Seventy percent!

That’s basically every place you’ve ever worked.

The open door policy has been around for a hundred years. I’m not going to give you the reason why it started, but I’ll just tell you that it made sense then and it makes sense now. Because the idea’s really good.

The idea being that “my door is always open. Come talk to me anytime. I want to hear what’s on your mind.”

It says, I’m approachable, I’m accessible. I care about you. I’m the kind of person that you can be open with and trust.

I’ve had open door policies throughout most of my career, I actually believe leaders, when they say they have an open door policy, they mean it.

The intention is good. It’s really good.

Unfortunately, open door policies suck.

Open door policies do not create psychological safety in your company.
They destroy it.

They’re the worst things you can do for your company.

Let me explain why.

Read more

You see back in 2009, they put out a deck about the Netflix culture that has since become pretty darn famous. If any PowerPoint can be considered to have gone viral, this one is probably the biggest influencer of them all.

In fact, Cheryl Sandberg once said it’s one of the most important documents to ever come out of Silicon Valley.

If you haven’t seen it, I’m going to put a link in the show notes here. That Netflix document reshaped how companies thought about culture and it led to the onslaught of company core values.

Today most companies have core values. They’re usually some beautiful words that they’ve come up with to define what they stand for. Most often it involves some form of integrity, collaboration, client focus, and probably innovation.

I’m sure you’ve seen them time again, probably on a wall in some office. Maybe on your wall.

But here’s the thing about core values: they mean nothing. I don’t say that to get your goat. I don’t even know what the phrase get your goat means.

Companies don’t call me when things are going well. They call me when they have problems. When they have complex issues that need some simple and fast solutions.

That’s when I get the call, and that’s okay because that’s what I do. And I love it.

One of the first things I’ll ask them, if I can’t find it online, is whether they have core values and what those values are. Some do, some don’t. Honestly, the ones who don’t have values are oftentimes in better shape than the ones who do.

Because for most companies, core values aren’t so much a healthy foundation of the culture, as they are a horrendous liability. And if you don’t know what I’m talking about, you’re probably part of the problem.

Let me explain.

Read more

And, the fact is, that one day I had to fire 35 people. It was a bad day, a really bad day. My wife at the time, and I ended up getting separated that week too. So what would’ve been a bad day, was a bad time in my life and I felt like a failure.

The reality is, after I sold my first company, I was 30 years old, maybe 29.

I felt like a failure then too. I felt like I didn’t achieve what I wanted to.

I felt like I couldn’t achieve what I wanted to, that I couldn’t do what other people did.

And that’s why now I cringe when people say someone either succeeded or failed. And you hear it all the time about entrepreneurs. He sold his company so he succeeded. She didn’t IPO. So the whole thing was a failure.

I was talking to a client today who has an early stage business. Been going for a couple years. It’s doing fairly well, but still trying to find its footing.

Suddenly, over the last month or two,

Read more

He wrote a brilliant book called Atomic Habits. You probably read it, but if you’re one of the seven people in the world who hasn’t, here’s the basic summary.

If you focus on small, consistent habits that allow you to improve 1% per day, you can radically transform your life.

Now here’s my take on it.

It’s complete bullshit.

The Math Works. The Logic Doesn’t.

From a mathematical perspective, the 1% principle makes sense. It simply takes the concept of compound growth and applies it to daily habits. It’s fifth grade algebra. Improving by 1% every day is one to the 365th power, which results in a 37.7% increase at the end of the year.

The math works. And that’s all fine and nice. But there’s a very big and hugely incorrect assumption with his premise. It’s this:

Read more

That’s not a hiring decision. That’s a comparison. And those aren’t the same thing.

This episode is about the bias nobody catches because it feels exactly like careful thinking. And the one question that exposes it before you make a decision y…

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Then you rolled it out... and nobody cared.

Not because your team is lazy. Because you forgot to have this conversation.

This episode is about the one conversation most leaders skip that determines whether a plan actually works.

--

Are you ready to see your Unconscious Operating System?

