Leaders must have passion; that is, in their own way, they must show that they care.
Talk can only go so far – while an occasional well-done pep talk can be great with the right context and timing, it’s what you do that demonstrates your passion. There’s a lot you can do to show your passion and commitment. Some ideas:
We’ve covered six leadership traits and skills. Now, it’s time to talk about two mindsets that must permeate our leadership behaviors.
The first is positivity. Being positive is the way others see that the hard work is worth it.
If there’s one skill that leaders must master and habitually improve, it’s communication.
If you read this blog, you’ll see that it’s a pretty popular area of concern.
So many dysfunctions, productivity concerns, drama, misunderstandings, and performance failures can be traced directly to communication mis-steps.
“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 coffee so I had to make a third one.
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
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.
“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.
An email I received yesterday: I would be interested in your thoughts about too much communication. It has been happening that with all the communication outlets, Facebook, Twitter, text, email, that keeping track of getting the word out is becoming overkill. I have some members that say they only check Twitter or Facebook and … Read more
Last fall, I spent two blog posts discussing how effective leaders stay organized. At that time, I was referring to your actual to-do list, which typically won’t have the actual words “pay attention to John on Monday.” But maybe you should consider it. A colleague of mine was telling me about a car salesman who … Read more
When I was in 6th grade, my music teacher, Mr. Jones, played us some “Switched-On Bach” – Bach performed on synthesizer.
That was pretty cool back in 1980. If you’re over 40, I bet you know what I’m talking about. It actually got me really interested in “real” Bach music; I’m a fan to this day.
Mr. Jones was a real advocate, and fed me more to listen to, and encouraged my unusual (for a 6th-grade boy) passion for Baroque music.
Until one day…