The Ins And Outs Of Business Leadership

Do you wish you were a more polished leader with all the right skills? Well, it takes time to learn what is necessary in becoming the best leader. As a matter of fact, it's something you live into as you learn more. So, put these tips in place in your life that you're about to read.

Use a mentor. Find someone whose leadership skills you trust, and model your behavior after theirs. Watch them for a while, and get an idea of how they lead and what makes them a good leader. You don't want to mimic them completely, but find what works about their style and incorporate it into a style that works for you.

Do what's necessary to promote group unity. This means making sure that everyone knows what tasks they need to perform and what everyone else is doing. This prevents duplicate effort. Also, make sure each member of the team keeps the others up to date on progress. This makes budget and time overruns less likely.

Good leaders should be honest people. Do what you can to tell the truth. Remain authentic. When you tell the truth, do so kindly. Be open about any mistakes that have occurred. Mistakes will happen, so you need to accept them. It is those mistakes that you can use to find a new solution. They can provide you with nearly limitless opportunities.

If you have an employee that goes above and beyond the call of duty, do not hesitate to give them extra praise and rewards. Even though it may seem like you are playing favorites, you are giving them what they deserve. be open with other employees about it so they are aware of what rewards come with hard work.

Consider holding monthly contests among your employees. These contests can be based on the most sales, the best customer service or a variety of things. The prizes for the contests can be something as simple as a preferred parking place or as extravagant as an additional paid day off.

Converse with your employees in a way that makes them feel important. Everyone needs to be heard. It is always best to lead by example. Don't yell at your employees, embarrass them in front of their co-workers or belittle their ideas. Opportunities for improvement can come from anywhere so be open to suggestions.

Take care of yourself. When you're a leader, it can be very easy for you to lose yourself. However, it's important for you to remember that you are not going to be much use if you never sleep and never eat. Make sure that you are caring for yourself so you can best care for those you are leading.

Your team is going to judge you by your actions. These decisions such as the hiring and firing of employees, who you assign tasks to and how you hand out promotions all go into others forming an opinion about you. Showing that certain people are your favorites and giving certain people rewards all the time can make people experience bad morale, which is bad for business.

In order to be an effective leader, you need to stay in touch with your emotions. Do not allow yourself to make any of your positive traits turn negative. For example, if you are normally a very confident leader, do not allow added pressure to turn you into someone that is overly arrogant.

Powerful leaders are humble people that instill the right values in others and teach the right knowledge. In order to be a successful leader, you need to remember what has been described to you here. You can provide inspiration and truth to people and help give them direction that they need.

Learn What You Should Know About Becoming A Leader

If you want to improve your leadership skills, you need to know what you are aiming for. You are about to learn what it takes to be a more productive leader within society. You'll definitely pick a few things up.

If you wish to have more leadership skills, you really have to start with being honest. When you are a leader, your goal should always be to try to lead your team in the right direction. If you are open with them, they will respect you more. You need to have some honesty in your leadership so that people can become influenced to act in a more positive way.

Say thank you to your employees. Many studies have been done on the power of a thanks given from a manager to his or her employees. It increases productivity, often by a lot. Just a little graciousness really can help extend your power as a leader, so be active about it.

Build trust in your ability to be a strong leader. Let your employees see you work. Don't do everything behind closed doors so that workers have no idea what you actually do. Always be cognizant of your leadership role. Your employees will do as you do, not as you say.

Understand the business you are in. Unfortunately there are many leaders out there who don't get their business totally. Whether that's because they inherited the business or they just no longer care, it doesn't matter. It reads the same to employees. How can you lead if others don't trust that you have the knowledge to do so?

Be a good example. The best thing you can do for those around you is to be a good role model. Show people how to act and how to treat others. If you are in a leadership position, it can be such a comfort to those you lead if you behave in a way that represents the best of yourself.

Learn to delegate nonessential tasks to your employees. Delegation allows you to focus on the essential things that must be done to make your company successful. Additionally, delegating tasks to your employees gives them a sense of pride and ownership in the company. Although it is tempting to try to do everything yourself, delegation is beneficial to your company.

Don't talk as much as you listen. If you want to be a good leader, it starts with hearing. Listen to the things your employees are saying to you. Listen to complaints as well as accolades. Pay attention to their feedback when it comes to the buyers and the products. You might be a little surprised at the amount you will learn from those who work for you.

Remember that you are not someone who is perfect. Even as a leader, you still have things that you can learn, and you don't singlehandedly own all the intelligence in your company or organization. Stay humble enough to realize that you are still going to need help every now and then, and the people you lead will think highly of you.

Try adding value to people every single day. Several great leaders will take a minute to sit and think about whether or not they have added value to another person the same day. Leadership can make a difference and break a deal since it;'s what makes organizations grow. It impacts lives. Remember that it's not just an idea that's talked about, but it's an action that you need to live out.

After reading this article, you should feel like you've gained some leadership skills. Use the education you have received here to become a confident leader. To further your path in life and secure your future, start working on your leadership skills, today.

Forge Your Own Path Through Life With These Helpful Leadership Tips

What makes a great leader? What are the qualities that define true leadership? How do good leaders inspire their employees to greater heights? Being able to answer these questions is important if you want to become a better leader. For help in your journey, read and absorb the following information.

No one is able to read your mind. Explain exactly how you need a task done, when it must be done, and how you would like it done. Make yourself available for questions. This way your staff will not hesitate to ask questions if they do not understand any of your expectations.

Make a commitment to success. It may sound simplistic, but leadership starts with believing in the company and having a vision for its success. That vision when communicated rubs off on all that work at the company. In this way, your vision of success breeds success among your employees.

Make sure that people know that you want the team's success. If you're in a position of power, some may suspect that you only want glory for yourself. That's why it is important to do things that let others know you are on their side, and that your leadership will produce good results for everyone.

Being a leader means taking action. It doesn't matter how many good ideas you have if all they ever do is take up space in your head. Develop a plan and put your idea into action. Focus on the outcome you would like to achieve and focus your energy on making it happen.

Once you become a leader, do not make the mistake of believing your job is done. While you may have won the first part of the battle, there is a lot more to come. You have to work hard every day to show people that you deserve to be where you are.

Learn to listen to your team. Giving orders is just a small part of being a leader. Learning to listen is a key to being an effective leader. Listen to your team members' suggestions or concerns. Your team is more likely to feel respected and return the favor when you listen to what they have to say.

Surround yourself with smart people. The best leaders out there all know one thing: when you've got the best people, you'll elevate everything. Don't think you need to be the smartest person in the company. Far from it. You need to be a visionary who sees greatness. Use that and find the best colleagues to surround yourself with.

How are things going within your team? It is a good idea to bring team members in for input. They can make suggestions, talk about changes, and you can also make some friends during this process.

As a leader, it is necessary to maintain an optimistic attitude in the workplace. Displaying a lack of confidence and expressing doubts about your team's chances of success is not the way to motivate your team. You can't expect to receive their best effort if they feel they are doomed to fail.

Always be clear. It doesn't matter how good your workers are if you aren't communicating your ideas efficiently. Be sure to explain your goals and any deadlines that need to be reached. Make sure that your workers understand what you expect from them, and be available to answer any questions they might have.

Being a great leader is an ongoing process that you must engage in if you want your business to succeed. The more that you understand about leadership, the more success your organization will enjoy. Remember the information you have read in this article so that you can become a better leader.

The Things You Need To Know About Leadership

You are probably reading this article because you want to learn how to be a great leader. If so, the article below has what you need. All you have to do is keep reading to learn what it takes to be the best leader possible.

Use a mentor. Find someone whose leadership skills you trust, and model your behavior after theirs. Watch them for a while, and get an idea of how they lead and what makes them a good leader. You don't want to mimic them completely, but find what works about their style and incorporate it into a style that works for you.

Don't let good talent go to waste. If someone is earning huge profits for your company, be sure to promote them, give them a raise, or, if you aren't in a position to do those things, recommend the person to someone who is. If you fail to do this, you might find that the employee has left for your competitor.

Say thank you to your employees. Many studies have been done on the power of a thanks given from a manager to his or her employees. It increases productivity, often by a lot. Just a little graciousness really can help extend your power as a leader, so be active about it.

As a leader, you need to create a joyful atmosphere. Nobody wants to work in a place that is full of negativity. You must work to discover the possibilities in every situation and try to enjoy yourself every day. Remain positive and help others remain positive. Know that you can create something wonderful with your team.

