Wendy E.’s Post

I've been having a friendly debate about leadership this week. It's turned into a bit of a rabbit hole. If you'll bear with me: It started with thinking about what different levels of management actually mean within an organization. Here's generally what I do at my level: - Set clear goals, being specific about what they mean and how to measure them. - Understand both the real and perceived constraints around how those goals can be realized - the resources, risks, roadmap, limitations and organizational climate. - Talk to people. Enable my colleagues to do their job better by going out of my way to understand exactly what they do and how they do it. Let them know I care about understanding this - not because I want to critique their work, but because I want to us to be a great team. - Enable everyone above and around me to make informed decisions. This means distilling my responsibilities into structured, rigorous, clear and consumable information that is communicated in a format that keeps momentum going. Build trust that I am the source of truth for my part of the work. - Accept that the job is actually multiple roles. I am a facilitator, mediator, coordinator, creator, engineer, administrator, writer, public speaker, and a few other things depending on the day. Endeavour to understand each aspect of this inside and out. - Provide the right tools for the job. If I don't know what they are, start talking to people who do. - To make work more efficient, make it more engaging. Stay curious and undeterred by difficult challenges, and remember that both joy and frustration are infectious. I would argue that every leadership position requires these abilities. What separates a CEO from, say, a junior program manager is, of course, expertise - how expert one has become in executing, staying true to the vision, and developing the technical skills and knowledge that inform decision-making. But... we think of people as experts because they are successful. So what does it mean to be successful? Your products all launched on time? You didn't go over budget? Your customers are mostly satisfied? Your teammates didn't leave the company? You helped solve a larger societal issue? That's the thing about success - we define it however we want to. But... leaders are defined as leaders because they met a particular definition of success. Often this definition comes down to traditional measures of growth or ROI, which can often omit more holistic impacts such as employee turnover and long-term sustainability. Does that mean that these leaders have to keep defining success in the same way? Can someone who builds their career on one definition of success redefine it to mean something else? It seems like that is the direction that many of today's most respected leaders are going - but it's not the easy path. What's your definition of success?

Some months back, a friend was vying for a promotion at their place of employment, into a leadership role. I was flattered to be sought out for advice and input. In keeping with my own standard of giving informed counsel, I framed most of my suggestions based on the notes I kept from a variety of books read over the course of my own journey. Over the coming weeks, I'll share a book and the thoughts therein that most stayed with me. Shout out to the leader (Bernard "Bernie" Kerr) who suggested this one to me, if memory serves, as well as its brilliant co-author (Douglas Conant). The simple, elegant advice in this book is powerful stuff! TouchPoints: Creating Powerful Leadership Connections in the Smallest of Moments, Conant and Norgaard "...there are spaces in between where something is and what something might become - and that these moments are ours to seize." "The leader is the one who listens carefully, helps others frame the issue, brings a sense of urgency, and creates confidence about the next step." "When a direct report owns the issue, the challenge for many leaders is to leave the responsibility where it belongs. This is particularly difficult for leaders who were promoted because others trust the to get the job done." "In this sense, the global workplace is very Darwinian. You either adapt and prevail, or you die under the weight of mediocre performance. In reality, there is no in between. BEING TOUGH MINDED, HOWEVER, IS NO EXCUSE FOR BEING BRUTAL. YOU CAN BE TOUGH ON THE ISSUES AND STILL BE CARING WITH PEOPLE." "...there are two things that are entirely within your control. The first is that you can choose to bring a sense of positive energy and direction to your very next TouchPoint, and then do it again. The second is that you can choose to stretch yourself as a leader and aim for mastery..." "Maybe you confuse working hard with working out, thinking that by putting in long hours you automatically get better. As the responsibilities and the complexities increase, however, winging it is no longer good enough, and working more hours is no longer an option. Something has to change." "Wisdom lies in understanding the movement between opposites - what Peter Senge (The Fifth Discipline) refers to as the 'dance of change.'" "When people schedule a time to meet with you about an important issue, ask them to come prepared with the answers to a few diagnostic questions, such as "What is the problem?" "Whom does this problem affect and how?" "What are the behaviors that are contributing to the problem?" "What would logically explain why people behave in that way?" and so forth..."

