Tag Archive for positive thought

Don’t Let Excuses Destroy Your Momentum

Are excuses getting in your way? Another week is passing by and you’re no closer to reaching your goal. Or wish. Or dream! 
 
Here’s a gentle reminder from CHI FOR YOURSELF about excuses and what you can do about them. 
 
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ARTICLE:
 
 
Excuses. They’re some of the biggest momentum destroyers. But you can overcome the need to create excuses by keeping moving in the right direction.
 
The smallest actions toward achieving your goal can keep your momentum moving along.
 
You want your action to be consistent. This will keep momentum moving and your goals on track.
 
In time, your progress will become easier and your actions will be done without even thinking. You’ll enjoy the actions much more too. And you’ll become more enthused as you realize one success after another.
 
chalkboard excuses
 
Here are some common excuses. They’re often used to keep you from beginning or following through with a commitment:
 
Time constraints –
“I just have too much to do and can’t exercise (or whatever else you need to do). Everyone has the same amount of time, but they don’t set the proper priorities.
 
Decide what’s most important to you. Then take action after weeding out some of the less important tasks in your life.
 
It’s too difficult –
You may need to break down the goal into small steps so that you better understand and can complete it. Make it a point to study and analyze what you want and how to get it.
 
That may mean going back to school, but if you want it badly enough, it’s worthwhile.
 
Too old (or too young) –
Look at older folks. Some have accomplished what seemed like impossible feats in their later years.
 
And look at those who’ve reached phenomenal success at very young ages. If you have the will and commitment to gather the momentum you need – you’ll succeed.
 
The time isn’t right –
You might think you’ll do it when the kids are out of school, when you retire, or when your finances are in better shape.
 
Chances are, the time will never be quite right to begin the motions to reach your most lofty goals. Begin now – even in small increments – to create the momentum necessary to move you along.
 
What are some of the excuses you’ve used in the past? Did they keep you from completing a project or beginning the process to reach a goal?
 
Decide whether your excuse is valid or a momentum killer that’s holding you back.
 
JohnK 5-24-2018
 
 
 
 
 
Image for excusesOverheard:  “It is better to offer no excuse than a bad one.” 
                        ~ George Washington
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

How Much Exercise Do You Need Every Day To Lose Weight?

Warmer weather seems to be more conducive to exercise. Maybe you’re looking to break a sweat and lose a few pounds in the process.
 
GenuLines always supports good health, and managing your weight is a big part of that. 
 
Below are some things to keep in mind during your program. All the best!
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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How Much Exercise Do You Need Every Day To Lose Weight?

Weight loss requires both a disciplined dietary approach and exercise. Other factors are important too. But, how much exercise do you need to do?
 
There’s no magic number of minutes, reps or hours needed to produce weight loss. Rather there are variables that you have to consider to reach the right numbers.
 
Here are some options to help you come up with an exercise time frame that works best for you.
 
Variable 1: Calories Consumed and Calorie Quality
 
The first principle of weight loss is that to lose weight you must reach a caloric deficit. This means burning more calories than you’re consuming.
 
barbell for exercise
 
So, to know the amount of exercise needed to lose weight, you need to know your daily caloric intake. Just as important are the sources of those calories.
 
For example, vegetables versus potato chips. If you function on a low-calorie diet you’ll need less exercise to lose weight.
 
You may be fine with a moderate 3-4 day a week training plan. If you eat large amounts of food you’ll need to up your exercise plan.
 
Variable 2: Exercise Type and Intensity
 
The second key variable is the type and intensity of exercise. 20 minutes on the elliptical has a far different energy output than 20 minutes of all-out sprinting.
 
kettle bells for exercise
 
This variable can also dovetail with our first variable. The greater the calorie consumption, the more energy for high-intensity exercise. Otherwise, you may not need to exercise for an especially long time or at a high intensity.
 
In general, aerobic-intensive exercise is different. It requires a longer time to see any sort of effective impact on weight loss.
 
Jogging, biking, the elliptical or other options eat up more time. This could consume hours over the course of a week before you see a meaningful impact.
 
Anaerobic activities will be more effective in a shorter amount of time. These include sprinting, resistance training or interval training methods.
 
But, their intensity level is much higher. So, you’ll need a certain level of fitness to get the full potential and results.
 
Variable 3: What is the Weight Loss Goal?  How much time do we have to achieve it?
 
