Every interaction gives you two sources of information: the person in front of you and your own reaction to them. Understanding people requires learning to read both.

Most advice about working with difficult colleagues offers a list of tactics: set boundaries, listen actively, address the behavior,...

When a people situation at work becomes a challenge, the reflex is to react quickly and resolve the problem. The more effective skill is to read the situation — including what it's stirring in you — and choose deliberately. 

Every leader experiences this regularly: someone on the team becomes a pro...

The recurring bind of managing above and below — and the two-way read that keeps stress from landing on the wrong people.

Most leaders in the middle know the feeling before they can name it. In front of the client, you're composed — measured, even accommodating. Then you turn to your own team and s...