Leading Quietly - guest post by Jim Estill

One of the books I read on the weekend was – Leading Quietly – An unorthodox Guide to Doing the Right Thing by Joseph Badaracco. 

The book is more about the subtitle “An unorthodox Guide to Doing the Right Thing” than the title – “Leading Quietly”. It did make a valid point that often the best leaders are not the loud stars that the press talks about all the time. Often the best leaders are the quiet plodders that create value over a long period of time.

Much of the book talked about making decisions in uncertain circumstances. Much of leadership involves decision making. And most decisions are not clear. The mark of a good leader is one who is willing to make the decisions quickly. Good leaders know when enough information is enough (some people will not make decisions because they want more information even though the probability of that information changing the decision is negligible). As Badaracco says “the courage to prudently tackle tough situations”.

Good leaders do not balk at making decisions even though there is risk involved. Usually there is greater risk in not making the decision.

Much of good decision making is about identifying the problem and simplifying it. Einstein said “Everything should be as simple as possible and no simpler”.

On statement that rang true to me “leadership is hard work”. I guess I never really thought about it but at the time I was reading it, I was struggling with many issues and juggling many balls so it hit home. It also talked about tenacity. This is a trait that I try hard to have. When I do not get the answer I want, I try to figure other approaches to make the sale (and most things are sales even if they involve selling internally or selling someone in a negotiation).

Good book.

Posted by Jim Estill http://www.jimestill.com/

5 Key Ingredients for Success -- in Sports and Business

The following tips come from a sports coach at Shelby High School in Montana, Ray Wanty.  Ray distilled his learning and coaching of successful athletes into 5 key elements.  I think these 5 key elements apply equally to business, and even to overall personal success.  Consider them and see if you agree:

The Level of  Our Success is Dependent on…

1. The Daily Habits We Create
     - am I creating good habits? 
     - am I getting rid of bad habits?
     - do I add new habits regularly that keep me growing and developing?
     ... my daily habits become the core expression of who I am

2. Our Most Dominant Thoughts
     - my thoughts drive my feelings, which drive my behavior
     - positive thoughts will keep me upbeat
     - I need to control and focus the "channels" in my brain
     ... my thoughts eventually become my beliefs and my behavior and my destiny

3. How Well We Serve Others
     - my interaction with others builds my own network and support system
     - my service to others builds my esteem and credibility
     ... my behavior in my community establishes my reputation and esteem

4. The Amount of Sincere Gratitude You Show
     - my sincerity and gratitude provide opportunity for leadership
     - my sincerity and gratitude allow me to fully enjoy my successes
     ... my sincerity and gratitude will build and strengthen my relationships

5. The Level of Commitment Towards Your Passion (Singleness of Purpose)
     - Commitment to my passion helps me remain focused on the end goal
     - Commitment to my passion heps me fend of distractions
     - Commitment to my passion increases my speed of success
     ... Commitment and Singleness of Purpose is the ingredient that links my thoughts, behaviors, support systems and relationships together to attain success

"Can't" is a four letter word! 4 Tips to break through barriers....

High performance racecar drivers and pilots overcome obstacle courses with an interesting technique. They visualize the "path around" any obstacle or barrier in their way.  

One professional pilot described the risks very succinctly:  "If you look at the barrier, you will most likely hit it.  If you look at the path around the barrier, you will be successful and maintain your momentum."

How often do we focus on the negative barriers or obstacles in our own work or personal situations?  

- I have watched teams implode because polarized groups took sides; each focused on negative aspects of the other position. 

- I have watched marriages falter because one or both parties focused on the negatives and irritations of the other partner. 

- I have watched business ventures fail because partners lost trust in each other and each "dug in" to a position that they could not work through to a resolution.

The secret?  Creative thinking, using "outside the box" analysis with the goal of creating a unified "new approach" to an agreed upon end solution.  

Ha!  Easy to say, but how does one actually accomplish this?

1) Agree on a common vision or end result; get everyone on the same page.   Restating your end result as a "vision statement" can be helpful:

2) Use  creative thinking techniques to brainstorm alternative solutions (remember: ignore the barriers and negatives, focus only on new, innovative alternatives) 

3) Filter your list of brainstormed alternatives into an agreed ranking of highest to lowest priority.  If necessary, you may have to agree first on the criteria to be applied to  calculate the ranking.  For example, must be a) within current budget, b) feasible with  existing staff resources, c) leaves no department at a significant market disadvantage, etc.

