Passion is...

Ready, set, go.  Everybody have their list in front of them?  who wants to go first?  Ok, go ahead...define passion.  Hmmm...That’s what I thought.  When you really have to put it down on paper, or describe it to a group, it’s not that easy is it?

That happened to me as I sat down to write about Passion.  When I think about defining Passion as I am driving, or getting ready to start my day, I can see it so clearly I can almost taste it.  Passion.  But when I sit down and attempt to put pen to paper, I get writers cramp or something else that gives me pause.

You are probably like me.  When you see someone who is Passionate about something, you can tell.  No one has to say “Wow, that Pastor Gable is so passionate about the word of God when he preaches”.  If you were to have dinner with Bud Selig as I did, you can tell the commisioner is very Passionate about baseball.  Even my five year old grandson Mason gets passionate about things in his young life that matter so dearly to him.  

So how do you define Passion?  The answer is that you don’t.  Thats the wonderful thing about it.  When you meet someone who has Passion, it doesn’t require definition.  It is so obvious, because it comes so easy and naturally to the person you have observed.

When a Leader Takes Ownership with Passion, it is no secret.  We can all see the obvious.

Think about the other side.  Some people approach their role as a leader with pain.  It hurts to watch them, let alone actually work for them.  They simply don’t care.  When it’s crunch time, they hope somebody else will step up and make it happen.  Goals are not met, no one is held accountable, sales suffer, good employees leave, and still, the leader without Passion takes no responsibility to assure success.

Taking Ownership of assuring success combines responsibility with passion.  Being passionate about your job as a leader almost eliminates the need to discuss responsibility.  That’s why Passion is so important when the Rare Leader Takes Ownership.

When John Gable preaches with Passion, it is because he has prepared, he believes he has been called, and he actually loves what he does.  Bud Selig has loved baseball all his life.  He invested his own money to buy a professional team.  He knows why baseball is Americas past time.  

They are passionate because this is “their Mozart”.  Thats what my dad called it.  He was a classically trained musician.  He was certain God created something very special and unique for every individual.  How else could Mozart compose his first composition, Andante in C, at age five?  Unfortunately, not everyone finds it.  But when they do find that Mozart in themselves, they Take Ownership with Passion.

What is the Mozart in you?  Is Leading organizations and people touch that Mozart in you?  If so, then Take Ownership of Leading, and do it with Passion.    

If you want to learn more about the Rare Leader™ in you, 

or if you are interested in retaining Steve as your Executive Coach, 

Contact Steve Riege via: twitter, or his website.

Give Me The Ball

There’s 10 seconds left in the game.  We’re down by 2 points.  This is the championship.  This is what we have worked so hard all year long to accomplish.  It was our BHAG.  

And then, during the timeout, someone speaks up and says it.  He looks at everyone in the huddle, and says those four words.  “Give me the ball”.  It is at that moment you realize someone has taken over.  When it really matters, he announces he is taking ownership of the crucial score. He is telling us if he makes the three pointer we win.  If he misses the shot, if he is anything but perfect for 10 seconds, he is to blame.  And...he is ok with that responsibility.  

Make it we win, and perhaps he is a hero.  Miss it, and the season os over, and the spotlight of blame is on one person.

Would you interpret this scenario as an analogy to “Taking Ownership” at work?

You’ve been there.  It is a crucial moment.  The Board meeting begins in moments, and there is one more question we had not expected.  Or, just before you reach an agreement on the details of a large sale the buyer throws in one more twist.  You tell others...”give me the ball, I’ve got this one”.

I will agree with you that this is a time where someone takes ownership of finding the right answer, or meeting the terms to create that sale.  However, the Rare Leader™ will be found Taking Ownership differently.  

As a leader, Taking Ownership is not about you taking the final shot.  This is about you leading others.  The Rare Leader™ understands the importance of accepting responsibility as a Leader, not as the MVP. A Rare Leader™ of people, and of organizations reaches pinnacles of success by finding others who will step up to be the MVP.  

The Rare Leader™ will fill the organization with people who are passionate about taking responsibility for choices, feeling, thinking, and in everything they do.  The Rare Leader™ provides an example, so others on the Team will stop blaming others for their own decisions, and will teach them to be responsible for who they are.  The Rare Leader™ will initiate this type of change of culture in their organization because they believe in themselves.

