HR – Page 12 – Doug Dickerson on Leadership

Four Traits of Courageous Leaders

Posted February 8, 2014
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Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.” – Winston Churchill

A story is told of Leonidas, King of Sparta, who was preparing to make a stand with his Greek troops against the Persian army in 480 B.C. when a Persian envoy arrived. The man warned Leonidas of the futility of trying to resist the advance of the huge Persian army. “Our archers are so numerous,” said the envoy, “that the flight of their arrows will darken the sun.” “So much the better,” replied Leonidas, “for we shall fight them in the shade.” Leonidas made his stand, and died with his 300 troops.

It’s one thing to have courage as a leader but another thing to be foolish. While Leonidas’ actions may be considered foolish in retrospect, courage can be one of your most valuable assets as a leader. Here are four characteristics of courageous leaders.

They are willing to stand alone

Courageous leaders are those who know where they are going and what it takes to get there. They can be both inspiring and complex. Their focus and demeanor can be misinterpreted by those who may not share the same leadership DNA who had rather go all out with a passion than play it safe with an assumption.

Leaders who are willing to stand alone do so not always by choice but sometimes out of necessity. When you believe so strongly in your cause that you are willing to stand alone it gives the signal to the rest of your team that you are all in. Be it your values, convictions, ethics, or just the general principles of sound leadership you will earn the trust and respect of those you lead when you are willing to go it alone for what is right.

They are willing to think different

Courageous leaders have cut the strings to the safety nets of a “this is the way we’ve always done it,” mentality and have wagered their chips on new and innovative ways of thinking. Courageous leadership is not about throwing caution to the wind where anything goes, but it’s recognizing that being competitive in the 21^st century requires more.

Have you noticed how leaders who think different can be restless? They are constantly brainstorming new ideas and methodologies and challenging old assumptions. They do so not out of disrespect, but out of a desire to contribute in more meaningful ways not yet realized. Courageous leaders are different because they think different.

They are willing to take risks

Founded during The Panic of 1837, would you know of Proctor and Gamble had someone not taken a risk? Founded during The Panic of 1873, you now know of GE because someone took a risk. GM was founded during The Panic of 1907 all because someone took a risk. United Technologies was founded in 1929 during the Great Depression all because someone took a risk. It was during the Oil Crisis of 1973 that Frederick W. Smith founded FedEx. I think it was a risk worth taking.

Courageous leaders are risk takers. They have a high threshold for failure because they understand it’s the surest way to success. Risk takers don’t wait until conditions are just right in order to step up and take a chance. What great idea have you been holding back on because you were afraid to take a risk?

They are willing to make mistakes

Courageous leaders are not perfect. They make plenty of mistakes and at times can be challenging to work with. Their mistakes not made out of an abundance of caution but because they have long sense progressed beyond it. They live not just for the here and now, but are passionate about the future and its possibilities.

George Bernard Shaw said, “A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable, but more useful than a life spent doing nothing.” Courageous leaders are willing to make mistakes and willing to risk looking foolish in order to live out the life she or he has dreamed. The only thing worse is to look back years from now with regrets for what you wished you had done.

What do you say?

I invite your feedback!

1. Which one of the four traits did you most identify with?

2. What additional traits would you add?

3. How can we as leaders encourage each other to be more courageous?

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Leadership Minute: Laughing Success

Posted February 7, 2014
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There is little success where there is little laughter. – Andrew Carnegie

Success is the culmination of a lot of hard work, long days, and sleepless nights. It’s the byproduct of defining your dream, setting your goals, and living your passion. And along the way a little luck. But along the way a leader should never sacrifice that success for his or her ability to laugh. Learning how to laugh at yourself will serve you well. How? When you can laugh at yourself and laugh with others it generates positive energy that can help you release much of the stress you deal with each day. It also serves to remind you not to take yourself too serious. Dream big. Work hard. Laugh often!

