Everyone expresses leadership and being on top of the world, but what are their reasons? Many say money, power,or control but the reason why I want to lead others is because I know what they need to do. I want to be a leader because that is the position where I feel the most comfortable. I trust myself as a leader because I want to help others improve and I want to make things as efficient at possible. I have been in leadership positions many times and that is where I shine as an individual and as a team player at the same time. I drop all bias' and attitudes and focus on everyone and how we can succeed as a team. I do not see myself as on top of a pedestal when placed in the leader position but as the tactical advisor and organizer of the group.
I become a totally different person when people are depending on me to guide them and push them forward. I feel comfortable in the leadership role because that is who I am. I work best when others put trust in me. I will do anything to protect the trust my team members put in me. They trust me to lead the group into the right direction for success and I can not let them down. That is another pressure that leaders face, the pressure of trust. When becoming a leader, you must remember that you are not a leader to make more money or have more power, but to protect and utilize the trust your team members put in you.
I read an article originally by Johanna Rothman, Agile's 2009 Conference Chair. She has been helping teams, managers and organizations move to agile approaches for their projects and project portfolios.
"Is there such a thing as team trust? If so, why do you need it?
When team members have interdependent commitments, you want them to trust each other. Daughter #2, who's a senior in high school has been working on several "teams" with other seniors this year, doesn't trust her team.
"I know that I'll have to take up the slack when they don't do what they said they would do," has been her slogan all year. If that's your approach, you don't have team trust.
In Solomon's Building Trust in Business, Politics, Relationships, and Life, he says that there are prerequisites to trust:
* Deliver what you promise to deliver
* Be consistent in your actions and reactions
* Make integrity a cornerstone of your work
* Be willing to discuss, influence, and negotiate.
* Trust in yourself and your colleagues
Whether or not you have a real team, how do you create a trusting relationship with each person? First, start with yourself.
Do you always deliver what you promise to deliver?
If you can't, why not? I've met many team leads who thought they could do the same amount of work as a team lead that they could do as an individual contributor without any overall commitment to the team.
Are you consistent in your actions and reactions?
Yes, you can become angry. No, you can't beat the table, say nasty thing to people or have other out-of-band reactions and still have trust.
Do you ever feel as if you have to swallow your professional integrity?
You might need to reframe what you think integrity is. Early in my career, I cared very much about the quality of the released product. I still care, and I realize that sometimes there are business decisions that trump actual quality. I now care very much about providing information about technical debt to the people who make the final decision.
Are you willing to discuss issues?
New team leads are particularly prone to "I would have done it this way, why didn't you?" syndrome. That's fine to say that to yourself. And, you need to discuss, influence, negotiate, and not tell people what to do.
Now, you can trust in yourself.
And, you can extend trust to your colleagues.
Trust is something people earn, by showing they are trustworthy. Prove yourself, to yourself, your team, your management. Then you can start building a trusting relationship with others."
Read more at 5Whys
Monday, February 15, 2010
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
The Unconventional Leader
Once you are a leader, what now? For some people, this is it, you are done and there is nothing to do but watch the gears run and poke at them every now and then. But for some, it is only the beginning. For these unconventional leaders sitting in the Ivory Tower is not for them. Unconventional leaders who sometimes deviate from their original roadmap. They have unconventional thinking and imagination that they use for their organization to succeed. Their unconventional wisdom puts a new spin on leadership. A new model for professional achievement is needed in our 21st Century economy. It requires discarding many of our traditional notions about how to succeed.
Here are seven tips to What Makes a Great Leader:
1. See the big picture: Great leaders are able to see the big picture and make sure that their entire company sees it as well. This includes having employees knowing the company’s vision and long-term outlook.
The idea of “seeing the big picture” gives clarity and direction in knowing where you are leading your company and your employees. This requires the fact that your actions must be aligned with your business goals.
2. Make sound decisions: An essential requirement needs to be effective leaders who have very good decision making skills, even the unconventional leaders. This is to ensure that strategically sound decisions are made to result in positive outcomes for the company. Unconventional leaders have the confidence and know how to take risks in their decisions and making them pay off.
