Leadership Lessons from The Story of Tom Rutledge

January 13, 2012 by

LeadershipTom Rutledge is a somewhat hidden hero in the story of Charles Lindbergh’s historic non-stop flight of the Spirit of St. Louis across the Atlantic Ocean in 1927.  Tom Rutledge worked at Wright Aeronautical as an engine builder, starting in 1926. The story goes that when Tom first heard that he was assigned the task of building the engine for Charles Lindbergh he asked to be reassigned because he did not want to build an engine for someone he didn’t know.

His request was denied, and though disappointed, he proceeded to build the engine, despite his displeasure. What impressed me with his story is that he did not just quickly rush through and put it together. Instead he took as much care in the work of building the engine, that he would – had he been building it for someone he knew. His integrity and careful attention to detail produced an engine that resulted in one of the most famous airplane journey’s of all time. There is a valuable leadership lesson in this story.

The Great Leadership Lesson from Tom Rutledge

As I pondered this, I thought about how often as successful leaders, managers, or employees we find ourselves with tasks that cause us much displeasure. Do we just trudge through the unpleasant task and do a “good enough” job, or do we put forth the effort and attitude needed to make sure the task is worthy to be called our best work. Tom Rutledge taught we should perform at out best no matter what the task and no matter our oppinion of the importance of the task.

Leadership Takeaway’s From Tom Rutledge

When faced with unpleasant tasks I suggest the following ideas:

  1. If this were the last thing you were to do in this life, would you want to be remembered for doing it well or doing it poorly.
  2. Imagine a person that you highly respect, someone that you wish you were like, and imagine how they would approach the task.
  3. Make a list of all the good reasons why need to do this project well, in other words, focus on the positive.
  4. Think about the benefit that will result from you doing a good job.

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So, now that you’ve read this article, how are you going to use this information to bring greater value to your unpleasent tasks and leadership situations? What other strategies do you have for dealing with unpleasant tasks?

Please take a moment and share your ideas in the comments section below, share this with your social media friends, and subscribe to receive A Slice of Leadership notices, and occasional leadership advice, articles, tips and freebies.
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Filed Under: Leadership Attitudes Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Effective Leadership & Personal Success Through Scripting

January 11, 2012 by

Effective LeadershipAs leaders and managers we are often thrown into situations that require us to think on our feet and make quick off-the-cuff decision. Often times these moments require a decision that can be driven from a negative emotion. Decisions that are emotionally based, rather than logically based, often end in poorer results, and ineffective leadership (I know, not always). I thought of this idea of scripting, when I was thinking about my Personal Success Plan for 2012.  I was originally thinking of a health goal related to food intake, since I travel a lot. It is not always easy to make the best decisions when eating out. I thought about printing a small card and keeping it in my wallet with answers to food related decisions. Had I done it it would have looked something like this:

  • Corn Tortillas, Not Flour Tortillas
  • Grilled Chicken, Not Fried Chicken
  • Water, Not Soda
  • Brown Rice, Not White Rice
  • Wheat, Not White
  • Granola Bar, Not a Candy Bar
  • Dessert, NO!

The idea with this was that by reading this often, I would make a decision in my head logically, before I needed to make it emotionally. Later, when required to make the emotional decision; such when I was tired, stressed, and hungry, the decision would be made for me because I had already decided what I truly wanted and needed to eat.

Effective Leadership Through Scripting

With any type of training, you practice, practice, and practice, until the desired action and decisions are second nature. This technique is also common in conditioning a sales person to be able to counter resistance. So with that logic, I wondered how I could apply this concept to create effective leadership. Several days later, after a “situation”… I found myself sitting down and thinking, “What just happened?” Well, I had made an emotional decision, contrary to what I knew I should have done.

Since it was emotional, I knew I could have scripted the decision beforehand, then when I found myself in the heat of the moment, I would already know what to say. Here are some thoughts of scripting in leadership and management situations.

  • “I would like to think this over for a little bit,” instead of, “We need to have a meeting right now to discuss this.”
  • “I have some time at _____,” instead of, letting someone interrupt a project or task you are working on.
  • “Our low cash-flow and company policy do not permit us to give employee loans at this time, but if you like I can give you the contact information to a financial advisor,” instead of, “Well, I guess this time we could make an exception and loan you $500 for ________.”
  • “Our company policy does not allow me to give you a raise, but our performance based compensation plans will allow you to earn more money by ________________, let’s talk about how you can do that,” instead of, “No.”

Getting Started With Scripting Your Way To Effective Leadership

Schedule an hour now to think about the poor or emotional decisions that have compromised your effective leadership or management decisions. Write down what you should say and what you should not say for various scenarios that you find yourself in. Refer to that document occasionally, and add to it as needed. Later, subtract the decisions that become second nature, or in other words, that you master.

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So, now that you’ve read this article, how are you going to use this information to bring effective leadership to your life or your organization? What scripting ideas do you have to create effective leadership?

