Sound Advice from Leaders

A while back I asked some well respected people in my life to give their best leadership advice. I was looking at the list again this week and thought I'd share it again and add in insights from some more household names.

Maureen Turner Rasmussen Listen.
Richard Branson Do something bold.
Elizabeth Warren Try the Unexpected
Vivian Vasquez Definitely listen.
Maria Shriver Have the courage go beyond shoulda could woulda.
Maryse Senecal Lead by example, always.
Kevin Hamil No one has all the answers so don't think you need to
or worse think you already do.
Joel Peterson Don’t do anything that matters without first setting a goal.
Charrise McCrorey Be you.
Chris Young If you want to be a leader, make sure you're worth following.
Arianna Huffington Find your place of wisdom and peace and strength.
Andrew Hedges Be transparent.
Lydia Robertson Actually care.
Steve Gamlin Live as an GOOD example.
Catherine Jones First learn how to follow.
Joel Scott Good leaders are good listeners and don't ask someone to do something
you never would or won't. Lead by example.
Sheryl Sandberg Follow your dream. Lean In.
Glen Bryant Be fair. Be consistent. Be credible.
Barbara Nixon Listen.
Jeff Immelt The world awaits your leadership.
Kathy Hahn Become the example.
Helen Smith Be present. Learn where to help and when to get out of the way.
Jeff Schueler Engage everyone in the outcome.
Carol Roy Respect everyone for where they're at in life/career and always support
where they want to go. Be honest, at all costs.
Wendy White-Katsipodas Be honest.
Brendan Jones Be dishonest and you are a fool if you don't know they know.
Randi Zuckerberg Be careful what you get good at.
Scott Armstrong Listen.
Sarah Montague Listen and let other people lead.
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Kneale Mann | Leadership and Culture strategist, writer, speaker, executive coach engaging leaders, collaborative teams, and strong business results.

istock

It's More Than a Theory

The Big Bang was the event which led to the formation of the universe. Based on the best available measurements as of 2010, the original state of the universe existed around 13.7 billion years ago, which is often referred to as the time when the Big Bang occurred. The theory is the most comprehensive and accurate explanation supported by scientific evidence and observations. Wikipedia

Your Universe

Now take all that big brain stuff and apply it to your life, your career or your business. I’m often asked whether I can help prospects get from where they are, to where they want to be which points to our collective impatience. They want a guarantee, today.

We put these numbers and gauges on ourselves as if they are some sort of finishing line. Now some would say I should simply say yes and grab the money. After all, most clients want a quick win now over a long win later. Logic would deny that statement, action proves it.

Who’s Buyin’? Who’s Sellin’?

Let your mind drift back to all the jobs you’ve had, people you’ve worked with, people you’ve dated, people you went to school with and imagine they are all in one large venue. Now do the same with only the people you interact with now. It may be smaller but perhaps stronger; it may be wider in some areas and deeper in others. If we fast forward a few years, it may look much different than today.

But unlike the big freeze, the big bang, the big rip or the big crunch, you only have to worry about your network which continues to expand and contract. We are not collecting numbers like dusty trinkets on the mantle, these are people who touch our lives if even for a moment when they click “follow” or “friend”.

How will you embrace and nurture your universe?
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Kneale Mann | Leadership and Culture strategist, writer, speaker, executive coach engaging leaders, collaborative teams, and strong business results.

moolf

The Four P's

Anyone in marketing can recite the four P's which are product, price, placement and promotion. But how do the four P's apply to company culture and leadership?

Practice

Have you ever been to a sporting event or seen a live play or concert? Have you watched a great movie? Do you have any experience meeting someone else who is successful in business?  Do you find motivation from people who show talent and prowess in a particular discipline? In each case, someone spent years honing their skills to make it appear effortless. Yet we are quick to criticize from the comfort of our 20oz beer mug in the 300 level. Now think about your skill set and what you can bring to any situation. Did you learn and execute all you know immediately?

Patience

If you enjoy writing, reading a good book may give you more determination to work on your own novel. You may know someone who went back to school and emerged with a whole new career path. Seeing others succeed may give you reason to study their process to improve your business.

Persistence

It requires working nights and weekends, writing ideas on scraps of paper you later find in the laundry, networking well, reading incessantly while life blends with work. No successful person in history has gotten it right the first time. And no one does it alone.

Play

There are many ways to be successful. What's important is to be organized and have a strategic plan. It is equally essential not to settle for good enough - that's what the other guys do. It's critical not to rest on the past or think we have all the answers, that's where danger resides. And it's okay to get a little messy once in a while, take some chances. And like the rest of us, you will make a lot of mistakes because that's where experience grows.

And let’s add one more – Purpose.
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Kneale Mann | Leadership and Culture strategist, writer, speaker, executive coach engaging leaders, collaborative teams, and strong business results.

magnetic

Finding the How

Have you ever dropped an idea because you don’t think you had the money, time, expertise, or network? I was working on a project with a colleague this week and remembered the story of Britta Riley. I posted her story last year but thought it was worth another look.

Riley solved the issue of growing food in her cramped New York apartment. The result is now a global organization called The Windowfarms Project which was built through leadership, teamwork, open source, community, social media, and determined people.

Don't discard that idea you're working on just yet.


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Kneale Mann | Leadership and Culture strategist, writer, speaker, executive coach engaging leaders, collaborative teams, and strong business results.

