What if the place where you’re least free became the place where you felt most connected?
That’s the remarkable paradox at the center of a recent New York Times essay by P.G. Sittenfeld, a Princeton-educated former city council member who served 16 months in federal prison — and emerged with a profound lesson about human belonging.
A recent article in The New York Times highlights the impactful leadership of Nike CEO Elliott Hill.
What stands out about Elliott is his passion for excellence and his ability to connect with people, reflecting the culture of Texas Christian University, his alma mater. The article points out that under the previous CEO, Nike had become disconnected from its star athletes and leaders in various leagues. Upon returning from retirement at the request of Nike founder Phil Knight, Elliott made it a priority to travel globally to reconnect with these key figures.
The author notes that when Elliott enters a room, he greets everyone, regardless of their status, demonstrating his respect for individuals. This approach fosters human connection, which is crucial for building trust. As Michael Jordan remarked, Elliott Hill embodies what Nike needed, emphasizing his unique ability to establish trust with athletes, partners, and individuals worldwide.
For more insights, check out the full article here.
If you have ever wanted to learn more about how the power of connection can help you and your team become smarter, happier, more productive and more resilient to cope with stress, then I have good news for you.
Join me for a free, virtual book club event hosted by the Blanchard Community as we discuss tips from my book, Connection Culture: The Competitive Advantage of Shared Identity, Empathy and Understanding at Work (2nd edition).
You can find all the details and register here.
The month of May marks a time of transition across college campuses in the U.S. as students who have completed their degrees celebrate graduation and prepare to embark on their next chapter.
On the campus of TCU (Texas Christian University), Victor Boschini recently handed out diplomas and paused to pose for photographs for the final time as the school’s chancellor. Thankfully for the TCU Horned Frog family, the transition for this “super connector” has him remaining on campus in his new role as chancellor emeritus.
As many organizations move away from diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, they are left asking, “what’s next?”
Recently, I had the pleasure of speaking with Will Milano, Chief Marketing Officer at Integrity Solutions and host of the Mental Selling podcast, about why connection matters in sales.
First published by Smartbrief on Leadership
As artificial intelligence continues to advance, the internal workings of Microsoft should be a matter of interest to more than just its employees and shareholders. Being a major player in AI, Microsoft will face considerable opportunities, challenges, and even threats of enormous magnitude in the years to come. Is Microsoft ready to navigate well if the sometimes smooth, sometimes choppy waters in the world of technology suddenly turn chaotic?
Can real-life office connections save lives? Consider this: a chance meeting in an office setting years ago set in motion a vaccine to prevent untold number of deaths due to Covid-19.
Dr. Katalin Kariko and Dr. Drew Wiseman, both researchers at the University of Pennsylvania, got to talking one day about their respective areas of RNA and immunology as they took turns using a copier. That friendly conversation led to a collaboration that ultimately resulted in the mRNA technology used in the first Covid-19 vaccines. For their pioneering work, in 2023 the two were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.
The decline of social connection and rise of loneliness in the United States has caught the attention of the U.S. Surgeon General’s office, which prompted the publication of a new advisory.
“The harmful consequences of a society that lacks social connection can be felt in our schools, workplaces, and civic organizations, where performance, productivity, and engagement are diminished,” writes U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy in Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation: The Surgeon General’s Advisory on the Healing Effects of Social Connection and Community released on May 2, 2023. “Given the profound consequences of loneliness and isolation [on individual and societal health], we have an opportunity, and an obligation, to make the same investments in addressing social connection that we have made in addressing tobacco use, obesity, and the addiction crisis.”
Our focus is on the importance of human connection and cultivating a culture of connection in the workplace, but what we’ve learned about connection applies beyond the realm of our work lives. The principles are relevant for individuals, community groups, sports teams, nations and even families. Knowing that a connection deficit negatively affects our own health and well-being, the health of groups and the health of society, we’ve become concerned observing how the pace and stress of life threaten to squeeze out time for supportive, lifegiving relationships and endeavors. Improving connection in the home can lead toward a more fulfilling life and healthier communities, organizations and nations.