Extreme Leadership and the TT Races

In April I saw the film TT 3D Closer to the Edge and thought it was brilliant. My partner Andrew has just returned from pitting himself against the TT course, back in 1 piece I’m pleased to say. And we’re gripped by the TT Races and every night tune in for all the latest and discuss – OK I’m an arm chair expert in some aspects. However I’ve been watching the top guy’s like John McGuinness, Bruce Anstey and of course the charmer Guy Martin. How they prepare for the race and how they recover from setbacks.

The TT race is an opportunity for man and machine to conquer the toughest environment, which shows no mercy. Keith Amor came off his bike in the wet the other day, and managed to hang on to the bike long enough not to be flung in to a wall, instead he spun on his back down the road. Last year Conor Cummins came off over the mountain part of the track and bounced like a rag doll down the hill. Amongst his injuries he broke his back in several places – and is back this year to race. Not every one is so lucky and every year riders die doing what they love. They are passionate about what they’re doing, they know the risk and the thrill you get from successfully testing yourself in such extreme circumstances is the prize.

So what have I noticed amongst the best:-

Focus, clarity, determination, passion – They know what they want and why, they also live and breath their sport.

Commitment – this isn’t just to the sport, this is commitment when on the track, every corner is taken on the edge. They know they’re not going to win if they are tentative, or back off half way through. Commit to the corner and if it doesn’t work out, learn from it. Make a decision, follow it through.

Sacrifice – some of the guys there are part funding themselves. And some of those winning now started off part funding themselves.

Faith, self belief, confidence, skill & experience, as well as the ability to take feedback and respond quickly. The bike is always talking to them about the road, it’s their ability to listen and respond that let’s them lead the field. The minute they start ignoring it and thinking they know best, or are invincible, yes you can see where I’m going with this.

Teamwork – races can be won or lost on the pit stops, and of course in setting the bike up in the first place, or repairing it in time for the next race.

Resilience – Both Guy Martin and Connor Cummins had serious injuries from their crashes last year. They’re both back this year. That say’s a lot about their bodies, as well as their minds. I don’t know that I could get back on a bike and go full out again, then again that’s due to racing not being my ‘passion’. Business and specifically leadership are, and I’ve lost count of the knocks and set backs and I just dust myself down, learn from it and get back in the game.

Preparation – they’re all out there beforehand, reacquainting themselves with the course, fine tuning the bikes, and their self talk is positive.

Razor’s edge – the difference between 1st and 2nd place, can be point something of a second. Yet it’s only the winners that get remembered, and talked about.

The leaders in the TT all demonstrate the above. The followers are working on being able to do the above.

Steve McQueen once said “Racing is life – anything before or after is just waiting”. Well I’d change it to “Leadership is life – anything before or after is just faffing about.”

Great leaders in business also demonstrate the above qualities, taking up the challenge of conquering todays tough business environment. One that is also unforgiving, poor leadership can easily take a business under.

The question to ask yourself is – “are you playing to win, or playing not to lose?”

 

Corporate Culture – Less talk, more action

Corporate culture and it’s effect on performance is a rising issue.  However it can be overwhelming and sometimes it helps to look around to see what others have done.  Have they moved from talking about it, and acting all cool and trendy to actually doing something and getting their hands dirty?  Every once in a while I get a bit annoyed by those who just want to talk.  Values blah blah… culture blah blah.  And should you ask them about their leadership in all of this – well – can I not see I’m in the presence of perfection.  Err no, but I’ve certainly met your ego.  What I can tell at that point is, I’m not in the presence of a new client.  One of the things our clients have in common is a strong desire to actually do something and an awareness that no matter how good they are as a leader ( and they are), they know it’s not enough, they want to be a great leader.  Then of course they know that it’s a continual journey.  They are the lid on the performance of the unit/team/section/business.

So if you’re wondering what to do about the impact your current culture is having on the performance of your business you could drop us a line and we can suggest some specific sources that will help you.

Alternatively here is a presentation from Netflix.  OK it’s 128 slides long, but if you’re interested in the what and some how around others companies embracing and working with their culture and values, then get clicking, it’s worth it.

Continuous Learning & Leadership

A leader takes people where they want to go. A great leader takes people where they don’t necessarily want to go, but ought to be.

Rosalynn Carter

Our life is a learning process. Learning does not come to an abrupt halt after the completion of school or college, but it continues throughout our lives.  Leadership should provide everybody the scope to learn. Most of the time, staff are worried to reinvent or innovate themselves as they are afraid of the fact that they might make mistakes in the process and it will not be appreciated by their leaders.  The leaders on the other hand, should not criticize the workers for their mistakes but use this person’s willingness to continuously improve.  Constructive feedback done well points out the areas where further improvement can be made but doesn’t have any negative impact on the morale of the worker.

