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
Russ Powell
Jan 66 min read
Avoiding the Sucker's Choice: There's Almost Always a Third Option
Leaders often feel trapped between two bad options, where both choices seem to sacrifice something vital. Welcome to the sucker's choice.
32 views0 comments
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Russ Powell
Dec 17, 20243 min read
Five Strategies to Help Startup Leaders Focus on What Matters Most
Effective leaders focus where they have a comparative advantage, delegate other tasks, and prioritize developing their future leaders.
8 views0 comments
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Russ Powell
Dec 13, 20243 min read
The High Cost of Workplace Loneliness (and What to Do About It)
Loneliness is a silent drain on your startup's most valuable resource: your people. It's costing your business more than you think.
19 views0 comments
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Russ Powell
Nov 22, 20244 min read
From Blame to Accountability: How to Recognize and Escape from the Victim Trap
Escaping the blame-game unleashes untapped potential. Improve problem-solving by shifting your focus from finger-pointing to accountability.
20 views0 comments
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Russ Powell
Jul 27, 20245 min read
The Knower Trap: How Certainty Sabotages Problem-Solving
In this post, I explore how the "knower trap" hinders problem-solving and offer strategies for recognizing and getting out of it.
100 views0 comments

Russ Powell
Jul 20, 20244 min read
Becoming a Better Forecaster: Insights from the Pros
In a world filled with uncertainty, the ability to make accurate predictions is a valuable skill. What do superforecasters have to teach us?
48 views0 comments

Russ Powell
Jul 13, 20245 min read
Developing a Learning Organization: Five Principles for Improving Performance
Cultivate a workplace where the practices of continuous learning and growth thrive—with these five principles.
39 views0 comments
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
Russ Powell
Jul 6, 20243 min read
A Surprising Secret: How High-Performing Teams Transform Conflict Into a Competitive Edge
HPTs embrace an inherent paradox—that creation and innovation is often impossible without some friction.
10 views0 comments

Russ Powell
Jul 2, 20246 min read
The S-Loop Problem-Solving Framework: A Primer for Business Leaders
The S-Loop is a cyclical, four-stage problem-solving framework that can help you tackle complex problems in human systems.
124 views0 comments
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Russ Powell
May 1, 20243 min read
A Caution Against Using DiSC and Myers-Briggs When Making Hiring Decisions
DiSC and MBTI can be useful for team-building and personal development, but I strongly recommend against their use in the hiring process.
179 views0 comments
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Russ Powell
Mar 1, 202411 min read
Peer Coaching: A Surprising Solution to Faster, Better Leadership Development
Unlock potential in your startup or small business with peer-coaching. Develop your leaders and solve problems better, faster, and cheaper.
93 views0 comments

Russ Powell
Oct 3, 20237 min read
"We know a lot about organizations; they’re not as mysterious as they seem." –Bill Daniels
Four systems outlining the relationships between leaders and their teams to help you understand productivity, progress and how to improve.
78 views0 comments
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Russ Powell
Jan 24, 20233 min read
Cowboys, Pit Crews, Doctors and Checklists – A Physician's Take on Systems-Thinking
In a TED video, Atul Gawande summarizes what we do at RPC every day—we help managers learn to analyze and solve problems in human systems.
29 views0 comments
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Russ Powell
Oct 18, 20225 min read
Six Rules of Training Every Manager Should Know
Skill alone is not enough to guarantee performance. You must also have opportunity to perform, self-efficacy, and a supportive environment.
49 views0 comments
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Russ Powell
Jun 27, 20222 min read
Three Steps for Having Better Difficult Conversations
To have productive difficult conversations take the perspective of the other, think about what you truly want, and don't take it personally.
33 views0 comments
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Russ Powell
May 9, 20223 min read
Dunbar's Number and the Limits of Friendship
A few excerpts from an article by Maria Konnikova about Dunbar's number, the nature of friendship and the limits of social media.
181 views0 comments
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Russ Powell
Feb 23, 20225 min read
Systems Thinking and the Juggling Girls of Berlin
A troupe of jugglers from Berlin helps us apply a simple, powerful framework for thinking about and diagnosing problems in human systems.
474 views0 comments
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Russ Powell
Feb 23, 20224 min read
Three Things High Performing Teams Do Differently
A study from psychologist Ron Friedman suggests high-performing teams find success by making better, stronger social connections.
73 views0 comments
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Russ Powell
Feb 22, 20223 min read
Sometimes a Leader Needs a Good Poet
As leaders, we don't often think much about poetry, until it becomes a necessity.
72 views0 comments
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Russ Powell
Feb 17, 20222 min read
Working on Building Empathy Skills? Here are Four Best Practices
An overview of the ways in which you can better express empathy on the job.
12 views0 comments
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