You make the plan. You walk out the door ready to execute it. And within an hour, something happens that throws the whole thing off course. If that sentence made you nod, you have probably worked in public works. But honestly, it doesn't matter what field you're in. Plans falling apart is not a public works problem. It's a work problem. It's a life problem. The only difference is how often you have to face it and how quickly you have to adjust.

Last December, I sat through a conference presentation on permitting and solar farms. I'm not in the permit department. I'm not in engineering. At the time, that presentation meant absolutely nothing to me. But the people presenting had lived it. They'd hit every wall you can hit, chased down every regulation, and dealt with every frustrated landowner and township board along the way. They were generous enough to share what they'd learned, mistakes included. So I listened an

Clutter is just a lot of things out of place. That's it. But don't let the simple definition fool you. Clutter can surround us at home, at work, in our car, in our lives, and in our minds. If we aren't careful, it creeps into every corner we have, including the corners where our leadership lives. That's because clutter accumulates slowly, and it looks the same whether it's in my office or my home. Something comes in, and I set it down. The first piece of paper. The first boo

Over the last few weeks, I lost my focus. Not entirely, but when you've got a lot going on and like to make progress on a bunch of different projects, even a small sidestep in focus makes a big difference. If you write it down and put it somewhere you see it regularly, guess what happens? It actually happens. You still have to put in the effort, don't get me wrong. But seeing it, right there in front of you, helps. It reminds you of your goals, your focus, your priorities.

We watched the whole thing unfold. Let's be honest, watching is a generous word. It was closer to staring. From the back of the boat, someone called out, “We must be something to watch.” I called back, “You really are!” What I missed in that moment was tone. A second after I said it, I caught myself and asked someone else who was clearly watching whether I'd misread the situation. I had. Her body language said it all. She was not enjoying being the center of attention.

I've been at the Road Commission for 21 years. That's a long time. Not the longest tenure in the room, but long enough that my brain is basically a filing cabinet of random history, processes, institutional knowledge, and details that most people don't even know to ask about. I remember looking at the long-timers when I first started and thinking...how do they know all of that? Will I ever get there? Well, I sure don't know everything. But I've gotten there in a lot of ways.

The result? They look like a diamond. Their coworker looks like a chunk of coal. And nobody actually did anything different. One person just decided their shine required someone else's shadow. Here's what I know about people who build others up. They are magnetic. People want to be around them. People want to work for them and with them. They create environments where everyone does better, because when one person wins and it feels safe to celebrate, the whole team gets more

I have spent a lot of time in rooms with leaders. New ones, seasoned ones, reluctant ones, and ambitious ones. And one thing I see over and over again is this: most leaders are so busy leading that they never stop to ask themselves the most important question of all. Who am I as a leader right now? Not who they want to be. Not who their organization needs them to be. Who they actually are today, with all the strengths and blind spots and unfinished edges that come with bein

Last week I interviewed 19 people for the same position. One hundred and eighteen people applied. Getting from 118 to a manageable interview list took time, focus, and more than a few passes through a whole lot of resumes. It got me thinking. About the process. About what makes someone stand out. About what hiring managers are really looking for and what applicants often miss. So whether you are on the applying side or the hiring side, this one is for you.

So that’s what this post is. The actual how. What job shadowing looks like when it works, how to cross-train without overwhelming your team, and how to stop wasting your vacation coverage opportunities. Let’s get into it. And yes, I know all of this. I’ve written it right here. That does not mean I do it perfectly or consistently. I am a work in progress too, and that is completely okay. I share this stuff because I believe in it, not because I have it all figured out.

Here is the statistic that knocked me over. Right after a training class, employees apply about 62% of what they just learned. Six months later, that number drops to 44%. After one full year, only 34% is still in use. WHAT?! I am sorry, but that one shook me. Companies invest in training. Schools build entire curriculums. Parents pay for tutors and camps and music lessons. Coaches design programs. And after a year, only about a third of it is still showing up in behavior?

I gave a presentation last week on how to stay organized at work, and right at the start I told the audience to brace themselves. Because here's the thing. If I'm up there talking about how to be organized, you might assume one of two things. Either I'm wildly, terrifyingly organized, or I'm a total imposter standing behind a podium pretending I know what I'm doing. Spoiler alert. It's option C. I'm not perfect, and I totally own it. And I told that audience exactly what I'm

Right now I'm in the middle of something big. I'm sitting down with every team across the organization and rebuilding our expectations from scratch. Not just one team. Every single one. Each work group. Each small team. Each large team. Then I'll keep going, group by group, until we've worked our way up to the full organization. That's a lot of conversations. And I'm doing them on purpose. After 20+ years in HR, I've learned something I keep coming back to. The words you en

“I don’t know what you’re doing, so you must not be doing anything.” That’s what a coworker from another department said to me. Not in a joking tone. Not as a question. As a statement. The logic was apparently this: if they couldn’t see me working, I must not be working at all. I was shocked. And honestly, I was hurt.

This week, I sat across from someone in a meeting who disagreed with me. Not a small "let's tweak the wording" kind of disagreement. We could not have seen the issue more differently if we tried. I shared my perspective. They shared theirs. And when I walked out of that meeting, I noticed something interesting happening in my own head. Part of me wanted to take it personally.

Here's where I am sitting today as I write this. Graduation is May 9th. I'm not walking. There won't be a ceremony for me, no cap, no stage, no speeches. And yet, somewhere in my brain, I've decided I am not allowed to celebrate until after May 9th. Why? I don't have a good answer. The work is done. The degree is earned. But there's some invisible permission slip I'm waiting for. Some "official" moment I think has to happen before I am allowed to mark this.

Change is hard. Some people love change. Some people resist it. But honestly? Whether you welcome it or dread it, change is still a challenge. Picture this. You're at work, somewhere you've been for a long time (in my case, 20+ years). You know the systems. You know the people. You know how to get things done. Then someone new walks in with fresh ideas, a different perspective, and a totally different way of thinking. Suddenly, the way you've always done things is up for de

There is a phrase that has been rattling around in my head lately: perfectionism is the enemy of done. That is not permission to do sloppy work. It is not an argument for carelessness or cutting corners. It is a recognition that at a certain point, the extra hours we pour into something rarely return anything meaningfully better than what we already had. The energy we spend chasing perfect is energy we are not spending on the next thing, the next person, the next project tha

A few weeks ago I read Scarcity Brain by Michael Easter, and I have not stopped thinking about it since. Easter spent years researching why our brains default to wanting more, no matter how much we already have. What he found is both unsettling and completely liberating once you understand it. Here is the short version: your brain evolved in a world where resources were genuinely scarce. Food, shelter, safety, warmth. Getting more of those things meant survival. So your brai

Here's my honest take, and yes, I know some people will call me a Pollyanna for saying it: I think the vast majority of people are reasonable. Most people, when given accurate information and treated with respect, can understand what is and isn't possible. They can handle a "no" if it's explained well. They can work with timelines, constraints, and the reality of limited resources. I have spent over 20 years working in public sector HR, mostly in local government and public