3. Keep cool under pressure: A great leader never lets their team see them sweat. Ranting and raving is not a sign of even a good manager. In times of crisis, employees typically look to their company leader to remain calm under pressure and handle the situation.
An unconventional leader is going to respond to situations in a different manner than conventional leaders. From what I have observed, when it comes to situations where leaders react or respond to situations, they handle the current situation and the crisis ends with nothing gained except how a situation was handled at that moment. On the other hand, when an unconventional leader handles the same situation, they deal with the situation and implement policies and procedures to make sure the situation is not repeated. As a result, the conventional leader and their employees go back to the same management policies and procedures as before the firefighting took place. Where as the unconventional leader and their organization is able to grow from this experience.
These great leaders know how to handle pressure. Having the know how to recognize a pressured situation, control their emotions, and move their company forward is within their toolbox of talents.
4. Know good people skills: Most people want to be effective in their work. Effective unconventional leaders go beyond making sure that their employees are supported. They assist in developing their employees; they inspire their employees by telling them the company’s compelling vision, and then ask the employees to contribute to this vision; they are catalysts with the ability to initiate and lead and manage the company to new directions when it is appropriate to do so; and they use and have all of their employees master their own Emotional Intelligence (self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management). In return, the leader and their employees experience their contributions in improved growth, teamwork, company vision, job satisfaction, and profitability.
In an unconventional organization, the company’s leader, in most cases, give praise to all employees. They would find a way to give all employees recognition for any and every task performed. This way the leader makes everyone feel good about themselves and for working in a company that cares about them.
5. Adapt quickly to new situations: Since change is a constant, unconventional leaders know they need to change their entire organization to reflect new applications for their products and services, and they are able to shift gears quickly in the direction where they take their company and where their company now needs to go. In order to adapt to new situations, the unconventional leader is open to change and to new directions; the unconventional leader embraces new thoughts and ideas. In order to adapt to new situations, new strategies need to be put in place.
6. Keep positive optimism: When you produce positive results, it is due to the positive actions you use and portray. In staying positive and bringing out the best in themselves, unconventional leaders also tap into their employees and employee resources in order to reach their maximum potential from their organization and stay ahead of others.
A great leader encourages their team to perform no matter the odds. The leader is the positive force that keeps everyone motivated to win. As a business leader, your company leadership should include a positive attitude that will affect you and your employees.
Dana Lightman, Ph.D. stated that power optimists are valuable because of the following:
Proactive = Goal Achievers
• Open-Minded = Innovative Thinkers
• Well-Informed = Opportunity Seeking
• Evolving = Continuous Learners
• Resilient = Adaptable Change Agent
This is where unconventional leaders go beyond the basics. They use every one of these values to their full advantage, and then they do it, succeeding in what they want to do.
7. Learn constantly: Besides being fast learners, unconventional leaders are open to continuous learning from a variety of sources, especially from those who have already been in the trenches of leadership. They study leadership which they believe is an essential part of lifelong learning. These other experiences and challenges help maximize their leadership impact.
In summary, many unconventional leaders, who are down-to-earth mavericks, sometimes feel that are reinventing their company in order to be a trail blazer as they bring their unique perspectives to life. It sets the stage for how your company can move forward with thinking and strategizing a little off center from where you are currently. The challenge for the leader is to both implement changes to their organization and work through the above seven tips with their employees.
Follow these seven tips of “What Makes A Great (Unconventional) Leader” and see how your company can do better in its thinking and as a result, gain a competitive edge. As your focus needs to shift slightly with the paradigm shift changes in management, so to does your company’s strategies and thoughts of using the talent of your employees for a more productive workplace!
Here are seven tips to What Makes a Great Leader:
1. See the big picture: Great leaders are able to see the big picture and make sure that their entire company sees it as well. This includes having employees knowing the company’s vision and long-term outlook.
The idea of “seeing the big picture” gives clarity and direction in knowing where you are leading your company and your employees. This requires the fact that your actions must be aligned with your business goals.
