods and services has skyrocketed way beyond craigslist.org and Couch Surfing. Now, access to goods and skills is becoming more important than ownership of them. And that has sparked a "Sharing Economy". Gartner Group researchers estimate that the peer-to-peer financial-lending market will reach $5 billion by 2013. Botsman says the consumer peer-to-peer rental market wil... posted on Apr 22 2011, 3,905 reads

A Second Look at First Impressions
Why do we admire, envy, or disparage certain social groups and people? Why hire Kurt instead of Kyra? How do students choose study partners? "Within less than a second, using facial features, people make what are called 'spontaneous trait inferences,'" says social psychologist Amy Cuddy. Through investigating perceptions of warmth and competence, Cuddy explains how men and women rise to the top- o... posted on Dec 14 2010, 7,554 reads

The Art of Motivating Employees
Could a simple five-minute interaction with another person dramatically increase your weekly productivity? In some employment environments, the answer is yes, according to Wharton management professor Adam Grant. Grant has devoted significant chunks of his professional career to examining what motivates workers in settings that range from call centers and mail-order pharmacies to swimming pool lif... posted on Dec 09 2010, 17,942 reads

Why Social Value is Good for Business
In a recent interview, David Schmittlein, Dean of MIT Sloan School of Management, hones in on the importance for business to be able to state their social value. "The social contract that businesses, organizations in general, have with the world is changing, and unless organzations can demonstrate and explain the social purpose and the social value that they've fulfilled, they will fail. They will... posted on Nov 23 2010, 3,182 reads

Leadership Through Solitude
"We have a crisis of leadership in America." In a speech delivered at West Point, writer William Deresiewicz states that many of today's leaders have jumped through the hoops and climbed up the greasy ladder of hierarchy only to maintain the status quo. Real leadership, though, "means finding a new direction, not simply putting yourself at the front of the herd that's heading toward the cliff." Th... posted on Nov 20 2010, 8,265 reads

Turning Values into Action
These days, many share the desire to do work that helps the world. Yet, despite good intentions, social enterprises and nonprofits are not immune to ethical challenges. This line of thinking- that because my cause is pure, I don't need to be concerned about values, conflicts, or ethics- is particularly relevant for social innovators. It can blind social innovators to their own value biases or fail... posted on Nov 10 2010, 4,091 reads