#Beingaleader means you have to challenge your team. To see things they can't see. To achieve more than they think possible. To help them win when it seems impossible. #Beingaleader means you need to challenge your team to see things they can't see. You are the one seeing the vision. Oftentimes you can challenge your … Continue reading Challenge
Category: Culture
Virtual
#Beingaleader in today's world means you have to lead virtually. Zoom. Email. Focused on the task but also building the culture you want. In the cloud. "Seeing" them but not really. Working on the tone of your emails to stop or at least not start, misunderstandings. #Beingaleader means you have to learn to lead virtually. … Continue reading Virtual
Safe
#Beingaleader means you need to make your team feel safe. That sense of trust in your judgment. In the "ok-ness" of making mistakes. And the celebration of success. #Beingaleader means that your team needs to feel safe in your judgment. Do you have a track record of making right decisions? Does your team trust that … Continue reading Safe
Show Up
#Beingaleader means you need to show up. Physically. Emotionally. And for them. #Beingaleader means you need to show up physically. People need to see you. To see what you value. To encourage them to show up as well. To set the standard. Whatever you want to call it, it means that you can't hide for … Continue reading Show Up
Burnout
#Beingaleader means at some point you may come fact to face with the possibility of burnout. Exhausted. At the brink. Not wanting to keep going. Today's topic is not so much about how to deal with burnout once it happens but rather how to avoid burnout in the first place. Today we will focus on … Continue reading Burnout
Waiting
#Beingaleader means you need to get good at waiting. Waiting on others. Waiting for movement. Waiting for success. But not just waiting in an idle sense. Active waiting is what's called for. Waiting on the results but actively moving towards your goal. #Beingaleader means you need to get good at waiting on others. To complete … Continue reading Waiting
Restraint
#Beingaleader means you sometimes have to show restraint to your team. Restraint of words. Restraint of emotion. Restraint of self. #Beingaleader means you need to restrain your words. Just because you think it doesn't mean you should say it. Too many words are said out of emotion whether verbally or in an email. Some say … Continue reading Restraint
Control
#Beingaleader does not mean you are in control. Control is an illusion. If you think otherwise, you are probably delusional. And you probably have less control than you think. You can't control your team, your project's outcome or how people react to you. #Beingaleader does not mean you can control your team. You can do … Continue reading Control
New Day
#Beingaleader means you need to take opportunities for starting over. For a new day. Whether it's the beginning of a new project, the start of a new team, or the beginning of a new year. It's fresh. And full of opportunities. What's it like to start with a new canvas? A clean slate? The key … Continue reading New Day
Quickness
#Beingaleader means you need a level of quickness. Quickness of decision-making, of movement, of thought. #Beingaleader means you need to have quickness of decision-making. Life is fast. #Beingaleader only picks up the pace. You cannot afford to agonize over every decision. Analysis paralysis is a real thing. And it is incompatible with #Beingaleader. The more … Continue reading Quickness
Adapt
#Beingaleader means you have to adapt. Become adjusted to new conditions. Make changes on the fly. And recognize that while you are adapting to your own new things so too must you adapt to the changes that others are experiencing on your team. #Beingaleader means you have to adjust to new conditions. Things change. All … Continue reading Adapt
Feelings
#Beingaleader means you should not be driven or swayed by feelings. Yours or theirs. Good or bad. Don't let them control you or take you places you do not want to go or that undermine your vision or your destination for your team. #Beingaleader means you shouldn't be driven by your feelings. You are human … Continue reading Feelings
Choices
#Beingaleader means you need to make a lot of choices. Some simple. Some monumental. But each should be done with a similar mindset and criteria. #Beingaleader means you need to make simple choices. These are the ones that seem to fill up the day. Left or right. Up or down. They are simple but they … Continue reading Choices
Value
#Beingaleader means you are bringing value to your clients, customers and team. The value of product. The value of time. The value of cost. #Beingaleader means you bring the value of product or process to your clients, customers and team. If your product or process is not continually improving then you are going backwards. You … Continue reading Value
PTO
#Beingaleader means you need to take paid time off (PTO) - vacation, holidays, a break, sabbatical or whatever you might call it. It's important for your longevity and sharpness. I see too many leaders who cannot disconnect. They don't allow for time to rejuvenate or to give themselves time to clear their mind. This will … Continue reading PTO
Remember to Lead you
#Beingaleader means you need to remember to lead you. I started out writing my blog (see https://beingaleader.blog/2019/01/08/leading-you/) on the topic of Leading you. Specifically, I touched on learning from others. You should continue to do so. But you also have to learn from you. Your past experience. Mistakes you've made. Things you got right. Keep … Continue reading Remember to Lead you
Consistent
#Beingaleader means you need to be consistent. Consistent in attitude. Consistent in message. Consistent in approach. #Beingaleader means you need to be consistent in attitude. This may be the hardest one so I start with it. A consistent attitude or countenance even when under stress or other issue will provide a level of confidence that … Continue reading Consistent
Peacemaker
#Beingaleader means you need to be a peacemaker. For your team. Within your team. With others. #Beingaleader means you need to be a peacemaker for your team. If there is someone who needs to 'take the hit' it should be you as the leader. You should protect your team from all enemies, 'foreign and domestic' … Continue reading Peacemaker
Pain
#Beingaleader means you have to endure pain. Emotional. Mental. From internal and external sources. Pain seems to be part of the job. The more you recognize that fact the better prepared you will be to handle it when it happens. Emotional pain is the type of pain that comes from the people who love us … Continue reading Pain
Brevity
Brevity is an important quality in #Beingaleader.
