Inspiration – Page 9 – Doug Dickerson on Leadership

Leadership Minute: The Power of Your Influence

Posted August 1, 2014
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Your influence is determined by how abundantly you place other peoples’ interests first. – Bob Burg, The Go-Giver

Influence is a by-product of your leadership. It’s also the blessing of your leadership and it comes with a powerful responsibility. Every day you have the opportunity to make an impact in the lives of people around you. You are not in your place of leadership just to occupy space or for it to be self-serving. You are there to serve and help others. When you use your influence with abundance it tends to have a reciprocal effect. When you are generous with your influence – be it as a mentor, helping someone make an important connection, being involved with a charity in your community, etc. it all comes back around on you in positive ways. The measure of your leadership will be determined in part by what you did with your influence. When you use your influence to lift others up you are raising the level of your leadership. Give generously.

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Leadership Minute: The Right Path

Posted July 31, 2014
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Sometimes the right path is not the easiest one. – Grandmother Willow, Pocahontas

Not all of your decisions as a leader will be easy. Sometimes in making the right decision you are making the harder one. The unintended consequences of the right decision can cause you to question if it was the right choice. Understand this; while there is great fulfillment in leadership it often comes at a price. Doing the right thing is the result of living the right way. When choosing which path to take don’t always look for the easy one. Not every path will be hard and not every choice will be difficult. In the end, what matters is that you are willing to make that choice. At the end of the day the question is not whether you made the hard choice or the easy choice but whether you made the right choice. Regardless of the outcome let the decisions you make and the paths you walk be driven by what’s right; not what’s easy.

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Leadership Minute: Make Peace With Your Past

Posted July 29, 2014
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Oh yes, the past can hurt. But from the way I see it, you can either run from it, or…learn from it. – Rafiki, Lion King

One of the greatest hindrances to your leadership today and that of your future can be things from your past. While you can’t go back change it you can adapt new ways of dealing with it. Perhaps you did some things that you are not proud of or someone hurt you and you are holding on to resentments. It could be a failed relationship or business that has turned your attitude the wrong way and it is affecting your leadership today. While you can’t go back and have a do-over, you can embrace new behaviors and attitudes today that can help you. The past is the past. You can learn from it but it is a choice you have to make. When you let go of the past; forgive, forget, and move on- you can experience the freedom that comes from a fresh new outlook on life. Make peace with your past.

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Leadership Minute: Opportunity Awaits

Posted July 25, 2014
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At times leadership boils down to this simple challenge: Will we rise to the opportunity placed before us? – Hans Finzel

Leadership is about seeing and seizing opportunities. The catch is being able to recognize it when you see it. Your opportunities won’t always look like what you might expect. It could come disguised to as opportunities to serve. It could look a lot like more work; and usually will be. Your opportunity could be found in mentoring a young person or coaching Little League. Don’t make the mistake in believing that the opportunity that awaits you is about you. Seize opportunities to empower others, meet needs, and let the expressions of your leadership be those that will outlast you. There will never shortages of opportunities to make a difference with your leadership. When you take the focus off yourself and place it on others you will see more opportunities than you will know what to do with. Will you rise to your opportunity?

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Leadership Minute: Be Grateful

Posted July 22, 2014
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Be grateful for what you have and stop complaining- it bores everybody else, does you no good, and doesn’t solve any problems. – Zig Ziglar

What are you grateful for? It’s really all about your perspective. You can spend your time and energy finding things to complain about. You can be one of “those” people who aren’t happy unless you’re unhappy and in the process make everyone around you miserable. But life is too short for that. We all have our share of troubles, but more importantly we all have many things to be thankful for. The thoughts that dominate your mind tend to set the tone for your outlook and life and the happiness you experience. If you are living the life of a complainer then your focus is wrong. The expressions of a grateful heart are realized when you choose to see the good, find ways to serve others, and life your life with a greater purpose. You are blessed more than you realize. Be grateful.

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Leadership Minute: What Motivates You?

Posted July 21, 2014
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I’ve never believed that titles motivate. Seeing possibilities motivates. Results motivate. Making a difference motivates. – Howard Behar

It is important to know and understand what motivates you as a leader. Forget about titles for a moment and try to identify what is it that keeps you up at night and gets you up early in the morning? When you know what that is you have found the source of your motivation. When you can see past the insufficiency of a title and see the possibilities before you then you will be motivated. When you see positive results that are the by-product of your hard work then you are motivated. When you see the lives you impact and the difference you make then your motivation has a purpose. What should motivate you as a leader is not another title or position, but a life that is lived for something that will outlast it. What is the source of your motivation?

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Leadership Minute: Great Opportunities

Posted July 17, 2014
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Great opportunities often disguise themselves in small tasks. The little things in life determine the big things. – Rick Warren

Do you want to make a difference as a leader? Good. The path to greatness as a leader is sometimes found in the mundane. That’s right; no headline, no photo-op, no ‘Atta boy’, or pats on the back. Great opportunities and consequently great impacts are simply the by-products of ordinary people doing ordinary things in an extra-ordinary way. Expressions of servant leadership are found when you concede being in the spotlight by putting someone else in it. Expressions of servant leadership are important to you when you don’t care about being important. The more you serve others the more you discover this fundamental truth: it’s not about you. When you are big enough to be little, humble enough to serve and proud to do it, you can find your purpose and meaning in the small things. Great opportunities are before you if you are willing to be little.

