Seven Disciplines of A Leader E-Book

Jeff Wolf

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

Seitenzahl: 455

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2014

Beschreibung

Recognize, develop, and embody great leadership Seven Disciplines of A Leader is a comprehensive manual for building better leaders. Author and executive coach Jeff Wolf is a respected authority on leadership, and his strategies and inspiration have fostered dramatic growth in some of the nation's top companies. In this book, he shares the secrets of great leadership to help readers align professional development and exemplify these traits themselves. Each of the Disciplines is valuable on its own, but together they add up to more than a sum of their parts, and work synergistically to propel leaders to higher and higher effectiveness and companies to better and better business. From initiative, to planning, to community service, readers will gain deep insight into what separates the good from the great, and how organizations can nurture these qualities in their employees with leadership potential. A good leader gets results, but a great leader inspires every single member of the team to reach their utmost potential every single time. A great leader makes everyone shine, and provides the vision, the tools, and the support people need to do their very best work. This book describes how it's done, and how greatness can be learned. * Discover the traits that make leaders great * Align leadership development training to maximize potential * Foster the right attitudes and behaviors for better outcomes * Build a culture of sustainable success that permeates the organization Individual achievement is great, but fostering a culture of achievement sends business into the future on an upward trajectory. It's more than just a single inspired employee; it's about recognizing the signs of potential leadership and nurturing them to fruition throughout the organization. Seven Disciplines of A Leader is the field guide to great leadership.

Leseprobe

CONTENTS

Cover

Title Page

Copyright

Dedication

Acknowledgments

Introduction: What Makes Certain Leaders Highly Effective?

A New Generation of Highly Effective Leaders

This Book Is Designed to Boost Your Leadership Effectiveness

Proven Process for Developing Highly Effective Leaders

I: The Nature of Highly Effective Leadership

Chapter 1: Welcome to Leadership

The Need for Leadership Is Greater Now Than Ever Before

Real Life, Real Lessons

Secret Ingredient: People

Jim Gets It Done the Right Way

The Inevitable Result of Failing to Take Responsibility

Finger-Pointing

Leading in Uncertain Times

Helen Gets It Right

Chapter 2: Who Said It Would Be Easy?

Five Fundamental Goals of Highly Effective Leaders

What's Wrong with Being Right?

Zoe Learns an Important Lesson from Her Boss, Stan

Fear of Failure Is Dangerous to Your Job Health

Bob's Short and Unhappy Career

Chapter 3: Principles of Effective Leadership

How to Make Things Happen

Grumbling George

Attitude Is Everything

Show Vulnerability

What I Learned from the Father of Professional Speaking

Highly Effective Leaders Build on a Foundation of Honesty and Integrity

Seven Deadly Leadership Sins

Pride and Envy Bring Millie Down

Chapter 4: Disciplines and Practices of Highly Effective Leaders

New Paradigm of Discipline: Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation

The Necessary Foundation of Discipline

Daily Discipline Activities

Why Be Disciplined?

Jimmy Corrects a Problem

Talent or Hard Work?

Deliberate Practice: 10,000 Hours or 10 Years

Three Disciplines of Highly Effective Leaders

Deliberate Practice

Tom Receives Feedback

II: Seven Disciplines

Chapter 5: Discipline 1: Initiative and Influence

Simply No Substitute for Honesty

Mary Ellen and Jane Part Company

Innovation

Meet Clarice Turner, Innovator

More Lessons from the Restaurant Industry

Make an Emotional Connection

Borrow from Your Competitors

Involve Staff and Customers

Chapter 6: Discipline 2: Vision, Strategy, and Alignment

Melvin Takes Over as Hospital Purchasing Manager

How to Share Vision

Five Useful Skills

Align People and Systems behind Your Vision

Vision/Strategy and Alignment

Searching Your Leadership Soul

Sharing Your Vision

Candid Communication

Positively Negative

Make the Mentoring Commitment

Starting Off on the Right Foot

Chapter 7: Discipline 3: Priorities, Planning, and Execution

Judy Sees the Light

Priorities, Planning, and Execution

Nancy Can't Find Her Way

Identifying Priorities

Productive Planning Meets Effective Execution

The Prophet versus Leader Paradigm

Top 10 Ways to Sabotage Yourself and Your Company

Chapter 8: Discipline 4: Social/Emotional/Political Intelligence

Always Seek Feedback

John Discovers that It's Never Too Late to Learn

Emotional Intelligence/Resilience

Headaches of Management

Larry Becomes a Leader

Chapter 9: Discipline 5: Reciprocation, Collaboration, and Service

Effective Leaders Must Influence and Inspire Others

The Way It Was

The Brutal Way of Old

The Need for Reciprocity

Collaboration: The Key Ingredient

Humility Will Improve Your Performance

The Benefits of Community Service

Chapter 10: Discipline 6: Love and Leverage

Do What You Love, Love What You Do

Sophie Mirman, England's Youngest Millionaire

Work Passion: A New Discipline

The Troubling News

Passion's Nemesis

Lessons from Industry Leaders

Phil Recharges His Batteries

The Dog Days of Work

The Highly Effective Leader Passion Assessment Tool

Chapter 11: Discipline 7: Renewal and Sustainability

Janet Transitions from Hard-Nosed Boss to Exceptional Leader

The World Is Changing: Was It Ever Not So?

