Becky Robinson's Blog, page 64

Featured on Friday: Your Weekend #MustReads!

Last week my husband and I enjoyed a few days away in one of our favorite cities, Chicago, and then closed out our road trip by witnessing the wedding of a friend. All in all, a lovely time away in a season of the year that I love the most – fall.

But the enjoyment of the cooler weather and the time unplugged doesn’t come without a price, and the price is dealing with “Vacation Hangover” and digging through email and tasks that have been put off while playing hooky!

Because of the busy week, I called on my Weaving Influence co-workers to share some of their favorite posts with you. I could say, “these are articles you don’t want to miss”, but in the words of LeVar Burton, host of the classic TV show, Reading Rainbow, “you don’t have to take my word for it!”

A big thanks to Becky, Paula, and John for their help this week.

Looking for a way to boost your leadership performance? Start by reading Turn This Up To 11 To Boost Your Leadership Performance by Tim Sanders. Stand out quote: “Giving recognition for the little things makes a big difference.“
Leadership performance okay, but lacking on mental toughness? We’ve got a great INC. piece to help with that! An FBI Agent’s 5 Steps  to Developing Mental Toughness by Justin Bariso. Stand out quote: “Learn. Try. Repeat.“
Over on Spin Sucks we found a fun surprise. First, a great article by Laura Petrolino (“ Four Tiers of Successful Business Innovation “), and as a bonus, Laura linked to a Forbes article by Scott Edinger . We launched his book, The Hidden Leader, earlier this year!
One of our team members said she enjoyed the Google/Picnik/Picmonkey trajectory found in The Four Best Productivity Tricks I Learned at Google by Stephanie Vozza. Stand out quote: “Transparency helps us be super collaborative and fluid.“
The team member who recommended Lists by Lisha Fink noted that although the post wasn’t business related, it was “the most moving thing I have read today.” Stand out quote: “We must live with so much love and grace that the people around us will feel that love and grace every day.“
Lead Change Group member Page Cole wrote When Life Hands You Lemons, Say Thank You! and it immediately resonated with lots of folks. The story of 11 year old Keith Boyd is motivational, and the business lessons that Page includes that hit a home run. Stand out quote: “Tough times can motivate us out of complacency.“
Mark Miller is back on the list (seems fitting that he follow the story of a lemonade stand!) with his post, I Hate It When I Do That . Stand out quote: “When I fill my calendar with nice-to-do, rather than strategic activities, regardless of how well I execute, I am forfeiting my highest contribution.“
Last, but certainly not least – I would be a terrible Book Launch Director if I didn’t issue A REMINDER! Karen & Henry Kimsey-House are launching Co-Active Leadership on Monday, so don’t forget to visit coactiveleadership.com and get your promotional fingers ready for the social media frenzy next week! BONUS: There are still spots open for their FREE webinar on Tuesday, September 22, so REGISTER NOW!

Now – we’ve shared our links, what would make YOUR list?

Finding the Right Words

I have always loved language. From a young age, I related to the world—and to myself—primarily through words. Whether that meant cuddling up for hours at a time with one of the many Little House on the Prairie Books or, as I grew older, sneaking out of bed to write in my journal as the stresses of middle school weighed down. As I grew, so did my fascination with language and words. In high school, I wrote poetry, edited the school newspaper, and took year after year of Spanish class. In college, I majored in English and the thought of doing anything other than writing, reading, and editing seemed absurd.

Though (thankfully) my professional horizons have expanded somewhat beyond the written word, I am blessed to have a work life that allows me opportunities to interface with language on a daily basis. I have, however, been surprised to learn that the words I need to pay attention to are not only those I read or write, but also the ones I say to myself and others, even in casual conversation.

In his book Leaders Open Doors, Bill Treasurer, founder and Chief Encouragement Officer at Giant Leap Consulting, discusses the importance of leaders being aware of their choice of language when speaking with team members and other colleagues. An obvious and easy-to-change example is a title. Bill cites a situation where a company wanted a certain group of managers to do less internal managing and exhibit more leadership in business development and other external processes. By simply changing part of their title from “manager” to “leader,” these employees felt empowered to embrace their new roles and confident in their abilities.

