Christopher J. Colombo MD, CEC, CMC, CPP Introduction Most professions reward expertise and this generally plays as exactly what you’d expect for the profession to be effective. Patients deserve physicians who recognize subtle diagnoses. Aircraft deserve engineers who understand failure modes. Organizations benefit when accountants know the subtleties of tax law, software developers understand minute...
Tag Archives: mentorship
The Second Apprenticeship
Christopher J. Colombo MD, CEC, CMC, CPP Introduction Organizations love promoting experts. It makes intuitive sense. The engineer who designed the breakthrough product becomes the engineering manager. The scientist who built the most successful laboratory becomes department chair. The professor with the strongest research portfolio becomes dean. The physician with the broadest clinical, educational, and...
Running Without a Map: Why Change Needs More Than Good Intentions
Christopher J. Colombo MD, CEC, CMC, CPP Introduction Feedback is a mirror. Over the past two posts, we’ve looked at two ways leaders stumble with feedback: ignoring it altogether (Ignoring the Mirror) and overreacting to every reflection (Trapped in the Mirrors). Both leave you stuck. But there’s a third trap, and it’s sneakier because it...
Ignoring the Mirror: Why We Resist Feedback and Growth
Christopher J. Colombo MD, CEC, CMC, CPP Introduction We previously defined feedback as the key enabling behavior of true mentorship. Good feedback acts as a mirror, reflecting something about us that we may not see on our own, and provides a pathway to change, grow, and improve. But what happens when you don’t like the reflection?...
The Resilience Rant: Reclaiming and Reframing Part 5
What Actually Builds Resilience: Pressure, Process, and Purpose Christopher J. Colombo MD, CEC, CMC, CPP Introduction Let’s step back. Up to now, this series has focused on you—the individual reader. Your internal dialogue. Your emotional load. Your capacity to fall apart and rebuild. That work matters. But if resilience is real, it doesn’t stay static. If...
The Resilience Rant: Reclaiming and Reframing Part 1
Why We Won’t Throw Out Resilience Just Because Some People Misuse It Christopher J. Colombo MD, CEC, CMC, CPP Introduction Resilience gets a bad rap these days—and not without reason. In recent years, especially in conversations about trauma, adversity, and systemic harm, the concept of resilience has sometimes been used to shame people rather than...
7 Dirty Words Part 3: Disarming Your Inner Critic by Breaking Free from “Except” and “Must”
Christopher J. Colombo MD, CEC, CMC, CPP Introduction “I did well, except for that one mistake.”“I must get this perfect, or I’ve failed.” Sound familiar? Although these statements might seem harmless, they have our next two of the seven dirty words. “Except” and “Must” are red flags for self-sabotage. In this post we’ll not only...
7 Dirty Words Part 2: The Trap of Absolutes: How “Always” and “Never” Limit Your Thinking
Christopher J. Colombo MD, CEC, CMC, CPP Introduction “Always” and “Never”: Opposites That Work the Same Way “They always leave me out.” “I’ll never be good enough.” At first glance, “always” and “never” might seem like opposites. One declares constancy, while the other implies impossibility. Yet, these words share a common function: they are absolutes...
Stop Shoulding All Over Yourself: 7 Dirty Words Part 1
Christopher J. Colombo MD, CEC, CMC, CPP Take control of the “Shoulds”: Aligning Expectations with Reality In our introductory installment of “The seven dirty words” we discussed a general approach to building mindfulness and becoming aware of using the words. Our mindfulness exercise focused on assessing your personal energy level and emotional state preceding the...