Take One Brave Step

Where does courage come from? How do we as leaders develop the courage that we need to stand up to resistance, overcome injustice, and develop our people even when resources are low? It's not a pill that we can take, it's not anything that we can buy; we develop courage one step at a time.

One step toward correcting the mistakes that we make. One step toward confronting a wrong. One step toward practicing assertiveness, not aggressiveness, in stating what we want in a situation.

We make mistakes along the way. We become too assertive. We fail to speak up when we see someone being disrespected. We let our boss incorrectly criticize a team member. But, we can correct those mistakes. We can redirect our work in courage toward effective behavior.

Courage does not require perfection.

It requires steps in that direction. How do we get started on our path to courage? Take one brave step at a time.

What step toward courage can you take today?

Doug Smith

Front Range Leadership: Training Supervisors for Success

doug smith training: how to achieve your project goals

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A Promise or A Plan?

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More On Learning

Even brilliant minds sometimes fall behind. Keep learning. I say it a lot, and yet can't say it enough: keep learning. That's a note to self as well as anyone else. What have you learned today? -- doug smith

Lead By Example

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One Generation Behind

It's not fair. It's not exactly logical. But how true do you think it is? Every generation creates its own problems -- and must solve the problems of the previous generation. Maybe it's the advance of technology. Maybe it's the quality of thinking. Maybe it's the incubator of time. What do you think? -- Douglas Brent Smith

Nothing Left to Give?

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Focus First

Ambition without vision consumes everything around it. -- doug smith

High Performance Leaders and Emotions

Are you an emotional leader? I had a boss once who put his fist thru a wall. He got lucky. If he hits a stud, it's a broken hand, at least. But he hit pure dry wall and his fist went right thru. He was making a point. I don't remember what his point was, but it was obvious that he was angry. He was also out of control. Leaders can't afford to look out of control. Scare your team and they'll lose productivity faster than you can say "update the resume." I've lost my temper, too -- but never put my fist thru a wall (at work. I did once in college in the apartment where I lived, but that's another story. Oh, yes I did fix the hole.) Sure, leaders can have emotions. But if our emotions get out of control they get in our way. Our teams panic. Our customers walk. Our families cringe. I'm not advocating any kind of flat line robotics here. Enjoy your emotions. Cry. Laugh. Cuss if you need to. Enjoy the joy that's there in lif...

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Are You In The Mood for Problem Solving?

Have you ever noticed people getting grumpy, just when they need to be at their best? Problems can bring out the skepticism in us. They can rankle our intentions and sour our mood. When that happens, don't deny it. Experience it. Let it find you in the moment and then let it go. Are you ready? Let it go. We can solve more problems in a good mood than we can in a sour mood. While we can't force a good mood, there's not much benefit to holding onto a discontented one. It's served its purpose once it has your attention. As a problem solver, it's time to move on. If your role is the leader in the problem solving effort, it's time to create a better space. Bring some things into the environment to build more comfort, trust, and energy: - food - water - soft music - light - warmth - confidence - acceptance - appreciation What else could you bring? What works best for you? What would work best for your group? Sour moods serve their purpose -- but...

High Performance Leadership

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