Succeeding As a Leader – Focusing on Building a Strong Team Around You

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StrategyDriven Management and Leadership Article |Building a strong team|Succeeding As a Leader – Focusing on Building a Strong Team Around YouWhen you are leading others, you naturally have a lot of pressure and strain to deal with. Improving how you lead, working towards being successful, and making a difference can be difficult things to achieve – especially if your team or colleagues are working against you (and not with you). To ensure that this does not happen, you have to focus on building a strong team around you. You cannot succeed in leadership all by yourself. The support and cooperation you will get from your team will be defined in your role both now and moving forwards. So, what proactive action do you need to start taking?

What Do You Want to Achieve as a Leader?

To begin with, you need to think about what you really want to achieve as a leader. For example, are you looking to raise profits within a business? Are you looking to improve productivity and efficiency? Are you looking to bring everyone together, and form a united business or company in the process? What do you want to achieve and why? When you have this vision firmly in your sights, you can then begin to push forwards. This question is relevant to consider both in terms of your work and your personal goals, so it is one to consider carefully.

Why You Need a Team and Support Network

Now that you have your vision and ideas for the future, you may be questioning why you need a support network and a great team around you. The answer is of course simple: you need them because you need their support and you need their input. As a leader, you can only achieve so much on your own, or by yourself. You need guidance, you need support, and you need backup, and this is what you can expect to get from a great supportive team. You will naturally think that what you are doing is the right way, you need constructive feedback from other people to establish whether you are right or wrong – what works and what doesn’t.

Connecting With Your Team – Finding Common Ground

Leading from the front or leading from the middle means that you need to be connected with your team. To find common ground and truly connect with your team, you have to do things that build relationships and also build trust. For example, you could organize a get-together with key team players at a UK stately home. The best stately homes to visit in the UK have spaces for groups to get together, and they have room for you and your team to connect and strengthen bonds.

Decisive Leadership

As a leader, you have to be decisive, and you have to be assertive. If you are not decisive, then how will others follow what you say, and how will you have a lasting and sustainable impact. To ensure that you are being decisive in as many areas as possible, you need to analyze your behavior and your response time. Are you making decisions as soon as you can? Are you taking decisive action in all work that you undertake? Struggling to be decisive can make you seem weak to colleagues and team members, and this can affect the level of trust that they hold in you.

Trust Begins with You

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StrategyDriven Management and Leadership Article |Trust | Trust Begins with You®Trust is a topic that is most often taken for granted … until it erodes or breaks down.

Then what happens?

Across the board, in teams around the world, we’ve discovered research and practice, that when trust breaks down, people tend to wait for others to step in and restore it. While people wait, they withhold. They build barriers around themselves and their areas of responsibility.

Work gets slower and harder. Energy plummets. Business objectives are not achieved.

Sound familiar?

When trust is compromised, nobody wins.

We, at Reina Trust Building® have been supporting leaders, teams and organizations to transform their workplaces through trust for over 31 years.

Our intention is to help you understand trust, talk about trust, and strengthen trust in your relationships at work. We’re going to help you learn how to build trust – and work productively again.

You want to be trusted at work. We all do. We all want others to believe we’re good, capable people, guided by the best intentions.

A truth about trust? It’s reciprocal. To get trust, you have to give it first.

What does it look like when you give trust?

You ‘walk your talk’, tell the truth, and tap into others’ talents and skills.

You also give people the benefit of the doubt when they let you down. You suspend judgment and criticism and make the effort to discover why they disappointed us. Your inner voice shifts from “I knew I shouldn’t have trusted him!” to “I wonder what happened to keep him from delivering on his commitment?”

When you give trust, you embrace the complexity of life. You extend compassion… approaching each situation with sincere interest and concern, rather than with suspicion and readiness to blame. The result?

You experience the people around you mirroring your efforts. You receive back the support, understanding, and compassion you’ve given.

Trust begets trust.

How about the flipside? What does it look like when you withhold trust?

You approach let downs very differently. You’re more likely to judge, criticize, and jump to conclusions. You tend to withhold information, keep our ideas and concerns close to our chests, and not ask for help when you need it. You may refrain from delegating even minor tasks, because you fear no one else can do handle the work as well as you can. The result?

Communication breaks down. Stress, doubt, and fear take over. Your work and relationships suffer. You suffer.

Distrust begets distrust.

Yet, when people are supported to take the initiative to rebuild trust, a shift occurs. People reconnect. Misunderstandings are worked through. Incorrect assumptions are cleared up. Barriers are broken down.

Work picks up pace and gets easier. The buzz returns. Together, people achieve more than they’d dreamed possible.

Everybody wins.

Building trust is not easy, but is necessary. Giving trust is more than just a ‘nice thing to do.’ It’s a vital component to building meaningful, productive relationships.

We can all benefit from reversing our thinking about who ‘owns’ trust in our workplaces. The truth is…trust begins with each one of us.

What can you do to build trust in your relationships, with those you work with and serve and those you live with and love? What small steps can you take to connect with another person, and make that person feel confident and trusted?

