Leaders developing leaders.

Leadership

What’s Your Dream?

VISION = A dream or aspiration that provides direction and guides us to a place far away.

This week the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, jr. was remembered and honored. His dream was to end inequality and provide the same rights granted to whites to blacks. This was, and is, a dream that continues to be pursued.

All of us don’t have the magnitude of this type of vision, but what’s yours? What is your dream? What are your aspirations?

PeopleTek’s Vision is to Create Worldwide, Individual, Team and Organizational Excellence. This vision has been a constant since PeopleTek was created in 1996. (Yes, we’re going into our 26th year!). We frequently talk about our Vision with the PeopleTek coaches and members of our operations team, and we link our goals and stress behaviors that support this.

Things to remember or consider:

  • As a leader, what dream or aspiration do you have for yourself and for your organization?
  • Visions are not always attainable, but the intent is to provide direction and focus our attention on making strides towards making our dream reality.
  • What values do you want your team (and you) to live by?
  • What do you want your team (and you) to be known for?

Don’t think in terms of what’s possible and what is not, rather think about that dream and write down how you envision it.

  • What does it look like?
  • What does it feel like?
  • What words help you describe it, share it, and make it feel real?

Sometimes creating a vision requires thinking outside the box. Think about the line of work you’re in, consider the value you provide your customers and how it could grow, assess what processes or actions could be improved upon, and build the necessary relationships so that dream may be fulfilled. Dream big – if you had unlimited resources (budget and personnel), what would you change and how would you change it?

Remember, your dream is a desired destination, not a state of “here and now”.

Let us know if we can help!

Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality.
–Warren Bennis

Desmond Tutu – A Global Legacy

Archbishop Tutu is an exemplary model of leadership and his record challenging apartheid
in South Africa is testimony of his courageous and moral leadership.
–The Board of Lifelong Leadership Institute (LLI)

Archbishop Desmond Tutu made an impact on the world. The Board of Lifelong Leadership Institute sums his life up by simply saying “he was an exemplary model of leadership”.

He was best known for addressing the inequities of apartheid, and he was applauded for his  leadership style and abilities which included:

  • moral values
  • courage
  • activism
  • integrity
  • clarity
  • persistence
  • compassion
  • cooperation
  • inclusiveness

Archbishop Tutu leaves behind a very impressive global legacy. He was an equal rights activist and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, he became the first black Archbishop of Capetown, he was appointed head of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (which investigated human rights violations), and he was awarded the U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom.

He was also part of “The Elders”, a group of senior and former world leaders that continued the efforts to promote peace. Other members included Nelson Mandela, Jimmy Carter, Kofi Annan, and Mary Robinson.

Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson shared that Archbishop Tutu would be “remembered for his spiritual leadership and irrepressible good humor.”

Chances are as leaders we won’t have a legacy that is recognized and applauded globally, but even impacting a few makes a difference. What will your leadership legacy include?

Do your little bit of good where you are;
it’s those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world.
–Desmond Tutu

Self Discovery

Invest in self-discovery. It will help you envision a better tomorrow and blaze a path to achieve what you truly desire.

How much time do you invest in yourself?  Do you actually make it a priority to evaluate:

  • What makes you happy?
  • What could change to help you achieve that goal?
  • What are the obstacles that are getting in the way?
  • What’s missing from your life and your career?
  • How has your past influenced this?
  • Do you regret any past decisions that you’ve made? If yes, what have you learned from them?
  • Have any past decisions helped you move closer to your goal?  How and why?
  • What makes you anxious?
  • What makes you relax and feel content and comfortable?
  • What inspires you to do more and expand your comfort zone?
  • What makes you feel valued?
  • What’s needed to grow your career?
  • What actions need to occur to address development opportunities?

The Collins Dictionary defines self-discovery as:
becoming aware of one’s true potential, character, motives, etc.

The Merriman-Webster Dictionary defines it as:
the act or process of achieving self-knowledge.

Growing self-knowledge requires energy, courage, honesty, and commitment. It also requires addressing the “why” behind our thoughts, words, actions, behaviors, and emotions. This can be difficult and challenging for many of us but is essential if we want to realize our full potential.

