In the Eye of the Storm

Everything Can Change in a Moment

There we were. Crowded in a stairwell watching live footage of the tornado touching down just up the street. Leaders were texting family, calling kids, checking on team members, and checking on one another. Nervous laughter, tears, and compassionate words echoed through the stairwell. 
 
It’s unreal how everything can change in a moment.

• During spring break, a few blocks from our hotel, we heard the sirens of the police racing towards the Denver High School in response to a shooting.

• In Nashville, family friends from MO lost their daughter in the school shooting.

• On Friday, tornados reigned down destruction and heartache to communities.

• Jobs can be lost.

• Key clients and can move on.

• Loved ones can hurt loved ones.

Everything important can change in a moment.
 
Last Friday was filled with distraction while I attempted to facilitate a session on Navigating Organizational and Personal Conflict. Schools were closing early, businesses were sending team members home and there we were watching the storm roll in from the 5th floor.
 
When in the stairwell no one wanted to talk about leading with Emotional Intelligence or developing Relationship Intelligence to be more effective leaders during challenge, conflict and crisis. In the stairwell priorities shifted. What was worthy of our time was no longer important at that time.
 
During crisis our priorities shift. We think about what’s most important and for most people – we aren’t thinking about our personal success at work. We think about our family, friends, and team members and check to make sure they are okay.
 
Our priorities shift. During times of crisis, we reach out to offer support, a lending hand, prayer, meals, clean-up, and/or an ear. During crisis, we come together in incredible ways to provide hope for humanity in the middle of tragedy.
 
Why does chaos cultivate a culture community even at work? This is a question that I’ve been processing for a few years and last Friday I had a front row seat.
 
During crisis, our priorities get a “forced” reset. When we perceive something as extremely important, we change our priorities to address it. Isn’t it amazing how resistant to change we can be and yet how quickly we can adjust and change when we choose?
 
Here’s what I’m thinking.
 
Let’s do a gut check on our priorities.

• Do you feel exhausted on a regular basis?

• Prioritize sleep, eat healthier food and exercise

• Do you feel overwhelmed like you can you never catch-up?

• Start prioritizing work and actually delegate.

• Do you feel shame for not spending enough time with your family?

• Schedule some dates and family dinners

• Do you feel regret for not investing enough time to develop your direct reports?

• Prioritize time for effective one on ones.

• Do you keep wondering when fitness will become a priority?

• Start taking the stairs at work and walking 10k steps a day

When that storm was rolling in, we could see it coming. We had time to adjust our approach. Right now, you are aware enough to know if some priorities are out of focus. You can feel the storm brewing. Take the time before the crisis to reset your priorities so you can love life at work and love life at home. If you need to set a coaching session to work through focusing on what’s most important, don’t wait for something to boil over. Let’s find focus now.

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Climb Better, Part 3: Who to Follow

There’s a statement made about the loudest talkers and decisive decision makers ... they remember names and can make people feel welcome. People call them “natural leaders” because they have charisma. However, is that a reason to follow someone? 

Followership is an interesting concept. Inevitably all leaders follow and all leaders lead. How do you know what voices to listen to? How do you know who to let influence your thinking? How do you know when to follow and when to lead?

It’s wise to follow a leader whose character has kept up with their responsibility and capability. This type of leader can be driven to take action, driven to create process, driven to help others or maybe driven with a unique blend of all ... people, performance and process. All types of leaders can have character with responsibility and capability. 

Every leader follows someone, in some capacity. When is the last time you read a leadership book and started to implement a practice or share the learning with your team? When is the last time you listened to a podcast and took action or thought deeply? When is the last time you shared a challenge with a peer and took their advice? Every leader follows someone in some way. How do you choose who to follow?

Every positional leader has to put themselves in a position to follow a team member at some point in time. If you want to rest, grow, and develop, you have to follow. 

Here are a few questions I think are important to ask when choosing to follow. Just remember, others are asking similar questions to decide whether or not they should follow us. 

• Is the leader’s character up to par? 

• Is the leader’s competency at the level of their responsibility? 

• Is the leader willing to listen and ask for help from others?

• Has the leader shown the capacity to accomplish the goals?

• Does the leader know where they are going and how to get there? 

Keep a look out for the next newsletter when we share two key reasons to follow. 

