Timeless Principles To Improve Your Management Of Individuals, Teams And Yourself

I read many books about leadership and this new book is one of my favorites. It’s The Psychology of Leadership by Sebastien Page. It offers a fresh take on leadership through the lens of groundbreaking research in positive, sports, and personality psychology.

“Like exercise strengthens your body, practicing positive, sports, and personality psychology will make you a better leader,” says Page.

The book blends research, fascinating true stories, humor, and self-improvement advice to deliver simple yet powerful principles to master the mental game of leadership.

Page reveals timeless strategies for achieving lasting impact, fostering growth, and promoting well-being. He demonstrates how leaders and individuals can balance measurable goals with practical approaches to maximize performance and fulfillment.

“Effective leadership is not merely about achieving measurable outcomes. It requires aligning goals with intrinsic motivations and psychological insights,” explains Page. “Plus, the psychology of leadership requires you to understand yourself so you can understand others. It’s about empathy, leading by example, and personal resilience. You put on your oxygen mask before helping others.”

The book’s three parts are:

Setting Long-Term Goals
Executing Your Goals
Unleashing the Power of Personality Psychology

Within those three parts, Page discusses 18 core principles including:

Don’t Die on Everest – Beware of the side effects of measurable goals.
Don’t Fake It – When you talk about meaning, mean it!
Think About Death – Always work backwards from your goals. Work backwards through a wide range of scenarios and decisions and solve for the optimal course of action.
Sit On It – Learn strategic patience.
Read The Room – Call on introverts. Giving everyone a chance to share the spotlight makes your meetings more productive and keeps everyone mentally alert.
Learn to Love to Worry – Harness the positive side of neuroticism.
Be Disagreeable, Sometimes – Don’t run your business like a democracy.
Eat Your Vegetables – Unleash the power of good habits.

Some of my favorite takeaways from the book include:

High-performing organizations diligently use goals.
Set goals that balance challenge and capability.
As a leader, you must create an environment where people can disagree because there’s enough trust and mutual respect to maintain positive relationships.
Winning at all costs is for losers.
Rally your team against a worthy competitor. Make internal competitive friendly and enjoyable.
Don’t assume all stress is bad. For optimal performance, you shouldn’t eliminate stress.
When things get tough, people look to you as a leader to remind the organization of a brighter long-term outlook.
When it comes to group decision making, let your team speak first. Don’t bias the discussion by stating your opinion too early.

Whether you’re a seasoned executive, an aspiring leader, or someone passionate about human psychology, The Psychology of Leadership is an invaluable guide that challenges conventional wisdom, encourages self-reflection, and provides practical insights to transform leadership from a transactional process into a deeply human endeavor.

Leaders will develop what feels like mind-reading abilities for interpreting workplace personalities, hidden motivations, and group dynamics. They will learn how to inspire their organization to move mountains, improve their ability to listen, communicate and, when necessary, persuade. Along the way they will dramatically improve their own mindset and resilience.

Sebastien Page

Page shares these additional insights with us:

Question: What inspired you to write The Psychology of Leadership?

Page: I wanted to become a better leader and build resilience. I met a sports psychologist, and the story he told me during our first discussion was the spark that started this project. It put me on a path of discovery.

What I learned has been life-changing and worth sharing with the world. I became a better leader at work, acquired wisdom, and developed resilience in all aspects of my life.

Question: Which of the 18 principles from the book do you think people most often overlook?

Page: Most people overlook the pitfalls of measurable goals. In the psychology literature, Mt. Everest deaths are a common case study.

The spring 2023 Everest season was the deadliest in history. If we include five missing climbers presumed dead, the death toll stands at 17. Yet, there were no massive earthquakes or extreme weather events. Experts and Nepali officials blame many factors, including climber errors, inexperienced guides, crowdedness, and climate change. Most Everest deaths aren’t predictable or preventable.

The reality is that climbing Everest is a deadly idea to begin with. If you’ve reached the summit of Everest, I admire and respect you. At the same time, let me ask you: why?

Question: “Leadership” is at once a broad concept and one that’s often siloed in business to refer to management. How do you define it?

Page: Management refers to the formal relationship between and boss and an employee, or a boss and her team.

Leadership is the ability to inspire others, to help them perform at their highest level. It’s the job of the leader to set goals. Leadership requires humility. It requires making tough decisions. Always remember why your company exists in the first place. It doesn’t exist to boost your ego.

Question: What’s one of the most common pitfalls that people encounter when setting goals?

Page: Goal-induced blindness happens when you’re so obsessed with reaching a goal that you don’t see the negative consequences of your actions. You lose sight of the big picture. Mt. Everest deaths are an example of goal-induced blindness cited in the psychology literature. Climbers obsess over the measurable goal of reaching the summit; they sacrifice safety and sometimes die in the process.

There are many other ways in which the focus on outcomes leads to undesirable side effects. Some people decide to bend the rules. Others sacrifice their work-life balance, even their health.

___

Page is Chief Investment Officer and Head of Global Multi-Asset at T. Rowe Price.

He has written two finance books: Beyond Diversification: What Every Investor Needs to Know, and the co-authored Factor Investing and Asset Allocation, and he has won six annual research-paper awards: two from The Financial Analysts Journal and four from The Journal of Portfolio Management. He appears regularly on CNBC and Bloomberg TV, and in 2022 was named a Top Voice in Finance by LinkedIn. He has been quoted extensively in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and Barron’s.

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

Comments

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...

