Leadership Mindset

Words Matter

“Recognizing that words have consequences, that choices made by people in power can have a direct impact, not just on behaviours, but on our very institutions, is an important thing…What we choose to say, what we choose not to say, how we say it, has consequences.”
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Canada, National Post, January 8, 2021
“Words are things. You must be careful, careful about calling people out of their names, using racial pejoratives and sexual pejoratives and all that ignorance. Don’t do that. Some day we’ll be able to measure the power of words. I think they are things. They get on the walls. They get in your wallpaper. They get in your rugs, in your upholstery, and your clothes, and finally into you.”
Maya Angelou

Have you ever heard someone say: “You have one mouth and two ears, listen more than you speak”, or ” Think before you speak, because you can’t take it back once you have said it.”

BURNOUT

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), burnout was first linked with helping professions in the mid-1970s. Burnout has broadened beyond helping professions to other industries today.

Burnout is a syndrome that includes: emotional exhaustion, disillusionment, and withdrawal. Symptoms include low energy, chronic fatigue, weakness, weariness, increased susceptibility to illness, frequent headaches, nausea, muscle tension, sleep disturbances, and more.

A Mental Reset

I love this Chinese proverb because it says so much in so few words. It highlights the importance of what kind of light we shine in the world. What we put into our body and mind is what comes out, and what the world sees.

Email Etiquette

What does email etiquette have to do with leadership? It leaves an impression and shows your character.

A 2013 study by Modeuro Consulting found that about 80% of email traffic is considered useless and only about 21.5% of emails get opened.

Leadership Seeds

By the time spring comes, most people are sick of winter. We get to shed our winter boots, bulky coats and clothing, and the gloom of winter. We look forward to springtime. It’s a time when we are ready for sunshine and something new-a time of planting seeds (seedtime) and creating beauty.

Manners: A Key to Success

“Good manners will open doors that the best education cannot.”
CLARENCE THOMAS ,Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States

Raise your hand if you are tired of angry and rude behaviour.

Company Culture

If you are lucky enough to be someone’s employer, then you have a moral obligation to make sure people do look forward to coming to work in the morning.
JOhn MacKey, CEO, WHole Foods

Collaborating with Others-Part 2

In part one of Collaborating with Others, I discussed two levers that impact collaboration; physical space, and online tools. Physical space had mixed reviews in terms of how well it encouraged collaboration, some found it to be less conducive to cooperation, while others liked the open space concept to promote teamwork.

Online collaboration was generally positively received and found to be good for organizations from a profit, efficiency, and worker satisfaction point of view.

Collaborating with Others-Part 1

Experts discuss the lost collaboration opportunity now that COVID has people working from home. They mention the good old days when people would gather around the kitchen, the water cooler, or the coffee machine to chat, share, test ideas, and collaborate. Mostly, staff would catch up on how the weekend was, what was happening with the family, what people were watching on Netflix, or any other streaming platform. While the catch up might not touch on workplace issues, the benefit of the chat was getting to know co-workers on a more personal level and developing a relationship. It is the development of the relationship that makes for easier collaboration.

Be Deliberate: Make your Mind Up on Purpose

What do I mean by this?

We get to decide how to respond and act, by being deliberate about our choices.

Being deliberate and making up your mind on purpose, means that you have guiding principle(s) for how you live your life.

Emotionally intelligent leaders actively practice being deliberate about how they will react and respond. When they decide to do something, they don’t let distractions, setbacks, and noise get in the way-they focus on what matters, whether it is personal or professional.

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