Eric Jacobson On Management And Leadership

To learn how to stay motivated, read  High-Profit Prospecting , by  Mark Hunter . It's a powerful read that includes counter intuitive advice and cutting-edge best practices for sales prospecting in today's business world. Today, I share one of my favorite sections of the book where Hunter describes his  seven things motivated people do to stay motivated : Motivated people  ignore voices in their lives . These might be people in the office and friends who have bad attitudes. They're out there, and if you're not careful, they'll control you, too. Motivated people  associate with highly motivated people . Just as there are negative people in the world, there are also positive people. Your job is to make sure you spend as much time with the positive people as possible.  Motivated people simply  look for the positive in things . Positive people count it an honor to live each day, learn from others, and impact positively those they meet. Positive people take g

These  eight decision-making tactics  from  David Lahey ’s book,  Predicting Success , are helpful to me and hopefully useful to you as well: Deep breathing , to clear your mind. Researching , to feel confident that you have all the information in front of you. Listing your options , in either verbal or written form, to keep the whole picture front of mind. Following through on the possible outcomes , complete with likely predictions and acknowledgement of whether they’re negative or positive (or design yourself a decision tree, that lays out every possible consequence visually). Testing your intuition , by imagining a committed decision and then gauging the corresponding feeling it inspires in your gut. Taking the time you need , so long as it doesn’t become an overly indulgent distraction. Evaluating your decision , an after-the-fact exercise that engages a conscious inventory of the lessons learned. Coming to terms with your pick , always cognizant of the reality th

For those who may have missed this posting from awhile back, I am pleased to share again a guest post from  Garret Kramer  about how to be a great coach: 14 Attributes of Great Coaches By Garret Kramer, Author of  Stillpower: Excellence with Ease in Sports and Life   There are many, many coaching manuals and books on the market today.  Unfortunately, virtually all of them provide an external blueprint or "positive" guide to successful coaching and leadership. Very few, however, point the coach inward to an intuitive understanding that he or she already possesses.   Below are fourteen examples of the inside-out coaching paradigm  revealed in  Stillpower .  Consider these attributes of great coaches for yourself; then see how they might apply to you, your team, classroom, company, or family.   1.  Great coaches think state of mind first; behavior (including "working hard, "staying positive, and "doing the 'right' thing"), a

If you serve on a nonprofit Board, are the executive director for a nonprofit, or are responsible for raising funds for your nonprofit,  The Nonprofit Fundraising Solution ,  book by  Laurence A. Pagnoni  is a must-read for you. Pagnoni bridges the gap between theory and practical methods and shows you (often via  real-life case studies)  how to: increase your access to wealthy donors raise your community profile stretch gifts operate major campaigns avoid revenue plateaus create a fundraising culture within your organization take specific actions if your Board's core strength isn't fundraising conduct challenge gift campaigns integrate social media into your existing fundraising methods create a planned giving program When it comes to transforming prospects into donors, Pagnoni suggests you follow these basic five steps: Get to know your prospect Get your prospect involved Ask for a small gift of financial support Ask them to open their network o

Some of my favorite  quotes for leaders  are: A good leader takes a little more than his share of the blame, a little less than his share of the credit --  Arnold H. Glasgow I praise loudly, I blame softly --  Catherine II of Russia Honest disagreement is often a good sign of progress --  Mohandas Gandhi A long dispute means that both parties are wrong --  Voltaire The least questioned assumptions are often the most questionable --  Paul Broca These and many more compelling quotes can be found in Susan H. Shearouse's book,  Conflict 101 .

