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31 Days to Becoming a Better Leader

Foundations

Day #1: Overview: Four Principles for Success

Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.– John F. Kennedy

Welcome to 31 Days to Becoming a Better Leader.

Thank you for joining me on this journey of discovery and empowerment. Next line the next 31 days will explore the themes of leadership under the topic of transformational leadership.

My definition of a leader, is one who…

1. Gets things done
2. Knows how things get done
3. Influences others

This journey of 31 days will provide you with my system so that you can be an influential leader by getting things accomplished and with the system I will provide you..

The schedule for the 31 days is posted below.

Here’s the series of sessions:

1. Overview: 4 Principles for Success
2. Foundations: Personal Life Vision
3. Foundations: Organizational Core Values
4. Foundations: Guiding Principles
5. Foundations: Organizational Vision & Mission
6. Foundations: Strategic Plan
7. Foundations: L/T & S/T Objectives
8. Foundations: Plans for Action
9. Foundations: The Performance Secret: DVDs
10. Foundations: Accountabilities and Metrics
11. Foundations: Leadership Skills & Gaps
12. Foundations: Personal Growth Plan
13. Relationships: Team Competencies
14. Relationships: Roles & Responsibilities
15. Relationships: Team Agreements
16. Relationships: Group Dynamics & Conflict
17. Relationships: Corporate Culture
18. Relationships: Getting Team Buy-In
19. Relationships: Team Performance Covenant
20. Systems: Meetings
21. Systems: Team Action Planning
22. Systems: Flash Meetings
23. Systems: Avoiding Micromanaging: Coaching vs. Mentoring
24. Systems: No Job Descriptions
25. Systems: Evaluations
26. Systems: Hiring Staff & Consultants
27. Balance: Managing Time
28. Balance: Managing Stress
29. Balance: Support Groups
30. Balance: Have a Coach
31. Conclusion: Continuing Improvement

You will notice that the sessions are grouped under my 4 Principles for Success:

1. Foundations (Know the Score):The musical conductor knows the plan and how to implement the plan, and can communicate that plan. This is knowledge and skill that leaders must possess.
2. Relationships (Hire the Best):Surround yourself with the best people. The musical conductor hires the best players and then requires excellence from them. This is no different. Hire for competencies defined in the strategy under #1.
3. Systems (Rehearse for Success):The musical conductor conducts a highly efficient rehearsal to build an excellent ensemble. To create a new Architecture of Engagement™ the leader must install effective systems for the team to perform with excellence.
4. Balance (Value the Rests):In music, the rests serve a specific purpose and are not just silence for silence’s sake. Leaders must balance work with the other aspects of life in order to remain at the top of their efficiency.

Each podcast will have a corresponding webpage that provides links, highlights, and notes pertinent to that lesson.

Each podcast covers a different topic under the umbrella of empowering leaders as a transformational leader. This journey is about empowerment, personal growth, leadership as a skill, and leadership as a system.

Congratulations on purchasing this workbook with all transcripts, action guides, and templates for the work you will need to do to be the best leader you can be.

On the corresponding webpage for each podcast, there will be a place for comments. I invite you to comment on the topics and share your perspective with others.

I love the quote by the British composer Ralph Vaughan Williams, “Music did not reveal all of its secrets to just one person.”

I’m sharing my own personal growth journey with you in this series. I invite you to share back with me ideas, concepts, and lessons learned, because I considering leadership as a unending topic to explore; it’s a lifelong journey of discovery and learning. I invite you on this journey with me. This is a conversation. It’s not a one-way delivery.

Several times during this journey, I will invite you to share content on the topic of leadership in any of the subtopics that we cover together. I will direct you to a place where you can put in your content and your contact information, and we will be in conversation.

One more thing: the more people in this conversation, the richer the experience will be for all of us. I invite you to share this link with people in your contact base. I invite you to share this link with social media, as well as the links for each podcast and each discussion, so that we can invite more people into the discussion and grow together.

Tomorrow’s podcast is day two: What kind of life vision do you have as a leader? In our professional life, whether we own or lead an organization or are a solo practitioner, the entirety of the profession should support the life that we envision. As we approach growing our sphere of influence, our position of influence, and the results from that influence, we continue to build a life that validates and empowers the vision that we’ve created for ourselves. All too often, leaders create a vision for an entity (a nonprofit, a business community, an organization, etc.) that controls their life, and not the other way around.

I look forward to tomorrow’s step in the journey with you. Join me on day number two in 31 Days to Becoming a Better Leader.