I can’t believe how often I leave a meeting thinking that someone is going to do something, only to have them leave the same meeting thinking they are doing something else, or that someone else is doing it altogether on a completely different date. Why is getting clear commitments so challenging and what can I do to fix it?

I’m working on a tough project with the team I lead. Everyone seems to agree with what I propose during our weekly meetings but the other day I heard a few team members in the staff room criticizing everything I’d suggested during our meeting only an hour earlier, though they didn’t say anything at the time

I don’t think our team has a very good level of trust and I’m not sure what to do about it. Nobody seems to come clean or be really honest with each other, nobody really says what they’re thinking or brings up the real issues, and nobody seems to really commit or to be prepared to hold each other accountable. How do you recommend building a stronger team?

With all the technology today and many people and devices competing for my time, and providing a distraction, can you give me some specific time management tips to help me succeed at my job?

I am, or was, a senior level executive (senior vice-president level and officer of the company) in the automotive parts manufacturing industry. While I am certainly aware that there has been a contraction and sea change in this industry, I never see jobs at this level either posted or advertised.

I graduated in 2002 with a bachelor of commerce degree from Dalhousie University. My marks were average at best. I majored in marketing because that was the only thing I could really do given my bad accounting and finance marks.