Remember, Trust begins with you®.

About the Author

StrategyDriven Expert Contributor |Michelle Reina, PhD and Dennis Reina, PhD.Michelle Reina, PhD and Dennis Reina, PhD. are considered pioneers in organizational trust by their clients. For over 31 years, they have helped leaders integrate trust-building behaviors into strategic initiatives to achieve outstanding business results and transform their cultures. The Reina’s co-foundered Reina Trust Building® based in Stowe, Vermont. As sought-after consultants, speakers, & executive coaches, they co-authored best-selling books: Trust & Betrayal in the Workplace, 3rd ed. & Rebuilding Trust in the Workplace. Their awards include: Global Strategic Leadership Award, at the World HRD Congress, top 100 Thought Leaders in Trustworthy Business by Trust Across America. Their global clients: American Express, Ben & Jerry’s, Johns Hopkins Medical Center, Johnson & Johnson, Harvard, Kimberly Clark, Lenovo, Lincoln Financial, MillerCoors, Turner (CNN), Yale, Voya Financial, US Army & US Treasury & Walt Disney World.

Contact us at www.reinatrustbuilding.com, or [email protected].

Top 3 Tips To Be A Better Manager

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StrategyDriven Management and Leadership Article |Tips to be a Better Manager|Top 3 Tips To Be A Better ManagerAs a manager, you have a lot of responsibilities. You’re in charge of the day-to-day operations and often oversee the employees. It can all be very overwhelming. That’s why we’ve prepared this guide for managing your team and becoming a better boss. We’ll cover what makes an effective leader, how to stay organized, and how to keep your employees happy and productive. From fostering workplace culture to improving communication skills, here are some top tips for being a better manager.

What Makes a Great Leader

In order to be a great leader, you have to know the importance of your role and continuously strive for improvement. Leadership means staying calm when everyone is overwhelmed and acting swiftly in times of crisis. It means setting an example for your employees and empathizing with them on a personal level. If you want to become a better manager, you must find out what makes an effective leader and take steps towards becoming one yourself.

How to Be Organized as a Manager

One of the most important things for a manager is to be organized. As a leader, you need to set goals and stay on top of tasks each day. To do this effectively, it’s best to have an organizational system that works for you. Some common ones are Kanban boards, time blocking, or project management software like Basecamp.

Managers know agendas and aforementioned organizational tools are a platform to success. Therefore, choose whichever fits your needs and be consistent.


How to Keep Employees Happy and Productive

One of the most important things you can do for your workers is foster a sense of workplace culture.

Create a company culture that encourages employees to feel like they belong and are valued. This way, they’ll be more likely to stay and more invested in their work.

Make your office an enjoyable place to work with a motivating attitude. Encourage your team to relax after a hard day’s work. Have a space where employees can work remotely when they need to so they don’t feel tethered to their desks all day. Promote trust by being accessible and showing that you care about your employees’ success. Try hosting monthly check-ins with each employee, and make sure you take time to listen before giving advice or solving problems for them.

Encourage feedback from employees through tools like open office hours, surveys, and focus groups. They’ll feel heard and will be more willing to share ideas openly in the future–helping you become a better manager for it!

Important Steps

Becoming a better manager doesn’t happen overnight. It takes time, patience, and plenty of hard work to make progress. But it can be done. You’ll want to make sure you know what you’re good at and what your employees are good at, too. Any time you want to bring about changes at work, you will have to be organized and have a detailed plan. Additionally, be mindful of the environment in which your employees work and keep it stress-free. finally, don’t be like pop up displays; avoid micromanaging your team.

The Most Important Leadership Strategy: Slowing Down

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StrategyDriven Management and Leadership Article |Leadership Strategy|The Most Important Leadership Strategy: Slowing DownLeadership has become more dynamic and fast-paced as organizations go global and technological integration increases. With these demands, leaders may feel the pressure to speed up, potentially sacrificing important leadership strategies along the way. Increasingly, immediate gratification is the way of the world, yet leaders would be remiss to forget the most important leadership strategy: slowing down.

When leaders choose to implement the deliberate act of slowing down, it can help promote various positive outcomes. Slowing down can help minimize mistakes, increase focus, and assist in the regulation of emotional reactions to various situations. There is no limit to the way these benefits can serve the modern leader.

Leaders who know how to take their foot off the accelerator and slow down — even when the impulse is to speed up — attain tremendous strategic advantages that, in the long run, help them to come out ahead.

Among the many advantages leaders can realize when slowing down, the following four are some of the most prominent:

1. Decreased mistakes. It should come as no surprise that going too fast can produce mistakes. Leaders who become caught up in fast-paced environments can forget their manners, overlook critical steps, or forget tasks altogether. When leaders speed up, they may inadvertently treat team members poorly as they become hyper focused on reaching goals. However, leaders must always remember that their organizations thrive because of their people, and that their people create the culture and environment of the workplace.

