Leadership | Michael Warden, Leadership Coach

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5 Ways Leaders Unintentionally Undermine Trust

“Keep adding, keep walking, keep advancing.” ~ Saint Augustine

As I mentioned in last week’s post, a leader’s blindspots are her worst enemies. After all, its the obstacle you can’t see that’s most likely to take you out.

Continuing along the same line, I thought I’d share five common behaviors I see leaders do that undermine their team’s trust. Keep in mind that these are blind-spot behaviors for most leaders ~ that is, they do them innocently, and do not realize the impact they have on the team’s trust.

May 22, 2013 in Leadership, Team Dynamics with 0 Comments

3 Blind Spots That Topple Good Leaders

“Mirrors that hide nothing hurt me. But this is the hurt of purging and precious renewal – and these are the mirrors of dangerous grace.” — Walter Wangerin Jr.

Through my coaching work with leaders, I’ve uncovered a secret. Here it is:

May 13, 2013 in Leadership, Transformation with 1 Comment

8 Simple Questions for Discerning When to Say “No”

“Don’t be afraid to give up the good to go for the great.” ~John D. Rockefeller

What do these have in common?

Overwhelm
Burn out
Fuzzy goals
Scope creep

In my work with leaders and their teams, I find these are all symptoms of the same root issue:

The leader and/or team lacks the willingness to say “No.”
The leader and team lacks any clear process for discerning when to say “yes” and when to say “no” to current or potential projects.

Thankfully, there’s a simple solution.

May 6, 2013 in Leadership, Team Dynamics with 2 Comments

5 Signs We’re Entering a New Era

“With every step of our lives we enter into the middle of some story which we are certain to misunderstand.” ~ G.K. Chesterton

We’re in the middle of a worldview shift across the western world ~ or so says Brian Mclaren, and I am inclined to agree. As with the shift from the Medieval to the Modern Era, new data about the nature of the universe and what it means to be human has blown apart current paradigms of who we are and how the world works.

April 29, 2013 in Contemplative Sojourn, Culture Change, Leadership with 1 Comment

The Vital Importance of Learning to be Present

“Right now” is the only life you really have. Why not be here while it’s happening?

I remember when I was a boy summers seemed to last forever. Each day was like an eternity. My mother would often send me outside after breakfast and I wouldn’t be allowed back in ’till lunch, then out again till the streetlights came on. (It was a different time.) I remember how those hours stretched. A single day could hold a hundred adventures or more, and still leave time for me to linger at the back door for what seemed like years, waiting for my father to come home for dinner.

April 22, 2013 in Contemplative Sojourn, Leadership, Transformation with 2 Comments

A Daily Prayer for Leaders

(based on Psalm 72)

Give me your judgment, O God
As a leader under your authority
Give me your righteous discernment

May I discern your people
With your eyes
And your afflicted ones
With your heart

Let my leadership bring peace to all
Who live under it
And grace to all I serve

April 15, 2013 in Contemplative Sojourn, Leadership with 2 Comments

Good Fuel / Bad Fuel

In my coaching work with leaders, you might be surprised to learn that one of the key areas we explore is the leader’s relationship with health & fitness. Though we don’t usually think of developing a fitness regimen as a “spiritual practice,” I’m convinced it is. The reason is simple:

You show me a leader who’s eating poorly, not exercising, and not getting enough rest, and I’ll show you a leader who is more likely to experience overwhelm, battle discouragement, feel disconnected from God, and struggle with self-destructive coping behaviors.

April 8, 2013 in Leadership, Transformation with 0 Comments