A high-tech leader, let’s call him Jason, said, “I can’t relax; I always have to do something useful. Nobody makes me do so; it’s me. This is how I am” ...
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Recently I was sharing the story of my career change and someone commented, “...and you never looked back”! I was caught by surprise. The fact is, I did look back, ...
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“What do you feel now?” I ask my client Tom in the middle of our session. “I think it is, …”, he replies. “What do you feel”, I ask persistently ...
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Q: Why is it important to set an authentic goal? When we are too focused on outside-in recognition like a job title, money, etc., we narrowly define our goal. It ...
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The beginning of the year motivates us to start things right. Ironically it often creates social pressure to declare a popular resolution rather than thoughtfully develop a meaningful and sustainable ...
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A typical "water cooler" conversation around this time of the year is the New Year's resolution. Of course, my standard answer used to be "be more organized," which hardly happened! ...
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Holiday's are in the air. You must be looking forward to all the festivities, traveling, seeing the family, or simply winding down. Me too. I am heading for a two ...
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After 12 years of coaching software engineers to VPs in the tech industry, I found this common theme: feeling fulfilled about our work and contribution is challenging. Managing a thriving relationship ...
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"All humans are entrepreneurs not because they should start companies but because the will to create is encoded in human DNA." - Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn. If you are ...
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The other day a senior leader contacted me to hire me as his coach. His LinkedIn Profile was immaculate - multiple graduate degrees from top-notch schools and a strong track ...
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"Not enough time," "Not enough support from others," and "Lack of ideas" topped the list for my survey question: "What is in your way of a more satisfying career?" It ...
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It was the summer of 2009 when I started my coach training class; the instructor started the session with a guided meditation. The purpose was to be ready and present ...
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“I don’t have the time to pause and think; my days are filled with back-to-back meetings. When someone asks me a question, I tell them what I know and go ...
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Theresa, a senior developer in a tech firm, said that their management encouraged them to be authentic. It prompted her to be passionately sharing some of her opinions. There was ...
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 Feeling stuck and unmotivated in your job? Not getting enough recognition or the upward mobility you deserve? Getting feedback that you are not doing enough? A software engineer in the ...
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A client of mine has a Ph.D. in Computer Science and works on a cutting-edge research project for one of the top tech companies. He has been feeling overwhelmed with ...
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Conflict is a common issue my clients face in their workplace. I found this talk, A Zen Approach to Conflict Resolution by Diane Musho Hamilton, insightful to manage such situations.  ...
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As engineers and tech professionals, we are rewarded for our analytical skills in finding code defects and design issues early on. Often we keep on applying this same trait with ...
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"I am busy all day, trying to complete my to-do list before calling it a day. Yet, some things always remain undone, and, worse still, new things pop up. I ...
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"He doesn’t work well with others.” “He has issues dealing with bad news.” “He is a star performer, but he is lacking executive presence.”  These are some of the typical ...
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It was the Spring of 2011; I was volunteering as a treasurer for a non-profit organization. My motivation was to hone my accounting skills while expanding my network. It was ...
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“Finish your homework before you play “ - Our parents’ well-meaning advice worked well in our early days, but as adults, it is backfiring. These days, most of our work ...
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Too many times, I hear that you can’t survive without multitasking. Checking emails during a meeting, responding to a door knock while trying to focus on your work seems to ...
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I was answering the audience questions during a recent speaking engagement when the host said, "pay attention, Sharmin is coaching.” Even though I was pleasantly surprised that he saw it ...
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Time management is one of the topmost challenges for almost every functional human being. When my clients come with this question, I tell them that time is a fixed resource ...
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In my recent survey, an amazing 79% of people said that Managing-up/Self-promotion is the most challenging aspect of their work. I didn't expect it at all! I then started thinking about it ...
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Too often, we send employees to training to fix the areas of weaknesses. We expect people to be well-rounded to be successful. The fact is, excellent performers, are rarely “well rounded”; ...
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Do anxiety, outrage, frustration, or sadness often grip you? Do they get in the way in high stake situations? Do you wonder why you are not getting what you want? ...
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Growing up, I didn’t think I was very courageous. One day I saw this quote saying: Courage is not the absence of fear. It is acting despite -- because something ...
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“There’s not enough time.” “Time is running out.” “I wish I had more time.” These are some complaints we hear frequently. High-performing, high-achieving professionals often ask for time-management strategies. After ...
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I was talking to Andrea, a leader in a big corporate here in the Seattle area. Brilliant and hardworking she was; her resume spoke for itself. As a senior director ...
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A few weeks ago, I had a headache almost every time I was in a Zoom video call. This phenomenon has become a common issue these days as so many ...
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Last year, when everything went virtual, I had to create videos for a couple of online events. It allowed me to hone my video shooting and editing skills. Recently, we ...
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A job change is usually a daunting task. It becomes even more challenging when it involves a discipline, industry, or a role change. People often see it as continuously submitting ...
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I have been feeling highly spirited all day watching US Presidential inauguration ceremony. This topic I found from Pastor Rick Warren on the Oprah show seemed appropriate for this week's post ...
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Tim is an engineering leader at a hi-tech company in Seattle. He is very good at his trade, has a profound understanding of the technology stack, and has decent ideas ...
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Two Leaders, Similar Challenge Tory, a senior director was in charge of a critical customer-facing component of the business. During big meetings, he had to answer the senior leaders about ...
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Almost half of the Americans make New Year’s resolutions, but fewer than 10% successfully achieve them(source)! The most popular resolutions are staying fit, work-life balance, and personal enrichment. All these ...
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David, a tech leader and a father of two, was in a big dilemma about a job offer. The money was higher than what he was making in his current ...
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“I am just busy,” “I could use a nap,” “I am so tired.” Does any of these sound familiar to you? If yes, you belong to a very large group ...
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