On Becoming Fearless …

According to some studies, public speaking is the number one fear of most people. Curiously, speaking in front of others frequently ranks higher than the fear of one’s own death, which often reaches only second on such Most Feared lists!

Also interesting is the number one fear of most senior executives, the fear they will be found out. It is the fear that eventually others will figure out you don’t really know what you are doing and the gig will be up. “John/Joan, we all just realized you are flying by the seat of your pants in running this organization. It is time to pack up your corner office.” It is the thought that if others really knew how little you know, they would fire you, and do so immediately.

Have you ever had this thought? If so, welcome to leadership.

When the boss needs training – How HR can handle this dicey issue.

It is 10am and you have already completed a solid three hours at the office. You know it will be a long day and you will likely only complete a third of all you need to do. The ping of emails has become your constant companion.

As you reflect upon the week ahead, the state of the economy, and that recent difficult conversation, a moment of fear, mixed with overwhelm washes over you. “How will I make all of this work?” You realize you are simply exhausted.

At that moment, you receive notice from HR regarding a Two-Day Development Event. In disbelief, you again begin talking to yourself – this time out loud,

“They must be kidding. Who can attend training at a time like this? They truly have no idea what I am up against. I will just have to get out of it.”

 

If the above scenario is the reality of so many senior leaders (and I propose that it is), how do you as a human resource professional convince the boss to actively engage in the development initiatives you believe are critical to her and your organization’s long term success? This is an important question, and one that perhaps Marshall McLuhan unknowingly answered in 1964 when he coined the phrase, “The medium is the message”.

Doctors, Lawyers, Leaders, Coaches.

I recently ran into an old friend from high school. It was great to see him; he was exactly as I remembered: friendly, easy-going and (still) easy on the eyes.

In our brief conversation, he asked what I had been up to (for the past almost 20 years) and so I shared a couple of details of my life, including the fact that I now worked as an executive coach. He said he had heard about coaching and thought it sounded like a great gig. I said it was. We moved onto other topics and then parted ways, both of us no doubt marveling at the passage of time.

A week later, I received a phone call. It was my friend. He decided that he too would like to start a coaching practice. “Well,” I said, “I am sure you would be very talented as a coach, but you should know, I actually went to school for over ten years to do what I do.”

Initially, I was offended he thought so little about what it took for me to be successful in my profession. However, with the rise in popularity of coaching during the last decade, and the numerous schools that popped up to capitalize on that popularity (some promoting 2-week courses), I realized I really couldn’t fault his (mis)perception.

The experience made me think about the leaders with whom I work. And, I wondered if at least one of the many challenges facing my clients could be the result of them not thinking of leadership as a profession and, as their profession.

Can we please move on?

Lately I have found myself having a similar conversation with a number of clients. The conversation begins with my client stating they want to increase their visibility within their organization and better position themselves to work at a more senior, strategic level. They want to be noticed and earmarked for succession by supervisors; to be seen as a thought leader by peers; and, ultimately, to position themselves as someone ready to participate in the larger decisions facing the company.

What is surprising to me is that these are the same people who will either completely fail to show for one of our scheduled sessions; send an email stating they need to reschedule at a minutes notice, or; arrive late and unprepared for our time together, and, then fail to apologize for their lack of professionalism.

I often find that the way a client manages their time with me is indicative of how they manage themselves with others. Therefore, some of the behavior I experience is serious cause for concern. If my client is unable to successfully arrive at our meeting – on time, prepared, and having followed through on the commitments they made at our last meeting – it is almost guaranteed that they engage in this (poor) behavior with others. How then are they to be seen as the kind of person and professional ready for more responsibility? Perhaps they are unaware of how some of their behavior is negatively impacting their professional advancement?

The Age of Application.

Stanley Kubric once said, “If you can talk brilliantly about a problem, you can create the consoling illusion that it has been mastered.” As Kubric suggests, knowing what to do and actually doing it are two very different things.

I doubt that many of us need additional information about how to be a more effective leader, as much as we need to find a way to consistently apply what it is we already know. We may attend a valuable workshop, class or industry conference, and yet most of us will continue to do Monday morning what we did the previous Friday afternoon. Why? Largely, because it has worked well; it has led to our current level of success. However, as the title to Marshall Goldsmith’s latest book warns, What Got You Here Won’t Get You There.  

Leadership Today. How much do others want to help you?

Lately I have been thinking about what makes a leader in today’s world.

 

Are we a leader simply because others report to us, or because we are responsible for an area of the business? Are we a leader because we have a future vision that no one else seems to be able to see just yet? Or, is the answer that we are only a leader when it is that others are following? After all, how can we call ourselves a leader if, when we turn around, no one is following us or the initiatives we need them to support?

2009: The Year of Opportunity

Welcome to 2009.

As you think of the year ahead, what are your first thoughts? Before reading further, take out a blank sheet of paper and write them down. Write all the thoughts you have about the coming year. Do not censor yourself – simply capture whatever comes to mind on paper so that you can more fully know in what direction you are focused.

Ø     Write about what you believe 2009 will mean for you personally (think of your health, finances, relationships, career, spiritual and personal development);

Ø     Write about what you believe it will mean for your family (your partner, your children, and other loved ones); and finally,

Ø     Write about the implications you believe 2009 will have on your organization (your company’s brand, bottom line, long-term future, and access to resources and opportunities).

 

Now, reflect on everything you wrote.

 

As you read over your thoughts and see them in black and white, how do you feel? Are you excited at what you believe lies ahead? Or, do you find yourself anxious, fearful and overwhelmed? Perhaps you experience some combination of the two. 

Organizational Mastery

It took me two years to get it.

Two years of being continually frustrated! It felt like I was always waiting.

Waiting for things to stabilize; waiting for systems and processes to be in place; waiting for resources to be available; waiting for the new hires to finally get up to speed so that we could move forward. I waited for over two years for a day that never arrived.

The Inner Work of Leadership – A tribute to my mother, a year after her death

This is an article I wrote a year ago. It captures what I believe is the inner work that all truly effective leaders must do at some point.

 

Leadership development is self development … 

Something important.

I have not written in some time. The reason? I did not have anything to say.

 

I believe strongly that the only reason to write (and for that matter, speak) is to share something important, something that has the potential to add significant value to the lives of others. Outside of this, as the saying goes, it is hard to improve upon silence.

 

I now have something to say.

 

What I will share is not of my own thinking, but rather, that of others whose work I think is brilliant. Brilliant because it is simple to understand, can be applied immediately and perhaps most importantly, delivers career-advancing results.