Hey Leaders! You Have Just One Job.

Want to know the single, most important responsibility of a leader?
 
It’s easy to become overwhelmed just thinking about everything we, as leaders, should be doing. Becoming a better leader is easier said than done. Some people have given up trying because there is just too much to think about. But what if we distilled being a great leader down into just one thing?
 
I recently consulted my mate, Professor Google, about a couple of burning questions that I had. I typed in ‘definition of leadership’ - 280 million search results. I also searched ‘what do leaders do’ - 515 million search results. I have a bookcase in my office that is chock full of big, thick leadership and management texts. How did leadership become so complex?
 
Here’s the one thing that, if leaders focus on achieving, will make a massive difference. Make people better. This thinking was inspired by the 6^th President of the USA, John Quincy Adams who said “If your actions inspire others to dream more, do more, learn more and become more, you are a leader.”
 
Think about this really important question. As a result of your leadership, are your people becoming more, are they remaining the same or have they become less? Sort of tragic if they are less then when they met you. Almost as sad if they have not changed as a result of your influence.
 
‘You manage things, you lead people” said US Navy Rear Admiral, Grace Hopper. It can’t be any simpler. Focus on helping your people grow and develop as your number one leadership priority. Do this, and everything else will fall into place, as it will be your people that will step up and, together with you, make your organisation successful.
 
You have one job. MAKE. PEOPLE. BETTER.

FOUR THINGS TO DO MORE OF IN 2017 (& SOME COOL LINKS)

Read / Listen - Audio book sales are growing at 40% per year. They are a great way to learn and grow productively. Get a free 30 day trial of Audible here. It's an app that you listen to audio books on.

BONUS TIP: Essentialism by Greg McKeown is the best book I've listened to in the last five years.

Sleep - there is strong evidence that we perform better when we are well rested. If you want to be at your best you must get enough sleep. Here is a great TED talk by Russell Foster on the importance of sleep.

Laugh - 'living lightly,' as Marty Wilson puts it, helps us build resilience and boost our mental health, Marty is a friend of mine, professional speaker and ex Australian Comic of the Year. In this TEDX talk he shares the wisdom he has gained from interviewing over 1,00 high achievers.

Meditate - I am amazed at the difference meditating for just 10 minutes each day makes to how productive I am. Calming the 'monkey mind' makes everything better. Calm is a great free app that guides your meditation practice. Check it out.

What good habits are you going to make in 2017?

HERE'S HOW MUCH TIME I SPEND PLANNING

Many don't believe me when I tell them that we should spend 20% of our time planning. "Sounds ridiculously high", is what they tell me.

Well, just think of how productive 48 minutes in an hour would be if you spent the first 12 minutes doing nothing but planning?

If you were working on a three month project (which was actually 60 working days), imagine how awesome it would be could if you spent the equivalent of 12 days mapping it out, reviewing progress, and improving!

One departure from this theory is that you don't have to spend 20% of your year. In fact, I reckon if you spent a day this side or the silly season (or early in the new year) getting your big picture right, you would be setting yourself up for an outstanding 2017.

BUT YOU MUST DOWNLOAD THIS FREE PDF EBOOK TO HELP YOU!

It has the planning secrets of some on the world’s most prominent thought leaders and entrepreneurs. People like Tony Robins, John Maxwell and many more. I have been using the methodology developed by leadership expert, Michael Hyatt for many years with great success. He has gathered the thoughts of some of the world’s best. Why not learn from the gurus? 

It really is an incredibly valuable resource, and it's free!

LEAD BETTER BY DELEGATING

A recent survey of leaders that I am working with revealed two important facts. 1. They are time poor. 2. They have trouble letting go. Trying to do everything, in turn, leaves them with less time and they end up feeling even more frustrated and inadequate as leaders.

Effective delegation is, almost universally in my experience, a key to helping leaders to become more effective. Here are the most common reasons why people don’t delegate. How many are you guilty of?

• By the time I show them how to do it, I could have done it myself. This is short term thinking. Showing someone how to do something, then supporting them while they master it may indeed take time, but in the long term there will be significant return on that investment of time.
• They won’t do it as well as me. Perfection is the enemy of production. Often a job doesn’t need to be perfect, but we labour over it and waste time.
• They won’t do it the same as me. This borders on arrogance! Who cares as long as it gets done?

Effective delegation can be achieved by using the following method – CREST.

CONTEXT: Here’s why this task is important (some background).
RESULT: Here is the specific outcome required.
ENQUIRY: Here’s all the information you need in order for the task to be completed.
SUPPORT: Here’s how I’ll help and support you to do the task.
TIMEFRAME: Here is when the task needs to be completed by.

BONUS TIP: Make a list of everything that you, as the leader, currently do. Now, put a tick next to the tasks that only you (no one else in the organisation) can do. Put a cross next to your current tasks that someone else could do. Start to delegate these tasks.

FIVE THINGS FIRST TIME MANAGERS NEED TO KNOW

Last week I made a presentation to a group about increasing employee engagement and improving culture. At the end I opened up for questions. "A couple of us are first time managers - what advice would you give us?" Great question! Here are five things that I think first time managers would benefit from knowing.

1. Understand the difference between managing and leading. Many think that they mean the same thing, but there is a vast difference. The key is to understand that the challenge is that it's not either / or, but that you must do both.

2. Be masterful at time management. This will allow you to be productive and efficient, thereby setting a good example for others, but most importantly, it will provide you with time to do the 'leadership stuff', which takes lots of time.

3. Choose leadership over likership. We all want to be liked, but it is important to understand that being a leader will mean that you are sometimes required to make decisions and take actions that will be unpopular. Click here for a previous short video on this.

4. Do what you say you are going to do. This will mean that you are reliable, and in turn build trust, which will help you build strong relationships. Leading others is all about relationships.

5. It's not all about you. Leadership is about what you can do with and for others. It is about lifting their performance. You should be asking, "What can I do to help you do you job?"
 
Come to think of it, this advice isn't only just for first time managers, but also for those of us that have been around the block a couple of times!