III: Eleven Practices of Highly Effective Leaders

Chapter 12: Practice 1: Hire People Like a Casting Director

Roger Makes His First Hiring Decision

Casting: Hire Smart

Attract the Best People

Take Three Key Steps

Pat's Hiring Policy Fails

Hire for Attitude

Santiago Succeeds Despite an Early Failure

A TV Executive Makes a Hiring Mistake

Eight Hiring Guidelines

Chapter 13: Practice 2: Never Stop Developing People

The Necessity of Ongoing Training

Training: My Story—A Game That Came Down to One Play

Train to Retain

Empowering People

Jonathan Delegates

Poor Leaders

Effective Leadership Development

Nurturing Growth

Empower—Don't Just Dump

Chapter 14: Practice 3: Understand the Value of Coaching

My Father-in-Law, My Coach

Three Skills of Effective Coaching

The Manager They Call “Coach”

Coaching People

Dealing with Difficult Employees

Chapter 15: Practice 4: Motivate and Inspire People

All Members Have to Pull Their Weight

Leaders Discuss Motivation

Chapter 16: Practice 5: Master Communication

Improving Communicating Ability

Andrew Identifies a Key Issue in Communication

Beatriz's Engaging Smile

Are You Listening?

Nuances of Nonverbal Communication

Zachary Wings It and Loses His Audience

Functions of Nonverbal Communication

Improving Nonverbal Communication

Lucille Slams the Door

About Face

Technology Conundrum

Chapter 17: Practice 6: Build an Optimal Team

To Build a Strong Team, Trade “Me” for “We”

Six Essential Leadership Responsibilities That Build Effective Teams

Fuzzy Focus

Teamwork and Strong Teams

Learning Teams

We Are Not the Enemy

Six Learning Disabilities

Solution: Team Learning Discipline

Team Health

Four Disciplines

Chapter 18: Practice 7: Deliver Excellence and Satisfy Customers

The Car of My Dreams

Ted Opens a New Market

The Disciplines of Excellence

Customer Intimacy

Excellence in Customer Service

Chapter 19: Practice 8: Balance Your Work and Personal Life

Jack Finds the Way

Work/Life Balance

Barbara Burns Out

Get a Life

What's Important to You?

Health Implications

Are We Having Fun Yet?

Chapter 20: Practice 9: Nurture New Leaders and Retain High Performers

Identifying and Grooming High-Potential Employees

Retaining High-Potential Employees

The Right Work Culture Helps Retain Your Best People

Appreciating Human Behavior at Work

A Promising Sales Manager Leaves Her Company

Workplace Harassment: The Real Deal

Creating Positive Energy

Homegrown Leaders

Chapter 21: Practice 10: Lead Desired Change

Embracing Change

As Hard to Move as a Boulder

Four Phases of Change

Resisting Change

Success Story

Chapter 22: Practice 11: Manage a Multigenerational Workforce

Shifting Demographics

World War II Generation

Baby Boom Generation

Generation X

Millennial Generation

Bridging the Generation Gap

Basic Leadership Techniques

Work Arrangements and Benefits

Congratulations

About the Author

Index

End User License Agreement

Guide

Cover

Table of Contents

Part 1

Part 1

Chapter 1

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Seven Disciplines of a Leader

How to Help Your People, Team, and Organization Achieve

Maximum Effectiveness

Jeff Wolf with Ken Shelton

Cover design: Michael J. Freeland

Copyright © 2015 by Jeff Wolf. All rights reserved.

Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.

Published simultaneously in Canada.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permitted under Section 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, [phone], fax [phone], or on the web at www.copyright.com. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, [phone], fax [phone], or online at www.wiley.com/go/permissions.

Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: While the publisher and author have used their best efforts in preparing this book, they make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this book and specifically disclaim any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by sales representatives or written sales materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for your situation. You should consult with a professional where appropriate. Neither the publisher nor the author shall be liable for damages arising herefrom.

For general information about our other products and services, please contact our Customer Care Department within the United States at [phone], outside the United States at [phone] or fax [phone].

Wiley publishes in a variety of print and electronic formats and by print-on-demand. Some material included with standard print versions of this book may not be included in e-books or in print-on-demand. If this book refers to media such as a CD or DVD that is not included in the version you purchased, you may download this material at http://booksupport.wiley.com. For more information about Wiley products, visit www.wiley.com.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:

Wolf, Jeff (Economist)

Seven disciplines of a leader: How to help your people, team, and organization achieve maximum effectiveness/Jeff Wolf.

pages cm

Includes index.

ISBN 978-1-119-00395-3 (hardback); ISBN 978-1-119-00396-0 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-119-00409-7 (ebk)

1. Leadership. I. Title.

HD57.7.W6495 2015

658.4′092—dc23

2014027703

Dedication

To my mom and dad who always believed in me, taught me right from wrong, and provided unconditional love and support in everything I ever did.

Acknowledgments

First and foremost, my thanks go out to my family who puts up with me through thick and thin. My beautiful wife Maria who many years ago suggested I go into this wonderful business of leadership development. You were right! My daughter Melissa, who has grown into a very successful young leader, whom I'm very proud of. My stepsons Greg and Alex, my brother Earl, sister-in-law Jacky, and, last but not least, Charlie (man's best friend) who keeps me humble during our nightly walks together.