Climb Better, Part 2: Pursuing a Better Path to Success

Welcome to the second installment of Climb Better--the challenge to make sure we remember the difference between what we achieve and what we deem success. If you missed the last article, you can view Climb Better, Part 1 here.
 
The former NFL player, Shannon Sharpe, recently shared that after all the success, the awards, even the Hall of Fame, he now realizes it would be more rewarding if he had a spouse to share it with. He talked about the one-track mind to succeed on the field that drove him to not ever prioritize family. After all his achievement, he is seeing the difference between achievement and success and wishing he had found a way to have both.
 
We all have choices we make every day. The pressure to achieve, to perform, to help, to make a living, to grow the business, to serve the client is real. Our hope at Insight Leadership Group is that we all learn to kick butt and take names at work while also finding success in life. We want everyone to look back on life all the while proud of what they achieved and people they impacted along the way. We want you to leave a legacy you and your family are proud of. 

So how do we achieve and succeed? I think we have to choose what mountain we want to summit? Why do some climbers choose to summit Mt. Everest, Mt. Kilimanjaro or K2? Each climb has a different set of challenges and a different story at the end. Climbers look at what they want to accomplish and choose a summit that aligns.
 
How do you choose the summit you want to climb at this season in your life? Here are four filters I use for choosing the next summit.

• Does this venture/choice/program benefit my organization/team?

• Does this decision honor and benefit my spouse now or am I asking for them sacrifice for a while?

• Does this decision impact my ability to be actively involved with my kids or just provide $$ for them?

• Does this decision align with my values and personal purpose or is it just a good business decision?

When choosing the summit you want to climb, it is important to make sure that when you reach the peak you can celebrate and be truly happy you made it. We cannot foresee the future, but when answering the questions that are important, we encourage you to have the courage to trust your gut. Then go all-in. We don’t know what mountain you are climbing. Our role at Insight is not to tell you which mountain to climb. Our role is to help you love life at work and love life at home no matter which mountain you choose.
 
Some leaders need help aligning their teams. Some leaders need executive coaching to navigate the next season. Some leaders need help developing their managers so they are equipped to lead. Whatever the next summit is we are here to help you navigate.

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Three open enrollment purposeful programs coming up to help leaders “climb better” are available to you [learn more: ryan@insightlg.com]:

1. Distilled: The focus is on rest and personal purpose. Let’s make sure the mountain peak you are pursuing is the right one and you are blazing the right trail.

2. Courageous Managers Cohort: The focus is on mastering the vital skills of management needed to climb with confidence and impact.

3. Arkansas Business Executive Leadership Academy: The focus is on building your leadership on solid foundation with the necessary skills, tools and mindsets needed in executive leadership.

Climb Better: Pursuing a Better Path to Success

The sun was shining. Backpacks were packed. Water bottles filled. The map we didn’t know how to read looked good. Compass for Instagram photos before Instagram was the thing.
 
You get the picture. We saw the mountain peak. We packed what we thought we needed and set off for a climb we weren’t ready for.
 
Sound familiar? If you are reading this email at some point in your life you set a goal you wanted to achieve and got after it.
 
As we climbed up the mountain trailblazing our own path, my dad and I might have questioned our own discernment a time or two! The only spot flat enough to pitch our tent had a few remnants of bears left behind and a clear bear path to the water. Safety first was not our motto!
 
During your climb to achieve, there might have a been a few circumstances you’ve navigated. Looking back, you think to yourself that there might have been a been a wiser path.
 
We’ve all had those moments:

• What if I would have prepped for that meeting a bit more thoroughly?

• What if I would have held my tongue when my idea was challenged?

• What if I would have executed instead of getting caught up in what I couldn’t control?

• What if I would have considered the options and slowed down to hear opinions?

We’ve all have those moments when looking back would have helped us climb better. I think about the impact this can have at home as well.

• What if I would have been as patient with my kids as I was with my team member?

• What if I would have been as helpful with my spouse as I was with my boss?

• What if I would have been as ambitious with the important home projects as I was with my goals at work?

• What if I would have slowed down to hear from my family before locking in plans that impact them?

We could have done better. We can’t change the past and we sure shouldn’t be letting it hang over us.  What we can do, is try our best to make sure we don’t repeat it.
 
