Leadership Solutions

Leadership: Important Warning

If I were to put a warning label on this blog it would be:
 

Caution! Using the ideas presented in these articles could lead to success in your business and your life.

Of course, successful people are always seeking ways to improve. That's why they read blogs like this one. So they would ignore such a warning. It might even attract them.

In fact, all my clients have this in common. They value learning as the key to becoming more successful. They work hard. They set goals. They take risks.

They focus on what is possible. And then they do it.

This means my clients are a very impressive group of people.

This also opens up a curiosity.

You see, my clients read books. They buy workshops from me and other experts. They attend conferences. As a result, they are very well informed.

Yet they keep acquiring more information than their less successful counterparts, whom (you might assume) need it more. You may wonder why this is so.

I notice this in my workshops. The active learners always attend. On the other hand, the rest don't. For example, sometimes a participant in one of my workshops will ask, "Where's Zoof?" (Note: Zoof is a fictitious name.)

"Why," I'll ask.

"Because Zoof needs this more than anyone in here."

So, where is Zoof?

Possibly responding to the caution: Learning makes you more successful.

Key Point: Learning of course is just the first step. Applying the learning is the step that makes success a reality.

Much success,

Steve Kaye

714-528-1300

PS: Call me to talk about workshops that show people how to be more successful.
 

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Leadership: What If You're Too Busy?

Let's suppose that you're too busy to prepare an agenda. What should you do?

The answer is simple: Cancel the meeting.

Here's why:

1) Bad Impression.

An unplanned meeting shows an inability to plan. This could ruin a career if such a failing became a personal brand within an organization. Many executives use a person's ability to lead a meeting as a basis for awarding promotions. Thus, it's unlikely that top executives would trust larger responsibilities to someone who was unable to manage a small activity such as a meeting.

2) Wrong Result.

When people are stuck without a plan, they drift. Then they feel frustrated. This leads to anger, and people never make wise decisions when they're mad. Thus, any decision will probably be a bad one -- incomplete, inappropriate, or impossible.

3) Cause Problems.

When people feel threatened, as they will in a meeting without direction, they attempt to protect themselves. They do this by either over performing or under performing. Either of these leads to mistakes. They say dumb things. They hurt each other's feelings. Or they avoid saying anything. All of this damages the relationships necessary for effective cooperation after the meeting. The result is problems in other work areas.

4) Cost Money.

People are hired to work on tasks that move a business forward. No one is hired to sit in a conference room arguing over what they should be talking about. Thus, time spent in a bad meeting prevents people from working on things that make money for the business.

Of course, there is an exception to the first point.

If you work for a business where no one knows how to hold an effective meeting, a bad meeting may appear normal. Then people can be promoted for the wrong reasons.

In that case, be warned. Such an organization has a limited future.

There are two options if this describes your organization:

1) Save the business. Buy a workshop that shows people how to hold better, effective meetings.

2) Leave.

Key Point: If you're too busy to plan, then you're too busy to deal with the problems that follow.

Much success,

Steve Kaye

714-528-1300

PS: My workshop on Effective Meetings shows practical techniques that work.

Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator

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Leadership: A Look Inside

Have you wondered what it's like to publish a blog?

For example, this blog is published five times a week, each time consisting of about 200 to 350 words. Since starting May 2007, I have published 578 blog articles.

Here's my process.

1) Collect Ideas.

I am always seeking ideas for my blog and other articles, such as my monthly newsletter. I jot these ideas on index cards while walking, on scrap paper while working, and so. Then I save these notes in a folder. Right now, that folder contains a 2-in thick stack of ideas. This serves as a valuable resource in case I run low on current ideas. Right now I have about a dozen on my desk.

2) Draft Ideas.

I'll write blog articles weeks in advance. Some of these drafts may wait months before I edit them into a context that I want to publish. Some of them may be published in other places, such as on article web sites.

3) Store Ideas.

I keep my blogs in a FileMaker database.
 

- - - Screen Shot of my blog database - - -


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This database also serves to manage publication of the blogs. For example, I have set up scripts that assemble text, combining the article, the key point, and the signature information. Other scripts log on to TypePad. (I also have other databases that I use to save longer articles, poems, and general ideas.)

4) Post Ideas.

Ideally, I have at least a few days worth of blogs waiting to appear. For example, this morning (September 4) I've been writing and posting blogs for next week. This blog will appear a week later on Friday, September 11.

5) Publish Ideas.

The FileMaker database also helps me sort and organize articles on particular topics. This is useful, for example, when I want to compile collections of these articles into a larger work, such as a book.

There's an important message in this.

Notice that I have developed a system to help me with an important task: preparing and publishing blogs. This makes my work more efficient and the results more effective.

So how about you?

Have you developed systems to manage key activities in your business? Do you keep track of valuable ideas? Are you moving the results of your work upward into places of greater visibility so that you can profit fully from them?

Key Point: Build systems, they make work easier.

