~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ LEADERSHIP WIRED John C. Maxwell's FREE Semimonthly Newsletter Designed To Maximize Your Leadership Potential. January 2006 - Volume 9, Issue 2 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In This Issue: * Maxwell Moment – Replacing Complacency * Leadership@Large – Surveying the Leadership Landscape * Book Review – Recommended Reading * Quick Quotes – Creativity ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Maxwell Moment ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ REPLACING COMPLACENCY By Dr. John C. Maxwell One of the biggest temptations leaders of successful organizations face is to stop thinking big. After a taste of success, even the best and brightest leaders suddenly start to think complacently. When a company gets on a roll, some leaders tighten up and start playing it safe. They stop playing to win and begin playing not to lose. Where they once thought big and new, now they think incrementally. This temptation is a reality with a lot of sports teams. How many times have we seen teams lose their momentum and then lose the game because instead of playing to win, they began to play not to lose? They get ahead, but then they pull back and stop playing with the intensity that earned them the lead. The same temptation traps company executives. With the organization exceeding expectations and making record profits, the leadership gets excited. The organization appears to be cruising toward its best year ever, when all of a sudden the focus shifts from gaining momentum to sustaining momentum. The moment leadership changes focus, momentum vanishes. I like to think of momentum as the great exaggerator. When you have it, people think you're better than you are. You're on a roll and everybody is amazed by your success. When you lose momentum, people think you're worse than you are. Momentum magnifies your performance, and positive momentum can be a potent force to push you forward. When things are on a roll, don't sit on the ball—run up the score! In other words, when you've got momentum going for you, put the pedal to the metal. Take off. Ignite momentum. As I wrote in "Thinking for a Change", "We are today where our thoughts brought us, and we will be tomorrow where our thoughts take us." When we stop thinking big as leaders and dwell upon protecting past successes, we start to think conservatively. The big thoughts that gave us a big year are replaced by conservative thoughts which will give us a mediocre year. Let me give you four strategies that will keep your momentum moving in the right direction. 1. When you're doing well, go shopping. When you're doing well, instead of patting yourself on the back, go shopping. Look around for somebody that's bigger, better, faster, and smarter than you are. Study their successes and benchmark your results against theirs. I did this as a young leader, because very quickly in my field I had successes. Instead of being content as the number one leader in my organization, I started going to other organizations where I wouldn't be in the top 100. It was an exercise in humility; but I immediately realized the way to refocus wasn't to compare myself against everyone I was beating, but to compare myself with somebody better than I was. 2. Stir up inspirational dissatisfaction. Inspirational dissatisfaction does not mean you are never pleased or satisfied. Nor is it a license to beat yourself up or come down hard on your people. Instead, it's a creative awareness that you can do better. You can do more to improve personally and to invest exhaustively in the growth of your team. This state of mind unlocks your comfort zone and prompts you to keep on stretching. 3. Develop a daily dose of paranoia. There's a difference between a daily dose and an overdose of paranoia. An overdose makes you and everyone around you miserable. A daily dose is an inner rustling—a pebble in the shoe—that creates just enough discomfort to keep you continually alert and engaged. In fact, the best leaders act as though someone is out to get them, like they're on the verge of losing every customer every day. 4. Continue to set goals that stretch your team. If you can reach your goals with a "business as usual" approach, then your goals are too small. A goal is only effective when it forces changes, big decisions, and bold action. The thinking of a leader is contagious to the team. As a leader, you broadcast your way of thinking to your people, and they are going to pick up on your signals immediately. Unsuccessful leaders focus their thinking on survival—"If I can just make it through the year." Average leaders focus their thinking on maintenance—"If I can just hold on to what I have." Successful leaders focus their thinking on continual progress. If you're a manager who concentrates more on holding your own than on moving forward, then it's time to seize the offensive. Don't settle for what conditions force upon you. As Marcus Buckingham says, "The only thing that leaders have in common is leaders break all the rules." Great leaders don't just buy into what everybody else is saying, and they don't follow the beaten path. Great leaders are constantly creating their own conditions for success by blazing new trails. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Leadership@Large ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ LESSONS LEARNED FROM MOVING THE COUCH Toting around furniture can be a drag, but who knew it could shed light on leadership? In his October article for "Fast Company", Mark Goulston lays out a three-step progression to encourage enthusiasm and arouse support from a team: 1) motivation, 2) inspiration, and 3) enspiration. Let's look at each step through the simple analogy of couch moving. Motivation Have you and a friend ever tried to move a heavy couch by sliding it? As much as you push and as much as you strain, sometimes you can't get the blasted thing to budge. Continue to work at it, and your only results are frustration and fatigue. At times, motivating a team can feel a lot like an experience with a stubborn couch. No amount of prodding and pressing seems to have any effect—other than wearing you out. Inspiration Even with two people, sliding a couch is difficult due to friction with the floor. The friction works against you by counteracting the force of your pushes. The task is made much easier by lifting the couch, since the friction is entirely eliminated. In an era of skepticism toward authority, employees feeling coerced or manipulated will resist every effort to motivate them. Unwilling team members can create friction and undermine the team. Leaders move from motivation to inspiration when they lift up those they lead. Realizing team members may feel underappreciated or misunderstood, leaders inspire when they are attuned to the needs and emotions of their followers. Willingness to understand and lend a helping hand to a team member undergoing trying times can build a mountain of respect. Enspiration One of the greatest challenges of moving a bulky sofa is finding the best way to navigate doorways. Have you ever been moving a large couch through a door when your buddy starts to go in the opposite direction of what you intended? The failure to show your friend which way to enter the room generally results in smashed