by Guest Author | Sep 5, 2012 | Career Development, Coaching Advice
Managing stress and the fast moving pace of life is a constant challenge. Too much stress and you burn out; too little stress and you become bored. Performing at optimal levels requires that you take stock of what stresses you and utilize specific strategies for managing those stressors. Recently, Harvard Medical School published a list of the ten most common stressors. Here is that list of ten, along with quick strategies for dealing with each: (more…)
by Dana Theus | Sep 4, 2012 | Career Development, Coaching Advice, Leadership
To get support for your big idea, you have to become adept at pitching every idea. Good leaders know how to pitch. They do it naturally and easily. But this isn’t a skill anyone’s really born with, it takes some personal development. Why invest in becoming good at pitching?
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by Guest Author | Aug 30, 2012 | Commentary, InPower Women Blog
Forbes has just published its annual list of the world’s 100 Most Powerful Women.
I applaud these women for their amazing impact and success, and I applaud Forbes for recognizing them. Yet it makes me wonder. Do Forbes’ more traditional criteria for power – “political and economic might” – seem broad enough? These are good and valid measures of power. I just don’t think they’re broad enough, because I don’t think they help us rethink power in the ways that power needs to be rethought.
I’d like to see a list of the most powerful peacemakers; the most effective educators; the most inspiring role models; the greatest champions for those without a voice. Whether or not you will ever hear about them, these are women of power as well. Forbes won’t be heralding them, but someone should. Over the coming months, I’ll be working with InPower Women to establish an annual award to recognize women who demonstrate an expanded, more current form of power: measured not by the size of title or income, but rather by the quality of their impact and character. Stay tuned!
by Téa Blake | Aug 24, 2012 | Gender Research, InPower Women Blog
Study: Why you didn’t land the top job (CBS News, 2011, Weisul)
Finding: Many job seekers at all levels don’t understand what the hiring managers are actually looking for in the interview process, and because of this they tend to emphasize the wrong characteristics and traits.
Note about The Woman Effect Research Index: This study was performed by researchers not affiliated with InPower Women. Our Research Index includes all relevant research to the subject of women, business and power. We do not influence how the research was conducted or reported by the researchers. In our abstracts, we focus on pulling out the most actionable advice for individual women. To suggest additional research we should index, or discuss our choice of abstract focus, please contact us
InPower Insight: Don’t underqualify yourself by bringing the wrong interviewing skills to the executive table.
Summary:
Listen up job seekers and corporate ladder-climbers, if you’re vying for that executive level top job you had better brush up on your interviewing skills. If you’re using outdated interviewing skills it may not matter how up-to-date your work ethic or experience is. (more…)
by Téa Blake | Aug 17, 2012 | Gender Research, InPower Women Blog
Study: Women in Charge: The Impact of Female Managers on Gender Inequality (Academy of Management, 2012)
Finding: Despite a widely held assumption that women in leadership will help promote women throughout the organization, in at least one organization this didn’t happen.
InPower Insight: Women’s equality is not a woman’s issue, it’s a cultural issue.
Summary:
MIT doctoral student Mabel Abraham studied a US bank with a significant percentage of women in management and found that – counter to the myth that women in leadership will help more women below them advance – they didn’t have much of an effect on gender inequality in the workplace. (more…)
by Dana Theus | Aug 16, 2012 | Coaching Advice, Insights & Inspiration
What if you KNEW your unique, authentic leadership style was EXACTLY what your team needed from you? How would you lead then?
If you think the real you – the one under the corporatemask – isn’t any good at leading, have you ever really given her a fair shot? No one is perfect the first time they do anything, so go easy on yourself, know that your authentic style is evolving just like you are. And it’s as good at your job as you are too! (After all, even if you haven’t let it out, it’s gone to the office with you every day you’re entire career). Don’t keep your best talent on the bench!
When has your unique style worked for you best? When did it get in the way a bit? What happened and what did you learn from it?
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by Dana Theus | Aug 15, 2012 | Coaching Advice, Leadership
Author Note: I wrote this post for a leadership blog. I think the content stands up along side the best in “leadership literature.” I didn’t point it out in the original article, but I will here, that three of the four interviewees are women. What I learned doing these interviews is that good leaders approach leadership the same way, regardless of their gender. Hooray for the human experience. -DT
In leadership and management we love to look at best practices. In leadership literature we love to look at the people themselves for insights into what makes a great leader. People are so interesting! Here are my top-line takeaways from some interviews I’ve done recently with a diverse group of leaders including a newly minted COO, the President of a boutique ad agency, an Air Force Lt General and the Chief of Security for Microsoft. Despite the differences in their responsibilities, their wisdom boils down to some glaring similarities we can all learn from. (more…)
by Dana Theus | Aug 11, 2012 | Coaching Advice, Insights & Inspiration
Personal power tip: know that every choice you make is an act of power. Pay attention to your choices and you InPower yourself.
Think the little choices don’t matter? Try noticing every choice you make for an entire day. If you get tired, notice that you don’t have to choose and that’s ok too.
When each and every small choice becomes easy the big choices do too.
What do you think? When do your choices make you feel most powerful?
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by Dana Theus | Aug 7, 2012 | Career Development, Coaching Advice, Innovation, Leadership, People Skills
There’s a particular skill that middle managers who will become more than middle managers learn, and it’s not something that is taught in business school. It’s one of the reasons that we all benefit from good mentors, who really understand “how things work.” This particular skill is the ability to understand the human dynamics of the business, office or industry well enough to navigate a good idea up the chain. It’s a proclivity for “politics,” by which I don’t mean running for public office.
Many people “hate politics” and struggle to master the human skills inherent with understanding and working within the agendas of all the people who can help you succeed. But over the years I’ve noticed that some people, many women among them, struggle even more with this kind of “politics” because they feel like the deck is stacked against them. They want the quality of their work to speak for itself without the need for them to champion it and risk its failure. They want to win every time. (more…)
by Téa Blake | Aug 3, 2012 | Gender Research, InPower Women Blog
Study: Five Myths about Women in Combat (Washington Post, 2011, Blair)
Finding: Five common myths surrounding women and their leadership abilities in the military and in combat situations are unfounded and women are capable of serving in the same capacity as their male counterparts in all areas of military service, including combat.
Note about The Woman Effect Research Index: This study was performed by researchers not affiliated with InPower Women. Our Research Index includes all relevant research to the subject of women, business and power. We do not influence how the research was conducted or reported by the researchers. In our abstracts, we focus on pulling out the most actionable advice for individual women. To suggest additional research we should index, or discuss our choice of abstract focus, please contact us
InPower Insight: Allow women the same training and opportunities as men and see that they are just as capable of being effective leaders in and out of combat.
Summary:
This article written by Maj. Jane Blair, Marine Corps Reservist, looks to debunk five common myths surrounding women in combat and cites several studies in support of her conclusions. Major Blair looks at each of these myths, breaks them down, and exposes them as evidence that women might be granted the same duties and opportunities as their male counterparts. (more…)
