When nobody is in charge

When nobody is in charge

I’ve spent many years (maybe too many?) in communities, groups, and organizations governed by consensus: lots of meetings, lots of talk, lots of conflict. A friend and I had a running joke. Whenever someone began to speak with, “I just have to say...
The Trouble with Nice

The Trouble with Nice

In my early twenties, when I was studying at the University in Zurich, I had to take a state Latin exam to get to the next level. It was a level of difficulty that I had never had to deal with before, and I honestly couldn’t see how I could pass it. So I found a...
When nobody is in charge

Can you outskill bad character?

“But what about someone who is just… abusive?” I must have given hundreds of talks on power, from classrooms to boardrooms, and I can say with confidence that this question or some version of it comes up every single time. But what about the boss...
The Trouble with Nice

The Lost Art of Not Knowing

I was listening to a podcast the other day, a very popular one, with millions of listeners, and the host was interviewing a Nobel Prize–winning economist. As he was listing his guest’s accomplishments, he said, “and then you won the Nobel Peace Prize.” The economist...
Rank Is a Drink Best Served Mixed

Rank Is a Drink Best Served Mixed

Of course it had to happen on a holiday weekend. The rainiest weekend of the spring. Our septic backed up, and with no one available to help, we dug up the earth, well, mud actually, lifted the 100-pound concrete slab, and tried to unclog it ourselves. Without the...
Motive is in Your Hands

Motive is in Your Hands

We’re inundated with coverage of the Epstein files as they trickle out. Headlines, podcasts, and reports dissect what they reveal about Epstein, wealth, and power. Even the release itself tells a story: the Department of Justice holding back some files, redacting...