Leadership Challenges

Not Done Yet! How Women Over 50 Regain Their Confidence & Claim Workplace Power by Author Bonnie Marcus

A few months ago, I had a friend that starting looking for a job to escape a toxic work environment. As she searched, she was astounded at the blatant ageism that still exists. She is only 46. In one interview, they asked if she would have a problem working with much younger staff. The company was worried that the younger crowd would be intimidated by her experience and age. Wow! Welcome to reality! Even I was shocked. Unfortunately, this is what so many “experienced” women deal with every day. 

Traditionally women have suffered the brunt of both work and family responsibilities. We know the challenges that are thrown at us almost daily. In addition, we “age” more than men and are frequently excluded from promotions, achievements, and opportunities well before men. It is real, it hurts, we have to acknowledge it and reclaim our power. Sound familiar? The new book Not Done Yet! How Women Over 50 Regain Their Confidence & Claim Workplace Power by Bonnie Marcus is a necessary read for women of all ages. 

Admittedly, I am a Bonnie Marcus fan. Her first book The Politics of Promotion is a phenomenal road map to guiding women through the perils of all the politics at work that most of us run from. The articles she writes for Forbes speak to me. Bonnie has experienced what so many of us have in the workplace. It is endearing to read what she and so many other women have experienced and continue to go up against as we age. In this book, Bonnie throws out the truth and the obstacles that we face as we age. Her solution? Become a Badass and live it every day to reclaim your confidence, power, recognition, and show them what you’ve got!

 Are you ready? A Badass “means owning who you are, owning your experience, your wisdom, your talent, your age”. Sign me up! So many women hold themselves back by beliefs. If we remain positive, our beliefs become our rock. If they are negative, we will never show up, own our talent, or be authentic in everything that we do.

 I admire how Bonnie lays it all out for us. The book is divided into three parts. Each chapter gave me chills because I can see myself in every single one. It was also a bit unsettling that I realized how I have just sat back.

  1.  Assumptions, fears, and all the crap about aging that holds you back

  1. Stop playing small, and do what it takes to stay in the game

  2. Be your BADASS self

 Despite all of the gains women have made in the workplace issues such as pay inequity, lack of promotional opportunities, respect for wisdom, few women at the helm of companies, the situation is worse for women over 50. Bonnie shares all of the fears, assumptions, and reality that hold women back. She then grabs us and shares how we should stop holding ourselves back AND stop those who try to stop us. Bonnie offers strategies, advice, life experiences, and candor with a sense of humor while cheering us on. Don’t have a success journal? Get one. Don’t know how to gracefully push back on age comments? She has us covered. Unsure how to move up in your career despite roadblocks? You can become a tactful bulldozer.

 Not Done Yet! is a book that resides next to my bed along with my journal. It will pick me up when I feel defeated. It will inspire me to be authentic and lift other women up. It will be a reminder of how much I still have to give. I will remain in control, visible, relevant, and wise. Join me and pick up Bonnie Marcus’s book Not Done Yet! today.

 

 

 

 

Ready to finally do strategy right?

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Strategy. Such an ominous word. Most of us strategize in our heads every day without realizing it. For some, it has connotations of excessive work and we avoid it at all costs. For leaders, nothing will change and mass confusion becomes the state of work without a written strategy. For the longest time, I preferred to keep my business and life strategies in my head, and not surprisingly, it is not effective. For the past few years, I have been writing my strategies down to reach goals and most importantly, to empower my team. They cannot perform if they have no clue what they are working towards and why.

The new book Strategy First – How Businesses Win Big by Brad Chase is one of the first books highlighting business strategy that I have enjoyed in a long time. The book is an easy read, fun, relevant, has over 50 company examples of corporate strategy. I learn best by real-world examples and Brad’s book kept me entertained. I learned ideas to incorporate into my life that are reasonable and not just all theory.