The third variable is arguably the most important. Think of your car ride or travel plans.
 
They’re determined by your destination. Your exercise plan and weight loss journey will be dictated by the goal we have set. If the goal is to lose 5 pounds in two months, that is a fairly modest and achievable goal for most.
 
If you’re a sedentary person you would only need to exercise 20-30 minutes a day for 3-4 days a week to achieve this goal.
 
Conversely, if your goal is to lose 30 pounds in two months, the equation is quite different. This would involve more hours every day at high intensity to achieve that same goal.
 
Putting it All Together: Finding the Right Number
 
We’ve examined the variables. Now we can consider how much exercise we need per day to lose weight.
 
jogging for exercise
 
Let’s say you have a low caloric intake, low-intensity aerobic exercise, and a modest goal.
 
You might be O.K. with 30-45 minutes of aerobic exercise a day. Not so if you love to eat, love to lift weights and also have an ambitious goal for weight loss.
 
You’re going to have to spend considerable time every day working out to reach those goals. Your best bet would be to assess your starting point as compared to your goal.
 
Look at how much time you have to reach that goal. Then make your plan to reach it.
 
This is a better bet than relying on a standard number or cookie-cutter approach.
 
JohnK 5-16-2018
 
 
 
 
 
 
Image for exerciseOverheard: ”Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.”
                           ~ George Bernard Shaw
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Breaking Up With Busy: This Week on CHI FOR YOURSELF

 

Being busy has become a status symbol in society. Overworking and under-sleeping are two of the byproducts of this. But what does all the busyness accomplish?

Yvonne Tally on busynessOur scheduled guest on this week’s CHI FOR YOURSELF has written a book that shows you how to reclaim your time and get off the busyness hamster wheel.

Yvonne Tally is the author of Breaking Up with Busy: Real-Life Solutions for Overscheduled Women.

 

 

Be with us for the interview with Yvonne Tally on Thursday, May 10th, at 4 pm Eastern, 1 pm Pacific time at chiforyourself.com

 

 

JohnK 5-9-2018

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Feeling Hungry? Get A Plan!

Picture this. You come home from work stressed, exhausted, and hungry. You decide that tonight might be a great night to order in.
 
Hungry woman
 
Do you find yourself doing this two or three times a week because your life is so busy? The scenario isn’t meant to shame, Most of us have been there.
 
Life doesn’t stop because your day has been crazy busy.
 
 
 
 
The kids still need to eat. The laundry still needs to get done. And you still have a night of balancing your checkbook ahead of you.
 
Let’s be honest, who would have time to even think about cooking with a schedule like that? This is where the importance of planning comes in.
 
When you’re able to plan your meals ahead of time you won’t need to hit that drive-thru window. You’ll already have your dinner ready, all you need to do is heat it. With everything already in place, you can focus on other things while your food is cooking.
 
Taking one or two hours a week to plan your meals might seem like a hassle. But this can save you hours in the future.
 
Doing something once a week is a lot easier than doing it several times a week. One trip to the grocery store and one afternoon in the kitchen. This can produce an entire week of meals for your family.
 
But planning your meals is only the beginning. You can also plan your trip to the grocery store.
 
What was once a headache can be a breeze when you have a categorized list in front of you. Make an Excel spreadsheet and list your grocery categories in bold, (frozen, produce, meats, etc.).
 
Then put each item under the appropriate category and print it out. Now you have an easy-to-use, focused list that will keep you on track.
 
And, your printout can be a template for your future grocery lists.
 
JohnK 5-2-2018
 
 
 
 
 
Image for hungryOverheard: “True healthcare reform starts in your kitchen, not in Washington”  
                        ~Anonymous
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Bringing Change To Your Life: Ya Gotta Want It!

Bringing change to our lives is great conversation fodder. But, are we really doing what it takes to bring about change?

Today’s article will give you some ideas to kick-start the process of changing your life.

Julie Simon on changeWhile we’re on the subject of change, I hope you had a chance to hear the CHI FOR YOURSELF interview with Julie Simon. Our topic was emotional eating. Getting an upper hand on that tendency can bring major change to your life.

 

You can listen to the show by clicking on below:

radio logo for change

 

 

Some of the talking points from the interview:

  • Emotional eating defined
  • Julie Simon’s experience as an emotional eater
  • Re-wiring the brain for better eating
  • Weight loss as a New Year resolution
  • Emotional eating: women and men

 

 

Subscribe to GenuLines- get CHI FOR YOURSELF guest information and more!