Have you ever heard this prophesy? “The greatest sales people may not make the greatest leaders.”  Great sales people are really successful at selling, because they are passionate about selling.  They love being the MVP of the sale.  They love the hunt, the harvest, and they love devouring the fruit of success.  

If I am a Rare Leader™, my team hopes being the greatest performer at my "craft" was not the top qualifier for the job.  My team does not need the MVP as their Leader.  My Team needs a Rare Leader™ who is passionate about making them the MVP at what they do.  My Team needs a leader to Take Ownership of making the entire team and the entire organization successful.  

I need to Take Ownership of Leading others.

1. Have you ever wanted the ball as time was running out?
2. Have you ever been the MVP?
3. Have you hired an MVP?
4. Have you led a Team of MVP’s?
5. Are you a Rare Leader™ who is passionate about Taking Ownership in leading others?

If you want to learn more about the Rare Leader™ in you, 

or if you are interested in retaining Steve as your Executive Coach, 

Contact Steve Riege via: twitter, or his website.

Taking Ownership

The Rare Leader™ willingly takes an initiative and acceptance of accountability, using intelligence and an enterprising attitude to figure out “how” to do it without being told.

F. John Reh writes in "Take Ownership of Your Job" http://bit.ly/bTecG5 , “Being passionate about your job is more than the old adage "do what you love". It's looking forward to going to work. It's time flying by when you're there. It's working past quitting time, not because you're swamped with work, but because you were so intent you didn't notice the time.

When you are passionate about what you do for a living you enjoy it more. You also do it better. You are more committed to the success of the operation if you believe in it passionately.”

Accepting responsibility for your own actions is simply not enough.  Taking Ownership combines responsibility with passion.  In fact, being passionate about your job as a leader almost eliminates the need to discuss responsibility.  Responsibility seems to invoke a forced action.  When you are passionate about leading, taking responsibility for your actions comes naturally.  It is...Taking Ownership in leading others.

Taking Ownership of your actions as a Leader matter! 

Do you naturally, and with passion:

• Accept responsibility as a leader?
• Accept that you are responsible for the choices you make?
• Accept that you are responsible for how you feel?
• Accept that you are responsible for what you think?
• Accept that you are responsible for what you do?
• Accept that you are responsible for the goals, direction and vision for your life?
• Accept that you cannot blame others for the decisions you have made?
• Accept that you are responsible for who you are?
• Accept that you are responsible to initiate change?

Leaders, more than anyone else, need to Take Ownership...with passion...Do you?  

This is what helps to make you a Rare Leader™

If you want to learn more about the Rare Leader™ in you, 

or if you are interested in retaining Steve as your Executive Coach, 

Contact Steve Riege via: twitter, or his website.

Taking One For The Team

Have you ever heard this acclamation?  

Someone feels so self involved that they need to declare that their action is necessarily not their first choice, but is for the benefit of others.  Why not add “praise me” to the end of the statement?  After all, isn’t that what you’re asking?  

You’ve let people know you’re taking action for their benefit but not yours, and it is outside of your character to do so.  Is this also declaring that what you’re doing is the “right thing”, but not “your thing”?  

Why can’t your actions simply be the “right thing”.  Does it matter who it is benefitting?  And, if you need to declare this as an unusual act, do you really need to ask for praise?  Are you that type of leader that craves feedback at this level?  If the answer is yes, you may want to sign out of this blog.  The challenges for you to become a Rare Leader™ will become too great over the next 9 months of study in our series together.  

Or, does this make you feel uncomfortable that you may have declared “taking one for the Team” in the past, and you now realize that it may not have been a moment of your greatest declaration of leadership?  Then I would invite you to continue to work with us.  

I find many “would be leaders” I have worked with to seriously stumble at this stage of discovering their gaps of developing as a Rare Leader™.  We can continue to develop your Visionary skills.  We can learn together to find a comfort level with being Decisive.  We can study the elements of better Delegation and encourage you to share your high Drive for Achievement.  

However, if you really have no core of Character that speaks to Integrity, then we have a point of disconnect.  

