Tag Archive for 'leadership'

Leadership: Can you sell your product?

Published
by
Jim Blasingame
on February 2, 2011
in Leadership and Uncategorized
. 0 Comments

What is a leader? A mentor once told me a leader is someone who can find others who will follow him (or her).

But as we all know, followers can be high-maintenance folks, requiring constant tending to whatever it is that attracts them; most of the time “it” is something intangible.  Napoleon is reputed to have said, “A soldier will fight long and hard for a bit of colored ribbon.”  Intangible.

Leadership, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder.  So we asked our radio and online audience which of five characteristics is THE most important to being a successful leader.  Two of the leadership traits we offered, courage and perseverance, got the lowest ranking, each in single digits.  The highest ranking went to “ability to communicate,” with about 40% choosing this one, followed by “ethical behavior” chosen by almost one-third of respondents,  and “vision” selected by a little more than one out of four.

At first, I was surprised that courage and perseverance didn’t rank higher, because it is my belief that both of these are immensely important traits of a successful leader. But surprise turned to clarity when I realized that our poll had revealed what we all know but don’t always remember: There are two faces of a leader.  One is the face leaders see when looking in a mirror, and the other is the one followers see. When seeking the definition of a leader, we have to be clear about which point-of-view is being sought: leadership traits we seek in ourselves or the things that attract followers.

The face in the mirror knows courage and perseverance are definitely among the imperatives for leadership success.  But to followers, these are merely raw materials used to manufacture the product they demand of leaders – that intangible “bit of colored ribbon” delivered by communicating a vision that is executed based on mutually held values.

Turns out, being a leader is a lot like being a business owner. To be successful in business, it’s not enough to offer quality products you’re proud of; customers drop the gavel on that judgment. Similarly, it’s not enough for leaders just to please the mirror; followers are the customers of your leadership product.

In order to get others to follow you, both faces of leadership must be in evidence:  Nurture those traits that success requires of you personally, like courage, perseverance, faith, commitment, etc., while simultaneously delivering what followers expect, like ethics, communication, vision and performance.

Are you finding followers for your “bit of colored ribbon?”

Recently on The Small Business Advocate Show, I talked about the two faces of leadership. Take a few minutes to listen and leave your thoughts on leadership. Listen Live! Download, Too!

Courage is a synonym for entrepreneur

Published
by
Jim Blasingame
on October 23, 2010
in Entrepreneurship and Leadership
. 2 Comments

One of the most powerful words in the English language is courage; it’s also a characteristic unique to humans.

The reason courage is a uniquely human trait is because it is typically demonstrated for something other than self - a cause, a country, another human - which is abstract thinking, also unique to humans.  And courage usually manifests itself after the courageous has had time to think about it.  Someone once said, “Courage is fear that has said its prayers.”  If you’ve had time to pray, you’ve had time to change your mind.

Courage is certainly not unique to entrepreneurs, but it is a characteristic very much in evidence in the entrepreneurial world.  And the abstract that we’re willing to fight for is our vision.

When you start a small business you demonstrate courage. When you persevere in the face of entrenched paradigms and small-minded naysayers, you demonstrate courage. And what about failure?  If you fail - nay, when you fail - and then persevere, welcome to the rarified air of the courageous.  Since you can’t fail if you don’t try, only the courageous can know failure.

You don’t have to be an entreprneur to be courageous. But you can’t be an entrepreneur without having courage.

Recently on my radio program, The Small Business Advocate Show, I talked with my friend and Brain Trust member, Dave Anderson about leading with courage. Dave is president of Learn To Lead and author of several books, including How to Run Your Business by THE BOOK. Please take a few minutes to listen to what Dave has to say about courage, and, as always, leave your thoughts. Listen Live! Download, Too!< >< ><–>

The Griessman Diversity Creed for small business

Published
by
Jim Blasingame
on October 16, 2010
in Entrepreneurship and Leadership
. 0 Comments

Many times in this space I have the pleasure of quoting smart people who have said something that I want you to hear. Eugene Griessman is such a person, and a long-time friend and member of my Brain Trust. Gene’s thoughts are oft quoted, but one piece he wrote caught on so much that, for almost 10 years, it continues to pop up around the globe. It’s called The Diversity Creed, and with all of the intolerance in the world right now, I thought you would appreciate this piece of Griessman wisdom, and I offer it with Gene’s permission.

THE DIVERSITY CREED
Gene Griessman ©1993

I believe that diversity is a part of the natural order of things - as natural as the trillion shapes and shades of the flowers of spring or the leaves of autumn. I believe that diversity brings new solutions to an ever-changing environment, and that sameness is not only uninteresting, but limiting.

To deny diversity is to deny life - with all its richness and manifold opportunities. Thus, I affirm my citizenship in a world of diversity, and with it the responsibility to…

Be tolerant. Live and let live. Understand that those who cause no harm should not be feared, ridiculed, or harmed - even if they are different.

Look for the best in others.

Be just in my dealings with poor and rich, weak and strong, and whenever possible, to defend the young, the old, the frail, the defenseless.

