In a post from a few years ago titled Why Corporate Change is Difficult, But Possible, I described the obstacles to and steps needed to produce positive and long-lasting change in both individuals and companies. This concern continues to be at the forefront of business leaders’ minds because the corporate world is in a constant [...]
I’m asked regularly by companies to help them find ways to increase their individual and organizational performance, productivity, and profitability. In these situations, two old adages come to mind: “Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” “If all you ever do is all you’ve ever done, then all you’ll ever [...]
Is there anything more important to the success of a company than decision making? And is there any other process that occurs so often in a company that is accomplished so haphazardly? The decisions that are made, from the boardroom and the corner office on down, dictate the direction that the company goes. Yet, decision [...]
I’m often brought into a company to help them solve a problem. The problem might have to do with strategic planning, research and development, or entry into a new market. I’m no expert in any of these areas, but what I am pretty good at is helping companies understand and go through the best possible process for making decisions. The first thing I say is that this process isn’t about solving problems; it’s about decision making. When we think about typical problem solving, it involves a series of steps: 1) Identifying the problem…which involves making a decision on what the problem is; 2) Finding a solution…which means making a decision on what will solve the problem; 3) Implementing a solution…which means making a decision on how to put the plan into action. Therefore, when we talk about ‘problem solving,’ what we really mean is ‘decision making.’
In a recent post, I introduced you to The 5 Things Great Leaders Do Very Well, in which I described the five essential roles that leaders must fulfill to be successful: 1. Leader as person 2. Leader as performer 3. Leader as team builder 4. Leader as decision maker 5. Leader as change agent In the follow-up post, I explored Leader as Person in which I argue that who you are is how you lead. In this post, I will examine your role as Leader as Performer and how this focus ensures that you and your team have the necessary tools to maximize your performances and, as a result, your successes. Performance is so vital because it is the foundation for two higher-order goals of individual and organizational success in the business world: productivity and profitability. The only way to maximize these two is to maximize performance.
This post extends my discussion of Leader-as-Person by exploring the role that your mindset plays in how you approach your leadership. I define mindset as the attitudes, beliefs, and expectations you hold that act as the foundation of who you are, how you lead, and the ways in which you interact with your team. Your mindset is so influential because it determines how you think about and interpret situations, your emotional reactions, the decisions you make, and the actions you take. Your mindset directly impacts the quality of your relationships, the interactions you have, and the way you lead. It also sets the tone for your organization and determines the kind of experiences your people have in their work lives. Your mindset isn’t just a bunch of touchy-feely psychology and relationship stuff either. It also has a big effect on your company’s bottom line, setting the stage of its performance, productivity, and, ultimately, its profitability. Your goal is to identify and create productive mindsets that result in Prime Leadership. There are four mindsets that I believe are important to have to be the most effective leader you can be.
In my first post in this series on leadership in the corporate world, I introduced you to the notion that there are roles that leaders must fulfill to be successful: person, performer, team builder, decision maker, and change agent. This post will explore what I believe lies at the heart of leadership: leader-as-person, who you are is how you lead. As I alluded to in my first post, I take a contrarian view of leadership: I don’t believe in leadership styles. Despite the many books written about leadership styles, I would argue that we are not capable of leading in ways that conflict with who we are. In other words, we can’t be someone we are not. Certainly, it is possible to expand the range of your leadership capabilities around the anchor of who you are; a great leader is always looking for ways to improve their leadership skills. For example, if you are an intense and emotional leader, you can learn to moderate your emotional reactions during a crisis to some degree. At the same time, it’s not likely you will ever be a Zen-type leader. Within notion of leader-as-person, the key for you is to fully understand who you are and, given who you are, maximize your effectiveness as a leader. With this information, you can then identify the strengths and weaknesses you have as a leader and can work to build your strengths and mitigate your weaknesses, thus allowing who you are to emerge as a more effective leader.
I'm excited that my recent business-related post, The Five Things Great Leaders Must Do Very Well, nabbed the headline on the Huffington Post Small Businesses page.
Leadership is one of the truly hot topics in the corporate world. Can you believe that there are more than 17,000 books on leadership available on Amazon? That statistic tells me that there are no clear answers on the best way to lead a company, organization, or team. Given that I work extensively in both the corporate and sports world, where effective leadership is essential, I wanted to share my perspective on what makes a great leader. Let’s start with where I stand on leadership. First, what is a leader? Your answer may include inspiring employees, having a strategic vision and plan, or knowing how to hire or delegate. All of these are necessary, but not sufficient, conditions for being a leader. But the purest definition of a leader I can offer is: someone with followers. Without them, there is no leader. I also want to add a rather heretical view of leadership: I don’t believe in leadership styles. We certainly hear plenty from all sorts of business gurus that this style or that is ideal. You hear about autocratic, democratic, collaborative, visionary, transactional, transformational, participative, laissez-faire, servant, the list goes on. I would argue, however, that talking about styles has little value because we are incapable of leading in a way that is inconsistent with who we are as people. However you lead, there are certain roles you must fulfill to be a successful leader of your team and to achieve the goals you have established for your business. I believe that leaders have five essential roles to fulfill to be effective.
Focus doesn’t get the respect it deserves in the business world. We hear a lot about motivation, stress, emotions, leadership, and team culture, but not much attention is paid to the role that focus plays in your ability to be productive. Well, I’m here to change all that. Let’s first start with what focus is. Simply put, focus involves the ability to pay attention to things that will help and avoid distractions that will hurt your work efforts. For example, to finish a report, you need to focus on the relevant information and analyses that will comprise the report. You must also avoid typical distractions such as emails, being hungry or tired, or the people around you.