October 2018 – Doug Dickerson on Leadership

Take The High Road: 20 Quotes to Reflect On

Posted October 28, 2018October 28, 2018
by admin

So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love – I Corinthians 13:13 (ESV)

Without question, we live in tumultuous times. The news headlines we see today are enough to discourage anyone as we see what is happening in our society.

In the midst of all the divides us, I wanted to devote space this week to remember what’s more important in times like this–taking the high road. There’s enough division out there to go around. We need to unite. Let’s be reminded that what we’d like to see in others first begins in us. Click To Tweet

I’ve chosen 20 quotes for reflection. Take them to heart and pass them along.

“If you don’t like something change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude.” – Maya Angelou

“Nothing gives one person so much advantage over another as to remain always cool and unruffled under all circumstances.” – Thomas Jefferson

“Your beliefs don’t make you a better person. Your behavior does.” – Toby Mac

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only love can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” - Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Click To Tweet

“The high road is always respected. Honesty and integrity are always rewarded.” – Scott Hamilton

“Spread love everywhere you go. Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier.” – Mother Teresa

“Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better, It’s not.” – Dr. Seuss

“Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see.” – Mark Twain

“Wherever there is a human being, there is an opportunity for a kindness.” – Seneca

“If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.” – Dalai Lama

“Everyone you meet is fighting a battle you know nothing about. Be kind. Always.” – Brad Meltzer

“We are not here to curse the darkness, but to light the candle that can guide us thru that darkness to a safe and sane future.” – John F. Kennedy

“In the long run, the sharpest weapon of all is a kind and gentle spirit.” – Anne Frank

“No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

“I’m going to take the high road because the low road is too crowded.” – Mia Farrow

“Make sure you see people through the eyes of love, not the eyes of judgment.” – Joel Osteen

“Teach me to feel another’s woe, to hide the fault I see, that mercy I to others show, that mercy show to me.” – Alexander Pope

“As a leader, the first person I need to lead is me. The first person I should try to change is me.” - John Maxwell Click To Tweet

“Have a heart that never hardens, and a temper that never tires, and a touch that never hurts.” – Charles Dickens

“Therefore encourage one another and build one another up…” – I Thessalonians 5:11 (ESV)

Bonus: “What unites us, is much greater than what divides us.” – Pope John XXIII

Please follow and like us:

Rhythm Busters: The Four You Need To Tackle Today

Posted October 21, 2018October 21, 2018
by admin

The way is long if one follows precepts, but short if one follows patterns. – Seneca

Ask any artist, poet, or musician and they will talk to you of the importance of rhythm. The same goes for athletes. Getting into and establishing a rhythm is essential to success.

Unknowingly, however, many people are sabotaging their own success in leadership or in their organizations due to common rhythm busters. These are actions or behaviors that if left unchecked can disrupt the rhythm you need to sustain your momentum.

Think for a moment about the patterns and practices in your organization that work. The ones that create momentum and drive success. List them. Now picture what your organization would look like without them. What if that list was removed from your playbook, not by outside forces, but by self-inflicted wounds?

There are plenty of rhythm busters that can sabotage your momentum and hold you back. These four are ones you need to identify and tackle today. Click To Tweet

Turf wars

Nothing will kill the momentum of your organization any faster than territorial turf wars. It fosters distrust within your team and undermines your goals and mission.

Not understanding the destructive force of turf wars will render a leader ineffective in moving his or her organization forward. Allowed to continue, it won’t matter. The organization will crumble under the weight of its own arrogance.

Patrick Lencioni, in his acclaimed book, Silos, Politics and Turf Wars, writes, “There is perhaps no greater cause of exasperation-not to mention turnover-than employees having to fight with people in their own organization. Understandably and inevitably, this bleeds over into their personal lives, affecting family and friends in profound ways”.

