Anyone can receive the rewards from becoming a competent leader. It does not matter your industry, professional field, or position. When you chose to grow and develop your leadership abilities you will reap the rewards. However, to become an experienced and competent leader takes time, effort, discipline, and action. The investment is worth the rewards. Here are four rewards of becoming a competent leader:

1. Your influence is maximized

Leadership is the ability to influence those around you. When you raise your leadership competence you are better equipped to impact people on a greater level. It positions you to be a 360 degree leader, having influence with your followers and also those beside and above you. Being a competent leader allows you to expand your reach and influence.

2. You excel toward your potential

Your purpose and dreams require that you become a leader, on some level. Wherever you want to go in life and whatever you want to achieve, you can do it faster and arrive quicker when you raise your leadership competence. The leadership skills you develop excel you forward and toward your personal potential.

3. You establish your authority

Being a competent leader allows you to be seen as an authority figure or expert on the topic of leadership. Those around you will see the knowledge and experience have and know you have something valuable and worthy to say. People will seek your advice and counsel because you have authority in the area of leadership. Authority raises you above the competition.

4. You reap the rewards of your effort

When you become a competent leader you gain inner satisfaction about the impact you have, as well as reap the perks and financial rewards. Those who are highly skilled and effective in the area of leadership will be properly compensated for their competence and effort.

Proverbs 22:29 is something we should remember and keep in mind. It says, “Do you see someone skilled in their work? They will serve before kings; they will not serve before officials or low ranks.” Whatever you do make sure you invest time and effort into becoming a competent leader.

Question: Can you add to the list? What are some other rewards or benefits to being a competent leader?

The post Four Rewards of Becoming a Competent Leader appeared first on Dan Black on Leadership.

There is the saying that, “You learn something new everyday.” Many people say that as if it is a proven fact and it is inevitable, however, I believe that learning only takes place if you proactively chose to learn. There are people in the world that fail at the same thing over and over and over again and yet they approach everything exactly same each time. They are not learning from their experience when they are repeating it over and over and not changing their actions. Sure everyone goes through a new experience everyday, but does that mean that they are learning everyday? Not necessarily.

To learn everyday, you must actively seek learning by study and by faith. There are many ways that you can study. You can study in organized education or you can study by another means. Once you have studied, you must have the faith to practice what you are learning. An example of this is that if you go through a class and you learn many new principles about leadership only to not put them into practice, do you really have faith that what they are teaching and what you are learning is a true principle? When you learn something, you must put it into practice if you want it to work.

The principles of learning are very important! In the first two paragraphs, I explained some of the principles behind why you should try to learn something new, but I didn’t mention how or where you can begin your learning. So, how can you begin your learning? There are three important methods below that explain how you can learn each and every day.

Three Steps You Can Take To Learn Daily

1.  Learn from the best books/literature. There are so many books as well as other forms of literature in the world today. Some are high quality while others are not even worth your mental energy. It is very important to spend your time and energy learning from the best books and forms of literature. As a leader, your time is extremely valuable. Find the books that give you the most value for your time and don’t be afraid to stop reading a book if it is not worth your time. There are also many other forms of literature that exist including blogs, newspapers, magazines, review journals, etc. These are good sources of information and learning, but just as with a book, you shouldn’t be afraid to stop reading if something is not worth your time.

2.  Learn from people. In addition to books, you have interactions with people on a regular basis. Each person has a different perspective on life and how things work together. Take each interaction that you have with someone as an opportunity to learn whether it be a teacher, doctor, coach, employee, boss, coworker, family member, supermarket cashier, or any other person you come in contact with. Each person has had a different experience in life that can give you insight on how to live your life as a leader. There are so many lessons to be learned from the people around us that would be beneficial if we just take a moment to listen and understand.

3.  Learn from reflection. In addition to all the people that you come in contact with, you also make many choices on a regular basis. Some of those choices are good and some are not. Take time each day to reflect on the choices you make and the lessons you can learn.  Also, reflect on how your choices are affecting others. As you reflect, identify what you can do to be better and differently in the future so the outcome is more desirable. In addition to looking at what didn’t go as planned, reflect on what went well and why it went well so that you can duplicate it in the future.

As a leader, learning is very important and vital to your success. If you do the three things mentioned above each day, I promise you that not a day will go by that you will not learn something new that is valuable.