Please take a moment and share your ideas in the comments section below, share this with your social media friends, and subscribe to receive A Slice of Leadership notices, as well as occasional leadership advice, articles, tips and freebies.
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Filed Under: Leadership Scripting Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

The Leadership / Parenting Analogy

January 5, 2012 by

LeadershipI recently heard a poem, that while amazingly simplistic, held a very powerful message about parenthood. But later, when I found the text of the poem online and read it, I was amazed at the how the same message could ring true to leadership and management. I am fascinated at the intricacy of leadership and the lessons that can be pulled from all walks of life, including as in this case, parenthood.

The poem below is called “Children Learn What They Live” by Dorothy Law Nolte, PH.D. As you read this replace the word children, with employees, and see how closely leadership parrallels to parenthood.

If children live with criticism, they learn to condemn.
If children live with hostility, they learn to fight.
If children live with fear, they learn to be apprehensive.
If children live with pity, they learn to feel sorry for themselves.
If children live with ridicule, they learn to feel shy.
If children live with jealousy, they learn to feel envy.
If children live with shame, they learn to feel guilty.
If children live with encouragement, they learn confidence.
If children live with tolerance, they learn patience.
If children live with praise, they learn appreciation.
If children live with acceptance, they learn to love.
If children live with approval, they learn to like themselves.
If children live with recognition, they learn it is good to have a goal.
If children live with sharing, they learn generosity.
If children live with honesty, they learn truthfulness.
If children live with fairness, they learn justice.
If children live with kindness and consideration, they learn respect.
If children live with security, they learn to have faith in themselves and in those about them.
If children live with friendliness, they learn the world is a nice place in which to live.

Comparing Leadership to Parenting

I know all these attributes do not necessarily align with employment traits. But I sure would rather manage and lead the employees that were raised by parents that taught the positive attributes, than the negative ones. Additionally, if your leadership style follows the practices of the negative traits in this poem, it is scary to see what kind of employee you might be developing.

Other Good Leadership Reading

You might also read “How To Be A Horrible Leader – 50 Bad Leadership Traits“, which would be a good read after reading this post.

One of my favorite books on parenting is called Parenting Kids: To Become the People Employers Really Want and… America Desperately Needs! by Charles Fay Ph.D.

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So, now that you’ve read this article, how are you going to use this information to bring greater leadership to your or your organization? Or perhaps greater parenthood to your family?

Please take a moment and share your ideas in the comments section below, share this with your social media friends, and subscribe to receive A Slice of Leadership notices, as well as occasional leadership advice, articles, tips and freebies.
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The Ultimate Personal Success Plan

December 30, 2011 by

Success PlanThe blogosphere is currently flooded with information on goal setting and New Year’s resolutions, but lets be honest, goal setting is not enough to be successful…you need a plan. At the beginning of 2011 I wrote about my 2011 Personal Success Plan.  I had a many wins and some losses in my 2011 goals, but overall, I am a better person and I achieved a lot more because of my plan. This year I have made a number of changes to help guarantee a successful 2012. The changes are not just aesthetic, but in how I manage my success, execute on the goals, keep motivation, track progress, and hold myself accountable.

Ben Stein beautifully said, “The indispensable first step to getting the things you want out of life is this:  Decide what you want.” This image to the left serves as the basis for stating what you, “want out of life”, or more specifically, what you want out of the year.  I value this document because it serves as a singular focal point to all I want to accomplish in the year (Read on to receive a template for yourself). Each of the parts are important to the success of the whole. I suggest you open up the image in another window to lok at as you read.

The Success Plan

The first part of the success plan is this success plan document. This is a Microsoft Word document that holds everything that is important for defining my goals. I will not use this document for tracking, but for defining and planning. Tracking comes later. Here are the parts of this “defining” document:

1. Annual Vision

I debated on what to call this section, but ultimately decided it was almost like a mini BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal). It was not a definite goal, because goals ultimately define what your overall success looks like.  It is a statement that is meant to define what I will become and what I will look like when I complete all my goals. It serves as the inspiration to WHY I’m doing this and WHAT I will become when I am successful. It is written as if it already happened, setting the mental image and motivation for the hard-work ahead.  My vision statement for 2012 is “2012 was a launching-point for a better future and a better me. I have set positive habits for the future that will make me a better father, a better husband, and a better friend. I have strengthened my professional reputation as an innovative, solid, and proven leader and I have become more spiritually in-tune and financially stable.”

2. Mission Statement

Developing a personal mission statement takes some time, but once you have it, it will serve as a guide for all your actions. I feel it is important to state this on the personal success plan because it is my “code of conduct” and guides me as I execute and as I come to problems throughout the year. Leaving this out leaves a big hole in the plan. My personal mission statement is, “I will not accept status quo and as such will seek after that which is efficient and effective in all areas my life, but never at the expense of my relationships.  I will focus on that which is important versus that which is critical.  I will be teachable and will strive to always learn new things that will help me reach my full-potential.  I will act with Integrity at all times and will treat others as they would like to be treated.  I will look for the good in all I experience, and remember all the blessings that I have been given.” Take the time to develop your own, it will be well worth it.

