Right Wisdom

Well, our country looks like it will be lead by Barack Obama for four more years. Is this the leadership you wanted? Leadership isn’t about changing the greatest country to a destitute and socialist society. It looks like that is what America wants. They want to be spoon fed everything that the government can give them without lifting a finger to do work. America is changing because the leadership is becoming too controlling. Leadership is listening to people and making decisions based on what you hear. America has spoken and it looks like America wants four more years of a poor economy, joblessness, high prices and lower incomes. Now that is what America is all about. We need to rise up as leaders, leaders in our homes, jobs and communities. We can’t let the government control our lives but we must control and lead our own life. Leading is about showing direction and strength even in tough times. It is about overcoming problems and finding solutions to those problems. It is li...

Leadership can be lonesome. Once you become a leader those who you used to hang out with and socialize with somehow shun you. They don’t always include the leader in their personal discussions or the camaraderie they may have. It doesn’t have to be that way it is up to the leader to make sure that it doesn’t become an “us versus them” situation. Sometimes the leader is the one who starts to associate only with other leaders and not with the followers or the co-workers. Leader shouldn’t be lonesome. It is a people position and it isn’t about the leader it is about the people they lead. That is why the leader needs to include others and make sure it is about the followers. Here are some things to do to make sure you keep leadership a people role. Find out what your people like. Ask them about their day or weekend. Be genuinely interested in their life. If possible include yourself in department activities. If the group goes out to lunch and they invite you, go if yo...

How many of you remember the show “Frasier”. It starred Kelsey Grammer as a radio psychologist doling out advice over the airwaves. His phrase when people would call up his radio show was “I’m listening”. Leaders should take this advice and use that phrase as a way to better understand the needs of their followers. I am focusing on listening over the next several days. It is a skill that all leaders should embrace and improve upon if it is a weakness. Listening helps leaders better understand needs and then can react to meet the needs of their followers. If you take Dr. Frasier Crane’s advice as a leader and say “I’m listening” I think you will find that your followers will open up and will want to follow your vision. Here are some things to do to make sure that you are listening. Hold a one on one meeting with your followers and let them do the talking. Ask for input about how things are done and if the suggestions are reasonable implement some of them. Show you care ...

A leader must grow to be successful. The problem becomes how does the leader grow? It is not always easy trying to evaluate your own shortcomings. The best way to approach growth then is to create an overall growth schedule. Find things that will help you grow in all areas. Find specifc things that will help you grow in each area thus creating a stronger leader. It is like going to a liberal arts college. You were expected to take classes that were not in your major, why? To become a well rounded citizen. Learning and growing outside your comfort zone helps strengthen your growth and will strengthen you as a leader. The past ten days we have looked at things you can do as a leader to streghten and grow as a leader. Here they are again in summary. I suggest you go back and read each of these or ones that may be of interest to you. Communication - Grow in your communication, speaking and listening are essential to good leadership. 2/9 "Growing Up" Mentor - Find s...

Thank you for allowing me a respite yesterday as I was much under the weather. Sometimes the leadership game can knock you out for a round or two. It will not knock you out permanently. Especially if you follow quality leadership practices. Growth and leadership go hand and hand. Without growth leaders do have the potential to be permanently knocked out of the game. We have looked at communication through being actively involved in a group like Toastmasters to grow your communication skills as a leader. We looked at mentoring and being mentored as another way to continue to grow as a leader. Today we are going to look at an unusual way to help you as a leader grow. That is to surround yourself with capable and aspiring followers. If the leader can hire quality workers. Then train and encourage those workers to be the best that they can be. Doing this will help produce future leaders and will help you grow as a leader. It will help you grow because it will show others that you can...