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I wrote an article, this past week, “Companies Are Looking For Leaders – Unfortunately there are few”
and I really received some great comments from people. (Thanks)
I took a close look at those comments and decided to look closer at my own life…
2015 has showed me that I need to really get more involved in all aspects of my life. The big areas that come to mind are
relationships, responsibility, listening and learning. In adition, I have been focusing on two action areas “sense of urgency” and “get healthy everyday”.
Let’s look closer at these areas:
Relationships
It is critical to look carefully at our relationships. I have been looking at the people I interact with and have begun questioning
where I need to spend more time. The truth is you cannot treat everyone the same. It is just impossible. I need to look closer at the
value here. What do I value most about this relationship? Where should I be spending more or less of my time? Personal relationships like
immediate family have to be right at the top. It is imperative to invest time and energy here. With respect to work, people need to be more open
and honest with each other. Relationships with workers and clients are being strained everyday. It is imperative to work on these relationships too.
It is critical to always look at where the “combined” value is to determine how to proceed.
Responsibility
This is where the rubber meets the road. I am finding myself wanting to work more and connect more with people who really take responsibility
of their work and want to see projects through to completion. Too often, I am seeing people who want to pass the buck or take the easy
way out. Frankly, these people are easy to recognize, check out my article on “Busy People”. I continue to find ways to take on more responsibility
and delegate tasks to others who I know will take responsibility for the work I share with them.
Listening
It is so critical to listen to people and news around us to stay informed. I cannot separate myself from the rest of the company. In addition, I need to
be aware of trends, office news, client news, local news and national news. It helps make me a better person and helps give me the opportunity to
add value in coversations and communications I have with other people. I can learn a ton, if I listen more intently. Also , there are wonderful tools
like Google Alerts that can save me enourmous time listening online.
Listen to your clients. Make sure you understand their pain points. Many people have pains today. I have learned to listen more closely and address
the pain points first, rather than offer a message about the type of service our company can provide. Listen, listen, listen.
Learning
I better know what is happening inside my company and continue to grow in my knowledge of processes that occur at work. This where a lot of
people miss the boat. It is critical to have a good handle on what your people are doing each day. There are way too many distractions today and
a lot of lost productivity because people are afraid to speak up or question processes. I have learned and discovered a whole
new world of workarounds that I had no idea were happening around me. It can be quite an eye-opener.
In addition, it is critical to grow in knowledge of the industries I serve. Knowing where to look is half the battle. Everyone talks about knowing
where your customers are online. I have learned to look closer at what my customers are doing or saying online not just where they hang out.
This is where the real value of social media can come in. In addition,it is imperative I growin my knowledge of technology and how it can benefit our company.
It is critical to have a good understanding of tools available in all aspects of business. Technology is changing everyday and it will continue to be this way for the foreseable future.
No one, but you knows your company better, but very few know how to find and implement technology that will take you to another level.
Sense of Urgency
Today, people need to see how fast the landscape is changing. Prioritizing daily events helps me keep things in perspective for the day and for the
short-term. It is too easy to ignore issues both personally and professionally. I have discovered if I want to change and make a difference, I need to start changing
my attitude, routine, work habits and start assigning completion dates, goals and objectives to the actities I am involved in. I can’t tell you how this little change
has made all the difference in the world for me.
Get Healthy
Making health a priority has never been a top goal of mine in the past, but more recently I have discovered a whole new enthusiasm for getting healthy.
It comes down to diet and exercise. If you eat right, (80%) and exercise (20%) everyday, you will discover a whole new energy. If you incorporate growing
in your faith, you will even see bigger dividends. You cannot put a % on faith. Growing in faith encompasses all of the areas listed. The goal
I have learned here is to take care of yourself first, so you can better love and serve others.
Summary
I am not writing this article as a means to brag about myself. I am only sharing my thoughts and experience so you can see that I see this list
as something I need to work on, now more than ever. Thanks for reading! I know I will have pitfalls and stresses along the way, but this list helps
me keep things in perspective as I try to step up my game everyday!
~Brent
Picture Source: Pixabay
