5 Millennial Leadership Tips from A Millennial Leader

I was at a great conference recently and found myself in a deep conversation with some peers about millennials in the workplace. You’re shocked, right? Who isn’t talking about this? It actually seems like we talk about it way too much!

Someone made a comment about how they feel like there is a lack of perspective on this topic. She said that she constantly finds herself trying to learn about millennials but every speaker and writer she came across seemed to be of a different generation. It got her thinking about the gap in this picture – why aren’t we getting advice and hearing about millennials from actual millennials?

I get requested for thought forums, interviews and presentations on the topic of multiple generations in the workplace because I fill this gap. I am a millennial in the workplace.

One of the most popular questions I get is about what advice I have for millennial leaders. Many millennials, very much like generations before them believe it or not, are itching to get into leadership and sure, many probably think they should already be there. That annoys some people like there’s no tomorrow!

So, here’s my leadership advice for new and aspiring millennial leaders and if you haven’t caught on, I am a millennial leader.

1. Put Your Earmuffs On…Strategically

Stop complaining about the noise around you and feeling sorry for yourself. People are going to judge you. They are going to make unfair remarks about your generation and somehow, ridiculously define you by your generational stereotypes. Then, they will argue why you cannot and should not be in leadership because of it. People will always tell you that you are not capable. Go for it anyway. What you tell yourself is more important.

In the end, this stereotyping is just useless noise. Become familiar with this type of noise and learn when to put your earmuffs on. Getting sucked into it, being overly hurt by it (it always hurts a little), feeling sorry for yourself or retaliating with equally hurtful remarks will get you nowhere!

2. Play Nice In the Sandbox

So, they pick on you for your age. It does not mean you get to pick on them for their age. Don’t stoop to lower levels. As a leader, you have to be able to play nice with everyone – people from all walks of life, with diverse backgrounds and with different ideas. Use this as your competitive advantage.

There is so much drama, hate and manipulation not just in the workforce but in the world. If you can turn this around, you’ll be ahead of the curve. Bring people together; be a connector. Help people see their similarities despite their differences. Help people find solutions together despite their problems. Help people reach their potential despite their doubt. Help everyone play nice in the sandbox.

When your team reaches that point of working well together, recognize them. Don’t ever forget to recognize and reward people both individually and as a team. Just be sure it is genuine and meaningful.

3. Don’t Give Up or Give In: You’re In Sales

As a leader, particularly a millennial leader, you will face a lot of scrutiny, a lot of resistance or distrust and a lot of skepticism. It can become very easy to give up on yourself or give into the pressure. The way to overcome all of this is to do things you believe in and believe in everything you do. If an organization’s values does not align with yours, you are in the wrong place.

Every leader is a sales person. Millennials, you better start believing this. If you want buy-in and influence, you have to be able to sell your ideas, your initiatives and your changes. You absolutely cannot assume that if you suggest something that everyone will get behind it. Many people are doubting you already. Prove that you are worthy.

It may not seem fair. You have to work extra hard to gain the trust of your team, especially if you have a diverse team that may not believe in you right away when you take over the team as the new leader. It’s even harder if you were a peer and got promoted into a leadership role. If you really want to be successful, don’t give up, on yourself or others, and don’t give into the pressure or the fear.

4. Always Fail Forward, Never Fail Back

You will fail so get a little comfortable with that. Don’t look at failure as a setback. Use it to your advantage every time it happens. Learn from it and let your lessons launch you forward. The weight on your shoulders will only get heavier every time you fail, but don’t let it weigh you down.

Yes, some people might even thrive in the fact that you failed. Don’t waste time thinking about that. Use your precious time and effort focused on the next great idea, project or initiative. Show everyone how your failures made you even stronger.

5. Be Willing to Stand Alone

In leadership, everyone is watching you. As a millennial, you are likely to have even more scrutiny. So, you have to be doing the right things all the time even if that means doing the difficult things – making unpopular decisions, coaching poor performers or challenging your superiors.

Like most things, the grass always looks greener on the other side. Leadership often looks glamorous from the outside looking in but for those who are in it, you know it is not all roses. Leadership can actually be an extremely lonely place. You are constantly balancing the pressure of the people on your team with the pressure from your superiors and the two never seem to agree. It can feel like a lose-lose situation sometimes.

If you want to succeed in leadership, you have to be willing to stand alone. When it seems that everyone else wants to take the easy road or the right thing is not the popular thing, you have to make that tough call. Contrary to popular belief, if you’re willing to stand alone as a leader, you actually rarely have to. Your employees will support you. People who believe in doing the right thing but who are too afraid to will follow you.

