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The 50+ articles in this section help you develop your leadership
skills, so that you can become an exceptional leader.
Start by taking our short quiz to test your leadership skills. Then
firm up on the leadership basics, explore the different
approaches to leadership that you can use, and find out why
emotional intelligence is so important in leadership.
The Browse by Category box will help you target specific leadership
skills, while you can look through the list below to find interesting
topics. Enjoy these articles!
Browse by Category
Understanding Power
Becoming a Leader
Leadership Styles
Emotional Intelligence
Further Resources
Bite-Sized Training
Book Insights
Learning Streams
Expert Interviews
Introduction
What is Leadership?
General Leadership
Core Leadership Theories
Learning the Foundations of Leadership
Authentic Leadership
Being a Leader People Want to Follow
Ethical Leadership
Doing the Right Thing
Understanding Power
French and Raven's Five Forms of Power
Understanding Where Power Comes From in the
Workplace
Winning Expert Power
Lead From the Front
Leadership Styles
Leadership Styles
Choosing the Right Approach for the Situation
Path-Goal Theory
Discovering the Best Leadership Style
Transformational Leadership
Becoming an Inspiring Leader
Developing Self-Awareness
Learning "Mindfulness"
Optimism
The Hidden Asset
Humility
The Most Beautiful Word in the English Language
Leading by Example
Making Sure You "Walk the Talk"
A Leader's Mood
The Dimmer Switch of Performance
A Bit of Perfume
Giving Praise
Degrees of Giving
Leading with Generosity
Becoming a Leader
10 Common Leadership and Management
Mistakes
Avoiding Universal Pitfalls
Leading Equals
Motivating People Effectively, Without Authority
Level 5 Leadership
Achieving "Greatness" as a Leader
Contingency Planning
Developing a Good 'Plan B'
Bite-Sized Training
Building Expert Power
Building Influence
Scenario Training
Learning Streams
Mindset for Success
Lead Now!
Book Insights
The 100-Mile Walk, by Sander and Jonathan Flaum
What Happy Companies Know, by Dan Baker, Cathy
Greenberg, and Collins Hemmingway
Revved! and Monday Morning Mentoring
Know-How, by Ram Charan
The Effective Executive, by Peter Drucker
If Harry Potter Ran General Electric, by Tom Morris
Think Big, Act Small, by Jason Jennings
Influencer, by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, David Maxfield,
Ron McMillan, and Al Switzler
How to Win Friends and Influence People, by Dale Carnegie
Results That Last, by Quint Studer
Myself and Other More Important Matters, by Charles Handy
Judgement: How winning leaders make great calls, by Noel M
Tichy and Warren G Bennis
The Turnaround Kid, by Steve Miller
Energy Leadership, by Bruce D Schneider
Followership, by Barbara Kellerman
Leadership Therapy, by Anna Rowley
The Audacity of Hope, by Barack Obama
Leading With Kindness, by William F. Baker and Michael
O'Malley
Collaboration: How Leaders Avoid the Traps, Create Unity, and
Reap Big Rewards, by Morten T Hansen
Multipliers: How the Best Leaders Make Everyone Smarter, by
Liz Wiseman and Greg McKeown
Talent Is Overrated, by Geoff Colvin
Emotionomics, by Dan Hill
The Snowball, by Alice Schroeder
Business Stripped Bare, by Richard Branson
Strengths Based Leadership, by Tom Rath and Barry Conchie
Expert Interviews
Leading People Through Disasters, with Kathy McKee
High Impact Non-Profit Organizations, with Heather McLeod
Grant
What Men Don't Tell Women About Business, with Chris Flett
The Leader as a Mensch, with Bruna Martinuzzi
Corporate Social Responsibility, with Andrew Crane
Be a Better Leader, Have a Richer Life, with Stew Friedman
Learning Business from McDonald's, with Paul Facella
Grown Up Digital, with Don Tapscott
The Leadership Code, with Kate Sweetman
The Introverted Leader, with Jennifer Kahnweiler
Fierce Leadership, with Susan Scott
Employees First, Customers Second, with Vineet Nayar
Open Leadership, with Charlene Li
Buy-In, with John Kotter
Strategic Leadership, with John Adair
The Power of Positive Deviance, with Richard Pascale
Better Under Pressure, with Justin Menkes
The Charisma Myth, with Olivia Fox Cabane
Leadership Isn't for Cowards, with Mike Staver
The Outsiders, with Will Thorndike
Heart, Smarts, Guts, and Luck, With Tony Tjan
The First 90 Days, With Michael Watkins
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iStockphoto/Laflor
In this article, we're looking at
10 of the most common
leadership and management errors, and highlighting what you can do
to avoid them.
If you can learn about these here, rather than through experience,
you'll save yourself a lot of trouble!
1. Lack of Feedback
Sarah is a talented sales representative, but she has a habit of
answering the phone in an unprofessional manner. Her boss is aware
of this, but he's waiting for her performance review to tell her where
she's going wrong. Unfortunately, until she's been alerted to the
problem, she'll continue putting off potential customers.
According to 1,400 executives polled by The Ken Blanchard
Companies, failing to provide feedback is the most common mistake
that leaders make. When you don't provide prompt feedback to your
people, you're depriving them of the opportunity to improve their
performance.
To avoid this mistake, learn how to provide regular feedback to
your team. (You can use our Bite-Sized Training session on Giving
Feedback to gain an in-depth understanding of feedback, and to
learn how to provide it effectively.)
will help
6. Misunderstanding Motivation
Do you know what truly motivates your team? Here's a hint: chances
are, it's not just money!
Many leaders make the mistake of assuming that their team is only
working for monetary reward. However, it's unlikely that this will be
the only thing that motivates them.
For example, people seeking a greater work/life balance might be
motivated by telecommuting days or flexible working. Others will be
motivated by factors such as achievement, extra responsibility,
praise, or a sense of camaraderie.
To find out what truly drives your people, read our articles on
McClelland's Human Motivation Theory
and Theory X and
Theory Y . Then, take our test "How Good Are Your Motivation
Skills?" to learn how to be a great motivator of people.
7. Hurrying Recruitment
When your team has a large workload, it's important to have enough
people "on board" to cope with it. But filling a vacant role too quickly
can be a disastrous mistake.
Hurrying recruitment can lead to recruiting the wrong people for your
team: people who are uncooperative, ineffective or unproductive.
They might also require additional training, and slow down others on
your team. With the wrong person, you'll have wasted valuable time
and resources if things don't work out and they leave. What's worse,
other team members will be stressed and frustrated by having to
"carry" the under-performer.
You can avoid this mistake by learning how to recruit effectively ,
and by being particularly picky about the people you bring into your
team.
9. Not Delegating
Some managers don't delegate, because they feel that no-one apart
from themselves can do key jobs properly. This can cause huge
Key Points
We all make mistakes, and there are some mistakes that leaders
and managers make in particular. These include not giving good
feedback, being too "hands-off," not delegating effectively, and
misunderstanding your role.
It's true that making a mistake can be a learning opportunity. But,
taking the time to learn how to recognize and avoid common
mistakes can help you become productive and successful, and
highly respected by your team.
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A Bit of Perfume
Giving Praise
"To see things in the seed, that
is genius", said Lao-tzu,
Chinese philosopher. This is
what we now refer to as
Appreciative Intelligence, a
term coined by Tojo
Thatchenkery to describe the
capacity by certain individuals
to see the positive inherent
potential of situations or people
it is the ability to see a
iStockphoto/DamirK
breakthrough product, top
talent, or valuable solution of
the future that is not readily visible in the present situation. In short, it
is the ability to see the mighty oak in the acorn.
The term originated when the author began studying the explosive
entrepreneurial growth in Silicon Valley in the late 1990s. According to
the author, it is appreciative intelligence that allowed, partly, for so
many highly talented immigrants from different countries to assemble
in the area and flourish. As the author puts it, venture capitalists
looking to fund the right ideas were asking the question, "How can I
make this work?" as opposed to "What are the chances this idea will
fail?" They created an environment of high anticipation of positive
results which became a contagious fever of opportunity,
achievement, resilience and possibility recognition. (Appreciative
intelligence is not to be confused with appreciative inquiry, which is
an approach and methodology for analyzing organizations).
Appreciative intelligence is a mental ability of individuals who have a
knack for reframing situations (the glass half full/half empty) and a
keen eye for spotting what's valuable and positive in a situation or in
people. And these individuals go one step further: they are able to
envision how the positive aspects can be used to create a better
future. Combining the two in an organization, i.e. a leader with
appreciative intelligence using an appreciative inquiry approach,
constitutes a powerful force indeed for effecting positive change and
inspiring others to give the very best they have to offer. Imagine if all
leaders in an organization proactively and mindfully practiced
appreciative intelligence. Imagine the profound, healthy impact that
this would have on an organization's culture.
Such a culture would fuel employees' motivation. Surveys of what
employees want consistently rank "appreciation for work well done"
high up on the motivation index well above "good wages". Ironically,
managers often place good wages above appreciation in their
responses of what employees want. Other surveys show that one of
the reasons employees leave companies is because of lack of praise
and recognition. Leaders often talk of the challenge of building trust
in their organization. Adele B. Lynn's study on trust in the workplace
shows that 54% of those polled would work for less remuneration if
the following trust building factors were present:
1. Importance: giving people a sense of importance about who
they are and about their role in the organization;
2. Touch: feeling that the leader genuinely cares about them,
feeling a connection with the leader;
3. Gratitude: being appreciated for their contributions and
sacrifices; receiving genuine gratitude;
4. Fairness: knowing that leaders ensure equal and fair distribution
of rewards.
Recognition and praise are indeed high octane fuel for the soul. When
we receive a genuine compliment, we experience an inner glow it's
a warm, magical feeling that makes us break into a smile. It makes us
want to go the extra mile for the person who bestowed the sincere
compliment. If this were not important to us, we would not be
treasuring all of the mementos of awards, plaques, appreciative notes
and emails, and other tokens of appreciation that we receive over the
years.
But intuitively, we all know that genuine appreciation is a key factor in
our relationship with our constituents, and any basic management
course will touch on the value of praising employees for their
contributions. Yet many well-meaning and otherwise caring leaders
are reluctant to express their appreciation of others' talents and
contributions.
Many years ago, I worked for a great leader, one who genuinely cared
for his constituents, and who confided in me one day that he found
expressing praise a very difficult thing to do publicly and even
harder, privately. I asked him why that is. He said, "I grew up in a
household where praising was not something we did." There is a
profound implication in this statement. Our families are our first
corporations that's where we learned many of our behaviors, and it
is often difficult to break these ingrained patterns. Withholding praise,
however, is a pattern of behavior that we need to unlearn if we want
to bring the best out in people. We need to get over the
embarrassment that grips some of us when we have to praise an
individual.
Here are some pointers for practicing this important skill:
1. If you have difficulty praising others, analyze the root causes of
this. If it is a fear of embarrassing others, know that even the
most introverted individuals who shun public praise enjoy
reading an email to all staff about their contributions. If it is a
discomfort at not knowing how to do it, read the few simple rules
below and consider working with a coach for one or two sessions
on this most important aspect of a leader's communication
repertoire. Self-awareness precedes self-management.
2. Sometimes, withholding praise is simply due to a lack of time for
leaders who are required to handle an ever increasing number of
issues during the course of a harried day. If this is your challenge,
I encourage you to reframe how you view this particular issue.
Showing your people you care about them needs to move up on
the list of items in your "to do" list. It takes less than 10 seconds
to say, "I appreciate the time and thought you put into this
report. It is exceptional. Thank you."
3. Praise has a limited "best before" date. Don't delay its expression
or wait until performance review time when you see something
that is worthy of praising, do so promptly after the event.
4. Make your genuine words memorable for your constituents by
being specific about the achievement. Not many of us remember
the perfunctory "job well done", but we all would remember
someone who tells us "This was pure genius," or "I would have
missed this if you hadn't picked it up." The praise does not have
to be elaborate. It just needs to be genuine.
5. When you drop by an employee's office or cubicle to deliver the
praise, don't follow that with a conversation about business
matters or other projects. Deliver the praise and leave. Come
back later for discussions on other matters. This gives the praise
its moment of honor and heightens its value in the eyes of the
recipient.
6. A primer for rewarding and recognizing others is Jim Kouzes' and
Barry Posner's Encouraging the Heart: A Leader's Guide to
Rewarding and Recognizing Others. The book provides 150 ways
to encourage the heart. Another useful book is Steven Kerr's
Ultimate Rewards: What Really Motivates People to Achieve
(Harvard Business Review Book Series). The book outlines many
different sources of motivation including accountability,
responsibility, organizational culture, coaching, teamwork,
incentives and goal setting.
7. Finally, how can you apply the dynamic concept of appreciative
intelligence on yourself? What are your talents? Practicing
appreciating our talents and gifts opens us up to appreciating
others' greatness.
Perhaps the ultimate appreciation is letting people know that their
work no matter how far removed they are from the top of the
pyramid is important to the organization. It's about making
everyone feel like an owner and helping them understand how their
work contributes to the overall purpose of the company. It's about
practicing seeing more people. Excellence involves everyone.
There is another lovely Chinese quote that says, "A bit of perfume
always clings to the hand that gives roses." As leaders, when we
make people feel great about themselves, paradoxically we elevate
ourselves to greatness as well.
Copyright 2006-2013 Bruna Martinuzzi. All Rights Reserved.
This article is adapted from Bruna Martinuzzis book: The Leader as
a Mensch: Become the Kind of Person Others Want to Follow.
Bruna is an educator, author, speaker and founder of Clarion
Enterprises Ltd, a company which specializes in emotional
intelligence, leadership, Myers-Briggs and presentation skills training.
Click here to contact her or visit her website at
www.increaseyoureq.com. Click here for other articles by Bruna.
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You also know that, under your predecessor, several of the team were
struggling, so you devote a lot of your time to coaching these
individuals.
This seems to be working well, with the team members concerned
growing in confidence as a result of your hard work. But after a few
weeks, your start to realize that things are going badly wrong in other
areas.
The group isn't working cohesively as a whole, and an unpleasant
blame culture has sprung up amongst several team members. And an
important deadline is missed. You've been so busy coaching people
that you didn't see these things till it was too late.
Managing a team is very much like juggling several balls at once.
Drop one ball, and it spoils the whole pattern.
Unfortunately, this is an easy mistake for managers to make, as they
spend too much time on one responsibility at the expense of others
that are just as important. This is where a management model like
Action Centered Leadership helps you monitor the balance between
the key areas for which you're responsible, helping you avoid
dropping any balls along the way.
In this article we'll look at what Action Centered Leadership is, and
we'll explore how you can use it with your team.
Team: Developing and building your team, so that it's ever more
effective.
Individual: Helping individuals develop their full potential in the
workplace.
These areas are represented by the three interlocking circles, as
shown in Figure 1 below.
The model states that leaders must balance the actions they take
across all three key areas if they want their group to succeed. The
areas are interdependent; if a leader focuses too much on one area
and neglects the other two, then the group will experience problems.
Tip:
Although Figure 1 shows all of the circles as being the same size,
this doesn't mean that leaders should always divide up their effort
across these areas equally. Rather, the most appropriate balance
varies according to the situation, and over time.
The shaded areas in Figure 1 show where one element relies on one
or both of the others for success.
Here is an example that illustrates this interdependency:
Imagine your team is working well together, and everyone has the
skills to accomplish the final goal. However, there's one team
member who isn't carrying his share of the load. He's lacking
motivation, and missing deadlines. The entire group's morale starts to
suffer because this one member is dragging their productivity down,
and the team misses its deadline because he hasn't finished his work.
Here, issues with the individual are negatively affecting the task as
well as the team.
Alternatively, imagine what would happen if you didn't articulate your
team's goal properly. Everyone may have great individual skills, and
people may work really well together, but because no one is sure
what they should be trying to achieve, progress isn't being made
towards your goal.
In this example, both the individual and the team needs are being
met, but task needs are being ignored. Because the group isn't sure
how to accomplish their task, they're headed towards failure.
Task
Identify the purpose of the team, and communicate that purpose
to all members.
Clearly state the final goal of the team.
Make sure everyone understands the resources, people, and
processes that they should be using.
Establish deadlines for project tasks, and explain the quality
standards you're expecting.
Create a detailed plan for how the team is going to reach their
final goal.
Group
Identify the style the group will be working in (very formal,
relaxed, etc.)
Make sure that everyone has the skills and training to accomplish
the final goal.
If your team will be working in smaller groups, appoint a leader
for each group, and make sure that he or she is effective and
properly trained.
Monitor team relationships, and resolve conflicts where
necessary.
Work on keeping the group motivated, and morale high.
Give regular feedback on the team's performance.
Individual
Make sure that you spend some one on one time with each
member of your team for assessment: identify their strengths
and weaknesses, their needs, and any special skills they can
bring to the team.
Make sure each group member has the skills to perform his or
her role successfully.
Appropriately praise and reward individual team members for
their contribution.
Help define each individual's role, and agree the tasks they're
responsible for.
If any team members seem to be lagging behind, coach them
until they're back on track.
If you'd like to learn more about your leadership style and how you
can apply it to the Action Centered Leadership model, you can
purchase ACL tests from John Adair's website.
Key Points
Leaders have many responsibilities when it comes to managing
their teams. And, it's easy to get so focused on one area that the
others slip by the wayside, leading to an unbalanced, poorlyfunctioning group.
Using a tool like Action Centered Leadership can help any leader
stay on top of the most important responsibilities, and keep the
group working efficiently, happily, and productively.
Action Centered Leadership, the Three Circles and Three Rings are
all trademarks used by John Adair and Adair International Ltd.
ACL is a registered trademark belonging to John Adair, and the model
is re-produced here with the kind permission of John Adair and Adair
International Ltd.
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Hi
I want to add.
The manager needs to consider all objectives and motivations.
The manger could consider his or her development at this time
too if the time could be used for development.
This could be time to consider the motivations and interactions of
the team, but assess it for the situation if these are altered trying
out different methods.
Bigk
August 8, 2009
bigk wrote
Hi
The tool suggests that these three areas be developed
simultaneously and that the overlap could be separated to allow
the manager to develop the areas separately so he or she could
focus on when to change the balance of time or action in each
area.
This would allow the manager to view the areas as an item in their
own right and adjust any issue to fit the task to be delivered.
It needs balancing to succeed.
This requires using the action management to get an
understanding of time and effort commitments.
From here the manager can assess what needs developed as an
immediate action.
This could be an opportunity to develop the needs of the team
and also the manager. I see a potential issue for the manager
when he or she then has little time for their own development.
However if the results and the team are of immediate importance
then the manager could get refreshed skills after providing for the
team.
But they must remember not to overlook their own skills need.
Maybe this could be factored into the team needs.
Bigk
August 7, 2009
A Leader's Mood
The Dimmer Switch of Performance
In response to a discussion on
the effect of a leader's mood on
the performance of a team, a
participant in a recent
leadership workshop made this
heartfelt and realistic remark: "I
cannot see how I am expected
to be in a good mood for four
quarters in a row."
The point is well taken. But can
you afford, as a leader, to even
entertain this thought?
iStockphoto/creacart
Afterglow or Aftermath?
Witness the number of times you may have driven home with an
internal glow, reliving a positive encounter with an upbeat and
supportive boss, perhaps savoring a "bon mot" about your
performance that he or she left with you on a Friday afternoon. How
great it made you feel, and how eager you were to get out of bed on
the following Monday morning, and get back to the office to give that
man or woman the very best that you had to offer. That's the
"afterglow" that lingers and gives you renewed energy to be more
productive, to bring your finest talents to work.
