Tactic #1 Engineer Experiences
In a world where connectivity and technology have turned the foreign into
the familiar and people can choose from an endless selection at every
corner, leaders have to bring more to the table. One way to bring more is
to be an engineer of experiences. Turn everyday occurrences into memorable
moments. Take the ordinary and make it extraordinary. Use your resources
to build out and build up situations. Add on extra at every
angle. Move away from a generic approach and customize and personalize the
everyday. Make it your mission to engineer adventures, moments, and
memoirs.
Tactic #2 Fire Up your Innovator
"Innovation." It's the word on the street. Innovating, inventing
and creating are the rising stars.
Successful leaders have fantastic analytical minds. It's one of their
vital attributes. They must be able to problem solve. However, sometimes
problem solving is a direct barrier to innovating. When innovation is
called for, moving out of a problem solving mindset into an innovative
mindset starts with how you proposition yourself. Rather than asking
"what's the problem or what's the solution?" try asking
yourself, "what do I want to create here?"
Tactic #3 Leaders Go First
If there is a deficiency in your personal or professional life the best
way to have more is to initiate more. If you are disappointed by the lack
of human connection, initiate more connection. If there is a lack of
imagination, invite imagination by modeling it. If you want more
understanding, be more understanding. If team camaraderie is falling
short, initiate acts of good-fellowship. Leaders go first. They don't
wait. They take the lead and initiate.
Tactic #4 Comic Relief. It's serious business
A study conducted at Canadian financial institutions reported that top
performing organizations had managers who employed humor. Harvard Business
Review featured an article called "Transforming A Conservative
Company - One Laugh at a Time," by Katherine Hudson, the president
and CEO of Brady Corporation. The article describes how Brady "has
made fun an integral part of its corporate culture, not as an end in
itself, but for serious business reasons." Scientific
research shows that laughter increases productivity, those who laugh out
loud are more creative at problem solving, and those who laugh are
healthier and miss work less often.
Consider your work culture. Would you say serious business is balanced
with light heartedness and fun? Is laughter a part of progress? What can
you do to lighten and liven things up?
Seriously. |