Brad has an impressive background leading at Microsoft and MSN where he worked with teams at all levels to set strategy. He illustrated how strategies can flow down so that everyone was on board. Likewise, he was open to new ideas and craved input from the employees in areas that are doing the work.

Brad has proven that success is all about strategy and without it, no plan is complete. He developed an effective theory that any business or person can incorporate into their day. E x mc2 can teach strategy to build and execute winning strategies relative to the competition. The three elements are:

  • C:  Customer, the most important factor as noted in the equation

  • M: Market Potential

  • E: Execution – There are three variables here including strategic, customer value, and financial

Managers should adhere to the Strategy First Score (SFS) when using the equation. Doing so allows us to calculate a score that offers both an analytical and visual representation of how your strategy stacks up to the competition. A quality strategy is unbiased and is an independent method to remain ahead of the game in the same competitive business arena.

Here are some factors that address change within our equation:

  • Technology

  • Innovation

  • New Business Model

  • Societal Trends

  • New Markets

Brad offers interesting examples of companies in a variety of fields to illustrate how the factors above can make an impact. The stories are my favorite part of the book because they offer numerous “Aha” moments. Not only did I remain engaged, but I was also entertained throughout the entire book.

Strategy First spends ample time looking at what factors can influence our strategy in an ever-changing world. Note that these are similar to internal factors that influence us. Brad calls them TIDE:

  • Technology

  • Institutional

  • Demographics

  • Economics and environmental

  • Social

No company can live in a bubble or without international competition and factors that can put a company out of business quickly. If Covid19 has taught us anything, those companies that are nimble and can change tactics on a dime will survive. Strategy First unintentionally addresses the pandemic that we are struggling with what Brad calls “Expanding the Universe” factors. To me, these are very relevant right now.

  • Develop or change products and services

  • Partnerships

  • Adapt to change

  • Expansion plans that consistent with your strategy

  • Mergers and acquisitions

A strategy is useless if it is not executed and followed by action. Don’t write one just to say that you have one. Live it every day. Leaders need to make priorities clear and concise. This involves alignment, communication, and most importantly, tracking. You will never know if your strategy is working if you fail to track progress. Moreover, you must be willing to make swift changes to new challenges. You want your strategy to grow and prosper over time. Here are some tips to bring strategy growth and success.

  • Seek change

  • Mine any gaps

  • Adapt to the tides mentioned earlier

  • Expand the universe

  • Climb short walls and build tall walls

I thoroughly enjoyed Strategy First by Brad Chase! I have read other strategy books and they have been so theoretical or intense I quickly lost my concentration. I did not have any actionable strategies or ideas that I could personally apply.

Business is disrupted by the pandemic. I have had to revisit my strategies in several categories to align with the current environment. Several of my goals have changed and how I address growing key financial areas is upside down.

If you are committed to strategy and have been turned off by other resources, read Brad’s book. I promise that you will not be disappointed and will come away with at least a few nuggets!

 

 

 

 

 

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The American spirit strives to win whether it is in our personal or professional lives. In these trying times, companies will feel the need to step up initiatives to bring back jobs, production, and sales. Winning does not just pertain to coming out on top regardless of how our teams are treated.  

Mark Miller is one of my favorite authors. I have read every one of his books and he just published his fifth installment of books in his High-Performance series. His latest book Win Every Day – Proven Practices for Extraordinary Results focuses on execution to create a remarkable organization. Mark’s books are business parables where the reader becomes a part of the story and engages with teams every day as they identify and tackle organizational problems.

Our business parable focuses on CEO Blake Brown who learns how to consistently cheer his team on to excel at execution after identifying some internal customer service issues. Coincidently, he receives ideas and leadership from an unexpected source, his son’s new high school coach who is working with the team to bring up their performance and teaching them how to win every day in one form or another. The coach uses a variety of approaches and field trips to teach valuable lessons to the team that brings results where everyone wins. Blake takes these same strategies and applies them to his company to win every day in a variety of areas, not just increasing profits.

