I am a big believer in Emotional Intelligence (EI). EI is a leadership concept that looks at four key facets of who you are and how you interact with others: Self-Awareness, Self-Management, Social Awareness and Relationship Management. I am such a big believer that the main reason I decided to go to Case Western Reserve University for graduate school was because it would give me an opportunity to learn from Dr. Richard Boyatzis, one of the foremost experts on EI.
Self-Awareness is the key to being proficient in EI. Before you can lead and develop others effectively and efficiently, you have to know how to lead yourself. This is an aspect of leadership most people not only do not focus on, but often intentionally ignore.
So, just how self-aware are you? Do you know where your areas of opportunities are? Do you know how certain situations affect you in a positive or negative way? Pay attention to your moods, behaviors and idiosyncrasies this week and then begin to create ways to better manage them. This will make you not just a better leader, but a better version of you.
Tags: behaviors, case western, ei, emotional intelligence, negative impacts, positive impacts, richard boyatzis, self-awareness
Valentine’s Day is traditionally a time when we recognize our loved ones, especially our spouses or significant others. Having three ladies in the house, I know I have to be on top of my game with Valentine’s Day (speaking of which….did I get cards yet?)
Last night, I had the opportunity to take my oldest daughter, Rhyan to “The Father-Daughter Ball” at her school. I took this as a chance to treat her to a great meal and give her my undivided attention.
We ate at Fina for dinner. It’s a great local Italian restaurant that is a new favorite of Jen and I (so I had to get her permission to take Rhy). We had a nice three course meal before going to the ball.
The ball was great. Well done. As I left, it made me realize how important parents are, but especially dads for their daughters. As a father, whether you are active or not in her life, you set the tone for what your daughter will look for and expect in men as she grows older.
I am thankful for my Dad, Grandpa, Pop and Uncle Clayton for demonstrating how to raise daughters and be great role models for them. Happy Valentine’s Day to you all, celebrate your loved ones this weekend and tell them how much you love and appreciate them.
Be You, Be Real & Be Easy
Tags: dads, Daughters, Father-Daughter Ball, Fina, Valentine's Day
I was speaking with a friend of mine yesterday and she explained a situation that had occurred at work. It seems that the staff had a looming deadline for a report and everyone was working hard to meet the cutoff. When the time had come for the report to be turned in, the staff discovered that the wrong specifications had been given.
Once this was realized, the leader began to berate the staff and managers for doing the work wrong. This is where I have a problem.
A good leader will first seek to understand the situation before jumping to conclusions. This is essential because many times we do not have all the facts to truly realize what has transpired. Leaders know that there are times when the best course of action is to apologize for confusion and agree on next steps to ensure that this challenge doesn’t happen again.
As a leader, do you regularly push pause and self-reflect on your accountability in the situation at hand? Or would you rather point fingers at others? Remember the saying, “Beware of pointing a finger, because when you do there are four more pointing back at you.”
Tags: accountability, berate, communication, good leaders, self-reflect