TED | Britta Riley

Important Questions for Any Leader

• How is the health of our overall operation?
• Do you spend more than half of your time helping your team?
• Can you be honest with yourself about your organization?
• Do you have strong financial leadership?
• Is your business plan clear, concise and executable?
• Are you aware of all opportunities and the realistic outcomes of each?
• Do you have a strong sense of your people?
• Is each member of your team working more than 80% of their time on strengths?

How many are on your priority list?
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Kneale Mann | Leadership and Culture strategist, writer, speaker, executive coach engaging leaders, collaborative teams, and strong business results.

valteroni

What if it Doesn't Work?

We all have big ideas yet often we don’t know what to do with them or we fold our hand the moment we get negative feedback. Most of this is self-inflicted conditioning.

It's common to get stuck on that fearful part rather than to keep working no matter how much resistance we face. We may not be able to visualize the final solution so we give up. We may be making it more complicated than necessary.

Share it. Like it.

It can be scary to share our ideas and often we make the early decision to keep them to ourselves. Shoulda coulda woulda replaces why not and what do we have to lose.

The late Princeton philosopher and author Walter Kaufmann coined the phrase decidophobia to describe those who would rather leave the deciding to some authority. Kaufmann opined once the decidophobe has relinquished they will accept anything argued by that authority. I call it "boss is always right" syndrome.

Let someone else decide?

She's a thought leader, he's a thinker, they're the idea team. All crutches we create to stop us from contributing to the process. We all have ideas that are valuable and if you are in a leadership role, open the doors a little wider and let those ideas in because there's brilliance waiting to be seen.

Two hundred years ago there was no Internet. A century ago we didn't have interactive technology built into the steering wheels of cars. And unless you share it, we will never enjoy what you have been thinking about which could change the world.

Let’s think big and stop over thinking.
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Kneale Mann | Leadership and Culture strategist, writer, speaker, executive coach engaging leaders, collaborative teams, and strong business results.

istock

Presenting Your Ideas

Whether you do professional speaking, facilitate workshops, coach professionals or attend conference calls – which makes up a lot of my work time - or you simply navigate regular business relationships, there is one common element we all share. It is what makes us similar and vastly different. It is something that we can implement or destroy.

Nancy Duarte has been studying this topic as well as what makes a great presentation for many years and she explains both in her 2011 TEDTalk.


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Kneale Mann | Leadership and Culture strategist, writer, speaker, executive coach engaging leaders, collaborative teams, and strong business results.

Nancy Duarte | TED

Feeding Your Mind

JP Rangaswami poses a question and a challenge to all of us. In our world where information is coming at us at warp speed, what if we looked at it as fuel and something to celebrate much like we view food.

Rangaswami spends a lot of his time studying behavior and speaks at events all over the world. He loves food but equally craves learning. He shares what the two have in common after studying both for over a quarter century.


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Kneale Mann | Leadership and Culture strategist, writer, speaker, executive coach engaging leaders, collaborative teams, and strong business results.

TED | JP Rangaswami

Imagine for a Moment

Money and time have been the hurdles to pushing through that big idea you've had for far too long. Imagine for a moment both evaporate and you are free to act.

Every time you want to say "not", imagine for a moment you change it to "why not".

The dream was long given up on because there was no way you would be able to pull it off. People like you don't follow their dreams, you're responsible and practical. That stuff happens to other people. Imagine for a moment the story you've been telling yourself for years simply because it was easier than trying. And you take the first step.

You take one item from your wish list and put it on your action list. Imagine for a moment you take one item on your action list and get it done.

Food for thought.
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Kneale Mann | Leadership and Culture strategist, writer, speaker, executive coach engaging leaders, collaborative teams, and strong business results.

istock

Who's the Boss?

As our days are filled by commiserating about that stuff that may be missing from our work, we must look at the top. If you work long enough, you will eventually be given more responsibility and perhaps other people who will look to you for direction.

A friend told me about her boss who feels compelled to raise his voice in every meeting like the alpha male pounding his chest to remind the minions who’s in charge. Perhaps you've met this guy.

Collaboration Personified

Simply because people stay is not evidence of strong leadership. Most people need money twice a month to pay for those pesky things called bills. Organizational attrition is rarely documented if one or two people leave every couple of months but over the course of a decade, how much of your team has been replaced? Do you think it could be linked to weak leadership?

An org chart and a business card does not constitute leadership. The human network is more vital than ever before. Your team does not want a boss. They don’t want to fear you. They don’t want to walk on egg shells around you. They don’t want to hate their jobs. They need you to lead and help them grow. People will mess up, because they are people just like you. Your team will make mistakes, just like you. Your company will have challenges, just like you.

Remind them your job title and you may lose the room.
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Kneale Mann | Leadership and Culture strategist, writer, speaker, executive coach engaging leaders, collaborative teams, and strong business results.

officespace | original: jan 2012

Mistakes and Missteps

Think about someone you would consider a great leader. They may be your direct report, someone famous you’ve never met, your biggest mentor, a colleague or friend, they may not even be in a traditional leadership position.

Now think of someone you would consider a bad leader. Sadly that name often comes to mind faster. The Harvard Business Review asked a simple question:

What are the biggest mistakes a leader can make?

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Kneale Mann | Leadership and Culture strategist, writer, speaker, executive coach engaging leaders, collaborative teams, and strong business results.

harvard business review