June 25, 2025

CULTURE AUDIT: PART 2

Looking for Culture Clues: Onboarding

Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash

There are many areas in a workplace to look for cultural clues: meetings/gatherings, physical space design, team projects, hiring practices, client facing practices, and more. In my experience, one key area that indicates culture in any institution is the way people are onboarded. I have distinct memories of the first days at the schools I have worked in. Why is this? These onboarding times have an impact and create lasting impressions on a person’s experience. 

A poor onboarding experience can leave employees feeling uncomfortable, confused, and dejected.

–A Guide to Onboarding for New Hires (For First-Time Managers)

According to Harvard Business Review, onboarding is defined as “the crucial process through which new employees acquire the knowledge, skills, and behaviors needed to integrate into an organization.”  Onboarding can have great impact on an employee’s overall experience and retention at a company. 

June 5, 2025

Culture Audit

How do we investigate the culture of our workplace?

Photo by Proxyclick Visitor Management System on Unsplash

How can you determine the culture of a community as a new member or as a senior member? How do you know how people are perceiving the culture of the community you are currently leading? These are questions that have been on my mind lately, especially as we enter the summer months, which are more poised for reflection.

There are often layers to community culture. There is the outward layer of culture that institutions often name in their mission statements on their websites. Then, there is the more hidden culture that is harder to understand and define. We mostly find this out after we have entered a community and have spent some time there. How do we find this out?

I have worked in many different institutions in my career. This has enabled me to observe and investigate culture in each place.

May 14, 2025

How are you making room for failure?

How do you make room for failure in your leadership practice?

Photo by Brett Jordan on Unsplash

How do you make room for failure in your leadership practice? When I was new to my career and leadership, I often painstakingly tried to avoid failure. I would spend enormous amounts of time thinking, planning, creating structures, and backup plans just in case something went wrong. When something inevitably went wrong, I blamed myself and tried to prepare even more! I soon realized that this process was not effective. I was not growing and learning about myself as a leader with this method. I needed to try something different.

Try not to control everything.

Try not to control everything, especially the things that are not in your control. I try to spend time thinking about what parts of each situation are actually within my control, not in my control or maybe within my field of influence.

April 24, 2025

Are You Getting in Your Own Way?

Are you standing on the hose and wondering why the water is not coming out?

Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash

How are you getting in your own way and maybe not even realizing it? My yoga teacher mentioned this image of standing on the hose and looking around wondering why the water isn’t coming out. This was a good visual for me. I often do this! I wonder what’s going wrong, who is making things go wrong, and I forget to take into consideration that I might be impacting the situation. I remind myself to pause and think about where I had impact in the situation. It’s not about blame necessarily. Rather, it is about noticing where I can create a different impact. Pausing and reflecting helps me realize where I can possibly change or do something different next time. I raise my awareness of my role and actions. After all, I can’t change what others do but I can manage my own choices.

April 4, 2025

Humility is Strong Leadership

Photo by Jaspinder Singh on Unsplash

Humility is an essential aspect of being a strong leader. Louise Penny creates the ultimate example of a leader who expresses humility in her Three Pines series, Inspector Gamache. Recently, I have been thoroughly enjoying the Inspector Gamache series by Louise Penny. Gamache is often described as positioning himself as a mentor to young folks in his field and teaching them how to be leaders. He is noted for teaching his mentees to say the following at crucial moments in their careers.

I don’t know.

I need help.

I’m sorry.

I was wrong.

-Inspector Armand Gamache

I don’t know.

In my leadership journey, it took me a long time to realize that saying, “I don’t know.” showed great strength. People actually appreciated my honesty in admitting I needed time and space to consult and research before getting back to them. As an educator, I used to draw a small circle on the board to indicate ‘what I know’ and then a much larger circle around it to indicate ’what I don’t know’.

