Inspiring Leadership

Time and again this blog has stressed the importance of inspiring employees and modeling desired behavior. This week will focus specifically on helping others to become more leader-like. This is not to suggest that you’re going to look for your own replacement, or that you’re going to add more chefs to your kitchen. The idea here is that well-developed leadership skills can improve overall performance, giving you and your team a better chance of success.

While some of your employees are naturally stronger leaders than others, it’s up to you to identify and assess their leadership skills. Consider that employees who exhibit sound leadership skills have increased potential for being successful and productive – in other words, valuable team members. Having said that, it’s no mystery that it’s in your best interest to seek out, foster, and encourage the development of leadership skills and characteristics in your employees.

Regardless of how rough or polished your employees are when it comes to leadership, helping them to hone their skills can benefit you both. But where should you start? Take a look at each individual and identify his or her leadership strengths and weaknesses. Once you have some kind of a baseline, you can apply your efforts and energy towards the desired changes. While not everyone will be able to achieve the same levels of leadership skills, any improvement will be considered as a positive.

Keep in mind that while resources such as books and articles, seminars and workshops most definitely have their place, you must take an active role in this endeavor. Your efforts should extend beyond modeling behavior. Empower your employees. Encourage leadership by promoting taking initiative and support responsibility. Make available the required resources as well as your own time and attention when needed. Most importantly, keep at it. This kind of undertaking will require time, effort, and consistency.

Dealing with stress at work

Work can be stressful – especially during challenging economic times. Chances are that you and your employees are facing more pressure and more responsibilities. As a leader/manager it’s your duty to model desired behavior by demonstrating how to best deal with stress. If you’re reacting poorly and not handling your own stress properly, your employees will see that. Not only will it be unclear to them what is acceptable behavior for dealing with stress, they won’t have much of a reason to come to you for guidance regarding this issue. Why would they seek you out if you don’t handle your own stress effectively?

Whether you promote blowing off steam by engaging in physical activity, utilize laughter as your choice of medicine, or simply talk to someone to get things off your chest, having at least one way to reduce stress is key. Keep your own stress in check and feel confident that you’re modeling desired behavior to your employees. Of course, it may be a good idea for you to get involved in helping your employees deal with their own stress. Go beyond simply modeling behavior. Give them ideas. Give them tools. Whatever you do, be active in reducing your stress and help your employees reduce theirs.

It’s an employers’ market……now what?

Given the current state of global economy, we all know just how scarce jobs are. But what does that mean to an employer? More importantly, what does that mean to you as a leader/manager? One may assume that many employees are motivated to keep their existing jobs more than ever before. If yours is one of the few companies that are hiring, you probably have a much larger pool of candidates applying for jobs. So where does that leave you? The phrase “employers’ market” can sometimes give a false sense of security, suggesting that somehow your job is easier, but nothing could be further from the truth. An employers’ market doesn’t come with an endless supply of problem-free, super talented, unbelievably motivated employees.

Your new/current employees are probably quite happy to have a job. But what motivates them? If having a paycheck is the only reason someone shows up, you as their leader/manager have your work cut out for you. It’s much easier to lead and manage happy, involved, and motivated employees than it is to motivate people who are there simply because they have no other choice.

The bottom line for you as the leader/manager is that you can’t mistake the current economic state for a big advantage in your favor. It’s crucial that you continue to lead, manage, guide, support, inspire (etc, etc, etc.) like you would if it was an employees’ market. Bring out the best in your employees. Unite your team, and take advantage of the talent that’s available to you to get through these difficult times.

Micromanagement – the silent killer

You as a leader/manager have a great deal responsibilities. Most of those responsibilities simply come with the job title, while others are probably self-imposed. Combined, they add up to a lot of work. Any good leader/manager knows that he can’t get everything done by himself. That’s where employees come in – there to help you complete tasks and projects as you (and your department) move towards the multitude of goals.

One of the most important questions that you have to ask yourself periodically pertains to your management style. Each day and each project require your management skills. How good those skills and how well you manage others will have a tremendous impact on employees’ success (and consequently your success). Do you support and empower your people, trusting them to get their work done? Or do you mistrust and expect failure, constantly demanding to be in the midst of all they do? Are you a micromanager?