When intuition meets innovation: a leadership story. As a child, I had an uncanny ability to read the energy in a room, sense undercurrents others missed, and know things I couldn't possibly "know." Sound familiar? Then corporate life happened. I learned to package these insights into "data-driven decisions" and "strategic foresight." I became fluent in the language of KPIs and quarterly forecasts, while that deeper knowing whispered beneath PowerPoint presentations. Until one night, after an extraordinary series of business "intuitions" that transformed outcomes, I found myself thinking, "Must be a full moon tonight." It was. That moment revolutionised my approach to leadership. I realised: What if those "unprofessional" intuitive gifts were actually next-level leadership skills? What if the ability to sense energy, read rooms, and trust our knowing wasn't woo-woo, but rather the cutting edge of emotional intelligence and strategic awareness? Research now shows that the most effective leaders possess precisely these qualities: - Advanced pattern recognition - Heightened situational awareness - Deep emotional intelligence - Intuitive decision-making capabilities - Energy management mastery This is why I'm hosting "Awaken to Your Extraordinary: A Journey Beyond Success" - a sophisticated leadership development intensive that bridges proven business acumen with advanced emotional intelligence and energy mastery. It is guaranteed to be unlike any other regular same & tame leadership development you’ve previously experienced. 📅 October 31st, 2024 📍 Eastwell Manor, Champneys Hotel & Spa ⏰ 9:30am - 12:30pm This executive development session includes: • Advanced EQ frameworks for intuitive leadership • Energy management for high-performance teams • Subconscious repatterning for strategic clarity • Values-aligned decision-making protocols • Practical tools for embodied leadership Perfect for: - Senior female leaders seeking next-level development - Organisations investing in innovative & truly visionary leadership approaches - Teams ready to enhance their collective intelligence - L&D professionals exploring cutting-edge development tools Investment: £90 - Corporate L&D budgets welcome - PO numbers accepted and invoicing available. Discount available for multiple bookings. Limited number of participants to ensure deep, transformative work. Comment "LEADERSHIP" below or DM me for: - Detailed learning outcomes - Corporate booking information - PO and invoicing details - Multi booking discount This isn't just leadership development - it's leadership evolution. #ExecutiveDevelopment #LeadershipTraining #EmotionalIntelligence #ProfessionalDevelopment #ExecutiveEducation #LeadershipSkills #CorporateTraining

Mastering Leadership from Day One: Strategy Meets Action Assuming a management position signifies a crucial turning point in one's professional journey. The initial 90 days in a managerial role establish the foundation for your leadership trajectory, influencing your team's perception of you and the effectiveness of your results delivery. Many new managers encounter a common challenge: transitioning from individual contributor to strategic leader, all while fostering trust and enhancing performance. This challenge goes beyond merely acquiring knowledge; it involves executing strategic actions that build your leadership credibility and lay the groundwork for sustained success. Key Insights for New Managers: 💡 Focus on clarity and alignment. Begin by understanding the organization’s expectations for your role, your team’s dynamics, and the broader strategic goals. Misalignment at this stage can derail progress. 💡 Earn trust through transparency. Your team wants to know you’re listening and that you have their best interests at heart. Actively engage in conversations, seek input, and communicate your intentions clearly to build credibility. 💡 Delegate for growth, not convenience. Delegation isn’t about offloading tasks; it’s about empowering your team. Match responsibilities with individual strengths and provide opportunities for skill-building to enhance engagement and productivity. 💡 Stay adaptable and curious. Leadership requires constant learning. Seek feedback, observe what’s working, and refine your approach. Flexibility signals resilience and inspires confidence among your team. 💡 Communicate the “why” behind decisions. Teams thrive when they understand the purpose behind actions. Explaining your rationale fosters alignment and strengthens commitment to goals. Call to Action: 1️⃣ Engage in structured one-on-one conversations with each team member during your first month. Understand their strengths, challenges, and career aspirations to build a strong foundation of trust. 2️⃣ Develop and share a clear 30-60-90 day roadmap that aligns with organizational priorities. Ensure your team knows where they fit and what success looks like. 3️⃣ Proactively seek feedback from peers, mentors, and your own manager. Use their insights to refine your leadership approach and accelerate your growth. Taking these actions will not only establish your credibility but will also position you as a strategic and empathetic leader from day one. #Strategy #Leadership #ActionableInsights #CompetitiveIntelligence Transform your strategy with intelligence-driven insights to foresee market changes and stay ahead of the competition. Visit us at Actelligos.com or reach us at [email protected] Check out more ideas at bit.ly/OnCompetitiveness