Discord or Discourse
#Beingaleader means you need to make a decision whether you will participate in discord or discourse. Too many leaders make the wrong decision. As a result, they use their influence to sow discord rather than encourage civil discourse. By discord, I mean creating an environment where opinion becomes fact and one's opinion is greater or … Continue reading Discord or Discourse
Forgotten
#Beingaleader means that sometimes you feel forgotten. Alone. Left alone. On your own. Even worse: sometimes you actually are forgotten by others. And yet you continue to lead. Continue to pursue the goal. #Beingaleader means you often live there. In that moment when you are working hard, even accomplishing your goals, but nobody notices or … Continue reading Forgotten
Significance
#Beingaleader means you need to know where you significance comes from and where it does not come from. If it comes from the wrong place it will not last. It will not be real. Many leaders find their significance in their accomplishments. They seek glory from what they have done. They look upon what feat … Continue reading Significance
The Unknown
#Beingaleader means you have to deal with the unknown. Unknown events. Unknown circumstances. Unknown reactions. And possibly unknown people. How you respond to these unknown things, events and people will show a lot about who you are as a leader. Do you react in a knee-jerk manner causing confusion and concern among your team members? … Continue reading The Unknown
Togetherness
#Beingaleader means you do things together with others. A group of people. A team. It usually presupposes some level of connection and proximity to others. Meetings. Gatherings. Impromptu check ins. For most of us it required physical presence for many of these tasks. Or at least we thought it did. There are different levels of … Continue reading Togetherness
Alone
#Beingaleader means you are often alone. Even in a group or crowd. This can occur for numerous reasons. Often it is because you see things differently than others. Have different goals. Different motivations. You see life differently. You often have to inspire others while trying to motivate yourself in the same circumstances. While you may … Continue reading Alone
Flexible
#Beingaleader means you have to be flexible. The level of flexibility depends on your level of leadership and the current status of your project or circumstances surrounding you. During the current Covid-19 pandemic, we have to learn to be flexible or show the level of flexibility we already have. Budgets change. Staffing changes. Timing changes. … Continue reading Flexible
Continued Trust
#Beingaleader means you need to have the trust of your people. I have written about this before. See https://wordpress.com/block-editor/post/beingaleader.blog/133. However, it bears repeating in a time of crisis. Whether national, business or family. So many decisions that are made are either followed or scorned based upon the level of trust someone has in their leadership. … Continue reading Continued Trust
Fear – Redux
#Beingaleader means you have to circle back to the same topics over and over. You don't just go through it once. You go through it. Learn. Apply. Go again. Learn. Apply. Repeat. Such as it is with blog topics. I have tried to not create content far in advance but instead deal with what is … Continue reading Fear – Redux
Fear
#Beingaleader means you have to deal with fear. Yours. And others. And on the surface there seems to be a lot to be afraid of. Stock values go down. Supply chains get interrupted. Plans get canceled. Deadlines move and shift. People fail you. You cannot do much about things out of your control. But you … Continue reading Fear
Juggling
#Beingaleader means you have to juggle. A lot. Whether you are a parent, a coach, or a CEO, you have a lot to juggle. At one time. With competing priorities and timelines. Pressures from many different corners whether your boss, a project deadline or a screaming infant. Everyone thinks their stuff is the most important … Continue reading Juggling
Age
#Beingaleader means you have to deal with a lot of different ages on your team. Young. Old. Experienced. Inexperienced. Wise. And maybe not so much. All age levels might be on your team and each might react differently to the same approach you take. You will have to deal with this no matter in what … Continue reading Age
Reflection
#Beingaleader means oftentimes you see your reflection in your team. They often exhibit your characteristics and tendencies. Your energy. Your drive. Your emotions. Even your priorities. Your team could be your children as well as your team members in a work environment. They usually take on the tenor of the leadership. Exceptions? Yes. But on … Continue reading Reflection
Struggle
#Beingaleader means you will struggle. With time pressure. Stress. People. Communication. Personal issues. Identity. Confidence. Maybe depression. With a lot of things. Most of the definitions I found of the word struggle were negative in connotation. But I think that struggle is part of fighting for what you want. Overcoming obstacles. Even striving to go … Continue reading Struggle
Long Term Thinking
#Beingaleader means you need to have long term thinking. Not just in-the-moment thinking but about what long term strategic impact you want to have or see be accomplished. To give things up sometimes in the here and now for something greater coming later. That is often a difficult thing to do in one's personal life. … Continue reading Long Term Thinking