Micromanagement is not only a waste of time and energy, it creates a negative atmosphere by promoting mistrust and paranoia. If your team is filled with people who are not capable or trustworthy, you must seriously consider replacing such employees. However, if it’s nothing more than your nature (or your own paranoia) that drives you to constant checking up and questioning of your employees, your management is destructive in its nature.

Remember previous posts about self-fulfilling prophecies? We tend to get exactly what we expect. What do you expect from your employees? Do you treat them with respect, or mistrust and suspicion? Give your employees tasks and responsibilities. Provide them with support and resources. Make it clear that they should come to you if they have questions or issues. Then treat them like adults and professionals, and let them do their work.

Micromanagement can sneak up on anyone, so don’t let your guard down. It’s your job to constantly assess your own skills and performance, and make changes and adjustments as needed. Be involved and supportive, and be a great leader/manager.

The art of combining leadership and management

Everything discussed in these blogs comes down to one point – the idea of successfully combining leadership and management. It’s easy to get wrapped up in the daily responsibilities, issues, and surprises. We all have projects and deadlines, and most of us have someone above us to whom we have to answer. The current economic situation brought with it new challenges and new worries, further cementing our focus on daily organization.

While fewer in numbers, there are those who have the ability to focus solely on leadership. Although equally as important, leadership focus alone misses out on the absolutely crucial tasks often associated with daily operations of a business. Our goal then, as we work on improving ourselves as leader/managers, is to successfully combine the two, and designate our attention, efforts, and energy to both. It’s not an exact science and we have to be flexible. Focus has to vary according to need, situation, alignment of celestial bodies….etc. Your job as a successful leader/manager is to pay attention and know when to wear what hat. You must be able to not only assess the situation as it looks at the moment, but also to anticipate the future as much as possible.

Keep in mind that your journey’s focus should be on ongoing improvement. As we strive for excellence (not perfection), the journey has no real end. Instead, the achievement of each goal is but a stepping-stone as we move forward.

How good are your people skills?

Good people skills are a must to a successful leader/manager. Consider the wide range of (your) tasks that rely on your people skills:

1. Coaching and developing employees
2. Leading and inspiring employees
3. Encouraging and motivating employees
4. Supporting employees & peers
5. Setting an example/modeling desired behavior
6. Developing beneficial relationships
7. Utilizing available talent

These are just the tip of the iceberg. Surely, you can add to the above list.

When was the last time that you assessed your people skills? Do you know where to begin such an assessment? Think about you behavior around others. Are people open and trusting with you, or are they reserved and seem fearful/mistrustful of you? Are you available to others and willing to listen to them and answer their questions frankly and honestly? Such simple questions can provide a good appraisal of your people skills.

This kind of assessment is even more important during tough economic times. Do your employees know that you value and appreciate them? Are they stressed and stretched to the max? If so, do you encourage them to rest and re-charge? Are their talents aligned with their tasks and projects? Limited resources and reduced numbers of employees make it crucial for us to work efficiently and utilize the available talent to the max. This also means maximizing our own talents and focusing on self-improvement. Take the time to consider your people skills. No matter how good they may be, there’s always room for improvement. The better your people skills, the better your relationships, and ultimately the better the results of all of your efforts.

Who Leads the Leader?

As a leader/manager, it’s up to you to lead, inspire, and manage your employees. It’s also your responsibility to coach and develop them, and to help them grow. You may even become a mentor for some. But who guides and supports you? Do you have a mentor?

It’s very important that you as the leader/manager know when and how to recharge your batteries. It’s also important that you have your own support network. Ideally, this network should consist of a mentor whose knowledge and experience can guide and teach you, as well as peers who can share with you their own experiences as you support one another. If you don’t already have such a support network, or if your current network could use some bulking up, it’s well worth your time to devote your energy to such a task.

So, who’s a good mentor candidate? It could be a (current or former) teacher or supervisor, or someone you met through a business or social connection. A mentor tends to be someone older, someone who has more knowledge (or different knowledge base) and more experience than you, so that you can benefit from their experience. This person should be able to teach, guide, and nudge you to stretch and challenge yourself, but not make your decisions for you.