Questions: How have the above mentioned points helped you to learn something new each day? What habits have you changed in your life to make time to learn as mentioned above? 

The post 3 Actions To Take To Learn Something New Each Day appeared first on Dan Black on Leadership.

Re-post from December 2011

The most successful leaders are ones who have found, developed and are using their strengths. If we want to reach our potential in life then sharpening our strengths is a key factor. We must develop our strengths while having other people around us who can complement our weaknesses, thus allowing us to avoid our weaknesses. There are a variety of ways to develop our strengths like reading, attending conferences, getting around successful people, and practicing.

We need to remember the best way to sharpen your strengths involves other people. If we want to maximize our strengths we need other people in our life. People who will come beside us and help us become better. It is true that, “As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend.” ~Proverbs 27:17 This should remind us of the types of relationships we should have in our life. Each person in the relationship should be getting stronger and becoming better because of each other. This is also why it is important to have the right people around you, people who trust each other and have each other’s best interest in mind.

The relationships we have should be where each person is becoming better, being sharpened, and it is a win-win situation. We also need people who are coaching and mentoring us in our area of our personal strengths. It’s important to remember that no one individual has the ability to fully sharpen or develop their own strengths. If we want to reach our strengths potential it requires doing things like reading books and attending conferences. But I have found one of the most essential factors is having people around you who will help sharpen your strengths. These should be people who are strong and experienced in the areas we want to become better in. So if you want to reach your strength potential then make sure you have people who are coaching and mentoring you.

Question: Do you have people who are coaching or mentoring you and how have you seen the benefits from it?

The post A Key Factor to Sharpening your Strengths appeared first on Dan Black on Leadership.

Time is a leader’s most valuable asset (Click here to Tweet that). However, most leaders have several minutes (Even hours) of wasted time during the day and week. The problem even affects the most productive, effective, and time conscious leaders. This is because time can be easily be wasted during a break, waiting for a client, in between meetings, walking from one area to the next, arriving early to work or an appointment, ect. Below are 8 practical solutions for how to use those free minutes during the day:

1. Read – Smart devises allow you to have access to books, magazines, and blogs. Why not read a few pages or blog post during those usually waited minutes. I have had several people ask me how I read and comment on so many blogs, part of the answer is that I read several blog posts throughout my day then comment on them when I’m at home.

2. Listen to audio- When you have a few minutes you can listen to a podcast, audio book, or music. Listening to audio can give you a boost of inspiration and motivation. Both reading and listening to audio throughout the day can allow you to grow and develop your leadership abilities.

3. Write- The next time you have a few free minutes you can write something you want or need to remember down, this can include a to-do list or an idea or thought. The program I mainly use for this is Evernote, which I highly recommend.

4. Take a minute to breath- A few minutes of unproductive or down time can be very beneficial for a busy leader. It can be a time to relax and take a breath which can calm the body and mind. A few minutes of quite time can do wonders for you.

5. Make a phone call- During those usually waited minutes you can make a phone call, to those people you have been wanting to or needing to call. For leaders, this can be valuable because it can allow you to give a follower, co-worker, friend, or family member a call so you can encourage them.

6. Catch up on your email- Looking through your emails, and responding to them can allow you to have and keep a low email in box. This can be done when you’re in or outside (through a phone) your office.

7. Pray- During those usually wasted minutes a person can take time to pray. This is one of the most valuable and beneficial ways to use your time. This is because staying closely connected with God through prayer can allow us to lead effectively.

8. Build your online platform- Leaders who have an online presence can be visible through social media during those free minutes. It’s also a great way to start or build your online relationships, which is a significant aspect to being an online success.

Implementing these suggestions can help you gain back those usually wasted minuted during your day which will allow you to maximize your time.

Question: Can you add to the list? what are some other ways a leader can do during those usually wasted minutes during the day?

The post How to Use Those Usually Wasted Minutes During your Day appeared first on Dan Black on Leadership.

It’s Guest Post Monday! This post is written by Kari Scare who is a freelance writer. Her passions include reading books, magazines and blogs, pursuing a healthy lifestyle through exercise and diet, spending time with your two boys and her husband, and of course, writing. While these passions play a large part in defining who she is, they are guided and directed by her faith in Christ. She writes at  Struggle to Victory where her focus lies with showing that victory of any size requires some amount of struggle. If you would like to have a post featured on my site then click here.

