Healthy Mind, Healthy Body = Healthy Business

by Elisa SpainNo Comments

 

I recently heard a CEO say “when I am healthy, my business is healthy”. And then over the weekend, I watched this TED talk Why We All Need to Practice Emotional First Aid.

I have been thinking about both the CEO’s statement and this TED talk in the context of CEOs I have known or observed over the years. My reflective observation is, he is right; there is a strong correlation between the health of the leader and the health of the business.

In the public company arena, we see the impact on stock prices when the CEO becomes physically ill.

In the private company arena, where most of the CEOs I work with reside, those that focus on their health and fitness are the ones that lead successful companies. I have watched CEOs move from poor mental and/or physical health to good health and back again and observed the company performance move in tandem.

While a component of health is genetic and beyond our control, research continues to show that lifestyle, nutrition and fitness are directly related to emotional and physical health.

So, as we go through our daily busi-ness, what can each of us do to pause, reflect and recognize we have a fiduciary responsibility as leaders to practice both physical and mental hygiene?

Leadership Quote: Compete With Things To Come…

by Elisa SpainNo Comments

 

This month’s leadership quote:

“Compete with things to come – not with things that were.”

-Carlos Rizowy

 So easy to look in the rear view mirror and ask ourselves, what’s coming? And, what Carlos reminds us is that what we see in the rear view mirror are only the things that are present now. The things to come require “eyes down the road”, as they say in driver training. It is only when we are looking down the road that we can see what we will be faced with and, therefore, will be competing with.

If we wait until it is in front of us, it is, at a minimum, more costly and often too late to respond.

Elisa K. Spain

The Power Of Shared History

by Elisa SpainNo Comments

 

A couple of weeks ago I attended the Vistage Chair Conference and spent an evening with 9 senior women chairs. All of us were at the gathering at the invitation of one of the people present, i.e. we all knew at least one person and none of us knew everyone. We talked about a lot of things and then serendipitously began to share stories about challenges early in our careers. In the spirit of full disclosure, the stories mostly were about challenges of being young women faced with inappropriate situations in male-dominated companies.

A few days later I had a conversation with a male chair who is a longtime friend and mentor. I was telling him what a wonderful time I had with the other women earlier that week.

I told him about our shared history conversation and the direction it took. After telling him a few of my stories, he then shared his own stories from the other side. Such as when he was in a leadership position and falsely accused, offered sexual favors, etc. I was struck by the reminder that the more we share, the more common ground we find. And, that these stories are really about the personal side of business.

Like me and my women colleagues, my male colleague had several stories to tell. We talked about how these stories shape us, and that for women and people of color, because of the power equation, sometimes they shape us more.

I was struck by the value of shared histories in creating connections and overcoming stereotypes.

Wouldn’t it be cool to sit at a table with men and women, and people of all colors and backgrounds, and tell our shared histories of career and life challenges that shape the people and leaders we have become…?

Can A Focus On Culture Produce Financial Results?

by Elisa Spain1 Comment

 

In 2014, the theme for my Vistage groups was All That Matters is Culture. We talk about culture a lot in Vistage and we have several speakers that focus on this topic. Certainly we can all agree that focusing on culture creates a more consistent workplace. I say consistent, rather than harmonious, because as we learned from Vistage speaker, Edgar Papke, each culture is different – The important thing is to know what your culture is, hire accordingly and ensure your culture (inward facing) is consistent with your brand (outward facing).

And…when we went around the table at the end of the year, two of my CEO members shared that they had their best year yet (both had been in business 15+ years). When the other members asked the reason, both said, without hesitation, “because I focused on culture more than anything else this year. I got rid of the cancers. Everyone who is with my company today reflects the culture. I see it, the customers see it, and frankly to my surprise, the bottom line shows it”.

In one case, one of the CEOs fired his #2 producer. A risky move, so he thought. In fact, he even expected a down year as a result.  He decided the risk was worth it.

Good thing he took the risk because… he was one of the CEOs to report the best year ever.

Elisa K. Spain

What Are You Doing In The Shower?

by Elisa SpainNo Comments

 

Strange question for a post about leadership, eh? Here’s why I ask…. Used to be, we got our best ideas in the shower. Today, most of us are on the run. So much so that instead of just taking a shower, we are busy planning what is next; thinking about what has to get done.

And if we are in motion all day long, even during what used to be called down time, what is the cost?

  • To our businesses, to our creativity, to ourselves?
  • What opportunities are we missing by focusing only on what is urgent?
  • What might be the result if we allowed time for reflection?

Elisa K. Spain

Leadership Quote: Innovation Is Hard…

by Elisa SpainNo Comments

 

This month’s leadership quote:

“Innovation is hard because ‘solving a problem people didn’t know they had’

and ‘building something no one needs’ look identical at first.”

