High Performance Leadership

There are many meanings contained in what I consider the five core leadership strengths: courage, creativity, clarity, compassion, and centeredness (the skillful use of the other four.) Here's a humble point on two of them: Courage is knowing when someone can do better. Compassion is knowing when someone has done all they can. Push when pushing is needed. Support when to push would be wrong. How do you know, as a leader, when to push would be wrong? It's wrong when it doesn't make things better. It's wrong when it hurts someone. 

Leaders do not settle. Good enough is not enough. Almost will never do. As my dad used to say, "Anything worth doing is worth doing right," and leadership must be done in a fully attentive, fully focused, high performance way. High performance leaders insist on ever increasing performance. To get there, they encourage positive action after positive action. Step by ever reaching step to a higher level, to a better degree, to a higher quality. It's what high performance leaders do. High performance leaders provoke positive actions. What positive action will you provoke today? -- doug smith Leadership Call to Action The next conversation you have with anyone on your team today, take a moment to provoke a positive action. Encourage your team member to do more, to add quality, to add value to something otherwise routine. Keep provoking until that positive action is a reality -- and then keep provoking until that positive reality is a habit. You can do it. You...

It might seem obvious, but it's worth remembering: strong goals provide you with strength. They provide you with strength of purpose, strength of direction, and strength of endurance.  A goal that you truly care about, that's written with clarity provides help when others try to hinder. Lots will try to get in the way. The best goals resist this resistance and persist to achievement. A solid, clear goal can withstand any judging. -- doug smith Leadership Call to Action Check in on your top three goals today. Are they providing you with strength of direction? How could you make them even stronger? What will you do today toward achieving them?

Is it easier to start strong as a leader or to start tender? Which gives you the most payoff? Which gives you the most credibility? Start strong. I don't mean bossy. No one needs or wants you barking orders at them. By start strong I mea get a grip on what you want from your team and let them know. Coach, coach, coach every single team member from struggler to super star. Everyone. Who benefits from coaching? Everyone. Get them the help they need to sharpen their skills and expand their capacity. Give them so much feedback that it becomes as natural as breathing. When you've reached that point -- when feedback (both sending and receiving) becomes as natural as breathing -- you are well on your way to a very strong team. And isn't that what you want? How strong will your team get if you're not strong? Your team looks to you for your strength. They draw inspiration from knowing that no challenge is too tough and no upper management person is too constraining t...