2. Make sound decisions: An essential requirement needs to be effective leaders who have very good decision making skills, even the unconventional leaders. This is to ensure that strategically sound decisions are made to result in positive outcomes for the company. Unconventional leaders have the confidence and know how to take risks in their decisions and making them pay off.
3. Keep cool under pressure: A great leader never lets their team see them sweat. Ranting and raving is not a sign of even a good manager. In times of crisis, employees typically look to their company leader to remain calm under pressure and handle the situation.
An unconventional leader is going to respond to situations in a different manner than conventional leaders. From what I have observed, when it comes to situations where leaders react or respond to situations, they handle the current situation and the crisis ends with nothing gained except how a situation was handled at that moment. On the other hand, when an unconventional leader handles the same situation, they deal with the situation and implement policies and procedures to make sure the situation is not repeated. As a result, the conventional leader and their employees go back to the same management policies and procedures as before the firefighting took place. Where as the unconventional leader and their organization is able to grow from this experience.
These great leaders know how to handle pressure. Having the know how to recognize a pressured situation, control their emotions, and move their company forward is within their toolbox of talents.
4. Know good people skills: Most people want to be effective in their work. Effective unconventional leaders go beyond making sure that their employees are supported. They assist in developing their employees; they inspire their employees by telling them the company’s compelling vision, and then ask the employees to contribute to this vision; they are catalysts with the ability to initiate and lead and manage the company to new directions when it is appropriate to do so; and they use and have all of their employees master their own Emotional Intelligence (self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management). In return, the leader and their employees experience their contributions in improved growth, teamwork, company vision, job satisfaction, and profitability.
In an unconventional organization, the company’s leader, in most cases, give praise to all employees. They would find a way to give all employees recognition for any and every task performed. This way the leader makes everyone feel good about themselves and for working in a company that cares about them.
5. Adapt quickly to new situations: Since change is a constant, unconventional leaders know they need to change their entire organization to reflect new applications for their products and services, and they are able to shift gears quickly in the direction where they take their company and where their company now needs to go. In order to adapt to new situations, the unconventional leader is open to change and to new directions; the unconventional leader embraces new thoughts and ideas. In order to adapt to new situations, new strategies need to be put in place.
6. Keep positive optimism: When you produce positive results, it is due to the positive actions you use and portray. In staying positive and bringing out the best in themselves, unconventional leaders also tap into their employees and employee resources in order to reach their maximum potential from their organization and stay ahead of others.
A great leader encourages their team to perform no matter the odds. The leader is the positive force that keeps everyone motivated to win. As a business leader, your company leadership should include a positive attitude that will affect you and your employees.
Dana Lightman, Ph.D. stated that power optimists are valuable because of the following:
Proactive = Goal Achievers
• Open-Minded = Innovative Thinkers
• Well-Informed = Opportunity Seeking
• Evolving = Continuous Learners
• Resilient = Adaptable Change Agent
This is where unconventional leaders go beyond the basics. They use every one of these values to their full advantage, and then they do it, succeeding in what they want to do.
7. Learn constantly: Besides being fast learners, unconventional leaders are open to continuous learning from a variety of sources, especially from those who have already been in the trenches of leadership. They study leadership which they believe is an essential part of lifelong learning. These other experiences and challenges help maximize their leadership impact.
In summary, many unconventional leaders, who are down-to-earth mavericks, sometimes feel that are reinventing their company in order to be a trail blazer as they bring their unique perspectives to life. It sets the stage for how your company can move forward with thinking and strategizing a little off center from where you are currently. The challenge for the leader is to both implement changes to their organization and work through the above seven tips with their employees.
Follow these seven tips of “What Makes A Great (Unconventional) Leader” and see how your company can do better in its thinking and as a result, gain a competitive edge. As your focus needs to shift slightly with the paradigm shift changes in management, so to does your company’s strategies and thoughts of using the talent of your employees for a more productive workplace!
Thursday, February 4, 2010
What Kind of Leader Are You?