Martin Smith, an honest and caring man who took me under his wing and helped me get published.

Ken Shelton, who said my original title, The Essence of Effective Leadership, would not resonate with people—but Seven Disciplines of a Leader would…. I hope you are right!

All the leaders I've been privileged to coach and work with during the past 14 years; I'm sure I've learned more from you than you've learned from me.

My literary agent, Jill Marsal, for believing this book had merit.

John Wiley & Sons for investing and showing confidence in me.

My PR team: Jessica, Marcie, and Jennifer. You bring unlimited energy to work each day, and I truly appreciate all that you do.

Thanks also to the people who read this book. I hope it will help you on your leadership journey.

IntroductionWhat Makes Certain Leaders Highly Effective?

Christopher had recently been promoted from shift supervisor to department manager in an online retailer's large distribution center. Unfortunately, Max, his boss, the shift manager, who leaned toward the theoretical side, was not as helpful or supportive as he could be and Christopher floundered. The distribution center's general manager recognized Max's failing and transferred him into a staff job that required no supervision. He replaced him with Janelle, a leader of considerable accomplishments, who understood how to develop promising employees.

Within weeks, Christopher's performance improved significantly, and he went on to become an outstanding leader for his company. Although he didn't realize it at the time, this experience was invaluable. In essence, what he discovered was that the very best people to teach leadership are those who have “been there, done that, learned from it.”

In this book I highlight similar observations to help you learn hard-earned leadership lessons. I call these hands-on advice. Regard them collectively as your own personal leadership adviser, the spirit hovering over your right shoulder, whispering in your ear.

Okay, let's get started with the first of these based on Christopher's experience.

Hands-On Advice: Find somebody to advise you who's “been there, done that, learned from it.”

Why? Because that's the person who can give you the most valuable advice on leadership—the person who has insights into the job based on his practical real-world experience. This is what I mean by the term hands-on. It has a corollary:

Hands-On Advice: Find a mentor, regardless of your level in the company.

You might be a first-line supervisor, a middle manager, a top executive, a specialist, an aspiring manager. You should have somebody in your corner, somebody you can turn to when you need advice, somebody who can provide an objective opinion. That person might be your boss, another employee who you respect, possibly an outsider. The point is you will always benefit from the association.

And that's what I bring to the table. I've been there, done that, learned from it—admittedly, sometimes the hard way. The point is I've worked my way up from the lower ranks of a company to its highest position. Along the way I acquired some priceless lessons on what works and what doesn't in leadership positions throughout the organization. And I founded my company based on teaching others those very same principles.

How Does This Book Address the Answer to Today's Leadership Challenges?

The book is based upon 14 years of coaching and training leaders at all levels and in all types of industries. I developed and refined the Seven Disciplines through my coaching practice and observing how the Seven Disciplines and Eleven Practices took leaders I've coached and worked with from good to great performers.

Because of the inordinate amount of pressure exerted on leaders today, coupled with the business necessity of continually doing more with less, leaders have little or no time to hone their leadership skills. This book takes you through the process, step by step, with succinct and descriptive steps, each with real-life examples, and a guide and practice application at the end of each chapter to help coach you through the journey.

Regardless of what section you read, skills can be gleaned from every chapter to improve leadership functions and abilities.

Before you can lead others, you must have fundamental and proven disciplines as a basis to rely on for success. The core disciplines described in this book are those that successful leaders I've coached have used to improve their job performances.

Not only are you learning the seven disciplines, which have proven themselves with literally hundreds of leaders, but you will also learn from stories of success and failure. Additionally, the takeaway section provides action items to further the application of the disciplines and practices learned best by doing. It's almost like having your own personal coach.

The seven disciplines not only bring to light successful business leadership ideals, but those same disciplines can be applied to improve everyday life.

Since the ability of leaders to motivate and inspire others is critical, the book shows you how to communicate and interact to execute and lead effectively.

Employee engagement in the workplace is at an all-time low. In most cases, poor leadership is the reason. This book provides answers. It lays out a platform of proven concepts and ideas that will, if followed, eliminate this burdensome problem in today's workforce.

Leadership starts from within and manifests itself on the outside. This book provides you with the skills needed within and shows how to seamlessly transfer them into viable actionable steps.

Many leaders today are promoted based on their technical skills without any consideration for what it takes to perform effectively as a leader. The fate of an organization depends on its leadership. My book provides a step-by-step plan that every company can use to develop its leaders and point to and say: “This is the right way to lead.”

Most important of all,

Seven Disciplines of a Leader

is a book from the trenches…not a theoretical hodgepodge of data and ideas. These concepts and ideas are practical and easy to apply. They have constituted the basis of my pragmatic and highly regarded coaching sessions for years.

I've been a janitor who worked in a sweltering furnace room all day, sorting garbage by hand, tearing apart each and every bag and separating the garbage that would burn from the metal and aerosol cans that wouldn't. I always hoped I would be able to pick out all the aerosol cans so they wouldn't explode in the raging furnace and pop my eardrums. Yet every day I came to work motivated because I had a leader who inspired me to be the best that I could be and take pride in my work.

