By Michael Holland The best approach in building a talent or leadership pipeline is to assess the potential of leaders against the level of sustained performance of them. It is critical that both perspectives of the leader are ascertained. The sustainability of performance at exceptional levels creates the pathway for a leader with potential [...]
by Michael Holland I recently read this story about a school teacher. . . a kindergarten teacher who at the end of an exasperating day had to put boots on all 31 of her students before she sent them out in the snow. As she struggled to lace up the last boot on the foot [...]
By Michael Holland Leverage that driving or flying time this holiday with a good audio book! Here are some books I've recently listened to on my iPhone. Get Motivated. . . .1 hour, 4 minutes . . . What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast by Laura Vanderkam. A great, quick [...]
by Michael Holland Crucible: A place or occasion of severe test or trial. Marine Corp recruits culminate their boot camp training with “The Crucible”, a 54 hour strenuous training exercise meant to simulate typical combat situations wherein recruits apply everything they’ve learned to that point in their training. The “exercise” includes 48 miles of [...]
by Michael Holland Take a strategic leadership approach to coaching and mentoring your employees. Determine one or two key performance areas for each employee. Choose performance areas which will provide the employee an opportunity to grow, explore or enhance talents. With each key area, determine how you will plant and water a seed to help [...]
by Michael Holland One of the easiest and most impactful kinds of feedback to give is positive feedback. It motivates and builds commitment and do people really ever get tired of hearing they've done a good job? The first step - and this is crucial - is to notice what's gone well. Next, follow these [...]
by Michael Holland It would be great if employees were more accountable, took initiative, went the extra mile, took responsibility for their own development, were self-motivated not being influenced by the negative behaviors of others and quickly turned failures into lessons learned. Our roles as leaders would be so much easier. So, ask yourself these [...]
by Michael Holland We all like to engage in discretionary spending. Tapping into an employee’s discretionary energy can be just as rewarding. What is discretionary energy? It’s that willingness to go “above and beyond,” give the extra effort, have a personal commitment to excellence or provide creativity that enhances the team. An employee’s discretionary energy can be [...]
by Michael Holland Advancing in an organization provides fantastic opportunities for you to leverage your loyalty and relationships. Some of these relationships may have been forged before you were a manager. A difficult challenge for most leaders is developing a clear demarcation line with regard to friendships and the leader’s authority role especially when managing [...]
by Michael Holland Is there a way to get your employees to act accountably? Yes! Start by making sure you allow it and support it. Ask yourself: Are you role modeling accountability - are you stepping up, solving problems and acting accountably? Are you coaching accountability - are you talking about your expectations, providing feedback when you [...]