3. Values (Areas of Focus)

My values are actually listed in 2 places, for 2 different reasons. In my mission statement I actually list values that are important to me. You do not have to do this, but you can. These values are more guiding to my life. Right above my mission statement I list the values that I will be focusing on in 2012. These could be called my areas of focus. My focus’ for 2012 are: Relationships, Spirituality, Intellectual Stimulation, Financial Success, Physical Wellness, Professional Growth, Giving Back, & Renewal. These help me to categorize my lower-level goals into groups that are easier to track and help me to see how everything fits together. The image is meant to remind me that everything contributes to the whole of who I am and who I want to become.

4. Lead Measures (Goals)

Lead measures are something I talk about in detail in my book. But basically they are smaller goals that predict the success of a higher goal. In my case, the higher goal is my annual vision. The beauty of a lead measure is that, assuming you set the right lead measures, when you complete them, you will have accomplished your goal. My lead measures are organized according to my areas of focus. They are all written as if I was in the future looking back. They are positive and stated what I have accomplished, not what I want to accomplish. Kind of the same thing but a mental difference.

5. Vision Board

Below my lead measures is a small vision board with images that remind me why I am doing these goals. I did not change this over last year, because my focus areas are the same. I know a lot of people put a crazy amount of effort into this part alone, but for me it is a mental reminder of the what is important in this plan.

6. The Reward (The Clincher)

This is probably the biggest change to the plan this year. One of the problems I saw with this plan was motivation. The thrill of achievement sometimes just isn’t enough, even for those like myself that are motivated by achievement. So the reward concept was brought in. It took me a while to come-up with a reward that would be motivational enough to keep me going, but a trip to Europe or Asia is what did it for me. There was one other problem with the reward. You see the vision accomplishment could be subjective. I don’t necessarily have to complete ALL my lead measures to accomplish my annual vision. So I am going to have to prove myself to a board of 4 people. I am going to have to keep records and track my progress. My “board” will consist of a financial expert, a business expert, a relationship expert and one other wild-card.  Only a unanimous decision will result in the reward. This is a kind of kick-in-the-rear, motivation also. I have to be a success in others’ eyes, not just my own.

Some Important Steps in Creating Your Success Plan

1. Take time to make sure the goals are right for you and what you want to accomplish. It took me over a month to nail down all my goals.

2. Talk to others about your goals. I have a personal performance partner that spent loads of time questioning me and helping me to narrow and define my goals better. The best thing I did was have a meeting with my wife to talk to her about my goals and get her feedback. Some of my goals changed because of that meeting and she is now vested in my success and we worked out some details to the execution that I had not thought of. Depending on who your goals touch, will determine who you should talk to.

3. Push yourself. I told a friend the other day that I felt like a very small person about to climb a very big mountain.  I am scared of my goals. Once that fear came on, I knew I had pushed my goals far enough to make me a much better person. I know they are all achievable as well. If you are not scared of your goals, you are probably not reaching far enough, and therefore you are limiting your capacity to grow.

Execution & Tracking of your Success Plan

I spent a lot of time setting up the processes to make sure that nothing will prevent me from hitting the ground running when I start. I am using a service at http://www.sendrecurring.com/ to schedule emails and text message reminders to myself and to my wife for certain things we need to remind ourselves to do. Until everything becomes a habit and second nature I want to be bugged about it.

The next and most important thing is I let my personal performance partner or accountability partner know about my goals. He will push me, make sure I am on track and not let me waiver. I will be sending reports to him on a weekly basis and we talk on a weekly basis via phone on the goals.  We also email each other on a daily basis regarding important weekly and daily goals or things we are struggling with. I am doing the same for him. This type of relationship is really important to the success of a plan that pushes your comfort level.

Success PlanThe last thing I needed was a system of tracking and measuring my progress. Everyone has to do what is best for them on this.  Some people like to track things on paper, not me. I am in front of the computer most of the time, I prefer typing and I like charts and graphs and percentages and other hard data to look at. I thought about using Excel, but it was going to be too much of a pain. I use Outlook all the time, and while I will be using it for task management and calendaring, it is not good for managing goals and running reports. I ultimately settled on a software program called Goal Enforcer (http://www.goalenforcer.com/).

Goal Enforcer is a mind map based program that’s sole purpose is Goal Management. There are a couple reasons why I chose it. First is because it allowed me a quicker method of inputting (or really importing from excel) my goals. When all my goals are broken down into daily tasks and weekly tasks and unit based tasks I had 3,448 tasks for the year just involving my success plan.  That does not include other things I do. Using excel I was able to knock all the goals into a spreadsheet in a couple hours and import that into Goal Enforcer.

Success PlanGoal Enforcer  integrates with Outlook tasks and beautifully setup all my tasks for the entire year on the appropriate days. It also imports from Outlook, so I can complete my tasks in Outlook and it will update Goal Enforcer.  It also allows me to email a report from within and save it to a remote location, which is good for me as I travel a lot.

Because I have some sub-goals that are daily, resulting in 366 circles under a task, I will not be using the mind-map very much. Instead I will be using the tree view. The tree view allows me to quickly click tasks that are done, update the percentage, if it is that type of goal, and easily add notes or logs to the task. I will be using this daily and weekly in my planning sessions. I can also attach files or website links to a task if I am using another type of log or agenda for something. It is reasonably priced and you can get a free demo and purchase it from http://www.goalenforcer.com/.

