Who Can Be A Leader

We are looking at what is leadership, who can be a leader and why do we need leaders. I gave my opinion of those three things now we have been looking at what others say about each of those questions.

Today we are looking at who can be a leader.

From Odewire and an article by Johan Schaberg titled "Everyone Can Be a Leader"

Can you learn to lead? Yes. Simply stop not doing it. You have a life, start living it—that’s the beginning of all leadership. Determine which goals you are currently following. If you’re following egotistical goals, ask yourself whether it’s really necessary.

From Ryerson University:

Leadership process by taking the lead and thus becoming the leader regardless of title or position within the group. This involves “becoming a nonanxious part of the system, and refusing to be homogenized into its one-dimensional fusion” (1985, p. 173). To do this a person must be willing and able to take and hold a clear and decisive non-reactive position while maintaining contact with others in the emotional system.

From Netplaces:

• You can learn to lead, even if you aren't a natural-born leader.
• Use your personality traits to your advantage to make your leadership more effective.
• To rally people to your cause, connect them to something greater than themselves as well as to their own sense of meaning.
• By setting the right types of goals, you and the others working with you can energize your activities and achieve success.

You see, even from these examples it is apparent that anyone can be a leader. You can be a bad leader or a good leader that it for you to determine how.

Festival Friday/Saturday

It is that time of year when counties all over the state of Minnesota start holding their county fairs. Today I am going to highlight a county from Minnesota, South Dakota and Wisconsin. These county fairs are your opportunity as a leader to relax, spend some time with your family and enjoy that typical fair fare.

Minnesota:
Anoka County Fair July 24th - 29th

Anoka County Fair: This is the county I live in and believe it or not I have never been to this county fair. Fairs are a fun place to eat, people watch, listen to music and show off your prized sow. The Anoka county fair has a lot to offer. To see what it is all about please follow the link to the Anoka County Fair

South Dakota:
Brown County Fair August 13th - 19th

Aberdeen is in Brown County and growing up I spent many summers and Thanksgivings visiting my relatives in Groton, which is only 20 miles from Aberdeen. actually went to this county fair where it is and my relatives may have spent some time at this county fair is why I am highlighting it. Some things to do at the Brown county fair are to watch the stock car races, enjoy a demolition derby (I love those) and of course listen to music and eat. See more about this fair by link to the Brown County Fair.

Wisconsin:
Pierce County Fair August 9th - 12th

River Falls lies within Pierce county and I again have relatives who live in River Falls. That is why I am highlighting this county fair. I visit River Falls almost every 4th of July and my wife attended the University of Wisconsin River Falls. What can you do at the Pierce County fair? Music, Food, Truck and Tractor pull as well as a demolition derby are just a number of the things you can do at the Pierce County Fair. Visit the Pierce County Fair web page for more information.

It is county fair season and I hope you find a county fair to your liking. Go ahead and enjoy the local fare and the local people. Relax and get away from the leadership rat race.

What is Leadership?

What is leadership? This is the question of the day. Yesterday I gave you my opinion of what leadership is, today we look at what others say about leadership.

From Wikipedia

Leadership is "organizing a group of people to achieve a common goal". The leader may or may not have any formal authority. Students of leadership have produced theories involving traits, situational interaction, function, behavior, power, vision and values, charisma, and intelligence, among others. Somebody whom people follow: somebody who guides or directs others.

From USA Today

Leaders impact our daily lives and futures. In good times and bad, there is always a need for strong leadership. The success of a business or an industry is determined by the leaders it chooses or inherits.

From Ask.com

Leadership is the guidance of a group of people towards a particular ideal. Leadership consists typically of one person leading a group by providing convincing information and inspiration.

From Ehow.com

Leadership is the process of determining goals for the team and finding a way for the team to meet those goals. Leadership involves finding ways to motivate team members or employees to reach their goals. Learning how to motivate for leader is not easy, as each employee or person on his team may have to be motivated in a different way. Finding out how to get each team member or employee to perform at her highest level is the job of a leader.

As you can see many of these are similar. Leadership is about people motivating and encouraging others. It is about setting examples for followers and guiding them. Do you have the right make to motivate others?

