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- How to Take Yourself From "Good to Great"
Welcome all experiences because you never know which one will lead to insight.
Experiences come in all shapes and sizes. A vacation, a nice meal, coaching a youth team, or taking a new job can all be experiences that imprint memories and insight.
This week, I had an experience with the great Jim Collins in Charlotte, NC. If you aren’t familiar with his work, he is the author of six books, including Good to Great and Great by Choice.
He is a man I have modeled, admired, and learned from as an author and someone who studies leadership. So when you can experience his teaching for over three hours in person, you get your Evernote ready.
However, instead of just keeping the knowledge to myself, I wanted to share my four biggest takeaways with you.
I. Leadership isn’t about a specific personality. It’s about the paradoxical difference in having personal humility and professional will.
What it means:
Collins' research uncovered that for a company to go from good to great, it required having “Level 5 Leaders, " which means having individuals who blend extreme personal humility with intense professional will.
There is a good chance you have worked for or with someone with intense professional will, but without personal humility, it burns you out. There is also a good chance you have worked for or with someone with great humility, but without the drive to accomplish, it doesn’t inspire you.
Work hard to develop your personal humility, but don’t forget to bring your professional will.
II. Never confuse big and great.
What it means:
We often think that because someone or something is big, it means they are great. There a lot of big companies that are the opposite of great. There are many big houses with the opposite of a great family dynamic living inside of it. There are a lot of big teams that accomplish a lot less than a small team.
Instead of striving to get bigger, focus on what it takes to be great.
III. Don’t get frustrated by what people are not, find joy in what they are.
What it means:
It is easy to get frustrated by what people aren’t instead of finding joy in what they are. Focusing all your attention on what they lack instead of leaning into what unique qualities they add is a mistake.
The person you are frustrated by may be simply in the wrong seat. Adjust and coach instead of being frustrated and complaining.
For whatever reason, I needed to hear this principle, write it down, and consider it on a deeper level. Maybe you did as well.
IV. The highest performing people want to do the hardest things.
There are many challenging things in life you wish you didn’t have to go through, but you recognize that on the other side, they make you stronger.
Your natural tendency is to be safe and comfortable. However, the highest-performing people want to do the most challenging things instead of seeking the path of least resistance. Because, only leaders who are tested become great.
Remember:
Hard now, easy later
Easy now, hard later
Have a day,
John Eades | CEO LearnLoft
P.S. I am glad many of you found value in how to have effective performance reviews last week. We included the free performance review toolkit below if you missed it.
P.S.S. The Leadership Growth Plan is officially in Beta Release. Make sure to book your demo today.
The Leadership Growth Plan (Now Available!)
You care about talent.
But does your organization have a bias toward replacing or developing employees?
There is a good chance it’s both. This begs the question: What are you doing to ensure the growth and development of your leaders?
Do you have a plan for their growth? Do they leave their annual review without a defined strategy to achieve their goals and improve their skills?
Stop hoping your leaders grow; provide them with the Leadership Growth Plan. The Growth Plan offers leaders:
Personalized Guidance
Actionable Resources
Proven Leadership Tools
Smart Reminders
Dynamic Content Suggestions
Encouragement and Challenges
Today’s Leadership Poll - Provide Insight and Win
Provide your insight into today’s poll and be entered to win a free digital copy of the 64-Day Excellence Planner.
When your organization has an underperforming leader, how much do you believe they lean towards replacement versus development? |
Here are some ways we could work together:
Skill Mastery Workshops- Sometimes, your managers don’t need transformation, they need a transaction. They are struggling in one skill area essential to performance and productivity, and providing them with a learning opportunity is all they need. Now is an excellent time to develop key leadership skills. Here are some recent workshop content:
Skill Mastery Content | Modality |
|---|---|
Time Management | 1 Hour - Virtual / In Person |
Coaching for Success | 1 Hour - Virtual / In Person |
Effective Communication | 1 Hour - Virtual / In Person |
Difficult Conversations | 1 Hour - Virtual / In Person |
Unleashing Change | 1 Hour - Virtual / In Person |
Performance Reviews | 1 Hour - Virtual / In Person |
Talent Evaluation | 1 Hour - Virtual / In Person |
Recruiting Excellence | 1 Hour - Virtual / In Person |
Sales Mastery | 1 Hour - Virtual / In Person |
Presentation Skills | 1 Hour - Virtual / In Person |
Strategic Decision Making | 1 Hour - Virtual / In Person |
Ready to provide laser-focused learning opportunities? See if a Skill Mastery Workshop is right for your organization.
1:1 Executive Leadership Coaching—Get 1:1 coaching to improve performance. Coaching programs are six months long and include a LearnLoft-certified coach. They are perfect for one executive or a group of executives who aren’t meeting their potential.
Speaking and Workshops- We’re now booking keynotes and Workshops for Q4 and Q1. Reply to this note or fill out the form here, and our team will be in touch to discuss topics, availability, and pricing.
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