by Melissa Dinwiddie | Sep 5, 2023 | Articles, Innovation, Leadership
“I wanted to apologize,” started the note. “I’ve been thinking a lot about you since yesterday, and I’m sorry for missing chords and getting lost when accompanying you on the bandstand.” I was stunned. My accompanist was...
by Melissa Dinwiddie | Aug 17, 2023 | Articles, Innovation, Leadership
Back in the late 90s and early 2000s, when I made my living as a professional calligrapher and artist, I did quite a bit of itinerant teaching. My favorite part of teaching calligraphy (or anything, really) was figuring out how to explain a concept in a way that...
by Melissa Dinwiddie | Jun 20, 2023 | Articles, Leadership, Team Development
”I can’t get people to reply to my emails,” Priyanka told her manager, Kara. “I put so much effort into them, and I get crickets in response!” She wasn’t the only one on the team having this problem, either. When Kara and I met...
by Melissa Dinwiddie | Jun 6, 2023 | Articles, Innovation, Leadership, Play, Team Development
“This isn’t resonating for me,” Deborah said. We were part way through an exercise I’d devised specifically for this group — a team of devoted staff members at a mid-size nonprofit organization. After two years of working 100% remotely, half the team had never...
by Melissa Dinwiddie | May 23, 2023 | Articles, Leadership, Play
“How will we know your work has made a difference?” It’s a great question I get asked by clients periodically. And here’s a secret: if they don’t ask the question first, I ask it for them. Because it’s important to me to be...
by Melissa Dinwiddie | May 11, 2023 | Articles, Leadership, Play
Don’t you love sleeping in your own bed again after being on a trip? I sure do! It’s great to be back home, after four days in St. Louis, for a business retreat (if you’re ever there, be sure to check out the amazing Union Station Hotel lobby, and...