Ho, Ho, Hold on a minute. The year is not done yet.

OK, so the silly season has officially begun. But before you go silly, let's have a serious discussion. Do you want 2015 to be a repeat of this year or something much, much better?

Many of us are about to put the cue in the rack and call 2014 a day. If we are not careful we might write this year off, go and have a break (and we should), then rock up back to work in 2015 and ... same ol' same ol'.

Use the next few weeks to set the next 12 months up to be not just good, but great. Here are a few ideas that you could commit to.

• Get your key people together for as long as you can manage - be that an hour or a day.
• Conduct a review of the last 12 months. List successes and failures. Go through the calendar, month by month, and list the highlights and low lights.
• Create a vision for 2015. Simply ask yourself this question - 'In December 2015, what do I want to be different to today?' List how you want things to be better this time next year.
• Prioritise the key result areas. Ask 'What are the five big ticket items for 2015?'
• List just three things you need to achieve in each of the five areas.

If you are able to do the above (and I assure you that you could have a real good crack at it in just 3-4 hours) you are setting up a great platform for success in 2015.

OK, so once you have done this, go silly!

THE SPEED OF THE LEADER IS THE SPEED OF THE GANG

The speed of the leader is the speed of the gang

Mary Kay Ash

As the leader (of the organisation, team or group) you are the pace setter. You are the one that others take their lead from. Are you currently on slo mo, fast forward or paused?

Cosmetics legend Mary Kay Ash, founder of the Mary Kay brand, said "the speed of the leader is the speed of the gang". The point she was making was that the leader sets the tone for the organisation. They are the one that must drive others towards the goals and ultimately the vision of the organisation.

Leaders should be bold, decisive and have a sense of urgency, but I want to sound a warning about speed. Not having a vision or a plan for how to get there can make some appear to be going fast but all they are really doing is behaving chaotically and randomly. This should not be mistaken for determined progress towards a clear, shared vision.

Leaders should be aware that their team members are observing their speed, their direction and their determination.

How fast are you going now?

"FOLLOW THE ADVICE IN THIS BOOK AND YOU'LL BE A BETTER LEADER"

"Follow the advice in this book and you'll be a better leader"

Wayne Bennett

I was really proud to have one of the most respected and accomplished leaders in Australia give the thumbs up to my book, 'Road Rules for Leadership'. Wayne Bennett is someone who I admire, mainly because of how he influences people with his simple, no nonsense leadership message.

I wrote the book to help you become a better leader. In my experience most people want to do better at leadership, many just don't know where to start. The book is a simple, practical guide to effective leadership, so if you want to be a better leader, start with it!

In 2015 I will be rolling out a brand new series of training programs and resources based on the 21 'road rules' contained in the book. The book is available both as a hard copy (click on 'buy the book' to get one) or as an ebook from Amazon or iTunes. Just search for the title.

 

Buy the book

I have had some interest in buying in bulk as a corporate gift or to give employees and I can offer a special price, so if you are interested contact me and we can discuss.

I hope you enjoy 'Road Rules for Leadership'.

Strong leaders aren't afraid to show weakness

Is it just me, or do you find it weird that some people try to create the illusion that

• they are always in control
• they are always right
• they are always confident
• they always know exactly what to do.

If you are a leader who promotes this illusion you are risking people not engaging with you. This could be because they know you are not perfect, but you still try to kid them that you are. Or, it could be that as a result of the 'perfect image' that you promote, they are intimidated by you. Either way, they are not likely to truly follow you.

Strong leaders aren't afraid to 

• admit they got it wrong, but they learn from the mistake and go again
• confess that they sometimes don't know what to do, but they ask for others' input
• reveal that they too sometimes second guess themselves
• ask for help.

Showing vulnerability from time to time will demonstrate your authenticity as a leader. People get that, they like that and they follow authentic leaders.

Your culture ... chaos or calm?

Successful organisations have a calmness around them. They are confident and focused. Struggling organisations tend to be chaotic and frenzied. What describes your culture – chaos or calm? 
 
In his book ‘Good to Great’, author Jim Collins talks about the five qualities he found in great organisations compared to organisations that were just good. Not surprisingly, leadership was one, followed by having the right people in the right positions. The other three are discipline, keeping it simple and building momentum gradually. Let's talk about these

Discipline. Struggling organisations lack discipline. There doesn’t seem to be anything controlling behaviour, be that procedures, policies or people. Successful organisations have people that follow guidelines that may be formal or informal, like culture. 
 
Keeping it simple. Underperforming companies allow things to become too complicated. Simple does not mean easy. In fact it is much harder to make things simple than to allow complexity to creep in. 

Build momentum gradually.  It seems that we are all in a constant rush. Time frames are shorter, deadlines are closer, things can’t happen fast enough for some. This sense of urgency sometimes forces us to rush, plan poorly and knee-jerk react if things aren’t going well. Organisations that plan well, know their environment and are confident, more patient and controlled. 

If you want to be more successful, less chaotic and calm, do these things.

1. Have systems, policies and procedures in place to guide, not choke behaviour. The most important thing here is to establish a strong positive culture where people feel like they are valued and belong.
2. Have a clear, shared vision for your organisation. Make sure people understand it and buy into it. Strive for simplicity in things like job descriptions, project overviews and overall communication.
3. Plan adequately and be clear about what you want everyone to do. Allow sufficient time frames for projects to bear fruit. Don’t change direction at the drop of a hat.

You might be wondering whose job it is to put these things in place. Of course it’s the role of the leader. Let us know if we can help.