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ARTICLE

People often say that they have at least one wish or desire to change something about their lives. Unfortunately, they often don’t move to change this.

They’ll say that their reason for not attaining their goal is lack of motivation. Then there are those who would say this is a lack of effort rather than a lack of motivation.

Let’s take a look at some reasons why people don’t put the effort into making a lifestyle change.

1. Lack of a reason

To make any type of change in your life you need to have a good reason to do so. Having a goal is wonderful but the reason you have to reach that goal fuels your decision.

Those reasons could include attracting more money for a move to a new location. or for funding more opportunities.

2. Setting too large a goal

Weight loss is a perfect example. If you want to lose 70 pounds don’t focus on this amount.

Instead, you can set smaller goals, say 7 pounds a month. That can help you stay on task.

If you meet this goal in less time that’s great. If you’re struggling, don’t give up. Refocus and set your next monthly goal at 5 pounds.

3. No vision

Having a vision of what you want is a great way to stay motivated. This is why it’s smart to keep track of your goals.

You can do this in various ways, depending on your goal. If that goal is to lose weight then keep photos and images of your progress.

If it’s another type of goal you might want to keep a journal or blog about your journey.

This way you can see what you are struggling with and what you’re accomplishing.

4. Lack of Support

Not having a support network can hurt your efforts to bring change to your life. Getting support from family and friends can be a big boost toward realizing your goals.

Put these four factors into practice. You’ll find that you have both more drive and more commitment.

And, you’ll finally start making those lifestyle changes you’ve dreamed about.

JohnK 4-25-2018
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Image for overheard for changeOverheard: “There is no man living that can not do more than he thinks he can.”
            ~ Henry Ford

 

 

 

Subscribe to GenuLines- get CHI FOR YOURSELF guest information and more!

 

 

Boost Your Confidence by Making Better Decisions

You’re starting another week. Another week of decisions you’ll need to make. But somehow those decisions don’t get made.
 
It’s one of the more frustrating situations you (and those around you) can face. You can’t seem to make a decision and stick to it.
signpost toward decision
There can be many reasons why you lack the confidence to make decisions in your life.
 
As a child your parents may have made all your decisions for you. And you weren’t supposed to question them..
 
Or it could be that you don’t like the pressure decision making puts on you. You question whether you’re making the right decision. And you’re fearful about how your decision will affect others.
 
You may feel very anxious at the thought of having to make a decision.
 
Here are a few ways to recognize if you’re someone who lacks the confidence to make  decisions:
 
You would rather have someone else make the decision for you –
 
Passing the decision-making process to another could show a lack of confidence.
 
You never make a decision –
 
Other people may be relying on you for a decision, but you let weeks or months slide by without deciding.
 
When you do make a decision, you second-guess yourself –
 
This is another demonstration of lack of confidence in your abilities.
 
Regardless of what led to an inability to trust yourself you can become better if you work at it.
 
Here are some ideas for improving your confidence and making good decisions.
 
Make an “unofficial” decision –
 
This is a decision that’s not yet set in stone. Make a decision, and live with that decision for a day.
 
For example, you’ve decided to upgrade to a bigger house, and you have the money saved up. You find a house that you really like that fits all the criteria you want in a bigger house.
 
It has a big yard, a deck, and an attached garage. But, you have trouble making decisions.
 
You may find that you try to talk yourself out of it. You begin to worry how you’ll afford it, the increased heating and cooling costs, and so forth.
 
This is where it can help to make an “unofficial” decision. You have to decide that you will or will not move.
 
Pick one, and live with that decision for a day. Convince yourself that the decision is a real one.
 
Then see how your decision makes you feel. This can be a good way to test decisions before making them official.
 
Knowing that you can still change your mind, if it doesn’t feel right, can be comforting.
 
Recognize decisions that are reversible –
 
For example, you’re having a tough time choosing a color of house paint. Start by picking some swatches. Then make a decision rather than fretting over the perfect color.
 
If you start painting and don’t like the color you can just reverse course and choose another color.
 
Ask yourself: what is the worst that can happen? –
 
Not all decisions are life altering. If you begin by making small decisions (like choosing which movie to go to) your confidence can grow as time goes on. You’ll be better positioned to make bigger decisions as time passes.
 