Another thing to prevent barriers was I systematized and created processes and checklists for various tasks such as my daily planning agenda, my weekly planning agenda and my social media strategy.

This was a long post and a lot to take in, but I believe there is not anything more important to do for your success, than to develop your own 2012 Personal Success Plan.  I would love to hear your thoughts in the comment section.

If you would like a blank 2012 Success Plan to work your own plan, subscribe the the Slice of Leadership list on the top-right side of this page. I am happy to provide my Daily Planning Agenda, Weekly Planning Agenda, and Social Media /Personal Branding Checklist for those that would like a copy. Just subscribe and request it in the comments below.

I hope that everyone has the most successful year in 2012 that they have ever had.

Filed Under: Personal Success Plan Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

How Hellboy Helped me be an Inspirational Leader & 5 Keys to Inspirational Communication

November 20, 2011 by

Inspirational LeaderLately I have been thinking a lot about inspirational leadership. In this world that focuses on the bad, weak, and the diminishing returns; inspirational leadership can be what separates mediocre performance from exceptional performance, poor morale from positive and productive morale.

Let’s face it, work is not always fun.  That, compounded with the grim hope that many feel in this economy, i.e. that they might never see a brighter future because of the poor performance of their organization, can cause many employees and even leaders to forget about what they are capable of.  They lose sight of their objectives and wallow in the drudgery of daily firefighting.

I recently had the opportunity to speak to an organization whose net worth had dropped a staggering 20% in the last 11 months from an already negative net worth.  Morale was low, trust in the leaders was low and there were a whole host of other problems. After significant financial and operational analysis, we called a company meeting. For hours the night before the meeting, I prepared what I was going to say.  I knew I could not “sugar coat” the problems.  The employees knew it was bad.  At the same time I did not want to point fingers or make the current management look bad.  They were talented and capable people, who just needed some direction. I felt that I needed to inspire them to look beyond the problems and see what the company was capable of.

I used to think that not every leader or manager could be inspirational; I have doubted my ability, like any other leader. I know I can write inspirational and while I have spoken many times to groups, companies or executives and inspired them to look beyond their problems, for some reason this was different too me.  It was a mixed group of people, morale was horribly low, performance was low and the stakes were higher.

The meeting turned out great.  Employees, who we previously thought were hopeless, told members of the management team at various times in the day that they were excited. The hope, that I had yearned to convey, pierced everyone’s mind and a new entity began to emerge out of the dark shroud it had been engulfed in. A line had been drawn in the sand, and everyone knew it was time to forget the past and focus on the future.

Being the process oriented person that I am, I kept thinking about this experience and other presentations I have done in the past, both inspirational and non-inspirational, to see what the keys were to creating inspirational communication.  I know there are many more qualified than I. But I figured that if I could break this down to a process, then I could be abundantly more successful in motivating others to get things done.

Well not just motivating, but inspiring.  I see motivation as getting people moving in a positive direction, I see inspiring them as getting them to move also in a positive direction, but with purpose.  Here is what I came up with that I think should be inclusive items to making one’s communication inspirational.

5 Steps to Inspirational Communication & Becoming An Inspirational Leader

1.       Genuineness
I believe in order to inspire others, you have to believe in what you are trying to convey. If you are trying to be inspirational just for the sake of making yourself look good then people will see through you.  I think genuineness is what can separate a pep talk from inspiring communication.  Being genuine is just being honest about the situation and showing your staff that you understand what is going on and that you care about it.

2.       Facts & Data
Maybe I am odd, but when explaining a situation, I always love a good fact thrown out to back-up the claim. I think that most staff members out there of most companies just have a huge distrust of management. A good fact will help drive your point home and for those not feeling the genuineness, the number will help convert them to the plan you are about to convey. Don’t go overboard on data points, 1 to 3 should be sufficient to help drive your point home.

3.       Labeling
I learned labeling many years ago and it was an eye opener to me. We generally think of labeling as negative, but it can be an amazing tool if used in a positive way. Labeling is easy, you imagine what you want, and you put that label of it on a person or persons. For example saying something like, “You guys are some of the most talented people I have had the privileged of working with; you’re loyal, dedicated, hardworking, and I know that if we can help focus all that talent, we will be <<insert goal>>, (i.e., the largest and most successful…..)”.

You can also use it to insert company qualities that might not be present, but that you want to inspire others to work for, “I can picture a company that has full benefits, generous compensation packages, and where the employees all respect each other and work together to efficiently solve any problem that comes our way.”

The idea with those two examples is to lift one’s vision out of the gutter and make people want to work toward the quality that you just described. This can be very powerful.

4.       Vulnerability
Depending on what type of presentation…. and the audience; vulnerability may be necessary to get through to those that have been severely hurt by your or your companies mismanagement.  Most experts usually preach that a leader has to be confident. I think you can be confident but still show vulnerability.  Vulnerability, when done right, puts your sacrifices and feelings about the condition on par with everyone else’s. It says to them that, we are all in this together.