The next few articles will focus on the idea of “climb better”. On our pursuit of success let’s not forget that our fulfillment and legacy is built on how we serve more than what we achieve.
 
Shoot us a note and let us know what lessons you’ve learned over the years and what would have been helpful to you in your leadership journey.
 
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Living On Purpose With Purpose: Learning to Play the "Music" Inside Each of Us

We are in it now. 2023 is off to the races. Goals are made, strategies are clarified, and action steps are in motion. During this year you want to make sure you grow, you achieve, you kick butt and take names! We all want more than goal boxes checked when December rolls around. Whether you know it or not – you want to lead on purpose and with purpose. If you take the time to find your purpose and intentionally lead with purpose everyday – a successful year is inevitable.
 
A few days ago I had the opportunity to spend time helping leaders uncover, clarify and learn how to lead with their unique purpose. It was a privilege. The organization did not do that exercise with their leaders simply to be nice and have a good time, though. When leaders align their personal values and purpose with the organizations, amazing results happen.
 
It’s interesting. Psychology Today examined 35 different strengths and came to a profound conclusion.

• Purpose contributes to a leader’s well-being more than any other attribute

• Purpose was the only attribute associated with healthy functioning after adversity

• Doctors found a connection between having purpose and being less prone to disease.

• Psychologist found a connection between purpose and greater well being

• Executives found a connection between purpose and navigating a constantly complex changing landscape without obvious right and wrong strategic decisions.

Purpose comes out of you. It’s part of you. It fuels you and drives you. Purpose is specific and meaningful. It gets you out of bed when you are tired. It propels you when you are overwhelmed and anxious. Purpose is what keeps you from burnout. Purpose is what leads you to leave a legacy worth remembering while being a leader worth following.
 
Purpose is not simply a statement. It’s not plaque. It’s not trivial exercise. It’s a reminder as to who you are and why you do what you do, in the way you do, every day.
 
My son Ezra is 9. He’s filled with funny one liners, good dance moves in the kitchen, FIFA facts and more random fun. He’s super quiet at school and no one knows this side of him outside the home. I said, "Ezra – this year I’m praying for you to have the courage and conviction to be you at school. Don’t be afraid to make jokes, bust a dance move, and have fun. Be you. Don’t worry about what others think." He said, "... but only the appropriate jokes, right dad?" – "Yes son." Oliver Wendell Holmes (former associate justice of the Supreme Court) said: "Most of us go to our graves with our music still inside us, unplayed." The last thing I want for my son is to live another day with music still inside of him.
 
The last thing you need is to go another year without you being you. The last thing you need is to go another year without leading with clear purpose. We believe in this so much, we are going to focus on helping leaders craft their purpose and personal vision frames for their lives at Distilled. Distilled is our executive leadership experience in Louisville that weaves leadership training and the bourbon trail together. This leadership experience has a limited number of participants. They come from any industry, so you can learn from high-level leaders outside of your normal sphere of influence. [Click Here to learn more.]
 
It breaks my heart to see my kids holding back, however, you and I both know leading with courage and conviction is a constant challenge. Our kids struggle with it and so do we. I love this quote from Howard Thurman, “Don't ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive, and go do that, because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”
 
Give us a call or set a time to chat and lets make sure 2023 is the year you come alive and help everyone you lead do the same!

The Game Changer

Using One on Ones to Leverage Your Team and Transform Your Leadership

Something special happens when we give the people who are important in our lives our undivided attention. Wednesday afternoon, I had to make one last Christmas gift run. I took Alice, our 5 year little girl. As soon as we headed towards the stores, she had a glimmer in her eye and asked if we could go to a coffee shop after shopping to warm up with a vanilla steamer and snack. She was helpful in the stores, and we had a great time warming up in the coffee shop.
 
The difference between this encounter and many of the other Brown family adventures was the undivided attention and the focused conversation. Too many leaders confuse the purpose of the one on one with leaving you and said team member wondering if it’s truly a value add.
 
The confusion is usually because the manager is busy and does more talking than listening. It’s more like a task management session rather than a strategic, relationship building meeting. Then, there are leaders who never get to the task because they spend the whole time talking about the last fishing trip and little Susie’s trip to the dentist. All of these conversations are important, but not all of these conversations lead to an engaged team member feeling supported, valued and appreciated.
 
Here's a brief reminder for you to leverage in the new year.
 