You notice none of these are from famous speakers about leadership. Their definition would be similar. This shows us that people get it they see leadership differently than management. Management is managing people, leadership is motivating people.

What, Who, Why

What is leadership? Who is a leader? Why do we need people in leadership roles? Today’s blog is about answering each of those questions. You can probably find the answer to each of those questions in a number of books and blogs. Finding leadership information from different resources helps you to see leadership from different angles and different viewpoints.

WHAT…

…Is Leadership. It isn’t about the leader but about the followers. It is about what the leader can do for others. It is about the success of the followers and how that leader can energize people into following his/her vision and mission. Leadership is about people and the interaction the leader has with those people.

WHO…

…Is a Leader. Anyone can and is a leader. People are leaders in their places of work, in their places of worship and in their homes. Many people may play varying degrees of leadership roles throughout the day. For example I am a leader at home as I try to lead my children. I am a leader at work and I am a leader in Toastmasters. Leadership is within everyone but it is how you grow that leadership within you that makes the difference.

WHY…

…Do we need people in leadership roles? Without leadership the people would perish. Everyone needs someone to lead them so they have a vision and a mission. All of us have a higher calling and a higher authority to which we are accountable to. You might think a CEO doesn’t have anyone they are accountable to; they would be accountable to a board the board to the shareholders and the shareholders to the consumers. Leaders help us have vision and guide us and encourage us to reach our goals and be the best that we can be.

Over the next several days I will take each of these idea: What, Who and Why and look at what other people say about these three ideas.

Are You A Legend?

There have been many books written, seminars given and speeches listened to that involve leadership. For every person that is out there talking and discussing leadership there is the same number of ideas about leadership. Each of us have a duty as leaders to share our knowledge and expertise in the area of leadership.

I started this blog with the intent to share my insights into leadership. Sometimes what I say might click other times it might miss the mark. That doesn’t mean if it misses the mark for you that it didn’t click for someone else. Through this blog I have presented many different leadership styles and comparisons. I’ve looked at articles and discussed those as well. I have even devoted time to leisure, after all leaders need time to decompress and the weekends are spent exploring ways a leader can enjoy leisure.

I am currently creating a Legends of Leadership page. Through this I highlight people who are legends in their leadership. I want to include those people you see leading in their everyday lives. I currently have four people I have highlighted as legends, Ronald Reagan, Steve Jobs, Jane Addams and Stephen Covey.

If you know of someone you want to nominate or have me put in my blog and eventually on my Legends page send me their contact information. What I am looking for is four or five bullet points that I call their resume, this is leadership positions they have held or leadership awards they have won. I also need 4 or 5 bullet points that highlight their accomplishments. Then most of all why you think they should be consider a legend of leadership. What did they do to impact leadership?

Famous people are okay but we really want those leaders who are “everyday people” making an impact on those around them. Let me know who has touched your leadership life.

Seven Habits

It is time for adding another legend of leadership. This is an intermittent series that I will be doing whenever I discover or determine someone should be put on my legends of leadership list. I really want to make this a series that my readers can embrace and nominate people for admittance into the Legends of Leadership Hall.

Back in the early 90s I had an opportunity to take a workshop that included this man’s greatest book, “The Seven Habits ofHighly Effective People”. I learned a lot in that workshop and it was my first exposure to leadership. That is why Stephen Covey is the next entrant into the legends of leadership.

Unfortunately on July 16^th Stephen Covey died due to complications from a bicycle accident. No, you do not need to be dead to join the legends of leadership. His passing triggered in me the remembering of the impact his book had on my early leadership career and that is why he is a legend. What are his credentials?

RESUME:

·         Professor at Utah State University

·         Awarded ten honorary doctorates

·         Entrepreneur of the year lifetime achievement award

·         2003 Fatherhood Award from the National Fatherhood Initiative

• 2004 Golden Gavel award from Toastmasters International

ACCOMPLISHMENTS:

·         Wrote “The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People”

·         Developed his The Leader in Me book into several education related projects.

·         Established the Covey Leadership Center which merged with Franklin Quest to become FranklinCovey

·         Created Stephen Covey’s Online Community.

