Planners’ Picks — March 24, 2026
We are more than one-fifth of the way through 2026. Are you 20% done with your goals for the year? No worries if you aren’t; there’s no time like the present to start! This week, we are talking about your environment affecting your leadership style, your sphere of influence, and a humorous bit about procrastination. Enjoy!
:: Image of the Week
: Productivity and Innovation
Why Productive People Don’t Multitask in Meetings (And You Shouldn’t Either)
You’re in a meeting. Your laptop is open. An email notification pops up. You glance at it while still listening to the presentation. And then you find yourself answering it along with a few others, just so you can feel less behind when the meeting ends.
Sound familiar? You’re not alone—53% of professionals admit they frequently multitask during meetings.
Jenna Piché tells us the best way to handle this in your leadership journey in her recent article.
:: Kindness in Leadership
Work Hard, Be Kind
There’s a Conan O’Brien quote that’s stuck with Douglas Conant over the years: “Work hard, be kind, and amazing things will happen.” It’s an elegant distillation of one of the core beliefs in my leadership philosophy, the concept of an ‘abundant’ approach to leading people. An abundant approach means recognizing that you must simultaneously deploy more than one crucial behavior to achieve extraordinary results. It’s a both/and orientation. You can’t just work hard. And you can’t just be kind. “Amazing things” can only happen through the magic created by two elements: the tough and the tender, working together in harmony. Here’s why you should embrace both, and expect the same of others.
See Doug’s full article on working hard and being kind here:
“Gratitude experienced is better than gratitude explained.” — Kevin Monroe
:: Communication
The Importance Of Listening As A Leadership Skill
The most expensive leadership mistake isn’t a bad strategic decision—it’s failing to listen effectively. Harvard Business School reports that when employees feel genuinely heard at work, they experience greater internal motivation, increased creativity and stronger engagement. Yet most leaders retain only a fraction of what they hear in conversations, missing critical insights, early warnings and breakthrough ideas flowing through their organizations daily. While everyone focuses on speaking more persuasively, the real competitive advantage comes from listening more effectively.
Google’s extensive research on team effectiveness found that psychological safety—the belief that one can speak up without fear of negative consequences—was the number one predictor of high-performing teams. And psychological safety begins with leaders who actually listen. In my practice of communication coaching and consulting, I’ve observed that the most effective leaders listen differently than their peers. They don’t just listen for information—they listen for understanding. They don’t just listen with their ears—they listen with their full attention. And they don’t just listen to confirm what they already believe—they listen to discover what they don’t yet know.
Not all listening is created equal. Understanding these four levels will help you recognize where you currently operate and where you need to go:
“Attention is the rarest and purest form of generosity.” – Simone Weil
:: Self-Leadership Development
Are You a Victim of Your Environment?
Some environments harden you. Some soften you. And some? You walk in and change the entire room.
In this conversation of Leader Experience, Megan Robinson and Ben Albert explore the “coffee bean” mindset — the idea that true leadership isn’t about controlling people or overpowering a space… it’s about transforming the environment through presence, values, and emotional steadiness.
If you’ve ever wondered how to:
- Show up as a stronger, more grounded leader
- Create a culture where people feel safe to speak and grow
- Balance empathy with healthy boundaries
- Influence your environment instead of being defined by it
This episode will give you both the metaphor and the mindset to start.
https://www.eleaderexperience.com/post/are-you-a-coffee-bean-carrot-or-egg
“I follow three rules: Do the right thing, do the best you can, and always show people you care.” – Coach Lou Holtz
Sphere of Influence in Action | Brad Englert
How effective is your influence as a people leader? Do you think about it very much? What would happen if your first core value was “Family First” in a competitive talent market where you can’t match salaries? Transform your sphere of influence on this episode of the Work Positive Podcast with Dr. Joey Faucette and Brad Englert.
Brad led Accenture for 22 years, 10 as a senior partner, and then served as CIO at the University of Texas at Austin where he influenced technology modernization serving 54,000 students, 4,000 faculty, and 21,000 staff. He’s the author of “Sphere of Influence: How to Create and Nurture Authentic Business Relationships.” On day one at Accenture, his mentor told him the people you work with today may become your boss or customer down the road, so treat them very well. That advice shaped his entire career.