Musician Kevin Abstract says that “self-discovery is an ongoing thing”. We agree! It’s not a point in time situation, but a particular event may be what gets us started. We always say learning is to be continual and that leadership (like learning) is a process, not an event. That’s why we call many of our programs “Journeys” – they are roadmaps that have no end!

As leaders we generally help others with self-discovery but don’t do the same for us. Why is that? It’s time we “blaze a path to achieve what we truly desire”.  In the words of Nike: “Just Do It”!

And you? When will you begin that long journey into yourself?
― Rumi

Leadership and Humility

One of the best ways (to be humble) is to adopt the humble mind-set of a servant leader. Servant leaders view their key role as serving employees as they explore and grow, providing tangible and emotional support as they do so.
–Dan Cable

Last week we shared some traits our clients wanted to see their leaders exhibit and one of them was the ability to be humble. Did this strike a chord with you? We’ve talked about servant leadership in the past and part of the common theme of definitions includes the need to be humble.

A post by Rebecca shares 21 attributes of a humble person.  We’ll highlight a few; to read her entire list and article click here. Humble people:

They do not belittle others
Quite the opposite – leaders make others feel important

They are not rude
Leaders are respectful, they listen, and are mindful of the
needs of others

They are truthful
Leaders live life with integrity and no hidden agendas

They will put themselves in someone else’s shoes
Leaders seek to understand

They are not self-righteous
Leaders do not have a superiority complex

They are not judgmental
Leaders do not form opinions without obtaining facts

They are not arrogant
Leaders do not portray a sense of self-importance

They will not dwell on the past
Leaders do not let negative “baggage” hinder their decisions

They will not get defensive
Leaders are accepting of feedback and suggestions for
change/improvement

  • As a leader, how would you score yourself in the above categories?
  • What about how you would score your leader?
  • What category would you like to personally or professionally develop? Don’t forget to add them to your development plan!

Servant-leaders have the humility, courage, and insight to admit that they can benefit from the expertise of others who have less power than them.
—Dan Cable

What Do You Want In A Leader?

Leadership is lifting a person’s vision to high sights, the raising of a person’s performance to a higher standard, the building of a personality beyond its normal limitations.
—Peter Drucker

Have you given much thought about the type of leader you want to work for?  What skills and behaviors matter most and inspire you to thrive and perform at your highest level?  Another way to look at it is to assess the type of leader you don’t want to work for. That may be easier!

Over the years we’ve listened to what our clients have shared but we’ve never taken a formal poll.  Here are some of the more common wants that we heard:

  • Inspirational
  • Humble
  • Builds trust
  • Sets and leads towards a vision
  • Caring and passionate
  • A desire to develop others
  • A good listener
  • Provides meaningful feedback
  • No hidden agendas

Steven J. Stowell, Ph.D. and Stephanie S. Mead, MBA did conduct a survey from 2100+ individuals and asked for the top three qualities they wanted in their leaders. The results were:

  • Communication skills (45.2%)
  • Interpersonal skills (44.2%)
  • Values and ethics (41.9%)
  • Personal attributes (30.2%)
  • Coaching and feedback (21.8%)
  • Credibility (22.3%)
  • Direction and strategy (16.7%)
  • Management essentials (5.6%)

Did you find any of the poll results surprising? Soft-skills and people skills seem to be the prevailing “want”. Were there any key omissions from your list, and do you think technical skills are a need?

Let us know!

People buy into the leader before they buy into the vision.
—John Maxwell

Surprises Are Rarely Enjoyed

I just want one normal day at work. No surprises, no emergencies, just a simple day where we can all do our jobs without feeling like the sky is falling.
—Unknown

Surprises at work are rarely well received except for maybe raises, promotions, or at Halloween. Even surprises that have positive impacts are dimly viewed by some as they are removed from their comfort zone.

In general, being kept in the loop about daily activities, pending changes, and known issues is appreciated, and this also holds true for leaders and clients.

We once worked with a leader that strongly shared, and in colorful language, that he should not find out about problems caused by his team by someone other than a team member.

