"Your present inadequate feeling and doing is automatic and spontaneous, because of the memories, real and imagined, you have built into your automatic mechanism. You will find it will work just as automatically upon positive thoughts and experiences as upon negative ones." Dr. Maxwell Maltz

I’ve worked with hundreds of leaders in my career and one thing many of them have in common is a feeling of insecurity, especially when they receive a new role. This insecurity leads them to 3 big issues:

• Feeling overwhelmed when solving problems,
• Indecisive when working on future vision/goals/dreams, and
• Procrastination when getting the work done.

As we work together, we find the beliefs, values, and feelings that drive their behavior. Every single time it’s some belief that was built in them from early life OR some type of imagination (i.e. worrying) that they’ve spent a significant amount of time on.

The good news is that you can spend the same amount of time thinking...

"You must have a clear mental picture of the correct thing before you can do it successfully." Alex Morrison (expert golf teacher)

Morrison, widely known as the most successful golf teacher during his time developed a system of using the imagination to get what you say you want out of your golf game.

Rather than focus on skill development, which I’m sure he did at some point, he explained that the best use of the golfer’s time was to develop a clear mental picture of the correct thing FIRST. When you think about how the club feels in your hands after an amazing swing, where the ball goes on the green, and how you feel after an amazing time on the course, you download a program into your mind about how to be successful.

If you focus your thinking on HOW to swing, HOW to get the ball down the lane, and HOW to finish under par, you won’t be as successful.

So, how does this apply to leadership?

You spend your time wither thinking about what you don’t want or what...

"It is characteristic of all learning that as learning takes place, correction becomes more and more refined." Maltz

When a baby toddles, they fall frequently. When a 5-year old rides a bike without training wheels, they fall often. When a 16-year-old drives a car, they make mistakes!

As a mother of an almost 16-year-old and having spent a great deal of the last year praying fervently and teaching him how to drive, under great stress I might add, I understand this learning principle even more now! As he practices, he seems to ‘grope better’ through his driving. (He’s actually really great at parking!) Much like the toddler who has to learn coordination, balance, and grace as they practice, Josiah is learning the same things as he drives.

AND… we learn the SAME way in our leadership roles! After working with thousands of leaders, many of them new, I can tell you that most of them have the understanding like I did when I started my first position, that you...

"Once a scientist attacks a problem which she knows to have an answer, her entire attitude is changed. She is already half way to the answer." N. Weiner

Attitude is the combination of thoughts, beliefs, and actions. I think most people understand that if you don’t believe something will happen, it probably won’t, right? I love this quote because scientists just have a different way of thinking, don’t they? Honestly, sometimes their faith rivals that of people in a church!

If one truly believes there’s an answer, they will go after it to find it. I think of our current day and all the scientists that are trying to find the immunization for COVID 19. They KNOW there is an answer and that they CAN find it and they PERSIST.

I’m positive they will reach their goal.

What about us? As leaders, what are we so sure about that we KNOW will happen? I talked to a couple leaders this week in the technological field and they are burned out right now. The last few...

“If you can remember, worry, or tie your shoe, you can succeed.” Maxwell Maltz

The way we view ourselves guides our thinking, behavior, and success. If we see ourselves as confident and capable, we will be. If we see ourselves as less than or disempowered, we will be.

Maxwell Maltz, in his book Psycho-cybernetics, describes the success mechanism we all have access to our brain and mind. When we download programs for success into our subconscious brain, much like you would software into a computer, you head toward success. How does one do this?

• Learning, practicing, and experiencing new ways of thinking,
• Using your imagination for positive growth, and
• Acting in order to move forward, despite your circumstances.

If you can spend time thinking about all the things that can go wrong, you can spend time thinking about all the things that would go right!

If you’re not getting the results you want in any area of your life, it might be time to ask yourself this question:...

“Any situation or circumstance is a chance to teach others what YOU are and what THEY are to you.” Anonymous

If you run a weekly staff meeting and it always starts 5 minutes late, what are you communicating? You may be communicating that you are disorganized and your people’s time isn’t valuable.

If you ‘stand on principles’ during the customer service process and don’t serve well, what do you communicate? You may be communicating that the most important person in this is YOU and the customer isn’t important- nor their business.

If you struggle to make decisions for and with your people in a challenging situation, what are you communicating? You may be communicating your insecurities and that they need to lead themselves.

See, EVERY situation is an opportunity to show people who you are as a leader AND to help them see what you believe about them. How well are you communicating what you really desire? Are you in alignment and...

Pessimism is a dangerous mindset and thought pattern to cultivate. It’s like growing weeds in your mind! It has several devastating effects and can actually cause you to physically heal slower! If it has that sort of effect on YOUR physical body, think about what your pessimistic attitude does for your TEAM….

Pessimism is contagious!

How can you prevent it?

• Acknowledge that you have a problem and seek help from a trusted advisor or friend
• Play around with different perspectives when faced with a problem
• Seek out optimistic people on your team and ask for their help
• Focus on your team goals and celebrate every small win you can

If you struggle with this and are real and honest with yourself and your team, things WILL get better! Your people will thank you!

Humans are a fickle bunch when it comes to time. We tend to mourn for the past and worry about the future, never really living in the present moment. A writer had this to say: "Creative living means responding and reacting to environment spontaneously." (i.e. living in the moment!)

When we fret or worry about what’s going to happen we send stress hormones throughout the body which keeps us from being creative or able to solve problems well. AND, it keeps us from attending whatever is in front of us, exacerbating the problem.

What can we do?

I have three tricks I use to get people’s bodies and brains in the same place when I speak or train. I’ll share them with you if you promise to only use your superpowers for good!

• Take a few short, deep breaths: this relaxes the nervous system and just feels good!
• Think about and write down something you’re grateful for: this floods your relaxed nervous system with good hormones, making you feel good and aligning your...

Do you ever refuse help from someone because you think you SHOULD do it yourself?

I can’t tell you how many young and inexperienced leaders I’ve worked with who have this mindset when they start their leadership journey!

The problem is, you can’t do everything yourself! And when you refuse the help and joy others try to bring you, you keep your whole team back. For example, when I was a school administrator, I thought the same thing when I started. I quickly realized the job was way too big for me and I lacked certain skills that were needed. Thankfully, I quickly surveyed my team for capacity and willingness and found a couple key players that could help.

They were overjoyed to help me and I was happy to receive it! They taught me things I needed to know and I realized their tremendous value and skill set, which made me more inclined to give them other opportunities. We grew as a team and met major goals quickly. I believe it was this one idea that helps us the...

"When a tough, challenging job is to be done, I look for a person who possesses an enthusiasm and optimism for life, who makes a zestful confident attack on his daily problems, one who shows courage and imagination, who pins down his buoyant spirit with careful planning and hard work, but he says, 'This may be tough, but it can be licked.'" Henry J. Kaiser

I’ve learned in my short life the value of one idea and the power behind a really great question. Here are a few to get you started on your own personal and professional development around the idea of resilience.

• How do YOU approach difficult tasks at home? Work? Personal issues?
• How do your team members approach challenges? Have you ever asked about their thinking process when they are facing challenges to get to know them more?
• How could you cultivate a more resilient spirit in your staff?
• Does your recruitment and hiring process reflect these qualities that you’re looking for?
• Do you promote people with this kind...