Chick-fil-A Serves Up 11 Leaders On May 6

On May 6 , the quick-service chicken restaurant chain, Chick-fil-A will serve up more than chicken. Because, that's the day when the chain's President and COO Dan Cathy brings together 10 influential leaders during a one-day leadership " Leadercast " available at hundreds of locations around the U.S. and overseas. "We desire to influence leaders at every level within an organziation. Whether you are leading a team of 2,000 or just yourself, the Chick-fil-A Leadercast is designed to help you use your voice to create positive change," explains the organization. I am a big fan of Chick-fil-A because of its customer service. It is also known as a company that has built its success on core values and its focus on developing leaders . I also like that employees respond with "my pleasure" instead of "no problem" when customers say "thank you." Chick-fil-A says leaders can express themselves with five voices (described below i...

Full Engagement By Brian Tracy

Best-selling author Brian Tracy's book, Full Engagement , provides practical advice for how to inspire your employees to perform at their absolute best. He explains that above nearly every measure, employees' most powerful single motivator is the "desire to be happy." So, Tracy teaches you how to make your employees happy by: Organizing their work from the first step in the hiring process through the final step in their departure from your company so they are happy with you, their work, their coworkers, as well as in their interactions with your customers, suppliers and vendors. Full Engagement includes these chapters and topics: The Psychology of Motivation Ignite the Flame of Personal Performance Make People Feel Important Drive Out Fear Create That Winning Feeling Select The Right People Internal Versus External Motivation At a minimum, Tracy suggests that managers do the following when managing their employees : Smile Ask questions Listen ...

Five Essential Principles For Being The Leader You Want To Be

“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 ...

The Top 20 Leadership Books: What To Give First To A New Manager

Eighteen months ago, I posted the question “ What’s The First Leadership Book You Would Give To a New Manager ?” within the discussion forum for the LinkedIn group Linked 2 Leadership . That question generated 603 comments and 690 recommendations. Some people suggested more than one book. Some during the course of the 18 months made the same book recommendations a couple times. And, the group discussion continues to be one of the most active still today. In early November 2011, group member Len White graciously culled through the comments using his company’s Symphony Content Analysis Software that assists with the organization, analysis, and reporting of themes contained in text data. And here are the results : · 412 different/unique books were recommended · The Top 20 recommended books, collectively, received 250 of the total recommendations · Two authors – S...

Leading Business Transformation That Lasts

David Shaner's compelling, The Seven Arts of Change , shows business leaders that transforming a business only happens when each employee equates organizational change with the process of deep personal growth. "The bottom line is that, despite how technological and automated organizations have become, at their core they remain a collection of human energies that are merely being applied in an organized environment," explains Shaner. "Resurrecting and guiding that human core of your organization is the secret to leading and sustaining change," he adds. Shaner pulls from his vast professional and personal experiences, including having been a member of the Olympic Valley USA Ski Team and a former Harvard University teacher, to lay out a seven-part "spiritual guide" for change: The Art of Preparation (Assessment) The Art of Compassion (Participation) The Art of Responsibility (Accountability) The Art of Relaxation (Clarity, Focus, Visibility)...

Be A Visible Leader

If you are a manager in a small business or not so large department, it's probably easy for you to be visible to your employees and co-workers. If you manage a large business, department or organization , you'll want to make a conscious effort to be visible. Don't spend your days behind closed doors or constantly in meetings. Walk around. Make conversation with your team members. It's important that you maintain visibility with your employees. That also means associating with employees at all levels. Don't limit your time for only your direct reports. The benefits for your employees are that they get to know you better and feel that you are more in tune with what's going on. The benefits to you are that you'll build a stronger rapport with your team, and you'll undoubtedly hear about good things and bad things through casual conversation that you would have missed if you had been less visible.

Best Reasons For Doing Employee Exit Interviews

Don't be the guy in the picture when an employee leaves your company. Instead, conduct exit interviews and surveys. Leigh Branham explains in his book, The 7 Hidden Reasons Employees Leave , what the most favorable conditions are for conducting the interviews and surveys. And, if you need convincing to read the book, take a look at these 11 best reasons for listening and gathering the data when an employee leaves : Bringing any "push-factor" root-cause reasons for leaving to the surface. Alerting the organization to specific issues to be addressed. Giving the employee a chance to vent and gain a sense of closure. Giving the employee the opportunity to provide information that may help colleagues left behind. Providing information about competitors and their practices. Comparing information given with the results of past surveys and employee data. Detecting patterns and changes by year or by quarter. Obtaining information to help improve recruiting. Possibly heading off ...

Create The Future And The Innovation Handbook

March 10 brings the new book, Create The Future: Tactics For Disruptive Thinking, by J eremy Gutsche , CEO of Trend Hunter. Flip the book over, and you have Gutsche’s updated and expanded, bestselling, Exploiting Chaos , book now called, The Innovation Handbook , featuring memorable real-world case studies and plenty of thought-provoking questions to inspire next steps for innovation. It's the ideal guide to turn your big idea into a reality. Gutsche shares that, Create The Future , "is a book about Disruptive Thinking, so it makes sense that it shouldn't follow conventional norms. That led me to create a double-sided book, where the first part is all about resetting your expectations and learning how to make change happen. Once you are primed for change, you can flip it over to read, The Innovation Handbook , and began the journey to finding your big idea. He adds, "however, another way to think about this is that I don't think you can truly ...

Eric Jacobson On Management And Leadership

Search This Blog