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Five Ways Leaders Lose Their Focus

Posted February 1, 2014
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The key to success is to focus our conscious mind on things we desire not things we fear. – Brian Tracy

Writing in Reader’s Digest, Carol Mann tells the story of golf immortal Arnold Palmer as he recalled an important lesson about self-confidence. It was the final hole of the 1961 Master’s tournament, and Palmer had a one-stroke lead and just hit a very satisfying tee shot. Palmer felt that he was in pretty good shape. As he approached the ball, he saw an old friend standing at the edge of the gallery. The friend motioned him over, stuck out his hand and said, “Congratulations.” Palmer recalls that as soon as he took his hand and shook it, he lost his focus.

The next two shots he hit the ball into the sand trap, then put it over the edge of the green. He missed a putt and lost the Master’s. “You don’t forget a mistake like that,” Palmer recalled, “you just learn from it and become determined that you will never do that again.”

Learning how to keep your focus is an important leadership skill to develop. But yet it is one of the hardest to master. Countless distractions coupled with the never ending demands on your time make it a challenge. How leaders lose their focus is important information. Being aware of these common distractions can help you be a better leader. Here are five ways leaders lose their focus and why it matters to you.

Bogged down in the details

It can be hard to focus on the big picture if you are mired down in the micro details of all of your operations. While it is important to be in the loop you have to empower and trust capable people to help you with the details. It’s normal to want to be informed but when you are mired down in the smallest of details it begs the questions – who’s steering the ship?

Improper delegation

This is where many leaders fall short and where most of them burn out. When the leader is of the opinion that he or she can do the job better by themselves it could be causing more harm than good. Let’s make the assumption that you have surrounded yourself with quality people who are capable of doing the work associated with your organization. Leaders lose focus when they do not empower these people to do their jobs. Delegation at its best will allow you to focus your time and energies where they are most needed. The secret is to empower and release the people around you.

Lack of organization

An unorganized leader is an unfocused leader. It is not so much about the proverbial cluttered desk as it is the personal disciplines that bring order to your life. If you tend to fly by the seat of your pants, if you are reactionary instead of proactive then these are all problematic traits that cause you to lose focus. You can overcome this by bringing order to your day. Keep a calendar. Schedule important calls and appointments and stick to it. Beware of the “tyranny of the urgent” and do not fall into the traps that can easily disrupt your day. Strong organizational skills will keep you focused and serve you well.

The need to be a people pleaser

In all fairness we all want to be liked. But if you are consumed by a need to be liked, you will quickly lose your focus as a leader. Your job is not to be liked. Your job is to lead. That being said; be friendly. But be careful not to get to the place where you are consumed about your popularity so much that it is affecting the decisions you make and it causes you to lose your focus on what is most important. You can’t lead with integrity if you make decisions based upon whom it pleases or displeases.

Gadgets

Technology is great isn’t it? The progress we have made in recent years has made our world much smaller and our work a lot easier. I am sold on the wonders of our technology. But take a look around your place of business or glance around the conference table the next time you are in a meeting. We are all wired up but in many ways are very disconnected. Our technology for all of its benefits has contributed to a strong lack of focus on many fronts. Let your technology serve you but do not be subservient to your technology.

What do you say?

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Leadership Minute: What’s Your View?

Open expression of multiple points of view and vigorous discussion leads to unification of effort. – Jimmy Collins

When was the last time you had, by choice, open an honest feedback in your organization? It is imperative that honest feedback is not only given but encouraged. It is when everyone has a voice that everyone has ownership. Creating ownership happens when leaders are secure enough to hear the truth and when egos are checked at the door. A wise leader wants the truth and will foster feedback in a way that is constructive and beneficial for everyone involved. Welcome differing points of view. Welcome honest discussion. Grow and learn together.

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Five Priorities Every Leader Must Keep

When your values are clear to you, making decisions becomes easier. – Roy E. Disney

A group of friends went deer hunting and paired off in twos for the day. That night one of the hunters returned alone, staggering under the weight of an eight-point buck. “Where’s Harry?” he was asked. “Harry had a spell of some kind. He’s a couple of miles back up the trail,” the man replied. “You left Harry lying there, and carried back the deer?” “Well,” said the hunter, “I figured no one was going to steal Harry.”

