The Seven Ways To Become A Generous Leader

Speaking about his new book, The Generous Leader, author Joe Davis says, “This book is about the ways in which you can become a generous leader to be part of something bigger than yourself.”

He adds that the old model for a leader – a top-down, unilateral, single-focus boss, isn’t effective in today’s workplace. “That old model no longer attracts talent, invites collaboration, or gets the best results from the team. That leader’s time is passed. Today, there is a need for a more human-centered, bighearted, authentic way to lead,” adds Davis.

To help you become a generous leader, Davis introduces you to seven essential elements that he believes will develop you into a leader for the future.

The seven elements are:

Generous Communication: Be real to build deep connections. Be available to connect with the person, and not just the person in their role to make them feel seen.
Generous Listening: Be sincerely curious about another’s perspective. Ask thoughtful questions. Ask “why” often.
Generous Inclusion: Be inclusive to invite collaboration and show respect.
The Generous Ally: Take chances to make chances for others.
Generous Development: Validate strengths and success, identify expansive opportunities.
Generous Moments: Make small acts of acknowledgment in important moments to make a big impact.
Give up the Mask: Be emotionally accessible with authenticity and vulnerability.

“Being vulnerable with your staff is intimidating, but when connecting with people not only will you grow as a leader and a person, but your business will grow as well,” explains Davis. Also, “bringing your authentic self to your leadership takes courage and commitment, but you reap profound benefits from heart-led generous acts.”

Throughout this book and essential and practical guide, you will discover unvarnished and unforgettable stories, the author, and CEOs of well-recognized companies reveal about their experiences and mistakes that informed their success.

I agree with Davis, there is a no more powerful leader than a generous leader! A leader who unlocks the best parts of himself/herself to become the best leader possible.

Joe Davis

Today, Davis shares these insights with us:

Question: Of the seven essential elements, which do you find the most difficult for leaders to master and why?

Davis: I think the two toughest are Give Up the Mask and Generous Listening.

First is sharing personal self, being vulnerable and authentic. Why? It is just not how so many of us were trained or raised to be leaders. The “tough guy” in control, in charge, have all the answers person has been glorified for too long.

Also, many of us do not have experience with showing emotions and the power of what happens when we do.

Second is listening to learn. You need to become comfortable knowing you do not know what you do not know and thus always ask questions, probing and exploring what others know that you do not, so you get to a richer answer/insight.

People also do not slow down enough to try to understand where the other is coming from – their lived experience. Why does this happen? It’s because often we think we know it all. Or we are afraid to show we do not know it all or feel we have done all the “work and analysis” and are sure we have the answer. Even worse, we don’t care about another’s experiences.

Question: If a reader can only tackle one or two of the seven essential elements this year as they strive to become a better leader, which one or two do you recommend they tackle and why?

Davis:

If talking about two to tackle, I recommend:

Generous Listening: Listen to learn, ask questions, probe, learn what others know. Doing so provides you with a much richer answer/insight. It makes the other person feel included, empowered, inspired, motivated. Ask questions!

Generous Moments: Take some small actions that will have huge impact. It’s easy to get started and it makes others feel recognized. It shows you care about others. When people feel recognized and appreciated, they will be inspired to be better, do more, perform higher – all benefitting them, the organization, and its mission, and you.

Davis is a Managing Director and Senior Partner at the Boston Consulting Group.

In The Generous Leader, Joe tells a story about a performance review he received as he was just starting his career: He was told he was not the best at problem-solving solo; but in collaboration with others, he could solve any challenge. His manager identified his key strength—Joe was a person who could connect with anyone.

This ability to connect with people became the foundation of a successful career at Boston Consulting Group, spanning 40-plus years.

Finally, here are the 10 guiding actions that Davis practices after he wakes up each morning:

Start the day caring.
Always remember you don’t know what you don’t know.
Find constant opportunities to engage, listen, and hear.
Work hard to hear from, and team with, the broadest possible set of voices.
Engage honestly; be real.
Speak plainly, directly, and honestly in all interactions.
Make decisions decisively, yet with the confidence and humbleness to adjust if wrong.
Make productive use of each moment each day.
Live each day positively, with high energy and a smile that exudes confidence.
Care for yourself, your health, and your well-being (exercise, sleep, eat healthfully).

Thank you to the book's publisher for sending me an advance copy of the book.

Comments

10 Quotes From The 5 Levels Of Leadership -- John C. Maxwell

Soon I'll post my full review of John C. Maxwell's latest book, The 5 Levels of Leadership . In the meantime, here are some of my favorites quotes from the book that I believe should become a must-read book by any workplace/organizational leader: Good leadership isn't about advancing yourself. It's about advancing your team. Leaders become great, not because of their power, but because of their ability to empower others. Leadership is action, not position. When people feel liked, cared for, included, valued, and trusted, they begin to work together with their leader and each other. If you have integrity with people, you develop trust. The more trust you develop, the stronger the relationship becomes. In times of difficulty, relationships are a shelter. In times of opportunity, they are a launching pad. Good leaders must embrace both care and candor. People buy into the leader, then the vision. Bringing out the best in a person is often a catal...

