Multiply Your Lessons Learned

Isn't it tempting to keep our mistakes to ourselves? We're just glad to get through them and really don't treasure parading our weaknesses around. But, what if by sharing our mistakes we can do some good?

The lessons we learn from our mistakes can be multiplied by teaching others.

It provides useful information (whether or not others take it). It shows our own humility. It demonstrates our compassion for others with the hope that they can avoid some pain or hardship that we've already experienced.

We might have a hand in helping others avoid mistakes.

And if others make fewer mistakes, won't that be good for us, too?

-- Douglas Brent Smith

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A Promise or A Plan?

Which would you rather have -- a promise, or a plan? I love promises. When some people make a promise to me I know that it is as good as done. They are reliable, trustworthy, hard-working creative people who keep their promises. I'll take a promise from them any day. Promises can be problematic sometimes, though. Some people are not so skilled or willing to keep their promises. They may make a promise to move forward in the conversation (possibly because the conversation is deep enough to cause some discomfort) and yet have no intention of keeping that promise. That's not helpful. That's not what centered leaders are looking for. That's not how centered problem solvers operate. Promises are great and I'm also interested in the plan. What exactly are they promising to do and when will they do it? What's the plan? Picking a promise over a plan is a risky way to solve a problem. Problems respond better to the actions completed in a careful and thorough

The Benefits of Supervisory Training

When was the last time you had any leadership training? How often do the supervisors in your organization get training? If you are like most organizations, it's never enough. Some teams go without any supervisory training at all and expect supervisors and managers to learn as they go, on the job. Unfortunately, while it is memorable to learn from your mistakes, it comes at a high cost. People get tired. People leave. Important accounts go away. Customers complain. And teams struggle without the skills and knowledge it takes to build cohesive teams that are capable of solving problems, improving performance and achieving goals. Admittedly, I can be expected to support training since I'm in the business. Still, take a closer look at your own leadership career and decide for yourself. Are leaders better off with more training and development or with less? Supervisory training can generate benefits that pay off long after the training is over. Here are just a few of the things sup

When To Dance?

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Helping People Change

Resistance to change is our most natural and unproductive impulse. Helping people thru that change changes their lives positively. It's s something that high performance leaders do. -- doug smith

Dump Anonymous Feedback

What's the problem with anonymous feedback? The list is long. When people can say anything they want, without any accountability, they are sometimes rude. The feedback becomes exaggerated. Not knowing what to do with it (who do you try to please?) it frustrates the person receiving the feedback. Anonymous feedback encourages anti-social comments. It opens up a level of venting that is not healthy for either party. And, rather than building relationships, it tears them down. The best place for anonymous feedback is the garbage. It's too easy to be negative when no one knows who you are. Hold people accountable. Teach them that two-way communication is responsible, respectable, and useful. Let's keep the trash talking on the basketball court and build relationships of worth at work. -- Doug Smith

Change Quickly

How are you at keeping up? Change is so rapid that adjusting, and evolving, has become a full time job. We roll with the changes, we drive new changes, we let go of the old. It's not getting easier, and it's getting faster. I work at it. I keep learning. I keep adjusting, and still... By the time I have it figured out it's time to try something else. Instead of getting frustrated, here's how I like to look at it: change is growth. Faster change is faster growth. Getting better is growth, so the more change the better. Are you with me on that? Because the alternative is slow-motion decay, and we don't want that, do we? -- Douglas Brent Smith

Tough and Tender

It's better to be considered tough and show up tender than to be thought tender and show up tough. -- doug smith

How to Embrace Criticism

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Make the Hard Choices

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Is Micro-Management Ever The Answer?

I found something I'd never seen before in a job ad today. It's something to think about. Listed as a job requirement, it said that the job candidate must have: "The ability and personality type to work in a micro - managed environment until you have built up a trust level with the people you support." What kind of work environment does that imply? It certainly gets points for honesty. Any new hire will know exactly what to expect: specific instructions, close direction, careful follow-up, and tight requirements. But wait -- while a seasoned professional might not need that level of micro-management, and while transformational, participative leaders allow lots of autonomy and choice, let's consider the needs of a new employee. Someone new to an organization may not be ready for unsupervised decision making because they're too busy adjusting to the culture, learning the job, creating new relationships, practicing new skills, and doing important tasks. Maybe

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