Undivided Attention

You want every team member to feel heard, valued, appreciated, supported, believed in, and developed. We can almost guarantee that if team members are leaving for lateral moves, then one of these elements is missing.

Close your computer and put your phone out of sight--or at least turn Outlook off and only take notes. Nothing says, I value your time like looking at every message on your phone and email popping in. Make sure the team member knows your expectations before meeting, so they have a shot at meeting them!
 
Focused Conversation

Be ready to ask key questions to support your team member during your daily check-ins. Your job as a manger is to coach your team member to success, and it’s tough to coach if there’s no conversation. Your job is to set priorities, remove barriers and prep a team member for success. Four times a year, we recommend straying from the framework to focus on career and personal development goals.
 
Question 1: What are your top priorities at work right now?

Question 2:  How is the team or organization helping you accomplish your goals?

Question 3: What strengths are you leveraging or what overdone strengths might be getting in your way?

Question 4: Is there anything in the way of you accomplishing the goal? A process, resource, team member, vendor, etc…?

Question 5: Do you have feedback for me on how I can better support you?

Question 6: Is there anything else we need to talk about?
 
These questions provide a focused conversation that puts you in the coaches corner and provides the opportunity for your team member to let you know what they need from you in order to succeed.
 
We hope this helps you continue to engage and develop your team in the new year!
 
Happy Holidays and be sure to give the most important people in your life what they will remember the most. Your undivided attention and focused conversation.

The Christmas Gift that Matters: Investing in Healthy Relationships

We have got to ask: What is it that your team members want, but are not going to ask you for? Yes, we know everyone wants a raise, a promotion, and to lease a workspace on company $$ with a mountain or ocean view. They may want those things, but we all know those things don’t make long term happy employees. Just like a new car, a new ring, and new vacation spot don't make for a happy family. 

So what is the gift that actually matters? 

Let’s get this out of the way. Yes, socks matter and are great gifts! Every year, families far and wide make jokes about those useful and helpful gifts that should be remembered all year ... good socks and underwear. Last year, I was ready to load up on smart wool socks to help keep me warm during those winter Zoom meetings in the office shed (The Reserve). Low and behold my family came through to keep my feet toasty!

Cozy socks may make a great Christmas gift for your team, but what about...

Intentional, Consistent, Uninterrupted Time. 

Do you know what makes the difference between teams with higher retention, improved employee engagement scores and increased productivity? The number one difference maker is effective one-on-one’s. Yes, company parties and vacations are great. But they are not the difference maker. 

There are salesmen pulling in record breaking years and going to Cozumel who are looking for new jobs because they don’t respect their leadership. 

You can’t buy your way to healthy relationships. You must invest. 

How do you invest? 

• Set regular one-on-ones with your team members. Cadence and sequence should vary by role, tenure, and the ability for impromptu conversations throughout the week. 

• Set clear expectations and learn how to communicate those expectations by speaking in the language of your team members through the Core Strengths App. 

• Speak 19.2% of the time and listen the rest. 

Our next newsletter will provide a tool for how to effectively conduct a game changing one-on-one. The first step is for you to wrap the present--commit to giving the gift of time to your team members. 

Say something like, “This next year I’m committed to investing in you and making sure you have what you need to succeed. Let’s align calendars for January for regular one-on-ones geared for your growth and success." 

Then be sure to follow-through! 

Chick-fil-A Cows Petition for Beef to be Thanksgiving Turkey Substitute

Bring Relationship Intelligence to Thanksgiving

The CFA cows recently spoke out about their frustrations with turkey as a beef substitute outside Thanksgiving. As one cow stated, “Turkey needs to stay in their lane. We don’t need turkey bacon, turkey burgers, turkey spaghetti. Enough already!” The cows went on to explain their concerns with turkey taking over the dinner table outside of Thanksgiving. 

While normally a champion of beef substitutes like chicken, the CFA cows cited a recent fallout with their Angus, Hereford and Kobe families, that has changed their tune about eating beef. A representative from the Angus family stated, “Those CFA cows are actually dairy cows. Nobody’s gonna eat those scrawny things. I’m tired of them representing the beef community. Stop speaking for all of us!”

A beef between beef. Go figure. At Insight, our mission is to help leaders love life at work and love life at home. While we recognize that there is no substitute for spending time with family at Thanksgiving, we also acknowledge that we’d like to substitute the tension at family gatherings. 