If leaders don’t take a moment to slow down, breathe, and check on their team, they won’t know their team’s status. Whether that’s their progress on goals or their internal struggles, team members’ wellbeing is necessary to achieve goals without setbacks. Part of being an effective leader is understanding the need to ensure the team reaches its goals without sacrificing quality or team members’ welfare.

2. Increased listening. Leaders who allow themselves to slow down improve their ability to listen to learn in their conversations. When the need for speed pushes all involved to move too quickly, conversations become compressed and the ability to actively listen diminishes. For leaders, this is especially detrimental. They must remain entirely present in all their conversations in order to keep a pulse on their team.

Should leaders regularly face instances where they’re unable to fully listen, they end up losing instead of gaining time, often having to reconvene team members to go back over important points or concerns. Instead, slowing down enables them to actively listen. This involves calming their breathing, maintaining eye contact, refraining from interrupting, and attempting to fully address the issues at hand.

3. Alleviated stress. The drive that comes from a need for speed is often accompanied by stress and anxiety. That drive also makes it difficult to gracefully respond to interruptions, which can produce negative reactions among team members. Slowing down decreases the risk of showing or provoking negative emotions. For leaders, this is imperative as their influence on their team sets the tone for team behavior and organizational culture.

By slowing down, leaders can effectively prioritize, stay on top of tasks, and remain organized, and therefore will find it much easier to avoid the stress and anxiety that can permeate throughout the organization. While the need to act quickly will present itself from time to time, leaders must slow down enough to respond from a controlled emotional state. Even under pressure, leaders can achieve a sense of calmness and model for team members how to manage themselves by maintaining a steady composure.

4. Strengthened organizational culture. Going too fast leads to making mistakes, diminishes listening skills, and creates stress and anxiety. Yet leaders who know how to slow down, remain present, and think clearly are helping to build a positive culture. Leaders are the drivers of culture, and they must model the behavior they wish to see in the workplace.

Slowing down leaves room for emotional intelligence, ethical behavior, empathy, and compassion. These are all foundational qualities to being a positive leader and leading a successful team. It allows teams to reach their goals, results in employee wellbeing and low turnover, and increases innovation and creativity. At a time when masses of workers are choosing to leave their jobs, leaders can create positive and productive cultures by slowing down.

Any current or aspiring leader hoping to learn and grow can start with the most important leadership strategy: slowing down. By slowing down, leaders cultivate all of the best leadership qualities that will better motivate employees, generate effective decision making, and galvanize a positive culture.

About the Author

StrategyDriven Expert Contributor | Mary SmithStrategyDriven Expert Contributor | Brian SmithMary Smith has degrees in English and psychology from the University of Redlands, and in organizational leadership from Colorado State University Global. She is co-author with her father, Brian Smith, of the new book, Individual Advantages: Be the “I” in Team (BookBaby, March 2, 2021). Learn more at iabusinessadvisors.com.

Why Businesses Need Management Consulting

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StrategyDriven Management and Leadership Article | Why Businesses Need Management ConsultingManagement consulting is something you may want to consider, even if you run a small business. Such professionals can assist a business of any size, however. These are a few of the complex issues that a consultant of this kind can help you with:

Team Leadership

For a business to be successful, all members of the team have to work together harmoniously. The leaders must be well versed and organized in their leadership strategies as well. A management consulting firm can assist you in this area by consulting with your top board members and management staff to develop new strategies for training and leadership. You may need these services if you find that employee retention numbers have plateaued or lessened. You may also find these services helpful if your customer service ratings have declined.

Research and Analysis

A management consulting firm can also conduct research and analysis for you. You may need to know if you should get involved with a possible merger with another business. Perhaps you need to decide which area to expand your business to. Maybe you need someone to gather information about the current market trends so that you can choose how you want to perform a product launch. Management consulting firms can do the legwork in this area so that your leaders can make decisions that profit your establishment.

Growth Strategies

Growth strategies are often complex processes that need more than one person to collaborate on them. Businesses of all sizes need to develop effective growth strategies. A management consulting team can assist you with growth strategies as well. They can help you develop blueprints for the business decisions you’ll make over a stretch of time. You may want to create a strategy for growth over the next five years, for example. Strategic planners will be able to look over the numbers with you and find areas where you can improve your company’s performance. They can also analyze the information and give you tips on how you can cut down on some of your operational costs.

New Process Rollouts

It can be difficult to enforce and implement new processes within your establishment. A management consulting firm could help you with those processes as well. Changing one of your primary processes can be an exciting and helpful move for your business. However, your employees and management staff may not be too keen on the changes. The good news is that a management consulting firm can assist you in that area and many others. You can think of such a firm as an end-all for solidifying your business’s success. Michael Canzian operates a reputable management consulting firm. All you need to succeed is a renowned firm that genuinely wants to see your business blossom.

A management consulting firm can be highly beneficial to you if you’re a new entity or a company trying to find your way around the market. You can schedule a consultation with such a firm to see if its services can assist you. You might find that a management consulting firm is exactly what you need.