Thursday, February 22, 2007

Core Leadership

Character is core to leadership,
"What is character?"
Here are a few definitions of character:

1. Strength of mind; resolution; independence; individuality
2. Moral or ethical strength
3. Who you are when no one else is around

In other words, a person of good character is a person who has a strong moral base and acts on it. They have the core inner strength, fortitude and determination to do what is right, whether anyone else is there to validate it or not. They operate out of what is good and right, not out of personal expedience.

Essential Traits of Good Character are Integrity, Honesty and Loyalty. 
A person of good character shows that they can give up personal gain for the good of the whole.
Let us focus on self-control, sacrifice and accountability.

Self-Sacrifice: What is it about self-sacrifice that breeds followers? Followers do not 
mind putting in the hard work. They don't even mind a leader making more money or reaping benefits from their work. What followers do mind though, is when the leader is using them for his or her own personal gain. People of good character do not use other people--period. So, when leader shows sacrifice of personal gain, it says to the followers that he or she is willing to come along side of them - and followers reward that almost universally. 

Accountability: The need for accountability doesn't prove lack of character. Rather, 
it proves the presence of character. Followers are growing tired of those leaders who will have nothing to do with accountability. They do not mind leaders who make mistakes. They do mind leaders who will not take responsibility for those mistakes by being accountable. When we allow ourselves to be held accountable, our followers know that we are serious about keeping our own house in order and thus will do a good job in leading the rest of the organization.

Self-control: The ability to make decisions - good decisions. There will be plenty of options to participate in things that are not moral. Everybody has temptations, but the person of good character knows well enough to exercise self-control, literal control over his or her choices. When people do not exercise self-control, they sabotage their ability to lead. People lose respect for them and will follow less, if at all. 
Self-control is the ability to choose to do the things we should and to refrain from doing the things we shouldn't. When we exhibit self-control we again build trust in our followers. They respect us and want to follow us.

I wish You Great Success.

Thursday, February 15, 2007

The Essentials: Effective Presentations.

Yes, we need to hit the mind with our message, but we also need to stir the heart with passion. 

The leader who is only rational will have bored followers who aren't inspired to go anywhere. 
The leader who is only emotional will have excited followers who do not know where to go! 
It takes both. Help them see the big picture.

1. Have a goal: Are you there to inspire? Encourage? Challenge? Comfort? Motivate? Deliver bad news? Good news? 
Is it just informational? Are you trying to motivate them to action? If you know where you are going and where you want to take the audience, you can then work back from there and create your presentation. Like Stephen Covey's old axiom, "Begin with the end in mind." Be sure to know your goal.

2. Keep it simple: Be yourself - take slow deep breaths you don't have to be someone else. One mistake many people make is in trying to emulate the style of another person. This rarely, if ever, works. Why? Because you are not that person! Be yourself. That is, who others are expecting.
You can be simple and be very good at the same time. So be sure to keep it simple. 
Remember the world would not fall apart if you do a rotten job.

3. Be passionate about your topic: People want to see that you are passionate about your topic. Aristotle said that there are three areas integral to persuasion: logic, ethics and passion. You need to be a person of good character, have logical reasoning, and say it with passion. Also, be optimistic. Napoleon said, "Leaders are dealers in hope." As presenters, we pull people in and bring them along by giving them hope. 
Be sure to let your passion and optimism come through! Understand that you are your own worst critic.

4. Balance the format of your information: Use facts and figures and use stories. Include lecture as well as audience participation. In this day and age, with waning attention spans, we do well to change up the format on regular intervals. People are used to modern media which makes single person speaking a tough act. Be sure to use different formats in your presentation.

5. Tell stories: The best way to start with a crowd is to make them laugh, the audience becomes more relax and receptive. The joke does not have to be related to the topic. Stories are things that people can connect with. They can remember them. They see them in pictures. What would you be most apt to remember two weeks after hearing a speaker: The exact percentages of his or her statistics, or a well-told story? Be sure to build stories into your presentation so people remember the points you want them to remember.

6. Mastery of your material: This is the foundation of an effective presentation: It tells people 
you are serious about the topic, that you care about it, and you are qualified to speak to them about it. Fear comes from wondering if you will make a mistake, know your material. You will feel more comfortable and will come across as very credible. Audiences are looking for credibility, be sure to know your material.

