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The following framework was developed in response to the district's Five Year Strategic Plan.

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https://www.forbes.com/sites/susankalla/2012/04/02/10-leadership-tips-from-steve-jobs/#137c5d95667f

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Steve Jobs, founder of and Pixar was an iconic leader who invented the Macintosh computer, a PC for the masses. He went on to create the music players and mobile phones that everyone loved, and his tiny cellphones were packed with so much processing power, they operated like miniature Macs. With a foray into computer animations with Pixar, he developed Toy Story, such a high quality movie that industry-leader Disney snapped up the company. Jobs' final innovation was the iPad, tablet computer to displace the PC. Jobs wanted a tool to expand the brain's processing power with all the world's information available on a small screen. He wasn't afraid to cannibalize his own products.

His inventions were disruptive to the retail and media industries, which lost to the Apple ecosystem as commerce moved to the web. Consumers thundered for Apple products, and the company's financials reflected leadership in the public markets. Under the watch of Steve Jobs, Apple was one of the most successful companies in history.

Jobs won over an entire planet with stunning designs, technically complex and yet simple to use. The devices were remarkable yet elegant, each with an endearing touch of humor. To keep the lead in innovation, Jobs pushed suppliers for new benchmarks then adopted the first breakthrough. He led a small band of talented engineers inside the company to come up with new applications once they ratcheted up performance.

Job's Eastern beliefs set him apart from Western leaders and allowed him to focus on a vision rather than reality. Spirituality combined with intensity allowed him to "Think Different," or imagine a new order of things that others could not see. Rave reviews for his new products led wishful buyers to line up around the block to buy them. The phenomenal demand was unmatched by the competitors.

The 10 Lessons of Steve Jobs are excerpts from Walter Isaacson's, "The Real Lessons of Steve Jobs," published in the Harvard Business Review, April 2012 (hbr.org/2012/04/the-real-leadership-lessons-of-steve-jobs/ar/1). Isaacson gives 14 lessons.
1. Simplify
Jobs' aspirations for Zen simplicity shined through when he eliminated the on/off button on the iPod. The music player gradually powered down and turned off, and then it flashed on again with just a swipe. Jobs had to write complex software and push the limits of processing power to handle all the instructions that made the user interface seem simple.

Jobs excelled at designing minimalist devices that broke barriers in computer speeds. His systems could stand alone or work together in an interconnected ecosystem-like an iPod connected to a Mac connected to an iTunes store. Apple could manage vast amounts of information through division of labor among the systems. For example, the Mac controlled system administration while iTunes fetched content from cloud storage, freeing the device to concentrate on playing the music.

Later, Jobs set his sights on redesigning the mobile phone. He would grab a competitor's phone and rant the functions were incomprehensible and the address book was indecipherable. His iPhone set a new standard for smartphones, making them into miniaturized computers. The iPhone's small touch screen was the test case for the iPad, Apple's tablet computer, and proved there was a big market for teeny mobile computers. At the end of his career, Jobs rethought TVs with a new navigation system to access any video content on the web. He dreamed up ways to make television more personal.
2. Control the Experience
Apple took full responsibility for the product from end-to-end. Every aspect of the hardware was analyzed carefully, from each component to the overall look. Likewise, he considered the user experience in every line of code and each salesperson in the Apple stores. Jobs' obsession with "the whole widget" reflected his passion for perfection. He used his powerful magnetic personality to motivate thousands. Apple's model of a closed and proprietary system was consistent with his controlling personality and set Apple apart from open-source competitors.
3. Innovate
Innovators change the game rules to reinvent industries. Jobs noticed people were burning CDs on their personal computers from content on-line. The Mac could manage videos and photos but it could not record CDs. Jobs thought he had missed an opportunity in on-line entertainment. But, he rethought the concept and developed an ecosystem that transformed the entertainment industry with iTunes software and the iTunes Store. He made it simple to buy and manage music from one website and store it on an iPod or computer. After the success of the iPod, Jobs made more breakthroughs in operating systems, processing and memory and then figured out how to add wireless voice to create the iPhone.
4. Ignore Reality
Jobs' ability to push the impossible was called his Reality Distortion Field, after an episode of Star Trek in which aliens create an alternative reality through sheer will. An early example was when Jobs was on the night shift at Atari and pushed Steve Wozniak to create a game called Breakout. Woz said it would take months, but Jobs stared at him and insisted he could do it in four days. Woz ended up doing it.
5. Have Confidence
When he took the iPhone on a trial run, Jobs found the plastic display scratched easily, so he decided the front needed to be glass. had developed a chemical process in the 1960s called Gorilla glass that was highly resistant to scratches. So, Jobs called Corning's CEO Wendell Weeks and ordered a huge shipment of Gorilla glass for delivery in six months. Corning had stopped making the glass years before and transitioned the factory to LCD displays, so Weeks told Jobs it would be impossible to make the glass in volume. "You can deliver, don't be afraid," Jobs insisted. A stunned Weeks unfamiliar with the Reality Distortion Field tried to explain a false sense of confidence would not trump the product's engineering challenges. Yet, Jobs was unmoved. He stared unblinking at Weeks and said, "Yes, you can do it. Get your mind around it. You can do it." An astonished Weeks called the managers of Corning's Kentucky facility making the LCD displays and told them to convert to Gorilla glass immediately. "We delivered in under six months," Weeks said.

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Steve Jobs, founder of Apple and Pixar was an iconic leader who invented the Macintosh computer, a PC for the masses. He went on to create the music players and mobile phones that everyone loved, and his tiny cellphones were packed with so much processing power, they operated like miniature Macs.

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https://www.forbes.com/sites/johnbaldoni/2015/11/21/shonda-rhimes-saying-no-to-say-yes/#592f0e8136c5

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I don't read work emails after 7 p.m. or on weekends. And if you work for me, may I suggest you put down your phone?
Those words are included in the salutation line of all emails from Shonda Rhimes. As the writer and executive producer of Grey's Anatomy and Scandal and executive producer of How to Get Away with Murder - ABC TV's Thursday night lineup -- Rhimes receives some 2500 emails daily, not including spam. She also does not take after-hours work calls.

As she told Terry Gross on NPR's Fresh Air, Rhimes budgets her time wisely. "Work will happen 24 hours a day, 365 days a year if you let it." Rhimes was determined to exert herself over her schedule. "It suddenly occurred to me that unless I just say, 'That's not going to happen,' it was always going to happen. ... Since turning off my phone at 7 p.m., there's never been a thing so urgent that I regret having my phone off." Rhimes also expects her staff to do the same; she wants them to live their own lives away from work.

In her new book, , Rhimes revealed on Fresh Air that her way of budgeting time was to say no to everything but work in order to spend more time at home. Attending Hollywood events or going out socially made her uncomfortable. What's more, Rhimes is a single mother of three.

In time Rhimes changed her stripes and began to say yes to interviews, guest appearances and social engagements. At the same time Rhimes did not surrender her power of no. She has learned to use it as a negotiating tool as well as a form of self-assertion. This form of control gave her a sense of liberation; she can live the professional and personal life she desires.

A key to Rhimes executive success is delegation; she insists that people she trusts can make decisions related to the shows. This gives Rhimes the time to be creative as well as strategic in order to write and produce three network television shows. Together with her team she needs to focus on story lines and characters. She also must be the advocate for her shows to ABC, balancing creativity with the limits of Broadcast Standards and Practices.

Rhimes's lessons are insightful for any executive. The most valuable resource a good executive employs is her time. She must husband it wisely. Learning to say no to what it not important as well as yes to what is may come easily to some people. When you are in an executive position, demands on your time escalate. People always want you to make decisions, and after all that's what good executives are paid to do.

Very importantly executives need time to think about the decisions they make as well as the strategic direction of their function and organization. Time only becomes available when you limit what you do. Executives are comfortable budgeting dollars but some are less proficient when budgeting for time. In reality an executive's time is money so it is important to husband it shrewdly.

Executives I know put strict limits on meetings they will attend as well as the length of those meetings. They also make time for their people by dispensing with routine administrative chores in favor of people time. You can delegate busywork; you cannot assign face-time to anyone but yourself. That's a leader's job.

Learning to say no is not being negative. It is, as Shonda Rhimes attests, a way of freeing yourself to do what is most important.

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I don't read work emails after 7 p.m. or on weekends. And if you work for me, may I suggest you put down your phone? Those words are included in the salutation line of all emails from Shonda Rhimes. As the writer and executive producer of Grey's Anatomy and Scandal and executive producer of [...]

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Grey's Anatomy creator Shonda Rhimes gets leadership prize

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Grey's Anatomy creator Shonda Rhimes gets leadership prize

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http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-30429258

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Grey's Anatomy creator Shonda Rhimes has been honoured with a leadership award at the Hollywood Reporter's annual Women in Entertainment event.

The writer-director-producer was recognised for "breaking through the industry glass ceiling as a woman and an African American".

Rhimes is also behind hits Scandal and How to Get Away with Murder.