Patience
#Beingaleader means you know the old adage "never pray for patience." However, without patience, you will not succeed at #beingaleader. You will push people away, alienate team members, and likely, in the end, irreparably blow up your team or project. Patience is defined as "the capacity to accept or tolerate delay, trouble, or suffering without … Continue reading Patience
Buy-In
#Beingaleader means you have to understand the 80/20 rule and work hard at overcoming it. The 80/20 rule states that 80% of the work gets done by 20% of the people. We've all seen it. A few people doing most of the work. The rest are helping in some capacity but frankly, you're not sure … Continue reading Buy-In
Encourage
#Beingaleader means it's your job to encourage others. To encourage is to give someone else the courage to keep going. To finish a task or to keep plugging along. To give them hope and strength. But how do you encourage someone? Here are three ways: tell someone that they can do it; that they have … Continue reading Encourage
Work
#Beingaleader means you have to work. Hard. Strategically. Effectively. Continually. #Beingaleader is about working hard. There is no substitute for perspiration. There is no easy success. Success comes from hard work, even if unseen by others. Getting up. Doing your job, business, career etc. Repeating this process over and over. #Beingaleader is also about working … Continue reading Work
Rest
#Beingaleader means you learn how to rest. It's a skill. You learn how. Sometimes a change is as good as a rest. But sometimes only rest can actually be rest. Rest is needed daily, weekly and annually. Too many people neglect rest. And they burn out. They get sick. They stop leading. They think they … Continue reading Rest
Manners
Parenting is #beingaleader. In that leadership role, it is your responsibility to teach your child(ren) manners. I am not simply talking about not speaking when your mouth is full of food (although that can be an issue too and clearly many adults were not taught that). I am defining manners as someone "having respect" - … Continue reading Manners
Next Generation
#Beingaleader means you need to think about being replaced. Succession. Carrying on the vision. And you are never too young to start thinking about or preparing for this. If your vision is important enough for you to spend your life on isn't it important enough to keep it going after you're gone (whether moving on, … Continue reading Next Generation
SHIELD
I need to revisit a topic that I touched on earlier as it's a topic that people can debate on but it's also a critical test of your character that #beingaleader requires you to pass. #Beingaleader means you sometimes are a shield for your team. Shielding them from attack and criticism that would weigh them … Continue reading SHIELD
Can-Do
#Beingaleader means you have a can-do attitude. The dictionary defines this as "being positive about your ability to achieve success." Positivity and confidence in your ability to achieve a goal or complete a task go a long way to making that a reality in your circumstance. Last time we talked about Belief Breakthrough (https://beingaleader.blog/2019/09/10/belief-breakthrough/) and … Continue reading Can-Do
Belief Breakthrough
Belief breakthrough is crucial to #beingaleader. I am defining belief breakthrough as identifying and changing those things you believe about yourself or your situation that keep you from achieving what you want to achieve. You must constantly be challenging and re-evaluating the beliefs you have in order to make steps towards your goal. #Beingaleader means … Continue reading Belief Breakthrough
Greatness
#Beingaleader means you can see the greatness in others. Usually before they do. It is a skill to work on and perfect. To practice on those around you. To call them out to be better then they currently are or to help them see what's already there. #Beingaleader means you are able to see this … Continue reading Greatness
Purpose
#Beingaleader means you know your purpose. We will talk another time about finding the purpose for your team but today I wanted to touch on finding and knowing the purpose for you and what you are putting your time, energy and money into. Two recent activities/events in my life have merged to focus my attention … Continue reading Purpose
Energy
#Beingaleader means you need to bring energy. Energy to yourself; to your team; to your goals. In order to bring energy you must have energy. So how does one get energy? I am seeing that we all have the energy we need within us. The issue is whether or not we are willing to have … Continue reading Energy
Train
#Beingaleader means you have to do a lot of training of others. On a lot of subject matter. A lot of skills. Ways to communicate. How to manage stress. How to manage teams. Sometimes, even how to do a specific task. You're the leader. You cast your vision. Others have signed on and want to … Continue reading Train
Think
Are you a doer or a thinker? That's an interesting question to me. One that needs to be pondered more often than it is. While we all would like to answer "both", I believe that most of us are doers by nature and thinkers only by learned discipline. We like to "accomplish" things and not … Continue reading Think
