Be the Leader You Always Wanted to Be

April 25, 2018

Go back in time with me, how far depends on you – your age, your experience, your motivation – go back in time to when you first started thinking, If I was the boss, I would . . .

What did you want to do?  The question is almost, what did you see others doing that you KNEW you could do better?

I’m guessing it may have been that, as the underling, the one actually performing much of what needed to be done, you saw things from a different perspective from the people in charge.

So, looking back, what did you want to do?  Did you want to tell the leader/boss/manager that they needed to listen?  Did you want to bring some very basic inefficiencies to their attention?  Did you have better ways to do things, maybe even save time and money, that you wanted to point out?

Now, years later, you may understand why some things were done as they were.  In fairness, the newbies don’t always know the rules and priorities.  Even given this, though, you probably had some very helpful ideas.

So, now that you’re the leader, you can implement your own great ideas.  First, think back to what you have and haven’t liked over the years.  Make sure you keep doing the good stuff – it’s too easy for good ideas to get lost over time.  Too often, good ideas are the ones that cost a lot of energy and effort.  Often, they are the tasks that have to be addressed ahead of time.

How often have you said, “Wow, if only they had spent a little bit of time prepping”?  For instance, nametags.  It takes effort to create name badges ahead of time, but how great is it when you walk up and are handed a professional looking, computer printed nametag, versus the option of being handed a sticky label and marker?  You know which option you prefer, but it does take planning and work.  It remains part of good leadership.

So what did you want to do once upon a time?  What inequities, what poor design, what did you see that you wanted to correct?  Think about it.

Next, consider increasing communication with everyone at every level.  Don’t limit your input to your managers.  They aren’t necessarily the people performing the tasks, so they may not see a better way to do things.  I’m not saying everyone needs to attend every meeting, but send an email encouraging feedback.  Put up an old-fashioned idea box and request ideas. Stop and chat with employees and seek input.

Also, spend time after each event doing a post-mortem.  Ask yourself three questions – What was done well?  What was not done well?  What can be done better – not that something was done wrong, but could still be improved. For instance, maybe you could have more than one point of entry and exit, or have a buffet with lines on both sides of the table.  Simple ideas can help a lot.

Mostly, in order to be the leader you want to be, you need to intentionally lead.  Don’t just allow things to happen.  Make intentional decisions.  Start early, collect information, and keep things moving.  Consider new options.  Listen to people who haven’t been heard before, but should be.  Just like you had ideas when you were new, others have ideas today.  Be the leader you wanted to be years ago, today.

Lindy is a Business Consultant and Speaker for companies of all sizes and individuals of all levels.  In addition, she is an author and columnist.  Contact her at LMEarl@EarlMarketing.com.

The Single Greatest Trait of Great Leaders

April 18, 2018

We have all met good leaders and poor leaders.  The bad leaders tend to be better remembered, but in worse ways.  Has anyone NOT complained about an especially bad boss?  They are everywhere.  We can’t be all things to all people, can we, or can we?

There are a plethora of articles on what makes a leader great.  You know all the common traits, and can you really be expected to exemplify all those traits all the time? There would be no time left to perform your work, right? Let’s explore the one trait that great leaders share.  By exemplifying this one trait, you will be counted among great leaders.

A great leader is especially humble.  That’s it. Are you thinking, it doesn’t quite work?  It can’t be that easy.  Leaders are out there, leading the pack, and have the confidence to do so.  They are fighters and risk takers.

Being humble does not mean a lack of confidence or unwilling to take risks.  Humble can mean a lot of things . . . .

Being humble can mean they are good listeners, in that they are humble enough to hear others’ thoughts and opinions.  Good communication is necessary, not just preferable, but needed, in every relationship, definitely including work relationships.  Think about some of your worst bosses or colleagues and whether or not they were good listeners, or just barreled through.  Good listening adds the benefit of synergy – great things come when several minds work on the same challenge.