Remember the days of having to print a map from the internet before going on a trip? The days before GPS? If you really want to date yourself, admit to using a booklet atlas to find your way.

Sometimes, the map failed to successfully get me to my destination. Sometimes, I failed to follow the map successfully and got frustrated and lost.

Even with GPS, destinations have a way of being elusive. Construction blocks the route. Roads change as buildings go up. No satellite connection flashes on the screen. One time, my destination was an abandoned building with the hotel in a new location not yet known to my GPS.

A leader exists somewhat like a map or GPS, guiding followers to an intended destination. As such, following maps and GPS helps me understand leading as well as following.

1.       Leaders make mistakes. When a leader fails morally, ethically or legally, a trip may need temporarily cancelled until restoration takes place. And sometimes, a leader just makes a wrong decision. That’s when you simply reroute and try again.

2.       Followers need to follow. As long as a leader leads morally, ethically and legally, my job involves following the leader’s directions. Not doing so leads to disunity and discord. When I let my pride get in the way, I don’t follow well and get lost. Focusing on serving in humility drastically improves my ability to follow.

3.       Blocked paths lead to frustration. Construction and blocked roads usually equal frustration. Frustration can lead to giving up or discovering an alternate route. A good leader allows emotions like frustration to guide toward new solutions rather than lead to discouragement.

4.       Every once in a while, the destination disappears. Ever follow the map perfectly only to have the destination not exist? When the intended destination is no longer an option (lost sale, denied grant, etc.), a leader must creating a new plan and move on.

5.       Rerouting sometimes happens multiple times. Shortly after receiving my first GPS, I had the opportunity to hit the reroute button multiple times in one business trip because of prolific construction in downtown Lansing, Michigan. Eventually, my GPS led me home. A leader must do the same when the unexpected becomes the expected.

In The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, Eragorn becomes frustrated when he believes his two friends, Merry and Pippen, are dead. He expresses his frustration, which leads him to finding clues telling him they are in fact alive and where they are located. While this happens, his followers (Gimli and Legolas) stand by waiting direction as if they know Eragorn’s frustration will lead them forward.

This scene emphasizes the lessons of GPS leadership. Plans change, dead ends come up, a leader makes mistakes, frustration leads to solutions, and followers sometimes feel lost. Yet, simply moving forward brings unexpected paths and new opportunities. In other words, refuse to give up even when the path appears blocked, the destination changes or frustration takes over. And be a good follower, because sometimes that’s exactly what a leader needs to keep moving forward.

Question: What other correlations do you see between using GPS and leading or following?

The post GPS Leadership appeared first on Dan Black on Leadership.

Your heart-

The best leaders lead with their heart. Leading with your heart allows you to be authentic, open, sincere, and honest with those around you. They use their heart to influence and make the best decisions. Author Steve Berry said, “Follow your heart. It rarely leads you astray.” Leaders who lead with their heart create a positive work environment where everyone is thriving.

Your mind-

Your mind is a powerful source when it comes to leading. Implementing this inward area consists of thinking, thoughts, and intellectual level. Let’s discuss each of those areas:

Thinking- Leaders should regularly take time to think and reflect. Thinking can help you become more creative, generate ideas, and find solutions to problems. Remember those who take time to think will always have influence and be in demand.

Thoughts- Your frequent inner dialog and thoughts greatly impact your life and leadership, either for good or bad. James Allen said, “You are today where your thoughts have brought you; you will be tomorrow where your thoughts take you.” Leaders have to daily evaluate and control the thoughts they have.

Intellectual level- One definition of intellectual is, ” A person professionally engaged in mental labor, as a writer or teacher.” This is about engaging in activities that sharpen your mind and results in gaining knowledge and wisdom. When you do this it raises your competence and leadership capacity.

Your emotions-

Leading people takes emotional work. Being an emotional driven leader can be done when you develop emotional intelligence. Emotional intelligence is defined as, “the ability to identify, assess, and control the emotions of oneself, of others and of a group.” It’s essential that you know, understand, and can control your own emotions and the emotions of those you lead. You have to be able to influence while not manipulating other people’s emotions. By use your own your own feelings and emotions to move yourself and others toward a positive and desired outcome.