His accomplishments are more than what is written above but leaders are those who influence others. Stephen Covey influenced through all of his books and everything he accomplished. There probably isn’t a leader who hasn’t been somewhat impacted by what Stephen Covey has done.

We will miss him but his books and wisdom therein will live on and impact future leaders as well.

Aquatennial

Usually I do a Friday Festival and highlight a festival from Minnesota and two other states. This week I am doing a combined Friday and Saturday look into the biggest festival of the summer in Minnesota, The Minneapolis Aquatennial. It is coined “The best days of summer” because it celebrates the City of Lakes, Minneapolis and the lakes that reside within the city.

The event is actually in its last weekend. Tonight was the fireworks, something everyone in the whole family enjoys. Besides the fireworks there are a number of other events that are fun to watch and participate in. The Torchlight parade occurred on Wednesday and that event is always a fun family event.

One event I have attended before that is a lot of fun to watch is the milk carton boat races. People and teams of people create boats from only milk cartons and then they race them in Lake Calhoun. Here is a blurb from the official Aquatennial website about the carton races.

·         An Aquatennial favorite since 1971, the annual flotilla of fun will feature several races of carton contraptions throughout the day at the Star Tribune Beach Bash! Registration is available at www.aquatennial.com. Milk Carton Boat Races Schedule: - 10 AM: Commodore’s Race: ages 19 and over - 11 AM: Skipper’s Race: cow theme race to design a bovine boat - 12 PM: Lieutenant’s Race: ages 12 and under - 1 PM: Admiral’s Race: race with a minimum of 5 crew members - 2 PM: The Best Days of Summer Race: have fun and get creative! The more milk cartons the better- 3 PM: 'Celebrating 73 Years' Race: watch as the Aquatennial races against the Saint Paul Winter Carnival in this annual tradition! - 3:30 PM: Awards Ceremony

Courtesy: Richard Westley Wong

There were water ski exhibitions on the Mississippi river, Beach bashes, and ice cream socials among many other fun events. I grew up in Minneapolis and went to a number of these events as a child. Next year when the event rolls around again take some time to enjoy the lakes the fill the city of Minneapolis.

This year is water under the bridge so until next year, we wait until the water freezes in St Paul for the Winter Carnival.

Honesty is the Best Policy

Today I am going to finish the final three aspects of selfish leadership. The final three are somewhat similar, deception, hypocrisy and hiding true feelings. When a leader displays any of these traits they are not only being dishonest with others but they are being dishonest with themselves. A sure fire way to lose control of your leadership abilities is to practice any of the seven traits I have mentioned. However, when you are deceptive or hypocritical or you hide how you really feel then it becomes lethal.

I will briefly look at each one of these and give you 1 or 2 ways you can prevent yourself from using it.

Deception – This is deceiving others, or shading/hiding the truth from others. The bible says that the truth will set you free. Be honest with those you lead. Far too often a leader will only share part of the information. This is detrimental to getting the job done. Do the right thing by being honest with yourself and others and you won’t fall into the deception trap.

Hypocrisy –This is trying to be something or someone you are not. It is also saying one thing and doing the complete opposite. If you want to be a leader who is well respected and successful then be yourself and if you say you will do something then do it.

Hiding True Feelings – This again speaks to the honesty portion of each of us. However this isn’t necessarily lying, it is more like remaining silent. Sometimes remaining silent can hurt a situation. Maybe you know that the idea someone has will not work but you remain silent about your feelings and apprehensions. This will hurt the project, person, team and company. It will also look bad for you because everyone will think you don’t have the guts to speak up. True leaders speak up. Don’t keep the great ideas to yourself share it and help everyone be successful.

Be a true leader. Be honest with yourself and others and do what you say you are going to do. Above all share you ideas or your reservations about situations and you will be known as a true leader and not a selfish one.

Personality Power

What type of personality do you have? What type of personality does your leader have? Have you ever been in a situation in which your personality clashes with the personality of your boss? Maybe there is something about you that your boss doesn’t like. Our fourth trait of a selfish leader according to the article “What Makes a True Leader” by JeroldAust is playing to personalities. This trait ties together with number three, playing favorites. Often times leaders click with someone’s personality and they end up showing favorites to that person.