Much success,

Steve Kaye

714-528-1300
 

PS: Building systems is one of the topics covered in my workshop on Time Management.
 

PPS: Here it is September 9, and I'm making minor changes in this blog to include ideas that occurred to me during the past week. I also added a screen shot of the top part of my blog database.

Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator

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Leadership: Wrong Type of News

It's not the good news that matters.

Now, I realize that we all work to create good news. We strive for raises, promotions, praise, and profitability. We want our team to win, and so on.

But consider a world that produced only good news.

We'd get bored. The very thought of relentless good news is enough to make us yawn.

So, we need bad news.

Here's why.

1) It teaches lessons.

Bad news happens because people made mistakes. If we pay attention, we can learn how to avoid making the same mistakes. 

2) It inspires action.

Bad news is so offensive that it motivates people to prevent recurrences. So, we build things, invent systems, and start organizations. Every noble effort was launched by someone who was disturbed by bad news.

3) It sets boundaries.

Bad news is reality in action. It shows the result of going too far, ignoring basic principles, and failing to follow common sense. So, bad news serves to contain the extremes of human behavior.

Of course, no one wants to be the object of bad news. This is a form of excitement that we prefer to leave for others.

 

We'd much rather be the object of good news.

That's easy to accomplish, too. All we have to do is work hard, make ethical choices, learn new skills, and apply common sense.

Key Point: Bad news is useful, as long as we learn something from it.

Much success,

Steve Kaye

714-528-1300
 

PS: My workshops show leaders how to create good news.

Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator

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Leadership: Truth Discovered

We all seek the truth, sort of.

That's because few of us want to hear the truth from others. In fact, we'll make life difficult for anyone who attempts to tell us the truth.

Consider, for example, how happy you were during a performance review when your boss told you to change something. Some people argue with their boss during a performance review. Or, they provide a smoke screen distraction to change the focus of the conversation. Or they agree to "try," with no intentions of changing anything.

Of course, in this case, the truth has merit. After all, it's your boss's job to help you improve your performance.

In other cases, however, you may be even less pleased to hear advice. This happens because some people use feedback with suspect motives.

They may be retaliating with impossible suggestions. They may be using their "helpful advice" to make themselves appear superior. Or, they may be using criticism to keep you small.

In any case, we seldom welcome receiving advice from others.

And yet, our effectiveness depends upon knowing the real honest absolute truth about ourselves.

So, where do we find it?

That, by the way, is the catch.

You see, the truth is where it has always been. It's inside of you.

And, you find it by being candid with yourself when evaluating the results that you obtain from the things that you do.

This requires asking yourself tough questions until you uncover the real answers. Sometimes you'll know that you have found the really important truth when it makes you miserable. At least it will the first time. After that you'll realize that truth is welcome news because it frees you from limitations that held you back.

And that's what life is all about.

Seeking truth and then applying it to ourselves.

Key Point: Seeking and applying truth is the process that leads to continual growth.

Much success,

Steve Kaye

714-528-1300
 

PS: My workshop on Life Mastery includes powerful techniques for discovering the truth about one's self.

Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator

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Leadership: Disturbing Numbers

Few young people think about long term financial planning.

It's so remote that they trust it will somehow take care of itself. Or they expect to take care of it later, such as when they reach retirement.

That's big mistake. They could reach age 65 with no savings and no income.

This is especially important for:

1) People in entrepreneurial careers with intermittent income.

2) People who have adopted a debt-based lifestyle.

3) People who have ignored managing their careers to maximize the return on their investment of time spent working.

Here are two important facts:

1) Your Social Security income depends upon the payments that you made while working.

First, you must have paid Social Security taxes in a total of at least 40 quarters (10 years) to qualify for any payment, regardless how much you paid during that time.

Second, your Social Security income will depend upon how much you paid into the system while working. People who paid the maximum over a long career will receive the maximum income. Those who paid less will receive less. For example, a Social Security agent told me that one person in her area was receiving only $5 per month.

2) You will need to have saved at least 25 times your annual withdrawal from savings to guarantee a lifetime income from your investments. Note that this assumes that your investments will grow by an average of at least 4% after inflation and account management fees. The amount needed from savings will depend upon many things, such as the amount received as a pension (which will be larger for those who spent an entire career working for the same company), the amount received from Social Security, and lifestyle.

Consider this a friendly nudge to being financial planning now.

Be wise in making selections. Recognize there is an inverse relationship between risk and reward. That is, those investments with high returns involve high risk. Recognize that established companies are there because they have delivered consistently reliable service over long time.

Key Point: Financial planning is an essential part of time management.

Much success,

Steve Kaye

714-528-1300

PS: My workshop on Time Management shows easy ways to prepare for the future.

Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator

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Leadership: Labor Day

The first Labor Day holiday was celebrated on Tuesday, September 5, 1882, in New York City. Then in 1884, the first Monday in September was selected as the holiday.

Labor Day was established as a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.

This can be a moment of pride for all of us.

