Leadership Solutions

Leadership: No Escape

Which way are you going?

That is, are you moving toward success or away from it?

This matters because the direction of your choices in this regard determines what you accomplish.

You see, moving toward success is based on hope. Moving away from failure is based on fear. And hope always proves stronger than fear.

Why?

Moving toward success encourages you to work hard, set goals, take risks, be creative, and seek cooperation. As a result, your actions open possibilities and make progress toward something. Even your effort can be considered a success. 

Avoiding failure causes you to move slowly, avoid risks, work alone, and (sometimes) do nothing. As a result, little (if anything) is accomplished.

This reveals a cruel paradox.

People who try to avoid failure, end up with more of it.

Key Point: Move toward success. You'll accomplish more.

Much success,

Steve Kaye

714-528-1300

E-mail

Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator

Web Site

Linkedin

Leadership: Strategic Rejection

Everyone wants acceptance, unless rejection proves useful.

In my November newsletter, I wrote about how to Get What You Want by asking for it.

Read the article at: Able Leader and find an index of articles at: Newsletter Archive

So, why might someone deliberately seek rejection?

Here's why:

1) Practice. When we start a new enterprise, we often have a new system. Even if it's the best possible system that we could build, it still needs to be tested. Thus, we can benefit from showing it to others, knowing that they will reject our offer.

Point: Use rejection to test and improve a new process. Always respond to the rejection by asking for ideas on how you can improve your request.

2) Sorting. Seeking rejection can serve as a marketing survey. Certainly, our customers are the people who accept our offers. And thus, determining those who decline helps us make our outreach efforts more efficient by removing them from further consideration.

Point: Focus on the people who want what you have.

3) Dialogue. Every request begins a dialogue. When appropriate, a rejection can lead to exploring alternatives. Now you can discuss viable options that provide a benefit for both you and the other person.

Point: Use rejection to start a dialogue on what else is possible.

4) Surprise. Sometimes we underestimate opportunities. We can thus find out if something is possible only by asking. And we might be surprised. A request that we judged to be difficult may be much easier to obtain than we expected.

Point: Make outrageous requests. The fact that you asked, makes the possibility a reality.

Key Point: Rejection is a key part of achieving success. Use it strategically to get what you want.

Much success,

Steve Kaye

714-528-1300

E-mail

Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator

Web Site

Linkedin

Leadership: Unbelievable!!!

Maybe the purpose of life is to be amazed by the things other people do.

Thursday (Nov. 5) I was taking photos in the Fullerton Arboretum.

(I decided to enjoy some fresh air after mailing my November newsletter, which always marks the end of a major project. Read this issue at: Able Leader)

So, I was standing beside a flower that was perfect for photography. It was fresh, nicely shaped, and standing in good light. While I was planning where I'd set up my tripod, a woman came by.

I told her that I was taking photos of the daffodils. And she told me that they were narcissus. I thanked her for the correction. And she added that they have a nice smell, as she casually reached down and plucked the "Perfect Flower." Then she sniffed it, tore it in half, and tossed it on the ground.

I was shocked. She had just destroyed the flower that I planned to photograph.

This brings to mind two lessons.

1) I could have told her that I was planning to photograph THAT flower. Maybe she would have left it alone. Or picked another flower.

2) We need to leave nature alone. When someone destroys a piece of nature, that piece is gone. She could have bent over and sniffed the flower without destroying it. Then I could have taken a photograph.

So this is a plea to treat nature with respect.

Flowers, trees, and animals are all living things. They are part of the collective life presence that inhabits this planet.

Those flowers, for example, are there to be beautiful for everyone who comes by. They may even be waiting for a photographer.

Much success,

Steve Kaye

714-528-1300

Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator

Web Site

Linkedin

Leadership: Where Do Bad Bosses Come From?

Bad bosses don't just happen. They result from a three step process.

1) Someone hires them.

Almost anyone can behave well for the duration of an interview. Thus, bad candidates manage to fool the interviewer.

This can be easy to do because some interviewers use the wrong approach. They talk about themselves, the company, and the job. They focus on technical skills instead of behavior patterns. Or they ask the wrong questions. As a result they hire the wrong people for the wrong reasons.

Better: Define the criteria that represent an ideal candidate for the job being filled. Use a behavior and ethics based interview process. Understand behavior styles. Learn effective questioning and interviewing techniques.

2) Someone keeps them.

Once on the job, a person's true behavior emerges. Now everyone can witness screaming, meanness, deceit, and other toxic behaviors.

Ideally, someone (such as that person's boss) would take immediate action to stop such destructive behavior. Instead, everyone (including the person's boss) either ignores or allows it. This is bad because toxic behavior damages everyone's productivity. It can even result in the toxic person appearing to be more productive than others.