When I read business books, I turn the corner of every page that has something I really like, want to remember and easily reference in the future. Halfway into the 300-page book,  Leadership Conversations , I had turned the corners of nearly every fifth page. So, you can see why I believe this is such a good book. There is so much to learn from  Leadership Conversations . It's a must read for today's business leaders. Leaders who are leading multi-generational workforces. And, leaders who want the skills to get promoted and move up the corporate ladder. Authors  Alan S. Berson  and  Richard G. Stieglitz  wrote the book because they believe that  a leader's most powerful skill is the ability to hold effective conversations . So, in their book, they detail the  four types of conversations every leader must effectively master .  Conversations that: Build relationships Develop others Make decisions Take action And, they provide real-world examples a

Here, from the book,  Be A Network Marketing Leader , are some tips on how, as a leader, you can connect with your individual team members: Send cards on their birthdays and anniversary-of-joining dates. Keep yourself updated with what's happening in their personal lives. Show your support during personal or family crises. Schedule weekly one-on-one phone calls or meetings. Pay attention. When you see an increase, decrease or change in results, get in touch. Schedule monthly whole team meetings. Applaud achievements and address concerns immediately. Be consistent. Make frequent thoughtful, spontaneous gestures.

The  First-Time Leader  book by  George Bradt  and  Gillian Davis  begins with a discussion of taking charge of your new team and then tracks through  BRAVE leadership  components from the outside in. BRAVE is a leadership framework that helps first-time leaders successfully build their team by uniting them around a shared purpose. The term reflects an acronym that stands for behaviors, relationships, attitudes, values and environment. Carefully considering and analyzing each component will help first-time leaders discover this shared purpose and incorporate it into the company’s larger strategy and their team’s implementation of same. Specifically, the book defines the  five components  as: Behaviors  –  The actions that make real lasting impact on others. Relationships  – The heart of leadership. If you can’t connect, you can’t lead. Attitudes  – Encompassing strategic, posture, and culture choices around how to win. Values  – The bedrock of a hig

A few years ago,  Brian Tracy , along with  Christina Stein , published,  Find Your Balance Point . "The desire for peace of mind and the idea of living a balanced life are central to your happiness and well-being. When you start to live your life in balance with the very best person you could possibly be, you will enjoy the happiness you deserve and experience harmony among all the elements that make up a successful life for you, as you define it," explain the authors. The book teaches you  how to identify you balance point, move to it at will, and automatically return to it whenever you want . "You need to establish your balance point before you can set and achieve the goals that are important to you," explains Tracy. The starting point is to develop absolute clarity about who you are and what matters to you. This means you much be clear about your  values . Then, chapter by chapter, Tracy and Stein take you through: Creating your vision and how

Words to lead by : "It's amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit." -  President Harry S. Truman . "Motivation is the art of getting people to do what you want them to do because they want to do it." -  President Dwight D. Eisenhower . "I not only use all the brains I have, but all I can borrow." -  President Woodrow Wilson .

"A boss creates fear, a leader confidence. A boss fixes blame, a leader corrects mistakes. A boss knows all, a leader asks questions. A boss creates fire, a leader creates passion." -- Russell H. Ewing, British Journalist.

In December, I'll post my selection for the best new leadership book for 2019 . In the meantime, here's a reminder/re-posting of my selection for 2018: The new book,  Say What You Mean , by  Oren Jay Sofer , couldn’t have come at a better time. Because 2018 was a year filled with communication challenges for so many people.   Often, those conversations were ineffective and unhealthy, causing frustration, conflict and distress. Published toward the end of 2018, Sofer’s book teaches you  how to find your voice, speak your truth and listen deeply . Most important, via the book, Sofer provides us the skill necessary to transform communication into a vehicle for greater intimacy, honesty, and compassion to bring us to greater equity and peace. And, that’s why,  Say What You Mean ,  is my pick for B est New Leadership Book for 2018 . The overarching framework for the book is taking  three steps to create effective conversation : Lead with presence  – show up

“By focusing in specific ways on five key leadership elements— Purpose, Process, People, Presence, and Peace —you can increase your time, capacity, energy, and ultimately your leadership impact,” explains Amy Jen Su , author of the book (released today, October 22), The Leader You Want To Be: Five Essential Principles for Bringing Out Your Best Self—Every Day . Su shares both Western management thinking and Eastern philosophy to provide a holistic yet hands-on approach to becoming a more effective leader with less stress and more equanimity. She draws on rich and instructive stories of clients, leaders, artists, and athletes. And, she focuses on three foundational tenets: s elf-care, self-awareness, and personal agency . Most important, Su explores in depth, chapter-by-chapter the Five Ps : Purpose – Staying grounded in your passions and contributions, doing your highest and best work that has meaning and is making a difference. Process – Relying on daily practices and