March 17, 2025

My Path to Citizenship

“In this country, all of us are free. That Freedom Is founded on the principle that this nation is a country of laws, not of men.”-Judge Schwartz

Photo by Chalo Gallardo on Unsplash

Recently, a dear high school friend of mine shared a note from her father that spurred a strong memory for me, the memory of my path to citizenship. 

Each of us, except for a tiny few, came to this country from other lands. We are here because our fathers and mothers, grandfathers and grandmothers, our forebears, journeyed here in search of a better life for themselves and their children; to find a land where they and their families would be free.

-Judge Schwartz

In 1994, I had the opportunity and privilege of becoming a citizen of the United States. My family came here in the early 70’s from Sri Lanka shortly after the 1965 Immigration Act, the Hart-Celler Act.

February 20, 2025

Antoni Gaudi and Strategic Leadership

“Antoni Gaudí, one of the most universal figures of Catalan culture and international architecture, devoted more than 40 years to the Temple of the Sagrada Família.”

Strategic work in phases is more effective and intentional. I have learned this lesson throughout my career, and more recently, when I visited La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona. We had the good fortune to see our daughter during her semester abroad in Barcelona, and of course, we visited the famous Antoni Gaudi Basilica, La Sagrada Familia. 

Ahead of his time, unique. A man of faith, observer of nature and genius architect, Antoni Gaudí has become a universal figure in modern architecture.

La Sagrada Familia

One of the plaques stated that Gaudi intentionally engineered his construction of the Basilisca to be done over many years in phases because he thought people would be less likely to give up on the project, and would be more invested for a longer time.

January 26, 2025

Where do I start goal setting? Deficits or Strengths?

Photo by Ronnie Overgoor on Unsplash

Goal setting by focusing on your strengths can lead to success. Oftentimes we think about where we want to start setting goals; we tend to think about our weaknesses or where we feel deficient. What if we decided to include our strengths?

A strengths-based goal draws on your natural talents to make positive and lasting change in your life while challenging you to use your talents in new ways.

–Gallup

I found that when I start from a place of weakness that it feels like a longer road and the strategy to get there feels unfamiliar. When I incorporate my strengths, the skills and qualities that I practice often and come naturally to me, the goal feels more reachable. 

For example, I find the marketing aspects of running a coaching business to be an area that I want to grow. I identify this as an area that I do not have a lot of practice and experience and where I need to increase my skills.

December 19, 2024

Practice Stillness

What’s your stillness practice?

Photo by Nick Fewings on Unsplash

During this time of year, possibly packed with family events, time with friends, and work colleagues, travel and so much more it can be hard to find a moment to be still.  Do you have a stillness practice that works for you during this busy holiday and new year?

Being still can look different ways. I joined a meditation group a few years ago and we practice together in a community led by a beloved and skilled teacher most weekday mornings. I also enjoy a quick quiet moment first thing in the morning in bed, a time for gratitude and a big stretch to start the day. This lasts just a minute or two. I also enjoy the quiet time before sleep, reading a book, reflecting on the day. Some of my ‘stillness’ practices require movement, a type of mindful movement that allows me to connect with my body or nature.

December 3, 2024

ACC ICF Certification

I am excited and proud to announce that I received my Associate Certified Coach Accreditation (ACC) from the International Coaching Federation (ICF). Through my educational training at the Berkeley Executive Coaching Institute, 100+ coaching hours, and dedicated mentor coaching, I demonstrated knowledge and emerging proficiency in the application of the ICF Core Competencies, Code of Ethics, and fundamental definition of coaching. 

Earning this credential requires a deep commitment to high ethical standards and proven professional competence, validated through rigorous assessment. My journey has been transformative, allowing me to grow tremendously in my skills, mindset, and approach as a coach. Coaching beautifully interweaves my experiences as an educator, parent, and partner, creating a unique lens through which I support client growth.

I am grateful to all my teachers, coaches, mentors, and clients who have been part of this incredible journey. As I continue to develop my practice, I look forward to learning and growing with each new and returning client.