And, in their new book, The Fido Factor: How to Get a Leg Up at Work, they outline the four qualities every leader needs to succeed and earn respect, and in their book, they use real-life dog (and human) stories to illustrate these core principles and practices.
These essential four qualities are:
- Faithful
- Inspirational
- Determined
- Observant
Today, Krissi shares these additional insights leadership from her book:
Krissi Barr
Question: How can leaders
demonstrate and instill loyalty in a fast-changing, ferociously competitive
business world and the age of free agents?
Barr: Your dog isn’t going to dump
you and move in with the family down the block. That’s because your pooch is
devoted to you because you’ve demonstrated your commitment to her happiness and
wellbeing. Unfortunately, most employees don’t feel that same sense of loyalty.
We live in a world of free agents, where workers can take their knowledge and
expertise to the highest bidder.
Leaders need to focus effort on building
that same sense of dog loyalty to their pack at work. There are many ways for
leaders and companies to show loyalty. Promoting from within, providing career
and professional development, stock options, awards and recognition, gym
memberships, even investing in new furniture and equipment: all demonstrate the
desire to strengthen the entire organization by caring for each individual team
member.
The only way to build dog loyalty is
to demonstrate your total commitment to your pack, and that takes work and
sacrifice. When times are tough, loyalty is tested. Companies may be able to
avoid letting go of associates by temporarily reducing executive compensation,
eliminating unnecessary travel and delaying capital investments. The key during
belt tightening is to find a way to consistently send the message that the team
is loyal to every member.
Loyalty is different from
engagement. Engagement is when associates feel connected to their work,
company, purpose and vision. Loyalty is when you and your team members run
through fences for each other and won’t jump ship when another company offers a
modest increase in pay.
To build loyalty, develop your
company’s vision or purpose statement and then deliver on that promise. People
want to be part of something meaningful. Given a choice between “improving the
quality of our customers’ lives” and “make a dollar an hour more doing
whatever,” most people will take the job that gives them purpose.
Leaders and companies can also
invest in team development, delegate more and involve others in key decisions.
People want to be an integral part, not just a cog in the wheel. In addition to
loyalty you’ll reap the benefits of increased productivity and revenue growth.
True loyalty is built when you
demonstrate your commitment to the other person’s success. Ralph Waldo Emerson
said “What you do speaks so loud that I cannot hear what you say.” When it
comes to loyalty, actions really do speak louder than words.
Question: You encourage leaders to
openly express their caring for colleagues and their own vulnerability. Isn’t
there a danger that showing emotion in the workplace will make leaders look
weak or even lead to lawsuits?
Barr: Great leaders do the right
thing, even when no one is watching. And they especially do the right thing when
their teammates are watching.
Showing that you care is one of the
most important things a leader can do. It is impossible to build leadership if
your team doesn’t believe you care about them or the mission you are on.
Leadership is an art, not a science.
There is no formula that says “mix six parts positive emotions with one part anger
to strike the ideal leadership balance.”
Many leaders are worried that if
they show too much positive emotion they’ll come across as weak. No! Leaders
who show positive emotions and even some vulnerability are viewed by their
coworkers as more authentic. And authentic leaders are seen as more competent
leaders.
Of course, everyone has negative
emotions, too. Just make sure you have a filter so everything that irks you isn’t
broadcast to the entire team.
Raising your hand when you need help
is a sign of strength. Think about it. Most people are afraid to show
vulnerability. True leaders know when they need help and don’t hesitate to ask
for it.
Showing positive emotions in the
workplace—“Bob, congratulations on landing that new account!”—is not going to
lead to a lawsuit. It will, however, strengthen the team’s esprit de corps. So
wear it on your collar.
Question: What can business leaders
learn from dogs’ natural sense of curiosity?
Barr: A lot! Dogs are keenly aware
of what’s going on around them. They sniff, they look, they listen: dogs are
always trying to get more information about both the things they want (burgers
on the grill) and the things they want to avoid (an impending thunderstorm).
Great leaders are curious about the
world around them. They use their senses to detect clues, and then stitch
themes together into actionable directions. They look at body language and tone
of voice, not just the actual words spoken. They listen carefully to what is
said and what isn’t. All of this helps them gather more and better information.
Leaders also surround themselves
with associates who share a spirit of adventure. That’s because people who like
to explore are often the ones who uncover new ideas and trends. Given the speed
of change in business, having a team that’s curious about everything is a real
competitive advantage.
Urge your team to get close to
customers and question everything. Ask “what if” and “how else could we”
questions. You just might uncover that brilliant new idea that will lead you
down new paths to prosperity.
Socrates said “The secret of change
is to focus all of your energy, not on fighting the old but on building the
new.” You need people who relish the spirit of adventure and pave the way to
the bright new future for your enterprise.
Curiosity may have killed the cat
but it sure helped the dog become an exceptional leader.
Question: Did you learn anything
unexpected about business leadership or your own leadership habits during the
process of writing The Fido Factor? What would you most like readers to take
away from your book?
Barr: Perhaps the most important
lesson we learned was the power of an idea. We started with a simple thought:
let’s write a book on the leadership wisdom of dogs. It seemed a little crazy
at first. After all, there aren’t a lot of canine CEOs. We were either on to
something big or barking up the wrong tree.
The more we dug into it, the more
parallels we saw. Dogs are faithful, inspirational, determined and observant.
Sounds like some fairly significant leadership traits. So we pressed on.
We learned the value of getting
feedback from smart people. And that led to a few month’s worth of rewriting.
And rewriting is not fun. But it was the right thing to do to make The Fido Factor the best it could be.
Our real jobs each took up 60-70
hours during the work week, so we only wrote on weekends. For two years our
limited free time was consumed with even more work. But in the end, the feeling
of accomplishment and of creating something that could help people become
better leaders made all the sacrifices worth it.
We’d like readers of The Fido Factor to learn some new tricks to help them get a leg up at work. Leadership is often
the biggest differentiator in success. Without it, organizations can almost
never succeed. With it, almost anything is possible. The book is packed with
specific, practical ideas for both experienced and new leaders. Incorporating
just one could make all the difference.
Krissi Barr is CEO of Barr Corporate
Success, consultants specializing in strategic planning, executive coaching,
and behavioral assessments, and the co-author of The Fido Factor: How to Get a
Leg Up at Work.
Thank you to the book publisher for sending me an advance copy of the book.
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