As constraints, obstacles and challenges multiply, wise leaders consciously devote time and attention to developing and fostering ingenuity in their organizations. Last week I had the opportunity to spend a day on the campus of Stanford University, learning from cross-disciplinary faculty there about the application of creativity principles to business. Here’s part of what I learned from Tina Seelig, a popular professor in the School of Engineering, who teaches entrepreneurship and innovation. This is great information for leaders who want to nurture creative problem-solving and innovation in their organizations.

Food for Thought ~

Seelig has identified 6 elements that when combined, maximize creativity and innovation. The first three are personal, and the second three are organizational.
1. Information base / knowledge
2. Creative Imagination
3. Belief that you can solve the problem + a passion to do so
4. Physical habitats that support innovation (team, rules, physical space)
5. Resources (time, money, community of support and expertise)
6. Culture (the “background music” of the organization)

Question for the day ~

How would you describe your personal level of creativity at work? How would you assess your organization’s culture in terms of supporting creativity and innovation?

Tina Seelig’s new book is called inGenius: A Crash Course on Creativity; and here’s a link to her TEDx Stanford talk on creativity.

Mary

Leaders must remember that their decisions impact people’s lives. Because leaders may be several steps removed from the results of decisions they make, the human impacts can sometimes be overlooked. Here are two stories, literally close to home for me personally, that illustrate two very different approaches taken by decision-makers.

Case A: A school decides to put in a solar energy system to save money on utilities and become more environmentally sustainable – great! Not so great was the fact they did not communicate with their neighbors about the project nor that it would involve cutting down a beautiful stand of mature redwood trees that also served as a sound and visual barrier on the school’s property line.

Case B: A winery purchased a long-standing apple orchard in a semi-residential area and is converting it to a vineyard. The president of the winery and his wife made a personal visit to each of the adjacent property owners to introduce themselves, explain what to expect and when, and answer any questions.

Food for Thought ~

Leaders constantly make decision after decision, and the sheer volume of decision-making can sometimes result in becoming inured to the impacts of their decisions. Whether this reflects self-protection or a lack of compassion, it’s a strategic and humanistic miscalculation. Wise leaders consciously work to maintain their connection with the human side of decision equations. Great leaders are also great humanitarians. Anything less is an administrator, not a leader.

Question for the day ~

When have you been on the receiving end of “just a business decision” that impacted you or your company? What decisions have you made, or are currently making, for which you need to consider the human impacts?

Let’s each do our part to bring more humanity to our corner of the world.

Mary

Have you noticed the frequency of articles and workshops on the topic of how to be a better listener? Apparently there are many people that need to improve their listening skills. Listening is one of the primary methods good leaders, real leaders, use for gathering information. They want to learn what others think and feel, their ideas, concerns, and opinions. They listen to identify trends and notice early indicators. A leader who does not listen is putting their organization at risk if they believe their opinion is superior to others; that they do not need to hear other viewpoints; that they know all they need to know. (Uh oh…the warning light is flashing.)

Food for Thought ~

Great leaders have a genuine curiosity and interest in others, and seek to understand and learn by listening. They are not afraid of what they might hear, and welcome candor and forthrightness. They know that good listening is one of the keys to building good relationships, and that leads to a great organization. They know they don’t know everything, yet they do know they are the primary role model for demonstrating the value of good listening skills.

Question for the day ~

How do you rate yourself as a listener? Do you expect people in your organization to be good listeners? What important things have you learned lately by listening?

Thanks to my readers who take a moment to write. Your feedback is important to me ~ I’m listening!

Mary

There are a lot of paradoxes in organizational life. One is that organizations can be both resilient and fragile. It is a leader’s job to maximize the resilience and minimize the fragility. When I am at the helm of an organization, I keenly feel the responsibility to “protect” it from harm. Of course, not being omnipotent, I have only a certain degree of influence, but I take it very seriously. Part of that means to provide a safe and healthy work environment. It also means to manage the boundaries, the places where the organization interfaces with the external environment: other entities, regulatory agencies, suppliers and vendors, and even customers and the general public. That involves providing whatever preparation, training and support is needed for those who work at the boundaries.

Food for Thought ~

Leaders cannot insulate their people or their organizations from external influences, but we can do our best to protect them from danger and yet, at the same time, expose them to reality. Leaders can’t stop change or eliminate risks, but we can prepare people for changes and challenges. In other words, we can help them to be resilient.

Question for the day ~

How does your organization handle its boundaries with the external world? Are you providing leadership in preparing for change, anticipating external challenges, and developing resilience?

The Labor Day holiday is an opportunity to appreciate progress. A turn of the (previous) century industrialist would hardly recognize today’s workplace.

Mary

Sometimes we minimize the value of familiar phrases. One illustration is the phrase “leading by example.” We’ve all heard it, and no doubt give it credence, but let it go at that. It’s worth much more than a passing thought. One of my all-time favorite quotes on leadership is by Albert Schweitzer, the Nobel Peace Prize winner who was a musician/physician/philosopher/theologian from Alsace-Lorraine. He said:
“Example is not the main thing in influencing others. It is the only thing.”
To my mind, that sums it up quite neatly. As a leader, if you use nothing other than this for your guiding principle, you will be well-advised.