Past experiences with certain family members, either good experiences or bad ones, create expectations for the next time you gather with those specific loved ones. If your past experiences were bad, the stage is set for potential tension and conflict. Perhaps you sense it with that worrisome feeling you have in the pit of your stomach as you approach the door, casserole in hand. 

If you anticipate a negative or tense experience this Thanksgiving, would you be willing to dig deeper into that relationship? Seek to understand how they are wired up, what motivates or drives them. Evaluate your own MVS (Motivational Value System - if you’ve taken the SDI 2.0) in comparison to your family member(s). Might this be an opportunity to recast that past experience with your new understanding? It could be the differences you have are simply a matter of what motivates you vs. what motivates your family member. Then, decide to master the moment and bring the right strength to your Thanksgiving celebration.

Perhaps, you don’t anticipate any tense relationships at your Thanksgiving gathering. If so, that’s great! Enjoy the turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, rolls, and every other carb attached to the season. May the football and football (world cup) gods smile upon you and your team, unless you are playing my Cowboys. Regardless of what the CFA cows think, I welcome the turkey come Thursday!!
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A few tips:

• Download the Core Strengths app and pull it out when you need to find a way to reframe your conversation at the family gathering.

• Remember to be grateful in the midst of what is frustrating.

• Remember to watch to cheer for the Cowboys!

• Remember to watch the World Cup.

• Call us next week to keep your development journey rolling.

Keep in mind, if you are exhausted and drained at work, then you’re probably not at your best when you get home. Certainly, that could have implications for your Thanksgiving celebration. Consider one or more of the following to improve your leadership so that you can love life at work and love life at home.
 
Three Opportunities to Consider [learn more: ryan@insightlg.com]

1. Our next Courageous Leaders Executive Experience to help leaders rest, think and prepare to lead well is around the corner. Distilled coming March 8-10, 2023. See more info below.

2. Executive Development: Sign up for executive coaching.

3. Manager Development: Register your managers for our Courageous Manager’s Virtual Cohort launching in the Spring 2023. Watch for new dates coming soon.

Ricky Bobby Leadership 101: Understanding Success that Matters

Thousands of years ago humans were very similar to how we are today. The following statements from Ricky Bobby continue to ring true through the ages.

• "I don’t know what to do with my hands." Name one person that can’t relate!

• "If you're not first, you’re last."

These statements ring true from the ball field to the conference room. These statements also impact our ability to lead.
 
The first one is obvious. Do I hold a cup, put my hands in my pocket, put them in the air like I just don’t care … It’s important to know how to present and what to do with your hands. (We can provide presentation coaching if you need it.) The more pressing issue for me is the second statement and how it impacts everything we do. If we're not first, we're last.
 
A few weeks ago, on a cool Saturday morning, there was a heated soccer match in the Fayetteville Recreational Soccer League for girls 5 and under. Picture 4 girls who are 4- and 5-years old competing for the opportunity to get snacks at the end of the intense competition. This story helps me believe that God is real and active in our lives. The opponents coach stood about 6 feet tall and weighed in around 263 pounds. He was actively moving on the field to try and motivate and coach his girls to victory.

Then, it happened. He began to turn his comments towards the other coaches (my wife and sister-in-law) and then he turned his comments towards the 5-year-old girl on our team who was unstoppable on that day. She couldn’t miss the goal! The coach knew that Ricky Bobby was right and could see the local news stations' headlines before they were written about his big loss. He began trying to stand in her way to block the goal and that didn’t work. He began to talk down to the little girl and that didn’t work. Coaches and dad stepped in. Then I stepped in to make sure local news outlets didn’t have a real reason to join us that day.
 
If you're not first, you’re last!
 
Some people can become a bit insane; they can lose themselves in the pursuit of winning. The key is to make sure we know what a “win” actually is. The opponent's coach could have celebrated a 5-year-old's stellar performance and helped her enjoy what was going to be a great day. She is 5 after all. Instead he gave her a story of how leaders can go for the wrong win.
 
Think of it this way ... In your pursuit of success make sure you are actually being successful.

• Success is setting policies in place that reward good sales not moving numbers to get the reward.