There is another aspect of this trait and that is when the leader seeks power for selfish reason. They will seek out other leaders who might be in a position of greater influence in order to eventually gain more power for themselves. You may have seen this in someone who is give a position of leadership and all of a sudden they ignore those they used to work with because they perceive them as below them. They instead seek out other leaders and you will see them hanging out and trying to fit into the leader circles.

If you want to be a true leader you don’t need to only hang out with other leaders. In fact you want to make a point to continue building those relationships with those you worked with or those in lesser positions. Here is why.

• One day you will need those people to help you with something. They will be less apt to help or to do a good job if you have alienated them.
• People talk. Ignoring some to obtain power for yourself will be noticed and people will say you have changed.
• If you want to move forward in your leadership and grow you have to look behind. Your future happens because of what happened in the past. The past for your future is now so make the most of it by not burning any bridges.
• Be a servant leader. Servant leaders care about others above themselves and they are unselfish. You will find more success in serving as a leader then seeking power. Eventually the power will go out and you will crash and no one will be there to catch you.

Stop seeking the power personalities and start being yourself and serving those around you. It is then others will see true leadership in you and not selfish leadership.

Playing Favorites

The third aspect of selfish leadership is playing favorites. Have you ever been on the opposite side of the fence when a boss or leader plays favorites? If you have it probably didn’t make you feel very good. It also makes a person feel as if the leader is alienating them.

When a leader plays favorites it shows their selfishness. It shows they are only interested in themselves and their own success. A true leader is someone who is more interested in the success of others and the success of those around them. A true leader will want to embrace everyone equally. In so doing it will build a cohesive team and a sense of family.

Building that cohesiveness allows people to be more productive and will generate greater success. When this happens leaders are successful and are viewed as true leaders because they aren’t playing favorites.

If you are a leader what do you do if one of your people are better at what they do than the others? You don’t want to play favorites, here are some things you can do to strengthen your team without playing favorites.

• Tap into the strengths of each member
• Have each of them train the others in their strengths
• Assign leadership roles to each of them so they will feel important

If you do these three things and not show favorites you will be a successful leader and not a selfish leader.

Politics

I am examining the seven common missteps of selfish leadership as identified in the article “What Makes a True Leader” written by Jerold Aust from “The Good News” magazine. We looked at the first misstep which was schmoozing.

The second aspect of a selfish leader is Politics. As in schmoozing you might wonder why politics is bad. Politics is bad for a number of reasons.

• Politics is self serving. Many people who practice politics say what people what to hear so they can be voted into an office.
• Politics can be described as another way to schmooze. A person may want something so they play the game to get what they want.
• Politics can also become a series of mud slinging in which a person will say negative things to bring the other person down.

Think about our Presidential campaigns. Think about how negative they become. That is politics they want to earn the votes for that office so they try their hardest to shed negative light on their opponent.

They really should be talking the issues and what each person plans to do. Then if they say they plan to do that to stick to their word. True leadership isn’t about self serving politics it is really about what a leader can do for the people. Then sticking to their values and doing what they say they will do.

Let’s stop playing politics and start being true leaders and serve the people and not ourselves.

Vacation Time

This past week I had the pleasure of having the week off from work. If you are a frequent stopper at my blog I apologize for missing a few days last week. My goal this year was to blog everyday of the year. I now have three blogs that I write, a sports one that I will occasionally write about sports happenings. A bible verse blog in which every Sunday I write a bible verse for the week. Then there is this blog which focuses on Leadership and on weekends what I call leisureship.

The Grandview pool (Kids love it)

As I said I was on vacation this past week. My focus today is on taking a vacation. Every leader needs a vacation they need time away from work and from leading. What better way to spend that time away then with a weeklong vacation. I spent the week at Grand View Lodge with my family and the in-laws. We had a great time. I spent time at the beach, in the water, with the kids. I was able to golf on one day. Watching and helping the kids fish off the dock was one of the more exciting things to do. Seeing their eyes get wide when they caught a fish. The big highlight was when my daughter put her pole down on the dock to do something and a fish grabbed her bait and my sister-in-law jumped into the lake to retrieve the pole and low and behold there was a fish on the line and a pretty good size one. These are the kind of moments that can only be enjoyed on vacation.

