I keep having versions of the same conversation with leaders and managers.
Sometimes it’s a remote team that feels like onboarding has become impossible. Sometimes it’s a hybrid team that’s technically “back,” but still spending most of the day on video calls. Sometimes it’s a co-located team where everyone sits in the same building and still struggles to coordinate across functions, or understand what other people are actually doing.
Read MoreIt's early February, and if you're like 80% of Americans, that shiny New Year's resolution you made three weeks ago is gathering dust somewhere between "I'll start Monday" and "Maybe next year." Perhaps you resolved to be more positive, adopt a growth mindset, or finally become that unflappable leader who sees every setback as an opportunity. Noble goals, all of them.
Here's the uncomfortable truth: mindset work isn't a resolution. It's a renovation.
Read MoreAs we recently celebrated Dowling Street's 12th anniversary, I found myself thinking back to an evening two years ago that crystallized what this work is really about.
On March 21, 2024, we gathered in New York City to mark our 10th anniversary. But this wasn't a typical milestone celebration. It was a chance to honor our firm's most important work to date, and to hear from a man whose story embodies the very principles we've built our practice around.
Read MoreEvery leader I know is sprinting. Racing to adopt AI. Rushing to transform. Scrambling to stay ahead. And yet, when you look at the actual results, most of them are running in circles. MIT's recent study reported that 95% of generative AI pilots are failing to deliver measurable value. Nearly all organizations are seeing zero return on their AI initiatives.
That's not an AI problem. That's a velocity problem.
Read MoreBetween the ages of fifteen and eighteen, I had three knee surgeries to repair a torn ACL. I know scar tissue well: the dull ache, the resistance, the slow work required to move through it. One post-op appointment stands out. After months of work, my doctor told me scar tissue was building up again. Unless I increased my range of motion, I would need another surgery to remove it.
Read MoreTwo concerns tend to dominate our conversations with leaders: skepticism that AI is not all that powerful and the hype is overblown, or fear that AI is dangerous and perhaps best avoided altogether. However, these perspectives are distractions, slowing leaders down, narrowing imagination, and prevent experimenting with what is possible.
Read MoreIt's 2024, and suddenly everyone's talking about the WNBA like it's an overnight success. Caitlin Clark! Angel Reese! Sold-out arenas! But here's what the "overnight success" narrative completely misses: the WNBA spent years getting knocked down, dusting themselves off, and figuring out how to use each setback as fuel for what came next. And that's exactly what your organization needs to learn to do.
Read MoreWhile most leaders are busy either panicking about AI replacing them or breathlessly evangelizing its capabilities, they're missing the most important truth of our time: artificial intelligence doesn't diminish the value of human judgment—it makes it exponentially more valuable. But only if you understand why.
Read MoreAll lives don’t matter… all lives can’t matter, until Black Lives Matter.
This is not going to be a typical Dowling Street Insight that you may have received from us in the past. It can’t be. Instead, today I’m going to share a personal message from my experiences and reflections over the last few weeks.
Read MoreDowling Street celebrated its 5th birthday at an anniversary celebration on January 17th at our headquarters in New York City. Clients, partners, friends and alumni all attended to commemorate the occasion and the road that has gotten us here.
Read MoreRecently, 60 advisers, associates, friends and members of Congress were all interviewed to give an account of how the President views his job. The consensus? Trump believes “every day is an hour-by-hour battle for self-preservation”.
Read MoreThe seeming paradox for many professionals today: the ability to shape and mold careers however wished, and yet, an overabundance of unhappiness. That is, so many describe themselves as “disengaged, unfulfilled and miserable.”
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