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Entries by Mike Figliuolo

When is the last time you participated as a team member instead of leading your team?

August 23, 2018 /0 Comments/in Entrepreneur, Leadership, Poll /by Mike Figliuolo

Our reader poll today asks: When is the last time you participated as a team member instead of leading your team? I’m acting as a team member right now: 67.46% I’ve done it within the past month: 16.10% I’ve done it within the past year: 10.96% I’ve never stepped out of the leader role and into a team member role: 5.48% Roll up the sleeves. Getting out of the leader role and into the team member role has many benefits. It brings you closer to your people, helps you understand and appreciate the work they do and it can be rewarding. If it’s been a while since you’ve worked side by side with the team, make a point of scheduling time to do so. Put reminders on your calendar so it happens more frequently than a few times a year. Stepping out of the leader role is easier to do than you might think. Do you agree with these poll results? Let us know in the comments below! – Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC Did you enjoy this post? If so, I highly encourage you to take about 30 seconds to become a regular subscriber to this blog. It’s free, fun, practical, and only a few emails a week (I promise!). SIGN UP HERE to get the thoughtLEADERS blog conveniently delivered right to your inbox!

Avoiding the Pitfalls of Impromptu Speaking

August 20, 2018 /0 Comments/in Books, Communications, Guest Blogger, Leadership /by Mike Figliuolo

Speaking spontaneously can be a powerful way for leaders to communicate with their teams. But such spontaneity comes with many pitfalls that can derail the speaker’s message. Beware of rambling on, using inappropriate humor, and not staying attuned to your audience. Today’s post is by Judith Humphrey, author of Impromptu: Leading in the Moment (CLICK HERE to get your copy). A senior vice president I know had just joined a firm and was asked to speak at the next town hall. He was excited about the opportunity to address the company’s 3,000 employees and carefully prepared a scripted speech. But when he began to rehearse, the CEO took one look at the script, and asked, “What’s that?” “It’s my speech,” the new executive replied. “Oh, we don’t give speeches here,” the CEO said. “Just talk to our employees.” Fortunately, he had time to mentally master the thoughts he had written out, and he spoke without a text – to rave reviews. Such spontaneous dialogue is the new normal for business leaders. No longer hidden behind podiums as their predecessors were, today’s leaders are far more likely to engage their audience in dialogue. These conversations might be interviews, town halls, elevator conversations, corridor exchanges, or brief remarks sparked by “Do you have a minute?” As casual as these extemporaneous situations seem to be, they can be high stakes situations for leaders. If you want to speak as a leader in impromptu situations, avoid the following pitfalls: Pitfall #1: Not Preparing Many leaders think of impromptu speaking as “winging it,” but doing so will lead to many stumbles – and who wants to be known for that track record? Winston Churchill had fun with speakers who talk without thinking. He observed: “Before they get up, they do not know what they are […]

Have you ever considered running your own consulting firm?

August 16, 2018 /0 Comments/in Entrepreneur, Leadership, Poll, Sales /by Mike Figliuolo

Our reader poll today asks: Have you ever considered running your own consulting firm? Yes, but I haven’t done it yet. 46.5% No, I’ve never considered it. 30.2% Yes, and I’m currently doing so. 13.6% Yes, I once ran a consulting firm but don’t anymore. 9.8% Get the revenue model right. Many of you have considered hanging out your own shingle and running your own consulting firm. One of the most important questions you have to answer is: what’s your revenue model going to be? If you don’t get the revenue model right, you’ll be spending too much time working and not getting paid enough for it. You might also miss out on lucrative alternate sources of revenue if you’re not thoughtful about what assets you have to sell. You must understand the different types of consulting revenue models and choose yours deliberately. It can be the difference between working like a dog and retiring early. Do you agree with these poll results? Let us know in the comments below! – Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC Did you enjoy this post? If so, I highly encourage you to take about 30 seconds to become a regular subscriber to this blog. It’s free, fun, practical, and only a few emails a week (I promise!). SIGN UP HERE to get the thoughtLEADERS blog conveniently delivered right to your inbox!