You are not alone.  We have all been challenged at some point in our lives to do the right thing, because we know its the right thing.  But life is full of decisions, and you must make one.  Will it be the right decision?

I was faced with such a challenge several years ago.  I was climbing the ladder of personal success in my career.  I had risen above comments from doubters about how a “school teachers kid with a music degree” could make it in a tough competitive business organization.  But I did succeed.  

Looking back I am confident I possessed many of the behaviors of the Rare Leader™ at this young age.  At my professional crossroads a question of Integrity was put before me.  

I worked for an organization that used the quote from their founder to guide everything they did.  He stated “customers will forgive you for errors of judgment, but they won’t forgive you for errors of motive, and we must have honesty in our business dealings and integrity in everything we do.”  

I was asked to take career ending action against several members of my Team.  It was clear this demand from my Leader had questionable motives and clearly was not a shining moment of honesty.  As the deadline for my response came due, my answer was clear as I submitted my resignation.  I could have made a bold statement that I took one for the team as I carried my personal things out the door, but I didn’t.  I learned that day that doing the right thing is simply the right thing to do.

Lets agree today, to stop taking one for the Team.   Next time...do the right thing, because it is the right thing.  You will be taking a bold step on your way to becoming a Rare Leader™.

1. Can you name a time you felt you “took one for the Team”?

If yes, was it really just the “right thing to do”?

2. Will you continue to follow me, and study the next 9 behaviors of the Rare Leader™?

3. Send me your stories of Integrity of Character.  If you want to remain anonymous from the blog readers, send it to me at steve@ovationleadership.com

If you want to learn more about the Rare Leader™ in you, 

or if you are interested in retaining Steve as your Executive Coach, 

Contact Steve Riege via: twitter, or his website.

Hiring up

They always said the key to being a successful manager, is being smart enough to hire people smarter than I am. 

You have probably thought this through when hiring new people to work on your Team.  After all, the gaps that appear as we get older are pretty obvious.  How do we keep up with technology?   How do we absorb all of the changing data?  How do we begin to understand every product detail?  

Yes, we become so much smarter when we are willing to leave our ego at the door and bring new people to our Team who are smarter thane we are. But what does “smarter” really mean?  How is “smarter” defined?  

Is it all about the craft of the job?  Is it about engineering, finance, economics, design, marketing, chemistry, and technology?  What about Character?  Does it also make sense to hire people with more Integrity of their Character than we might believe we possess?  

If the theory about surrounding ourselves with smarter people makes us as leaders collectively smarter, than could it be true; that if we surround ourselves with a Team who thinks and acts out of a core belief of morals, values and ethics, that we might grow as a Leader with Integrity of Character?

I have been very fortunate to have worked with enormously successful Teams.  I credit my earlier successes to my Teams.  When challenged, I prided myself at saying...”I’m not sure of the answer...I’m just a school teachers kid”.  I loved the cynical answer I would offer when the brightest and the best of the senior leaders would challenge me, knowing I had much more humble beginnings than they had.  

But, I would always have the answer.  The answer was typically better than correct, and I built a reputation of someone you could count on.  But it was no secret that my Team was the key to my success.  We’ll talk more later on assembling that great team.  

How did I continuously assemble such great teams?  What was my secret sauce?

Here’s the recipe to my secret sauce.  I

 hire by the “rule of three C’s”.  

Core, Character, Craft.

When I set out to hire a new Team member, I focus on a discovery of what the candidate feels is the vitality of their core.  The core is that essence of why they believe they are given this wonderful opportunity to live the life they have been given.  This is where values, ethics, and morals are formed and realized.  That is...the Core of the candidate.  

Character is how the candidate can prove they “walk the talk”.  If they found values, morals, and ethics within their Core, then what choices do they make every moment, to live out this Core of who they are?  This is...the Integrity of their Character.

Craft is the easy part.  This is the intellectual side of the career journey.  Craft is the essence of learning, and experience  achieved through school, training, work experience, and applying aptitude.  The missing portions of their Craft can probably be acquired through additional training and other experiences.  But I have no ability to change Core and Character.  They either have it, or they don’t.  And If candidates do not have Integrity of their Character, I do not want them on my Team.