5.       History and the Heart
History is full of inspiration. Giving people examples of organizations that were able to get out of similar problems or achieve similar types of goals, shows people that you’re not full of hot air and that what you are trying to convey is possible. But there is something that history can do even more, it can touch the heart.  You can see from my other points that they all involve an emotion. When people feel something in their heart, it gives them energy, focus, and the drive to perform better.  It can be a story, a quote or even a video or audio clip.

Late one evening a few days before the presentation I described at the beginning of this post, I was flipping through the channels on the TV in my hotel room.  I came across the end of the movie “Hellboy.”  I don’t watch much TV, but it grabbed my attention. In the last scene of the movie the character John Meyers in a closing narration says: “What makes a man a man? A friend of mine once wondered. Is it his origins? The way he comes to life? I don’t think so. It’s the choices he makes. Not how he starts things, but how he decides to end them.”

Call me crazy, but that was what I needed.  The group I was talking to could connect to that. I needed to draw a symbolic line in the sand. A line that signified that the past was the past, that the ways of the past were the past, and that we were crossing this line into a new future. That quote from a crazy movie helped to strike the emotion I needed to touch.

History and media is full of inspirational tidbits of information to back any principle that you need to drive into the hearts of your listeners.

6.       Structure & Direction
Those that know me know I am a huge proponent of structure in many forms.  I believe you must have it in order to produce scalability, change and ultimately, profitability. In this instance of inspirational communication in leadership, what I mean is that there has to be some kind of plan. Fancy words, genuineness and an emotional touching story will only get you so far.

You don’t have to have all the answers, but you need to have the beginnings of a plan, even if those beginnings are to figure out the plan. For me this “plan” was nothing more than some scribbles on a small whiteboard that showed how the organization was going to start the process of fixing things.  I also explained what the staff should expect. I did not sugar-coat anything and told them it was not going to be easy.

In the end the staff knew what was expected, they knew how things were going to change, what their organization could achieve, and they had a reason burned in their hearts on why they needed to act.  Inspirational communication is not something that only needs to be used in a turnaround situation.  It can be used to take motivation to the next level, it can be used to bring about greater execution, it can be used to improve morale and turn hidden ‘A Players’ into real ones. Lastly, it will turn you into a more effective leader.

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Never Underestimate The Lowly Peasant In Front Of You

October 10, 2011 by

I was at a couple conferences recently and a familiar topic came to mind, that is the value of those you network with.  The reason why this topic stuck with me because I had an interesting conversation with the CEO of an association that serves the IT industry.  There was an exclusive party for technology vendors and sponsors at this conference. I was invited by one of the technology vendors.  I was just a guy that had recently resigned and was looking for other opportunities.  I guess to the lay person, I was an unemployed nobody.  As with any party, I circled the room and talked with people about what they did and what companies they were from.  I met some fascinating people.

During the party, I ran into the CEO of the association that was putting on the conference. I congratulated him on the event and engaged in small talk. He then asked who I was and who I was with. When I explained that I was not with anyone and that I had recently resigned and was looking for other opportunities, he kind of shook his head, chewed some food and non-chalently turned around and started talking with someone else.  I stood there in in awe at this experience.

I don’t consider myself prideful, but later I thought to myself. Does he realize I run the largest IT operations oriented peer group with CEO’s from 3 continents? Does he realize I have almost 10,000 social media connections, of which at least two-thirds, work in the IT industry?  Does he realize that I write guest articles for an IT Industry Channel blog that is read by thousands of IT executives? Does he realize I have been asked to speak at several IT industry events in the coming year that will be attended by thousands of IT executives? Does he realize I have a book that will be published soon by a major publisher? Does he realize I was invited by one of the vendors paying him money to be there?

No, my head is not getting big. I guess to the lay person, I am an unemployed nobody. But who knows where I will be in a few years and what kind of influence, good or bad, that I could have on his association. I have often heard people say that they only connect with fellow peers of equal or greater position. I always respond that I connect with just about everyone (I have a few moral exceptions).  I tell them, that I will connect with people from other industries, because someday the IT industry could drastically change(i.e. Cloud Computing).  I explain that I will connect with an entry-level technician, or customer service rep., because one day I may need to hire one, and one day that person might be CEO of their own company. I will connect with an artist, because I might need one (I have), or any just about any other person, because you never know who they know. Perhaps they are the son of a Board member that will make a decision about having me come into the company.

The point I am trying to make goes back to the golden rule.  Treat others as you would like to be treated. Treat others with respect and interest, because you never know when you may need their help or when another might help you for no other reason than, they can. 

Filed Under: Networking Leaders Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Are You a Leader When No One is Watching?

September 30, 2011 by

I am in Las Vegas for a couple days attending a conference.  I do not visit Las Vegas very often, so it is always eye-catching to see the magnificence of the architecture and how technology seeps from every crevice of the city, especially in contrast to what many of the buildings represent.  The day in the conference center was filled with lots of great content.  I was a little slow leaving after it ended, from talking to people and answering some emails.