Food for Thought ~

Think of the people in your life who have influenced you, both for better and for worse. Most likely it was their example, what they did, even more than what they said. It’s very powerful when your conduct and your words are consistent, and you use language to verbally express the thoughts and values related to your behavior and actions. Remember that the power of example will always outweigh any other type of influence. As a leader, you are always being observed and evaluated based on what you say and do. Use that visibility wisely.

Question for the day ~

Do you conduct yourself as a leader with this in mind? Are there any ways you might improve your leading by example?

Mary

One of the seemingly simple, yet incredibly important, characteristics of leaders is that they follow through. And that applies in both directions. After delegating, giving an assignment or providing direction, a good leader will follow up. Checking in gives you a chance to clarify any misunderstandings, to make course corrections if needed, and to remind people about critical deadlines or details. It’s also an opportunity to teach, mentor, encourage and acknowledge. Of course, follow through goes the other way too, when you are the one who’s responsible for execution. It’s equally important to do your “assignments.” If you have a job to do, then do it as agreed. If the timeline proves untenable or circumstances change, communicate or re-negotiate, but don’t fail to do your part or do it poorly.

Food for Thought ~

Leaders are held to a higher standard. And that’s as it should be. If you want to be esteemed as a leader, then you need to perform your job with high standards for personal excellence. Following through is one of those standards.

Question for the day ~

How are you at following through? Are you equally good at follow through in both directions?

Mary

Much of the art of leadership lies in its subtleties. One of them is the distinction between providing direction and providing answers. Although oftentimes people want answers, it’s frequently more valuable to provide direction than answers. Encourage and teach people to be critical thinkers, to research, to gather information and differing perspectives, to consider various scenarios. Pose thoughtful and revealing questions that will guide the way forward. Think of yourself as a human compass that helps your organization keep its bearing.

Food for Thought ~

Good leaders realize that even though they know a lot, they don’t know everything. Being a leader is not so much about being “in charge” as it is about being out in front, sensing the world around you and your organization, paying attention to clues, and staying in touch with that reality. Smart leaders encourage people to help find good answers to important questions.

Question for the day ~

Are you able to resist the temptation to answer all the questions that are brought to you?

By the way, don’t you love people who ask great questions? I do!

Mary

The Olympics offer example after example of the many facets of leadership. Most of the events are for individuals, relating nicely to my recent theme that self-management is a requisite for leaders. (We cannot effectively manage or lead others if we cannot manage ourselves.) There are also events that require a partnership. And of course there are many events for teams with multiple members, where the leadership lessons become even more apparent.

Food for Thought ~

The Olympic Games received its name from Mt. Olympus in Greece, the mythological home of the Greek gods. It is thus associated with magnificence, the achievement of great attainments, and also with having superhuman calm and detachment. As a casual observer, it is not always obvious to me who the leaders are on any given team. However, I am quite sure they are there – guiding, teaching, encouraging, and generally inspiring their team to do their best.

Question for the day ~

If you are watching the Olympics, have you seen any great demonstrations of leadership? What is your response to the secondary definition cited above describing an Olympian as having superhuman calm and detachment?”

May the Olympics serve to remind the world community of our shared humanity.

Mary

In the class I taught on business management, one of the discussion topics was the distinction between management and leadership. The disciplines are surely closely related, but not synonymous. Management is primarily concerned with the efficient and effective execution of an organization’s strategies. It is the realm of operations – systems, structures, staff supervision and the implementation of policies and procedures. Leadership is primarily concerned with the strategic issues of the organization – defining and communicating its vision, mission, values and markets, and working with people – inspiring, challenging, encouraging, protecting, listening to and teaching, just to name a few of the people skills. Leadership is ensuring that the organization as a whole is greater than the sum of its parts and that all of the strategies are interconnected, consistent and integrated.

Food for Thought ~

There have been debates about which is more important, strategy or execution, leadership or management. Both, of course, are vitally important, and great companies exhibit excellence in both of these arenas. In fact, both disciplines are interwoven and interdependent. Individuals may be better at one or the other, and some are good at both management and leadership. Both are essential for an organization’s success, and it’s the best leaders who ensure that the management and leadership bases are fully covered.

Question for the day ~

Do you consider yourself to be a leader or a manager or both? Which one is your stronger skill set? Which role do you prefer?

I enjoyed and appreciated all the comments on last week’s post – thank you! I love it when my readers write ~ a nice completion of the feedback loop.

Mary

One of the most compelling TEDTalks I’ve seen is by Shawn Achor, a Harvard PhD who has extensively researched positive psychology. His remarkable finding is that happiness increases our success, energy, and access to our intellectual resources. The neurotransmitter chemical dopamine increases when we experience happiness and apparently serves to ignite learning centers in the brain. His research findings contradict the traditional maxim of “If I work hard to achieve my goals, I will be successful and then I’ll be h Continue reading →