A humble person will ask for help.  They realize that others can simply perform some tasks better than they can, and they will seek support.  They will happily pay for the support.  I have seen too many potentially great companies go downhill because the owner, call them CEO or Entrepreneur, doesn’t want to hire others.  They think they can do it all themselves, when they can’t.  In addition, they see hiring others as a cost, not the investment it is.  And, they see asking for help as weak, when that’s just plain wrong.  Asking for help shows great intelligence, not weakness.

Another thing that makes humility the greatest asset of a leader is that people enjoy being around humble people, versus being around egotistical people.  I have paid more for things I’ve bought, just because the person with the greatest price was so arrogant I couldn’t stand working with them.  Isn’t it sad when someone’s own sense of self-worth is so high that it damages their success?  This doesn’t happen to humble leaders.  It’s enjoyable to be around people who don’t take themselves too seriously and are as eager to talk about you as themselves.

Thus, humble leaders attract great people to them.  I could talk about so many friends and colleagues here, as could you.  They are people you simply enjoy being around.  They may also offer intelligence or a great sense of humor or a great work ethic, but within all those things, there needs to be humility to attract people to you.  If you have those characteristics without the humility, you could end up being a poor leader.

Being humble means the leader will share recognition.  When it all comes together, a great leader will happily acknowledge all the people who made it work – which requires a great amount of humility.  In today’s world, people love success.  To be able to share your glory, when it comes, can be hard.  The leader worked as hard or harder than anyone else, and probably risked more than anyone, so sharing the recognition takes more than gumption, it requires humility.  Media often doesn’t want to hear about all the people who helped, they want the rags to riches story.  A humble, and great, leader, will share the spotlight.

So, the one characteristic of being humble leads to good listening skills, good communication, asking for help, attracting other great people to themselves, and sharing recognition.  Ah, those are the more commonly recognized traits of a great leader, but they all come down to the single greatest trait, humility.

Lindy is a Business Consultant and Speaker for companies of all sizes and individuals of all levels.  In addition, she is an author and columnist.  Contact her at LMEarl@EarlMarketing.com.

On Staying Quiet

April 10, 2018

In this day and age, talking is much of what we do. On the phone, on social media, via text or email, and face-to-face, communication takes up large parts of our day.  With this constant interaction I think we’ve all been in situations where we knew we should STOP talking, but we just couldn’t.  And whether this is in a professional or personal situation, if we know to stop, why don’t we?

When a sales rep gives a pitch they can have a fabulous presentation and close a deal.  At that point they should shake hands and be done.  Instead, I’ve seen the person stick around, continue the conversation, and end up talking the client out of the sale.  It happens.

When an employer gives an employee an annual review, too much talking can cause unnecessary friction.  When an annual review is held, the rules are simple: do your homework so you know what you’re going to say.  Say it, good and bad alike.  Then dismiss the person gently but firmly.   Be done!

When a boss needs to communicate a task to an employee, that’s exactly what they should do:  explain the task.  Instead, we see tedious explanations and micromanagement, which only slows the process.  Simply explain the process and be done.

All of this can be fixed quite simply. When there’s nothing to say – LEAVE! Knowing when to NOT talk is as powerful as knowing what to say and when to say it.

After the sale is pitched and the client is satisfied, close the deal and end the conversation. After the review is finished and the paperwork is signed, end the meeting and thank them for their work. After you’ve explained the tasks and your expectations to your workforce, dismiss them to begin work. Let them know you are available if there are questions but trust them to take care of business.

In negotiations, one of your best tools is silence.  If there is nothing to say, then say nothing.  I have seen people cut a price or increase an offer, all because the other person knew to keep quiet.  You’ve seen it.  The seller names his price, and the buyer remains silent.  So the seller reduces the price, even though the buyer didn’t question the price, or anything else.  It works in reverse, too.  A seller can keep his counsel, and a buyer will increase his offer.

There are a myriad of examples when, after the fact, we realize, we should have said nothing.  Actually, I employed this recently.  A friend got mad at me and, being a bit of a hothead, declared the friendship over.  I literally walked away. In truth, knowing she’s a hothead, I was more relieved than hurt by her declaration.