Early in my career I was a high school basketball coach and sought out great college coaches like John Wooden, Bobby Knight, and Al McGuire to see what made them successful and how to incorporate some of their methods of success and leadership practices into my own program. I had a thirst for knowledge that kept me seeking to improve my leadership skills every single day. I learned to motivate the young men on my team by challenging them to achieve peak performance, teamwork, and personal goals.

As an executive, I took the principles and lessons learned from those early experiences and realized that leadership is focusing on the people side of business. It's helping your people perform beyond their own level of expectations. It's bringing out the best in people, teams, and organizations, allowing them to quickly clarify their purpose and vision, set goals, and stay focused and committed.

Fourteen years ago, at the pinnacle of my corporate career, I completed a stint as a CEO and felt it was time to move on to a new career. After engaging numerous consulting firms, I imagined creating a single firm capable of providing truly innovative solutions to a multifaceted range of organizational problems.

I envisioned a unique team of highly experienced senior practitioners who could deliver unprecedented client satisfaction, improve performance, and exceed expectations in three critical areas: consulting, coaching, and training. This pivotal focus would allow us to develop long-term strategic partnerships that could effectively address every level of clients' changing needs.

Over the last decade, despite economic downturns, we've experienced dramatic growth, and I've been very fortunate to coach and provide leadership training to CEOs, presidents, corporate executives, as well as managers, supervisors, and business owners. We've worked with some of the largest and most well-known companies in the world such as Sony, Samsung, Qualcomm, Abbott Labs, Pfizer, CVS, Baxter, Monsanto, General Mills, Tupperware, and hundreds of others.

Having coached hundreds of leaders through thousands of coaching sessions, I've been able to narrow down the essence of leadership success to Seven Disciplines and Eleven Practices that I'll share with you in this book. I'm going to describe leadership skills I've applied in a common sense, easy-to-understand fashion to help leaders at every level of an organization make a real difference in the workplace. The strategies and techniques can be immediately applied to improve your leadership ability.

Over the past 10 years I've worked with people, teams, and organizations who were seeking to:

Improve individual performance and productivity.

Address leadership development and succession planning.

Make a significant impact on their long-term success.

Sharpen the leadership skills of high potential individuals.

Change behavior of leaders to make a long-term positive impact on organizational performance.

Develop the skill set of current and future leaders.

Build more effective teams.

Address specific workplace problems.

Build job-critical competencies.

Achieve individual performance objectives aligned with organizational goals.

Raise employee engagement.

Address the biggest problems facing leaders today.

Improve employee retention rates and be an employer of choice.

My job is to provide a catalyst for change and equip leaders with the tools, knowledge, and opportunities they need to help them focus on the specific goals they want to achieve.

What makes this book different from others on the market is the fact that I've been there, done that, and learned from it, while so many authors of books on leadership have not. Without that crucial hands-on experience, it's impossible to separate the meaningful from the insignificant in teaching effective leadership principles.

This book is an extrapolation of the future of leadership based upon a varied business career and coaching and working with leaders at every level of organizations for the past 14 years. Seven Disciplines is up-to-date with what's happening in today's fast-moving and quickly changing business environment.

A New Generation of Highly Effective Leaders

Today's competitive global marketplace and the high number of retiring senior leaders is driving a great demand for a new generation of highly effective leaders. Where will they come from? How can they be developed? What makes certain leaders highly effective? Are leaders born or made? These questions have been hotly debated for decades.

As an executive coach, I've come to realize that while some people seem to be natural leaders, most great leaders aren't born highly effective with extraordinary skills; rather, they develop skills and become highly effective through instruction, experience, and practice of core disciplines.

Just as competitive athletes train to win, leaders must work hard, adopt a positive attitude, and demonstrate a desire to continuously improve. Effective leaders inspire people to do great things. They're visionaries who serve as role models. They also understand that their unique leadership style will change over time as circumstances dictate, so they must remain flexible and adaptable.

Leadership isn't about who's in charge; it's about those they lead and the paths they take. Larry Bossidy, former CEO of Allied Signal and coauthor of Execution, said, “At the end of the day you bet on people, not strategies.” Leaders are needed at every level, and the success of their organizations depends on how well they're developed.

This Book Is Designed to Boost Your Leadership Effectiveness

I intend your experience to be, as my colleague Susan Spale wrote:

Thought provoking! It will cause you to think about your role in new ways.

Challenging! It will stretch you to achieve higher performance.

Meaningful! It is relevant to enhance your value on the team.

Interactive! It challenges you to own your learning process.

Rewarding! You feel that it's a great investment of your time.

Inspiring! It moves you to take action.

Practical! It provides easy transfer to your work.

This book will also deliver four major benefits: (1) Build and sharpen your core leadership skills; (2) Enhance your market position and reputation by attracting and retaining the best talent, leading to healthy revenue growth; (3) Improve your decision making, interpersonal relations, and teamwork; and (4) Assist you in becoming a highly effective and dynamic leader, leading to increased employee engagement, enhanced customer service, and a strong bottom line.

In my work, I address leadership development as a means of improving performance and productivity, empowerment and engagement, retention and succession, and making a long-term impact on teams and organizations.

Astute leaders today turn to coaches as catalysts to accelerate change and achieve desired results. Why? Because there is just so much time in the day, and leaders and their staffs are so overburdened there's rarely enough time to step back and examine the big picture.