This may be a bit bold, but it's essential to present to senior executives, especially those in C-suite positions of large-scale companies. Do we celebrate and promote the right characteristics for leadership? The question comes from your next level teams. It is discussed among them, or with outside peers when they find an opportunity to express themselves. Hoping that, there will be some change at some point of time... As organization engaging with senior leaders to help them develop their leadership team through strategic change programs, we come across such dialogs. Here is what we think are felt by the rest of the organization, and what you as a leader can do to set the tone for today and long term future. 1. Biased for action, hustle, busy. Spinning the wheel is appreciated. Slowing down is seen as a negative thing. 2. Rapid decision making - leads to jumping to conclusion too quickly. 3. We appreciate fire fighting, solving issues, but do not recognize that the fire was caused by poor planning, lack of thoughtfulness at a different time. 4. Getting things done, no matter how. Completely misses the point of compassion, collaboration. Leaves bruises, creates toxic environment. 5. Go getter, misses the point on when to empower, take opportunities to develop people 6. Very articulative with non stop ornamentation in words, does not promote true listening, when to keep quiet, when and how to extract team point of views 7. Use of power - given the power and authority, how do they use it. Do they always want to have the final word, when do they let go So what can you do? Where do you want to start from? A. Acknowledge that these behaviors occur. Observe yourself and assess how you perform in these areas. If you don't notice any of these behaviors, keep looking or ask someone else for their perspective. B. Reflect on your own role, contribution, decision making, fast and slow. How do you create space for your team to develop. C. Bring in longer term planning, challenges to the table, let the team explore and bring their imagination to the table. D. Consciously have the discipline of not deciding too quickly. We call it, deliberate decision making. E. Create time and space for meaningful relation building at the work. This is one clear goal you can set up for yourself and your team, even though may seem uncomfortable to begin with. Try these, you will naturally find out more effective ways that is suitable for you and your teams. If you feel the above would be helpful for you or anyone in your network, please comment or share. Follow us ValueInfinity Inc. We work with numerous supply chain and operations executives to improve their teams performance with designing strategic initiatives and navigating the change. #OperationalExcellence #leadership #Decisionmaking

🔓 𝗨𝗻𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗳 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗰𝗶𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗗𝗲𝗰𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻-𝗠𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴: 𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 Feeling like you're in the thick of leadership challenges, where the pace is dizzying, and every decision feels like a tightrope walk? Take a breath – you're definitely not sailing these waters alone. It’s a common story: many leaders find themselves navigating this maze, and if not checked, it can really start to chip away at your confidence and effectiveness. ⚠️ Now, before you hit that overwhelming point of decision paralysis or burnout, let's hit the pause button and strategize – think of it as a holistic upgrade for your internal leadership operating system. Here’s a trio of transformative steps to guide you: ✅ Daily Reflection Time: Carve out 10-15 minutes each day for some quality 'me-time' reflection. Think of it as a coffee break for your mind. ✅ Become a Self-Awareness Ninja: Keep an eye out for patterns in your reactions and pinpoint those triggers that affect your leadership style. Record these observations in your leadership journal. Enhancing self-awareness is crucial for elevating your leadership consciousness and effectiveness. ✅ Master the Art of Conscious Decision-Making: When faced with choices, weigh them like a pro – consider the practical bits, sure, but also tune in to the people side of things and stay true to your values. Let your core values and purpose statement guide you. By embracing these steps, you're not just making choices; you're sculpting your leadership journey with intention. Imagine the leaps and bounds you'll make as you transform into the leader you always dreamed of being. 💎 What conscious decision-making strategies have you applied in your leadership journey? Share your thoughts and COMMENT below. ⬇️⬇️ ➖ ➖ ➖ Over the past two decades, I have dedicated myself to leadership and employee development, guiding individuals on a transformative journey towards enhancing their leadership skills and realizing their fullest potential. The key to my clients' success lies in unlocking their potential, elevating their consciousness to the adult stage of development through the power of my proprietary “L.O.V.E. System.” This genuine transformation propels them to unprecedented heights of leadership effectiveness. For a limited time, I'm offering my six process steps on L.O.V.E (Leveraging Open-hearted, Values-based Energy) for FREE. ***** 👉 Type "LOVE" in the comments below or click on the link in the first comment to receive the free PDF and start your journey towards raising your consciousness. #leadership #leadershipdevelopment #management #servantleadership #executivecoaching #loveleadership

