Reality-Based Leadership E-Book

Cy Wakeman

• Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
• Kategorie: Fachliteratur
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 246

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2010

Beschreibung

Leadership strategies grounded in reality and focused on results Recent polls show that 70% of workers think about quitting their jobs every day. That number would be shocking--if people actually were quitting. Worse, they go to work, punching time clocks and collecting pay checks, while completely checked out emotionally. In Reality-Based Leadership, bestselling author and leadership expert Cy Wakeman reveals how to be the kind of leader who changes the way people think about and perceive their circumstances. This no-nonsense guide shows you how to deal with the facts, give helpful and clear feedback to employees, and kindly help others focus their effort on their personal contribution, not the rampant workplace drama. Filled with dynamic examples, innovative tools, and diagnostic tests, Reality-Based Leadership shows you how to become a Reality-Based Leader: * Uncover destructive thought patterns within yourself and others * Diffuse drama and lead the person in front of you * Empower others to focus on facts and think for themselves * Stop managing and start leading If you're ready to lead more and manage chaos less, Reality-Based Leadership will empower you to do so!

Leseprobe

Table of Contents

Praise

Title Page

Copyright Page

Dedication

Foreword

Introduction

Part One: Find Peace at Work

Part Two: Restore Sanity to the Workplace

Part Three: Lead Your Team to Results

PART ONE - Find Peace at Work

Chapter 1 - You Are the Source of Your Suffering—and That’s the Good News

Suffering Is Optional: Stop Arguing with Reality

Learned Helplessness: Putting On the Shackles

Personal Accountability in the Pursuit of Happiness

Chapter 2 - If You Argue with Reality, You Lose (but Only 100 Percent of the Time)

Event

Thinking

Feeling

Action

Results

Respond to the Facts, Not to the Story

Professional Courtesy: Give Others the Benefit of the Doubt

Your World Is a Projection of You

Chapter 3 - Would You Rather Be Right, or Wildly Successful?

Ego: Not to Be Confused with Confidence

Ego Motivation Masquerading as Selflessness

Work to Be Successful Rather Than Right

When Things Go Wrong. . .

Learn and Grow from Feedback, Especially If It’s Negative

PART TWO - Restore Sanity to the Workplace

Chapter 4 - Lead First, Manage Second

Over-Managing and Under-Leading

Six Principles for Leading First, Managing Second

Empowerment Without Accountability Is Chaos

A Radical Approach: Survey for Accountability

Chapter 5 - Play Favorites: Work with the Willing!

Playing Favorites Is Fair Game

Identify the Visionaries

Redirect Your Focus

Compensate Value, Not Effort

Lack of Feedback Is the Root Cause of All Employee Issues

Dealing with Resistance

Chapter 6 - Change Is a Fact of Life—Get Over It! How to Bullet-Proof Your Employees

Three Core Competencies That Make People Bullet-Proof

Three Common Mistakes to Avoid

Best Practices in Times of Crisis

PART THREE - Lead Your Team to Results

Chapter 7 - Opinions No Longer Count—Actions Do!

Limiting Beliefs That Hold You Back

Chapter 8 - Stop Judging and Start Helping: The Golden Rule of Teamwork

Ambiguity Is the Source of All Conflict

Delegation Is Vital to Good Leadership

Challenge People to Find the Lesson

Get Real, Step Up, Redirect

CONCLUSION

Appendixes

NOTES

Acknowledgments

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

INDEX

Praise forReality-Based Leadership

“An entertaining read, every chapter has an ‘a-ha!’ moment. Be a follower of Cy Wakeman’s insights and solutions, and drive amazing results in any profession, industry, or company culture. Keep this essential reference for leaders at your fingertips!”

—Victor Susman, chief operating officer, First National Merchant Solutions

“Cy Wakeman’s energetic Reality-Based Leadership message is compelling and genuine. Her real-life experiences combined with her mastery of relating those experiences will captivate and influence readers. Her quick-wit key points will become memorable ‘Cy-isms’ in the workplace.”

—Diana M. Mehochko, president, First National Merchant Solutions, LLC

“Cy Wakeman provides the reader with an exquisite guide for developing individuals and the teams they lead. Reality-Based Leadership is chock full of marvelous resources and practical advice on building contemporary organizations that are able to thrive and weather change. This is a must-read for anyone committed to developing a truly successful and vibrant organization.”

—Geraldine Bednash, CEO, American Association of Colleges of Nursing

“Wow! Cy Wakeman’s Reality-Based Leadership is an excellent, heartfelt, humorous, wisdom-filled, butt-kickin’ leadership book! Cy has an amazing way of exposing the drama and stories to get to the soft underbelly of reality. She helps leaders recognize our limiting beliefs and challenges us to change our mindsets. As a general engineering contractor for 30 years, I am just learning to lead first and manage second, and love that I now have the wisdom and tools to recognize and capture the opportunity in every challenge.”