You may hope that people will not judge you by your generation but you cannot wish something like that away. All you can do is stay focused on what matters. If you become a strong leader that your team trusts, they will stop seeing you as a “millennial leader.” They will see you simply as their leader, someone they trust and support.

Loyalty is not dead…but it requires effort.


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Do you believe in YOU?

The world is full of people who will tell you all the things that you cannot do but what do you tell yourself?

There will always be people who laugh at you when you tell them your hopes and dreams but do you listen to them?

Even the people closest to you will advise you that the goals you’re pursuing and the actions you’re taking are unrealistic or impossible but do you let that stop you?

I work a lot of hours (mostly by choice because I love my job and want to do more), I chair the Learning & Education Committee for ASHHRA and I write a blog.

I recently accepted a board position and an MBA program. I’m told constantly that I should reconsider some of the commitments I have made before I even give them a try. I’m told constantly that I will never see my friends and family again for the next three years. I’m told constantly that I cannot possibly accomplish all of this and that I will fail. I’m told constantly that I’m in over my head and I’m too young and inexperienced to realize it. I’m told constantly that I’m going to regret my decisions.

People will say these things, sometimes out of genuine concern for you, but does that mean you should believe it and make it your reality?

This has been the story of my entire life. Most of my accomplishments thus far have been faced with these exact words, these exact obstacles – being the first college graduate in my family, getting six promotions in six years and starting my blog. My parents couldn’t help me pay for school so I was told that I would never be able to do it on my own and that I had no clue what I was getting into. Every time I was promoted, I was told that I did not have enough experience and that I was too young to succeed. When I started my blog, I was told that no one would read it and that it was a waste of time.

I’m grateful for all the amazing people in my life who are looking out for me and you should too but if you take care of yourself and do the things in life that make you happy, that is what matters. If you believe completely in yourself even when it seems that others don’t believe in you, you will succeed beyond expectations. If you allow yourself to fail, you will grow to levels you may not even realize you are capable of. Many future successes are a product of previously failed attempts. Failure is just a stepping stone to success.

Don’t let anyone stop you – not people, not words, not failures, not fear.

I wish you all the success in the world and when it feels like you’re up against the world working to accomplish something great, just know that I’m in your corner! Live the life that makes you happy, not the one that satisfies the doubts of others.

What’s your story?

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Want to succeed? Ask questions!

Ask questions! That is my one piece of advice to all new employees. Heck, start asking questions before you get the job. The traditional interview process is no longer relevant. It’s not a one-way Q&A session anymore. The Q&A goes both ways now. Ask your new employer questions that are meaningful to your decision process. This will help both you and your potential employer make a better decision about whether or not you would do well in the job, in the organization and on the team.

Once you start a job, it is just as important to continue asking questions. No one knows everything even if they tell you they do! I’ve heard all the excuses and assumptions:

  • I’m scared I’ll sound stupid.
  • I’m afraid they think I should know the answer to that already.
  • I don’t know who to ask.
  • I don’t want to bother them.
  • They’re so busy. They don’t have time to answer my questions.
  • I probably don’t really need to know that right now. I’ll ask if I ever have to know.
  • If I needed to know that, they would tell me so I don’t need to ask.
  • I’m sure someone else will ask my question.
  • I’m sure I’ll figure it out eventually.

Well, guess what? These are all actually very valid concerns and feelings. But, guess what else? They don’t need to stop you from asking questions and growing yourself and your career.

  • So, someone thinks you sound stupid. Who cares? You still gain something out of getting the answer. Who’s problem is it that they think you sound stupid? It’s not your problem.
  • Maybe you should know the answer but if you don’t, keeping quiet isn’t going to get you the answer.
  • If you don’t know who to ask, ask everyone until you find out who the right person is to ask.
  • If people are bothered by you asking a question, that is their burden to carry, not yours.
  • Everyone is busy, including you, I’m sure. You’ll be more productive if you ask and so will they because they know you’re getting your work done.
  • Growth is about learning as much as you can so even if you don’t need to know it, ask questions about things you want to know.
  • Never assume that someone is going to look out for you. You need to ask questions proactively rather than waiting for people to give you all the information you need to do your job.
  • Again, you’re going down a very uncertain path if you’re waiting for someone else to ask the question you have. What if they do it when you’re not there and now you don’t have the answer?
  • Maybe you will figure it out eventually but wouldn’t it be nice to get the answer and figure it out now?

