The power of full engagement
Leaders have been conditioned to orient from Hierarchy (the 1-up,1-down relationship between supervisor and subordinate) rather than Heterarchy (supervisor and subordinate as peer-to-peer, shoulder-to-shoulder, in it together). As a result, they tend to prioritize choices that will please or maintain a stable relationship with their supervisor rather than transparently sharing differences in moments big and small.
Be the old rabbit hunter
All too often, in the face of a baffling challenge, leaders search outside themselves and their organization. They can become fixated on pursuing a silver bullet to their organization’s dilemma(s), things like new computer systems, software tools, or best-selling methods (the young rabbit hunter style). Invariably, the invested time, energy, and money do not produce the desired results.
The new leader blind spot
Invariably, new leaders focus on the wrong things, make bad decisions, debate what they should embrace, and discount people with the relevant knowledge they need to be successful. Their inaccurate interpretations and poor judgment drive performance decline, damaging relationships and shareholder value. This self-validating thinking and behavior is the dominant cause of thousands of failed leadership transitions.
Leading with full power
Many leaders develop these self-protective tendencies to fit in, minimize conflict, stay out of trouble, or preemptively defend themselves. The problem: Anyone who routinely plays these roles cannot be trusted to consistently produce valuable outcomes. Why? Beneath each role’s orientation is the choice to avoid responsibility. While these compensating behaviors started years before you worked together, if you cannot observe, understand, and help them escape their limiting tendencies, these leaders will continue to hold your organization back.
Installing more powerful choices
Culture and leadership development are the force multipliers behind our top 1% results. Helping leaders escape their familiar, conditions ways of working, so they can enact new, more meaningful and significant choices is some of our most important work.
The ordinary versus the extraordinary
Notice how differently the extraordinary executive invests 100 units of time, energy, and attention to create positive impact (value creation).
Winning the day
The most pervasive cause of organizational underperformance is a lack of narrow focus and drifting attention. Without a narrow focus on specific behaviors that will transform results, leaders invariably fall into a responsive-reaction orientation at work — this orientation fuels their wandering attention that compromises results.
The power of narrow focus
Exceptional performers stop confusing activity for results. They say “no” to distractions, emergencies, and firefighting. They say “no” to mediocre opportunities and instead say “yes” to the few activities that matter to creating results.
Chasing greatness
Recently, I was impressed by a post-game interview with Jalen Hurts and AJ Brown, two stars from the NFL's winningest team. As you read Jalen's comments below, imagine if your organization's performers were infected with his vision, his continuous improvement mindset,...
7 Practices for Scaling Your Impact
The power to manifest a professional life filled with greater meaning and impact comes down to the quality of your imagination and choices.
How to 10X Your Creativity
Discover a daily practice extraordinary leaders use to 10X the number of ideas they generate.
Get Off the Treadmill!
Learn why longer/harder/faster rarely delivers the consistent results leaders seek and what high-functioning leaders do instead.
How Great CEOs Create Unfair Advantage
That’s because businesses that don’t focus on producing outcomes superior to competitors’ will struggle to gain prospects’ attention and convince them to act. The competitive spoils have always gone to those who have built a unique collection of capabilities that are highly valued by customers.
Does Strategy Even Matter?
While leaders invest an enormous amount of time narrowly focused on where their groups are over- and under-performing expectations, they rarely objectively examine if their chosen operational and tactical strategies are the most relevant or effectively coordinated.
You Can’t Fix What You Can’t See
The more significant test of your leadership will be unlocking new growth by finding truly novel ways forward to include designing new actions that are more important, useful and worthwhile than those produced by your competitors.
Mastering Uncomfortable Conversations
In my work with senior teams, I witness far too many CEOs and senior leaders who are not skilled in having uncomfortable conversations. Instead, these leaders choose to withhold their concerns or unproductively lash out. The problem with both choices is that they...
The Most Important Question
Taking advantage of the opportunities in this moment for your company requires becoming a leader that is increasingly skilled in seeing more choices. Developing greater discernment can only improve through practice. This audioblog (5 min.) outlines a daily practice...
How to Train Leaders Who Change the World
Had so much fun chatting with my friend, former F-18 fighter pilot and five-time best seller Ed Rush on How to Train Leaders Who Change the World. Ed hosts a daily show (ED TALKS) that is an antidote to the anxiety of the current health crisis. You can find his show...
Leading In Crisis | Deepening Customer Trust
Originally featured in YPO Ignite blog! Businesses are in varying states of health with CEO’s facing a dizzying array of decisions in the midst of the global health crisis. While some are necessarily focusing their attention on tactics to survive, others are elevating...
Embrace Your Mental Swirl
The current global crisis, and the season of spring, is an opportunity for renewal. For me, part of a life well lived is the rituals that shape my perspective and way of being. One of my favorite alchemical and self-care rituals is journaling. I started my...
Leading in Crisis | Prioritize Personal Connection
Priorities change during a time of a crisis. Yes, there will be actions leaders needs to urgently attend to harden their business for the impact of this crisis. Still, it's important to escape the habitual patterns that occupied your calendar before the crisis and...
