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Turning Potential Into Results

Be an Olympian at Work

By Camille Smith / July 9, 2016

  The Olympics are here!! With them come all the excitement of underdogs versus shoe-ins, veterans versus first-timers and photo-finish dramas. Athletes commit long before they know if they will have the opportunity to compete.  They commit to the idea, to the possibility of being an Olympian and promise to do what it takes to…

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Are you living and leading by design or by default?

By Camille Smith / May 16, 2016

Riddle me this:  No matter your gender or geography, your doubts or desires, your highs or lows, if you lead 5 or 500, you are always influenced by me. What am I?    Answer:  The conversation you have about the future. The conversation that is shaping your life, how you lead, how you follow, right…

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Cubicle Concussions

By Camille Smith / April 7, 2016

Remember connecting the dots as a kid and seeing the squirrel emerge?   As kids, we had to move our crayon from 1 to 2 to 3 because we couldn’t imagine what the picture was going to be. With more experience, we could “see” the picture without drawing any line.  It’s time to connect the dots…

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What Washington Politics can teach us about Office Politics

By Camille Smith / February 4, 2016

Both networking experts and relationship gurus tell us the same thing: If you want to develop a relationship that lasts, don’t begin it by discussing religion or politics. Why? The topics are too emotion-laden, too side-taking, too side-making, too divisive.  This conventional wisdom advises us to steer clear of discussing either topic at work. It’s…

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Illusions are too cool, until they turn too costly

By Camille Smith / March 12, 2015

Optical illusions are a hoot. They work by taking advantage of how our brain’s hard-wiring processes information. Recently, a photograph of a bride’s dress posted online went viral along with the question: Is the dress White and Gold or Blue and Black? Those in the W&G camp are adamant that they are right, just as…

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Resolutions? Bah, humbug!

By Camille Smith / January 27, 2015

Looking back If you haven’t made your New Year’s resolutions yet, or, probably more likely, the one’s you’ve made have fallen away, it’s ok. In fact, it’s better than ok … read on.In my December 2013 blog, I declared “releasing” as my one-word intention for 2014. I put it on a card and stuck it…

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The Problem with Thinking … Only Certain Thoughts

By Camille Smith / December 9, 2014

I just finished reading The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt. Regardless of the mixed reviews of the Pulitzer Prize winner, I loved it. The last 10 pages got me thinking about thinking. One phrase in particular gave birth to this blog: “… just as the stars are beautiful because of the space between them”. The ‘not…

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Ostrich-ize your Leadership

By Camille Smith / November 16, 2014

When someone’s ignoring what we think they ought to pay attention to, we chastise them with: “Don’t be an ostrich and stick your head in the sand!” Well, add one more thing to the list of the stuff we believe that isn’t true. This past summer, I visited the Rooster Cogburn Ostrich Ranch outside Red…

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Drink up to improve your performance!

By Camille Smith / October 16, 2014

“Water, water, everywhere, Nor any drop to drink.” So says the speaker in Coleridge’s The Rime of the Ancient Mariner remarking about a sailor on a becalmed ship surrounded by salt water that he cannot drink. By extension, these lines are used to describe a situation in which someone is in the midst of plenty…

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Swallowing the bitter pill of rejection leads to a diet of success

By Camille Smith / July 31, 2014

No.   Thanks, but no thanks. Decline.   Not interested. Dismissed. Rejected.    Your idea might not be adopted. Your application might be declined. Your declaration of love might receive a blank look.  It’s ok to not like rejection. But, if you avoid it when something really matters to you, I promise you’ll regret it. Why? …

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