This secret sauce brings me great team members.  If the theory about surrounding myself with people better than me is true, then I have also surrounded myself with people who have a higher level of Integrity in their Character than I might have.  As a group, we’re contagious with each other, and we hold each other accountable to a new level of success. 

As a Rare Leader™, Integrity of Character is where we begin!

If you want to learn more about the Rare Leader™ in you, 

or if you are interested in retaining Steve as your Executive Coach, 

Contact Steve Riege via: twitter, or his website.

The Road Less Traveled

...Two roads diverged in a wood, and I, 

I took the one less traveled by, 

And that has made all the difference...Robert Frost (1874–1963)

 Why is it that the most prosperous road is the less traveled?

Why is it that we so often choose the easy road?

Why is it we miss opportunities to make a difference?

Why is it?

I encountered some people recently who must have thought about these questions.  They were faced with decisions.  Decisions that were both simple and difficult.  Decisions that were both minor and major in their impact upon others.  Decisions they had faced before.

Kristen works as a manager of a retail store.  Kristen really wants to be liked by her employees.  It seems Kristen has “respected” and “liked” confused, thinking they are the same.  As Leaders, we know that many times our tough decisions mean our Team members may not like us, but if we make good decisions, and if we are consistent in our actions, then perhaps we have moved towards becoming respected.  

Wanting to be liked is a dangerous temptation that leads to the road most often traveled.  

In this instance, Kristen overheard some of her employees talking of an after work party.  It sounded like it would be fun.  Kristen hoped she would be invited.  As she listened in closer, she heard the dark side of their plans.  The party was to be held in the large storage room of the store.  Guests would be escorted in the back door, and no one would know.  And as hosts, the storage contents would certainly serve the guests well.  After all, who wouldn’t want an open bar with unlimited snacks.  

Kristen knew she wouldn’t be invited.  But now she was faced with a dilemma.  Does she ruin the party plans by telling the owner?  This would certainly lead to discipline and termination of some of her Team.  And that would only add to Kristen’s heavy work load.  Or, another idea might be to approach her Team.  Why not tell them she overheard their plans?  Why not tell them this was not to be allowed?  Of course, if Kristen took this action, her Team would never like her.  They would see her as an outsider.  

Why should she even get involved?  If they got caught, Kristen would be far away, at home with her family and away from the trouble.  

Kristen was faced with a question.  One road would prevent the party.  It would prevent trouble.  It would lessen her chance of being “liked”.  The other road was a simple denial of any knowledge of the party.  Kristen would have nothing to lose, and her chances of being “liked” by her Team would be intact.

Which is the road less taken?  Which road will make all the difference?

Tim was a client of mine for many years.  Tim, like Kristen enjoyed being “liked” by his employees, but he also commanded respect.  Tim had earned his promotions through the company to his current role as a business unit leader.  Tim knew how to mix both business and social relationships and situations.  He made his appearances at company parties, bought a round or two, and quietly exited, leaving his employees to their good times away from the boss.  At work, Tim was fair and consistent when assigning work and made certain everyone received their praise when their results were achieved.  Everyone liked Tim.  He had good Charisma.  

Tim’s boss approached him on Monday morning.    Julia said...“Tim, I need you to help me on a new acquisition.  This will be an enormous undertaking, but the rewards will be tremendous.  If it succeeds, I have been told I will be named as President of the company as George retires.  When I am President, you will become my COO”.  

This all seemed too good to be true.  Tim was finally being recognized for his years of loyalty.  His dedication and hard work paid off.  Julia added, “Tim, this will not come without cost.  As part of the acquisition, we will be offering your business unit as part of the deal.  A trade so to speak.  In the long run, we can not allow your current business unit to succeed under the new owner.  We will be launching a competitor of our own after the acquisition is realized.  I need you to make some plans prior to your transition out of this group.  I have some ideas, but please see me tomorrow with your ideas of some “poison pills” we can place in this group which will destroy its ability to compete with us in two years.”  

