Leadership Caffeine: “How Can I Help?”
Filed under: Leadership, Leadership Caffeine, Leadership Skills, Management Education, Professional Growth, Uncategorized, Your Professional Development "To Do" List
“How can I help?” These four simple words are powerful leadership tools when framed into a question and applied with genuine intent.
The leader that is comfortable asking this question is comfortable in his or her leadership skin. It takes self-confidence, a dose of humility and a genuine comprehension of the role of leader to form and apply the question, “How can I help?”
This individual understands that “telling” isn’t the only way to lead.
The act of asking the question shows that the leader has confidence in his team members. This is a subtle but important way for the leader to say, “I trust you” to individuals and teams.
The Intent of “How Can I Help?”
The engineering manager asking this question isn’t expecting to be invited to lead the next design review or to write a few lines of code. She wants to know if she can provide support by providing resources, helping to shape policy, brokering alliances and repairing systemic problems. She’s really asking,
- Are there obstacles in your way that I can clear out for you?
- Do you have the tools and resources that you need to do the work?
- Is there something wrong with our business processes that we can improve?
- Is there something that I can do that will increase the likelihood that teams and individuals will succeed?
Don’t confuse the use of “How can I help,” with the need to pitch in on the loading dock so that customers receive their orders, or, the need to sit in on a team meeting where the group has been unable to work well together. These types of transactional or fire fighting situations provide context for the leader to understand where help is truly required. The individual acts are just part of the bigger picture problem-solving process.
The Bottom-Line for Now:
Don’t discount how much self-confidence it takes for a leader to ask the question, “How can I help?” Much of modern leadership culture is predicated on the false belief that those at higher levels are paid to tell people how and what to do. Just like “telling ain’t teaching,” it’s usually not leading either.
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays
Peace on Earth, Good Will To All
Merry Christmas!
Peace on Earth and Good Will Towards All!
Vacation Reading
One of the biggest challenges that I face every vacation is trying to decide what I’m going to read. Usually, I don’t decide and I end up lugging 40 pounds of books with me just in case I might be in the mood for a certain work. (Note: I know that the Kindle from Amazon will solve this problem…I just can’t get beyond my “I don’t buy the first generation of any consumer electronics” rule.) Eventually, I thrift my choices down to a full duffel bag (for driving trips), and when my wife is not looking, I sneak a few additional volumes into someone else’s bag or under the seat. I guess I’m a book smuggler.
Here’s the latest list of great reads that will make it into my traveling book bag this season:
- The Glorious Cause, volume two in the Revolutionary War series by historical fiction writer, Jeff Shaara. If you like historical fiction, you’ll love Jeff.
- The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement, by Eliyahu Goldratt…a classic business novel and something I’ve been meaning to revisit for the last decade.
- Atlas Shrugged, by Ayn Rand. I re-read this classic of objectivism every few years and it’s time.
- A biography of one of the founding fathers to match up to Shaara’s book. I’ve always enjoyed pairing a good piece of historical fiction with the real thing. It’s kind of like Stilton Blue Cheese and a glass of vintage port…they just go together.
- Duct Tape Marketing by John Jantsch and Million Dollar Consulting by Alan Weiss…both authors and both books are must-reads for the independent professional and invaluable reference tools for me.
- Marketing Metaphoria by Gerald and Lindsay Zaltman. A review of this one prompted my “Why Don’t Managers Think Deeply” blog posting a few weeks ago.
- The last two issues of Harvard Business Review. In particular, the July/August issue is themed as “Honing Your Competitive Edge” and has some great looking articles.
I’m probably approaching a stuffed duffel bag of books at this point, so I’m pushing my luck (and the limits of my time), but if I can slide a couple under the back seat, they will be:
- Team of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin, the story of Lincoln’s challenges and successes in managing his less than friendly cabinet.
- Guns, Germs and Steel by Jared Diamond. I started reading this unique take on the development of cultures and societies last year and got sidetracked. It’s been on my to-read list for some time and it’s time to finish it.
The Bottom-Line for Now:
I’ll keep you posted on my progress and I’ll look forward to the incredible material for blogging that I will gain from the list above. I love great business books, but I’ve always believed that the best leadership and management material is found somewhere other than the business aisle in the bookstore. I look forward to reporting back to you after vacation.
A Blogging Milestone and What I Learned by Writing 100 Blog Posts
It was a tough week for blogging. A perfect storm of business and personal schedule challenges conspired to keep me from spending quality time on the blog. OK, and the fact that I have been holding steady at 99 posts for a few days, and somehow it seemed like I needed to create something truly remarkable for the milestone, 100th post. I'm over the "need for remarkable" part, but thought I would take a few minutes this Saturday morning to reflect back on what I've learned in this half year of blogging about all things management, leadership, strategy and project and product management.
