Posted on Wed, Jul 14, 2010
by Dan Rockwell,
Author of Leadership Freak and Our Guest Blogger
Let’s begin by acknowledging the positive value of making mistakes. Mistakes indicate you are trying new things. Einstein put it this way, “Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new.”
Furthermore, realizing our mistakes enlightens us. James Joyce explained, “A man's errors are his portals of discovery.” Most importantly, our mistakes make us. While successes reiterate who we are, mistakes create and recreate us. My own life illustrates the formative power of a single crucial mistake. Before sharing my personal big blunder, here are the top mistakes I think leaders make.
Clinging to the command and control model of leadership is catastrophic when knowledge workers are involved. Knowledge workers frequently know more than the boss. Command and control leaders frustrate and de-motivate. However, setting knowledge workers free leverages their skills, enhances their effectiveness and allows companies to exceed the reach of management.
Losing the big picture in the details slows forward momentum, lowers productivity, creates unnecessary stress, and under-utilizes talented staff. Leaders reach higher and go further when they delegate rather than dive into details.
Neglecting the big Mo creates flat individuals and organizations. Untended organizations naturally cool down and become problem centric structures with negative attitudes. Leaders may forget the power of celebrating small wins to create and nurture momentum.
Being free with correction and stingy with affirmation creates negative work environments. Leaders naturally work toward higher effectiveness and efficiency. They easily become correctors. Ken Blanchard’s experience indicates that it takes four positive comments to balance one negative comment. Think of it. You need four affirmations to get back to a positive work environment after only one negative comment.
"The greatest danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it." Michelangelo
My biggest mistake of all. The single most crucial mistake I ever made is focusing on mission to the exclusion of vision. Mission expresses your purpose in the present. For example, “To serve and protect,” explains the mission of law enforcement. Their mission does not create a new future -- it preserves the present.
“It’s a terrible thing to see and have no vision.” Helen Keller
Personnel issues, pressing problems, meetings, budgets, and other pressing urgencies capture a leader’s attention and limit focus to the present or, at best, near future. However, vision requires letting go of the present while pressing into a preferred, yet distant future. Vision is about not yet, not here, and not now. It’s about becoming.
I lived much of my life focusing on exceptional performance in the present while neglecting a forward-facing, future-making vision. I did this because I believed a lie. I believed that doing my best in the present would create the future I desired. Like all good lies, the lie I believed is partially true.
It’s true that excellence in the present (mission) is essential for success. However, excellence in the present isn’t the same as reaching toward an unrealized dream. For that you need vision.
It took years for me to see the mistake of living a mission driven rather than a vision-driven life. I’m glad to say that Joyce is right. My mistake became the portal of discovery.
Vision energizes leaders and enables endurance. Vision gives direction and infuses the present with meaning.
***
Dan Rockwell is the author of Leadership Freak a personal development blog designed to help leaders reach higher in 300 words or less.
To read our previous post by Jeremy Willinger on importance of leadership, please click on this link: http://www.etiquetteoutreach.com/blog_new-york-etiquette-guide/bid/44961/Leading-Not-Following-The-Importance-of-Effective-Leadership
Posted on Tue, Jun 15, 2010
by Judith Kallos, Business E-mail Expert
E-mail is one of your business' strongest branding and marketing tools. Your e-mail communications are many times one of the first things new customers will see and use to determine if they want to do business with you. Perception is the only reality online!
Let's talk about the five most common mistakes that can lend to you not being perceived as the professional and credible business person that you are:
1. From Field Display: Your name should be type properly: John A. Doe. Not john a doe, john or JOHN A DOE. No nicknames, hobby handles, user-names. Only your formal name typed in proper case will do ñ on all your devices.
2. Subject Field: Your Subject field should contain a short and accurate description of the subject of your e-mail, again, using proper case ñ sans hype. Not all caps, not all small case and not misleading in any way. You want to be sure the recipient recognizes your e-mail as one that they are expecting.
3. Greetings and Closings: Each and every business e-mail should start with a greeting and end with a closing that reflects the proper level of formality. If you are e-mailing a new customer, the highest level of formality should be practiced until they provide an indication otherwise. In business, formalities are a sign of respect. Becoming too informal too soon may not be appreciated by your potential customer.
4. Grammar and Typos: Never rely solely on your spell check. Read your important business e-mails out loud before sending to ensure they read correctly and relay the intent and tone you desire.
5. Attachments: Refrain from sending unannounced large attachments ñ especially outside of business hours. Always ask first when would be the best time to send your attachments and let the other party know the format you will be sending in to ensure they have the same software as you do. Send an Excel file that the potential customer didn't ask for, who just so happens to not have Excel, isn't productive -- or impressive.
These are five issues you need to minimally take into consideration with each and every single business e-mail correspondence that you send. By making these miniscule efforts, you will easily outshine those competitors who underestimate the importance of business e-mail etiquette basics.
About the Author:
Judith Kallos is an experienced good-humored Technology Muse who has offered WordPress Consulting and Web Site services for over a decade. Be sure to check out her popular Business Email Etiquette Web Site! too.
Posted on Mon, Feb 22, 2010
President Medvedev of Russia is greeting the Health Secretary of Russia
Photo Credit: Reuters/ by D.Astakhov
Posted by Lyudmila Bloch, Etiquette Expert NYC
“Sending your message and simultaneously learning as much as you can about the other person while shaking hands takes some preparation and practice” say Robert E. Brown and Dorothea Johnson in their book The Power of Handshaking.
Etiquette experts still argue about the history of the handshake and its place of origin. But they all agree on one thing: a handshake in business is the most critical element in proper introductions and first impressions.
Many of us give and receive handshakes on a daily basis -- when introducing ourselves at a business meeting, signing a business contract, congratulating others, or even after stumbling upon a person we haven’t seen in a while. Whatever the circumstance, our first business introduction always leaves an impression within a few seconds – it might get you a job or a contract, or lose one for you.
Every country in the world has its own “greeting protocol” but there are a few rules that should be observed no matter where you are:
· Never invade the “personal space” of your new acquaintance -- stay at arm’s length prior to extending your hand. Your distance should emphasize your respect for the person’s territory and gracious awareness of this ritual.
· Never stand too far from the person you are meeting – you’ll look awkward while bending over and trying to reach his or her hand.
· Don’t act especially excited or obsequious while meeting VIPs, celebrities, or elected officials. Grabbing their hand with your two hands and pumping it vigorously is an obvious no-no! Instead, contain your excitement by offering a dazzling smile, enhanced eye contact, and a firm handshake to accompany your verbal greeting. Tapping the right shoulder of the person with your left hand is of course also inappropriate, as it reveals your naiveté and lack of basic etiquette knowledge.
· Never shake hands more than two or three times during a single introduction. Don’t prolong the shake – it makes people suspicions and uncomfortable (except when greeting in Arab countries. They prefer a very light and lingering handshake combined with kisses on both cheeks).
· Avoid a limp handshake or a wet-palm handshake at any cost. No one likes to receive a sweaty, nervous hand -- it gives an impression of insecurity, passive personality, and extreme anxiety of a greeter.
· Always establish a firm “web-to-web”contact by gently grasping the hand of the person you are greeting and squeezing it for a few seconds. Pause for a moment to express your interest and establish trust. Your grip should be warm, firm, and straightforward without any twisting or crushing. Putting your best hand forward will deliver a message of self-confidence, openness, and sincerity.
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