LEADERSHIP BRAD

Reinventing Traditional Management Traditional management looks too much to the structure above ground, and too little to the ideas and greatness within the people. Too many bosses are demanding, unrealistic, critical, and angry. Great leaders understand that the most important thing is having a good relationship with your employees, not driving them in the ground until they get things done. Why is it that so many new employees who start off so highly motivated and excited about their new job become so discouraged, replacing their enthusiasm with feelings of unhappiness and disappointment. Most of the time the blame is linked to low pay, poor culture, bad hours, and boring work. But this is not supported by research. The number one reason people leave their job is poor management. People leave managers not companies - in the end, turnover is mostly a manager issue, Gallup poll wrote in their survey findings. A Gallup poll of over 1 million employees concluded that the number one reason...

Take People to the Threshold of Their Own Greatness The fact is that most management is still to controlling. We are looking only at the structure above ground. We are taking people to our house of wisdom, not to the threshold of their own greatness. We are looking at goals instead of ideas. With our eyes focused on the structure above the ground, we have lost sight of those human resources, imagination, vision, hope, and faith which make the structure itself possible. Innovative leadership is what strengthens the foundation of any organization. A leader unconsciously draws people to them by the strength of their leadership style. Management people are in training for almost everything under the sun but the thing they need most - development of their own leadership style. Most managers want to motivate, inspire, and drive change. Too many of them don't know how, and don't realize that they need to improve their leadership style. Traditional management thinking establishes a hug...

Managing the People-Side of Change Change management is the processes, procedures, and strategies for managing the people-side of change. Understanding what is happening, why it is happening, and how it can be improved is the beginning of change management. Old change management involves management making all of the decisions, managing by fear, and working against innovation. New change management involves the team, communicates constantly, encourages creativity, and never gives up. When it comes to change, management often spends a lot of time and energy on the idea, not on the process. For change to work, you need to provide a road map, not just an idea. You need to motivate, inspire, and drive change. It is important to understand that any change requires a change in the organizational culture. If you cannot change the habits and behaviors of your employees, you can spend a million dollars on a change plan, and nothing will happen. INVOLVE THE PEOPLE IN THE CHANGE PROCESS 1. Make su...

Evaluating & Improving Your Leadership Style The job of a manager is to plan, organize, and control. The job of a leader is to motivate, inspire, and drive change. The biggest difference between management and leadership is that we manage things and we lead people.  The evaluation of your leadership style begins by looking at you. You need to identify your strengths and weaknesses. This requires honesty, reflection, and a personal commitment to improving yourself. The process can be as simple as filling out questionnaires that will help you determine your leadership style, your strengths, and your weaknesses.  If you really want to evaluate and improve your leadership style, you should; 1. Conduct a detailed personal evaluation by personally answering questions, 2. Get feedback and suggestions from your employees, and 3. Have your boss complete an evaluation of your leadership style, then meet with them to compare answers. For any improvement program to work, there has to ...

  Why Clarity Is Critical to Effective Leadership Clarity of purpose in leadership is essential. It is the job of leadership to explain why you do what you do. Without a well-defined purpose, organizations and team's drift. With a strong underlying purpose that motivates, inspires, and drives change; teams and organizations will align and advance. Each individual on the team should know what is expected of them. It's not enough to say you expect "success." One person's definition of success may differ from another's. Constant communication is vital in leadership. You can never say what you are trying to accomplish too much. Repetition is key. Say it, say it, and say it again! 12 Communication Tips 1. Connect Emotionally 2. Don't Assume 3. Listen More, Talk Less 4. Understand What is Being Said 5. Don't Focus on Your Response 6. Use Their Language 7. Offer Suggestions, Not Advice 8. Ask, Don't Tell 9. Don't Blame 10. Support Their Comments 11. U...

Leading with kindness For some leaders, leadership is all about being firm, strong, and having people do what you say. They see kindness as a weakness. Being kind isn't a leadership weakness. Great leaders find real strength in kindness. The leaders that are really thriving are those who create a culture of open communication, employee feedback, and acts of kindness.  Leading with kindness encourages people to be open-minded and embrace new ideas. A lot of it comes down to trust. When leaders show kindness, they build trust, create happier, motivated employees, who are inspired to produce better results. When you lead with kindness, you’re creating an atmosphere where people feel valued and respected. This doesn’t mean you should avoid difficult conversations. It’s about treating people with respect, even when you’re delivering difficult feedback. Kind leadership is not just about what you say - it's about how you say it. Great leaders communicate their kindness through their a...

  Inspire Your People to Be Great Leaders Leadership is a very common word, but who can fully tell what this simple word represents? It refers to that which is most obvious, and yet most incomprehensible; for, while our senses can take cognizance of it, our minds cannot grasp it. Truly wonderful are the mysteries of leadership. When I started my career in management in 1973, we didn't have computers, cell phones, texting, or e-mail. We didn't understand the meaning of leadership. The only management style we understood was autocratic (or authoritarian). A "military" style leadership where management makes all of the important decisions.  Nowadays, most managers in top organizations inspire and shape their subordinates to be both great leaders and managers. They now understand the meaning of interdependence and appreciate the importance of both management and leadership. In an interdependent relationship, leadership and management must be reliant on and responsible to ...

The Job of Leadership The managerial practices presented in this blog are the result of many years of leadership in almost every kind of business or activity. That work began in 1973 as the manager of a retail store in Sturgis, South Dakota. I worked sixty hours a week and attended the school of hard knocks. I made $6,035 my first year in management. This was succeeded by varied positions in management and business ownership. I have been a professional management consultant and leadership trainer since 1985.  It is the job of leadership to find those who are discouraged and give them confidence and purpose. Lift them up, help them find success by learning from their failures.  Failure overcomes us when it discourages us, kills our faith in dreams, in people, and in ourselves. It overcomes us when it teaches us to despise others and to hope little for ourselves. Leaders who lift people up are more successful than those who push people down.  Resilience. It's the secret to ...

Great Leaders Listen More and Talk Less In 1977, Abraham Zaleznik authored an article that became the first publication to define management and leadership as two separate functions. Since then, leadership has become one of the most studied and least understood subjects in the world. There are millions of books, courses, and websites to help create and promote our obsession with the subject of leadership.  Leadership is generally explained as being "visionary" and involves motivating, inspiring, and driving change. Managerial skills involve "tasks-oriented" functions. Functions like planning, organizing, directing, and controlling. Together, the two terms “leadership” and “management” form the framework for the skills and abilities necessary to drive organizational success. In fact, the concepts of leadership and management are transposable, especially in describing performance effectiveness within organizations.  When a leader doesn't listen, employees do not b...

One of the Most Critical Leadership Skills Is Being Patient Good leadership is learning to be thankful for each day. Be patient with what seems the delay in the progress of goals. Do not be discouraged in doing good. It may often seem as if you accomplished very little; as if, with all your efforts, you cannot effectually help those whom you wish to help. When you lift them up, they fall again. You may even sometimes find that your very help seems to do them harm.  As leaders, we may sometimes do harm. But the greatest mistake of any leader is to stand distant from the needs of the people they lead.   If your idea of patience is never getting annoyed, staying calm in any situation, and being endlessly agreeable, no wonder it seems impossible. That is not a realistic definition of patience. At its most simple level, patience is the ability to wait. The ability to wait for something you need or want.  Four Tips to Help You Improve Your Degree of Patience 1. Accept What...