7. Timing: Focus on the first five minutes, this time is critical as it allows you to settle and get 
comfortable. One of the skills of an effective presenter is that they can craft their presentation to 
fit the allotted time and then discipline themselves to stay within that time frame. Starting on time 
and ending on time will show people that you respect their time. Speakers/leaders shoot themselves in the foot by not finishing on time. Be sure to always stay within your time limits and leave your audience wanting more!
 

I believe leaders and almost anyone can become a better speaker and presenter if they practice their skill. It doesn't require a tremendous amount of advanced training, either. Just mastering the basics will take you to the next level and allow you to become a much more effective communicator.


I wish You Great Success.

Thursday, February 08, 2007

The Choices We Face

Our ultimate life objective should be to create as much as our talent and ability and desire will permit. The greatest rewards are always reserved for those who bring great value to themselves and the world around them.

Finding your purpose helps defines your burning desire, your purpose should be good, fun and focused.
Your purpose is when you do more than you have the immediate capacity to do because you know and you have faith, that it is going to pay off.

Your purpose is when every single morning you wake up with a fresh new idea and you know your turn is coming.

A quick way to define your purpose:
1. Write down the activities that you enjoy
2. See if any of these activities can make you a living.

Each of us has a choice to be all or to be less or to be nothing at all.

The first choice we can make is to be less than we have the capacity to be. To earn less. To have less. 
To read less and think less. To try less and discipline ourselves less.

The second choice is to do it all! To become all that we can possibly be. To read every book 
that we possibly can. To earn as much as we possibly can. To give, lead and share as much as we 
possibly can. To strive and produce and accomplish as much as we possibly can.

Results are the best measurement of human progress. Not conversation. Not explanation. 
Not justification. Results! And if our results are less than our potential then our choice is clear

With the right choice it is important to clarify and nullify the myths facing potential leaders:
The position myth: "I cannot lead if I am not at the top."
The destination myth: "When I get to the top, then I will learn to lead."
The Influence myth: "If I were on top, then people would follow me."
The Inexperience myth: "When I get to the top I will be in control."
The freedom myth: "When I get to the top I will no longer be limited."
The potential myth: "I cannot reach my potential if I am not the top leader."
The all-or-nothing myth: "If I cannot get to the top, then I would not try to lead."

These are all negative belief system, you can lead from wherever you are; 
Why not do all that we can, every moment that we can, the best that we can, for as long as we can?

I wish You Great Success.

Thursday, February 01, 2007

The Ultimate Communicator

Although you can play a game of chess with rules, you cannot write a poem with one. 
Your creativity will take you to levels you cannot get to with rules, always strive to develop your USP (Unique Selling Preposition)

Communication is not one direction. It goes both ways. To become an effective 
communicator, you must be a good listener. Once you know what your "audience" wants, you are better able to communicate to them. You should care about the people with whom you communicate. Talk with them, not to them. People don't want you to talk at them. They want to communicate. Think about it: the root word is "commune." It means to live and share together. This is what we do when we communicate together--we share words and ideas. This means we must care about the people we are communicating with. We should be interested in their needs and desires.

Focus on clarity: The most effective communication is clear communication. Many speakers believe that they should be as ambiguous as possible--but that is not what makes them effective! The 
important principle is clarity. Do they (your audience) understand your message? Be as clear and 
concise as you can. Never go any longer than it takes to make the communication as clear as it needs to be.

In order to be effective, communication must be done over and over again. Very rarely will you be able to communicate something just once and have someone or some group walk away with full understanding. It just doesn't happen that way. You need to do it often and with varied ways. This is what will make it most effective.

Improve your vocabulary, pronunciation and spelling: When people hear you or read what you have written, they look for class and style. This can often be noticed through your vocabulary, your pronunciation, and your spelling. If you want to be more effective, then focus on improving in these areas. 

A key phrase is that our vocabulary directly affects the way we both view and interpret the world around us. If we have a small vocabulary, it limits our ability to define or communicate what we 
see, feel and hear. The larger the vocabulary, the better our ability to relate.

You can become an effective communicator! Start with improving the fundamentals and you will get better. Once you have mastered the fundamentals - and very few have - then you can start on the 
advanced areas and become a world-class speaker!


I wish You Great Success.