I asked what would happen to the rest of my Team.  These were good people who had worked hard to make me successful.  “Don’t worry Tim.  When we make the deal, they’ll be happy, because they will have a job guarantee with the new owner”.  But I asked, isn’t that guarantee worthless since we will have set up their new company to fail?  “Tim, you are focused on the wrong road.  Our new road is filled with wonderful opportunities for both of us.  We’ll make great financial bonus awards from the success of the acquisition, and then you and I will be running the entire company.  Remember, this was our dream when we both joined as trainees so many years ago.”  

Two roads.  Both filled with opportunities.  One road will be less traveled.  One Road will make the difference.

The Rare Leader™ lives through a combination of morality, values and ethics to create a strength of Character consistent of being true to values, and doing the right thing because it is the right thing.  This inner strength enables Teams and organizations to trust their leader, whose Character embodies this knowledge, comfort, and trust of their own personal Core.  We call this Integrity of Character.

1. If you are Kristen...Which is the road less traveled?
2. If you are Tim...Which is the road less taken?
3. Why do these roads make the difference?

If you want to learn more about the Rare Leader™ in you, 

or if you are interested in retaining Steve as your Executive Coach, 

Contact Steve Riege via: twitter, or his website.

Integrity of Character

Character of The Rare Leader™ represents the sum of his or her  very core. Values, experience, knowledge and wisdom complete the dimension of “who I am”.  The combination of morality, values and ethics create a strength your Character consistent of being true to values, and doing the right thing because it is the right thing.  This inner strength enables Teams and organizations to trust their leader, whose Character embodies this knowledge, comfort, and trust of their own personal Core.  

In the Rare Leader™, we call this Integrity of Character.

Integrity of Character embodies the Golden Rule, because it represents every gift of morality, value, and ethics we would hope to receive from others.  Kurt Senske in his book Executive Values stresses a roadmap exists for incorporating faith and values into organizational and business life.  Kurt professes “vision acts” where companies and leaders indicate and show a reality behind their words of acclamation of doing what is morally and ethically right.  When we as leaders make claim to Integrity, we better be ready and willing to walk the talk.

Jim Collins talks about the Integrity of Character in his bestseller Good To Great.  “In a good to great transformation, people are not your most important asset.  The right people are.” Good to Great companies place a greater weight on character attributes than on specific education, practical skills, knowledge, or experience.  

We found in the teachings of Marcus Buckingham that these skill based traits are teachable.  Character traits are ingrained.  Integrity of Character is the true measure of how you bring the core of your life to the surface for you, and those who choose to follow you.

This month our study of Integrity of Character will be exciting.  I  know it will make some people uncomfortable.  But maybe that’s how we discover and claim new opportunities for ourselves.  Integrity of Character is truly one of the remarkable behaviors of the Rare Leader™.  Join in on the blog.  E-mail us, and make certain your following us on Twitter.

If you want to learn more about the Rare Leader™ in you, 

or if you are interested in retaining Steve as your Executive Coach, 

Contact Steve Riege via: twitter, or his website.

Moving from Charisma towards Integrity

You have spent a career climbing the leadership ladder.  Through your experiences and careful research, you have discovered a consistent pattern of behaviors predicting the potential of great success in a Leader. I call these twelve behaviors and characteristics the style of a Rare Leader™.

Since January, we have “dug deep” into the behaviors of Vision and Charisma.  Let’s probe a bit deeper into the next behavior.  Character, or Integrity as some of you have been calling it, will be our next topic beginning in March.  

Thanks for your many comments about Charisma and Vision.  I look forward to your comments, e-mails, tweets, and phone calls about Integrity in the Rare Leader™.  

You can also join in at www.twitter.com/sriege for regular posts on this topic.  Recent tweets are on the left.

If you are new, perhaps you might enjoy starting at the beginning.  Click the archives and look for Vision under January, and “read up”  Please post your comments.  I invite you to actively participate.  I'd also appreciate your inviting friends to follow our discussions and contribute as they wish.

Welcome, I hope you enjoy your journey discovering the 12 behaviors and characteristics of the Rare Leader™ 

If you want to learn more about the Rare Leader™ in you, 

or if you are interested in retaining Steve as your Executive Coach, 

Contact Steve Riege via: twitter, or his website.

Is Charisma your Hero?

February is nearing an end.  I pause and look at the beautiful fresh snow in my yard, and think of the perfection in front of me.  No two flakes alike...Is that true of people?  Is that true of Leaders?

