


“You Need to EARN My Trust!” Are You Sure?
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedinMany faulty beliefs go unquestioned and the notion of earning trust before it is given is one of those. Others do not need to earn your trust. Rather, the trust you need earn is that which you must find within yourself. Trusting...
Mental Health: Creating Safe Spaces
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“We have brains in order to get along with each other, to be with other people, to connect with other people. That’s really what we are fundamentally all about. And so, much of trauma is about a rupture of the safety of the people...
Shame: Don’t Kill the Messenger!
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“Each and every time the grace of devastation enters our reality, we have an equal opportunity to either cement the falsehood of limiting beliefs or to allow limiting beliefs to melt away by walking through the fire of our most epic...
Do I Care Enough to Risk Losing You?
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“Many of us live in denial of who we truly are because we fear losing someone or something-and there are times that if we don’t rock the boat, too often the one we lose is ourselves…It feels good to be accepted, loved,...
Manipulation
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“Arriving at the destination is more than just having the map.” Judy Ryan, CEO LifeWork Systems Manipulation has gotten a bad rap. We often feel insulted and become defensive when we or someone we love is described as...
A Fool with a Tool is Still a Fool
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“A fool with a tool is still a fool.” Grady Booch, American Software Engineer In any situation involving significant transformation, the most important change process is the one within, one’s mindset. In my 12-month culture...
Your Greatest Barrier Is Your Pain Tolerance
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“…Sometimes I suspect that what had really happened was that we became more resigned, more cynical, raised our pain thresholds as we lowered our expectations. All in all, we settled for less.” Emma Donoghue, Playwright It’s...
Episode 5 – The Power of Mentoring
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Episode 3 – The New Culture Model
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In this episode, Judy and her guest, Lynn Dornfeld, dig a little deeper into the new culture model from several different angles. What are the components to follow? What are the success criteria? What is a culture framework and why do you need one?

Honesty is the Best Policy – or is it?
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“Failure of an employee to speak up in a crucial moment cannot be seen. This is true whether that employee is on the front lines of customer service or sitting next to you in the executive board room. And because not offering an...
Managing Frustrations in a Frustrating World
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“Face challenges, fear, and frustration by seeking out knowledge and opportunities for growth.” ~ Fanny Mairena Today’s leaders must be powerful without entering into the fray caused by frustration. They must refrain...
The Crucial Role of Honor, Dignity and Respect
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“Do the best that you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.” Maya Angelou All one has to do is turn on the news or get on social media to see that honoring oneself and one another and treating oneself and...
Advantages of Cross-Functional Teamwork
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedinOne of the biggest challenges leaders face, according to Deloitte, is organizational design. Specifically, redesigning their structures through teams. The line and block hierarchy found on a company org chart isn’t how work actually...
Emotional Presence: It’s Good Business!
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“The affairs of the heart are directly connected to the brain and it’s theheart’s natural intelligence that must be unfolded for the brain to operate with greater efficiency.” Magical Child, Joseph...
Encouragement vs. Praise
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“Humans need encouragement much like plants need water… We constantly encourage or discourage those around us and thereby contribute materially to their greater or lesser ability to function.” Rudolf Dreikurs, Author, Psychologist...
Choose Helpful AND Harmless
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“It always seems impossible until it is done” Nelson Mandela I often reflect on how many people are “checked out” at work, home, and school; they are suffering and barely surviving, rather than overcoming and...
The Need for Patience & Reassurance
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“It’s not our job to play judge and jury, to determine who is worthy of our kindness and who is not. We just need to be kind, unconditionally and without ulterior motive, even – or rather, especially – when...
Walking the Talk
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“It is difficult to inspire others to accomplish what you haven’t been willing to try.” Confucius “It is my responsibility to do what inspires me, in order to inspire others to do what inspires them.” Tsepiso...
Don’t Hold Up Progress
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“Success on any major scale requires you to accept responsibility . . . In the final analysis, the one quality that all successful people have is the ability to take on responsibility.” Michael Korda...
Do You Have Faith In People’s Goodness?
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase. Always pray to have eyes that see the best in people, and a heart that forgives the worst.” Martin Luther King, Jr You may be surprised to...
What is Social Interest? Does it Matter?
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedinThink of people you know and admire a lot. What qualities do you like most about them? How do they make you feel? Chances are they are people who banish inferiority feelings in others and cause a positive experience instead. They...
Building Caring Connections
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“Nobody cares how much you know, until they know how much you care.” Theodore Roosevelt “Caring about others, running the risk of feeling, and leaving an impact on people, brings happiness.” Harold Kushner I frequently...
You’re Not The Boss of Me!
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“Trying to win a power struggle is like trying to win a nuclear war. You may achieve your goal, but not without catastrophic casualties on both sides.” Jamie Raser, Author of Raising Children You Can Live With A man I know...
Being Trustworthy Isn’t Building Trust
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“Trust is the glue of life. It’s the most essential ingredient in effective communication. It’s the foundational principle that holds all relationships.” Stephen R. Covey I teach and consult on the importance of the following eight...
From Compliance to Commitment
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“You get the best efforts from others not by lighting a fire beneath them, but by building a fire within.” -Bob Nelson Compliance People used to think of the workplace in terms of the activities and behaviors that...
