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Buy the Yellow Shirt.

If you opened my closet, you would likely notice two things; First, I own a lot of blue shirts, and second, I have a wide selection of hooded shirts. What can I say, I know what feels comfortable.

There is a store at the mall that I like. While I like their style, what I like the most is the fact that their sizes are sensible. If you wear a medium in one of their shirts, then you wear a medium in all of their shirts. If one pair of pants in size 10 fits, then all the pants in size 10 will fit. Unlike other stores – where I walk into the dressing room with five sizes of one item – they make it simple.

A few weeks ago, while shopping at this store, I found a hooded shirt that I liked. I tried it on, and I felt good about it. The only issue was that the shirt was yellow. Let me clarify, we are talking about a solid shirt with no prints or patterns. Additionally, it was a soft, golden-yellow, not neon yellow!

leadership developmentMolly GrishamMay 19, 2023leadership development

Empower Your People

I am a creature of habit. When I travel for work, I like to keep things simple. This usually means I have a breakfast bar and a cup of tea poured from my travel-hot-water kettle each morning. However, due to my meeting schedule, one Tuesday in November, I knew I needed to venture out and eat a big brunch before a very long day began.

I did my research, and I narrowed my list down to two options. Both restaurants were within walking distance of my hotel, and each had good reviews. Their menus included what I was craving; French toast, bacon, hashbrown casserole, and tea.

leadership developmentMolly GrishamApril 15, 2023leadership development

She said she is an Influencer

An old pier in Redington, Florida, used to extend nearly 60 yards into the ocean. After storm damage and a lack of maintenance, it finally turned into a public safety hazard. As a result, a few years ago, most of the structure was removed. What remains is about 30 yards long, and it stretches from the parking lot onto the beach, but it only comes close to reaching the edge of the water. On top are some picnic tables and a nice view. Below is a space where people can sit in the shade or hang hammocks.

On this day, as I made my way to the shore, I walked past the pier and tried not to laugh out loud. Below was a 20-something young woman dressed in a way that would have gotten her arrested for indecent exposure in most public places! Not much more than a spool of thread was needed for her outfit.

leadership development, peronal growthMolly GrishamApril 4, 2023leadership, personal growth

I Was Wrong

A few months ago, a famous author with several hundred thousand followers posted something on social media that felt dangerous. His words seemed shortsighted, potentially harmful to people struggling with mental health, and lacked sensitivity and compassion.

I rarely comment on social posts. A stranger’s opinion does not have much leverage, but I draw a line regarding mental health. I understand that a thoughtless post by a well-respected celebrity with a platform may be triggering to someone in pain.

leadership development, peronal growthMolly GrishamJanuary 7, 2023personal growthComment

Leadership Exposed

A common question I have heard this year is, “Why are so many leaders failing?” I certainly don’t think leadership has even been easy, but I do believe a global health crisis – resulting in face-to-face jobs shifting to hybrid or remote work – has directly impacted our tolerance for poor or unqualified leadership.

I have noticed a pattern. I believe there are three types of leaders who are being called to step up or step aside.

First, we have the Loud Leader. This individual has been able to hide behind their bravado. Typically, they are the loudest voice in the room.

leadership developmentMolly GrishamNovember 15, 2022leadership developmentComment

He Built Them a Pond

Growing up, my family never traveled outside of the Midwest. While I was fascinated by the vastness of the world, I had not experienced much of it firsthand.

In my mid-20s, I was presented with an opportunity to spend a summer with a group of Americans in the Philippines. This was an easy yes for me! I had never seen the ocean, been on an airplane for more than a few hours, or needed a passport. I was ready to experience new things.

Upon arrival in Manila, I found myself taking it all in. The unique architecture, the sounds of a different language, the taste of a mango right off the tree, and the smell of diesel were all foreign to me. There was an overwhelming sense of newness which forced me into a constant learner mindset.

leadership developmentMolly GrishamOctober 18, 2022leadership developmentComment

Presence and Proximity

This is a painful story to write.

Over the last couple of years, I have put pen to paper at least half a dozen times trying to bring this story to life. With each attempt, I realized the timing wasn’t right.

I believe that some things are not meant to be shared. There are experiences in my own life that were meant just for me, and me alone. I hold tightly to those moments.

Additionally, there are experiences with individuals and teams behind closed doors that are simply not my story to tell. I recognize in these moments that the main character gets to decide how, when, or if they will publicly share their story.

leadership development, peronal growthMolly GrishamSeptember 18, 2022personal growth, leadershipComment

Anchors Aweigh

A few months ago, the President of a successful company reached out to me. He shared the following, “The ship is sinking. We need help!” He told me their industry was rapidly transforming but his people were not onboard with doing things differently. He wanted guidance from a neutral, outside party, and he was hoping my skills could be of use.

