Leadership
Leadership is first and foremost a people business. You can manage systems and things, but you must lead people. A lack of leadership can cause a cascade of negative effects in a business and often leads to disgruntled employees, frustrated bosses, significant attrition and ultimately lost revenue.
There are two main reasons I’ve observed that explain why business owners often struggle to lead their people. One is a lack of leadership training and the other is a lack of understanding of their employees. This is why I take a two prong approach to help alleviate this issue. First, I listen to the leaders and introduce proven methods for them to utilize to improve their leadership skills. Second, I conduct empathy interviews with employees to find out what they need and how they view their leadership. I pass the knowledge gained through the interviews to curate a plan on how to improve both side’s understanding.
Vision
It is crucial for leaders to develop and articulate a company’s vision. The impact of having a clearly stated vision cannot be overstated. Although the overall vision is personalized, there are templates that can be used to assist in creating the final vision statement. Having a guide who is familiar with the process can significantly streamline the process, remove roadblocks and help refine the end result.
I utilize a vision casting template to assist a business in articulating core values, a mission statement and a vision statement. It provides all the framework needed to guide the leadership team through the whole process. As a personal guide, I keep discussions on track and moving forward from an outside perspective, while putting the end result solely in the hands of the individuals’ tasked with implementation.
“Leaders execute a vision by motivating, guiding, inspiring, listening, and persuading – and, most crucially, through creating resonance.” – Daniel Goleman, Primal Leadership
Strategy
Strategy takes the vision and overlays a plan on it. If vision is dreaming then strategy is waking up and going to work.
The second section of mapping the future is the strategy portion. Vision shines a spotlight on the desired end result and strategy determines the path to get there. One without the other is an exercise in frustration. Coming down from the “Vision Mountain” and the elation it produces can be difficult, but is necessary if the vision is ever going to become reality. Strategy can be equally exciting as it assists with connecting tasks to short term wins on the way to long term victories.
While a consultant can help guide a business leader while developing a vision, the vision is solely owned and embodied by the creator. Strategy, on the other hand, is a fertile ground for an outside source to come in and plant seeds of knowledge, help cultivate the various steps and see the leader through the process of reaping the bounty. I prefer to do this by helping outline the steps to take, setting timelines and milestones for achieving them and providing an outside view that allows for mid-course correction, as needed.
Motivation
Motivation is a fleeting feeling with a short shelf life. With that said, it can be a powerful catalyst when used to re-energize a tired employee. The key to being effective with motivation is to learn each team members’ individual motivations. The next step is to determine how to leverage their motivation to help them achieve their work goals.
In this instance, it is particularly helpful to have an outside source to help better understand employees at a personal level. It is very difficult for a leader to meet with and understand each employee’s drive while also completing the day to day tasks. I spend time in a business so I can learn employees’ motivations and translate them into actionable steps for leaders to reach people where they are. It creates a win-win situation with employees feeling valued and leaders getting the best out of their people.
Communication
“Leaders who refuse to listen will eventually be surrounded by people who have nothing significant to say.” Andy Stanley. Sadly, this quote is truer than most leaders would like to admit. Quite often, leaders inadvertently shut down communication channels or don’t open them fully. Typically this results from a lack of understanding rather than a lack of empathy. Blindspots in a leader’s communication style can contribute to employees feeling uneasy approaching, “the boss.”
A lot of communication issues can be fixed relatively easily through awareness and guidance. Unfortunately, the nature of blind spots makes it next to impossible to recognize them without outside assistance. Having a “mirror” to come alongside, highlighting habits that could cause misunderstanding and teaching how to overcome them is vital to improve communications. My purpose is to be that guide, by observing communication and its results, gently sharing what I’ve observed, and teaching ways to improve both the communication and its impact.
“The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place.”
George Bernard Shaw
Problem Solving
Problem solving encompasses a wide range of situations and honestly is the whole purpose of any consulting period. Whether it be in the realm of financial or relational issues, problems can interrupt and distract from job performance and satisfaction.
Leaders carry an even greater burden because they are responsible for not only solving their own problems, but are also drawn into the middle of solving employee problems. This is the greatest source of workplace stress I’ve seen. Sadly, many leaders fall into the category outlined by the Abraham Maslow quote, “I suppose it is tempting, if the only tool you have is a hammer, to treat everything as if it were a nail.” Luckily, with some assistance, most employee issues can be arrested in the moment and mitigated in the future with some simple tactics. My goal is always to enhance a leader’s ability to develop and effectively utilize more tools. The larger the toolbox and the more expertise in wielding these tools the greater opportunity to have a well tuned, happy work environment.
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