I instill this in my team and in all the employees I work with every single day. The ones who ask a lot of questions have become the go-to people in the organization. They always seem to have the answers because they always ask the questions.

So, let me ask you a question: are you going to start asking questions?


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Satisfaction is overrated

Don’t get me wrong; satisfaction is great. It’s comfortable. It’s rewarding. It’s bliss, really. Satisfaction is the ultimate goal in many cases. If I’m satisfied with my meal at a restaurant, I’ll become a loyal customer and go there all the time. If I have the best doctor in the world, I’ve hit satisfaction and there’s no reason to keep looking for a new doctor.

But, what about work, if that’s what we want to call it? I don’t just mean the job we do everyday. I’m talking about our work environment, our leadership and the culture at our organizations. I challenge the notion of simply getting to satisfaction in this realm. In this case, I believe that satisfaction is way overrated.

In the past six years, I’ve changed jobs six times and departments twice. I reached satisfaction in all of my previous five roles, achieving a state of total comfort. There wasn’t much left for me to learn and almost nothing that was challenging me in my career. So, I moved on. It would have been easy for me to stay in the same role and department forever. I might have been perfectly happy but I knew that the only way to grow was to take a risk and make that next move into the scary unknown.

I wouldn’t be where I am today if I settled for satisfaction. There are plenty of reasons to be satisfied but not if someone is trying to grow their career. I hear people complain about their jobs and their situations all day, every day. Yet, I never see most of them do anything about it because even though they have complaints, they’re comfortable and satisfied to an extent. It can be terrifying to push ourselves out of our comfort zones but it is necessary in order to grow ourselves.

Some may have noticed that I didn’t say I changed organizations in the past six years. That is not necessary in order to step out of my comfort zone. I’ve been extremely fortunate that I’ve had the opportunities to challenge myself and push myself out of my comfort zone within my current organization. I’m still not satisfied or comfortable and that’s the best feeling in the world. It means I’m being challenged both personally and professionally.

To really find our passion and really make an impact in the world, we have to keep striving for better. It’s not just about a job role change. It’s about everything we do – every project we’re on, every committee we participate in and every change we’re trying to make in our organizations or maybe, in the world.

Don’t settle for satisfaction. It could possibly mean settling for less.


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Four requirements of internal branding and why it all matters

There’s a reason that every business degree requires a Marketing class. It doesn’t matter what your job is anymore, you better be a marketer too. In Daniel Pink’s book, To Sell is Human, he discusses the importance of being able to sell in every profession. He argues that we all need to be sales people in order to be successful. I would argue the same thing about marketing. We have to be able to market everything that we do even when our customers are internal to the organization. Examples include support departments such as Human Resources, Finance and IT.

I believe that branding is of the utmost importance when it comes to internal marketing. It’s where everything starts. If you don’t have a good brand, you can’t sell your product, service or value. There are four key requirements to achieving this brand.

Consistency

A strong internal brand requires consistency. My team jokes that consistency is my favorite word in the dictionary. They get it though. Consistency in branding says so many things to our customers, end users or stakeholders.

  1. It says we’re credible. Consistency allows people to actually understand our brand and if they can understand it, they can buy into it. They can appreciate it and believe in it. They can trust it.
  2. It says we’re predictable. Customers want to know what they can expect. Consistency gives them comfort in knowing that there is quality in everything we offer, regardless of the day or time or who on our team or in our organization they encounter when they have a need.
  3. It says we’re confident and if we’re confident, everyone who comes in contact with us and our product or service will be confident too. Consistency means we know what we’re doing, we know what we’re offering is exceptional and we’ll produce the same high quality time after time.

Sophistication and Simplicity

A strong brand must be sophisticated, yet simple. Wait what? I’m contradicting myself, right? How can we be both at the same time? I’m not going to say this is easy. It’s actually extremely difficult to find the right balance between sophistication and simplicity when it comes to our brand.

Our brand has to be smart. It has to meet every criteria our stakeholders are looking for – personalization, versatility, relevancy, wit and much more! Yet, it also has to be simple – consistent (check!), understandable, quick and to the point.

The best way I have found to do this is to keep simplicity at the core throughout the planning process while considering options for incorporating the sophistication. Apple is a great example of this. The company’s brand is always simple, an apple. Yet, they add flares of sophistication and complication by offering different color options for user personalization. They keep it consistent in that every computer operates the exact same way with a dock of icons and every iPhone works by clicking on any icon to open an application. It’s smart and innovative but it’s so simple that users will be able to use Apple products for years and decades (maybe their entire lives) without learning new ways to operate the products.