A Simple Sales Tip for Maintaining Great Relationships

August 15, 2018 /1 Comment/in Business Toolkit, Communications, Customer Service, Entrepreneur, Leadership, Sales /by Mike Figliuolo

How effective are you at maintaining client relationships? Do you stay in touch with them or do you lose the relationship over time? Do your clients and prospects respond to your messages or do your emails end up in a black hole? Here’s a simple tip for maintaining contact with your clients and prospects. Client relationships are the lifeblood of any business. Be deliberate about maintaining them. Regular contact will keep you top of mind. Find meaningful “excuses” to reach out to them. Some of my favorites include “Hey I read an article and I thought of you” or “I heard about a cool new technology and I thought you might be interested in it.” Send these notes and leave it at that. Don’t try and sell during those interactions. They know you eventually want to sell them something. Beware of excessive contact, they’re going to ignore you or block you if you’re in their inbox too much. Focus on being helpful and good things are going to come. I have one client who I’ve had a great relationship with over the years. Every once in awhile I’ll see something that I think would be interesting to him and I drop him a note and I said “I read this and I thought of you.” He always writes back and says “Thanks for the information. Interesting. I appreciate it… not that you’re trying to sell me something.” This has become a running joke with us that at the end of every interaction one of us says “not that you’re trying to sell me something.” He understands the nature of the relationship because he is a great salesman too. He and I both know the deal but he doesn’t mind my outreach. He actually welcomes it because he knows I’m trying to […]

Change Management Is Dead: The Rise of Progress Leadership

August 13, 2018 /2 Comments/in Books, Communications, Guest Blogger, Leadership /by Mike Figliuolo

The way we traditionally define what it means to be brave can be our greatest obstacle. Simply shifting our focus can be the gateway to powerful results. Today’s post is by Dean Lindsay, author of How to Achieve Big Phat Goals (CLICK HERE to get your copy). Change Management is a business term relating to initiating change within an organization. This could include anything from a change in work culture to increasing employee engagement and morale. The problem, however, with the term change management, is that no one really desires to change. Instead, we desire to plan to progress and we want leaders to lead us – creating Progress Leadership. Committed leaders or Progress Agents, should not be apologizing for the change, but instead, they should focus on inspiring the progress of their organization. If Progress Agents include others in the process, they can shape and sustain the thoughts that in turn lead to desired results. Companies are most successful when the goals of the company connect personally with the employees. If the goals don’t connect on a personal level with the individual, then the planned progress will be viewed as merely a change and will be resisted or at least not acted on. Back in 1936, Dale Carnegie wrote his classic How to Win Friends and Influence People, and its wisdom still speaks to this point today. Packed with insight on leading strong relationships by lifting people up, the book encourages readers to genuinely care about people and their feelings. Not only does this encourage us to take actions for the benefit of the people we are respecting, but it makes clear that caring about others is good for the person who cares.

Have you ever had a salesperson ask you to tell them a story so they can get to know you?

August 9, 2018 /0 Comments/in Communications, Entrepreneur, Leadership, Poll, Sales /by Mike Figliuolo

Our reader poll today asks: Have you ever had a salesperson ask you to tell them a story so they can get to know you? Yes, it happens frequently: 20.6% No, I’ve never been asked to tell a story: 79.4% Stories tell more than the story. If you’re in sales – and let’s be clear, we’re all in sales since we’re always selling ideas – getting your buyer to tell you a story will give you insight into their challenges, their preferences, and their decision making approach. Asking buyers to tell stories also helps build a relationship and build trust. The more you know about the other person and their experiences, the easier it is to connect with them and understand their perspective. There are a few critical yet simple techniques to get your buyer to tell you stories like asking for specific events or prompting their story by asking about a specific problem. Who knows – the next story you hear might help you close that sale or get your idea approved! Do you agree with these poll results? Let us know in the comments below! – Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC Did you enjoy this post? If so, I highly encourage you to take about 30 seconds to become a regular subscriber to this blog. It’s free, fun, practical, and only a few emails a week (I promise!). SIGN UP HERE to get the thoughtLEADERS blog conveniently delivered right to your inbox!