Better: Any toxic behavior must be confronted and stopped the first time it appears. This requires coaching for the first occurrence. Then it may require counseling. And if it continues, the toxic person should be fired. Of course, you will need to work with your HR group to identify resources and follow proper procedures.

3) Someone promotes them.

Some toxic employees appear to be top performers simply because they have destroyed the effectiveness of everyone else. Actually, their contributions may be minimal. And in some cases their actions can severely harm a business (i.e., cost money, delay projects, lose customers, cause resignations, prevent communication, and so on).

Many organizations award promotions based entirely on technical achievements. This becomes a problem if those achievements were gained through unsustainable actions such as false claims, intimidation, or politics.

Better: Award promotions into leadership positions based on proven leadership skills. Provide leadership training to prepare future leaders for such promotions. Establish clarity on the skills that represent effective leadership. Create a culture that facilitates good leadership.

Key Point: Bad bosses result from negligence in the basic activities of hiring, evaluating, and promoting people.

Much success,

Steve Kaye

714-528-1300

PS: My workshops show people how to be good bosses, as well as effective leaders.

Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator

Web Site

Linkedin

Leadership: From Failure to Inspiration

This had an unusual start.

I was wondering about (feeling grumpy, actually) the failures of the past week. And while writing about failure in my journal, I achieved a small success: I wrote three and a half pages of quotes about failure.

Here are the better ones (yes, some of them were, you know, failures):

• There is no such thing as a life without failure. You either earn it by taking risks or you choose it by doing nothing.

• Failure is the first half of learning how to do a better job next time.

• Failure is the admission price for success. Sadly, some people give up after having paid it.

• The odd thing about failure is, the more you try to avoid it, the more failure happens to you.

• Failure exists to test your commitment.

• Some of the most inspirational people in my life were the ones who told me that I'd fail. (Then I went to work, proving them wrong.)

• If you aren't busy failing, you're busy wasting your time.

• If we were supposed to be discouraged by failure, we'd still be crawling on our hands and knees.

• People who won't admit failure scare me. They're either hiding something or doing nothing.

• You can learn more from one ordinary failure than from a dozen extraordinary successes.

• There's no such thing as a perfect first draft.

• Failure is simply an invitation to try again by doing something different.

• Failure protects us from situations, relationships, and agreements that would never work out.

• Successful people fail strategically. That is, they plan failures that will put them in situations where they can learn, grow, and prosper.

• If you haven't failed, you have nothing to talk about.

• Fear of failure is discouragement that we give ourselves.

• The true measure of a success is the amount of failure that was overcome to achieve it.
 

Key Point: Go forth and fail.

Much success,

Steve Kaye

714-528-1300

Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator

Web Site

Linkedin

Leadership: Your Plans for the Next 2 Months

Have you noticed that the last two months of the year seem to rush by?

Before you can put away the dishes or pick up the wrapping paper, there it is again: January 1st and the beginning of another new year.

So, what do you plan to do with the remaining two months of 2009? What do you plan to accomplish? What will you do to make a difference?

For most of you, that is an easy question because you have spent the past months putting events in motion so that they could bring you good results during the weeks ahead.

I'd like to share some of the things that I'm working on because these contain useful news, interesting possibilities, and requests for help.

I plan to: 

1) Attend the Social Entrepreneur Summit on Nov. 7 - 8, in Long Beach, CA. I value learning, and thus attend many educational programs. You'll find details about this event at:

Social Entrepreneur Summit

If this program interests you, call me. I may be able to bring you in as a guest (i.e., at no charge).

This promises to be a weekend packed with valuable educational sessions and excellent networking opportunities.

2) Find three people for HUB. I'm involved in many programs that advance social good. HUB, or Humanity Unites Brilliance, is one of them. HUB is conducting the Social Entrepreneur Summit mentioned above. If you're interested in a powerful way of making a difference, call me. Or visit the link below.

Humanity Unites Brilliance

3) Give one, maybe two, pro bono presentations during November and December. One goal in my marketing plan is to give at least one presentation each month to a professional organization. I do this to support these organizations and to provide a sample of my work. Call me if you live near zip code 92870 and would like to: a) schedule a presentation, or b) attend as my guest.

4) Buy a 27-in iMac on November 27. I decided to make this purchase in January when I wrote my business plan for 2009. Why? Because I knew Apple would announce their next version of the iMac in September or October and I know that Apple holds their one sale of the year on the Friday after Thanksgiving.

5) Go on a photo trip. I'll post photos and lessons gained after we return. Stay tuned for more.

6) Find new clients. If you want to get better results by being a more effective leader, call me. An entrepreneurial business is always seeking ways to serve others. 

Key Point: A full schedule leads to expanding successes.

Much success,

Steve Kaye

714-528-1300

Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator

Web Site

Linkedin

Leadership: Truth in Business

Here is an innovation that should make everything simpler.

Drum roll, please . . . .

It is: Honest Disclaimers.

