“This isn’t going to work. Let’s move on.”   Last weekend, I was helping out at a friend’s party. There were dozens of candles that needed to be lit, in a short period of time, so four of us were working our way down the line with lighters and long tapers.   The candles were …

We spend a lot of our work life seated. Many calls and meetings have us in our chairs for hours! What do we need to know about how to ground and utilize our physical presence when we’re sitting down?   Ignite CSP senior coach, Vivian Smith, brings you some advice for just this situation.   …

I spend a lot of time coaching people to achieve a single outcome—more effective communication. “Effective” can mean concise, moving, convincing, reassuring, compelling…the specific outcome differs, but what everyone is looking for is to avoid miscommunication and to get to the desired result.   Many of our clients do almost all of their communication for …

It could happen.   You’ve prepared, you’ve planned your talk using a strong intention,  you know just how you want to affect your audience, and you’ve practiced. You walk up there, open your mouth…and flop.   What do you do when you feel it going wrong? How can you save it?   I’ve been in …

Our habits and routines go a long way to determining who we are. If my habit is to rush from one task to the next, never quite finishing one thing or deliberately beginning the other, that’s who I become. That’s how I know how to be.   If, on the other hand, I can take …

Yesterday, I was headed home after work and approached an intersection. Traffic was backed up, and there were signs indicating some kind of road work ahead, with a flagger who was sending cars through the stoplight.   I waited, and after a minute or two, I was second in line to go through the light. …

I love a Plan B, and often it’s absolutely necessary (see this post!)   But sometimes Plan B is a way of copping out, of giving ourselves a way to not do the hard work. And here’s the truth about a Plan B—if you know it’s there, you’re going to use it.   The poster …

When we bought our house in 2004, we were smitten with the delightful creek that runs through the rear of the back yard. It provides a constant background of gentle rushing water, and it looks lovely in its banks surrounded by wildflowers.   What we couldn’t see was the way that the creek, years and …

“What’s the trick here?,” you might think. “Extroverts are natural public speakers. No problem.” Well, yes and no. Extroversion refers to how people get their energy; in this case, from being with other people. Many extroverts love to talk and really get their batteries charged from that kind of interaction. But—surprise!—that doesn’t make them good …

In my work, the concept of introverts and extroverts comes up often. How can I be a good speaker if I’m an introvert? I can’t be good at networking if I’m an introvert; what should I do? There is a fundamental misunderstanding operating here about the nature of these personality traits. Introverts and extroverts can …