And think about the reverse of the afterglow the aftermath, or bitter
aftertaste. This is what Susan Scott, in Fierce Conversations:
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Anyway, the meeting didn't really end on a high note as she got
very defensive. My colleague and I thought we would raise it with
the big boss, that we have difficulty in establishing clear roles and
responsibilities. But, what had happened was - our supervisor
went to the big boss and laid a formal complaint about my
colleague!! There were no grounds for that, I was there the whole
time! What sort of manager does that! Consequently we were
interviewed separately and I made it quite clear that I have never
encountered a manager who, rather than try and address any
conflict directly with the person, would lay a complaint against
one of their staff.
To be honest, I don't think I can work with someone who I can't
trust. She brought up things from the past that neither my
colleague or I had any idea she had any 'issue' with. So from now,
how comfortable would I be raising things with her, and not
knowing whether there would be a complaint laid against me in
the future.
I have told senior management this, and I am hoping that they
have taken it on board. Unfortunately there are a lot of managers
here who have little idea of good management practices, but I
think I have given them some tips. Especially around process for
formal complaints.
We shall see.
Lulu
August 12, 2007
MichaelP wrote
Great article, insightful and well presented.
What continues to amaze me is how often the 'leaders' don't
realize how significantly their behavior good or bad effects the
organization. The boss shouts so everyone keeps out of the way
and limits communication and then its all their fault for not
communicating....
All employees should choose their Boss and in my opinion the
organizations would be better for it. That's how we run countries!
August 10, 2007
Yolande wrote
What a brilliant article!
I once worked in an organisation where the MD had bad outbursts
from time to time, but on the whole he was a very likeable person.
Yet, the staff morale was slowly deteriorating - due to their fear
and their feeling that especially on "those" days, he would only
see everything they did wrong. It has not yet improved; I am sad
to say that it is not going well with that business. And
unfortunately, he has successfully managed to teach his
Authentic Leadership
Becoming a Leader People Want to Follow
You may have heard of
"authentic leadership." Books,
leadership courses, and even
businesses have been built
around this idea. But it's often
easier to identify authentic
leaders than it is to define what
makes them that way.
What do the words "authentic
leader" actually mean? What
truly makes one, and why is it
worth the effort to become
one?
They have integrity and firm moral codes, and they manage to stay
sensible and stable even during the most difficult times.
Ethics
Authentic leaders are ethical leaders. They've identified their ethical
codes, and they never compromise on what they believe to be right
and wrong.
If you'd like some help identifying your own ethics and values, our
article Ethical Leadership is a great starting point; and our Book
Insight into "Winners Never Cheat" by Jon Huntsman reviews a
book that shows why being ethical matters so very much.
Power
All leaders have power. But authentic leaders know how to use the
right kind of power for the good of the group, and for the goal that
needs to be achieved.
There are several different kinds of power. One type is expert power.
As a leader with this, you're an expert at what you do, and your team
looks up to you because of that. Learn how to build and use this type
of power with our article on Expert Power .
Authentic leaders use the power of example. When leaders do as they
say, they gain the respect and admiration of their teams. Learn more
about this in our Leading by Example article.
Authentic leaders don't simply know what type of power to use in a
given situation. They also understand power where it comes from,
and how to use it to get things done. Our article on French and
Raven's Five Forms of Power can help you understand the many
different types of power in the workplace, and helps you use the good
forms and avoid the bad.
Communication
Authentic leaders are excellent communicators. And they use a
number of different communication strategies to pass along their
values, inspire their teams, and give clear commands.
They'll often use storytelling as an effective way of communicating an
important message. Stories may inspire a team to work harder and,
when done right, stories can change an entire corporate culture by
creating "legends". Our article Business Storytelling will show
you how to start telling great stories to your team.
The Organization
We've probably all seen leaders who look out for themselves, instead
of the organization and the people they're leading. Authentic leaders,
however, never forget that they have an enormous responsibility.
They put their companies and their people first.
A leader's goals should be aligned with company goals. When these
two areas are not aligned, the focus becomes divided. Learn more
about aligning your goals with your organization's goals in our article
on Management By Objectives .
Authentic leaders also know what truly drives their companies and
their teams. Why is this important? Well, if you don't know the drivers
that are key to performance, then you'll probably never find out
what's wrong when your company or team isn't "working." The
Congruence Model will help you discover the four key
components of your organization, and it will teach you how to make
sure they're aligned for success.
Read Bruna Martinuzzi's article The Talisman of Leadership
Authenticity for a related discussion of authentic leadership,
based on emotional intelligence.
Key Points
Authentic leadership involves a lot of different things. And
developing the skills and characteristics needed should be an
evolving journey, not a final destination.
These leaders are often easier to recognize than define, but they
all have a few traits in common. They know themselves well, and
they never allow someone else to cause them to break their
"moral codes." They put their companies and their teams first,
they're excellent communicators, and they know how to use the
right kind of power for the right situation.
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Dianna wrote
This message can't be repeated often enough!! It's essential to
monitor and develop our emotional intelligence - I'm convinced
it's a critical factor in moving from a good leader to a great one.
Dianna
December 15, 2009
winneyn wrote
A very timely article. So many managers think that capitulation is
a show of weakness. But a moments pause to determine if this is
a battle worth fighting, will show others that you are studied and
controlled in your responses. The workplace is no place for the
dramatic.
December 15, 2009
The first step is fairly obvious (if time consuming) build expertise
. And, if you are already using tools like the information gathering
tool , chances are that you have already progressed well ahead in
this direction.
But just being an expert isn't enough, it is also necessary for your
team members to recognize your expertise and see you to be a
credible source of information and advice. Gary A. Yukl, in his book
"Leadership in Organizations," details some steps to build expert
power. These are:
Promote an image of expertise: Since perceived expertise in
many occupations is associated with a person's education and
experience, a leader should (subtly) make sure that subordinates,
peers, and superiors are aware of his or her formal education,
relevant work experience, and significant accomplishments.
One common tactic to make this information known is to display
diplomas, licenses, awards, and other evidence of expertise in a
prominent location in one's office after all, if you've worked
hard to gain knowledge, it's fair that you get credit for it. Another
tactic is to make subtle references to prior education or
experience (e.g., "When I was chief engineer at GE, we had a
problem similar to this one"). Beware, however, this tactic can
easily be overdone.
Maintain credibility: Once established, one's image of
expertise should be carefully protected. The leader should avoid
making careless comments about subjects on which he or she is
poorly informed, and should avoid being associated with projects
with a low likelihood of success.
Act confidently and decisively in a crisis: In a crisis or
emergency, subordinates prefer a "take charge" leader who
appears to know how to direct the group in coping with the
problem. In this kind of situation, subordinates tend to associate
confident, firm leadership with expert knowledge. Even if the
leader is not sure of the best way to deal with a crisis, to express
doubts or appear confused risks the loss of influence over
subordinates.
Keep informed: Expert power is exercised through rational
persuasion and demonstration of expertise. Rational persuasion
depends on a firm grasp of up-to-date facts. It is therefore
essential for a leader to keep well-informed of developments
within the team, within the organization, and in the outside
world.
Recognize subordinate concerns: Use of rational persuasion
should not be seen as a form of one-way communication from the
leader to subordinates. Effective leaders listen carefully to the
concerns and uncertainties of their team members, and make
sure that they address these.
Avoid threatening the self-esteem of subordinates: Expert
power is based on a knowledge differential between leader and
team members. Unfortunately, the very existence of such a
differential can cause problems if the leader is not careful about
the way he exercises expert power.
Team members can dislike unfavorable status comparisons where
the gap is very large and obvious. They are likely to be upset by
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Regards
Yoland
August 12, 2008
Leadership Theories
There are many theories of leadership:
The "great man" theory claims that leaders are born, not
made.
By contrast, behavioral theory says that leadership skills can
be learned.
Trait theory argues that leaders have a certain combination of
natural, instinctive characteristics or traits.
Situational theories tell us that the different leadership
styles each have appropriate uses in different situations.
At Mind Tools, we believe that leadership skills can be developed and
learned, and we also believe that, in business, the right kind of
leadership is most often "transformational leadership". A
transformational leader is someone who can create an inspiring vision
of the future, motivate people to achieve it, manage the
implementation of that vision, and build a team capable of meeting
the next challenge even more effectively.
A lot of this goes on within a potential leader's mind, however, as
someone seeking to nurture leaders, you can learn to recognize the
traits shown by these people. By watching out for these traits, you
can see that the person you're watching is thinking in the right way.
So, while almost everyone can develop leadership qualities, some
may already be more advanced in their ability to do well in leadership
roles. The observable behaviors listed below show this high potential.
Look for these personal attributes in others. and develop them in
yourself.
Key Points
Leaders are needed throughout a company, and it's wise to
identify those people who show promising leadership skills.
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Contingency Planning
Developing a Good 'Plan B'
Fires, floods, tornadoes these
are things that we often
connect with contingency
planning.
But what if your main supplier
suddenly goes bankrupt?
Or, your entire sales force gets
food poisoning at the annual
sales conference?
Or, your payroll clerk calls in
sick on payroll day?
These things can all cause confusion and disorder if you haven't
prepared for them properly. Contingency planning is a key part of this
preparation.
As you can see, contingency planning is not just about major
disasters. On a smaller scale, it's about preparing for events such as
the loss of data, people, customers, and suppliers, and other
disruptive unknowns. That's why it's important to make contingency
planning a normal part of the way your business works.
Risk Assessment
The need for contingency planning emerges from a thorough analysis
of the risks that your organization faces. It's also useful in thinking
about new and ongoing projects: what happens when 'Plan A' doesn't
go as expected? Sometimes Plan A simply means 'business as usual.'
Other times, with more sophisticated risk management plans, Plan A
is your first response to deal with an identified risk and when Plan A
doesn't work, you use your contingency plan.
Use these principles in your risk assessment process:
Address all business-critical operations A good plan
identifies all critical business functions, and it outlines ways to
minimize losses.
Identify risks For each of these functions, conduct a Risk
Analysis to identify the various risks that your business may
face. What has the potential to significantly disrupt or harm your
business?
The end result of a risk analysis is usually a huge list of potential
threats: if you try to produce a contingency plan for each, you
may be overwhelmed. This is why you must prioritize.
Prioritizing risks One of the greatest challenges of
contingency planning is making sure you don't plan too much.
You need a careful balance between over-preparing for
something that may never happen, and adequate preparation, so
Key Points
Contingency planning is ignored in many companies. Day-to-day
operations are demanding, and the probability of a significant
business disruption is small, so it's hard to make time to prepare a
good plan.
However, if you're proactive in the short term, you'll help ensure a
quicker and more effective recovery from an operational setback in
the long term, and you may save your organization from failure in
the event that risks materialize.
Contingency planning requires an investment of time and
resources, but if you fail to do it or if you do it poorly the costs
could be significant if a disaster happens.
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Kind regards
Yoland
May 20, 2009
Midgie wrote
Hi Aeonima,
Thanks for sharing that ... as it does indeed make a positive
difference to look at our lives as if it were like a business.
Some of us wouldn't dream about running a business with no
focus, no direction and just let the wind take us in whatever
direction it blew! So ... why put up with that in our personal lives.
Sometimes it is a good to have a regular board meeting with
ourselves ... to take stock, see where we are going, what needs to
change and what else we could do to make ourselves more
successful!
I'm just facing some personal changes at the moment so I think a
board meeting is in order! We have a long weekend coming up
this weekend ... so perfect timing!!
Midgie
May 19, 2009
aeonima wrote
Hi Midgie,
Time and again, I sit down and think about "aeonima.com",
analyzing the situation as if I were a company.
It helps me to overcome my passivity and the feeling of being
overwhelmed or victimized.
With a healthy sense of paranoia and a grain of salt, I feel much
better and more in control.
Cheers,
Aeonima
May 19, 2009
Midgie wrote
Interesting article on business contingency planning with some
great ideas and suggestions.
I've been thinking about how this can also related to us personally
and career wise. By having a plan of action and being prepared for
the 'what if' scenarios, you will be in a stronger position to move if
something does happen, like a redundancy or restructuring.
For instance, when you need to make quick decisions, which style is
best? When you need the full support of your team, is there a more
effective way to lead? Should a leader be more people-oriented or
task-oriented? These are all questions that contingency leadership
theories try to address.
The Hersey-Blanchard Situational Leadership Theory
is a
popular contingency-based leadership framework, which links
leadership style with the maturity of individual members of the
leader's team. Other contingency-based models include House's
Path-Goal Theory and Fiedler's Contingency Model .
You can also use the Leadership Process Model to understand
how your situation affects other factors that are important for
effective leadership, and how, in turn, these affect your leadership.
is often
Key Points
Over time, several core theories about leadership have emerged.
These theories fall into four main categories:
1. Trait theories.
2. Behavioral theories.
3. Contingency theories.
4. Power and influence theories.
"Transformational leadership," is the most effective style to use in
most business situations. However, you can become a more
effective leader by learning about these core leadership theories,
and understanding the tools and models associated with each one.
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Crisis Planning
Preparing Your Response to the Unexpected
Crises happen from time to
time in all organizations.
So when one happens "on your
watch" how will you react?
Will you resolve it in a way that
seems graceful and wellconsidered?
Or will you stumble, and make
mistakes which seriously
damage your business?
iStockphoto/swilmor
Many of these arise from within an organization. And it's worth noting
that sometimes the risk is predictable, and prevention may be in your
control. For example, a contented workforce is unlikely to go on strike;
or if you have retail premises, vandalism may be an expected cost of
doing business.
Remember, too, that impact of a crisis can go beyond the direct loss
of money, sales or long term customers: for example, if the crisis
means that your organization no longer meets its regulatory
requirements, you could lose your license to do business.
Whether yours is a business in the pursuit of profit, or a public service
organization such as a hospital, you have a duty to your stakeholders
to get back on track as soon as possible. A crucial part of crisis
planning is therefore to plan for business continuity after a crisis. This
part of crisis management is often referred to as business continuity
planning or business continuity management.
Stage 1: Preparation
There are two main areas of preparation to think about information
gathering, and definition of roles and responsibilities.
Start by appointing the person who's going to be responsible for the
crisis plan. If your organization has several sites, it can be useful to
have someone responsible at each site, and also an overall
coordinator. If you're the person responsible for crisis planning, make
sure that you involve the right people in the process of creating the
crisis plan, and that you communicate effectively with those involved.
Stakeholder management is a great way to make sure you
involve the right people.
Before you start crisis planning, it's important to understand the risks
you face, and plan your response.
The risks that affect businesses vary enormously between individual
businesses, industry sectors and countries. But your company may
have many risks in common with other businesses in your industry or
locality, and that means you can learn much from other people's
experience. Business associations, local agencies, regulators and
governments often share such learning, by providing advice on crisis
management and prevention. So it's well worth finding out what's
available that's relevant to you before you start your crisis planning.
Assess any crisis plans that are already in place. If your company has
faced crises in the past, talk to people who were involved and find out
what they learned from them.
Seek advice from organizations and agencies which have an interest
in your successful management of crises. Your local or national police
may provide advice on physical security and other threats caused by
crime. Your insurance company may also be a good place to find help.
Key Points
Crisis planning can make the difference between surviving a crisis
situation and succumbing to it. As such, it is an important part of
proactive and effective management.
In many crisis situations, the stakes are high and the margin for
error low. If you don't already have a good crisis plan, consider
doing some crisis planning sooner rather than later.
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Degrees of Giving
Leading With Generosity
The true meaning of life is to
plant trees, under whose shade
you do not expect to sit.
Nelson Henderson
I am holding in my hand a
graceful, inspirational book
entitled Ramban's Ladder: A
Meditation on Generosity and
Why It is Necessary to Give by
Good leaders help others shine and grow.
Julie Salamon. The book is
iStockphoto/Andy445
based on the teachings of
Ramban, a physician and philosopher who, more than a thousand
years ago, developed Ramban's Ladder, which outlines the various
forms of giving from the lowest handing out money begrudgingly, as
one might to a panhandler to the highest, helping someone become
self-reliant. I have long been meditating on the whole issue of
generosity as an important quality of leadership: observing leaders
who had it, and those who lacked it.
When we think of generosity, our thoughts automatically drift to gifts
of money or charity. In the context of leadership, there are other gifts
that don't have a monetary value, but whose value is beyond price.
These include giving someone a chance; giving someone the benefit
of the doubt; and giving others a reason to want to work for you. It
entails giving others latitude, permission to make mistakes, and all
the information that they need to do the job. It's giving them the
authority that goes with responsibility it's giving them due credit for
their ideas. In a nutshell, all of this translates to generosity of spirit, a
quality we admire in leaders.
Generosity, a word which once meant 'of noble birth,' used to be
associated with members of the aristocracy who, by virtue of their
privileges, were expected to show generosity towards those in lesser
standing. A leader too, by virtue of her position, and the power and
privileges that she holds relative to those she leads, has the same
expectations and obligations. A prime obligation is to lead with a
generous heart, and to be guided by a nobility of mind. A leader's
generosity has a positive spreading effect conversely, its absence
has a series of negative consequences that, if a leader paused to
reflect on them, may stop her in her tracks.
I am a firm believer that people need more than just 'a nice job close
to home.' Most people want to find meaning in their jobs they want
to feel that they are a part of something bigger and something better.
They want to know that what they do matters. A leader with a
generous spirit understands this need, and connects the dots for
people the dots that help them see how the work they perform, no
matter how small it may be in the scheme of things, has a bearing on
the ultimate vision of the company.
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Developing Self-Awareness
Understanding Yourself
It is wisdom to know others; It
is enlightenment to know one's
self.
Lao-Tzu, Chinese philosopher
Have you ever worked with
someone who was very selfaware?
This person considered the
Learn to develop self-awareness.
needs and feelings of others,
iStockphoto/lili41
took responsibility for her
mistakes, was humble about
her strengths, never said thoughtless things, and was aware of how
her words and actions affected others.
Put simply, this person was great to work with!
Self-awareness is one of the most important qualities that you can
have as a leader, and developing self-awareness is important in both
your personal and professional life.
In this article we'll look at self-awareness in more detail, and we'll
explore how you can develop yours.
What is Self-Awareness?
Researchers Shelley Duval and Robert Wicklund published the first
major theory of self-awareness in the early 1970s. They said that selfawareness is the ability to look inward, think deeply about your
behavior, and consider how it aligns with your moral standards and
values.
They argued that when your behavior is out of alignment with your
standards, you feel uncomfortable, unhappy and negative. By
contrast, when your behavior and values are aligned, you feel positive
and self-confident. Self-awareness also gives you a deeper
understanding of your own attitudes, opinions, and knowledge.
Self-awareness is sometimes confused with self-consciousness, but
there's an important difference between these. Self-consciousness is
a hyper-sensitized state of self-awareness; it's the excessive
preoccupation with your own manners, behavior, or appearance, and
is often seen as negative. Self-awareness is focused on the impact
your behavior has on other people, and, as such, is much more
positive.
Self-awareness is one of the most important elements of emotional
intelligence . It gives you the ability to understand and control
your own emotions and actions, and it helps you understand how
these affect the emotions and actions of others.
3. Focus on Others
People who are self-aware are conscious of how their words and
actions influence others.
To become more aware of how you affect others, learn how to
manage your emotions . Take time to weigh what you say
carefully, and think about how it will affect the person that you're
speaking to.
If you find yourself taking your stress, anger, or frustrations out on
others, stop immediately. Instead, see if you can find something
positive about the situation. Take a few deep breaths, or even walk
away if you find that you can't control your emotions.
When you manage your own words or actions, it doesn't mean that
you're being false. Rather, it shows that you care about other people
enough not to say or do something that might affect them in a
negative way.
Showing humility is an important part of this. When you're
humble, you focus your attention and energy on others and not on
yourself.
