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Intro to Effective Leadership As an Advantage

The Foundations of Leadership range from emotional intelligence to building relationships. Each foundation brings in elements of all the other foundations – and allows you to practice your leadership skill. As you do this, you’ll find that your leadership becomes effective. Effective leadership creates empowerment, innovation, creativity, and achievement – possibly where none existed before. This same leadership teaches people how to lead, along with responsibility and accountability. Let’s discover the ways that your effective leadership can be an advantage – both to you and your organizations – in several different areas of life. In the following series, we will look in more detail at each area and at the advantages that you can obtain.

First, think about how effective leadership can be used as a personal advantage. The most obvious advantage is that you are increasing your own skill. You can take your leadership skills with you wherever you go, whether in personal or work situations. When you have increased skills, you’ll feel more confident in your own abilities. Think about the advantages that could come about because of that confidence. As you practice the foundations of leadership, you’ll develop a toolbox or bench strength of your own – and be able to call on those tools when you need them the most.

At an organizational level, let’s look at communities or community organizations. Many times, as we’ve discussed, these organizations lack solid leadership simply because people do not step up to the plate. When you courageously step forward as a community or organizational leader, you define or redefine what leadership means to that group. But every organization has its own agenda – and you can promote that as a self-made leader. Not only this, you can use your own leadership as a way to create the expectations of leadership – this way, all facets of the organization will be able to sense when leadership is lacking – or has failed.

Corporate groups need leadership at all levels, and perhaps this is where your effective leadership can lend the most advantage. Everyone has some vision for his or her career, whether it’s to advance, to make a place right where you are, or to expand your position laterally. When you set the leadership example, you’re setting yourself up for the achievement of your own vision. As a leader, you prepare yourself to compete with the other people who want the same things. But take the advantages to the entire organization. Effective leadership builds teams, sets up open communication, and helps the organization move forward to the fulfillment of its goals. Leadership in corporate work groups creates a succession plan and a pool of talent who can fill in as things expand.

What about your family? You can use effective leadership as an advantage in family situations, as well. First, you are setting new expectations for yourself and for your family. Above this, as you move through the leadership foundations, you’ll start to define the roles and responsibilities of each family member. Everyone will learn about responsibility and accountability, as well as their own skills. You’ll be able to spend more time coaching and communicating than dictating and ordering. How is this advantageous? Imagine how your every day issues will start to work themselves out, whether it’s bedtime or behavioral problems. Picture your family members when they want to pitch in and achieve the goals you’ve set for them.

Your effective leadership is an advantage – and you can use it personally and for the organization. As we move through this series, we’ll discuss in more detail the ways you can utilize the advantage personally, in your community and community organizations, at work, and at home.

Copyright 2007-2008 Bryant Nielson. All Rights Reserved.

Bryant Nielson – National Corporate Sales Trainer – assists executives, business owners, and top performing sales executives in taking the leap from the ordinary to extraordinary. Bryant is a trainer, business & leadership coach, and strategic planner for many sales organizations. Bryant’s 27 year business career has been based on his results-oriented style of empowering.

Subscribe to his blog at: [http://www.BryantNielson.com]

Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Bryant_Nielson/142446

 

Leadership

How Leadership Training Develops Strong Business Leadership Skills

Leadership training must evolve beyond programs of improving basic business leadership skills. While discussing the fundamentals of delegation, running meetings, “motivating” employees and public speaking may be OK for newly minted supervisors, it’s really inadequate for the majority of professionals who rely on executive management training to survive in their leadership positions.

If you do not think we need to change our leadership training strategies, here are a few reasons why we should. Our world enjoys a level playing field which empowers billions of people to attain greater prosperity. At the same time, more people are acquiring and improving their business leadership skills through formal educational programs or their own informal development efforts.

The many advances made in computing, communications and other commercialization technologies offer everybody opportunities to quickly develop and sell their ideas. As improvements in the physical technology arenas continue to capture media attention, most business leadership skills courses and leadership training endeavors fail to improve our expertise in applying social technology.

