My favorite definition of leadership comes from Kouzes and Posner: “Leadership is the art of mobilizing others to want to struggle for shared aspirations.” That’s a great, dense package that generates discussion about the complexity of leadership. However, sometimes we need something more active. That’s why I like: “Leaders Meet Needs.“ I know I’ve written … Read more
No matter how far you’ve come, a leader always asks: “What’s the next step?” True to my DiSC® style of a strongly inclined iD — I’m impatient. It’s been a lifelong tendency of mine to interrupt, or at least formulate my response before the other person is done talking. A college professor I had called … Read more
We all need a starting point for discussions about vision, direction, prioritization, and hiring. That’s precisely why leaders love rubrics. Simple rubrics are easy to implement, and help make things clear. Consider using a scale of 1 to 3, or 1 to 5, to keep it simple. Example 1 You’re considering candidates for a position, and they’re … Read more
Feedback from leaders drives engagement and performance, yet workers report that feedback is lacking. Leaders even know this truth, but still avoid giving feedback. Last week we explored five common reasons leaders can be uncomfortable giving feedback, with reasons to do it anyway. This week – two reasons why it might be wise to delay giving feedback: … Read more
Feedback from leaders drives engagement and performance, yet many workers report that feedback is lacking. Leaders even know this truth, but still avoid giving feedback. Here are five common reasons leaders may be uncomfortable giving feedback, and reasons to do it anyway: “It’s just a small thing – no big deal.” – Do it anyway. When … Read more
Leaders often know what the needs are in a situation, and dictate them with authority. While the leader is often correct about the direction, engagement can suffer without more buy-in; asking questions that help others discover the same needs can help. Even when you know what is needed, consider expanding your own understanding, helping others buy-in … Read more
Formal and informal networking opportunities abound. There are plenty of pointers on networking out there. And, we’ve blogged about DiSC in the past – you’d better review the basics if you’re unfamiliar. Let’s put those together; check out these quick ideas for your next opportunity. Pointers for your DiSC type: If you are a… D- … Read more
Accountability is one of the areas of dysfunction mentioned in The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni. If you haven’t heard Alan discuss this, check out this video – it goes over the dysfunctions in a quick and compact way. In order for us to achieve the best results, Lencioni points out that … Read more
One thing I do to help leaders is teach them how to facilitate a SWOT activity. SWOT stands for: Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. I’m going to assume that you already know the concepts behind SWOT (if not, we’ll make this clear during your workshop or session). I received a request to post about the … Read more
Deadlines are kind. They give people a way to prioritize their time and efforts. Priorities are also kind. Not setting them becomes fertile ground for frustration. Without priorities, people are led to think one of two things: 1- All of my tasks are equally important. 2- None of my tasks are important. The result? The … Read more