Treat all of your employees well and never get involved in office gossip. Employees are usually happier in an environment where their work is appreciated and valued on the same level as any other employee. Spend time working with all of your employees so that you understand each person's contribution.

Make sure your subordinates and coworkers know that you are someone who is approachable. You probably don't want to leave holes in your schedule for conversation and socialization, but it's necessary. Your employees expect and deserve your guidance, respect and appreciation. With it, they can become your greatest business asset. Without it, they become a tremendous business liability.

Delegate responsibilities whenever possible. Showing trust in your employees gives them confidence in their own abilities. It will also inspire confidence in your ability to lead. Micromanaging your employees is exhausting for your and demotivating to your employees. Offer support and help them deal with any problems that may come up.

Leaders must always be able to facilitate smooth, clear communication with their teams. Try to make sure that you give your team the right information they need to do their tasks, especially deadlines. Keep an eye on the progress of the project to make sure things are running smoothly.

Know the difference between your vision and the reality of the task at hand. These two things can really affect each other. If you have something that you're constantly thinking about, then it should be acted upon. Write things down so you will not let it interfere with your current task.

If you are the leader of a business, you should never let your personal opinions get in the way of how you do business. For example, never pass somebody up for a promotion simply because you do not like them. If they deserve to advance, you should set your feelings aside and make it happen.

Now that you read the above article, you see that leadership can be attained by anyone if they understand how to become one. How these tools are procured is through being dedicated, working hard, and then learning what you can about leading like this article has shown you. Take the ideas learned here and use them to grow your leadership abilities.

Simple Tips About Leadership That Are Easy To Follow

The unique assemblage of traits and qualities that comprise a truly great leader can sometimes prove quite mysterious and elusive. To really grasp what effective leadership entails, it is important to acquire a thorough education on its principles and truths. The material below should provide a strong basis for any study of the topic of leadership.

A good way to start being a better leader is to be more decisive. You will have to make many tough choices. If you are one of a team that is divided about how to solve problems, it is important to choose solutions that will benefit the whole team instead of only a few people.

Understand the business you are in. Unfortunately there are many leaders out there who don't get their business totally. Whether that's because they inherited the business or they just no longer care, it doesn't matter. It reads the same to employees. How can you lead if others don't trust that you have the knowledge to do so?

Continue to learn new leadership techniques and innovative methods for conducting business. Continuing your education will give you a better understanding of how your younger employees think. A new perspective will help you improve your leadership style while also giving you the tools to be competitive in an ever-changing market.

Be a communicator. Communication is a major aspect of what makes great leadership. If you can't communicate your goals and vision, then what is there for your employees to follow at all? If you have a tendency to "loan wolf" at work, break out of that habit and begin communicating with your teams.

Good leaders don't lower morals to compete. When the competition engages in questionable practices, look for other ways to compete with them. You never have to sink lower than they are. If you're able to figure out new ways to compete with them, you'll be happier with the decision you made.

Be open to new ideas, perspectives, and ways of doing things. Many companies want to constantly repeat something that has proven successful for them. There is little wrong with that, but inadvertent leaders try putting too much effort into one thing that worked. Thoughtful leadership should acknowledges success, while also recognizing that there are ways to improve.

To be an effective leader you have to know your own strengths and weaknesses. Delegate responsibilities in areas that you are weak in to the members of your team that excel in them. You'll give your team members a chance to shine, while ensuring that the job is carried out effectively.

Reward great work. It may be tempting to be a slave to the bottom line, but you'd be amazed what a few rewards can do to help productivity. These rewards don't have to be big. A bagel breakfast or gift certificates for a team work quite well. The gesture shows that you care, and good leaders really do.

Learn to listen to your team members; this challenging skill is vital to becoming a great leader. They can give you great tips and ideas for what to do. Also, listening causes others to trust you more.

Rehearse the behaviors and attitudes you wish to display as an effective leader in your mind. Try to create the most realistic vision you can. When the time comes, focus on putting the behaviors you practiced into action. This method is often used by athletes before a big competition or race.

The value of strong leadership to any business enterprise simply cannot be overstated. The ability to motivate and spur others onto greatness is a rare thing indeed, and something that is indeed worthy of examination. With any luck, the information provided above has been a great starting point for readers everywhere.

Learn All About Leadership With These Tips.

Leadership is a quality that most people respect. If you are a good leader, you can get people to support you and follow you almost anywhere. You may not think that you have what it takes to be a leader, but that couldn't be more from the truth. If you use the tips here, you will find your inner leader.

Make things easy to understand for everyone. Make sure you focus on what is really important. Start setting priorities once you've accomplished that. Take the time to streamline your daily tasks as much as possible. Also, reserve some time for you and your team to brainstorm.

Make sure to engage people as a leader. You must learn how to motivate, involve, and excite others. Inspire them to engage their passions, strengths, skills, and creativity in the tasks at hand. Do what you can to acknowledge and appreciate each person's contributions and efforts. You should make them all feel like they did something to move the project forward.

Walk the talk. Leaders don't say one thing and do another. That is confusing to employees, and demotivating in many ways. Instead live by what you say. Follow through and lead by example. Then you'll have more than employees, you'll have champions who believe in your business and your leadership too.

Understand the business you are in. Unfortunately there are many leaders out there who don't get their business totally. Whether that's because they inherited the business or they just no longer care, it doesn't matter. It reads the same to employees. How can you lead if others don't trust that you have the knowledge to do so?

Express a vision for the company. Great leaders differentiate themselves from great managers because of vision. They see where the company needs to be 5 years, 10 years and 20 years down the road. If you've got the vision, share it with your employees. Make them part of the team that'll help get you there.

Treat all of your employees well and never get involved in office gossip. Employees are usually happier in an environment where their work is appreciated and valued on the same level as any other employee. Spend time working with all of your employees so that you understand each person's contribution.

Be sure to finish everything you start or you risk losing the respect of the people that work under you. Even if something seems particularly difficult, you should give it your all and see it through to the end. No one will look at you the same if you turn into a quitter.

You should never procrastinate if you want to be seen as a great leader. When people think of having a boss, they imagine someone that is in charge and knows how to get down to business. Putting off projects and not following through is not the best way to present yourself to people.

Create goals and reward those who reach your goals. Setting up goals is much more effective than creating quotas. It is also a great way to boost morale in your team. You do not have to spend a lot of money on rewards if you are creative. However, if you really want to reward your team for good work, ask for a budget for rewards.

It is hard to be a leader all of the time. However, being a leader affords people great respect. That is why you must find the leader that is in you. Make use of the information laid out in this article, and you will be able to lead your business or organization in ways you have not yet considered.

Improve Your Leadership Skills By Using These Ideas

Although conventional wisdom often says that great leaders are born, not made, history has proven otherwise. Many people in a position of leadership have benefited greatly from learning more about the characteristics and habits of effective leaders. This article contains some tips and suggestions for those who are interested in this topic.

Say thank you to your employees. Many studies have been done on the power of a thanks given from a manager to his or her employees. It increases productivity, often by a lot. Just a little graciousness really can help extend your power as a leader, so be active about it.

One of the most important aspects of any leader is the ability to create a sense of trust among their employees. Employees who trust their supervisor are willing to do more to help the company succeed than those who do not trust their supervisors. Always be truthful when dealing with employees.

If you make a mistake, admit it. Nothing will kill the confidence workers have for you faster than insistence that you're right when you are clearly not. However, if you can admit that you are wrong, you will gain the respect of your underlings. The respect of those around you is imperative.

Express a vision for the company. Great leaders differentiate themselves from great managers because of vision. They see where the company needs to be 5 years, 10 years and 20 years down the road. If you've got the vision, share it with your employees. Make them part of the team that'll help get you there.

Treat all of your employees well and never get involved in office gossip. Employees are usually happier in an environment where their work is appreciated and valued on the same level as any other employee. Spend time working with all of your employees so that you understand each person's contribution.

Being a good leader doesn't just mean that you lead others. You also need the skills to lead yourself. Leading yourself by staying motivated and focused can also set a great example for others. Make an effort to become a working part of your organization and not just delegate tasks to others.

Frequently keep synergy in mind. Know what your goals are. Understand just what your goals in business are. They should be aligned and have similarities. You should work on both simultaneously. When you can't, people will see your lack of passion.