A good leader is conscious about all the quintessential ingredients which make a great leader.  This means they invest not only in the development of their staff but also themselves.  This allows the leader to provide proper guidance at every stage to all employees so that they do not lose their focus or direction.  Leadership isn’t just about striving for the growth of the organization but it also exerts equal preference for the growth of people.  It doesn’t have to be training courses, in somecases an active mentoring or coaching role (yes they are different) can provide the framework for the growth and development required.

If your staff are not asking for development then look to the culture of your organisation.  Is continous learning and improvement important?  Perhaps it’s important to the product or service you provide but you’ve never made the link to staff development explicit.  Where do you and your employees need to be in order for your business to grow and thrive?  And if growth is a stretch then where do you need to be in order to handle the uncertain business market?

Business Growth – Employee Engagement

In times of economic uncertainty, recession and tough markets, business growth is even more challenging. Here is the last of 3 videos in which Ruth Sanderson explains critical components that enable business growth. The final part dicusses the importance of staff engagement.

Business Growth – Values

In times of economic uncertainty, recession and tough markets, business growth is even more challenging.  Here is the second of 3 videos in which Ruth Sanderson explains critical components that enable business growth.  The second component are the company’s values.  Although equally important are the leaders values too.

Business Growth – Vision

In times of economic uncertainty, recession and tough markets, business growth is even more challenging.  Here is the first of 3 videos in which Ruth Sanderson explains critical components that enable business growth.  The first is Vision, which is key for business stability too.

Often in the overwhelm of staying a float and finding new business leaders can overlook the importance of communicating the vision.

Good Business Leaders Take Responsibility And Thrive

I’m amazed at the number of small business owners who are striving for increased business performance and yet haven’t linked their leadership as a critical factor in making this happen.  One of the factors that’s often overlooked is responsibility.  As the business owner you have the absolute authority to steer your staff to success.  Yes too many give this away to their staff and no I’m not talking about getting all authoritarian and dictator here.

The power to guide your people towards achieving your vision for the business includes responsibilities like making sure they’re on the right direction, being mindful of each and everyone’s tasks and mistakes, and putting them back on the right track when they get lost.  Nobody said leadership was easy or intuitive.  In fact as a small business owner you can be fulfilling so many roles it can become overwhelming.  It’s like juggling plates, but if you’ve got an IKEA plate, a denby plate and a ming plate (OK not sure ming made plates, it might just have been vases), which one do you let drop.  Your leadership of the business is the ming.  Let that one go and you’ve let your business go – well the results that were possible for you anyway.

Business leadership is one responsibility after another – the buck really does stop with us.  There are times where occasionally it makes us feel better to blame someone or something else when things goes wrong, but this shouldn’t be a habit.  It should be the rare slip up.

Instead of blame and excuses good leaders accept that something went wrong, and look for the learning instead.  As the leader of the business or team what can they personally learn as well helping the individual who made the mistake find their learnings.

You may not have full control over other people and aren’t expected to have full control over their actions, but you have total control of your own reactions.  Understanding what to do over sudden and unpredictable circumstances will make you responsible, give you greater flexibility and ironically give you a greater sense of control.

Are you resisting the hero’s journey?

Our life is one huge journey, made up of a series of smaller journeys.  The choice for all of us is whether we see ourselves as the hero or the observer.  The role we choose to take determines our success in life, and by success I mean our ability to handle life and come out on top.

The hero’s journey is a map that can guide us as we negotiate our way through life and all it’s challenges and opportunities for growth.  It is the universal story of human development and if it didn’t work so well, we wouldn’t have a film industry, tv or best selling books.  What’s more for many of us that’s the only medium through which we learn about the hero’s journey, as a passive construct, rather than understanding it in a practical and personal context.

I’ve been working with and teaching the hero’s journey for many years now and I’ve been persuaded (ok it didn’t take much), by Chris Cooper of Be More Achieve More to share more of what I know with his clients on a teleseminar on the 27th July.  So you’re also invited too.  

During the call I’ll be answering questions like:-

- What is the Heroes Journey?

- How can it help us in a personal and a business context?

- What are the signs we’re resisting taking the journey and what are the implications?

 - What resources do we have access to that can help us through our journey?

 Plus there will be time for you to ask me your questions.

I’m currently teaching several coaches to use this in their work, here’s what one of them recently sent to me after her last coaching session “Just wanted to say a huge thank you , you are simply amazing and I can’t thank you enough for the insight you have given me.” 

 I do know what a difference understanding the hero’s journey has on life and so I hope you’ll join Chris and I on the 27th July at 8pm.  To register fill in the form below

Authentic Leadership Development – Using archetypes to improve your emotional intelligence

Ruler seeks Magician to help restore the kingdom

Jester seeks Creator to get right outside the box

Damsel in distress seeks knight, must have own horse.