Write down the pros and cons of each decision you are considering –
 
It might help if you put your ideas on paper. List what you like and don’t like about them.
 
Seeing rather than only thinking about the options can make it easier to come to a decision.
 
 
 
 
 
 
man making decisionOverheard:  “To change a habit, make a conscious decision, then act out the new behavior.”

                       ~Maxwell Maltz
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Put The Brakes on Complaining

Young man complainingAnother Monday morning, and it’s a great time for complaining. Gotta wake up so early. Traffic is always a mess. This job is the worst.
 
You may not have a lot of options for improving your situation right now. But, you can change how you look at it
 
This is especially true if you’re a complainer. Let’s look at some ways to ratchet down the tendency to complain.
 
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How To Avoid Complaining
 
Remember the phrase from the poem Solitude, by Ella Wheeler Wilcox? The line is, “Laugh, and the world laughs with you; weep and you weep alone”.
 
The same can be said for complaining. If you’re a chronic complainer, you may want to rethink that tendency.
 
One problem with complaining is that too much of it becomes less effective over time. Are you really unhappy with every situation you’re presented with?
 
It could be a sign that you have other negative situations going on in your life. You need to choose your battles, as they say.
 
Let’s say you have several situations that make you unhappy. Pick the one you most want to focus on for improvement.
 
It will be easier to get your point across if you limit the frequency of your complaints.
 
There’s a right time to complain. But it should be done in the context of offering up alternatives.
 
Be part of the solution and not part of the problem. If you only offer a complaint, how is that helping solve the problem?
 
Offering solutions will show your willingness to have a stake in solving the problem.
 
A good approach is to come up with more than one solution whenever possible. This will help get more people to see your side of the story.
 
If you’re someone who complains a lot, take a step back. Think about others who are chronic complainers as well.
 
How did you react to their constant stream of complaints? Did you think to yourself that the person should try to help solve the problem?
 
If you answered yes to this last question, this is how others are thinking when you complain.
 
Complainers often feel like no one’s listening to them, usually with good reason. And the increased frustration could lead to their alienation from the group.
 
This is not a good situation. Management could be more likely to let the complainers go. Or the complainers might take it upon themselves to leave.
 
Complaining is considered negative thinking, but it’s a changeable habit.
 
Begin that change by shifting from negative to positive thoughts.
 
Your peers will likely find fewer faults with you. And they won’t go out of their way to avoid you if you maintain a positive attitude.
 
If you find that you complain a lot and people are avoiding you it may be time for some changes.
 
JohnK 3-26-2018
 
 
 
 
 
Image for overheard for changeOverheard:  “When you change the way you look at things, the things     
you look at change.”        

                            ~ Max Planck

              
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Change, The Power Of Self Development, And This Week’s CHI FOR YOURSELF

Corrine Zupko picture of changeThis week’s episode of CHI FOR YOURSELF takes a look at fear, anxiety, and A Course In Miracles. We’ll welcome Corinne Zupko. She was challenged by anxiety at an early age.
 
But she found a way to heal from rather than just coping with fear and anxiety. That way included A Course in Miracles
 
 
 
 
Corinne Zupko is the author of  From Anxiety to Love: A Radical New Approach for Letting Go of Fear and Finding Lasting Peace
 
Hear the interview on Thursday, March 22nd at 4 pm Eastern, 1 pm Pacific time at chiforyourself.com
 
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ARTICLE:

 
Unlock Your Power Of Self Development
 
Life is about change. Even when we’re not aware of it.
 
An honest look at ourselves can assure that the changes take us in positive directions. But the honesty can be difficult since it requires perspective.
 
If you look at a painting too closely you might not be able to appreciate it. Back up a bit and you get a clearer vision of the whole artwork. You see it in perspective.
 
Life can sneak up on you with hints that might help you unlock your power of self- improvement. But until you’re ready for change you won’t see them. And the ready point may happen when you hit rock bottom.
 
It’s a little like the well-known frog principle. If you try placing a frog in a pot of boiling water, what happens? He jumps right out. Why?
 
Because he is not able to tolerate sudden change in his environment. He knows that water is too hot for him.
 
But put him in cooler water then turn the gas on and he won’t move. The water gets hotter and hotter until it’s boiling. You know how the story ends.
 