Key Points
By developing self-awareness, you get to know what does and
doesn't work for you, and you learn how to manage your impact on
other people.
People with high levels of self-awareness are more effective as
leaders, because they deal with people positively, and they inspire
trust and credibility in their team members.
As a result, these people also often have more satisfying careers
and higher incomes.
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The model shows the relationship between four key factors that
contribute to leadership success or failure. These are:
1. The Leader: This is the person who takes charge, and directs
the group's performance.
2. Followers: These are the people who follow the leader's
directions on tasks and projects.
3. The Context: This is the situation in which the work is
performed. For instance, it may be a regular workday, an
emergency project, or a challenging, long-term assignment.
Context can also cover the physical environment, resources
available, and events in the wider organization.
4. Outcomes: These are the results of the process. Outcomes could
be reaching a particular goal, developing a high-quality product,
or resolving a customer service issue. They can also include
things like improved trust and respect between the leader and
followers, or higher team morale.
The model shows the way in which the leader, the followers, and the
context combine to affect the outcomes. It also shows how outcomes
feed back to affect the leader, the followers, and the context.
Most importantly, the model highlights that leadership is a dynamic
and ongoing process. Therefore, it's important to be flexible
depending on the context and outcomes, and to invest continually in
your relationship with your followers.
Accordingly, the model can also help you understand:
How your actions as a leader influence your followers, depending
on the context and the outcome.
How your followers influence you.
How the context and outcomes influence you and your followers.
at work, and
Key Points
The Leadership Process Model highlights the dynamic and longterm nature of leadership. It shows how your actions and behaviors
influence your people, just as their actions and behaviors influence
you.
As well as having an awareness of the model, you can also apply
lessons from it by doing the following:
1. Providing regular feedback.
2. Being aware of actions and reactions.
3. Leading honestly and ethically.
4. Leading with the right style.
5. Assigning tasks consciously and intelligently.
6. Focusing on relationship development.
Overall, the Leadership Process Model helps you see the
interdependent nature of leadership and its effects on situations
and outcomes. Use this framework to be aware of your actions and
to deepen the relationship you have with your people.
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Hi Francisco,
In addition to what Dianna has offered, I would like to add that
ultimately, we can not control how other people react, we can only
control ourselves.
By focusing on yourself and on being the best you can be, use the
reactions of others as feedback to learn and grow. Perhaps you
could do things differently or change your approach? Perhaps it is
entirely this 'issue' and does not accurately reflect on you as a
person and how you are. Sometimes by removing the reaction as
a personal attack or slight against you as an individual and see it
rather as a reaction to behavior can help deal with situations more
resourcefully.
By removing the 'personal' aspect of people reactions, how does
that shift things for you and shift things in your attitude and
approach?
Midgie
Midgie
December 26, 2013
Dianna wrote
I think that when you get a different reaction than you expect, as
a leader that's an opportunity to evaluate your expectations and
re-think how you interact with that person. Try to figure out what
is behind their bad attitude? Is there something you can do to
help make the situation better? You might not be able to change
their attitude but it's always worth investigating. In that way their
reaction is valuable because you never know what you may
discover.
What do you think?
Dianna
December 26, 2013
fxgg090 wrote
Actions and Reactions.
What happens when you expect some reaction and this does not
happen?
Lets say you expect most of your followers to appreciate your
time, work and effort, your knowledge, and suddenly one reacts
different either he has some issues or many issues, or he has bad
intentions, bad attitude?
Is that one reaction more or less or equal valuable as the rest of
the members? is that reaction as valid as others, should we focus
on just that one member or let it go?
2. Self-regulation
Leaders who regulate themselves effectively rarely verbally attack
others, make rushed or emotional decisions, stereotype people, or
compromise their values. Self-regulation is all about staying in
control.
This element of emotional intelligence, according to Goleman, also
covers a leader's flexibility and commitment to personal
accountability .
So, how can you improve your ability to self-regulate?
Know your values Do you have a clear idea of where you
absolutely will not compromise? Do you know what values are
most important to you? Spend some time examining your "code
of ethics." If you know what's most important to you, then you
probably won't have to think twice when you face a moral or
ethical decision you'll make the right choice.
Hold yourself accountable If you tend to blame others when
something goes wrong, stop. Make a commitment to admit to
your mistakes and to face the consequences, whatever they are.
You'll probably sleep better at night, and you'll quickly earn the
respect of those around you.
Practice being calm The next time you're in a challenging
situation, be very aware of how you act. Do you relieve your
stress by shouting at someone else? Practice deep-breathing
exercises to calm yourself. Also, try to write down all of the
negative things you want to say, and then rip it up and throw it
away. Expressing these emotions on paper (and not showing
them to anyone!) is better than speaking them aloud to your
team. What's more, this helps you challenge your reactions to
ensure that they're fair!
3. Motivation
Self-motivated leaders work consistently toward their goals, and they
have extremely high standards for the quality of their work.
How can you improve your motivation?
Re-examine why you're doing your job It's easy to forget
what you really love about your career. So, take some time to
remember why you wanted this job. If you're unhappy in your
role and you're struggling to remember why you wanted it, try
the Five Whys technique to find the root of the problem.
Starting at the root often helps you look at your situation in a
new way.
And make sure that your goal statements are fresh and
energizing. For more on this, see our article on Goal Setting
4. Empathy
For leaders, having empathy is critical to managing a successful team
or organization. Leaders with empathy have the ability to put
themselves in someone else's situation. They help develop the people
on their team, challenge others who are acting unfairly, give
constructive feedback, and listen to those who need it.
If you want to earn the respect and loyalty of your team, then show
them you care by being empathic.
How can you improve your empathy?
Put yourself in someone else's position It's easy to support
your own point of view. After all, it's yours! But take the time to
look at situations from other people's perspectives. See our
article on Perceptual Positions for a useful technique for
doing this.
Pay attention to body language Perhaps when you listen to
someone, you cross your arms, move your feet back and forth, or
bite your lip. This body language tells others how you really
feel about a situation, and the message you're giving isn't
positive! Learning to read body language can be a real asset in a
leadership role, because you'll be better able to determine how
5. Social skills
Leaders who do well in the social skills element of emotional
intelligence are great communicators. They're just as open to hearing
bad news as good news, and they're expert at getting their team to
support them and be excited about a new mission or project.
Leaders who have good social skills are also good at managing
change and resolving conflicts diplomatically. They're rarely satisfied
with leaving things as they are, but they don't sit back and make
everyone else do the work: They set an example with their own
behavior.
So, how can you build social skills?
Learn conflict resolution Leaders must know how to resolve
conflicts between their team members, customers, or vendors.
Learning conflict resolution skills is vital if you want to
succeed.
Improve your communication skills How well do you
communicate? Our communication quiz will help you answer
this question, and it will give useful feedback on what you can do
to improve.
Learn how to praise others As a leader, you can inspire the
loyalty of your team simply by giving praise when it's earned.
Learning how to praise others is a fine art, but well worth the
effort.
Key Points
To be effective, leaders must have a solid understanding of how
their emotions and actions affect the people around them. The
better a leader relates to and works with others, the more
successful he or she will be.
Take the time to work on self-awareness, self-regulation,
motivation, empathy, and social skills. Working on these areas will
help you excel in the future!
For more on emotional intelligence in leadership, see the series of
articles by Bruna Martinuzzi elsewhere on MindTools.com. Click here
to find them.
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Ethical Leadership
Doing the Right Thing
We've seen some high profile
ethical failures in the press in
recent years. It will be hard to
forget the devastation caused
by accounting fraud at the
investment company run by
Bernard Madoff, or the earlier
frauds at Enron and Worldcom.
People have also raised ethical
questions over the welfare of
some organizations' staff and
suppliers.
What do you do? He's a close colleague and a personal friend. On the
other hand, he's overstating how well his team is doing. Do you
support him, or do you tell the truth to the other executives?
We're often faced with tough choices like this in the workplace. Most
of the time, however, ethical dilemmas aren't this obvious, and they
can be hidden in ways that are hard to uncover.
So, how do you recognize these dilemmas?
Identify "trigger" situations Certain situations seem to
attract ethical dilemmas. Some of these are areas like
purchasing, hiring, firing, promoting, and calculating bonuses.
There can also be other unexpected situations. You could make a
mistake will you admit it to your boss, or try to cover it up? Or
you could discover that a colleague is acting unethically do you
protect the person or tell someone?
By recognizing when these situations might occur, you can make
the right decisions when and if something actually happens.
Prepare in advance Imagine yourself in the situations we just
mentioned. What would you do if you knew one of your
colleagues was about to be fired, but you weren't legally allowed
to tell her?
Putting yourself in these imaginary situations can help you work
through your feelings and decide what you would do if the
situation occurred. In real life, you may have only seconds to
reach a decision. Of course, you won't be able to imagine every
possible ethical dilemma you might face, but this exercise WILL
help you get to know your values, and it can prepare you for the
decisions you may have to make.
Listen to your "inner voice" Your conscience often tells you
that something isn't right, even if this is just a feeling of
uneasiness with something. If you face a situation that makes
you uncomfortable, or goes against one of your core values or
beliefs, then make sure that you stop and think things through
rationally.
Reevaluate your decision before you act If you're in a
difficult situation and you aren't sure what to do, make a
decision. But, before you act on that decision, ask yourself how
you would feel if your actions were in the company newsletter or
on the evening news for everyone to see. Would you be proud of
what you did? If not, then reconsider your decision.
When in Doubt...
At times, you'll make a decision but still wonder if you did the right
thing. You may be uncomfortable, but these situations can teach you
to trust yourself and your instincts. If you calm your anxiety and look
logically at the situation, your instincts will often guide you in the
right direction.
Key Points
Ethical living and leading takes courage and conviction. It
means doing the right thing, even when the right thing isn't
popular or easy. But when you make decisions based on your core
values, then you tell the world that you can't be bought and you
lead your team by example.
Once you identify your company's core values as well as your own,
you can start to set the tone with your team and your organization.
Actions always speak louder than words, so make sure you do as
you would wish others to do.
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http://www.mindtools.com/community/pages/article/
newLDR_58.php
Best wishes
Rachel
January 10, 2012
Bree wrote
Thanks, yet again, for a great article.
I was just last week facing a work situation which presented a bit
of a dilemma, and one which needed to be sorted today! As I was
scanning the forums, I came onto this article which helped me
make a decision because even though I had anticipated this
scenario, I hadn't really prepared a response. However, now, I've
listened to that 'inner voice' and I re-evaluated my decision.
Feel much better now and I'm off to address and resolve the
situation!
Thanks.
Bree
July 7, 2008
Note:
With this theory, we are not using the word "contingency" in the
sense of contingency planning . Here, a contingency is a
situation or event that's dependent or contingent on someone
or something else.
Leadership Style
Identifying leadership style is the first step in using the model. Fiedler
believed that leadership style is fixed, and it can be measured using a
scale he developed called Least-Preferred Co-Worker (LPC) Scale (see
Figure 1).
The scale asks you to think about the person who you've least
enjoyed working with. This can be a person who you've worked with in
your job, or in education or training.
You then rate how you feel about this person for each factor, and add
up your scores. If your total score is high, you're likely to be a
relationship-orientated leader. If your total score is low, you're more
likely to be task-orientated leader.
Unfriendly
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Friendly
Unpleasant
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Pleasant
Rejecting
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Accepting
Tense
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Relaxed
Cold
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Warm
Boring
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Interesting
Backbiting
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Loyal
Uncooperative
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Cooperative
Hostile
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Supportive
Guarded
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Open
Insincere
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Sincere
Unkind
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Kind
Inconsiderate
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Considerate
Untrustworthy
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Trustworthy
Gloomy
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Cheerful
Quarrelsome
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Harmonious
The model says that task-oriented leaders usually view their LPCs
more negatively, resulting in a lower score. Fiedler called these low
LPC-leaders. He said that low LPCs are very effective at completing
tasks. They're quick to organize a group to get tasks and projects
done. Relationship-building is a low priority.
However, relationship-oriented leaders usually view their LPCs more
positively, giving them a higher score. These are high-LPC leaders.
High LPCs focus more on personal connections, and they're good at
avoiding and managing conflict. They're better able to make complex
decisions.
Situational Favorableness
Next, you determine the "situational favorableness" of your particular
situation. This depends on three distinct factors:
Task
Structure
Leader's
Position
Power
Most
Effective
Leader
Good
Structured
Strong
Low LPC
Good
Structured
Weak
Low LPC
Good
Unstructured
Strong
Low LPC
LeaderMember
Relations
Task
Structure
Leader's
Position
Power
Most
Effective
Leader
Good
Unstructured
Weak
High LPC
Poor
Structured
Strong
High LPC
Poor
Structured
Weak
High LPC
Poor
Unstructured
Strong
High LPC
Poor
Unstructured
Weak
Low LPC
Key Points
The Fiedler Contingency Model asks you to think about your
natural leadership style, and the situations in which it will be most
effective. The model says that leaders are either task-focused, or
relationship-focused. Once you understand your style, it says that
you can match it to situations in which that style is most effective.
However, the model has some disadvantages. It doesn't allow for
leadership flexibility, and the LPC score might give an inaccurate
picture of your leadership style.
As with all models and theories, use your best judgment when
applying the Fiedler Contingency Model to your own situation.
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Understanding Power
One of the most notable studies on power was conducted by social
psychologists John French and Bertram Raven, in 1959. They
identified five bases of power:
1. Legitimate This comes from the belief that a person has the
formal right to make demands, and to expect compliance and
obedience from others.
2. Reward This results from one person's ability to compensate
another for compliance.
3. Expert This is based on a person's superior skill and
knowledge.
4. Referent This is the result of a person's perceived
attractiveness, worthiness, and right to respect from others.
5. Coercive This comes from the belief that a person can punish
others for noncompliance.
When you have knowledge and skills that enable you to understand a
situation, suggest solutions, use solid judgment, and generally
outperform others, people will probably listen to you. When you
demonstrate expertise, people tend to trust you and respect what you
say. As a subject matter expert, your ideas will have more value, and
others will look to you for leadership in that area.
What's more, you can take your confidence, decisiveness, and
reputation for rational thinking and expand them to other subjects
and issues. This is a good way to build and maintain expert power. It
doesn't require positional power, so you can use it to go beyond that.
This is one of the best ways to improve your leadership skills.
Click here to read more about building expert power
using it as an effective foundation for leadership.
, and
Referent Power
Key Points
Anyone is capable of holding power and influencing others: you
don't need to have an important job title or a big office. But if you
recognize the different forms of power, you can avoid being
influenced by those who use the less effective types of power
and you can focus on developing expert and referent power for
yourself. This will help you become an influential and positive
leader.
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feedback on it.
It's great to see you around the forum.
Best!
Dianna
August 8, 2013
BMCL wrote
Hello All,
I consider expert power as the most influential and this form of
power should be what any leader occupying leadership position
should develop. When a leader/subordinate possess expert power,
he/she commend respect and over time people follow him even
after he/she has left the organization/position.
Best regards
Austin
August 8, 2013
Rachel wrote
Hi All
People tend to follow people with power. But are some types of
power more effective than others?
Find out in this week's Featured Favorite on French and Raven's
Five Forms of Power.
http://www.mindtools.com/community/pages/article/
newLDR_56.php
Best wishes
Rachel
March 6, 2012
lulu wrote
I would also seriously think about development of a workplace
policy around abusive behaviours in the workplace - and define
that in the policy. Then staff have something concrete that they
can refer to if they want to stand up to that type of destructive
behaviour and managers also have something to constantly
remind all staff of.
Create an office culture where that type of behaviour is not
tolerated, and that all staff work towards a happy, cooperative
and respectful environment that is regularly rewarded - through
James
November 19, 2008
For each statement, click the button in the column that best describes
you. Please answer questions as you actually are (rather than how
you think you should be), and don't worry if some questions seem to
score 'in the wrong direction'. When you are finished, please click the
'Calculate My Total' button at the bottom of the test.
18 Statements to
Answer
1 When assigning tasks, I consider
peoples skills and interests.
Not
Some
Rarely
at All
times
Often
Very
Often
18 Statements to
Answer
Not
Some
Rarely
at All
times
Often
Very
Often
18 Statements to
Answer
Not
Some
Rarely
at All
times
Often
Very
Often
Total = 0
Score Interpretation
Score
Comment
18-34
35-52
53-90
Personal Characteristics
Successful leaders tend to have certain traits. Two keys areas of
personal growth and development are fundamental to leadership
success: self-confidence, and a positive attitude.
Self-confident people are usually inspiring, and people like to be
around individuals who believe in themselves and in what they're
doing. Likewise, if you're a positive and optimistic person who tries to
make the best of any situation, you'll find it much easier to motivate
people to do their best.
Self-Confidence
(Questions 2, 8)
Self-confidence is built by mastering significant skills and situations,
and by knowing that you can add real value by the work you do. One
of the best ways to improve your confidence is to become aware of all
of the things you've already achieved.
Our article on Building Self-Confidence explains what you can do
to understand yourself better and build your self-confidence. From
there, you'll begin to make the most of your strengths and improve
your weaknesses. Explore this further with our Bite-Sized Training
session on Personal SWOT Analysis .
Emotional Intelligence
(Questions 5, 15)
The concept of emotional intelligence used to be referred to as "soft
skills," "character", or even "communication skills". The more recent
idea of Emotional Intelligence (EQ) offers a more precise
Transformational Leadership
Transformational leadership is a leadership style where leaders create
an inspiring vision of the future, motivate their followers to achieve it,
manage implementation successfully, and develop the members of
their teams to be even more effective in the future. We explore these
dimensions below.
Remember that emotional support is also important. The BlakeMouton Managerial Grid is a great tool for thinking about the
right balance between concern for people, and productivity.
Key Points
To be successful in your career, regardless of your title or position,
focus on developing your leadership skills.
Effective leaders can add value simply by being present on teams.
They are inspirational and motivating. They know the right things
to say to people to help them understand what's needed, and they
can convince people to support a cause.
When you have talented and effective leaders in your organization,
you're well on your way to success. Develop these leadership skills
in yourself and in your team members and you'll see the
performance and productivity of your entire team improve.
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More Self-tests
career_path wrote
I really like the quiz and was wondering if there is a way to have
access to it as a tool for use during a leadership training session?
February 28, 2012
Yolande wrote
Hi Kandil d
Welcome to the Club and also to the forums. Glad to hear that ou
enjoyed the quiz etc. I gather thatt you are interested in tips and
articles about leadership...do have a look at our Learning Stream
called ' Lead Now'. The link is: http://www.mindtools.com/
community/LearningStreams/LeadNow.php
We hope to see you on the forums often; the input from all of our
members are extremely valuable.
Kandil d, if you need any help around here, please dont hesitate to
let me know.
Kind regards
Yolande
January 11, 2012
Humility
The Most Beautiful Word in the English Language
Many years ago, one of my
university professors
mentioned that "windowsill"
was voted the most beautiful
word in the English language.
Being an armchair linguist, this
factoid naturally stayed with
me.
Words have enormous power.
They can make us erupt into
laughter or bring tears to our
iStockphoto/OGphoto
eyes. They can influence,
inspire, manipulate and shock. They can build and destroy.
Some words have different effects on different people. One such word
is humility. It is one of those words that are seldom in neutral gear.
Some, like me, love the word and all it stands for. Some almost fear it
and interpret it synonymously with lack of self-confidence or timidity.
The dictionary defines humility as modesty, lacking pretence, not
believing that you are superior to others. An ancillary definition
includes: "Having a lowly opinion of oneself, meekness". The word
"humility" first struck me in the context of leadership when Jim Collins
mentioned it in his seminal work Good to Great: Why Some
Companies Make the Leap... and Others Don't. In this book,
Collins examined companies that went from good to great by
sustaining 15-year cumulative stock returns at or below the general
stock market, and after a transition point, cumulative returns at least
three times the market over the next 15 years.