It would appear from the story that the eager hunter had misplaced his priorities. As a leader it’s easy to get sidetracked and fall into the trap of believing that you are invincible. It can be a slippery slope to travel and if you are not careful it can hurt you. Burnout at the office due to high demands and even higher self-imposed expectations can cause you to cut corners and make unhealthy personal choices. Here are five priorities that ought to be non –negotiable for every leader.

Family

Leaders understand the value of work and are certainly familiar with sacrifice. But when you sacrifice your family for your business then you are too close to the slippery slope and it’s time to reorder your priorities. Walt Disney said, “A man should never neglect his family for business.” That’s sound advice and should be your number one priority. No level of success is worth losing your family over. Besides, no one like family can give you the unvarnished truth you need to hear and keep your ego in check like family.

Faith

While your faith is primarily a personal matter it’s impact is far-reaching. Your faith gives you moral clarity that impacts the way you live and the decisions you make. The peace you receive from your faith is the foundation of your temperament in all walks of life- including your leadership style. Your faith is not your adversary as it relates to your leadership it’s your partner so embrace it and keep it close. The principles of your faith make for good leadership skills.

Time Management

Your ability to manage your team as a leader will make you or break you. If you don’t take control of your time then you can be assured someone else will. Your priorities are just that –yours. In his book, All You Have Is Now, my friend John Patrick Hickey (http://www.johnpatrickhickey.com/) says, “It has never been about how much time we do or do not have. It is how we use our time that counts. Even more important is that we do use our time.” Use your time wisely because you will never get it back. It’s a top priority every leader must keep.

Self-Improvement

By nature, most leaders I know are generous and giving people. Most have a hard time saying no. But you must be careful not to get to the place where you are not growing and learning and nurturing your own sense of wonderment, curiosity, education, and personal development. If you do not make personal development a priority then chances are those around you will not do it for you. What new books are you reading in in 2014? What are you doing to keep your leadership skills sharp? Make self-improvement a priority and you will be the better for it and so will those around you.

Proper diet and exercise

Many leaders I know burn the candle at both ends. I understand it. But you are not invincible. And if you want to be a leader who lasts you must permit yourself to have some down time. Proper diet and exercise is essential to your ability to do the many tasks you are responsible for. I would include in this category another essential – sleep. Researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (http://1.usa.gov/Mc0f8P) did a study of the sleep habits of U.S. workers and discovered that thirty percent (about 40.6 million workers) get fewer than six hours of sleep a night. Leaders who make proper diet, exercise, and sleep a priority are going to be healthier and better equipped for the challenges of the day. If you don’t take care of your body how will you take of all of your leadership demands?

What do you say?

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Leadership Minute: Successful Habits

Posted January 22, 2014
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Successful people are simply those with successful habits. – Brian Tracy

Your success as a leader is tied to your habits. Leadership successes are not the sum of random acts but rather the sum of consistent habits. Success with your clients, customers, employees or any other endeavor are proportional to your ability to identify the habits you need to develop, the discipline to carry them out, and the flexibility to adjust them as needed. What habits do you need in place to achieve the success you desire? When you work your habits you will soon begin to realize more success. Successful habits are the cornerstones of your success. When you build with confidence and consistency you are on the way up.

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Leadership Minute: Customer Service and the Leadership Connection

Posted January 21, 2014
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Whether you are big or small, you cannot give good customer service if your employees don’t feel good about coming to work. – Martin Oliver

The mistake some managers in business make is found in not understanding the connection between good customer service and sound leadership skills. They see it as two separate entities when really it’s one. You can’t provide good customer service to the people you are most dependent upon for your success without understanding how it all depends on strong leadership skills. They are interdependent skills that have to be taught. If your employees don’t feel good about coming to work why should your customers feel good about doing business with you? Take care of your leadership needs and you will take care of your customer service needs. Happy customers make happy employees.

