Lee Ellis's Blog, page 180
April 17, 2019
4 quick tips to connect with the heart
4 quick Leading with Honor tips to connect with the heart of your colleagues or team – see if you agree:
1. Train your mindset so that it will support your heart in this effort. Some people will have to go against their nature and re-train their brain the connecting with the heart will get results and build solid, trusted relationships.
2. Develop your strategy and tactics to be more intentional in encouraging and affirming others.
Accept that you will have to be vulnerable and genuinely open yourself to make this connection.
Begin to observe others and see them as valuable human beings that are struggling to gain a foothold with their own security and confidence.
Look for ways to affirm them, remembering it must be true and genuine. You may even want to write a short one or two sentence script if it seems difficult to do.
3. Look for a good opportunity and deliver your message. At first this may be a bit mechanical for those who are highly results-oriented, but it will get more comfortable. Soon it will start to come more naturally.
4. Make it a habit and use tools if needed. There was a story about a senior vice-president at Bellsouth (now part of ATT) who put ten dimes in her pocket each morning. Every time she affirmed someone, she moved a dime to the other pocket. Her goal was to move all ten dimes over before the end of the day. How is that for being intentional? It may sound hokey, but it worked. She was an amazing leader who got great results, and people did not want to let her down.
Remember—the goal is to become more intentional in connecting with the hearts of your team (and others too). Please post your tips and experience too – thank you
Also, read the entire article on this topic – “4 Mentorship Steps to Free Your Leaders”
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April 16, 2019
Endorsement – GA School Superintendent Assoc
Thank you Keith Porter, Professional Development Director, Georgia School Superintendent Association, for your kind words about the Leading with Honor message –
“Col. Lee Ellis’ training session with our educational leaders was extremely impactful for the participants. His incredible grasp of the complexities of leadership, forged over a lifetime of dedicated service and marked by intense life trials, give authenticity and power to his tenants of leading with honor. The Leadership Behavior DNA assessment allowed the school superintendents to obtain objective data on their natural leadership behaviors and the discussions with Col. Ellis illuminated areas of strength and challenge for each participant. His emphasis on character, courage, and commitment are as timely today as they have ever been and especially resonate with those who are responsible for educating and caring for future generations.”
Lee Ellis Speaking – Link
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April 15, 2019
Graduation Gifts for the Next Gen Leader
Graduation season is here, and Leading with Honor wants to help you celebrate and gift these young leaders with future wisdom! Experience gripping stories from the Vietnam POW camps and learn the leadership lessons that enabled them to survive and return with honor.
Save 20% instantly when you buy both Lee Ellis leadership books together – Purchase in the Online Store.
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April 12, 2019
Leading with Honor Wisdom for Today, April 12, 2019
“A mentor’s belief in another person can completely launch them on a path to a rewarding, purpose-filled future.” – Lee Ellis
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April 11, 2019
Fill-in-the-Blank – “The best thing that I can do to…”
Fill-in-the-Blank – “The best thing that I can do to make someone feel more confident is __________________________.”
Please post your responses in the comments section below – thank you
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April 9, 2019
On This Day in Leadership History, April 14th
On this day in leadership history in 1860, the first Pony Express rider arrived in San Francisco with mail originating in St. Joseph, MO. Able to deliver a letter in only 10 days from east coast to west coast, it was only in operation for 18 months until a new telegraph line was installed.
What’s the leadership lesson? As an honorable leader, what are the efforts that you would go to communicate and clarify with your team and organization? Go above and beyond to ensure that everyone is on the same page.
Pony Express – History and Culture
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Lincoln Leadership Attributes – A Case Study
Free Case Study! After surveying hundreds of leaders about President Abraham Lincoln’s leadership ability to achieve great results amidst unbearably difficult circumstances, there were some tangible leadership attributes that rose to the top in Lee’s research.
Leading with Honor’s “Leadership Balance Case Study” examines the unique results vs. relationship balance of this famous presidential leaders in U.S. history.
Please download your copy and post your comments below on this topic – thank you!
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April 8, 2019
4 Mentorship Steps to Free Your Leaders
“The goal of many leaders is to get people to think more highly of the leader.
The goal of a great leader is to help people to think more highly of themselves.”
– J. Carla Nortcutt
Most great stories have a struggling protagonist and a mentor—someone who speaks into their life to help them find their way. You may recall Mentor from The Odyssey, the original “mentor” who spoke into the life of Telemachus, inspiring him to live up to his potential and preserve the home front until his father Odysseus’ return.
In more recent times we’ve seen Obi-Wan Kenobi and Luke Skywalker, John Keating and his students in Dead Poets Society, and Gandalf and Frodo in The Lord of the Rings. In real life, there was Moses who served that role for Joshua. Socrates mentored Plato, who then mentored Aristotle. More recently, Warren Buffet has mentored several famous business leaders.