A leader demands integrity at all times. Always be honest and act in everyone's best interest, especially when no one else is around. It's difficult for others to keep trusting leaders without integrity. If you have integrity, your employees with trust and respect you. What's more, they will be loyal.

Trust the people who work for you and do what you can to help them develop their specific talents. Although you must provide direction to your employees, you do not need to look over their shoulders all day. If you find yourself doing this, you may not have hired the right type of people for your company.

Nurture growth in your team members. You can do this by offering help and solutions when they make a mistake instead of punishments. Understand that everyone makes mistakes, and show your workers where they went wrong when they make one. A great team is not hired, it is built through teamwork.

Effective leadership does not simply just happen. Effective leaders take the time to learn about traits that successful leaders have and habits that they practice. Good leaders can become great ones by studying these characteristics, and it is an education that should continue throughout the duration of one's tenure.

Solid Advice About Leadership That Can Help Anyone

Leadership can be difficult to quantify, despite the fact that most people desperately wish to understand what it takes to be a strong leader. To really get a handle on the concept, it pays to spend some time researching and studying. The guidance below is intended to help any burgeoning leader do precisely that.

Make sure you hire people who will advance your business goals. Preferably, this means people who are smart, can solve problems, and most importantly, have some experience in your business field. Make sure you check references and do proper research so that you don't get scammed by someone with a fake resume and a silver tongue.

A successful leader needs to maintain a balanced public and private life. Having a good reputation in the community is vital to continued success. Being in a leadership role invites scrutiny, so it is important to maintain humility and exercise moderation. Do not give anyone something to point to that disqualifies you as a leader.

Be open to doing things in different ways than the ones you are familiar way. Do not immediately shut people down because they are suggesting you do things differently. Show them that you are open-minded and willing to give new things a chance. This will help foster better connections with people.

If you are in a leadership role, make it a point to avoid using harsh, or discouraging comments with your team members. Instead of using negative reinforcement, try starting the conversation with a positive comment, then gently easing into your problem or concern. This helps them to let their guard down, and remember that you are on their side.

Empower your employees. Leadership isn't just about decision making. It's also about knowing when to give up the power to your trusted colleagues. When you let them make decisions, you are helping to build their loyalty to the company. They'll feel respected, and most importantly, wanted. That's a big thing for the health of your business.

Offer incentives for high quality work. Sure, everyone is getting paid, but an incentive can be a great motivational tool. If a team member works particularly hard on a project, reward them with a gift or cash bonus. The best leaders reward their team for a job well done.

Cop to your mistakes. Even the greatest leader messes up from time to time. But, great leaders are willing to step up and take responsibility. You can make mistakes, but as a leader, you must have the power to correct them. It might not look like a good leadership trait, but it does breed serious loyalty when done right.

Surround yourself with smart people. The best leaders out there all know one thing: when you've got the best people, you'll elevate everything. Don't think you need to be the smartest person in the company. Far from it. You need to be a visionary who sees greatness. Use that and find the best colleagues to surround yourself with.

How you behave will directly effect how your employees conduct themselves in the office. A leader that is hostile and aggressive can expect a combative atmosphere and lack of trust in the workplace. By displaying confidence and remaining calm in tense situations you set an positive example for your employees to follow.

Most people wish to be effective leaders of others, but very few actually succeed in doing so. One of the most effective methods of acquiring true leadership acumen is to learn as much as possible about those who have gone before and the attributes they had in common. The article above can serve as an ongoing resource for anyone wishing to undertake just that sort of study.

Interested In Becoming A Better Business Leader? Read This

Would you like to improve your leadership skills? If you do, you must improve your own leadership skills. A good leader is always striving to hone their skills, and this information will tell you what to do. This article has all the information you need.

When attending meetings, act like you're stupid and don't know anything. You are not actually stupid, of course, but adopting this mindset makes you more likely to accept input from other people who may actually know more than you do. Arrogance has been the downfall of many business leaders, after all.

If you make a mistake, admit it. Nothing will kill the confidence workers have for you faster than insistence that you're right when you are clearly not. However, if you can admit that you are wrong, you will gain the respect of your underlings. The respect of those around you is imperative.

Consider holding monthly contests among your employees. These contests can be based on the most sales, the best customer service or a variety of things. The prizes for the contests can be something as simple as a preferred parking place or as extravagant as an additional paid day off.

Stick with your goal. One way that leaders tend to fail is that they "switch sides" when things get tough. Try to stick with the goals you've established, and do what you can to stay on one path until completion. You may have to eventually change paths, but do so carefully and avoid doing it too much. Constantly changes paths can make you appear confused and undetermined to others.

Choose an appropriate form of communication for the subject matter. Simple confirmation of instructions or other daily communication can be done through email and text messages. If the subject matter is sensitive or of high importance, it is important to schedule a meeting to discuss the subject face to face.

If you make a mistake, admit it. Even the best leader is bound to make mistakes now and again. Good leaders own it and communicate it to the employees. It proves you have flaws, like all humans. This might not seem like a leader, but humanity can inspire major loyalty.

When choosing people to work for you, try to hire diverse people. Diversity will enable you to have many different perspectives within your company. Don't make all of your employees come from similar backgrounds as you. Your ability to innovate will be severely restricted. You may also cause your company to fail, due to your weaknesses.

Real leaders are willing to learn. Many great leadership skills don't just occur from a sudden flash of insight or a great epiphany. Great ideas can come to anybody, but good leaders study. Try reading some books on how to be a good leader, going to seminars, and talking to colleagues to see what works best for them. It can take a long time, but the more knowledge you have about proper leadership skills, the better yours can become.

Work on your writing skills. Leadership doesn't just mean that you should follow a vision and that's it. You also have to show others what you mean through words. If you're not able to spell right and make a lot of mistakes with grammar, then people aren't going to be able to take you that seriously. Remember this and pay special attention to how and what you write.

Now, you have the information you need to become a better leader. Do not just use them, but teach others how to use them as well. By using these tools, you can help your company to do better while making sure your team is doing their best.

Simple Tips To Help You Understand Leadership

Building a trusting relationship with your employees is an important part of being a strong leader. Just because you're the boss does not mean that you are the only leader in the group, or even the smartest person in the room. Read these suggestions for improving your business leadership skills.

Do what's necessary to promote group unity. This means making sure that everyone knows what tasks they need to perform and what everyone else is doing. This prevents duplicate effort. Also, make sure each member of the team keeps the others up to date on progress. This makes budget and time overruns less likely.

Always make moral choices as a leader. When you need to make a decision, make sure that you'll be able to live with it. If the decision does not feel right to you, then avoid it. There are plenty of other people who make immoral decisions. That doesn't mean you should ever stoop to the same level.

Good leaders know how to nurture growth in other people. Take the time to support other people. You can do this by learning their strengths, work styles, and passions. Try encouraging them to seek new possibilities and challenges. Remember that every person has the ability to expand the potential of the company.

When leading, focus on the workers and work will get done. Inspire and encourage your workers. Instead of micromanaging everything, work on getting the most out of your team's potential.

Don't make the mistake of ordering people around. That is not true leadership. The key to true leadership is to inspire those around you. You need to help them find their own voices, so that they can go on to lead others. The entire journey they take with you is about their ability to know themselves better.

Don't micromanage. Leaders don't do all the work. They inspire and train others to make decisions with confidence. If you are always nitpicking on things and doing it yourself, then you're sending a signal to your employees that you really don't want their help. That's not leadership at all. Take a step back and figure out how you can inspire your employees to make the right decisions.

Be a communicator. Communication is a major aspect of what makes great leadership. If you can't communicate your goals and vision, then what is there for your employees to follow at all? If you have a tendency to "loan wolf" at work, break out of that habit and begin communicating with your teams.

Talk to other leaders. This can be a great way to get feedback on ideas and to figure out how best to address concerns and problems. This will also give you time to observe other leadership styles and techniques. You may find something useful, or you might inspire someone else.

Reward great work. It may be tempting to be a slave to the bottom line, but you'd be amazed what a few rewards can do to help productivity. These rewards don't have to be big. A bagel breakfast or gift certificates for a team work quite well. The gesture shows that you care, and good leaders really do.

Hire a variety of folks for your company. You will have a broader perspective if you hire people of various ages and cultural and educational backgrounds. Do not just hire people that are like you. If you do, there will be no new ideas brought to the table. This can also make for a failing company due to your own weaknesses.

