Reading this section of Maureen Gaffney’s excellent book Flourishing I was reminded of Jon Birt’s leadership at the BBC and the moment when the organisation forgot this important point.
To flourish, people need to make a connection between the practical things they are doing and some deeper value that motivates them.
So too with organizations. Organizational values such as compassion, gratitude, forgiveness, internal trust and optimism may seem remote from profitability, productivity, quality, customer retention. Yet, studies of organizations across a number of sectors have shown that those which score higher on such values perform significantly better than other organizations on precisely those practical things. Having a sense of goodness is just as important for organizations as for individuals.
Mark’s Daily Thought – Ideas from Mark Fritz to help you Get Ahead, Stay Ahead and Be Successful
Leadership is all about influence, and your influence can never be high with others unless they trust you. Therefore, trust is what makes leadership possible, and enables others to follow you…even into new and difficult challenges.
Mark’s Daily Thought – Ideas from Mark Fritz to help you Get Ahead, Stay Ahead and Be Successful
Successful leaders invest the time to find out what really motivates their people. Since motivation is an individual thing, that means taking time to really listen to what lies below the surface of what they are saying…and what points to their real motivations. When you find out, leadership becomes much easier.
In a conversation yesterday about revolutions the risk of a small, dominant group of thinkers simply replacing one leadership with another was raised. The very nature of the changes we are seeing brought about in society and organisational life by the impact of the web makes this sort of risk even more of a concern. If we are talking about distributed influence and universal access to the contribution and exchange of ideas any dominance by individuals or small groups is something to be worried about.
I am very conscious of the irony of raising this as a concern while on the point of having a book published by which process I am clearly seeking to have increased influence. I have always been fascinated by the challenge of helping things happen without being seen to make things happen. That fine balance between inspiration and direction. Phrases like “to rescue someone is to oppress them” occur to me on a daily basis. I guess what I am talking about is a new form of leadership. Leadership that involves and encourages rather than commands and controls.
The instinct to seek leaders is strong though and the temptation to succumb to this perceived need needs to be resisted.
Mark’s Daily Thought – Ideas from Mark Fritz to help you Get Ahead, Stay Ahead and Be Successful
Successful leaders are great role models, and from their habits & behaviours, their people see that they really live what they talk about (do=say). What you say and do adds power to your influence when they are consistent, and this is one of the keys to leadership success.
Mark’s Daily Thought – Ideas from Mark Fritz to help you Get Ahead, Stay Ahead and Be Successful
Whenever you are driving change across departments, you always need strong leadership to drive it successfully (and fast). Each department looks at their own self interests, and only strong leadership will help change the mindsets and approach of each department, as well as drive the necessary teamwork. Focus on getting the strong leadership first.
Mark’s Daily Thought – Ideas from Mark Fritz to help you Get Ahead, Stay Ahead and Be Successful
Leadership is influence, and the consistency of our behaviours is what keeps our influence with others high. However, the hardest person to influence is ourselves, as we often ask ourselves "Why am I not able to do it?". Successful leaders understand that the foundation of their success is built by leading themselves first.
Mark’s Daily Thought – Ideas from Mark Fritz to help you Get Ahead, Stay Ahead and Be Successful
Every company has a rhythm to it, and it is driven by the leadership. The foundation of this rhythm comes from the company’s values, and how they are communicated and reinforced. Successful companies focus on maintaining this rhythm, as they view it as the foundation for their success, both today’s and their future success.
Mark’s Daily Thought – Ideas from Mark Fritz to help you Get Ahead, Stay Ahead and Be Successful
You have heard the expression "a fish out of water". Certain leadership styles fit some cultures better than others. That’s why if your leadership style is not a good fit for the company culture you are in, then everything seems a struggle. A culture that fits you will make your leadership role feel almost "effortless".
This short video by John Burns will give you the three key principles of successful public speaking. These principles work in every area of communication.
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