Avoid needless conflicts and diversions, but be always willing to change for the better that which can be changed.

Seek knowledge in order to know what can be changed, as well as what cannot be changed.

Forge alliances with others who love liberty and justice.

Be kin, remembering how fragile the human spirit is.

Live the examined life, subjecting my motives and actions to the scrutiny of mind and heart so to rise above prejudice and hatred.

Care. Be generous in thought, word, and purse.

This is Jim again…great words and wisdom from a great man. Gene Griessman is not only a very smart man, but he’s also an Abraham Lincoln scholar and one of the top Lincoln portrayers in the world. He was on my radio show, The Small Business Advocate, recently to talk about Lincoln’s thoughts on leadership. Please take a few minutes to listen, and, as always, leave your thoughts. Listen Live! Download, Too!

Introducing your small business to Motivation 3.0

Published
by
Jim Blasingame
on April 24, 2010
in Communication, Human Resources, Leadership and Motivation
. 0 Comments

We’re only 10% into the 21st century, so there is a pretty good chance that a lot of what you know was learned in the last century.  Having said that, here’s the bad news: Most of what you learned about the marketplace in the last millennium is now obsolete.  And that includes how to motivate and manage people, especially the young folk.

Having come of age in the marketplace in the last third of the 20th century, it seems to me that managing and motivating people wasn’t much different in that era than it was for my mentors. Indeed, senior managers in those days were pretty much doing in the 1970s, 80s and 90s what they had learned and practiced for decades. But somehow, seemingly coincidental with the advent of the new millennia, best practices for leveraging human power effectively and successfully in business began to change as two new generations came online.

One of the most noticeable changes was how different these new generations were from earlier ones with regard to motivation.  Clearly, the motivational books are having to be rewritten for the 21st century, and not surprisingly, one of my long-time Brain Trust members, Dan Pink has done just that.

Recently, on my radio program, The Small Business Advocate Show, I talked with Dan about why the old “carrot and stick” approach is not as effective in the 21st century and what managers should know about what he calls ”Motivation 3.0.” Dan is the author of several provocative, bestselling books about the changing world of work, including his latest, Drive, in which he reveals his ground-breaking ideas on modern motivation best practices.

I hope you’ll take a few minutes to listen to what Dan has to say in this recent visit with me. And be sure to leave your own thoughts. Listen Live! Download, Too!

Don’t just adjust to change, lead it and sell it

Published
by
Jim Blasingame
on February 8, 2010
in Customer Care, Leadership and Problem solving
. 1 Comment

As I have said many times before, our challenge is not change - the computer is just a fancy wheel.  Indeed, the only thing that’s really different about change in the past 3,000 years is the velocity of change. What’s taking our breath away is the time between generations of change, which is being significantly compressed by technological innovations.

In this high-velocity change environment in which you operate your business, sustained success requires that you do more than merely accept change.  In fact, 21st century success means you embrace change, are able to sell it to your organization and customers and then lead that change - everyday.

I know this sounds hard. It is. If it weren’t, monkeys would be running small businesses.  But here is a piece of advice that will help you embrace, sell and lead change.  I hope you’ll write this down somewhere and remember it. I call it Blasingame’s 21st century Small Business Attitude on Change: “It’s okay to fall in love with what you do, but you can’t fall in love with how you do it.”

Recently, on my radio program, The Small Business Advocate Show, I discussed this new attitude on change with Brett Clay, including tips on how to incorporate this leadership attitude about change to find solutions for your customers. Brett is the founder and CEO of Change Leadership Group, LLC. and the author of Selling Change: 101 Secrets for Growing Sales by Leading Change.

Take a few minutes to listen to what Brett and I have to say and, as always, leave your own thoughts on leading with change. Listen Live! Download, Too!

Identifying common problems that inhibit small business performance

Published
by
Jim Blasingame
on February 1, 2010
in Customer Care, Entrepreneurship and Leadership
. Closed

Every small business likely has one 800-pound gorilla in its living room and more than one 400-pounders.  There might even be occasions when the “emperor has no clothes.” You’ll pardon the mixed metaphors, but these are the disfunctional elements that everyone knows prohibit efficient execution, productivity and good morale, but no one wants to talk about. There could be many reasons for such a lack of candor and honesty, but the usual suspect is top management cruisin’ down that river called denial.  

If you’re business isn’t hitting on all cylinders, such as not enough sales, bad morale, department bickering and turf wars, etc., what you probably have, as that famous line from the movie “Cool Hand Luke” goes, is a “fail-ya to communicate.” This “fail-ya” is caused when management doesn’t demand and practice organizational honesty

Recently, I talked with one of the honesty experts in my Brain Trust, Steven Gaffney, on my radio program, The Small Business Advocate Show.  We discussed how to reveal the hard questions that have to be asked and answered with brutal honesty in order for your business to be successful. Steven is the president of Steven Gaffney Company and author of several books, including Honesty Sells.

Take a few minutes to listen to our conversation and, as always, leave your thoughts on how to promote honest conversation and more success. Listen Live! Download, Too!