Happy Holidays!

I would like to take this time to say thank you very much to all of you.

Since starting this blog in May (time really does fly) many of you have commented publicly and some of you privately (via email and Twitter) and I appreciate the very kind words of enjoyment and support that each of you have offered over the months. To those of you that have courageously offered comments on the blog, thank you. Without your inputs, it would be just another blog, but because you have touched it, it is so much more!

As we approach the Holidays, starting today with Hanukkah and very soon Christmas and soon after that Kwanzaa and then New Years Day, let me offer you this:

I wish you Peace, I wish you Family, I wish you Joy, and I wish you Love.

My Holiday is Christmas. For those of you that celebrate it with me, I wish you a very Merry Christmas and I will have a piece of Birthday Cake in your honor, as it is tradition in our home to have a Birthday Cake for Jesus.

As with most of you, the next few weeks will be filled with activity after activity and so it is with us, therefore I shall end this year’s blog today and start the next year’s blog on the 4th of January 2010.

Lastly, to our men and women standing is harm’s way (you will never be forgotten), I pray you return home safe and sound for without you, this would not be possible; Thank You and God Bless you!

To all, a heartfelt thank you.

Respectfully,

Wayne

A Lesson From A Friend

A couple of weeks ago, a friend sent me an email that had several thoughts on relationships. As I pondered their guidance in the workplace, I realized I had seen some leaders fall to the wrong side of several of the suggestions. In fact, I witnessed one just recently which made me post it here today.

As leaders, you must be firm; however, there is a difference between being firm and cruel.

Thank you Donald for the thought.

Have you been on the receiving end of this type of behavior? Worse yet, have you said something to someone at work that was on the cruel side?

Growth

Some leaders have learned that stepping outside of their comfort zone facilitates learning…

When was the last time you took a risk and were happy with the new knowledge?

Resource Broadening

One of a leader’s many talents has to be one of relationship building, inside and outside of the organization. One never knows when they might need to ‘call in’ a favor.

Has your leadership ever asked you to ask someone outside of the organization for advice or help? Have you?

Has any of your bosses ever come to you and said, “I need a favor…”?

Depending on your professional ‘relationship’ with that person, how did you react?

Ever said, “sure!” and didn’t mean it?

There is more to it than setting the example…

Leaders set the tone, the pace, the path, the bar, the attitude, and yes, they even set the creative and innovative activities to different levels over time.

Ever been in a meeting with the boss and everyone looks in the bosses direction to see if the boss is laughing?

How has a leaders actions impacted you? How have you energized others?

Let’s be clear, this impact has two sides, negative and positive.

Navigation

The leader must be able to navigate through the political, the bureaucratic and the dynamic environments presented to them on a daily basis, with success! At this level, the leader will have to utilize a totally different set of skills to progress, as the skills that brought them this far, are no longer the only one’s needed.

Any idea what those new skills are? Did you find the need to progress required (in conjunction with the skills articulated over the past two weeks) an additional set of skills serendipitously or did you already know?

Like clockwork, it is Friday again. It is also December. I cannot believe it is December already. I feel as though I just started this blog last month!

Thank you for reading and thank you for the continued positive comments on and off of the blog site.

Hope to see you back here on Monday!

Until then, “Lead On!”

Write It Down

Last Skill one needs to be a good leader:

This is one that most likely is not accomplished on a regular basis (if at all). It is one of the efforts I deem as follow-through.

Audit your efforts and write down the reasons for failure and success and disseminate that information to the stakeholders.

Have you witnessed this practice? What are your thoughts?

We Have Talked About This One Before

Skill Number Fifteen:

Say thank you. (A sincere thank you goes a very long way.)

The Two Sided Perspective

Skill Number Fourteen:

This one is more important than many realize. It’s not that you have to be a follower before you can lead; it is more about learning to be a good follower before and as you lead.

Do you think this is significant? Why or why not?