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June 25, 2014
How to Become an Authentic Leader
Here are five steps to help you on that journey.
Authentic leadership. What is it and why should you care? Authentic leadership is relevant and even more important and necessary today in a world where we observe many leaders proven to be untrustworthy. Consider some of the many examples where you have felt let down by a leader you know or have grown to know through the media.
Authenticity is where our external actions align with internal beliefs. It’s the alignment of who you are and who you appear to be. Are you the same...Continue reading
By Jayne JenkinsPosted in Leadership & Teambuilding on June 25, 2014
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June 16, 2014
Managing Conflict: Six Things NOT to Do
Are you fixing problems on your team or elevating them?
Many new mangers struggle with how to deal with a conflict on their team. Many, many seasoned managers struggle even more with how to deal with a conflict. How you deal with conflicts on your team sets the tone for innovation, progress, and success on your team.
To succeed in helping your team resolve conflicts, there are several things you should always do, but perhaps more importantly, there are also things you should avoid. Here are six ways you could be making a conflict worse, and a...Continue reading
By Emilie ShoopPosted in Management on June 16, 2014
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May 13, 2014
Leading Through Change: Persistence and change agents are vital!
Find those trusted agents who can help you.
No doubt at some point in your career you have heard, "We tried that, and it didn't work." or "We don't need to make any changes." Change is not easy, in fact, most will resist change. We get comfortable with the way we do business and change is just that, change. Change can be difficult.
When I became the head of the Department of Physical Education at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 1997, gymnastics was one of the required courses for all plebes (freshmen). The...Continue reading
By Karen KuhlaPosted in Leadership & Teambuilding on May 13, 2014
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April 29, 2014
How To Give A Meaningful Compliment
Giving Praise, What Great Leaders Have In Common
We are all in a position to give and receive compliments at some point, both in our personal and professional lives. Some of us are better at it than others. Sometimes our skill varies based on the setting; sometimes it varies based on our relationship with the individual that is deserving the compliment.
Why do we let these varying factors impact our ability to give complements? Maybe it’s because we are concerned about how we will be perceived. Maybe it’s because we are shy....Continue reading
By Lisa WoodsPosted in Leadership & Teambuilding on April 29, 2014
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April 17, 2014
7 Horrible Mistakes You’re Making with Team Communication
Remind your team that communication is critical to everyone’s success.
Effective team communication is critical to your success a leader. Each member on your team, including you, needs to know what is going on, deadlines, expectations, budgets, and more. When information is flowing freely, your team is able to reach and exceed goals.
We all get busy. We all have more than enough work to fill each day. We all get stressed. Unfortunately, that is when our communication skills tend to take a backseat to our other priorities.
Here...Continue reading
By Emilie ShoopPosted in Management on April 17, 2014
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April 4, 2014
Managing Workplace Personalities: The Politician Without A Plan
How to work with and manage difficult people.
We don’t always get to choose the people we work with, nor whom we work for, but if you want to succeed, your relationships with everyone in your work environment must be cultivated, especially as a Manager. Managers need to maximize the potential of their team. If you leave people out because of personality clashes, everyone suffers, especially your results. One of the most annoying and common personalities to prepare for is the politician without a plan. Below are some tactics you can use to...Continue reading
By Lisa WoodsPosted in Management on April 4, 2014
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March 19, 2014
How to Deliver Bad News That Builds Trust & Confidence
3 Steps to Offer Feedforward vs Feedback
Remember the last time you hit your thumb with a hammer? You didn’t think twice when you yelled and let the (expletive) words fly. For a few moments you stopped thinking about the task at hand, caring who was within earshot and instinctively reacted, grabbing your thumb to stop the physical pain.
Your brain went into “survival mode” and reacted. No thinking required. If we had your brain hooked up to a fMRI (a technology used by neuroscientists to produce...Continue reading
By Christina HaxtonPosted in Management on March 19, 2014
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March 17, 2014
15 Things Your Boss Wishes You Knew About Being A First Time Manager
A Guide for First Time Managers & a Resource for Those That Lead Them
There is a lot to learn when becoming a manager for the first time. If you are lucky, you will get ample training to get you up to speed on your company’s policies and procedures. However, if you are like most first time managers, you will learn as you go.
To help you get ahead faster, here are 15 things your boss wishes you knew about being a first time manager.
15 Things Your Boss Wishes You Knew About Being A First Time Manager
1. Start...Continue reading
By Emilie ShoopPosted in Management on March 17, 2014
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March 5, 2014
Servant Leadership & The Agile Leadership Transformation
Do you Think Like a Servant Leader or Act Like The Smartest Guy in the Room?
Leaders in countless I.T. organizations see themselves as “the smartest person in the room.” They solve problems that exceed the grasp of their direct reports. They position themselves as decision-makers and information traffic cops. They established their reputations for brilliance early in their careers and were promoted quickly because so many I.T. organizations value subject matter expertise over “soft skills” and promote people accordingly.
So...Continue reading
By Ron MontgomeryPosted in Leadership & Teambuilding on March 5, 2014
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March 3, 2014
Two Surefire Ways to Bring Your Next Presentation to Life
Are your presentations boring?
For some reason, whenever we stand-up to make a presentation, many of us become our sternest selves. We’d be no more likely to break into a spontaneous smile than we would be to turn a quick pirouette. The same logic applies directly to the words being spoken from our unsmiling lips. Those words tend to be stripped-down minimal phrases. They are as focused as possible and as few as necessary, as we aim to deliver a professional business case.
I’m not sure exactly where it is...Continue reading
By Peter PaskalePosted in Communication Skills on March 3, 2014
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