In the POW camps Capt. Ken Fisher was that person for me. The bottom line of mentoring is that they speak into the lives of others to inspire and challenge them to overcome their doubts and achieve their potential.
Helping Others to Security
In the last few articles*, we unpacked the topic of core identity and how to move from insecure leadership to secure leadership. Every person is constantly sliding back and forth on this continuum, but there are practical ways you can help others move toward a more Secure Self. And this is crucial to be an honorable and effective leader.
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“Healthy leaders recognize that when their team members feel good about themselves, they naturally perform better—meaning they feel comfortable with themselves.” [Tweet This]
A healthy degree of inner-security that we have been talking about.
With this insight, secure leaders can be intentional about affirming others. It’s a practical way of moving a person toward being more confident and secure. Those type of connections have more power than you can ever imagine.
An Example of Leading the Way
Recently while conducting a leadership training, I asked the participants to reflect on a person who had spoken power into their life (my way of asking about a key mentor) and altered their life and career. Several people shared their story, and they were so moving! What they described was how one person’s words had moved them toward a more secure and confident self.
“A mentor’s belief in another person can completely launch them on a path to a rewarding, purpose-filled future.” [Tweet This]
Why would any leader not want to be a launcher or booster to lift others up? Can you imagine the kind of organization that comes when its leader is intentionally providing this kind of heart-connections with people?
4 Steps to Connect with Heart
In my book, Engage With Honor, I explain the Courageous accountability Model
with one of the steps called “Connect with the Heart”. This affirmation and encouragement is much more than logic or reasoning of the head—it’s a heart connection.
Whether it’s part of your natural leadership behavior or not, you need to be intentional in doing it. Here are four steps that will help you get there –
1. Train your mindset so that it will support your heart in this effort.
– Read Chapter Seven of Engage with Honor.
– Watch this Engage with Honor Coaching Clip on connecting with heart
– Watch Dr. Richard Boyatzis’ online videos on resonant leadership. His many years of research and teaching in emotional intelligence and resonant leadership lay out the evidence that scientifically proves the power of compassionately caring and connecting with others in this way.
2. Develop your strategy and tactics to be more intentional in encouraging and affirming others.
– Accept that you will have to be vulnerable and genuinely open yourself to make this connection.
– Begin to observe others and see them as valuable human beings that are struggling to gain a foothold with their own security and confidence.
– Look for ways to affirm them, remembering it must be true and genuine. You may even want to write a short one or two sentence script if it seems difficult to do.
3. Look for a good opportunity and deliver your message. At first, this may be a bit mechanical for those who are highly results-oriented, but it will get more comfortable. Soon it will start to come more naturally.
4. Make it a habit and use tools if needed. There was a story about a senior vice-president at BellSouth (now part of AT&T) who put ten dimes in her pocket each morning. Every time she affirmed someone, she moved a dime to the other pocket. Her goal was to move all ten dimes over before the end of the day. How is that for being intentional? It may sound hokey, but it worked. She was an amazing leader who got great results, and people did not want to let her down.
The Power of Connection
Remember the goal is to become more intentional in connecting with the hearts of your team (and others too). So, do you see the power you have? Are you willing to engage with your people to make help feel more secure and confident? Expect a real return on your investment. Give it a try and then let us and others know how it’s working for you.
LE
*Here are the earlier articles in this Core Identity series:
“Revealing the Rocket Science of Secure Leadership” – Link
“Securing Your True Leadership Self” – Link
“How to Strengthen Your Core Leadership Identity” – Link
“Defining Your Core Leadership Identity: Back to Square One” – Link
The Complete Model for Courageous Accountability
[image error]The Engage with Honor Launch Package Special Offer is still available with any purchase from the Leading with Honor Online Store! Over 10 complimentary leadership development tools provided for personal and/or professional development –
“…Ellis demonstrates that this difference comes from having the character and courage to do the right thing. A must read for all leaders.” – Dr. J. Phillip London, Executive Chairman and Chairman of the Board – CACI International Inc
“I believe our country is at one of the most crucial periods in our entire history. Lee’s book represents an important ‘instruction manual’ for righting the ship.” – Bob Littell, Chief NetWeaver – NetWeaving International & The Enrichment Co.
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The Differences Between Leadership Teams in The U.S. And Asia
Interesting insights in this Chief Executive Magazine article on the differences between U.S. and Asian leadership teams—in particular, team unity and the common silo mentality that occurs.
Please read on their website and post your comments on this topic too – thank you
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April 7, 2019
On This Day in Leadership History, April 7th
On this day in leadership history in 1970, John Wayne won his first and only Oscar for his role in “True Grit.” He had been in over 200 films.
What’s the leadership lesson? As an honorable leader, would you do your work the right way even if you never received any awards or accolades? Let’s hope that all would lead with honor no matter what!
John Wayne – Wikipedia
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