Pessimistic Leaders Can Never Instill Hope

Leadership is about pointing people to a more promising tomorrow. At its best it instills hope and unshakeable confidence in the people it leads. To do so, however, leaders must be men and women who themselves embody and exemplify optimism. People may be influenced by pessimists. But they are never inspired to follow them.

Pessimism comes easily. Our brains are hyper-attuned to anticipate and recognize threats. That makes us susceptible to fears, anxieties, and foreboding views of the future. Left unchecked, such states of mind easily lead to pessimism.

Yet, I’m persuaded that people prefer to live in hope, to live with confidence that things will be better tomorrow. And they turn to leaders to provide them such assurance. For this reason, leaders must see themselves as guardians of optimism, first in themselves, then in their people.

In this podcast I build the case for optimism as a way of life. I look at the backdrop of uncertainty and unrest which permeates American life today. And I highlight the role that optimistic leaders will play in ushering us out of this predicament into a future filled with promise.

A printed transcript of this episode may be downloaded at https://www.leaderperfect.com/podcast/episodes/2017-guardians-of-optimism.htm.

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To Lead Well, Know This First

The Greek philosopher Aristotle famously advised, “First, know thyself.” That adage serves anyone well. But it is particularly relevant to leadership. Leaders should know themselves, first and foremost.

The most important mentor in my life understood that well. He repeatedly told me, “We all have a flat side on our wheel somewhere. The sooner we can identify that flat side and build systems and people around us to compensate for it, the sooner we will be successful and the greater our success will be.”

This episode guides you through a process of identifying the flat side on your wheel. And it explains why knowing yourself is essential to effective team-building — and in truth, to leadership in any arena.

For a PDF copy of this episode, go to https://www.leaderperfect.com/podcast. Simply click on the link to download scripts.

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All High-Performing Teams Have These Traits in Common

It’s fashionable today for managers to refer to their employees as their team, whether the group actually functions as a team or not. That’s unfortunate. It blurs what makes authentic teamwork distinctive. It cheapens the meaning of “team.”

As a result, many so-called teams are not really teams, at all. They are simply a collection of individual contributors who happen to work together. They are what we might call workmates or shipmates or officemates. But they are not truly teammates.

True teams – especially exceptional teams – embody certain traits and characteristics. These qualities are always evident, whether you’re speaking of a sports team, a research team, a self-directed work team, a special forces team, a management team – any kind of team which genuinely deserves the name.

In this episode we look at eleven of these essential traits. How many of them are characteristic of the team which you lead or teams on which you serve?

For a printed copy of today’s podcast, go to https://www.leaderperfect.com/podcast and click on the link to download scripts.

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What Management Is Learning from the COVID-19 Shutdown

There is hardly a business in America which has not been adversely impacted by the corona virus pandemic. Yet many are learning how to thrive, even while their employees are working remotely for the first time ever.

In this episode Daniel Ramsey shares lessons which he has learned from many of these business leaders who have chosen to tackle the challenges of the COVID-19 shutdown with a CEO’s mindset. They are mastering the art of leading teams in a virtual environment, a skill which they never expected to need.

Not only does Daniel relate the lessons which they have learned, he also relates what he has learned as he manages his own team remotely. Toward the end of the episode he offers my listeners a free book entitled Scaling Your Business with Virtual Professionals. To obtain your copy, send a text message to 31996 and include the code: “SVP” in the message.

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The Fruitless Quest for Leaders without Flaws

One of the weightiest questions in the study of history is how to judge leaders from the past. Not in terms of their military, political, or other achievements. But in terms of their character and morality.

Should their behavior be measured by our standards today? Or should they only be accountable to the standards of their own era?

Recently mob action has toppled several statues of renowned American leaders. The rationale for this action is tha the statue depicted a person who was guilty of grave immoral behavior, at least by today’s societal norms, morals, and mores.

But what consequences ensue if we use that standard to determine which leaders from the past we respect and which ones we treat dismissively. The fact is, all leaders are flawed. They are, after all, human. In that regard, they are like the rest of us.

Great leaders, however, are men and women who, though flawed like the rest of us, had exceptional traits which set them apart from the crowd. And we can recognize those things which were exceptional about them without condoning the things which they did amiss. To do otherwise sets in motion a process which little-by-little robs us of the heroes whose example inspires us to press beyond the crowd ourselves.

