Tag: Soft Skills

Securing and keeping top talent is essential to a company’s success. However, it is also extremely difficult to do. Employers need to try and preserve their best employees and these elite people must be strategic in order to stand out as top talent.

A Leader’s Requirement

If you’re in leadership, then you have to always put your best foot forward and give your best 100% of the time. The benefits of this approach will be seen in the results that follow in both your role and those that you supervise.

Leaders should stand back and be more:

• Focused
• Approachable
• Strategic
• Thorough

As a leader, take initiative to stay focused and help your team do the same.

Be sure to stick to your company’s vision and others will follow your lead. Also, be an example and take time out to get refreshed so that you can be more balanced in life and stay committed to the company without getting burnt out.

How does one pull this off as a leader? The goal is to have personal leadership and you’ll be set apart. This is just not the norm today.

Steps Toward Personal Leadership: 

Who do you plan to invest in?

As a leader, you must look around you and think about who you should invest in. You may see a need to focus on some growth for yourself too. Is there a course or seminar that would help grow you professionally? Consider yourself but be sure to think about who you need to focus on. Top talent is rare and you don’t want to let a talented individual get passed over or even get complacent. That includes you.

How can you empower someone else?

Once you’ve identified the person or people that you plan to invest in, you need to figure out how to empower them. Equip them to take on a leadership focus and switch their thinking in that direction.

One way to do this is to help them focus on their priorities. They may need help to define what those are, but stick close and they will figure it out in time.

How to consider both time and cost as you develop leaders?

The process of leader development is essential but a strategic approach should be taken. You must think of both the time and cost that it will take to grow talented individuals into leaders. One approach could be to give a large project to someone that is up and coming in their talent and rank in the company. Allow them the opportunity for growth and to let their potential really shine.

Often, the result is that the employee feels empowered and like they are adding value to the goals of the company. This is a win for all.

Growing and preserving top talent will allow for continued growth of your company. The effort is worth it and more.

Your comments are greatly appreciated. Please let us know how we are doing!

Gary Brunson
gary@myclearfocus.com

Debra Rider
debra@myclearfocus.com

574.361.2674

Sustainable Growth & Profit Consultant, Coach, Mentor and Counselor/Therapist for Business Owners and Professional.

In order to improve business operations, you’ll need to acquire the skill of concentration. Companies struggle to make improvements because they are not equipped to move forward as quickly as they’d like and see real growth in the area of operations.

Concentration 

Businesses strive to be more innovative and organized. They want to grow in their communication skills and styles. Often, they lack the one ability that enables them to focus your attention. Concentration is essential for entrepreneurs.

These days we are inundated with busy schedules, social media, and an overwhelming amount of stimulation from all directions. Concentration is what will help us remain focused and stick to our priorities.

This struggle to concentrate may lead us to fail in personal relationships too. Being present is what it takes to concentrate. We need to focus and not get so busy with random tasks and behaviors. People tend to spend their time daydreaming about the weekend, their upcoming vacation, or tonight’s dinner plans.

Lower the Basket to Increase Concentration

Businesses need to make changes in order to improve their operations and this calls for the need to “Lower the Basket.”

Imagine a young boy that cannot shoot a basketball to save his life. What would a parent do in order to assist him? The child is frustrated and the parent is at a loss. One tip that would help could be to lower the basket. Taking measures to allow growth and stretch the child in a different way could pull off big results.

In other words, bring the basket down to his level and current skill set.  We can use this same approach in business. We must lower the basket for our team in a way that helps them to put their eye on the prize. They need encouragement and to be asked how it is working for them and how it made them feel. This is what concentration is all about.

An employee, like the child trying to shoot hoops, will feel the win and learn how to better hit the goals set before them. Training a new team member and helping them to concentrate will give them the skills they need to be successful within the company.

The basket and the stakes will increase; however, the concentrated efforts to train them and equip them with the tools they need will pay off continuously.

Please send us your comments, suggestions, and ideas today.

Gary Brunson
gary@myclearfocus.com

Debra Rider
debra@myclearfocus.com

574.361.2674

Sustainable Growth & Profit Consultant, Coach, Mentor and Counselor/Therapist for Business Owners and Professional.

I’ve spent so many years in school, this week doesn’t feel like the end of summer. If feels like a new year.

You know, the one that comes with sharpened pencils, new penny loafers, and a new notebook to signal a brand-new start.

This season also comes with a reminder about talent I believe applies to lots of people today. In fact, I know it does because when I talk about this in my speeches, people seek me out later – in tears.

It comes from a dissertation by a friend, John Radar. John selected six people known for the important contributions they made to the world. He gathered their elementary school records if any were available. Since some were historical figures and no actual records could be located, he created them using biographies and other accounts of their lives.

He included information about their physical health, intellectual ability, family relationships, genetics, social skills, emotional maturity and goals in life and labeled each record with a fictitious name.

Then, he assembled groups of school administrators, teachers and parents to review the records and select two for a special gifted and talented program. Each study participant made their selection and then the group arrived at a consensus. When the group decision was final, the records were “unblinded” and the real names revealed.

Eleanor Roosevelt was not among the two selected. Study participants viewed her as unsuitable because she was shy and withdrawn, her father was alcoholic and her stated life goal – to help people – was “soft.”

Abraham Lincoln was rejected because he lived in poverty with a single-parent and had a disease, Marfan’s Syndrome, known to shorten lifespan. The arts, generally, were not valued which is why Isadora Duncan didn’t make the cut.