His intent was actually very positive despite his delivery being a bit harsh.  Once he explained his intent, his message made sense. When he’s informed, he won’t be blindsided, he can share the known facts, provide status updates, perhaps have an idea when the issue will be (or has been resolved), and most importantly, he shared he’d do all he could to support his team member.

Communication is the first and most important step for preventing surprises. When in doubt, over communicate and be sure to provide as many details and facts as possible:

1.    What’s the situation?
2.    Who is/was impacted and in what way?
3.    Who needs to be kept in the loop?
4.    Is the root cause known? What can be done to prevent a reoccurrence?
5.    Provide status updates

a.    For large issues with severe impacts, we suggest hourly
b.    For medium issues with a moderate amount of disruption, twice daily
c.    For issues with minimal impact, daily

6.    Once the issue/problem is resolved:

a.    Identify and share the root cause
b.    Document the solution and what will be done so it does not happen again.

Having a work culture that owns issues, communicates them, and works towards a permanent solution will build integrity and trust levels and prevent unpleasant “surprises”.

Good management is the art of making problems so interesting and their solutions so constructive that everyone wants to get to work and deal with them.
—Paul Hawken

Colin Powell – Public Servant and Trailblazer

If a leader doesn’t convey passion and intensity then there will be no passion and intensity within the organization and they’ll start to fall down and get depressed.
—Colin Powell

This week we want to recognize General Colin L. Powell (1937 – 2021) as it builds on last week’s topic of Quality Person, Quality Leader.

Powell’s accomplishments are many. He was a former U.S. Secretary of State, the youngest and first black Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and was instrumental in shaping foreign policy for the U.S. He earned the Presidential Medal of Freedom twice (along with many other medals), and was respected by U.S. Presidents on both sides of the political spectrum.

Powell had the courage to admit his mistakes and took full ownership for them. The one he regrets most is reporting that “Saddam Hussein has biological weapons and the capability to rapidly produce more, many more”. It was later determined that this was false, and he called his reporting of this a “blot” that will forever be on his record.

His leadership style was respected and appreciated by many. He was known for being direct, for being a straight shooter, for his passion, and his problem-solving skills. He also created 13 Rules of Leadership:

  1. It ain’t as bad as you think. It will look better in the morning.
  2. Get mad, then get over it.
  3. Avoid having your ego so close to your position that when your position falls, your ego goes with it.
  4. It can be done.
  5. Be careful what you choose. You may get it.
  6. Don’t let adverse facts stand in the way of a good decision.
  7. You can’t make someone else’s choices. You shouldn’t let someone else make yours.
  8. Check small things.
  9. Share credit.
  10. Remain calm. Be kind.
  11. Have a vision. Be demanding.
  12. Don’t take counsel of your fears or naysayers.
  13. Perpetual optimism is a force multiplier

    In closing we’ll share another of the General’s thoughts on leadership:
    Great leaders are almost always great simplifiers, who can cut through argument, debate and doubt, to offer a solution everybody can understand.

A Quality Person, a Quality Leader, a Public Servant, and a Trailblazer.    May he rest in peace.

There are no secrets to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work,
and learning from failure.
—Colin Powell

Quality People, Quality Leaders

If you want to be a leader who attracts quality people,
the key is to become a person of quality yourself. – Jim Rohn

Do you agree that before you can be an effective leader you must be viewed as a “quality person”?

A good starting point is to think about Maya Angelou’s quote: People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.

As a leader, how we make people feel absolutely impacts our work culture. It’s essential that we deliver messages with not only clarity but also respectfully. There’s no doubt we will have the need to deliver tough messages, but the way we do it makes a huge difference on how well the message is received, and it will also impact the ongoing relationship.

Author and motivational speaker Jim Rohn identified the following key leadership traits:

  • Learn to be strong but not impolite
  • Learn to be kind but not weak
  • Learn to be bold but not a bully
  • Learn to be humble but not timid
  • Learn to be proud but not arrogant
  • Learn to develop humor without folly
  • Learn to deal in realities

Leaders want to show compassion and empathy. We need to be authentic and let people know they are valued and appreciated, and better yet, we can provide specific details supporting our perspectives.

