Category Archives: Expectations

Crushing Your Leadership?

16 Friday Aug 2019

Posted by in Expectations, Importance, Leader, Leadership, Purpose, Reflection, Servant

≈ 4 Comments

Well, here we are again with the start of another school year and for many of us, the first full week with students. As we look toward the end of May, the 36 weeks ahead of us does seem long. However, you are in a position to control the magnitude of your attitude and spread your leadership most positively.

A few weeks ago, I was playing golf one Saturday morning with our group. It was my turn on the tee box, and hit a drive that CBS Golf would have loved to put the shot-tracer on. As I got back into the cart, I told my partner, “That was crushed.” You might want to know that our group does “trash talk” each other out of jest, and we have a lot of fun with it. Norm, who is a great friend and mentor in my life, said, “It didn’t go as far as you think it did.” In response (ego inflated), I said, “That had to carry at least 260.” When we got to my ball, Norm just patted me on the back and said, “about 230.” Now, with my ego deflated, I said, “Well, the wind must have picked up while my ball was in the air.” Norm, in his mentor voice, made a profound statement, “They never go as far as we think they do.” (I still think it flew farther… Maybe his SkyCaddie was broken?)

giphy-downsized-large

As I look back on that conversation, I immediately thought about leadership and the notion that a lot of times, we believe our leadership carries a lot further than it actually does. “Profoundess” and good intentions are needed, but what of lasting ripple effects?

Do you see your leadership as a “hit or miss” idea? Is it like a new clothing style, a fad that you will hope it comes back in style one day? Or, is it something more than like a one-hit song? What we are looking for is that all-time greatest hit, styles that transcend time, and leadership that hits the target.

Measuring your leadership takes time, but how long? I am not sure what the answer must be or is, but I do believe if you lead with a servant-heart, the lasting effects will carry the actual distance it should. Strong leadership is seen over time, whereas weak leadership is almost recognized immediately.

A few thoughts to make sure our leadership carries the distance it should over the course of your endeavors for the foreseeable future…

  • No matter how small, how routine, or how insignificant your leadership may seem, someone is always watching, and you never know what effects it will bring.
  • Your call to pursue quality leadership is built on the foundation of being for others that rests on servant hood. Any pursuit of leadership apart from this is futile and only for yourself.
  • It must be recognized, however, that to have the right view of your leadership, you must hear what others say.

Providing leadership that carries as far as we think is often tricky. Societal “feelings” change with the drop of a handkerchief. Sometimes, there actually may be a strong wind in our face. However, others always see the results. Our challenge is to find a way that measures the true distance our leadership carries, and eliminate the self-inflated ego that gets in the way.

Remember… Think Leadership and Be For Others

©2019 J Clay Norton

Want more Leadership Thoughts?  Follow me on…

Image result for small facebook icon

 

Do You Have “Drop Anchor” Leadership?

01 Friday Mar 2019

Posted by in Anchored, Decisions, Effective, Expectations, Leader, Leadership

≈ Leave a comment

For the boater’s out there… Why do you ever drop anchor? I suppose you can come up with many reasons…

I do not own a boat but have been in a few over time. The times I have been on a boat, and heard the classic “anchors away” or “drop anchor,” I knew something was about to happen. A few thoughts I have never wondered were: is the anchor large enough to take hold, or is the chain or rope long enough to reach the bottom. If either one of these two is not what they are supposed to be, then dropping an anchor does not carry the value of its words.

Ship-anchor-featured-image

Now the only two reasons why I can think an anchor would need to be dropped is either to keep the boat in one place because you want to stop, or a storm is coming and you need to hold fast. Regardless of which reason, dropping an anchor has its effects on many around. Let’s look at a few implications (assuming the above premise is correct)…

Leaders whose leadership is anchored…

Creates a safe environment for others

When an anchor is dropped, everyone goes on about their business.  Nothing is amiss and everyone feels safe. People need to know that they can be themselves. Confident in performing their work and the freedom to know they can speak their mind. Their perspectives and point of view have value. Now that does not always mean that it will be accepted, but at least they are acknowledged.

Make decisions

To “drop anchor” you must decide. Anchored leaders make decisions. I can see it now, “Do you think we should drop here?” If this question keeps being asked, before you know it, you will be way off course. I am not promoting that there should not be some due diligence, but once there is, make a decision.

Know the lay of the land

A great leader does not “drop anchor” anywhere. They know their anchor weight and chain length. Their expectations are precisely what they need to be to succeed. Better yet, they communicate their expectations. Leaders are the ones who say, “Drop anchor.” To communicate effectively, a leader must know what is going on and where they are.

Anchored leadership is about sustaining success safely for all involved. Too many times we find leaders whose anchor is large enough but not enough chain or not large enough and too much chain. Either way, their “anchored leadership” never becomes “grounded,” and their leadership either drifts or is tossed.

Let your leadership be anchored.  Everyone around will be better for it.

©2019 J Clay Norton

Want more Leadership Thoughts?  Follow me on…

Image result for small facebook icon

Remember… THINK LEADERSHIP!

Is your teaching and leading built on a foundation of excellence?