This is very different than Windows products which requires a slightly more tech-savvy user to be able to operate it without instruction. As a trainer, I’ve witnessed this thousands of times. It used to be a start button with a menu. Then, with Windows 8, there was an entire start screen, not just a button. Now, Windows 10 is a combination of the two. My mother cannot operate her Windows computers if her life depended on it but she’s had three different iPhones and she used all of them like a pro. She asked me just the other day if I knew that she could do everything on an iPhone and there’s really no reason she needs a computer anymore.

Yes, how customers interact with a product or service is part of branding.

Appearance

I hate to say it but looks matter…a lot! Our brand can be consistent and we can win the sophistication/simplicity balance but if our brand is not appealing, neither is our product, in the eyes of our stakeholders at least. We must consider all design elements such as contrasting colors, white space and appropriate font sizes when designing any outward facing elements of an actual product or when designing promotional (or other) materials.

Impression

A strong brand leaves a lasting impression. It elicits emotion and retention. This requires all of the previous three requirements. It’s the wow factor when all is said and done. Do all of the elements of our brand come together cohesively?

It’s important to do a check, a double check and a triple check test before we launch our brand. It is also necessary to pilot our brand, ask for feedback, whatever it takes to make sure it will hit home for our audiences.

Our business, our value and our reputation rely on a strong internal brand and the four requirements of that brand. That should be reason enough to pay more attention to our internal brand!


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How a punitive culture will punish you

Why are we so afraid to fail and why are we so afraid to let our employees fail? Often, it’s because we’re punished for it. If we make a mistake at work, we get written up for it or in the harshest of organizations, maybe even fired for it.

I challenge you to change this mindset in your organizations. I’m not asking you to give up accountability. I am asking you to rid the punitive cultures that exist in your workplaces. Failure without accountability has no place in the workplace but allowing people to learn from failure holds great value.

I’ve seen organizations lose exceptional employees because they punished them for a “mistake.” Some of these “mistakes” include making a decision that the organization felt should not have been made by the employee or forgetting to do something once. If you have a good employee in this situation, they may start looking for another job because you punished them right away instead of empowering them to learn from their mistakes.

It goes beyond mistakes though. Sometimes, employees are punished simply because they made a decision that the organization or leader does not agree with even though that decision may play out in everyone’s favor in the end. Employees don’t always have the chance to see their ideas, risks and decisions come to fruition because they get in trouble just for presenting them.

Allow your employees to fail and take some risks without punishing them. A punitive culture keeps people down after they fall rather than helps them back up. Remember that as leaders, we make mistakes too but we sometimes have the power to avoid punishment for them. We’re often trusted and expected to learn from our mistakes without any guidance from others.

Think about the last time you did something wrong. If you can’t think of something, you’re in desperate need of some self reflection. Then, think about the last time you did that same thing again but did it right. The feeling of relief that something that once went poorly now went very well is a pretty amazing feeling. Afford your employees the same right to have that feeling. Let them learn from their mistakes and have the opportunity to fix them or change them for next time.

Some of the most successful people and the best employees are the ones who make a lot of mistakes because they are the ones willing to take some risks. They learn from each mistake and eventually, they could be the ones who do something really cool that makes you and the organization look good too. So, stop punishing your employees for making mistakes or taking risks without first empowering them to learn from those mistakes or see the outcome of their risks. A punitive culture only punishes you.


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Don’t wait until you need a job to update your resume

You wouldn’t wait until you’re completely dehydrated to drink water, right? Well, if you did, you would know that it’s not the best idea and doesn’t feel very good. It’s better to stay hydrated and drink enough water every day.

The same goes for updating your resume. If you wait until you need a job, you might find that you’re in more of a panic. You can’t remember everything you’ve done and you’re likely going to write your resume from a different perspective when you’re looking for a job versus when you already have one.

Here are some suggestions of what you should be updating on your resume even when you’re not looking for a job:

  • Update your demographics and contact information – phone number, email address and education.
  • Regularly, update the details of your job. Add new projects, responsibilities and accomplishments.
  • Add new certifications or licenses you’ve received.
  • Add new memberships to professional organizations.
  • Add new skills.
  • Update your volunteer experiences.
  • Change up your layout. Giving your resume a new look and feel can go a long way to making it stand out. Take the time to do this when you’re not under pressure to find a job.