Previous recipients include Oprah Winfrey, Dame Helen Mirren, Meryl Streep and Barbara Walters.

In a recorded message, First Lady Michelle Obama praised Rhimes, adding she was an avid fan of Scandal, which is set in Washington DC.

"She's created strong characters that reflect who we are are as a country," she said.

"[Shonda] has proven that successful TV shows can be built around and by women, and she's paving the way for our next generation."

Accepting her award, Rhimes said she thought her recognition had been a mistake.

"I haven't broken through any glass ceilings," she said.

"If I had I would have felt some cuts, I would have some bruises. How come I don't remember that happening? Here's why: it's 2014."

The writer paid tribute to her female predecessors, who she said helped pave the way for her success - both as a black woman and a woman in the entertainment industry.

"How many women had to hit that glass before the first crack appeared? I didn't have to fight that hard. When I finally hit that ceiling it just exploded into dust - my sisters before me had already handled it," she said.

"Making it through the glass ceiling was simply running on the path created by every other woman's footprint.

"I'm proud and honoured to receive this award because it was a group effort. I want to thank all the women in this room and all the women who never made it to this room."

Rhimes began her career writing the 1999 TV movie Introducing Dorothy Dandridge starring Halle Berry. She later wrote the scripts for Britney Spears' 2001 film Crossroads and 2004's The Princess Diaries 2.

A year later her first series, Grey's Anatomy, launched, followed by spin-off Private Practice in 2007, which ran until last year.

Scandal debuted in 2012, with her latest drama How to Get Away with Murder - which she executive produces and stars Oscar nominee Viola Davis - beginning in September.

All three current shows are aired in the US on a Thursday - historically the most competitive programming night among broadcast networks.

The Hollywood Reporter event also featured a tribute to comedian Joan Rivers, who died in September.

Her daughter, Melissa, said had her mother been at the event "she would be beyond herself".

"She would be sitting at the table beaming, while discreetly shoving croissants and silverware in her purse," she joked.

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Grey's Anatomy creator Shonda Rhimes has been honoured with a leadership award at the Hollywood Reporter's annual Women in Entertainment event. The writer-director-producer was recognised for "breaking through the industry glass ceiling as a woman and an African American". Rhimes is also behind hits Scandal and How to Get Away with Murder.

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https://www.paconferenceforwomen.org/2017-speakers/shonda-rhimes/

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SHONDA RHIMES is the prolific writer, executive producer and creator of the hit ABC series "Grey's Anatomy," and "Scandal." In addition to creating the "Grey's Anatomy" spinoff series "Private Practice," Rhimes is the executive producer of the ABC series "How to Get Away with Murder," "Still Star-Crossed" and "The Catch" as well as the upcoming drama series "For The People" and "Untitled Grey's Anatomy Spinoff." For her collective work on her various shows, Rhimes is the recipient of a Golden Globe for Outstanding Television Drama, the Peabody Award, a Television Producer of the Year award by the Producers Guild of America, a Writers Guild Award for Best New Series, a GLAAD Media Award, as well as numerous AFI Awards for Television Program of the Year and an unprecedented number of NAACP Image Awards.

Rhimes has twice been included in TIME Magazine's 100 list of the most influential people along with Fortune Magazine's "50 Most Powerful Women in Business," and Glamour Magazine's "Women of the Year." She is a recipient of the Directors Guild of America's prestigious Diversity Award, Harvard's W.E.B. Du Bois Medal, The Hollywood Reporter 's Sherry Lansing Leadership Award, the Writers Guild's Paddy Chayefsky Laurel Award for Career Achievement and the Producers Guild's Norman Lear Achievement Award. She was additionally honored with the Human Rights Council's Ally for Equality Award, the Feminist Majority Foundation's Eleanor Roosevelt Global Women's Rights Award and the Champion of Change Award from Planned Parenthood. Internationally, Ms. Rhimes received the MIPCOM 2016 Personality of the Year Award from MIPCOM as well as the International Emmy Founders Award, for her contributions to the quality of global television production. Among many other honors, Rhimes is an inductee into the National Association of Broadcasters Broadcasting Hall of Fame.

Rhimes is also involved in non-narrative projects. During the 2016 Presidential campaign, Secretary Hillary Clinton asked Rhimes to create a short biopic on the Presidential nominee for the Democratic National Convention. Rhimes interviewed President Obama, President Clinton and Secretary Clinton among others for the piece. The film was shown on closing night of the DNC and was narrated by Morgan Freeman. She also worked on a controversial political ad featuring Shonda and her three lead actresses which aired during the all-Shondaland Thursday night programming lineup on ABC. In addition, she helped orchestrate a cast-oriented series of ads for JJ Abrams' then-upcoming Star Wars revival. Currently, Rhimes serves as Creative Director to Dove's #RealBeauty campaign. She's partnered with Pilot Pen to award the G2 Overachievers Grant to enhance the reach of ordinary heroes who give back to their community in impactful ways. Her course on television writing continues to be a best seller at Masterclass.com. Rhimes is expanding her brand with the launch of Shondaland.com, a digital storytelling platform that will feature first-person essays, exclusive interviews, reported features, advice, podcasts and videos. Shondaland.com kicked-off with its first newsletter in May 2017 and the full site will launch in fall 2017.

In 2016, Rhimes created The Rhimes Family Foundation with a mission to support arts, education, and activism with a focus on promoting inclusion, equality and tolerance. The foundation proudly funded the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture Rhimes Visual Arts Gallery as well as supports the John F Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Debbie Allen Dance Academy and The IAMA Theater Company. Rhimes also serves on the boards of several non-profit organizations - including Humanitas, the Writers Guild Foundation, Beyond 12 and Planned Parenthood. In addition, Rhimes is a member of the Television Academy Executive Committee. In 2013, Rhimes was appointed by President Barack Obama to serve as a Kennedy Center trustee.

Rhimes released her first book "Year of Yes" from Simon & Schuster in November 2015. The book, which candidly chronicles her moving and humorous attempts to come out of her shell by saying "yes" to everything that scares her, was an instant New York Times best-seller. In 2016, she followed up with a companion piece, "The Year of Yes Journal."

Rhimes holds a BA from Dartmouth College and an MFA from the USC School of Cinema-Television. She's also received an honorary PhD from both institutions. In 2014, she was honored to deliver the Dartmouth commencement address.

The child of educators, Rhimes blames her parents for her rampant addiction to books. The youngest of six, she was born and raised outside of Chicago, IL, and now resides in Los Angeles with her three daughters.

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Shonda Rhimes - Pennsylvania Conference for Women

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SHONDA RHIMES is the prolific writer, executive producer and creator of the hit ABC series "Grey's Anatomy," and "Scandal." In addition to creating the "Grey's Anatomy" spinoff series "Private Practice," Rhimes is the executive producer of the ABC series "How to Get Away with Murder," "Still Star-Crossed" and "The Catch" as well as the upcoming drama series "For The People" and "Untitled Grey's Anatomy Spinoff."

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2 Magic Leadership Lessons from J.K. Rowling

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2 Magic Leadership Lessons from J.K. Rowling

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https://www.forbes.com/sites/geoffloftus/2012/08/01/2-magic-leadership-lessons-from-j-k-rowling/#f58cda727690

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It's tempting to think that the creator of Harry Potter cast a spell that led to her astounding success. Not exactly. J. K. Rowling says, "I believe in hard work and luck, and that the first often leads to the second."

Given the massive good luck her hard work has produced, you might want to learn a couple of lessons from this lady:

YOU HAVE NOTHING TO LOSE - DON'T BE AFRAID TO FAIL

As Rowling said in her commencement address at Harvard: "I think it fair to say that by any conventional measure, a mere seven years after my graduation day, I had failed on an epic scale. An exceptionally short-lived marriage had imploded, and I was jobless, a lone parent, and as poor as it is possible to be in modern Britain, without being homeless. . . . I was the biggest failure I knew.

". . . Why do I talk about the benefits of failure? Simply because failure meant a stripping away of the inessential. I stopped pretending to myself that I was anything other than what I was, and began to direct all my energy into finishing the only work that mattered to me."

I recognize that bet-the-company strategies are imprudent risk management, I'm not advocating management by gigantic risk taking. But whatever new product, service or plan you've devised, follow it as if you have nothing to lose. Commit to it without fear of failing. If you're unable to commit to your new strategy with that urgency, you probably should reconsider the strategy.

FOCUS

Rowling started writing the Harry Potter series during a delay on the train from Manchester to London King's Cross. As she later described the moment: "All of a sudden the idea for Harry just appeared in my mind's eye. I can't tell you why or what triggered it. But I saw the idea of Harry and the wizard school very plainly. I suddenly had this basic idea of a boy who didn't know who he was, who didn't know he was a wizard until he got his invitation to wizard school. I have never been so excited by an idea."