Again i am discussing leadership in this post because I find it important. I have attended many leadership conferences and panels. I want to take the knowledge I have learned and apply it to not only help myself, but to benefit others. Here we will take what we have learned in the previous post to figure out what type of leader you are.
The five factors (Imposing Context, Having Conviction, Making and Taking Risks, Generating Critical Mass, and Challenging and Changing the status quo)are the elements that make up leaders. In order to determine what kind of leader you are, let us look at the seven different types of leaders.
The Transformational Leader
Leaders who show strength in all five leadership behaviors are those who are able to transform the commitment levels of those around them. They have deep conviction about goals; determination to execute plans and are prepared to go against conventional wisdom.
The Enforcer
These are leaders who act in ways characterized by cautious optimism and a drive to make sure specific objectives are achieved. They display strong belief in what they are doing and commitment to stay the course, but tend to limit options and avoid taking action where risk is associated.
The Deal Maker
These leaders attract followers largely because of their energy and excitement for anything new. They thrive on change and frequently break the mold. In the business world, they often rise to prominence on the back of their reputation for the deals they pull off, but can be bored easily and have little regard for sustaining the performance of their efforts after initial success is achieved.
The Administrator
These leaders are strategic executors who are clear in what needs to be achieved and ruthlessly follow through. They are autocratic in approach, letting nothing stand in the way of achieving the overall objective, and are likely to prefer detailed and rigorous project plans, constant monitoring and updating, and tight control over resources and people.
The Visonary
These leaders inspire people to dream of greatness but fail to follow through. They have all the qualities of the transformational leader, including their ability to elevate ambition, but are weak at generating critical mass.
The Serial Entrepreneur
These leaders are imaginative, but calculating, gamblers. They display huge energy and commitment and sweep people along with them because they make seemingly impossible challenges achievable. They care deeply about their legacy but struggle to articulate the wider context of their decisions in a way that's meaningful to their followers.
The Spin Doctor
These leaders seem to be everything a leader should be, but their behavior is inconsistent and self-serving - they have underdeveloped conviction. What distinguishes these leaders most is their ability to convincingly argue the case, any case, and justify the change to followers.
If, none of these seem to fit you exactly or maybe you think you might be more than one of the seven types of leaders, you are not alone. I am still developing my leadership style and I jump from style to style in order to find my place and where I feel I am the most comfortable. The type of leadership you display also depends on the company you are working for.
So what kind of leader do you think you are? Let me know by posting in the comments below! ^_^
The five factors (Imposing Context, Having Conviction, Making and Taking Risks, Generating Critical Mass, and Challenging and Changing the status quo)are the elements that make up leaders. In order to determine what kind of leader you are, let us look at the seven different types of leaders.
The Transformational Leader
Leaders who show strength in all five leadership behaviors are those who are able to transform the commitment levels of those around them. They have deep conviction about goals; determination to execute plans and are prepared to go against conventional wisdom.
The Enforcer
These are leaders who act in ways characterized by cautious optimism and a drive to make sure specific objectives are achieved. They display strong belief in what they are doing and commitment to stay the course, but tend to limit options and avoid taking action where risk is associated.
The Deal Maker
These leaders attract followers largely because of their energy and excitement for anything new. They thrive on change and frequently break the mold. In the business world, they often rise to prominence on the back of their reputation for the deals they pull off, but can be bored easily and have little regard for sustaining the performance of their efforts after initial success is achieved.
The Administrator
These leaders are strategic executors who are clear in what needs to be achieved and ruthlessly follow through. They are autocratic in approach, letting nothing stand in the way of achieving the overall objective, and are likely to prefer detailed and rigorous project plans, constant monitoring and updating, and tight control over resources and people.
The Visonary
These leaders inspire people to dream of greatness but fail to follow through. They have all the qualities of the transformational leader, including their ability to elevate ambition, but are weak at generating critical mass.