Among the many characteristics that distinguished these companies
from others is that they all had a Level 5 leader . Level 5 leaders
direct their ego away from themselves to the larger goal of leading
their company to greatness. These leaders are a complex, paradoxical
mix of intense professional will and extreme personal humility. They
will create superb results but shun public adulation, and are never
boastful. They are described as modest. An example of such a leader
who epitomized humility is David Packard, the co-founder of HewlettPackard, who, in Jim Collins' words, defined himself as a HP man first
and a CEO second. He was a man of the people, practicing
management by walking around. Shunning all manner of publicity,
Packard is quoted as saying: "You shouldn't gloat about anything
you've done; you ought to keep going and find something better to
do."
Another great leader is Patrick Daniel, CEO of North American energy
and pipeline company Enbridge, who espouses two leadership
attributes: determination to create results and humility, shifting the
focus away from himself and continually recognizing the contributions
of others. "I have learned through the lives of great leaders," he said,
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shelley wrote
What a great article which hit a soft spot for 2 reasons :
Lack of humility is one of the many reasons I had for recently
deciding to leave the company I built and still own 1/3 because of
the total lack of humility in one of my fellow shareholders. The
perpetual use of Me, Myself and I, by him in front of teams and in
front of clients helped give me that final push I needed to explore
other professional paths.
What's more, I'm in the middle of reading "Good to Great".
Definitely a super read
February 6, 2007
Meena wrote
While on the subject of humility, I'd like to make just a fine
distinction between plain humility and allowing onself to be trod
upon. We do come across people holding top positions in large
companies having the quality of humility notwithstanding their
many achievements. At the other end of the scale, we also come
across those who are arrogant while not having anything much to
show as being good enough reason for it. In a way, humility can
be powerful facet of human nature, because it allows you to seek
help without feeling emarassed, ask people about things you don't
know, so you can gain from the knowledge of others in a positive
way. Being arrogant, will of course preclude that possibility,
because the arrogance will come in the way of 'exposing your
ignorance' as it were. It's the willingness to learn from others that
makes a person grow, learning from his own as well as others'
experiences and rise above all that is narrow and petty.
It doesn't make sense, however, to take everything lying down, in
the hope that things will eventually sort themselves out, when
there are underhand dealings at play. Although it might take
courage to do it, there are occasions when you'll need to confront
the person and the issues. My guess is that others around you will
respect you for it even though there may not be a win or gain for
you in the the immediate future. It will help boost your confidence
and make you better able to handle the situation the next time
around. Cheers!
February 6, 2007
paula wrote
That was a good article. Some people enojy bragging so much
about thier accomplishments that they do not look at what they
have done to get them. I know someone who will go out of his way
to help a person but then he has to tell everyone what he has
done. To me he is just shouting "Look at what a wonderful person I
am". I help people but do not brag about it.
Dazzle, you are most likely not the only person who has been
the problem has not been solved but, in your elation at having
found the solution to a nagging problem, you hush your intuition.
You come to the office the next day, with a spring in your step
and a song in your heart relieved at having shed a burden.
A senior member of your team has a habit of treating less
influential ones very poorly in meetings, interrupting them,
discounting their contributions and generally exhibiting posterlike bad behavior. It mortifies the recipients, embarrasses other
team members and even bothers you. Again, though, because
you value harmony and hate confrontation of any kind, you
choose to ignore the offending behavior and hope that it will stop
on its own. The fact that the perpetuator is an aggressive, high
achiever, successfully delivering results, makes it even harder for
you to step up and do something.
You have just announced the company's drastic cost cutting
measures and asked for everyone in your department to
cooperate by eliminating all discretionary spending. You
delivered a genuinely inspiring speech to your team and
everyone is on board to make this work. Two days later,
employees see a $1,000 chair delivered to your office an earlier
purchase you had genuinely forgotten to cancel. Others, of
course, don't judge us by our intentions they only have the
appearance of events to judge you by.
A mistake was made, the ownership of which falls on several
shoulders including yours. Driven by the anxiety and chaos that
ensues, you minimize your role in the fracas, and even
unwittingly suffer from temporary corporate amnesia, forgetting
that you were fully briefed in advance. You set out to find a
scapegoat, genuinely convincing yourself that it is surely their
fault. This can easily happen in times of stress because, as a
leader, you handle dozens of issues on a daily basis. However,
others involved only handle a few issues and remember the
course of events with laser-like precision.
Well, the list can go on. Some slips are due to personality preferences,
others just from the sheer amount of work and stress that leaders
often experience. The reasons are multiple and really not important.
It's the behaviors that are important.
They are all examples of behaviors you would not condone in others
when you set out to hold them accountable. And as we all know,
when there is a disparity between what you tell others to do and what
you do yourself, people will believe your actions and not your words.
The fallout of this scenario is an erosion of trust, one of the high
prices we pay for lack of self-accountability.
Let's also not neglect to mention that, as a leader, you sometimes
have to take unpopular decisions and this can, by itself, elicit
criticism. You are always in a fishbowl.
So what strategies can you adopt to be more careful, to be selfaccountable essentially to report to yourself?
1. Just as companies are rightfully concerned about how they are
viewed by customers or shareholders, consider taking time to
reflect on how your actions are viewed by all stakeholders: your
direct reports, your peers, your clients. Go through a formal 360
Leadership Assessment process or simply get hold of a
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Once you know how to recognize these signs, you can spot potential
weaknesses in your organization, and determine whether it might be
First, confirm that your team members know the organization's core
values , and check that none of the goals that you've set, or the
processes for achieving them, cause people to violate these values.
Meet with your team members and explain the lines that they
shouldn't cross, and the consequences if they do so. If team members
violate these ethical boundaries, meet with them one-on-one to
discuss their behavior and discipline them appropriately.
If your team members spot processes or behaviors that they believe
could motivate poor behavior, encourage them to speak out.
Last, practice ethical leadership by always trying to do the right
thing, and by setting a good example for your team.
If top leaders rule with fear, it can often signal that an organization is
at ethical risk.
Action
4. A Weak Board
An organization's board can be weak for several reasons: its members
might be inexperienced, they could be distracted by infighting, they
may have conflicts of interest, or they might miss meetings or key
votes because they're not engaged.
The board's structure might also contribute to weakness. For
instance, the board might discuss major proposals over the phone or
online, without giving key members the chance to review issues
thoroughly.
Weak boards can often indicate an organization's ethical collapse,
simply because they don't have the strength or cohesiveness needed
to challenge an unethical CEO or senior management team.
Action
It's quite possible for these roles to conflict, and this can lead to
unethical decision-making.
Action
Key Points
Marianne Jennings, a business ethics professor, identified seven
signs of ethical collapse in organizations, and published them in
her 2006 book on the subject.
The seven signs are:
1. Pressure to maintain numbers.
2. Fear and silence.
3. Young uns and a bigger-than-life CEO.
4. A weak board.
5. Conflicts (of interest).
6. Innovation like no other.
7. Goodness in some areas atoning for evil in others.
You can use this tool as a guide to spot unethical trends in your
organization, and take appropriate action if you feel that your
company is going off course. Keep in mind that the presence of
these signs doesn't necessarily mean that an organization is in
ethical trouble. This is where you always need to use your best
judgment.
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He'd hand you a piece of work and then spend the next few weeks
hovering over your shoulder, questioning your decisions and offering
"helpful advice" at every turn.
These two scenarios illustrate opposite ends of a management style
spectrum.
The first boss has a "laissez faire" management style, and the second
is the classic micromanager more politely known as a "very-handson" manager. Both styles can be effective in the right circumstances,
but not, usually, when they're taken to extremes. As usual, the best
approach lies somewhere between the extremes.
In this article we'll look at each management style, and see how to
find the best style for each person and situation.
Micromanagement
Micromanagers are the opposite of laissez faire managers. They
resist delegating, and when they do delegate, they spend a great deal
of time checking up on their teams. Micromanagers focus on every
tiny detail, and often discourage their team members from making
decisions if they're not around.
Tip 1:
You can find out more about the differences between specific
cultures around the world in our article on Hofstede's Cultural
Dimensions , and by exploring our Managing Around the
World section.
Tips:
When working in a hands-on style, it's easy to be perceived as
cold and impersonal. However, you can show your team that
you're approachable by sharing stories when assigning roles,
praising a job well done, or giving your team tips from some of
your past experiences.
Adopting a more laissez faire approach with your team doesn't
mean that they're doing all the work, of course. You still need to
monitor their progress, and make sure you're available to them if
they have questions. If you step too far back, there's a very real
chance your team will feel lost. (Our article on delegation
gives tips on how to do this appropriately.)
Every leader has their own "comfort zone". You might find
yourself naturally drawn to a more laissez faire style, and
extremely uncomfortable with the thought of hands-on
management. But leaning towards different styles in different
situations is the mark of a good leader: you're giving your team
members what they need, not what you want to give.
Tip 1:
If you know that you tend to micromanage people too much, you
can find out how to deal with this in our article on Avoiding
Micromanagement . And you can find out more about laissez
faire and other types of leadership in our article on Leadership
Styles .
Tip 2:
You can also use tools such as the Leadership Style Matrix
and the Hersey-Blanchard Situational Leadership Theory
to choose the right leadership style to use for your own situation.
Key Points
Laissez faire management and micromanagement are at opposite
ends of the style spectrum. And while no one should take either
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yann wrote
I smiled at Saskia's comment about her manager never
questioning her work but checking her timesheets. An obvious
reason that comes to most people's mind is probably "the
manager is incompetent and tries to keep busy doing something".
Let me just float another possible scenario: "the manager knows
that timesheets and other such items are not exciting for anyone,
yet she also knows that she will be pilloried and the organisation's
reputation will suffer if there are compliance issues with basic
processes, especially those involving remuneration. Hence she
feels compelled to keep a tight control on those items. As for
work, she knows that her team is both motivated and competent,
so she does not feel the need to be hands on".
Obviously, I do not know what scenario is the most plausible. Just
thought it would be good to highlight that there may be a
"positive" one.
Yann
September 16, 2009
bigk wrote
Hi
The question of if there is another reason to what is being
measured or assessed seems as James suggested possible an
unclear communication in what is being asked and what is
expected.
I would seek to find better understanding in what is expected from
the task being done and what perception of what is expected in
results in the time spent.
If the
if the
If the
more
Example
Is this more training that is needed?
Is this more priority of tasks that is needed?
Is this scheduled task time a useful time and is there a better time
to have the task done due to other tasks or a conflict of some
kind?
Is this to get detail on if the time or task has been allocated
correctly or the issues encountered in the task are not getting
communicated back to the manager?
The meeting should give a better communication between
manager and yourself so that both can highlight what is
happening during the task.
If the manager expects not to need to be involved during this task
Your older colleagues think "the new kid" is overconfident, pushy, and
too anxious to leave at precisely 5:00 p.m. The newcomer finds it
hard to get support from her older colleagues. She's concerned that
they can't (or won't) multitask, they're less confident with technology,
and they're unwilling to share their hard-earned knowledge. As a
result, cooperation is suffering.
How can you bridge this generation gap? And why is this important?
There's little doubt that the U.S. workforce is at a unique point in
history (other countries face similar situations). As "Baby Boomers"
people born between 1946 and 1964 begin to retire, a new
generation is stepping into their shoes.
Generation X, or Gen X (born between 1965 and 1976), and
Generation Y, or Gen Y (also called "Millennials," born between 1977
and 1998), have values and work styles that are completely different
from the baby boomers. Finding ways to bridge the gaps within this
new multigenerational workforce takes great skill and it all starts
with understanding how new generation leaders think, and what's
important to them.
In the U.S., the drop in birth rate in the post baby boom years means
that, by 2010, the number of people in the 35-44 middle
management age group had dropped by nearly 20 percent. Many
other major economies worldwide are facing similar demographic
changes. One practical consequence of these statistics is that
organizations have to work much harder to attract and retain good
people.
New generation leaders are a scarce commodity, and should be
nurtured as such.
It simply means that if you want to keep the best and brightest
leaders in your organization, you need to offer them an environment
that's geared to their values.
Quite a few Fortune 500 companies have changed the way they work
to meet the wants and values of these new generations. Here are
some examples:
A major U.S. chemical company has eliminated its "corporate
ladder" approach to management. There are no bosses, and
there's no top and bottom in the chain of command. Instead,
authority is passed around through team leaders, so everyone in
the company has a sense of equality and involvement.
A large U.S. accounting firm gives four weeks of vacation to
every new hire (most U.S. companies offer only two weeks). This
firm also offers new parents classes on how to reduce their
working hours to spend more time with their families.
A software company in Silicon Valley has no set office hours. Staff
come in and work when they choose. Everyone gets paid time off
every month to do volunteer work, and they get a six-week
sabbatical every four years.
If you think these dramatic policies would never work and would be
too costly, then remember these are all profitable, highly productive
companies with low staff turnover. They've made new rules, and
they're successful.
Leadership Styles
So, what does all this say about the new generation's leadership
styles? Well, it's easy to see that Gen X and Y are unlikely to lead in
the same way the boomers did.
The new leaders value teamwork and open communication. They'll
encourage collaboration, and they won't give direction and expect to
be followed just because they're in charge. They want to understand
their peers and other people's perspectives.
They'll spend more time building relationships with their teams than
their predecessors did. Because they value their family time, they'll
also give their staff enough time for personal lives. As a result,
corporate culture might become less rigid than it is now, bringing
more flexibility and a sense of fun.
As a result, if you're a member of a team whose leadership is being
passed from an older generation leader to a new generation leader,
you'll probably need to adjust to having more autonomy delegated to
you, and you may find that the boss is not around as much to check
on things.
This new generation values action, so they'll work more efficiently and
productively to earn time off. They'll expect their team to work hard
too, but they'll also know when it's time to leave the office and go
play. One of the ways in which they gain this efficiency is by using
technology. Although they themselves will usually get to grips with
this easily, you may need to remind new generation leaders that
other members of their team need more training and support than
they do themselves, if they're to get up to the same speed with new
applications.
But they'll also follow a leader who has heart. So if you have new
generation managers in your team, then you'll probably have to prove
your worth before they'll fully support you. But once you show them
that worth, they'll follow you all the way.
Tips:
Here are some things you can do in your company to ensure that
your new generation of leaders wants to stay.
Offer ongoing training, especially in skills like organization,
time management, leadership, and communication. People
in Gen X and Y usually love to learn new things, so
opportunities to grow are high on their list of priorities.
Increase non-monetary benefits. Gen X and Y tend to value
time as much as, if not more than, money. They have lives
outside of work, and spending time with family and having
fun are very important to them. Increase your vacation
benefits and offer flexible working hours. These people are
often busy parents who appreciate when a company
understands that the traditional 9-to-5 day isn't always
practical.
Give them freedom. Gen X and Y are often self-reliant and
don't always look to a leader for direction. Their goal is to
complete tasks in the most efficient way possible, while
still doing them well. So don't force them to work under a
management style that boomers often preferred, with the
boss giving orders. Give them the freedom to make their
own decisions.
Earn their loyalty and respect. Gen X and Y may not
automatically be loyal to leaders, just because those
leaders are in charge. Younger staff want open
communication and leaders who are supportive and worthy
of being followed.
Treat women and men as equals. Gen X and Y grew up with
mothers who were often focused on their careers as well as
their families. They're used to viewing women and men
equally, so be sure you compensate both genders equally.
If women feel they're the target of discrimination, you'll
quickly lose them.
Be "green." The new generations have grown up with Earth
Day and the threat of global warming. They want to make
less of an impact on the environment. Studies have shown
that people who work for companies with green initiatives
have higher job satisfaction, and turnover is usually much
lower.
Key Points
There's no doubt that the new generation of leaders has priorities
that are often quite different from those of previous generations of
leaders.
So if you want to hire and keep the best and brightest people, the
ones who will lead your company into the future, then you must
create a work environment that's tailored to their values and
priorities.
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GREAT guy and I learnt a LOT from him - I still write his
presentations and proposals and we often have coffee!)
I also value my time and I love being able to be in charge of my
own time - if I want to work in the middle of night (which I love)
and go to gym at 11h00 in the morning (which I also love doing...)
then I am free to do so...
Incidentally, I have learnt a lot from a number of boomers that I
have worked with and been employed by, but I also love working
with Gen Y's because they teach me new things and new ways of
"operating" and keep me up to date with what's hip and
happening right now... We really all need one another, don't we?
Regards
Yolfsie
June 17, 2008
James wrote
Hi Gosh
I'm very glad that you liked it!
Like you, I can certainly reflect on times where I've run up against
this sort of generational difference in approach as, I'm sure, can
many other members.
Understanding where the mismatch in styles is coming from is
useful, because it helps you transform an unhappy, conflicting
situation into one where people can make allowances for oneanother's preferred approaches.
And great to hear that you're now in a situation that really suits
you!
James
June 17, 2008
gosh72 wrote
cazz66: it seems this article was appreciated by cat lovers mostly
Dianna: don't you consider changing your avatar?
June 17, 2008
gosh72 wrote
Hi there,
this article is simple marvellous! I have just left my workplace and
I often asked myself what was the real reason. And look what!
Yes, 90% it was this generation problem. As a Gen X I could not
work in a corporate culture that highly supported this "old style"
type of management.
Yes, I really need more "independence", "space" and free time. Of
course I was loyal to the company first (I wanted to spend here
30-40 years). However later I sadly realized I just do not fit here,
so I have quitted and started a new life.
Now I work from home, in a team with talented youngsters and I
have really flexible work-time. Telling you the truth I really enjoy
working but sometimes I am like a poet - I need inspiration - and
work very late or early. Previously I had to sit in the office for 8
loooong hours even if I had absolutely nothing to do
This article really explained me the roots of my (and even many
others') problem stemming from working together with staff
having different age.
It seems this problem is really universal - I live in Hungary, worked
for a US company and had an Italian boss. My boss was like a
mother and baby boomer. She wanted to control everything.
Although as a person she was fantastic and nice I and my
colleagues were not able to work together with her. We were all
Gen Xs (maybe with some GenYs)
Cheers:
Gosh
June 17, 2008
Dianna wrote
That's a great point to keep in mind when designing any training
program or communication. I know lots of training sessions are
designed to fill a particular slot of time. Hence you get a lot of
"filler"! High value does not have to equal high time commitment.
So keeping up with technology and committing to finding the best
and most efficient means possible to present your information is
really important.
Offering alternatives is a good idea too. The Book Club and Expert
Interview sections of our Club are prime examples - some people
like to download the MP3 versions and others prefer the
transcript. Being able to meet a variety of preferences is always a
great idea and usually worth the extra time or effort you have to
put in.
Dianna
June 13, 2008
caz66 wrote
Hey Mind Tools, thanks for highlighting this! As a youngster,
generational differences are something I've definitely experienced
at work. It doesn't mean peole are hostile, but sometimes they
older generation just don't understand how I like to do things.
Don't get me wrong here, I love having their experience and calm
wisdom to draw on, but I think they are still rooted in the pretechnology era they started work in sometimes. The other week
we all had to go on a training session, which took all day, but
honestly, the content could have been covered in an hour. We had
to do lots of interactive exercises in groups - all quite fun, but
SUCH a waste of time - if there had been a podcast of the main
points, with a few voxpops thrown in, I would have learned the
same stuff from my iPod while I was walking to work in the
morning!
Happy Friday everyone.
Caro
June 13, 2008
your staff to perform especially well: the more they know you
care, the more likely they are to respond to your call for action.