Taking these steps when you’re happily employed will pay off in the long run. Update your resume when the content is fresh in your mind. If you ever decide that it’s time to move on or if you ever fall into the unfortunate situation of having to find a new job, you’ll be ready to do so.

Additionally, an updated resume may come into handy for reasons other than finding a new job in another company:

  • If there’s another position or promotional opportunity within your organization, you’ll probably still need to submit a resume.
  • If you’re looking for volunteer opportunities, nonprofits may ask for your resume.
  • If you’re networking, you may want to share your resume.
  • If you’re ever looking to sit on a board for a nonprofit, you may also have to submit a resume.
  • If you’re ever recruiting for positions, candidates will be looking at your LinkedIn profile as much as you are looking at theirs.
  • If you ever plan to go back to school or apply for a scholarship, you may need to submit a resume.

It’s a time commitment to keep your resume updated but it’s an investment worth making for future success. It will also save you a lot of time when it matters most. Don’t wait until you need a job to update your resume!


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Want employees to step up? Make them a plate to step up to!

Why do so many leaders throw out the word “accountability” as if it’s magical and will just make people successful? Trust me, I believe 100% in holding people accountable. In fact, I write about it, talk about it and live it out every day in my work.

The wake up call, however, is that accountability is not something that just happens. We can’t just tell people what to do and then punish them if they don’t do it. “Do this, or else…” and “My way or the highway.” are threats, not forms of accountability.

Accountability is nothing without proper training, guidance, support, development, assistance, patience and leadership. Managers tend to focus so much on “what” they need to hold their staff accountable for that they often forget “how” to actually accomplish such a thing. They forget that if they want employees to step up to the plate, they need to give the employee a plate to step up to.

When I say “a plate to step up to,” I don’t necessarily mean that there needs to be a promotional opportunity or financial incentive. I mean that we need to give people a reason to step up. We need to motivate people if we want to succeed as leaders.

The years of 30, 40 and 50 year service pins are gone. Employees are going to have more choices than ever before when it comes to jobs. With an overwhelming amount of job boards at their fingertips and websites such as Glassdoor, the future of job-seeking is going to look more like job shopping. The ball is now in the jobseekers’ court, not the employers’ court.

As organizational leaders, we need to find ways to get the most out of our people and give the most back to them. Our jobs are harder than ever but if we do it right, our hard work will pay off. We need to personalize our relationships with each employee so we know what motivates them to step up to the plate and do their best work. Then, we need to create that plate for them and help them step up to it.

I used to shop at Express simply because I liked their clothes and well, that’s all it used to take to gain my business. If I liked your product, I bought it. They’ve never provided poor customer service. Their staff is as friendly as the next store but I stopped shopping there. Why? I found something better!

I went into a White House Black Market one day and who would have known but the experience changed my life…or at least my shopping experiences. Their clothes were no better than Express, in my opinion. An associate approached me, not to see if I needed any help, which is the question most store associates ask. “Do you need any help?” is a yes or no question. At White House Black Market, they asked me what I was looking for today and how they can help me get what I’m looking for. They made me think. I had to come up with the reason I was there, a goal.

I needed some new work clothes. The associate spent about five minutes walking around the store with me seeing what I picked out. She was checking out my taste in style, my size, my color choices, etc. She then said to me, “I’m going to take what you’ve picked out and start a fitting room for you. Then, while you try these on, I’m going to continue shopping for you. I’ll have more outfits ready when you’re done with what you’ve already picked out. We’ll keep trying until you have what you need.” I had a personal shopper! Coolest thing ever and it was free! Her picks were spot on with my taste!

That’s personalization, if I’ve ever seen it! Why not do the same thing with that “plate” we need our employees to step up to? Whether you like it or not and whether you believe it or not, employees are constantly shopping for jobs. Even if they are not actively seeking a job, people are dangling job postings, interview appointments and job offers in their faces constantly – LinkedIn InMail, position advertisements on every website, email alerts from Indeed, conferences and other networking events.

If we don’t personalize that “plate” that we expect our employees to step up to, we’re going to lose them and that accountability you were trying to force on them is completely irrelevant. Talk to your staff, find out what makes them tick and use that to create motivation and build accountability.

To most leaders’ surprise, employees actually appreciate accountability. They want to set goals with you and be motivated to meet them. They won’t do those things though if you’re micromanaging them, providing a negative work environment for them and giving them unrealistic expectations to work with.