Your situation may be like the frog’s. You stay comfortable in a bad situation. You may think that one more cigarette or drink won’t hurt. You find yourself addicted and you can’t stop.
 
Pain teaches us lessons. Pain that is strong enough to make us see that our comfort zone is not so comfortable anymore.
 
We can ignore the warning signals for a long time, but finally, something hits home. 
 
When do we realize that we need to change diets? When none of our jeans and shirts fit us.
 
When do we stop drinking sugary sodas all day? When every visit to the dentist reveals that we need painful work.
 
When do we realize that we need to stop smoking? When we develop a cough that will not go away.
 
When do we pray and ask for help? Sometimes, not until we know we are about to die.
 
It’s not easy to change. But change becomes more painful when we ignore it.
 
Change will happen, like it or not.
 
Happy people accept and embrace change. You don’t have to feel unbearable pain before realizing the need for self-improvement.
 
Self-development may not be everybody’s favorite pastime. But if we look at things from a different point of view, we might have a greater chance of enjoying the whole process.
 
Enjoy the process of unlocking your power of self-development. Then expect a better experience of happiness.
 
JohnK 3-21-2018
 
 
 
Image for overheard for changeOverheard: “Intelligence is the ability to adapt to change.”

            ~Stephen Hawking

 
 
 
 
 
 

A Conscious Approach to Good Leadership

 
Linda Kohanov picture on leadershipThis week I want to finish up our look at leadership. If you didn’t hear the CHI FOR YOURSELF interview with Linda Kohanov ( author of The Five Roles of a Master Herder: A Revolutionary Model for Socially Intelligent Leadership) you can click on here and start the player on the page.
 
 
 
 
Here’s a look at some of the features of a good leader. Could this be you?
 
ARTICLE:
 
Do you get frustrated at work when things don’t seem to be happening the way you think they’re supposed to? You see people milling around but nothing gets accomplished.
 
And in the daily hustle and bustle, do you feel that your goals remain only goals? Then it might be time for you to stand up and do something about it. Most people are content to stand around waiting for orders. It isn’t unusual to adopt a follow-the-leader mentality.
 
But it could be that somewhere inside of you, you feel the desire to make things happen – to be the head, not the tail. Leadership might be a good fit for you. There’s a saying- “great leaders are made, not born.” Yes, it may be true that some people are born with natural talents.
 
But, leadership doesn’t develop without practice, drive, enthusiasm, and experience.
 
And, good leaders continuously work and study to improve their natural skills. This takes a commitment toward constant improvement.
 
First of all, let’s define leadership. To be a leader, one must be able to influence others to work toward a result. He or she contributes to the organization and cohesion of a group.
 
Contrary to what many people believe, leadership isn’t about power. It’s not about harassing people or driving them using fear.
 
It’s about motivating others toward the goals of the organization. It’s getting everyone on the same page and helping them see the big picture.
 
Aim to be a leader, not a boss. You have to get people to follow your lead. How is this accomplished? People follow when they see that the leader has a clear sense of purpose. People will follow you if they see that you know where you’re going.
 
Remember that bumper sticker? The one that says, ‘Don’t follow me, I’m lost too’? The same holds true for leadership.
 
If you yourself don’t know where you’re headed, chances are people will not follow. You must understand the vision and mission of the organization.
 
Have a clear sense of hierarchy. Know who the bosses are. Who to talk to, and the organization’s goals and objectives and how it works. Being a leader is not about what you make others do. It’s about who you are, what you know, and what you do.
 
Studies show that a basis of good leadership is the trust and confidence of those you’re leading. If they trust you they’ll likely go through hell and high water for you and for the organization.
 
Trust and confidence are built on good relationships, trustworthiness, and high ethics. The strength of your relationships will build faith in your capabilities.
 
Communication is key to good leadership. You must be clear when you impart your knowledge and technical expertise. As a good leader, you’ll want to have sound judgment.
 
You must be able to assess situations, weigh the pros and cons of any decision, and actively seek out a solution.
 
It’s this judgment that those you lead will come to rely upon. So, good decision-making is vital to the success of your organization.
 
Leaders are not do-it-all heroes. Don’t claim to know everything, and don’t rely on your skills alone.
 
Recognize and take advantage of the skills and talents of your personnel. This way you’ll be able to work as one cohesive unit. Remember, being a leader takes a good deal of work and time. It is not learned overnight.
 