Effective ways to #Respond to some emerging Leadership Challenges - Part 1 1. Set goals for yourself and your team. 👉Be proactive in setting goals and establishing the timelines — and deadlines — necessary to keep yourself and your team members on track. The distractions you face can make it easy to lose sight of long-term and even short-term goals. You can easily get sucked into dealing with urgent issues that arise unexpectedly, rather than staying focused on producing the outcomes that matter most to your organization. 👉While no leader can completely avoid surprises, goal-setting provides a map you can return to time and again to refocus on your top priorities while handling other leadership challenges. 👉One time-honored approach is the SMART method. When setting a goal, make sure it’s: 🔸Specific. Write down a detailed description of what accomplishing the goal would involve. 🔸Measurable. Set targets that you can quantify to assess progress. 🔸Attainable. Stretch goals are fine, but you also need to make sure that achieving the goal is possible. 🔸Realistic. Be sure you understand what you will likely need — in terms of time, resources, and talent — to achieve it. 🔸Timed. Create deadlines for hitting milestones on the way to your goal, as well as for achieving the goal itself. Just be sure to set goals that align with your values. 2. Delegate more to others. 👉You’ll be more productive in tackling leadership challenges, and you’ll empower your colleagues to take more ownership, if you delegate. 👉Effective delegation requires more than just getting a task off your desk — it involves a repeating cycle of 4 key steps: 🔸Understanding your preferences. Effective delegators prioritize their workload and decide which tasks to keep and which to give to someone else. They also understand how much feedback they want while the person they’ve delegated to works on the task. 🔸Knowing your people. To delegate effectively, you must assign tasks to people with the necessary knowledge and skills. That means that you have to understand your people. Use delegation to help direct reports develop, allowing them to learn as they take on new tasks. 🔸Being clear about the purpose of the task. A task’s purpose gives it meaning. By aligning this purpose with team or individual beliefs and goals, delegation can become an opportunity for personal growth. 🔸Assessing and rewarding. You should engage in collaboration and work with your direct reports to develop ways to help them, and you, decide if a task has been completed properly, and to reward them appropriately. Stay tuned for more updates in the 2nd version. Follow Avinash Kaur ✨ for more 😊 LinkedIn LinkedIn News India

⛓️ 𝗕𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗙𝗿𝗲𝗲: 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗘𝗺𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗩𝘂𝗹𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗦𝘂𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗦𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝘀 Is the fear of vulnerability holding back your full potential as a leader? I get it – showing your softer side in a role where you're expected to be strong can seem daunting, stirring worries about diminishing your authority. Here's an interesting perspective, though – steering clear of vulnerability might actually be doing more harm than good. It's a bit counterintuitive but true. Avoiding vulnerability can chip away at the trust and respect that are foundational to impactful leadership. It might lead to less collaboration within your team, a drop in the sense of safety to speak up, and ultimately, can undermine the trust and respect that bonds your team together. So, how about we shift gears and embrace some transformative strategies? ◾ Model Vulnerability: Openly share your own experiences and challenges. It's a powerful way to spark honest conversations with your team. This falls under the “O” in my L.O.V.E. Leadership Development process. ◾ Transparent Communication: Embrace honesty, especially in times of uncertainty. This openness invites your team to step up and share their insights and ideas. ◾ Cultivate Psychological Safety: Make it your mission to create a work environment where taking risks and expressing oneself is not just accepted but encouraged. ◾ Embrace the Power of Storytelling: Share stories from your journey, the highs and the lows, to humanize your leadership and inspire your team through real-life examples. ◾ Quick Coherence Technique: Use this method to center yourself, making it easier to approach situations with openness and authenticity. Embracing these strategies doesn’t just mitigate the fear of vulnerability; it transforms it into a strength, fostering a more trusting, collaborative, and genuinely inspired team. ➖➖➖ Over the past two decades, I have dedicated myself to leadership and employee development, guiding individuals on a transformative journey toward enhancing their leadership skills and realizing their fullest potential. The key to my client's success lies in unlocking their consciousness or adult stage of development through the power of my proprietary “L.O.V.E. system.” This genuine transformation propels them to unprecedented heights of leadership effectiveness. For a limited time, I'm offering my six process steps on L.O.V.E (Leveraging Open-hearted, Values-based Energy) for FREE. ***** 👉 Type "LOVE" in the COMMENTS below to receive the FREE PDF and start your journey towards raising your consciousness. #leadership #management #personaldevelopment #motivation #culture #employeeengagement

