Books – thoughtLEADERS, LLC: Leadership Training for the Real World

How Avoid Mistakes When Doing Analysis and Making Recommendations

October 19, 2020/0 Comments/in Books, Business Toolkit, Communications, Leadership /by Mike Figliuolo

Three major mistakes people make when conducting analysis are succumbing to confirmation bias, analysis paralysis, and generating weak results. If you’re mindful of these risks and approach your analysis rigorously and objectively, you can make a recommendation that will be easily approved.

Today’s post is by Mike Figliuolo, Managing Director of thoughtLEADERSs and author of The Elegant Pitch: (CLICK HERE to get your copy).

A hypothesis-driven approach to problem solving and making recommendations can be tremendously efficient. You create a hypothesis (something taken to be true for the sake of argument), conduct analysis designed to prove or disprove the hypothesis, then make your recommendation based on the results of your analysis. Typically your hypothesis is based upon prior experiences you’ve had as well as your knowledge of the subject matter you’re evaluating. I’ve personally used this approach for years. I refer to it as the Structured Thought Process. The method is both efficient and effective. That said, using this approach is not without risks.

Risk #1: Confirmation Bias

While it’s great to have experience and prove your hypotheses are correct, that same experience carries risk with it. Confirmation bias – the tendency to look for or interpret information in a way that confirms your preconceived ideas – is the biggest risk you face when using a hypothesis-driven approach like the Structured Thought Process.

No one wants to be wrong so it’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking disproving your hypothesis means you made a mistake. That fear of being “wrong” can lead you to wear blinders when you’re conducting analysis. You might ignore or dismiss facts contrary to your hypothesis. You might only look for data that proves you’re “correct” which can then skew your analytical results. Before you know it, you’re making a case based upon incorrect information. You find you’re like a horse wearing large blinders that only allow you to see down a very narrow path, ignoring things outside of your field of view.

Is Your Organization Building Innovation Into Its DNA?

October 14, 2020/0 Comments/in Balanced Lifestyle, Books, Career, Leadership /by Ryan Shaw

Want to continue to be at the forefront of your industry, trying to get to the forefront, building innovation into the company structure is a must-have.

Today’s post is by thoughtLEADERS principal Maureen Metcalf.

Change is accelerating on all fronts across all industries. Each organization will be faced with different types of change and at different rates. The commonality is that everyone is facing opportunities and strains because of the current business ecosystem. Companies are regularly facing a broad range of risks, such as cybersecurity attacks, where the question has changed from “Will we be hacked?” to “When will we be hacked?” On the positive side, robotic processes automation, machine learning/artificial intelligence and a wide range of applications are making the tight labor market more productive.

With rapid change as the backdrop for the foreseeable future, it has now become imperative for leaders to build innovation into their personal leadership “operating system” as well as into the DNA of their organizations. Innovation is imperative for long-term survival and success.

While many people associate innovation with special people who come up with creative ideas, it is more accurately nurtured by building a company that embraces innovation as part of its core DNA. The real question is what does that look like, and how do you make it happen?

How Great Stories Create Great Performance from You and Your Team

August 24, 2020/0 Comments/in Books, Communications, Leadership, Sales, Upcoming Events /by Ryan Shaw

Here are six great ideas to move performance from good to great. From the stories you tell to your own bold moves others will be telling stories about for years to come, you can build perseverance, passion, and engagement.

Today’s post is by Paul Smith, thoughtLEADERS instructor and author of Sell With a Story.

Here’s an easy way to learn some new leadership skills – in easy-to-digest 10-minute podcasts you can listen to at your convenience.

These podcasts are based on interviews with 100 executives and leaders at dozens of companies around the world. Each episode brings you an important leadership lesson through a single compelling story.

These next 6 episodes will help you learn to do remarkable things other people will talk about, lead your team to love what they do or find the perseverance to press on even in the face of defeat or ridicule, move their performance from good to great, and learn 5 steps to giving more effective feedback.