Five Essential Principles For Sustaining Growth Through Innovation

Even though many companies strive for innovation, most struggle to achieve meaningful change. The largest reason for this disconnect? Playing it safe. Leaders and organizations want to implement new ideas, but too often they are held back by the fear of failure, even though setbacks are intrinsic to the innovation process. In the new book, No Fear, No Failure , by Lorraine H. Marchand (with John Hanc), readers will learn how to overcome the status quo that stifles creative thinking and how to create a culture that encourages innovation. Marchand provides a framework for sustained growth built on the “ 5 Cs ”: Customer First Culture Collaboration Change Chance She draws on more than 120 interviews with leaders across industries, real-world case studies, and her firsthand experience and shares step-by-step, field-tested strategies, tactics, and tools that practitioners can use to embed creativity within organizational cultures. Marchand is a former Big Tech and Big Pharma ex...

How To Be A More Human Leader

“To be most effective in today’s environment, leaders must be human leaders. Human leaders must be able to lead not only with their heads but also with their hearts and souls,” says veteran executive coach Hortense le Gentil , author of the book, The Unlocked Leader: Dare to Free Your Own Voice, Lead with Empathy, and Shine Your Light in the World . She adds, “In addition to being respected, seen, and valued, employees also seek leaders who feel human, not distant and perfect beings with whom they can’t connect.” Additionally, leaders need to put the collective interest before their own and work hard to make other people’s good ideas happen. “And although the book focuses on leadership at work, each of us is a complete individual, not a sum of separate, isolated parts. As such, the process presented in the book applies to all areas of your life,” shares the author. She further explains that becoming a human leader is a journey, not a desti...

29 People Who Taught Us Life Lessons In Courage, Integrity And Leadership

The 29 profiles you will read in Robert L. Dilenschneider’s new book, Character , are about people who are exceptional exemplars of character. They’re inspirational because they used their abilities at their highest levels to work for causes they believed in. Because of character, they influenced the world for good. The dictionary defines “character” as the mental and moral qualities distinctive to an individual, the distinctive nature of something, the quality of being individual in an interesting or unusual way, strength and originality in a person’s nature, and a person’s good reputation. “But beyond these definitions, we know that character is manifested in leadership, innovation, resilience, change, courage, loyalty, breaking barriers, and more,” explains Robert (Bob), “Character drives the best traits in our society, such as honesty, integrity, leadership, and transparency, and it drives others to exhibit those qualities.” Profiled in the book ar...

Leadership Lessons From Kent Taylor, Founder Of Texas Roadhouse

From cover-to-cover of Made From Scratch you’ll learn the leadership lessons of the late Kent Taylor , founder of the restaurant chain Texas Roadhouse. In the new book, Taylor recounts how he built the restaurant chain from the ground up after being rejected more than 80 times as he pitched the idea for the business. His approach to business was often out-of-the-box, however, his business lessons and leadership lessons from the course of his life and career are invaluable. Here are some of my favorite leadership lessons from Kent and his book: The best leaders stay down-to-earth and approachable. In a bottom-up company, the leader learns from frontline people. As soon as you make a profit, find a way to give back. Be willing to laugh at yourself. Become a student of your craft. Positive reinforcement inspires much greater performance than fear ever can. Want to get the respect of your people? Then roll up y...

14 Attributes of Great Coaches

Today, I am pleased to share a guest post from Garret Kramer of InnerSports LLC 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 distant second. 2. Gre...

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

Debbie Laskey's Expert Insights On Marketing and Leadership

Debbie Laskey is one of my go-to experts when I seek advice about a number of business topics, including marketing, social media, and nonprofit marketing and leadership. So, it's my privilege to share today some of Debbie's insights on all these topics. However, before you read the answers to my questions to Debbie, we'll set the stage with her background: Debbie has an MBA Degree and 17 years of marketing experience in the high-tech industry, Consumer Marketing Department at Disneyland Paris in France, insurance industry, and nonprofit sector. She’s created and implemented successful marketing and branding initiatives for nonprofits including the Foundation for the Junior Blind, Exceptional Children’s Foundation, League of Women Voters of Los Angeles, and Brides for Good; and in the B2B financial sector for an insurance company and CPA firm. Currently, she works with the Nonprofit Communications and Media Network and Special Olympics Southern California. ...

How Great Leaders Think

Here is some good advice from Lee G. Bolman and Terrence E. Deal , authors of the book, How Great Leaders Think : Good thinking is the starting point for good leadership. Leaders who can reframe—look at the same thing from multiple perspectives—think better. They create a lucid portrait of what’s going on around them and have a clearer vision of what’s needed to achieve desired results. Also, reframing involves shifting frames when circumstances change. Leaders can see and do more when they know how to negotiate four key areas of the leadership terrain: structural, human resource, political, and symbolic. Great structural leaders: Do their homework. Insist on clear goals. Rethink the relationship of structure, strategy, and environment. Focus on detail and implementation. Experiment. A designated leader is no guarantee that a team will be well led. An effective team requires leadership that aligns the group’s structure with the group’s tasks and circumstanc...

Use TIPS When Providing Feedback

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.

Eric Jacobson On Management And Leadership

Search This Blog