Leadership

Leadership

If you can’t make them, you can’t lead.

Good leadership is not a popularity contest. One of the most important take-away was the day I realized that leading well was more important than being well-liked.

Our careers are filled with difficult, sometimes unpopular choices, and our success rests on how we handle them.

You’ll avoid the tough decisions, you’ll avoid confronting people who need to be confronted, and you’ll avoid offering different rewards based on different performance because some people might get upset.”

We’re tempted to postpone and avoid tough decisions and hard conversations. The great American financier once cautioned: “Don’t fall victim to what I call the ‘ready-aim-aim-aim-aim syndrome.’ You must be willing to fire.” Decide. Act. That’s your job as a leader.

Step 1: Take Responsibility.

Nothing changes if nothing changes. Procrastination kills leadership effectiveness today and leadership potential tomorrow. Whatever is your biggest problem now will be your biggest problem next week and your biggest problem next month unless you do something about it.

Step 2: Prepare Yourself.

Are you feeling anxious about those looming choices? Let’s do some research to boost your decision-making confidence.

Step 3: Reflect.

Once you’ve completed the first two steps, consider where that knowledge takes you.

Step 4: Determine your action plan.

Go through that four-step process, and I promise that decision-making will go from overwhelming to attainable. (Notice, though, I’m still not calling it easy!) Repeat that process for the additional situations you listed and the countless others you’ll face in your personal and professional lives.

Act immediately. Although it is your responsibility to deliberate options and make educated decisions, you’ll also encounter situations in which you must think on your feet. Great leaders act with limited information. Don’t hedge! Take action using your knowledge and instincts to guide you.

Be confident. Don’t waste time and energy second-guessing yourself. Someone once told me that I have no rear view mirror. I believe that’s true: I have little desire to look backward. I make decisions and move on. You should, too.

Think payoff. Your motivation to act comes from the benefits you envision. Is your team morale likely to improve? Will productivity increase? Will you see an impact on the bottom line? Focus on those positives. It’s like going to the dentist—you may not look forward to the process, but the outcome is highly beneficial.

Change can be hard, but uncomfortable changes often lead to breakthroughs. In every challenge lies the opportunity for growth. One of the most difficult decisions that I ever made was leaving the organization my father led—the place I had committed 10 years of my life to. That decision was painful and a little frightening, but it was also the move that changed my career.

Leaders make hard decisions. Team does not understand the rationale n reason behind it.

As a project manager, sometimes you make decisions that force the team member to follow.

Team member takes their time to complete their assigned task. However, the project manager will have to push the team to move forward. Complete the task on schedule so that the project timeline is not stretched.

Leader needs to be versed and high in emotional quotient.

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