#Beingaleader will come with a downside. Your energy will go. You will need to put others first. You will be disappointed at times. You may be alone. And you may have to do things you don't want to do. How's that for encouraging people into #Beingaleader? But it is true. It's not all about being … Continue reading Downside
Re-Invent
#Beingaleader means you sometimes need to re-invent yourself. To re-invent means to make new again. To invent again. It's not that everything before was wrong or bad. It's just that you need to re-invent yourself for the future. For the next steps. For the future. Sometimes you need to change something so much that it … Continue reading Re-Invent
Passion
#Beingaleader means you need to have passion. Passion for what you are doing. Passion for who you are doing it with. And passion for where you want to go. Passion is having an enthusiasm for something, a desire for something, that is so strong that many of the roadblocks that are inevitable seem not worthy … Continue reading Passion
Infamy
#Beingaleader means you need to avoid infamy. Being well known for a bad quality or deed. Infamy can kill your future. It means others will look at you with suspicion. It is very hard to overcome public infamy. So what do I mean by infamy? Infamy is not just a mistake. It's likely a trait … Continue reading Infamy
Remember
#Beingaleader means you have to remember. Remember where you've come from. Remember what you and your team has already accomplished. Remember what got you to where you are today. Remember. #Beingaleader means you need to remember where you've come from. You've come a long ways. Sometimes our focus is so future-centric that we fear we … Continue reading Remember
Heat
#Beingaleader means you deal with heat. Battle. Deadlines. Pressure. Decision-making. People's views of you or your team. Misunderstanding. Heat. Does the heat you find yourself in lead you to overboil? To explode at others or to shut down completely? You need to learn to live with the heat because it is more normal than not … Continue reading Heat
Execution
#Beingaleader means you need to be good at execution or have someone on your leadership team that is. It's one thing to have a vision. Or ideas. It's another to execute on those plans. For some, ideas are a dime a dozen. But they never get past the idea phase before the person moves on … Continue reading Execution
Bridges
#Beingaleader means you need to build bridges. To others. For others. To build bridges means to help you or your team or someone you are working with to see an opposing point of view or a different way of doing things. Sometimes it's a communication style. Sometimes it's a different way of prioritizing. Sometimes you … Continue reading Bridges
Pioneer
#Beingaleader means you are often a pioneer. The one that's doing something first. Going somewhere first. Trying something new, first. Think "Oregon Trail"! Full of adventure. Highs and lows. The unknown. All because you're a pioneer. When you're the one that does something for the first time or experiments with a new method for accomplishing … Continue reading Pioneer
Timid
#Beingaleader means you sometimes have to fight being timid. Even if it's in your nature to be timid. You can't always allow yourself to be so. Or to remain timid too long. Being timid is when you lack confidence. You're afraid of what might happen depending on what decision you make. Or you're lacking the … Continue reading Timid
Humility
#Beingaleader means that you need humility. Not humiliation. Humility. One happens to you. The other is something you have. It's who you are. Humiliation is when you do something stupid and it turns out into a situation that embarrasses you or your team. This should be avoided as much as possible. It is something that … Continue reading Humility
Lost
#Beingaleader means that sometimes you feel lost. Unable to find your way. Or having misplaced the path of the direction you felt you were headed in. That pit in your stomach feeling that things just aren't going the way they are supposed to. Being lost is not a good feeling. It's disorienting. It might even … Continue reading Lost
Waiting Room
#Beingaleader means you are often in the waiting room. Now, I've touched on waiting before (https://beingaleader.blog/2021/02/02/waiting/), but the waiting room can be even deeper than simply waiting for something to happen. What does it mean to be in the waiting room? It means you feel like you have a dream or a promise or desire … Continue reading Waiting Room
Lessons Learned
#Beingaleader means you need to lead a life of lessons learned. The good. The bad. And the ugly. Not just go through the lessons. But lessons learned. Meaning, are you going to have to keep doing the same thing over and over or are you finally going to learn to move on and through them? … Continue reading Lessons Learned
The Future
#Beingaleader means you need to think about the future. You want to build towards something. A goal. A vision. A dream. The future that you want. But can you have the future that you want? The future doesn't just happen. At least it doesn't always happen the way you want it to. You need to … Continue reading The Future
Timeliness
#Beingaleader means that timeliness is an important quality you have. When something happens, and in what order, often matters. Turning in an "A" paper late is an "F" in many cases. Timeliness matters. There is a sequence to life and to most projects. There is often a life cycle for the team. #Beingaleader means you … Continue reading Timeliness
Credibility
#Beingaleader means you need a certain amount of credibility. Do you have any? Trustworthiness. Track record. Can be counted on. Believable. Convincing. In other words, when you say something, can others rely on it? Is your word sufficient for others to believe and make decisions based on it? Credibility is often lacking in today's leadership … Continue reading Credibility
