Developing your leadership skills has to do with many things – including Emotional Intelligence (E.I.). It’s no mystery. E.I. is a powerful tool and behaviour that will help you achieve business goals and improve your leadership skills.
Forbes Magazine calls E.I. ‘the ultimate soft skill’ in this article
As a business coach, I like to keep up with meaningful, relevant content. I also like to show clients how understanding and controlling your emotions can help you become an effective leader. In a high-pressure environment, leading and elevating involves managing people. This can sometimes involve emotions.
I like the Forbes piece. It confirms that companies seek out managers and leaders who have high levels of empathy and emotional control. Who are adept at building trust, motivated and able to inspire employee loyalty. Loyalty is essential for good productivity and results. Emotional intelligence inspires loyalty. This is one very important attribute that a good business coach can help you with. The ability to recognize, understand and control your emotions will help you manage your employees and enhance your leadership skills.
By relating better to other people’s feelings and behaviours, you can develop empathy and meet them where they are. That’s essential to great leadership, says the Forbes article. How do you actually measure the ROI on empathy, people skills and how we handle social relationships, as the EQ factor?
An article from workforce.com included the following:
“According to a research paper entitled EQ and the Bottom Line, ‘restaurants managed by managers with high emotional intelligence showed an annual profit growth of 22 percent versus an annual average growth of 15 percent for the same period.’
That’s not all. People with high EQ scores make $29,000 more on average each year than their counterparts with a lower EQ. One of the things that I like to do as a business coach is inspire clients with studies like these. They reflect potential, productivity and results. All the things a good business coach can help you with.
As a business coach, one of the many that things I discuss with clients is how to achieve your goals within the framework of your company name and identity. I often have to get one fact out of the way first – that, yes, my given name is the same as the famous manager of The Beatles. But I don’t work in music. This is where brand identity can be confusing.
My business definition as ‘Success Coach’ should make it clear. I’m here to help companies succeed. As a business coach, I can help guide you towards success in many ways. For example, your corporate identity, brand image and name can stand tall or fall based on your company’s actions and reputation.
Consider Wells Fargo, longtime multinational financial-services company. It’s now also known for the scandal of creating over 2 million fake bank accounts by their own employees. The firm had an uphill battle to fix their reputation. This is definitely getting into damage control, and we’ll talk more about that in another blog post.
General advice about naming a company includes: Watch synonyms and mashups. It shouldn’t need a mini-manual. People should get it right away. And most of all, the name should *stand for something*.
Apple is a ‘rule-breaker’ because the name doesn’t actually tell you what the company does. It’s all about brand positioning. People get it right away. It’s as famous as The Beatles ever were, and most people use their products, everyday. A name that big has to be very accountable, and maintain a position of excellence.
Whatever industry you’re in, your name and brand identity are part of what determines how successful you are. In order to achieve your goals, you should be able to answer:
What do you and your company represent?
What are the most important goals you’re working to achieve?
How does the general public perceive your brand?
A strong identity built on a strong foundation can be very powerful. And a business coach who works regularly with CEOs and managers of medium – and large-sized companies, can bring you the outside-inside perspective. Contact me for:
As stores pile up with costumes and masks for Halloween, I think about how we often go through life not knowing what’s under a disguise. It’s more than having our hands in the no-sugar-added candy pail, and thinking, “Gee, if I knew for sure that was Jim’s kid, I’d give doubles.” We don’t necessarily all have those insights and advantages. Sometimes we have to do some work to find them.
Did you know October is also Gain the Inside Advantage Month? In the corporate world, we spend a lot of time trying to reach and define the key to business success. We often have to peel back layers of disguise, denial assumption, or simply corporate red tape to get to the crux of the matter. The advantage that’s concealed. It is up to leaders to help reveal those layers, but some do not know where to start.
This is where the insight advantage comes in. Often, the advantage is so buried that it can benefit from an outside professional to help bring it out. That pro can give you the insight you need. They can also help you recognize what you already have. Most businesses have a real competitive advantage. It may just take an outsider to help you identify yours.
The book, The Inside Advantage, by Robert H Bloom with Dave Conti highlights the strategy that unlocks hidden growth. It will help you capture that magic moment when customers select your product or service over your competitors. Bloom shares his 45-years of experience with the reader, and a success coach can do the same for you.
