There is no narrative arc more dystopian than insecure people with power and limited accountability. Our tiny headlamp in an otherwise pitch black situation starts with the idea that work can be better.

NewsletterJohnathan NightingaleDecember 11, 2024Melissa Nightingale, Johnathan Nightingale, Raw Signal Group, RSG, Worlds Best Newsletter, Management, Leadership, Management Training, Leadership Training, reflection, power, psychological safety, culture, values, uncertainty, goals

I do not think it means what you think it means

Attaching the word performance to something doesn't automatically make it a good idea. In fact, most of the time when we see performance initiatives announced, they have the opposite of their stated intent.

True power lies elsewhere

A lot of stuff lives in the "about work and not about work at the same time" bucket. Turns out that organizing humans around complex tasks is messy.

This is not a democracy

There was a hard call to be made. And Jeff made it. That's not abnormal. Jeff makes a lot of hard calls. He has trained his whole life for just this moment. And this one just went very badly.

NewsletterJohnathan NightingaleOctober 30, 2024Melissa Nightingale, Johnathan Nightingale, Raw Signal Group, RSG, Worlds Best Newsletter, Management, Leadership, Management Training, Leadership Training, reflection, power, psychological safety, change, culture, accountability, values

Nice, nice, very nice

The longer you're in a culture of niceness and side-channels and things left unsaid, the more you have to wonder about the conversations happening out of earshot.

NewsletterJohnathan NightingaleOctober 16, 2024Melissa Nightingale, Johnathan Nightingale, Raw Signal Group, RSG, Worlds Best Newsletter, Management, Leadership, Management Training, Leadership Training, reflection, power, psychological safety, change, culture, feedback

Power-posing in the driver's seat

"Don't worry, we have a slackbot that does weekly micro-learning prompts on how to use the brakes" is a transparently bad idea.

NewsletterJohnathan NightingaleOctober 2, 2024Melissa Nightingale, Johnathan Nightingale, Raw Signal Group, RSG, Worlds Best Newsletter, Management, Leadership, Management Training, Leadership Training, reflection, power, psychological safety, uncertainty

When someone tells you there are only two types of leaders

The number one rule of leadership development is that there’s no growth without reflection. So come sit a spell and let’s reflect. How’s that two-shapes-of-humans theory actually playing out?

NewsletterJohnathan NightingaleSeptember 18, 2024Melissa Nightingale, Johnathan Nightingale, Raw Signal Group, RSG, Worlds Best Newsletter, Management, Leadership, Management Training, Leadership Training, reflection, culture, values, future of work

Lower your expectations

We have been to a lot of corporate all-hands, gatherings, conferences, and un-conferences. Some of them have been incredibly well-run. Some of them have been a rolling shit-show. But holy shit what if you did this?

NewsletterJohnathan NightingaleSeptember 4, 2024Melissa Nightingale, Johnathan Nightingale, Raw Signal Group, RSG, Worlds Best Newsletter, Management, Leadership, Management Training, Leadership Training, reflection, culture, values, connection, future of work, community, COVID-19, happiness

Okay, call it a come back

There is some design work to do if we want to build new connections, and rebuild the ones we miss.

What did they say when you told them?

You're just reminding them that it's a fair expectation that they would try to resolve it directly.

NewsletterJohnathan NightingaleAugust 7, 2024Melissa Nightingale, Johnathan Nightingale, Raw Signal Group, RSG, Worlds Best Newsletter, Management, Leadership, Management Training, Leadership Training, reflection, psychological safety, uncertainty, accountability, feedback, culture, values, connection

Announced on Sunday, handed off on Sunday

The path to better succession planning starts with taking a moment to reflect.

NewsletterJohnathan NightingaleJuly 24, 2024Melissa Nightingale, Johnathan Nightingale, Raw Signal Group, RSG, Worlds Best Newsletter, Management, Leadership, Management Training, Leadership Training, reflection, business strategy, leading through uncertainty, flexibility, psychological safety, uncertainty, accountability

Even better than inbox zero

Not all months are created equal. And July, in particular, is a gift for many orgs if you're able to grab it.

NewsletterJohnathan NightingaleJuly 10, 2024Melissa Nightingale, Johnathan Nightingale, Raw Signal Group, RSG, Worlds Best Newsletter, Management, Leadership, Management Training, Leadership Training, goals, reflection, performance, business strategy, startup

Was the Future of Work a ZIRP?

You can feel lucky to have a job and still want your work to have reasonable hours, pay equity, and the flexibility to deal with family matters on a Wednesday afternoon.

NewsletterJohnathan NightingaleMay 15, 2024Melissa Nightingale, Johnathan Nightingale, Raw Signal Group, RSG, Worlds Best Newsletter, Management, Leadership, Management Training, Leadership Training, reflection, accountability, uncertainty, change, org chart, power, leading through uncertainty, psychological safety

Find the through-line or make one

"How do I set goals without a strategy?" Or "How do I get my team working on the right things, when no one has told me what the right things are?"

NewsletterJohnathan NightingaleMay 1, 2024Melissa Nightingale, Johnathan Nightingale, Raw Signal Group, RSG, Worlds Best Newsletter, Management, Leadership, Management Training, Leadership Training, reflection, accountability, uncertainty, change, org chart, power, leading through uncertainty, psychological safety

If you're doing their job, who's doing your job?

The cure for a structurally overwhelmed team is a better structure. It's clarity about what matters most, and permission to hand off or put down the work that doesn't.