1996
I was despondent. Poor me. “My people” weren’t engaged. They didn’t get me; they weren’t loyal, they weren’t receptive, they were leaving me, and it wasn’t my fault. They just needed to give me more time, to get to know me…
Except…
Effective Leaders Know When to Ignore the Tone
“Samantha, please reinstate the afternoon tea and coffee cart for the residents, starting in November.” Samantha [delivered with sarcastic tone and an eye roll] replies, “Well, sure, why not. Last time we tried it, Beth in 4C took 10 tea bags. AND when I wasn’t looking, some of the staff drained the second pot of … Read more
Effective Leaders Take 3 Seconds to Say…
If the two-word definition of leadership is “Meet needs,” then you have frequent opportunities to be very explicit about that mission by taking three seconds to ask
What’s YOUR Space Program?
We’ve always heard that the space program has done more for us than explore space, the moon, and Mars– but that we have NASA to thank for some other, “accidental,” by-products: Teflon and Velcro come to mind — and I use those daily, I think. What’s your space program? In other words, what crazy big … Read more
For those who don’t get it…
Something that occasionally presents itself in the world of leadership is that there is one person, also a leader, who doesn’t “get it.”
Maybe it’s another teacher, a member of administration or your direct supervisor. They see what you are doing, they know that those you lead appreciate what you’re doing, but for one reason or another, they don’t think it applies to them. It’s usually one of the following: they think they’re already doing it, they think their team is doing fine and they don’t have the time to “waste,” or they think their way is better.
The Olympics of Dedication
The Olympics have a way of shining a new light on the meaning of dedication.
The opening ceremonies were comprised of one spectacular vignette after another, with thousands of performers, musicians and athletes knowing exactly where to go and what to do during every minute of their moment in the spotlight. That’s dedication.
Every commercial that runs during the Olympic Games tells the athlete’s tale of foregoing dessert, not watching TV, not skipping a single day’s workout in order to be the best. That’s dedication.
Then there was the Chinese farmer who spent the last two years traveling to London via rickshaw just to see the Olympic games. A little extreme, but yes – that’s dedication.
Fear and Vision
Fear paralyzes; sometimes we allow it to, calling it “caution”. It’s good to be cautious. Not so good to be paralyzed. Either by over-analysis OR by fear.
(Though, extreme analysis can combat fear; see Freakonomics for the statistics on child restraints…)
A good nugget from Tim Ferriss’s Four-Hour Workweek is this (paraphrased):
The thought of the “worst-case scenario” keeps us from acting, yet the worst-case scenario almost never occurs.
Effective leaders value clarity
Few things are more energizing than leaving a productive meeting with your team, set ablaze with fresh ideas that will set the wheels in motion. You’re ready to go. Your team is ready to go. You’ve established MT goals and are ready to tackle the world.
It’s a great feeling. Until something, somewhere, gets a little hazy.
Be smart about SMART goals (shortcut included)
Last week’s blog talked about the value of vision as a leader. With vision, you have a clear destination; a clear destination can aid in motivating your team. But with vision, comes goals. Goals serve as checkpoints on the way to your vision. But how do you know you have a goal worth pursuing? Enter: … Read more
Can you see okay?
“Employees want to constantly be better at what they do. If not challenged, they will look for challenges elsewhere.” –Ilya Pozin
As a leader, you have a job to do: lead people (sounds simple enough, right?). Where you lead them requires vision. Knowing your destination makes it possible for you to challenge them in a “directionally appropriate” manner.