At this writing, we’re coming up on the start of Q4. What questions do you ask yourself about what’s ahead of us all for the rest of the year? Are your visions for the next three months based on negativity bias? Or possibility-oriented thinking? In this uncertain year, we could go either way in our imaginings.

When you look back at the year 2020, will you see it as a time of loss, fear, and stagnation? Or will you see it as a time of growth, expansion and a deepening of your wisdom and resilience as a leader in your company? As of this writing, we’re still in Q3 of 2020, so you have plenty of time to shift gears and resolve to use this year as a time of enrichment and learning.

The learning never stops as you climb the ranks of corporate leadership. You acquire the technical skills and industry insights necessary to stay ahead of the game. And they just require refresher courses now and then to keep your saw sharpened. But the higher up the ranks you ascend, the demand for technical acumen makes way for the increased need to broaden and deepen your people skills. Those lessons never seem to end.

I’m often asked what the critical components are to the kind of extraordinary partnership that I have with my chief people officer. I have to say there is indeed a bit of luck, chemistry, and magic to our rapport. But there are some aspects to our relationship that are absolutely replicable – assuming both partners are willing participants in the adventure. I’ve unpacked them for you here.

For those of you who have been following my work over the years, you might be thinking, “Garry has lost his mind. He’s telling us all how to do it wrong!”