Listen as Brad explores:
• Why “Family First” became the top value and how promising an 8-hour day competed against tech giants on salary
• How he replaced three direct reports in the first 6-9 months for dishonesty and what that taught about culture
• The dirty little secret that many organizations don’t have a strategy despite spending tens of millions
• Why he wrote a weekly 200-word blog for 8 years to communicate values and even apologize where they failed
• How moving quickly on dishonesty prevents issues from festering and setting bad role models
Brad transforms how leaders think about influence by proving that when you articulate values, communicate them relentlessly, and move decisively on integrity issues, authentic business relationships flourish.
https://www.workpositive.today/brad-englert
:: Work Culture & Team Development
The Five Pillars of Effective Team Decision Making
Focus on clarity in your team decision making to make better decisions, faster.
Too many teams get stuck spinning in circles—second-guessing decisions, looping through endless meetings, having endless “meetings after the meeting,” or implementing strategies that never had a clear finish line. If you’ve ever walked out of a meeting and wondered, “Wait… what did we just decide?” or found yourself saying, “We could have avoided all this if they’d just asked us first,” then these four pillars of effective team decision making are for you.
Effective decision making isn’t just about being decisive. It’s about being clear. Clear about what kind of decision you’re making, who’s involved, who will make the decision, and how you will turn your decision into results. These five pillars will help you build a team decision-making culture that is fast, focused, and energizing.
“One of the most beneficial skills you can learn in life is how to consistently put yourself in a good position.” – Shane Parrish
:: CSN’s Book of the Week Recommendation
The Science of Personality Change
David Epstein has been a fan of Olga Khazan’s writing at the Atlantic for a long time. She has a remarkable ability to toggle between the silly and the serious, often in the same paragraph. That ability is on display throughout her book, Me, But Better: The Science and Promise of Personality Change. The book has been out for nearly a year.
In the book, Olga delves into each of the so-called “Big Five” personality traits that psychologists study—the ones that go by the acronym OCEAN: Openness to experience; Conscientiousness; Extraversion, Agreeableness, Neuroticism.
She takes a personality test at the beginning of the book, and then—via a chapter on each trait—commits to personal experiments in an effort to shift her personality in ways that make her calmer and happier.
Research shows that you can alter your personality traits by behaving in ways that align with the kind of person you’d like to be—a process that can make you happier, healthier, and more successful. In Me, But Better, Olga embarks on an experiment to see whether it’s possible to go from dwelling in dread to “radiating joy.” For one year, Olga reluctantly clicked “yes” on a bucket list of new experiences—from meditation to improv to sailing—that forced her to at least acthappy. With a skeptic’s eye, Olga brings you on her journey through the science of personality, presenting evidence-backed techniques to help you change your mind for the better. Sharply witty and deeply fascinating, Me, But Better offers a probing inquiry into what it means to live a fulfilling life, and how you can keep diving into change, no matter how uncomfortable it feels.
See the book below, and an interview with David Epstein on how to be less neurotic and a little more extraverted.
Book: https://a.co/d/02jK5Twm
:: TED Talks
Tim Urban – Inside the Mind of a Master Procrastinator
Tim Urban knows that procrastination doesn’t make sense, but he’s never been able to shake his habit of waiting until the last minute to get things done. In this hilarious and insightful talk, Urban takes us on a journey through YouTube binges, Wikipedia rabbit holes and bouts of staring out the window — and encourages us to think harder about what we’re really procrastinating on, before we run out of time.
https://www.ted.com/talks/tim_urban_inside_the_mind_of_a_master_procrastinator
:: Upcoming Events
Beyond the Timeline: The People in Projects with Nancy Kujak-Ford
Managing projects often means balancing deadlines, deliverables, and resources—but truly successful projects go beyond the basics. This session explores how human dynamics shape project outcomes and introduces T.R.U.S.T. (transparency, reliability, understanding, support, and timeliness) as a practical framework for building stronger team connections. You’ll learn how to establish trust quickly, align perspectives, and make relationship-building a daily practice. We’ll also cover what to do when trust is missing and how to rebuild it. You’ll leave with actionable strategies to make your projects more people-focused, resilient, and successful.