Once you see it, you’ll never be able to unsee it again.
Sign up for the FREE Leadership Diagnostic Workshop.

www.thebestleadershipcompany.com/leadership-diagnostic-workshop

When you promote loyalty over performance, you just told your best people exactly how much their work matters.

Spoiler: they’ll act accordingly.

This episode is about what your last promotion really said about you.

--

Are you ready to see your Unconscious Operating System?

Once you see it, you’ll never be able to unsee it again.
Sign up for the FREE Leadership Diagnostic Workshop.

www.thebestleadershipcompany.com/leadership-diagnostic-workshop

There are 5 skills that every company needs every employee to master. The catch? They don’t teach you how to do them. That’s all on you. And if you don’t figure it out, somebody else is always going to get that promotion.

Listen to this rant, and let me know your position on the matter (my contact info is below)

--

Are you ready to see your Unconscious Operating System?

Once you see it, you’ll never be able to unsee it again.
Sign up for the FREE Leadership Diagnostic Workshop.

www.thebestleadershipcompany.com/leadership-diagnostic-workshop

--

The Best Leadership Newsletter Ever (join 14k subscribers) :: www.TheBestLeadershipNewsletter.com

Coaching, Consulting + Keynote Speaking :: www.TheBestLeadershipCompany.com

Contact Jeff Matlow ::
hello@TheBestLeadershipCompany.com

Are you more lonely than you were seven years ago? Because we might be in a loneliness epidemic and nobody is recognizing it - or looking for a cure. It’s not going to magically change on it’s on.

Listen to this rant, and let me know your position on the matter (my contact info is below)

--

Are you ready to see your Unconscious Operating System?

Once you see it, you’ll never be able to unsee it again.
Sign up for the FREE Leadership Diagnostic Workshop.

www.thebestleadershipcompany.com/leadership-diagnostic-workshop

--

The Best Leadership Newsletter Ever (join 14k subscribers) :: www.TheBestLeadershipNewsletter.com

Coaching, Consulting + Keynote Speaking :: www.TheBestLeadershipCompany.com

Contact Jeff Matlow :: hello@TheBestLeadershipCompany.com

It’s not about how you do the writing, it’s about how your words resonate in the end. So stop judging people for using AI as a writing partner.

Listen to this rant, and let me know your position on the matter (my contact info is below)

--

Are you ready to see your Unconscious Operating System?

Once you see it, you’ll never be able to unsee it again.
Sign up for the FREE Leadership Diagnostic Workshop.

www.thebestleadershipcompany.com/leadership-diagnostic-workshop

--

The Best Leadership Newsletter Ever (join 14k subscribers) :: www.TheBestLeadershipNewsletter.com

Coaching, Consulting + Keynote Speaking :: www.TheBestLeadershipCompany.com

Contact Jeff Matlow :: hello@TheBestLeadershipCompany.com

Uncover the patterns holding you back.
Sign up for the FREE Leadership Diagnostic Workshop.

www.thebestleadershipcompany.com/leadership-diagnostic-workshop/

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Uncover the patterns holding you back.
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Starting today, I’m going to drop short audio thoughts throughout the week - things I’m noticing, patterns I’m seeing, or leadership insights that deserve more than a social media post but less than a full newsletter.

Think of these as the things I’d tell you if we were grabbing coffee. Or if I caught you between meetings and had less than 5 minutes to make a point.

Sometimes I’ll riff on current events. Sometimes I’ll share a story from a coaching session. Sometimes I’ll just pull a leadership metaphor out of something I thought about while on a run - because that’s what I do.

These won’t be polished. They won’t be perfect. But they’ll be true.

And if something lands, I’d love to hear from you about it. Hit reply, drop a comment, let me know what’s resonating.

Also, some of these are free, some are for paid subscribers only

Please become a paid subscriber. Here’s 30% off.

Alright. Let’s do this.

Notes From This Week

Managing Up: The 5 Things Your Boss Wants To Know

1. You move the ball the ball forward (tell them what you’ll do)

2. You speak up before things go off the rails (tell them when you’re doing it)

3. You don’t need rescuing (tell them when you’re done)

4. You think like a leader

5. You understand their priorities

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Reserve your workshop spot now. Next session in February.