Leadership

When I was a kid, adults used to bore me to tears
With their tedious diatribes about how hard things were
When they were growing up; what with walking
Twenty-five miles to school every morning ... Uphill BOTH ways

Yadda, yadda, yadda....

Close your eyes.....And go back in time....
Before the Internet or the Mac....
Before semi-automatics and crack ....Before SEGA or Super Nintendo...
Way back.... I'm talking about hide-and-seek in the park, The shop down the road, Hopscotch, Goomey, Donkey, skipping, handstands, football with an old can, Roly Poly, Hula Hoops.

When I was 5 years old, my mom always told me that happiness was the key to life.

Think back to when you were a party-mad teenager, or any of those occasions you wanted to get into an exclusive nightclub. Or that time you wanted to meet your idol when you were in the same room as they were? Did you find this easy or difficult? Did you get past security and in to the inner sanctum?

Increasingly I speak to people at work who are unsure that the job, or even career, they have chosen is the right one. Graduates and young employees have more choices today than ever before - and most will retire from careers that do not exist today. So how do you know if you've made the right choice when you most probably were not given all the information at school? Here are two important questions.

We've all been asked the same "How would you", "Tell me about ..." questions in job interviews. So with my stepson job-hunting, we've been talking a lot about interviews. Then I got thinking about a technique we sometimes use in business strategy sessions that also relates to the movie industry. Here are some movies with great lines to impress your prospective employer.

Understanding people and their “natural” (or thrust) behaviour style can go a long way to helping HR professionals streamline the recruitment of new employees. Research shows that poor behavioural fit with existing team members can lead to conflict and a significant drop in team and individual performance. So it’s a good idea to be able to interview not only for ability and attitude, but also for behavioural fit.

In a world devoid of loyalty from employees and customers, a new style of Leadership is imperative.

Gone are the days when people trusted and followed us on face value and because of position. With global access to information, critical thinking is the modern relationship currency.

Follow this SECRET to make the modern Leadership connection:

Last week I was waiting to check in at the airport and was confounded by the rudeness of fellow travellers toward the airline after a delay. This morning, while having a meeting at a coffee-shop at an upmarket mall, I noticed little kids throwing tantrums and being rude towards everyone in their immediate environment. Then I got back to my home-office where I was faced with more short-temperedness because I forgot to buy a new supply of coffee for the coffee machine.

Instead, I took everyone to our favourite coffee shop on the corner for a cappuccino. Noble I know, but my reason was much deeper than scoring brownie-points. Familiarity will cheer people up, while people will only embrace newness and novelty when they’re in a positive mood.

I woke up this morning to screen-shots and clips of Barack Obama’s SOTU speech and I’m still astounded that a year ago he was heralded by all in sundry as the saviour of the universe – but in true American style, the very folks that elevated him have been slating him. His ratings have been lower than GW’s!! But if we’re going to decide Leadership purely on ratings and number of votes, then perhaps American Idol wannabees can take a few lessons from Barack Obama. Here’s why.