I hope you will find time to break from your busy leadership life and go on vacation. Enjoy that family time and create some memorable stories that will be shared for generations to come.

More Festivals on Friday

It is Friday and I will be taking a look at three more festivals from around the country. The states of choice this week are Minnesota (my home state), New York and California.

Minnesota - More Festivals in Minnesota

WHAT: Anoka Riverfest and Craft Fair
WHERE: Anoka
WHEN: July 14th

One of the Twin Cities largest summer craft events, drawing in over 15,000 people. With over 140 juried artisans and crafters, a variety of creative and original work will be available including; jewelry, glasswork, pottery, paintings, woodwork and much more. Families can enjoy free riverboat rides on the Rum and Mississippi Rivers, live music on two stages, plenty of food and much more.

New York - More Festivals in New York

WHAT: Return of the Big 6
WHERE: Auburn/Finger Lakes
WHEN: July 12 - 15

Sponsored by the Museum and Cayuga County 4-H Youth and Adult oriented activities. Daily events opening ceremony, 4-H dog show, kiss a calf contest, kids coloring contest, face painting, animals on display, craft & projects on display, bounce houses, farm equipment and much more. Food available.

California - More Festivals in California

WHAT: Annual Citrus Festival
WHERE: Ventura
WHEN: July 13 - 15

“Known as the “Citrus Capital of the World” because of its expansive lemon and orange orchards, the City of Santa Paula celebrates the fruit of California every year with the popular Kiwanis Citrus Festival. The 42nd Annual Kiwanis Citrus Festival’s theme this year is “Sweet Fruit, Sweet Life” and is a full weekend of headline entertainment, carnival rides, a downtown parade, car show, citrus and avocado pavilion, specialty foods, arts and crafts vendors, family fun stage, and fruity fun and games.”

Schmoozing

In the business world people often talk about schmoozing and making sure you are saying the right things to the right people. However did you know that schmoozing actually carries a negative definition? According to Merriam Webster the definition is "to chat in a friendly and persuasive manner especially so as to gain favor, business, or connections". You might be saying that doesn't sound too negative? If you read the words closely you see that you are chatting with someone in a manner that is persuasive to gain favor. This means that the person schmoozing really doesn’t care about the person they are speaking to. All they are caring is that they can be nice enough to the person to convince them to do something for them. 

This is a sure sign of selfish leadership. The person is schmoozing just to gain something for themselves. They aren’t really interested in being friendly or helping the other person they are only interested in what that person can do for them. 

Selfish leadership is truly poor leadership because it isn’t about the leader it is about the people you are leading. Schmoozing will get you nowhere as a leader because eventually people will realize the game you are playing and will be unwilling to work with you or speak with you. 

If you really want to talk to someone and gain something from them be sincere in your dealing with them. Stop feigning empathy and start treating people like people and show them true empathy when you talk to them. If you do this they will more than likely be your friend for life and will want to deal with you from a business perspective.  

Stop schmoozing and start caring.  

Selfish Leadership

I am reading an article from "The Good News" magazine about leadership. I have provided a link for you to look at the website. The article is called "What Makes a True Leader" by Jerold Aust.

My focus over the next few weeks will be based upon that article. Since we are in an election year we will be voting for our leaders of this great nation. It is good to take some time to reflect on what makes up good leadership and what makes up bad leadership.

There are two parts in the article that I will focus on. The first is the seven common missteps of selfish leadership. Each day I will unpack one of those missteps and give my own twist to the reasoning behind that misstep.

After the seven missteps I will focus on the seven characteristics of a true leader. If you have been following and reading my blog probably have read about some of these characteristics in the past. Again we will look at them and unpack them and I'll add my special twist to each characteristic.

The seven missteps of selfish leadership are:

• Schmoozing
• Politics
• Playing Favorites
• Playing to Personalities
• Deception
• Hypocrisy
• Hiding True Feelings.