Being a part of a company that emphasizes servant leadership has given me many opportunities to reflect on how leaders can be most effective in their use of language. Something I have noticed that makes a big difference is the way leaders refer to themselves. Rather than being the “boss,” a title that often feels top-down, I have noticed many individuals in high positions referring to themselves from a perspective of “how can I help my team?” Some examples I have liked include Bill Treasurer as “Chief Encouragement Officer” and Becky Robinson as “Chief Influence Officer of Lead Change Group.”

Besides changing titles, there seem to be countless ways that we can utilize language (most often simple switches) to shift (even dramatically) the outcome of our conversations, both personally and professionally. One thing I have been trying to be more conscious of is making my communication more personal.

When engaging with another person, I try to keep these questions in mind:

Am I using this person’s name when I speak to them (i.e., acknowledging them as a unique individual)?
Do I use language in a way that will build this person up? Or am I emphasizing the negative?

In Hebrew, the word for gratitude is Hakarat Ha’Tov, which literally means “recognizing the good.” When we use our language to recognize the good in others, we help them feel appreciated and respected, which in turn helps us as leaders feel helpful and successful.

Tell me something! What small shifts in language have you seen make a difference?

 

Image credit: bman ojel

 

Featured on Friday: #CoActiveLeadership Authors @henrykh @kkimseyhouse

Did you get to enjoy a long weekend where you live? When the team (virtual and local) got back together on Tuesday, we all compared stories from our three days away. Some dealt with unexpected health issues, some found projects to work on around the house and yard, a couple of us took naps and read for fun – and we all came back, ready to gear up for the next book launches on our calendar!

The next one coming up takes us back into our “normal” realm of Leadership material, but Co-Active Leadership is anything but “business as usual”. I hope all of you reading this have signed up to be a part of their September 21st book launch!

Meet Karen and Henry Kimsey-House

Henry and Karen Kimsey-House have always been fascinated with people. Through their pioneering work in coaching and their practical experience leading hundreds of leadership programs, they have inspired thousands to generate full self-expression, a deep sense of interconnectedness, and an ability to be responsible for their world.

In 1992, Henry and Karen met and co-founded the Coaches Training Institute (CTI) along with their partner, Laura Whitworth. CTI is now a global coaching and leadership development organization offering programs in 18 different countries.

More than 4,000 people have completed the Co-Active Leadership Program and are bringing Co-Active Leadership principles to organizations, governmental agencies, educational settings, nonprofits, coaching clients, and families around the world.

Connect with Karen and Henry Online

Find Karen on: Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Connect with Henry on: Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Co-Active Leadership: About, Support, Webinar

Co-Active Leadership is a deeply collaborative approach. We must be fully present and live lives of integrity, open-heartedness, and self-awareness if we are to make the kind of conscious, creative choices which Co-Active Leadership demands.

Co-Active Leadership uniquely celebrates and honors these different expressions of leadership. It invites all of us to share our expertise and allows collaborative solutions to emerge which would never have been possible otherwise.

This exciting new book is launching September 21-25! There are lots of ways to be a part of the Co-Active Leadership launch, including…

Joining Karen and Henry for a FREE, one-hour webinar (hosted by Becky Robinson) on September 22 at 12 pm (ET). {Register Now}
Requesting an Interview with Karen and/or Henry (contact our PR Team for details)
Write a review of Co-Active Leadership on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Goodreads (go ahead and spread the love!)
Don’t forget to visit coactiveleadership.com for images to share on social from now through the launch!
Tweet about the book and tag a Twitter connection who might be interested in hearing about a new way of looking at leadership. Help us spread the word and build the buzz! In fact, you can start by tweeting this right now…

Looking for fresh #leadership ideas? Check out #CoActiveLeadership by @henrykh & @kkimseyhouse! www.coactiveleadership.com {Tweet Now}

Thanks for helping us build the buzz… see you on September 21st!

Change Your Perspective – Change Your Life

T.S. Eliot very famously said that “April is the cruelest month.” But I disagree. I think September is the cruelest month – yet also a month with the most promise. The days after Labor Day feel like a slow, sad good-bye: to summer, to long hot days and warm nights, to beach trips and picnics, to frogs singing you to sleep, to all the infinite possibilities summer holds. Even the wind and light take on an elegiac tone.