Remember, also, that it is not about just you. It’s about you and the people around you. So, do you have the drive and the desire to serve required of leaders? Do you have the desire to work cooperatively with other people?
 
Then start now. Take your stand and be the leader today.
 
JohnK 3-14-2018
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Have You “Herd?”- Animals Can Teach Us Leadership

Linda Kohanov picture on leadershipOur guest (Linda Kohanov) adapts horse-inspired insights into powerful tools for developing collaborative leadership and managing change.

Over thousands of years, Kohanov writes, “master herders” of nomadic herding cultures developed a multi-faceted, socially intelligent form of leadership combining the five roles of Dominant, Leader, Sentinel, Nurturer / Companion, and Predator.

 

Linda Kohanov is the author of  The Five Roles of a Master Herder: A Revolutionary Model for Socially Intelligent Leadership. 

Some talking points from the show:

  • Features of socially intelligent leadership
  • A definition of “master herder”
  • Master herder roles in the working world
  • Human and animal interaction
  • Animals and their work in entertaining humans

Listen to the interview by clicking on below:


 

logo for leadership

 
 …and you can read more about leadership styles here:

 

   ARTICLE:

Why You Might Be Failing At Leadership

By  

   Expert Author Cillin David Hearns          I remember getting my very first leadership opportunity. I was thrilled because this is what I’d been working towards for many years and boy oh boy did I suck!

I thought I understood all I needed to know because, after all, I’d read all the books and gave an awesome interview so why was I floundering so badly?

I couldn’t understand why my team wasn’t jumping on board and hanging onto my every word. It was at this point that I was firmly pressed up against reality and I quickly realized that I didn’t have the skills that I thought I had.

My boss, who seemed quite successful in building a team, told me that the team had to want to follow me and that no title was going to give me that. That’s where his advice ended, not because he was short on giving advice, but because he didn’t understand what made him a good leader and he, through no fault of his own, lacked the skills to grow leaders under him.

It was like being thrown into a pool to learn to swim but no one was there to teach me. Looking back it was largely this experience that led me on the journey to discover what makes great leaders. I was no longer satisfied with the theory alone, I wanted to the tools to grow a team and to be able to lead them to be high performers.

As you’ve often heard me say in the past, the first step is awareness of yourself and, in this instance, awareness of your default leadership style. We all have a default and with every style there are positives and negatives in how they are used and there are also specific times when each style should be ‘consciously’ drawn upon.

More on this later but for now, let’s look at the different core leadership styles.

Debate is common about which leadership style is most effective. The answer, of course,… it all depends. ~ Thomas Kohntopp

Visionary Leadership Style

The Visionary Leader moves people towards a shared dream/vision. This style is particularly effective when a business is adrift-it comes naturally to transformational leaders, those who seek to radically change an organization.

Of all the leadership styles, this style appears to be the most strongly positive. Examples of Visionary Leaders include Martin Luther King, John F. Kennedy, and Barrack Obama.

The key personality traits of these leaders are empathy, self-confidence, and honesty/integrity and they act as a change agent and are big on transparency.

A note of caution: This style can fail when the leader is working with a team of experts or peers who are more experienced than he/she and may be viewed as someone with a grand vision or someone who is misaligned with the existing agenda. It can cause cynicism which can lead to poor performance.

The leader can come across as overbearing and can undermine the spirit of the team.

Coaching Leadership Style

The Coaching Leader connects what a person wants with the organization’s goals. This is a highly positive leadership style. The focus is less so on the “bottom-line” but tends to promote loyalty and a strong culture which, in an indirect way, leads to “bottom-line” results.

The personality traits of this style of leader are emotional self-awareness, empathy, rapport building, and listening. When done well, coaching improves the team member’s capabilities, self-confidence, autonomy, and performance.

This style is the most lacking in leaders. Having a deep conversation with a team member goes beyond the immediate short-term concerns and instead explores a person’s life, including dreams, life goals, and career hopes… this takes time and effort.

A note of caution: When executed poorly the coaching approach can look more like micromanaging or excessive control of the team member. This can impact on the team member’s self-confidence and be detrimental to performance.

Affiliative Leadership Style

The Affiliative Leader creates harmony by connecting people to each other. This leadership style has a positive impact on the environment.

