Monthly Archives: November 2013

#202 – How to Provide Encouragement

As we enter the end-of-the-year holiday season, it’s an apropos time to focus on the leader’s role in expressing appreciation. It’s one of the most important responsibilities of a leader. I use the word responsibility quite intentionally. This is not an optional item on the job description. Positive communication is an essential leadership skill. Over the next few weeks, I will address several different types of positive communication. We’ll start with encouragement.

Food for Thought ~

Encouragement involves being supportive, heartening someone with encouraging words. It is intended to give courage, hope or confidence to a person who may feel unsure or discouraged. It can be as simple as a quiet “I have confidence in you.” Or, it can be vociferous cheerleading for a rousing team effort. Encouragement may be one to one, or it may be addressed to a group or an entire organization going through a difficult time. Good leaders provide encouragement when it’s needed. An encouraging leader can make the difference in how an organization weathers difficult times and thrives during good times.

Question for the day ~

How are you at providing encouragement when and where it’s needed? How might you improve your skills?

A Footnote ~

It’s instructive to think of this from a personal perspective. Think of a time when you received some important encouragement and how much difference it made. Conversely, think of a time when you badly needed encouragement and how much difference it could have made. Use your insights from this simple exercise to make a resolution about providing encouragement to others.

Mary

#201 (201 Exclamations!) – “The Determiner”

An experienced leader suggested this topic, and it’s one I call a “sleeper.” I don’t recall seeing books or articles on the subject. It’s not sexy or controversial. As a matter of fact it’s often overlooked. And yet, it is a powerful “determiner.” It can make the difference between success or failure. It can elevate an activity, strategy, or enterprise from average to excellent. Conversely, the lack of it can compromise or even torpedo an otherwise worthy effort. What is it? Attention to detail.

Food for Thought ~

Many professions are fundamentally about attention to detail – accounting and finance being perhaps the most obvious in business. Highly skilled executive assistants exhibit this quality. Manufacturing processes, medical procedures, and graphic design are just a few additional examples of disciplines that rely on successful attention to detail. Actually, almost anything done to a high level of excellence involves attention to detail. Leadership activities often deal with intangible issues, making attention to detail all the more challenging. Leaders who have learned to slow down enough to notice details, and take the time necessary to discuss and resolve important details, have a far better batting average. My caveat: attention to detail is not the same thing as perfectionism. This is an important distinction. How to make that distinction? Evaluate the importance of the detail under consideration and then do a cost : benefit analysis of the time and effort it would take to resolve that detail.

Question for the day ~

Are you good at attention to detail? If not, is there someone in a leadership role in your organization who can make sure that base is covered?

A Footnote ~

You are probably familiar with the well-known book and movie called “101 Dalmatians.” My subtitle for this post is a takeoff on that title. I started writing this weekly essay in January of 2010, and this is post # 201. Thus, purely for whimsey, the subtitle for today’s missive: “201 Exclamations!”

Mary

#200 – The Currency of Leadership

The defining role of leaders is made manifest in their conversations, especially now, in the era of knowledge workers. Leading and managing people is really a series of conversations. It’s the informal stop in the hallway, the formal business meeting, and everything in between. Thus, it makes sense for leaders to hone their skills in the art of conversation. However, because conversations are something we do all the time, and have for all of our lives, we often don’t appreciate their significance. I believe the artful skill of conversation is an “invisible advantage.” The capacity to have consistently productive, efficient, and meaningful conversations is one of the best indicators of exceptional leadership. It’s one of the “the quiet arts” of an effective leader ~ the seemingly simple act of consistently convening and conducting high-caliber conversations.

Food for Thought ~

Many of the problems in organizations could be avoided, or at least minimized, by improving initial conversations. If the people involved are clear from the beginning, have a shared vision of the desired outcomes, and agree on the steps to take, a successful result is more likely. This applies to everything from a hiring interview to a new strategic initiative. Of course, in these complicated times of changing circumstances, and accepting the fallibility of human communication, problems cannot be completely avoided. When they happen, a skillful conversation about those problems will determine the next chapter. Are the issues resolved or still unclear? I encourage you to be mindful in each and every conversation. Conversations are the currency of leadership.

Question for the day ~

Have you considered your skill at conducting conversations? Where are you strong, and where might your skills need improvement?

A Footnote ~

An excellent resource on the subject of conversation is the book Crucial Conversations, and its companion book that addresses conflict, Crucial Confrontations, by Patterson, Grenny, McMillan, and Switzler.

Mary