As you can see there are a lot of aspects involved in being an effective boss. Knowing how to communicate with your employees and build confidence in your leadership abilities will gain you the respect you deserve. Implement these tools when dealing with your employees and your business will have a greater chance for success.

Need To Improve Your Leadership Skills? Try These Tips!

When it's time to pursue leadership skills, then you have most likely realized it's your time to rise to the occasion. Well, everyone realizes this at different points, and you want to capitalize correctly on these opportunities given you. Be sure that you work diligently towards knowing how to be an effective leader.

Effective leaders are inspiring. You need to develop the ability to inspire those who work under you, motivating them to work toward a common goal. You can use public speaking to achieve this, but there are also videos, blogs, articles and other methods to convey your uplifting message to your audience.

Say thank you to your employees. Many studies have been done on the power of a thanks given from a manager to his or her employees. It increases productivity, often by a lot. Just a little graciousness really can help extend your power as a leader, so be active about it.

As a leader, you must have confidence. This will, in turn, instill confidence in your team. If your team sees you doubt yourself, they will begin to doubt you too. Always act deliberately and do not waver, but do not be afraid to change your mind. A good leader is flexible.

As a leader, you need to create a joyful atmosphere. Nobody wants to work in a place that is full of negativity. You must work to discover the possibilities in every situation and try to enjoy yourself every day. Remain positive and help others remain positive. Know that you can create something wonderful with your team.

Befriend a trustworthy person in the same business field. This person will be invaluable when you have an idea and you want to make sure it is actually viable. You will, of course, have to be available to your "business buddy," as well, as this sort of relationship is a two-way street.

Converse with your employees in a way that makes them feel important. Everyone needs to be heard. It is always best to lead by example. Don't yell at your employees, embarrass them in front of their co-workers or belittle their ideas. Opportunities for improvement can come from anywhere so be open to suggestions.

Do not be afraid to jump in and help. This is much easier if you work on site with your team, but is possible from afar if you are creative. If any person from your team needs help, jump in and give them a hand. You may learn a lot from the experience.

Leaders, and their teams, often do not connect as much they would like to. However, getting together to talk about work is vital in order to keep things running smoothly. The best kind of gathering to start with is one where you, as the leader, opens the forum with a question like, "How is everything going?" This is a great ice-breaker, and will help you to learn a lot.

Effective communication with the team is key in order to be a great leader. Make a special effort to ensure that your team has all the necessary information to complete the tasks assigned to it, including deadlines. Continue to check with them to ensure the project is running smoothly.

Anyone in a leadership role should be concerned about trust. You must be able to trust your team, or workforce, and they must also be able to trust you. Try having a meeting periodically with a small group, where trust issues are discussed, and solved. Look for good articles on the subject of trust in the workplace, and read them with your group, giving each other feedback and suggestions.

Perhaps being a leader is always striving to do better and to help people. A leader always learns from mistakes and does what is necessary in order to propel others forward. In order to do that, you want to implement the tips that you have found out here and get prepared for some great experiences.

What You Must Know About Leadership Skills

Perhaps you are not the type that considers himself a leader. Or, maybe you are one but think that you could do a much better job. Either way, everyone can improve their leadership skills, so this article is going to benefit you by explaining a few things that you should know.

Don't make the mistake of ordering people around. That is not true leadership. The key to true leadership is to inspire those around you. You need to help them find their own voices, so that they can go on to lead others. The entire journey they take with you is about their ability to know themselves better.

Express a vision for the company. Great leaders differentiate themselves from great managers because of vision. They see where the company needs to be 5 years, 10 years and 20 years down the road. If you've got the vision, share it with your employees. Make them part of the team that'll help get you there.

Be a good example. The best thing you can do for those around you is to be a good role model. Show people how to act and how to treat others. If you are in a leadership position, it can be such a comfort to those you lead if you behave in a way that represents the best of yourself.

Make sure that people know that you want the team's success. If you're in a position of power, some may suspect that you only want glory for yourself. That's why it is important to do things that let others know you are on their side, and that your leadership will produce good results for everyone.

When you're a business leader, you should be stern but understanding. Make sure that the people working for you understand what you expect out of them. If they don't meet your expectations immediately, give them a chance to catch on. Everyone has a different learning curve, and the people that may seem slow to catch on could become your greatest workers.

Good leaders must finish the job. You hear many leaders brag about their projects, but many haven't actually finished them. Those that don't genuinely finish can lose the confidence of their clients. You must set goals and see your tasks through to completion. Remember that nothing is entirely useful until it's finished.

Adopt an eternal attitude of learning. While this article has great tips in it, there's always something more to learn. Business changes and evolves and you need to keep up with it. Always be reading books, newspapers and blogs. If possible, attend classes and workshops. Those are chances to learn and network.

Get to know the truly talented performers underneath you. Great employees are hard to come by, and harder to keep. Learn what their personal ambitions are in life. The more you are able to synergize their dreams with your business' goals, the longer you can retain them and their productivity.

Create goals and reward those who reach your goals. Setting up goals is much more effective than creating quotas. It is also a great way to boost morale in your team. You do not have to spend a lot of money on rewards if you are creative. However, if you really want to reward your team for good work, ask for a budget for rewards.

Figuring out how to become a much better leader is not always easy. It is hard work, and a true leader exhibits many great qualifications and abilities. Remember all the helpful tips that have been discussed here so that you can always be the great leader you've wanted to be.

How To Be A Great Leader To Your Group

Establishing better leadership skills will always help you get more out of the job you have or pursue later. It's part of growing as a person and being more confident in who you are and what your job represents. Plus, it carries much farther than just employment. Pay close attention to the following suggested leadership strategies.

An important leadership characteristic is honesty. A leader that's effective will need to be trustworthy as well. While you build your skills in leadership, try to keep a precedent of trustworthiness and honesty. A person will have more respect for you if they feel like they can rely on and trust you.

Say thank you to your employees. Many studies have been done on the power of a thanks given from a manager to his or her employees. It increases productivity, often by a lot. Just a little graciousness really can help extend your power as a leader, so be active about it.

Learn your employee's names. A great leader takes the time to learn the names of his or her most immediate staff, and even the names of the top performers under them. It shows them that you care enough about them to know them not just as a worker, but as a real person.

Sincerity plays a major part in leadership. The people that you are leading may come to you with problems. These problems should be listened to and addressed. It may be easy to brush off a problem when it's not the most important matter. Your team will feel better about you being the leader if you can sincerely listen to and solve their problems.

On most days, be the first in the office and the last out. This is not just about working the most hours. It's about giving your employees the perception of work ethic. If they see you working hard, they'll believe in you as a leader more. And with that comes real trust and a bump in productivity.

Consider holding monthly contests among your employees. These contests can be based on the most sales, the best customer service or a variety of things. The prizes for the contests can be something as simple as a preferred parking place or as extravagant as an additional paid day off.

When you're trying to be a good business leader, you'll need to be able to make difficult decisions. When making a difficult decision, you should understand the consequences and outcome of your decision. When making a decision, you should always consider what is going to be best for your business, not just for certain people or yourself.

Continue to learn new leadership techniques and innovative methods for conducting business. Continuing your education will give you a better understanding of how your younger employees think. A new perspective will help you improve your leadership style while also giving you the tools to be competitive in an ever-changing market.

Learn how to present persuasively. Presentation skills are something every great leader needs to master. You'll be on stage, and the results will be the perception that sticks with the crowd. Not only about you, but also about the company. If you are a strong presenter, you can make a major difference in how people perceive your leadership.

Powerful leadership strategies are not only learned but honed throughout time. Practice what you've been give, and always desire to be a great leader for others. This will make for the right combo as you find out your continued purpose. There is a leader in each person, and it's time for it to be brought out.

Helping You Understand The World Of Leadership With These Easy Tips

Establishing better leadership skills will always help you get more out of the job you have or pursue later. It's part of growing as a person and being more confident in who you are and what your job represents. Plus, it carries much farther than just employment. Pay close attention to the following suggested leadership strategies.

Business is changing constantly so be open to new ideas. Even though something has always worked well in the past, that doesn't mean there isn't a better way to get the job done. Be open to innovative ideas. You can try new methods on a small scale before implementing them company wide.

Improving your leadership capabilities requires a thirst for knowledge. While you may truly be a great leader, you can always learn from your peers. Others may be better able to see things that you can't, such as ways to improve a particular process or a certain flaw that needs to be remedied.