The best executive coaching delivers dramatic results, expressly because its practitioners realize that coaching is not about them. They understand that people have the answers and solutions they need to make a positive behavioral change. They simply provide the discipline and resources for them to identify and implement their own solutions. They are both coach and catalyst for change, helping clients focus on specific goals and providing them with the tools, knowledge, and opportunities they need.

I feel that most management education and leadership development fails top leaders because the discipline and resources are missing. I've seen it, and it is tragic: throwing younger supervisors of the company into the fray without them having any understanding of what it takes to lead and motivate their people, allowing them to make profound mistakes, and then relieving them of their responsibilities when they don't perform. The result: damaged careers and a loss of potential leaders for the company. Doesn't make sense.

During the last recession, which has been a new experience for many leaders, the focus has been on survival, with little attention on growing leaders or providing current leaders with the skillsets to lead in an uncertain economic environment.

When there were leadership development efforts, they were usually for the mid-level and senior level, provided mostly through training classes consisting of full-day or week-long sessions, but lacking a coaching component to reinforce the skills learned in these classes. Why is coaching so important? Because personal coaching not only changes the behavior of participants, but aids them in real-time on-the-job situations.

Additionally, organizations need to look at developing high-potential individuals and frontline leaders of managers and supervisors to provide them with the skillsets needed to hone their craft. This element has been absent for years, and now that the economy seems to be getting on track, hopefully this all-important group will be developed.

This demerit needs to be offset by a different mindset, skillset, and style. Leadership effectiveness is the result of a regimen of Seven Disciplines that culminate in the realization of a compelling vision of service to others, using the tools at your disposal, with a clear vision of what you want to accomplish with the resources at hand. Effective leaders create a synergy of interdependent functions to make the business run as a singular, unique, integrated, and open system. Nearly all executive decisions for solving any single problem cut across the organization, with consequences for multiple divisions. Hence, we see many examples of well intended decisions with unintended consequences that undermine profitability and sustainability.

The real test of leadership effectiveness happens during turbulent economic times and when changing strategic direction. You know that it's time for change when routine activities are not delivering the intended results. Since Dr. W. Edwards Deming, a celebrated statistician, engineer, and management consultant, proved that 94 percent of all results are systemic in nature, any successful leader must demonstrate effectiveness at leading and managing the entire value chain or entire system. Ultimate responsibility over the entire value chain is what sets the leader's position apart from other executive roles.

The responsibility for the value chain carries through to all levels of the company, including that of the first-line supervisor, the leader who is responsible for executing orders that originated at the top. As costs out of his control escalate (such as the price of purchased material and the hourly labor rate in a manufacturing operation), he has the burden of finding enough cost reductions to offset the increases. Oftentimes, the P&L of the company rests on his shoulders.

Leaders need not always learn by hard or bad experience or be left to their own devices. My development system, which I describe in this book, provides leaders with disciplines that help them organize and execute to get desired results.

Proven Process for Developing Highly Effective Leaders

In this book, I've integrated our Leadership Development Program Design with the Seven Disciplines. Thus, by reading this book, you experience a simulation of our leadership development program, perhaps even receive 80 percent of the benefit! To achieve this high standard, we've added a new feature: each section and chapter has applications and exercises to help you learn and practice the aim of the chapter.

There's also Section III. The Eleven Practices described there aren't tied specifically to any of the Seven Disciplines but affect them all. For example, Practice 1: Hire People Like a Casting Director is a precondition that underlies achievement of the Seven Disciplines. If you hire the wrong people you simply will be unable to get the most from any of the Seven Disciplines. So while the Eleven Practices are described independently, they all are prerequisites to successful leadership.

Given this developmental design feature, you use this book best when you use it for personal, team, and organizational leadership development, either alone or with a formal leadership development program (LDP). You'll find that our paradigm doesn't compete with, but rather complements, any other LDP or process you may now be using.

Leadership development should be practical, interactive, incremental (modular), and experiential to develop mindsets and skillsets that can be transferred and applied at work. It should be aimed at all levels of the organization, and especially at the lower levels, where less experienced employees need the most guidance. (You can read the 12 components in Chapter 13.)

Seven Disciplines of a Leader is organized into three sections: (1) The first offers an overview of effective leadership; (2) the second introduces the Seven Disciplines of highly effective leaders; (3) the third focuses on Eleven Practices that sustain the Seven Disciplines.

Takeaway Exercises

At the conclusion of each chapter you'll read a section titled “Takeaway.” This section allows you the opportunity to evaluate your own leadership style through an exercise that will drive home one or more of the chapter's main points. It's designed to sharpen your leadership skills in a practical way. It doesn't attempt to cover each and every major point in the chapter. But, the benefit of performing these exercises is that you can apply the very same methodology to an entire range of issues at work.

If you do these exercises faithfully, by the time you finish this book you will have improved your leadership skills many times over.

IThe Nature of Highly Effective Leadership

In organizations worldwide, people are promoted to management and leadership positions each day. Through no fault of their own, they seldom have a clue as to how to manage or lead effectively. Their companies, while demanding much of them, fail to provide them with the necessary skills, coaching, training, and tools to lead successfully.

