Share Leadership

Someone is in charge. You may have thought it was you. Do you share your leadership or keep it to yourself?

Share. It's not an either/or proposition. Even when the buck stops with the leader, the leader can still share leadership. Share decision making. Share idea generation. Share development.

I like the concept from "The Art of Possibility Thinking" by Rosamind Stone Zander and Benjamin Zander -- lead from any chair.

When anyone in the room can contribute, the contributions are better. When anyone in the circle has a voice -- the voices all matter. When anyone in the room can lead, we lead much more responsibly, with more compassion, courage, creativity, and clarity.

Share leadership. It's not losing. It's sharing the win.

-- Doug Smith

Quick Link: Here's a great summary of the 12 concepts from "The Art of Possibility Thinking"

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Learn Constantly No Matter How Annoying It Is

Some things that annoy us the most grow us the most. I never asked for some of my biggest lessons. I probably didn't ask for any of them. They hurt. They bruised. They provoked anxiety. They made me sweat. But I learned. I learned that people need lots of attention. That sending an email isn't enough. That a handshake (and even a kiss) doesn't mean that a deal won't ever be broken. That broken promises (especially when a kiss IS involved) are the hardest lessons to take. We go on. We strive forward. We learn. We forgive. I am annoyed by big lessons. My ex-wife once gave me a little present that was a miniature traffic cone with the words "Oh no, not another learning opportunity!" on it. That about sums it up: not right now please, I'd rather not get that lesson. We don't always get to pick the timing, but we do get to decide whether or not we learn from those things that annoy us. Things like the team member who isn't finishing the import...

Leading Relationships

While looking for something else, l found this quote: "Appreciate you without judging. Join you without invading, Invite you without demanding. Leave you without guilt." -- Virginia Satir It reminded me that part of a leader's role is in leading relationships. That's not the same as directing or controlling them. Leading relationships has more to do with taking personal responsibility for what you bring to a relationship -- whether that's at work, in the community, at home...anywhere. Relationships can not be taken for granted. To truly lead, we must remain attentive to the kinds of relationships we are co-creating. Appreciate you without judging We don't always have the answer, but we usually think that we do. Effective leaders listen with their whole being. We bring our soul to the game. We wait to be touched before reaching out to correct. We appreciate and allow for differences. Courageous leaders correct dangerous situations, but hold ...

Mistakes Don't Care

I can't erase my mistakes, how about you? I've learned that mistakes don't care how we feel about them. We do have a choice, though. That is the choice of whether or not we learn from those mistakes. It helps to talk about them. It helps to analyze what went wrong. Eventually, though, we must move on. We live with our mistakes, whether we want to or not. Why not get over it, and move on? -- Doug Smith

Is It Really Your Problem?

Just because someone tries to give you a problem doesn't make it yours. Leaders get shoved problems all the time. Because your good at solving things, people are inclined to help you with more work. Do you really want more work? One of the first jobs of a high performance leader is to develop the people on the team. Teach them to resolve conflict. Train them to solve problems. Help them achieve their goals (but don't achieve them for them). It takes more time. It takes more patience. It's the centered, high performance approach to leadership. Building your team frees you up to stay strategic. Building your team makes your team not only more effective but also happier. Isn't that what you want? So the next time you see a little reverse-delegation heading your way, cut it off at the pass. And pass it right back. -- Doug Smith

No Complete Failure

"Make failure your teacher, not your undertaker." -- Zig Zigler You know that we can learn from our mistakes. You might also know that failure carries many valuable lessons. I like the expression that comes from NLP (Neurolistic Programing) "there is no failure, only feedback." There's always something to learn. Any effort that results in learning is not a complete failure. So it's up to us. While we would never choose to fail at anything (oh horrors!) sometimes we will. Whether we learn or not is completely up to us. Find the learning. Find the success. What have you learned today? -- Doug Smith

Compassion Does Not Require You To Be A Victim

Is it possible to be too compassionate? I suppose that it depends on what you mean by compassionate. Certainly, we owe it to other living beings (and I include all living beings in that, not just people) kindness, grace, caring, and working to create tolerable or better living conditions. We are fundamentally here to help others. But that does not mean that we need do anything anyone asks. We need not become a victim. Some people are in need beyond our capacity to provide that need. Some people take advantage of our desire to help. Some people (gasp!) simply can't be trusted. I come from a tradition of faith that says help anyway, and I believe that is best. Help anyway. Do what we can. But...and maybe I'm going out on a limb here...but not to the point of becoming a victim. Sometimes we must say no. Sometimes we must walk away. Compassion does not require foolishness. We are not required to surrender our selves when evil prevails. Please do not misunderstand me. I ...

Work That Plan!

"Constant and determined effort breaks down all resistance and sweeps away all obstacles." -- Claude M. Bristol I enjoy designing a plan to achieve a goal. Listing the tasks, estimating the times, scheduling them - that all appeals to my analytical side. Then comes the hard part: getting it done. But it's not really hard. It's one step at a time. One movement, one action, one call, one thing . At - a - time. Design a cool, appealing plan. And then, most importantly, act relentlessly on your plan. As Larry the Cable Guy says, "get -er done!" -- Doug Smith

That Awesome Gift of Listening

"The greatest motivational act one person can do for another is to listen." -- Roy Moody How would your work and your life be different if everyone you encountered listened carefully, compassionately, and attentively to each other? It seems so simple, yet it's not. Listening takes focus. Listening takes attention. Listening positively takes curiosity. How curious are you when you listen? Here's what I'm working on: listening without judging. I remember a time when I had an answer to every question, an opinion to every view, and something to say in any situation. I wasn't wise enough to know that smart wasn't always enough. We need to listen. Listening is a gift as profound as any you might give today. Who will you give that free yet awesome gift? -- Doug Smith

Stay Optimistic

"I never saw a pessimistic general win a battle." -- Dwight D. Eisenhower "The pessimist complains about the wind. The optimist expects it to change. The leader adjusts the sails." -- John Maxwell Are you feeling optimistic? I like that sense of "things will be great, things will be better" and the energy it takes to make that true. It's hard to summon up energy for change when I'm pessimistic. That doesn't mean carrying an attitude of everything-will-work-out-no-matter-what. We do need to work. We do need to focus. We do need to set meaningful goals and then work like heck to achieve them. But staying optimistic helps. Then, lead. Take charge. Move ahead. Help it to happen. What are you optimistic about today? -- Doug Smith

Big Problems, Big Success

Is it hard to see the value in problems? No one asks for problems. But the really big ones offer great opportunity for change. The really big problems create such a disturbance that the status quo just won't do. We do something about them. Sometimes a box full of problems can lead to a warehouse full of success. One solution leads to another. One burst of creativity builds more capacity. New standards are set and people grow. Where are you in your box of problems? -- Doug Smith

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