You can obtain a PDF copy of this episode by following the link to download scripts at https://www.leaderperfect.com/podcast.

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Seven Intrinsic Benefits Which Motivate Commitment

Whether you lead a company, a non-profit, an institution, or a government agency, people join your organization and remain committed to it for one of seven reasons. And for the most part, money and benefits have little to do with it.

Instead, one of seven intrinsic benefits exerts a gravitational pull on those who choose to become part of your team or organization. This benefit — what I call a motivational connection — is the force which draws someone to become part of the group which you lead or manage.

So long as this benefit remains vibrant, people remain committed. However, if the benefit dwindles or disappears, their commitment evaporates, as well. This episode examines each of these seven intrinsic benefits individually and offers real-life examples of the impact they have on motivation, morale, and engagement.

For a PDF transcript of this episode, follow the link to download scripts at https://www.leaderperfect.com/podcast.

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5 Leadership Lessons from the COVID-19 Experience

Few times in our history has political leadership at every level of government been so visible as it has been in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. And the visibility has been on a daily basis.

People have therefore been able to see great leadership on display, along with other leadership which has not necessarily been so great. Even though the crisis is far from passed, we are far enough along in it to identify some principles of leadership which have been reinforced by events surrounding the pandemic.

In this episode I look at five things which leaders can take away from how the pandemic has been managed from a leadership standpoint. I’ve chosen “take-aways” which are valid and valuable for men and women in leadership in any type of organization.

These include:

1. The importance of giving people a compelling why when you ask them to change
2. The need to establish clear end-games and stick with them when you ask something extraordinary of your people
3. The danger to leadership credibility when decision-makers are emotionally detached from their people
4. The tremendous innovative capability found in people and what that means for leaders who successfully tap into it
5. The powerful threat which fear poses for clear, rational thought

A PDF transcript of this episode is available for download at https://www.leaderperfect.com/podcast.

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Attract Local Customers by using Smart SEO

Occasionally I use this podcast to address topics which are not strictly a leadership core competency, but which could greatly benefit people in certain leadership positions.. This is one of those episodes.

I’ve aimed today’s program at professionals, entrepreneurs, and leaders whose businesses rely on the internet to bring them customers, especially local customers. Their ability to use search engine optimization to maximum advantage pays incalculable dividends.

My guest, John Vuong, has helped over 10,000 business owners in 50 verticals dominate their local market in terms of search engine rankings. In this episode he discusses major considerations to keep in mind as you consider marketing on the web. And for those who lack the time or inclination to optimize their own website, he offers helpful guidance on finding a professional to assist.

John also highlights the clear distinction between advertising on the web and marketing on the web. Marketing is likely to succeed, he explains, when you clearly know what potential customers are looking for when they are ready to buy.

John’s company, Local SEO Search, Inc. serves all of North America from its base in Toronto, Canada. John’s website is https://www.localseosearch.ca.

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The New Mandate for Today’s Leaders

The Armed Forces War College uses the acronym VUCA to described the world today. That stands for Volatility, Uncertainty, Change, and Ambiguity. Ron Holifield, my guest on this episode and the president of Strategic Government Resources, argues that this state of affairs has brought on a new set of expectations for leaders.

People, he says, are looking for leaders who communicate a sense of clarity, confidence, and certitude. Unlike workers 40 years ago, who tended to accept what leadership said at face value, today’s workers are more skeptical, more likely to question leadership decisions. They want to assure themselves that the leader is trustworthy, competent, and authentic.

Authenticity means that the leader has a clear and well-defined set of values and that the leader lives consistently with these values. People, more than perhaps ever before, want leaders to authenticate themselves by walking their talk. According to Ron, a discussion of values is the one topic which creates the greatest resonance in his in his workshops at present.

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Making Good Use of the Shutdown

The pandemic shutdown has been particularly disruptive for owners of small or medium-sized businesses. Rather than merely hunkering down and waiting out the economic downturn, men and women who are heading and leading smaller businesses should see the opportunity in the moment.

What are these opportunities? To answer that question, I turned to Bob McKinnon, host of RealLeadershipPodcast.com and a veteran expert in the leadership of small and medium-sized businesses.

Bob talks about the importance of using this lull in economic activity to retool your business in terms of your vision, your company strengths, and what he calls your “unfair competitive advantage.”

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