Question: How else can a leader become a full throttle leader through by using their entire body?

The post Full Throttle Leadership appeared first on Dan Black on Leadership.

Anyone has the potential to become successful. Knowing the foundational elements of success can position and move you toward your desired areas of success. Below are 4 elements that will increase your chances of becoming successful:

1. Self-Leadership-

Self-leadership is the most important element to achieving any level of success. This is because to gain influence or move toward success requires that you lead yourself well. Leading yourself well happens when you understand and control your attitude, emotions, thoughts, and behaviors on a consistent basis. When you lead yourself well your setting yourself up for success.

2. Passion-

It’s essential you find and focus on your areas of passion. When you do it increase the chances of success in those specific areas. George Friedrich said, “Nothing great in the world has been accomplished without passion.” Allow your passions to be the fuel that drives you toward person and professional success.

3. Intense focus-

Leaders who become successful have disciplined themselves to have a consistent and intense focus on the areas that produce maximum results. If you focus on your purpose, strength zones, vision, and specific niche areas you will begin to see gradual results that lead to success. It’s important to remain focused on those areas over a long period of time. Remember most overnight success stories are a result of a person being focused on their areas of expertise for years or decades.

4. Hard work-

A considerable number of people who want to become successful never will because they refuse to put in the effort and hard work that success requires. Thomas Edison said, “Opportunity (Or success) is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” Sitting around and thinking about success will never create success. A foundational element to success is in taking action on what you want to achieve. The key is to be strategic about where you place your time, energy, and effort.   

Question: What are some other foundational elements of success?

The post 4 Foundational Elements of Success appeared first on Dan Black on Leadership.

It’s guest post Monday! This post is written by Mans Denton who writes about overcoming mental barriers on his blog The Hacked Mind. You can connect with him on Twitter and Facebook. If you would like to have a post featured on my site then click here.

We’ve all seen great speeches of military heroes- William Wallace of Braveheart, Leonidas, and General Patton. Their words are great, they are wise, and they are powerful, but true inspiration and motivation comes less from words and more from action.

Leadership, Whether in a battle, in a business, or on a sports team, is about practicing what you preach with a 100% commitment.

Learning the Skill of 100%

I never considered myself much of a leader growing up. Being a caption for my soccer team was always a distant goal, but I never realized what it would have taken in order ot have the honor bestowed upon me.

At first I thought it was a popularity contest, then I figured it must be related to skill, but I never imagined that becoming a caption and being a true leader only required a 100% commitment to the team and working hard towards our common goals.

Today, I realize one of the most important aspects of being a leader- your credibility. I’m a strong proponent of a healthy diet, but no matter how much I talked about it, my family never seemed to listen. If I ever ate anything that went against my own rules, they would seize the opportunity to tarnish my credibility and I’d never hear the end of it.

After taking a 100% commitment approach to my diet, I no longer had to say a word. When I simply abstained from certain foods, my family started to make healthier decision on their own.

By offering myself no excuses to break my own rules, I inadvertently provided my family with the best leadership that I could offer.

Need Motivation? Do it for others.

Sometimes it is hard to stay motivated to do tasks or practices that make you better in the long term. Maintaining the motivation and willpower to stick to things can be difficult, but when you know that other people depend on you, it is a lot easier.

Here are a few things I learned while taking a 100% commitment approach:

1. Improving my life makes a change in the world. By being 100% committed to things for my own health or wellbeing, I never been able to improve the lives of others who emulate the practice.

2. After a while, it just becomes a habit. If I always do something, it starts to become a part of who I am so there is no desire to revert to old habits.

3. I maintain better relationships. Nobody like to hear “you should do this, you should do that” but everyone loves a role model to follow. A 100% commitment has helped me affect change without sounding too preachy.

While changing my family’s dietary habits is only a miniscule improvement in the world, I now know that 100% commitment approach is the way to go. By doing this, I have been able to show that I practice what I preach and that it is worth if for others to follow my lead.

Question: In what way are you struggling to be an effective leader? How could you apply a 100% commitment approach to lead people better?

The post Leadership Through the 100% Commitment appeared first on Dan Black on Leadership.

