Anna Prow

We had a little challenge for our team, who did it best?

Most of us ask terrible questions and wonder why conversations feel so uninspired. Here are unusual questions people asked me that led to more meaningful connection (+ the 5 simple rules that guide them below):

Some of the best leaders aren’t extroverts…they’re introverts. > They lead with quiet confidence. > The model the way with excellent behaviors. > They champion the best ideas not just their own ideas. > They lead others with positive emotions. #Leadership #Influence #Examples

“How do you know a business is operating at a high level?” These are the things I look for. My 19 traits of top 1% performing businesses:

Carl Jung was not playing around when he wrote: “No matter how isolated you are and how lonely you feel, if you do your work truly and conscientiously, unknown allies will come and seek you.”

“If you bring a problem, bring context. If you bring context, bring options. If you bring options, bring a recommendation.” HT/Via @blakeaburge

A pattern I’ve noticed: The higher the level, the more basic the questions. I’ve advised Fortune 100 CEOs and 8-9 figure founders, and the conversations aren’t exotic. They’re about delegation, time, hiring, clarity, stress. The deeper you go, the more you realize that mastery is disciplined repetition of fundamentals. The amateurs chase hacks. The elite protect the basics.

The most successful people I know have learned to treat failure as tuition, not punishment. Every mistake is a payment toward education. The more you fail, the smarter you get. Failure isn't the opposite of success. It's the price of it.

Human Insight: #leadership #HR I find it almost cruel to expect more of a team when they’ve not been prepared and cared for.

Micromanagement is insecurity with a title.

In a celebration, you lead from the back. In a crisis, you must lead from the front. Only the very best leaders do this.

A hill I’ll die on: Unless you do regular 1-1s with your employees, you are not a great manager. (No matter what you tell yourself.)

Don’t hire qualified candidates and then micromanage them into miserable employees.

The fastest way to predict someone's future: Look at their tolerance for discomfort. People who embrace discomfort grow. People who avoid it stagnate. Discomfort is where growth happens. Comfort is where growth stops. Your future depends on your relationship with discomfort.

“The first sign you're operating from instability: every decision feels equally urgent.” HT/Via @SpartanPsyche

Psychopaths and serial bullies in the workplace often focus on the most talented and capable employees. They use micromanagement and harsh words to undermine these individuals. By insulting mocking and harassing them they aim to break down their self-esteem and confidence.

A mentor once told me this: Confidence is less about knowing you’ll win and more about knowing you’ll bounce back even if you don’t. Real confidence is built on resilience. Adaptability. Tolerance for uncertainty. Fear loses when you embrace that failure is never final.

Most interviews are decided in 12 questions. And almost no one prepares them well. Here are the 12 questions that really matter in almost any interview: 1️⃣ Tell me about yourself 2️⃣ Why do you want to work here? 3️⃣ What are your strengths? 4️⃣ What has been your biggest challenge? 5️⃣ Why should we hire you? 6️⃣ Tell me once you've failed 7️⃣ Where do you see yourself in 5 years? 8️⃣ Tell me once you influenced a team 9️⃣ How do you manage stress? 🔟 Why did you leave your last job? 1️1️⃣ ⃣ What is your greatest achievement? 1️2️⃣ ⃣ How do you handle feedback? The important thing is not only to know them. It's how you answer them. Here are 6 rules that make a difference: 🔹 1. Never answer in the abstract Avoid "I'm proactive", "I adapt". Talk about real situations: what happened, what you did, what changed. 🔹 2. Use numbers whenever you can % improvement, people impacted, time saved, sales, growth, error reduction. Data turns opinions into facts. 🔹 3. Connect your answers to the position Each example should basically answer to only one thing: "This is why I am useful for this role." 🔹 4. Don't hide mistakes Questions about failures do not seek perfection, they seek learning and criteria. 🔹 5. Don't talk about tasks, talk about impact "I didn't do X." Better: "thanks to X we get Y". 🔹 6. Practice them out loud If you can't explain it clearly in 60–90 seconds, you're not ready for an interview.

When you can’t decide, ask yourself: Which option minimizes future regrets? Then do that.

A surprising amount of “tech leadership” is just being the adult in the room when everyone wants to work on shit that doesn’t matter.