Leadership

Last week I was trying to figure out how to update my website and I sent an email to a friend who I thought might know the answer I needed.

In just a few minutes, he responded and within an hour or so, my website received an upgrade that I had been wanting to do for a long time.

I experienced this another time recently with a repair on my son’s car while he was home from college. A friend of mine who loves working on cars helped us solve a problem and saved us hundreds of dollars in repair costs.

If I had tried to figure things out on my own, I probably would’ve been frustrated and potentially wasted much time and money, but by reaching out to knowledgeable friends, my problems were solved quickly.

This reminds me of the lesson from the book ​“Who Not How”​ by Dan Sullivan and Dr. Benjamin Hardy.

The premise of the book is that we can waste hours/days/months/years learning “how” to do something, but it’s better to find someone “who” already knows how to do it and ask for help or delegate the task.

Whatever you need help with, think about who you can ask for help or insight.

You’re surrounded by people with a variety of skills and knowledge that you probably take for granted or just don’t think about.

Whatever you need help with in your life or business, spend a few moments thinking about who you can ask for help and you’ll probably be amazed how quickly things can improve.

Until next time, make today GREAT!

Whenever you’re ready, here are four ways I can help you:

1. ​The Magnetic Leader book​– Grab your copy of my playbook to consistently attract and retain high-quality team members, customers, and clients.
2. ​Magnetic Leadership video course​ – Learn the 18 Essential Actions to attract and retain high-quality team members. (Enter coupon code “MM50” at checkout to receive a 50% newsletter subscriber discount!)
3. ​Magnetic Leadership Community​ – Join the community of growth-minded individuals focused on leveling up their leadership capabilities. (This is a monthly membership program that includes group coaching, expert interviews, the Magnetic Leadership video course, and bonus training)
4. ​Magnetic Leadership Community for Teams​ – Enroll your team for an 18-month leadership development program that provides a common leadership language and helps foster a thriving, attractive culture.

It’s not uncommon in organizations to have leadership gaps in different seasons or on different teams.

Sometimes it’s ignorant neglect. Other times, complacency sets in and people simply go through the motions.

If you find yourself frustrated that there’s a lack of leadership, take the initiative to step into the role that’s needed.

As John Maxwell has famously taught for many years, “leadership is influence.”

It doesn’t require a title, position, or special office.

Anyone can lead wherever they are.

If you’re at the top of the org chart, it’s implied that you’re supposed to provide leadership.

If you’re in the middle of the pack, it’s easy to hide.

And if you’re in an entry-level position, it’s natural to look to others to lead.

But the reality is that anyone at any level can be a leader to help the team and organization flourish.

A great book about this is John Maxwell’s ​“The 360 Degree Leader: Developing Your Influence from Anywhere in the Organization.”​

I’ve been in situations where the leaders above me were burned out and simply didn’t lead.

I’ve also worked under leaders who were afraid to speak up because they didn’t want to rock the boat among the other leaders.

I learned from each of these situations that a leader is needed regardless of how anyone is feeling, and it’s an opportunity to contribute when you step up to lead when others are backing down or shying away.

Don’t let a leadership void go unfilled when you have the ability to add value.

You may not be the most experienced or qualified, but that doesn’t mean you can’t make a big difference.

You never know…your stepping up may be just what is needed to move others to do that same.

Until next time, make today GREAT!

Whenever you’re ready, here are four ways I can help you:

1. ​The Magnetic Leader book​– Grab your copy of my playbook to consistently attract and retain high-quality team members, customers, and clients.
2. ​Magnetic Leadership video course​ – Learn the 18 Essential Actions to attract and retain high-quality team members. (Enter coupon code “MM50” at checkout to receive a 50% newsletter subscriber discount!)
3. ​Magnetic Leadership Community​ – Join the community of growth-minded individuals focused on leveling up their leadership capabilities. (This is a monthly membership program that includes group coaching, expert interviews, the Magnetic Leadership video course, and bonus training)
4. ​Magnetic Leadership Community for Teams​ – Enroll your team for an 18-month leadership development program that provides a common leadership language and helps foster a thriving, attractive culture.

Most people understand the importance of focus to get things done most effectively, but leaders are often pulled in so many directions that it’s quite the challenge to actually experience focus.

To be productive and not just busy, we must learn to focus consistently.

Here are 5 steps to improve your focus in your daily work:

1 – Clarify What Matters Most

Do you know what you truly need to accomplish to accomplish your dreams or goals?

Do you even have clear goals?

The first step is making sure you know what your “big rocks” are so you know what to focus on.

Next, you need to determine the order of importance of each “rock”. Write it down.

2 – Prioritize Key Activities to Achieve Success

After you have settled on your highest priority goal, it’s time to break it down into smaller action steps to accomplish it.

What specific steps must you take to achieve that goal? Begin with the end in mind.

Here’s a simple formula to assist your strategic planning process:

To accomplish X, I/we need to do Y.

Create an organized checklist of these activities.

3 – Utilize Your Calendar Strategically

Once you have your checklist, schedule each activity in specific time slots.

Keeping things on a “to-do” list is one of the biggest mistakes people make when it comes to productivity.

Success coach and author Darren Hardy taught a key lesson years ago that hit me hard when I heard it. He said, “If it’s important enough to be on your to-do list, it should be important enough to be on your calendar.”

This one statement changed how I operate. If I want to get things done, my tasks must be added to specific time slots on my calendar. When they are, I can accomplish so much more in a short amount of time.

4 – Review Your Results Consistently

It’s not enough to just act. Your actions must be evaluated to make sure they are moving you in the right direction.

It’s wise to evaluate at the end of each day, week, month, quarter, and year to evaluate what led to progress and what was simply busy work that needs to be eliminated.

5 – Invite Accountability

Once you’ve decided to implement the four actions above, ask at least one colleague, friend, mentor, or coach to help you stay the course. It’s one thing to get started. It’s quite another to keep moving forward consistently.

With the assistance of an accountability partner, you’ll be able to develop better habits that will lead to better results.

Focus is a superpower in today’s “attention economy.” The more focus you can maintain, the farther ahead you can go in faster timeframes. This is a competitive advantage in the marketplace.

If you need help navigating this process, contact me and I’ll be more than happy to serve as your strategic thinking partner and accountability coach.