But hard-wired in us from our school days is also the sense of a fresh, new start that comes with September. It’s a month like a blank page in a new notebook, just waiting for us to write our story.

So with these mixed feelings of sadness and hope, I stumbled once again on the annual Beloit College Mindset List. It’s a fascinating list, created originally to prepare Beloit professors for the way their new students see and experience the world, based on what has and has not existed in their lifetimes. I’ve read the list each year and laughed at times, shook my head a few times, and even sighed when I’ve thought about the world these kids have missed. But what I’m really sighing about is that they’ve missed my world, my experiences.

This year I marveled again at this new crop of kids who never watched an episode of Seinfeld as a current program, don’t remember the excitement of Saturday morning cartoons, and never got to play outside without constant supervision. But instead of thinking about these poor kids who missed out on the experiences I treasured, I tried to see how the world must look to them. What must it feel like to have always had the world’s best thinking (and cat pictures) at your fingertips all the time? To consider it normal to be constantly connected to others via your cell phone? To live in this instant world? I guess in some ways it leads to having Donald Trump considered a serious candidate for President; but there are positives to the experience, too.

What was different this year was that, as I thought about how unlucky the class of 2019 was to have missed The Brady Bunch, I finally saw and recognized my biases. I considered their experience to be ‘less than’ mine because the things I loved didn’t figure into their cultural landscapes. I thought these kids had really missed out.

If I change my perspective, I see that they bring fresh eyes to our world. They grew up with so much available to them — just imagine how much bigger their dreams might be than ours, the generation which had more limits early on. It’s made me think more deeply about how we make snap judgments about people, their talents, their experiences and beliefs, everyday without realizing it.

My challenge in the clean notebook that is September is to open my eyes to how I see, experience, and judge the world around me. Instead of thinking of how others are ‘other’ than me, I challenge myself to see the world through their eyes, through other perspectives, and make my vision and dreams bigger in the process. (I might even add a Mumford & Sons song onto my R.E.M playlist on Spotify. Maybe. This is still a work in progress, after all.)

Tell me something! What will you try to see anew in September?

 

Image credit: BarnImages

Featured on Friday: TBB Member @allipolin

Happy September! We’re back into book launch season after a minimal “slow down”, launching just five books in June, July, and August. Since we didn’t really get a break this summer, I’m looking forward to taking a few days off next week before we jump into our autumn schedule – which is fast filling up! If you’re a member of Team Buzz Builder, get ready for your inboxes to start filling up with great promotional opportunities for 2015 – Q4 and 2016 – Q1.

Speaking of TBB, you may recall that the last Buzz Builder we profiled lived in Kenya. Well, this time it’s an American expat living in Australia! Yes, we are definitely a global community of promoters. And now if my husband and I ever make it “Down Under”, we will have someone else to look up!

Meet Alli Polin!
I’m glad we finally found time to connect, Alli! First question: Why do you like being a part of Team Buzz Builder?

There are a few things that I like about TBB. First, supporting other authors and thought leaders is important to me. Secondly, it really is a community of people who make it all work. I love being a part of this robust network. 

What benefit do you think you receive from being a part of Team Buzz Builder?

A bunch! I get to read and share new books with my blog audience. Also, I appreciate that Team Buzz Builder supports and promotes all members of the community and their blogs.

So, if someone asked you why they should join, what would you tell them?

Team Buzz Builder creates buzz for people and organizations that are doing great work in the world – not only maximizing profits. People should join to get exposed and connected to brands and bloggers that are making a difference.  

This is always my favorite question: tell me about your work/family/life/hobbies!

I’m an American expat living in the Australian Outback with my husband and two children since 2012. Every school holiday, we travel somewhere new to take advantage of our time living overseas. I also coach and speak globally from new homebase. In addition, I write about personal development for my blog, www.breaktheframe.com, and have just completed writing my first fiction novel. 

Want to learn more about Alli? I first connected with her Twitter, but she’s also on Facebook and LinkedIn, and I recommend following her on all three!