The Serial Entrepreneur
These leaders are imaginative, but calculating, gamblers. They display huge energy and commitment and sweep people along with them because they make seemingly impossible challenges achievable. They care deeply about their legacy but struggle to articulate the wider context of their decisions in a way that's meaningful to their followers.
The Spin Doctor
These leaders seem to be everything a leader should be, but their behavior is inconsistent and self-serving - they have underdeveloped conviction. What distinguishes these leaders most is their ability to convincingly argue the case, any case, and justify the change to followers.
If, none of these seem to fit you exactly or maybe you think you might be more than one of the seven types of leaders, you are not alone. I am still developing my leadership style and I jump from style to style in order to find my place and where I feel I am the most comfortable. The type of leadership you display also depends on the company you are working for.
So what kind of leader do you think you are? Let me know by posting in the comments below! ^_^
What is a Leader?
Ok we all know leaders, the enthusiastic go-getters, but there are actually many types of leaders. I have met many people and have traveled to many different places and have noticed this. There are many different elements that make up different types of leaders and they are all based on 5 factors:
The 5 Factors:
Impose Context
As a leader, your role is to cut out the clutter and impose context by concentrating people's attention on what matters most. This means providing a clear sense of direction; outlining what the key goals are; and distinguishing between the day-to-day actions that are important and those that are not.
Have Conviction
Leaders believe in what they are doing. It is this deep personal conviction and the ability to communicate it to others that vests them with their authority, attracts energy and mitigates uncertainty. Having a clear view of what you aim to achieve will help guide your decisions, inspire people to follow you, overcome obstacles, give you the courage to stand your ground and build confidence in your people.
Make and Take Risks
Leaders break rules - it's their job. As a leader you must make and take risks by understanding what opportunities exist, or can be created, and then converting them into results. Doing so allows you to: pre-empt otherwise hidden risks that might damage the enterprise; take advantage of windows for success in the present or future; create new, better ways of doing things; and develop yourself and others through exposure to new situations.
Generate Critical Mass
As a leader, you must generate critical mass by turning knowledge into action and influencing people in a way that: channels their energy into the appropriate activities; mobilizes them to work together in a coordinated way; creates a culture of human development; and makes things happen.
Challenge and Change
Leaders do not rest on their laurels. As a leader, you must challenge and change the status quo by experimenting and creating excitement in order to grab people's attention, energize your followers, take competitors by surprise and jolt your people out of accepting things as they are.
These 5 factors are vital to developing yourself as a leader. The are what distinguish you from everyone else in the group. Even if you already are a leader, work on these 5 factors and see where you need improvement.
The 5 Factors:
Impose Context
As a leader, your role is to cut out the clutter and impose context by concentrating people's attention on what matters most. This means providing a clear sense of direction; outlining what the key goals are; and distinguishing between the day-to-day actions that are important and those that are not.
Have Conviction
Leaders believe in what they are doing. It is this deep personal conviction and the ability to communicate it to others that vests them with their authority, attracts energy and mitigates uncertainty. Having a clear view of what you aim to achieve will help guide your decisions, inspire people to follow you, overcome obstacles, give you the courage to stand your ground and build confidence in your people.
Make and Take Risks
Leaders break rules - it's their job. As a leader you must make and take risks by understanding what opportunities exist, or can be created, and then converting them into results. Doing so allows you to: pre-empt otherwise hidden risks that might damage the enterprise; take advantage of windows for success in the present or future; create new, better ways of doing things; and develop yourself and others through exposure to new situations.
Generate Critical Mass
As a leader, you must generate critical mass by turning knowledge into action and influencing people in a way that: channels their energy into the appropriate activities; mobilizes them to work together in a coordinated way; creates a culture of human development; and makes things happen.
Challenge and Change
Leaders do not rest on their laurels. As a leader, you must challenge and change the status quo by experimenting and creating excitement in order to grab people's attention, energize your followers, take competitors by surprise and jolt your people out of accepting things as they are.
These 5 factors are vital to developing yourself as a leader. The are what distinguish you from everyone else in the group. Even if you already are a leader, work on these 5 factors and see where you need improvement.
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