The funny thing was when I shared the story with a confidant, she was frustrated that I hadn’t gone off on the woman.  She wanted me to have the last word.  In my mind, my silence was the last word.  In fact, the ex-friend contacted me a week later to apologize.  It was thoughtful, but as I prefer to not retain a friendship, I’m continuing to keep my mouth closed.

Proverb 17:28 says that it is better to be thought a fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt.  Yes, it’s a bit sassy, but it holds a great truth.  We have been in situations where somebody says something that just clearly portrays that they don’t get it.  I’m not talking about a question – those are welcomed and appreciated.  If you’re not understanding my points, especially as I’m a Speaker, please let me know.  I’m talking about everyone chatting or laughing, and the odd comment is made.  Better to not say anything than face the awkward response.

So how do we know when to keep quiet?  When in doubt, err on the side of caution, and say nothing.

Lindy started her career in Marketing and was responsible for creating Marketing materials, which she can still do.  She is also a Business Consultant and Speaker for companies of all sizes and individuals of all levels.  In addition, she is an author and columnist.  Contact her at LMEarl@EarlMarketing.com.

Look At Things in a New Way

April 3, 2018

Let’s start with a quiz – didn’t you hate those words during school days?  But bear with me, this will be fun.  The following are all the same thing, allowing for the limitations of keyboards.  Can you tell me what?

VIII           6.5         1 )

So often, we go through life, not really looking at what is before us.  We see the same people at their desks, and put forth a rudimentary greeting, but are we really seeing them?  One time, during church of all places, I saw a woman run out of the room.  The people with whom I was sitting hadn’t noticed, but I ran after her.  The poor woman had had a bad day, week, and month.  She had just moved to the area, didn’t have any friends yet, and her daughter was supposed to give her a flower on Mother’s Day at church.  It just didn’t happen, and she had had enough.  I have no idea why I saw this woman, but for some reason I did.  It encouraged me to be more aware.

When you take on a new project, do you find yourself addressing it in the same way?  That’s probably a good and productive approach – you’re comfortable with it, it has worked for you in the past, and it’s efficient. Might it be a good idea to try coming at a project from a new angle? Or get people involved who might not normally be? Others might be thrilled to be included and you could get some unique perspectives.

Do you see people doing their jobs and, without intending to, pigeon hole them?  A client of mine recently told me he wants to hire a graphic artist to create some Marketing pieces.  That’s what I did the first five years of my career.  This client, however, sees me as the Business Consultant that I’ve become, and didn’t consider me for a job where I bring years of experience as well as inside information.  I’ve been pigeon-holed.

When a problem arises, you probably tend to respond in a manner typical for you. We all have MOs (modus operandi), which allows people to figure out how we will respond and what our next move might be.  This is helpful to television detectives who are looking for mythical criminals.  It can be dangerous in a real life negotiation where your counterpart can predict your moves.

Looking at things in a new way can take some practice.  One way to start is to ask others their opinions, before expressing your own.  You may find responses that mirror your own, because the people you ask probably know how you think.  Encourage others to be creative and/or ask people you wouldn’t normally ask, who may not know you as well.

Using the recessive side of your brain can help you look at things in a new way.  Try wearing your watch or bracelet or rings on the opposite hand and notice how awkward it is to secure a clasp that is usually done without thought.  Notice how different your hand feels the first few hours.  Try cutting a deck of cards or playing pool or golf or hitting a baseball with your recessive hand/arm.  I doubt you’ll immediately be great at it, but that’s okay.  You’re using the opposite side of your brain.  As you train your brain to look at physical tasks differently it will get easier to look at mental tasks differently.

So, all three of the above images are half of 13.  The second is simple math.  The first and third are horizontal mirror images of 13, the first being written in Roman numerals.  See, wasn’t that fun?

Lindy started her career in Marketing and was responsible for creating Marketing materials, which she can still do.  She is also a Business Consultant and Speaker for companies of all sizes and individuals of all levels.  In addition, she is an author and columnist.  Contact her at LMEarl@EarlMarketing.com