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This episode is going to serve as a bookend as I take a break from podcasting to regroup and reenergize.

In this episode we recap the Learn to Lead series including every letter in L-E-A-D-E-R.

In this episode I cover: Why should they follow you? What's more important in leadership: to make a mark, or leave a legacy? Why Should They Follow You? Of all the reasons why people should follow you, what means the most to you? They follow me because I am the boss. They follow me because they have to. They follow me because I pay them well. They follow me because they like where I am taking them. They follow me because they respect me and trust me.

In this episode I will cover: The mistake of focussing on your gifting The story of Richard and his fall from grace How Moses grew into a great leader in 3 stages

What we will cover today in this podcast: 1. God is watching me - and us 2. Six barriers to finishing well - no matter what your age or where you are in your career 3. What it means to have integrity

What I cover in this episode: 1. Why poor delegation is so damaging in leadership 2. Four questions every follower asks 3. Why a lot of leaders suck at delegation 4. Tips for excelling at great delegation - how to be hands off but not out of sight 5. Leave you with ten great action points related to delegation

Today’s Podcast is brought to you by the letter “S”. That is a letter that gets a lot of action! S is for “ Servant Spirit.”We are going to unpack the true nature of Servant Leadership - A topic I find is very confusing. I have shared about this important topic in past episodes, but I have some fresh new insights for you today.Today’s Podcast is brought to you by the letter “S”. That is a letter that gets a lot of action! S is for “ Servant Spirit.”We are going to unpack the true nature of Servant Leadership - A topic I find is very confusing. I have shared about this important topic in past episodes, but I have some fresh new insights for you today.

Resilience is very different than determination. In this episode I contrast difference. How flexible are you? Do you bend or do you break when things get difficult or when dramatic change occurs? One of the traits of an effective leader that every new leader has to master is becoming a resilient person. Resilience is being spongy, flexible and able to adapt. Don't make the mistake of having your methodology become your theology.

One of the most effective responsibilities of any leader is clear and effective communication. In this episode I will show you what that looks like.

Determination is a huge part of being a successful leader. Another word for this would per persistence or courageous leadership. I to start this podcast with a story of my own determination through a very tough time. We all face these times. If I asked you to name one of your top biggest times of discouragement, what would it be? I can think of a big one - when I was betrayed by a dear friend. My board chair turned on me. One reason this was such a difficult situation is I couldn't fix it. I had to endure it for a couple of years. I love to resolve conflict and fix things that are broken. But sometimes we have to live in the midst of a big discouragement. It reminds me of my son who's been in the job for about 18 months that is true.

Did you know that accessibility is absolutely essential for today’s’ leaders? No corner offices and executive floors! Welcome back to our series on Learn to Lead: Ten Essential Skills Every New Leader Must Master. We have covered L: Listen and Learn, and E: Emotional Intelligence. Today I want to talk about A: Accessibility, and along with it Vulnerability. Beware of the: Ivory tower syndrome Corner office syndrome I have devised a simple test to determine whether you are task or people oriented. When you are working at your desk, and someone comes up to talk to you just for conversation, do you stop work, smile, and chat until the conversation comes to its natural conclusion? Or do you grimace inside and do anything you can to get the conversation done as quickly as possible. If your answer is the latter than you are one of us: the ‘Type A’ personality who tends to measure success by getting our lists checked off.

Today we are going to cover the “E” in leadership. It stands for EQ, or Emotional Intelligence. It is also known by EI or EQ. I am going to use EQ. I had one of my listeners recently say this to me about my podcast. “It’s not really just about leadership, it’s about being a healthy person.” I loved that feedback. Really that’s what emotional intelligence is all about, it’s about being a healthy person as a healthy leader. Thank you Jordan in Lyle, IL. Emotional Intelligence counts for twice as much as IQ and technical skills combined. According to research, performance success is one-third IQ and two-thirds EQ.

I am starting my new series on the top ten skills every leader must master in order to be effective. This new series is based on input from my listeners and my own journey of leadership. I am not going to tell you ahead of time what all the letters stand for..that is up to you to gather as you listen! Today we are going to cover the “L” in leadership. It actually stands for two words….. L – Listen and Learn! The two most important words in a leader’s vocabulary. Keep Listening! Listening. “Listen” is the most important word in a leader’s language. Just because we are the leaders does not mean we are the only ones with a voice. The L in leader stands for listening. I hear from so many followers and stuck employees, “My boss just won’t listen to our input.” How do you feel if you are not listened to? Unimportant Marginalized Waste of time trying I am invisible My opinions are not respected I am not respected I have nothing to contribute Leaders often love to talk. They enjoy listening to their own great pearls of wisdom and insight. Sometimes they even begin to believe their own press reports. And as they gain more authority, they have less reason to listen to subordinates. Have you ever noticed that there is much more horizontal communication in an organization than vertical? Coworkers are always talking about everything, but the communication between those coworkers and their superiors is much less frequent and much more formal. Leaders must figure out ways to tap into that underground flow of information. They must keep current on the undercurrents.

This week I have a great interview for you with Dr. Mick Ukleja! Dr. Ukleja is a Consultant, Teacher, and Writer who studies and teaches leadership and works extensively with Millennials as they are the future of the workforce. Top Leadership Lessons that Dr. Mick Has Learned “Leadership is synonymous with becoming yourself. It is precisely that simple, and that difficult.” Warren Bennis. This means if you can’t lead yourself, you can’t lead others. Passion is a responsibility that we need to work on everyday. It includes mastering our moods. Life is about motion or movement. We have to get in the habit of acting before feeling, which prevents procrastination. Affirmation is a key to mastering moods and controlling our self talk. Our fears and doubts can be our allies, as it is God’s way of pointing out where we do not trust him. Fighting the ImposterSyndrome: this is a form of self talk that says: “if people really found out the truth about you they would not think you are as smart or successful as you think you are.” Concentration is something you need to be brutal about. “Simplify to amplify.” Do whatever you can to eliminate clutter in your world to minimize distraction: make your bed, clear your desk, get rid of stuff you don’t need. The Ability to Self-Differentiate: knowing where you end and others begin. This is the concept of togetherness and separateness. Too much separation causes us to miss out on be connected to others and be “in the loop.” If we are too close to others we get enmeshed in other people and leads to mob psychology and not thinking on their own.

How do you survive the rough and tumble of change warfare? Is it by developing a thick skin? DO YOU REALLY NEED A THICK SKIN? No. In fact, developing a coarse emotional hide is the worst thing you could possibly do. Making yourself impervious to pain means shutting yourself off from most of the nuances and intricacies of life — and business. I’ve seen leaders become thick-hided and insulated before, and it only led to their demise. Before long, they became so well-insulated that they could not hear the whispers of common sense, interpersonal resentments, or even approaching trouble. For a leader whose greatest responsibility is to sense how the proverbial wind is blowing, that is the kiss of death. Rather than a thick hide, the thing to develop is a resilient one. One that can absorb the blow, not deflect it. Instead of trying to develop ways of never feeling the attack, work on ways of processing it more painlessly and efficiently.

Welcome to episode 60! I am so excited to have been podcasting for 2 years, and have 60 episodes out there for you. I hope you are enjoying these shows and learning and growing in your leadership. “Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with great talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence, determination alone are omnipotent.” (Bennis and Nanus, Leaders–The Strategies for Taking Charge, Page 45) This week I want to discuss courageous leadership. I want to start with a letter from a friend of mine who is head of a seminary, that is embarking on major change in his life and how he is doing so with courageous leadership.

We are continuing the series from my book Top Ten Mistakes Leaders Make with the second half of Chapter 7: Communication Chaos, Singing from the Same Page in the Hymnal. I hope you are enjoying it.

This is a continuation of my series on my book Top Ten Mistakes Leaders Make. In this chapter we are discussing the communication in our organizations, some best practices, and how it evolves over time. In this episode I cover: Never assume that anyone knows anything. The bigger the group, the more attention must be given to communication. When left in the dark, people tend to dream up wild rumors. Communication must be the passionate obsession of effective leadership. 

This is the third in our series on my new book Launch Your Encore, written with my good friend Rick Hicks. In this episode we cover: 1. The Old Man and the Sea 2. Four Areas where Choices are Looming 3. Old Dogs Can Learn New Tricks 4. Gandalf - yes there are great lessons to be learned from the wizard!

This is the second in our series on my latest book Launch Your Encore, which I co-wrote with Dr. Rick Hicks. While the first episode covered some of the basic ground work on this topic, in this episode Rick and I are going to unpack the idea of having a vibrant life after your traditional career ends in greater detail. Life Stage Development Dr. Rick Hicks studied life stage development under Peter Drucker, which mirrors society. Whereas at the beginning of the last century Dr. G. Stanley Hall recognized the stage of adolescence between childhood and adulthood, today we are seeing a stage emerge that is after adulthood but really before old age when people are retiring from their traditional jobs to enter a new stage of mentoring, which we are calling “Elderlesence.”