It heightens team harmony, increases morale, improves communication and repairs broken trust in an organization. This leadership style tends to value people and their feelings-putting less emphasis on accomplishing tasks and goals, and more on team member’s emotional needs.

They strive to keep people happy, to create harmony and to build team resonance. But, it should not be used alone.

When coupled with the Visionary Leadership Style it can be a highly potent combination. This style is best used to heal rifts in a team, motivate during stressful times, or strengthen connections.

A note of caution: When using this style alone poor performance can go uncorrected and lead to a culture of mediocrity.

Democratic Leadership Style

The Democratic Leader values people’s input and gets commitment through participation. It has a positive impact on the environment and keeps morale high by spending time one-on-one and in meetings listening to the concerns of team members.

The democratic approach works best when the leader is uncertain about what direction to take and needs ideas from able employees. Even if there is a strong vision, this style works well to surface ideas about how to implement that vision or to generate fresh ideas for executing it.

Please Note: In order for this to be effective, team members have to be well-informed and competent. This approach should not be used in times of crisis and when urgent events demand on-the-spot decisions.

A note of caution: Over-reliance on this style can be exasperating leading to endless meetings to gain consensus, delayed decision making, confusion and lack of direction leading to delays and escalating conflicts.

The next couple of leadership styles, although they have their place, need to be used sparingly and because of the incorrect use of these, they are deemed highly negative… I’m speaking from experience here!

Pace-Setting Leadership Style

The Pace Setting Leader meets challenging and exciting goals. Because this style is frequently poorly executed, it has a highly negative impact on the environment.

When used excessively or in the wrong setting, team members can feel pushed too hard, morale drops and the result is discord. This style works well with a team of highly competent, motivated individuals who need little direction and it makes sense during the entrepreneurial/growth phase of a company.

It can also be effective for short deadlines but continued high pressure can lead to increased anxiety and a drop in performance.

This approach is synonymous with the leader needing to dive into the detail, reluctant to delegate and taking over from others who are not performing (rather trusting they could improve with guidance). The continued high pressure can constrict innovative thinking.

The underlying foundational characteristics of this style include the drive to achieve, a high initiative to seize opportunities, striving to increase their own performance and those of their team.

Leaders who default to this style are motivated, not by external rewards, but by a strong need to meet their own high standards of excellence. Use with caution!

Commanding Leadership Style

The Commanding Leadership Style soothes fears by giving clear direction in an emergency. This is the least effective style in most situations.

This style contaminates the team’s mood and impacts performance, feedback tends to focus on what people did wrong. It is useful, however, in a crisis, to kick-start a turnaround, or with problem employees (when all else fails).

The Commanding Leadership Style undermines the ability to give people the sense that their job fits into a grand, shared mission. This leads to people feeling less committed (even alienated) from their jobs and thinking, “Why does any of this matter?”

It comes from the old military command and control hierarchies used in the twentieth century… interestingly enough, this style is now even cross-pollinated with other styles in the modern military. Again, use with caution!

As you can see, each style has it’s uses and can be effective when applied at the right times. Each style also has its drawbacks and it’s useful to be aware of these too.

Earlier I mentioned that ‘each style should be consciously drawn on’ and by this, I mean that in order to be an effective leader you have to rely more on a range of leadership styles and apply them intelligently rather than just having your default style.

If I was to ask a project manager why they included a section on Risk Management in their project management plan I expect them to be able to tell me. In the same manner, if I was to ask you why you choose to behave one way under certain conditions and another under other conditions I would expect you to be able to articulate the leadership style you are consciously applying and why.

Don’t leave your leadership development to chance. Consciously take control of it and become the best leader you can be!

I wish I knew about the importance of flexing my leadership style back then, it would’ve made a world of a difference.

Knowing what you know now: What’s your default leadership style? What are the challenges you face with your team and what style would be most appropriate in this situation?

Knowing what you know now: You don’t have to have a title to lead. How can you apply these styles in what you do? What styles do you recognize in your peers and leaders in your organization and what impact do they have on their teams?

If you’d like to know more about how you can embed this powerful principle into your life, or if you’d like to learn a little more about what coaching can offer you, please contact us at any time for a free consultation:

e: results@setantaconsulting.com

m: +64 (0) 21 592 445

Skype: SetantaCoach

http://www.setantaconsulting.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Cillin_David_Hearns/1376757

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9099238

 

 

JohnK 3-7-2018

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