To exit the conference center to get to the hotel entrance one must walk a long corridor that leads into the middle of the Casino.  As I walked out of the corridor and made my way to the entrance I witnessed many of my colleagues attending to the festivities of the Casino.  Some of the same individuals that were calm, focused, and studious during the conference, were now zombies in front of a slot-machine. Some were already partying, drinking and gawking at the dancing girls overhead.  As I looked at this, a thought popped into my head. The thought was, “Are you a leader, when no one is watching?”

I am not making a statement about those activities.  I believe everyone has the freedom to do what they want, within reason. I do believe that too much of anything can be bad. In Las Vegas like many other cities, especially for a traveling businessman, it can be easy to get “lost”. There are infinite places that one could go to and no one would probably ever know. If what I was seeing was occurring only 30 minutes after the conference, I wondered what was in store for later in the night. I also wondered what colleagues had disappeared and gotten “lost”.

I thought about what a leader is and the thought popped into my mind, being a manager is a job, being a leader is a calling.  I know people who have been fired for activities at conferences. I know colleagues who lost some respect because of their lack of control at conferences. I have avoided purchasing from certain vendors and partnering with certain companies, because of what I have seen at late night activities. But what about numero uno, you? Are you ok with entering into a dimly lit area and participating in activities that you would not want your significant other to see? Or in activities you woudl not want your staff see?

As the night continued, I went and had sushi with a group of colleagues and vendors.  Yes they were drinking, but they were in control (well most were 🙂 ).  We had a lot of fun and I learned from my colleagues and built deeper relationships. I am not sure what happened after I left, but I am glad to know that there were others that exhibited control.
 
Those leadership lists that I hate so much came to mind and I thought that maybe they could be used in this situation.  It is the concepts of values and priorities in life. I think they should apply all the time, not only when you chose. If you value trust in your company, I think it would serve well to ask if the activity you are about to participate in will create or destroy trust in others.

In the morning, as the first keynote speech started at 7:15 am, I looked around and beheld that the room was barely 1/4th full.  In fact I could have probably stood up and counted everyone in a few minutes.  The sea of empty chairs seemed to be a sign of the previous night’s activities

Remember being a manager is a job, being a leader is a calling.

Filed Under: Leading At All Times Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Breeding Enemies with Success + Humility in Leadership

September 24, 2011 by

It is said by some that there must be balance in all things.  Good versus Bad, Positive versus Negative, Light versus Dark.  I have come to ponder this recently.  I would like balance in life…like anyone. An 80 hour work week followed by 80 hours of fun and play would be awesome. Unfortunately the world does not work like that and I personally believe that balance is a myth for the most part.  (But that is another story)

In the last 6 months I have become increasingly aware of persons that were previously colleagues or friends, perform actions that undermine my success. This idea of balance came to mind and it has troubled me greatly. I recently spoke with a friend who is the CEO of a $65 million dollar company. I asked him if he had found this to be true.  He affirmed that it is has absolutely been true for him. We shared stories on the subject for a bit.  It was refreshing that I was not alone in this, but disheartening to think of the future. 

I have made lots of mistakes over the years and I know I will make more. Those mistakes have taught me great lessons.  Lessons that I believe have helped contribute to some of my success.  I do not claim to be a successful person.  I look at what I have done alongside so many other capable people and I feel quite small. So I wonder to myself, if the little success that has followed me can bring such an opposing force, what will the future bring?

I am not usually a fan of the lists of leadership qualities. You have all seen them.  “The XX Leadership Qualities Essential to Success”. Just input your favorite number and you will find a list on the Internet. I think they have their purpose, but there are successful leaders out there that run the whole gamut of good and bad on these lists. The one quality though I am not sure I have ever read in these lists for a successful leader is humility. Let me explain:

Having some humbleness in a leader would:

  • Prevent one from spreading false rumors
  • Prevent one from saying things that make them appear more powerful, such as supposedly being privy to something that others do not know
  • Help one to recognize the good in others
  • Help one to downplay the bad in others, because they know they have many weaknesses and made similar mistakes.
  • Prevent one from putting blame on others because they are no longer in the same circle of success
  • Prompt one to help others who have made similar mistakes you have
  • Prevent one from taking joy or benefiting in any way from another’s misfortune

Humbleness does not mean one is melancholy. Some of the definitions of humbleness include: being conscious of one’s failings, not being arrogant, being courteous, and being respectful.

The German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche wrote, “You may have enemies whom you hate, but not enemies whom you despise. You must be proud of your enemy: then the success of your enemy shall be your success too.”

I hope that as leaders we can express some form of humbleness, not seek the misfortune of others and I hope that we can all make friends of our enemies.  

I would love to hear your thoughts, stories and comments on this subject below and if you like this message, please share on the social media channels.

Cheers to your success!

Filed Under: Breeding Enemies with Success, Humility in Leadership Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

Revitalize – Getting Things Done Through Aligned Execution – Part 1

August 13, 2011 by

A couple of posts ago I mentioned that I had written a book.  I started writing the book in July of 2010 and finished it in April of 2011.  The book is written as a business fable and describes a methodology that I developed to solve one of the most mystifying problems that organizations experience.  That problem is the ability to get everyone’s activities in an organization aligned to help achieve the top-line goals of an organization. 

