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Hayseeds Creative

Enhancing Lives

Category: Leadership

Are you paying attention?

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Point 1 – Established Track Record. Not only are we 31-years-old with consistent growth, but we just closed out our largest growth ever (32% GROWTH)! Wall Street would eat this company up – but that won’t happen. We are only able to stay true to our program, our customers and the mission statement if we are not clouded by the influence of investors.

Point 2 – Financially Sound. To our first point about Wall Street – We don’t need them! We have developed the infrastructure to grow by another 200% and it is all paid for by cash. When you have a vision and have planned appropriately for that vision that is when something special happens.

We are all very proud of this, but what does it really mean to you? If I didn’t know anything about this company and I was looking to better my personal future, I would spend a little time asking a few questions. Since this growth and stability has been built on helping people live healthier lives – there is something for everyone!

The old phrase is, “only time will tell”. Well time is talking, and this year it is talking about growth! When I was was first introduced to this online shopping club these 12 points of interest were shared with me (View article – Does the concept of working from home intrigue you). Two of these points are related to the financial stability of the company and ring even more true today than they did 5 years ago.

Being Coachable

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You have probably heard it most in connection with sports; he or she is “coachable”. While it is certainly relevant to the sports model, have you considered how it also applies in the business environment as well.

It’s not complicated. Listening and learning should be an everyday activity as you grow and develop yourself and your business. Being coachable has a lot to do with linking yourself with one (or a few) trusted mentors. It involves absolute trust in the lessons they provide, just as in sports. Even if it sounds unreasonable or doesn’t make sense, it will as you grow in your business.

We aren’t saying your  ideas and concepts don’t have relevance—they do—but the experience of those you choose as your coaches offers a history of success. That history  is why you chose them.

As you grow and expand personally and professionally, you’ll find a plethora of people and information that are relentlessly trying to influence you and your decisions. This “white noise” must continually be filtered and your coaches can help you sort them into “What is true” and “What isn’t true” categories. This is an ongoing practice.

I have attached an article from INC. to clarify some of information you need to make sound decisions. Choosing your coach or a team of coaches is an indispensable part of your own success. Vett their credentials carefully. What have they accomplished? Do other business people have good things to say about them? Are they focused on you and your goals and not their own? You have an obligation to yourself to be selective and scrupulous in choosing those whose lead you will follow. Remember good leaders are coachable themselves. Now go play the game to win.

 

 

Blame And Responsibility

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If you are in business, whether it is one you own or one you manage, you are going to make mistakes. Those mistakes are inevitable. They are part of your business’s and your own personal growth and ultimate success.

It is how you personally respond to those mistakes that can make a huge difference in your effectiveness as a manager or an owner. As this article from the Harvard Business Review states, playing the “blame game” never works.

Those who work with you and for you observe your behavior when a mistake is made either by you or someone for whom you are responsible. If you assume responsibility, you are not taking the blame. After all, you are the boss or manager, so you are responsible. Sometimes the blame does belong to someone else, so it has to be addressed. The way you handle it can be a learning moment for those you work with, so be constructive, not destructive.

A good manager or owner always creates a psychological environment of security so that others are not afraid to take risks because that creates the success of the mission statement. The article suggests that focusing on learning from those mistakes, even rewarding them creates a culture where no one is resistant to innovation. Blaming produces the opposite effect where everyone lives in fear and innovation is at best diluted and at worst invisible.

http://workingwhileliving.com/article/blame-and-responsibility?barbarahay

Humility Is The Primary Asset To Great Leadership

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Great leadership is a complex mix. It can, however, be fairly simple if you apply some structured principles to your leadership style. “Showboating” will turn-off the members of your team or staff. Leaders who come from humility use their own success for the greater good of all.

This article from “Entrepreneur” points out some of the attributes that are necessary for exceptional leadership. Those attributes include humanity; people don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care. Great leaders possess a depth of understanding that includes a heavy dose of humility.

Rank certainly brings status but great leaders use that platform to establish order and discipline among their team members. Balanced authority makes a leader a player’s coach. Those who lead from humility prepare their team to believe in their own personal potential. Great leaders promote others not themselves. They understand the bigger picture.

Exceptional leaders understand the importance of acknowledging and the celebration of their team’s successes. Criticism often produces the opposite effect of what it was intended to do and it is usually done for the ego of the leader and not those being led. It is important to establish an atmosphere of collaboration. Collaboration is far superior to competition.

Great leaders point out that there is no such thing as a losing experience. It is a learning experience and it presents the opportunity for great opportunities. Good leaders accept winning with grace and dignity. That attitude will duplicate among the members of the team. Great leaders recognize that their “power” has been extrapolated from lots of success and lots of suffering.

The best leaders always possess integrity. Their word is their bond and there is never an exception to that principle. Their yes is a yes and their no is a no. Their team will come to understand this and it will grow and grow their trust in their leader. Finally, a great leader never forgets to be grateful; grateful for the team; grateful for the resources they have been provided and grateful for the products and services that continue to provide opportunities for successful growth.

I am fortunate to be associated with a company that has provided me with this kind of great leadership. My team members reflect that great leadership by helping in every way they can without patronizing efforts. They realize how fortunate we all are to be in this together and that evokes all the right attitudes that generate our success. 

http://workingwhileliving.com/article/humility-is-the-primary-asset-to-great-leadership-566?barbarahay