Each of you, as leaders, has a passion for achieving your leadership goals and aspirations.

And as a member of the About Leaders community, you see the importance of taking the time to learn about other leaders and how to refine your leadership skills. With this in mind, I want to share some of the extremely valuable and fascinating information that people have told me about their leaders.

The feedback I hear ranges from positive comments to deep frustrations.

Most often I hear the frustrations - the leadership behaviors that annoy this person about another person which results in lower productivity and less than desirable performance.

Here are Examples

People come to me and say comments like:

• “My manager doesn’t listen.” 
• “My employee doesn’t show a sense of urgency.”
• “My co-worker doesn’t share information”
• “My _____ doesn’t _____.”

How would you fill in the blanks?

Try it! This exercise is very valuable because it provides each of us an opportunity to reflect on needed conversations. Think about specific behaviors that are holding us back and potential barriers to accelerating our leadership skills.

Why Care about Barriers?

A total commitment to leadership success means challenging our thinking, priorities, and blind spots.

Unfortunately, what people don’t communicate to us are our behavioral blind spots – the things we routinely do to others but don’t realize the impact.

When blind spots are not revealed, and the truth about our behavior is not openly discussed, we continue to operate on cruise control.

We keep doing the same things over and over. As a result of our "unconscious incompetence" our learning is stifled. WE become our largest barrier to leadership success.

Barriers to Leadership

Over the next several weeks I will reveal the “Top 10 Barriers to Leadership” that I have heard people communicate about their leaders. The purpose of the “Barriers to Leadership” series is to provide a discussion that all of us will want to participate in, genuinely reflect on, and ultimately increase our awareness of leadership barriers that affect everyone.

Some of the Top 10 Barriers will be things you have heard before, behaviors you have personally witnessed, and maybe a few surprises. Try to guess at least 2 of the Top 10 leadership barriers that employees have said are the most frustrating leadership behaviors of all.

Courtesy - About Leaders

he proof you’re looking for doesn’t exist. Rock solid, guaranteed, “won’t fail” proof — it’s not out there.

As a business leader, if you wait to make a decision until you know you’re right, you’re usually making the wrong decision. To be successful, you have to develop the habit of trusting your instincts.

You won’t always be right.

That’s a certainty that you need to get used to. Despite insurmountable proof, you won’t always be able to make a decision that turns into the results you want.

That’s because proof is based on history not on reality. Experience and an honest interpretation of results will tell you how you should have made a decision in the past. But it won’t always accurately predict how you should make a decision right now.

There are numerous factors that are different now from before. Waiting until you have better timing isn’t a smart move either.

What do you do?

What should you do when you don’t have the proof you want in order to make a decision that you are sure won’t fail?

1. Stop looking for guarantees. — There are no guarantees in life. The proof you’re looking for doesn’t exist. That “won’t fail” journey you want to walk is just a fantasy in your head. Figuring out the right move starts with a shift in your philosophy. To make the best decision you need to believe that there’s a possibility that whatever your decision, it will be wrong. Chances are you’re going to make a mistake.
2. Be more honest about your weaknesses. — Stop pretending like you don’t make mistakes. You do. Sometimes you make big mistakes that have long term consequences. Denial just impedes forward progress. By acknowledging mistakes (and apologizing when necessary) you teach your brain and your employees to adapt to realistic benchmarks for success.
3. Take smaller, more recoverable positions. — Instead of lunging boldly after schemes that involve luck or fortuitous timing, make decisions that limit uncertainty. Stable long term circumstances give you the best environment for improving on decisions that you’ve made in the past that might not have been the best choice at the time. By taking tiny steps forward all the time, you limit the number of times you need to dramatically change course. That means there’s less drama, chaos, and frustration for everyone involved.

Making great decisions requires another set of skills.

(It’s requires you being curious and interpreting clues.)

The better you are at looking for answers and finding answers from what you see around you, the better you will be at making great decisions. Especially when you don’t have enough information to be guaranteed that what you’re doing will be successful.

Take for example the complexity of gas station fuel type analysis.  Which type of fuel is purchased most frequently by consumers?

