This year on International Women's Day I am sharing a story about a woman and how she leads differently from the men around her, and is highly effectively in the process. I'm hopeful that in dialogs like these we're finally moving beyond the question of "are woman better leaders than men?" and...
Our economy needs women in leadership. When women are more than tokens in leadership – representing over 30 percent of the team in diverse business specialties – their organizations perform demonstrably better. Not only are women naturally good leaders, showing the capacity to balance their...
Some athletes are simply not destined to get the gold. Women have a record-breaking presence in the Olympics this year - every nation sporting women on their teams for the first time in history and more women than men on the U.S. team. But when I look at the participation stats across the other...
I have been honored with a regular writing gig at the Smartblog on Leadership - an extention of the Smartbrief empire. This was my first post as a contributing author and it generated a lot of interesting comments (read them here). The comments reminded me that there are plenty of people (men AND...
Most leadership books and gurus will tell you that leaders are learners and full of curiosity. Sometimes, this penchant can get you into trouble and – as many entrepreneurs learn the hard way – lead you traipsing off after some little bright shiny thing, letting your business languish. This kind...
Old boss - mentoring and advancement opportunities. New boss - frustration, competition, neglect, stupidity and powerlessness. What's your strategy for getting ahead now? In the last week, I've talked to three people in situation "new boss" - at all levels including a CXO (no, my friends,...
Yes, Steve Jobs changed the world. He was brilliant, fearless, courageous and undeniably successful by all measures but one. But, in his most blatant imperfection, I see great opportunity for you. The ends don’t justify the means I know that part of your justification for being a jerk and a...
Even when I left Corporate America, I didn't leave. For at least a few years I think I was still caught in the corporate culture trance as I contracted in semi-permanent positions. It was lucrative and fun, but I didn't really experience the freedom of the outside until later. Freedom can be...
Sometimes we run into people in positions of power who just seem incapable of getting their ego out of the way. Regardless of how “successful” they appear on the outside – and how many rewards they receive for it – it’s a drudge to work for them and the company suffers the inefficiency of a demotivated workforce. Most organizations – especially large ones – that I’ve worked for tend to treat these ego-leaders as a cost of doing business.
What they don’t seem to realize is that by tolerating a toxic boss they are failing to realize productivity and innovation while sending the message to the entire employee base that, “we know this person abuses their position but we care more about them and their results than we care about you and all the productivity we could get out of you if we and the ego-boss respected you.”
Although I don’t think it happens often enough, it does happen that the egomaniac sees the errors of their ways and switches perspective to become the servant leader.
Make your YES mean more by saying NO more often. Saying “No” is hard because we don’t just say the word, we burden it with other – unsaid – baggage on both the sayer’s and receiver’s part. But it doesn’t have to be that way and powerful leaders know how to use the Art of No in ways that leave the listener feeling useful, appreciated and inspired. Learn to practice the Art of No. Your team will thank you for it.
October 2024 Leadership Development Carnival
Breaking the Mold: Thriving as Women in the Workplace Built for Men
Unlocking Potential: How the Right Coach for Executives Can Transform Your Leadership Skil…
The Psychology of Goal-Setting Success
How to be Feminine, Ambitious and Successful: Navigating the Gender Gap in Workplace Ambit…
