How To Be A Better Boss

Heed this advice from Julian Birkinshaw, author of the book, Becoming A Better Boss, on how to be a better leader.

Strive to answer “Yes” to these three questions:

Do you invest your time in things that help others to succeed?
Do you invest in projects that will help the company in the long run, even if you won’t be around to get any credit for their success?
Are you prepared to try out a new way of working that may fail, even if you risk looking foolish?

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5 Tips For Generating Ideas From Employees

Your employees have lots of ideas. So, be sure you provide the forums and mechanisms for your employees to share their ideas with you. Hold at least a few brainstorming sessions each year, as well. And, when you are brainstorming with your employees, try these five tips: Encourage ALL ideas. Don't evaluate or criticize ideas when they are first suggested. Ask for wild ideas. Often, the craziest ideas end up being the most useful. Shoot for quantity not quality during brainstorming. Encourage everyone to offer new combinations and improvements of old ideas.

Effective Listening: Do's And Don'ts

Here are some great tips from Michelle Tillis Lederman's book, The 11 Laws of Likability . They are all about: what to do and what not to do to be a leader who's an effective listener : Do : Maintain eye contact Limit your talking Focus on the speaker Ask questions Manage your emotions Listen with your eyes and ears Listen for ideas and opportunities Remain open to the conversation Confirm understanding, paraphrase Give nonverbal messages that you are listening (nod, smile) Ignore distractions Don't : Interrupt Show signs of impatience Judge or argue mentally Multitask during a conversation Project your ideas Think about what to say next Have expectations or preconceived ideas Become defensive or assume you are being attacked Use condescending, aggressive, or closed body language Listen with biases or closed to new ideas Jump to conclusions or finish someone's sentences

Great Business Quote

Here's a great quote from author and speaker Harvey Mackay : "When a person with money meets a person with experience, the person with the experience ends up with the money, and the person with the money ends up with the experience."

How To Lead A Family Business

Julie Charlestein is the author of the book, How To Lead Your Family Business: Excelling Through Unexpected Crises, Choices, and Challenges . Charlestein is also the fourth-generation leader of an incredibly successful family-owned enterprise, and she’s seen it all firsthand, including family drama in the workplace and the office politics that come with any corporation. Her book features her unique set of strategies for navigating the distinctive challenges and choices facing family businesses. In her highly personal storytelling style, Charlestein shares her experience as an emerging leader and ultimately CEO, who has worked to earn her colleagues’ respect. She details her leadership adventure, offering actionable strategies for those leading and working within their own family businesses. The book is ideal for anyone leading a family business or starting a family business. It’s also good for anyone taking over an existing (or new) business. More about Charleste...

Give Positive Feedback. Don't Praise.

There is an important difference between giving your employees positive feedback and giving them praise . Positive feedback focuses on the specifics of job performance. Praise, often one-or two-sentence statements, such as “Keep up the good work,” without positive feedback leaves employees with empty feelings. Worse yet, without positive feedback, employees feel no sense that they are appreciated as individual talents with specific desires to learn and grow on the job and in their careers, reports Nicholas Nigro, author of, The Everything Coaching and Mentoring Book . So, skip the praise and give positive feedback that is more uplifting to your employees because it goes to the heart of their job performance and what they actually do. An example of positive feedback is : “Bob, your communications skills have dramatically improved over the past couple of months. The report that you just prepared for me was thorough and concise. I appreciate all the work you’ve put into it, as...

How To Find Your True Purpose And Avoid Purpose Anxiety

Having a sense of purpose has been scientifically proven to help people find happiness, longevity, and health. But lots of us are also worried about purpose―having purpose anxiety ―estimated to affect as much as 91% of people. That purpose anxiety is the fear of not knowing your purpose in life. “Most people understand the term purpose but have no idea how to take action to discover what it means in their lives,” says hospice medical director Jordan Grumet , author of the new book, The Purpose Code: How To Unlock Meaning, Maximize Happiness, And Leave A Lasting Legacy . Furthermore, explains Grumet, “ It turns out that we fundamentally misunderstand purpose and the role it plays in our lives. In fact, there are two distinct types of purpose. One will lead to anxiety and disillusionment; the other will lead to connection and legacy.” Grumet uses personal anecdotes and examples from years of his hospice work to illustrate that true contentment comes fro...

How To Coach Rather Than Supervise Employees

Bill Berman and George Bradt , authors of the book, Influence and Impact , explain the importance of helping your employees to understand what their jobs entails, and what the culture expects, so they can do the work you need from them the most. More importantly, they say that it is better for you as a leader to coach employees rather than supervise them. And, as you coach, they recommend you: Ensure the employee fully understands their job responsibilities. Pave the way for the employee to be successful. Given them the time, resources and encouragement they will need. Help them know themselves better. Consider a personality assessment by a trained evaluator so they understand their styles and preferences. Help them know the business. Ensure they know the organization’s mission, vision and purpose, business strategies and cultural norms. Help them know you. Help them to really understand what you really need from them to make you and the organiz...

How To Be A Learn-It-All Leader

“Great leaders are great students, and the world is their classroom,” says Damon Lembi , author of the new book The Learn-It-all Leader . “Learn-It-All leaders are constantly creating and re-creating themselves, their companies, and their leadership. They are information extractors. They pull what they learn about everything—be it product innovation or how to inspire a team—from their lived experience,” adds Lembi. These types of leaders also model and directly encourage a culture of learning inside their organizations. This attracts higher-quality workers, improves their performance over time and holds onto them longer. The book is divided into two parts: Part 1: Being – explores how Learn-It-All leaders think . Part 2: Doing – examines what Learn-It-All leaders do differently . Damon Lembi Some of my favorite takeaways (including some quotes) from the book include: Quote : “Live as if you were to die tomor...

Use A Board Of Advisors

David Burkus often provides valuable comments to my various Blog postings, and he's a person who effectively uses a board of advisors, instead of mentors, to help him achieve success. "I've found that in my life, it was easier and more effective to set up a board of advisors," said Burkus, the editor of LeaderLab . "This is a group of people, three to five, that have rotated into my life at various times and that speak into it and help me grow. I benefit from the variety of experience these people have." LeaderLab is an online community of resources dedicated to promoting the practice of leadership theory. Its contributors include consultants and professors who present leadership theory in a practitioner-friendly format that provides easy-to-follow explanations on how to apply the best of leadership theory. Community users can download a variety of research reports and presentations about leadership and leadership versus management. For example, a pr...

Eric Jacobson On Management And Leadership

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