1) Enter e-mail & click on button below
2) Verify request
3) Confirm in follow up e-mail
« April 2010 | Main | June 2010 »
- - -
Leadership, like photography, includes the art of seeing opportunities.
Much success,
Steve Kaye
Leadership Expert and Author of Create Success
714-528-1300
P.S. Come back tomorrow for an article on leaving a legacy.
Would you allow your children to do something that made your job as a parent difficult?
By difficult, I mean something that encouraged disobedience, disrespect, and destruction?
Consider this:
1) TV Sitcoms
Most sitcoms feature a fool because fools are funny. Popular fools include: an idiot father, a helpless mother, a tyrannical boss, or an evil authority.
Watching such shows imprints the message that parents and other authorities are stupid or evil. This undermines your authority.
Better: Turn off the TV. Use the time to read or engage in family activities.
2) Video Games
Many video games feature destruction. The players kill enemies, monsters, and assorted other villains.
Playing such games imprints violence as the solution to problems. The result is aggression, arguments, and anger.
Better: Refuse to allow violent video games in your home. Talk to your children about them. Start a dialogue about the effect such games have on a person.
Personal footnote: I grew up watching violent TV shows - westerns, crime shows, and so on. Each of them featured fist fights and ended with the hero killing the villain. It took me decades to remove the residual trauma from these shows from my mind. And I still have nightmares about being beaten or shot.
Today's Task: Remove the mental trash from your home. After all, as the parent, you are the leader in charge of your home.
Much success,
Steve Kaye
Leadership Expert and Author of Create Success
714-528-1300
Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator
PS: My workshop on meetings shows how to make every meeting valuable.www.stevekaye.com/workshop-meetings.html
There are two sides to success.
1) There's your half.
This is the part that you control. It's also the part that tests your commitment as you persist through obstacles, set backs, and fears.
2) There's the other half.
This is the part that depends upon other people. And thus, you have very little control over this.
Yes, you can plan actions that make it easy for others to cooperate with your goals. You can ask for their help. You can write articles (like this one). And even with the best efforts, it's still possible for others (e.g., the marketplace, your management, and so on) to reject (or ignore) what you do.
For example, you could write a wonderful book. It might contain critical information that people really need. So, by writing the book, you accomplished your half.
And let's suppose that no one buys the book.
Does this mean you failed?
No, you took care of your half. Now the second half depends upon other people.
The point is, we need to acknowledge our achievements. Some of them represent incredible successes.
Then we need to keep seeking ways to help others cooperate with their half. After all, if people ignore wonderful achievements that could help them, they miss valuable opportunities.
This brings us back to the beginning. Sometimes the first half of success includes helping people discover something that would benefit them. This includes promoting your achievements at work, marketing your company's services and products, and inviting people to consider your creative works.
By the way, I have ten fantastic books that you might consider. I especially recommend: Create Success, One Great Meeting, 119 Tips for Effective Meetings, and any of my poem collections. You'll find them at: Bookstore
Today's Task: Help an author with the second half of success. Buy a book.
Much success,
Steve Kaye
Leadership Expert and Author
714-528-1300
Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator
Sometimes the path that you take goes the long way around to where you want to go.
For example, a few weeks ago I went to the Fullerton Arboretum to take photos of birds.
Point #1: I started with a goal.
If you have ever tried to photograph birds, you know that it's difficult. They won't come when you call. They refuse to pose. And they fly away when you move close to them.
Point #2: Every project has obstacles.
A half hour passed without finding a photogenic bird. (I did find birds that were too far away or hidden from view inside trees.) So, I began to wonder what else I could do with a telephoto lens. As a result, I opened my perspective to a larger range of possibilities.
Point #3: Leaders sometimes work backwards, seeking ways to use the resources they have.
While in the cactus garden, I found this flower.
- - -
- - -
Normally, I'd use a macro lens, but this flower was on a large cactus, and thus inaccessible. However, I was able to take this photo with a telephoto lens.
Point #4: Changing the rules makes new opportunities possible.
Then I walked to another part of the Arboretum. As I entered an open, grassy area, a young fellow with a bicycle pointed and called out, "There!"
Point #5: Help can come from anywhere.
This bird was flying back and forth between two trees. And when it perched on this branch, I took a photo (a dozen actually).
- - -
- - -
Point #6: Persistence leads to results.
Consider: Sometimes the path to success is unknown when we start.
Much success,
Steve Kaye
Leadership Expert and Author of Create Success
714-528-1300
Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator
Some people misunderstand Facebook.
Yes, it's a wonderful relationship tool. People can use it to stay in touch, find friends, and share news.
It's the sharing news part that causes trouble.
People post news about anything. And sometimes that Anything should never be printed anywhere.
Why?
Because anyone can find that news. This includes:
1) Job interviewers checking on candidates.
2) Buyers checking on other companies (and the people who work for them).
3) Bosses checking on their staff.
4) Investigators checking on employees.
5) Anyone checking on anyone.
For example, recently someone left a phone message asking me to call back about a possible speaking engagement.
Before calling back, I spent a few minutes checking the web. From this I determined the correct spelling of the person's name, employment history, schools attended, memberships in associations, and other details.
Then I returned the call.
I consider this basic research before starting a new dialogue. It provides a head start on what to expect and questions to ask. And I did this before proceeding with something as simple as returning a phone call.