01 Friday Feb 2019

Posted by in Actions, Choice, Consistency, Deciding, Effective, Essence, Expectations, Foundation, Leader, Leadership, Purpose, Relationships, Servant, Teachers

≈ 1 Comment

For this week’s blog, I am going off the road of general leadership but staying on the leadership map. Today, I would like to take a small side trip and talk about the educational leadership side of teaching.

Let’s start with this quote from Epictetus (Roman Teacher/Philosopher, 55-135, AD)…

images-10

 

Foundation of Excellence: “Tentative efforts lead to tentative outcomes. Therefore give yourself fully to your endeavors. Decide to consult your character through excellent actions and determine to pay the price of a worthy goal. The trials you encounter will introduce you to your strengths. Remain steadfast – and one day you will build something that endures: something worthy of your potential.”

 

I believe the question that can be asked of the quote is, “What are the foundations of our teaching/leadership* building?” I have a few thoughts…

*While discussing this idea, you can at any time switch out the words teaching and leading/leadership, because I think both, in essence, are the same.

To build anything, we must know the personalities of all involved. What are the personalities of those we teach? What makes them tick? When we understand who we are teaching first, our teaching becomes much more effective; understanding that leading is not about us but others. Learn who your people are.

We must also be consistent with our teaching. I have never seen a foundation made for a structure that is not consistent. Inconsistent foundations will not hold up and support what is being built. It reflects the “tentative efforts” part of the quote… for we will obtain “tentative outcomes.” Overall, one of the main problems teachers have is not being consistent with their day-to-day methods; how they teach, how they manage.

Your foundation is your foundation. No one else can build it for you. Now, there are some great teachers who are very deserving to model, and it does us well to emulate some of their teaching characteristics, if and only if those characteristics can work for you. However, a common mistake of many teachers, young and experienced, is always copying and not being yourself. Be you and adapt and adjust depending on the environment. The worse thing you can do is be hard-headed. “My way or the highway” is not good teaching or leadership.

Great teachers are willing to try new approaches. The worst six words with regards to any leadership are, “We have always done it this way.” Just because the “manual” says this is the way to do it, does not make it the only way. As teachers, we have to find what works and connects to our audience. Only when both are established can we bring our efforts “fully to our endeavors.”

Lastly, I believe great teachers are willing and want to keep learning. There is nothing more disappointing than seeing a teacher who is either contented or disheartened. Go back to the “tentative efforts” part of the quote. Experience does matter, but not to the extent of believing you know it all. We can always learn something new.

Great leaders are aware of not only who they are but also who everyone else is and the environment surrounding them. This is an ongoing process that is rooted in servant-leadership. Start today building that foundation of excellence.  Be that person and when you are, referring to the quote, “one day you will build something that endures: something worthy of your potential.”

©2019 J Clay Norton

Follow me on WordPress, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook

Remember… THINK LEADERSHIP

 

 

“Masked” Leadership

07 Friday Dec 2018

Posted by in Actions, Attitude, Authentic, Character, Consistency, Expectations, Facade, Honest, Integrity, Leader, Leadership, Mask, Transparent, Trust

≈ Leave a comment

This past summer when we visited Los Angeles, my daughter and I decided to take a tour of the Warner Brothers Studio.  One of the areas of the tour was the “Streets and Buildings” section. This section of the tour took us up and down streets on the grounds of the studio with buildings that were “sets” for many of our favorite TV shows.

While I knew each building was just a “prop,” seeing it up close reinforced my notion of the great facade within TV shows.  You might be saying, “Duh, really?  You did not know that?”  Well, yes I did, but to see it up close makes you realize just how real, “fake” can be.

The same can be said with leadership.  Often, leadership is nothing more than a facade, providing a face that appears to have it all together.  As we continue to live our lives in leadership positions, and the more mature we grow in that, we should begin to see how many fake, masked leaders are in roles that end up causing more harm than good.

How can we tell the difference? How do we see beyond the facade that “fakes everyone out?” What is really “behind the scenes?”  To answer these questions, we must look at the actions, and then hear the words to see if they connect.

images-6

I believe leaders who wear a mask do the following…

Fail to speak the truth

Masked leaders swallow the truth.  They speak what they think is best to cover themselves.  When this happens, they also swallow their integrity, self-respect, and most of all their authenticity.

Want to be “blenders”

Masked leaders want to be whatever they think they need to be for whatever environment they are in. They change their leadership style to accommodate and blend into every new crowd.

Find it hard to apologize

Masked leaders find it very hard to apologize. Either they do not, or they deflect with, “I’m sorry you feel that way.”

Are “copycats”

Masked leaders who “copycat” other leaders cannot be themselves. I believe this is one of the more dangerous characteristics of leadership. People want a real leader.

Promote their “perfectionism”

Masked leaders cannot handle situations where no one agrees with them. It causes them to feel rejected. Believing that your leadership is perfect actually stems from the fear of knowing that it is not.

Shine their “light” too bright

Masked leaders never dim their light. They always want to be seen as the brightest in the room. Having their light the brightest automatically dims anyone else’s light that actually could shine brightly.

When you wear a mask, you rob not only yourself of what you could be, but you rob others of their ability to be who they are around you. If you are wearing a mask, please lose it.  Halloween should only come one time a year, and life is not an everyday masquerade ball.

©2018 J Clay Norton

Remember… THINK LEADERSHIP!

Follow me on WordPress, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram