When people give up on a best practice because of the difficult path necessary to reach it, they miss the fact that the difficult path is what makes the best destination better than the alternative. Powering through difficult to go to the best practices is what builds the character necessary to appreciate a best practice as the
As leaders we must find those that want to move and move with them. Every leader will have to deal with naysayers at every turn. Naysayers are not bad people. They are simply those that care enough about the team to express a different opinion or even concern about the direction or vision. The truth is that
It takes commitment to develop others because of the people factor. Walking alongside someone as they go through growing pains can be enormously fulfilling. Unfortunately, it can also be extremely painful. When people struggle they may not always own those struggles. Our effort to help can be seen as exactly the opposite and we can be labeled
The long term quality of a team is only as good as its leader development. Every once in a while, a great leader comes along and becomes the catalyst to short-term success. Their mixture of talent and charisma can be intoxicating in the short term until “Father Time” comes calling and that person moves on through any
Leadership moments are often thought of as inspiring pep talks or speeches. They are actually much less glamorous than the movies make them out to be. Real leadership moments happen during the hard but necessary conversations that challenge others to improve. People who don’t understand leadership often mistake those conversations as someone being rude enough to insinuate
Nothing manifests insecurity like authority. Insecure people tend to have a negative view of authority because they believe the role of authority is to catch them in the wrong or where they fall short. This insecurity stems from the very real fear that what I am doing isn’t good enough and the person in authority has both
When we make up our minds about people, we have essentially given up on any hope for them to change. They are ______ (fill in the chosen label) and that now defines that person in our mind. The truth is that there may be much more to that person’s story and journey than what we have deemed
Potential isn’t a reality. Potential is a possible future. Individuals require others around them to do the following three things in order to have the best chance to reach their potential. 1) Believe people can change. 2) Delay deduction. See mistakes as an opportunity to learn and not a confirmation of an existing judgement 3) Embrace risks.
Every team should be about reaching the team’s potential. This includes the wins that everyone is usually worried about. However, if the team only ever aims at the team win, it will often overlook the development of the individuals on the team. This sacrifices the immediate goal for the long term goal of growth and development. Everyone
Teams that believe people can change and grow are more likely to tap into the potential of the team. Unfortunately, most people who answer in the affirmative when asked if they believe that people can change or grow don’t usually match their answer with behavior that supports it. This requires a long-view approach to development and not