-Aaron Levine

Steve Jobs is noted for “solving a problem people didn’t know they had” time after time, first with the Mac, then ITunes, the IPhone, the IPad, etc. etc. And most of us will acknowledge that Steve was a rare genius. So… what can the rest of us mere mortals learn from Steve about innovation? Here’s what I observed that Steve did:

  • He was focused – He started with the desktop and it wasn’t until he built that market that he designed products for other needs, with his first big breakthrough the IPhone 
  • He was observant – He carefully watched what his customer did, saw the gaps, watched what was frustrating for them
  • He was determined – I recall reading that when he first came up with the idea of ITunes there were many barriers to making it happen, one by one, he broke through them all

While coming up with the innovative idea may initially seem to be the hard part, my sense is innovation is like everything else in business, it’s executing on the right things at the right time.

Elisa K. Spain

 

Is Coaching For Me Or For My Company?

by Elisa SpainNo Comments

 

As a leadership coach, working with both CEOs and senior executives, I am sometimes faced with this question:

  • Is leadership coaching for the individual or
  • Are there specific results this individual is expected to produce for the company?

For CEOs, the answer to this question is usually easy, the development a CEO gains from coaching usually has a direct correlation with results in their business.

For a senior executive, the question is more complex, both for me and for their sponsoring manager.

As with most things, getting clear upfront about your intentions and expectations will yield better results. Here are some questions to consider if you are either the senior executive or their sponsoring manager:

  • Is coaching for your general professional development?
  • Or are there specific expectations that coaching is expected to address and that you will be accountable for?
  • What is the contract between you and your coach?
  • What is the contract between you and your sponsoring manager?
  • As the executive in coaching, how will I demonstrate or communicate progress to my manager?
  • As the sponsoring manager, how do I want to be kept informed of progress?

 

 

Vistage CEO Confidence Index: Optimism At Highest Level In Ten Years in Q4 2014

by Elisa SpainNo Comments

 

The quarterly Vistage Confidence Index is now available. CI-graph-q4-280

Confidence among CEOs reached its highest level in ten years in the Q4 2014 Vistage CEO Confidence Index survey. The gain
in the closing quarter of 2014 was largely due to more favorable assessments of the current state of the economy as well as more favorable prospects for economic growth during the year ahead. The Vistage Confidence Index was 107.5 in the 4th quarter of 2014, up from 103.4 in the 3rd quarter and 101.5 in last year’s 4th quarter, and the highest level since 109.8 was recorded in the 1st quarter of 2005. The data indicate that most firms believe the economy has made substantial progress and will continue to grow in 2015.

Below are some key highlights from the Q4 2014 Vistage CEO Confidence Index (all members surveyed):

  • 63% of CEOs said the economy has improved in the past year–the highest since the Q4 2004 survey.
  • 49% of CEOs expect the economy to improve in the next year, up from 38% in last quarter’s survey.
  • 62% of CEOs anticipated expanding their workforce in the year ahead, the highest level since 64% was recorded in Q1 2006.
  • 77% of all CEOs expected their revenues to increase in the year ahead, the highest level since 2006.
  • 62% of CEOs expected profits to increase in the year ahead.

Elisa K. Spain

Leadership Quote: Success Is All About Growing Others…

by Elisa SpainNo Comments

 

December’s leadership quote:

“Before you are a leader, success is all about growing yourself.

When you become a leader, success is all about growing others.”

-Jack Welch

While personal growth and development is lifelong, it is only through developing others that we achieve measurable results in our businesses. As a Vistage chair and leadership coach, I have the opportunity to observe every form of leadership. Here is what I see… it is those leaders that truly invest time and money in developing others that cross the dividing line from operator to leader.

No coincidence that nearly 20% of Vistage members produce annual revenue >$50mm; while less than 1.5% of US companies overall produce more than $25M in annual revenue and less than .27% produce more than $100M.

Elisa K. Spain

Celebrate Your Gift

by Elisa SpainNo Comments

 

Each year at this gift-giving time, I am reminded that we all have natural gifts.

Our challenge is to notice our strengths and work to enhance them. In my Vistage work, and as a leadership coach,  I refer to this as discovering and working in our genius.

While personal growth and development are part of living a full life, and after all this is what Vistage is all about, the successful CEOs and executives I know are the ones who work to become excellent at what they are already good at. And… these same successful people surround themselves with people who bring their own strengths, filling in the gaps.

As you reflect on your accomplishments for 2014, and think about 2015, take a moment and ask yourself:

  • What are my gifts? How did they serve me this year? How will they serve me next year?
  • What am I striving for that I could instead delegate to someone else?
  • What can I accept simply not doing?

Once we know and understand our strengths, and focus on them, we not only become more effective, we become more satisfied, and ultimately become better leaders.

Elisa K. Spain

P.S. This is the last post for 2014. Happy Holidays to all!  See you in the New Year.