Manage the Task, Not the Person

By: Ryan Scholz

In the early 1970’s Paul Hersey and Ken Blanchard developed one of the most popular and used leadership models which is called Situational Leadership. While I think a more appropriate name would have been situational management since it deals primarily with task execution, the model is still very relevant and useful today. I’ve had several situations while working with managers that we have used the model to help manage staff more effectively.

Leadership Personalities: Laid Back, Hesitant or Avoider?

By: Sylvia Lafair 

Jack was a boss who loved to let his leadership team tussle with issues and come to him when they had solved the problem. Often this worked. However when the team came to a stand still, when they had heels dug in and no solutions in site they would ask for his input.  Jack was a boss who loved to let his leadership team tussle with issues and come to him when they had solved the problem. Often this worked. However when the team came to a stand still, when they had heels dug in and no solutions in site they would ask for his input.

The Laws of Attraction Are Mysterious and Uncontrollable Submitted

By: Sandra Prior

 

Some crushes are inappropriate but excusable. For example, you may find yourself doing a double take when someone from the sales department walks past. He may be cute but it's not a good idea to admit you have a thing for him, because you work with him. And because he's a salesman. Still, at least he's hot. What happens when you find yourself going weak in the head for somebody who really is not in the slightest bit nice to look at?  Funny Guys
It's vaguely understandable when the object of your crush is attractive in other ways - for example, he could be funny. Take American talk-show host Conan O'Brien. (I would.) He looks a bit like Tilda Swinton, only more unsettling. He has ginger hair. He has no discernible eyebrows. He's about nine feet tall and can't weigh more than 65kg. But every time he gives the double thumbs up, grins into the camera and says 'Buddy boy,' I want to jump his bones. Funny is so sexy that it can make up for there being no actual sexy present at all.

3 Unconscious Habits That Kill Effective Communication

by John M Reisinger

The strategies we attempt to use for effective communication are filtered through our habits. Take a look at the arguments and frustrations you experience everyday. For most of us, 98% of them habitually breakdown in the same places. The breakdown points are intersections of a perceived outside trigger and our unconscious habits to react the way we do (visualize the co-worker who annoys you, your spouse's embarrassing behaviors, and the constant complaining of your children for a clearer picture).

Most people never examine their habits when they're trying to resolve conflicts, triggered into frustration, or become upset over innocent comments. Our habits tend to run us, like we're on automatic pilot just reacting to whatever turbulence we encounter. Still worse, unexamined habits prevent effective communication because we unintentionally inflame them by using strategies not coherent with our habits.

Tips, Tools and Techniques for Honing Your Public Speaking Skills

by Aileen Pincus

It's a stubborn myth that public speakers are born, not made.

While we assume climbing the corporate ladder or being in the public eye takes hard work, we cling to the notion that communication abilities come without effort, springing from the lucky few naturally.

Both Presidents Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton, widely regarded as 'natural' born communicators, worked continually to hone their 'natural' skills. Clinton worked with speech coaches throughout his presidency. Ronald Reagan famously said he couldn’t imagine being president without having been an actor.

It’s not just the communication skills of politicians that people notice. An executive who assumes a strong track record of accomplishment and the right connections will "speak for themselves" assumes wrongly. More often, the lack of communication ability will erode confidence in leadership abilities, and at the very least, become a stumbling block in accomplishing goals.