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Three Ways to Push Back Against Negative People

Posted January 18, 2014
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The greatest day in your life and mine is when we take total responsibility for our attitudes. That’s the day we truly grow up. – John C. Maxwell

The noted English architect Sir Christopher Wren was supervising the construction of a magnificent cathedral in London. A journalist thought it would be interesting to interview some of the workers, so he chose three and asked them this question: “What are you doing?”

The first replied, “I’m cutting stone for 10 shillings a day.” The next answered, “I’m putting in 10 hours a day on this job.” But the third said, “I’m helping Sir Christopher Wren construct one of London’s greatest cathedrals.”

As a leader it is important to understand how important your attitude is as it relates to your success. How high and how far you go often has less to do with your talent or skills and has more to do with the attitude you have in navigating those skills. Attitudes can lift you or ground you. It’s a choice we all make.

While you may be fine with that scenario you may have more of an issue with other people and their negative attitudes. How do you handle those perpetually negative or toxic people in your office who always see the glass half empty and usually have something negative to say about most everything?

How can you push back against negative people in your life? Is it really possible? For starters, here are three tips to help you learn how.

Hit your personal reset button.

Hitting your reset button is about recalibrating your own set of personal standards. Consider for a moment the type of people whom you have tolerated or have entertained in the past. How many of those were the negative or toxic types? The reason they were around, excluding professional necessity, is because you chose to have them around. Hitting the reset button is about choosing whom you keep and who you cut loose. I will have more to say about that in a moment. Suffice to say; in order to push back against negative people you have to reset your standards and this means making some really important choices going forward.

Choose your inner circle more carefully.

The reason this is so important is that we tend to become like those we most closely associate with. If you want high standards for yourself then you will have to be more selective about those you keep close. That’s not to say you can’t be cordial to all, but you must be more selective with the few you keep close. Your standards are reflected in your associations. Negative people tend to attract negative people in the same way positive people tend to attract positive people. The good thing is that those closest to you will tend to be of the same mindset and attitude. Be careful about who you keep close because they can be the lifters in your life or the ones who drag you down.

Stay above the fray.

Simply put, there are times when you cannot escape the reach of negative people. They are in your office, they sit at the same conference table as you, and they share the same break room. Sharing the same space is not the same as sharing the same mindset. Your positive attitude can make the difference and give hope to those who share your same beliefs. Stay above the fray by staying true to your values. Staying above the fray means that others will have to come up to your level and not the other way around. When you stay above the fray you are setting a higher standard for everyone.

These three tips all have one thing in common. Did you figure it out? They are not tips on how to change the other person. They are all about the things you can do to improve your own attitude. You can’t change the other person, but you can be a good example to them. Pushing back against negative people is about improving yourself.

What do you say?

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Leadership Minute: Zip Your Lips

Posted January 17, 2014
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The time comes upon every public man when it is best for him to keep his lips closed. – Abraham Lincoln

Leaders are often noted for what they say. After all, leaders are good communicators and as such enjoy firing up the troops with some motivational words that offer some profound encouragement. But, there are times when the leader needs to be quiet. Sometimes saying what’s on your mind could be inappropriate or simply not advisable. Mastering the discipline of keeping your lips closed can save you a lot of grief and preserve your stature as a smart leader. Just because you may be thinking of something “important” to say, it may be more beneficial in the long run to you and everyone else if you just keep it to yourself.

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Leadership Minute: Your Level of Success

Posted January 13, 2014
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The level of our success is limited only by our imagination and no act of kindness, however small, is ever wasted. – Aesop

What are your dreams and aspirations? As a leader your journey to success begins when you dare to imagine and visualize your success. It’s when you envision your success that you can begin to take the steps of achieving it. Along the way, you must remember that your deeds of kindness are seeds that you plant which will one day come back on you in positive ways. Sow generous seeds in the lives of others. Visualize your own success. Remove any limitations that would hold you back. Dare to dream big dreams.

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