With only a few months left in 2019, it's not too early to start identifying your New Year's resolutions and goals for 2020. As you prepare for creating those, add reading The  School of Greatness  to your "to do" list. It's a highly uplifting and motivational book on how to strive for greatness in your everyday life. Specifically, author  Lewis Howes , shares his progression of a series of lessons --  eight areas  that help you focus on continual improvement: Create a vision. Turn adversity into advantage. Cultivate a champion's mindset. Develop hustle. Master your body. Practice positive habits. Build a winning team. Be of service to others. Packed with exercises, tools, tips and examples, the book makes for a perfect read at the start of the new year.

“Making small changes to reach big goals is the answer,” says entrepreneur and bestselling author  Michael Alden  in his book,  5 % MORE: Making Small Changes To Achieve Extraordinary Results . “If you just put 5% more effort into any aspect of your life, you will not only achieve your goals, you will surpass them,” he explains. The book will be available in late August. “Far too often, people become paralyzed when they want to improve their lives, because the effort to reach their goals seems overwhelming,” adds Alden. “Or the opposite occurs. They decide to dive into something one hundred percent, but then quickly lose steam.” Therefore, Alden demonstrates that long-lasting success is based on small increases in effort. “Five percent is almost unnoticeable in terms of effort—but it accrues quickly, with each step boosting the baseline,” he declares. Although much of Alden’s advice is based on personal experience, observation, and common sense, he is careful to discuss

As explained in  John Baldoni 's, book,   Lead With Purpose ,  Marshall Goldsmith  suggests all leaders make it a habit to regularly ask their employees these  six questions : Where do you think we should be going? Where do you think you and your part of the business should be going? What do you think you're doing well? If you were the leader, what ideas would you have for you? How can I help? What suggestions or ideas do you have for me?

"The clearer your company culture, the less likely it will be hijacked by the weaker personalities in your team," explains  Mary Christensen , author of the book,  Be A Network Marketing Leader . "A few guidelines will ensure a level playing field for all team members as they pursue their individual goals." Christensen's  recommended eight guidelines  are: We respect each other. We support each other. We appreciate everyone's contribution. We're always professional. We operate in a spirit of fun and friendship. We keep it positive. We're a gossip-free zone. We deal with our disagreements in private.

The real gems in John C. Maxwell's book,  Everyone Communicates Few Connect , book are the abundant leadership and communication quotes, such as these: To add value to others, one must first value others. People may hear your words, but they feel your attitude. All good communicators get to the point before their listeners start asking, "What's the point?" The first time you say something, it's heard. The second time, it's recognized, and the third time it's learned. In the end, people are persuaded not by what we say, but by what they understand. People pay attention when something that is said connects with something they greatly desire. Maxwell also says that: Management is about persuading people to do things they do not want to do, while leadership is about inspiring people to do things they never thought they could . The book covers five principles and five practices to help readers so they can connect one-on-one, in a group, or

Eric Harvey and Al Lucia wrote a booklet called,  144 Ways To Walk The Talk . They provide the following great advice about giving feedback: 1. Make it  timely  -- give your feedback as soon as possible to the performance. 2. Make it  individualized  -- tailor your feedback to the feedback receiver. 3. Make it  productive  -- focus your feedback on the performance and not the  performer . 4.  Make  is  specific  -- pinpoint for the receiver observable actions and behaviors.