Be visionary Leaders with vision, passion, energy, enthusiasm,
and real engagement with their staff... these people are the key
drivers of economic growth. Stay focused on the big picture, and
manage to the best of your abilities.
Take care of yourself Respect your own feelings and
emotions during difficult times. Where appropriate, share your
concerns with people you trust, and build a network of people
you can talk to. On the other hand, if you're constantly worried,
others may sense this. Get enough rest to keep yourself fresh,
and manage your emotions to keep your creativity and selfconfidence high.
Key Points
Leadership during good economic times has its challenges. But
those challenges increase when the economy is tough, and when
staff are worried about keeping their jobs and paying their bills.
In these conditions, leaders and managers must keep a sharp eye
on their environment, prepare for recovery, support their people,
and project enthusiasm and energy.
By remaining positive, supporting your people, and looking for new
business opportunities, you can help your company survive and
succeed through the difficult times. Leadership performance is
critical to organizational success, so use all of the assets available
to you.
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Circumstantial or Habitual
Solution
De-Motivator
Circumstantial or Habitual
Solution
Done with the list? Now you are ready to take on the challenge of
tackling the killjoys.
Start by considering whether the 'demotivation attacks' are
occasional, circumstantial things, triggered by circumstantial factors
(the visit of a difficult client; or being under the weather), or are they
habitual, typifying your working style (leaving tasks unfinished; or
saying yes to everything irrespective of whether you can do it). Mark
the cause, circumstantial or habitual, in your table.
Next comes the solution column. If circumstantial factors bother you,
then get a grip on exactly what is it that "switches you off" and try to
neutralize the cause. For Susan, it was being next to the kitchen. She
"just didn't feel like working" and was distracted by who was having
how many cups of coffee. Once the de-motivator was identified, she
pushed her boss to allot her another workspace. Her work improved.
You may not be able to run out and fix the problem immediately, but
at least list the solution.
However, if the de-motivator is a recurring habit, you have to
acknowledge it as a serious handicap, which may undermine all the
good work you want to accomplish. You need to make concerted effort
to bring motivation and passion to the activity. Our next tools will
show you how to achieve this. Zero in on the correct tools and list
them in your solutions column.
Background:
Identify the key information and training you need to achieve them
effectively, and think through the tools you'll need and the people
you'll need support from on your way.
Make a professional, rational, well thought-through plan. And then use
this plan to turn your goals into reality.
Tip:
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Overview
Eric Flamholtz and Yvonne Randle developed the Leadership Style
Matrix and published it in their 2007 book, "Growing Pains." The
matrix, shown in Figure 1, helps you choose the most appropriate
leadership style , based on the type of task you're involved with
and the people you're leading.
Next, look at the X-axis. If the people you're leading prefer to work
alone, move right on the axis. If they need more instruction and
interaction from you, move to the left.
The quadrant that you fall into lists the two leadership styles that are
most likely to be appropriate for your situation.
Key Points
Eric Flamholtz and Yvonne Randle developed the Leadership Style
Matrix and published it in their 2007 book, "Growing Pains." The
Leadership Style Matrix is a simple and useful model that helps
you choose the most effective leadership style for your situation.
To use the model, first look at the task or project. If there are
specific, programmable steps to follow, move down the Y-axis, but
if the project or task is more creative, move up this axis.
Next, look at the people that you're leading. If they want
autonomy, move right on the X-axis. If they need instruction,
interaction, or feedback from you, move left on the X-axis.
Once you have determined the quadrant you fall into, you can
choose from the two leadership styles that are most appropriate
for your situation.
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Leadership Styles
Choosing the Right Approach for the Situation
Situational Leadership is a registered trademark of the Center for
Leadership Studies.
From Mahatma Gandhi
and Winston Churchill, to
Martin Luther King and
Steve Jobs, there can be
as many ways to lead
people as there are
leaders.
Fortunately,
businesspeople and
psychologists have
developed useful
frameworks that describe
the main ways that
people lead.
Flash
When you understand these frameworks, you can develop your own
approach to leadership, and become a more effective leader as a
result.
In this article, we'll highlight some of the common approaches to
leadership that you can use. We'll also look at some specific
leadership styles, and we'll explore the advantages and
disadvantages of each type.
Note:
Path-Goal Theory
You may also have to think about what your team members want and
need. This is where Path-Goal Theory published in 1971 is
useful.
For example, highly-capable people, who are assigned to a complex
task, will need a different leadership approach from people with low
ability, who are assigned to an ambiguous task. (The former will want
a participative approach, while the latter need to be told what to do.)
With Path-Goal Theory, you can identify the best leadership approach
to use, based on your people's needs, the task that they're doing, and
the environment that they're working in.
Transformational Leadership
These leadership style frameworks are all useful in different
situations, however, in business, "transformational leadership
is often the most effective leadership style to use. (This was first
published in 1978, and was then further developed in 1985.)
"
Bureaucratic Leadership
Bureaucratic leaders follow rules rigorously, and ensure that their
people follow procedures precisely.
This leadership style is appropriate for work involving serious safety
risks (such as working with machinery, with toxic substances, or at
dangerous heights), or with large sums of money. Bureaucratic
leadership is also useful for managing employees who perform
routine tasks.
This style is much less effective in teams and organizations that rely
on flexibility, creativity, or innovation.
Charismatic Leadership
A charismatic leadership style resembles transformational leadership:
both types of leaders inspire and motivate their team members.
The difference lies in their intent. Transformational leaders want to
transform their teams and organizations, while leaders who rely on
charisma often focus on themselves and their own ambitions, and
they may not want to change anything.
Charismatic leaders might believe that they can do no wrong, even
when others warn them about the path that they're on. This feeling of
invincibility can severely damage a team or an organization, as was
shown in the 2008 financial crisis.
Servant Leadership
A "servant leader" is someone, regardless of level, who leads simply
by meeting the needs of the team. The term sometimes describes a
person without formal recognition as a leader.
and
Transactional Leadership
This leadership style starts with the idea that team members agree to
obey their leader when they accept a job. The "transaction" usually
involves the organization paying team members in return for their
effort and compliance on a short-term task. The leader has a right to
"punish" team members if their work doesn't meet an appropriate
standard.
Transactional leadership is present in many business leadership
situations, and it does offer some benefits. For example, it clarifies
everyone's roles and responsibilities. And, because transactional
leadership judges team members on performance, people who are
ambitious or who are motivated by external rewards including
compensation often thrive.
The downside of this style is that, on its own, it can be chilling and
amoral, and it can lead to high staff turnover. It also has serious
limitations for knowledge-based or creative work.
As a result, team members can often do little to improve their job
satisfaction.
Key Points
In business, transformational leadership is often the best
leadership style to use.
However, no one style of leadership fits all situations, so it's useful
to understand different leadership frameworks and leadership
styles. You can then adapt your approach to fit your situation.
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Leading by Example
Making Sure You "Walk the Talk"
There's the boss who tells
everyone to stay late, and then
leaves promptly at 5:00pm to
go golfing.
There's the supervisor who
criticizes everyone for spending
time on the Internet, but is
discovered buying groceries
online in the middle of the
afternoon.
And the CFO who recommends
layoffs to stop "unnecessary
spending," but then buys
herself brand-new luxury office furniture.
Why It Matters
There's an old saying about the difference between a manager and a
leader: "Managers do things right. Leaders do the right things." (It's
best to be both a manager and a leader they're just different
processes.)
As a leader, part of your job is to inspire the people around you to
push themselves and, in turn, the company to greatness. To do
this, you must show them the way by doing it yourself.
Stop and think about the inspiring people who have changed the
world with their examples. Consider what Mahatma Gandhi
accomplished through his actions: He spent most of his adult life
living what he preached to others. He was committed to nonviolent
And so it is with your team. If you say one thing and do another, they
likely won't follow you enthusiastically. Why should they? Everything
you tell them after that may meet with suspicion and doubt. They
may not trust that you're doing the right thing, or that you know what
you're talking about. They may no longer believe in you.
Good leaders push their people forward with excitement, inspiration,
trust, and vision. If you lead a team that doesn't trust you,
productivity will drop. Enthusiasm may disappear. The vision you're
trying so hard to make happen may lose its appeal, all because your
team doesn't trust you anymore.
Key Points
Good leadership takes strength of character and a firm
commitment to do the right thing, at the right time, for the right
reason. This means doing what you say, when you say it. If your
team can't trust you, you'll probably never lead them to greatness.
Leading and living by example isn't as hard as it might sound.
It's really the easiest path. If your team knows that you'll also do
whatever you expect from them, they'll likely work hard to help
you achieve your goal.
Mahatma Gandhi and Alexander the Great helped change the
world because they lived by example and, as a result, they
accomplished great things.
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Janani,
try turning the situation around in your head. Ask yourself what
people have had to do in the past to win your trust. Ask yourself
what people have done in the past that has made you stop
trusting them. Write both of these lists down. Try to do the first
list, try not to do the second.
Another thing that I have found helps is to ask someone you trust
to keep a critical eye on you. This works very well if they have a
copy of, and indeed have maybe added a couple of points to, your
two lists. You must be prepared to accept what they say though,
remember, you asked them for help.
Also, be prepared for the fact that what you are doing may well
become more common knowledge that you think. People watch,
people talk. You have to assume this, and you have to carry on
regardless, remember the reason why you are doing this in the
first place.
Well, that's my two pennies in the pot.
June 1, 2008
Dianna wrote
Hi Janani, welcome to the forums! It's fabulous to hear from you,
and your question is one that many of us relate to. Sometimes we
have to try and fix things with our team and the fact that you
recognize things need improving is the number one motivation for
change.
In our article Building the Trust of Your New Team
http://www.mindtools.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=1226 we have
lots of great ideas for building (or rebuilding) the foundation for a
great relationship. Being really honest and accountable, as well
appreciating peoples work and being humble are great places to
start. Our article on Humility is also a good motivator when you
recognize the need to make changes in yourself. You can read it
here: http://www.mindtools.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=446
I wish you well on your journey to better team relationships. Let us
know how things go and keep posting questions its one of the
best ways to learn and the people here at the club have so many
fabulous ideas!
Take care and let me know if there is anything I can help you with
as you get started in the club.
Dianna
June 1, 2008
janani wrote
Its a great article, after I read the article I am able to co-relate
things why my team lost interest and the productivity is down.
What is the efficient way to regain the trust, moving forward I will
follow the "walk the talk", but how to rebuild the lost trust?
Any pointers will help.
FYI: This is my first post and today is my first day in mind tools.
Thanks,
Janani
May 31, 2008
colinscowen wrote
Jara,
you will find, should you be interested in reading around the
subject a bit (Peter Northouse wrote probably the best primer on
leadership that I have ever read, Maxwells 21 irrefutable laws is
also a good starter), that influencing others is one of the
definitions of leadership, so, although you may not be leading the
meeting, you may well find that you are leading people in the
meeting.
A way to try and see that is, next time you are in a meeting, or
situation, where someone is suggesting a change of some form,
have a look around at the others in the meeting, and see who
they look to. Whose opinion do they wait to hear.
You may not see this in every case, and you may not see it at
work, maybe among a group of friends, but, if you do see it, what
you have seen is a real leader. Because, that person has followers.
They might be the most experienced person there.
If everyone argues and talks at the same time, then, probably
there is no leader there.
May 30, 2008
Jara wrote
Thanks for the article and for the do's and don'ts that Colin
posted. I never thought about thinking in terms of NOT doing what
I've really disliked others doing to me. It's a great perspective to
take.
One of my biggest don'ts is "Don't make assumptions about a
person's capabilities or value to the team based on their age or
experience."
It's so awful to always feel inferior so I go out of my way to ask for
feedback from the newest employees and those who I can tell are
a bit unsure offering opinions. Even in meetings, although I'm
often one of the ones being judged, I have learned (through
Mindtools!!) to be more assertive and stick up for myself so I
make a point of making sure everyone is included. Even though
I'm not the "leader" I hope I can influence others with my behavior
Part of the follow up to this will be, if doing that exercise has
helped them to stop doing some of the things that they have
listed. This is viral leadership by example. I have shown that I am
willing to do it, and have in fact done it, then I have asked them to
do it, and, I know, because I have asked them, that some of them
have done it. I have also noticed that this has helped me to stop
doing some of the things I have listed above.
May 30, 2008
Leading Equals
Motivating People Effectively, Without Authority
Does this sound like a job you'd
want?
You'll be managing a diverse
group of people from a variety
of departments. They each
have different areas of
expertise and different ways of
getting work done. The people
don't report to you, and you'll
have little or no authority to
direct their performance.
The only difference between you and your
colleagues is that you're in charge.
However, you'll be held
iStockphoto/ravelin3d
accountable for the team's
output. To accomplish the
team's goals, you'll be expected, among other things, to motivate,
facilitate, encourage, communicate effectively, build trust, and
resolve conflict.
This doesn't sound like a lot of fun, does it?
When leading a team of your peers, these are typical challenges.
Leadership is a complex subject. There are visionary leaders,
empowering leaders, charismatic leaders, and values-based leaders.
For each of these styles, there are situations where that style is and is
not effective. However, the one thing that traditional leaders can
usually rely on, regardless of their style or situation, is legitimate
power. When things get tough, a traditional leader has the status and
position to demand how work is done.
But when you're in charge of a team of your peers, your level of
authority is often nonexistent. You might have as little status as the
person to whom the work has been given but is that enough to lead
what is essentially a horizontal collaboration?
To lead a multifunctional peer group, you must have all the
characteristics of great leaders and then some. Here are the key
skills you'll need to succeed.
Be Flexible
Rules, regulations and a heavy-handed approach can cause
resentment and non-compliance in a team of peers. Use discretion,
and learn to adapt to the changing environment this can be critical.
You won't always be the expert, and you won't always know what to
do. With a flexible leadership style, you can often deal with changing
circumstances without compromising your leadership role. If you rely
on a rigid structure and style, you may find yourself challenged often,
and you may waste your energy fighting interpersonal battles instead
of accomplishing goals.
Essentially, you need to help your team adjust to changes in
direction, circumstance, and priority. Whenever you get a crosssection of people working together, there can be times of ambiguity
and uncertainty. When you're open to change, your team will see that,
and they'll be more likely to also accept change.
Set Goals
Few teams would get very far without goals. Certainly you need goals
to point you in the right direction and to evaluate performance. When
you bring together a diverse set of people, having a clear direction is
even more essential.
All team members will likely have their own perspectives. These could
lead your team down very different paths if there's no central
Key Points
Leading a team of your peers is a definite challenge, and it can put
all of your leadership skills to the test. From setting goals to
involving team members in decision making to creating a climate
of openness and honesty, you need to have it all and more.
If you remember to put your team's needs first, and if you work
very hard to protect their interests, you'll prove to them that
you're committed to and passionate about their success. When
you demonstrate that you believe in the value of their work, and
when you're willing to work through any obstacles you encounter,
your team will respect your integrity and they'll want to work
hard with you, and for you, to achieve results.
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Level 5 Leadership
Achieving "Greatness" as a Leader
What makes leaders great?
Is it their courage? Their
business acumen? Their expert
knowledge? Their ability to
organize?
Truly great leaders have a
specific blend of skills. But they
also possess something else;
certain characteristics which
are harder to define.
iStockphoto/dmitryphotos
If you're in a leadership role,
then you've likely wondered
how you can move to that "next level," going from good to great
leadership.
Develop Humility
Level 5 Leaders are humble people. So, learn why humility is
important, and make sure that you understand at a deep, emotional
level why arrogance is so destructive. Then ensure that you behave
in a humble way for example, whenever your team has success,
make sure that credit goes to them for their hard work.
Conversely, as a leader, you need to take responsibility for your
team's efforts, even when things go wrong.
Tip:
Take Responsibility
A top attribute of Level 5 Leaders is that they take responsibility
for their team's mistakes or failings.
So make sure that you take responsibility for your (and your team's)
actions. Our Book Insight into No Excuses! The Power of Self
Discipline has more on this.
Develop Discipline
Level 5 Leaders are incredibly disciplined in their work. When they
commit to a course of action, no matter how difficult it is, they stick to
their resolve.
If you know in your heart that you're right, then don't let naysayers
dissuade you from a course of action. It's always important to listen to
differing opinions, of course, but don't let fear be your driving
motivator when you make, or change, a decision.
Use common sense in the way that you apply this idea.
In some environments that is, in high-trust, properly-managed
workplaces Level 5 Leadership is something to aspire to,
demonstrate and apply.
In low-trust or dysfunctional environments, however, you may
need to use Level 5 Leadership more cautiously. Definitely apply
the approach, but make sure that you're alert to the "corporate
politics" going on around you.
Key Points
Level 5 Leadership is a concept developed by Jim Collins. After
several years of research, Collins discovered that all of the great
organizations that he studied were headed by what he called
"Level 5 Leaders."
These Leaders have a unique combination of fierce resolve and
humility. They were the first to own up to mistakes, and the last to
take credit for success.
You can work on developing the following skills and characteristics
to become a Level 5 Leader:
Develop humility.
Ask for help.
Take responsibility.
Develop discipline.
Find the right people.
Lead with passion.
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Note:
Key Points
Social psychologist Kurt Lewin identified three primary leadership
styles in 1939. These were:
Authoritarian (autocratic) leadership.
Participative (democratic) leadership.
Delegative (laissez-faire) leadership.
Lewin's research forms the foundation of many of today's
leadership models and frameworks.
Its most important conclusion is that people tend to resent
authoritarian leadership, and that they can become aggressive,
demoralized or demotivated when subjected to it. By contrast, you
need to use participative or delegative approaches to leadership to
get the best from people.
It's helpful to understand each of these three styles so that you
know when and how to use them, and so that you know what
behaviors to avoid if you want to get the best from your team.
Situational Leadership is a registered trademark of the Center for
Leadership Studies.
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Next article
Talk. Communicate with your team right from the start. As far as
you can, share your concerns about the transition, and invite
them to comment. Our article on Building the Trust of Your
New Team has more great tips on setting up this new
relationship.
You may also have to address the hurt feelings of those who also
wanted your new position. This can take a great deal of
diplomacy, sensitivity, and understanding.
Communicate your expectations. Your new team isn't used to
working with you as a boss. Figure out your routine, and let them
know what to expect.
Will you have regular team meetings?
Will you have an "open door" policy?
What are your priorities?
How will you communicate?
What are your objectives?
How will they be evaluated?
Clarify and regularly update your expectations. The sooner you
start a pattern of open communication, the better.
Establish boundaries. You know that you can't be everyone's
friend the way that you were before. Think about what this
means and how your relationship with others will change.
Give everyone equal attention avoid spending time with
just one group of people.
Attend team social functions, but leave early so the team
can talk freely among themselves.
Build a social network with your new peers (your former
bosses).
Dress differently this can be a subtle indication that
your position is now different.
Because you know your former peers, you should be able to
find ways to have conversations. Not everyone responds to
openness in the same way, so remember to be sensitive to
these differences, and adjust your style accordingly.
Be careful about what you say. Unfortunately, you probably
can't be as free with your opinions as you used to be. When you
express dissatisfaction with something, you may influence your
team. If you say that you don't like someone, you may affect
your team's attitude toward that person. As a boss, you have to
watch what you say and understand that your words have the
power to influence the opinions and behavior of your team
members.
Delegate. As a new leader of former peers, your job has
changed from "getting things done" to "managing people to get
things done", so it's extremely important that you delegate
effectively. Don't make the mistake of thinking that you can do it
all because you're the boss. You still have the same skills and
abilities as yesterday (when you were one of the team). However,
Key Points
It can be difficult for team members to deal with a former peer
becoming their boss and it can be difficult for you, as the new
boss.