You might readily answer that Regular Octane 87 type of fuel is the most popular purchase by buyers. But how would you know that was true if you just had a few moments to make a snap decision?

(Just because that’s what you might purchase doesn’t mean that’s what everyone purchases. Just because everyone you know purchases that type of fuel doesn’t mean that it is the most popular type of fuel sold.)

You can know with certainty the answer to this question by simply looking at the  selection buttons at the gas pump. In just a few seconds of analysis, you can see quite clearly which type of gas is the most popular. The button that is scratched, faded or gouged the most is most likely the choice of fuel that is selected most by buyers.

In a few seconds, you can accurately answer a complex question that would otherwise take much longer to answer. You could stand outside the gas station and count the number of cars and their selections. You could analyze gas container buying and shipping patterns over the weeks and months ahead.

Or, you could just look at which button on the outside of a pump handle is scratched the most. With a few more steps and a few more seconds of effort, you could analyze the buying patterns for every pump at the gas station.

If you want to know, you should probably start looking for answers. That’s where great decision start. With you looking to do the right thing.

The evidence you need to make a good decision is all around you.

Look for answers. Interpret clues honestly. Take steps toward where you want to be.

The only guarantee in life is that if you keep moving In the right direction, you are getting closer to being successful.

Courtesy - Danwald Schmidt

Step 1: Put Yourself in a Position to Delegate
Delegation is when you assign responsibility to another person to carry out a specific task . The task could be large (such as "revamp our train-ing department" or small (such as "take this letter to the post office").

It doesn't matter how large or small the task is. What matters is that there is another person that you can delegate the task to.

You don't have to have an empire of people around you that serve as your minions. Rather, you do need to put yourself in an organizational position that there are good people to whom you can delegate responsi-bility. These people could report to you directly. Or, there may be a group of people that are in a support capacity in the company that you could rely upon. Regardless, you need to be in a position to delegate tasks to others, if you want to get more done than you have hours avail-able in the day.

Step 2: Get Ready Mentally
The second step is to make sure you have mentally accepted the fact that you need to delegate to others. You may be hesitant to delegate to other people for a number of reasons.

You may fall into the trap of feeling that it will be faster to get something done yourself rather than having to explain it to others. Or, you may feel as if the other person already has enough to do and you don't want to add more to their plate. You need to move beyond this type of thinking in order to effectively delegate your tasks.

You will never be able to grow as a project manager if you feel that an-other person can't do something as fast or as proficiently as you. Sure, the first couple of times may be a bit rough, but you will be surprised how much easier things become. You'll also be pleasantly surprised when you find they can do something even better than you!

Step 3: Create Your "To-Do List"
Your next step is to put your "To-Do" list together. Take some time to do this right. One of the best ways to do this is to clear your desk and pull out your favorite pen and pad of paper. Start thinking about all the things that you need to get done.

This doesn't have to be in any particular order. Include those tasks that are related to projects (such as updating a status report) to everything else (such as completing your open enrollment insurance form).

Let everything come out on this piece of paper. You can include person-al, professional, or other obligations and commitments you have. You'll start to feel better as you begin to size up how many things are weigh-ing you down.

Step 4: Cull Your List
You are going to have a sizable list. You will be amazed at how much 'stuff' you have on your plate to accomplish. Some of these things are extremely important and others now appear to be just a waste of time.

Go through this list and delete as many items as possible. There may be items on your list that are MONTHS old that you've been carrying in your head for that entire time. Get rid of it. There may be items that you at one time thought were important but now they just seem trivial. Cross them out!

You are now left with a purged and manageable list that you can delegate to others. Narrow your delegation list down even further by removing those items that ONLY you can do.

Step 5: Begin Delegating
Take this relevant and meaningful list of tasks and meet with those who are on your team. Let them know the process you've just been through and the fact that you need their help.

You need to focus on tasks that are in your area of expertise - where you can make the biggest difference for the entire team. You can then divvy up what is left on your list and spread it out amongst the team.

Your team will appreciate your request for help and that these tasks really are important to get done quickly.

Most job candidates feel interview questions can be decoded and hacked, letting them respond to those questions with "perfect" answers.

