Category Archives: Leadership

6 of the Most Important Components of an Effective Leader

Contributed article in our leadership series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

Every great business needs a great leader, but what is it exactly that makes a leader great?

Firm but Fair

Any truly great leader must be able to strike a balance when dealing with their subordinates. In particular, it is important that you always make your workers aware when they make mistakes, as this is the only way that they will learn. However, your role cannot simply be to hand out work and critique the results. You have to mix constructive criticism in with compliments and acknowledgment of their strengths and achievements.

If you lean too heavily in either direction on this, you will find that you quickly have a demotivated workforce on your hands. As their leader, it is up to you to ensure that the various components of your business are acting in harmony.Continue reading→

How to Prepare for Leadership Positions

Contributed article in our leadership series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

With several years of professional experience under your belt, a time will come when you feel you need to take your career to the next level and assume a leadership role in the organization you are working for.

This is when you now understand the complexities of the business and you have grown in your career to feel ambitious enough to lead other people. Of course, you need to back up your ambitions with a history of stellar performance otherwise no one will take you seriously. Even if you rise to the level you want, your subordinates won’t give you the respect that the office you hold deserves.

You need prepare well before you assume leadership roles.

Attitude Adjustment

Start working on your attitude if you want to be a leader. Attitude is the first signal that you are ready for the altitude. Do you sulk when given roles beyond your job description? If yes, then you need to change your attitude.

Does your boss know that he/she can assign you tasks and trust that you will complete them with minimal supervision? Do things that bothered you before; like impromptu tasks no longer bother you? In fact, you even find yourself more flexible these days and somehow understand that the only constant thing is change. If you no longer take last minute requests and disruptions from your boss personally you are well on your way there.Continue reading→

4 Ways To Transform Your Team From Good To Great

Contributed article in our leadership series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

Being the boss is a difficult task that takes hard work and dedication. Maybe you’re someone who’s been struggling to keep your team motivated, or simply want your staff to try harder.

Telling them what to do and how they can be better doesn’t always work. You need a plan in place for transforming your team from good to great and allowing them to showcase their true talents in the workplace. While it’s going to take a little extra work on your part, it’ll be worth it in the end when they’re going above and beyond and surprising you with their improved outputs.

Never Stop Challenging Them

Rewards are great, but you also need to provide your employees with work that makes them think and use their skills. One way to shake up your normal routine is to challenge your team to breaking free from one of the many life-sized Escape Rooms. They’ll need to work together to solve mysteries and puzzles and won’t get anywhere unless they’re communicating and coming together as a team. Put them to the test inside and outside the office, and you’ll soon see each of them truly start to shine.Continue reading→

Taking Charge of Your Company – How to Stay Ahead of Your Competition

Contributed article in our business series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

Being complacent is equivalent to death in the business world. This is because trends, technologies and innovations are always changing, and while being consistent in some elements like customer service is a great thing, most of the time this lack of innovation can cause your downfall. To counter such complacency though, you need to research, you need to innovate, and you need to always strive to be better than you were yesterday:

  1. Know Your Demographic

Knowing your demographic means saving money through repeat customers. It means saving money because you won’t waste your marketing budget advertising blindly to people who don’t care or trying to acquire customers who aren’t interested. The average attention span of online users is only seconds long, and many scroll through their newsfeeds at blinding speeds. You want your advertisements to not only catch their attentions, you want to hold their attentions, and to do that you need to know your demographic. You need to know what medium they use, you need to know where they are, what language they speak, and what they value. Conducting online qualitative market research can help you be the company of the people, and be a success as a result.Continue reading→

What Makes a Boss Great?

Contributed article in our leadership series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

Being a good boss is essential if you want your team to work well. Becoming a great boss takes time and experience, but there are some things to remember that will help you. When the boss of a company is amazing, the work that is done for that boss is amazing too.