Leadership Lessons from Unexpected Places

August 8, 2018 /0 Comments/in Books, Communications, Leadership /by Mike Figliuolo

Sometimes the best leadership lessons come from the most unexpected places. In this set of 6 podcasts, you’ll learn leadership lessons from an old man who ran 543 miles in 5 days, a chemical engineer specializing in dirt, and a comedian who toured all 50 states. You’ll also learn how to give presentations you don’t believe in, if your leadership stories have to be true, and hear an interview on the courage and integrity of a leader with the former CEO of Dun & Bradstreet. Today’s post is by Paul Smith, thoughtLEADERS principal and bestselling author of Lead With a Story and Sell With a Story. Here’s an easy way to learn some new leadership skills – in easy-to-digest podcasts you can listen to at your convenience. These podcasts are based on interviews with 100 executives, leaders, authors, and experts at dozens of companies around the world. Each episode brings you an important leadership lesson through a single compelling story. Finding the Fire at Work: What We Can All Learn from the World’s Most Grueling Athletic Competition You can’t run 543.7 miles in 5 days without learning a few things. Here’s one of them. One Question that Led to an Innovation Breakthrough at Procter & Gamble and Can Do the Same for You A think-outside-the-box story from Tide that can spur creativity and innovation in just about any industry. “Do the stories I tell at work have to be true?” As a storytelling coach, I’m often asked, “Do my leadership or sales stories have to be true?” Here’s my perhaps surprising answer. . . 3 Bad Jokes and 1 Important Lesson in Courage from Comedian Drew Tarvin

Redefining What It Means to Be Brave

August 6, 2018 /0 Comments/in Balanced Lifestyle, Books, Guest Blogger, Leadership /by Mike Figliuolo

The way we traditionally define what it means to be brave can be our greatest obstacle. Simply shifting our focus can be the gateway to powerful results. Today’s post is by Kimberly Davis, author of Brave Leadership (CLICK HERE to get your copy). Have you ever wondered why, when you think of needing to be brave – like when you need to have a difficult conversation that you don’t want to have, or give a big presentation, or meet with the C-Suite, or start something new, or put yourself out there in a new way – why just thinking about being brave seems to have the opposite effect? You get that queasiness in your stomach, your breathing might grow shallow, your muscles tighten. Why is it, when you most need to rally yourself, that you find you’re feeling more tense than ever? “I don’t get it,” one senior executive said to me as we were talking about her upcoming presentation. “I speak all the time. I know my stuff. I’m a pretty confident woman. So why do I feel like I want to throw up just thinking about having to give this talk?” And it’s no wonder. If you look at how we traditionally define what it means to be brave – ready to face and endure danger or pain – it’s not something most of us get terribly excited about. But the bigger question is, does it serve us? I would argue no. Because our focus triggers our feelings, which triggers our behavior. And really, is this definition sufficient? We tend to think of “brave” as an admirable quality. We aspire to be brave. And yet how many people can you think of who seem to have no problem with being “ready to face danger and pain” yet their […]

How often do you see candidates bomb their interview because of a single big mistake during the interview?

August 2, 2018 /0 Comments/in Communications, Entrepreneur, Leadership, Poll /by Mike Figliuolo

Our reader poll today asks: How often do you see candidates bomb their interview because of a single big mistake during the interview? All the time Frequently Sometimes Rarely Never Interviews are stressful. These are high-risk situations for a candidate. It’s not surprising that 85% of you see a candidate make a catastrophic mistake that tanks the interview. While common interview mistakes like candidates checking their phone or watch are bad, bigger mistakes like poor answers to common questions are definite interview-enders. Your job as an interviewer is to make the conversation as relaxed as possible. You’re looking to really get to know this person. If you can reduce the stress level surrounding the discussion, you’ll get better responses from candidates and ultimately make better hiring decisions. Do you agree with these poll results? Let us know in the comments below! – Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC Did you enjoy this post? If so, I highly encourage you to take about 30 seconds to become a regular subscriber to this blog. It’s free, fun, practical, and only a few emails a week (I promise!). SIGN UP HERE to get the thoughtLEADERS blog conveniently delivered right to your inbox!