You need to accept that you may not always be liked, and you
have to be careful of what you say. Some people may resent your
promotion, and changes in expectations can cause confusion.
To manage the transition, be aware of the obvious and subtle ways
that your relationships with team members have changed. If you
find ways to communicate openly and honestly about
expectations, this will help you be successful. Being respected is
more important than being liked and understanding this is the
first and most important step in beginning to lead your former
teammates.
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Next article
Both times we talked about this early on, I engaged well with
them and included them in lots of decision making - however both
turned sour about 18 months to 2 years later. I think it was
ongoing resentment that they never dealt with and although
everything appeared ok on the surface, clearly it was not.
There will always be resentment - it is human nature. If the new
manager trips up just once, they are then an easy target. It takes
good management skills to manage effectively in an open and
transparent way but fair and consistent.
Lulu
March 29, 2010
samsam wrote
I wonder how to best manage the situation when a few of the
team members were also candidates for the job. Do you have any
suggestions on that?
Thanks,
Sam
March 29, 2010
Optimism
The Hidden Asset
Among the topics that young
people study before they enter
the workforce is calculus, the
mathematics of change and
motion. While training in
calculus is undoubtedly
valuable, I believe that training
in optimism is also important.
Just as it is good discipline to
solve problems like the velocity
of a car at a certain moment in
iStockphoto/hidesy
time, it is also crucial to figure
out what drives people to give us the very best that they have to
offer. Ironically, Leibniz, one of the inventors of calculus, is also known
for his philosophy of optimism. He was considered to be an inveterate
optimist, asserting that we live "in the best of all possible worlds".
Optimism is an emotional competence that can help boost
productivity, enhance employee morale, overcome conflict and have
a positive impact on the bottom line.
In writing about optimism, you face the danger of being seen as
advocating a "Pollyanna" or quixotic approach. The truth is, however,
optimism has been proven to be a powerful tool that will pay
dividends for your personal life and give you a competitive advantage
professionally in your career. There is a lot to be gained, indeed, in
cultivating an optimistic outlook.
Take leadership, for example. Nowhere is optimism more important
than in leading organizations. Highly effective leaders have a
transforming effect on their constituents: they have the gift of being
able to convince others that they have the ability to achieve levels of
performance beyond those they thought possible. They are able to
paint an optimistic and attainable view of the future for their
followers: They move others from being stuck with "how things are
done around here" and help them see "how things could be done
better".
In The Leadership Advantage, an essay from the Drucker Foundation's
Leader to Leader Guide, Warren Bennis tells us that optimism is one
of the key things people need from their leaders in order to achieve
positive results. Every "exemplary leader that I have met," writes
Bennis, "has what seems to be an unwarranted degree of optimism
and that helps generate the energy and commitment necessary to
achieve results."
Consider, as well, the reverse: the effect that pessimistic individuals
can have on an organization's creativity and innovation. To be
innovative, you need to be open to new ideas, wide open to seeing
possibilities, willing to take risks and encourage others to take risks
willing to challenge the process in order to create new solutions or
products or improve processes. In short, you need to have a sense of
is a very useful and powerful tool to help you change the way
you explain events that trouble you from optimistic to
pessimistic. Click here for our Book Insight on Learned
Optimism .
6. Adapt your language and outlook. Consider how a simple
shift in the language you use can make a difference in your
outlook: Do you frequently say: "yes, but...." in response to your
constituents' suggestions? The "but" automatically negates
anything you have said in the beginning part of the sentence. A
simple shift to "yes, and..." might make a positive difference.
Check the emails you have sent recently. Count the proportion of
negative to positive words. It could be enlightening.
Become aware of your stance in business meetings. Are you
known as the "devil's advocate", the one who is quick to shoot
down others' ideas? Jumping in too quickly to negate an idea can
derail the creative process. Often valuable ideas are the result of
an initial "crazy" thought. At meetings, even when we don't have
the floor, we are under a magnifying glass. Practice being more
upbeat, practice speaking last, and see what happens.
7. Focus outside yourself, on important people in your life, on
pursuits and projects that fire you up. Bertrand Russell once said
that the quickest way to make ourselves miserable is to
continually focus on ourselves. It was his love of mathematics
that kept him going.
8. Nurture a culture of optimism when you are in charge of
other people at work. Expect people to succeed. Even when they
occasionally fail to achieve what they set out to do, encourage
them so that they can tackle the next challenge. A simple: "I
know you'll do better the next time" can have very positive
effects.
9. Cultivate spontaneity. Consider putting aside all your plans
once in a while to take a walk with your kids, play a game or
catch a show. Getting out of your comfort zone by being
spontaneous helps to develop your optimistic muscle, as
spontaneity essentially involves an expectation of having a
pleasurable experience.
10. Consider the health benefits. If you need an extra motivation
for practicing optimism, consider the statistics linking optimism
to greater health. As Dr Seligman explains, there is evidence to
believe that immune systems among optimistic people are
stronger than among pessimists.
This paper would not be balanced if we did not address the benefits of
pessimism. Pessimists, as Seligman explains, may be more realistic
and accurate about dangers and risks. At times, when there is a risk
of serious negative consequences, a cautious, risk-avoiding
evaluation is appropriate and desirable. But the positive effects of
being optimistic fighting depression, aiding in professional,
academic and sports achievement, and boosting mental and physical
health outweigh the benefits of being a career pessimist. The
answer then is, as Seligman explains, "flexible optimism", i.e. having
the wisdom to assess situations and identify those that require a
pessimistic inquisition, and those that call for optimism, for having a
"can do" attitude" and taking a chance. Winston Churchill had a
reason for saying: "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every
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Midgie
December 26, 2013
fxgg090 wrote
[color=#00BF00:33vwhmfh] I never thought being Optimistic had
such a big important impact in the Organization and the life of
others, great references and tips!
fxgg
December 26, 2013
kurt_gielen wrote
Let's start with a big smiling smiley to stay in the mood.
anybody who wants to look into a more religious approach of this
subject, dive into the wonderfull world of Buddhism, especially the
parts where it talks about controlling the mind. By this is meant
recognise negative thoughts as soon as possible and train your
brain to think happy thoughts.
Amazing what this attitude can do to your personal & professional
life.
Good luck to all of you optimistist or want-to-be optimists out
there.
Enjoy,
Kurt
October 25, 2006
Rachel wrote
Hi there
This is a great article - there's also a discussion running about
"Who's feeling optimistic?" in the career cafe!
http://www.mindtools.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=172
Have a great day!
Rachel
October 24, 2006
Path-Goal Theory
Discovering the Best Leadership Style
Imagine that your boss has just
assigned a major project to
your new team.
There are some very talented
people within the team, but
you've worked with them in the
past, and it wasn't a pleasant
experience...
You've always felt that the best
way to manage a fast-paced,
Lead your team to their objectives effectively.
expert team is to set
iStockphoto/ssstep
objectives, and then let team
members work out how they'll deliver for themselves.
You don't want to interfere with what they're doing, so you rarely have
meetings with individuals or with the group.
The problem is that the team hasn't responded well to this approach.
So what else should you do? Would daily meetings waste your
people's time? And would they be annoyed if you involved yourself
more in decision-making, or gave them more guidance on the project?
When thinking about the best way to lead a team, we have to
consider several different factors, and it's easy choose the wrong
approach. When this happens, morale, effectiveness, and productivity
can suffer.
Path-Goal Theory helps you identify an effective approach to
leadership, based on what your people want and your current
situation. In this article, we'll look at Path-Goal Theory, and we'll
explore how you can apply it to your own situation.
Leadership Responsibilities
According to it, if you want your people to achieve their goals, you
need to help, support, and motivate them. You can do this in three
ways:
1. Helping them identify and achieve their goals.
2. Clearing away obstacles, thereby improving performance.
3. Offering appropriate rewards along the way.
To do this, you can use four different types of leadership:
Situational Factors
Path-Goal Theory defines two distinct situational factors the nature
of your subordinates, and the nature of your environment. These
factors directly influence the best style of leadership to use with team
members.
Subordinates Understanding your people's needs is key to
choosing the best approach for leading them.
How well do your team members respond to direct
authority? How do they react when you tell them how to
do a particular task?
How experienced are your people? How much do they
know about the task or assignment?
How motivated
are they?
the environment, so that you can choose the best leadership style for
each situation.
Note:
Subordinates
Environment
Want
Authoritative
Leadership
Complex or
Ambiguous
Task
External Locus
of Control
Strong
Formal
Authority
Low Ability
Leadership
Style to
Adopt
Directive
Good Work
Group
Don't Want
Authoritative
Leadership
Simple or
Structured
Task
Internal Locus
of Control
Weak Formal
Authority
High Ability
Not Good
Work Group
Want to be
Involved
Complex or
Ambiguous
Task
Internal Locus
on Control
High Ability
Strong or
Weak Formal
Authority
Supportive
Participative
Subordinates
Environment
Leadership
Style to
Adopt
Good or Not
Good Work
Group
Want
Authoritative
Leadership
Simple or
Structured
Task
External Locus
of Control
Strong
Formal
Authority
High Ability
AchievementOriented
Good or Not
Good Work
Group
As you can see from Figure 1, you can match up the needs of
subordinate and environmental factors to determine the best
leadership style to use. (Where subordinate and environmental
combinations fall between these four groups, use an appropriate mix
of styles.)
As an example, imagine that you're in charge of a team in human
resources. You've put together this special team to help reduce some
of your core team's workload. Because this new group is from a
different department, they're not very knowledgeable about HR
processes and practices, and they're not confident in their ability to
achieve their goal (pointing towards an external locus of control).
They need clear instructions, they have low ability for the task, and
their work is fairly simple. However, everyone in the team has a good
relationship, so they are capable of supporting one another in their
work. Using Path-Goal Theory, you determine that most people in
your new team need a directive leadership style.
Or, imagine that you're a manager in IT. The marketing department
needs a simple program to help them keep track of client requests.
Your expert team is more than capable of completing this project, so
they need to be set challenging goals. Also, you have clear authority
over them and high confidence in their abilities. So the best
leadership style to use in this instance is the Achievement-Oriented
style. (In this this case, it doesn't matter that the team is not a good
work group.)
Note 1:
Key Points
Path-Goal Theory helps leaders determine an appropriate
leadership style, depending on the situation and the people they're
leading. It's based on four leadership styles: supportive, directive,
participative, and achievement-oriented.
Consider your team and your current situation, then use the model
to determine the best approach. This will help your team be more
productive and motivated about their work.
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November 8, 2010
Dianna wrote
Hi Zuni - interesting example. It is so easy to become entrenched
in one leadership style and not see that it isn't as appropriate in
certain situations. The question here is, how do you cope with a
manager who uses a directive style? You say feedback has been
ignored thusfar, I'm wondering if could approach her again and
provide a solution or two like suggesting a way for her to stay
informed of what is happening without feeling the need to dictate
to you. Maybe there is something you and your colleagues could
do to "prove" you don't need to be directed so much as you need
to be led. Can you offer to spearhead a project or produce some
deliverable with little input from her?
I think it's worth trying to make the relationship work. Over time
she might change and in the meantime at least you can feel like
you are doing "something" rather than just sitting back and
getting more and more frustrated.
What do you think?
Dianna
November 8, 2010
zuni wrote
Hi all,
Path-goal theory is a logical approach to leading others. As a
former team lead myself and observing others who lead, I often
find that leaders become so caught up in achieving objectives and
expediting work that they do not pause to reflect on the needs of
individual team members or analyze the context. Or, they have
become comfortable in a specific style of leadership and do not
adjust when the composition of their teams change.
For example, my manager cut her teeth as a team lead by leading
junior managers. Now she leads a group of senior professionals
and she still leads with a directive style. It should come as no
surprise that, several of the team are disgruntled and grow tired
of being told what to do. Despite feedback her style has not
changed.
Zuni
November 7, 2010
Yolande wrote
The Path-Goal theory is a very logical approach for leaders to get
the best from the people around them. If you are willing to help
people get what they want and what they are striving for, the
team is the winner in the end!
Kind regards
Yoland
November 4, 2010
Note:
You'll be able to choose the best style to use if you know how to
"read" others and the situation you're in. This is where it's useful to
improve your listening skills , learn how to understand body
language , and improve your emotional intelligence .
We'll now examine each style in more detail.
When to Use It
Visionary leadership is most effective when the organization needs a
new vision or a dramatic new direction, such as during a corporate
turnaround. However, it's less likely to be effective when you're
working with a team more experienced than you are here,
democratic leadership is more likely to be effective.
This leadership style can also be overbearing if you use it too often.
How to Develop It
To develop a Visionary style, focus on increasing your expertise,
vision, self-confidence and empathy . Get excited about
change, and let your team see your enthusiasm.
You also need to convince others of your vision, so focus on
improving your presentation skills .
Example
Imagine that, in order to reach some aggressive sales goals, you've
decided to overhaul the way that your department connects with new
clients. The techniques and processes you've developed are radically
different from the ones that your people are used to.
As you tell your team about the new process, you can't help but be
excited. You believe that these changes will make a real difference to
your results, and you want your people to succeed.
Your team immediately picks up on your excitement and sincerity,
and they get excited too. They know it's up to them to use the new
system to make things happen, and they're willing to put in the extra
work needed to learn new skills.
When to Use It
The Coaching style should be used whenever you have a team
member who needs help building long-term skills, or if you feel that
he or she is "adrift" in your organization and could benefit from a
coaching or mentoring relationship.
However, coaching can fail when it's used with an employee who is
not making an effort, or who needs a lot of direction and feedback
here, pacesetting or commanding leadership may be more
appropriate.
How to Develop It
To develop a Coaching style, learn how to engage in informal
coaching and mentoring .
It's also important to get to know the people on your team. When you
know your people, you're better able to see when they need guidance
or advice. Use Management by Walking Around to keep in
touch with their needs.
Example
Jim, a new hire on your team, is having trouble fitting in to his new
role. He's only been with the organization a month, but you can tell
he's dissatisfied. Your organization requires "face time" at the office,
and Jim misses the freedom of telecommuting, as he did at his old
job. You also get the feeling that he'd like a position with more
responsibility.
You meet with Jim, and you help him see that being in the office five
days a week does have distinct advantages over telecommuting. For
instance, showing up every day allows him to bond with the team and
network with colleagues who could turn into strategic allies in the
future. You also encourage him to use your organization's immense
training library, which he can visit in his lunch break to learn the skills
he needs for a promotion.
To inspire and motivate Jim, you assign him projects that will stretch
his skills and knowledge base. Instead of being overwhelmed, he
expresses excitement about the opportunity.
After your talk, Jim takes your advice and starts making the most of
his time in the office. He works on his projects with dedication,
impressing both you and your boss.
When to Use It
Use this style whenever there is team tension or conflict, when trust
has been broken, or if the team needs to be motivated through a
stressful time.
How to Develop It
Leaders who use the Affiliative style are highly focused on emotion.
So, learn how to resolve conflict and how to be optimistic .
Our article on managing emotion in your team will also help.
Example
After a difficult year, Sarah's boss has finally been asked to leave her
department. Although she was proficient at her job, her management
style was dictatorial. It didn't matter what she had to do or whose
feelings she hurt meeting department goals was her top priority.
Sarah's been asked to take over her position, and, although she's
excited about the opportunity, she's now in charge of a team that is
emotionally battered and untrusting.
Sarah decides to focus on her team's emotional needs before doing
any work on department goals and future projects.
Her first few meetings are just spent talking. She allows everyone to
open up about how their old boss made them feel. Every person on
the team is allowed time to vent. The group quickly realizes that
although they went through their own tough times, they all
experienced similar things.
After two meetings, the atmosphere in the team is better and more
open to new relationships. Because their emotional needs were met
first, the group is now ready to focus on new projects and goals.
When to Use It
This style is best used when you need to get your team on board with
an idea, or build consensus. It's also effective when you need your
team's input.
The Democratic leadership style shouldn't be used with people who
are inexperienced, lack competence, or aren't well informed about a
situation. It's best to ask for input from team members who are
motivated, knowledgeable and capable.
How to Develop It
To develop a Democratic leadership style, involve your team in
problem solving and decision making, and teach them the skills
they need to do this. You should learn active listening and
facilitation skills.
Example
Your department has lost money over the past two quarters, and
you're anxious to reverse this you know that if you can't figure out
how to make your department profitable soon, something radical (and
unpleasant) will have to be done to stem the losses.
You call a meeting with your team and explain the situation. You ask
them if they have any ideas that could turn the department around.
Then, you give them the floor: For the rest of the meeting, all you do
is listen.
Your team members talk through their options, and you reach a
consensus on what to do next.
When to Use It
The Pacesetting leadership style is best used when you need to get
high quality results from a motivated team, quickly.
How to Develop It
Because the Pacesetting style focuses on high performance, learn
how to improve the quality of your team's work using techniques like
Six Sigma and Kaizen . Train your people properly, and engage
in high-performance coaching
as possible.
, so that you
Example
Although the holidays are coming up, your boss is pressuring you to
improve your team's numbers by the end of the quarter, which is only
a few weeks away. Your team is motivated, but they're also tired.
They're not looking forward to a last minute push right before their
break.
You decide to move forward anyway. They can handle the pressure,
and if they can meet their performance goals they'll be rewarded with
a great end-of-year bonus. So you get them fired up one last time,
asking everyone to work extra hours to ensure success. You also work
extra hours yourself, and you help anyone who falls behind.
When to Use It
The Commanding leadership style is best used in crisis situations, to
jump start fast-paced change, and with problem employees.
How to Develop It
Be cautious when setting out to develop a Commanding leadership
style. Remember, this style is very easily misused, and should only be
used when necessary.
To work effectively in these high-pressure situations, learn how to
manage
crises , think on your feet , and make good decisions under
pressure .
Example
Vijay has just learned that his CEO is stepping down, as of today.
As the Executive Vice President, he's naturally next in line for the
position. But right now, the board is in turmoil. Everyone is trying to
decide what to do before the financial markets open and shares
plummet on the news.
He tries to collaborate with some of his allies, but everyone has their
own idea of what needs to happen. The team is arguing constantly,
and Vijay realizes that nothing is going to get done unless someone
takes charge.
He starts issuing orders to those closest to him, almost without
thinking. His tone is firm and authoritative, and there's no room for
debate. Quickly, the room quiets down and he outlines what needs to
happen within the next few hours. He ends up quieting the fears of
everyone in the room, and things get done quickly.
Having passed the crisis, he switches to a more democratic
leadership style, respecting the experience and expertise of his
executive team.
Tip:
Key Points
According to Daniel Goleman, Richard Boyatzis, and Annie McKee,
there are six emotional leadership styles Visionary, Coaching,
Affiliative, Democratic, Pacesetting, and Commanding. Each style
has a different affect on the emotions of the people that you're
leading.
Each style works best in different situations, resonating differently
with your team, and producing different results.
Anyone can learn how to use these leadership styles. But it's
important to remember that these styles are meant to be used
interchangeably, depending on the needs of your team, and the
situation.
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office seem to go smooth and times that call for harder measures;
times when relationships are blooming and times when it's more
difficult to keep peace and harmony; times when business and
income flows well and leaner times. Each situation calls for a
connected leader who knows how to handle the situation
emotionally.
It will be great to hear about experiences from some of our
members.
Kind regards
Yoland
March 2, 2011
script for the physical motions required in tying our shoes. Through
practice, this script is eventually entrenched and it ends up making
the action so easy and automatic that we never give it another
thought. Another example of a behavioral script that we learn is
ducking when something is thrown at us. Behavioral scripts simplify
our world, make us more efficient and help us move around faster and
with less effort. They influence not only our actions but also what we
perceive and believe. Gonzales says that "We tend not to notice
things that are inconsistent with the models, and we tend not to try
what the scripts tells us is bad or impossible."