Your personal growth and learning are key elements to your success as a leader and moving toward your potential. So let me ask. Are you a teachable leader? Here are a few questions to ask yourself to determine if you have a teachable mindset:

• When was the last time you did something for the first time?
• When was the last time you experience a teachable moment?
• When was the last time you asked an inner circle member or mentor for advice or counsel and accepted the advice you received?
• What have you learned and applied in the last month?
• When was the last time you moved outside of your comfort zone?

If you have a difficult time answering these questions or can’t remember the last time you developed yourself or learned something new, now is the time to shift your mindset toward becoming a teachable leader. Even if you are a teachable leader you still have the opportunity to increase your growth and learning. being or becoming a teachable leader requires that you avoid these teachable stoppers:

• Pride- Pride makes you believe you are better than you actually are, preventing your growth and learning.
• Talent reliant- Relying only on your skills or talent can prevent you from being teachable.
• Title minded- Focusing on your authority or leadership title causes you to concentrate on your power or position and not your growth.
• Highly educated- Too much reliance on your education can cause you to only lean on your past knowledge and education which prevents continued growth and learning.
• Resistant to change- Growth and learning cause change and those who resist change are often not teachable.
• Low understanding- Those who don’t know the value and importance of personal growth or learning don’t engage in the activities that will cause them to become better.

If you’re going to remain teachable and be moving toward your leadership potential remember these two points:

1. Know your limits- Leaders have to know their personal limits. They have to remember they are not the best or knowledgeable in every area. To stay within your limits find and concentrate on your strength zones and areas of expertise. This also means you know the importance of having a strong team of people around you. Having a well rounded and skilled team creates unlimited potential. Speaker and author Mattie Stepanek said, “Unity is strength… when there is teamwork and collaboration, wonderful things can be achieved.”

2. Be deliberate- Being teachable is about being open and willing to be taught or learn something new. Teachable leaders are deliberate about learning from those around them and have systems in place which allow them to engage in growth and learning on a daily basis. They understand growth and learning does not happen by accident. To remain teachable requires making a daily decision to grow and learn.

Questions: What are some other teachable stoppers? How else can a leader remain teachable?

The post Are you a Teachable Leader? appeared first on Dan Black on Leadership.

One of my favorite speakers and authors is John Maxwell. For over 10 years I’ve been reading and listening to his leadership content. During this time I have gained a tremendous amount of wisdom and insights on the topic of leadership and life. Below are some quotes from him:

“Good character is more to be praised than outstanding talent.”

“Everything begins with a decision. Then, we have to manage that decision for the rest of your life.”

“A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way.”

“A leader is like a quarterback. They don’t get paid to run the ball. They get paid to put the ball in the right hands.”

“Relational skills are the most important abilities in leadership.”

“Credibility is a leaders currency. With it, he or she is solvent; without it, he or she is bankrupt.”

“Change is inevitable. Growth is optional.”

“Our problem is trying to find a leader to solve our problems. The answer is to be the leader that solves the problem.”

“Life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it.”

“Leaders must be close enough to relate to others, but far enough ahead to motivate them.”

“There are two paths people can take. They can either play now or pay later, or pay now and play later. Regardless of choice, one thing is certain. Life will demand a payment.”

“Leadership is influence.”

“Failing forward is the ability to get back up after you’ve been knocked down, learn from your mistakes, and move forward in a better direction.”

“It isn’t easy to be simple. But it’s effective.”

“To add value to others, one must first value others.”

“It is in the things you do well that will give you the highest return.”

“People do not care how much you know until they know how much you care.”

“You must manage your thought life daily and then you can manage your life.”

“A man must be big enough to admit his mistakes, smart enough to profit from them, and strong enough to correct them.”

“Character creates consistency, and if your people know what they can expect from you, they will continue to look to you for leadership.”

“A good leader is a person who takes a little more of his share of the blame and a little less than his share of the credit.”

“The greatest day in your life and mine is when we take total responsibility for our attitude. That’s the day we truly grow up.”

“People buy into the leader before they buy into the vision.”

“The secret of your success is found in your daily routine.”

Questions: Do you have a favorite John Maxwell Quote? Which above quote do you like the best?

(To know how to use and implement quotes into your everyday life and leadership I suggest reading: How to use Quotes. You can also get a free copy of my quote book Characteristics and Qualities of a Great Leader by clicking here.)

The post Top John Maxwell Quotes appeared first on Dan Black on Leadership.