Leadership

How is your self-awareness? The Institute for Health and Human Potential defines emotional intelligence, as the ability to recognize, understand and manage our own emotions, and recognize, understand and influence the emotions of others. That's a lot to digest. In simple terms: we need to be aware of the emotions that drive our behavior and impact people (positively and negatively), and learn how to manage those emotions, especially under pressure. The first step toward becoming an emotionally intelligent leader is understanding the components: Self-awareness Self-management Motivation Empathy Social skill For this week's topic, I want to start with self-awareness. I have found for many people (myself at the top of the list) we tend to be more comfortable pointing out [...]

What business are you in? This is the time of year that business plans for the new year are already formed, or at least are in process. Therefore, it may be a good reminder to ask yourself the question of, "What business am I in?" It shouldn't be a surprise to you that your answer has nothing to do with making a profit. Obviously you will be out of business if you don't. Profit is a result of when we answer the question correctly. Over the years I have wrestled with this question, but have discovered a simplistic answer. For me, "the purpose of business is to create a customer and to satisfy a human need." As you review your [...]