High performing organizations do four things that create excellence:

1. Bet on leadership

2. Act as one

3. Win the heart

4. Excel at execution

Obviously, every organization must agree that they aim to be great, excel, and unique. Moreover, leaders need to be sincere in doing their best, encourage others to be the best for families, customers, vendors, and ultimately the world. Teams need to sincerely buy-in. Teams should pursue mastery, own the numbers, and help others to win. On the other hand, leaders should coach for life, focus on processes, and communicate.

Mark offers some key takeaways from Blake’s journey. Most importantly, Black acknowledges that he is the root cause of how the company experienced some failures and he is the key to encouraging everyone to win.

1. The past does not determine the future

2. Communication is the oxygen of execution

3. Our competition is our own arrogance and complacency

4. When you win every day, you can live a life with no regrets

5. Execution is not one more thing – it is THE thing

6. We cannot win every day without everyone

7. If I do not make the right choices, my team never will

8. We want to measure activities that actually help us win more “games”

9. If we own the numbers, we can hold each other accountable. More importantly, we can hold ourselves accountable

10. Mastery is a level of skill in which three things are true: the desired behavior is consistent, execution is flawless, and the behavior is second nature.

I love nothing more than a good story and Mark Miller is a master parable writer. I learned lessons that “stuck” in my mind because I was learning from a story and the ideas flowed in order and made sense. In particular, I was fascinated by how Blake learned so much from his son and his son’s coach. They learned how to teach teams new ways of growing, supporting each other, and how everyone could win. So often we see how sports analogies and business strategies are the same, we just use different terms.

If you love easy reading stories that teach you lessons as you grow in your career and influence your teams then Win Every Day is a must-read. You will find yourself lost in the book eager to see how the lessons from a high school sports team and those of a successful company seeking a new status are entwined.

 

 

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As employees have more career choices and the availability of jobs, they have the luxury of deciding what they want from their job or the company that they work with. The days of accepting the job with the highest salary are gone. Employees want flexibility, the ability to work from home, more vacation days, yoga classes and other unique benefits.

One of the number one factors that employees look for in a new opportunity is a robust, positive, and open culture. Culture has always been my number one priority when looking for a new job. Culture is the lifeblood of a company and can make or break success. The new book Creating Constructive Cultures – Leading People and Organizations to Effectively Solve Problems and Achieve Goals by Janet L Szumal Ph.D. and Robert A. Cooke Ph.D. offers a model to assist leaders in creating ideal cultures. They utilize over 40 years of research that reveal some interesting insight into the various types of cultures in the workplace as well as disconnects.

This book is very science, data, and theoretical based. If you love data and textbook or academic learning, you will delve right into this book. It offers robust charts and graphs, and a variety of graphics to explain theories to drive the authors’ ideas home. Cleary the authors understand what distinguishes a strong culture from a weak or poisoned one. They layout the plusses and minuses of cultures that are closed, self-centered on power, and not inclusive. On the other side, they explain in-depth how cultures power a company to success by encouraging people to reach their potential, take intuitive approaches and think independently, are open to free thought and new ideas, value quality over quantity, and how cultures that depend on collaboration and coordination bring results.

The authors describe the main theoretical premise in the book that exists in most organizations. They offer a concise summary of the Human Synergistics Circumplex applied to cultures as part of a system they call the Integrated Diagnostic System. Ultimately, there is no single way to approach culture change however; having a common language, measurement, and uniform approach to change can be a powerful tool for leaders. There are twelve cultural norms and within these norms, we see three different cultural styles in most organizations. Here are the three styles:

1. Constructive Style: Cultures are based on achievement, self-actualization, encouraging and humanistic. This type of culture focuses on improvement and the development of individuals and the company

2. Passive/Defensive Style: Focused on approval, conventional practices, and dependence and avoidance. The goal is to protect the existing organization and individuals

3. Aggressive/Defensive Style: Full of opposition, power and competitiveness and perfection. This culture is often in hostile or negative companies trying to protect themselves from change

Clearly, leaders need to understand their current culture. They need to be aware of who holds the power or who controls the culture and understand the ultimate impact. Looking at their culture through the lenses noted above will help identify weaknesses and point out how the organization can work towards a cultural transformation from within. Leaders have sound reasons for changing norms and working toward a constructive thinking organization.