Accountability
#Beingaleader means you need accountability. To others. For your actions, activities, schedule. I know. I know. You're a leader. But we're not perfect. We make mistakes and need someone to help us own them. Mistakes in time management or in priorities. Accountable. But wait, you say. I'm the top dog. The person in charge. Others … Continue reading Accountability
Yesterday
#Beingaleader means you have to deal with yesterday. Yes, we live in today. Yes, we plan for tomorrow. But sometimes it's yesterday that's holding us back. Keeping us from focusing on today. Keeping us from moving forward. Yesterday can be very powerful. Mistakes were made. Relationships harmed. Missteps. Hurt feelings. Regrets. All of these can … Continue reading Yesterday
Today
#Beingaleader means you need to be aware and focused on today. Yes, I know. Everyone says look to the future. And, yes you should. But you also need to take care of today. Don't look past it. Don't squander it. The future will come but it will look an awful lot like today when it … Continue reading Today
Active
#Beingaleader means you need to be active. Active with your mind. Active with your body. Active with your vision. Being active with your mind means you keep feeding it. Reading. Thinking. Analyzing. Not letting your mind get stale with old ideas. Looking forward to the future because better days are ahead. Active. Being active with … Continue reading Active
Quiet
#Beingaleader means that you need some regular time to be quiet. Quiet your mind. Quiet the external voices and demands. Life is busy and often chaotic. #Beingaleader only accentuates that reality. It's important to take time to quiet your mind. To allow yourself time to recover, recuperate, regenerate. To quiet your mind to all that … Continue reading Quiet
Collaborate
#Beingaleader means you have to collaborate with others. Jointly. Together. With others. Those are not necessarily the things done by a boss. But they are things done by a leader. So many bosses like to be lone rangers. Commanding from on high. Barking orders. Telling people what to do. But a leader works with their … Continue reading Collaborate
Easy
#Beingaleader means you find certain things easy to do. Things that seem easy for you to do are the very strengths that make you the leader you are. This was an interesting thought that took me a while to comprehend. I thought that things that were easy to do for me were just easy to … Continue reading Easy
Hard
#Beingaleader means you have to handle hard things at times. Hard emotions. Hard decisions. Hard circumstances. Not that you should become hard. Just that you will be in hard situations. In fact, the hardness you find yourself in needs to be matched with the strength of the opposite emotion to be successful. Not soft. But … Continue reading Hard
Start
#Beingaleader means you need to start. Something. Anything. It always seems this is the hardest step and where most people quit. They quit by not starting. Don't be that person. Start something. Maybe you need to start a hobby. Maybe you need to form a new habit. Maybe there's a business you need to start. … Continue reading Start
Celebrate
#Beingaleader means you need to learn to celebrate. Celebrate the wins. Celebrate surviving. Celebrate living the good life. Celebrating the wins means that you tried to do something and you succeeded and now you are celebrating the fact that you accomplished what you set out to do. That is worth celebrating. First you set a … Continue reading Celebrate
Traditions
#Beingaleader means you need to understand traditions. Yours. Others. The company's. Not agree. Understand. Why you may ask? Because if you fail to understand the traditions, you will unnecessarily offend, hold back progress and potentially miss out on great opportunities. So what traditions do you have that need to continue? Ones that make your house … Continue reading Traditions
Transition
#Beingaleader means you have to work through transition. Transition is inevitable in some form or another. But you have to work through it when it happens so that the end result is better than where you started. In other words, while transition is inevitable, successful transition is not. Transition is about the process of change. … Continue reading Transition
Self-Aware
#Beingaleader means you need to be self-aware. Conscious of who you are. Your abilities. What you are capable of. Your leadership skills. An honest assessment. Not fabricated. Not believing your own press. Just, self-aware. One of the keys to success as a leader, is to know who you are. What you can do. What you … Continue reading Self-Aware
Steward
#Beingaleader means you are a steward. Of your team. Of your clients. A steward is someone responsible for someone else's things. In this case, the team or your client's things. You are to steward them. To steward your team is to care for them. To train them. To act like what they do is as … Continue reading Steward
Answers
#Beingaleader does not mean you have all the answers. The sooner you come to that realization, the better leader you will be. You will need to seek after them, however. It is your job to find the source of the answers you are seeking because at the end of the day, it is you that … Continue reading Answers
Depleted
#Beingaleader means you can often feel depleted. Energy crashed. Vision blurred. And your "care meter" very low. Have you ever had an energy crash? This can be physical or emotional. You just don't feel like you can keep going. The physical reasons are easier to fix. Get back to the healthy things that worked for … Continue reading Depleted
Uncertain