The Critical Importance of Leadership During Boring Times

August 1, 2018 /0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Entrepreneur, Leadership /by Mike Figliuolo

Leading during a crisis is easy. Adrenaline leads to focus and higher performance. But how do you lead during the doldrums when nothing “important” is going on? Those slow times are the ones that affect performance during the crisis. Failure to lead during slow times leads to failures during crisis. I recently spoke with Todd De Voe of EM Weekly. We discussed leadership, management, and how to lead people who deal with crisis situations on a regular basis. You can listen to the entire interview by CLICKING HERE. You can also listen to the entire interview below. We had a great conversation and I’d like to share an excerpt of our discussion where we discuss the importance of leading people during the boring, day-to-day situations that reside in between the crises we invariable face. Here is my perspective on that situation. The day-to-day stuff is an easy place to get lazy and not do it well. Everybody is going to lead well in a crisis because we respond in those exciting moments. The adrenaline kicks in. We see the stakes are high, we get focused, and we understand the importance of leading well in those situations. I argue that it’s easier to lead in a crisis situation than it is during periods of calm. From a military perspective, it’s easier to lead in the field than it is to lead in garrison. I think, back to my platoon leader days and my soldiers were awesome in the field. I loved taking those guys to the field because they were focused. They were on it. They were doing the right things. They understood the mission and how they contributed. Incidentally, the photo is me and my tank crew – SGT Villarreal, PV2 Bundy and PV2 Dick. Yes, my driver’s name was […]

Recognizing Innovation Right in Front of You

July 30, 2018 /0 Comments/in Books, Entrepreneur, Guest Blogger, Innovation, Leadership /by Mike Figliuolo

Breakthrough innovation virtually always builds upon other existing ideas or innovations. Your organization is full of ideas that simply haven’t materialized yet. Changing the way you look at and think about innovation can help unlock their potential. Today’s post is by Dr. Kumar Mehta, author of The Innovation Biome (CLICK HERE to get your copy). Establishing the conditions that encourage innovation is the best way for your company to consciously develop an environment that consistently lets you produce offerings with new and novel value – innovations in the eyes of your users. The most innovative companies do this instinctively – perhaps because of the culture instilled by superstar leaders, a conscious and successful effort, or the emergence of the right conditions after things just fell into place. But the fact is that every company can develop this innate innovation capability – something I call an Innovation Biome. Companies are inherently innovative, and their employees often have great ideas that can become market winners. The problem is that companies do not have an environment to support, nurture and germinate the great ideas as they believe that the great ideas are “out there” somewhere. It is critical that your organization focus on innovation from within by recognizing the innovation in front of you. One of the core assumptions about innovation that every leader needs to understand is that ideas always build on other ideas. Breakthrough innovation is never something that comes out of the blue. Nothing is independent. Progress breeds progress. Improvements lead to other improvements. Just like the Internet – everything is connected. Creativity and innovation are about improving on what is out there and connecting dots in an original way to create new value. Innovations are rarely, if ever, unique breakthroughs with no history. They come from interconnected, networked ideas. […]

How effectively do you use data to tell stories?

July 26, 2018 /0 Comments/in Communications, Entrepreneur, Leadership, Poll /by Mike Figliuolo

Our reader poll today asks: How effectively do you use data to tell stories? Very: my data always tells a story: 52.8% Kind of: sometimes my data tells a story: 39.1% Not very: it’s rare that my data tells stories: 6.1% Not at all: it’s always just a data dump: 2.0% Tell me a story. Clearly many of you think about the story you’re trying to tell with your data. When you understand how to structure a story and what elements to include, it’s much easier to use data to fit your narrative. Invest that extra time thinking through the story before you jump into the analysis. That extra time will clarify your message and help move your audience to take the actions you want them to take. If you’re not thinking about the story your data is telling, find people who are good storytellers and ask them how they craft those narratives. Storytelling isn’t hard. It just requires discipline and the use of a solid storytelling method. Do you agree with these poll results? Let us know in the comments below! – Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC Did you enjoy this post? If so, I highly encourage you to take about 30 seconds to become a regular subscriber to this blog. It’s free, fun, practical, and only a few emails a week (I promise!). SIGN UP HERE to get the thoughtLEADERS blog conveniently delivered right to your inbox!