Majestic and Vital Leaders

We are the giants that are so dependable. We have risen from the ground,weathered the seasons and the storms. We stand tall against all skies, the bright blue ones and the ones that are grey and daunting.
Yes my friend,we are as the mighty oaks.
Beautiful and majestic and vital in a very special way.
-- David Spiegel

Do you have a mentor? Is there an older person in your life you trust who can guide you and coach you as you work on your goals?

I've been fortunate enough to have worked with some strong and bold mentors. They haven't always been older than me. Sometimes a great mentor is younger than you, and when you get to be my age, it's highly likely than many younger people can provide expert advice, guidance, and coaching. In fact, most of the best coaching I receive now comes from people younger than me.

Here's my point. Whether the guidance and feedback comes from someone older, younger, or the same point, don't disregard it. Think it over. Evaluate it. We all need feedback. We all need coaching. We all have blindspots that stand in our way. We all build walls that we need help navigating. I am so grateful for that help. Help from people older, and help from people younger.

When you look at someone older than you I hope you will recognize that they are still vital, still filled with life, still bursting with energy. Yes, our hair might be grey (or gone!). Yes, we might walk a little slower. But we are still powerful. You are also powerful. Centered, high performance leaders realize that it is in community with each other that we are all most powerful.

Just something to think about as you get busy on your next goal. You are busy, aren't you?

-- Doug Smith

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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...

On Failure

Failing one test is study for the next. As adults, the learning never stops. We get to repeat the lesson until we LEARN the lesson. I've learned to take my lumps and keep learning. Keep getting better. Study harder, work harder, and fill the gaps. We all fail sometimes. Let the learning continue! -- doug smith

Now Means Now

How do you feel when someone says that they will do something right away, and then they don't? When I say "now!" I mean immediately, and without over-thinking. never under estimate the temptation to overthink (I think I just did!) When is now? How about now? -- Doug smith Looking for leadership training? That's what I do: doug smith training

Own Your Time

Do other people sometimes waste your time? I facilitate workshops on workflow and time management occasionally and there are usually people in the workshop who blame their circumstances on other people. "It's all their fault" may feel like it takes the responsibility off your shoulders, but does it help? No. Any time we choose to be a victim we get to stay there. Time. No one knows for sure how much we have, except that we all have only 24 hours at a time per day. No stretching. No expanding. Time doesn't care what we do with it. Time keeps moving. So why blame other people? Sure, other people make unreasonable requests. Other people use inefficient processes. Other people make mistakes and talk endlessly when we know we should be working. But think about it. Other people can only do that TO you if you let them. Take charge. Move along. Keep your focus. Other people can only wast your time if you let them. Why let them? -- Doug Smith

Disagreement Clarifies

One of the biggest mistakes I've made, many times, was assuming that someone agreed with me. That's a dangerous practice. It feels easier to agree. It just isn't always the agreement we think we have. High performance leaders constantly clarify the truth. They clarify meaning. The granular details reveal the truth. Abstractions keep us smiling and nodding. Clear communication sparks the awareness needed to see true disagreement. Disagreement can be the start to understanding, and without understanding there can be no true agreement. The more clearly we communicate the more likely it is that someone will disagree with us. Then we know where we stand, and the direction we need to move. -- doug smith

More Than Convenience

This is probably get some disagreement. We've come to rely so much on one particular trait of business, probably even more than price. Convenience. We make so many decisions based on how EASY a transaction is. It's so much EASIER than ever before and we've all been spoiled by click-and-ship that anything with any friction whatsoever gets passed over. That's an understandable decision, but not always the best one. Convenience is great, but no substitute for quality. Hamburgers are convenient but wouldn't you rather eat a steak? (please excuse me my vegetarian and vegan friends.) Social media is convenient but how about the depth and richness of a long face to face conversation with a dear friend? I advocate that we consider other measures in our important decisions. Measures other than convenience: Quality Durability Care Beauty Drama What would you add to the list? Convenience is a poor measure of quality. Let's consider everything else that makes business -- a...

Power In Your Foundation

Where do you start? When you're building a team. When you're starting a project. When your developing a career. When you bonding a relationship. Build a strong enough foundation and your subsequent mistakes won't matter. Take the time to create the agreements, the conditions, the promises that you keep. Take the time to steady the ship and the waves won't matter. Sure, problems will bother you. Certainly, mistakes will sometimes hurt. But that strong foundation that you build creates resiliency that will see you through. Why not build for the long, long term? -- Douglas Brent Smith

Get Going!

What goal are you working on? Maybe you don't spend every minute of every day working on your goals. I certainly don't. But when I do work on my goals they propel me forward. They get me going. Find your favorite goal. Work on it. Even if you start with the smallest task. Put one task after the other like little steps leading to a lofty elevation. Goals get us going. Because standing still goes nowhere. -- Doug Smith

Expanding Capacity

High performance leaders expand capacity by constantly developing their people. How does your team grow? How can you get more done with less? There are many answers to the question of increasing capacity and responsible leaders explore them all, including improving processes and design. It's also important to constantly develop your people People who feel valued and who are constantly growing develop new ideas. They fix problems. They engage in processes and structures and find better ways to get things done. People who are developing stop tolerating defects and instead work toward optimizing their environment. They raise their capacity and increase the value of the team. What are you doing to develop your people? How much more capacity could your team have with people who were fully engaged, truly energized, and growing? -- Douglas Brent Smith Learn more in the workshop: Building Your Team

Stronger

It's been a year. It's been more than a year, it's been a dilly. Are you building muscle? Are you building resilience? Are you creating greater possibilities by hanging in there and doing your best. Of course you are. And we can even do better. We are all far stronger and far more vulnerable than we've ever imagined. Keep thinking, keep singing, keep going strong. Just look at those muscles now! -- doug smith

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