Passion

A great boss must be passionate about the company, the team, and the work that is done. They must love the products and services that are sold, and they must show that passion in everything they do. A boss who doesn’t care, or who is unsatisfied with their job, is very demotivating, and can lead to employees not caring either. If no one cares about the company, customers will soon sense that and stay away.Continue reading→

Be a CEO Who Cares: How to Show Team Spirit in the Office

Contributed article in our business series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

Great work environments take time to build. Even if you are the best CEO in the US, you won’t get much done without a positive team spirit behind you. It’s important to ensure that your office is a positive and collaborative space, in which you are all working together to reach your business goals. A good team spirit will also ensure that your employees understand any plans or strategies for the future of your firm, making sure that they don’t feel you have any unwelcome hidden agendas. If you’re a CEO who cares, your employees will love coming to work, and feel like they are being challenged and driven to achieve great results.Continue reading→

What are the Essential Skills Needed for Business Leadership?

Contributed article in our business series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

Do you consider yourself a leader? Honestly, everyone is not meant to be a leader. The good news is that it is perfectly okay if you are not.

What is surprising is that there are people who are leaders, but they do not realize it. There are many different aspects of being a leader. The question you will need to answer is what is your leadership style and why?

There are a few business leadership skills that are key to helping you be a successful leader.

Show by Example

When you are a leader, you cannot appear to be aloof. You do not want to seem as though you are not interested in getting your hands dirty, or you are never around when your staff needs you.Continue reading→

Wellbeing Doesn’t Always FEEL . . . well . . . WELL!

Here’s how I’m facing this year’s daunting challenges. Who’s in? – Kimberly

With all of the hatred unleashed in the 2016 US elections, I’ve been struggling to regain my send of wellbeing. Then I remembered . . .

WELLBEING ISN’T NECESSARILY EASY. Sometimes I fret that “wellbeing” will be misinterpreted as “Life should always be easy.” How dull would that be?!! My work mostly involves tackling challenges that most people claim are very difficult, highly unlikely, or darned near impossible, and I find the work absolutely exhilarating! Yes, I feel quite “well” when I’m in the midst of such circumstances, meeting tough challenges while shaking in my boots, staying committed to results that seem unattainable. Wahoo! For me, wellbeing isn’t endless days of paddling a lazy canoe toward my ultimate resting place (RIP). While I sometimes enjoy the tranquility of a quiet stream, I’m sure I’d go completely bonkers if I had to experience peace, calm and tranquility every moment of my life. Truly.Continue reading→

Leadership Training Every Startup Should Consider

A help button on a rusty old bear trap. Credit risk concept. Very high resolution 3D render.Contributed article in our entrepreneurial series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

Every day there are literally tens of thousands of companies starting up around the world and many of them do well while many fail. Part of the reason for this is because some entrepreneurs have had thorough leadership training while others have a great idea but don’t have the skills to start and run a company. Those entrepreneurs who have no experience leading a team should seriously consider leadership training that will help them get their company off the ground and on the road to success.

Join Professional Associations within Your Industry

Many times joining a professional association will provide leadership training in the form of a mentor. Continue reading→

5 Sure-fire Ways to Advance in Your Career

Business woman walking into arrow shaped door with bright light

Contributed article in our business series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

Whether you are seeking to climb the corporate ladder within your industry or looking for a new position with another company, there are ways in which you can advance quickly with just a little effort. Becoming proactive in your goals lets you take the reins, and before you know it that coveted position can be yours. Here are 5 sure-fire ways to advance in your career.

1. Networking for Meaningful Connections

There are so many ways in which to network that surely you can find one in which to make the connections you are looking for. From social media to volunteering in a cause that is meaningful to you, there are ways to meet new connections who are able to help you advance within your career. These may be executives of companies within your industry or peers who know of open positions. Besides making an impact on your community, society today is oriented towards ‘doing good’, and your volunteer hours logged will surely impress your boss!Continue reading→