Are You Self-Leadable?
It's been said many times, in many places by many people:
"You can't expect to lead anyone else unless you can lead yourself!"
Yet, I find in my executive and leadership coaching that too many leaders are still struggling with this concept.
They fight with themselves and with others they are trying to lead with a "do as I say, not as I do" approach to leadership. And, surprisingly, they are surprised to find themselves frustrated over the lack of commitment of their employees, team members or committee workers.
It's time for a change.
Another old adage is "curiousity killed the cat."
Well, I like to say "Incongruency kills the leader!"
If you lead an organization, a team, a not-for-profit board of directors, a school or church committee, or even a family of two, you must be self-leadable*!
*The term “self-leadable” came to me from an idea by Scott Ginsberg, who just wrote a book called “-able” (pronounced a-bull).
How can you expect others to feel confident in following you if you fail to show up in a way that inspires others to show up in a positive, powerful way?
One client with whom I recently finished working had a terrible reputation for raising his voice and chastising his people in public anytime he became frustrated with a lack of performance by a member of his team. Yet, he was also frustrated with the fact that some of his employees were yelling and cursing at each other on the job in public places where customers, clients and subcontractors could see and hear.
Another client from many years ago came to me frustrated with the productivity and teamwork of his office staff. Yet, invested little time around the office to mentor, coach and monitor his employees in the desired behaviors he was hoping would manifest organically with no direction. In this instance, he showed little interest and expressed so little value in his people that his people showed little interest and value in the company or each other.
And, yet a third former client was frustrated with the lack of respect and commitment his employees showed to himself and his company. He couldn't understand it because they had created a strong list of company values that the team would recite and discuss together each week.
On my first day consulting with this firm I sat back and observed this team meeting. Not 2-minutes after this values recitation process the company owner replied to two of his employees in two separate incidents in a sarcastic manner with inappropriate tone.
As Gandi said “We must become the change we want to see.”
This means a person, a leader, must be “self-leadable” first! Are you?
How can you be “self-leadable?” Here are just four steps:
1) Commit to showing up with a higher standard:
In what areas are your words and actions inconsistent and incongruent? In what ways are you not walking your talk? In what ways are you expecting things of others you are not willing to do yourself? If you don’t know, become extremely humble and with humility ask some people around you that you trust.
2) Decide what that higher standard be:
Be specific as to what it would look like, sound like, feel like, talk like, walk like, believe like, expect like, etc.
3) Write it down in detail:
How would you speak, how would you walk, how would you feel inside, what would you have to believe to become this person.
4) Begin practicing one of those areas each day:
Focus on improving 1% each day and in 70 days you will be twice as good (thanks to one of my mentors Alan Weiss, the Million Dollar Consultant, for his “1% Solution.”)
I guarantee that if you apply the four steps above people will begin to notice.
If you’d like to get a sample of a standard I espouse and work with my executive/leadership clients to integrate into their approach and into their organizations, you can read my article on “The 5 Traits of a CHAMP Leader” at this link .
Additionally, this fall I am launching a Tele-Seminar Series titled, “The Champion Leadership Training Camp” during which about 50% of the program will be dealing with this issue and the issue of transferring the standard to your team so that it sticks and gets great results well into the future.
If you’d like to join me visit www.ChampionBusinessLeadership.com
If you like the idea of being “self-leadable,” you will probably want to read other “-able” strategies, which is a recently published book by Scott Ginsberg. You can learn more about it here .
You can read more of Scott’s innovative ideas for being a more effective in your business at www.HelloMyNameisBlog.com
'til next time, make it a great week!
Champion Leadership Tip #42 - The 5 Magical Management Strategies to Manifest Leadership & Teamwork in Any Organization
After taking last week off while on vacation here is a leadership and teamwork tip I've been working on developing the past few weeks.
I've been getting a lot of questions in my email from subscribers about how they can get their employees and team members to take more initiative in their jobs and to work better as a team.
So, it got me thinking on some of the specific keys to making that happen.
I've come up with these 5 steps:
1) Make "Teamwork" a Job Performance Expectation & Reward It
This sounds like a no-brainer, but I'm amazed at how many organizational leaders just expect teamwork to happen. Unfortunately, too many organizations have compensation and reward systems that do not promote the sharing of resources and helping fellow team members.