• Success is setting policies in place so teams are rewarded for collaboratively getting the goal instead of creating a culture of finger pointing.

• Success is helping a team member improve and develop through coaching instead of receiving a bad annual review after a year with minimal to no feedback.

You want to be first. Who doesn’t? Be first in what matters.

Love your life at work. Help your team love life at work.
Love your life at home. Help your team leave work in a way that helps them engage in life after work.

It's what we strive to do best at Insight Leadership Group.
 
Three Opportunities to Consider [learn more: ryan@insightlg.com]

1. Manager Development: Register your managers for our Courageous Manager’s Virtual Cohort launching in the Spring 2023. Watch for new dates coming soon.

2. Executive Development: Sign up for executive coaching.

3. Let us know you are interested in our next Courageous Leaders Executive Experience to help leaders rest, think and prepare to lead well. Distilled coming Spring 2023. See more info below.

My Weekend 911 Story

We quickly swerved around a blown tire flying down I40 and watched an out-of-control SUV barrel into the woods. I yelled to Titus to call 911, as I pulled over immediately, jumped out of the car, and sprinted into the woods while thinking in the back of my mind … what am I going to do to help? I hope he’s okay. What am I going to see?
 
It's wild how everything can change in a matter of minutes. An easy drive listening to Nebraska blow a game against Northwestern was interrupted by a blown tire and crashing car.
 
Have you ever been enjoying your day at work and all of a sudden, a crisis happens? Everything is on fire?
 
What “fire” moments did you deal with last week?

• Was your team equipped to solve it or were you pulled in to save the day?

• Were you able to get the problem resolved?

• What do you wish you knew prior to dealing with the issue?

• Do “fires” keep you from doing what only you can do, on a regular basis?

As a leader there are many times you are pulled into situations that interrupt your day.

• Do you operate like my experience above, sprinting towards the crisis, dialing for help without the competency to fix it?

• Do you operate like the 911 operator taking time out of your day to assess the situation and who to call to help?

• Do you operate like the highway patrolman or EMT flying into save the day because no one else around has the skills to help?

 
The crisis will come. The questions is, how will you navigate it, while continuing to take care of your team and business?
 
After 10 years of providing executive coaching, it’s evident that the healthiest and most effective leaders are able to operate more like the 911 operator. They listen, connect, and go on with their day. Their teams are capable of solving complex problems. High performance leaders don’t have to run to the fire every week.
 
Many of you are pulled into the fires because your managers are not equipped to handle the complex situations. They run towards it with you on the phone. They know they don’t know what to do, but they know they need to be there because it’s the right thing to do.
 
Until you develop your managers you will continue to be pulled out of work that keeps your team and business healthy.
 
The rest of the story:
The driver was shaken up, but thankfully okay. He was able to get out of the car with minimal injuries.
 
Three Opportunities to Consider
Manager Development: Register your managers for our Courageous Manager’s Virtual Cohort launching in October.
Executive Development: Sign up for executive coaching or let us know you are interested in our next Courageous Leaders Executive Experience to help leaders rest, think and prepare to lead well.

3 Keys to Strategic Agility and Change

There are 3 keys to leading with strategic agility and change.  

1. Know Your Business 

1. System Improvement 

1. Trusting Relationship  
    

As I’m typing this, I am practicing agility and quick change at home. The day has not gone according to plan. Has that ever happened to you? Juggling personal life and work life at the same time? We are having our pastor and his family over for an early dinner. The plan was to smoke and grill chicken thighs and legs. That is an easy 1–2-hour, mess free meal, that tastes incredible. A member of my home, whom I love, brought home 2 whole chickens. Luckily, I left the reserve at lunch, fired up the smoker and now we are having smoked beer can BBQ chicken. Yes, the meal will be incredible, but it is a bit more work. The switch was frustrating, but easy because I know how to make the change without thinking twice. Honestly – the hardest part was practicing Relationship Intelligence!  

Know Your Business  

A few weeks ago, I was driving home and google maps had multiple route options displayed. Without knowing the roads or the area very well I had to slow down, pull over, and review the information before making the best decision to get home.  

I did not know the area so I could not make the right decision on where to go.  