Charisma is one of the twelve behaviors of a Rare Leader™.  I look back on the variations of Charisma I have seen in just the past month and yes, - no two leaders are alike.  Here’s one example.

I was introduced to an aspiring rising star recently.  Going into the meeting, my host said, “I think you will really enjoy meeting her, she has unbelievable Charisma”.  My client friend knows of this study of the Rare Leader™ and our current pause at Charisma.  He wanted me to meet someone that he and others  frankly could not get enough of.

She and I had a wonderful first meeting.  It was as my host had predicted, almost as if we knew each other for years.  After  lunch, our host left us to the real reason for her request to see me.  She was seeking me out for some Executive Coaching advice.  As I waded through my quick assessment techniques, she quickly opened up to me.  “Look”, she said “Let me cut to the bottom line - I am about to lose my job and I never saw it coming.  I need to understand what went wrong...what did I do?”

Asking her to describe her background, her career, her passions, her high points and low points, she seemed to focus on knowing the right people, being with the right people, doing the right things with the right people, and had very little to say about putting her craft, skills and experiences to work.  Karen was an example of a rising star who fell in love with her own popularity and in all honesty, stopped working.  She did what came natural.  She used her eyes and her facial expressions to draw people in to an engaging conversation.  Her ability to remember the names of everyone who walked into a room was uncanny.    She made it a priority to be at the right place or event to be around the right people.  For Karen, she did not have to try to develop her Charisma.  My friend was correct.  She had it.

Trusting that her Charisma could make people believe she performed at a high level took Conger and Kanungo’s study of Characteristic Leadership into a new corner of the Leadership snowflake.

What Karen forgot to recognize, is that Charisma also needs to be authentic.  Authenticity is not limited growing Charisma from your heart, but it also means being authentic in what you do at work and at play, in essence your Craft, as well as what you do   with your Character.  Karen had in effect found herself guilty of an abuse of power of her dynamic Charisma.  She had made everyone around her believe she must be this good at work too.  But eventually it did catch up to her, and it cost her a nice career.

Where’s the lesson here?  Rather than focus on what Karen did wrong, let’s focus on the hero of the story.  Charisma is a very powerful behavior.  As Karen found, she could persuade everyone to believe whatever she wished about her job performance...temporarily.  This powerful behavior comes with responsibility.  Next month we will explore Character, and in future months we will look at the remaining nine behaviors  including Planning, Achievement, and Decisiveness.  The Rare Leader™ uses all of the twelve behaviors in a positive way, for the collective good of their Team, their organization, and themselves.  Charisma becomes a powerful and important tool in the Rare Leader™ tool box when Leading others in their Vision, making decisions, setting goals, and achieving success.

Next week we move on in our journey to study Character.  Number 3 in our detailed look into the 12 behaviors of the Rare Leader™.  But, while your waiting, try out this weeks questions.

1. How can you make Charisma a “hero” in your career?
2. How do you remain engaged in both Character and Craft as you grow your career?

If you want to learn more about the Rare Leader™ in you, 

or if you are interested in retaining Steve as your Executive Coach, 

Contact Steve Riege via: twitter, or his website.

Charisma builds Trust

“Beauty is but skin deep.”

When poet John Davies of Hereford wrote this now famous saying in 1616, he was actually referring to a murder involving Sir Thomas Overbury.  

We have taken this almost 400 year old phrase and excluded the remaining lines of the poem which include "Beauty is but skin deep, ugly lies the bone, Beauty dies and fades away, but ugly holds its own." 

Charisma too, can be skin deep.  In earlier postings we discussed the danger of your Charisma not being authentic.  One simple way to prove your Charisma is authentic, and not only skin deep, is to use it wisely.  As a Rare Leader™ you have a powerful tool to draw attention to yourself, and to make others want to like, respect, and emulate you.  

Patrick Lencioni writes in his book the Five Dysfunctions of a Team, the  importance of overcoming the absence of trust.  The fear of being vulnerable with your Team prevents the building of Trust within your Team.  When you use authentic Charisma in a positive way, you draw people close to you.  Using your heartfelt Charisma lets people see inside of you.  Making your Charisma personal, opens the door to vulnerability which is the secret key to building trust.

