Bam. That’s the sound of your confidence hitting bottom. The longer you’re out of work, the bigger the hit your confidence takes. Pretty soon you’ll have trouble remembering what you did well and why anyone was foolish enough to pay you for doing it. The good news is, you’re not alone. The bad news is, [...]
TCA News & Articles
Cal, the employee, is in the middle of an approach-avoidance mess. He has a job that he needs and doesn’t want. He doesn’t know what he’s doing and he’s lost while he’s doing it. He forces a smile while he’s scared; he wants to leave and has to stay. As confused as he appears, he’s [...]
This economic climate is tough. Not only are organizations being tasked to do more with less, but technology changes are causing seismic cultural shifts within their ranks. Groomed in adversity, and generally proficient in using technology, Gen Xers are often called to be their organizations’ cultural and technological change agents, much like Brian with whom [...]
Aana is nine years old and bright. Really bright. I was interviewing her for a book chapter I’m writing about youngsters and their ideas about work and the workplace. She eased right into our conversation and jumped at a chance to give me a crash course on Star Wars characters and the relative merits of [...]
Carrie is a 31-year-old accountant for a small oil and gas firm that has been expanding rapidly for the past three years. She loves the challenge of what she does for a living and the colleagues with whom she works. The only problem is the hours. With the volume of business, she has found herself [...]
“It’s not what they do it’s how they do it. If they weren’t so good at their jobs they’d be long gone.” How often have you used those phrases when describing the disruptive behavior of colleagues? In a previous post, I described 3 employees who insist on pushing the boundaries: A rainmaker who disrespects co-workers, [...]
As the Baby Boomers begin their slow march toward retirement, the jobs they leave behind are being filled by those more than half their ages. While some bright young professionals are capable of stepping in and doing the work, their matriculation causes a cultural shift among the people that the new hires find themselves working [...]
“So, Michele, it must be nice to be paid to tell people what to do,” says the friend I ran into at the grocery store. I noted the raised eyebrows and head shake, and sensed that he was…amused at my livelihood. “Well, the sad news is that I don’t get to boss anyone – not [...]
Three employees in the workplace. Each one tries our patience and challenges our notions of fair play: The first is a free radical existing in a conservative, hierarchical institution. He’s as difficult as he is brilliant, appealing, and maddening. He has a small but adoring claque of supporters who follow his lead and go wherever [...]
I admire the discernment of older professionals, don’t you? When someone has been on a job for more than a couple of decades, the ability to discern and prioritize critical information regarding their tasks becomes second nature. Chelsey Brunett Sullenburger, or “Sulley”, is a great example of this. He became famous after he preserved the [...]