Think back to the last big decision you had to make at work. Maybe it was about how to handle a difficult conversation with a colleague, or a call on whether to push forward with a risky project. Whatever it was, you probably weighed the pros and cons, looked at the data, and tried to make the best possible choice for your team or company. That’s how leadership is supposed to work, right? We act based on the facts in front of us. Or do we? Most of us think that leadership decisions are largely driven by external factors. We look at deadlines, resources, and demands from higher-ups. It’s easy to feel like we’re simply responding to what’s happening around us—focusing on what needs to be done and how fast we can get it done. Leadership advice typically centers on efficiency, decisiveness, and staying one step ahead of challenges. There’s plenty of guidance on how to lead effectively: stay calm under pressure, delegate wisely, listen to your team, and communicate clearly. These basics show up in every leadership book or webinar. We’re told that strong leaders are responsive, pragmatic, and good at handling the unexpected. In fact, most leadership strategies are built on the assumption that the leader is constantly reacting to outside forces. I’ve had a nagging feeling that there’s something that doesn’t get talked about enough. 𝐈𝐭 𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐦𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐚𝐬 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐞𝐜𝐡𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰 𝐰𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐝, 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐰𝐞’𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐢𝐭 𝐨𝐫 𝐧𝐨𝐭. Every decision, interaction, and small choice reflects our deeper beliefs—and those actions shape the culture and environment we lead. When we constantly make snap decisions under pressure, it likely stems from a view that urgency is more important than thoroughness. If we always take on more than our share, we may be driven by the belief that our worth is tied to how much we can do. These beliefs seep into our actions, often without us noticing. Recognizing this connection is crucial because our behaviors shape our team’s culture. Every choice leaves an imprint. If we aren’t aware of the worldview driving our actions, we risk building environments that don’t align with what we truly want for our teams. When we value constant output, our teams can feel overwhelmed, believing busyness is more important than effectiveness. If control is the focus, collaboration and creativity can suffer. But by leading with awareness, we can align our actions with our values. Prioritizing balance influences how we manage workloads and set boundaries. Trusting in autonomy shows in how we empower our teams. Understanding the beliefs behind our actions allows us to shape the culture we want to create. Your leadership is always building something—make sure it’s the culture you truly believe in.

𝐀𝐩𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐏𝐨𝐬𝐭 I hear about intentional leadership quite often, but I've seen some of it firsthand. Having just resumed a new role as L&D Specialist at Microsoft, I had all the ceremonial one-on-ones with my manager at the time and a few others. Navigating an organization as complex as Microsoft was no mean feat, so these conversations helped set the stage. Priya Priyadarshini (She-Her) (pictured), was my skip level manager, or my manager's manager. I was expecting a lecture but instead, I got a conversation. However, what is unforgettable to me was a resource she recommended titled, "The First 90 Days: Proven Strategies for Getting Up to Speed Faster and Smarter" by 𝑀𝑖𝑐𝘩𝑎𝑒𝑙 𝑊𝑎𝑡𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑠, a book which I now consider to be the Holy Grail of leadership, management and whatnot. First things first, the book is for leaders who typically just assumed a leadership position. But I was an Individual Contributor (IC). Am I missing something? Her first statement was, "everyone is a leader, so ignore that". In my mind I was like, "okay, this will be fun". After sharing a few tips then which have helped me so far, a few days ago I was reminiscing about all the giants in my professional life who have been invaluable in so many ways, and I thought to begin a tour of appreciations (Priya forgive me for putting you on the spot). A few lessons from the book are: 1. 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟: not in a self-aggrandizing way but in terms of shifting your mindset from your previous role to your new responsibilities and regularly embodying that distinction. 2. 𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠: learn as much as you can about the organization, its processes, culture, and politics. Engage in active listening and gather critical information quickly. One of the tips Priya gave here was, "to faster change minds, ask better questions rather than jump into giving better solutions". 3. 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐄𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐖𝐢𝐧𝐬: No matter how small, early victories help to build credibility and create momentum. But ensure those wins align with the company's overall goals and priorities. These days, I'm keen on asking, "what is the easiest but significant task to get RIGHT NOW?". I then build on that to suggest more long-term propositions. So helpful! 4. 𝐍𝐞𝐠𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐒𝐮𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬: I never thought about it that way - success is negotiable. It's not set-in-stone. One way to do this is to clarify expectations and maintain a positive relationship with your manager and peers. 6. 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐞: I'll stop here. This is about helping others accelerate their learning and success, too. Either suggest or help establish processes and systems that enable the entire team to thrive in the early months of assuming a position. It takes away from the mentality of "I'm new, help me!", to "how can I help?". These tips along with other personal stories from Priya has helped me tremendously so far. Thank you, Priya.