Leadership Quote: We Cannot Become What We Need To Be…

Leadership Quote: We Cannot Become What We Need To Be…

by Elisa SpainNo Comments

This month’s leadership quote: We cannot become what we need to be, by remaining what we are – – Max Depree

When faced with anything new that is significant in our business or our life… a new role, a new competitor, a new technology, most of us humans, first resist.

And, it is what we do next that matters most.

Change is difficult. And in my experience as a leader and a leadership coach, what  I have learned is when we say we like change, the truth is we only like change when we are leading it. When change is thrust upon us, the resistance begs to take over.

What if instead, we were to embrace all the change that comes our way, not just the change we initiate. By recognizing that we cannot remain as we are; rather, we must recognize the changes we must make within ourselves so that we can become what we need to be to thrive in the new environment.

Elisa K. Spain

When Is Followership Leadership?

When Is Followership Leadership?

by Elisa SpainNo Comments


Interesting that “followership” is a word we rarely hear. My spell checker didn’t even know the word. According to Webster the word wasn’t even used until 1928 while the word leadership has been in use since 1821.

And yet, without followership, there is no leadership. As Vistage Speaker Rick Eigenbrod reminded us in his recent presentation, “the one characteristic all leaders have in common is they all have followers”. And, Rick also reminds us that the best leaders also are good followers. We learn by following.

So, what is followership? Webster defines it as as following or the capacity or willingness to follow a leader.

For me,  followership happens when someone is doing something that is worth following. When the leader is doing something, saying something, creating something, accomplishing something that we want to be a part of, participate in, contribute to.

And, followership is also leadership.

  • When was the last time you chose to follow instead of lead?
  • What about the leader inspired you to follow?
  • What about the first follower perhaps inspired you to follow as well?

Elisa K. Spain

Coaching Companies To Greater Sales & Profits….And An Invitation

by Elisa SpainNo Comments

We hear a lot about sales strategy and sales management, as though it is something separate from business strategy.   Vistage Speaker Jack Daly encourages us to think of it this way, “a great place to work is a great place to buy”.

If you are a CEO qualified for Vistage membership and would like to hear Jack’s  indepth treatment of this topic, I am inviting 3 CEO guests to attend the September 12th meeting of my Vistage CEO group.  Please contact me at (312) 421-1813 if you would like to see if your company has what it takes (or if you would like to refer a guest).

Elisa K. Spain

What Is The Business Practice All Leaders Do And Everyone Says They Hate…

What Is The Business Practice All Leaders Do And Everyone Says They Hate…

by Elisa Spain1 Comment

What is the business practice everyone does and everyone says they hate? MEETINGS!

How often do we hear, I hate meetings? And yet, how do most leaders spend most of their time? In meetings.

Most of us accept that, as leaders, we need meetings to communicate and get things done through other people. And yet,  most leaders, say they dread attending meetings, even the ones they are leading.

As a leadership coach, I enjoy my meetings. I draw energy from the peer group meetings I lead and from the coaching sessions with my Vistage members.  Some meetings, of course, are better than others and I find value in all of them. I  enjoy the interchange, the questions, the sharing, the challenging and the learning. And, my members tell me that meetings inside their companies sometimes have these characteristics and sometimes they do not.

I am curious to hear from you. What’s working for you in meetings and what is not?

For those who hate meetings, here are my questions:

  • When you say, “I hate attending meetings” what would you rather be doing?
  • What is it about one-on-one meetings you don’t like?
  • What is it about group meetings you don’t like?

And, for those of you who like meetings and find them to be productive:

  • What is it about one-on-one meetings you like? What makes them work for you?
  • What is it about group meetings you like? What makes them work for you?

And, for those of you who want to learn more about leading productive meetings, one of my favorite books on the subject is Death by Meeting, by Patrick Lencioni.

 

Elisa K. Spain

Leadership Quote: Giving People Permission To Fail…

Leadership Quote: Giving People Permission To Fail…

by Elisa SpainNo Comments

This month’s leadership quote: Giving people permission to fail is more important than giving them the tools to succeed.

In my experience as a leadership coach, many, if not most leaders, struggle with this one. We often know the answer and are quick to give it. Or, even step in when we see the situation “going south”.

And, we become frustrated when our staff chooses the safe choice rather than the best choice.

Is there perhaps a correlation here? What if instead we explicitly give people permission to fail and let them, what might the outcome be?

Please share your stories.

Elisa K. Spain

Is Your Leadership Team Your Co-Advisor Or ?

Is Your Leadership Team Your Co-Advisor Or ?

by Elisa SpainNo Comments


Businesses are assets, right? What might happen if we followed the best practices of investment management in running them?

When we hire an advisor to manage our traditional portfolio of stocks and bonds, the first thing they want to know is the answer to the following  two questions:

  1. Will you delegate full responsibility for managing your portfolio to me? or
  2. Will the account be co-advised, meaning, before I make a purchase or sale in your portfolio,  I must consult with you?

When the owner of the portfolio chooses #1,  the client and the advisor work together to design a portfolio that meets the risk tolerance of the client, the advisor constructs the portfolio and typically the advisor provides reports, usually monthly or quarterly, that inform the owner of the status of their portfolio. Additionally, the advisor’s reports include a comparison of their performance to that of their peer group.

The full process is based on the DIME method (coined by my friend Scott Morgan, author of an out-of-print book by the same title).  DIME: Design, Implement, Monitor, Evaluate.

Sometimes, the owner of the portfolio chooses #1, but instead of delegating authority, monitoring the performance of the portfolio, and periodically evaluating the portfolio manager; the owner abdicates, i.e. moves on to other things and ignores the portfolio manager.