Your ability to be agile is directly connected to how well you know your business. Your experiences matter--where you’ve been, where you are, and where you are going. If you don’t know your business, you can’t practice agility when a need to change arises. Great leaders can be strategic on the fly. We are shifting goals we are shifting how to accomplish the goal. (i.e. – Great dinner is still the goal. It's just what we are having that changed). Your business does not always have time for you to pull reports, have meeting after meeting, form a committee and meet a quorum before a vote. Business moves too quickly to crawl. Know your business so you can practice agility without losing yourself.  

Keep tabs on your roadblocks, goals, and metrics. Know what your people are working on and their progress so you can quickly and accurately speak to their bandwidth.  

Having this knowledge will help you remain strategic and agile.  

System Improvement 

Twenty years ago, I could run circles (or at least hold my own) around most anyone on the pitch. My body (systems) were agile enough to shift directions, pick up speed and remain in position to compete. Fast-forward to now … I’m in the backyard with my boys and I cannot keep up. They shift directions every two seconds, and my kneecaps feel like they are going to pop. My system does not work, and I am no longer as agile!  

If you have been in business for long you know some systems work better than others. This could be a computer system, program, or internal process you are leveraging to get work done. Some systems bog down the ability to be agile and implement quick change.  

Great leaders recognize when something is not working and instead of practicing insanity, they implement wisdom. They change what is not working to improve efficiency, opportunity, and to accomplish goals. Systems exist to support the business, not slow it down. If you have systems (mindsets, programs, processes) that are keeping you from being agile – fix your systems.  

Trusting Relationships  

When a leader is driving for quick change and asking team members to be agile, the health of the relationship will influence the cultural health of the organization.  

If the leader does not have the trust of the team, they will lead forward reluctantly and the culture, as well as results, will create an “us” vs. “them” mentality.  

If the leader practices Relationship Intelligence and has the trust of the team, they might be a bit anxious, but they will not cultivate an “us vs “them” because they are bought in. Leaders – if you need your organization to be more agile to drive for results the first thing you need to do is take a temperature check of your relationships and lean in. I promise that if you lead forward without trust, you will not enjoy where your leadership takes you.  

Leaders – Know your Business. Improve Your Systems. Build Trusting Relationships and you will be set up to be agile and lead through change.  

If you need coaching or training to help you and/or your leaders with agility and change, set up a call and let’s talk through options that work for you and your business.

Roots and Resilience

Last week in a matter of three hours we experienced a flat tire, a broken windshield, and an ER visit to Arkansas Children's. Just a typical Thursday night... Those three experiences were not directly connected, but they were far from enjoyable!  

We've all had one of those days. One of those seasons. When, no matter how hard we try to make everything work right, something goes wrong.  

This happens at work often. A key leader forgets a key aspect on a project. A rising star manager accepts a role in a different organization. A vendor you rely on doesn't follow through. A computer stops working. A marketing strategy flopped. A team member gets COVID right before a big pitch. 

You get the picture: a day or a season when things do not go as planned.

Sometimes when those things happen I start to think: "What did I do wrong?" "Is this punishment for...?" "Does this mean I shouldn't move this direction?" Have you felt that? 

Then I wake up to reality and remember life happens and it is going to be okay. 

I'll tell you what--when "life happens" and my roots are deep, I'm much more resilient. I stay focused on my goals and keep pursuing them in-spite of what I cannot control. When I'm not in a healthy place, when my roots are shallow, it's much easier to let the circumstances thwart my purpose. 

There's a direct correlation between our roots and our resilience. Just like a tree. I remember pretending to not watch, "A Walk in the Clouds" with my wife. At the end of the movie after a vineyard fire, Keanu Reeves ran to the original vine, dug up the roots and saved the family vineyard. Because of the strength and health of the roots, the vineyard was going to be okay. It was resilient. The strength and health of the roots is the key to its resiliency.

How do you gain strong roots as a leader? 
1) Rest | Take time to rest as a leader. Stop running on fumes. Date your spouse, play with your kids and leave your phone in the other room when you do. Spend time being active and be healthy.
2) Relationships | Take time to invest in authentic friendships with people who care about your marriage, your family, and your purpose. Invest in people who build you up, encourage you, and are there for you. Be that for someone and make sure someone is being that for you. 
3)  Purpose | Take time to clarify what's most important in this season of life and be proud of how you live with that focus in mind. Live life with purpose and be proud of the trail you are blazing. 