During the next five years, she outlined the plots for each book, eventually there would be seven - and none of them is a slender tome - and began writing the first novel, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (called Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone in the UK). She found an agent, and that agent sent Rowling's manuscript to 12 publishers, all of whom turned down the book. (Hey, Hollywood casting agents weren't impressed with Fred Astaire when he first came to town. Everybody makes mistakes. Whopping, dragon-sized mistakes.)

But Rowling didn't give up, and within five years of the publication of the first Harry Potter book, she was one of the richest women in the world. From the time she first came up with the idea, Rowling stayed focused on producing a fantastically entertaining, well-written series of novels that transformed the reading habits of British and American kids (and huge numbers of adults, too). As she said at Harvard, she directed all her energy into finishing the only work that mattered to me."

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2 Magic Leadership Lessons from J.K. Rowling

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It's tempting to think that the creator of Harry Potter cast a spell that led to her astounding success. Not exactly. J. K. Rowling says, "I believe in hard work and luck, and that the first often leads to the second."

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http://www.centerforworklife.com/leadership-qualities-jo-rowling/

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Leadership Qualities of Jo Rowling, Do What Matters

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Leadership Qualities of Jo Rowling, Do What Matters, failure, perseverance, leadership tools, success, leadership tips, being a leader, J.K. Rowling, JK,

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https://hbr.org/2013/09/women-rising-the-unseen-barriers

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Many CEOs who make gender diversity a priority-by setting aspirational goals for the proportion of women in leadership roles, insisting on diverse slates of candidates for senior positions, and developing mentoring and training programs-are frustrated. They and their companies spend time, money, and good intentions on efforts to build a more robust pipeline of upwardly mobile women, and then not much happens.

The problem with these leaders' approaches is that they don't address the often fragile process of coming to see oneself, and to be seen by others, as a leader. Becoming a leader involves much more than being put in a leadership role, acquiring new skills, and adapting one's style to the requirements of that role. It involves a fundamental identity shift. Organizations inadvertently undermine this process when they advise women to proactively seek leadership roles without also addressing policies and practices that communicate a mismatch between how women are seen and the qualities and experiences people tend to associate with leaders.

A significant body of research (see "Further Reading") shows that for women, the subtle gender bias that persists in organizations and in society disrupts the learning cycle at the heart of becoming a leader. This research also points to some steps that companies can take in order to rectify the situation. It's not enough to identify and instill the "right" skills and competencies as if in a social vacuum. The context must support a woman's motivation to lead and also increase the likelihood that others will recognize and encourage her efforts-even when she doesn't look or behave like the current generation of senior executives.

"Who Will Lead and Who Will Follow? A Social Process of Leadership Identity Construction in Organizations," by D. Scott DeRue and Susan J. Ashford (Academy of Management Review, October 2010)

"Women and Leadership: Defining the Challenges," by Robin J. Ely and Deborah L. Rhode ( Handbook of Leadership Theory and Practice, Harvard Business Press, 2010)

"Impossible Selves: Image Strategies and Identity Threat in Professional Women's Career Transitions," by Herminia Ibarra and Jenifer Petriglieri (Insead working paper, 2007)

"Negotiating in the Shadows of Organizations: Gender, Negotiation, and Change," by Deborah M. Kolb (Ohio State Journal on Dispute Resolution, 2013)

"Taking Gender into Account: Theory and Design for Women's Leadership Development Programs," by Robin J. Ely, Herminia Ibarra, and Deborah Kolb (Academy of Management Learning & Education, September 2011)

The solutions to the pipeline problem are very different from what companies currently employ. Traditional high-potential, mentoring, and leadership education programs are necessary but not sufficient. Our research, teaching, and consulting reveal three additional actions companies can take to improve the chances that women will gain a sense of themselves as leaders, be recognized as such, and ultimately succeed. (This article expands on our paper "Taking Gender into Account: Theory and Design for Women's Leadership Development Programs," Academy of Management Learning & Education, September 2011.)

Becoming a Leader

People become leaders by internalizing a leadership identity and developing a sense of purpose. Internalizing a sense of oneself as a leader is an iterative process. A person asserts leadership by taking purposeful action-such as convening a meeting to revive a dormant project. Others affirm or resist the action, thus encouraging or discouraging subsequent assertions. These interactions inform the person's sense of self as a leader and communicate how others view his or her fitness for the role.

As a person's leadership capabilities grow and opportunities to demonstrate them expand, high-profile, challenging assignments and other organizational endorsements become more likely. Such affirmation gives the person the fortitude to step outside a comfort zone and experiment with unfamiliar behaviors and new ways of exercising leadership. An absence of affirmation, however, diminishes self-confidence and discourages him or her from seeking developmental opportunities or experimenting. Leadership identity, which begins as a tentative, peripheral aspect of the self, eventually withers away, along with opportunities to grow through new assignments and real achievements. Over time, an aspiring leader acquires a reputation as having-or not having-high potential.

The story of an investment banker we'll call Amanda is illustrative. Amanda's career stalled when she was in her thirties. Her problem, she was told, was that she lacked "presence" with clients (who were mostly older men) and was not sufficiently outspoken in meetings. Her career prospects looked bleak. But both her reputation and her confidence grew when she was assigned to work with two clients whose CFOs happened to be women. These women appreciated Amanda's smarts and the skillful way she handled their needs and concerns. Each in her own way started taking the initiative to raise Amanda's profile. One demanded that she be present at all key meetings, and the other refused to speak to anyone but Amanda when she called-actions that enhanced Amanda's credibility within her firm. "In our industry," Amanda explains, "having the key client relationship is everything." Her peers and supervisors began to see her not just as a competent project manager but as a trusted client adviser-an important prerequisite for promotion. These relationships, both internal and external, gave Amanda the confidence boost she needed to generate ideas and express them forthrightly, whether to colleagues or to clients. Her supervisors happily concluded that Amanda had finally shed her "meek and mild-mannered" former self and "stepped up" to leadership.

Effective leaders develop a sense of purpose by pursuing goals that align with their personal values and advance the collective good. This allows them to look beyond the status quo to what is possible and gives them a compelling reason to take action despite personal fears and insecurities. Such leaders are seen as authentic and trustworthy because they are willing to take risks in the service of shared goals. By connecting others to a larger purpose, they inspire commitment, boost resolve, and help colleagues find deeper meaning in their work.

Integrating leadership into one's core identity is particularly challenging for women, who must establish credibility in a culture that is deeply conflicted about whether, when, and how they should exercise authority. Practices that equate leadership with behaviors considered more common in men suggest that women are simply not cut out to be leaders. Furthermore, the human tendency to gravitate to people like oneself leads powerful men to sponsor and advocate for other men when leadership opportunities arise. As Amanda's story illustrates, women's leadership potential sometimes shows in less conventional ways-being responsive to clients' needs, for example, rather than boldly asserting a point of view-and sometimes it takes powerful women to recognize that potential. But powerful women are scarce.

Despite a lack of discriminatory intent, subtle, "second-generation" forms of workplace gender bias can obstruct the leadership identity development of a company's entire population of women. (See the sidebar "What Is Second-Generation Gender Bias?") The resulting underrepresentation of women in top positions reinforces entrenched beliefs, prompts and supports men's bids for leadership, and thus maintains the status quo.

Research has moved away from a focus on the deliberate exclusion of women and toward investigating "second-generation" forms of gender bias as the primary cause of women's persistent underrepresentation in leadership roles. This bias erects powerful but subtle and often invisible barriers for women that arise from cultural assumptions and organizational structures, practices, and patterns of interaction that inadvertently benefit men while putting women at a disadvantage. Among them are:

A paucity of role models for women.

Aspiring leaders need role models whose styles and behaviors they can experiment with and evaluate according to their own standards and others' reactions. Fewer female leaders means fewer role models and can suggest to young would-be leaders that being a woman is a liability-thus discouraging them from viewing senior women as credible sources of advice and support.

Gendered career paths and gendered work.

Many entrenched organizational structures and work practices were designed to fit men's lives and situations at a time when women made up only a very small portion of the workforce. For one example, formal rotations in sales or operations have traditionally been a key step on the path to senior leadership, and men are more likely than women to have held such jobs. Yet requirements like these may be outdated when it comes to the kinds of experience that best prepare a person to lead. For another, career- enhancing international posts often assume a "trailing spouse" who has no career and can easily move-a family situation much more common for men than for women. How work is valued may similarly give men an advantage: Research indicates that organizations tend to ignore or undervalue behind-the-scenes work (building a team, avoiding a crisis), which women are more likely to do, while rewarding heroic work, which is most often done by men. These practices were not designed to be discriminatory, but their cumulative effect disadvantages women. A vicious cycle ensues: Men appear to be best suited to leadership roles, and this perception propels more of them to seek and attain such positions, thus reinforcing the notion that they are simply better leaders.

Women's lack of access to networks and sponsors.

Informal networks are a precious resource for would-be leaders, yet differences in men's and women's organizational roles and career prospects, along with their proclivity to interact with others of the same gender, result in weaker networks for women. They cite as a major barrier to advancement their lack of access to influential colleagues. Moreover, the connections women do have tend to be less efficacious: Men's networks provide more informal help than women's do, and men are more likely to have mentors who help them get promoted. Meanwhile, men in positions of power tend to direct developmental opportunities to junior men, whom they view as more likely than women to succeed.