I heard a sad story from a friend recently who chose option #1, neglected the monitor and evaluate part, and didn’t discover the result until he needed the money and discovered it was gone. The advisor was not dishonest, he simply made poor investment choices.

Ok, so what does this have to do with leadership and running a business? Here is what I have learned as a Vistage Chair and leadership coach.

The “portfolio managers” of our business are our leadership team, our key executives.  Each business owner has a risk tolerance that leads them to be more or less involved in activities in their businesses. The result sometimes is key executives either feel micromanaged or business owners abdicate  instead of delegate, only to jump back in when things are not going as they expected (but didn’t verbalize).

This seesaw drives both owners and key executives crazy and leads to outcomes neither wants. What if instead owners and key executives sat down together and asked the investment manager questions. These questions might include some of the following:

  • What decisions will I have full responsibility for?
  • Which decisions do you want to co-advise?
  • What risks are you most concerned about?
  • What kind of reporting works best for you? Written, verbal?
  • What do you want to monitor, and on what frequency?
  • How will my performance be evaluated?

And finally the most important question,

What is our agreement as to how to give each other feedback when the outcomes or the process didn’t go as we expected?

Elisa K. Spain

 

Consensus Equals Beige

Consensus Equals Beige

by Elisa Spain2 Comments

When a leader asks for input and then makes a decision, the result is vivid color, i.e. a better decision. It is a better decision for lots of reasons.

First and foremost, your team feels valued when they are asked to participate in the decision process.

Second, there is value in the wisdom of crowds, many times the group will surface ideas that the leader hasn’t thought about. As a Vistage Chair and leadership coach, I see this happen each month during the executive sessions  I lead  with CEOs and Key Executives.  This, of course, is why 15,000 people around the world are members of Vistage – because we know the value of seeking input from others.

Where it all goes awry, is when we seek consensus either from our team or from our Vistage group (or our family, friends, book club, etc).  With consensus all the colors get mixed together, resulting in a dull beige, i.e. a mediocre, watered down decision.

Next time you are asking for input, ask yourself  if what you want is color. And, if it is color you want, don’t settle for beige.  Make the final decision yourself.

Elisa K. Spain

 

Leadership Habit: Because That's The Way We've Always Done It….

Leadership Habit: Because That's The Way We've Always Done It….

by Elisa SpainNo Comments

Several years ago, I was working with a key executive who had been in his position for many years. We were discussing the way things were done in his department and every time I asked him the reason why they did something a particular way, his answer was “because that’s the way we’ve always done it”.  Over time, this answer became a private joke between the two of us as we worked together to modernize his department.

One of my favorite examples of this habit is the seat belt announcement on airplanes.  Once, I heard a flight attendant put it this way “for those of you who have never been in a car…” Clearly at least this one flight attendant shared the same humor as my key executive friend and me.  And yet, this announcement continues on every airline.

Perhaps it is time for someone (FAA, Airlines?) to pause and ask, “What should our safety message be?” And, for each of us to ask,  has “that’s the way we have always done it” become a leadership habit at my company?

If so, is it time for to pause and begin asking:

  • Why are we doing “that” this way?
  • What is the goal of doing “that”?
  • Is doing it “this way” getting you the results you want?

Elisa K. Spain

Leading Change, When Is Enough, Enough?

Leading Change, When Is Enough, Enough?

by Elisa SpainNo Comments

Leaders drive change in their businesses for a variety of reasons; the two primary reasons are:

  • When the leader sees opportunities the current structure does not support
  • When industry changes threaten the current business model

Both of these scenarios create a sense of urgency on the part of most leaders and much has been written about how to lead change. Pundits will say, it is important to have confidence in yourself and stay the course. Moreover, it is important for the leader to overcome objections as it is human nature to resist change.

We are living in a world of constant change – and the pace continues to increase. We tell ourselves and our teams that we must adjust to this pace or we will be left behind.

And, how do you know when enough is enough? How do you know when your team truly can’t keep up?

If you are driving change in your organization and  have been at it for awhile, here are some questions for you:

  • Are you seeing signs of change fatigue?
  • Are you noticing some people who are “off their game”?
  • Are others becoming ill?
  • Are the people you counted on in the past to lead with a positive and supportive attitude no longer playing that role?

If the answer to any of these questions is yes, is it time to check in with your team and perhaps re-calibrate the pace?

Elisa K. Spain

 

When Is It The Leader's Job To Build Creative Confidence?

When Is It The Leader's Job To Build Creative Confidence?

by Elisa SpainNo Comments

Do you divide your team  into “creatives” and ” practical” people? If so, are you  missing out on the creative ideas of the other half?

If you ask David Kelley, founder of IDEO, and winner of countless innovation awards including Fast Company’s Top 25 Most Innovative companies, he will say yes.

David maintains that human beings are naturally creative and it is fear of judgement that stifles creativity in most of us. He asks, what might happen if we were to overcome that fear of judgement and unleash our creativity? Perhaps the secret lies in what psychologist Albert Bandura calls guided mastery – a process whereby we  identify a fear or phobia and by forcing ourselves to overcome that fear, we release our creative abilities.

How might you as a leader create an environment that enables your employees to build their creative confidence? Perhaps a simple starting place is with more legitimate brainstorming – following the brainstorming rules – no idea is a bad idea!

If you want to take this further, are you willing to expose your team to guided mastery? Sound too touchy-feely for you?

Before jumping to judgement, take a look at this 12 minute TED Video where David tells stories from his legendary design career and his own life, and offers ways to build the confidence to create.

Elisa K. Spain