Some people call this period of human history, the Age of Knowledge, yet still others, like me, say it is the Imagination Age. Indeed, we even find ourselves questioning deeply-held priorities, like our use of natural, human and man-made resources, in response to ever-increasing social pressures.

However, leadership training programs, especially in today’s competitive economy, should prepare executives, management candidates and entrepreneurs to energize their business leadership skills in such areas as:

=> Innovation strategy development
=> Talent management and human capital enrichment
=> Technology portfolio designs and analysis
=> Business systems requirements and analysis
=> Coaching, facilitation and consulting techniques
=> Value-oriented analytics and engineering principles

 

All these subjects and others can help you boost growth and improve your performance on the “bottom-line”. But more importantly, directors, executives and managers who work in non profits, a governmental agency or a service organization simply do not understand the contributions of those same subjects to their future success.

When selecting your next leadership training, business leadership skills or executive management training program use the following three tips.

Tip-1 – What Philosophy Is Being Promoted?

Any leadership training program attempts to help you discover the nature, causes and principles associated with the reality of leading, applying the knowledge base of leadership and the reasoning used by leaders.

That statement defines the philosophy of most leadership development programs. However, it’s up to you to assess, measure and comprehend the scope, depth and intensity of your leadership training courses. You do have to evaluate when the needs of your business leadership skills are not being served by your executive management training program.

Tip-2 – How Does This Leadership Training Strategy Work for You?

These days there quite a few numbers of effective, efficient and efficacious educational techniques, delivery systems and program support strategies available to you.

Obviously, you will want to use your schedule, your learning style preferences and your personal as well as your professional requirements to gauge your leadership training options.

Your business leadership skills will be strengthened, sharpened and stimulated if you employ a long-term (6-12 months or longer) executive management training regimen.

Tip-3 – Why Will These Activities Energize Your Business Leadership Skills?

An excellent leadership training program will include classroom or instructor-led, self-directed or home-study and in-service learning activities. Involving this variety of learning situations increases the energy levels of your business leadership skills.

In other words, the doing, dissecting and developing of your leadership performances enables you to more effectively absorb your ‘lessons’ physically, mentally, spiritually, emotionally and psychologically. That’s why world-class organizations give their promising performers executive management training for 2, 3 or more years.

Finally, the last and most critical “Tips” I will share with you are these –

Search for an executive management training program that adds richness, texture, luster, power and scope to the depth, capacity, value, quality and competency of your business leadership skills and experiences on a daily basis!

Invest in leadership training that will help you realize the ideals, opportunities and goals described in these Tips and you will make outstanding contributions to your organization, to your community and to our world.

Copyright © 2008, Mustard Seed Investments Inc., All Rights Reserved Worldwide.

Bill Thomas is the author of books, video, and CD-ROM programs, he conducts executive leadership training programs for Awesome Leaders and Innovative Leaders.

Bill helps professionals, managers, supervisors, executives, entrepreneurs, and directors in 75 countries improve their performance by providing in-depth, results-driven leadership development, coaching, and consulting support.

Sign up and receive Bill’s leadership “Power-Tips”, read free ebooks and articles, listen to his weekly radio programs, and get free educational white papers. Bill guarantees his cost-effective services will maximize the returns on your investment.

Awesome Leadership Training Programs and Leadership-Toolkit – Leadership Skills Training

Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Bill_Thomas/462

 

Leadership

Elevate Your Leadership by Immersing Yourself in a Wide Array of Leadership and Organizational Tools

There are so many books, seminars, coaching, and consulting practices based on leadership and organizational development. There are many forms of leadership and organizational development models such as transformational leadership, executive coaching, Six Sigma, TQM (Total Quality Management), business process improvement, learning organizations, and systems thinking to name a few. Some of you may feel overwhelmed by the sheer volume of authors, seminars, coaching, and consulting practices claiming to have the answers for improving your leadership and/or organization’s performance.

