We have previously dealt with trust, influence, self-control, discipline, results and hope (or inspiration).  Each article contains suggestions, exercises or approaches that you can implement in order to address these areas. To catch up on the previous articles in this series, follow this link.  In this article, we examine the concepts of pride and humility in the context of the leader and his/her team. 

A leader is a dealer in pride. This is not arrogance. It is based on the understanding that the team that is proud of itself, its achievements and its members will constantly strive to win. He talks up his team and makes sure that they celebrate their successes. He looks for opportunities to give recognition, and focuses on what is right in the team whilst quietly addressing what is wrong or needs fixing. His team has no doubt that he is proud of them and, as a result, they take continued pride in excelling.

Are you proud of your team? How would they know? How do you celebrate successes with your team? What is worth celebrating right now? How will you do it?

A leader is a dealer in humility. She knows that any success that she may achieve is because of the collective effort of the team – and she shares the glory with the team. In fact, very often she will stand back and allow the team to bask in the glory of their success, with little need to have the limelight all to herself. She will acknowledge the collective efforts of the team at every opportunity, and ensure that everyone knows that the team is the key to her success.

What successes have you enjoyed that should have been shared with the team? What will you do now to put it right? What will you do next time? What can you do to make sure that your upline knows how great your team is?

The next article in this series of twelve will look at the concept of power and how to exercise it in a constructive way.  If you have any feedback on your progress that you would like to share, email me.

In the previous article, we looked at the constructive exercising of power.  Another challenge for the leader is to maintain the momentum when times are tough, and this is when clarity of vision is vital.  If you’ve missed previous articles in this series, you can catch up by following this link.

A leader is a dealer in pace. She gets things moving and keeps things moving. She knows that energy and momentum are critical in achieving results. She works fast herself, and she expects her team to also work quickly. She knows that lethargy is a killer, and makes sure to keep things pacey. She knows that gradual improvement is not good enough, and so fosters change and growth at a pace that stretches the team but does not overwhelm them. You know this leader – she walks quickly, thinks quickly, acts and decides quickly and works quickly. She knows that if change is to happen, it must happen quickly – change that is dragged out creates far more pain and resistance than change that is quick – and she keeps it moving until it is done.

Think about changes you wish to make. Are you happy with the pace at which change is happening? If it is slower than you would want, what is the hold up? Is it you? Are you slowing things down on the assumption that this will make it easier for the team? What could you and the team do to pick up the pace?

How are you doing so far?  Send me an email to let me know where you have experienced the most challenges in terms of implementing new practices and approaches.

This is the sixth in a series of leadership articles dealing with those challenging times when inspiration deserts the leader, and the vision seems vague and irrelevant to what is curerntly going on in the business.  To read the previous articles, with their practical advice, hints and tips, click here.

A leader is a dealer in results. This is all about winning, and the leader is the winning captain. She finds a way for the team to win. By producing results and delivering superior performance, this leader ensures that the best people are in the team and stay in the team. She also ensures that the team is constantly pushing for improvements. They harness the collective energy of the team in pursuit of the vision. They pull people together when things get tough. They know that for every problem, there must be a solution – it just takes the collective effort of the team to find that solution. This leader knows that, in order for the team to succeed, it must include a diversity of talents, skills and thinking styles – people who make up for her own gaps and weaknesses. She knows that if she surrounds herself with good people, the team will win.

How do you keep the team focused on results? And when you are not getting the results you are looking for, how do you problem solve? Do you get the team around a table and wrestle with it until you find a solution?

What problems have you and the team been living with because they have been around so long that you came to believe they were unsolvable? What will you do about them?

I trust that you are seeing a difference in yourself, your team and in the organisation after having implemented the exercises and approaches that I have suggested.  Send me an email to let me know how you’re doing.

In previous articles, we have dealt with the impact of hope (inspiration), discipline, influence, and self-control on a leader’s ability to re-connect with the vision and to be an inspirational leader.  If you would like to read these articles, please follow this link.

A leader is a dealer in trust. It is through the actions of the leader that an organisation becomes a safe place to be –safe enough for team members to take risks and push the boat out. The team needs to know that the leader has their back. Only if they know this will they put themselves on the line, take tough decisions and push the limits of their creativity and innovation. In a safe environment, where team members are acting in unison, guided by a compelling vision, and supported by a trustworthy leader, people will drop their guard and suspend their need to cover their backs – only when this is true will they dig really deep and give their all. If they believe that they may be hung out to dry, they will inevitably play it safe – and sure fire guarantee of mediocrity.

When was the last time a really big idea came from your team? When was the last time your team challenged you or disagreed vigorously with you? Or do they play it safe and remain polite? Not a good sign. Without vigorous discussion and wrestling with challenges and ideas, nothing truly great will ever come from your team. The best you can expect is vanilla. It’s up to you.

When did your team last bring you bad news? How did you respond? Do you hear everything you need to hear or do you sometimes get nasty surprises? What have you done to contribute to distrust in the team? What have you done to make it safe to tell it like it is? It is up to you.

Creating an environment in which trust is implicit is incredibly challenging and the success of this rests on consistency.  Let me know what impact these exercises have on establishing, building and increasing trust within your team.

In this, the fourth article in the series, we look at self-control and the challenges of consistently exercising self-control.  If you would like to catch up on the previous articles in this series, follow this link.

A leader is a dealer in self-control. No matter how tough things get, he cannot let everyone know how stressed he is or how worn down he feels at the relentless pressure and criticism. It is okay to vent with a trusted colleague - or, better still, an outside coach – but it is not okay to vent outside of this circle of trust. In front of anyone else, he puts his best face forward and focuses on the needs of the team. They cannot see the leader having a meltdown! This leader knows that just because a thought passes through his mind, it should not necessarily pass through his lips. That’s a tough ask but it is important. If the team sees you caving in, they will inevitably follow.

Who is your go-to person when things get tough? Is this person sufficiently removed from the team or personally tough enough to be able to be your person without “leaking”? If not, you are not being fair to them, your team or yourself. Find a go-to person who can fulfil this role.

What challenges have you been keeping to yourself in the belief that you just need to tough it out? This is not good for you or your team. Sometimes we are so close to our challenges that it is difficult to see the wood for the trees. Find yourself a coach who can help you to think things through and offer you another set of eyes and another perspective.

How are you doing with implementing the practical exercises and tips that I’ve included in the previous article? What results are you seeing, either in your personal leadership or in your team?  Please email me with your comments or any queries.