Twitter: @AlliPolin
Facebook: Break the Frame
LinkedIn: au.linkedin.com/in/allisonpolin
Blog: Break the Frame

I appreciate Alli, and all of our past & current Buzz Builders who have so selflessly given of their time and talents in promoting books, and generously shared their blog space and social reach with our authors. Each one is a valuable part of our network, and we wouldn’t be where we are today without them. It’s a privilege for me to have opportunities to engage with our Buzz Building community throughout each launch. Go Team!

Are you a Team Buzz Builder Member who would like to be featured in one of our Friday posts, or are you interested in learning more about TBB? Email me for more details!

Scenes From A Hat

In a popular comedy show, the improvisational (improv) performers are challenged with acting out a scene to the best of their ability, on the spot (i.e. “at the drop of a hat”). If you think about it, life can sometimes feel like a series of improv skits. Not just because of the ridiculous events that occasionally occur in our lives, but because we form opinions, make decisions, and react based on past experiences that happen during the course of everyday events.

For example: you know what time to set the alarm in order to get to work on time. You know that the freeway is congested at a certain time of day, so you use surface streets. Or you remember that you should have tea bags on hand for your morning meeting because the client doesn’t drink coffee. Superficial as they may seem, these behaviors are shaped by past experience and built over time by positive, and sometimes negative, results.

Whether you realize it or not, you lead others by gathering data from your past experiences, and by witnessing the good and bad examples of those around you. I am a firm believer in leading by example, and I often share anecdotes about my first boss when mentoring young professionals. I tell them stories of his bad behaviors and how I learned how not to conduct myself in the world of business.

Leading by example is not only important when coaching young team members, but many times “old dogs” can benefit from your “new tricks.” I am fortunate to be reminded of this in different ways, through varying leadership models offered by the many talented thought leaders that Weaving Influence represents. Oftentimes, their books are targeted at professionals on many different levels, but they also speak to individuals who are willing to continue to grow their personal knowledge and who are willing to learn how to best use their skills for success, regardless of age or experience. Putting these tools to work allows a leader to draw from new experiences and realize different (hopefully better) outcomes than in the past.

When you are next in a challenging business situation, how will you role play your scene? Will you draw on past experience and simply react – or will you take a moment to rally your skills, gather your thoughts, and guide the situation toward a positive result?

Either way, your audience (subordinates and co-workers) is watching. Will you rise as a shining star, or bomb miserably?

The stage is set: finish on a high note. You’ll be remembered and valued for it.

 

Image credit: Arpad Nagy-Bagoly

 

Getting Traction for a New Blog Site

There’s no quick fix that I’ve found to create fast traction for a blog site.

Most of the successful bloggers I know have been consistently blogging and promoting their blogs for years; we’ve never seen anyone achieve overnight success in blogging.

Take this list curated recently by Charles Specht. Though I cannot say without question that all of the bloggers have been blogging for years, I am fairly certain most of them have been.

This is bad news for anyone starting fresh with a new blog site. We support several dynamite leadership thought leaders who regularly share powerful content and resources. Despite consistent promotion, growth is slow.

My own new blog site is an example of the difficulty in getting traction. Despite the fact that I’ve been blogging for 6 years on various domains, and despite the fact that I have a robust social following, I’m not seeing regular visitors to my domain.

If you want to create regular, steady traffic to a new blog, the best advice I have is to settle in for the long haul. Longevity in blogging creates traction with repeat readers, who find value in what you’re writing — and in organic search traffic because the more content your site contains, the more likely people are to find you when they search for terms relevant to your site.

Here are a few other ideas:

Spend as much time promoting your content as you spent writing it. If this seems crazy, consider the alternative. You may invest a lot of time writing something that few people will read. If you want people to read what you’re writing, you will need to strategically publicize the content in ways that are more about the value the reader can receive than about you as the writer. In the event that you don’t have time to publicize your content, consider partnering with a company or assistant who can help you.

Pay attention to keywords and metadata. If you want to generate relevant traffic, you need to consider what words are relevant to the work you most want to do in the world. Think about what words people might use to search for the resources you’re providing and incorporate them in your writing (and in the meta data you craft for each post).

