by Larry Dressler | Oct 29, 2021 | On My Mind
You may be impressed to know that in my senior year I was my high school’s #1 tennis player. You will be decidedly less impressed to learn that our team was the bottom ranked in the league – every year I played. It’s safe to say we were the “underdogs”. My school,...
by Larry Dressler | Oct 13, 2021 | In My Tool Bag
I received a number of appreciative emails about my recent blog (on the ways we can calm unproductive anxiety about the future) and was inspired to share a tool that might prove useful when you find yourself in a downward spiral of unproductive worry. The tool was...
by Larry Dressler | Sep 23, 2021 | On My Mind
The future has never felt more uncertain. How much time do you waste on excessive and unproductive worrying? I define “unproductive worry” as the downward spiral in which we take stock of the unknowns and convert them into worse case scenarios. We then fixate on those...
by Larry Dressler | Sep 9, 2021 | On My Mind
When I revisit the past I often feel disappointed – in myself and in others. I fixate on ways I didn’t measure up to expectations or how I felt let down by those I trusted. The past, or more precisely stated – our relationship with the past – can provide a mountain of...
by Larry Dressler | Aug 26, 2021 | On My Mind
I work a lot with teams that are trying to make something better – their organizations, their communities, their countries. Inevitably, early in any change process, there’s often a person at the back of the room who raises his or her hand and asks a question that’s...
by Larry Dressler | Aug 13, 2021 | On My Mind
I recently spent the afternoon at Denver’s Museum of Contemporary Art. One of the exhibitions featured a 10-foot high poster created by Rick Griffith of @MATTERdesign entitled: “An Introductory Ethic for Designers.” As I looked up at the massive manifesto and reviewed...
by Larry Dressler | Jun 30, 2021 | On My Mind
Think for a moment about a relationship at work that you really value. How would you describe this relationship? Now, think of a relationship where you feel less trust and connection. What makes these two relationships so different? According to relationship...
by Larry Dressler | Jun 25, 2021 | On My Mind
Chickens? Wisdom? Give me a chance to explain. When I’m working with leaders I often find myself coming back to three words of advice inspired by author Greg McKeowen – “protect the asset.” He wrote: The best asset we have for making a contribution to the world is...
by Larry Dressler | Jun 15, 2021 | From My Bookshelf
The old saying, “seeing is believing” doesn’t really describe how we operate as humans. If you’ve spent any time with me in a workshop, you’ve probably heard me tell a favorite story that challenges this conventional wisdom. There’s this elderly couple. The wife Ethel...
by Larry Dressler | May 27, 2021 | On My Mind
If you look at the typical resume, 80% of the document’s “real estate” is occupied by a section titled EXPERIENCE, in which job candidates describe their past employers, positions held, and length of service. There’s a reason for this – most employers place a great...
