#onethingseries: Employee Engagement w/ Mark C. Crowley, @MarkCCrowley

#onethingseries: Employee Engagement w/ Mark C. Crowley, @MarkCCrowley

by | Sep 8, 2019 | #onethingseries, Engagement, Fulfillment, Learning to Lead, Motivation, Organizational Growth, Organizational Leadership, Results

 

Don’t miss this leadership podcast with Mark Crowley.

Mark C. Crowley spent over 25 years in the dog-eat-dog world of financial services, an environment known for its heartlessness and “take no prisoners” attitude. Twice, he held national-level responsibilities – most recently as Senior Vice President-National Sales Manager for Investment Products at one of America’s largest financial institutions, where he was named “Leader of the Year.” After much success, Mark decided to leave the financial services world and devote himself to fully answering the question:

“What happens inside of people that makes them fully committed to doing extraordinary work?”

His research led to the publication of his first book, Lead From The Heart, which we believe has a very powerful message.

Recognized globally as a workplace thought-leader, Mark is a regular leadership contributor to Fast Company Magazine and has been published in the Seattle Times, The Huffington Post, Reuters, CEO Magazine Great Britain, USA Today, and by the Great Place To Work Institute. He has interviewed CEOs and senior executives at innumerable high-performing companies (including Google, SAS, Gallup and the Cleveland Clinic) who are models for “managing the emotional side of work.” And his profound conclusion draws on new scientific research which shows that the human heart is a source of remarkable intelligence:

What people feel in their hearts has tremendous influence over their motivation and performance in the workplace. “The heart is the driving force of human achievement.”

His interview with TheSchoolHouse302 is enlightening as it challenges many conventional ideas about leadership. He provides practical ways for leaders to  effectively manage through care and high expectations for great employee engagement at work.

TheSchoolHouse302 · One Thing Series: Employee Engagement w/ Mark C. Crowley

  • Listen to Mark debunk the fears of “soft management” and how tactics like fear and intimidation simply don’t work effectively.
  • Mark talked about psychological safety and the importance of honoring people for who they are and how he follows the work of Harvard Professor, Amy Edmondsons.
  • He also discussed the power of “thank you.” Don’t miss what he says.
  • You definitely want to hear his thoughts on why we resist change when we know things aren’t working.
  • We were thrilled to hear him talk about the power of “knowing thyself.”
  • You have to hear how his thoughts on how people should lead and the wisdom he acquired over his years leading others.

Please follow, like, and comment; it really helps. Use #onethingseries and #SH302 so that we can find you. For more great leadership content, follow dereka206.sg-host.com.

Joe & T.J.

#TheThreeMinuteChallenge

#TheThreeMinuteChallenge

by | Sep 4, 2019 | #TheThreeMinuteChallenge, Engagement, Learning to Lead

Engagement

Superstar leaders do many things incredibly well, but unfortunately they can still fall short in one of the most important areas of leadership, which is celebrating their people at every turn. The problem is that too many leaders make a lot of excuses as to why they don’t celebrate more often. The trap for leaders is that they typically don’t view the concept of celebration through the lens of the people who they lead. The culture of our organizations must fit the needs of our people, not our own. The key is to know your staff and that not all employees desire the same kind of appreciation for their work. It’s important to note, though, that lifting the people, no matter how tough times can get, might just be the one thing that is saving them from burnout.

Take 3 minutes to challenge yourself at work.

Challenge Yourself: Let’s Get RAW

Reflect–When something positive happens within your organization or department, do you find yourself saying “thank you” because the credit goes to you as the leader or “thank you” to the people who did the work?

Act–An attitude of gratitude can be good for both you and the people you lead. Decide upon one act of gratitude each day before you leave the house for work and then act on it by lifting someone new each day with a comment, an award, or a new experience you can provide.

Write–Write down the names of your direct reports and the way in which you believe they would most like to be appreciated at work. Use your list as frequently as possible.

Stay tuned for more challenges, reflection questions, leadership models, podcasts, and more by following dereka206.sg-host.com. It’s our job to curate, synthesize, and communicate so that you can lead better and grow faster. In a world plagued by nothing but noise, we help you by getting to simple.

Joe & T.J.

#SH302: Low Level Leadership–Three Surefire Ways to Disengage Your People

#SH302: Low Level Leadership–Three Surefire Ways to Disengage Your People

by | Sep 2, 2019 | #SH302, Engagement, Learning to Lead

Supervisor

Twenty minutes went by before Jan even realized that she was staring blankly at her computer screen. She thought to herself that it wasn’t always like this. In fact, there was a time when she was excited to come to work. But things changed. A few of her colleagues moved on and new regulations restricted creativity, but the biggest factor in her disengagement was her new supervisor. Each day she was consumed with nothing but uncertainty, isolation, boredom, and neglect. The negative aspects of work-life were stacking up, creating an atmosphere of disconnect and withdrawal.

Jan’s boss is a poor leader, and he alienated people with his behaviors. The sad truth is that Jan is not alone in how she feels about her manager. According to Gallup only about a third of U.S. employees are engaged. There are tons of reasons why employees are disengaged at work and we can’t saddle all of them on the leader, but there are three surefire ways to guarantee worker disengagement, and they can plague any organization if we’re not careful.

  1. The first, and probably the most common problem with low level leaders, is that they don’t celebrate their people. Poor leaders ignore the accomplishments of others and treat everyone as a commodity. Instead of lifting people, they use them for their own success, take credit for any and all achievements, and hold them back from being recognized.
  2. The second and equally damning behavior is when low level leaders create uncertainty for the team. Bad leaders deliver vague goals that are then coupled with high expectations. They want results but convey very little direction. Instead of relying on clear values, they constantly convey new objectives.
  3. The third, and toughest habit to break, is when low level leaders micromanage the people they supervise. They take away their ability to make decisions, to manage their time effectively, and to act with confidence. Instead of unleashing talent by empowering people, they paralyze them by second guessing their every action.

Leaders don’t wake up and decide to be ineffective. In fact, we believe that many leaders are simply unaware of just how much their actions actually stifle the people they lead. The remedy is to recognize when your leadership is low level and how you can shift your actions toward engagement. The following Employee Engagement Chart demonstrates the key behaviors associated with low level leadership and how each has its own countermeasure so that you can climb out of the valley of disengagement once and for all.

Engagement

That’s this month’s model for employee disengagement/engagement. Stay tuned for challenges, nuggets of wisdom, reflection questions, and more. Follow us at dereka206.sg-host.com to join thousands of others who get alerts, resources, podcasts, and more.

Let us know what you think of this #SH302 post with a like, a follow, or a comment. Find us on Twitter, YouTube, iTunes, Facebook, & SoundCould. And, again, if you want one simple model for leading better and growing faster per month, follow this blog by entering your email at the top right of the screen.

TheSchoolHouse302 is about getting to simple by maximizing effective research-based strategies that empower individuals to lead better and grow faster.

Joe & T.J.