2) Make "Self-Leadership" and "Self-Responsibility" a Job Performance Expectation
This, too, sounds like a no-brainer, but few organizations set true standards for how people "show up" on the job in their attitudes and behaviors. As such, many leaders are frustrated with dealing with individuals who do not have the "can do" self-starter attitude but do look to blame others when things don't go as they hoped. But, it is their own fault because there is no measurable job performance standard for this area.
3) Create Opportunities for Teaching, Coaching and Mentoring the Organization's Next Leaders
In a couple of weeks I'll be starting my second leadership training program for a high-profile company in my region. When this program concludes around Thanksgiving roughly 1/3 of their staff and 100% of their youngest generation of employees will have gone through a 32-hour leadership training and development program. This organization will be ready for the next generation of leaders to step up, is yours?
4) Make Promoting from Within a Priority/Core Value and Communicate It Throughout the Organization
Another client whose leadership team completed my 'Champion Organizations' program back in the spring recently went through a mini-crisis with one of its leadership team members. Instead of going through a recruiting process to bring an experienced executive on board from outside, we worked on restructuring the team already in place to promote other high-performers giving them the opportunity to take on more. This allows others to see potential opportunities within their own agency and they will be more committed to their present roles knowing their is a possibility for advancement from within.
5) Help All Team Members Achieve their Aspirations Even If It Is With Another Company or Competitor
If all of the above strategies are followed you will be hiring and retaining high-level employees who are a great fit for your organization. But, that retention of key employees will create a backlog of talent, which will need to be addressed. For some you will be able find new challenges for higher contribution, for others you will not and they will wait for an opportunity only so long. Keep the lines of communication open and let them know you will help them get to the next level, whether it is in your organization or elsewhere. If you do, your people will reward you while they're with you.
If organizational leadership and teamwork development strategies like this are helpful to you, you are going to want to join me for my free teleseminar on Thursday, September 9th, during which I will be discussing "The 3 Leadership Strategies Champion Organizations Master That Too Many Leaders Take for Granted."
I've only reserved 100 phone lines for the event and when I got home from vacation this week I learned they are almost 3/4 taken, so don't get shut out, reserve you spot on the call today
www.ChampionBusinessLeaders.com
'til next time, make it a great week!
Champion Leadership Tip #41 - A Strong Bench Is Characteristic of Champion Teams & Vital for Business, Too!
I n athletics its called bench strength. It's managed via something called the depth chart. You've heard the terminology, first team, second team, third team, etc.
The "first team" are the players in the starting lineup, the second team are the "understudies" who give the first team a rest on certain strategic days during the season, or they come in to games at certain strategic times like for defense when a more conservative approach is desired. And, the third team is there to protect against serious injury and unexpected situations that may present themselves, (e.g., a player getting suspended for substance or steroid abuse or getting in trouble with the law, etc. where the second team player has to step up to the first team to fill that void.)
Well, the suprising resignation of former Hewlett-Packard CEO Mark Hurd last week has caught the high-tech bohemoth with its depth chart a little light.
According to a recent Wall St. Journal article there is no clear succession plan in place and no clear successor to the CEO role at H-P. This is surprising for such a large, multi-national firm.
It's not a surprise to me in dealing with the small-to-medium sized firm's I work with. But, it is no less important, and maybe even more important, for the smaller companies and not-for-profit agencies with whom I work to have a succession plan in place.
Few do.
I call it the "Mack Truck" scenario. What happens to your organization should the owner/CEO walk down the street for lunch and get hit by a Mack Truck crossing the street?
Hmmm, something to think about! Yet, too many organizations fail to plan effectively for this possibility.
That's why I was excited to get a call from a former client this week who asked me to help train their middle-level managers on leadership and high-performance management skills last winter asking me to take their younger executives, who are the next level on their depth chart, through the same training. This is a firm obviously looking to the future and wants to be ready for it.
I also have another client, a not-for-profit organization, that to this point has not invested time, energy and resources on its Mack Truck scenario. But, I've been moving them in that direction since I started working with them because I believe the health and vitality of its current executive director is vital to the long-term viability and sustainability (not just the success) of the agency. And, at this stage the agency lacks the depth chart to have a viable succession plan.