· Attracting and retaining talent

· Teamwork and problem solving

· Strategy implementation

· Innovation and adaptability

· Consistency with organizational values

· Financial

· Closing the gap between current and ideal culture

My favorite part of the book is Part II. Szumal and Cooke highlight nine organizations that have used practical principles and concepts from the book to enhance and grow their cultures. The companies that they highlight are from all over the world and each has its own unique story. This area of the book is where everything falls into place for the reader and real lessons hit home. Here are some of the companies highlighted:

· San Diego Unified Port District

· Spreadsheet – Germany

· Strauman – Switzerland

· PONS Bakery – Serbia

· Dreher Brewery

· Agroenzy Mas – Mexico

Each company had a fascinating journey, which resulted in their organizations being more productive, more cohesive, and more collaborative. The stories highlight that there is no one way to approach culture change and influence the overall company climate. Overall culture change was aligned with improvements in employee satisfaction, innovation, revenue growth, and other factors.

The final portion of the book closes with a four-phase process for strengthening true constructive culture and amplifying results. These phases bring all the concepts, ideas, tools and experiences to fruition for the benefit of both the teams and organizations. Again, this book is academically focused on models, key intricate strategies, and presents over 40 years of research so the reader needs to be prepared to jump in for a new way of learning.

Outward Bound Lessons of Leadership

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I have always been an avid reader – a book nerd. Ever since my boys were little I would tell them that “Readers are Leaders”. Wouldn’t it be great if this were true? However, it takes more than reading to become a true servant leader. It also takes grit, experience, uncomfortable confrontation, and throwing yourself into situations where you are scared, challenged, and willing to do what others shy away from. 

Some of the strongest leaders in the world have grown through fear, challenge and jumping into the unknown. The new book Outward Bound Lessons to Live a Life of Leadership – To Serve, To Strive, and Not to Yield by Mark Michaux Brown along with Outward Bound USA tells the story of how experienced-based learning is how leaders are made. 

Outward Bound is a learning and leadership based program for youth and adults. The core of the program leads people into the wilderness (hiking, biking, desert/jungle trips) and throwing them out of their comfort zone. Those who are fortunate enough to build their skills and enhance relationships become some of our strongest leaders. Outward Bound Lessons shares powerful personal stories, ideas, and real-world success traits that Outward Bound leaders bring as change agents to companies and communities around the world. Being thrown into unknown situations transforms people into “Expeditionary Leaders”. 

There are three key factors to being an Expeditionary leader. The motto is simple: 

· To Serve: Focus on employees, customers, communities, and the greater good

· To Strive: See challenges as opportunities to grow, value your learning and how to offer it to the greater good

· Not to Yield: Leaders learn that the “finish line” is forever and the best is always to come. Leaders should always stick to their principles under pressure. Never yield to weakness and always put others first. That means playing the long game, foregoing short term profits, and having the true moral courage 

The Outward Bound program has changed lives. It has pushed people to the edge of their humanity. As a result, they impact those around them and share the lessons they learned. The principles that we need to develop include effectively serving, striving, and not yielding. I was immersed in the numerous stories that people shared during the trips that they experienced in the book as well as the awe and courage they felt when they beat the odds. They had to live the “pages” of a leadership book to truly become leaders. 

