Need a Loving Taskmaster?

By Marty Nemko

The only person who likes change is a wet baby. The rest of us usually find it comfier to stay put, even if the status quo is yucky. According to Richard Bolles, author of What Color is Your Parachute, moving forward may require weekly check-ins with a "loving taskmaster". Prefer group support? Recruit 4-6 friends, relatives, or colleagues to meet weekly or at least monthly. At each session, each person gets ten minutes in the hot seat: describing their desired change, asking for the group's advice, and concluding by saying what s/he commits to accomplishing by the next meeting.