This first section includes four chapters:

Chapter 1

: Welcome to Leadership—Nature of the Job

Chapter 2

: Who Said It Would Be Easy?—Scope of the Job

Chapter 3

: Principles of Effective Leadership—Essence of the Job

Chapter 4

: Disciplines and Practices of Highly Effective Leaders

1Welcome to LeadershipNature of the Job

Today, there's an unprecedented demand for highly effective leaders. As organizations strive to stay competitive in the tough global marketplace, the ability to develop effective leaders has become increasingly difficult. Organizations are facing—or must face—the reality that effective leaders, at every level, can make or break them.

An aging workforce and retiring baby boomers compound the challenge. Where will tomorrow's leaders come from? Smart organizations must identify and train their talent to meet rigorous leadership demands, or they risk failure.

The Need for Leadership Is Greater Now Than Ever Before

The Gallup Business Journal had it right in its March 25, 2014, article, “Why Great Managers Are So Rare.” According to authors Randall Beck and Jim Harter, “Companies place the wrong leadership candidates in the job 82 percent of the time.”

Think about that number for a moment: 82 percent? Is it any wonder that so many companies fall by the wayside? As Beck and Harter put it, “Bad managers cost businesses billions of dollars each year, and having too many of them can bring down a company. The only defense against this problem is a good offense, because when companies get these decisions wrong, nothing fixes it. Businesses that get it right, however, and hire managers based on talent, will thrive and gain a significant competitive advantage.”

The lack of effective leadership is further evidenced by the staggering number of employees who aren't working to their full potential. In another Gallup Business Journal article, “How to Tackle U.S. Employees' Stagnating Engagement,” dated June 11, 2013, authors Susan Sorenson and Keri Garman claim that only 30 percent of American workers “…were engaged, or involved in, enthusiastic about, and committed to their workplace.”

They go on to say, “An alarming 70 percent of American workers are not showing up to work committed to delivering their best performance, and this has serious implications for the bottom line of individual companies and the U.S. economy as a whole.”

Mike Myatt, author of the book Leadership Matters…The CEO Survival Manual (Outskirts Press, 2007), writing in Forbes says, “Why do businesses fail? If you're willing to strip away all the excuses, explanations, rationalizations, and justifications for business failures, and be really honest in your analysis, you'll find only one plausible reason—poor leadership. I've often said real leaders refuse to take the credit for success, but they will always accept responsibility for failures. Harsh? Yes; but it goes with the territory.”

Steve Tobak of Fox Business News puts it this way in an article he wrote for foxbusiness.com on January 20, 2013, “Why Good Companies Fail”: “When you cut through all the BS [of a failing business] it always comes down to one thing. People. If you observe the people in charge, ask some good questions, and poke around a bit, you can usually figure out what's really going on. And what's really going wrong.”

Steve continues: “At the core of every company in trouble is usually a management team that's not as competent as it needs to be, more complacent than it should be, and more dysfunctional than it can get away with.”

In such an environment is there any basis for questioning the need for more capable leaders, or as I like to say, highly effective leaders?

Real Life, Real Lessons

I wrote this book after being prodded by thousands of people who have attended my speeches and workshops, the hundreds of executives I've coached, and the countless organizations I've worked with in consulting and training. I designed the book to address and answer a critical question: What can you do to improve your leadership?

This book provides you with simple, pragmatic principles, as well as stories and exercises that can make you a more effective leader as you read and apply the book's lessons.

Leadership is not rocket science. It comes down to living and leading by the golden rule: Do unto others as you want them to do unto you.

Through real-life stories and examples, I provide a window into the lessons gleaned in hundreds of coaching sessions. Certain names and details have been omitted to protect clients' identity. I confess that coaching alone wasn't responsible for their successes.

Leadership requires common sense, knowledge, and honesty with people. It's talking—and walking—the talk. Effective leaders learn about the people they lead, they communicate well, they offer relevant feedback and praise, and they give credit to those who deserve it. They are a positive force at work (where people spend most of their time), and create a welcoming, productive environment where people can enjoy their jobs.

Secret Ingredient: People

“You can dream, create, and design the most wonderful place in the world…but it takes people to make the dream a reality.”

—Walt Disney

When Walt Disney made this statement some 55 years ago, he likely never imagined that it would be applied to the workplace and become a core management tenet.

It doesn't matter what business you're in—manufacturing, accounting, legal, high tech, biotech, blue collar, or white collar—nor the size or nature of your organization: It's people who are your most vital resource. Without highly motivated employees, your organization will struggle to survive.

Motivated people give you a competitive advantage. As a leader, you can make the difference between those who care deeply about their roles versus those who simply show up for work every day (if you're lucky), and go through the motions while collecting a paycheck. An effective leader motivates employees to work together and achieve greatness, instilling confidence and trust as they go about their everyday business.

Of the 70 percent mentioned in the previous Gallup article, 52 percent are not engaged, and another 18 percent are actively disengaged. These employees are emotionally disconnected from their companies and may actually be working against their employers' interests. That's a frightening number! What does this say about the state of leadership today?

People make companies. As leaders, we often spend most of our time on strategy and improving bottom-line results, but what about our people? It's our job as leaders to guide them, help them develop more skills, and increase productivity.

I've often questioned why so few MBA programs include essential people skills (often called “soft skills” in their curricula). I was therefore happy to read a recent Wall Street Journal article describing how top MBA programs are starting to incorporate soft skills into their course studies. It's about time! In today's workplaces, these soft skills can make or break a leader. Let me give you an example.