Here are some common themes that the Outward Bound leaders experienced: 

· A yearning to serve a higher calling by taking risks and trying new paths to pave the way for others

· Problems are what spark leaders to jump into action

· Become core connectors and foster community interaction to build stronger communities

· Take advantage of teachable moments and reflect on learning’s

· Continually use uncertainty, adversity, and challenge for personal development

· Always be curious, never settle

· Relay on compassion for others no matter what the challenge

· Mentor and tech others the three Expeditionary Leadership qualities

· Go with your gut in situations while holding to your values

· Develop grit and stand up for yourself so that you can support others

· Know that you will need to continually take more risks and stay out of your comfort zone or your growth will diminish 

Outward Bound Lessons is a fascinating book. It is more than just getting teams together to experience zip lining or trust games for a day. It’s about people being with one another on a long and perhaps dangerous journey. Growth requires time and true reliance on others. Not only are the stories and lessons engaging, but at the end of each chapter, there are reflection questions to ask yourself and challenge what your notions of leadership are and what true leadership is. 

If you are looking for a fresh book on leadership where you can share the adventures of others and learn from the experiences that they had, this is a must-read. Learn how YOU should climb out of your skin once in a while and face the unknown for eye-opening lessons and personal growth

 

Knowing That Leadership Has a Rhythm of Growth and Loss Holds One to Hope By Dr. Jeanie Cockell and Dr. Joan McArthur-Blair


How is your leadership journey going? In our ever changing world being an effective leader is a daily challenge. Building Resilience with Appreciative Inquiry by Dr. Jeanie Cockwell and Dr. Joan McArthur-Blair is a new book that speaks to leadership journeys with hope, during despair, and with forgiveness. Here is an some insightful information from the authors to help you become the leader that you were meant to be.

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By Dr. Jeanie Cockell and Dr. Joan McArthur-Blair

The hope of the gardener described in the next story is a wonderful metaphor for the place that hope dwells—a place that enables and encourages leaders to sow the earth knowing that some things will grow and some will flounder. Leaders repeatedly begin again and resow, knowing that the wind, rain, and sun can be nurturing friends or destructive foes. Sometimes leaders retrace their steps to find things they should have understood, and other times they strike out in new directions. In the garden, there is both hope and its shadow. Hope holds in its hands the soft earth as it readies it for planting; hope is open to the possible and deeply feels the moment of beginning, not the prediction of the end state. A leader described her leadership life as a gardener this way:

I am a gardener—one who nurtures, tends, plants, cultivates, and harvests. I am a leader who inspires, creates, celebrates, encourages, and invests. Gardeners and leaders have many skills and talents and values in common. Great gardeners are full of hope. It is genuine and considered hope that is the essence of how I see myself as a gardener and a leader. This is a hope that is based in reverence for life in its deepest and most profound meaning.

Some of my earliest memories of hope involve planting radish seeds as a small girl and waiting impatiently for them to sprout. I can still feel and smell the soil and relive the joy of the first shoots. In a similar manner, I can still visualize my first formal leadership role in my Brownie pack. The possibilities of making a difference, of helping others with their badges, of teaching them the rituals, of being there for them when they forgot their tams or scarves. Hope for the future was the essence of these early experiences.

The lessons of the gardener inform me in the lessons of leadership. Sometimes, despite all the necessary prep of soil, nutrients, seed selection, etc., the seeds blow away, the plant withers, and the bugs attack or the bloom fades before it flowers. The ground is fallow for periods of time and only a few stalks blow in the wind. I prepare again, gather more information, and make selections, try different nutrients, check the weather, except that for me roses do not do well—concentrate on daisies. This is hope. Next time, the garden will be great, it will be different, and it will grow.

My leadership is embedded in the hope of the gardener—learning to accept, to rethink, to reimagine, to redo, to undo, knowing that tomorrow is another opportunity full of possibilities and potential to discover and celebrate.

I have loved every job I have ever had—some lasted longer than others. In some positions there was more to plant, more to nurture, and more learning to be had. I have chosen to change jobs based on my assessment of the possibilities for growth for myself and others.