I used to be one of those individuals, as I too was initially overwhelmed by the number of books, speakers, and seminars pertaining to leadership and organizational development. However, I soon realized that life, learning, and leadership is all about taking in knowledge from multiple sources and then deciphering for yourself what works best for you and your particular situation. Whatever improved my personal leadership, I incorporated in my repertoire. Whatever did not work, I allowed to fall into the recesses of my subconscious so that I could retrieve it in case I ever needed it in the future.

There is so much knowledge available in the world in regards to leadership and organizational development. However, all of this knowledge may not be beneficial to our particular situation or life. Therefore, we must obtain this knowledge with a discriminating eye, assessing multiple leadership models from multiple sources, looking for those tid bits of information that can improve and shape our lives and organizations to be what we want them to be. However, for this to occur, we must overcome our intimidation and immerse ourselves in the vast genre of leadership and organizational development for optimal absorption.

Personally, I try to read as many books and articles on leadership and organizational development as my time allows. In addition, I still attend leadership and organizational development workshops and seminars because even though leadership and organizational development is what I do, I can always learn more.

My personal leadership development is the result of all of my years of academic study coupled with my ongoing appetite for learning about leadership and organizational development. The books, coaching, seminars, and blog are expressions of what I have learned and continue to learn. I am sharing my insights with you because I know that leadership and organizational development does not occur overnight, rather it consists of a continuous immersion of both your conscious and subconscious into the depths of who you are and how you relate to the challenges of the world you live in.

By immersing yourself in all of the leadership and organizational development training offered by the various leadership development outlets, you will provide your conscious and subconscious with a steady diet of ideas that you can then pick and choose from. Immersing yourself in multiple leadership and organizational models will afford you the ability to pick and choose the ideas that work best for you. It is important to note that one model may work for one individual and not another. Also, a combination of ideas from several models may work better for you than someone else. Therefore, do not limit yourself to any one model, as there may be something you can learn about yourself, or your leadership from another. Always remember that leadership and organizational development is a life long learning process. If you truly want to develop your leadership, don’t be intimidated by the vast amounts of knowledge in the field. Immerse yourself with a discriminating eye and come out a leader.

Dr. Barrett has an earned PhD in applied management and decision sciences, with a specialization in leadership and organizational change. He also holds a MS in organizational leadership and a BS in organizational management. In addition to these degrees, Dr. Barrett has completed several executive certificates focusing on various areas of management and leadership development.

Dr. Barrett is proud of his academic accomplishments, as they are the product of his long and sometimes difficult journey out of poverty. Along his journey, Dr. Barrett served honorably in the U.S. Air Force, participating in several vital overseas operations in the Middle East and Europe. He has also taught organizational leadership courses at the graduate degree level at Mercy College. This desire to develop leadership whether it be in myself or others is what drives Dr. Barrett. Dr. Barrett currently lives in NYC, where he runs The Barrett Center for Leadership Development, LLC ( [http://www.TheBarrettCenter.com] ) and The Barrett Leadership Blog ( http://www.TheBarrettCenter.blogspot.com ). The Barrett center offers workshops, seminars, coaching, consulting, and speaking engagements focused on the leadership and organizational principles developed by Dr. Barrett. You can find his current leadership model (The Barrett Leadership Model) in his new book Leading from the Inside-Out.

The Barrett Center’s Mission: To help clients develop their leadership from the inside-out. The Barrett Center’s Vision: Uplift the human condition by teaching individuals and organizations how to lead their existence from the inside-out.

Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Dr._Mario_Barrett,_Ph.D./245459

 

Leadership

The How and Why of Participative Leadership

As a business owner, one of your biggest challenges is to lead your team well. Should you focus on employee participation at the cost of business goals? Or do you “show them how it’s done” and expect the team to follow your lead? Is there a different approach for every situation?