The relationship between your roots and your resilience, as a leader, is key. When you are rested, have healthy relationships and are living with purpose and things don't go your way, you will be resilient and stay the course.  When your roots are shallow (you're on fumes, you have no real relationships, and you can't clarify your purpose) it's going to be easier for the next crisis to guide you off the trail. 

If you are a senior leader who needs stronger roots you need to seriously consider prioritizing participating in our Courage and Conviction Leadership Series. The next experience is Aug 24-26 in Dallas--Green.

What's Next?

Let's meet up for a virtual coffee to talk about what's happening in your world and figure out the best next steps to address it: https://calendly.com/insightleadership/virtualcoffee 

Lesson 4: The Joy of Celebration

Over the past 4 weeks, one truth has become increasingly clear. Leaders are missing out on one of the greatest aspects of leadership - Celebration.
 
Why is that?
 
Truth: Many leaders are wearing themselves out because they are not getting out of the way. (This stings a bit, but it might be true for me, too!)
Truth: Many team members are leaving your organization because they are tired of not having the opportunity to leverage their strengths.
 
Leaders - We have good intentions. Everything gets busy. We just get it done. We make it happen. It’s faster. But, then, the follow-up (the actual work) has to take place and no one on the team is ready to carry it on.
 
Hence … you miss the joy of celebration.
 
If you are staying up late doing what your team members should be doing, you are not celebrating. You are setting everyone up for failure. You have to learn to train, delegate and empower.
 
One the greatest rewards of a leading is celebrating the growth and opportunity of our team members.
 
You celebrate when milestones are hit, goals are met, or tasks are done at a high level.
 
Then you celebrate in a way that in meaningful for your team members. That’s another thing I love about the SDI 2.0. The Core Strengths platform and Outlook Plug-in provide clear tips on how to encourage a team member who is not wired up like me.
 
We need to make sure we set team members up for success and celebrate them.
We need to make sure we celebrate our team members in a way that makes them feel valued and appreciated.

The sense of gratitude, joy and confidence that welled up in Titus after he successfully rode the motorcycle was well worth the effort to set him up for success. 

What's Next?

Let's meet up for a virtual coffee to talk about what's happening in your world and figure out the best next steps to address it: https://calendly.com/insightleadership/virtualcoffee 

Lesson 3: 3 Keys to Letting Go and Empowering Leaders

Why do we hold tightly to some things and let go so easily of others? For example:

• When my boys were old enough to load and unload the dishwasher – we were ready to let go! Yes, we had to show them how to rinse and load correctly.

• When a team member was ready to manage sending mail chimp newsletters for Insight – yes, I’ll let go.

Some aspects of our life at home and work are easy to delegate and empower others to take on, but other things we cling to like we are trying to run next to a motorcycle to hold it up.
 
When Titus started riding the motorcycle, I couldn’t keep up with him and it was a bit terrifying. There was nothing I could do if something went wrong. I couldn’t answer his questions. If he started to fall, I couldn’t catch him. If there was a barrier he got to before my arrival, I couldn’t remove it. Letting go was terrifying.
 
I was proud of him and nervous all at the same time. He was going too fast for me to hold on and keep a semblance of control.
 
I think that’s the key. We want the leaders we empower to move too fast for us to hold on. If we are holding on, we are in control … that means we are never fully empowering anyone. That keeps us from doing what only we can do and it keeps our team members from reaching their potential.
 
If you want your business to grow you need to stop holding on when employees are ready for you to let go.  

Here are 3 keys to actually empowering leaders:

1. Show them | Effective leaders model the way. They set the example. The first thing you need to do is take the time to show them how to do what you want them to do. Show them the details, the nuances, the process.

2. Watch them | Take the time to let your team member show you how they can perform the task, the project, etc.. This does not mean you are standing over their shoulder, but you need to build in moments for the team member to show you how they are thinking, why they made the choices they made, and how they are pursuing successful results. Make any needed corrections and let them work on it again.

3. Celebrate them | When the goal is set and met – celebrate. Celebrate not only with a great coffee or lunch, but also by choosing to not sneak in and do those tasks any longer. This is a hard one for me. Yes – you can do the job, but if we keep on stepping in, we will never experience the joy of developing our leaders and we will always be holding ourselves back from reaching our full potential.

 
Sidenote: If you need help learning to coach instead of chase give us call.