Walk The Talk Chock full of resources to inspire, motivate, encourage, and challenge you!

In their materfully written book Leadership Courage, best-selling authors David Cottrell and Eric Harvey adress this topic (and many others) head-on. And they provide a wealth of information and strategies for ensuring that your team’s faithful majority don’t end up as the forgotten majority. The excerpts below are definitely worth remembering, applying, and sharing with others.

And here’s something else worth remembering: As the largest segment of the employee population, middle stars are the backbone of your team. Many are people who occasionally exhibit super-star behaviors but are inconsistent in their overall performance. They are important, “on the bubble” contributors – with the potential of becoming super stars … or falling stars. Clearly, your ability to affect the performance of this group is critical to your success as a leader.

Lead well … LEAD RIGHT

1. Build their confidence by increasing their responsibilities. Start small and then increase as they achieve success. Sometimes employees are unsure of their ability to excel. Allow them to discover their “hidden” talents and encourage them to exceed their own expectations.

2. Give frequent and accurate performance feedback. Be specific. Clearly explain what is required for them to become super stars on the team.

3. Teach them how to set goals to keep their performance on track. And, by all means, hold them accountable for those goals.

4. “Catch” them doing good things, and then praise them. The more you focus on finding the good, the more good you will find … and the more they will do! Reinforced behavior becomes repeated behavior.

5. Hook them up with a super star for mentoring. An effective mentoring program provides middle stars with positive role models and encourages super stars to be even more involved. That’s a good deal for everybody!

6. Create rewards that appeal to their personal values. Maybe you are rewarding team members in ways that you like to be rewarded – and it is not working for them. They will be happy to tell you what motivates them … if you’ll just ask.

Often, it’s the “small things” you do that will inspire middle stars to become super stars – things like remembering facts about them and their family; asking their opinions on job-related matters; showing empathy when they’re facing a personal crisis; taking the time to listen to them; or merely doing something special when they need a boost. These are, by the way, things that should be done with and for ALL employees.

Host of the Inspired Living Café
Questions? 888.822.9255

Skill without motivation is like a Ferrari with no gas … so consider this book fuel for your leadership journey! Its fusion of information and inspiration can propel you and your team forward through even the most challenging times. Here is a unique collection of powerful, true-life stories – and their leadership lessons – that offer the acceleration of inspiration.

This book transforms 12 real-world sagas into a dozen teachable moments that can make you a more effective leader or spark a professional development dialogue with your team. Enjoy a rare resource that leaves you refreshed, empowered and INSPIRED TO LEAD!

Pick up copies for your entire team!

It’s no secret that In today’s ever-changing competitive marketplace, one of the biggest enemies all of is face is the “status quo.” In order for our organizations to survive and prosper – and for us to have successful leadership careers – we have to get good at encouraging and cultivating new and different ideas.

“Business as usual” is a mindset that will NOT serve any of us well. That’s a factual statement you’d be wise to write down and post in your work area. And it’s the message behind one of the most clever and thought- provoking books I’ve ever read, A Peacock in the Land of Penguins.

There’s a reason this charming and engaging corporate fable has sold over 320,000 copies and has been translated in 22 languages. It hits home! Authors BJ Gallagher and Warren Schmidt provide a story echoing one that is unfolding each and every day in organizations big and small – how to build a culture of creativity and capture the talent, energy, and commitment of all employees.

Take my word for it – this book is a “must read.” Better yet, take the word of world-renowned author and speaker Ken Blanchard as you read excerpts from his Foreword to the book (below). Most importantly, remember that fostering diverse and creative ideas really is a “MUST DO” responsibility for all of us who are privileged to lead others.

Lead well … LEAD RIGHT

… Every once in a while a book comes along that deals with a profound subject in a simple and elegant way. A Peacock in the Land of Penguins is such a book.

… Stories are a great way to convey important messages – they inspire and teach at the same time. People forget facts, figures, and theories, but they remember stories.

… This is the story of Perry the Peacock – a bright, talented, colorful bird – who comes to live in the Land of Penguins. He soon runs into problems because the penguins have established a chilly organizational climate that is formal, bureaucratic, and governed by a vast array of written and unwritten rules. Although his talent is recognized, his different and unusual style makes the penguins feel uneasy. The very thing he was recruited for – his distinctive flair and creativity – is viewed as a “problem” by the penguins once Perry is inside the organization.

… While executives and managers today say that they want new ideas and new thinking from their employees, their actions often indicate otherwise. New ideas are disruptive, they’re messy, they require taking chances and increased risk, and they push everyone out of their comfort zones. So people who are different, people with new views on how to make the organization successful, are often discouraged from expressing them – much to the detriment of both the individual and the organization.

… If you’re interested in new ideas for making yourself and your organization successful, read this book. Creating a workplace where new ideas and innovation can flourish is a top priority for managers and employees alike.

“Home is the place where love lives.”
~ Mary Anne Radmacher

What do you think of when you think of home? I think of a place full of acceptance and peace. A place where I spend lazy Sunday afternoons and find solace at the end of a long day. And, to borrow Mary Anne Radmacher’s words, home is the place where love lives.

I had the wonderful privilege of interviewing Mary Anne Radmacher about her new book May Your Walls Know Joy. While Mary Anne LOVES to travel, one of the best parts of her travel experience is gathering the memories and messages and joys of her travel and taking them to her home. The walls of her home comprise a sweet sanctuary where she focuses on restoration and rejuvenation. In her book, she has reflected on that unique balance between “going out” and “coming home.” She says, “This book is a celebration of all that home is and can be. I love to hear this book being used in so many different ways: a hospitality gift, real estate professionals use it as a closing gift, it’s the perfect substitute for a bottle of wine as it pours out its own inspiring brew! It’s a house warming gift, and is great as an anniversary recognition.”

After reading this blessing-turned-book, I am inspired to make my own home even more of a sanctuary for my family and me. It is my hope that you, too, may be inspired to create a home which provides comfort and peace. And it is my hope that, most of all, your walls may know joy.

Live Inspired,

Host of the Inspired Living Café
Questions? 888.822.9255