Presented by Nancy Kujak-Ford, a CSN Planner and director of strategy and impact @ the College of Letters and Science
Date: Thursday, April 9, 2026
Time: 10:00-11:00 am
Location: Online via registration link
https://strategicconsulting.wisc.edu/in-scope-managing-projects-at-uw-madison/
Administrative Professionals Conference April 15
The Admin Prof Conference is coming soon! Who should attend? UW–Madison employees, UW System employees, and Madison community members who would like to learn professional skills across a wide variety of valuable topics such as:
- Career management
- Inclusive excellence
- Leadership
- Personal development and workplace skills
- Relationship building and communication
- Well-being
There are several great sessions at this conference; here are a few recommended by the CSN Planners:
The 3 Cs of Working Better Together
Presenter: Lynn Freeman
In the evolving landscape of higher education, you play a pivotal role in fostering organizational effectiveness. This session explores the 3 Cs—collaboration, cooperation, and coordination—as essential competencies for getting things done and contributing to an inclusive, high-performing department culture. Through a brief presentation and interactive dialogue, you will deepen their understanding of how you can use these elements to support your work and your department’s goals.
Learning Outcomes
- Identify and apply the 3 Cs to enhance teamwork and partnerships.
- Develop strategies to improve collaboration in your work.
- Strengthen your own practices that will support transparency and trust, which are required for successful collaboration.
Things Can Only Get Better: Process Improvement and Process Mapping
Presenter: Jim Thompson and Tim Dalby
This session will explore the fundamentals of continuous improvement and process improvement and how they can be combined to bring about lasting changes to existing business processes. Using case studies and examples, we will explore how to create process maps and how to use them to identify areas for improvements and remove the frustrations caused by outdated activities.
Learning Outcomes
- Understand Continuous Improvement, Process Improvement, how they are different and the power that can be unleashed when combined.
- Know the four key process inefficiencies and the eight lean wastes.
- Be able to produce an accurate process map and add data.
- Be able to use a process map to identify process improvements.
Strategies for Creating, Developing & Leading Productive Teams
Presenter: Wendy Johnson, PhD
High-performing teams do not happen by accident, they are the result of intentional leadership, clear expectations, and consistent development. This session is designed for leaders who are responsible for building, developing, or leading teams and want practical strategies to improve performance, engagement, and accountability. Participants will explore the core elements of productive teams, including role clarity, communication norms, trust, accountability, and alignment with organizational goals. The session examines how leadership behaviors directly influence team dynamics and outcomes, and how leaders can adapt their approach to meet the needs of diverse, cross-functional, remote, or hybrid teams. Through guided reflection, real-world examples, and applied exercises, participants will assess their current team effectiveness, identify common barriers to productivity, and learn actionable strategies to strengthen team performance. Emphasis is placed on creating sustainable team practices that support results while fostering collaboration, ownership, and continuous improvement.
Learning Objectives
- Identify the core elements of productive teams and evaluate how leadership behaviors influence trust, engagement, and performance across diverse team environments.
- Apply practical strategies for setting clear expectations, fostering accountability without micromanagement, and strengthening collaboration within in-person, remote, and hybrid teams.
- Develop a personalized leadership action plan that translates key concepts into actionable steps to improve team effectiveness, navigate challenges, and support individual and collective growth within their organizations or communities.
Talking about Retirement Together: Sharing Resources and Wisdom for Employees at all Stages of Work Life
Presenters: Carol Hulland, Mary Czynszak-Lyne, Tonya Messer, Hassan Pasha, Mario Pennella, and Brian Shore
Beginning with introduction to a rich, linkable list of resources created by the UW Retirement Issues Committee (RIC), this session invites participants at all stages of work life to ask questions, and share their experiences and wisdom related to preparing for retirement (and other big transitions) – financially, emotionally and mentally. Feedback from previous sessions notes that information shared has contributed to participants’ well-being and resilience. Examples – employees continue conversations with work colleagues beyond the session; many were inspired to learn more about contributing to university sponsored retirement savings options; many noted that they feel curious and likely to explore resources. This session also outlines a process for initiating and facilitating work group discussions about preparing for retirement.
Learning Outcomes
- Become comfortable with preparing for retirement as an ongoing process throughout the work/life cycle
- Identify individual steps to support personal development and preparation for retirement – taking small steps that contribute to wellness and resilience
- Provide resources for and model a discussion that can be set up within a small work unit to discuss preparation for retirement – inclusive of employees from early to late stage career
Date: April 15, 2026
Time: 8:00-4:30
Location: Union South
Register by March 31 to be part of this event!
https://hr.wisc.edu/administrative-professionals-conference/