4) Remember the "people" side of these issues -- rebuild trust between polarized groups.  A great book that I have used is The Speed of Trust by Steven M. R. Covey. 




If you can break out of the downward spiral of negative emotion, you have a good chance of eliminating that 4-letter word, "can't" from the vocabulary of your business.  

It's all about focus  -- concentrate on the end vision to drive your success!

Leaders Cannot Be Blamers: 3 Things - guest post by QAspire

The true test of a leader is when things don’t go as planned. Worst yet, when things fail.

In an organizational context, I have seen so many leaders who drive the project/initiative right from the beginning – yet when the project fails, they blame others. They blame senior management, the organization culture, their own team members and sometimes even the customers. It tells me something – if you decide that you want to blame “others”, you will invariably find those “others”. That is an easy choice, and the one that puts everyone down.

When leaders indulge into the blame game, they lose respect because they throw a negative vibe around. This vibe is powerful (and sometimes even viral), because it comes from someone who is supposed to be a leader. It spreads fast, harms reputation of leader and culture of the organization on a longer run.

If you are a leader at any level, here are three things worth noting:

• Blaming is easy but taking responsibility, learning from mistakes and implementing those lessons to improve constantly is difficult. It is these difficult things that makes a real leader. Similarly, for an organization, building a culture where people are not afraid of taking responsibility is critical.
• Leaders need to watch and choose their words. Every conversation with others is an opportunity to make a difference. When you talk negative, focus too much on problems and blame others, you are missing the opportunity.
• Leadership is about using “we” language more than “I versus them”, and that kind of leadership owns the failures as much as they own their successes. It is about celebrating the contributions from each team member when team succeeds, and take collective ownership of failures, learn from them and improve. It is also about knowing when to step up and take the lead, versus when to step down and let people perform.

Bottom line:

Leadership is not just about enjoying the fruits of success. It comes with a fair share of failures as well. We cannot be the leaders who blame others.

   
http://qaspire.com/blog/2011/03/07/leaders-cannot-be-blamers-3-things/      posted Mar 6.2011

Business Introductions - add value to your own business network

Building a network of business contacts takes time and patience.  One great way to expand your network is to add "introductions" to your regular routine. 

1) Utilize business cards - when you meet someone interesting, ask for their card and jot a comment or two on the back regarding the conversation / issue / opportunity:

 

USE BUSINESS CARDS TO STRENGTHEN RELATIONSHIPS



2) expand your electronic contact list, add new business cards into natural groupings (by interest, business opportunity, etc).  Make notes of issues, interests and possible introductions where possible

3) use a business card scanner to easily enter your business contact information electronically.  Technology has made these card readers easily accessible and useable for very reasonable prices at office supply stores.

4) when you meet someone who would benefit from an introduction to another contact, ask their permission to provide an introduction -- note the "introduction" opportunity on the back of their business card to jog your memory later.

5) link up two or more individuals who may have a mutual benefit by email:

   "Joe, I met Suzie Cue, who is an entrepreneur in the same business you are.  She has some interesting marketing ideas that you might also benefit from.  Suzie, I have known Joe Shmoe for 10 years and he runs a great small business in XYZ community.  I think you two would enjoy meeting over coffee to discuss common business interests.  Please consider this an introduction to both of you.  your emails are as follows:

    joeshmoe@anyweb.com   suziecue@bizzness.com "

I have made an effort to facilitate at least 2 or 3 introduction per month.  Over the years, I have had many thank you's from those folks I have introduced - and some great stories of new opportunities and alliances formed.   What a great feeling to know you have positively impacted other businesses in your circle of colleagues!

Generation Y: Combining Profit and Non-profit

Rumeet Toor is part of a growing number of Entrepreneurs combining profit and charity.


The idea that capitalism and social causes can co-exist may be anathema to some, but a growing number of businesspeople are using their corporate savvy and innovation skills to address sweeping social or environmental issues alongside the traditional business goal of generating profits. It's called social entrepreneurship, a 30-year-old term that is still gaining awareness even by those who practice it. "I had to Google it," says Rumeet Toor, owner of Jobs in Education, an online employment board that also helps fund her Toor Centre for Teacher Education, a teacher's college and general training facility in Kenya that opened earlier this year. "I didn't even know what a social entrepreneur was until someone asked me to give a talk about it."

Definitions aside, Toor is a textbook example of someone using use her skills and earnings as an entrepreneur for a broader social purpose.