In this piece, we’ll take a look at a particular leadership style – “participative leadership” and its benefits.

Leadership means different things to different people. However, a generally accepted definition is that it “is a process that takes place in groups in which one member influences and controls the behavior of the other members toward a common goal.”

While every leader creates his or her mantra of leadership, most leadership practices fall into one of these categories. Try and figure out your style!

Directive Leadership: You have the first and last word, and the group merely follows instructions. Do we sense a secret longing to be in the army!

Supportive Leadership: You create warm, personal relationships with your team members in order to coax their best efforts.

Participative Leadership: Group members are involved in the decision making process right from the start, by contributing their ideas and suggestions. You’re a strong believer in team work.

Achievement Oriented Leadership: You give your team a goal and they work independently towards achieving it. Either you’re plain lazy, or more likely, have a high degree of confidence in your team’s ability.

For now, let us take a closer look at Participative Leadership

A person who follows the participative leadership style will get a buy-in from group members on most changes and important decisions, before implementing them. However, the leader is still the final decision making authority. Remember, participative leadership is not about reaching consensus – if you keep looking for universal approval, you’ll never get anything done.

Some people feel that participative leadership is a “female thing” and makes you look soft. Let’s set the record straight – using this style is not a sign of weakness, in fact, it’s a strength that your team will respect you for.

When does participative leadership work?

While it’s not practical to change your approach with every situation, you might like to try participative leadership under specific conditions. Say you’re working on an assignment where you have limited expertise but your employees collectively have a lot of knowledge and experience. Using participative leadership is likely to create a win-win for both – they will feel included and you’ll make better informed decisions. And if you’re the owner of a start-up firm, getting buy-in on key issues from your core team members could prove invaluable.

Can I learn to be a participative leader?

Sure! Leaders are made, not born. Here are some of the important tips offered by experts:

Encourage group values: Allow the group to establish values and thereby take ownership. Of course, these will have to support the firm’s objectives.

Share vision: Participative leadership is all about sharing, starting with your dreams for the firm. Let your employees know where they’re headed.

Create a healthy environment: It is your responsibility to create an environment based on trust and mutual respect. Give your employees their space. No growth is possible without it.

Equip the team: No point taking their inputs, if they don’t have the necessary skills for the job! Ensure they have the tools and the training.

Organize and energize: Not every speech needs to be “rah rah”, but it’s important that you nurture and motivate your employees. Get those juices to flow!

Take and give feedback: Two-way communication is the cornerstone of participative leadership. Be generous with praise and objective with criticism. Talk, but also listen.

Expect accountability: Since your employees are given more responsibility, they must be accountable for their actions. At the same time, don’t turn into a control freak!

If you are interested in knowing more, take a look at which features a wide selection of books on leadership.

What’s in it for me?

Participative leadership is not all about feeling good about yourself. It can take you through many challenging business situations.

Implementing change: Regular involvement of the team prior to introducing the change will ensure that they’re already prepared for the transition. This works better than a separate “buy-in meeting” that other types of leaders might resort to.

Encouraging risk taking: A senior manager from a global telecom company relates how he used participative leadership to encourage employees to think out of the box, while charting their company’s growth plan.

Solving technical problems: If you need to get a group of gruff, technically qualified people to solve a complex problem, a participative leadership style will help draw out their combined expertise.

So, is participative leadership the best?

There’s probably no answer to that one. Each style works better in a specific situation and vice versa. Participative leadership is no different – while we’ve talked about the benefits, it’s equally important to recognize those instances where it won’t work. A situation that requires firm control and immediate action – like say, a disaster site, certainly cannot afford a consultative approach. To be an effective participative leader, you must also develop an astute judgment for when not to use it!