Turf wars will disrupt the rhythm of your leadership and organizational life. It’s time to put a stop to it. Click To Tweet

Chasing the urgent, forsaking the important

Commonly referred to as “the tyranny of the urgent”, this behavior will always disrupt the rhythm of your organization. Study the patterns of most any successful organization or leader and you will see this clear distinction – knowing what is urgent and what is important.

The urgent bends toward pesky interruptions, phone calls, text messages, “need this right away” distractions that take team members away from the priorities that matter to tend to things that can wait. Unless you understand the difference between the urgent and the important you will always fight this battle with little success. Don’t let the urgent disrupt the rhythm of important.

Complacent attitudes

One of the dangers of a well-oiled machine is the belief that it runs by itself. If not careful, members on your team can settle into an attitude of believing that success is automatic if they keep doing the same things over time. While there is much to be said for regular patterns that work, it’s never a good idea to settle into a complacent mindset and take success for granted.

Leaders must always be on guard against anything that would disrupt organizational rhythms. Be it poor attitudes, complacent mindsets, or dated thinking Click To Tweet. As Pat Riley said, “When a great team loses through complacency, it will constantly search for a new and more intricate explanation to explain away defeat”. Don’t allow complacent attitudes to disrupt your rhythm.

Mistaking movement for progress

Mistaking movement for progress is the byproduct of complacent attitudes. This mindset lulls your people into believing that as long as the team is moving then all is well. But not all movement is progress. And smart leaders will recognize this.

As a leader, you must have keen eyes to see whether you are moving in the direction of your goals and vision. You must have ears to the ground to filter thru the noise of those, who despite their best intentions, may be giving bad advice.

Too much is at stake for you as a leader and for the direction of your organization to allow your rhythm to be derailed. Rhythm busters are a constant threat. You must be diligent and stop them before they stop you.

Please follow and like us:

Take A Stand Against Bullying

Posted October 14, 2018October 15, 2018
by admin

I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear. – Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

October is National Bullying Prevention Month. It’s not exactly the topic we would like to address but until this problem goes away, we are obligated to do so. It’s up to all of us to be aware, speak up, and do what we can to end it.

Read most any survey or story and you will discover that the problem of bullying is not going away. Through our research we discovered some alarming statistics:

96% of American employees experience bullying in the workplace
The percentage of bullies who have been after a specific target for a minimum of one year: 89%
54% of bullies have been bullying for more than five years
62% saw sabotaging of others’ work or reputations as the primary form of bullying in the workplace
51% of employees say their company has a policy for dealing with bullies, but only 7% who are aware of a policy against bullying know of anyone who has ever used it
Bosses make up the majority of bullies

As we read statistics like these, we realize that there is much work to be done in order to end it. Let’s first think about where bullying stems from.

In the animal kingdom, there is a constant struggle to determine the Alpha of the group. This position usually goes to the biggest, the strongest, and the healthiest. The purpose of the Alpha in the animal kingdom is to lead and protect the group. In our modern society, we still need leaders, but the leaders no longer need to be the biggest or strongest. We now follow those who are wise, those who inspire us, and those who we trust Click To Tweet. Many individuals long for the power and control that they believe being seen as a leader will provide them. Yet, they lack the characteristics that compel others to follow them willingly. These individuals resort to bullying in order to build themselves up in their own minds and intimidate others into following them.

Our objective here is to lend our voices in raising awareness in hopes that you will come away more informed, and if the victim of bullying to be empowered to take your stand against it. So where do you begin?

Acknowledge it

Many in the workplace tolerate bullying without realizing what it is. Click To Tweet Too often, workers pass off bad actions and behaviors from bosses, or others, as that person just being that person. So rather than call it what it is, and not wanting to “rock the boat”, many suffer quietly while bullying goes unchallenged and unchecked. The time is now to stop suffering in silence and for those bad behaviors to stop.

Address it

It’s simply not enough to recognize bullying when you see it or experience it. You must be courageous enough to address it. This can be beneficial not only to you but for the person doing the bullying as well. In the research, we cited it went on the say, “One of the issues of workplace bullying is that the bully doesn’t actually know how they are being perceived”. The bully may not recognize that his or her actions are bullying and when confronted will stop. If not, then address the issue head-on and the bully will know that you are not going to tolerate it.

