Bite-sized insights for curious leaders & learners every other Sunday.

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🗣️ "Magic is just someone spending more time on something than anyone else might reasonably expect." -Teller (of Penn & Teller)

🗣️ "Doing the work is what makes you look like an overnight success ten years later." -Kathleen Shannon and Emily Thompson

🗣️ "Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any other one thing." -Abraham Lincoln

🗣️ "Compared to what we ought to be, we are only half awake. We are making use of only a small part of our physical and mental resources. Stating the thing broadly, the human individual thus lives far within his limits. He possesses powers of various sorts which he habitually fails to use." -William James

This is the 12th year I've done a reading wrap-up post at year-end. Here's my survey of everything I read in 2025, including highs, lows, surprises, and more. ​Read more​

Every month, I record the best quotes I find in books, articles, podcasts, etc. Here are the gems from this past month. ​Read more​

​The Workshop Survival Guide by Rob Fitzpatrick & Devin Hunt​ ​Nonfiction: Communication, Training If you ever lead trainings or workshops, this book is a terrific guide. Even though I've run trainings for many years, I got a lot out of it. ​See takeaways​

​Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins​ ​Fiction: Young Adult, Popular Fiction I'm a sucker for The Hunger Games series, so I'll probably buy any prequel Collins releases. This one dives into Haymitch's backstory and explains why he's so broken and bitter. If you like The Hunger Games, check this out before the movie drops in November.

🗣️ "Leadership, it turns out, is not about being in charge. Leadership is about taking care of those in your charge." -Simon Sinek

A manager recently asked me how they can fight for their team without coming off as oppositional to colleagues or senior leadership. I thought that was a fantastic question.

It reminded me of a situation I frequently saw in my first manager role...

When I worked at Target, the store didn't have enough payroll hours for everyone to get full 40-hour workweeks. So, it was a big deal when new shifts opened up because many employees wanted those extra hours (aka a higher paycheck).

The managers got to decide who received the extra shifts, which required some negotiating.

I noticed that some managers didn't advocate for their teams at all, whereas others argued so forcefully that it damaged their relationships with other leaders. There was always a fine balance between fighting for what was best for your team versus what would be best for the entire store.

I've seen similar dynamics in other companies, and it's always a delicate balance. I generally try to stay in the middle of this continuum:

If you're trying to figure out how to advocate without being an asshole, here's my advice:

• Learn as much as possible about your team members and what they ultimately want out of their work. (This helps you advocate strongly for them—whether for a promotion, higher salary, more hours, etc.)
• Simultaneously, learn about the company's needs from the senior leadership's perspective: what's good for the overall operation and why (managing the budget, hitting payroll, etc.).
• In negotiations across departments, try to be assertive (stating what you need/want) without being aggressive.
• Truly listen to your fellow managers. If another leader makes a strong argument for why their team should get XYZ, don't be afraid to agree. It'll build credibility for future cross-team negotiations.

Just like many aspects of leadership, this topic is nuanced. There are no perfect answers. Strive to become known as someone who fully understands your team's needs and is willing to fight for them, without doing so to the detriment of everyone else.

When's the last time you got to take yourself out to dinner?

The first few times I went out to eat at a sit-down restaurant by myself, it felt weird—especially because I always sit down with a book in hand.

But the more I've done it, the more I enjoy it. I started off doing it years ago on work trips, and now I do it during activities like solo retreats.

People tend to judge someone reading a book at a restaurant more than they judge someone sitting on their phone (which is weird), but I view these dinners as a chance to practice not caring.

The last few times, I've even ordered an appetizer or cocktail first to really enjoy the experience and have a longer meal. It's been lovely.

Visit me at BobbyPowers.com for more articles and book reviews about leadership, self-improvement, and productivity.

You can also access high-res PDFs of my 1-pagers and cheat sheets here.

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