It Takes a Village
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“Everybody in a village had a role to play in bringing up a child—and cherishing it—and in return that child would in due course feel responsible for everybody in that village. That is what makes life in society possible. We must...
Are You a Leader Others Follow?
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.” John Quincy Adams Your role is THE determining factor in whether you drive and sustain positive change ...
1. Straightforwardness: Dare I Tell it Like It Is?
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedinThe most important relationship to manage is with our self. A trustworthy person practices honesty, straightforwardness, respect, receptivity, recognition, keeping commitments, seeking excellence and disclosure, the eight values...
2. Honesty: Don’t Play Others, Don’t Play You!
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“When you face a choice between being polite and being honest, err on the side of the truth. It’s better to be disliked but respected than to be liked and disrespected. In the long run, the people we trust the most are those who...
3. Receptivity: Are You Receptive?
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“Receptivity and sensitiveness are what makes one’s behavior endearing and enriching. Do not try to thrust your likes and dislikes on others. Try instead, to find out what those around would expect from you and where you can...
4. Disclosure: Will You Show Us Who YOU Are?
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“Shame derives its power from being unspeakable.” Brené Brown, Author, Speaker I teach eight values needed to build trust: honesty, straightforwardness, respect, receptivity, recognition, keeping commitments, seeking...
5. Respect: Valuing Unconditionally
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“Respect yourself and others will respect you.” ― Confucius This article on respect is the seventh in my series on the eight values that build trust. I always pair the word respect with mutual because one is not possible...
6. Recognition: Why is Recognition Important To Trust?
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“If you could only sense how important you are to the lives of those you meet; how important you can be to the people you may never even dream of. There is something of yourself that you leave at every meeting with another person.”...
8. Seeking Excellence: Are You All You Can Be?
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“Excellence is never an accident. It is always the result of high intention, sincere effort, and intelligent execution; it represents the wise choice of many alternatives – choice, not chance, determines your destiny.” ...
7. Follow-Through: Do I Mean What I Say?
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“Intent without action will leave every word that I use to describe my intent as empty and best never said.” Craig D. Lounsbrough Imagine you ask someone to do something and they agree. You count on it, and then come to find...
Are You Cultivating Excellence?
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedinNational research shows 29% of employees are engaged in excellence. They’re eager, willing, and personally responsible. The remaining 71% are mediocre or actively disengaged… Ghandi, Helen Keller, DaVinci, or simply a...
Reasons We Gossip & What To Do Instead
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“How would your life be different if…You walked away from gossip and verbal defamation? Let today be the day…You speak only the good you know of other people and encourage others to do the same.” Steve Maraboli, Author, Life, the...
Kinds of People I Need
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“A pessimist is one who makes difficulties of his opportunities and an optimist is one who makes opportunities of his difficulties.” Harry Truman An important question to consider is, “What kinds of people do I need and...
Are We Compatible?
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedinWhether in business or personal relationships, a worthwhile question to ponder is what constitutes compatibility? I went to a lecture by Dr. Denbo, a local therapist, who posed this question. Most of the crowd said things like,...
Soul Mates
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedinLike many of you, I’ve always wanted a soul mate – that wonderful partner who in their presence makes me feel connected and whole. The one who really gets me and who’s there for me through thick and thin, for better or worse, richer...
Can a Team-Hater Engage Employees?
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedinby Julia Paulus (referencing Judy Ryan and LifeWork Systems) SBM, March 2010 I don’t like teams. Back in school, I hated classes when we had to do group projects. My group was always the one where a couple of people did nothing...
What Does it Take to Build Trust?
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedinI’ve delivered many team building workshops to corporations, schools and parent groups in which I focus on the behaviors that build trust and those that don’t. One behavior destructive to any team is gossip and part of my program is...
Better to Give Than Receive?
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedinWe often hear the phrase, “It’s better to give than receive” but is it true? The truth is, it just feels safer to give. Without equal ability to receive, a relationship is defined and limited by a certain amount of fear and...
Connect to Your Light!
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedinRecently, I took a self-imposed retreat to discover how to more fully operate from freedom, courage and joy. As women, unless the light of love is flowing fully in our family or in our intimate relationships, we’re not fulfilled...
Shift Enemies To Friends
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedinHave you ever met someone you felt completely in sync with? Entrainment is a term used to express how the human body assumes a sympathetic response to stimuli much the way scientists have discovered that two heart cells put together...
Commitment
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedin“The moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves, too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one’s favor all...
Am I Selfish?
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedinIt’s important to ask, “What do I feel and what do I want?” When we neglect to take time to consider our choices we often commit self-betrayal, which then results in betrayal of others… A friend recently called me for advice....
Organized Chaos on Purpose
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedinAs a child deeply in love with nature, living on the edge of a park, and the 5th child of 6, I knew a lot about chaos, the beautiful, free, creative and exhilarating kind. Starting out free to explore, school at age 5 felt like...
Did You Hear What I Meant to Say?
Share this...FacebookTwitterLinkedinHave you ever thought you had an agreement or understanding with someone only to find you didn’t? You thought you were clear and direct in a request, and ended up disappointed. Or have you responded to a request, only to find...