You take over a team for the first time, and despite being very excited about your promotion and this new opportunity, you can't help be feel a little dread. Why? Because morale is seriously low on your new team. Major upheaval, layoffs, the previous manager or other negative factors have your employees feeling low, unmotivated, and maybe a little resentful. That is killing … [Read more...]
Leaders Recognize the Importance of Traditions
Memorial Day is an important day for all Americans to remember and honor those who fought and died for our freedom. In cities and towns across the country this weekend, a variety of traditions will celebrate and honor this fact. As a resident of Indianapolis, home of the Indianapolis 500, I love the rich history of traditions and rituals that are a part of the race … [Read more...]
You and Your Employees Should Be Taking More Risks
Management guru Peter Drucker once said "People who don’t take risks generally make about two big mistakes a year. People who do take risks generally make about two big mistakes a year." The lesson here? You are going to make mistakes whether you take chances or not. However, if you don't take risks, you will miss opportunities to innovate and excel. You are better off to … [Read more...]
5 Reasons You Should Care About Values
Values play a huge role in behavior and results; however, because values are personal, and not always clearly defined, the idea of values is often omitted from both leadership discussions and training sessions. As a new leader, it's smart to think about your values and the role they play in how you lead, and hopefully, this article prompts you to do that. A quick note first: … [Read more...]
Are You an Optimist or Pessimist?
Unless this is the first thing you have read from me, you know my answer to that question. Harvey Mackay summarizes my feelings on this issue perfectly (see his words to the right). I believe your answer to this question is critical to the level of influence and success you will experience as a new leader, and in life, in general. To get you thinking about this, I'd like you … [Read more...]
Leadership Lessons From the Presidential Campaign
Every four years the U.S. elects a new President. The process isn’t simple, and it certainly isn’t short. Because the process plays out in the news media, and because it requires leadership both to gain the job and do the job, you can learn a lot from the campaign this year, including: Don't Miss Opportunities to Communicate Political candidates excel at finding … [Read more...]
5 Ways to Learn More From What You Read
Michael Hyatt builds a pretty compelling case for why leaders should be voracious readers in his post 5 Ways Reading Makes You a Better Leader, and he is not the only one touting the benefits. Many experts believe that reading is a major key to your success as a leader, and I agree. Reading improves your knowledge and skills, sharpens your mind, helps you to decompress and … [Read more...]
Why the Best Leaders Do the Dirty Work
Some people think that once they ascend to a leadership role they don't have to do “real work” anymore. Even if you don’t feel that way, there is a good chance your employees do. There is no question that as a leader, you have different responsibilities than you had as an individual contributor. However, the best leaders realize it isn’t an either/or proposition. There is … [Read more...]
Is Your Attention Polluted? I Bet it Is
Earth Day is this week, April 22 to be exact, and all week schools, charity organizations, businesses and more are taking a closer look at what we can do to protect the environment, reduce our carbon footprint and prevent pollution. No doubt the havoc we're wreaking on our environment with pollution is a major problem, and we should all be doing a little more to protect … [Read more...]
3 Lessons You Can Learn From Your Non-Stick Pans
PTFE or polytetrafluoroethylene was discovered on April 6, 1938 by Dr. Roy Plunkett at the DuPont research laboratories, and it was patented in February of 1941. You know PTFE as Teflon, the non-stick coating used on pans, griddles, grills and the like. The chemical has a growing list of uses, and it has made DuPont a lot of money. That is all well and good, but what does … [Read more...]