fingers or a dent in the wall. Leaders advance from inspiration to enspiration when they show the way. Energizing employees and attending to their specific needs is no longer enough. Leaders must make sure everyone has the goal in plain sight and is moving in the same direction. In the words of Goulston: "To enspire is to both lift up and direct. Enspiration makes something happen. It gives people the will to find the way and also the way to sustain the will." To read more about Enspiration from Mark Goulston, please visit: http://www.fastcompany.com/resources/leadership/goulston/103105.html _________________________________________________________________ MAKE THE MOST OF MENTORING In our quest for growth and improvement, the most valuable resource may be sitting in the office next us. If experience truly is the best teacher, then we would be wise to study the life lessons and expertise of a mentor. As an advisor, personal coach, evaluator, and sounding board for ideas, mentors can be of benefit in a variety of roles. Recognizing the tremendous merits of mentoring relationships, companies—both large and small—have embraced mentoring programs as an employee development strategy. In a recent article for Forbes.com called "Help Wanted: Mentors", Julie Watson shared a few thoughts about mentoring: "Mentoring is a two-way street" Remember: mentors offer you their valuable time and a precious glimpse into their life's experiences. Give them something in return. It may be as simple as buying them lunch. Perhaps it's volunteering time to assist them with a project. Likely, you will feel unable to repay your mentor for all of their time and attention, but a small gift or act of service will go a long way in expressing your gratitude and respect for them. Keep in mind: mentoring is not all about getting. Look for mentors, but take the opportunity to be a mentor as well. "Your mentors will change" As your goals evolve or you enter a new stage of life, your mentors will naturally change. You may relocate or decide to pursue a different career path. You might grow to a point where you reach or surpass the proficiency of your mentor. Be prepared to end mentoring relationships (always with grace and appreciation), and be willing to initiate additional ones. "Don't rely on just one mentor" Searching for the all-knowing, fatherly mentor with all of the right answers is like chasing after a lamp with a genie inside. Unfortunately, no one person can grant us all of the knowledge and tools we require to maximize our potential. For the greatest benefit, seek out mentors with specific skills you desire to acquire. Maybe it's the company's top strategic thinker, the salesperson with the charming people skills, or the teammate who consistently wows the crowd with presentations. Target their strengths and learn what makes them the best in their particular area of expertise. To read more from Julie Watson on mentoring, please visit: http://www.forbes.com/2005/12/14/mentor-career-work-cx_jw_1215bizbasics.html ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Book Review ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "Resonant Leadership" By Richard Boyatzis and Annie McKee (Harvard Business School Press, 2005) Inspired by the supposed sleeping patterns of the legendary Leonardo DaVinci, "Seinfeld's" Kramer once attempted to gain extra time by sleeping no more than 20 minutes every three hours during the day. After chronic fatigue, unplanned naps in awkward places, and a deep slumber resulting in a near-death experience, the comical Kramer finally gave up his skimpy sleeping schedule. We can laugh at Kramer's silly scheme, but as leaders we're prone to bypass the rest and renewal that are vital to our success. As stress mounts, how often do we skip lunch, work late, and spend our evenings "catching-up" on email? In "Resonant Leadership", Boyatzis and McKee offer a refreshing resource to help leaders break the cycle of stress, fatigue, and burnout. Their deeply researched writings underscore the value of constantly renewing ourselves as leaders. In 2002, "Primal Leadership" (written by Boyatzis and McKee, along with Daniel Goleman) burst upon the scene as a landmark study on the importance of emotional intelligence in a leader's roles and relationships. Leaders who positively influenced the emotions and performance of those around them were found to display resonance. Since writing "Primal Leadership", Boyatzis and McKee noticed a disturbing trend in leadership—leaders have tremendous difficulty sustaining healthy emotions (and resonance) over time. Through case studies, medical inquiry, and psychological analysis, "Resonant Leadership" examines how the stresses inherent in leadership will emotionally derail a leader who does not intentionally engage in renewal. As the stress of leadership compounds, many leaders make intense sacrifices and, in doing so, ignore their own well-being and become dissonant—feeling and projecting negative emotions. Citing examples of leaders who have successfully displayed resonance over the long term Boyatzis and McKee are able to direct leaders to healthy habits of renewal to combat the dangers of stress. They identify three practices essential to renewal: mindfulness, hope, and compassion. Resonant leadership begins with mindfulness. In short, mindfulness is awareness—internal awareness of thoughts and emotions combined with external awareness of people and events. Cultivating mindfulness can be tough. As the authors write, "Many organizational cultures drive people to action, rather than reflection," and it takes resolve to schedule the solitude necessary to be mindful. Without hope, a leader's resonance is stifled. Boyatzis and McKee describe hope as a vision for a better future united with the optimism that change is possible. As Napoleon said, "Leaders are dealers in hope." Whether or not a leader has hope can be a stimulant or stop sign for an entire organization. As the final component to leadership resonance, compassion involves understanding, caring, and acting on behalf of others. Leaders often deprive themselves of any empathy toward co-workers, and the results can be numbness and machinelike detachment. Resonance springs from the human impulse to help and care for others. "Resonant Leadership" explores the heart and soul of leadership and in doing so recognizes a leader's vital need for continuous renewal. Leaders feeling the weight of responsibilities and challenges will draw strength and energy from the refreshing practices set forth in this book. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Quick Quotes ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ CREATIVITY "Creativity requires the courage to let go of certainties." - Erich Fromm "The world is but a canvas to our imaginations." - Henry David Thoreau "Creativity can solve almost any problem. The creative act, the defeat of habit by originality, overcomes everything." - George Lois _________________________________________________________________ Leadership Wired is written by Dr. John C. Maxwell and is available via e-mail on a free subscription basis. You can subscribe at: www.INJOY.com/Newsletters. Questions about document transmission or editorial comments? Contact mailto:feedback@INJOY.com. 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