Write consistently, at least once per week. Once per week is a minimum if you want to gain traction for your blog. If you blog less frequently, you may lose readers’ interest.

Partner with other, more established bloggers or blog sites. Veteran bloggers, who likely have established traffic and networks, can be of great help to newer bloggers by including links or introducing new voices. Dan McCarthy and others helped me when I started. As more established bloggers mention you, you will reach more potential readers. Contributing content to a multi-author site, like Lead Change Group, can also be helpful, as you will reach more people and your bio will point people back to your individual site.

Tell me something! What other ideas do you have for gaining traction for a new blog site?

Featured on Friday: Links for Your Weekend Reading!

From time to time on these Friday posts, I like to share a collection of online articles from the last month that I think you might like. This time I decided to get a few of my Weaving Influence co-workers involved in sharing some of their favorite links.

A big thanks to Kylah, Paula, Christy, John, Max, and Elizabeth for their help in suggesting links that you might enjoy. If you’re looking for something to read this weekend, this is a great starting point!

We have to start with our very own, Becky Robinson. Check out her post on training for a marathon and running a business – in both cases, Committed People Do Crazy Things !
As an introvert, I loved this post which includes Jennifer Kahnweiler and her new book (launching this week), The Genius of Opposites! Every Introvert Must Read This – great title, true statement.
Going right along with the introvert/extrovert discussion, this doesn’t involve a client or a team member, but one of my (few) fellow introverts on the Weaving Influence team recommended this post – which I loved – The 4 Types of Productivity Styles .
I’ve mentioned before that Whitney Johnson was part of our beginning, and now she’s back. This is a great (guest) post on her blog that ties in her first book, Dare, Dream, Do, and ends with her new book, Disrupt Yourself. From a Carousel to a Roller Coaster was written by Tiffany Sowby.
We got a couple of recommendations for Chip Bell that you’ll want to check out, Roundabout Leadership for Innovation is found on LinkedIn, and How to Catapult Your Customer Partnerships to New Heights on Switch & Shift.
This one isn’t a post, but it’s a great new blog from Erin Schreyer – be sure to bookmark this one!  erinschreyer.com
Not one, but TWO of our team members recommended reading  The Invisible Force Behind Amazing Teams by Mark Miller.
Melissa Lamson, President & CEO of Lamson Consulting, references Rick Springfield in Reversing Rick: DO Talk to Strangers on LinkedIn.
Did you catch Part 1 of Is My Feedback Motivating from Susan Fowler? Then you’ll definitely want to catch Part 2 !
Rounding out the list are two posts from the Lead Change Group, A Critical Team Building Mistake to Avoid At All Costs by David Dye, and Is Your Leadership Soul Getting Its Wings? by Jon Mertz.

Now – we’ve shared our links, what would make YOUR list?

My Piece of Peace

During my recent trip to the USA, my husband and I took a drive to visit Becky and the other local team members in their fabulous new space in Lambertville, Michigan. Besides meeting with team members face-to-face (they are just as amazing and talented in person as in our virtual communications!), my favorite part of the trip was perusing the shipment room, a space filled with copies of many of the books our company has supported over the years.

One of the titles Becky thought I would enjoy was The Anatomy of Peace by the Arbinger Institute. On my long journey home (Indiana>Florida>Rome>Israel) I read through the entire book. Though I am still a bit jet lagged and admittedly quite uncomfortable as temperatures push towards 100◦ F (no air conditioning, but I do have two fans blowing straight on me), I am still pondering one particular lesson from the book, a lesson about taking action to fix relationships.

The Anatomy of Peace follows a story line that includes a father wrestling with his complicated and contentious relationship with his troubled son. After spending some time in a group-therapy style program, the father realizes that he must not only cease the battle in his heart and transform his negative feelings, but that he must also DO something to restore the peace.

The book lists this action as the step in peace-making called “Staying Out of the Box,” and encourages readers to “Act upon what I have discovered; do what I am feeling I should do.”

This message has stayed with me since putting the book down, particularly since this week marks the beginning of the Hebrew month of Elul, a time characterized by introspection, evaluating one’s character and deeds, and beginning the end-of-the-year (the Jewish new year falls on Sept. 15th this year) process of making amends with those you may have hurt and forgiving those who have hurt you.

