Blog

Are you in a career that you love? If not, then you need to read this now!

I wrote an article back in September 2016 on having an “accidental career.” You can read the post here. I know that was a true statement for me and it happens for a lot of people. You are so busy going through the day to day motions of your job, that you don’t realize it. This is especially true in corporate roles where your management sees potential in you and moves you to another role that needs your help. Sure,…
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Monday Morning Leadership Q & A – 3/27/17

Today’s Question: “I made a presentation today to a new group. My boss came up afterwards and said that my slides had some errors. Is it really a big deal when you have a few errors on your presentation slides?” The short answer is yes. Here is the longer answer as to why it is important. When you are presenting information, people want to know that what you are saying is credible and they can believe you. When you…
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Fantastic Leadership Resource Summary – 3/24/17

Welcome to the Fantastic Leadership Resource Summary! This week’s summary includes: motivation, goals, getting to know your employees personally, fix your leadership pipeline, personal brand, setting a leadership example, mentoring others, focus on excellence over perfection Articles/Ted Talks/Quotes 5 Ways To Nurture Extraordinary Performance https://twitter.com/SusanMBarber/status/844313422560985089 Extraordinary performance is driving by motivation Goals Are Not the Issue, It’s the Way You Think About Them by Jan J. Osburn https://twitter.com/SusanMBarber/status/844043775437668352 Change the Way You Think About Your Goals Want More from…
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Are Leaders Doing Enough to Prepare Others?

Leaders have a lot of expectations placed upon them when they take the role. They have a team to develop, projects to deliver, strategies to define and keeping their stakeholders happy. What about the other expectations that are not always so obvious? Yesterday’s post focused on some of these expectations in terms of body language and behavior that leaders need to focus on. Another unwritten expectation is that you should help, support and guide others. How can you share what…
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Do You Want to Get in the Game or Sit on the Bench?

I saw a clip last night of the UCONN Women’s Basketball Coach, Geno Auriemma talking about the importance of body language in a game. “We put a huge premium on body language,” Auriemma said. “And if your body language is bad, you will never get in the game. Ever. I don’t care how good you are.” The Coach has set this expectation with his team and for him this applies whether you are in the game or sitting on the…
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Fantastic Leadership Resource Summary – 3/17/17

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Welcome to the Fantastic Leadership Resource Summary! This week’s summary includes: Develop your leadership point of view, building relationships with your team, increasing trust, can you see things differently, dealing with a micromanager, strengths of a team, succession planning Articles/Ted Talks/Quotes 7 Questions to Help You Develop Your Leadership Point of View by Paul Sohn. http://paulsohn.org/7-questions-to-help-you-develop-your-leadership-point-of-view/ Do you have a defined leadership view to share with your team? If not, these questions can…
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What Do You Need To Consider When Building Your Team?

Have you ever met someone and it feels like you have an instant connection with them? You may have similar values, likes, dislikes or personalities that makes you feel that way. It is natural to be drawn to people who are similar to us. When you look at your team in comparison to you, do you see more similarities or differences? Imagine if you had a team of people that were just like you….everyone agrees all the time, works the…
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Monday Morning Leadership Q&A – 3/13/17

Today’s Question: How do I deal with my new manager who micromanages everything that I am doing? We have all dealt with a manager who has micromanaged us to some extent. There are usually a few reasons why this occurs. The manager may be new to the team, hasn’t managed a team before, doesn’t trust the team yet or is a bit of a control freak. Unfortunately this causes issues with morale and employee engagement. It also creates so…
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Fantastic Leadership Resource Summary – 3/10/17

Welcome to the Fantastic Leadership Resource Summary! This week’s summary includes: Resiliency for Leaders, demonstrating consistent leadership, asking the right questions, motivating people, creating plans, conversations and online presence for networking Articles/Ted Talks/Quotes 4 Ways to Increase Your Resiliency as a Leader http://bit.ly/2mNaJBy via @ccldotorg A common myth is that the way to deal with the pressures of middle and senior management is working harder. We like to think that extending work hours and multi-tasking are ways to be more effective…
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Do You Want To Get Better At Networking Online?

Networking is generally thought of as in person activity, but the internet provides you the opportunity to network with people all over the globe. There are so many choices of places to network online. You have probably used Facebook and LinkedIn. Many of you may also use Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest. Have you thought about networking with these people vs just accepting the connect, friend or follow request? Some people seem to just be trying to get as many connections…
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Can Being Visible Make A Difference For You?

Can being visible make a difference for you and your career? The short answer is absolutely yes without a doubt. Everyone that I have worked with clients, mentees that I have mentored and people that I have interviewed for my book. Everyone of them found that visibility is important to their success. Many people view this is a gender based challenge that women struggle with the most. Many studies have been done to show that it is true that women do struggle…
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What Visibility Will Help You Transition In The Best Way?

Are you thinking about taking on a new role in your company? How will the leaders who make the hiring decisions know that you are ready? It comes down to taking action and raising your visibility. Management needs to see that you can do what is required before you get the role. That means you need to be visible to them. Think about the key responsibilities in the role that you want and how can you demonstrate those things? Show them that what…
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What Are The Benefits Of Visibility For You?

There are many benefits that you will gain by being more visible. I will share a few to help you see why visibility is important. First, this may seem basic, but people will know who you are. This is especially important in larger organizations where there are many team members that are not known to senior management. They are known to their team members and manager, but that is it. When it comes time for succession planning, if you are…
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