#Beingaleader means you are often uncertain. Uncertain about what to do. Uncertain about next steps. Uncertain about your leadership.Every leader has found themselves in a place where they are uncertain about what to do. They are facing a conflict they've never faced before. They are facing uncertain markets that they have never experienced before. They … Continue reading Uncertain
The Moment
#Beingaleader means you need to live in the moment. It's not just about planning for the future. Or the next steps. Enjoy now. Live now. In the moment. Sometimes we get starry eyed. Or so focused on the next steps that we fail to live in the moment. What's happening now. The successes now. The … Continue reading The Moment
Dignified
#Beingaleader means you need to be dignified. Not crass. Not vulgar. Not boorish. Not overbearing. Dignified. Calm, impressive and deserving of respect. So how do you react to stress, bad things happening or difficult people? Are you calm, impressive and deserving of respect? Or do people cower and resent your involvement? Too many people equate … Continue reading Dignified
Fair
#Beingaleader means you need to be fair. Even keeled. Fair-minded. And equal in your treatment of people and situations. Fair means to be just and impartial. Not showing favoritism to anyone. Unbiased. And it's really hard to do. When dealing with people, it is inevitable that you have favorites. That doesn't necessarily mean you like … Continue reading Fair
Curveball
#Beingaleader means you're sometimes thrown a curveball. Something unexpected. Something life altering. How will you react? Don't try to hide. Don't try to deny it happened. Embrace the suck as they say. Allow yourself time to grieve whatever loss you experienced with that curveball. Maybe it's a relationship lost. A position lost. A change in … Continue reading Curveball
Decisive
#Beingaleader means you have to sometimes be decisive. Often making decisions based upon incomplete information. Affecting others. Affecting the future. Affecting your future. Being decisive is not just a reflex. It needs to be learned. And practiced. Experience is a great teacher if you are willing to learn. And take the risks associated with being … Continue reading Decisive
Alert
#Beingaleader means you need to be alert. Alert to dangers. Alert to your people's needs. Alert to new trends. Failure to be alert could spell disaster. #Beingaleader means you need to be alert to dangers. Dangers to your team. Dangers to your product or process. Dangers that might stop you from achieving your goals. Keep … Continue reading Alert
Negotiate
#Beingaleader means you need to know how to negotiate. The ability to come to an agreement with someone else. To find a resolution. To settle a disagreement. Negotiate. Negotiation skills include keeping a calm demeanor. Knowing what your final goal is. Knowing what your opponent's or competitor's or the person across from the table's goals … Continue reading Negotiate
Modernize
#Beingaleader means you need to modernize your thinking. You need to stay up-to-date. See what's working today since what worked before might not be working any longer. Continue to learn. Read. Listen. Go to conferences. Get information from every industry you can to see what is working in the marketplace. Your ideas might never change. … Continue reading Modernize
Captain
#Beingaleader means you are the captain of the ship. In charge. The one with the final say. Responsible. If you are a parent, there is that moment when that child first comes home with you and everyone else leaves and the realization hits. I'm responsible. This life is my responsibility. I cannot look to anyone … Continue reading Captain
Courage
#Beingaleader means you have to have courage. Courage is defined as pushing through your fear and accomplishing your mission. Courage to start. Courage to finish. Having fear is fine. Everyone has it from time to time. Facing your fear and still doing the task is what courage is all about. Not letting fear stop you. … Continue reading Courage
Shape
#Beingaleader means you shape the direction of your team. Shape the emotion around your team. And shape the team's impact. Shaping the direction of the team is critical to its success. You often impact how it starts, how it moves along and where it ends up. You cannot underestimate the impact you have on shaping … Continue reading Shape
On Fire
#Beingaleader means you need to be on fire. On fire means that you are playing or working extremely well. On fire for what you do, who you do it with and for what purpose. Be on fire for what you do. What you do matters. But often we forget the impact on our team or … Continue reading On Fire
You
#Beingaleader means you need to check on yourself now and again. So how are you doing? Not just the leader you, but the you, you? How are you, doing? Are you in any pain? Are you reacting out of that pain onto your team? Do you have someone safe to talk to about that pain? … Continue reading You
Optimize
#Beingaleader means you need to optimize your team. Your situation. Your skills. Their skills. Make them and your situation as good as possible. Add value. So, how does one add value to your own situation? Whatever you encounter, however you find yourself, do it to your best. Keep learning new things. Go to conferences and … Continue reading Optimize
Drama Queen
#Beingaleader means you should not be a drama queen. Or tolerate it on your team. Stop being overly dramatic every time something goes wrong or not exactly how you wanted them to go. Things happen. Some good. Some not so good. But you need to press through them without creating additional chaos or drama on … Continue reading Drama Queen
Giving
#Beingaleader means you need to be a giving person. Giving of your time. Giving of your finances. Giving of your emotion. And doing it cheerfully. #Beingaleader means you need to give of your time. Your family needs you. Whether it's work or play, whenever you are leading, they need your time. They need you to … Continue reading Giving
Being A Leader 