Imagine how much information a professional search expert could find before proceeding with something critical, such as a job offer or purchase agreement.
So, use common sense when posting information about yourself on Facebook (and other social media sites). And, of course, live in such a way that all of the news about you is good news.
By the way, privacy settings offer minimal protection. Friends may post amazing news that ends up being accessible to everyone.
Today's Task: Life Mastery includes living well so that only good news about you appears on the web.
Much success,
Steve Kaye
Leadership Expert and Author of Create Success
714-528-1300
Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator
There are two types of detention in school.
There is the detention for unruly students.
And there is the detention for teachers.
This latter type of detention is also referred to as a staff meeting.
Both types of detention serve the same purpose.
1) They waste people's time.
This is cruel because your time is your life. And it's especially cruel for the teachers who are working hard to do a job.
2) They teach a lesson.
We hope students conclude the unruly behavior that earned detention should be avoided. (There is, however, a better approach. See Marv Marshall for information on this.)
Apparently, teachers also learn a lesson.
One teacher reported to me that having to sit in detention (i.e., bad meetings) showed her how painful it is to sit through dull monologues. So, she made an extra effort to provide interesting lectures for her students.
Of course, there are better ways to teach this lesson, too.
Today's Question: What lesson do people learn from attending your meetings?
Much success,
Steve Kaye
Leadership Expert and Author of One Great Meeting
714-528-1300
Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator
PS: My workshop on Effective Meetings shows how to make every meeting valuable.
If you use meetings for planning, the results determine your future.
If you use meetings for solutions, the results determine your profitability.
And if you hold bad meetings, you will have neither.
The benefits of holding effective meetings include:
1) Effective Meetings Make Money
- Smart businesses outperform their competition
- Good ideas earn a positive return on investment
- Efficient operation attracts customers
2) Effective Meetings Save Money
- Good decisions cost less to implement
- People receive pay for performance, not chit chat
- Inspired employees stay
3) Effective Meetings Increase Employee Effectiveness
- Involvement creates ownership
- Success inspires effort
- Achievement builds loyalty
4) Effective Meetings Maximize Your Human Resource
- Synergy makes the group a genius
- Teams outperform individuals
- Group wisdom knows more
5) Effective Meetings Create Expanding Excellence
- New employees imitate great leadership
- Meetings help identify new leaders
- Success leads to more success
In contrast, bad meetings:
1) Waste money by paying people to do nothing
2) Allow the loud and vocal to dominate
3) Bore people into quitting
4) Fail to produce useful results, or
5) Produce results that no one will support, or
6) Produce results that people sabotage
Today's Task: Make effective meetings a top priority in your business.
Much success,
Steve Kaye
Leadership Expert and Author of One Great Meeting
714-528-1300
Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator
PS: My workshop on Effective Meetings shows real, proven techniques that lead to results.
Every success depends upon good relationships with others. Here's how to win the support you need.
1) Acknowledge people.
Answer the phone. Return phone calls. Listen carefully when people talk to you. Be an active participant in conversations. Never use your cell phone when with others, especially in restaurants or other public places.
Remember: Acknowledgment satisfies a basic human need of being connected with society.
2) Show respect.
Use people's names when talking to them. Never invent nicknames or make fun of people's names. Be on time. Treat people as if they were smarter than you. Let others speak first. Pay attention when people talk to you.
Remember: Respect is powerful because it gives people dignity.
3) Offer Compliments.
Seek the good in everything. Avoid gossip and people who gossip. Remind people about successes they had. Focus on what works and what went well.
Remember: Warmth attracts people.
4) Be positive.
Master optimism. Accept change and new ideas. Always focus on success. Expect the best to happen. Think in terms of the future and how you can make it better. Use positive (or at least neutral) words.
Remember: Leaders sell hope.
5) Be mature.
Manage your emotions. Speak softly. Seek solutions. Let other people do well. Let people tell you things that you know. Let other people win. Share information.
Remember: Mature behavior creates trust.
Today's Task: Make kindness your top priority for today.
Much success,
Steve Kaye
Leadership Expert and Author of Create Success
714-528-1300
Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator
PS: Want to know more? My workshops show how.
The Meeting
The donuts are gone
and
the coffee is cold
but the boredom
continues.
My brain
escaped
hours ago
and refuses to return.
So I’m drawing
doodles
while someone
stands
at the projector
mumbling
in a monotone
about a slide
no one
can read.
Before this we
discussed
something
that must have been
important
because everyone
had
billions of reasons
why
it wouldn’t
work.
I just wish
there were a less
painful
way to avoid the job
I was hired to do.
- - -
Note: This poem appears in Crackers, a collection of whimsical poems.
Today's Question: Are your meetings this bad?
Much success,
Steve Kaye
Leadership Expert and Author of One Great Meeting
714-528-1300
Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator
PS: My workshop on Effective Meetings shows leaders how to hold better meetings.
You might call this Square One in personal growth.
The things that matter in life are a choice before they become a skill.
For example,
• Someone must want to listen before wanting to learn how.
• Someone must want to be kind before wanting to learn how.
• Someone must want to be successful before wanting to learn how.
And so on.
You see, if someone truly wants to do something, they will seek the skills they need.
Today's Question: What's on your Square One?
Much success,
Steve Kaye
Leadership Expert and Author of Create Success
714-528-1300
Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator