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Best Practices Growth Leadership Personal Development

How to Raise the Bar of Integrity in Your Organization

It seems that the more leadership events I attend, the more I hear the word ‘Integrity’ as a key focus for success. Sure we all know that integrity matters — or SHOULD matter! — for leaders to drive and thrive in this increasingly-stressful business climate. However, how do leaders actually make a noticeable improvement in the integrity demonstrated within their organization beyond just blah-blah-blahing about it?

 

During the recent C-Suite Network Digital Discussion hosted by C-Suite Network Chairman Jeffrey Hayzlett, we heard from two very powerful (and colorful!) thought leaders Beth Weissenberger and Robbie Bach, both of whom use their experiences on the front lines of business to help guide leadership teams through challenging times. The result was an honest conversation about what really stops us from making progress in cultivating a culture of integrity and what we can do to raise the bar, not only from within and but also throughout our organizations.

 

In addition to being inspired by Robbie’s compelling story about launching the Xbox brand at Microsoft and how to navigate the dynamics of a large enterprise organization (Hint: Get an Executive Sponsor!), Beth brought a wealth of insight on how we can positively affect the integrity of our organizations by making key changes in ourselves first.

 

Beth is a tough-as-nails executive coach from The Big Apple who tells it like it is and delivers the goods for her clients. She started the conversation by sharing that everyone is messed up right now. (No kidding!!) Fear, overwhelm, uncertainty, and stress are commonplace in every organization, and when that happens, the worst traits of all of us come out.

 

What can we do to combat these beasts?

 

  • Keep dreaming. Most of us have stopped wildly dreaming about what we want and find ourselves simply executing on What Is. Create a big audacious dream for yourself and work backward from there.
  • Master the basics. If we aren’t feeling well, we likely won’t DO as well. Some of the table stakes in this new climate are our personal health and wellness, including establishing better relationships with meditation, food, and yoga. (As a thought leader in Mindful Performance, this was music to my ears!)
  • Design your day. Working from that Big Dream, figure out what are the major activities you are going to do to support every area of your life. Be intentional. Don’t let success be accidental. Schedule it.
  • Name your Inner Saboteur. Sometimes we have well-meaning but annoying voices inside our heads that sabotage our best efforts to walk our highest walk. The Chicken is the avoider, the Brat is the defiant negator, and the Weather Reporter simply reports the latest happenings instead of consciously creating them. If you are struggling with showing up as authentically and powerfully as possible, ask yourself if the Chicken, the Brat, or the Weather Reporter are in charge. 
  • Be accountable to your promises. Be crystal clear about what you are promising YOURSELF in support of your Big Dream, and create an unpleasant consequence if you break your promise (Beth suggested taking a $20 bill and throwing it out the window!!) If you break your promise twice and have experienced the consequences twice, chances are you don’t have the right consequence. Make it painful to break promises, and you’ll stop breaking them.

 

One of the biggest nuggets of awesome I got from the Digital Discussion was when Beth said, “Whatever you believe, you prove.” It made me really think about what I believe. Do I believe that I have plenty of resources at my disposal to be the best expression of myself? Do I believe that the path to great success can be a joyful, healthy one? Most importantly, do I believe that there is plenty for ALL of us?

 

What do YOU believe, and what are you proving?

 

If you would like to be a part of these informative and thought-provoking conversations, you are welcome to become an Executive Leader and get invitations to our next C-Suite Network Digital Discussion! The more we learn and grow, the stronger our leadership skills will become. And when we are strong leaders, we will naturally raise the bar of integrity everywhere we go, including our workplaces.

 

#ceo #peakperformance #csuite #csuitenetwork #thoughtleadership #leadership #coaching #bestpractices #engagement #integrity #driveandthrive

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Best Practices Growth Leadership Personal Development

Performance Traits That Top Athletes, Musical Prodigies, & CEOs Have in Common

I’m always impressed by people who truly strive to make every one of their performances a spectacular one. I love watching people be REALLY good at their craft, whether it’s a physical feat or an artistic one. (Or both!!)  More importantly, I love hearing from those high-caliber pros in sports, the arts, and in business on HOW they created those impressive showings.

Last week the C-Suite Network Digital Discussion hosted by C-Suite Network Chairman Jeffrey Hayzlett was held. Jeffrey interviewed two first-class experts, Dr. Michael Gervais, High-Performance Psychologist, and Co-Founder of Compete to Create, and Dr. Noa Kageyama, 

Performance Psychologist, Bulletproof Musician, and Faculty at The Juilliard School, to discuss how the world’s top performers face and conquer fear and adversity. They also talked about how to distinguish between those with high potential and the high performers within your team and shared specific strategies and mindsets we all can use to persevere through adversity and achieve peak status.

Here are the top five takeaways I got from listening to these peak performance masters, every one of which I am focusing on in order to become a stronger leader:

Resides in the present

Michael Gervais described the traits that business leaders can look for in seeking out high performers. While there are certain aspects that are empirically beneficial to high performance — clarity of purpose, relentlessness, and authentic expression — the one characteristic that is what Gervais described as “the keyhole to high performance” is living in the present moment. Jeffrey Hayzlett reflected on the importance of presence, especially in this current business climate: “Leaders need to be centered. You need to stand in the middle of the chaos and do what you have to do as a leader.” And sometimes that just means doing Jeff’s favorite go-to mindfulness strategy (and mine!): to simply BREATHE.

 

Beware the FOPO

Gervais shared that FOPO, or Fear Of People’s Opinions, is one of the biggest challenges to high performance. When we stop attaching our outcomes to the opinions of others, we become free to experiment, grow, and evolve our thinking. Hayzlett further added later that night at the C-Suite Network Member Mixer that he addresses FOPO by offering this nugget of awesome: “‘Thank you for your assessment’ is a great way to respond. It’s just an assessment; it doesn’t mean that it’s right or wrong.”

 

Optimism is serious business

Mental toughness is required to fight off FOPO, and optimism is the center of mental toughness, Gervais said. “If the mind is left untrained, the brain will win.” Our brains are hard-wired for survival, and that program isn’t always the best one to execute for high performance. Rather, it’s far more beneficial to consciously choose the optimistic response. Train your brain to manage your mindset, and strive for the positive choice, every moment, every dang day. Because it matters.

 

Practice. Really. FOR REAL.

Dr. Kageyama stressed that practicing, recording, reviewing, and identifying improvements in our performances is the least favorite aspect of high performance but it’s also the most important. Great performers successfully separate who they are with what they do. “Being great at their craft is hugely satisfying and worth the pain of practicing”, Dr. Kageyama said. Hayzlett echoed the sentiment by reminding the audience that, “If you want to be a maestro, you have to be willing to play a lot of bad notes”.

 

Aim for Delicious

Sometimes we can get caught in the trap of chasing after perfection. Dr. Kageyama shared a story about a conversation he had with a premier chef. The maestro of the kitchen stated that “the aim of being a great chef is to be delicious, not exact.” That delicious expression of who we are as individuals is what truly resonates with our audiences, not just our polished, technical expertise. In all that we do, whether professional or personal, let’s all “aim for delicious.” (I’m half-thinking of getting it as a tattoo. #aimfordelicious)

 

Dr. Kageyama finished his interview by reiterating that high performers recognize that, “Being great at their craft is hugely satisfying and worth the pain of practicing.” Isn’t that the truth!

Whether it’s practicing mindfulness techniques to stay in the present moment and insulated from FOPO or practicing my craft of facilitation, keynote performance, or comedy by watching game footage, I am eagerly accepting the invitation to do what it takes to show up stronger, deliver better, and connect deeper. I want to practice taking more risks, taking more chances, and doing things differently. Because that’s what true leaders in the c-suite do to drive and thrive.

I love being surrounded by high performers, especially those in the C-Suite Network! Since bringing my awareness to the teachings I have learned in the Digital Discussions and Executive Leadership Forums, I have found myself far more focused. Clearer. More productive. And most importantly, more INSPIRED. As a thought leader in mindful performance and C-Suite Radio podcast host, I am always discovering how top leaders in business deliver their best performances so I can not only improve myself but also help others accelerate their businesses in the Thought Council! If you want to join me for the next digital discussion from the c-suite, become an Executive Leader. It’s a great way to stay abreast of up-to-the-minute relevant business insights that will not only inspire you but also make you one of the most strategic people in the room.

#ceo #peakperformance #csuite #csuitenetwork #thoughtleadership #leadership #coaching #bestpractices #engagement #music #sports #athlete #juilliard

Categories
Best Practices Growth Leadership Personal Development

What Business Are You In? Lessons From Christie Hefner

Really great leaders make their businesses simple to understand.

Because when there is clarity, there is unity of purpose. And when there is unity of purpose, there is advantage.

At the High Stakes Executive Leadership Forum, Jeffrey Hayzlett, Chairman of the C-Suite Network, Primetime Television, and Podcast Host, sat down with Christie Hefner, Chairman of Hatchbeauty Brands, former Chairman, and CEO of Playboy Enterprises, and one of the most influential women in business. Their conversation was incredibly insightful and contained critical leadership focus areas and mindsets that are absolutely necessary in order to compete in this tumultuous economic climate.

Hayzlett and Hefner discussed unconscious bias that has kept women in executive leadership from an equitable representation in the boardroom (20% of women are on executive boards, yet they make up more than half the population and half the MBAs – grrrr.) and what leaders can do to cultivate stronger diversity both within their companies and externally. They further discussed the future in business and what needs to be kept at the forefront in order to stay competitive.

Either companies are growing or dying; it’s only one or the other,” Hefner said. Too often leaders aren’t paying attention to the important shifts in business and adapting quickly enough to new models. The question that Hefner suggests all leaders ask themselves is simple, but sometimes not easy:

What business are we in? If you answer it correctly, you’re Netflix. If you answer it wrongly, you’re Blockbuster.” This clarifying question must be answered in order for organizations and their teams to move as rapidly and effectively as possible, especially in the midst of so many unknowns.

As Jeffrey and Christie talked about the impact of Covid-19, they highlighted the impact that TIME has had on business. Hefner stated, “The pandemic is a time machine to the future”. Hayzlett reiterated his belief that the increased velocity must be mastered in order to continue to drive and thrive in this perfect storm of global challenge. Great leaders listen well, communicate with transparency, and engage their entire teams on a unified approach to success. This requires clarity of purpose and a true understanding the intrinsic value of your products, services, and company actually provide the customer.

Don’t make the mistake of competing against your competitor! That approach is no longer a business model that is sustainable because it’s just too darn slow! Instead, great businesses will accelerate their growth instead of contract because they are the ones who compete for the hearts and minds of the customers they serve. As my brilliant colleague Tyler Hayzlett, Marketing Jedi, and fellow C-Suite Network Advisor, cautions, “Stop operating in the shadow of the past.”

Are you ready to move your business out of the shadow of the past and keep pace with the hyperspeed of the Now? What actions will you take today to grow instead of decline? Most importantly, do you — and all of your team members — know what business you are REALLY in?

Up-to-the-minute, relevant business insights are just a part of what the C-Suite Network offers through their Executive Leadership Forums and Digital Discussions. If you would like to be a part of more conversations from the c-suite, become an Executive Leader today. As a thought leader in mindful performance and C-Suite Radio podcast host, I am on a constant quest to discover how top leaders in business deliver their best performances. During the High Stakes Forum, Jeffrey Hayzlett and Christie Hefner demonstrated why they are two of the best.

#ceo #peakperformance #csuite #csuitenetwork #thoughtleadership #leadership #coaching #bestpractices #engagement #business growth