A good leadership idea is to engage your employees in meaningful conversation about work. A great way to start is to make a list of things that particularly interest you, and take a few minutes each day to ask employees their opinions on these topics. You will be forming meaningful relationships, and may learn something in the process.

Continue to learn new leadership techniques and innovative methods for conducting business. Continuing your education will give you a better understanding of how your younger employees think. A new perspective will help you improve your leadership style while also giving you the tools to be competitive in an ever-changing market.

Stick with your goal. One way that leaders tend to fail is that they "switch sides" when things get tough. Try to stick with the goals you've established, and do what you can to stay on one path until completion. You may have to eventually change paths, but do so carefully and avoid doing it too much. Constantly changes paths can make you appear confused and undetermined to others.

When you're a business leader, you should try to treat your team or staff in the way that you'd like to be treated. Looking down on people isn't right and doesn't promote a good work atmosphere. If you treat you show your staff respect, they will return the favor which can make your life much easier.

Befriend a trustworthy person in the same business field. This person will be invaluable when you have an idea and you want to make sure it is actually viable. You will, of course, have to be available to your "business buddy," as well, as this sort of relationship is a two-way street.

Don't be dishonest or devious. For a good leader to build trust, come through with promises. If your claim is that your team provides the best customer service, ensure your team knows how to do that.

Preparation is key before speaking to a team. Think of possible questions they might ask you. Spend some time thinking of what your answers will be. By always having the answers to their questions, you will build confidence among your team. Doing this will also save you time.

In order to be an effective leader, you need to stay in touch with your emotions. Do not allow yourself to make any of your positive traits turn negative. For example, if you are normally a very confident leader, do not allow added pressure to turn you into someone that is overly arrogant.

Powerful leadership strategies are not only learned but honed throughout time. Practice what you've been give, and always desire to be a great leader for others. This will make for the right combo as you find out your continued purpose. There is a leader in each person, and it's time for it to be brought out.

Are your employees disengaged?

DID YOU KNOW?

• Training expenditure per employee has consistently gone up despite the tough business climate. in 2001, the expenditure per employee was $734 on training. By 2012, this number climbed to $1,195 per employee (ASTD stats).
• Surveys in 2000 and 2012 suggests that there has been no major shift in employee engagement attitude, 70% of all employees continue to be disengaged from their employer interest (Gallup Study).
• Allocating more money doesn't appear to be the answer. 
• Your thoughts? 

Regards,
Ravinder Tulsiani

http://www.ravindertulsiani.com

See http://www.yourleadershipedge.ca for my solution.

What Is Respect?

Respect often seems like a meaningful and powerful word. We claim that we want others to treat us with respect, and we dislike it when others show us disrespect. But what’s the real meaning of this word?

The word respect has a number of definitions — feel free to look it up if you’d like — but in the context of relating to the beliefs of others, the most basic and fitting definition is to have “due regard” for the other person’s beliefs.

What does that mean?

Due regard means paying attention to another person’s beliefs. To regard something is to look at it. The Latin origin of the word respect also means “to look back.” Respect is just observation. To respect a belief is to observe it — to acknowledge its existence.

So the word respect doesn’t actually pack a lot of punch. It really just means looking at another person’s beliefs. You don’t have to like those beliefs. You may even think they’re stupid. But you can still respect someone’s beliefs merely by acknowledging that such beliefs exist. That a pretty low bar, wouldn’t you say?

What about the flip side?

Interestingly, the word disrespect isn’t merely the opposite of respect. Disrespect packs more punch.

To disrespect someone’s beliefs could mean ignoring those beliefs entirely, but more commonly, it means showing a lack of courtesy — i.e. being impolite. Being impolite means not showing good manners. And manners are social expectations.

So basically, if you violate other people’s expectations of how they believe you should behave towards them, that’s considered being disrespectful.

The opposite of disrespect is often what gets transplanted to supplement the rather weak definition of respect.

Consequently, the common meaning of respect is to behave as other people feel you should behave. If you violate others’ expectations in certain ways, then you’re being disrespectful. If you behave the way others feel you should behave, then you’re being respectful.

So respect is actually a form of obedience. Doesn’t that make sense in a way? Aren’t the most obedient people typically considered the most respectful? And isn’t disobedience often labeled as disrespectful?

Respect is very much an “eye of the beholder” concept. What one person sees as respectful could be interpreted as disrespectful by another, and vice versa. So if someone behaves as you believe people should behave, that’s a show of respect. If someone violates your expectations in ways you dislike, you may interpret that as a sign of disrespect. And from your perspective, you’d always be right.

By these definitions I could label myself as either highly respectful or highly disrespectful. On the one hand, I definitely pay attention to other people’s beliefs. I certainly don’t ignore how others think, feel, and behave. I often like to delve into someone’s beliefs when I’m getting to know them. So in that sense, I’m very respectful. I consciously observe.

On the other hand, I frequently violate other people’s expectations of how I should behave. I don’t feel compelled to follow social norms. This is often deliberate. I recognize the expected behaviors, and I consciously choose not to adhere to them. To many people this is a very disrespectful thing to do.

One person may love that I like to be honest and direct and may hold me in high regard for that. Another person may perceive me as being discourteous for the exact same behavior. Within their own frames, they’d both be right.

Since the definitions of respect and disrespect are personal, I’ll share a personal example for you to chew on.

I think it’s wrong to forcibly impregnate, to cage, and to slaughter animals. So if someone supports this system, such as by buying animal products in restaurants or grocery stores, then they’re automatically disrespecting my beliefs. Note that I don’t feel the same about people who would hunt animals for food to survive in the wild. While I wouldn’t do that myself, I don’t automatically consider such people as being disrespectful towards my beliefs or disrespectful towards animals. But to support modern factory farming, there’s no way around it — that’s about as disrespectful as a person can get. It’s disrespectful towards animals. It’s disrespectful towards the environment. And it’s personally disrespectful towards my beliefs. Such behavior goes pretty far beyond being impolite and discourteous.

When a meat eater tells me they respect my beliefs, from their perspective they may also be right. They may require nothing more to satisfy that definition than to observe that I’m a vegan, which is pretty easy to do. But at the same time, they also qualify for my definition of disrespect.

If someone who enjoys killing people’s pets decides to refrain from killing any pets in front of you as a show of respect for your beliefs, would you give such a person credit for their politeness and courtesy? Maybe you would… I dunno. I’d be more concerned with what they’re doing to the pets — relative to that, it’s inconsequential whether or not they’re committing such violent acts in my presence.

Now would a meat eater determine that what I just shared is a sign of disrespect towards them? That depends on the person. I’m sure many would find me disrespectful. They may determine that I’m not behaving as they believe I should behave. Perhaps in their views, I’m not allowed to say that I consider supporting factory farming a show of disrespect towards my beliefs. How could I say something like that? It not only impolite and discourteous… it’s downright rude!

Then again, I’m sharing my honest thoughts and feelings on my own website and social media pages. I don’t go posting this anywhere else, although other people are free to reshare it. It’s not like I’m chasing anyone down and pushing these ideas onto them. People have to seek me out and choose to engage with me. The meat eaters who might take issue with this are always coming to me.

I see honesty as one of the highest forms of respect. I feel that I’m respecting people far more by being as honest and open as I can as I share my path of personal growth. I think it would be disrespectful to pretend to be someone I’m not, to present a false image of myself even if it’s more socially acceptable.

Can I still respect someone that I feel is disrespectful of my beliefs? I don’t see why not. I have too many readers to expect all of them to respect my beliefs. I think it’s unrealistic to expect everyone to adhere to my ethical standards. That said, I feel it would be quite phony to pretend that I feel my beliefs are being respected by those who think it’s fine to support the rape, confinement, and slaughter of animals. What does it matter if they’re doing it in front of me or not?

Is it automatically a show of disrespect to tell someone that you feel disrespected by them? I don’t think so. I think it can actually be a powerful show of respect to do this. I don’t feel my meat eating friends show any respect for my beliefs when they willingly support of a system that is so incredibly unethical, corrupt, and harmful in my view. I don’t feel I’m being at all disrespectful towards them in saying that. In fact, I believe I’m being very respectful. I honor them enough to share my truth with them.

And again, this isn’t forced upon anyone. I share this only with those who willingly choose to engage with my work. I don’t chase anyone down and push these ideas onto them. I’m not a hunter.