Double binds.

In most cultures masculinity and leadership are closely linked: The ideal leader, like the ideal man, is decisive, assertive, and independent. In contrast, women are expected to be nice, caretaking, and unselfish. The mismatch between conventionally feminine qualities and the qualities thought necessary for leadership puts female leaders in a double bind. Numerous studies have shown that women who excel in traditionally male domains are viewed as competent but less likable than their male counterparts. Behaviors that suggest self-confidence or assertiveness in men often appear arrogant or abrasive in women. Meanwhile, women in positions of authority who enact a conventionally feminine style may be liked but are not respected. They are deemed too emotional to make tough decisions and too soft to be strong leaders.

The three actions we suggest to support women's access to leadership positions are (1) educate women and men about second-generation gender bias, (2) create safe "identity workspaces" to support transitions to bigger roles, and (3) anchor women's development efforts in a sense of leadership purpose rather than in how women are perceived. These actions will give women insight into themselves and their organizations, enabling them to more effectively chart a course to leadership.

Educate Everyone About Second-Generation Gender Bias

For women.

More than 25 years ago the social psychologist Faye Crosby stumbled on a surprising phenomenon: Most women are unaware of having personally been victims of gender discrimination and deny it even when it is objectively true and they see that women in general experience it.

Many women have worked hard to take gender out of the equation-to simply be recognized for their skills and talents. Moreover, the existence of gender bias in organizational policies and practices may suggest that they have no power to determine their own success. When asked what might be holding women back in their organizations, they say:

"It's nothing overt. I just feel less of a connection, either positive or negative, with the guys I work with. So sometimes I seem to have difficulty getting traction for my ideas."

"I look around and see that my male colleagues have P&L responsibility and most of us are in staff roles. I was advised to make the move to a staff role after the birth of my second child. It would be easier, I was told. But now I recognize that there is no path back to the line."

"My firm has the very best intentions when it comes to women. But it seems every time a leadership role opens up, women are not on the slate. The claim is made that they just can't find women with the right skill set and experience."

These statements belie the notion that gender bias is absent from these women's work lives. Second-generation bias does not require an intent to exclude; nor does it necessarily produce direct, immediate harm to any individual. Rather, it creates a context-akin to "something in the water"-in which women fail to thrive or reach their full potential. Feeling less connected to one's male colleagues, being advised to take a staff role to accommodate family, finding oneself excluded from consideration for key positions-all these situations reflect work structures and practices that put women at a disadvantage.

In Practice

Leadership Interview

An interview with Facebook's Sheryl Sandberg.

Without an understanding of second-generation bias, people are left with stereotypes to explain why women as a group have failed to achieve parity with men: If they can't reach the top, it is because they "don't ask," are "too nice," or simply "opt out." These messages tell women who have managed to succeed that they are exceptions and women who have experienced setbacks that it is their own fault for failing to be sufficiently aggressive or committed to the job.

We find that when women recognize the subtle and pervasive effects of second-generation bias, they feel empowered, not victimized, because they can take action to counter those effects. They can put themselves forward for leadership roles when they are qualified but have been overlooked. They can seek out sponsors and others to support and develop them in those roles. They can negotiate for work arrangements that fit both their lives and their organizations' performance requirements. Such understanding makes it easier for women to "lean in."

For women and men.

Second-generation bias is embedded in stereotypes and organizational practices that can be hard to detect, but when people are made aware of it, they see possibilities for change. In our work with leadership development programs, we focus on a "small wins" approach to change. In one manufacturing company, a task force learned that leaders tended to hire and promote people, mainly men, whose backgrounds and careers resembled their own. They had good reasons for this behavior: Experienced engineers were hard to find, and time constraints pressured leaders to fill roles quickly. But after recognizing some of the hidden costs of this practice-high turnover, difficulty attracting women to the company, and a lack of diversity to match that of customers-the company began to experiment with small wins. For example, some executives made a commitment to review the job criteria for leadership roles. One male leader said, "We write the job descriptions-the list of capabilities-for our ideal candidates. We know that the men will nominate themselves even if they don't meet all the requirements; the women would hold back. Now we look for the capabilities that are needed in the role, not some unrealistic ideal. We have hired more women in these roles, and our quality has not suffered in the least."

In another case, participants in a leadership development program noticed that men seemed to be given more strategic roles, whereas women were assigned more operational ones, signaling that they had lower potential. The participants proposed that the company provide clear criteria for developmental assignments, be transparent about how high potential was evaluated, and give direction as to what experiences best increased a person's potential. Those actions put more women in leadership roles.

Create Safe "Identity Workspaces"

In the upper tiers of organizations, women become increasingly scarce, which heightens the visibility and scrutiny of those near the top, who may become risk-averse and overly focused on details and lose their sense of purpose. (In general, people are less apt to try out unfamiliar behaviors or roles if they feel threatened.) Thus a safe space for learning, experimentation, and community is critical in leadership development programs for women.

Consider performance feedback, which is necessary for growth and advancement but full of trip wires for women. In many organizations 360-degree feedback is a basic tool for deepening self-knowledge and increasing awareness of one's impact on others-skills that are part and parcel of leadership development. But gender stereotypes may color evaluators' perceptions, subjecting women to double binds and double standards. Research has amply demonstrated that accomplished, high-potential women who are evaluated as competent managers often fail the likability test, whereas competence and likability tend to go hand in hand for similarly accomplished men. We see this phenomenon in our own research and practice. Supervisors routinely give high-performing women some version of the message "You need to trim your sharp elbows." Likewise, we find that participants in women's leadership development programs often receive high ratings on task-related dimensions, such as "exceeds goals," "acts decisively in the face of uncertainty," and "is not afraid to make decisions that may be unpopular," but low ratings on relational ones, such as "takes others' viewpoints into account" and "uses feedback to learn from her mistakes." We also frequently encounter women whose performance feedback seems contradictory: Some are told they need to "be tougher and hold people accountable" but also to "not set expectations so high," to "say no more often" but also to "be more visible," to "be more decisive" but also to "be more collaborative."

Creating a safe setting-a coaching relationship, a women's leadership program, a support group of peers-in which women can interpret these messages is critical to their leadership identity development. Companies should encourage them to build communities in which similarly positioned women can discuss their feedback, compare notes, and emotionally support one another's learning. Identifying common experiences increases women's willingness to talk openly, take risks, and be vulnerable without fearing that others will misunderstand or judge them. These connections are especially important when women are discussing sensitive topics such as gender bias or reflecting on their personal leadership challenges, which can easily threaten identity and prompt them to resist any critical feedback they may receive. When they are grounded in candid assessments of the cultural, organizational, and individual factors shaping them, women can construct coherent narratives about who they are and who they want to become.

The Importance of Leadership Purpose

In a recent interview with members of Hillary Clinton's press corps, a veteran reporter noted, "The story is never what she says, as much as we want it to be. The story is always how she looked when she said it." Clinton says she doesn't fight it anymore; she just focuses on getting the job done.

How women are perceived-how they dress, how they talk, their "executive presence," their capacity to "fill a room," and their leadership style-has been the focus of many efforts to get more of them to the top. Voice coaches, image consultants, public-speaking instructors, and branding experts find the demand for their services growing. The premise is that women have not been socialized to compete successfully in the world of men, so they must be taught the skills and styles their male counterparts acquire as a matter of course.

To manage the competence-likability trade-off-the seeming choice between being respected and being liked-women are taught to downplay femininity, or to soften a hard-charging style, or to try to strike a perfect balance between the two. But the time and energy spent on managing these perceptions can ultimately be self-defeating. Overinvestment in one's image diminishes the emotional and motivational resources available for larger purposes. People who focus on how others perceive them are less clear about their goals, less open to learning from failure, and less capable of self-regulation.

Anchoring in purpose enables women to redirect their attention toward shared goals and to consider who they need to be and what they need to learn in order to achieve those goals. Instead of defining themselves in relation to gender stereotypes-whether rejecting stereotypically masculine approaches because they feel inauthentic or rejecting stereotypically feminine ones for fear that they convey incompetence-female leaders can focus on behaving in ways that advance the purposes for which they stand.

Focusing on purpose can also lead women to take up activities that are critical to their success, such as networking. Connections rarely come to them as a matter of course, so they have to be proactive in developing ties; but we also find that many women avoid networking because they see it as inauthentic-as developing relationships that are merely transactional and feel too instrumental-or because it brings to mind activities (the proverbial golf game, for example) in which they have no interest or for which they have no time, given their responsibilities beyond work. Yet when they see it as a means to a larger purpose, such as developing new business to advance their vision for the company, they are more comfortable engaging in it. Learning how to be an effective leader is like learning any complex skill: It rarely comes naturally and usually takes a lot of practice. Successful transitions into senior management roles involve shedding previously effective professional identities and developing new, more fitting ones. Yet people often feel ambivalent about leaving the comfort of roles in which they have excelled, because doing so means moving toward an uncertain outcome.