Today was an introduction. Tomorrow we will dive in and look at schmoozing. I hope you enjoy this look at leadership.

Simply Amusing

Amusement parks have long been part of Americana. People all over America get their thrills riding coasters and other thrill rides at amusement parks across the country. It is a great way to relax and spend a day with family and friends.

I remember when I was a kid Excelsior Minnesota had one of the few amusement parks in Minnesota. The other one was located at the Como Zoo. I remember riding the rickety roller coaster in Excelsior and that is what captured my heart for roller coasters. I love riding roller coasters.

When Valley fair opened I spent many summer days riding the coasters at Valley Fair. At the time of the opening they only had two now they have many more. My favorite at Valley Fair is the Corkscrew, this of course is only because I haven’t been out there too often to ride the Wild Thing and the Renegade.

A number of years ago I took a group of teens to Six Flags in Gurnee Illinois. I rode the American Eagle a double coaster. That was quite a fun ride. Unfortunately I am not a “ride every coaster” type of person. Because of this I haven’t ridden some of the greatest coasters in America. Maybe someday I will take a coaster trip across America. But as I age I become less excited about the thrills the coasters bring.

What I would like to hear from you is to leave a comment with your favorite coaster. Also share your favorite amusement park. America has many that people know and love. Disneyland, Disney World

Festival Friday

If it is Friday it must be another look at Festivals. Today I will continue the trend of looking at a festival in Minnesota and two other states. Today it will be Alabama and New Mexico.

How many of you remember the Little House on the Prairie books? Part of those books took place in Minnesota. To kick off our festival frenzy we will visit Walnut Grove Minnesota.

Minnesota - More Minnesota Festivals

Wilder Pageant
Walnut Grove Minnesota.
When: The next three weekends

Outdoor drama based on life of author Laura Ingalls Wilder in Walnut Grove in the 1870's. A totally live production, with all characters from the Walnut Grove area. Hillside amphitheater has been developed to allow for extensive lighting, sound and special effects.

Alabama - More Alabama Festivals

38th Annual World Championship Domino Tournament
Andalusia Alabama
When: July 13th - 14th

More than 300 people will participate in this tournament filled with fun, fellowship and competition for all ages. More than $20,000 in cash and trophies awarded. Fri. & Sat.; Registration 6:30 a.m.; Game begins 8 a.m., sweepstakes drawings, Sat., 7 p.m.

New Mexico - More New Mexico Festivals

'Biennale Grande' Juried Art Show and Exhibit
Ruidoso Downs New Mexico
When: July 6th - 8th

The Hubbard Museum of the American West is proud to announce the opening of its 2^nd “Biennale Grande” art show and exhibit in the Museum’s Green Tree Gallery. Original art from some of New Mexico’s best artists will be on display. The Biennale Grande is a juried fine arts competition that seeks to recognize and honor excellence in the contemporary visual arts of the American West. Thirty-nine (39) artists, representing 54 pieces of original art, were selected as finalists for the show. These artists and their works will benefit from regional recognition and exposure through New Mexico’s first Smithsonian Affiliate museum, as well as the opportunity to sell their work(s) during the exhibition.

Humor Me

"Saying No to your Boss" can be a difficult task. It is almost easier to suck it up and do the work even if it means burning the midnight oil. Fortunately we have been given a good article written by Ernie Humphreys. He gives us five approaches we can take to say no without really saying no. I am looking at each of those approaches and looking at how leaders should react if they have an employee or a follower use one of these approaches.

Today I am combining the 4^th and 5^th approach. The fourth is “Let a task stew to see if it still remains relevant”. This approach is making a point of not saying anything but instead let the project or task sit for a while and see if your boss still remembers it. Sometimes bosses will think of something and then think out loud, not really assigning the task. If you leave it alone it may go away.

As a leader this is a harder approach to combat or embrace. It might be that you are serious about the task or maybe you were just thinking out loud. Here are some things you can do as a leader if confronted with this approach.

• Let the task settle before bringing it up again. This way they know you were serious. 