Jim Gets It Done the Right Way

Jim, an engineer at a pharmaceutical plant, was loved by everyone he worked with. When people in production had a problem, they would seek him instead of their manager for help. Jim was outgoing, pleasant, and well-grounded in the technical components of his job. He always had a smile on his face, a kind word for everyone, and a positive attitude. He went out of his way to show people how to do things correctly. And when anything extra needed to be done, Jim always volunteered. He was the first person in his department to arrive each morning and usually the last person to leave. With 15 years of industry experience under his belt, he knew what it took to be successful. He had all of the basic traits and talents to be an effective leader, yet no one ever considered him leadership material.

One day, the process engineering department manager suddenly left without giving notice, and the company was hard-pressed to find a replacement. Executives didn't believe anyone inside the company could step up, so they planned to recruit from outside.

One employee asked the obvious: How about considering Jim for the job? After much debate, the execs decided to take a chance on him, with the condition that he receive leadership training to enhance his skills. They called Jim into the conference room and asked him if he was interested. He initially stated he wasn't interested, saying he enjoyed doing what he had always done and didn't want to make a change. Besides, he told them, he had never been a manager or leader, and he didn't know what to do.

The executives asked him to reconsider, as the new job represented a major step up in his career, as well as an opportunity to share his knowledge with others. After giving the promotion much thought, Jim changed his mind and decided to accept the position. The management team was pleased, and they began a highly structured program through which Jim could develop his leadership skills. They sent him to seminars outside of the company and provided a coach to work with him. Company executives understood that they needed to provide Jim with the right tools if they wanted him to succeed.

After a few months of intensive training, a once-reluctant Jim was eager and ready for his first day of leadership. He felt both excited and nervous as he arrived early Monday morning and proceeded to stand at the entryway to his department. He greeted everyone by their first names as they walked through the door and asked about their weekend, family, and children. He made a concerted effort to learn about his employees' outside activities and personal interests.

Jim had worked over the weekend to learn something about each employee, and he came through the door prepared. His ability to demonstrate that he cared about his staff and that he viewed each member as an individual started him off on the right foot with his department. Jim's leadership training and coaching paid off on the first day of his new job, creating a buzz among employees about the newly promoted manager's genuine interest in his staff's personal and professional lives.

During his first week, Jim held one-on-one meetings with each team member, followed by weekly team meetings. Each session had a specific agenda, and he enthusiastically solicited input from team members. The group was excited and motivated because Jim demonstrated a basic leadership principle: People make an organization, and engaging them creates loyalty.

Over time, Jim's department developed a reputation for highly motivated, energized, and productive people. Company employees jumped at the chance to transfer into Jim's department. One of Jim's secrets of success is that he understood what his people wanted, not just what he wanted, and he acted accordingly. He proactively asked his staff for feedback about his leadership style and effectiveness. He quickly learned that what was important to him wasn't necessarily important to them.

Jim asked questions: What can I do to make you happier here? What do you find challenging about your work? What's energizing about your work? How can I be a better leader for you to be successful? What resources do you need that you currently don't have? What motivates you to work hard? Do you feel appreciated and receive the praise and recognition you feel you deserve?

Over time, Jim was deemed one of the best managers in his company, a designation that continues to this day. He continually works to improve his leadership skills and understands the premise that Walt Disney espoused 55 years ago: It takes people to make the dream a reality.

The Inevitable Result of Failing to Take Responsibility

Unlike Jim, many managers and leaders fail to take responsibility. They are quick to point their fingers at others for failures. Looking in the mirror proves to be too difficult for them, and they are more than happy to abdicate personal responsibility.

This concept was put to the test when J. Tyler Leverty, PhD, an assistant professor of finance at the University of Iowa's Tippie College of Business, studied failed executives, including:

Lehman Brothers Chairman and CEO Richard S. Fuld Jr., (aka the Gorilla on Wall Street), named one of

Portfolio.com's

Worst American CEOs of All Time.

The duo of Enron Chairman Kenneth Lay and CEO Jeffrey Skilling, whose illegal business exploits led to indictments, trials, and criminal convictions. According to Dr. Leverty, the pair blamed an angry short seller in Florida for the company's demise, the largest bankruptcy in U.S. history when it was filed in 2001.

A coterie of CEOs at General Motors, who consistently blamed the economy and outside pressures for the automaker's failure and reorganization in 2009.

None of these leaders cited poor management or a corrupt culture as reasons for their companies' downfalls, but as Leverty notes, their highly deficient decision-making skills were to blame. “We found that managers of failed firms are less skilled than their peers, and the consequences of their incompetence are economically significant.” Dr. Leverty and his coauthor studied 12,000 insurance companies to determine how the decisions of their chief executives over a 12-month period affected firm performance. They asked: Were costs minimized? Were revenues maximized? Did the company operate efficiently? Did the company use technology effectively? How did the quality of leadership affect solvency? Ultimately, “inefficiency is a manager's fault,” Leverty notes. Leaders are charged with identifying and remedying every problem area.

Finger-Pointing

Manny was shipping manager for a regional delivery company…and he was not respected by his peers. He was quick to point fingers when shipments fell below plan, blaming his problems on others.

This situation persisted for years because Manny had the ear of the company founder. Unfortunately for Manny, the founder died and his son, who succeeded him, didn't appreciate Manny's finger-pointing. He fired him.