When your Charisma is positive, uplifting, true, from the heart, and personal, it reflects your Character.  In March we will explore the powerful behavior of Character in the Rare Leader™.  You will begin to see how the behaviors of the Rare Leader™ work together.  In our first three studied behaviors we find Character delivered through Charisma, helps others see your Vision.  Effective leadership requires the interaction of many qualities and behaviors simultaneously, and interdependent upon each other.  This is why we find many well intentioned people discover they can not lead.  However, the Rare Leader™ learns to live by, and use all 12 behaviors together.

When you think about how to use your Charisma, you can also be guided by Ella Wheeler Wilcox (not John Joyce) who first wrote,  “Laugh and the world laughs with you; Weep and you weep alone”.

Tell us...What can you do today to be Charismatic with others,  and to draw them into your trust?

If you want to learn more about the Rare Leader™ in you, 

or if you are interested in retaining Steve as your Executive Coach, 

Contact Steve Riege via: twitter, or his website.

Here’s what I heard about Charisma

I’ve spent the past several days with a lot of people.  Visiting with my clients take me to many wonderful places.  Some people might say I’ve had an overload of people interaction, but I love it.  I always use a side angle or hidden agenda to keep my energy up.  These past two weeks my little side study was to learn what people think about Charisma.

I quickly learned how dangerous “trying to be” Charismatic can be.  When people try to be Charismatic, they tend to come off as a bit bizarre and lose trust of others.  Some people who are mistaken about natural Charisma find they push themselves too hard and actually become offensive.  One person joined toastmasters thinking he could acquire more Charisma and be a better Leader.  While he did hone his speaking skills, he looked like an amateur comedian trying out a new act.  One person was just like Bobby in the movie - Saturday Night Fever.  He thought if he would mimic someone who was drawing the crowds, he too could be Charismatic.  I watched a manager trying to please everyone.  Of course when she found out that it’s not only impossible, but career threatening, she realized she could not demand people see her Charisma.

What I did find, is that there are many people who are authentically Charismatic.  They’ve got it, and they continue to develop the skills they possess.  They seemed relaxed, confident, in control of their emotions, and use great body language.   But when they speak...that is the key - “When they speak”.  People with Charisma think before they put their mouth in motion.  People with Charisma are active listeners.  And when they do finally speak, the have commanded a waiting audience and they speak with a confident, controlled conviction.  

I found one other important observation of people with Charisma.  They follow the “golden rule”.  They typically treat other people the way they would have wanted to be treated.  You know...that rule still works.

Take a few days and purposefully observe people.  

1. Who do you see that does not have Charisma? Why?
2. Who do you see that has Charisma?  Why?

Tell me what you see, and what you’ve learned.

If you want to learn more about the Rare Leader™ in you, 

or if you are interested in retaining Steve as your Executive Coach, 

Contact Steve Riege via: twitter, or his website.

Developing Your Charisma

It’s not tough to convince people that Charisma is important when taking on a leadership role.  However, the issues begin to surface when my clients actually explore the degree of their own Charisma, and find themselves asking the question...”how do I develop my Charisma as a Leader?”

I went on a personal journey to discover more real applications of Charisma.  I had many people in mind that I could name as “Charismatic”.  Without telling them of my hidden agenda, I made it a point to discover what it was that attracted me to them.  And, could I observe what brought other people to the same attraction?  Here’s what I found with Richard and Susan.

I have always struggled a bit with remembering names of people.  I have a little system I learned years ago to overcome this issue that has helped immensely.  The Leaders Institute resource center http://www.leadersinstitute.com/resource/howtoremembernames.html offers some good tips including their “mind picture”, which is similar to my favorite tactic. 

When I asked Richard how he seemed to remember everyone, he had a few insights.  He makes an effort to collect business cards  when attending events.  At some point during the event, he would excuse himself and retire to a “private place” for a few minutes and write notes on each card.  These notes included keys to the conversation, some followup thoughts, and also some hints to remember the name to the face.  Prior to the event ending, he tried his best to connect with each “new” person one more time, in his mind repeating the name to face sequencing.  

