DRINK: THE NEWSLETTER

Volume 1 / Issue 2

WHAT IS LEADERSHIP

Leadership is the quality, ability, or process of influencing and guiding others to achieve a common goal. – Summary from four internet sources.

WHAT IS MANAGEMENT

Management is the coordination and administration of tasks to achieve a goal. – Indeed.com.

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE

If you believe that we are on this planet to serve a purpose, to contribute, to make things better, then you know we cannot do it alone, it’s not about self, rather it’s helping one another advance. In the simplest terms, management sets direction and leadership guides the way. Together they provide what’s need to achieve a successful outcome.

“Management is about persuading people to do things they do not want to do, while leadership is about inspiring people to do things they never thought they could.“ – Steven Jobs.

Manager, Leader, or Both, It’s All About People 

People Skills, Soft Skills, Power Skills. I take exception to the use of “Power” but I’ll save that for another newsletter. Whatever we decide to call them, these skills are important for managers and leaders to develop and employ. To some, these skills come naturally, to others it’s learned, and unfortunately to more than we may like to count, it’s a hard sell. What’s motivated all the attention to communication, collaboration, integrity, emotional intelligence, creativity, empathy, and let’s not forget passion, credibility and faith? The pandemic, working remotely, a global community participating in global projects, and an emphasis on life and work balance. It seems obvious that these skills significantly contribute to people working together to advance one another and their organization. What more convincing is needed? A lot!

According to the Project Management Institute (PMI) Pulse of The Profession 2023, the barriers to prioritizing these skills across all organizations surveyed are cost (44%) and lack of perceived value (40%) – Pulse of the Profession | PMI

What is a professional to do if their organization does not see the value in investing in developing these skills or worse, your leadership doesn’t have these skills? Find an organization that does. Invest in yourself. Get a mentor or coach.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this topic. I welcome helping you advance your skill too. – len@rethinkinc.com 

In the spotlight

Mitchell Levy, Global Credibility Expert & Executive Coach

Empowering Leadership: How Credibility, Clarity, Consistency, Curiosity, and Courage Drive Success

Successful leadership is not just about having a title or a position of authority. It requires a unique set of qualities that enable leaders to motivate, inspire and guide their teams to success. These qualities help them to navigate the challenges that come with leadership and drive the achievement of goals, both big and small.

While the specific qualities that make a successful leader can vary from person to person, there are certain core attributes that are widely recognized as essential. These attributes include credibility, clarity, consistency, curiosity, and courage. These qualities enable leaders to build trust with their team, communicate effectively, make difficult decisions, and navigate change with confidence.

1) Credibility.

Credibility is the quality of being trusted, known, and liked. Credibility is important to a thought leader because people need to trust you first before interacting, getting interested in knowing, and ultimately liking you.

 There are ten skills that came out of the 500-thought leader credibility research that is relevant to how you can establish your credibility as a thought leader. For a more elaborate explanation of these ten skills, watch the Credibility TEDx, pick up the Credibility Nation book, or take a look at the Credibility Nation community.

 2) Clarity.

Clarity is having the ability to clearly articulate who you are as a thought leader. You need to be able to let people know in seconds how you can help them—whether what you do to serve is something they want to recommend to others or something they’re interested in.

 A CPoP (Customer Point of Possibilities) is a short, succinct expression of the playground you play in. It’s 1-10 words, 1-3 seconds, and includes two parts: the class of clients served and the specific pain point or aspiration point you address for your clients. Having a CPoP provides you the clarity and confidence to be consistently credible in every situation. My CPoP is “CEOs Flying Like Eagles!” 

These are not overnight solutions and they can take some time to implement but the rewards can be immeasurable. I never expected that someone would make a crypto currency out of my likeness but without our naturally curious culture, one of our crypto-curious engineers might never have tried.

3) Consistency.

Reinforce clarity in your synchronous and asynchronous presence. Have the consistency to articulate your (CPoP) everywhere you show up so that people get to trust, know, and like you as a thought leader who has the expertise to deliver in your playground.

4) Curiosity.

What worked yesterday won’t work today. What worked today won’t work tomorrow. Today’s clients are not going to be clients tomorrow if you do not continue to grow and learn. 

You need to be curious to understand best practices, what your peers are doing, and what’s going on and be able to change, focus, and do new things.

 5) Courage.

Have the courage to change what is working “today” if you know that “tomorrow” needs a new solution.

Have the courage to go the other direction when people tell you to go in one direction, especially when you know that it’s the right thing to do.

 Successful leadership is not just about possessing one or two qualities, but rather a combination of them. Credibility, clarity, consistency, curiosity, and courage are all crucial elements that enable leaders to effectively lead their teams towards achieving their goals. These qualities not only help build trust with the team but also ensure effective communication, decision-making, and adaptability to change.