- Back a million years ago in the Fall of 2007, I recall being uncertain about whether blogging was right for me, whether it would help me in my business and whether anyone would care what I had to say. I'm now a zealot, and my friends and associates are likely sick of me raving about what an incredible experience this is personally and professionally. I enjoy and am benefiting from blogging so much, I am starting to incorporate this message into speaking engagements
- Blogging imposes a discipline that requires that I immerse myself in my subject matter and not only think about it, but put something down on the metaphorical paper. Call me crazy, but I truly love the business world, love learning about and meeting people and companies engaged in innovative, great practices, and I love writing and talking about these topics.
- I am constantly reminded through the comments to my posts and the many e-mails and LinkedIn invites that I've received that there are some remarkably smart people in the world that share a passion for excellence in management with me. The cross-border dialog has been tremendously rewarding for me. Thanks to all that reached out.
- More on the smart people theme. I read a number of blogs religiously, and I tip my hat to the consistent excellence that emanates from these professionals. Just a few of my favorites include: the Three Star Leadership Blog, Web Ink Now, Contrarian Consulting, ProBlogger and The Product Marketing Blog. Thanks to all of you for the consistently outstanding content and the inspiration.
- I continue to be surprised the way some posts resonate and spread through the blogosphere and others that I thought would do the same just languish. Of the 100 posts, the winner by far for page views was: Values Based Leadership: More of What I Learned At Matsushita. The popularity of this post gave me a true insight to how powerful blogging can be for spreading ideas.
Looking Forward: The Next 100 Posts:
I am a goal-driven person, and I have several that I have honed in on for the next hundred or so posts.
- I know that my posts are too long. Everyone is busy, and the best posts for me are the ones that get across compelling points efficiently. It is my goal to reduce the average word count of a post from 750 to 500. I'm working on it. Bear with me. I'm starting right after this post, I promise!
- Somewhere between now and post number 200, I have a goal to announce and begin my next book. The experience writing Practical Lessons in Leadership with Rich Petro was tremendous and I want to keep writing and publishing. Given enough time, there are a few books in me that I will bring forth.
- I struggled with the comment issue on blog posts during the first 100. I've not been certain whether I should comment on people's comments or just let the conversation run, minus the author sticking his nose back in. I love the comments, even those that disagree, and I learn from them. I feel compelled to do a better job acknowledging and engaging with those of you that add your thoughts, so look for more of that.
- Less preaching…more idea generation. Many of my first 100 are soapbox posts, with me decrying lousy practices and preaching best practices. Some of that cannot be helped, but I also want to spend more time talking and writing about the practices of others and offering ideas versus preaching.
- Continue to learn how to be a good citizen of the blogosphere. I will do a better job referencing other great content that is published on a daily basis.
- It is my goal to grow this blog into a leading resource for thoughts, ideas and best practices on all things management. That goal alone drives my desire to improve and to strengthen my ability to put out useful, practical content to help solve the vexing problems that we all face in managing and leading.
OK, I've already exceeded my targeted word count. Thanks again to all that joined and hung in there with me through the first 100. I'm looking forward to doing a better job with this next round and as always, your ideas, input and constructive suggestions are fuel for improvement.
Best to all! -Art
My Book
The desktop reference to leadership success whether you are starting out or starting over.
Art Petty
Welcome to Management Excellence where the focus is on building better leaders and creating high performance organizations.Building Better Leaders
Art Petty's Building Better Leaders programs in Leadership, Management and Developing as a Senior Contributor offer powerful and practical guidance for motivated professionals.
All programs available on-site in group format and select programs available in a distance learning PLUS personalized mentoring format.
Visit Building Better Leaders to find a program to help you or your team move forward. And don't forget to subscribe to the Building Better Leaders Leadership Tip of the Day.
Management Excellence Tools
Download the Management Excellence Guide to Effective Trade Show Marketing. What's Your Strategy & Execution (STREX) Quotient? Download and use the survey to help you gauge your organization's Strategy & Execution effectiveness and identify areas for improvement.e-book-Leadership and the Project Manager - Developing the Skills that Fuel High Performance Download the pdf or go to the e-book pages on this site and contribute to the conversation
Blog Subscriptions
Connect With Me On
E-Newsletter Mailing List
Join my e-newsletter mailing list and receive the latest in best-practices content for leadership, sales & marketing and strategy.