Celebration, Relationships, and Rest

Cathie Leimbach • December 18, 2023

The holiday season is upon us! During the next two weeks, most of us will be taking a break from our normal routine to celebrate Christmas, New Years, Kwanzaa, or simply time off. This is a great season for celebration, relationships, rest.


Take advantage of this season to celebrate! Enjoy traditions that celebrate your faith. Treasure group events and the small things that affirm your beliefs. Acknowledge your achievements throughout the year. Maybe you have become healthier, taken up a hobby that energizes you, or furthered your education. Perhaps you started a new business or got a promotion at work. You may have achieved a financial goal or taken your dream vacation. Celebrate your successes!


Invest in your personal relationships. Take time for long dinners and conversations. Have fun with the people in your life. Encourage others around you by giving them a meaningful gift or lending them a hand with a project.


Enjoy some rest. Sleep in or take naps. Make time for both physical and mental rest. In today’s society, it is easy to feel overwhelmed and overburdened. Give yourself permission to play, to do things that give you joy and recharge your spirit.   



I encourage you to live the next two weeks intentionally, so you get the most out of this holiday season. How can you have a Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays? What celebrations are most important to you? What relationships do you wish to enjoy or strengthen? What will allow you to feel rested? Scheduling these life-giving activities is the first step in making them happen.

Wishing you a holiday season filled with joy, hope, love, and peace!

4 Leadership Behaviors That Drive Trust, Performance, and Accountability

By Cathie Leimbach • March 31, 2026
Most leaders don’t struggle because they lack knowledge. They struggle because leadership opportunities show up in daily conversations —and those moments are easy to miss. The difference between average and high-performing teams often comes down to four leadership behaviors: 1. Build Trust Through Everyday Conversations Trust is built in small moments. Listen to concerns Ask thoughtful questions Follow through Address issues quickly and respectfully 🤝 Trust grows through consistent, everyday conversations. 2. Reinforce What Good Looks Like People repeat what gets recognized. Be specific: “I appreciated how you handled that client issue quickly—that made a difference.” 🔒 Clarity + recognition = stronger performance. 3. Address Problems Early—Kindly and Clearly Avoiding issues creates bigger ones. Keep it simple: What was expected? What happened? What needs to change? 👥 Clear, timely conversations reduce drama and improve results. 4. Support People So They Can Succeed Your role is to help your team succeed. Clarify priorities Remove obstacles Provide resources Coach progress 🔍 When people have clarity and support, performance follows. The Real Lever: Conversations None of this requires new systems. It happens in everyday interactions— 1:1s, quick check-ins, and follow-ups. Better conversations → better results. Quick Reflection Which one would make the biggest difference for you right now? Build trust Reinforce performance Address problems early Support success 👉 Join our next 60-minute Leadership Conversation – Inspiring Employee Performance on Monday, April 6, at 3:00 pm ET. Not a webinar. A working session with other leaders looking at what’s actually happening on their teams—and how small shifts in daily conversations change performance fast. If you're curious what even a 10% shift in consistency could look like for your team… this is a good place to start.

Three Small Shifts That Change Everything

By Cathie Leimbach • March 24, 2026
You don’t need to make big changes in your leadership practices to get better results. Often, it’s small shifts in everyday leadership conversations that quietly change how work gets done. Here are three that work:  1. Make priorities clear Start meetings by stating current priorities. That creates focus right away and helps conversations stay on topic. 2. Ask instead of solve Instead of answering an employee’s questions, ask, “What are your suggestions?” Such questions encourage employee thinking and stronger follow-through. 3. Hold short monthly one-on-one check-ins Meeting with each employee one-on-one allows the regular review of goals, progress, and obstacles. These short conversations surface issues early and keep everyone aligned. These small habits keep teams steady and focused. Your challenge this month: Pick one shift and try it. Notice what changes in clarity, buy-in, or accountability. Sometimes the difference between teams that struggle and teams that move smoothly comes down to a few simple leadership conversations happening consistently. 👉 Join our 60-minute Leadership Conversation on March 30th at 3:00 PM to see how small shifts in everyday leadership conversations can quickly improve clarity, ownership, and results.