Checking In

About a year ago I was thinking about my struggles, my imposter syndrome voice that creeps in every once in a while, those around me that are probably experiencing the same self-doubt, or are generally going through episodes of struggle themselves.

I decided to do something about it, and started reaching out to check in on friends, colleagues, and in many cases people I haven’t met yet but have gotten to know through various social channels.

The goal was to reach out to at least one person each day, though I’ll admit I haven’t gone a full month yet intentionally checking in on someone consistently. However, I log my check ins as a sort of private accountability tracker, and it’s amazing to see how many times I’ve connected.

So despite the fact that I’ve failed to hit a daily goal, I have succeeded in connecting with many more people who wouldn’t have heard from me otherwise.

Some are going through public challenges. Others are struggling with very private issues that I happen to be aware of. Still others have shared subtle cues on their social networks which I’ve taken the risk to inquire about…and the flood of emotion comes out.

This process that I now hold close has given me far more than I believe I’ve done for others. For me, it is a way to live my faith without pressuring anyone about religion. It’s a way to take action instead of seeing one more “if only someone had reached out” posts. And most of all, isn’t that what friends and colleagues are supposed to do?

Who are you going to check in with today?

Thanks for being here.

Jay

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Still the Same

If you look back on the last five years of your career, ask yourself what has changed? The pandemic aside, ask what you’re doing differently today vs the past.

How have you upped your leadership style?

How do you focus differently?

What new priorities matter to you that weren’t on your radar five years ago?

Do you have fresh new goals that you didn’t consider previously?

Who matters most in your professional life now?

Growth, lifelong learning, and constantly challenging ourselves to be better is not only fun, it ensures that we do not become old and stale (regardless of our age.)

So today it’s all about a bit of reflection; and hopefully, new thinking for your future. 

Remember, you can never think big enough!

Thanks for being here.

Jay

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Greatest Strength = Greatest Weakness

Becoming self-aware is hard; and then elevating our self-awareness enough to appreciate, leverage, and act upon our strengths is a powerful leadership skill. 

I hate to break it to you though, we can’t be good at everything. Understanding how we can play to our unique skill set and move our organizations forward is what savvy leaders do. But there are risks.

Our strengths can become our leadership super powers…or something quite the opposite.

Our unwavering focus on ‘what we have convinced ourselves is the right thing to do’ can end up looking like we’re playing with corporate fire. Our strength of conviction, and blind commitment to taking chances based on those convictions can come at a high price.

The strengths that we’ve relied on for many years sometimes become a blind spot and morph into our greatest weakness.

So what is the message here? Do we simply ignore our vision for the future and settle into the morass of mediocrity that plagues so many executive teams?

Not at all.

The real challenge is to integrate humility into our self-awareness leadership style. Easy, right? I’m guessing the answer is no for most of us.

Balancing our vision and desire to make our organizations better with the reality that we can’t always make the right moves is difficult to internalize. Only the truly savvy leaders can pull this off.

Is that you?

Thanks for being here.

Jay

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Confidence and Solo Projects

Confidence is a curious thing. Sometimes we have so much of it we believe we can conquer the world. At other times, it’s as if we don’t have the courage to start the day.

Maybe it’s just me?

Over the years I’ve learned how to manage that inner voice that attempts to erode my self-esteem and confidence.

But it’s difficult sometimes.

Once in a while I post positive messages about taking control. Most of the time those messages are for me. If they help someone else too that’s a nice bonus.

Inspirational posts aren’t what matters most though. The hard work to maintain our confidence and self-esteem is always a solo project.

I wish you nothing but the best as you face your solo project head on, and if I can be a resource to you in any way, please reach out.

Thanks for being here.

Jay

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Return to Office = A Compliance Power Play

Just in case employers haven’t noticed, the ENTIRE world of work has shifted post-pandemic. Productivity, innovation and collaboration remained high, while employees enjoyed the benefits of working from home, fewer or no commutes, and a sense that their personal needs were actively supported by their employers.

Until the ‘new’ trend of returning to a command and control management style reappeared.

Really? Have we learned nothing since 2020? 

Trust. This elusive goal that you might have had for your culture quickly evaporated when the “return to the office” memo was released. 

Gone in an instant.

The good news for your competitors however is that there will be a fantastic group of talented professionals on the job hunt who I’m quite sure will be hired faster than you can say “we made an error in judgment.”

Am I being a bit harsh today? I don’t think so. 

In my opinion a blanket “return to the office mandate” is such a big misstep that a strong leadership voice needs to offer a reality-check to this corporate blind spot.

Where are you on return to work?

Thanks for being here.

Jay

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Developing Your Internal Brand

The word brand gets thrown around a lot lately. Candidly, I do a fair amount of that throwing. Why? Because your brand matters.

And just so we’re clear, you already have one whether you’ve invested any time into developing it properly or not.

One more thing, your employees and colleagues are fully aware of your brand regardless of whether or not you are.

So, here’s a quick set of action steps you can take today to improve your internal brand.

1. Schedule regular meetings with important colleagues on a recurring basis. The best professional relationships are built on much more than just meeting deadlines and being a collaborative team member.

2. Start using (or finding) your leadership voice. Simply being on the team is not enough. Demonstrate your expertise, insights, and opinions. Be someone who matters to the overall progress of the company.

3. Take risks. Don’t make every decision based on the safest move. Be bold, and watch how others gravitate toward you.

What else have you done to improve your internal leadership brand?

Thanks for being here.

Jay

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Leading in an Age of Transparency

How comfortable are you being truly transparent?

It’s not a trick question. The issue of transparent leadership is all the rage now, particularly with the workforce no longer buying into the tired, and candidly, lame management speak that has been used for years.

Employees are bright, well-informed (sometimes), and know what they want out of their work experience. Oh, and they also don’t really care about the cliches managers have used for years about paying your dues or sucking it up and keeping your head down.

Did any of us ever truly believe that talk?

So, I’ll ask again…how comfortable are you sharing information with your employees about what is happening in your organization?

I’m reminded of one of my early leadership jobs. I reported to the VP of HR, and he attended health system wide leadership meetings, but modified the notes he shared with his team…and he expected me to do the same.

Um, no. 

I simply shared everything. Good news, bad news, financial information…everything. A funny thing happened. My credibility immediately grew. You see, my VP had been the leader of my team previously and they never received as much information as I was passing along.

I guess I was into this whole transparency thing back in the 90s before COVID and the world turning upside down and demanded it.

How much do you share with your team? 

Do they know you are honest with them?

If you’re holding back, or trying to be “smooth” I have news for you…you’re not. None of us are when we try to pull one over on our people.

Let’s all be better.

Thanks for being here.

Jay

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