Respect your people’s time. When meeting a customer, we arrive fifteen minutes early to avoid any mishaps. We are diligent about keeping personal appointments and call ahead if we are running a few minutes late. However, we often fail to extend the same courtesy when...
Mike’s #BeIntentional — 39
It’s time to lighten up! Great leaders recognize that their work and the role they play is serious business, but they don’t take themselves too seriously. They have a way of making people feel inspired instead of pressured…and they figure out how to have the greatest...
Mike’s #BeIntentional — 21
- Always put the professional and emotional needs of your people before your own. - Get to know someone first as an employee, then as a person, then as an employee. - Never take credit for something if you can give credit to someone else. - Defend your people from...
Mike’s #BeIntentional — 20
Culture is not the dye color used in a garment. It is not the style of cut or choice of accents. Culture is the "fabric" you choose to make that garment including the combination of yarns and type of weave. The right fabric allows your people to move freely, feel...
Mike’s #BeIntentional –18
You cannot offer too many compliments or words of appreciation. Some leaders feel the need to use them sparingly less their comments sound too routine or their people begin to feel a sense of entitlement. Employees who understand what they are doing well, and that...
Mike’s #BeIntentional — 16
Culture is the organizational extension of the way leaders build relationships inside a company…and it starts at the very top. Culture is created, sustained and changed from the inside out…the way a leader manages relationships across the organization will define the...
Mike’s #BeIntentional — 15
If "wanting to be liked by your employees" is a leadership flaw, then count me among the world's worst bosses. Some of my most valued friends are people I work with every day. I worry about the impact of critical conversations we have on our friendship. Despite my...
Mike’s #BeIntentional — 14
"When I ask for the time of day, you tell me how to construct a watch." I have received this feedback from members of my team more than once. Striking a balance between offering too much or too little of your perspective can sometimes be a challenge. Ask people to...
Mike’s #BeIntentional — 12
“I made a mistake. I understand how it impacted you. I apologize. This is what I commit to do differently going forward. Please hold me accountable to honor my commitment.” As leaders, we sometimes tend to dismiss our errors, or trivialize their impact, or blame them...
Mike’s #BeIntentional — 10
The greatest source of organizational strength is not the leader, but the people they lead. A leader's greatest contribution is their ability to unleash the individual and collective power of their people. If we as leaders lose sight of that reality, then we are...