What about you? Too many company's and not-for-profit organizations procrastinate on this 'fundamental' of long-term success (it's no coincidence that the word 'success' is the core of the word 'succession' as in 'succession planning.')
That's why I have included 'succession planning' and 'depth chart' creation as a strategy within my program on "The 3 Leadership Strategies Champion Organizations Master That Too Many Leaders Take for Granted."
If you haven't downloaded that free white paper report you should do that now at this link.
You also may want to register for my upcoming Free TeleSeminar on September 9th as well, on which I will be discussing the strategies outlined in that report.
The Tele-Seminar on September 9th is titled ""The 3 Leadership Strategies Champion Organizations Master That Too Many Leaders Take for Granted."Champion Organizations Master That Too Many Leaders Take for Granted."
Grab your seat today before the call fills up. I've been amazed at the number of registrations already and I haven't promoted much beyond last week's mention in my ezine that goes out to my list of 4,000 subscribers.
'til next time, make it a great week!
Champion Leadership Tip #40 - Leading Is Like Playing the Guitar
Every time I've picked up the guitar to play or practice this summer I've had to tune it. The varied humidity during the summer months makes the string tensions more varied than at other times during the year.
Each string has to be adjusted differently. Some are very far out of tune while others just need a slight tweak to get them back.
This morning with the guitar hanging from my neck I looked down at the tuner on the edge of the guitar's body and began to test and adjust each string.
After tuning the second string my focus pulled back slightly and I saw the entire six strings in full view and I recognized them as a unit, a team. And, I realized these were the 'team members' I needed to help me achieve my goal of playing the guitar properly in tune.
I then realized that the act of tuning the guitar is similar to leading a team of people.
Each one is different. Each is different in terms of its size, weight, texture, tension, its strength and the sound it makes. Each one also has strengths in certain situations and weaknesses in others.
Just like the people we lead in organizations.
Some days our people are in tune. Some days they need tuning. Some days they are ready to go and some days they need an attitude or motivation adjustment.
One day last week right in the middle of playing a song, one of the strings broke and I had to replace it with a new string. Sometimes that happens to our team members, too.
In leadership its important to remember that every person on our team is a unique human being with dreams, desires, aspirations, personal frailties and insecurities, but also great strengths.
As leaders we need to learn how to play those we lead. I don't mean in a manipulative, condescending way, but in a way that helps bring out the best in them.
We need to get to know them so that we can help them fine tune their approach, their attitudes, their skills and knowledge so they can help us, in conjuntion with their co-workers/teammates play beautiful music for our organizations.
If you would like to learn the techniques to lead like a champion so you can begin tuning your team into performing like a champion, join me on Thursday, September 9th for a FREE Tele-Seminar titled:
"The 3 Leadership Strategies Champion Organizations Master That Too Many Leaders Take for Granted"
Registration is free but you must reserve your spot in advance to make sure you get access to this call, click here to learn more and grab your spot now.
'til next time, make it a great week!
Blinds.com CEO Adds To My Rules for More Effective Delegation
My third most popular and viewed blog post, and the most popular that doesn't have a reference to any contemporary news item, is on the topic of "delegation."
So, it was with great interest that I followed a link to a blog post written by Jay Steinfeld, founder and CEO of Blinds.com. (Blinds.com is the industry leader in online window covering sales, representing more than 50% of window treatments sold online with more than $80 million in sales annually. Steinfeld has been selling window coverings online since 1993 and sold his chain of retail store outlets to go fulltime online in 2001.)
Here is Jay's guest blog post which both supports and adds to my post on the topic of delegation. post on the topic of delegation. Enjoy!
A few years ago, my son Alec, who was fifteen at the time, asked me what I do at work. I told him as CEO of Blinds.com, I set the company’s strategy, help make people the best they can be, and ensure we execute according to plan. With a puzzled look, Alec responded, “So, you don’t really do any actual work.”
I assured him that the work I was doing was, ahem, critical to the success of the business. But in a way, Alec was picking up on something important: I’ve gotten to a point where I can work on my business instead of in it.
