Tag Archives: Leadership

3 Leadership Lessons I’ve Learned From Making All The Mistakes: Lesson 1 – Complete Communication

Guest post in our leadership series. I met Paul Pickard, CTO for Korrus, a few months ago, and am so impressed by his appreciation of the human aspects of leading technical teams. Enjoy! – Kimberly

I’ve been meeting people on LunchClub for the past year or so, and it’s given me the opportunity to connect with people with diverse interests and backgrounds from different locations around the country and world.  I was recently speaking with an early career software engineer who was mulling over an opportunity to move into a position where she managed people.  She asked me for my “top of mind” things to I’ve learned about managing people in my career.  After explaining that anything I could relate would come from having made all the mistakes – some of them repeatedly – I came up with three core intentions that I’ve adopted over the years and passed them along.  I say intentions because I don’t always exhibit these behaviors, but it is certainly my aspiration to do so.  This post covers the first intention.  I’ll follow up with the other two in subsequent posts.

#1: Communicate Completely

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Common Roots: Shifting Context – Leadership Springs from Within

What does a rubber chicken like this one? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Have to do with a book like this one?  

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well, Kimberly Wiefling (rubber chicken lady) met Linda Alepin (now author of above book) when they started their study of generative leadership as young professionals.  

Kimberly was inspired by the principles of vision, listening, and dreaming to become widely known in the leadership arena, particularly working with innovative Japanese companies.  

Linda took the same principles into industry, academia, founding a not for profit that worked with hundreds of people around the globe and, finally, to this book.  

Join Linda as the author (and Kimberly as a participant) on Friday, February 4 from 8:00 AM to 9:30 AM PST (GMT -8).  You will hear stories of people from around the world who are featured in the book. 

It’s FREE.  Register at bit.ly/shifting-context-launch.

Shifting Context:  Leadership Springs from Within is available for pre-sale at Amazon https://amzn.to/3IHdJFS.  

Here is what Rayona Sharpnack had to say about the book:

“Shifting Context: Leadership Springs from Within is an important book at an important time in history. Research consistently shows that countries who seriously invest in women’s and girls’ empowerment get a dramatic return on their investment financially, socially, and in all ways that matter for a civil society. 

The women featured in this book are exemplars of that important investment! 

The book will inspire you, move you, and remind you of the hidden power that women have to make all of our lives better. Kudos to Linda and Barbara for their essential leadership in this movement for social entrepreneurship!”

 —Rayona Sharpnack, Founder/CEO at Institute for Gender Partnership and Women’s Leadership, Inc. 

These true stories of sheroes and heroes from around the world will inspire you.  They demonstrate how leadership that springs from within brings about real social change. 

If you are a passionate leader who wants to create greater impact do not miss this book launch and be sure to read the book. 

Leadership Tricks that you Can Learn From the NBA

Contributed article in our business series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

The sports industry is one of the biggest industries in the world with a global market of $390 billion in 2020, and it is expecting to grow to $440 billion this year. This shows that sports are more than just teams competing for prestige and money. In fact, they are so impactful that can change many people’s lives only by following the same principles.

We can learn a lot of things from sports that we can use in our everyday lives, especially from the NBA, such as:

  • Having a strong will
  • Be a team player
  • Networking
  • Having confidence
  • Overcoming mental health issues
  • And being a good leader

Having leadership skills is crucial in the NBA, especially if you want to be one of the top players in the league. With that said, the NBA can teach us many things about leadership and in today’s article, we will highlight some of the things that you should absorb from this sport in order to improve your life on every level.

Lead by Example

Being a good leader is all about taking responsibilities and holding yourself accountable before you can hold someone else. This is also the difference between a manager and a leader. Leaders will ask themselves before asking others, and managers only give out orders.

If you expect players to give 100% and always be on time, you should do that yourself. That is the best way to set an example that everyone follows. Continue reading→

Good Writing as an Essential Leadership Skill

Contributed article in our business series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

Our writing gives us away. It is an element of great importance in our image because it says everything about a person. Talk about your education, your values, your way of seeing life, etc. Everything we put together through words is indicative of our personality.

Today, with the influence of electronic media, the impact of our spelling and writing is imminent. From sending a text message, writing an email, writing a paper in college, writing on a person’s Facebook wall to chatting, it reflects everything about us.

These have become the most common and current means of communication used by millions of people. Unfortunately, with surprise, we realize that the writing of many is deficient. In schools and universities, jobs and exhibitions are saturated with spelling errors. We have lost this habit that is essential to maintain and encourage, not only to project a good image but to be able to understand each other.Continue reading→

How to Use Video and Podcasts For Employee Engagement

Contributed article in our business series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

Employee engagement is a critical aspect of any successful business. An engaged employee will deliver far more than that of a disengaged one, and a team that can work well in collaboration achieves much more than those who work in silos. Some businesses make the regrettable mistake of not investing in the engagement of their employees. As a consequence, not only does this impact the level of productivity, it also will often result in a higher turnover in staff. Recruitment costs can be significantly more than employers appreciate, and therefore spending some extra budget on employee engagement is considered to be money well spent if it reduces turnover.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→

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→

3 Critical Steps for Leading Your Business into New Markets

leadershipContributed article in our business series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

With the recession now said to be safely behind us, many businesses are venturing out into new markets. Some are expanding locally while others are spreading their wings farther afield to foreign lands where there is virgin territory for their products and services. If you are a company director charged with leading your business into new markets, the following three steps are critical.

1. Give Your Team a More Localised Insight

When branching out into a whole new market, some people on your team may not understand the differences in language and culture. Continue reading→

Ways to Lead Your Hotel Team More Effectively

KONICA MINOLTA DIGITAL CAMERA

KONICA MINOLTA DIGITAL CAMERA

Contributed article in our business leadership series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

Running a hotel is definitely not something that you can do all on your own. You have to hire a team of people who can help you manage the hotel on an everyday basis, from maintaining its finances and marketing the hotel, to keeping it clean and doing renovations. But how can you lead your hotel team effectively so that everyone enjoys what they do and so that your business will continue to succeed? Check out the tips below for some helpful insight.

Be Clear in Your Business Plans

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Making Your Message Memorable by Kimberly Wiefling (Wiefling Consulting)

KimberlyNikkeiAd-2010-1024x469(Originally posted on SVProjectManagement.com)

For years I’ve been using a rubber chicken in my consulting work to burn into people’s consciousness the concepts of personal accountability and a belief in an internal locus of control. Holding the chicken at shoulder height, I release it and ask why the chicken fell to the floor. Victims blame gravity. (Some people even blame the chicken!) Leaders say “Because you released it, Kimberly.” It’s a simple message, but an important one for leaders. No matter how tempting it may be, if we blame circumstances for our problems we give away our own power. Continue reading→