After listening to him, I asked a very direct question, “What will happen if your company doesn’t change?”

leadership development, CultureMolly GrishamAugust 7, 2022leadership development, CultureComment

The Teamwork of Leadership

If I could see into the future, I would love to read what historians will write about this time in history years, will humanity be surprised to know that until 2020 most Americans left their homes every day and drove to work at an office building? Will they be stunned to hear that when it snowed children got the day off rather than participating in online school? How will they comprehend the fact that we used to believe it was a good idea to let someone blow out candles on a birthday cake and then share the cake so everyone could enjoy that person’s germs!

leadership developmentMolly GrishamJune 24, 2022leadership developmentComment

Leadership, Mistakes, & Ice Cream

Last week, while visiting a new city, I stopped in a quaint local ice cream shop, and it trigger a positive memory for me.

A few years ago, I was in Central America. I had spent the day on a city tour with a small group of people. Our local bilingual guide, Jose, was a gem of a human. It had been a full day and everyone else from my tour had retreated to their hotel rooms for the night. However, Jose asked if I wanted to take a drive to the countryside. He said he knew where we could get some homemade ice cream and he thought I would enjoy it.

leadership developmentMolly GrishamMay 28, 2022leadershipComment

Square Windows Are Deadly

Every single day my work is a little different. I may start the week with a college athletic team, then facilitate a Zoom session with leaders in the biomedical space, later shift to an online group coaching session comprised of individuals from all industries, and finally close the week leading educators in a face-to-face session on personal growth. While the participants may vary, there are some themes that often come up in these sessions.

leadership development, CultureMolly GrishamMay 1, 2022leadershipComment

The Worst-Case Scenario

A little more than five years ago it was publicly shared that I was leaving a career in college athletics and starting my own business. This decision came as a surprise to most people in my life and the responses from well-meaning friends were very telling. Within 10 minutes of the press release being posted, I received a text from a friend that said, “I heard the news … but what if you end up homeless?”

leadership development, peronal growthMolly GrishamApril 16, 2022

How You Love is How You Lead

You don’t have to be a fan of The Office, know the characters, or have even watched an episode to find value in what I am about to share with you. In fact, while I will give an overview of one particular character, this post isn’t about that character, it is about the authentic leadership of the human playing that character.

leadership developmentMolly GrishamJanuary 23, 2022leadership developmentComment

Make the Room Bigger

This is a tale of two teams. The first is a college volleyball team. It was preseason and I was facilitating a team-building session with them. We were doing an activity that required participants to be blindfolded. After they put their blindfolds on, I placed a couple of wooden shapes in each player’s hands. They then needed to figure out what shapes they were holding — while blindfolded — to complete the activity.

leadership developmentMolly GrishamJanuary 8, 2022leadership developmentComment

“I Was NOT Ready for That!”

There was a gasp in the room.

I was standing in front of 35 entrepreneurs facilitating inner personal work. I had just shared a lighthearted story that had people smiling and laughing and then I introduced our third prompt, “What have you been carrying that you want to set down?” Immediately I felt the air being sucked out of the space we were meeting in, which was followed by a noticeable gasp from a corner of the room. This prompt had struck a chord with a group of high-performing people.

peronal growth, leadership developmentMolly GrishamAugust 8, 2021personal growthComment

Stay Close to Your People

I had been with this team for a few months. During my visits to campus, I observed a handful of practices, watched some home games, and led the team through several team-building sessions. It was clear from the start that this group had the potential to do something really special this year.

On this particular day, I had a meeting scheduled with the head coach. This is a coach who has won at every level and just a year ago she had accepted the job to try and rebuild this program.

leadership developmentMolly GrishamJuly 10, 2021leadership developmentComment

Eat The Frog

Over the weekend I was able to attend a weekend-long milestone birthday celebration for Levi, the husband of one of my best friends. I have only known Levi for a few years, but he is someone that I have grown to like in a short amount of time. There is an authenticity and sincerity to him which is all too rare in our culture.

Levi happens to be pretty high up in his company, and he leads a large sales team. He is in a high-pressure industry and the challenges of COVID only increased his workload. He, like most of us, has had a stressful year.

leadership development, peronal growthMolly GrishamJune 28, 2021leadership, leadership developmentComment

Leaders Are Bridge Builders

It was a Saturday morning in late August and the college soccer team I was coaching was wrapping up a few grueling weeks of preseason. During this time our players’ bodies and minds had been pushed to a new level as we attempted to lay the foundation for our upcoming season.

On this day, I could hear players coming and going from our locker room (which was situated next to my office) and I sensed that the energy was going to be high at practice that day.

leadership developmentMolly GrishamJune 14, 2021leader, leadership developmentComment