A lot of leaders can’t get to this point because they either don’t know how to or they’re afraid of delegating. Maybe they think it will take too long to train someone effectively, or if they delegate too much, they’ll have nothing left to do. And often the more competent they are, the harder it is to delegate. They’re afraid the work won’t get done at all, or more likely, it won’t be done according to their high standards. It’s difficult to give up control, especially when you won’t tolerate anything less than the perfectionism and high-level performance you expect of yourself.
Trust me, I know because I used to be one of these control freaks. But I reformed and I learned that I couldn’t do everything myself. The only way your career - and your business - will grow is by assuming increasingly higher levels of responsibility; the only way you’ll have time to do that, without spending your life at work, is to delegate. You have to work on your business and let everyone else work in it.
Want to free up some time and get ahead? Here are five ways to start delegating:
To read the rest visit BNET at this link
If you'd like help with improving your delegation skills and breaking through the mindset barriers that prevent you from delegating more a good place to start is with my End Procrastination NOW! System. Because once you know the tricks and rules for delegating from me and Jay, the reason you are not is FEAR. And, FEAR is at the heart of your delegation procrastination.
Just a thought?
'til next time, make it a great week!
Champion Leadership Tip #39 - 3 Reasons Why Your Employees Are Not Taking Initiative In Their Roles!
Happy August!
One of the biggest issues my clients and prospects express greatest frustration about regarding the motivation of their employees, is that they feel their employees are not proactive enough, and that they do not take initiative in their roles.
I believe there are 3 reasons why this is happening.
Below are three areas to look at regarding how you and your managers are communicating to them (and with them) and to identify what type of messages you are sending, and/or they are receiving (sometimes communication from managers and leaders in organizations sends mixed signals, causing confusion for employees keeping them from being more motivated and proactive in their roles. In some organizations the mixed signals equate to a labyrinth):
1) They don't know you want them to (I know you think you've probably told them you want them to, but...leaders need to understand that "the meaning of any communication is the response you get." So, if the response you get is counter to your intended and desired response, you need to review your communication, your style and ask for clarification and understanding);
2) They are unmotivated and don't care enough (this is a performance management issue. I would recommend having more frequent performance discussions and asking what is getting in the way of an individual failing to take initiative and responsibility in their roles. The response you get, if you ask, may surprise you!) ;
3) There are de-motivators in the environment that are preventing them from doing so (e.g., they've tried in the past and have gotten negative feedback just for doing so from either a supervisor or peer who felt they were not authorized to do so, they've done so in the past, made a mistake and were given reprimanded for it.
A great resource for understanding and addressing the manifold scenarios that may be causing the performance problem is the book:
Some Employee Recognition Programs Kill Motivation, Here Are Some Ideas To Do It Right!
This blog post is a first. An added value to you with a guest blogger contribution. This comes from Derek Irvine, CMO of Globoforce and is republished from his post at Compensation Cafe on July 15th.
You know I've written before on this blog about recognizing and rewarding employees for contributions to their organizations.
I've also written about the importance of matching those rewards
to the personality, style and comfort zone of those employees to have those rewards provide positive reinforcement for on-going motivation.
I've also written about the importance of throwing out the "Golden Rule" when leading, and replace it with "Platinum."
Well, last week I learned (to no one's surprise) that not enough people are reading, and even fewer are applying, my employee motivation strategies. (see the Employee Motivation Equation)
So when I came across this post by Irvine, it might be a good way to reinforce my previous suggestions with the very funny and sad recognition strategies Irvine shared in his post, with some good suggestions for doing it right. ENJOY!
Compensation Cafe abounds with strong advice on employee recognition.
But sometimes, the best lessons are learned from the failures, from the atrocities, from the "I cannot BELIEVE he just did that" stories.
Marissa Keegan over at Fistful of Talent has written a couple of great posts along these lines - the deaf guy given an iPod, the boss giving himself the first ever Employee of the Month award.
My personal latest favorite - a beautiful, very expensive, and personally engraved espresso machine given to a Mormon (who eschew caffeine).
And then there's this story from a recent Dear Prudence column:
"At my company, when a colleague does something great - secures a new account, exceeds a goal, etc. - everyone is called into the lobby. The person's supervisor announces what she did and she has to dance in front of everyone. I've heard that public speaking is the most common fear, and public dancing has to be up there, especially when you're the only one dancing and everyone is watching you. I've been with the company for three months, and I have been forced to dance three times. How can I let the company know that public humiliation is not a valid form of employee recognition? Let me take an afternoon off, get me a Starbucks gift card, or just give me a handwritten note. This forced dancing is encouraging me to fly under the radar and aim for mediocrity."
