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Cathy Gaynor
Lead UP – Leadership is not a title
Leading is required in all areas of our lives – home, work, family and relationships – and yet we often forget that leadership is not a title; it is an action. The concept that Emergent calls LeadUP is defined by speaking and influencing from any position or project in which we are involved. The concept…
Wearing Emotions on your Sleeve
A common challenge when working with organizations, teams, and leaders for developing more sustainable leadership performance is understanding emotional intelligence. We can define it, and most people know they need more of it, but we are often stymied by the area/competence called “Emotional Self-Control.” When not correctly understood, this competency often makes leaders feel they…
Big Potential, Shawn Achor – A Book Review
The new book by Shawn Achor is an excellent read for anyone looking to transform their pursuit of success to raise achievement, happiness and well-being. “Big Potential” shares many examples and research showing that our potential is not limited by what we alone can achieve, but rather by how we complement, contribute to, and benefit…
Everyday Compassion
The past couple weeks I have been amazed by the compassion shown by businesses, individuals, and actors during and after the hurricanes in Texas, Louisiana and Puerto Rico and the shooting in Las Vegas. A furniture store owner offered his entire complex to those in need of a place to stay; people waited in seemingly…
Exercising Good Judgment
Everyone has heard the word “judgment” and for most of us this word has a negative connotation related to the inevitable unfairness we associate with judging others. What does that really mean? Judgment can be exercised for good, especially in delicate or stressful situations, and in this context it is often referred to as a…
It is Not the Speed, but the Direction
How many things can help us move faster? Faster internet, faster planes, fast cars, faster products to help us clean, study, and lose weight. But with all of the things that are taking us places faster, are we even going in the right direction? Life can move at a very fast pace, and studies have…
“The Outward Mindset: Seeing Beyond Ourselves” – a Book Review
As humans, our default focus is one of self; we tend to look at the world and everything in it from that perspective – and it’s not always the most useful perspective to have. The book “The Outward Mindset” by The Arbinger Institute provides meaningful examples and insights into how we can learn to see…
Detachment for Higher Productivity
We came into the world attached to our mothers, but when did we really start getting productive? When the cord was cut. Somehow, now, we have become attached again – this time, to technology. Between email, social media, and smartphones, we can be reached anytime, anywhere. Studies are now showing that detachment and recovery from…
Spark Mystery and Curiosity
I am reading a wonderful book called “Unthink” that is part of the curriculum for our LeadFORWARD program. The Emergent LeadFORWARD program is a year-long program for high-level leaders in organizations in Central New York. “Unthink” – like its title implies – reminds us not to just do the same things over and over again,…
Lean In – A Book Review
Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg, the current COO of Facebook is a book I would highly recommend to all men and women in a leadership role as well as all wives, husbands, fathers, and mothers. I thought I would share a couple of ideas mentioned in the book that really stuck with me. Sheryl talks in the…