Ask Madeleine is Blanchard’s weekly advice column for well-meaning managers dealing with the challenges of bringing out the best in people in today’s changing work environment. For more than 10 years, master certified coach Madeleine Homan Blanchard has been answering readers’ questions. How about you? Do you have a work issue that Madeleine could help…
Dear Madeleine, I read Feeling Trapped with interest and it scared me. I have had several jobs in retail and have been promoted to manager in each one, only to become disillusioned with the owners. I also just ended my marriage and moved to a new city for a fresh start. My dream is to…
Dear Madeleine, I read your blog from last week and it struck me that I could use some tips from you about the problem you skipped in your answer to the letter writer. I, too, have been passed over for a promotion. It happened at my last company, which is why I left, but I…
Dear Madeleine, I am a senior leader in a highly specialized digital publishing organization and I have about 14 direct reports. Organizationally, I’m third in seniority. My plan is, by the end of 2025, to transition out of this role and into my own coaching and consulting business. I’d be working with some clients, but…
Dear Madeleine, I took some business and leadership courses in college and graduated with a degree in accounting. Last spring I got a job in the finance department of a mid-sized manufacturing company. I like the work and I am learning practical stuff. What surprises me most is just how bad the management is. Not…
Dear Madeleine, I think I know the answer to this, but I thought I would just check my thinking. I work in the arts and have been an assistant to many executive directors. My experience is that once people get into that job they never leave, even when they should. I have been in my…
Dear Madeleine, I am a young professional woman in the biotech space. I started with one company right out of college and then was recruited away to the company I am with now. I double majored in biology and business, and my company is paying for me to get an MBA right now. I love…
Dear Madeleine, I work for a large publishing company. I started here because my dream is to someday be a published author, so I thought I would at least be in the industry. I have been here for four years. I started in marketing and am now an editorial assistant, which sounds a lot loftier…
Dear Madeleine, I am a senior sales manager in a mid-sized company. I love the company, the work we do, and the people. I have been identified as a high potential. My team always hits goal, I get consistently excellent performance reviews, and I have every expectation that I will have a shot at chief…
Dear Madeleine, I am at a crossroads in my career. I am 63 years old and have held positions of plant manager and operations manager. I currently serve as director of operations at a company that offers overhead crane and hoist design, manufacturing, and maintenance services. My past has been challenging; I have reinvented myself…