Social networking gives us some great opportunities as well.  When I enter a new business card  (and those notes) from an event into my contact manager, I also look for them on Linkedin, Facebook, or on their website to once again reacquaint my self with the name to the face.  This planned repetition I learned from Richard has been very helpful.  

Richard develops Charisma by remembering faces and names.

Some people think a “life of the party” person attracts people to them and shows off their Charisma.  As we’ll learn later, Charisma must be more than skin deep to positively affect your leadership skills.  Think about people you were drawn to, only to find them to be selfish, boring, crude, or self involved.  

Once you have an opportunity to be 1-1 with someone, or find yourself interacting within a small group, you will find your personal interaction skills will make you different than the others.

I was sitting at lunch with Susan the other day.  I was excited to work my hidden agenda on Charisma.  Of course I’d tell her my observations later in our conversation.  It was quite engaging.  For some reason, I was drawn to tell her so many things about me.  While I try to be a good listener, I found it very difficult to listen to Susan, because she was so good at engaging me to talk.  

John, (another CEO both Susan and I would like to get to know better) greeted us as he walked to his own table.  Then I was able to see how she did it.  Observing this brief greeting, I could see it growing from her eyes.  As John said hello, Susan’s eyes lit up, as if there was nothing else in the room to see.  Everything else had been dimmed in the room except Johns face. He said simply “Hello Susan.  It’s been a long time...how are you?”  I was amazed to see how Susan’s eyes lit up, and followed first his eyes, then the movement of his lips, and then continued on the triangle of facial movement we all learned in communications 101.  Susan’s eyes were not only actively following him, but were sparkling with interest.  I could also not help but notice her eyebrows and facial muscles moving with emotional response, and of course her smile was contagious.  All of this non verbal response in less than 3.5  seconds.  And Susan’s answer?  “I  am doing great John - Thank you!  Gosh, I have not seen you since you won the community volunteer award two years ago.  Tell me how that volunteer work has progressed.”   

Wow, not only a good quick answer to his open question, but in the same breath, she remembered something important about John, (in effect praising him) and asked him to speak about himself.  And of course the eyes...her eyes were all about his response.  

Over the next 2 minutes, Susan got a full update on John's activities, was able to introduce John to me, and agreed to his request to call his office to make an appointment to see him.  

Susan creates Charisma, beginning with her eyes.

In summary, you need to take Charisma far beyond being the “dressed for success” person telling the best jokes, and having the ability to be everywhere and claiming you know everyone.  Taking Charisma to the next level as a Rare Leader means making it personal, being authentic, and making yourself more than skin deep.

1. What do you see in others, making them to Charismatic?
2. What simple things can you adopt to develop your Charisma?
3. Do you have deep, personal, authentic Charisma?

If you want to learn more about the Rare Leader™ in you, 

or if you are interested in retaining Steve as your Executive Coach, 

Contact Steve Riege via: twitter, or his website.

Charisma

The Rare Leader will display a winsome quality causing people to like, respect, and emulate, while displaying a deep attitude of who he or she is, what they’re about, and where they’re going.  

The Rare Leader should gain energy from trusting beliefs that appear natural, giving a high expectation of others while radiating hope, concern, confidence, love, excitement, etc.

Are you able to adopt some techniques to increase your own Charisma?  ThinkSimpleNow.com suggests you can focus on mirroring, remembering names, being interested in others, allowing others to talk, an intention for interaction, offering to help, smile, and being authentic.

Conger and Kanungo in their book Charismatic Leadership in Organizations, feel that charismatic leadership has blossomed.  We have gone beyond theory into a practical application.  Studies by Shamir, House, and Arthur (1993), Agle & Sonnenfeld (1994), and others found that Leaders who are perceived as Charismatic receive higher performance ratings, and are seen as more effective Leaders.

Nick Morgan in his book Trust Me: Four Steps To Authenticity and Charisma, speaks to the powerful combination of authenticity and charisma, passionately using verbal and non verbal conversations and connections, to listen, to read others, and to be persuasive.

Join in on Charismatic discussions this month!

If you want to learn more about the Rare Leader™ in you, 

or if you are interested in retaining Steve as your Executive Coach, 

Contact Steve Riege via: twitter, or his website.