The efficiency of these scripts carry with them a downside: they can
divert our attention from important information coming to us from our
environment. In other words, the models or scripts push us to
disregard the reality of a situation, and dismiss signals because the
message we get from our scripts is that we already know about it. So
we make decisions about a situation that, as Gonzales puts it "arent
really decisions in the real sense of the word. Theyre simply
automated behaviors."
Mental scripts may also result in stubbornly clinging to the notion that
"this is how we have always done it", refusing to understand and
accept the realities of a new situation. Gonzales quotes Henry Plotkin,
a psychologist at University College in London, who states that we
tend to "generalize into the future what worked in the past." So,
whatever worked in the past, do it; whatever didnt work, avoid it.
This is, of course, the anti-thesis of the quality of being adaptable, of
being flexible under the influence of rapidly changing external
conditions. It can make us rigid, unresponsive to change, and
unwilling to learn and adopt new ways, all of which can have an
impact on our ability to survive and succeed in the long run. People
who score high on the adaptability competency are able to deal more
positively with change, and they are able to do what it takes to adapt
their approach and shift their priorities.
Here are a few tips for developing adaptability.
When you catch yourself shooting an idea down, take a moment
to consider what mental scripts are influencing your behavior.
Mental scripts are so automatic that you have to decide
intentionally that you want to challenge them, if you want to
improve your leadership.
Help your people distinguish between observation and
inference, between fact and conjecture. Inference and
conjecture can be influenced by mental scripts which dont have
a bearing on reality. Be the voice in the room that calls others
attention to this possibility, and help everyone pause so that they
can analyze inferences and conjectures that may or may not be
valid.
Do you habitually insist on going "by the book"? Is this
necessary for every issue? Might you enhance your teams
productivity if you paid more attention to the effect that this
might have on the people involved? What would happen if you
applied standard procedures more flexibly?
Consider that when we push the envelope, and when we
intentionally put ourselves in situations that are outside our
comfort zone, we grow. Are you trading on old knowledge? Do
you need to update your skills? Are you relying too much on your
title as the sign of authority? In todays working environment,
surrounded by highly intelligent and specialized knowledge
workers, this no longer works. We need to adapt by continually
evolving and reinventing ourselves. In "Rethinking the Future",
Warren Bennis talks about the importance for leaders to
recompose their leadership style and to continue to adapt: "Its
like snakes. What do snakes do? They molt, they shed their
outside skins. But its not just that. Its a matter of continuing to
grow and transform, and it means that executives have to have
extraordinary adaptability." This applies to every level in the
organization: change or perish.
When we are in a position for a length of time, we may tend to
become accustomed to the status quo and fail to challenge the
process in order to continue to grow and improve. If you left
tomorrow, what would your successor do to improve
things? Consider making these changes yourself.
In today's environment of complex challenges and rapid change,
the ability to solve problems becomes even more crucial. The
Kirton Adaption-Innovation Inventory (KAI) measures the way
people solve problems and make decisions. Adapters prefer a
more adaptable, methodical and organized approach to problemsolving, and are more likely to seek a solution to a problem by
working within current framework rather than developing a
completely new one. Innovators, on the other hand, prefer a
less orderly, more unconventional and ingenious approach to
problem-solving and are likely to seek solutions by thinking
outside the box. One looks to do things better, the other looks to
do things differently. Consider that a team that is composed of
extreme adapters or extreme innovators is less successful
than a team that is balanced. If you want to know where your
team is in this dimension, check out the KAI.
If you want a test to assess your level of adaptability,
consider the StrengthsFinder or Emotional Competence
Inventory (ECI). The latter tests adaptability on four scales:
1. Openness to new ideas.
2. Adaptation to situations.
3. Handling of unexpected demands.
4. Adapting or changing strategy.
To understand what changes you need to make to continue to be
successful, read: What Got You Here Won't Get You There:
How Successful People Become Even More Successful by
Marshall Goldsmith. (We have published a Book Insight
covering this great title.)
Adaptability is not just a "nice to have competency." It is a
competitive advantage for you, as a leader and for your organization.
So, where does your company stand in terms of adaptability? What do
you need to do to keep up with the pace of change, with the
increasing complexity of todays workplace? Long ago, Benjamin
Franklin said: "Wide will wear, but narrow will tear." What can you do
today to widen your perspective, to stretch the limits imposed, to
extend the scope and meaning of what you do as a leader?
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Yoland
June 10, 2009
Midgie wrote
This is an interesting article which highlights the need and
benefits of being 'adaptable'. We are not being 'adaptable' when
we are entrenched in our 'mental scrips' that all of have going on
all the time. The key is taking the time to stop and question why
were are responding or saying things in a certain way.
The article concludes with some excellent strategies to help you
become more adaptable. So, well worth considering and adopting!
Midgie
June 9, 2009
Key Points
The Blake Mouton Managerial Grid is a practical and useful
framework that helps you think about your leadership style. By
plotting concern for production against concern for people, the
grid highlights how placing too much emphasis in one area at the
expense of the other leads to low overall productivity.
The model proposes that when both people and production
concerns are high, employee engagement and productivity
increases accordingly. This is often true, and it follows the ideas of
Theories X and Y, and other participative management theories.
While the grid does not entirely address the complexity of Which
leadership style is best?, it certainly provides an excellent starting
point for thinking about your own performance and improving your
general leadership skills.
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iStockphoto/Veni
These four factors get you started with leadership, but you can
develop your skills much further. If you want to build skills in all
areas of leadership, take our How Good Are Your Leadership
Skills? self-test, and find out where else you can improve.
Key Points
David Bowers and Stanley Seashore created the Four Factor
Theory of Leadership in the mid-60s.
The four dimensions are:
1. Providing support.
2. Encouraging teamwork.
3. Focusing on goals.
4. Helping people work effectively.
You can use the four factors as a solid base when building your
leadership skills. Bear in mind, however, that you'll need to learn
much more than this if you want to be an effective leader.
Click to vote no
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Click to vote no
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Lulu;
It happens to some extent any every aspect of life -- events
around us are observed as unfair or unequal, by either another
individual or group of individuals. Envy or lack of fairness is often
hard to judge as it is all down to specific situations. And in my
opinion the best a leader can do is try to limit the envious, trying
to act in the most fair aspect.
In you examples, why is the staff member allowed to work from
home? You may not get the true answer because there is not a
need to know. At my job we had a similar event, many were upset
that they did not have laptops or ability to work from home. After
two years we found out the employee working from home had
been battling cancer. They worked from home on chemo days
because of the exagerated illness.
Of course after the fact and discovery that opened a whole new
bag of worms.
January 28, 2012
Fidget wrote
What an interesting article! while I was reading, I actually checked
up the dictionary difference between envy and jealousy, and
although they are often used interchangeably, there is a subtle
difference - envy is more admiration of what someone else has
that you don't, while jealousy is the same thing but with an added
layer os unhappiness or a feeling of unfairness that goes with it.
Fiona
December 10, 2007
lulu wrote
Interesting topic. I have seen what I believe to be unfairness or
inequality in the office, but is it also envy??
For example, we have had certain staff member's children, appear
at work to do some filing or other tasks and get paid. This has not
been offered to other people's children, nor made public that
there is work to be done, so it has created as sense of inequality.
What do we have to do, to be in 'that circle' of staff where your
kids can earn pocket money.
Another scenario - one staff member has been given a laptop to
work out of the office and from home. This is essential also for the
training team, but has not been met with the same level of
enthusiasm (although we are making progress). I see it as
inequality or unfairness when the training team are mobile all
over the country (compared to this person who just works in the
city). Is this envy or management just not treating staff equally??
Curious....
Lulu
December 9, 2007
Leadership Styles
According to Hersey and Blanchard, there are four main leadership
styles:
Maturity Levels
According to Hersey and Blanchard, knowing when to use each style
is largely dependent on the maturity of the person or group you're
leading. They break maturity down into four different levels:
M1 People at this level of maturity are at the bottom level of
the scale. They lack the knowledge, skills, or confidence to work
on their own, and they often need to be pushed to take the task
on.
M2 at this level, followers might be willing to work on the task,
but they still don't have the skills to complete it successfully.
M3 Here, followers are ready and willing to help with the task.
They have more skills than the M2 group, but they're still not
confident in their abilities.
M4 These followers are able to work on their own. They have
high confidence and strong skills, and they're committed to the
task.
The Hersey-Blanchard model maps each leadership style to each
maturity level, as shown below.
Maturity Level
Most Appropriate
Leadership Style
S1: Telling/directing
S2: Selling/coaching
S3: Participating/supporting
S4: Delegating
Key Points
All teams, and all team members, aren't created equal. Hersey and
Blanchard argue that leaders are more effective when they use a
leadership style based on the individuals or groups they're leading.
Start by identifying whom you're leading. Are your followers
knowledgeable about the task? Are they willing and excited to do
the work? Rate them on the M1 - M4 maturity scale, and then use
the leadership style that's appropriate for that rating.
Situational Leadership is a registered trademark of the Center for
Leadership Studies.
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iStockphoto/Andresr
14 Statements to
Answer
1.
Strongly
Disagree
2.
3.
4.
5.
Strongly
Agree
14 Statements to
Answer
1.
Strongly
Disagree
2.
3.
4.
5.
Strongly
Agree
Total = 0
Score Interpretation
Score
14
27
Comment
This implies a low motivation to lead.
Score
Comment
28
55
56
70
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More Self-tests
The second group is of tests that are more closely aligned with
formal work psychology research, and the leadership motivation
test is an example of one of these. By their nature, these tend to
focus on one area rather than multiple areas, and you're right to
point out that this one is quite short and elementary. (That's not a
bad thing, incidentally! )
What this test does is help you work out for yourself how much of
a "buzz" you get from leadership and management. This is really
important, because the most fundamental thing that marks out an
effective leader from an ineffective one is that the effective leader
really, passionately, wants to lead.
As Bree and Dianna say, if you don't get a buzz from leadership,
then it really pays to reflect on whether you can build that passion
within yourself, or whether, in fact, you should develop your
career in a different way. For some, this can be a career-changing
insight.
Hope this helps!
James
June 22, 2010
Bree wrote
Hi everyone,
I just wanted to say that I really like these self-assessment quizzes
as they usually give me insight, and often confirmation, into
myself. I've done various psychometric tests before as well as
quizzes (like the one here) and I would say the difference is for
what purposes are you using them.
For me, gaining more insight into myself is always interesting so
these quizzes are perfect. However, if I was an employer looking
to promote from within, I'd go for psychometric testing and
profiling of employees.
As Dianna said, There is an unwritten expectation that to move
forward in one's career that means moving upward. yet often
times the greatest of technicians do not make the greatest of
managers/leaders. Therefore, knowing that in advance can save
alot of problems in the long run! Using this type of quiz to do an
initial assessment could be the first step in shortlisting people
before doing more in-depth assessments.
Keep up the good work Mind Tools with providing good
information, resources and tools! I love the 'bite-sized' format of
your resources which are easy to digest and use. And, if I'm really
keen to delve deeper, I can also go investigate further elsewhere!
Bree
June 22, 2010
ravend wrote
Dianna,
The other resources along this stream do seem interesting and
may prove quite fruitful in what gems they deliver.
The comment from myself earlier was/are aimed however at your
'short quiz' format starting point, and realistically at the
comments both James and yourself (as part of the Mind Tools
Team) place on it. (It is tempting to make reference here of being
over enthusiastic about your own product although I feel I might
be too cynical in my 'old before my time' age)
Certainly you / I would expect some measure of excitement or
enthusiasm towards tools like this, but the follow up post to
James's stressing the value of quiz really, IMHO, plays down on
what the quiz is for - leading you towards more information on
subject matters.
Therein lies the rub that stressing the short quiz could divert
people away from following the more mature material behind this
(because of getting low scores).
I'll avoid making a joke about the linking of space based
propulsion systems to passion as I am sure there are a full range
of puns that could come from doing so, and partially as I do view
the rest to be worth a read by others and would hate to distract
from what the text is leading towards.
Ending nicely (having already been told today to play nice by a
fellow colleague) , I hope the day brings excitement and a grin.
skills and approaches that you'll need for each transition, you can
start to prepare yourself for your next promotion.
First, new managers at this level need to know how to hold level one
managers accountable. This might include becoming a coach or
mentor to help them develop, and providing appropriate training.
Managers in level two are also responsible for training the managers
and
Leaders at this level must know how to think over the long-term, as
they'll need to plan for the medium-term future. They must also
understand the organization's long-term goals, so that their functional
strategy aligns with these aims.
Coach new functional managers to stay up-to-date on industry
trends , so that they can take advantage of new advances:
managers who are aware of technology and trends can adjust their
strategy to better contribute to the organization's competitive
advantage.
Although all managers need to be good listeners, this skill is
particularly important at functional manager level. Teach your
functional managers how to use active listening skills. They also
need to be skilled at reading body language , so that they can
avoid misinterpretation and spot untruths.
Group managers need the ability to value others' success, and they
must be humble enough to help others succeed. They need to learn
how to critique the business managers' strategy-formulation, and
provide effective feedback.
Group managers should know how to create the right mix of
investments in their businesses to help the organization succeed.
Resource allocation, market prediction and segmentation, and global
business etiquette are all important skills here.
They also need to stay on top of all of their businesses to ensure that
they're obeying the law, sticking to corporate policy, acting in a way
that's consistent with corporate strategy, enhancing the global brand,
and making a robust profit.
The businesses in their group that show the most promise in all these
areas are the ones that will be fully funded. So, group managers must
know how to maintain good relationships with businesses, even if
they aren't getting the funding they want. They also need analytical
skills in order to balance what's good for their businesses, versus
what's good for the organization.
Future CEOs need to understand that once they ascend to this level,
they're responsible for a number of different stakeholder groups
and organizations, such as the board, financial analysts, investors,
partners, the workforce, direct reports, and local communities. Failing
any of these groups means a loss of credibility.
By the time that managers reach this stage, they should already have
developed many of the leadership skills mentioned in this article.
However, there are several ways in which they can develop further.
Our article on Level 5 Leadership teaches good leaders how to
become great leaders by developing humility.
Often, CEOs, because of their number of responsibilities, have to
make good decisions under an incredible amount of pressure. Make
sure that potential leaders are familiar with a wide range of decisionmaking techniques, and know how to think on their feet .
Last, risk taking is a given at this level, but future CEOs need the
courage to take calculated risks, even when they face opposition from
others. This requires character , integrity, decisiveness, and inner
strength.
Key Points
Ram Charan, Stephen Drotter, and James Noel developed the
Leadership Pipeline Model and published it in their book, "The
Leadership Pipeline." The model highlights six progressions that
managers can go through as they develop their careers.
These progressions are from:
1. Managing self to managing others.
2. Managing others to managing managers.
3. Managing managers to functional manager.
4. Functional manager to business manager.
5. Business manager to group manager.
6. Group manager to enterprise manager.
While organizations can use these progressions to help develop
their people, individuals can also use them to grow personally,
increasing their knowledge and skills so that they're ready for their
next promotion.
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Zuni
September 23, 2012
A strong tie.
iStockphoto/Skyak
Some kids ate the marshmallow within seconds, but others waited up
to 20 minutes for the researcher to return. 14 years later, the
researchers found that the children who had delayed gratification
were more trustworthy, more dependable, more self-reliant and more
confident than the children who had not controlled their impulses.
When I recounted this study in a workshop on emotional intelligence,
a participant remarked that he wanted to try this experiment with his
own child. I cautioned him, however, that there is a very important
variable to take into account and that is, does the child trust that
there will be a second marshmallow? If previous promises made to
the child were broken, the child may not trust that, this time, the
adult will keep a promise. Trust is largely an emotional act, based on
an anticipation of reliance. It is fragile, and like an egg shell, one slip
can shatter it.
Trust pervades nearly every aspect of our daily lives. It is
fundamentally important in the healthy functioning of all of our
relationships with others. It is even tied to our wealth: in a Scientific
American article, Dr. Paul J Zak, a neuroeconomist at Claremont
Graduate University, discovered that trust is among the strongest
known predictors of a country's wealth nations with low levels tend
to be poor. According to Dr. Zak, societies with low levels of trust are
poor because the inhabitants undertake too few of the long-term
investments that create jobs and raise incomes. Such investments
depend on people trusting others to fulfill their contractual
obligations.
In seeking to understand what was physically going on in the human
brain that instilled trust, he discovered that oxytocin, a hormone and
neurotransmitter, increases our propensity to trust others in the
absence of threatening signals. We are indeed wired to trust each
other, but, as Dr. Zak points out, our life experiences may "retune"
the oxytocin to a different "set point", and thus to different levels of
trust throughout the course of life. When we are brought up in a safe,
nurturing and caring environment, our brains release more oxytocin
when someone trusts us resulting in our reciprocating that trust. By
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Researchers David Rooke and William Torbert argue that there are
seven stages that the most successful leaders go through, and that,
by learning new skills, you can move from one stage to the next.
In this article, we'll look at these seven leadership transformations,
and we'll discuss how you can move through each stage.
1. Opportunist.
2. Diplomat.
3. Expert.
4. Achiever.
5. "Individualist."
6. Strategist.
7. Alchemist.
From "Seven Transformations of Leadership" by David Rooke and William R. Torbert. Harvard
Business Review, April 2005.
Let's look at the categories in detail, and discover how you can evolve
through them to develop your leadership capabilities.
1. Opportunist
Opportunists focus on personal success rather than on the success of
their team or organization. They take advantage of others, engineer
situations for their own benefit, and manipulate their colleagues to
get what they want.
Being an opportunist leader is likely to damage your reputation and
working relationships, although opportunism can sometimes be
useful, for example, in sales situations.
Opportunist leaders will need to transform to the next action logic
quickly, otherwise they're likely to find that their success is limited.
2. Diplomat
Diplomats avoid conflict whenever possible. They want to belong to
the group and please others, especially higher-ranking colleagues.
They also seek to avoid upsetting other team members with feedback
that could be seen as negative.
As you might imagine, diplomats aren't good at implementing
change, because of the inevitable conflicts this causes.
The diplomat's strengths are in resolving conflicts and holding a team
together, especially at lower levels of management. However,
diplomats tend to be poor long-term leaders as they may be passive,
or avoid making difficult or controversial decisions.
3. Expert
The majority of leaders are categorized as experts, and their expert
power means that people tend to follow them willingly. Experts
depend on their knowledge and skills to lead, and they often focus on
logic and fact when making decisions. They're very efficient, and they
work consistently to improve products, processes and skills in the
workplace.
Experts can add a lot of value to an organization because they value
precision and quality. However, they sometimes don't make good
leaders, because they can adopt a "my way or the highway"
approach, and they resist collaboration. They can also tend to dismiss
the opinions of others who aren't as knowledgeable.
4. Achiever
Achievers are goal-oriented. They set effective goals for their team
and themselves. More importantly, they have a higher emotional
intelligence than people with the three previous action logics.
5. "Individualist"
"Individualists" understand that each individual has his or her own
different world view, and that these influence the way that he or she
behaves. As such, these leaders seek to understand how each
individual views the world, and they adapt their approach according
to this.
Individualists reflect upon the differences between the goals that they
are trying to achieve and the current ways that they, or their
organization, are behaving. Where there's a difference, they seek to
bring these into alignment. As such, they do their best make
themselves and their organizations true to the values and mission
that they say they stand for.
Because of the individualist's insight into other people's world views,
they are able to communicate well with others and build great
working relationships.
Despite being excellent performers, individualists can often disregard
established processes to the annoyance of their colleagues if they
don't see the reason for them.