Second-generation gender bias can make these transitions more challenging for women, and focusing exclusively on acquiring new skills isn't sufficient; the learning must be accompanied by a growing sense of identity as a leader. That's why greater understanding of second-generation bias, safe spaces for leadership identity development, and encouraging women to anchor in their leadership purpose will get better results than the paths most organizations currently pursue.

A version of this article appeared in the September 2013 issue of Harvard Business Review.

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Reprint: R1309C Even when CEOs make gender diversity a priority-by setting aspirational goals for the proportion of women in leadership roles, insisting on diverse slates of candidates for senior positions, and developing mentoring and training programs-they are often frustrated by a lack of results.

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http://www.thecrazyones.it/spot-en.html

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The website dedicated to the Apple's "Think different." advertising campaign. Steve Jobs narrated version.

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Top 10 Differences Between Managers and Leaders

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Top 10 Differences Between Managers and Leaders

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ubRzzirRKs

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Top 10 Differences Between Managers and Leaders

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This short video from @ScottWilliams provides 10 clear distinctives to help understand the difference between a manager and a leader. Thanks to Samson Varughese for bringing the video to life. Find Scott: Twitter - @ScottWilliams Facebook - ScottWilliams.tv Blog - BigIsTheNewSmall.com Company - NxtLevelSolutions.com

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VIDEO: My year of saying yes to everything

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VIDEO: My year of saying yes to everything

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https://www.ted.com/talks/shonda_rhimes_my_year_of_saying_yes_to_everything?referrer=playlist-ted_talks_by_strong_women_lead&language=en

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Shonda Rhimes: My year of saying yes to everything

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Shonda Rhimes, the titan behind Grey's Anatomy, Scandal and How to Get Away With Murder, is responsible for some 70 hours of television per season, and she loves to work. "When I am hard at work, when I am deep in it, there is no other feeling," she says.

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VIDEO: How I Stopped the Taliban from Shutting Down My School

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VIDEO: How I Stopped the Taliban from Shutting Down My School

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https://www.ted.com/talks/sakena_yacoobi_how_i_stopped_the_taliban_from_shutting_down_my_school/transcript?referrer=playlist-ted_talks_by_strong_women_lead

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Sakena Yacoobi: How I stopped the Taliban from shutting down my school

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When the Taliban closed all the girls' schools in Afghanistan, Sakena Yacoobi set up new schools, in secret, educating thousands of women and men. In this fierce, funny talk, she tells the jaw-dropping story of two times when she was threatened to stop teaching -- and shares her vision for rebuilding her beloved country.

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https://www.ted.com/talks/linda_cliatt_wayman_how_to_fix_a_broken_school_lead_fearlessly_love_hard?referrer=playlist-ted_talks_by_strong_women_lead

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Linda Cliatt-Wayman: How to fix a broken school? Lead fearlessly, love hard

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On Linda Cliatt-Wayman's first day as principal at a failing high school in North Philadelphia, she was determined to lay down the law. But she soon realized the job was more complex than she thought. With palpable passion, she shares the three principles that helped her turn around three schools labeled "low-performing and persistently dangerous."

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https://www.ted.com/talks/drew_dudley_everyday_leadership?referrer=playlist-how_leaders_inspire

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Get a daily email featuring the latest talk, plus a quick mix of trending content.

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We have all changed someone's life -- usually without even realizing it. In this funny talk, Drew Dudley calls on all of us to celebrate leadership as the everyday act of improving each other's lives.

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VIDEO: 5 Seconds to Close the Knowledge Action Gap

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VIDEO: 5 Seconds to Close the Knowledge Action Gap

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http://www.runawaystrategist.com/brain-dates/2017/4/10/video-5-seconds-to-close-the-knowledge-action-gap

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It takes 5 seconds for our brains to register an idea (or impulse) and turn it into action. In this week's video find, I was introduced to the concept of controlling metacognition. Which is really just controlling your response in emotional 'micro-moments'. We're only one decision away from a totally different career, relationship, business outcome or weight loss result. "Your life is based on your decisions, and if you can control your decisions, you can change everything." - Mel Robbins.

Get your notebook ready this one is PACKED with golden nuggets:

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VIDEO: 5 Seconds to Close the Knowledge Action Gap

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It takes 5 seconds for our brains to register an idea (or impulse) and turn it into action. In this week's video find, I was introduced to the concept of controlling metacognition. Which is really just controlling your response in emotional 'micro-moments'. We're only one decision away from a totall

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http://melrobbins.com/the-5-second-rule/

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If you are reading this then you know exactly what you need to be doing in order to get what you want. There is nothing that I could tell you about how to get what you want that you don't already know, or that you couldn't easily get from a quick Google search. You already know that the opportunity for growth and expansion lies in your ability to step outside of your comfort zone, but you still won't do it, and here's why:

Knowing what to do will never be enough.

It's not as simple as, "Just do it." If it were that simple, we would all have everything we want. There's something really foundational that has to happen before we can take action, and that is that we must learn to conquer our own feelings.

Because of the way your brain is wired, when your thoughts and feelings are at war, when there is a discourse between what you know you should be doing and what you feel like doing, your feelings are always going to win. If you don't feel like doing it, you won't do it- that's why you need the 5 Second Rule. And no, I'm not talking about the 5 Second Rule that relates to dropping food on the floor, and as long as you pick it up within 5 seconds it's okay to eat...I'm talking about something that will literally change your life - if you let it.

This is a tool for hyper-intentionality, action, and identifying moments in your life where there is tremendous opportunity and joy.

I first shared the idea about 5 years ago on a TEDx stage, and it's now one of the top 20 Tedx talks in the world. It's been viewed over 6 million times in over 37 countries - and the feedback we've gotten from people who have applied what they learned from that talk is incredible.

I discovered the 5 second rule about 7 years ago. Before I worked for CNN, before I gave the TEDx talk, before I was a contributing editor for SUCCESS magazine, before I had written a book, launched and sold two businesses - in fact, I discovered this tool in what was probably the worst moment of my life to this day.

My husband had a restaurant business that went from uber successful to total failure in a matter of a few risky decisions, and we found ourselves in a financial free fall. We were at risk of losing everything we had spent our lives building - and I was having a hard time dealing with it. All of a sudden getting out bed was the hardest thing in the world to me. My alarm clock would go off in the morning, and I knew what I was supposed to do, I was supposed to get up and get my kids off to school. But instead I kept hitting snooze. Over and over again.

Every night I would lie in bed and think about what I needed to do. I needed to get a job, so we could pay the bills. I needed to start being nicer to my husband, and not let this financial crisis weaken our relationship. I needed to be a mother that could deal with this kind of crippling fear, so that my kids didn't start to feel it too. I knew what I needed to do, but I simply couldn't do it. You know things are really bad when your kids start missing the bus because you're oversleeping every day. And that was kind of a wake up call for me.

The 5 second rule was something that I developed to get myself to take action when I didn't want to.

I was so busy feeling sorry for myself that something that is so simple became so difficult.

And if you don't struggle with getting out of bed in the morning then your issue is somewhere else, trust me. We all struggle with SOMETHING.

Do you ever find yourself making to-do lists and then not following through on them? Like every single day?

Or thinking to yourself, "What the heck is wrong with me? I know what I'm supposed to be doing, why can't I just do it?"

Trust me. I AM YOU.

But this is what I've found:

1. Knowing what to do will never be enough.

2. Knowing why you need to do it will never be enough.

So what we need is something that's going to launch us into a state of action. Because if you're sitting around waiting for motivation, I'm here to tell you it's not coming.

If you don't start doing the things you don't feel like doing, you will wake up one year from today and be in exactly the same place.

So here's the one-liner definition of the 5 second rule:

If you have an impulse to act on a goal, you must physically move within 5 seconds or your brain will kill the idea.

So if you have a goal of gaining more respect in the workplace, you have to raise your hand the next time you're in a meeting and you have a great idea.

If you have a goal of losing weight, you can take action right now by researching healthy meal options and setting daily reminders on your phone that will prompt you to go to the gym.

If you have a goal of launching your own business, and you have no idea where to start, get on Google right now and research other companies in your field of interest, see what they're doing and decide what you'll do the same and where you'll differentiate yourself. Then google a free business plan template, and then fill it out. Get serious about it and put your intentions in writing.

Whatever your goals are, show the world, and yourself, that you're serious by taking action, however insignificant that action may seem, RIGHT NOW.

Because when you physically move, your brain starts to build new habits. When you do something you're not used to doing, you are in the act of building new habits and erasing existing ones.

The fact that you took the time to read this blog tells me that you are already taking the time to invest in yourself, which makes me even more excited to see how this simple change in habit changes your life.

Let me know how the 5 Second Rule works for you:

Use the hashtag #5SecondRule on Social Media

I can't wait to see everything you do.