So as I gear up for a meaningful Elul, I am striving to focus on making amends and rectifying two aspects of my life: personal and professional. The Anatomy of Peace encourages its readers to not only gain an understanding of the heart of their conflicts, but also to take the necessary concrete steps to ameliorate those conflicts.

For my personal life, I take this to mean swallowing my pride and apologizing to those I have hurt, stepping outside my comfort zone by reaching out to those who may have hurt me, being honest with myself about my negative habits and making concrete plans of how I will rectify them.

Professionally, I think that this means owning up to my weaknesses, learning to ask for help when I need it, admitting mistakes I have made, and speaking with my leaders and team members to try to understand ways in which I can improve.

Though I may not reside in the most peaceful region in the world (praying that changes soon), I hope to use the tools I am learning from The Anatomy of Peace to recognize how I may be contributing to conflict. My goal is to humble myself enough to learn how I can serve as a source of improvement and, ultimately, peace.

Visiting the Weaving Influence Office in Michigan!

Featured on Friday: #UnseenTears Author @beausides

The Weaving Influence team isn’t huge. We’re growing – to be sure – but we still number in the double digits as a whole. However, for such a small team, there are a surprising number of us who have a personal interest in adoption. It’s not something we planned, but as we began working on getting Unseen Tears out to the world, we started to share our stories.

Much like the children represented in Unseen Tears, each #witeam member story is unique. Some have adopted internationally, while others have discussed domestic adoption. Some have a heart to help special needs children, and others have focused on keeping siblings together. Our passion for children without families has united us in support of this book.

Whether you have been personally involved with an adoption, or have felt an emotional pull to help those who cannot speak for themselves, I think you’re going to be moved by what you find in Unseen Tears, a book based on the 48 trips to China made by this author…

Meet Beau Sides

Beau Sides is the founder and president of Global Partners in Life (GPiL), a non-profit organization that helps orphaned children, special needs orphans, and disadvantaged youth with educational, humanitarian and medical needs in China. Since 2004, GPiL has been giving for the purpose of enabling young lives to prosper. Please visit GlobalPartnersinLife.org to learn more.

As a businessman, teacher, humanitarian, and husband, Beau enjoys the business of making life better for those around him. It’s no secret, he enjoys people. Formerly, he served in the tech world successfully as a manager for IBM. As his interest in Chinese culture grew, he earned the title of teacher after serving on numerous teaching tours as an English language instructor at a Chinese university and other business and language schools in China. In China, teacher is a lifelong title of honor of which he will always appreciate and cherish.

Beau’s passion is to serve others, and doing so as the president of Global Partners in Life has been his focus and a joy. He has given the intellectual property rights for his books to GPiL, with all proceeds going to GPiL to help support their work with young people in China. Beau and his wife, Leah, reside near Atlanta, Georgia.

Connect with Beau Online

Find Beau on: Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Learn more about Beau’s trips to China by visiting his website.

Unseen Tears is Launching August 24-28!

Needless to say, our team is very excited about building support for the launch of Unseen Tears (as you can see by our model, Amy), and I hope that you are ready to join us! With all proceeds going to GPiL, we would love to see this launch bring in some major buzz, not only for the book, but for the work being done by Global Partners in Life. There are a number of ways for you to get involved in the launch, including:

Requesting an Interview with Beau (contact our PR Team for details)
Write a review of Unseen Tears on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Goodreads (yes, all three – spread the love!)
All proceeds go to support the work of GPiL, so consider purchasing copies of the book from the CreateSpace e-store
If you know someone who is interested in international or special needs adoption, tell them about the book, and feel free to point them to unseentears.com for more information
Tweet about the book and tag any adoption-friendly Twitterer you can find! Agencies, bloggers, authors – help us spread the word and build the buzz! In fact, you can start by tweeting this right now…

Interested in #adoption, orphan care, or China? Don’t miss reading #UnseenTears by @beausides! www.unseentears.com {Tweet Now}

Thanks for helping us build the buzz… see you on August 24th!