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Category Archive: Leadership Development

An Early Warning System For Your Team's Stress Level

Posted by on May 3, 2017

Because everyone is under such incredible stress, we have grown to accept abnormal behavior and just right it off as no margin. However, there is a line beyond which some people pass that impacts their ability to make it back to being productive and really enjoying their work again. This HBR post gives leaders some excellent training:

“If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen!” This had always been Michel’s response when his senior executives started “wilting under pressure” and letting him down. As the CEO of a global oil company who had risen through the ranks, Michel had faced many stressful events on off-shore rigs early in his career, and considered himself to be a tough guy with no tolerance for wimps.

But with intense media and regulatory focus on oil prices adding complexity to a current restructuring in the organization, Michel was now facing an internal crisis that he had not foreseen. His blunt approach to fixing low performers in his executive committee wasn’t working.”

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What The Best Leaders Learn From Hate And Hypocrisy

Posted by on May 1, 2017

Many years ago I learned a very painful but valuable lesson. It started with the realization that I could so easily see the negative things in others but was totally blind to the flaws in my own life. The lesson is the bitter truth that one of the reasons we can see things so clearly in others is that those same issues live within us. This Forbes post is very revealing:

“A few years ago, I was on an executive retreat with 10 friends, all of whom run successful businesses. The idea was that we would learn from one another about how to grow our companies and deal with the challenges we faced.

John Drury, who became an executive coach after selling his advertising agency, served as our moderator. In an exercise that I will never forget, he asked us to list three adjectives to define the person we admire most.”

Categories: Leadership Development Personal Leadership | Comments Off on What The Best Leaders Learn From Hate And Hypocrisy

What To Do About Mediocrity On Your Team

Posted by on April 28, 2017

When the leader is the last person on the team to know why productivity is marginal and the overall attitude is negative, the real problem is more with the leader and not the team. Every leader that hires me to work with their teams has certain people in their mind who are under performing. After about two team meetings, it becomes clear where the performance changes need to start. This HBR post offers practical advise:

“The toughest test of a manager is not how they deal with poor performance — it’s how they address mediocrity. I’ve been struck over the years watching executives opine in public about the need for “accountability” and “high performance,” then complain helplessly in private about one or two middling members of their own team. You have no moral authority to ask other managers to hold people accountable if you’re not doing so yourself.”

Categories: Leadership Development Teamwork | Comments Off on What To Do About Mediocrity On Your Team

Why Highly Productive People Use "Time Blocking"

Posted by on April 26, 2017

The movement toward multitasking felt like progress but in reality it was the worst possible thing for overall productivity . Yes, during some times of the day I still use it but the game changer for me was the idea of blocking times for work that requires a deep dive without several interruptions. This post by Abby Lawson is excellent:

“Would you like to learn the secret to becoming insanely productive? Productivity and organization go hand-in-hand. When we get busy or face times of stress, it’s easy to let things slide. And before you know it, your desk and habits are in disarray. “Time blocking” is a method that just might help you avoid those moments of chaos, and keep your mind and office clear.”

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Crashing Churches

Posted by on April 22, 2017

It seems that a week cannot go by without hearing about another church that is in crisis. The issues have gotten to the point where the entire community knows about the problems as well as people outside the area.

The amazing thing is that once you evaluate what went wrong in almost every situation it had nothing to do with a moral failure with the leader or some controversy concerning doctrine. At the end of the day, there was a leadership failure within the church that directly related to how people should relate to each other.

People on all sides of the issues, from the pastor to the pew do not apply the principles of Matthew 18 where you should go and talk directly to someone instead of talking about them behind their backs with other people. Often times these conversations are veiled under the acceptable premise of sharing prayer requests when in reality they are nothing more than gossip.

When someone comes to you with negative comments about another person you have an opportunity to be a part of the solution or a part of the problem. My first question is always the same, Have you talked with this person directly about this problem?

If the answer is no, I will not listen to what they have to say and I will challenge them to go and speak with the other person. If the answer is yes, and there are still issues then I will be glad to get involved and see if I can help resolve the conflict.

In the strictest sense this really is a theological problem. It is not one though where there is disagreement on what the scriptures say, it is simply a failure on all sides to be obedient to clear teaching that cannot be denied.

Categories: Pastoral Leadership Spiritual Growth | Comments Off on Crashing Churches

6 Characteristics Of An Effective Vision

Posted by on April 21, 2017

When we think of the word vision we are drawn to a picture of the future of how things can be better than they are in the present. Most vision casting does a good job of painting a hopeful image of the positive benefits involved but not a very realistic job of the costs involved to get there.

This is a major problem because when the negative forces and fears involved in the change process start to appear and people are not prepared they can give up very quickly resulting in the death of the vision. John Kotter in his book Leading Change lists all the characteristics that should be included in an effective vision:

Imaginable: Conveys a picture of what the future will look like
Desirable: Appeals to the long-term interests of employees, customers, stockholders, and others who have a stake in the enterprise
Feasible: Comprises realistic, attainable goals
Focused: Is clear enough to provide guidance in decision making
Flexible: Is general enough to allow individual initiative and alternative responses in light of changing conditions
Communicable: Is easy to communicate; can be successfully explained within five minutes

The change process for most people is extremely difficult because of the fear of the unknown. There are powerful forces involved that will try to maintain the status quo at all costs. The pain of the present must be contrasted with the pain of the change process so that the people will know that the option of no change is not realistic.