Comments

comments

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If you are reading this then you know exactly what you need to be doing in order to get what you want. There is nothing that I could tell you about how to get what you want that you don't already know, or that you couldn't easily get from a quick Google search.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Lz0VOltZKA

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https://www.ted.com/playlists/486/ted_talks_by_strong_women_lead

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Get a daily email featuring the latest talk, plus a quick mix of trending content.

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Who should run more of the world? Women. Until then, enjoy these talks by awesome women who lead fiercely and fearlessly.

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Ted Talks: 10 Guiding Principals for Leadership

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Ted Talks: 10 Guiding Principals for Leadership

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https://www.ted.com/playlists/596/10_guiding_principles_for_leaders

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Get a daily email featuring the latest talk, plus a quick mix of trending content.

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10 guiding principles for leaders | TED Talks

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It never hurts to have a basic set of guiding principles. Let these insightful talks help shape, redefine and build out your own leadership goals. (Curated in partnership with SAP)

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https://www.ted.com/playlists/140/how_leaders_inspire

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What makes a great leader? These TED Talks offer surprising, nuanced approaches on how to inspire and empower others to do their very best.

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http://situational.com/the-cls-difference/situational-leadership-what-we-do/

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Situational Leadership® Training & Management Model by CLS

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The Situational Leadership® Model is arguably the most recognized, utilized and effective leadership and influence tool in the history of the behavioral sciences.

Developed by Dr. Paul Hersey in the late 1960s, the Situational Leadership® Model is a powerful, yet flexible tool that enables leaders of all kinds; managers, salespeople, peer leaders, teachers or parents to more effectively influence others.

Dr. Hersey's original Situational Leadership® Model is based on the relationship between leaders and followers and serves as a framework to analyze each situation based on:

The amount of guidance and direction (task behavior) a leader gives

The amount of socioemotional support (relationship behavior) a leader provides

The readiness level that followers exhibit in performing a specific task, function, or objective

Situational Leaders learn to demonstrate four core, common and critical leadership competencies:

Diagnose: "Understand the situation they are trying to influence"

Adapt: "Adjust their behavior in response to the contingences of the situation"

Communicate: "Interact with others in a manner they can understand and accept"

Advance: "Manage the movement"

The Situational Leadership® Model provides leaders with an understanding of the relationship between an effective style of leadership and the level of readiness followers exhibit for a
specific task.

Situational Leadership®, which stresses flexibility and simplicity in execution, can equip leaders in your organization with the tools necessary to skillfully navigate the demands of an increasingly diverse workforce and evolving global marketplace. Infinitely adaptable to any circumstance, the model prepares leaders to address the most pressing challenges pervasive in today's work environment.

The Situational Leadership® Model utilizes a repeatable process that your leaders can leverage to effectively influence the behavior of others.

The process is so simple to both understand and apply that its creator, Dr. Paul Hersey, often described it as "organized common sense." At its core, Situational Leadership® provides leaders with an understanding of the relationship between an effective style of leadership and the level of readiness that followers exhibit for a specific task. But, it does much more than that ...

With application across organizational leaders, first-line managers, individual contributors and even teams, Situational Leadership® utilizes task specificity to serve as a mechanism through which leaders maximize their influence-related impact. We call these individuals "situational leaders" and would contend that they are critical to the success of any organization.

More specifically, situational leaders:

Maintain an acute awareness of their innate leadership-related strengths and areas for development - critical skill sets in working in high-performing organizations

Conduct highly effective coaching conversations by understanding when a particular leadership style has a high probability of success and when it does not

Skillfully influence up, down and across the organization by knowing when to be "consistent" and when to be "flexible"

Create more productive teams/organizations by accelerating the development of individuals that are new to their role and/or are learning a new task

Develop engaged, committed employees by effectively recognizing and proactively addressing the dynamics of performance regression

Effectively drive behavior change and business results by communicating through a common, practical language of leadership

Task Specificity to Drive Behavior Change

Through the tools associated with the Situational Leadership® Model and The Center for Leadership Studies' Influence Curriculum, leaders are able to approach coaching and influence opportunities through the lens of task-specificity, as opposed to making generalizations about a follower's overall level of ability and motivation.

The result is targeted, dynamic coaching that drives the desired change in behavior.

Situational leaders help followers grow and develop by using high-probability leadership styles for each level of Performance Readiness®. This translates to accelerated individual development and the achievement of desired results.

Building Sustainment

While behavior change is the ultimate goal of most adult-learning endeavors, it is not a realistic outcome for standalone, unsupported training events. Focused reinforcement needs to occur in order to ensure learning is retained and long-term behavioral transformation is realized. In particular, "next-level manager" (NLM) support is critical. In fact, research suggests an increase of 65% in retention and transfer to on-the-job application when NLMs are actively engaged in the learning process of their direct reports.

Somehow this seems easy - engage managers and your training will produce a desirable result. Clearly, if it were, in fact, that simple, the challenges associated with training transfer would be non-existent. The fact of the matter is that without a clear process, mutual task alignment and accountability, manager commitment to the pull-through of training remains random, haphazard and difficult to measure.

To assist you in overcoming these potential challenges, The Center for Leadership Studies has created a simple four-step process that ensures NLMs support learners at critical moments in the learning cycle. We call this The Four Moments of Truth. When utilized, the supporting tools and materials comprising The Four Moments of Truth ensure that NLMs will effectively prepare and position training for their employees and be actively engaged in the reinforcement process. By following this process, your NLMs will enhance their ability to create and sustain a constructive learning environment while applying transfer of learning strategies to drive on-the-job performance.

Recognizing the importance of sustainment in maximizing your return on learning investment, The Center for Leadership Studies has made The Four Moments of Truth a cornerstone in each of our Situational Leadership® and Influence Curriculum courses.

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The Situational Leadership® Model | We Build Leaders

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Developed by Dr. Paul Hersey in the late 1960s, the Situational Leadership® Model is a powerful, yet flexible tool that enables leaders of all kinds; managers, salespeople, peer leaders, teachers or parents to more effectively influence others.

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http://www.ascd.org/ASCD/pdf/journals/ed_lead/el_197602_gates.pdf

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https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ846732.pdf

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The Understanding and Practice of ServantLeadership

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The Understanding and Practice of ServantLeadership

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https://www.regent.edu/acad/global/publications/sl_proceedings/2005/spears_practice.pdf

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Summary of Stephen R. Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly EffectivePeople

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Summary of Stephen R. Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly EffectivePeople

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http://dl.motamem.org/Summary-Seven-Habits-of-Highly-Effective-People.pdf

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What Makes A Good Leader? Simple Ways To Improve Your Management Skills

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What Makes A Good Leader? Simple Ways To Improve Your Management Skills

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https://www.briantracy.com/blog/business-success/management-skills-what-makes-a-good-leader/

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Brian Tracy's Self Improvement & Professional Development Blog

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What makes a good leader is the use of effective management skills such as spending 50 percent or more of their time listening carefully.

Great leaders understand that some of the best leadership qualities entail listening to others with undivided attention.

When was the last time you actually listened single-mindedly to one of your staff members?

Can you remember when you last listened to someone without interruptions or distractions from either telephone calls or drop-in visitors, when you just focused intently on the person speaking with you, ignoring all else? When CEO Alan Mulally arrived at Ford, he used a technique he had refined at Boeing. He found a way to instantly shift the senior executives on his team from talkers to listeners by changing the way he evaluated his team's performance.

"It always comes down to incentives. What's the incentive for someone to behave differently? Is it recognition, time, or more money? No. It's usually visibility," he said. "When you give a speech, you'll be scored by the audience."

So those executives who were smart enough to leave lots of time for Q & A got better grades than those who lectured. And those managers who encouraged a dialogue with the team came out on top.

Great leaders with excellent management skills encourage input and change, and the best way to measure them is based on feedback they get from their best people. People usually give the best scores to leaders you trust and to leaders who listen.

The Most Essential Leadership Qualities

Integrity is perhaps the most valued and respected quality of leadership and one of the most important management skills you need to attain. By saying what you'll do and then doing what you say, you will build trust around your team.

Do you stand up and speak out for what you believe?

Do you demonstrate the courage to stay the course when the going gets tough and the outcome looks uncertain?

What makes a good leader is the ability to stay calm and in control, especially when everyone around them is wondering whether it's the right decision or if it was a mistake to commit to a particular course of action.

When you exude confidence in yourself, in the decision, and in the people around you, you instill the same feelings and attitudes in others.

Leaders have what is called "courageous patience." Between the decision and the result, there is always a period of uncertainty when no one knows if the effort is going to be successful.

To be a successful leader, you must strive to have these essential leadership qualities. If you have lived with this feeling many times in your career, you're in good company.

What Makes a Good Leader?

To be successful as a leader, you need a combination of two ingredients: character and competence. You need to be a person of integrity. Someone people trust and are willing to follow.

To be trusted in business, you must be trustworthy. You must believe in yourself, your company, the essential goodness of your products and services, and in your people.

