Have you been in a situation at work that you are unsure of what to do? I am sure that this has happened to you in your career at some point along the way. It is a vulnerable place to be as a leader feeling like you should have all the answers. Although you are in the leadership role for what you know and what you can get done, it is just not possible for you to know everything. I…
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Christmas is officially on the way. We put up the decorations in the house, baked some holiday chocolate chip cookies and then it snowed about 5 inches throughout the day and night. I may be in the minority here, but I totally love the first snowfall. There is nothing better than when you can just watch it as it comes down which turns everything white. One of my favorite things is when you first walk outside in the snow…
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When I first started out as a leader, I was much more directive than I should have been. I didn’t know another way to lead a team yet. Now many teams and many years later, I have learned that there is a much better way to lead. This style of leadership sets the vision for the organization, empowers the team and helps the team learn the skills they need to be successful. Being a leader who leverages coaching skills helps…
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What is interesting about the title “leader” is that you don’t get that title unless you are leading a team, an organization or a company. By definition, it means that you have others who are following you. Although there are some companies out there trying the concept of not having formal leaders in place, this is still evolving and it may only work for certain types of companies. In my opinion, being a leader is really one of the greatest…
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CONGRATULATIONS to the Chicago Cubs on winning the National League Division Series! Four very exciting baseball games occurred against the San Francisco Giants which led to the win. I was thinking about all the work that the Chicago Cubs Organization put in place to get to this point. Tough decisions about who to keep on the team and negotiations to identify other players who would bring the team together to give them the chance to win. It is exciting to…
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I just watched the season premiere of Madam Secretary tonight. It is absolutely one of my favorite shows! I love the character of Elizabeth McCord who is the Secretary of State of the United States played by the actress Tea Leoni. She has a tough job to do as she is navigating the politics that surrounds her, managing up (imagine if the President was your boss?), staying connected with what is going on, having a good staff that she had…
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I have seen many occasions where people don’t always support each other in the workplace. Why don’t we assume the best about each other? There is already enough negativity in the world, let’s not add to it. Helen Keller said “Alone we can do so little, together we can do so much.” Imagine what we could accomplish if we all worked together and supported each other? There are so many people who have helped to mentor and support me in…
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Leaders need to focus their efforts on areas where they can add the most value. There is never a shortage of priorities, so what do you do? One of the biggest transitions for a new leader is that you no longer do things by yourself, but you need to get things done through others. Focus on delegation and accountability or it becomes very easy to fall into old habits of doing things yourself and you get overwhelmed. Doing things really…
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