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Leadership Minute: Be Merciful

Posted July 14, 2014
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Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. – Matthew 5:7 (Jesus)

For all of the attributes ascribed to leaders how high on the list would you place being merciful? After all, leaders are tough, decisive, driven, and are no-nonsense type of people. But drill down to the finer qualities of what makes a leader inspiring and worth following is a sense of mercy that embodies their leadership style. They don’t overlook the obvious and are not afraid to act when times are tough. Leaders lead with a clear set of goals and outcome expectations. But they also understand that life happens and a merciful leader will make allowances. Don’t be so rigid with rules, regulations, policies, and procedures that you fail to see the human equation. Mercy is not weakness. The merciful leader is strong enough to care, gracious enough to show it, and confident enough to live it.

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Three Fears That Shape Your Leadership

Posted July 13, 2014
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One of the greatest discoveries a man makes, one of the great surprises, is to find he can do what he was afraid he couldn’t do. – Henry Ford

The story is told of two explorers who were on a jungle safari when suddenly a ferocious lion jumped in front of them. “Keep calm” the first man whispered. “Remember what we read in that book on wild animals? If you stand perfectly still and look the lion in the eye, he will turn and run.” “Sure,” replied his companion. “You’ve read the book, and I’ve read the book. But has the lion read the book?”

What’s your phobia? For some it’s a fear of heights, or flying. For others it may be riding in an elevator, speaking in public, or Friday the 13^th. For me, it’s spiders. I can handle most anything you throw my way, but for some reason spiders creep me out.

You will face many challenges as a leader. One the best discoveries to make on your leadership journey is that some of the things you were afraid of were, in fact, nothing to be afraid of at all. It’s as you grow and gain confidence in your talents and abilities that you can look back on some of your unfounded fears and smile. So what fears can actually make you a better leader? Here are three for your consideration.

The fear of thinking too big – This fear is rooted in the “what if?” mentality.

Donald Trump said, “I like thinking big. If you’re going to be thinking anything, you may as well think big.” That’s the rub with some leaders. They had rather play it safe with small thinking. After all, small thinking equals small risks. But big thinking requires big risks and big sacrifices. And did I mention the issue of pride? After all, as the logic goes, how would it look if I failed?

Let me ask you the question that’s been around for a while. What would you attempt if you knew that you could not fail? Leaders who think big had rather fail at attempting something big than succeed at something small. You overcome this fear of thinking too big with hard work and dedication. Don’t let the fear of thinking too big hold you back. Embrace your big ideas, goals, and dreams and see where they take you.

The fear of overestimating your potential – This fear is rooted in a “who me? mentality.

This is a fear that causes you to think too little of your gifts, talents, and leadership abilities. If you ever buy-in to the notion that you are not meant to be where you are, doing what you are doing, and possessing the skills to be there, you will never reach your full potential.

Winston Churchill said, “Continuous effort, not strength or intelligence- is the key to unlocking our potential.” Your potential is always fluid as you continue to grow. Your level of potential today is not the same as it was five years ago simply based on your growth. The bar will be higher five years out as your growth pattern continues. The key here is to have faith in your abilities and to never entertain negative thoughts or attitudes that would hold you back. Your potential will be unlimited when you take the limits off your potential.

The fear of empowering others – This fear is rooted in the “why them?” mentality.

Every smart leader understands the impact and importance of empowered teams. Empowered teams are more productive, create positive energy, and build morale in ways you can’t do when individuals are isolated from one another. But a fear of empowering others can undercut that culture and progress.

The fear of empowering others likely has less to do with your team than it does with your own insecurities or fear of not being in control. Whatever the reason; it’s a hindrance to your progress and success. But when you shed that fear and believe in your people, you can unleash your team to do what they were meant to do. Empowering others begins as you overpower your fears.

Every leader faces fear. That’s common. How you respond to your fear will determine the shape of your leadership. Don’t be afraid to think big, be confident in yourself and your abilities, and empower others. When you do fear can’t win.

I welcome your feedback:

1. What fears have held you back on your journey as a leader?

2. How can you work to overcome them?

3. How can you help others overcome their fears?

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Leadership Minute: Breaking Down Big Thinking

Posted July 10, 2014
by admin

I like thinking big. If you’re going to be thinking anything, you might as well think big. – Donald Trump

Your achievement is proportional to your thinking. Until you embrace big thinking you will not see big results. Of course, big thinking doesn’t guarantee big results but it is the starting place. Big thinking, like big dreams, requires more. You can’t just think it or dream it. You have to devise a plan and go to work. But big thinking is foundational to your success. Big thinking or ideas is nothing more than a series of accumulated incremental steps in the process toward that end. Begin by asking the basic questions: What can I do today? Who can help me? What resources do I have? What resources do I need? What changes do I need to make? How soon?, etc. Start asking and start answering. Create your plan and work your plan. Think big, grow big, and work to be big. There is no other way. But it all starts with big thinking.

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