A network of peers can consist of colleagues, (current or former) fellow learners, friends, or business acquaintances. These should be people who face similar challenges and have relevant experiences, making sharing and supporting one another of benefit. Keep in mind that building a network of supportive peers will take time, and maintaining it will require your efforts and energy. However, if done well, it can pay off tremendously.

Take the time to examine your current support network. How solid and varied is this network. Does it need to be expanded and/or strengthened? Do you have a mentor? How effective is your support network and your mentor? Remember that change is part of life, so if your network isn’t working like it should, make the necessary changes. If your mentor no longer offers what you need, consider asking someone else to fill those shoes. In order to be the best leader/manager, you have to take care of yourself first.

Motivating Your Employees

How do YOU motivate your employees? Do you even know what motivates them? Different people are motivated by different things. Some people have a number of things that motivate them, while others focus on only one. The point is, it’s your job as a leader/manager to help your employees figure out what motivates them so that the two of you can use that knowledge to optimize the employee’s performance.

Why does any of this matter? Very simply, it matters because everything that we do – from the simplest to the most complex – we do for a reason. This means everything at work as well as everything outside of work. So how do you figure out what motivates others? It’s simple – take the time to talk to your people. This is why it’s so important to coach and develop your employees. It doesn’t mean hours of one-on-one. Ten to fifteen minutes will be plenty of time.

Keep in mind that some employees may not even completely understand what it is that truly motivates them. This is a perfect opportunity to help them figure it out. Once you know what motivates an employee, the two of you can formulate a plan that will optimize his performance and increase his satisfaction. Understanding what motivates someone allows you to offer to him the most effective kinds of rewards. While for some motivation will come in the form of a paycheck, others look for personal satisfaction of a job well done or the recognition of others. Pay attention to what each employee is saying to you, and remember that you may have to read between the lines to hear the real message.

The Art of Listening

How good a listener are you? If you’re the boss, you may be thinking that others are supposed to listen to you, right? Well sure, but that’s only part of the equation. How important is it that you listen and do it well? As a leader/manager, you have the great responsibility of not only listening, but also actually hearing others. This may mean listening to your employees, your colleagues, your supervisor, and your customers. It means hearing the words, the messages, and any hidden meanings.

Being a good listener can benefit you in so many ways. Listening to others can provide you with the opportunity to receive valuable feedback and great ideas. It can also invite others to share with you promoting open communications and the exchange of ideas. As a good listener you will model the way and set a good example for others.

While at a first glance listening may not seem as important as the mountain of other responsibilities that you face each day, it can prove to be detrimental if neglected. There’s an old adage that tells us that having two ears and one mouth means that we should listen trice as much as we speak. Clearly there’s a great deal of wisdom in those words.

So how good a listener are you? Take some time this week to consider your listening style, habits, and effectiveness.

Modeling the Way

In the past this blog has addressed the importance of modeling the way. As a leader/manager, you have the tremendous responsibility to show people how you want them to work and behave – so much so, that it’s worth bringing up again. The old do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do may work some of the time with some people, but it’s not very effective for long-term success. Consider how you feel when someone expects one thing from you, and does something else. When you behave in this way, you give your employees reason to doubt your leadership abilities, and maybe even resent you.

Take time this week to consider how you measure up. Dedicate a couple of minutes at the end of each day to review what behavior you have modeled (and therefore inspired) for that day. Is yours the do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do approach? How effective has that proven thus far? Although it may seem like the easier way to go, it’s not a leader’s way. All of the day’s responsibilities can be tiring enough to tempt taking an easier way out, but your desire for long terms success should take it off your list of options. Leaders are not dictators or tyrants. They do not bring fear and resentment, but rather inspire all of those positive things that bring victory and success for the team and/or company. So if you want your employees to know that you expect hard work, or positive attitude, or team players, tell them, but also show them exactly that by modeling those things with your own behavior. It’s up to you as the leader/manager to model the desired behavior, and therefore model the way.