Learning from mistakes key to leadership and learning

Leaders should be open about learning from mistakes to foster an atmosphere of continuous learning, writes Kara Glassman, an organizational psychologist and executive coach, who also recommends looking at failure as an opportunity to improve. "When leaders show they're willing to make and learn from errors, they create a safe environment for their teams to do the same," Glassman writes.

Put it into practice: Leaders should model the values of continuous learning to encourage the same behaviors among employees. "Encouraging risk-taking and celebrating learning isn’t enough; leaders must actively exhibit these behaviors themselves," Glassman writes.

Body language and your tone of voice communicate more than you realize, writes Wilson Luna, a leadership expert, who cites research that shows 55% of communications stems from nonverbal cues. Luna recommends maintaining eye contact and using controlled gestures to help convey your message, while also keeping listeners engaged by matching your tone to your words.

Put it into practice: Building trust by keeping eye contact without staring is a key starting point. "Even while you maintain a steady gaze, eye contact expresses engagement and trust," Luna writes.

Productivity is as much about managing emotions as it is about managing time, writes Kevin Kruse, who identifies five common emotional barriers to productivity: the stress of getting started, being bored by your task, wanting it to be perfect, feeling overwhelmed and a temptation to micromanage. Kruse offers strategies to overcome each barrier, such as recognizing resistance to starting a project as natural and breaking tasks into smaller chunks.

Owning a pet can be good for your mental health, but new research shows that may not be the case if you have an anxious attachment to your pet that causes you to worry too much about them, writes Brian Chin, an assistant professor of psychology at Trinity College who conducted the research. "For those who rely on their pets for emotional support, recognizing these patterns may help foster a bond that feels reassuring rather than stressful," Chin writes.

If you've felt "off" during a conversation, it may be because the other person's body language was saying more than their words. As Wilson Luna writes, 55% of our communication with each other comes through body language. According to Albert Mehrabian's famous 7-38-55 Rule, 38% of communication comes from the tone, pitch and pace of our voice, while only 7% of the impact comes from the words we speak.

This means that we must be careful that our body language matches the tone and words we use to fully communicate our message without confusion or contradiction.

It's best to maintain eye contact when speaking to others, either individually or in a group. Make your gestures open. Avoid crossing your arms or taking other defensive postures. Use facial expressions to convey your emotions and control any nervous fidgeting, Luna advises.

"Learning these elements not only improves message delivery but also strengthens relationships," Luna notes.

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