This past December, Fast Company announced that 2020 would be the year of working remotely. Well, the magazine’s editors may be right about that — but not for the reasons they expected. Instead, growing concerns about Covid-19 have prompted many organizations, both global and domestic, to start talking about protocols for sending their workforces home and ways they can maintain … Read more
Article originally published in Forbes, December 2019 As a communications coach, I’m a staunch supporter of companies having a robust professional development curriculum. Yet even I will agree that corporate training on inclusivity and unconscious bias have their pitfalls and limitations if employees don’t — and aren’t expected to — practice what they learn when their decisions … Read more
Any good business person will tell you that failures are a necessary ingredient of success. They demonstrate ambition to push limits, resilience against setbacks, and the creativity inherent in trial and error. Yet this same principle is rarely applied to the rules of engagement between co-workers. An isolated slip-up of questionable language, for example, can … Read more
After studying civility and workplace communication in the legal profession with the NALP Foundation for over a year, it is time to start putting our finding to work! Check out our article, “An Exploration of Civility within the Legal Industry,” in this month’s issue of the PD Quarterly. To learn more about how we are … Read more
This June marked one of the most visible observances of Pride Month that our clients have ever seen. The celebration was certainly ubiquitous in my own city of D.C. Rainbow flags appeared not only above the basement bars in Dupont Circle (as usual), but also (for what felt like the first time) as window banners … Read more
Next time you disagree with a co-worker, a neighbor, or your mother-in-law, pat yourself on the back. You’re doing your part to help save humanity. That’s because the delicate push-pull involved in resolving a challenge — i.e., engaging in productive conflict — is what moves our society forward. That’s right. Our human capacity for multilayered … Read more
Yes, it’s 2019. We ping. We snap. We tweet. We deliver knockout client presentations over video chat and then high-five each other on Slack with dancing emoticons, impressed with our 21st-century prowess. But let’s face it: Email is still a necessary tool for communicating for work. And even though it barely qualifies as actual communication, … Read more
Here at Fringe PD, we frequently use humor as a teaching method. But with today’s message, I couldn’t be more serious. Incivility in our workplaces needs to be addressed—and soon. So, I’m pleased to announce today that Fringe PD and the NALP Foundation are doing something about it. To be clear: This issue isn’t just … Read more
Be better than Selina Meyer when writing your performance reviews (well… and generally) This article was originally published on Forbes.com Fall has officially arrived, which means everyone’s favorite, most festive time of year is almost here: performance review season. Pour the pumpkin spice, and let the celebrations begin! But before you sit down to write … Read more
Creativity is all the rage in the business world right now, and for good reason — the ability to imagine new ways of doing things (especially with technology) can be a powerfully disruptive tool. Yet for creativity to be truly effective on a large scale, adopting small-scale, everyday habits is required. (Think: being first to … Read more