Leading Choices

We need courageous leadership, but lack it.

Recent research confirms that leaders who exercise compassion produce loyal, dedicated, and passionate employees. In fact, numerous studies have found that workplaces led by compassionate bosses enjoy increased rates of employee satisfaction, greater employee engagement, lower levels of overall stress and fewer reported sick days.

Though I don't like statements such as one "must" and companies "have to", I believe that the overall view is correct. The world's changing, business environment is changing as well. New leadership skills are required that were not taught in public schools at all but neither at business schools yet.

Have an identity and hold it loosely, but don't let your identity have you!

I prefer the word 'mindful' rather than 'thoughtful'. It is a big difference. I see thoughtful as being part of mindful. The author makes a good point about networks and communities being different. This means we can behave and act differently. Networks may or may not be able to hold people to account whereas a community might be able to.

“Keep your identity small.” — Paul Graham“Identity” has become somewhat of a dirty word, especially in Silicon Valley circles. In many minds, the word “identity

Values and energy based coaching enable individual to authentic leadership.

To overcome the limitations you must understand quickly what is at stake, how to build trust in a short period of time to collaborate and innovate in a fast moving globalized world.

www.equanimityexecutive.com

I don't see much evidence in education that small groups are disrupting the status quo. It is more entrenched than ever.

Successful collaboration requires leadership. This excerpt from a book by Cisco executives Ron Ricci and Carl Wiese explains the key behaviors that leaders must exhibit to support and enhance collaboration.

This very good article describes the history, foundations, mindset and obstacles of 'Collaboration'. Must read!

You'll never achieve a customer centric organisation wthout engaged employees that will need to constantly collaborate.

Point #4 -Find a Mentor. I completely agree. Having a mentor in your career will further your success, not only professionally, but personally.

What does it take to be a top business leader? Age-old qualities still apply but they will need to evolve in a changing world, say our experts. We spoke with Bob Gandossy, founder of the Top Companies for Leaders survey, and Ronald Heifetz, director of the Center for Public Leadership at Harvard Kennedy School, for their take on what strategies a leader of the future should master.

We need to do more than just get by. That is part of the problem.

As our culture changes, so too must our leadership.

(From the Article): Are you deeply curious? Do you respond to challenges with openness? Do you ask powerful questions? 

Or do you want just the facts? When challenged, do you defend yourself and attack the other person? Do you have more answers than questions?

I encourage you to cultivate your curiosity as a leader and to promote a spirit of inquiry among those you lead. Make extra effort to explore an issue before deciding. And, when someone disagrees with you, see that as a gift.

Intellectual curiosity, at its deepest, reaches outward and inward.

There is an external openness. The leader has a willingness to explore the unknown – seeking new situations, new data and new insights from others. When challenged, the leader wants to explore the differences.

And there is also be an internal openness to new ways of thinking. The leader is willing to challenge her own biases. The leader is willing to approach an issue with alternative perspectives.

Tips and Tools to Help You Accept What You Can't Change and Commit to Changing What You Can't Accept

Very timely for me just now, and excellent advice!

Put yourself in the other person's shoes.

Thought provoking read.  I find a similar issue working as a communication consultant, I usually find people feel the organization needs to communicate better but when it comes time to apply tools that will help communication, many people resist using them.  These barriers are true for communication as well as collaboration.  

 From the article:

Collaboration Barrier #1 – Hoarders

Collaboration Barrier #2 – Hidden knowledge

Collaboration Barrier #3 – Not invented here syndrome

Collaboration Barrier #4 – Transferring hard to encode information

(From the article): Collaboration Barrier #3 – Not invented here syndrome

Siloes are a common feature of many workplaces. They could exist around functions or regions or even hierachies. It’s also increasingly common that these siloes are given a large degree of autonomy as to how they operate. Whether these barriers are physical or merely mental they are often extremely damaging to collaboration. For instance, do your senior managers accept ideas from those beneath them in the hierachy or is there a culture whereby only those on the same level can collaborate? Is there a culture where asking others for help is seen as an admission of failure or ignorance?

(From the article): Collaboration Barrier #3 – Not invented here syndrome

Siloes are a common feature of many workplaces. They could exist around functions or regions or even hierachies. It’s also increasingly common that these siloes are given a large degree of autonomy as to how they operate. Whether these barriers are physical or merely mental they are often extremely damaging to collaboration. For instance, do your senior managers accept ideas from those beneath them in the hierachy or is there a culture whereby only those on the same level can collaborate? Is there a culture where asking others for help is seen as an admission of failure or ignorance?

For organizations to prosper, leaders and employees need to seek help and information from people who have vastly different points of view. As Berkeley psychologist Charlan Nemeth sums up three decades of research: "Minority viewpoints are important, not because they tend to prevail but because they stimulate divergent attention and thought. As a result, even when they are wrong they contribute to the detection of novel solutions and decisions that, on balance, are qualitatively better."

Public speaking is persuading, after all. Vic

By 2020, millennials will comprise nearly half of the U.S. workforce.

Les jeunes ont la mobilité dans le sang ! Près des trois quarts (71%) des natifs de la « génération Z » (ou, "Millenial Workers", nés entre 1995 et 2000) souhaitent connaître une expérience professionnelle à l’international afin de développer leurs compétences. Les entreprises devraient donc préparer dès maintenant des « stratégies de mobilité des talents » (talent mobility strategies) pour soutenir l’attractivité de leur marque employeur. Elles devront se montrer pro-actives, agiles et capables de se réinventer constamment.

http://www.manpowergroup.fr/infographie-du-mercredi-mobilite-en-2020-un-marche-mondial-des-talents/

At some point each of us has the opportunity to lead. What are the principles that enable us to lead with the interests of others foremost in mind?

Whatever happened to leadership? Have all the great leaders gone from the world scene? Are leaders born, or do they emerge in appropriate circumstances?

True leadership is and always has been a selfless action. It involves taking yourself out of the picture and considering the needs of others. It is a way of thinking that takes other people into account even when your own needs are pressing.

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John Michel, experienced leader, humanitarian, visioneer, and renown status quo buster, is the author of the ground breaking book, Mediocre Me: How Saying No to the Status Quo will Propel you from Ordinary to Extraordinary. Check out his blog at www.MediocreMe.com or drop him a note at johnmichel@MediocreMe.com