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Emmanuelle Jarmon
WCL Membership Director
Current research by Professor Sheena Iyengar and doctoral candidate Roy Chua explores the idea of how much decision latitude managers should give their employees and its effect on leadership perceptions.
Decision latitude is defined as a “the degree of control a person has over his or her work.” Much has been written about the link between decision latitude, job demand and mental strain – considered the “intrapersonal experience of having freedom and discretion”. But few have looked at the interpersonal experience – that is how an employee perceives a leader’s effectiveness based on the level of decision latitude granted. [click to continue…]
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Shelley Wagner
WCL Advisory Council Chairman
Brené Brown is a research professor who has been studying vulnerability, courage, worthiness and shame for over a decade. She has a compelling video on TED about The power of vulnerability, which will expand your perception. It is an extremely compelling 18 minutes that will leave you changed if you dare to watch it.
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Monique Hayward
President & CEO of Nouveau Connoisseurs Corporation
In today’s global marketplace, business professionals and entrepreneurs must think broadly and strategically about their careers and businesses to create visibility for themselves and their products or services. That means we must be shameless, fearless promoters of ourselves and our businesses in order to point the spotlight in our direction, attract people to our concepts, and convince customers to spend their money.
It all starts with your story, one that’s clear and coherent and differentiates your business from your competitors. What is your unique selling point? What’s the hook? What makes you and your business special and why? What is it about you as a person that is unique and interesting and will make the story about your business and your career rich and colorful? In other words, what’s your story, why should anyone care, and what difference does it make that you’re the person telling that story? [click to continue…]
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Michelle Sosinski
WCL President
A personal theme for 2013 … how interesting! I was intrigued with Gretchen Rubin’s recent blog on choosing a single word or phrase as an overarching theme for next year. I kind of like the idea. [click to continue…]
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Kirsten Meneghello
Illumination Coaching
Part Two – Building Your Support Team & Defining Benchmarks
So you’ve assessed your strengths (see Part One of this article) and recognize that you have what it takes to be an entrepreneur. You’ve got a business plan and the resources to get started. What else do you need to make this transition?
During any transition, it’s important to have support and accountability. But there are many ways to define support; each person has their own definition. It will be important for you to assess what kind of support will best serve you. Here are some key players you may want to have on your support team: [click to continue…]
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Amy Weeden
Propeller Resources
As a follow-up to July Leadership Breakfast topic, “Building an Executive Presence: How to work effectively at every organizational level,” I gave myself homework to truly focus on one of the areas that Kim and I presented – the ability to connect.
I recently made the transition to an entrepreneur, so connecting with people has become my full-time job. Whether I am talking to potential clients about our business model, interviewing potential consultants or simply expanding my network, my days are filled with connecting with people, many of them new to me. During the presentation, we talked about the following practical steps to increasing your ability to connect:
- Recognize that to be an effective leader, you need others to follow
- Pursue real connection, not simply transactions
- Be genuinely interested: eye contact, facial expression
- Project sincerity and warmth
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Jennifer Packer
Peace Health Southwest Medical Center
Have you ever found yourself sitting at your desk, typing on the computer while trying to listen to someone telling you something? When this happens to me, I generally will agree with the person as I know they are speaking, but in actuality, their words did not register. I have no idea what I just agreed to as my brain was more focused on what I was typing.
I consider myself to be a good listener. I am quiet, do not interrupt and am not free to readily offer advice; yet, I have to admit there are times when I am not really hearing what people are saying.
To be an exceptional leader you need to be more than a “good listener”. You need to be an intentional listener. Listening with the purpose to be present and really hear what the other person is saying. Not just the words, but the meaning and emotions behind those words. [click to continue…]
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Kirsten Meneghello
Illumination Coaching
Part One – Planning Before Setting up Shop
You’ve been daydreaming about leaving your day job behind in order to start your own business, but not sure what to expect or know of all the facets to consider.
First, it’s important to assess your own personality. Are you well suited to being an entrepreneur? [click to continue…]
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Kelli Gizzi
WCL Social Media Director
I was impressed by the determination and focus of the US and Canadian women’s teams in the Olympic Women Soccer Semi-finals earlier this week.
What made the biggest impression on me when I watched the game was the display of resiliency on both teams throughout the entire game – after every set-back, injury, questionable call, and penalty kicks. The teams rallied on. These female athletes exemplify resiliency – and it has stuck with me over the past two days.
We have all had career setbacks: projects canceled, employees leave, funding dries up, and on and on. We all have had to adapt and rally.
In her blog, “The Secret for Today’s Leadership – Being Resilient,” Rebecca Shambaugh writes that resiliency is “the capacity to bounce back from misfortune, disruptive change, and failures. [click to continue…]
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Claire Celeste Carnes
WCL Strategic Marketing Director
Last week WCL member, Julia Baumann Sarver, blogged about making time for your own self-care. Just in case you had any lingering doubts about whether it’s a good time to take vacation, trust me. It is. Now go pack.
The thing is that, while all of us are probably very good at our jobs, we need to do more than go to work five (or more!) days a week. We need to step away, get some perspective, and focus on something other than moving forward on our objectives. [click to continue…]
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