Hi, I’m Akhil Shahani, a serial entrepreneur who wants to help you succeed. If you like to work smart, check out [http://www.SmartEntrepreneur.net] It’s full of articles and resources to help you start and grow your business successfully. Please visit us & download our special “Freebie of The Month” at [http://www.smartentrepreneur.net/freebie-of-the-month.html]

Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Akhil_Shahani/52098

 

Leadership

Creating a Culture of Leadership

Many organizational managers assume that by adding leadership training or a leadership development program that they are able to create a culture that accepts leadership. The move from non-existent leadership to a leadership culture takes time – and a few steps in between. Let’s look at how you can create a culture of leadership.

First, you, as the organizational leader, must acknowledge the existence of leadership potential. It sounds simple, but many leaders do not want to admit that they are replaceable – that someone or more than one person would be capable of taking the reins once they’re gone. Don’t be that leader – seek out and recognize that the organization has talent. Acknowledge that the talent will one day be capable of taking over your vision and moving the organization forward. By making this acknowledgment, you’re telling your mid- and senior-level leaders that a path exists. And you’re telling new hires that the sky is the limit in your organization.

Next, clearly outline what a leader in your organization “looks like” – and hold people to the standard. The list of leadership competencies is a long one. You’ll never find one leader who executes all competencies perfectly. So, you must determine the competencies that mesh well with your organization and its climate. Don’t forget to decide which competencies lend themselves to your vision for the organization and where you see the organization in the future – even after you’ve gone. You should also consider the functional leadership competencies that go along with your organization’s line of business. If you choose too widely, you’ll end up with a picture of a leader who doesn’t exist. Once you’ve determined the competencies, lay them out for the organization. Simply put, you can say that a leader in your organization has these competencies and displays these behaviors. As people move into leadership roles, hold them to the standard.

We’ve already mentioned the fact that organizations do create leadership training and development programs – and you should do that to build a leadership culture. The program should be ongoing and consist of various levels – from “beginning” leadership to the advanced. In fact, your leadership program should begin reaching down into the lowest levels of the organization right away. For example, offer a leadership program to new-hires that details what your leader “looks like”. It’s the seed that will keep leadership growing through all levels. Your program should include seminars, networking, and even real-time project management at the higher levels. By creating a multi-level program, you’re keeping the leadership machinery in motion – and giving the organization a sense that anyone can move up to the leadership ranks.

Now that you’ve got your program, put your mid- and senior-level leaders through the program. You should even include yourself. This way, the message goes out loud and clear that your organization expects the same standard of leadership from everyone – executives included. Any cultural shift should start from the top. If they don’t buy in, how do you expect the lower levels to buy in? It may be an unpopular decision with your executive team, but you’ll be taking big strides in creating the culture of leadership.

At this point, it’s important to explain why you’re making the shift to leadership. The explanation shouldn’t just be afforded to executives and managers but to all levels of the organization. Explain that you’re looking to give everyone an opportunity to advance – and to learn what it takes to do so. Outline the fact that you’re looking for bench strength for all leadership positions – including your own. Not only this, a leadership orientation prepares you for succession planning at all levels, as well as talent management. The benefits to the organization are numerous and it’s your job to explain them.

Finally, focus on the success of the program. When you have a successful advancement due to the leadership program, highlight it publicly. Or, let’s say one of your leadership teams “in training” solve a business problem in their project assignment. Showcase this development as related to the culture of leadership at your organization. When the members of your organization see that the program and its culture are successful, you’ll have no trouble keeping your talent pipeline full.

There are many ways to move to a leadership culture. Follow these steps in the beginning and you’ll find that the transition is simple and beneficial.

Copyright 2008 Bryant Nielson. All Rights Reserved.

Bryant Nielson – Managing Director and National Sales Trainer – assists executives, business owners, and top performing sales executives in taking the leap from the ordinary to extraordinary. Bryant is a trainer, business & leadership coach, and strategic planner for sales organizations. Bryant’s 27 year business career has been based on his results-oriented style of empowering.

Subscribe to his blog – and learn the legendary secrets of top business training programs at: [http://www.BryantNielson.com]

Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Bryant_Nielson/142446

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/1307327