Now people can wear a handy name tag that explains why they did something. You might even know people who could benefit from having such a name tag.

Possibilities include:

1) If I had wanted your participation in this meeting, I would have sent you an agenda.

2) If I had wanted you to read these slides, I would have used a larger font.

3) If I had wanted you to stay awake, I would have rehearsed my presentation.

4) If I had wanted to hear your ideas, I would have paid attention while you were talking.

5) If I had wanted to learn anything, I would have asked you some questions.

6) If I had wanted you to succeed at this, I would have given you clear instructions.

7) If I had wanted you to feel useful, I would have asked for your help.

8) If I had wanted this relationship to succeed, I would have treated you with respect.

9) If I had wanted to achieve something, I would have set goals and worked to accomplish them.

10) If I had wanted this conversation to continue, I would have responded to what you said.

What do you think? Could this innovation help?

Key Point: Of course, successful people don't need to make any of these excuses.

Much success,

Steve Kaye

714-528-1300

Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator

Web Site

Linkedin

Leadership: Rats Save Lives

Here's today's hot news.

Rats are now saving human lives.

Here's how.

You must know that leftover land mines are a major problem in many parts of the world. (I have long proposed that we could end all wars by requiring the participants to file an environmental impact statement before starting, but that's another article.)

For example, it's estimated that there are 40 million mines buried in Africa.

Finding these land mines is difficult because: a) they are designed to be difficult to find, and b) they are designed to explode when disturbed.

As a result, clearing these mines is slow, dangerous work.

Until now.

Bart Weetjens, from Belgium, has trained rats to find land mines.

[  Important Note: the rats FIND the mines so that people can remove them. No rats are harmed during this activity.  ]

This has notable advantages.

1) Rats are so small that they don't cause a significant (as in bad) disturbance when they scurry about on the ground.

2) Rats enjoy performing repetitive tasks that earn a reward (food). So Bart Weetjens is helping rats find fulfillment as useful members of the global community.

3) Rats do not require insurance, expect raises, or hire attorneys. The rats also arrive on time, follow directions, and appear grateful when paid (fed). You might say that they make the ideal employees.

4) Rats are not discouraged by high risk assignments. In addition this is a much better job than most other careers currently available for rats, such as working in a research lab.

5) Rats are much more efficient and cost effective than any current technology using people. A rat can perform a day's work (for a human) in about 15 minutes. They are also easy to transport, train, and replace.

This is an excellent example of beyond the box thinking.

Now, if we only could get rats to eliminate spam.

Much success,

Steve Kaye

714-528-1300

Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator

Web Site

Linkedin

Leadership: Lost by Northwest

Actually this happens every day.

The people in charge fly past an opportunity. Or they miss a goal. Or they ignore a warning.

Then they have to turn around and try again.

It's like the two pilots of Flight 188 who seemed to forget that they were flying an airplane. As a result, they missed Minneapolis. (But wait, it's not that bad. They could have missed something larger, like Canada.)

This event: 1) highlights an important point and, 2) leads to an incredible opportunity.

First, the people in charge of an organization are responsible for leading it, not getting lost.

This requires paying attention, reviewing progress, and making adjustments.

It also requires real leadership skills. Tip: my workshops show how. 

Second, let's recognize that anyone can sit in a cockpit while an airplane flies 150 miles past its destination. Similarly, anyone can sit in meetings while a business goes bankrupt.

Which brings us to a cost effective way to achieve unexplainable failure.

Now, instead of wasting money on an expensive human, you can hire a cat for a fraction of the cost.

Olivia Felini (photo below) is available at 10% of whatever salary you are now paying for a person.
 

Olivia is an outstanding candidate for this job because she excels at doing nothing (career profile).

For example, she can nap while planes fly past their destinations, sit in meetings while businesses go bankrupt, and so on.

Call now before her popularity causes the price to increase.

Key Point: Why waste money on people who do nothing when you can hire a cat?

Much success,

Steve Kaye

714-528-1300

Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator

Web Site

Linkedin

Leadership: Inspiring Greatness

What happens when you scare small children?

Obviously, they cry.

Or the run away.

This is an important point for leaders who want to inspire people to be creative.

Why?

The muse is a child.

In fact, it's a very timid child. It scares easily. And then it hides, leaving people with ordinary ideas -- perhaps the same old ideas that they mulled over yesterday.

There is an important twist in this.

Creating an environment that facilitates creativity requires strong, courageous, mature leadership.

It's the type of leadership that you will find in exceptional parents who want their children to become more successful than they are.

Such leaders support others with praise. They focus on what others do well. And they provide the resources so that others can exceed every possible expectation in achieving greatness.

Then the muse appears. And people invent ideas that amaze everyone with their brilliance.

Key Point: Great leaders help others surpass their achievements.

Much success,

Steve Kaye

714-528-1300

Author, Speaker, IAF Certified Professional Facilitator

Web Site

Linkedin