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Tag: Leadership

How Do You Know Real Leadership?

There are lots of books and discussions about the meaning of leadership. You could spend literally thousands of dollars on texts that suggest they know the real definition of leadership. While many of these probably can give you a good theoretical view, and some may even come close to giving you a picture of what leadership looks like, I don’t think you really understand it until you see it in action. In a very bad situation this week I got an opportunity to see an extraordinarily good example of leadership take place. Our agency recently announced some of the most severe layoffs in its history. As you can imagine, this has caused an enormous amount of unrest and pain throughout the organization. Some of the folks losing their jobs have been with the agency for 20 years or more. It is a painful and heartbreaking time, but unfortunately, one that could not be avoided. It would have been easy for our executive leaders to hide behind the veil of budget cuts and simply hand down the mandate of these layoffs. One person in particular though demonstrated exactly what it means to be a true leader. Our Deputy Director came around to speak personally with each of the individuals directly affected by the layoffs. He had no personal agenda other than to touch base with them, see how they were faring, and to find out how he could be supportive. This process has been exceptionally difficult for him, watching people he has worked with for years struggling and having to go through such a difficult time. His professionalism, patience, and willingness to really listen and be compassionate as they shared their fears and frustration were invaluable. Throughout, he maintained his composure and let people vent, express their feelings, and share with

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Dare to Choose

Several years ago, I worked with a large organization in the midst of some substantial structural changes. Over the course of several months, as we re-created their entire foundation and processes, we came together to develop agreements about what we believed was necessary for each individual, and by extension the organization, to be successful. I have held on to this and shared it many times since. Dare to Choose … Continue readingDare to Choose

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Hey Buddy, Can You Spare Some Change?

It never ceases to amaze me the amount of change that seems to be constantly going on around us. If you ever doubt that, live in a house with 4 adolescent boys, as I do, and try and follow what is going on in their lives from day to day. I promise you, that the speed and magnitude with which things change will boggle your mind. On the same track though, we are presented with virtually endless amounts of change in our professional lives. Many of us have had several jobs in our careers, even if they are all within the same organization. Or we may have experienced a fundamental change in the organizational structure where we work so that we report to someone new and now have to adjust to the way this person manages. Regardless of the types of change we are talking about though, the important thing to bear in mind is not so much the change itself, but how we react to that change. As you find yourself in situations of upheaval or change, whether good or bad, you will often find yourself becoming exceptionally stressed, tired, and unable to focus. The key is to find ways to mitigate the impact of the change on the other aspects of your life. Find things you enjoy doing, get away from the situation for a while, or work to discover the opportunities in the new environment. Whatever the case, for your own well-being (and as my wife will attest, for the betterment of those around you), focus on getting the lessons you can out of the change, and you are likely to be more successful in managing the stress and emotion that accompanies it. … Continue readingHey Buddy, Can You Spare Some

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How Would You Answer?

We spend a lot of effort and energy attempting to define leadership and the characteristics of a good leader. I have always felt that history is one of the best teachers. More than 40 years ago, President Kennedy spoke about his vision of what makes a true leader by asking 4 basic questions. I have had this quote posted or around my desk for the better part of my career and have always done my best to live up to the ideals so clearly identified in his vision. It is plainly evident to me that when we see leaders who are not successful or who are facing difficulty in creating the environments they want, whether at work or elsewhere, we can look to these questions and almost invariably find the flaws in their behavior. “When at some future date the high court of history sits in judgment on each one of us, recording whether in our brief span of service, we fulfilled our responsibilities to the state, our success or failure in whatever office we may hold will be measured by the answers to four questions: … Continue readingHow Would You Answer?

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