High Performance Leadership

  Standing still is not an option. We can pause, we can relax, and we can certainly breathe, but there is work to be done. There are problems to be solved. There are goals to achieve. The status quo is not for you. High performance leaders push beyond the status quo. -- doug smith

Are you feeling a little busy? Are there more problems than you can juggle at once? It feels new, and yet the world has always had unsolved problems waiting for your help. There are more people now, many more, and that does make a difference. Everything is multiplied.  Which makes you even more important than ever. The world will always need centered problem solvers. Are you ready? -- doug smith

Those big problems are tough. Like giant stone walls they overshadow everything around them. How will we ever solve them? Those walls are made of smaller bricks. What if we tackle one brick at a time, one smaller problem at a time? High performance leaders find ways to break down the big walls into digestible pieces. What if our biggest unsolvable problem is really one hundred perfectly solvable little problems? -- doug smith

Solving a problem is challenge enough. Adding personal and cultural differences to the mix confuses conflict into the situation. Centered problem solvers sort out the interpersonal difficulties and focus on the process behind the problem. Most of the time, when we solve the process problem, the people problems are much less significant. And still we must solve the people problems as well. Here are some antidotes to the poison of culture clash: respect, clarity, understanding, taking the time to find and create shared meaning. Trust. And, let's not forget the most powerful help: love. Culture clashes create problems within problems. Understand rather than undermine. Reveal rather than conceal. Heal rather than steal. You can not only solve the problem -- you could also build better relationships. -- doug smith

High performance leaders solve problems. They solve their problems and they work with their team members to solve collective team problems (because any team problem becomes a collective problem - impossible to isolate.) Using the right balance of clarity, courage, creativity, and compassion high performance leaders facilitate the kind of dialogue that challenges, encourages, cooperates, and collaborates. They talk about it. Their team talks about it. They get it done. It can be rough going solving problems. Personalities can get excited. High performance leaders find ways to remain centered. How? Of course it depends. Here are some ways to remain centered when you're solving problems: Breathe Pause Maintain respect Think creatively Consider many, many possibilities Suspend your inner judge and stay curious Trust that others have ideas as great as yours There's more to it of course. Solving problems is a dynamic, difficult adventure. But by taking the time to...

Just because a problem confronts you, doesn't mean that you must become confrontational. Stay calm. Stay focused. Stay centered. It works so much better than panic or anger. -- Doug Smith