You need to believe that you are offering an excellent product or service in every way, one that makes a difference in the lives of your customers.

You must lead by example and obtain management skills that inspire others to join you in the exciting project of building a great company. At the same time, you must become excellent at the key capabilities and functions of leadership and set yourself on a course of continuous improvement throughout your career.

"You need the humility to remind yourself that you've got to get better at everything you do," insisted Amazon founder, Jeff Bezos. "I don't know about you, but I'm never done growing my company or myself."

Believe in Yourself

Management guru Jim Collins uses the phrase "Level 5 Leadership" to describe the characteristic of the best leaders, those who build great companies.

Out of all the existing leadership qualities, the most fascinating and distinguishing characteristic of level 5 is an often misunderstood trait: humility.

As it happens, humility doesn't actually mean being humble . . .

People who are crazy enough to launch businesses as the economy is falling apart and then fight Goliath-size adversaries, are not exactly humble.

"Humility simply means you have a burning, driving, relentless ambition to serve and to win," Collins told me, "Without the arrogance to delude yourself into believing that you are all knowing or always right."

As a Level 5 Leader, you don't believe you are perfect. You must, however, believe in yourself, and be convinced that you have what it takes to succeed and that you can get better. You are always looking for new ways to develop your leadership qualities and take your game to the next level.

If you enjoyed this article on how to improve your management skills and develop your leadership qualities, please share it with others right now!
About Brian Tracy - Brian is recognized as the top sales training and personal success authority in the world today. He has authored more than 60 books and has produced more than 500 audio and video learning programs on sales, management, business success and personal development, including worldwide bestseller The Psychology of Achievement. Brian's goal is to help you achieve your personal and business goals faster and easier than you ever imagined. You can follow him on Google+, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Linkedin and Youtube.

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What Makes a Good Leader? | Brian Tracy On Management Skills

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What makes a good leader is the use of effective management skills such as spending 50 percent or more of their time listening carefully. Great leaders understand that some of the best leadership qualities entail listening to others with undivided attention. When was the last time you actually listened single-mindedly to one of your staff members?

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5 Leadership Styles To Inspire Peak Performance

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5 Leadership Styles To Inspire Peak Performance

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https://www.briantracy.com/blog/leadership-success/5-leadership-styles-to-inspire-peak-performance/

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Brian Tracy's Self Improvement & Professional Development Blog

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The job of the leader is to get things done by leading others to success. It is important to develop leadership styles that suit different situations. The style used depends on the needs of the team.

Great leaders choose leadership styles based on the circumstances and the end goal. Here are the 5 leadership styles you should develop to inspire your team to deliver their peak performance.

Be a Structural Leader

The first leadership style is Structural.

Everyone knows exactly what needs to be done, why it needs to be done, and to what standard. You accept complete responsibility for your staff. You choose them, you assign them, and you manage them with the expectation of excellence.

This style allows you to make quick decisions without the input or challenge of others.

The structural leadership style can allow for more transactional activities to occur. For example, rewarding or punishing team members based on their performance of your goals.

Use this style when your team is already motivated and are experts who need little direction.

However, using this style does not leave much room for flexibility. Using it too much or on a team that isn't already motivated can lead to them to feeling overwhelmed or stifle innovation.

Be a Participative Leader

The next leadership style is Participative.

You make your team feel that you really care about them by putting them first.

You practice the "Friendship Factor" with them, which is made up of three components: time, care, and respect.

You treat them with the same respect, patience, and understanding. The same way you would treat a family member or friend. You express care and concern for them and their problems. This fosters a feeling of bonding, belonging, and ownership to the organization.

This style boosts your team's morale by allowing them to take part in reaching a consensus on decisions and goals. Their opinions and voices feel heard, which will help them buy into changes easier. It also works best when you need fresh ideas or new perspectives.

Use this style during stressful times or when trust needs to be built. Excessive reliance on praise can cause mediocre performance and a lack of clear, strong direction for the company.

Be a Servant-Leader

The third leadership style is Servant.

This makes the Participative style more one-sided, where you see your job as a means to serve your team just as they are there to serve you and the company.

You practice the Golden Rule - you manage other people the way you would like to be managed. You ensure everyone understands their job fully and has all the tools they need.

If they don't, you offer plenty of learning, training, and improvement opportunities.

This style elicits peak performance because your employees are learning vital skills that will both improve their performance and character. Their participation, ideas, and feedback truly feel like they matter.

Use this style with a diverse team, where personalized management is required for each member. Servant leadership is a great style to start off with to gain a great deal of respect, trust, and loyalty. The style also builds a strong culture since it tailors to the team's needs.

But if you don't balance this style very well, this could lead to your team fully running the show. It could create a lack of authority and limit direction and vision.

Be a Freedom-Thinking Leader

The next leadership style is Freedom.

You give your people the freedom to perform. Once you assign a task, you try to stay out of the way only to comment and help when needed.

You take on more of an authoritative role by pointing the team towards a vision or goal. However, similar to the Servant style, you leave the means up to each member.

This style inspires an entrepreneurial spirit with a clear goal in your team members. Especially if they need a new vision due to changes within the company.

Use this style when you have tremendous expertise and have a team of highly experienced employees who don't require a lot of supervision.

The freedom style won't work best when your team members are better experts than you or need more supervision. This can lead to poor production, lack of regular feedback, and lack of control.

Be a Transformational Leader

The last leadership style is Transformational.

This one is my personal favorite. Transformational leaders affect people's emotions by painting a big, exciting picture of the future.

You transform people by tapping into their hopes, dreams, and ideals. You motivate employees by motivating yourself. You enhance productivity through high transparency and communication.

This style uses vision and the future to get your team excited and committed to a project. It doesn't only require the ownership of your team to accomplish goals, it also requires your involvement as a leader. You lead by example by being excited and committing yourself to everything you say and do.

Use this style to focus on building lasting personal strengths. These strengths make your teammates more successful and confident in you, themselves, and the company.

Unless you lack proficiency or your team is defiant and unwilling to change or learn, this style will inspire work, alleviate fears, and help you overcome obstacles together.

Bring Your Team to Success

And there you have it- the 5 different leadership styles. Remember, the process of developing valuable leadership qualities is simple, but not easy. Nothing worthwhile is easy.

The good news is that by developing these styles, you will notice a change in your employees' work. The 5 styles will bring your team to great success, increase productivity, and inspire peak performance.

Before we wrap up, I'd like to leave you with a thought to share with you friends and followers: "Leadership is the ability to get extraordinary achievement from ordinary people."

Now I'd love to hear from you, so my question today is: What is one skill you use to be an effective leader?

Leave a comment below, and I'll be sure to follow up with you.

What kind of leader are you? Download my free "Leadership Questionnaire" to find out how to effectively lead your business and team to success.
About Brian Tracy - Brian is recognized as the top sales training and personal success authority in the world today. He has authored more than 60 books and has produced more than 500 audio and video learning programs on sales, management, business success and personal development, including worldwide bestseller The Psychology of Achievement. Brian's goal is to help you achieve your personal and business goals faster and easier than you ever imagined. You can follow him on Google+, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Linkedin and Youtube.

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5 Leadership Styles to Inspire Peak Performance | Brian Tracy

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The job of the leader is to get things done by leading others to success. It is important to develop leadership styles that suit different situations. The style used depends on the needs of the team. Great leaders choose leadership styles based on the circumstances and the end goal.

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The Top 7 Leadership Qualities & Attributes Of Great Leaders

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The Top 7 Leadership Qualities & Attributes Of Great Leaders

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https://www.briantracy.com/blog/leadership-success/the-seven-leadership-qualities-of-great-leaders-strategic-planning/

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Brian Tracy's Self Improvement & Professional Development Blog

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Many leadership qualities have been identified that are important to great leaders across time.

But there are seven specific qualities of leaders that seem to stand out as being more important than the others.

The good news is that each of these leadership traits can be learned, and they must be learned by practice and repetition.

7 Leadership Qualities of Great Leaders

Here are the seven most identified attributes of great leaders and executives:

What Makes a Great Leader?

Great leaders find the balance between business foresight, performance, and character. They have vision, courage, integrity, humility and focus along with the ability to plan strategically and catalyze cooperation amongst their team.

Vision

"Good business leaders create a vision, articulate the vision, passionately own the vision, and relentlessly drive it to completion." - Jack Welch

Great leaders have a vision... They can see into the future.

They have a clear, exciting idea of where they are going and what they are trying to accomplish and are excellent at strategic planning.

This quality separates them from managers. Having a clear vision turns the individual into a special type of person. This quality of vision changes a "transactional manager" into a "transformational leader."

While a manager gets the job done, great leaders tap into the emotions of their employees.

Courage

"Courage is rightly considered the foremost of the virtues, for upon it, all others depend." - Winston Churchill

One of the more important qualities of a good leader is courage. Having the quality of courage means that you are willing to take risks in the achievement of your goals with no assurance of success. Because there is no certainty in life or business, every commitment you make and every action you take entails a risk of some kind.

