The good news is that the term “Radical Candor” has entered the lexicon. The bad news is that there’s a risk it becomes a meaningless buzzword. We need your help to fight this. Please let us know which ideas in the book or the podcast you have rolled out with your team. What’s working? What’s not? If you’re willing, we will feature your stories in our blog and email newsletter. If you want it kept confidential, we will honor that…
On Sunday I took my 8 year-old daughter to the grocery store after her Little League game to pick up something for dinner. She and I were both a little tired and grouchy, and beginning to snip at each other. She was cold and wanted to make it a quick trip; I shared, and magnified, her impatience. At one point we were in a narrow section between the olive bar and the bananas and my daughter stopped in her tracks,…
This note from a nurse-midwife who decided to become a manager made our week. When a really good person decides to become a manager, the world becomes a better place. It's not only managerial leverage, it's good person leverage! Hi Kim and Russ, I am a nurse-midwife who long ago chose to "move up the ladder" in health care by becoming a clinician rather than going into management. Well, soon it will be my turn to join management as first…
A few weeks ago, we received an amazing email from Samir Sagar, Director at Manubhai Jewellers. He had shared some of our blog posts and videos with his team several weeks prior, and on the day of the email to us, had held a meeting with his five direct reports to ask for feedback. I told my team that I am at fault for not creating an atmosphere in which they can bring their honest feedback ...and that I never…
We have a great story to share with you about a company that rolled out Radical Candor in their organization. Gem, a Los Angeles based blockchain company focused on healthcare and supply chain, recently introduced their 20-person team to Radical Candor and developed a really fun way to recognize their successes. Read on for ideas on rolling out the framework with your team! --- As People Operations Manager at Gem, Madeline Mann had been hearing some feedback from the team…
Seven years ago, before launching Femgineer and having Kim Scott on FemgineerTV, I had to make my first sales hire for my second startup, BizeeBee. I had never hired a salesperson before. Most of my hiring experience had been with technical folks such as engineers, designers, and product managers. I just figured it would be the same. Find someone who is capable, comes with good references, and then give them some time to ramp up. I decided to hire Adam. Adam…
Marc Murphy, CEO at Atlatl Software, wrote us recently with this great feedback story, and a great new term to start using. Had a great candor moment this week that I wanted to share. I called it a candor boomerang... Marc met with a manager on his team and had a great, candid session. Marc shared some feedback with the manager. When he finished, the manager said, "Now can I share some feedback that I have for you?" What came next was…
Manipulative Insincerity is the worst of the quadrants in our Radical Candor 2x2 because you don't Challenge Directly or show you Care Personally. Unfortunately, when you or those around you behave with Manipulative Insincerity, it's often reciprocated and difficult to break out of. We shared a story from Joe Dunn last year about Obnoxious Aggression. Now here's a continuation of that story, when Joe found himself in a meeting surrounded by Manipulative Insincerity. https://youtu.be/nu49ePRFmLI Have you experienced something like this? Share your story with…
Have you heard Kim tell the origin story for Radical Candor? When she was living in New York, a complete stranger approached her on the street and Challenged her Directly while also showing that he Cared Personally. Kim was amazed by the interaction, and further inspired by the words the stranger left her with: It's not mean, it's clear. Watch the video for the full story: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ViLau3YpVLU Also check out episode 2 of the Radical Candor podcast for more about…
One of our podcast listeners, Nadia, wrote in to share this story with us and gave us permission to share with you as well. It’s such a great story about advice that Nadia received years ago, that has stayed with her all this time. We’ve re-written her story here: When I was in middle school, so about 15 years old, I was chairperson of the Middle School Council. Each week I met with the principal of my school, Adam Heath,…