People also need to be told on the front end that sacrifices are probably going to need to be made and there will be discomfort involved during the transition. However, if the vision takes the group to a better and more viable place then all the costs involved will be worth it every time.

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The Incredible Priority Of Personal Development

Posted by on April 19, 2017

I was attending a conference many years ago and heard for the first time this life changing quote, “You will be the same person in five years as you are today except for the people you meet and the books you read.” I made a commitment on that day to apply this principle in my life.

The people you meet part of this development applies to all of life. There is great wisdom in finding people who know more than you do about your area of expertise or interest and asking them for a meeting so that you can learn all that you can from someone who has already been where you want to go. Every year you should have a list of at least ten new individuals that are successful and willing to invest in your life.

Please do not limit this to your professional life because you can find people everywhere who are great spouses or parents or involved in church and community work. Some of the greatest connections I have ever made were in the normal flow of life because I was always looking for someone who could teach me something.

In the area of reading I have found that for every ten books that I read on a particular subject I will find at least one that will permanently change my life for good. These become the books that you read at least once a year just to remind yourself of all the truths that you need to make sure you are applying in your life.

One of the disciplines I have developed over the years is that I will write the power statements or great quotes on the inside flyleaf of every good book so that I can always go back for a quick review. If you will set a goal of at least one new book a month to start you will be amazed by how much your life will change because as you read your capacity to understand and develop new skills will be exponentially multiplied.

I am sure if this quote were made today it would include some reference to the incredible amount of information on the web. Today you can read blogs and watch videos by some of the greatest communicators on life’s most challenging subjects whenever you want and usually without any cost but your time.

All learning that enhances personal development is an investment in your future that will give you an incredible return on your investment.

Categories: Leadership Development Personal Leadership | Comments Off on The Incredible Priority Of Personal Development

5 Questions Leaders Should Be Asking All The Time

Posted by on April 16, 2017

For my first twenty years in corporate life, the leader was the answer man. The positional authority leader was always the one who could solve your problem or give you direction. In essence, the leader was responsible for answering all the questions. Today leadership theory and practice according to this HBR post, has shifted to more collaboration and now the leader needs to know how to ask great questions:

“The best teachers all have at least one thing in common: they ask great questions. They ask questions that force students to move beyond simple answers, that test their reasoning, that spark curiosity, and that generate new insights. They ask questions that inspire students to think, and to think deeply.

As a business leader, you might have years of experience and the confidence of your organization behind you, so it may be tempting to think that your job is to always have the right answers. But great leaders have to inspire the same curiosity, creativity, and deeper thinking in their employees that great teachers inspire in their students – and that starts with asking the right questions. Any answer is only as good as the question asked.”

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Knowing When Its Time To Quit

Posted by on April 7, 2017

As Seth Godin points out we have all heard the expression winners never quit and quitters never win. In real life that is simply not true because knowing when to quit something that is clearly not working is the secret to winning because it gets you one step closer to the one thing that you were meant to do with your life.

Many times we take jobs thinking that we have finally found the answer to what do I want to do with my career. Many months later we realize that what we expected was wrong. We should never quit just because the work is challenging and the people with whom we work are not the best.

However, when you have done your best and the day to day responsibilities that you have been assigned are not bringing any challenge or lasting value then you need to find something that you can be passionate about doing. Our work should be something we care about, to the point that we look forward to going in every day, because what we do really matters.

Sometimes, we really like what we do but the team of people we are doing it with are merely takers and not givers. They are out for number one and there is an atmosphere of backbiting , constant stress and negative criticism that drives the culture of the organization. No matter how much you like what you do if you cannot enjoy the journey with the people you are doing it with it is simply not worth it.

Becoming a serial quitter for all the wrong reasons can be a fatal character flaw that will negatively impact your entire life. Quitting for the right reason can be the best thing you have ever done because it can lead you to a brighter future.

Categories: Career Development Leadership Development | Comments Off on Knowing When Its Time To Quit

The Critical Factor For Meeting Effectiveness

Posted by on April 5, 2017

I have read more information in the last year on this subject than any other. There are many great things you can do to make your meetings more effective but this one thing is the most significant. Have separate meetings that cover administrative, tactical and strategic objectives and never combine them again. This Forbes post is great:

“Meetings to convey information should be different than those to get input or make decisions, which in turn should be different than those to generate breakthrough new ideas or solutions. Deliver those different outcomes with different types of meetings:

1. Level One Meetings: One-way presentations to convey information.

2. Level Two Meetings: Two-way conversations to get input and make decisions. Better approach to most meetings.

3. Level Three Meetings: Joint sense making. Curated co-creation or problem solving.

In any case, work through context, objective, approach, connecting and impact.

Categories: Leadership Development Meeting Effectiveness | Comments Off on The Critical Factor For Meeting Effectiveness