Hands-On Advice: Failing to take responsibility for the performance of your job is a losing proposition. Face your own problems and correct them.

It's easy to unconsciously slip into the routine of blaming others when things go wrong. And it may work for a time, but eventually you will be exposed. In the meantime, you risk alienating the people whose cooperation you rely on. Not a smart move.

Leading in Uncertain Times

The role of leaders in uncertain times transcends managing the bottom line. It requires remembering that their first priority is employees. Great leaders never forget that their employees are the keys to success.

As an executive coach, consultant, and former CEO, I've worked with hundreds of leaders who perpetuate the growth of their companies, departments, or teams. I find that successful leaders practice four simple leadership skills, all based on developing people. Implementing these skills keeps people focused, reduces anxieties and fears, reduces turnover, and makes employees feel loyal and positive about the company.

Communication.

The late Sam Walton, founder of Walmart, said, “Communicate everything to your associates; the more they know the more they care. Once they care, there is no stopping them.” Because of the downturn in the economy, people feel vulnerable and overwhelmed. They are also worried about cutbacks and layoffs. Communicate everything to them by letting them know what is happening in your company, team, or department. Open the lines of communication with everyone and let them know that you care not only about their involvement in the workplace, but in their personal lives as well. A leader places a high value on human capital.

Praise.

When you praise people you inspire loyalty and encourage them to perform great work. Praising also creates positive energy in companies when people are continually being praised for doing good work. Great leaders go out of their way to praise people; they catch people doing something right! When praising people, do it in a timely fashion, make it specific, and try to do it in front of their peer group. Use such statements as: Thanks for getting that report in so quickly. You handled that situation nicely. That was an interesting point you brought up. We couldn't have done it without your help. I can see you're improving in that area; keep up the good work. Your contribution is making a difference on this project. Praising your people will keep them motivated, inspired, and full of positive energy.

Empowerment.

Great leaders know that they need to create more leaders at all levels. Empower your people; nurture their development as leaders. Don't just delegate work; delegate decision-making powers to people. When people have the authority to make important decisions, they feel part of the organization, and they're more likely to remain part of it. By empowering your people, you enable them to reach their potential. When you fail to empower people, barriers are created that people can't overcome. If these barriers remain long enough people give up and leave. Many of those people go on to become great leaders at other organizations.

Coaching.

Coaching boosts productivity, builds teamwork, motivates employees to elevate performance levels, and helps people overcome obstacles to their success. A great leader spends time working with individuals to see the blocks in their performance. A successful leader and effective coach are one in the same. People won't change until they see the need to. Good coaches listen to people to find ways to break down the barriers that keep people from reaching their full potential. They then work with their people to outline a plan of action that clearly states the goals for improvement and accountability. Coaching helps people learn, grow, and change. It provides a powerful structure through which people can focus on specific outcomes, become more effective, and stay on track.

Uncertainty calls for strong leaders who guide people through troubling and turbulent times. Inspire and motivate your people to help them adjust and be productive employees. By utilizing these four leadership skills, you can change attitudes and create a positive and nurturing environment.

Helen Gets It Right

When the board of directors of a failing company appointed Helen as CEO she brought with her all the requisite skills from her previous position with a competitor. She practiced the four techniques just described: communication, praise, empowerment, and coaching. Those skills enabled her to turn around the company.

Hands-On Advice: Bear this in mind—you can succeed where others have failed if you do the right things, have faith in yourself, and have the courage to persevere.

Helen did it as thousands of others have before her, and at all levels of the organization. It's not easy, but it can be done, and it is those character traits that separate thriving leaders from mediocre performers.

Takeaway from Chapter 1

Define the traits, duties, and competencies of highly effective leaders you have known. Compare them to highly ineffective leaders you may have had the good fortune to work with. I say good fortune because watching leaders fail enables you to evaluate why they failed. Now contrast them with leaders who have had great success and determine why they succeeded.

I suggest you write this information, listing the traits, duties, and competencies in the left-hand column, and the names of the contrasting managers in the next two columns, then evaluate them one attribute at a time. In the third column, write your name, and have a coach or mentor evaluate you compared with the other two leaders, attribute by attribute.

Why write it? Because the act of writing assures that you won't skim over the information but instead give each of the traits, duties, and competencies the thought they deserve. This method will also help guide your thinking, organizing how you analyze an issue (whatever that issue might be), then let you come to rational conclusions in a systematic way.

There is no better school than this. Use the takeaway from this chapter, and each succeeding chapter, to improve your leadership qualities.

2Who Said It Would Be Easy?Scope of the Leader's Job

Leadership is a tough job, one that places you in difficult positions, facing vexing dilemmas. Regardless of your level—supervisor, manager, general manager, president, or CEO—leadership is challenging.

Five Fundamental Goals of Highly Effective Leaders

Let's examine those five goals:

Bring people together to work as a team.

You guide your team, department, or group, and it's not easy leading a group of diverse people. The workplace today is more diverse than at any time in history: Greatest Generation, baby boomers, Gen X, and Gen Y. Each group has its ideas, values, and thoughts regarding what should be done and how to do it. Effective leaders work hard to build strong teams that accomplish great things. People who work together cohesively offer a competitive advantage.

Motivate people to perform.

You can't lead without inspiring people to do great things. They must be willing to take that