What does each of your employees’ “plates” look like? Does it have money on it? Is there a career development plan on it? Does it have a learning opportunity on it? Is there some recognition or reward on it? Does it have a touching story on it? Maybe, there’s just a big smile and nice pat on the back waiting for them on the “plate,” and that might just be enough for them to step up.

Remember, though, that fair is not always equal. Motivation comes in all different shapes, sizes and methods. Either way, it has to be personal and mean something to the person you’re trying to motivate, the person you’re trying to get to step up. If that plate doesn’t have what they’re looking for, they won’t step up; they’ll step away to find a different plate to step up to.

So, are you serving up a plate of motivation?

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Fit for duty does not equal fit to lead

Just because you’re good at your job, it does not mean that you will be a good leader. This is one of the biggest mistakes I see organizations make when it comes to their human resources. While I believe strongly in succession planning and employee development, growth does not always equate to promotion into a leadership position.

To determine how to best recognize and reward your employees, speak with them about their career aspirations, build upon their strengths and move them into positions and environments where they’ll thrive. Don’t automatically assume that the next step for every star performer is management.

I’ve seen far too many organizations lose fantastic employees because they were forced into management positions they could not handle. Going from a staff position to managing a group of your peers is not an easy thing for anyone, let alone someone who does not have the right set of skills to take this on, or even the desire. Just because someone can manage a task, it does not mean they can manage people.

Here are some questions to ponder before promoting an employee(s) into a leadership position(s):

  1. Is management even what they want to do? Forget for a second if they would even be right for the job. If they have no passion for a leadership position and you force them into one, you’ve defeated the purpose of recognizing and rewarding them.
  2. Are they qualified? When I ask these questions, the response I often get is, “Well, if I don’t push them to take on a leadership position, I’ll never know if they’re a good fit or not.” However, people fail to realize that leaders often don’t carry titles. The people you should look to when filling leadership positions are those who are already leading your teams informally. You may have intelligent and hard workers on your team but who do they look to for direction, support, guidance, feedback and decisions?
  3. Is there another way to promote them? Promotion does not always mean taking on a management position and growth does not always happen through upward movement. If you have an outstanding employee who is not fit to lead, you may consider creating another promotional opportunity for that person. What about a new job with new or more responsibilities and meaningful benefits?
  4. How would the team feel if you promoted this person? It doesn’t just matter how the employee feels; don’t forget about the team you’re asking this employee to lead. I have met a lot of employees who are well-respected by their peers for their knowledge but despised for their lack of people skills. If you promote someone in this situation, you’re not just letting that person down but you’re letting the entire team down.

So, consider the implications of promoting employees into leadership positions before actually doing it.


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Your move: Leaders act as if everyone is watching

“It’s not a problem unless you get caught.”
“It’s not like she heard me.”
“He doesn’t have to know. We don’t have to tell him.”
“Those things are confidential so they can’t talk about it.”

Sound familiar? Perhaps, you’ve even said these things before without meaning any harm. These aren’t just things that our employees say. I’ve heard these exact words from organizational leaders and even Human Resources (HR) and Compliance professionals. Sometimes, it’s easier to let things go if we don’t think others will find out. It can be more convenient to take the shortcuts because we think it’ll still get us the same result without anyone noticing.

You don’t get in trouble if you don’t get caught, right? Well, the truth is you never really know. Whether we like it or not, when we are in a leadership position, we are on stage 24 hours per day and 7 days per week. We’re in the spotlight whether we’re at work, online or out on the town. We represent our work, our employees and our organizations no matter where we are or what we’re doing.

So, how do we handle such pressure of being a leader? Live by one rule: always act as if everyone is watching. If we do this, we’ll have a better chance of always doing the right thing and doing the right thing means that we don’t have to remember and keep track of all our secrets or stories.

As leaders, we’re responsible for a lot of tough decisions and difficult conversations. We’re often forced to act quickly, which sometimes leaves us little time to thoroughly evaluate our decisions and their consequences. Even in times of turmoil, leaders must remember to do the right thing even though the right thing will not always make everyone happy.

An example that I’ve seen many leaders struggle with is fair compensation. I’ve seen leaders and HR professionals engage in unfair pay distribution and defend it by convincing themselves that the employees will not talk to each other about their pay.

Even when it comes to confidential matters like pay or severance packages or employee relations concerns, leaders must act as if everyone is watching and do what they know is best. The most successful leaders I know always have ethics at the forefront of everything they do.

So, what’s your next move? Will you act as if everyone is watching?

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