Staff meetings your employees won’t try to crawl out of

One of the perhaps less-than-obvious ways to help the people who work for you to find passion for their work, is to remove the things they’re decidedly dispassionate about – starting with your staff meetings.

Perseverance: The Pringles Story

Perseverance in the face of defeat is a required character trait in sports and politics. You have to lose a few games and races on the road to the Super Bowl or to Washington. Here’s what it looks like when you demonstrate perseverance in business.

The Jittery Compass: Moving your performance from good to great

Authentic Leadership For Progress, Peace And Prosperity

August 17, 2020/0 Comments/in Balanced Lifestyle, Books, Career, Leadership /by Ryan Shaw

Being an authentic leader isn’t just good practice, it’s a necessity for the short, and long, term success and progress of your business.

Today’s post is by thoughtLEADERS principal Maureen Metcalf.

I am keenly interested in understanding how leaders progress their business agendas as well as the global agenda in times of significant geopolitical shifts. I attended the International Leadership Association’s conference, Authentic Leadership for Progress, Peace & Prosperity, in West Palm Beach, Florida, where keynote speakers, academics, award recipients and leaders across industries and the globe discussed their perspectives on the subject. This article summarizes my key takeaways.

With 39 countries represented at the conference, the focus on the volume, complexity and rate of change in the current climate continued to inform the conversations. So too did the political landscape, particularly the disillusionment with democracy and the move toward populism. The conversation was also impacted by several events happening in the background, such as a bomber delivering 14 bombs to democratic leaders and supporters, who was actually apprehended near West Palm Beach, where the conference was being held. There was also a synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh in the morning of the final day at the conference.

These events called to question what more we, as members of an international association, can do to focus on the intersection of leadership, scholarship and practice at a conference that focuses on progress, peace and prosperity.

Collaboration Improves Business Outcomes

August 5, 2020/0 Comments/in Balanced Lifestyle, Books, Guest Blogger, Leadership /by Ryan Shaw

Creating a culture of overt collaboration is foundational to an organizations ability to maximize results.

Today’s post is by thoughtLEADERS principal Maureen Metcalf.

In the United States, where we recently came out of a challenging election season, a concern for many leaders in the last few months has been creating workplaces where all employees are focused on the mission of the organization and not distracted by the political views of their colleagues. It seems that with this election, we are seeing a decrease in civility, openness and appreciation for alternate points of view. While this problem is accelerated by the recent election in the U.S., we are seeing similar concerns globally as we experience factions pushing toward globalism while others move toward localism.

For example: Bill is leading a group of technology professionals. They come from diverse backgrounds, and many are new to the organization. They are focused on IT security, a field that is evolving quickly. This group is continually faced with challenges they have not seen, and they are one of the top organizations among their peers. They are encouraged to attend conferences, read, talk to people in different industries and talk to thought leaders. Their only limitations in their interactions are time and money—the same limitations we all face. In addition to being encouraged to solicit information continually, they are explicit about their culture. They have discussed how they will work together and define the elements that support a highly effective culture. These agreements are foundational to their ability to think and behave collaboratively as their primary approach to problem-solving.

Personal Empowerment and Why It Matters

July 13, 2020/0 Comments/in Books, Guest Blogger, Leadership, Strategy /by Ryan Shaw

Blanca De La Rosa discusses how people can take control of their careers through personal empowerment.

Today’s post is by Blanca De La Rosa, author of Empower Yourself for an Amazing Career (CLICK HERE to get your copy).

Are you in control of your life and your career? Is your life what you imagined it would be? Or have you somehow allowed yourself to be deterred from your chosen path? Did you know that nothing changes unless you change it?

No matter what you seek, it can only happen if you do something about it. Take charge of your personal power. To be empowered you must know what you want for your life and why.

Personal empowerment is a collection of beliefs, actions and skills all working together to help you achieve your goals and it begins with two things: self-awareness and a positive mindset.