Tag: growing-leader
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You are your career’s quarterback
OK. I’ll admit I’m not much of a sports guy. Not a sports guy at all, really. But I just finished watching an episode of a series about an American high school football team, so the metaphor came to mind. When you view your career as a defensive lineman, you see the world outside yourself…
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The best leaders don’t always win
I must disagree with a well-respected leadership expert. Referring to what he called “the greatest leaders,” John Maxwell made a claim in chapter 15 (“The Law of Victory”) in The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership. He wrote, “I think victorious leaders have one thing in common: they share an unwillingness to accept defeat.” On the…
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They buy in to you before they buy in to your vision
You finally got responsibility for the team you need to make a difference. You have a vision for a much better future, and now you need your new team to buy in. But they probably won’t. At least not yet. Unless you’ve been around a while and already built relationships with them. John Maxwell explains…
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When good habits bring bad results
“They know what they need to do; they’re just not doing it.” That was how someone judged their team members in a recent conversation. The person wanted to know how they could get the people on their team to step up and pull their weight. Some were producing results, and others weren’t. I asked about…
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As a leader, are you too big to fail?
I had success all wrong. As an individual software developer, when my code did what it was supposed to do, the way it was supposed to do it, that was success. Then I became a leader of software developers. In that role, when our team project delivered what it was supposed to deliver, the way…
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Silence the internal noise
Before I write this, let me check if I got a response to my question yet. Oh, and I needed to order more paper for the printer. And there are those three unchecked boxes on my to-do list. They’ll only take me about five minutes each and they’re just nagging me! Even if you use…
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Don’t try to be the person who succeeds
Some leaders want to advance in their career. They make a pitch that they get good results and their team members and coworkers are happy. They connect with other departments to gain visibility and let other teams know they’re open to bigger opportunities. They tell their boss they want to be the first person in…
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You will compare yourself to others
“Don’t fall into the comparison trap” is a confusing warning. You can’t avoid comparing yourself with others. But you can avoid falling into a trap. What matters is how you respond to what you notice. If they’re better than you are at a certain skill: ✅ You can admire them and find inspiration to become…
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Your most valuable leadership resource
“Our people are our most valuable asset,” they say. Careful. It’s a trap. And if, as a leader, you believe that your people are your most valuable asset, you’ll miss a more important point. “Your” people don’t belong to you. And when companies start to act like human beings are assets, they stop treating them…
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Yes, work on your weaknesses
“Stop fixating on your weaknesses; focus on developing your strengths.” That’s what they say. I get it. And I don’t completely agree. Sure, you can often get a much greater return investing your time and energy on further strengthening what you already do well. After all, what you do well is how you create value.…
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It’s a person, not a project
The words were painful to hear: “I’ve always enjoyed working with you. I’ve always hated working for you.” These words came from one of my direct reports in a one-on-one. In our company, they had a reputation of being hard to work with. They were technically brilliant. And like many technically brilliant engineers, their people…
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Good managers are like smart LCD film
My family knows I’m obsessed with the idea of large glass picture windows giving an unobstructed view to a natural back yard. Most of the time, that dream seems ideal. But after the sun goes down, that complete transparency is no longer the best thing. ❌ Other people can see into the house, introducing a…