As a leader, coaching is one of your most important duties. It's how you will help employees correct negative behaviors and enhance positive ones. It is how you will train new employees to take on their new positions. It is how you will guide two employees to work through a conflict. And the list goes on. While coaching, in general, is important, how you coach can mean the … [Read more...]
Ignite Your Own Passion to Spark Greater Team Performance
A quote by Dwight L. Moody is my inspiration for this post today. Moody was a 19th century evangelist, who said “The best way to revive a church is to build a fire in the pulpit," and he was sharing a lesson about more than building churches. The lesson is much broader. Consider my adaptation of his quote: “The best way to revive a team (or organization) is to build a fire … [Read more...]
How to Communicate with a Cautious Person
As a new leader, effective communication is absolutely essential to your success. And...it's not always easy. One of the reasons communication is difficult is that not everyone communicates in the same way, with the same tendencies or styles. If you want to be a better communicator, you must be able to understand, observe, and diagnose the styles of others, so that you can … [Read more...]
Make the Next 37 Days Count!
It is November 25. There are 37 days left in 2016. However, it seems that once Thanksgiving arrives, many people act as if the year is over. You know, there is the shopping, the parties, and the events. Many people have days off for the holidays, and others use up their remaining vacation time before they lose it.Even when we are at work on days like today, Christmas Eve and … [Read more...]
A Surprising Gratitude List for Leaders
If you will be celebrating Thanksgiving this week, there will be a moment when you look around the room or table, and the list of things for which you are thankful will be apparent. The food, the family and friends around you, the warmth and shelter, and perhaps even the football on the TV may all make the list. In fact those things will make most people’s lists, mine … [Read more...]
When People Just Want to Do Their Job
I think we all know someone like this: they're good at the technical parts of their job, BUT that's all they want to do... And while they might argue that they're "doing their job", this isn't really the case. Check out the video below for two very powerful suggestions to lead employees beyond this sticky … [Read more...]
4 Leadership Lessons From the Election
Today is Election Day in the U.S., and soon enough we will know who our next POTUS will be. We are all a little exhausted and burnt out from this nasty presidential campaign, but rest assured, this post isn’t about politics or who you should vote for. This post is for you as a leader. While you will likely never have your every move reported on TV, never have your tax … [Read more...]
Communicating When Stressed
When I was asked recently how leaders should communicate when they are stressed, I had three very specific answers to this common question. I'm sharing them in today's video. https://youtu.be/1I6SDT8E7BE?rel=0&controls=0&showinfo=0 Tweet it out: If you are stressed, now might not be the time to communicate. Can you wait? via @KevinEikenberry … [Read more...]
Challenge Yourself to Share Your Gratitude This (and Every) Month
It's the beginning of the month in which gratitude is top of mind. A popular exercise this time of year is to write down or share one thing each day for which you are truly grateful. Perhaps you've seen the trend on Facebook or social media. Or maybe your family creates a "Thankful Tree" or "Thankful Jar" each year. Take a 30-day challenge While I suggest that you take … [Read more...]
What Shouldn’t I Delegate?
Delegation is extremely important to our success as leaders, but there is one very important task that absolutely should not be delegated. Here's what I'm talking about... https://youtu.be/rKCK6Ya7MrA?rel=0&controls=0&showinfo=0 Tweet it out: Great leaders delegate often, but they don't delegate the important responsibility of coaching. via @KevinEikenberry … [Read more...]