The examples at the beginning may seem like strange lonely heart ads, but they’re universal patterns that we function around.

Take great movies like ET, Harry Potter, Pretty Woman, Cinderella, and those up for Oscars this year like Avatar.  Each is so powerful and successful because the characters embody a clear archetype and the story line is one we’re familiar with.  King Arthur needs his Merlin for Camelot to be healthy

An Archetype then is a root word that encodes a complete pattern.  If I said his leadership style is little Hitler you know exactly what I mean.

A picture may paint a thousand words, but archetypes convey everything in the word.  Archetypes carry the seed and energy in a universal language.  What’s so powerful is that you respond at a deep unconscious level and either the archetype draws you in or you pull away quickly.

Within business we’re also running our personal archetypal patterns.

The thing about archetypes is that over time we develop our favourites, and we have those that we out and out reject.  Yet all have their place and purpose.  I remember when I first worked with my archetypes.  My destroyer had in the past done just that, destroyed, so when I really needed to let go of things that no longer served a purpose I didn’t, I hung on, and hung on, and then experienced situations where ‘the baby went out with the bath water’.  My experiences with that archetype hadn’t been pleasant, so when it was required, it ran me rather than me using it.  Not good, and even less so as a leader.  We can do all the Emotional Intelligence stuff in the world, but trust me when I say that Archetypes run much deeper, so if you haven’t got a handle on them then you can only go so far.  Now of course things are different, I can sense when the destroyer is required, so I pay attention, what do I need to let go of  – it could be something physical, like a good office tidy up, it could be mental, like a belief, it could be emotional, maybe I’m not being true to how I feel and I’ve been ignoring myself.  When I know what it is I can work with it, and the destroyer is an Allie.  I also appear way more Emotionally Intelligent – and I am, because I’m paying attention to signals from the core of who am I.

Archetypes then are free powerful resources with a specific purpose, if you’re not aware of them, then they run you, when you are aware of them then you can use them.

As a leader your success – and ability to run a productive business with a  highly engaged workforce – is determined by your level of self awareness.  If you’re ready to take huge leaps forward then join me in April where I’ll be helping 12 leaders understand their archetypal patterns, access these phenomenally powerful resources and use them productively.  You can find more information here on our Archetypal leadership development course or contact us to secure your place.

Routes to Business Growth – Emerging From A Recession

The creation of a values-led corporate culture within one of Britain’s most successful healthcare companies had engaged its workforce, driven growth and resulted in turnover rocketing from £60 million to £100 million in a handful of years, according to Chris Harrison of North West pharma company Fresenius Kabi.

Addressing business leaders from across the North West at this week’s ‘Emerging from the Recession’ conference at Manchester’s MacDonald Hotel, the Runcorn based Group Managing Director said the adoption of values-led leadership could assist organisations in weathering the economic storm.

“At Fresenius Kabi, values have provided an important underpinning of what we do as a business and they have enabled everybody within that business to be engaged,” he added.” I am convinced that our progress would not have been as sustainable without values.”

Ruth Sanderson,one of the conference organisers and MD of blue pea POD, the Chester based leadership consultancy told the delegates that all the speakers would outline their experiences of corporate culture and its impact on performance.

“The uncertain times have seen many companies lose their way,” she said:” But forward-thinking CEOs are working with their corporate culture and leadership values because they know these hold the key to business growth.

“The level of interest in this conference in Manchester is, in my view, a clear indication of the growing acknowledgement of the role of values in corporate life. We have senior players in attendance today who have all experienced the positive impact of company values. We want them to share their experiences with all our delegates.”

Her co-organiser Sue Coyne, Executive Coach and Culture Change Consultant of Stockport-based Connectiveness Ltd added that research had shown that the adoption of a values based corporate culture within an organisation had a measurable effect on performance from sales figures to the bottom line.

Mike Stevens, the Manchester based Group and UK Human Resources Director for the £300 million turnover Odeon and UCI Cinema Group told the conference that he became involved in building a values based corporate company when the Odeon and UCI operations were being integrated.

“We conducted a company wide survey of our employees and as a company we were shaken to the core when the results showed a worrying level of disengagement and negativity.”

“We made a conscious decision to apply values to the culture using engagement, communication and development. We have already seen some very positive results from our work and now values are integral in every aspect of our business.”

After the conference Ruth Sanderson said: “Many companies are now looking forward to emerging from this long and difficult recession and this conference was the start of a series of events to give our delegates the benefit of the experiences of our speakers, all of whom spoke very positively about values-led leadership and corporate culture.

“We believe in the effectiveness of values-led leadership and the end of the recession will give many companies the opportunity to examine the many positives from this approach to business. Putting in those values now will pay huge dividends as time goes on.”

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