I probably shouldn’t say this, but I do get tired of having managers ask, how to get workers to think/do/work “outside-the-box.”
For decades they’ve been exploring a plethora of business books, articles, seminars, coaching, consulting, discussions, etc., on the subject—some good, some not so good—and are still searching for how to lead their workers out of that dreaded box.
I hear, “How do we get the team to think differently?” “What incentives work best?” “How do we engage our people?”
What I don’t hear is “What do I need to change in me [to make it happen]?”
What annoys is the assumption that the …read more

What do you think about slogans? Do they resonate with you or do you just shrug them off?
The subject came up when a client asked me whether it was worth the effort of finding an effective slogan for a new program at his company; he said the idea surfaced because of the success of President Obama’s “Yes we can” during the last election.
Our conversation reminded me of an article last year about the futility of slogans in today’s world by Dan and Chip Heath, co-authors of Made to Stick.
Now, Made to Stick has some great stuff in it and they …read more

What do you do when you are booted out of your business leadership position? Go into politics, of course.
Carly Fiorina, Hewlett-Packard’s ex (to the great relief of people both internal and external) CEO is the latest to throw her hat in the ring, touting her corporate problem-solving skills; problem-making is more accurate.
So what do you do when you are booted out of your political position (or your term expires)? Go on the speaking circuit.
I realize that I may offend some of my readers, but to learn that George W. Bush is being paid $100K to speak for 40 minutes ($2500 …read more

You’ve heard of Cesar Millan, the “Dog Whisperer,” but the item in the article that grabbed me was a quote from another article by Malcom Gladwell in the New Yorker article that “quoted scientists and dance experts analyzing how Mr. Millan’s bearing instills confidence. The conclusion: his fluid movement communicates authenticity better than words could.”
Sadly, the authenticity conveyed by the fluid movements of Jeff Skilling, Bernie Madoff and a host of recent “leaders” proves that authenticity isn’t always the best yardstick.
People are much like dogs, although the words used to describe their reactions are different.
We talk about dogs and other …read more

When you’re the leader, the person out front, you need to motivate and to achieve a commitment from your people you need more than a vision—your people need to know that they matter and that you believe in them. And they need to know before the fact—you can’t wait until they prove themselves by their actions. You need to trust them before they will trust you; the ball always starts in your court.
The US Navel Academy prides itself on teaching leadership, but the students you’ll see in this video haven’t realized yet that what they learn in class needs …read more

Every manager loves the folks who come to work champing at the bit, raring to go and bust their butt all day long. They love to talk about the high level of engagement their team has and brag about their productivity and innovative ideas.
If you want a group like this then make no mistake, It’s your responsibility to engender that attitude, i.e., engage them.
It’s not going to happen by accident and you can’t order your people be engaged.
Engagement happens because you, and hopefully your company are engaging.
This isn’t doubletalk or smoke, think about it. Think about what engages you.

The guideline …read more

I read a great description of politics in You Run, a short story by Sarah Shankman, “politics is one long power plan; an exercise in ego”. That seems to be a good description of what leadership is to many people.
It certainly describes the MAP so prevalent in the business scandals of the last two decades, as well as that of the titans of Wall Street who contributed so heavily to the current economic mess.
It’s also a major characteristic of the more mundane populace in general, as witnessed on social media platforms.

The foremost cyber-goal is to …read more

“The real character of the person can be known by what he does when nobody is watching. … Feudal culture is one where there is one set of rules for the king and another set of rules for the rest of the people. … What we are seeing is not the failure of entrepreneurship. It is the greed, ego and vanity of some super managers of some large corporations. That is not the essence of capitalism. Capitalism is all about creating an environment where individuals can leverage their innovation and their entrepreneurial abilities to create better and better opportunities.” –N.R. …read more

Engagement is a hot topic, especially now, but it isn’t a new one—think buy-in, ownership, commitment, involvement, etc.
The term may change, but the behavior has been consistently on management’s radar for decades.
Whereas the way to achieve it is as old as humanity.
Disengagement is costly, “Gallup estimates it costs the US economy about $300bn a year and that 17 per cent of employees are “actively” disengaged. These employees each cost their employers $13,000 a year in lost productivity.”
But, as any successful manager knows, engagement is as simple as 1, 2, 3—4.
The Big 4 are

respect;
encouragement;
support; and
rewards.

It’s not as if this is secret …read more