Among the seven leadership qualities, courage is the most identifiable outward trait.

Integrity

" With integrity, you have nothing to fear, since you have nothing to hide. With integrity, you will do the right thing, so you will have no guilt." - Zig Ziglar

In every strategic planning session that I have conducted for large and small corporations, the first value that all the gathered executives agree upon for their company is integrity. They all agree on the importance of complete honesty in everything they do, both internally and externally.

The core of integrity is truthfulness.

Integrity requires that you always tell the truth, to all people, in every situation. Truthfulness is the foundation quality of the trust that is necessary for the success of any business.

Humility

Humility gets results. Larry Bossidy, the former CEO of Honeywell and author of the book Execution, explained why leadership characteristics, such as humility, make you a more effective leader:

"The more you can contain your ego, the more realistic you are about your problems. You learn how to listen, and admit that you don't know all the answers. You exhibit the attitude that you can learn from anyone at any time. Your pride doesn't get in the way of gathering the information you need to achieve the best results. It doesn't keep you from sharing the credit that needs to be shared. Humility allows you to acknowledge your mistakes." - Larry Bossidy

Great leaders are those who are strong and decisive but also humble.

Humility doesn't mean that you're weak or unsure of yourself. It means that you have the self-confidence and self-awareness to recognize the value of others without feeling threatened.

This is one of the rarer attributes - or traits - of good leaders because it requires containment of one's ego.

It means that you are willing to admit you could be wrong, that you recognize you may not have all the answers. And it means that you give credit where credit is due - - which many people struggle to do.

Strategic Planning

"Strategy is not the consequence of planning, but the opposite: it's the starting point." - Henry Mintzberg

Great leaders are outstanding at strategic planning. It's another one of the more important leadership strengths. They have the ability to look ahead, to anticipate with some accuracy where the industry and the markets are going.

Leaders have the ability to anticipate trends, well in advance of their competitors. They continually ask, "Based on what is happening today, where is the market going? Where is it likely to be in three months, six months, one year, and two years?" They do this through thoughtful strategic planning.

Because of increasing competitiveness, only the leaders and organizations that can accurately anticipate future markets can possibly survive. Only leaders with foresight can gain the "first mover advantage."

Focus

"Successful people maintain a positive focus in life no matter what is going on around them. They stay focused on their past successes rather than their past failures, and on the next action steps they need to take to get them closer to the fulfillment of their goals rather than all the other distractions that life presents to them. - Jack Canfield

Leaders always focus on the needs of the company and the situation. Leaders focus on results, on what must be achieved by themselves, by others, and by the company. Great leaders focus on strengths, in themselves and in others.

They focus on the strengths of the organization, on the things that the company does best in satisfying demanding customers in a competitive marketplace.

Your ability as a leader to call the shots and make sure that everyone is focused and concentrated on the most valuable use of their time is essential to the excellent performance of the enterprise.

Cooperation

"If your imagination leads you to understand how quickly people grant your requests when those requests appeal to their self-interest, you can have practically anything you go after." - Napoleon Hill

Your ability to get everyone working and pulling together is essential to your success. Leadership is the ability to get people to work for you because they want to.

The 80/20 rule applies here:

Twenty percent of your people contribute 80 percent of your results.

Your ability to select these people and then to work well with them on a daily basis is essential to the smooth functioning of the organization.

Gain the cooperation of others by making a commitment to get along well with each key person every single day. You always have a choice when it comes to a task: You can do it yourself, or you can get someone else to do it for you. Which is it going to be?

Effective Leaders Are Also Strong Communicators

Another important trait that the best leaders strive to perfect is the ability to speak effectively and persuasively. In fact, many tend to practice public speaking within their own businesses until they are ready to branch out into professional paid speaking gigs. Although talking in front of crowds is a top fear for the majority of us, conquering this fear is what makes a good leader become a great leader.

If you're ready to overcome your fear of speaking and start leading more effectively, just take the first step and the rest will become history. You can get started right now by signing up for a spot in my free webinar, 4 Steps to a 6-Figure Speaking Career.

A Few Thoughts on Leadership Qualities

Most of the time, leaders think about good leadership qualities and how to apply them on a daily basis.

They also know that they must lead by example to truly earn the will of their followers.

The most important contribution you can make to your company is to be a leader, accept responsibility for results, and dare to go forward.

BONUS: 3 Extra Leadership Traits to Accelerate Your Career

Bonus Tip 1 - Great Leaders Are Future Oriented 100% of the Time

The predominant quality of g reat leader s is that they think about the future most of the time.

They think about where they are going rather than where they have been. They maintain a positive attitude and think about the opportunities of tomorrow rather than focusing on the problems of the past.

Only about 10% of people have this quality of future-orientation. This small percentage includes all the movers, shakers, entrepreneurs, business builders, top salespeople, artists, musicians, and creators of all kinds.

To think like a leader, you must practice "idealization" in each area of your life.

To get the most out of the use of idealization, you should begin by imagining that you have no limitations at all on what you can be, do or have.

Imagine for a moment that you have all the time and money that you need. You have all the education and knowledge.

You have all the talent and experience. You have all the friends and contacts. You are a "no-limit" person who can do anything that you really put your mind to.

If you were the very best professional business person that you could possibly be, what additional knowledge, skills, and leadership qualities would you have developed to a high level?

When you begin the practice of idealization, you can then extend this exercise to your family, your finances and your physical health.
If your family life was ideal in every way, what sort of lifestyle would you be living? If your financial situation were ideal, how much money would you have in the bank, and how much would you be earning from your investments each month and each year? If your levels of physical health and fitness were ideal, how would you be different from today?
When you begin to develop leadership qualities, you begin to engage in what is called "long-term thinking."

Bonus Tip 2 - Keep A Positive Attitude

Top people maintain a positive attitude and are long-term thinkers. Average thinkers think only about the present, and about immediate gratification.

But great leaders think about where they want to be in five and ten years, and what they have to do each hour of each day to make their desired futures a reality.

Great leaders inspire other people, their friends, customer, associates and even their children because they are inspired themselves.

They are excited about the possibility of creating an exciting future for themselves.

They get up every morning and they see every effort they make as part of a great plan to accomplish something wonderful with their lives and push forward with a positive attitude.

Leaders are optimistic.

They see opportunities and possibilities in everything that happens, positive or negative.

They look for the good in every situation and in every person. They seek the valuable lessons contained in every problem or setback. They never experience "failures;" instead, write them off as "learning experiences."

Most of all, great leaders have a sense of meaning and purpose in each area of their lives.

They have clear, written goals and plans they work on every day. Leaders are clear about where they are going and what they will have to do to get there.

Their behavior is purposeful and goal-directed. As a result, they accomplish five and ten times as much as the average person who operates from day to day with little concern about the future.

Bonus Tip 3 - Take Responsibility

One of the most important leadership qualities is the acceptance of personal responsibility.

Leaders never complain, never explain. Instead of making excuses, they make progress.

Whenever they have a setback or difficulty, they repeat to themselves, "I am responsible! I am responsible! I am responsible!"

Great leaders see themselves as victors over circumstances rather than victims of circumstances.

They don't criticize or blame others when something goes wrong. Instead, they focus on the solution, on what can be done.

Leaders are intensely action-oriented. They are constantly in motion. They try something, and then something else, and then something else again. They never give up.

Finally, leaders have integrity. They tell the truth at all times. They live in truth with themselves, and they live in truth with others.

The acceptance of leadership is a great responsibility.

It is both scary and exhilarating. Once you decide to become a leader in your life, you cast off the shackles of fear and dependency that hold most people back and pursue life with a positive attitude. With your own hands, you design your own future. You set yourself fully on the path to becoming everything you are capable of becoming.

Are you ready to ignite your career by becoming a better speaker? Reserve your spot in my free training webinar and I'll show you four easy steps to obtain the highest paid profession in the world.

Thank you for reading this post on the 7 leadership qualities of great leaders. Please share our infographic with others and comment below!

If you want to learn the specific habits shared by the most successful people on the planet be sure to download my free e-book, The Power of Habit.
7 Leadership Qualities of Great Leaders (Infographic)
See the full-size infographic here. Share this infographic on your blog! Featured Image: Elon Musk under a creative commons license The Summit 2013 - Picture by Dan Taylor / Heisenberg Media - www.heisenbergmedia.com About Brian Tracy - Brian is recognized as the top sales training and personal success authority in the world today. He has authored more than 60 books and has produced more than 500 audio and video learning programs on sales, management, business success and personal development, including worldwide bestseller The Psychology of Achievement. Brian's goal is to help you achieve your personal and business goals faster and easier than you ever imagined. You can follow him on Google+, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Linkedin and Youtube.

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The 7 Best Leadership Qualities (INFOGRAPHIC) | Brian Tracy

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Many leadership qualities have been identified that are important to great leaders across time. But there are seven specific qualities of leaders that seem to stand out as being more important than the others. The good news is that each of these leadership traits can be learned, and they must be learned by practice and repetition.