From the book,  Mastering the Challenges of Leading Change , comes this useful checklist from author H. James Dallas for how to  identify and develop emerging talent  in your company/organization. Dallas recommends that each question should be graded on a scale of 1 to 3, with 3 being the best. Use the questions and the scoring for you and your employee to work together toward the highest ratings across the board. Has the person demonstrated a "getting lost with confidence" mind-set? Does the person communicate with authenticity? Has the person created a strong personal brand that is recognized by colleagues of all levels? Does the person know his or her blind spots and have people watching to prevent him or her from crashing? Is the person getting exposure to executive management? Does the person seek out and seriously consider advice? Is the person building an inclusive team and sponsoring others? Is the person proactive in finding opportunities to initiate

The Art of Change Leadership   demystifies the psychology behind our reactions to change and offers a powerful collection of tools to inspire individual and collective transformation quickly and more effectively, explains author of the book,  Cheryl Cran . The book teaches you how to: Leverage your current technical knowledge to increase the rate of innovation. Use the cycle of change to foresee and handle change-related issues affecting yourself, others, and business. Raise your emotional intelligence to match your IQ. Guide "change" initiatives with repeatable success by using the reliable three-step change model. Cran also explains the  differences between a Change Manager and a Change Leader . For example: A Change Manager creates a plan, directs projects and people to achieve a goal. In contrast, a  Change Leader sets the compelling vision; tells a story that includes the hero's journey for each person involved . In addition, a  Change Lead

While recently reading C. Elliott Haverlack's book,  Unbundle It , I found his  11 ground rules for meeting behaviors  to be particularly helpful: Arrive on time. Be respectful of other attendees. No phones or computers if at all possible. No leaving the meeting or getting up to walk around until scheduled breaks. No eating unless during working meal meetings (consuming beverages as appropriate is acceptable). No side conversations. Good posture. Listen intently (even if you don't want to). Ask questions at the appropriate time. No filibustering. Take notes.

According to  Kristi Hedges , author of the book,  The Power of Presence , a good story includes these seven elements: Has a clear moral or purpose Has a personal connection to the storyteller and/or the audience Includes common reference points the audience can understand Involves detailed characters and imagery Reveals conflict, vulnerability, or achievement others can  relate  to Has pacing (a beginning, ending, and a segue back to the topic) Serves to strategically underscore your intention (it's not randomly told)

"The more specific you can be about your goal, the greater your level of success will be," explain authors  Tom Pandola  and  James W. Bird , in their book,  Light A Fire Under Your Business . "This is because once we have visualized something that doesn't yet exist, it causes our subconscious mind to make the decisions necessary to make that visualized goal a reality." The authors explain that all goals must have these  five elements : Goals must clarify a specific action or outcome. Goals must be measureable by being able to quantify the benefits of achieving them. Goals should be achievable with the resources available (or at least you should know that the necessary resources are in reserve and can be acquired). Goals must also be realistic for achieving based on your particular situation. Goals must also include the time period in which you want to achieve them. With a date or time period specified for completion, planning can be established in

Being a good listener is absolutely essential to being an effective leader. When you really listen, you : Remember names and facts correctly. Hear "between the lines." Show respect. Learn more about what's going on within your workplace. Here are 10 tips on how to be a better listener : Look at the person who's speaking to you. Maintain eye contact. Watch for non-verbal clues, body language, gestures and facial expressions. Eliminate all distractions. Don't multi-task. Ask questions that let the other person know you have heard them, and that you want to learn more. Don't interrupt. Don't finish the other person's sentences. Avoid using words, such as "no," "but," and "however," when you respond. Don't prejudge. Display a friendly, open attitude and body language. Ask questions to clarify what you heard.

In his book,  True North , Bill George shows you how to discover your true north - your internal compass that guides you successfully through life. "Only when you discover your true north can you unlock your full potential as a leader and human being," explains George. In the book, published a couple weeks ago, George shares with you how to: Cultivate self-awareness Define your values Find the "sweet spots": of your motivated capabilities Build your support team and lead an integrated life Make the journey from "I' to "We" as an empowering leader Become a global leader Bill George George shares  profiles and stories from more than 100 leaders  who in their own words explain how they discovered their true north.  He also explains the characteristics differences needed to be a leader in the Twenty-First Century versus the Twentieth-Century. Today's leaders, he says need to be: Purpose-drive versus charismatic Glob