—Mary A. Larsen, president, Stormwater Specialists, General Engineering Contractors

“Read Reality-Based Leadership more as a testimonial to success rather than as just another theoretical business book. Cy Wakeman is not suggesting concepts here—she has lived what she writes. Cy understands that business operates in real time and is played out every day on the competitive pitch. And those who communicate expectations, hold people accountable, and continuously drive teams to higher and higher performance are richly rewarded. Reality-Based Leadership should inspire you to stop making excuses and have the courage to be successful, by first holding yourself accountable and next creating a culture of accountability inside your company!”

—Doug R. Wilwerding, president and CEO, The Optimas Group, LLC

“Cy Wakeman is the Queen of Real. Her message to get over your bad self and lead is perfect for today’s crazy business organizations that are steeped in self-righteous indignation. Got an issue? Get a tissue and move on!”

—Lisa Harper, former CEO and chairman of the board, The Gymboree Corporation

“Insightful and practical. Cy Wakeman’s unique, direct, and colorful approach provides a road map for leaders to drive accountability and empowers talent to achieve extraordinary results. This book is full of practical advice that I was able to put to use immediately!”

—Anne Wignall, senior vice president, human resources, Liberty Bank

“In Reality-Based Leadership, Cy Wakeman takes us on a journey of understanding how we as leaders are accountable and that, quite simply—there are no excuses. Own our vision, inspire our teams, drive results. Reality-Based Leadership provides the reader with Cy’s straightforward, no-nonsense wisdom and great humor, a combination that has helped transform the leadership results of those who have worked with her. She provides a much-needed wake-up call to leaders everywhere.”

—Scott Focht, Institute for Career Advancement Needs

“Cy Wakeman helps us understand that the ‘facts’ are not always as they seem. Reality-Based Leaders liberate and motivate others to understand self and colleagues. Everyone in the organization is empowered to be productive and successful, individually and collectively, achieving extraordinary outcomes with seemingly good ordinary people.”

—Timothy M. Gaspar, dean and professor, the University of Toledo College of Nursing

“Cy Wakeman’s book delivers a powerful message. The bottom line—this is required reading for all leaders!”

—Russ Olson, president and CEO, Liberty Bank

“Cy Wakeman turns the tables on conventional wisdom by showing you how to rise above the noise of interpersonal conflict. Reality-Based Leadership is a playbook on how to thrive in challenging times and lead your organization to breakthrough performance. Cy provides step-by-step instructions on how to have life-changing conversations and be the change you want to see in others. I know. It worked for me and it will for you too.”

—Tim Singley, senior manager of operational excellence, Ingersoll Rand University

“The critical growth of business today is good leadership—this book hits the target. Its practical format is easily applied to every leadership challenge.”

—Caroline Bailey, third-generation Gallo family and owner of Premier Growth, The Business of Family™

Copyright © 2010 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Wakeman, Cy.

Reality-based leadership : ditch the drama, restore sanity to the workplace, and turn excuses into results / Cy Wakeman ; foreword by Larry Winget.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-0-470-61350-4 (hardback); ISBN 978-0-470-87521-6 (ebk); ISBN 978-0-470-87523-0 (ebk); ISBN 978-0-470-87525-4 (ebk)

1. Leadership. I. Title.

HD57.7.W3355 2010

658.4’ 092—dc22

2010020676

I dedicate this book with love and gratitude

to my mother, who taught me the true meaning of Amazing Grace—surround yourself with enough amazing women in your life and you will be graced . . .

and to my dad, who taught me to always succeed in spite of the facts . . .the beginnings of Reality-Based Leadership

FOREWORD

I have never met Cy Wakeman. Strange, huh? Usually the Foreword of a book is written by one of the author’s buddies. But that’s not the case here. Her editor sent me her book to read for a cover blurb. If I had read it and hated it, I could have said so, or I could have said nothing. I didn’t need to say something nice to make her feel good or to sustain our friendship. I didn’t owe anyone anything on this one. So I opened the book with little expectation and no pressure to enjoy it. To my surprise, I read the whole thing in one sitting and found myself saying “Yes!” and “That sounds like !” So I happily wrote a blurb and sent it to the editor because I genuinely liked the book. Wait. That’s not exactly true; I loved the book. Which is a bit odd for me because I hate most business books. It’s true. I’ve read more than 4,000 books in the past twenty years. That’s right: 4,000. I don’t know anyone who has read more books than I have. And most of the books were crap. A few were pretty good. Then there were the rare few that were outstanding. This is one of those outstanding books.