I have often pondered about why there are so many businesses that fail, why small business are more likely to fail then succeed and most importantly, why there are so many small businesses that never seem to progress beyond their plateaus that leave them at the same place for years and years.  The concepts in the book are not revolutionary.  In fact they are the basic building blocks of business. But it is how they are organized that is different. 

Below I have pasted the introduction to the book as well as some of the reviews I have received.  The reviews have been phenomenal. I actually had to go back to a few of the reviewers and ask if they were telling the truth.  I already have verbal orders for the book from CEOs that want it for everyone in their company and I have received invitations to speak and conduct workshops on the process.  Of course I have to get the baby published first.  It is in the hands of a great agent, so keep following me and I will let everyone know when it is available.

Introduction

    In the book Execution, by Larry Bossidy and Ram Charan; Larry Bossidy wrote, “Leadership without the discipline of execution is incomplete and ineffective. Without the ability to execute, all other attributes of leadership become hollow.”

    I wish that every leader could have that quote ingrained in their memory. I have had the privilege of meeting with thousands of business owners and leaders in various capacities and situations over the years. Many of them that I have met are stuck in a cycle of constant ineffective commotion. A commotion filled with busywork and all the myriad things, both big and small, which are required to run an organization. These leaders work countless hours, yet don’t really get much done to move their organization forward. All this busywork is “critical” work that must get done; but none of it helps the company progress toward becoming a bigger, better, and more profitable entity. When a leader is stuck in this cycle, the staff is sure to follow. This can continue for years until people wonder what they have accomplished with all their hard work.

    The ability to execute and get one’s staff dedicated, aligned, and moving in the same direction should be the study and focus of all leaders. I think sometimes we are so focused on getting every ounce of performance out of ourselves and others that we forget to lead them, we neglect to manage them, and rarely take the time to properly plan for our success.

    This book will guide you through a straight-forward process: a flexible methodology that allows organizations or teams to get their actions focused and their goals accomplished, all while remaining in alignment with organizational objectives.

    Though the process is simple in nature, it will take vision, focus and creativity to implement. I hope you will accept the challenge to follow this process through to completion and achieve great things as a result.

Okay. Let’s revitalize!

Praise for Revitalize

    “I would highly recommend Revitalize – Getting Things Done Through Aligned Execution. This book gives a solid foundation and systematic process for organizations to step out and jointly get things done more powerfully in their life and work. The way that organizational focus, alignment, and execution are woven throughout the story provides a clear path for organizational success.” 

~Kris Cavanaugh (Author of Stuck to C.E.O., Speaker & Coach | Atlanta, GA) Website

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    “I’ve probably read hundreds…perhaps thousands of business books. I’ve invested over $250k into seminars, books, audios, and other continuing education since I started my company; yet it didn’t all crystalize for me until I read Revitalize. Your book gave me the framework to execute the vision that has existed only in my head. It took the “what ifs” and “somedays” and “hopefullys” out of my world and replaced them with absolute certainty. Now I know there IS a way to absolutely guarantee success…and it is simple. Thank you!”

~Pamela Viveiros (CEO/President, ThinkTech Computers | New Bedford, MA) Website

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    “Revitalize – Getting Things Done Through Aligned Executiondoes a better job of explaining how to align behavior to goals than all of the hot-shot speakers I’ve heard over the years, and more importantly, it is done in such a simplified way that individuals at every level can understand the process to make significant organizational improvements.”

~Tim Shea (CEO, Alpha NetSolutions, Inc. | Millbury, MA) Website

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    “This is a work that can empower the reader with the concepts and inspiration to make the changes necessary to grow and prosper in our difficult economy. Revitalize is exactly what the doctor ordered to bring anyone back to business and life health.”

~Jim Camp (Author of “Start With No”, Founder of The Camp Negotiation Institute | Dublin, OH) Website

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    “Revitalize combines important information on execution and organizational alignment with a critical life topic of urgency. Primo Levi once said, ‘If not now, then When? If not us, then Who?’ This book brings a personal change story into significance by reminding us that we must take action not tomorrow, not next week, but today to execute and begin our organizational transformation and change journey!”

~Louis Carter ( Author, CEO & Founder, Best Practice Institute | West Palm Beach, FL) Website

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“Revitalize-Getting Things Done Through Aligned Execution is by far one of the best business books ever written! The use of the story was a powerful way to demonstrate the importance of developing purpose, vision, core values and goals for any business and personal life! The methodology taught in this book is simple to understand yet innovative in structure. If followed, success is guaranteed!”

~Arvee Robinson (Master Speaker Trainer, International Speaker, and Author | Upland, CA) Website

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    “In looking back through my 30 years of business experience, college, continuing education, and my personal library of hundreds of business books, I find no one has better able to explain the concepts of mission, vision, value and BHAG better than Todd Nielsen.  I found the story to be riveting and filled with business lessons and practical examples of how to apply these intertwined concepts. Many business owners believe the success or failure of their organization is up to fate.  Revitalize breaks through that myth and gives you hands-on, practical tools that can be immediately implemented to make any initiative successful.  As a business owner, I look forward to formalizing these processes in our organization to ensure our future success.  I wish I had this book many years ago!”        

