Articles
Balance Curve publishes articles designed to support and assist our clients. Some of our articles are found below and on LinkedIn.
All Leadership
The Conversations Leaders Avoid — and Why They Matter Most
Many communication problems that appear in organisations are not actually about communication at all. They are about conversations that never happen. A leader notices tension between colleagues but hopes it will resolve itself. A performance issue sits unresolved because addressing it feels uncomfortable. A disagreement in a meeting is quietly set aside rather than explored…
Effective Communication is Critical for High Performance
I recently spent a “Development Day” with a highly engaged group of Board Directors who were all committed to improving their performance as a team. Our focus for the day was on how the Directors could become more effective communicators. Research makes it clear that effective communication is critical for high performance, so we drew…
The problem with silence
Last December I ran four of my Mastering Hard Conversations programs with a diverse group of leaders – two in a government agency and two in a not-for-profit organisation. Participants shared stories of stressful workplaces, destructive conflict, and dysfunctional, poor performing teams. A common theme was the failure of people to share their voice – to…
Rebuilding Trust in Organisations – it doesn’t happen by magic!
Last year, I had the opportunity to work closely with several teams that were struggling to perform at their best. As I delved into the dynamics of each team, it became evident that a significant hurdle they faced was a breakdown in relationships stemming from a loss of trust. This challenge isn’t uncommon. Trust within…
Using Performance Reviews to Motivate and Engage
If you aim to create a high performance culture then you need to be thinking and talking about performance all the time. I advocate that leaders should have regular performance review meetings with their team members. The frequency of the meetings depends on the experience of the team member but, for most, monthly or quarterly…
When people choose silence, rather than expressing their issues, organisations lose
Leaders are expected to not only have hard conversations, but also do them well. And this is the expectation in the private and public sectors. The New South Wales Government, for example, has developed a set of capabilities – the NSW Public Sector Capability Framework – used to help develop their leaders. Many of the…
Mastering Hard Conversations – The Art of Self-Reflection
Conflict in the workplace is inevitable. Whether you like it or not, there will be times when you must navigate uncomfortable conversations and make tough decisions. The first step in becoming better at this is becoming good at the art of self-reflection. That is, understanding what’s going on for you in relation to the situation…
Holding people accountable
Holding people accountable As a leader, your key task is to get the best out of your people. An important part of managing people is giving them feedback. We all like being valued and appreciate being told we are doing a good job. Giving positive feedback is easy. As a leader you also need to…
What makes hard conversations hard?
We ask this question in our Mastering Hard Conversations program because often people don’t give it a great deal of thought and we find understanding what is causing discomfort is very useful. Some common responses in our workshops include: ‘I don’t like conflict.’ ‘Hard conversations put the relationship at risk, and I value the relationship.’…
What are hard conversations and why should you have them?
Conflict in the workplace is inevitable. As a leader – whether that be as CEO or part of senior management, or a leader within your team or thought leader within your organisation – being skilled in dealing with conflict and having uncomfortable conversations has enormous benefits. Hard conversations are the conversations that you find uncomfortable,…