April 3, 2012 • Volume 3, Issue 7 • ISSN: 2154-3240

In This Issue

♦	Feature Article: The Derailed Executive
♦	Ask Amanda: How can I keep a health issue private?
♦	Practical Tips: Problem Solving

The Derailed Executive

You may have never heard the term, but chances are good you’ve been exposed to a derailed executive. That’s because 37% of companies report never doing anything about them. A derailed executive is someone who starts out very strongly, is successful, but then unintentionally fails—leading to demotion, firing, or early retirement.

The Center for Creative Leadership has conducted extensive research (30,000 executives over 24 years) and has identified five broad categories of reasons for derailment: 1. Inability to change or adapt during a transition; 2. Problems with interpersonal relationships (e.g., the person is described by others as insensitive, manipulative, critical, demanding, authoritarian, self-isolating, or aloof); 4. Failure to meet business objectives; and 5. Too narrow a business focus(defined as upward career progress in same function, unable to wear multiple career hats, and lack of awareness about the organization or competitive landscape).
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	Extreme results come with extreme commitment.

Practical Tips:
Problem Solving

Most executives are hired to solve problems. With a constantly increasing pace, volume, and pressure, it can be difficult to access the problem-solving areas of your brain. The next time you’re faced with a thorny problem, try this technique:

Clearly state the question you’re trying to answer. Boil the issue down to the one central problem you want to resolve.
Write it down.
Walk away—literally. Think of the question. Get up and walk for 20 minutes...

I have a health issue I’d prefer to keep private. So far it hasn’t affected my work but I worry that I’ll be the target of gossip when I start taking time off to go to my doctors’ appointments. I don’t want to jeopardize my job by telling my boss. Advice? D.F., Mt. Prospect, IL

First, it’s important to know your rights. Cornell University Law School has a site that links to every state’s employment laws (law.cornell.edu/wex/table_labor), which will help you figure out where you stand. Then speak with your boss and come up with a plan together to cover the work you are responsible for.
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About Us: Our Corporate Life LLC (OCL) is a company that offers a new system for reducing unnecessary workplace suffering caused by the organizational, interpersonal, and ethical issues of our time. It is founded on the belief that adhering to core human values and achieving business success are always compatible. Working with both companies and individuals, OCL helps create solutions that enable corporate employees at every level to optimize profits while enabling them to thrive in the corporate environment. OCL was founded by Amanda Mitchell to help meet the needs of people working in corporate America during this transformative moment in our nation's history. The OCL system reflects her experience and insight gained from a 20–year corporate career working with Fortune 500 companies, and as an executive coach to senior–level corporate executives.