~Diana L. Spurgus (President, MBA, MCP, CPA, CITP – BSSI, Inc. | Lancaster, OH) Website

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    “Revitalize – Getting Things Done Through Aligned Execution, provides the ideal framework for businesses looking to improve their bottom line.  It simplifies the execution of strong solid business principles, and inspires the reader into action.  Revitalize, reinforced where our company needs to make improvements and left me motivated to put things into action, now.”

~ Wendy Panor (Operations Manager, The Digital Architects, Inc. | Stevensville, MD) Website

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“I highly recommend Revitalize – Getting Things Done Through Aligned Execution to anyone wanting to improve the outcomes and productivity in their company or personal life.  It is a quick read and explains the principles and concepts well.  The story shows how all the pieces fit together in real life situations to create synergy and exponential growth or change.  A real treasure in my business book library.

~ Doug Hulme (President, Consolidated Business Systems | Denver, CO) Website

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I’d love to hear your thoughts.  Comment below!

Filed Under: Revitalize Book Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Four Principles to Successful Operational Leadership

August 6, 2011 by

Operational Leadership

This picture to the left here, while not a real highway infrastructure, is a good representation of how operations are often run in an organization and how it can feel to run the operations of complicated business that offers multiple products and services.

I have worked with over 50 business owners and colleagues over the last couple years on the topic of operations and operational leadership, in addition to running the operations of multiple companies. This has been primarily within the IT industry. It is so easy to get caught-up in the sales or growth of the business that operational leadership can fall by the wayside. Yet it is often the operations of a company that can cause and prevent the “fires” and headaches that leave many leaders in confusion and panic. Operations brings many aspects of a business into play, which is can be the source of the confusion. Aspects such as delivery and implementation, project management, cost reductions, efficiency, customer service, on-boarding, team building and others are, many times, at an opposing spectrum to the organizations objectives.

Success in operational leadership, whether it is data-center operations, service delivery operations, restaurant operations; or just about any operational capacity, comes down to four main components: People, Processes, Policies, and Systems. People, Process and Systems is nothing new.  Many books have been written on it, many companies like Toyota and others, model their company’s management after it.  It can and is applied to many industries and leadership situations.  I added “Policies” to this list, although many people group it with “Processes” I think it has a place of its own and I will explain why. I am going to touch on each of these operational leadership principles, briefly and hopefully provide some insight or at least a refresher for those that might be familiar with these concepts.

Four Principles to Successful Operational Leadership:

1. People in Operational Leadership

While technology might be in part taking over our lives and jobs, people are still at the heart of running an organization. It can be tough for leaders to focus on this though.  People are just so different and managing them and especially motivating them can bring even the best leader to tears.  I can’t even begin to touch upon the infinite number of problems to watch out for nor the infinite number of solutions to those problems.   What I want you to recognize is that it is very hard to have a great company, without great people.   As a leader, no matter what your specialty is, “people” is where you need to focus the majority of your time.  Learn about them, know them, understand what makes them tick, help them and serve them.  They can cause you the greatest pain or the greatest joy and success.

2. Processes in Operational Leadership

We need directions to put together toys for our children, why is it that many business owners do not take the time to write “directions” for their employees? You want to gain more time and spend less time “fighting fires”, write processes.   In working with business owners and employees, I have been amazed at the mass inability of people to write set processes. If you have to explain something to someone more than once, then it probably needs to be written down.  Want to be able to empower your employees with greater ability to get things done without coming to you, write processes. A process can be as simple as a checklist or  as complicated as an ITIL compliant flowchart.  Even if you area 1-man shop, you can start writing processes.  You cannot have scalability and exponential growth without a solid foundation of processes.

3. Policies in Operational Leadership

Processes generally apply to the “how” of getting things done.  You want something done a certain way, then write a process.  Policies though are the more official high-level things that one can or cannot do. You want your employees to dress a certain way to work, that is a policy.  You want them to be consistent with email signatures, that is a policy.  Many leaders are so busy that “policy” ends up being verbal instruction that comes from the leader or colleagues.  More in the form of warnings and often not correct.  It can be grudgingly boring to write policies and one should consult a professional when dealing with the legal aspects of some policies.  I think that in great companies, people know what they are supposed to do, how they are supposed to do it and they know what they are not supposed to do.  Don’t wait until you have problems, to start writing policies.

4. Systems in Operational Leadership

Unfortunetly I think many people start with systems because it is “more fun”. Depending on what the business is, it may very well be the first thing to focus on.  We live in such a wonderful world of technology and innovation.  There is software and tools to do just about anything for you. Find those systems, whether it be software or technology.  And most important, when you get those systems, learn ,them, train others on them and use 100% of them.

I recognize that this is a very high-level list of success principles for operational leadership success.   Thousands of books have been written on all the granular details that go into these four principles. I hope that as a leader, you will take a step back, look at your priorities and and take the necessary steps to fill in the gaps of what you might be missing.

Filed Under: Operations Leadership Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,
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