I know that many meat eaters consider it a show of respect to tone down their flesh consumption in the presence of vegetarians or vegans. I’m sure some veg*ans appreciate that. Personally it makes little difference to me in terms of feeling respected — it’s a drop in the bucket if I know they’ll go right on supporting factory farming when I’m not around. I’d actually consider it more honest if they didn’t make such adjustments on my behalf. If they genuinely feel like sharing a vegan meal together, great. But if they’d rather have animal products and are toning down the carnivore behavior because they want to be respectful of my beliefs, I don’t actually give them any meaningful credit for that. It doesn’t make me feel any more respected.

That said, I do actually prefer it when meat eaters don’t eat flesh in front of me, but that’s because I find the sight and smell of rotting flesh kinda disgusting — especially the smell of dead fish. So I will give them some courtesy credit for not nauseating me.

What does respect mean to you? What would you consider disrespectful? Do you believe that telling someone you feel disrespected is necessarily a show of disrespect? Or could such honesty be a deeper show of respect, perhaps even an invitation to connect on a whole new level?

You, of course, have the freedom to make your own determinations about which behaviors you consider to be respectful vs. disrespectful. And whatever you decide, you’re right.

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View the original article here

The Ultimate Champion

November 25, 2013 November 25, 2013/ mark waltz

“I am a member of a team, and I rely on the team, I defer to it and sacrifice for it, because the team, not the individual, is the ultimate champion.” - Mia Hamm, retired professional women's soccer player

Don't be confused. That's not a picture of Mia Hamm. That's her quote, though. The lady pictured here - Julie Smies - is my administrative assistant. And she understands team.

Julie has been on my team as my assistant for nearly nine years. As my assistant...

She represents me - and our entire connections and multisite teams - to people in our church, in our WiredChurches network and in our community. The impact of her tone, words, facial expressions, professionalism and personableness cannot be underestimated.She understands that people perceive me, our teams, and our church through her representation.Her number one priority is to help me and our team win. For a long time this was tough for me to say aloud. It sounds ridiculously egotistical. But the reality is - it is her number one job.Her can-do attitude, mountain-moving determination, and humble spirit allow me to do what God has called me to do, to do what I've been charged to accomplish.She is a wiling servant.  Her task list isn't merely that she handles phone calls or my schedule or my email, her "task list" is intentionally choosing to serve. Whatever that means.This doesn't mean I see her as a slave! That she is not! She is an intelligent, thinking, quite independent person who chooses to work interdependently for the sake of the team.

All that said, it's a huge plus that she is a dear friend to my wife, Laura. This brings a heightened level of trust and respect to the working relationship Julie and I share and serves Laura and my marriage well too. Truth is - Laura and I see Julie and her husband, Jim, as family friends. We actually like each other and enjoy being together. 

In fact since Laura's diagnosis with breast cancer in late July, Julie has gone above and beyond. She has been our friend, caring deeply for Laura. During the rigors of chemotherapy, she embraced what had to be done - things I was not getting done - and she found a way. She has carried an exceptional load this fall on my behalf. I am grateful beyond the words I can find here.

Julie makes our entire connections and multisite teams better. She's part of the team. Her role is no less important than anyone else's. Her joy, grace and love of Jesus is a delight to experience. It fuels her work and brings fulness to our team.

The "who" on your team matters. The team, after all, is the ultimate champion.

View the original article here

Money and Your Path With a Heart

There’s this idea that if we want to experience more financial abundance, we must identify and rewire our limiting beliefs about money, such as “money doesn’t grow on trees” or “money is the root of all evil.” But the people I know who have lots of money usually didn’t bother to fuss over their beliefs. In fact, current brain research tells us that dwelling on limiting beliefs can be self-defeating since you’re still reinforcing the same neural patterns by thinking about them, thereby making them stronger.

A more effective approach is to largely ignore your so-called limiting beliefs. Put your focus on what you desire first and foremost. The tricky part is figuring out what you actually desire.

I found that the best approach for me, financially speaking, is to follow my path with a heart and to admit that money just isn’t that important to me in the grand scheme of things. So I actually seek to minimize the role of money in my life, making it mostly irrelevant. I create enough financial abundance that I don’t have to devote much mental bandwidth to fussing over money. Money is there when I need it; otherwise I can largely ignore it. This frees up my attention to express my creativity, to explore relationships with people, to travel, to read a lot, and to generally enjoy and experience the aspects of life that matter to me so much more than money ever will.

When I tried to center my life around money, it didn’t make me happy. I found it pretty stressful actually. It set me up for a competitive relationship with others. And I wasn’t very good at making money for the sake of money anyway. I didn’t find myself particularly motivated to do the things that would make me more money. I would procrastinate on seemingly profitable work and spend time learning about personal growth instead, which for much of my life was just a side hobby.

Eventually I saw the folly in investing so much energy into trying to make more money, especially when I wasn’t doing a very good job of it anyway. I realized that I don’t actually want to fuss or stress over money in my life. I don’t really want to make a lot of money. That isn’t a true desire for me. A more genuine desire is that I’d like to live without giving much attention to money. I’d like to live as if everything I desire is free.

Growing up, I was inspired by the characters in the universe of Star Trek: The Next Generation. They didn’t seem to need money. Technically they did have money in their universe, but money was so unimportant that hardly anyone talked about it — except for one race that everyone made fun of. The people in that universe worked because they wanted to work, not because they got paid. Money was irrelevant because they lived in a universe of abundance. They had unlimited food, cozy quarters, quality healthcare, and speedy transportation. Having all their needs met gave them the freedom to focus on other parts of their lives: hobbies like music or painting, recreation, intimate relationships, reading, exploration, and more. They lived in the ultimate personal growth playground.

I was inspired by that idea and asked myself how close I could get to it in the real world. Obviously this reality isn’t the same idealized fictional universe, but I could at least get closer to it if I tried. I realized that one step was to earn a certain threshold level of income in such a way that it wouldn’t require me to do a lot of grunt work to maintain it, and then all my expenses would be covered. That’s what got me interested in passive income.

I’ve been experiencing that reality for many years now, and honestly… I love it.

In order to play the game of life this way, I made decisions that many people would consider foolish. That’s because their priority is to make more money. My priority is to have a life. I’m not interested in getting rich or retiring. I’m already doing what I’d do if I were retired. So I deliberately pass up many opportunities to earn more money, so I can give less attention to money and more attention to personal growth, relationships, and more. I’m very pleased with this trade-off.

I don’t want to waste my life fussing over money. I did that during much of my 20s, and I think it was a mistake to live that way.

What may surprise you is that I learned to live this way even when I was broke. The key is how you focus your mind. To really enjoy life, focus your mind on what you love most, and bring that into your life now — not later, not when you have more money. Whatever you think money will add to your life, you’re probably wrong about that. Add those elements to your life now. So if you think money will allow you to travel more, start traveling now, even if you’re doing a lot of couchsurfing. Realize that you already have the means to do what you tell yourself you’re going to do when you have the money. You’ve just been programmed by social conditioning to think you need more money, but you don’t. And besides, you aren’t really going to be more motivated to earn extra money if you aren’t already following your path with a heart.

Take time to experience the simple pleasures of life. Put more attention on what you can enjoy and experience right now. That doesn’t actually require money. You can enjoy a long walk for free. Long walks are still one of my favorite pleasures.

When I couldn’t afford to buy books, I would go to the library and check out five or ten personal development books and audio programs and go through them. I very much enjoyed doing that, and it was free. I still do this today, typically averaging about one audiobook per week.

Today I can buy the best organic produce. I don’t have to look at prices when I shop. I like to shop as if everything were free. Whatever the bill is, I know I have plenty of money to cover it.

When I couldn’t afford the best food, I bought the best that I could afford and learned to appreciate it. I tried different foods. I learned to cook. I expressed my desire to have growth experiences through whatever level of abundance I could muster.

That approach was very motivating. It gave me a reason to actually earn some money. My reason for earning money was to help express my desired life path — a path centered around personal growth, exploration, and relationships. The real shift happened when I stopped using a lack of money as an excuse for not pursuing that path. I released the fear of not having enough. I started pursuing this path when I was broke. The money came later.

In my experience, needing money has usually pushed it away. When I don’t adopt a needy relationship to money, I seem to attract plenty of it. It flows to me quite naturally as a result of following my path with a heart. When I’m on this path, I’m feeling good about my life, my self development, my connections to people, and my contribution to the world. That state of being is very attractive. It attracts people, opportunities, business deals, and more. And that state of being doesn’t depend on having any particular level of income.