Everything that we have is here because people worked hard to build it. They overcome obstacles, hardships, and setbacks. They endured every imaginable type of discomfort. And yet, they persisted.

We must continue to do the same.

There are huge challenges ahead and we need everybody.

Key Point: Take a moment to be grateful for the people who built what we have.

Much success,

Steve Kaye

714-528-1300

Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator

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Leadership: The Real Problem With Fear

We know that fear is bad.

On the surface, it prevents people from realizing their full potential. Beneath that, there's a darker problem.

Fear attracts or causes the exact thing that the person fears.

For example, someone who is afraid of failure will avoid taking the risks that are a necessary part of achieving success. That leads to failure. In more extreme cases, the person will avoid doing anything, which guarantees failure.

This matters because you probably have people like this in your organization. (I'll add, everyone has some amount of fear in them. The difference between high performers and low performers is that successful people manage their fears more effectively.)

You may have already tried helping the low performers with enticements (e.g., "You could earn more if you did the work") or threats (e.g., "You'll be fired if you don't do the work").

Another approach is to apply a process of orchestrated successes.

That is, give the person tasks that are relatively easy to complete. Then encourage further effort by finding something commendable about the person's effort. As the person achieves successes, increase the difficulty of the tasks.

I realize that in some cases, finding praise may require creativity. For example, about 25 years ago I had to evaluate a speech that someone refused to give. So, I commended the person for showing up and offered encouragement to give the speech at the next meeting. (Good news: He came back and delivered a speech at the next meeting.)

This can also matter if you find fear keeping yourself from things that need to be done.

In that case, the solution is simply: 1) Find the fear, 2) Recognize that every fear is a nightmare that people give themselves, and 3) Throw it out.

Some people will take care of this last step by writing the fear on a piece of paper, which they destroy. Some even hold a special ceremony to commemorate the end of a bad dream. Others seek out the help of a coach or counselor.
 

Key Point: Life is too important to be wasted on fear.

Much success,

Steve Kaye

714-528-1300

Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator

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Leadership: A Good Decision

This happens in everyone's life.

They reach an time when they pause to reflect upon what they have done. It often happens coincident with a major milestone, such as reaching 40, or 65, or January 1.

Then they confront what they have done with their life.

If they have done well, they feel good. They know that they have built something that endures. They know that they are moving into a comfortable future. They know that they have helped others. 

Then they can talk about what they have done and how they did it.

On the other hand, if they have done poorly, they feel bad. They know that they could have done better or done more. They may even know that they have caused harm.

Then they have to hide behind excuses and blame.

So, here is a friendly reminder that:

1) Our time is brief. We have one chance to live well. And living well is based on making good decisions.

2) The future matters more than the past, unless you decide to stay in the past. So, live forward into making good decisions. This means that anyone can improve upon the past. Even successful people can find ways to expand their success.

3) A workshop on time management can provide a comprehensive approach to living well. I know, for example, that my workshop does this. Attending it could be one of the best decisions that you make. As you might expect, the people who appreciate my workshop the most are the ones who are already doing well.

Call if you'd like details.

Key Point: The decisions that you make today determine the choices you will have tomorrow.

Much success,

Steve Kaye

714-528-1300

Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator

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Leadership: Boss Held Hostage

Here is a myth that you'll find in almost every large business.

It is: Our "star performer" is too good to lose.

This is nice if that "star" gets along with others. It's a problem if the "star" also happens to be a toxic employee.

Then, management is afraid to confront the person's toxic behavior. For example, I've heard about one toxic "star" who told his boss that the business would go bankrupt if he left. (This by the way is a threat.)

In effect, this boss is being held hostage by the possibility that this "star" might leave and take all current and future success with him.

Let's recognize some realities.

1) There are almost seven billion people on this planet. At least one of them has to be just as smart, clever, and knowledgeable as any "star" in any organization. There might be millions of them. Some of them might even be already in the organization. More so, it's possible that any of them would be better (as in more productive) than the current toxic "star."

2) This toxic "star" costs a business money by depressing the performance of everyone who works nearby. Thus, replacing a toxic "star" with an average performer would result in a net productivity gain that far outweighed losing the one "star."

3) Toxic behavior is always a mask used to hide some deficiency. This means that the "star" is underperforming in other areas that cost the business money. Often this is being neglected because everyone is afraid to talk to the toxic "star" about anything.

So, what do you do?

First, I wrote this blog as a friendly nudge for the toxic "stars" to stop their toxic behavior. Threats and myths never lead to a lasting result. Recognize that during difficult times business leaders begin seeking improvements, and firing the toxic "stars" often ends up at the top of the list. Hard times thus provide an excuse to take care of overdue housecleaning.

Second, if you are a boss, recognize that it's time to have a candid conversation with that bothersome "star." It may be possible to start a program that helps this "star" become are real superstar who adds genuine value to the business. Check with your HR department for guidance on how to proceed.

Key Point: Anyone can be replaced. We need to remember this as we strive to be part of results that last.

Much success,

Steve Kaye

714-528-1300

Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator

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