The two selected children excelled at the traditional “three R’s.” One was a boy who completed a PhD in Math as a teenager and the other was Bill Bradley, who was not yet a Senator but at that point a Rhodes Scholar and professional basketball player.

Kinda breaks your heart, doesn’t it?

Each one of those rejected contributed a genius to the world:

• Eleanor Roosevelt showed us the value of emotional intelligence.

• Abraham Lincoln taught us the value of persistence in the face of loss and how to heal a nation.

• Isadora Duncan demonstrated that the arts have an important place in our soul.

Might you – or one your children – be graced with genius like this?

If so, I hope it’s been recognized and is being nurtured by the connections in your networks today.

Your comments are greatly appreciated. Please let us know how we are doing!

Gary Brunson
gary@myclearfocus.com

Debra Rider
debra@myclearfocus.com

574.361.2674

Sustainable Growth & Profit Consultant, Coach, Mentor and Counselor/Therapist for Business Owners and Professional.

By Glenna Crooks, Ph.D., noted executive, speaker, problem-solver (www.glennacrooks.com), SageMy™Life founder and author of The Network Sage: Realize Your Network Superpower,

People spend much of their time trying to be right and working to avoid being wrong at all costs. While this may be ok in some instances, leadership is not one of them. As early as our childhood, we learn that getting in trouble or doing things wrong is not acceptable. In business and leadership, we should switch our thought process and even embrace and grow from being wrong and accepting the blame when it applies to our situation.

If your team sees you as someone who is constantly right, then you may appear to be a know-it-all. Most likely, this is not pleasant for those around you and doesn’t help you with your leadership role either. Accepting the fact that you are just plain wrong at times will help you improve and allow others around you to see you as both more human and approachable. Try the following:

Embrace Mistakes

If you never make a mistake, then you are not taking enough risks. How will you grow as a leader if you never mess up? You can be wrong and still do well overall. If you want to grow personally, then you must be willing to fail and do it gracefully.

When you make a mistake and let your team see you handle it well, you build trust and buy-in amongst your staff. It is much harder to be transparent and people will respect that effort as you own up to a mistake or flaw of some kind. Embracing mistakes will enable you to be seen as real, approachable, and respected.

Focus on improvement

Your goal should be to constantly improve. If you can’t accept that you have areas where you need to grow, then improvement will be tough. As a leader, your team will follow suit as you seek to change, develop, and try new things. Working as an entire group, you can accomplish much more than on your own.

Cultivate strong team members

Work to grow your team’s strength. These individuals will, in turn, help you as a leader to become stronger with the goal to constantly improve. Be sure that everyone knows to avoid the blame game and set everyone up to grow and learn from each other instead.  Accept being wrong and your team will too. Everyone acknowledging a flaw, mistake, or issue will enable people to feel “human” and it will foster growth rather than squelch it.

Leaders can be wrong and still be right. Seriously? Yes, by accepting that you are wrong from time to time, you will actually be doing things just right. Your team will appreciate your transparency and you will be on the path of continued growth.

Your comments are greatly appreciated. Please let us know how we are doing!

Gary Brunson
gary@myclearfocus.com

Debra Rider
debra@myclearfocus.com

574.361.2674

Sustainable Growth & Profit Consultant, Coach, Mentor and Counselor/Therapist for Business Owners and Professional.

Close knit organizations or multi-generational family businesses tend to have some similar problems along with benefits. One of the issues that rises to the top, yet is often ignored, is a succession plan.

When businesses have a family like management team, then rivalries and personal agendas can often come into play. Also, the situations can be strained because no one wants to hurt feelings or offend.

Open communication must happen in order to have a good succession plan. There are legal and tax issues to be considered. If you put a plan in place, then succession can go smoothly.

Think ahead and follow these 8 steps if you have a family-owned business:

1. Set Clear Goals

Don’t miss out on the opportunity to sit as a team and set clear, specific long (and short) term goals.

When it comes to the future, you should leave no stone unturned. Iron out the details and get the goals and vision in writing.

2. Come Up with Managerial Competencies

Establish agreed upon managerial competencies that showcase what’s important to your operation.

3. Evaluate the Team

Create a system to evaluate your managerial team. Consider the skills of each team member and figure out which managerial competencies are their strengths.

4. Review the Assessment

Be sure to review the findings of the assessment to learn more about each person’s strengths. Then work to tailor an individual development plan for each team member’s career.

5. Legal and Tax Advice

When it comes to family business, there are transfers of ownership and tax implications that must be considered. Seek out counsel and get proper legal advice.

6. Performance Management

Teach your managers how to hold their team accountable for their performance. They should be trained to seek specific outcomes which will help when it comes to a succession plan.

7. Talk with Successors

Talk with your top team members about their career goals and the path they are on. Find ways to provide more training and help them develop even further.

8. Hold on Tight

Do whatever it takes to hold onto your best people. Offer incentives and a great benefits package in order to keep your top talent.

When it comes to proper succession, timing is extremely important. Be wise when it comes to starting a transition. Move your managers up at a slow pace and give them the proper training that they need. With a close-knit group of people, be sure to communicate the promotion and ensure that everyone is clear on the role change.

In order to have a sustainable company, you need to have a strategic plan and a thorough execution of the set goals.

Your comments are greatly appreciated. Please let us know how we are doing!

Gary Brunson
gary@myclearfocus.com

Debra Rider
debra@myclearfocus.com

574.361.2674

Sustainable Growth & Profit Consultant, Coach, Mentor and Counselor/Therapist for Business Owners and Professional.