Much as a gardener decides their type of garden. All my life, I have been associated with some aspect of education, whether it be teaching pottery, swimming, or anthropology, or facilitating teams, or teaching others to teach and be leaders. For me, education is all about hope—for oneself, for others, and for a different world. It is the hope that sees me through to more possibilities and to uncovering the potential in others and providing me the opportunity to be a small part in realizing the possibility. Finding the seeds, nurturing their beginnings, tending the fragile shoots, staking their stems, and admiring their unique blooming beauty is the gift of hope and the reason to be. I will always be a gardener and revel in the possible, despite stormy weather, dry seasons, scattered seeds, and invasive pests. In leadership, I cherish the hope of the gardener, and this hope inspires my leadership and sees me through the tough times.

The practice of hope in all the multiple tasks of leadership is the recognition that hope can be nurtured in the early stages when the outcome is not known; in the journey along the way, where already some things have floundered and some have grown; and in the final outcome, which might be different than planned. It is undertaking leadership in all of these places with the heart of the gardener that can help sustain hope as the rhythms of growth and loss and the seasons change.

About the authors

Dr. Jeanie Cockell and Dr. Joan McArthur-Blair, co-presidents of leadership consulting firmCockell McArthur-Blair Consulting, are the co-authors ofBuilding Resilience with Appreciative Inquiry. The veteran consultants’ latest book explores how leaders can use the practice of Appreciative Inquiry to weather the storms they'll inevitably encounter and be resilient.

Eight Reasons Why You Are Still In High School

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I remember years ago when I was in high school my mom telling me numerous times “these are the best years of your life!” Sure, spending day after day dealing with gossip, cliques, homework, disenchanted teachers, including kids who didn’t care much about actually learning was the best right? The sad thing is that many of us are still in high school only we call it work. Sound familiar?

Years ago employees hung out around the water cooler or coffee counter. Open office plans have flipped that practice upside down. Most employees have minimal privacy and are sitting on top of each other. It’s like sitting in a classroom all day working on homework assignments. Ultimately not much has changed since graduation, and you are still in high school.

Eight reasons why you are still in high school

1. Gossip. I think that corporate gossip is worse than in high school, we are just sneakier about it. Back in the old days, we didn’t have social media and smart phones to share what we heard. Technology has exasperated the spread of gossip and adults are savvier about making chatter sound like corporate strategy. These days gossip destroys people and careers. Don’t get wrapped up in its dangers.

2. Bullying. Adults can be cruel. Bullying takes place every day in the form of intimidation, sabotage, belittling, and even subtle threats. Not long ago, I had a manager that was smooth one day and the next day would micromanage and throw out threats with a smile on his face. We would all do a double take to try and understand his game.

3. Cliques: We were all in a group in high school whether we realized it or not. Nothing has changed. You are in a circle at work. Look around you. Higher level managers stay in their corner; the interns hang together all day. The IT folks have their spot. These cliques often meet after work for “team building”.

4. Lackadaisical Coworkers: My twins love school. Fortunately, they are bright and motivated to learn. They also complain weekly about being in classes with kids who could care less about learning or growing. It brings them down and at times, interrupts their learning. We all work with people who don’t care. They don’t want to learn. They don’t care about growing and strengthening the team. They just show up.

5. Competition: The magical word. In high school, we see competition in every sport, and it permeates throughout the system. Most of the time it’s healthy, but not always. Competition encouraged with negative intent can impact lives. You know where the competition is and who owns it in your area. You have probably seen how a competitive team can thrive and accomplish. You have also been on the receiving end of spiteful and negative competition. I have seen people pay with their jobs from malicious competition.

6. Teachers: I remember some of my best teachers. They were passionate about my learning and growth and cared about preparing me for success. I also remember the poor teachers. They had tenure and just showed up every day for a paycheck. Managers are not much different. Some leaders thrive on growing and mentoring teams. Others don’t care and like a tenured teacher, just show up.

7. The Principal: I’m guessing that you either loved or hated your high school Principal. It probably depended on how much trouble that you created! You still have a Principal – your top leadership including the CEO. The Principal is the one that manages the culture of the company, makes or breaks your future in the company and can make your job easy or challenge you. They probably don’t know you well unless you are a troublemaker or….a suck up. Beware of the Principal.