What if I want to increase my income? Trying to increase it directly seldom works. What works for me is to expand my path with a heart first. Internally I must open my heart to greater challenges or new levels of experience. If those experiences require more money, then the money will flow into my life — but only when I take the first step and get moving.

Quite often when it seems like money is a block to having certain experiences, that’s a false belief. We block ourselves because we aren’t ready. We’ve turned our backs on our light. In truth we are very powerful and creative beings, capable of summoning wonderful experiences into our lives when we’re finally ready to embrace them — and all their rippling consequences.

I used to think that traveling overseas was a really big deal. I turned it into this behemoth of complexity. I definitely used a lack of money as a reason for not traveling more. I also used the excuse of being in a relationship with a woman who didn’t like to travel. But once I realized that those limitations were just excuses and that of course I was a powerful enough being to summon the experience of travel into my life, I simply made it happen. It felt like there was a push to get moving initially, but afterwards it felt more like allowing than pushing.

Once I started traveling more, I began getting a lot more free travel invites. As I shed the belief that I needed money to travel, I found myself being able to enjoy amazing trips while spending very little money. For instance, people would invite me to speak at their events, and they’d pay for my travel expenses and provide a place to stay. I recently received an invite for my fourth free trip to Europe within the past two years, to speak at the Lifestyle Design Convention in Zurich in January 2015. I haven’t been to Switzerland yet, so I’m really look forward to it.

But of course this wouldn’t be happening if I wasn’t following my path with a heart. Part of that path involved facing and overcoming fears. I used to really dislike public speaking. Now I love it! It’s such a beautiful way to share a positive message and connect with people.

I’ll probably be getting speaking invitations with free travel opportunities for the rest of my life. I love speaking, I love traveling, and I love meeting new people, so this adds a lot of happiness to my life. This unfolded very gracefully by following my path with a heart. I didn’t have to push myself to do work I disliked to earn more money just so I could travel. I made travel a part of my life first, to the extent that I could afford it, and then it expanded, including the expansion of opportunities to fuel it.

You may be assuming that money is the ultimate fuel, the ultimate enabler, the ultimate resource in life. If that were true, then people with lots of money should be so much happier, shouldn’t they? But the data shows that once you get passed about $75-80K per year in income, happiness doesn’t increase with additional income and often decreases.

I have many wealthy friends who earn 10 to 100 times as much as I do. Most of them, however, actually seem less happy than I am. Some of them have told me they’re jealous of my lifestyle. They have empires to manage. They travel 150-200 days per year because they believe they have to. Otherwise they wouldn’t make as much money, and they might have to start laying people off. They often seem worried about potential threats to their revenue streams. Some of them are disturbed by the fact that I’ve uncopyrighted most of my work since they believe that intellectual property is their most valuable asset. But what does their income matter if they aren’t as happy as they could be, if they’re experiencing chronically higher stress levels, if they spend a lot of time worrying, if they wrap their self-esteem into their achievements (which sets them up for an inevitable fall)?

I think that especially in the U.S., we undervalue what actually makes us happy in life. We push ourselves to earn more, but why? If the path to get to that next level of income isn’t fulfilling, and if the money isn’t likely to fulfill you either, then why expend so much energy on an unfulfilling path? Why not put happiness and fulfillment first in our lives — and then see what it does to our incomes?

The approach that worked for me was to surrender the socially conditioned path. I gave up the path that said I have to earn lots of money first, and then I can do whatever I want and be happy. After trying that for many years, I found it foolish and unfulfilling. I actually resigned myself to being broke, figuring it would be worth it to be perpetually broke if I could at least spend a lot of time doing what I found fulfilling and enjoyable. But much to my surprise and delight, that path with a heart turn out to also be the path of abundance.

Steve Recommends
Here are my recommendations for products and services I've reviewed that can improve your results. This is a short list since it only includes my top picks.

Spring Forest Healingfest (Free) - Learn to heal yourself with qi gong
Site Build It! - Use SBI to start your own money-making website
Getting Rich with Ebooks - Earn passive income from ebooks
Lefkoe Method - Permanently eliminate a limiting belief in 20 minutes
PhotoReading - Read books 3 times faster
Paraliminals - Condition your mind for positive thinking and success
The Journal - Record your life lessons in a secure private journal
Sedona Method (FREE audios) - Release your blocks in a few minutes
Life on Purpose - A step-by-step process to discover your life purpose

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Room for Doubt. On Easter

People matter. Period. They matter to God. They matter to me. You're a people - you matter, too. 

Here I'll share tips on all things related to the worth and value of human life: guest services - in and out of the local church; volunteering best practices, thoughts on multisite church campuses, ramblings about leadership, my heart on family and relationships, and some insight to my relationship with Jesus ... and questions about all of this.  

Please join the conversation by leaving a comment, observation or question. 

And thanks for stopping by.

View the original article here

How Poor Funnel Structures Defeat Sales Coaching, Reduce Sales

This is a story about two companies’ sales funnels. One company has a sales funnel that improves win rates, the other doesn’t.

“Company A” uses the most common approach, orienting its sales funnel to the steps of its sales process: qualifying, solution identified, quotation provided, demonstration delivered, etc. You know the drill.

Company B uses a funnel based on the customer’s buying process. Each stage of the funnel identifies specific actions that customers take when they are moving forward in their buying process. It is these “customer go forward actions” that salespeople seek to achieve as they progress an opportunity through their funnel.

Company A’s funnel causes everyone, both salespeople and sales managers, to focus on the steps of their sales process. Sales opportunities are tracked based on sales tasks performed by the salesperson.

Because of the inward focus of Company A’s funnel, a sales opportunity can seem to be progressing quite nicely because the salesperson is doing everything the funnel described. But if the customer slows down their buying process or the rep makes a mistake, nobody knows until it’s too late because neither the rep nor the sales manager is measuring the success of each sales call based on customer actions. They often get blindsided when a “sure-thing” is lost, or goes radio-silent.

In short, the sales behaviors defined in Company A’s funnel are an inaccurate metric because sales reps are so often out of sync with customers’ views.

Another flaw in Company A’s approach is that it is based on sales process statistics that are lagging indicators (data collected after a process is complete) – such as how many calls, appointments, demos, and quotes have been made. Therefore, most coaching done by sales managers at Company A is what I would describe as “performance management.” That’s where a sales manager reviews what a sales rep has already done. Typically, then, the manager cracks the whip by saying, “make more calls, and do it faster!” Meanwhile, the rep is thinking, “That’s the same advice you gave me last month and it didn’t help.”

Over at Company B, things are run differently. A few years ago they became alarmed about poor user adoption of their CRM system. Salespeople were not inputting information in a timely manner, so the accuracy of the information being recorded was questionable. Not good.

Company B recognized that simply providing more training on CRM usage wasn’t the answer. They wanted their sales force to be more motivated to use CRM. But that would only happen if sales managers used CRM to become more effective sales coaches - proactively coaching salespeople through big deals in a constructive way so that reps won more deals and made more money.

Providing sales managers with improved visibility on customer actions in the earlier stages of a deal was a big reason why Company B switched the focus of their sales funnel to be focused on the buying process. Most sales managers are instinctively drawn to intervene in the latter stages of a deal, to help close it. But from the customer’s perspective, it’s in the earlier stages of the buying process when the size of the deal is determined – so better sales coaching during the earlier stages of an opportunity is crucial to making major sales.

To build their Buying Process Funnel, Company B identified buyer actions for each stage of the buying process. These became criteria in the sales funnel that indicate a customer has completed one step of buying and is moving on to the next. Salespeople can now review those criteria to help them answer the question, “What specific action do I want my prospect to take at the end of this meeting?” They want to get the customer to commit to go-forward actions linked to these criteria. The better a sales rep becomes at having customers complete next-step actions, the smoother and more predictable the sales funnel becomes.

Now, if and when a buyer chooses not to move forward, a buying process action criterion is not met and so alarm bells go off at Company B. Sales managers are alerted to the problem right away, and can intervene while there is still a chance to fix the problem and get the opportunity back on track.

Company B has discovered that with a Buying Process Funnel they get far better usage of their CRM system by both reps and managers — sales coaching is improved. Sales forecasts are more accurate because everybody is more focused on what the customer is doing.

For years, most sales organizations have a self-concept that “we are customer-focused.” But in practice, the tools many of them have been using are built around their sales process. This disconnect leads to ineffective sales coaching and poor win rates.