Abstain from it

You do not have to participate in bullying; this type of behavior does not benefit anyone. Click To Tweet If you have the desire to be a leader, start sowing the seeds of empathy, trust, and respect. Leadership is built on relationships, not fear. Being part of the ‘in’ crowd is not worth devaluing the worth of yourself or others by participating in bullying behaviors.

Advocate against it

Now that you are aware of it, become part of the solution. Bullies only gain power when others participate either through the support of their unacceptable behavior or fear and dread of their words and actions. You have the power to stand up and advocate against bullying. Click To Tweet When we refuse to accept bullying behavior regardless of who is bullying and who is being bullied we take away the bully’s capacity to gain power and control at the expense of others.

We no longer live like animals. We do not need an Alpha to take control by brute force. What we need are leaders. Leaders who support instead of sabotage; influence instead of force; and earn respect instead of despising. Every one of us has the ability to take a stand against bullying; to acknowledge it, to address it, to abstain from it, and to advocate against it. If not now, when? If not you, who?

Resources:

Please follow and like us:

Why Indecisive Leaders Hurt Morale

Posted October 7, 2018October 7, 2018
by admin

Indecision may or may not be my problem – Jimmy Buffett

A story is told of former president Ronald Reagan once had an aunt who took him to a cobbler for a pair of new shoes. The cobbler asked young Reagan, “Do you want square toes or round toes?” Unable to decide, Reagan didn’t answer, so the cobbler gave him a few days.

Several days later the cobbler saw Reagan on the street and asked him again what kind of toes he wanted on his shoes. Reagan still couldn’t decide, so the shoemaker replied, “Well, come by in a couple of days. Your shoes will be ready.” When the future president did so, he found one square-toed and one round-toed shoe! “This will teach you to never let people make decisions for you,” the cobbler said to his indecisive customer. “I learned right then and there,” Reagan said later, “if you don’t make your own decisions, someone else will.”

Indecisive leadership is a crippling character trait for leaders. When your organization needs clear direction and decisive action, a waffling leader can cause more harm than good. Click To Tweet

With so much at stake, why do leaders waffle and struggle with decision making? Three primary reasons come to mind.

They lack clarity

Leaders who struggle with decision making may lack the necessary clarity needed to make the necessary decision. Rather than making the wrong decision, they make no decision at all.

They lack confidence

In some situations, leaders withhold decision making because they are not confident enough in their own instincts. Rather than take a risk and make a decision, they play it safe and everyone is left dangling.

They lack consensus

In some cases, leaders withhold decision making because they don’t have a consensus on the best path forward. Rather than offend a few with a decision, the leader demoralizes everyone by not making one.

So what is a leader to do? How can a leader overcome this agonizing dilemma? Here are a few ideas.

Trust your instincts

A confident leader will trust his or her instincts in times of decision. Deep down you have a strong intuition that guides you. Trust it.

Welcome input

Decisive leaders are informed leaders. Those most affected by your decisions should be the first at the table of discussion. As it’s been said, “the person who sweeps the floor should choose the broom”. Welcome input, but make your decisions on principle, not politics.

Clarify your values

The worst thing you can do as a leader is to make a decision for the sake of making one. Roy Disney was right when he said, “When your values are clear to you, making decisions becomes easier”. When making a decision make sure it aligns with your values. If not, don’t do it. Click To Tweet

Check your motives

First and foremost in your decision making should be what’s best for your organization and people. If you are making decisions to gain popularity or to gain favor with some to the detriment of others you are sowing the seeds of low morale. You must have the best interest of the team at heart and not just a few.

Leadership is about making hard decisions. Indecisive leaders make it harder--on themselves and those they lead. Click To Tweet Your path forward begins by acknowledging what your indecisive tendencies are doing to your leadership and how it’s impacting the morale of those you lead.

Please follow and like us: