Ronald T. Brown, Ph.D. author of The Courageous Life, is an organizational consultant with a special interest in coaching courageous and effective leaders.
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Friday, 18. December 2009 by Ronald T. Brown, Ph.D.
This Video is worth watching - about 4 minutes. INSPIRING!
(wait for the 20 second commercial to pass…)
Wednesday, 16. December 2009 by Ronald T. Brown, Ph.D.
In his article, “Level Five Leadership” (Harvard Business Review, Dec 2000), Jim Collins details the kind of leadership that transforms mediocre companies into great companies. His 5 year study of over 1,500 companies found that companies that make the jump from average to extraordinary ALL had leaders with two common traits: A “Self-Effacing Humility” and a “Dogged Persistence.” What Jim Collins also calls, “Humility + Will.”
He writes Level One Leadership is being a highly capable individual, with good skills and traits. Level Two Leadership is being able to contribute as a team member. Level Three Leadership is being a competent manager of people, Level Four Leadership is being an effective leader (or influencer) of others, and Level Five Leadership is the executive who builds enduring greatness through a paradoxical combination of personal humility and professional (fierce) will.
Level 5 leadership challenges the assumption that transforming companies from “good to great” requires larger-than-life-leaders. In fact, the leaders that came out on top in Collins’ five-year study were relatively unknown outside their industries. The findings appear to signal a shift away from the a leader who is “the hero” - to a leader who is “the anti-hero.”
“Level 5 leaders are a study in duality”, notes Collins, “modest and wilful, shy yet fearless.”
** Which is harder in your leadership - showing consistent humility or fierce will?
Saturday, 12. December 2009 by Ronald T. Brown, Ph.D.
“Followers and Leaders both orbit around the purpose; followers do not orbit around the leader.” - Ira Chaleff
Successful companies keep this idea front and center: People seek purpose - not only employees, but customers seek a purpose. And those leaders and companies that clearly define and articulate a compelling purpose will have a huge competitive advantage.
Employees and customers are hungry for purpose. Yes, employees want jobs and customers want deals. But even in a recession, they want more than that. They want to feel that their lives have a deeper meaning that goes beyond paychecks and discount shopping. Abraham Maslow had it right. Once a person’s physical needs are met, they long for love, belonging, esteem and finally what Maslow called “self-actualization” - where they know their lives contribute to a purpose bigger than themselves.
Leadership is all about vision, for without vision there is no leadership. Yet many of today’s leaders are so bogged down in the minutiae of “running the business” that they have lost focus on the vision. They no longer embody the unique purpose which they are responsible to champion and align to.
** Leadership without a purpose is a languid, drifting thing; therefore every day a leader ought to review the purpose behind their leadership. They need to say to themselves,
“Today, in every interaction and decision, I am going to keep my eyes on the purpose for which I serve. I will keep my eyes, and the eyes of my followers, on the vision which makes us not only unique, but truly special in a world filled with so many counterfeit distractions.”
Sunday, 06. December 2009 by Ronald T. Brown, Ph.D.
By nature, our brain waits. Our brain waits for the perfect moment, day, gift, for the traffic to clear, for the shopping lines to disappear. It waits for the perfect mate, investment, client or customer. Our brain waits for the perfect day, perfect life… for the perfect wave.
But no matter how skillfully or determined we get at seeking the “perfect,” no matter how resilient we are at waiting for the perfect to arrive - perfect never happens.
Exceptional leaders and teams know that life, and breakthrough success, is all about embracing and leveraging the imperfect. They understand that they must choose to grow and go forward in a world that is uncertain and complex. They also develop the necessary skills to accelerate their growth in whatever fast changing environment they find themselves in.
Though our minds will temp us to wait and seek the perfect. Seeking the “perfect” not only never happens, it can drive us nuts - for the mirage of the “perfect” will block us from moving toward a rich are rewarding life now.
The fact is: “Imperfect is… Perfect isn’t.” You would think that most of us have learned that by now - have learned to overcome perfectionism. But we haven’t.
So instead of waiting for the perfect… learn to trust your instincts. As the winds of life change, trust your experience and instincts and continue to step up the mountain of your potential and success. Dial into your senses, adapt, get ingenious, and imperfectly rise up. When you do, you’ll begin to appreciate, in a deeper way, the ever-changing nature of life.
Whatever it takes, learn to imperfectly and relentlessly rise. Increase your skills of adaptability. Get ingenious. Reach deeper now, sense more creativity now, find the better/different now… stop wasting time. Keep moving from your “real” here, to your best “there” - building a bridge into the future as you walk across it. As the Marines like to say “Improvise - Adapt - Overcome!”
* What are your best instincts telling you today?
Thursday, 03. December 2009 by Ronald T. Brown, Ph.D.
“There are two parties, the establishment and the movement.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
Leadership without strategy is nothing, for without strategic thinking, leaders have no where to go, no where to point others, and only boring stories to tell. To be an effective leader, we need to be a strategic thinker - for Great leaders have clearly defined dreams and visions of what could be, and what should be.
The father of Servant Leadership theory, Robert Greenleaf, writes, “Not much happens without a dream. And for something great to happen, there must be a great dream – for behind every great achievement is a dreamer of great dreams. Much more than a dreamer is required to bring it into reality; but the dream must be there first.”
Although you may not have thought of yourself as a “dreamer” (or a strategist), unless you are able to develop powerful dreams, your ability to effectively lead others will be greatly undermined – For leadership always starts with a strategic vision that defines (and describes) what could be – or rather, what should be.
So what does strategic thinking look like? This can be a little confusing, for many executives interchange the words: strategy, values, mission, purpose, vision, and goals as if they were all the same. But Strategic Thinking is the way in which a leader thinks about, assess, views, and creates the future for themselves, their organization, church, or family. It is not reactive, but proactive. One more thing… Strategic thinking always involves change, and often, profound personal change. It is about achieving positive results, adding incredible value… and so forth and so on. You get the idea.
Challenge: What are you doing to improve your strategic thinking skills? What dream do you need to create a specific plan around to achieve?
Saturday, 28. November 2009 by Ronald T. Brown, Ph.D.
A Leader Derailed.
It can happen to anyone - to any leader.
Tim Irwin writes, “No matter how brilliant, charming, strategic, or commanding a leader is, a breach in one’s character can become extraordinarily disabling and bring down even the strongest among us. If a leader’s character is not strong, they will pass by the warning signs - and eventually derail their progress.”
Despite our character breeches (for non of us are perfect), derailment can be avoided - but without careful attention, it is probable. Irwin writes, “Derailment is especially rooted in the failure to prepare, to grow personally and professionally, and to develop the qualities needed to stay on track…. where we constantly stay alert, develop deeper self-awareness, and have a lifelong commitment to learn, to grow, and to prepare.”
To combat derailment, develop the following five habits:
First, develop a habit of openness and humility. “Openness to feedback reflects our interest in being a learning, growing person.”
Second, continually increase your self-awareness. “It is critical that we regularly tune into how others see us.”
The third habit is to cultivate personal early warning systems that can tell us when we are at risk of derailment. “The key is to monitor ourselves and pay special attention to signals which may indicate our lives are getting off track.”
The fourth habit is one of accountability. “The leaders most susceptible to derailment refuse to have their opinions, decision, and actions questioned…. Accountability means that, even when we are not required to answer to others because of our position, corporate policy, or law - we intentionally place ourselves in a relationship with someone who regularly tests our motives and our actions.”
Finally, develop the habit of resiliency. “Resiliency is the ability not only to bounce back from adversity, but to learn from it.”
* Which of these issues do you need to incorporate into your own life and leadership?
Tuesday, 24. November 2009 by Ronald T. Brown, Ph.D.
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” ~ Philippians 4:6-7
Karl Barth, a twentieth-century theologian wrote, “God is not deaf, He listens; more than that, He acts. And He does not act in the same way whether we pray or not. Prayer exerts an influence upon God’s action – that is what the word ‘answer’ means. The fact is, God yields to our petitions.”
The Apostle Paul knew this. That is why he tells us to not be anxious. Instead, we are to pray and petition God with a thankful heart. Why? Because we are coming to our Heavenly Father - who loves us, cares for us, is all powerful, and promised to work out everything according to His good will.
This Thanksgiving, let us remember the privilege we all have to petition God regarding our own needs - and regarding the needs of those we care about. And then, let us be quick to thank Him for both this privilege… and for His answers.
** And, while we are on the topic – Thank you for visiting this Blog every once and awhile! It is much appreciated.
Thursday, 19. November 2009 by Ronald T. Brown, Ph.D.
“Sometimes the dark side of leadership eclipses the bright side – to the detriment of both the leader and the organization.” – Jay Conger
There are many paradoxes in Leadership. One paradox is that a leader’s personal strengths – the abilities that have brought a leader success – can (if left unchecked) contribute to an eventual failure in their leadership. Research has shown that the qualities that propel an individual to leadership success have often been the issues that catalyzed a significant failure in that person’s leadership.
So, what is the “dark side?” The dark side is grounded in the inner urges, compulsions, and dysfunctions of our personality that often go unexamined, or remain unknown to us, until some type of emotional experience or trauma is experienced. Our dark side can be exasperated by various personal issues, including:
• Our insecurities
• Feelings of inferiority
• Our need for approval
As a leader, here is what you should know:
• Characteristics that drive people to lead and succeed often have a “dark side” that is capable of crippling them.
• Every leader/person suffers from some degree of personal dysfunction.
• Many leaders are not aware how their dysfunctions influence and drive them.
• Because dysfunctions can channel themselves into ambitions, our dysfunctions can often go undetected until it is too late.
• Learning about their dark side can enable leaders to address and prevent (or at least mitigate) their potential negative effects.
Writing about Abraham Lincoln, author Donald Phillips writes, “Unlike many leaders, Lincoln was painfully aware of his dark side and took proactive steps to prevent it from sabotaging his leadership.” Lincoln understood that for any person to successfully lead others, he or she must understand that leading, at times, can bring out the worst in us.
So how do we master our dark side? Well, in many ways, mastering our dark side is nothing more than using good common sense. First, one needs to admit they do have dark tendencies, and then take time to adequately discern what they are – and understand how they tend to manifest themselves.
Second, understand that our past does impact our present – and therefore we need to examine our past with the purpose of understanding ourselves better. One begins by recalling the events that (for whatever reason) have significantly shaped our life and have left an indelible mark. The Bible teaches, “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.” Once we have taken the time to admit how certain events have left an unhealthy shadow, we can then start down (many times with the help of others) a path of healing and personal freedom.
Finally, we need to practice progressive self-knowledge and discipline. Self-knowledge is best attained by opening ourselves to the scrutiny of others, seeking feedback regarding how our dark side may be rearing its ugly head. Self-discipline (coupled with accountability) is then developed to keep our unhealthy appetites under control. For example, Lincoln helped manage his anger by writing long letters to vent his anger and emotion – which he generally never sent.
Challenge: Do you know, and are you managing, your dark tendencies as a leader? Would others say you know, and are managing, these tendencies?
Sunday, 15. November 2009 by Ronald T. Brown, Ph.D.
The phrase “Strong Opinions, Weakly Held” describes an important philosophy for effective leadership. Bob Sutton describes the importance of this idea as:
“A virtue of wise people – those who have the courage to act on their knowledge, but the humility to doubt what they know…to deal with an uncertain future, and still move forward – have ’strong opinions, which are weakly held.’... Weak opinions are problematic because people aren’t inspired to develop the best arguments to support them, or to put forth the energy required to thoroughly test them. It is just as important, however, to not be too attached to what you believe because, otherwise, it undermines your ability to ’see’ and ‘hear’ evidence that clashes with your current perspective and opinion. This is what psychologists call the problem of ‘confirmation bias.’”
When navigating your organization into a complex and uncertain future, formulating strong opinions - that are weakly held, is a wise posture when developing and implementing an effective strategy.
Wednesday, 11. November 2009 by Ronald T. Brown, Ph.D.
I can across an interesting post on failure by Tony Morgan, “10 Reasons Why You’re Probably Going to Fail.” Here is his list:
1. It is not your passion. If it doesn’t make your heart beat fast, or cause your mind to race when you’re trying to sleep, you’re probably doing the wrong thing.
2. You don’t have a plan. You need a vision - and you need to identify specific steps to make your vision become reality.
3. You’re waiting for it to be perfect. Be willing to test-drive a new idea. You’ll fall into the trap of inaction if you think it has to be absolutely right from day one.
4. You’re not willing to work hard. Everything worth pursuing in life will demand discipline and perseverance.
5. It outgrew you. Keep learning. Keep growing. But more importantly, build a team of people around you that are growing too.
6. You’ve had success in the past. I’ve watched organizations hang on to a good idea for too long. Time passes. Momentum fades. It’s risky to let go of the past and jump onto a new idea. Take that risk!
7. You’re unwilling to stop doing something else. Complexity is easy. Simplicity takes discipline. For example, you can’t build a healthy marriage if you’re unwilling to give up dating other women. Who/what do you need to stop dating (doing)?
8. You don’t take the time to build a team of friends. You need to find people you want to share life with. In the long run, great relationships will get you out of bed in the morning.
9. You walk away from tough conversations. When breakdown happens (and it always does), you need to initiate the difficult conversation that leads to relational healing.
10. You are afraid of failure. When fear consumes you, it will cause you to do stupid things. It will cause you to embrace the known, and grow comfortable with mediocrity. The more often you fail, though, the more often you’ll find success.
** This is a great list to work through when embarking on a new and challenging initiative.
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