8. School Board: The school board oversees the entire system and has no idea about the inner working of the company nor do they care how you function on a daily basis. They only know what they are told and generally go along with what they hear. They don’t tend to dig deep into the company culture or care about employee well being or team challenges. Making cuts, moving employees, cutting departments is all in a day’s work for them.

Hopefully, you loved high school and have positive memories. You may also be in the minority. I was eager to move on after high school and grow through my college years. As you read this and if you are at work, look around you, and I bet you will whisper to yourself “I AM still in high school!”

The Importance of Conviction By Jim Haudan and Rich Haudan

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Leadership is an enigma. There are some that feel that they are strong leaders and have everything that it takes to be successful. Their teams don’t agree. Strong leaders know that they always need to work on their leadership skills and are open to learning about what they are missing or what blind spots that they have. Here is a guest post from the new book What Are Your Blind Spots? Conquering the 5 Misconceptions that Hold Leaders Back.

In order to activate purpose at your organization, your leaders must have conviction in that purpose while also being clear on their personal purpose at work. People generally have a desire to bring their best selves to work, but if you or they are not sure what that best self is, it’s hard to consistently bring it or know when and where to apply it. Great organizations don’t just have an organizational purpose, but they bring out personal purpose in individual people as well.

When we talk about personal purpose, we don’t mean an all-encompassing answer to what makes you happy in life. That’s a bonus. We are referring to understanding what makes you happy and most effective at work. As a leader who wants to be truly purpose driven and have teams that are as well, you must ask yourself the following questions:

• Do I know what drives, motivates, and inspires the people working on my team?

• Do I know the core strengths and passions of my team?

• Do I know what each person’s personal best is and understand how to activate it?

• Do I know the personal purpose of the members of my team?

• Do I help individuals bring their purpose to life?

• Do I know how to connect people’s personal purposes to the larger purpose of my organization?

Once you can answer yes and elaborate on each of your answers, you will be ready for a game-changing performance. Simon Sinek wrote in his book Start with Why:

Studies show that over 80 percent of Americans do not have their dream job. If more knew how to build organizations that inspire, we could live in a world in which that statistic was the reverse—a world in which over 80 percent of people loved their jobs. People who love going to work are more productive and more creative. They go home happier and have happier families. They treat their colleagues and clients and customers better. Inspired employees make for stronger companies and stronger economies.

If you want to create an organization in which 80 percent of your people are excited to come to work and are vested in the success of the business, your people need to know and feel that you are fully vested in their success. They need to see how they connect to the purpose of the organization and how their contributions make a difference.

About Jim Haudan

Jim Haudan is Co-Founder and Chairman of Root Inc. Root Inc., the organizational change expert on helping companies create leadership alignment, execute strategies and change successful, build employee engagement, and transform businesses. He is a sought-after business presenter who has spoken at TEDx BGSU, Tampa TEDx, and The Conference Board. His latest book, What Are Your Blind Spots?: Conquering the 5 Misconceptions that Hold Leaders Back is co-authored with Rich Berens is CEO and Chief Client Fanatic of Root Inc. The book equips readers with the tools needed for a personal leadership reset. You’ll discover how to increase engagement, productivity, and growth in your own organization.

About Rich Berens

Rich Berens is CEO and Chief Client Fanatic of Root Inc, and has helped align leaders at Global 2000 organizations to drive strategic and cultural change at scale. He is a noted speaker on the issues of, transformation, and how to create lasting change and has authored articles for numerous publications and blogs. Under Rich’s leadership, Root has been listed among the Great Place to Work® Institute’s top 25 places to work, been named to the Inc. 5000 fastest-growing companies list, and experienced 10 years of consecutive growth. His latest book, What Are Your Blind Spots?: Conquering the 5 Misconceptions that Hold Leaders Back is co-authored with Jim Haudan is Co-Founder and Chairman of Root Inc.