6. Strategist
Strategists have the gift of seeing organizational roadblocks as
potential opportunities. They're good at managing conflict. They're
also often highly ethical, and they seek to promote those ethics
beyond the organization, in order to do good on a wider scale.
This action logic is similar to that of the individualist, in that both are
adept at communicating with people using other action logics.
However, they differ in that strategists have the ability to build a
shared vision with other leaders. This brings people together to
achieve important goals, and, ultimately, leads to personal and
organizational transformation. As a result, strategists are usually
excellent at implementing change.
7. Alchemist
Alchemists are different from strategists because they have the
strength and ability to reinvent themselves when they need to.
Alchemists also excel at dealing with short-term projects and tasks,
while keeping long-term goals in mind.
They also have great rapport with people in their organization,
whether this is the executive team or the ground-floor crew. This is
because they always tell the truth, even when it might be hard to
hear. They also use business storytelling to capture the imagination
and emotions of the people they work with, and this creates a positive
and engaged corporate culture.
Alchemists tend to be extremely busy, yet they find the time to take
care of all their responsibilities. This includes finding time to speak to
people personally, and at all levels of the organization.
Growing as an Alchemist
By the time you get to this last stage, you've likely mastered both the
art of getting things done and the art of managing your team.
No matter how busy you get, make sure that you devote enough time
to building good relationships. This is especially important with people
lower in your organization's hierarchy. If you take the time to talk to
these people and address their concerns, it shows that you care, and
this develops loyalty.
Note:
Key Points
David Rooke and William Torbert published their Seven
Transformations of Leadership model in the April 2005 "Harvard
Business Review."
According to Rooke and Torbert, the following seven "action logics"
represent stages which leaders needs to evolve through in order to
develop their leadership skills:
1. Opportunist.
2. Diplomat.
3. Expert.
4. Achiever.
5. "Individualist."
6. Strategist.
7. Alchemist.
Many leaders progress to the expert or achiever stage, and then
stop. However, the most effective leaders continue to push
themselves until they reach the final two stages: strategist, and
alchemist.
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situation.
Do you find yourself switching leadership styles often or do you
find you only pull out different styles when absolutely necessary?
And what type of style do you typically pull out in these
situations?
Dianna
February 20, 2013
brisbane_artist wrote
I have read many leadership books and spent some time here
reading today.
There is a tricky aspect of leadership that stands out for me.
What I am realising after reading many of these articles is that
leaders have the choice to be responsive by sometimes adapting
between styles.
Once having attained the Alchemy stage a leader has the ability
to assess the situation and respond authentically. I would think
that if a leader was going to suddenly change a style of relating
and leading, he or she might have to preface many interactions
with very clear and succinct explanation and expression of intent.
eg....
"Jan, I value our working relationship and usually we meet eye to
eye, and things run smoothly. However at this stage of this
particular project things seem to have gone off course and I
believe I now need to change my strategy and be very firm in the
way I take the lead.
Is that how you see the way things are?"
Over the years I have watched leaders who suddenly become
aggressive when things go wrong and the sudden change of tack
can be very off putting. I think a leader needs to be predictable.
People like to know where they stand.
I have also watched others who remain in the one leadership style
out of habit and stuckness, when clearly the situation calls for a
different way of handling things. I see this happen a lot.
As I peruse these articles [color=#FF0040:1z09g59k]as a set - I
realise that I can feel validated about the way I try to change my
own leadership style when the situation I find myself in changes.
I have enjoyed reading through some of the articles in your
leadership series thank you, Jo
February 20, 2013
april123 wrote
One thing that stands out to me, is that it is implied in this article
that the leader always has to watch out for his ego standing in the
way of his own growth. When being touted as the 'expert', is does
stroke the ego because everybody asks the 'expert' how to do
something and what his opinion is. The achiever's ego is boosted
by reaching goals...becoming the best. Is it the best for team
though? Or the best for himself? The individualist will probably get
an ego boost because he thinks 'out of the box' (oh my...terrible
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The Tannenbaum-Schmidt
Leadership Continuum
Balancing Control With Your Team's Need for Freedom
Leaders use a variety of
different approaches.
Some are autocratic and prefer
to tell their teams exactly what
to do.
Others use a much more
participative style. Still others
may use a style somewhere
between these two extremes.
These differences suggest a
continuum of leadership
behavior with leaders being
able to choose the style they use.
So, how do you choose the leadership style that's right for you?
One popular approach to leadership, the "contingency" approach,
argues that your choice should be based on the situation, and not on
your personal preferences (here, "contingency" means that your
approach is dependent on, or contingent upon, the situation).
In 1958, contingency theorists Robert Tannenbaum and Warren
Schmidt identified a continuum of seven distinct leadership styles,
which they published in the Harvard Business Review. By
understanding this continuum, you can see some of the options
available to you, and these help you think about which leadership
style is most appropriate in a given situation.
The model highlights seven leadership styles that occur across the
continuum:
Note:
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I ended up keeping the birthday card that was destined for my friend.
It is on my desk as a beautiful reminder of the strength that comes
from relying on our dreams, on our purpose, on our passion, no
matter how uncertain our current situation may be. These are the
things that energize us, inspire us, propel us forward the things that
put a fire in our belly just thinking about them.
"What every man needs, regardless of his job or the kind of work he is
doing, is a vision of what his place is and may be. He needs an
objective and a purpose. He needs a feeling and a belief that he has
some worthwhile thing to do. What this is no one can tell him. It must
be his own creation." (Joseph M. Dodge, Sitterson Professor, Florida
State University.)
Joy and hope are an inside job. Abandon the tendency to think that
what is now will continue into the future. Focus on what you want for
your future, rather than on what you don't want. Something
remarkable happens when we successfully make that shift.
Copyright 2006-2013 by Bruna Martinuzzi. All Rights Reserved.
This article is adapted from Bruna Martinuzzis book: The Leader as
a Mensch: Become the Kind of Person Others Want to Follow.
Bruna is an educator, author, speaker and founder of Clarion
Enterprises Ltd, a company which specializes in emotional
intelligence, leadership, Myers-Briggs and presentation skills training.
Click here to contact her or visit her website at
www.increaseyoureq.com. Click here for other articles by Bruna.
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Transformational Leadership
Becoming an Inspirational Leader
Molly is someone everyone
respects.
Her team members are fiercely
loyal, and they're highly
successful as individuals, and
as a team.
In contrast, other leaders in the
organization report that their
people seem disengaged. They
experience high staff turnover,
and their results are often
disappointing.
Note:
As you can see, our process doesn't map directly onto Bass' list.
However, it does translate the traits that he set out into clear and
actionable steps.
Use these steps, along with the tools we outline below, to develop
your transformational leadership skills.
Key Points
Transformational leaders inspire great loyalty and trust in their
followers. They have high expectations, and they inspire their
people to reach their goals.
You can become a transformational leader by following these
steps:
1. Create an inspiring vision of the future.
2. Motivate people to buy into and deliver the vision.
3. Manage delivery of the vision.
4. Build ever-stronger, trust-based relationships with your
people.
Keep in mind that, to succeed as a transformational leader, you'll
need to work on your own skills, and set aside time and space for
personal development.
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Decision Making
Leaders need to be able to solve problems effectively and make good
decisions. But decision making and problem solving skills are
commonly taught so, with all those problem solvers out there, why
can good leaders be so hard to find?
According to Livingston, the difference often lies in your approach to
finding solutions. If you deal with a problem believing that you have
to find the 'right answer', this can actually lead to failure. After all,
you can analyze a problem forever, and still not be 100% sure that
your solution is the best. The only way to assess your decision is by
looking back, after the fact. Even then, there are sometimes too many
variables to determine whether or not you definitely chose the right
course of action.
Effective leaders use practical and responsive approaches to decision
making. They know that you can't wait to make a perfect decision:
when you're in the middle of a situation, you have to be confident
enough to do what needs to be done right now. This means you must
quickly evaluate the situation, and take an action that has a high
probability of success. The decisions that these leaders make under
pressure may not be perfect, but they're consistent with the
desired outcome.
Good leaders also know that problem solving and decision making
aren't entirely rational processes. We all have emotions, so
completely objective decisions don't really exist. Successful leaders
therefore use critical thinking a technique that questions every
step of their thinking processes to manage the subjective side of
decision making.
Ultimately, what sets apart effective leaders is that they know HOW
to decide. They know when to take the time to use analytical and
thorough decision-making processes. They know when to engage the
whole team, and when to make decisions on their own. This
knowledge doesn't come from a book, but from practical experience.
As a developing leader, look for opportunities to make decisions in a
wide variety of situations, so that you can gain that experience.
See the Mind Tools decision-making skills section to learn a wide
range of specific decision-making techniques.
Problem Finding
Leaders don't simply solve problems that people bring to them they
look for problems that may be hidden. In other words, they often
recognize potential issues before they become significant.
The quicker you discover a problem, the more time you have to find a
solution, and the easier it is to tackle the problem before it becomes
serious. Skillful leaders are proactive, and they continuously ask
questions. The 5 Whys problem-solving technique a tool that
helps you get to the root of a problem quickly is something that
good leaders often do instinctively when they first find a problem.
Also, look for potential problems that may be caused by a proposed
solution before that solution is implemented. When they can,
leaders use approaches like Failure Modes and Effects Analysis
(FMEA) to spot these problems before they take action. Sometimes
this happens intuitively and informally, but the objective is the same
Opportunity Finding
When you solve problems, you make sure the organization can
continue on its defined path toward its goals. When you find
opportunities, however, you focus on redefining and hopefully
improving the company's overall direction.
As management expert Peter Drucker famously said, "The pertinent
question is not how to do things right, but how to find the right things
to do, and to concentrate resources and efforts on them."
Successful leaders find opportunities and use them effectively. In
practical terms, they understand leverage , and they constantly
look for ways to achieve more with the same amount of effort.
Simplex is a sophisticated tool for finding problems and
opportunities and for taking action.
Our strategy tools section has many useful tools that help
leaders assess strategic opportunities. Some of the most popular
are PEST Analysis , SWOT Analysis , the Boston Matrix
and Porter's Five Forces .
Note:
Key Points
Leaders aren't created overnight: leadership is something that you
need to work on every day. It's more than learning how to solve
problems and make decisions you must focus on making your
organization better through everything you do.
This means that you need to understand how and when to make a
decision, recognize problems before they appear, constantly look
for opportunities to improve, and be aware of your leadership
style. When people believe in you, they'll likely trust your decisions
and actions and that's the mark of a true leader.
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I have gotten better over the past few months. For example, I
wanted to send a survey to my women's group, so I decided to
write the questions and send it out to the group. I let go of trying
to write the 'perfect' questions and simply wrote from my heart.
The article makes me realize that I must be confident enough to
make the decision so I can move forward. My husband is a good
role model for me in terms of decision making.
[u:2avmwyof]Problem Defining[/u:2avmwyof]
I truly believe that problems are opportunities. Once a problem is
identified, I have an opportunity to put a system in place so the
problem doesn't resurface. This is my work philosophy. I often ask
co-workers, "What can I do to make your job easier?" Upon further
discovery, I've come to realize that defining problems allows me
to set people up for success - this is very important to me and ties
into my core value of developing people. I get frustrated at work
because I don't see this as a core value of the company.
[u:2avmwyof]Opportunity Finding[/u:2avmwyof]
At first, I didn't see the distinction between problem defining and
opportunity finding. Here's what I came up with, problem defining
asks the question, "what's not working" and opportunity finding
asks the question, "what's possible?"
In terms of opportunity finding, I think my company can get buy-in
from its employees by involving the employees in a discussion of
what they see as opportunities for growth. I also believe that the
leadership team at my place of employment is so busy with dayto-day operations that no one is looking for ways to take the
company to the next level. This is tough for me because I'm a
visionary and love brainstorming ways to make things better.
[u:2avmwyof]Natural Leadership Style[/u:2avmwyof]
I agree that there is no one correct leadership style. I like using
tools, like the DISC, because it gives a common language for
talking about different preferences of people and gives me ways
to flex my style based on who I'm talking with.
In conclusion, I don't have a leadership position at work, yet my
commitment is to show up as a leader in my life and for my
women's group. I will definitely read the book How to Lead:
Discover the Leader Within You so I continue to enhance my skills
and step into the role of Transformational Leader!
Joyfully,
Shannon
January 25, 2011
Dianna wrote
Hi alqwairi - welcome to the forums. It's great to hear from you.
I agree leadership is something that we all have to work on and
try to practice on a regular basis. Even if you aren't in a leadership
position right now you can still use the qualities of a leader to
achieve your team and professional goals.
Let us know how we can help support you as you work to
implement leadership skills. If there are specific tools you'd like to
read more about you can search for them or I can help you find
them. Please do let me know. In the meantime, I hope you
continue to enjoy the tools and resources we have here at the
Club.
Cheers!
Dianna
September 24, 2010
alqwairi wrote
real this good points ,but need more works to implement
September 23, 2010
Rachel wrote
Hi All
What skills differentiate average leaders from great ones? And
how can we apply these skills to be better leaders?
In this week's Featured Favorite, we highlight the key skill areas
that are essential for successful leadership.
Click below to find out what they are, and how you can apply
them to your own situation, so that you can be an even better
leader.
Best wishes
Rachel
September 21, 2010
mayc wrote
This has got to be one of my favorite articles on Mind Tools.
Leadership is tough and this brings it back down to practical
things I can do everyday to be a better leader and example for my
team. We've really embraced "problem finding" in our team. And
it's changed out whole outlook. Instead of going through the gears
I find my team is thinking about why we do what we do, and they
are questioning lots of process and systems that were just taken
for granted before. My boss has already noticed our "motivation
and morale" have improved which is fantastic feedback for me.
May
What is Leadership?
Leaders are people who
do the right thing;
managers are people who
do things right.
Professor Warren G.
Bennis
Flash
Leadership: A Definition
According to the idea of transformational leadership, an effective
leader is a person who does the following:
1. Creates an inspiring vision of the future.
2. Motivates and inspires people to engage with that vision.
3. Manages delivery of the vision.
4. Coaches and builds a team, so that it is more effective at
achieving the vision.
Leadership brings together the skills needed to do these things. We'll
look at each element in more detail.
Key Points
Leadership can be hard to define and it means different things to
different people.
In the transformational leadership model, leaders set direction and
help themselves and others to do the right thing to move forward.
To do this they create an inspiring vision, and then motivate and
inspire others to reach that vision. They also manage delivery of
the vision, either directly or indirectly, and build and coach their
teams to make them ever stronger.
Effective leadership is about all of this and it's exciting to be part
of this journey!
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James wrote
Hi everyone
This is to let you know that weve published a video for this topic.
Click here to watch the video:
http://www.mindtools.com/community/pages/main/
videos.php#leadership
James
July 14, 2011
James wrote
Hi Tarek
Someone who's an inspiring leader but a poor manager can leave
a team or organization in chaos. Someone who's a poor leader but
a good manager can create an efficiently functioning machine
that's completely overtaken by events.
Leadership and management are different but overlapping skill
sets, and we either need to develop both sets of skills if we're
going to be truly effective in the workplace; or we need to work
with others who provide skills that we lack.
James
June 7, 2010
stasiaandtarek wrote
thank you Dianna
June 6, 2010
Dianna wrote
Hi Tarek - interesting way to look the role of manager and leader.
From a practical standpoint I think it's very difficult to separate the
two concepts. They are so interrelated and I agree that the best
teams will emerge when the person who leads them is a great
manager as well as leader. That's why I think it's so important that
people work on their leadership skills regardless of the position
they are in. Then when a management position opens up, you
have many of the skills already covered. Try to be inspirational
and lead by example in all things you do. That way when the
official management responsibilities fall to you, you will be ready
to lead your team to great results.
Dianna
June 6, 2010
stasiaandtarek wrote
HELLO
I just want an answer and help about what me i could do thru this
article
and if it is right my point of view, for me to get more
understanding , and also because cause i am a little manager
(NEGATIVE OR POSITIVE) Manager + (NEGATIVE OR POSITIVE)
Leader = ?? Team
so what i me trust is :
[b] (NEGATIVE) Manager + (POSITIVE) Leader = (0 =<) Team
(NEGATIVE) more than (POSITIVE)
(POSITIVE) Manager + (NEGATIVE) Leader = (0 =>) Team
(NEGATIVE)
(NEGATIVE) Manager + (NEGATIVE) Leader = (0) Team (NEGATIVE)
(POSITIVE) Manager + (POSITIVE) Leader = (0 <=) Team
(POSITIVE)
so does it should be understood in this way ?
Regards
Tarek
June 5, 2010
iStockphoto/EasyBuy4u
While empathy is a right brain activity, it is far from being a touchyfeely topic. At its core, empathy is the oil that keeps relationships
running smoothly. The fact that empathy is an important component
of effective relationships has been proven: In studies by Dr Antonio
Damasio (outlined in his book: "Descartes' Error: Emotion,
Reason, and the Human Brain"), medical patients who had
damage to part of the brain associated with empathy showed
significant deficits in relationship skills, even though their reasoning
and learning abilities remained intact.
Indeed, empathy is valued currency. It allows us to create bonds of
trust, it gives us insights into what others may be feeling or thinking;
it helps us understand how or why others are reacting to situations, it
sharpens our "people acumen" and it informs our decisions.
A formal definition of Empathy is the ability to identify and
understand another's situation, feelings and motives. It's our capacity
to recognize the concerns other people have. Empathy means:
"putting yourself in the other person's shoes" or "seeing things
through someone else's eyes."
There are numerous studies that link empathy to business results.
They include studies that correlate empathy with increased sales,
with the performance of the best managers of product development
teams and with enhanced performance in an increasingly diverse
workforce. A few of these studies can be viewed on the site of The
Consortium for Research on Emotional Intelligence in
Organizations.
Yes, increasingly, the topic of empathy is encroaching on the business
world. We are now even seeing terms such as "empathy marketing"
and "empathy selling." Not long ago, I came across the term "user
empathy," referring to user interface.
Along those lines, in his book, A Whole New Mind: Moving from
the Information Age to the Conceptual Age, Daniel Pink predicts
that power will reside with those who have strong right-brain
(interpersonal) qualities. He cites three forces that are causing this
change: Abundance, Asia, and Automation. "Abundance" refers to our
increasing demand for products or services that are aesthetically
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Click to vote yes
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Next article
there is another aspect that helps develop the people and the
business which also allows you to develop the people while still
providing forward progress of people and business.
This still allows the people to change and allows the business to
change.
Yet this still needs you to get the new or current people to
progress yourself, them self and the business itself.
Often this requires a new way to be more emphatic but perhaps it
just needs to acknowledge when the business needs to be more
supportive in the business objectives and the trust given to the
people to develop the business and themselves.
This needs to adjust to when the business changes when the
people want to move on or when new people need to fill the new
position vacated without the business adapting to this change.
Bigk
September 16, 2010
Yolande wrote
Hi all
Very much a case of 'people don't care how much you know until
they know how much you care'. Even though we are running
businesses, without people those businesses wouldn't be able to
operate. So, caring about those who help make our businesses
successful almost seems only logical to do...
Regards
Yoland
September 16, 2010
zuni wrote
Hi all,
I work in a telecommunications company which is dominated by
left brained people. I can attest to the author's comment that
empathy, and anything associated with emotional intelligence, is
considered wishy washy.
Our lack of attention to the "soft" side of leadership is now
becoming our achilles heel. Our employee engagement scores are
dropping in a time when we need every employee to be fully
engaged and doing whatever it takes to serve our customers and
achieve our objectives. We are now educating leaders about the
importance of knowing their employees (career aspirations,
desires) and caring about them by listening to them and hearing
what they are saying and acting on issues that cause distrust.
In the final analysis, we all want to be respected and