If we are a “quality” person and leader, chances are our behaviors will be modelled by those we interact with. We want to engage people, we want to interact with others in their preferred style (not ours!), we truly listen to what others have to say (understanding that sometimes our message may not be well received), but we can show empathy and explain what prompted the message. ie. Company mandates, errors, cost savings, growth, etc

Quality people (and leaders) are known for their integrity, for being trustworthy, for having no hidden agendas, for influencing and inspiring others, and in general making others feel good about themselves, with a desire to want to be around us.

Are you a quality person and leader?

Become the kind of leader that people would follow voluntarily; even if you had no title or position. —Brian Tracy.

Effective One on One Meetings

One on ones are the bedrock of any relationship you have within your team and any organization.
-–Danielle Leong

How do you feel about attending or facilitating one on one meetings? We were in a group meeting last week and were surprised to hear that readiness levels were sometimes an issue.

  • Either the leader was ill prepared and asked “do you have anything to talk about”? If the answer was “no” the meeting would end.
  • On the flip side the, the attendee could be uncomfortable and not share their thoughts, issues, or successes.
  • Have you experienced either of these?

Tips for effective one on one meetings:

1. Schedule them regularly; some prefer weekly, others monthly. Regardless, get them on your calendar.

2. Establish expectations of the session

3. You can prepare conversation points to discuss but try not to have it too scripted, rather let the conversation flow naturally

4. Make time to “get to know” each other and build your relationship (and trust)

5. Ensure the sessions are comfortable and interactive

6. Be attentive and listen; don’t dominate

7. Ask what the attendee needs. Are there any obstacles or barriers you could help eliminate?

8. Obtain their perspective on what’s going well and what could be improved upon

9. Make them feel valued

10. Ask for feedback.  Ex. what could you do to be more effective?

11. Provide them with meaningful feedback

12. Discuss developmental wants and needs and career path desires

13. Recap any “to do’s” or commitments by either side (with target dates)

Often the sessions are primarily about business updates and not about the person. Use team meetings for business updates, organizational goal achievement, and strategic objectives instead of during one on one sessions.

How effective are your one on one sessions? Do you enjoy them? What could you change to make them even more meaningful?

Reminder: One on one meetings are meant to focus on the person.

It All Starts With Culture

It all starts with culture! You can have the greatest mission statement in the world but it’s pointless unless you have people who are on a mission.
—Jon Gordon

It’s no surprise that our work culture is important. It impacts levels of engagement, accountability, productivity, and team synergy. It also impacts attrition as well as the desire to grow and flourish in careers.

Author and speaker Jon Gordon has a blog: 14 Thoughts About Building A Great Culture.  Excerpts are below.

1. Great leaders build and drive great cultures.

2. Culture is the reason why great organizations have sustained success.

3. Culture beats strategy.

4. If you focus on the fruit of the tree (outcomes and numbers) and ignore the root (culture) your tree will die.

5. When building a team and organization you must shape your culture before it shapes you.

6. A culture of greatness doesn’t happen by accident.

7. Culture is dynamic, not static.

8. Your culture is not just your tradition.

9. When leading a new team or organization, it will take longer to build a new culture if you allow negative people from the previous culture to contaminate the process.

10. When you build a strong, positive culture most of the energy vampires will leave by themselves because they don’t fit in.

11. Creating a culture where people are afraid to fail leads to failure.

12. Change is a part of every culture and organization.

13. Progress is important but when innovating and driving change make sure you honor your tradition, purpose and culture.

14. Culture is like a tree.  Click here to read the entire blog

As leaders, it’s up to us to make a difference in our work culture. We need to share and support our organizational and team goals and values, we need to inspire our teams by listening to their views, we need to provide opportunities that support desired career paths,
and most importantly we need to build trusting relationships.

How’s your work culture?

I used to believe that culture was ‘soft,’ and had little bearing on our bottom line. What I believe today is that our culture has everything to do with our bottom line, now and into the future.
– Vern Dosch, Author, Wired Differently