• Ask for a confirmation and completion date from the person.
• Restate the task or project and briefly explain what role that person will play in the project.
• Ask for their opinion of the project. This will get them talking and who knows you might find it is an off the wall idea.
• The fifth approach is a good fit for the next bullet point. Use humor if tension is apparent. Humor should always be used by both sides. It helps cut through the tension and it helps each person be able to see clearly. It also allows each side to see the project for what it is worth, solid and worthy or crazy and unfounded.

Be a leader work with your people to make sure the project is clearly understood. I hope you have found this series helpful. Please share with me other leadership topics you would like to see discussed.

Happy Birthday America

What did you do to celebrate America’s birthday? Back in 1776 when the leaders of this nation decided to sign the declaration of independence from England and create this great nation that gives us the freedom we have today. They were visionaries looking out for future generations. Great leaders do that, they look out for the future. Little did they know that today's America is not the same America they created?

All leaders need a break now and then. What did you do today? We spent the day over at my relatives in River Falls swimming in a pool. A great relief from the 100 degree temperatures. No fireworks in the offing this year, just too hot and besides I have to work tomorrow. Here are some things you can do on the Fourth of July.

• Have a picnic
• Watch fireworks
• Enjoy time with family
• Hang out at the lake or any body of water
• Attend a parade

What is the greatest place you have ever watched fireworks? My wife and I watched fireworks over lake Minnetonka in Excelsior quite a few years ago. It was one of the most beautiful and spectacular fireworks displays I have ever watched. The reflection over the lake was stunning! The only downside was getting out of there afterward it took an extremely long time. I promised the kids next year we will take them to see those fireworks.

Share your favorite fireworks display.

Don't Get Mad

What if one of your employees or followers comes to you and says no to one of your new projects or tasks? I have been looking at an article by Ernie Humphreys on “SayingNo to Your Boss”. He gives five approaches someone can take when saying no to your boss. What I have been doing is looking at the approaches and looking at what the boss should do when confronted with the creative no approach.

The third approach is “directly state your opinion supported with facts as to the relevance of a request”. This approach is the employee coming in and actually saying no but supporting that no with facts as to why they shouldn’t take on this new task. If they have done their homework and formulated a convincing case you may not be able to get upset with them for saying no.

Here is what you should do as a leader when you are confronted with this approach. First of all do not get mad because the person isn’t jumping for joy over the task or project.

• Embrace the fact that they did their research.
• Congratulate them on a good job crafting their argument. The congratulations may see them having a change of heart and wanting to be part of it.
• Ask them if they still want to be part of the project using some of their ideas or changes and they can be the driver of the project.
• Process what they have presented to you and com back with a modified version of the project. They will see that you care about their ideas and hopefully embrace the idea.

As a leader don’t get mad but embrace the energy and ideas that the person brings to the table. Let them know that you want them to be part of the project and you value their contribution. If you do this you will counter the no that is coming from the employee.

Offense not Defense

I took a break from the series on “Saying no to your boss”. Today we will get back into it and look at the second approach you can make to say no to your boss. Here is the point of my blog. It isn’t to rehash a great article written by Ernie Humphreys. Instead it is designed to look at the approaches and determine what you would do as the leader if someone used these approaches on you.

The second approach is “redefine the request on your terms”. What happens in this approach is that the person who is given yet another project will not necessarily come out and say no but will tell the boss that in order to make this work I will have to readjust but it may take longer than usual because I have some other projects that are due first. What the person has done is to tell the boss that I can do this but because of other priorities I may have to adjust the scope of the project as well as the timeline.

If you are a leader and one of your people uses this approach on you, what should you do? By all means do not get defensive. Far too often leaders will go on the defensive wondering why that person didn’t embrace that project with gusto. Don’t be defensive instead do the following.

• Evaluate what was just discussed.
• Talk through the options to make sure there is no alternative.
• Ask the person to take a few minutes and think about the project and propose a workable solution.
• Reiterate what your goals are for the project and discuss to see if there is a way to reach those goals.
• Talk to the team about the project it may be that someone on the team has some time to devote to the project.

Don’t be defensive be offensive minded and if you do it will turn into a win-win situation for everyone.