Or how about this story from the news:
"A 'motivation day' organized by one of Italy's biggest real estate agencies ended in tears and scars when nine staff had to be treated in hospital after walking barefoot on a bed of hot coals."
While my emotions ranged from amused to horrified reading these stories, the lessons are real and they should be transparent. In order of the horror stories mentioned above:
- Don't be lazy and assume everyone wants the same reward. You'll end up insulting (and driving out of your organization) at least a few of the people you're trying to recognize.
- Don't set up a recognition program just to prove to employees how great you are and then use it as a weapon to get them to "perform better.
- Don't mortify employees so that they would rather under-perform than be recognized.
- Don't put your employees in the hospital!
So what do you do? First and foremost, ask your employees. Talk with them. Have an open conversation. Start with these questions:
- I appreciate the work you do very much. I'd like to honor you for that. What would be a meaningful form of recognition for you?
- What would you particularly not welcome as a sign of our appreciation? (Many people cringe at any form of public recognition, even being mentioned in a team meeting.)
Even more importantly, take them at their word. Never assume that somethingyou find rewarding would be received the same way by anyone else.
What are your stories of recognition gone wrong? What's your advice on how to recognize right?
As Globoforce’s CMO & Head of Strategic Consulting, Derek Irvine is an internationally minded management professional with over 20 years of experience helping global companies set a higher ambition for global strategic employee recognition, leading workshops, strategy meetings and industry sessions around the world. His articles on fostering and managing a culture of appreciation through strategic recognition have been published in Businessweek, Workspan and HR Management. Derek splits his time between Dublin, Montreal and Boston. Follow Derek on Twitter at @globoforce.
This may seem like common sense but, again, as I wrote in Monday's blog post, it ain't all that common!
Feel free to leave your comments on this topic below. What are your most frightening employee recognition stories and your best?
Champion Leadership Tip #38 - Champion Leaders Get the Facts Before Making Decisions
I know what you're thinking.
This is common sense.
But, like they say, "common sense isn't all that common."
Last week the news was overwhelmed by the story of U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack demanding the resignation of Shirley Sherrod, the head of the USDA Rural Development office in Georgia.
It seems now with all the facts released, the furor which caused the incident, came from an edited video of a presentation Sherrod made back in March.
Vilsack, it seems, made a decision without having all the facts from which to make it. And, violated Sherrod's basic constitutional rights of being innocent until proven guilty.
This is just one example of how people in leadership positions often jump the gun and make decisions without having all the facts. And, often times, even failing to consider the source of the information.
Back in the spring my wife sent me an e-mail from someone who just took over running a division where she works. This new leader unilaterally changed a policy based on his desire to save money across the entire division.
His decision was going to force public employees to pay for a licensing certification, for which their only use of it would be on the job, out of their own pocket and they would no longer be entitled to reimbursement.
The decision was sent via broadcast e-mail to every person who had responsibility for this area, and at no point leading up to the decision were department heads surveyed to discuss the decision's impact on overall operations.
After significant pushback by department heads and reasonable arguments being made, the decision was rescinded two weeks later.
David Brooks, NY Times Columnist speaking on NBC TV's "Meet the Press" on Sunday made a great comment about reporters and fact checking, "when I was a young reporter my boss in Chicago told us, 'if your mother tells you she loves you, you better get sources for confirmation.' "
Organizational leaders desirous of maintaining high morale and motivation of their employees, should invest time in doing the same.
Get the facts before jumping to conclusions and making decisions that can have adverse affects on your people and organization.
Common sense, I know, but a good reminder in the heat of battle.
A great resource for leaders looking to improve their leadership skills in making decisions and communicating more effectively is "The Leadership Series."
"The Leadership Series" offers 7 lessons in leadership with assessments and worksheets that equate to a mini-masters degree in leadership. It offers practical and specific strategies and tactics to get the most out of those you lead while creating a high-morale work environment.
You can learn more about it at www.YourLeadershipSeries.com" href="http://www.YourLeadershipSeries.com" target="_blank">www.YourLeadershipSeries.com
'tl next time, make it a great week!
p.s. - on Wednesday I will be featuring a guest blog post with a great article on how "not" to motivate your employees! Look for it!
