Posts by Jo Ilfeld, PhD
Five Cities, Four Flights, Twelve Lessons (None about business)
A friend recently forwarded me an Instagram post making fun of those LinkedIn posts where someone relates a personal experience to business. You know the ones: “My toddler taught me about quarterly planning.” I felt so seen—and so called out. Because of course I do that. I’m constantly relating life to leadership. So I’m trying something different.…
Read MoreThe Jagged Edge of AI: What Leaders Need to Understand
Leaders should not view AI as either fully reliable or completely unusable. Instead, they need to understand the jagged edge of AI. The jagged edge refers to the boundary between where AI performs well and where it still produces unreliable results. This boundary is not fixed. It is moving quickly as AI systems improve through…
Read MoreHow a Simple “Parking Lot” Can Create More Effective Team Meetings
When I recently spent a day facilitating a session with a leadership team, one simple tool turned out to be their biggest takeaway: a “Parking Lot.” All I did was write “Parking Lot” at the top of a flip chart and post it on the wall. The idea was simple: whenever someone brought up a…
Read MoreWhen Promotions Are Frozen but Ambition Isn’t. What’s Your Next Move?
This is the latest edition of my new work advice column — Dear Dr. Jo! If you have a work issue you’d love my insight on, please email me at [email protected] or DM me here on LinkedIn. What would you do if your top performer is ready for more but your hands are tied because…
Read MoreAre You Looking Where the Light Is—or Where the Answer Is?
I was seated a mile above home and office when I wrote this article in an airplane on my way to my hometown of Chicago. This was the only moment I could find to step back and reflect in a more meaningful way. It’s hard to find time in the middle of an “ordinary” workday,…
Read MoreRewrite the Story First
A client recently told me about a frustrating work situation: they had asked a team member for a deliverable by Friday at 3 p.m. The team member messaged later in the day, overwhelmed, and finally sent the deliverable at 6 p.m.—but it was completely off the mark. Frustration is a natural reaction in moments like…
Read MoreA Simple Weekly Reflection Practice That Works
Ferris Bueller said it best: “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” For many leaders, life does move fast — from back-to-back meetings to constant deadlines. But without reflection, we miss opportunities to learn and grow. That’s where a simple tool called Plus…
Read MoreRedefining Career Success: Why It’s Not Always About Climbing the Ladder
Many of us were taught to measure career success by how high we climb: bigger titles, larger paychecks, more responsibility. But real growth doesn’t always look like a straight ladder. Recently, a friend shared that she had moved from a management role to an individual contributor position. At first, she wondered if this was a…
Read MoreSmall Shifts, Big Impact
Have you ever wondered, is there any small change I could make to my schedule that would make a monumental difference? The truth is, it often can. Recently, two of my clients shared simple adjustments that completely shifted their day-to-day experience. One client realized Mondays always felt blah. Instead of pushing through, she added a…
Read MoreConversations That Bridge Generations
Most of us laugh at the Friends episode where no one can remember what Chandler Bing does for a living. (“Statistical analysis and data reconfiguration,” anyone?) But it made me wonder: do your kids — or even their friends — know what you do? This question hit me at a memorial for my best friend’s…
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