If your organization suffers from some of these same problems, take a hard look at your company’s sales funnel, and the sales training program it maps to. Implement a buying process focused sales funnel in 2014.

Kevin Davis is the president of TopLine Leadership, which provides customized training on sales management leadership skills and sales effectiveness. Kevin is the author of two sales books, including “Slow Down, Sell Faster!” 

Written for TrainingIndustry.com

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Stepping off the Stage

Earlier this week my wife, Laura, and I read from Jesus' sermon on the mount: Matthew 5-7. The opening paragraph of chapter 6 from Eugene Peterson's The Message goes like this:  

“Be especially careful when you are trying to be good so that you don’t make a performance out of it. It might be good theater, but the God who made you won’t be applauding."

This isn't news: I'm a recovering Pharisee. That is, I'm a long-time "wrapped-in-religion people-pleaser." If you don't quite understand me yet, that means that too often in my life my motivation for most anything has come from trying to make others happy with me. Approval. Acceptance. Smiles. "Isn't he awesome?" kind of stuff.

Sick, I know. I lived that way for more years than I want to admit. So I won't. But I did.  

For years I dismissed myself from Jesus' audience of Pharisees. After all I wasn't putting on a show. I wasn't making a big production out of my serving or leading or caring for people. But if I'm waiting for accolades or bothered by the lack of them, well... welcome to my stage.

Truth is, I am still tempted to live out of that paradigm... that identity. 

It's an identity that wants to define me as "enough." An approach to life that practically disregards all that Jesus has done as "enough." A paradigm that dismisses the grace of God as sufficient, as though the acceptance of people is somehow better or preferred to His acceptance. Which all in all, makes me arrogant and other people my false idols.  

Sick, I know. But, I'm recovering.  

Now, if you're reading this and you're disheartened by the notion that I've faked concern for you, or that I've lied about praying for you, I haven't. I do care, I serve because I love people, and I pray out of deep trust that people matter to me... and certainly to God.

I want God's applause, even though my old tapes scream otherwise. I want God happy with me, and apparently He already is. I want to be good enough, and God says I am through Jesus. 

There's one place to go when we leave our self-absorbed stage, and that's into the welcome arms of Jesus who calls us to simply rest.  

“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”

Recovering Pharisees are called to rest. Join me.

 

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Speed Up!

Don’t use the “enjoy the process” mantra to justify slogging along even more slowly and watching your goals die. It’s a huge limiting belief to assume that going faster means you’re doing something wrong and creating too much stress.

Making goals happen faster is often a LOT more fun. Fast tempo is HOW you enjoy the process. And some goals cannot be achieved slowly at all, so in many cases faster means success while slower means failure.

If going faster makes the process of achieving your goals less enjoyable for you, you’ve probably chosen the wrong goals to begin with. If you don’t want them sooner, you probably don’t want them.

On my first attempt at college, I tried going at the normal student pacing towards graduation. I found my classes boring and uninspiring. The goal of graduating in four years seemed distant and too much out of my control. The whole experience was pretty depressing, despite the fact that I was attending the #1 school in the nation for my major at the time. I did my best to enjoy the process by having more fun outside of class — getting drunk twice a week, shoplifting like crazy, and playing a lot of poker. That helped — I certainly enjoyed the process more, but it didn’t help me on my path towards graduation. After three semesters I was expelled, and rightly so.

I took a year off, then tried again. This time I tweaked the goal to make it more fun and inspiring — to start over as a freshman and earn my 4-year computer science degree in 1.5 years. All I really needed to tweak was the speed. That brought many other inspiring elements to the table — the full engagement of my mind, motivation, focus, curiosity, different ways of thinking about education, a sense of control over the process, higher self-esteem, access to deeper resourcefulness, a powerful vision of myself as being more productive than ever, and so on. This was the inspired path. The energy I felt upon considering a serious speed increase was a clear sign that I was onto something.

It also worked. Speed made the goal fun and meaningful. It brought interesting challenges. I revelled in the time management aspect. Finally I had a goal that felt worthy of me, not the mind-numbing snail’s pace of my first attempt at a college education. After all, if 15 semester units equates to 15 hours per week of classroom work (the average for a full-time student), then where is all the extra time going? A serious full-time student can invest a lot more than 15 hours a week in classes. Homework alone isn’t enough to fill in all the other hours of a week.

Instead of making the goal more terrifying and stressful, the faster pacing made the goal so much more fun. I loved the experience!

What I love about speed is that it pushes me not just to achieve the goal but also to become a better person along the way. In order to achieve a goal faster, I have to change myself. I have to release more limiting beliefs. I have to become more organized. I have to focus better. I have let go of more fluff. I have to cultivate new relationships with like-minded achievers. I have to get better at avoiding distractions. Since I love personal growth, goals that challenge me in this way are so much more fun than goals that don’t. The speed aspect is what helps me enjoy the process. Without sufficient speed the enjoyment just isn’t there.

Imagine playing your favorite game at 1/10th the speed. Does that help you enjoy the game more or less? For some, maybe it does help. Chess can be enjoyable at a very slow pacing. I’m not suggesting that all goals need to be sped up.

Just don’t rule out speed as being negatively stressful. Not all stress is bad. A fast tempo can create a lot of eustress — positive, beneficial stress. It can also mean the difference between achieving a goal and failing to achieve it. Going so slowly that you fail to achieve your desired outcome usually isn’t much fun. You can always justify such failure in retrospect with a “well, at least I learned something” or “I still enjoyed the process” mindset, and that can help, but wouldn’t it have been even better to gain the lessons AND to achieve the goal as well?

How much faster is better? I’m not talking incremental speed increases in most cases. I’m suggesting that you consider a 2x increase in speed at least. Even think about a 10x increase. Look at one of your goals and ask yourself, “How could I achieve this goal 2x, 5x, or even 10x faster?” I love the 10x question because it really gets me thinking in new directions.

Going fast is one of the things I love about writing. It’s why I’ve written so much. If I wrote as slowly as many other writers do, I’d be underground with a bullet in my decaying skull by now. Going too slowly is a creativity killer for me. I have to write fast to enjoy the process.

These days I can write a 2500-word article in about 2 hours flat. That includes the time from when I get the initial idea to when it’s fully written, edited, and published on my website. Many writers I’ve talked to consider that very fast. I consider it fun.

This morning I got up at 5am. I got an idea for a new article at 5:20am. And now this 1100+ word article is published a little after 6am — less than 45 minutes from idea to publication. That pacing is fun. I enjoyed those 40-odd minutes. I could have taken all morning to write this piece, but why go so slow? Fast is fun!

At a higher speed, I’ll make more mistakes. I may not be as elegant or polished, but so what? I can be blunt instead. I’ll get the ideas shared and moving. Some people will benefit from them. That’s what matters. Keep the energy moving and flowing at a pacing that feels exciting. Go too slow, and the ideas shrivel and die.

Today I decided to take on the challenge of writing for about 12 hours straight — fast — just to see how much content I can create and how quickly I can create it. I intend to keep writing throughout the day with only brief breaks for meals and mental rest as needed. I’ll publish the articles produced over some weeks, not all at once. A challenge like this is a way for me to enjoy the process of writing even more.

Note that going faster doesn’t mean working crazy long hours necessarily. It means thinking differently about your work, focusing yourself, and having MORE FUN.

Would you enjoy the process of achieving your goals even more if you doubled, tripled, or 10x’d your pacing? Pick a goal and ask yourself, how can I 10x the speed? See what fresh ideas bubble up from your subconscious. See if you feel any added energy or excitement from the speed. Then go!

Steve Recommends
Here are my recommendations for products and services I've reviewed that can improve your results. This is a short list since it only includes my top picks.

Feng Shui Fest (Free) - Alter your space to increase flow and peace
Site Build It! - Use SBI to start your own money-making website
Getting Rich with Ebooks - Earn passive income from ebooks
Lefkoe Method - Permanently eliminate a limiting belief in 20 minutes
PhotoReading - Read books 3 times faster
Paraliminals - Condition your mind for positive thinking and success
The Journal - Record your life lessons in a secure private journal
Sedona Method (FREE audios) - Release your blocks in a few minutes
Life on Purpose - A step-by-step process to discover your life purpose

If you've found Steve's work helpful, please donate to show your support.
Get Steve's Free Newsletter to stay in touch and receive the newest updates

View the original article here