Hilton Worldwide CEO Discusses Employee Alignment, Reinforces "The Employment Motivation Equation"
As they say, "timing is everything."
Just two days after Monday's blog posting here in which I offered a simple strategy organizational leaders can apply to gain alignment from employees with their organization's goals, the Wall St. Journal today ran an article discussing how Hilton Worldwide CEO Chris Nassetta does just that.
Hilton Worldwide operates 3,600 properties in 81 countries across 10 brands with approximately 500,000 employees.
Imagine trying to maintain alignment with employees towards organizational goals in that large an organization?
Mr. Nassetta says in the article that "I realized we weren't as aligned as we needed to be in achieving our global growth objectives. It is a simple philosophy: I want every team member involved in our enterprise, which is over a half a million team members serving our guests, to have a common vision, mission, values and key strategic priorities so that they all understand why we exist (purpose)."
I encourage you to read the article (you may need to obtain a temporary subscription to read the entire article), as Mr. Nassetta discusses how extensive and comprehensive his approach to organizational communicating is to reach his worldwide team members.
I'm impressed by his commitment to communicating the company's worldwide growth objectives and reinforcing for everyone in the company Hilton's "purpose."
Mr. Nassetta's approach outlined in this article reinforces two key leadership strategies I've recently written about:
- aligning employees with organizational goals and objectives with "The Employee Motivation Equation" and
- throwing out your organization's "Mission Statement" and replacing it with your organization's "Purpose."
I was excited to read this quote from Mr. Nassetta in the interview reinforcing my philosophy about an organization's "purpose" -
"I want every team member involved in our enterprise, which is over a half a million team members serving our guests, to have a common vision, mission, values and key strategic priorities so that they all understand why we exist (purpose)."
Creating your organization's "purpose" and creating a system for communicating it with employees so they 'buy-into' it and are motivated by it, will be a focal point of my upcoming "Champion Leadership Training Camp."
The "Champion Leadership Training Camp" will be based on the white paper I'm in the process of finalizing this week titled, "The 3 Leadership Strategies Champion Organization's Master that Too Many Leaders Take for Granted."
You can click that link to learn more and to register to receive the white paper as soon as it becomes available so you can get ready to join me to:
- create a powerful organizational "purpose" that you can align your employees with,
- create a strategy and systems to communicate your organization's "purpose" so that it motivates employees to help fulfill your most important organizational objectives.
As I am just now beginning to create the dynamic content for the "Champion Leadership Training Camp" and will be basing a lot it from my client case studies and FAQs from subscribers submissions in recent months, I encourage you to complete the statement below (you may e-mail me with your statement completion at Skip@WeismanSuccessResources.com or I would prefer you leave it as a comment below so others can see and we can generate a brainstorm of ideas I can incorporate):
"If I were to particpate in the "Champion Leadership Training Camp" the one thing that would be most valuable for me to learn and take away form the program would be..."
Thanks for your help...I'm looking forward to working with you to craft a dynamic, transformational leadership program.
'til next time,
Champion Leadership Tip #37: A Simple Strategy to Improve Employee Motivation
Just this past Friday I was inspired by a Twitter Tweet posted someone I'm following who always shares great leadership quotes.
Steve Keating (who can be followed on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/leadtoday) posted:
"Average leaders make their people perspire while great leaders make them inspired."
His post inspired me that afternoon to create what I am now calling the "Employee Motivation Equation - A Recipe for Team and Organization Success" .
Click the image above to go to a page that explains in more detail each of the components of the equation and why they are important.
Along with this equation I've also created a "Leadership & Employee Motivation Assessment" tool. It is a simple 21-statement checklist you can work through to see how many things you are doing well to motivate your employees and team members, and the areas you need to do better.
To get access to the assessment, complete this form:
If you were consistently apply the above Employee Motivation Equation, worked through the 21-Point Assessment and combined it with "The Secret 6-Step Formula for Creating a High-Performing Business Team that Gets Champion Level Results," you will succeed in creating a highly-motivated team that could achieve outstanding results.
Check out the Employee Motivation Equation and let me know what you think.
'til next time, make it a great week!