The new year often brings with it an onslaught of planning. We make plans for what we want to achieve within our companies, within our departments, and often in our lives. This usually takes the form of us listing everything we feel we need to achieve that year and assigning dates and sometimes detailed action-plans. Unfortunately, while we may gain short-term success from this activity, our long-term success could be serious stunted. Continue reading
A Way Out
It was a school zone. Someone was driving recklessly. I’m not sure how it happened, but soon two cars had their windows rolled down. One man yelled, “It’s a school zone!” The other replied sarcastically, “Was the light on?” The other promptly informed him, “Yes, and there is a cop back there, you moron.” That did it! The reckless man spewed profanity and told the first guy to mind his own business as he drove off. Why do I tell this story? When we want someone to change their behavior, we have to leave them a way out. Continue reading
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5 Steps When Faced with a Saboteur
Why are we so resentful towards successful people? Residing within our culture is a sense of entitlement. We see successful people and think we deserve the same thing. As you move through life and further up the ladder of success, you will inevitably encounter people who aren’t happy for you. Worse, you may even encounter people who work against your success. What do you do when faced with this type of skullduggery? Continue reading
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5 Tips to Give a Better Review
It’s that time of year. A time many dread. Will I get a raise? Will I get laid off? What does my boss really think of me? As leaders we should be able to empathize with those we write reviews for. Most likely we have lingering doubts as our review approaches. If we don’t, that probably means our boss is doing some of the right things. Make sure you are doing them as well to help relieve your team’s anxiety. Continue reading
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How to Start Living Your Dream Today
What did you want to be when you grew up? No, really. Think back. Remember what you wanted to spend your life doing? Picture yourself as a child, dreaming of the future, knowing someday you would be doing something you would be happy with every day. Do you remember that feeling? Is it a distant memory, or is it a part of your reality?
Somewhere between childhood and becoming an adult, we are suddenly burdened with responsibility and this notion that supporting yourself and living your dream are irreconcilable. But why? Why does it have to be that way? I don’t think it has to! Here are a few thoughts on how to live your dream. Continue reading
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I Don’t Want My Talent!
With time off during the holidays, I have not encountered as many leadership stories in my day-to-day activities. I have, however, had the opportunity to find leadership lessons in animated movies. Either I’m desperate to find examples of leadership, or Disney has done a good job of building character lessons into their films. Continue reading
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Why Your New Year’s Resolution Won’t Succeed
“You’re going to be 40 anyway. Do you want to be 40 with a degree or without?” This was encouragement a friend gave her husband as he lamented how long it would take to get his degree going to school part-time. How often do we fail to start something because of how long it will take to reach our goals? We miss the big picture, though: we will still reach them, even if we are 40 or 50 or 90!
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Opportunity in the Turbulence
We tend to like the calm. We like calm skies for our flights, calm waters when on a ship, and calm weather when traveling. The problem with calm is you always know what to expect. And while it makes it easier to fly, sail, or drive, it’s not necessarily the best thing in all areas of our lives.There is opportunity in turbulence. When industries are calm, it’s hard to get a foothold. The customers aren’t looking for someone new to buy from. There are no new differentiators between products. Things are pretty much status quo. If you are trying to get into the market or gain market share, it’s going to be tough. Why choose you over the industry leader? Continue reading
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Key Ingredient to Be the Best
Do you have an all-consuming passion? I recently had the pleasure of being in the audience to hear a CEO of a Fortune 500 company speak about the company’s future. I sat enraptured by his passion and realized the most successful people have an all-consuming passion and focus.
This type of passion keeps leaders ahead of the competition. Since these leaders are passionate about the industry, they never feel they know enough and are driven to keep learning. Staying on the edge of the latest information allows them to make strategic decisions, helping differentiate their company from the rest.
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Refined by the Fire
Picture a drill sergeant. Can you see that mean look and hear the yelling – are you cowering with fear? Cross that with a chicken with it’s head caught off, and you know exactly what I looked like on the day of my sister’s wedding. We were falling behind schedule, and a few things weren’t turning out as planned. As the ceremony time approached, my ability to see the bigger picture and what next steps or corrective actions were needed helped us get everything completed. However, my directive and impatient nature rose to the surface as I barked orders in abrupt (but efficient) ways.
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