If you have a colleague, coach or mentor who give you the insights you need if you don’t have time to read this great book, you’ve already got an advantage. Contact me today, and I can help you get inside of those insights.
The other day, I read about the recent Power of 4 Event, in Pointe Claire, QC, run by motivational sales analyst Marcie Balaban of the website Let’s Get Going. She brings entrepreneurs and upper management of companies together in a way that is business matchmaking. In elegant surroundings, she carves out a direct meeting between the two. She does this in business disciplines from electronics to real estate, with a common purpose – finding trading partners and referral sources.
There are times when I think about some of the clients I work well with, and how well they work with other people. Let’s face it, we match-make every day, even if we don’t call it that. Will this new employee fit well with our company culture? Can this caterer provide service for our upcoming event that has at least three vegans? Will my upcoming date-night have the potential of providing me with a permanent partner or a gym buddy?
Business Matchmaking: Dragons’ Den Versus Shark Tank
Business matchmaking reality shows like Dragons’ Den and Shark Tank also show us that there’s a definite process and growing connection between potential partners. This has as much to do with the heart as with the head and finances. An eager entrepreneur and a venture capitalist are a match! Sometimes they even hug, and there’s the occasional glint of tears on both sides.
Although the shows are similar, there are some dragon/shark differences. In a Financial Post Magazine article, panelist Kevin O’Leary said, “As a shark I get a pre-pack of where they came from, history, what school they went to. I know more about them as individuals.” And, as follow-up episodes show, the matches can pay off big time.
The common purpose is key here. Both parties in a business deal want it to succeed. They’re coming at it from different places, with different levels of action, experience and contribution. They each have expertise and particular money concerns. Information is exchanged. A connection is made, grows, ignites. That match has the potential to knock your socks off, with two passionate experts at their best.
Hire a “Shark” of Your Own
Need some input and coaching on how to make the best matches in your company? Looking for a business coach to help you scale your business or secure a new partner – and who’s a great match for you?
There’s a great way to find out if you and I are a match. Contact me today to find out.
Summer is here and many of us are enjoying the sunny weather. It’s time to relax and enjoy for sure. Just because it’s the summer, though, you can’t completely forget about work. If you are searching for new opportunities, you still need to do career research and planning. The time for your job search is now.
People often tell me that they will apply for jobs in the fall. They often ask, why look for a new job in the summer, when the fall is when employers do their hiring?
I often respond by paraphrasing my grandfather, who was a successful businessman in Nova Scotia – “What you plant today, will be part of your harvest tomorrow.”
As with anything else, there is a lead up and planning time to secure work in your chosen field. Statistics show (depending upon what web site you are on), that 70 to 90 percent of job seekers find work by building and growing their professional network. Summertime is a great time to reach out to your personal contacts. Take this time to set up coffee meetings with employers and company representatives. Moreover, this is the time of the year, in many organizations, where the pace is slower. Leaders and Managers are using this time to develop their financial and marketing plans for the fall and winter.
This summer slow down may be the perfect opportunity for job seekers to learn more about various industries and organizations and where you may fit. I suggest that you use this time to have introductory and information meetings with employers and people of influence. They may consider you for upcoming jobs or refer you for roles in other organizations. Summer may be the a very good time to look as employers are receptive to meet and grow their professional networks – and possibly hire.
We all know them – and most of us have worked them in some capacity. I remember working with sales professionals who have been promoted to be sales managers. They made great sales and brought in a lot of revenue for the company. However, they were not very successful in leading others. There are challenges in promoting from line functions.
Decision makers in organizations have often thought that the best way to motivate and retain staff is to promote from within. Senior managers tend to believe that if someone is effective in their line functions, they will be great leaders and motivate others to be as successful. However, this is not always the case.
The challenge is that people who do well in their role, whether they are in sales, marketing, finance, accounting or human resources are not necessarily successful in leadership and management roles. They do not necessarily have the skill-set or competency to lead other employees within the organization. This is not to say that they can’t learn these skills.
They can benefit from business coaches who will discuss strategies and leadership styles. Coaching provides perspective for new leaders. An effective coach can provide another perspective to newly promoted managers. They will be able to guide, question and challenge the thinking and behaviours of these managers. The result is stronger leaders which means happier employees.
To learn more about what a business coach can do for you, contact me today.