And they're right, especially if you insist on asking opinion-based job interview questions.

(Quick aside: Is there really a perfect answer to a question like, "What do you feel is your biggest weakness?" I think there is: "If that's the kind of question you typically ask, I don't want to work for you.")

Asking opinion-based questions is a complete waste of time. Every candidate comes prepared to answer general questions about teamwork, initiative, interpersonal skills, and leadership.

That's why you should ask interview questions that elicit facts instead of opinions. Why? I can never rely on what you claim you will do, but I can learn a lot from what you have already done.

Where employee behavior and attitude are concerned, the past is a fairly reliable indication of the future.

How do you get to the facts? Ask. Ask an initial question. Then follow up: Dig deeper to fully understand the situation described, determine exactly what the candidate did (and did not do), and find out how things turned out. Follow-up questions don't have to be complicated. "Really?" "Wow... so what did he do?" "What did she say?" "What happened next?" "How did that work out?"

All you have to do is keep the conversation going. At its best, an interview is really just a conversation.

Here are my four favorite behavioral interview questions:

1. "Tell me about the last time a customer or co-worker got mad at you."

Purpose: Evaluate the candidate's interpersonal skills and ability to deal with conflict.

Make sure you find out why the customer or co-worker was mad, what the interviewee did in response, and how the situation turned out both in the short- and long-term.

Warning sign: The interviewee pushes all the blame and responsibility for rectifying the situation on the other person.

Decent sign: The interviewee focuses on how they addressed and fixed the problem, not on who was to blame.

Great sign: The interviewee admits they caused the other person to be upset, took responsibility, and worked to make a bad situation better. Great employees are willing to admit when they are wrong, take responsibility for fixing their mistakes, and learn from experience.

Remember, every mistake is really just training in disguise... as long as the same mistake isn't repeated over and over again, of course.

2. "Tell me about the toughest decision you had to make in the last six months."

Purpose: Evaluate the candidate's reasoning ability, problem solving skills, judgment, and possibly even willingness to take intelligent risks.

Warning sign: No answer. Everyone makes tough decisions, regardless of their position. My daughter works part-time as a server at a local restaurant and makes difficult decisions all the time - like the best way to deal with a regular customer whose behavior constitutes borderline harassment.

Decent sign: Made a difficult analytical or reasoning-based decision. For example, wading through reams of data to determine the best solution to a problem.

Great sign: Made a difficult interpersonal decision, or better yet a difficult data-driven decision that included interpersonal considerations and ramifications.

Making decisions based on data is important, but almost every decision has an impact on people as well. The best candidates naturally weigh all sides of an issue, not just the business or human side exclusively.

3. "Tell me about a time you knew you were right but still had to follow directions or guidelines."

Purpose: Evaluate the candidate's ability to follow, and possibly to lead.

Warning sign: Found a way to circumvent guidelines "... because I know I was right," or followed the rules but allowed their performance to suffer.

Believe it or not, if you ask enough questions some candidates will tell you they were angry or felt stifled and didn't work hard as a result, especially when they think you empathize with their "plight."

Good sign: Did what needed to be done, especially in a time-critical situation, then found an appropriate time and place to raise issues and work to improve the status quo.

Great sign: Not only did what needed to be done, but also stayed motivated and helped motivate others as well.

In a peer setting, an employee who is able to say, "Hey, I'm not sure this makes sense either, but for now let's just do our best and get it done..." is priceless.

In a supervisory setting, good leaders are able to debate and argue behind closed doors and then fully support a decision in public - even if they privately disagree with that decision.

4. "Tell me about the last time your workday ended before you were able to get everything done."

Purpose: Evaluate commitment, ability to prioritize, and ability to communicate effectively.

Warning sign: "I just do what I have to do and get out. I keep telling my boss I can only do so much but he won't listen.... "

Good sign: Stayed a few minutes late to finish a critical task, or prioritized before the end of the workday to ensure critical tasks were completed.

You shouldn't expect heroic efforts every day, but some level of dedication is important.

Great sign: Stayed late and/or prioritized - but most importantly communicated early on that deadlines were in jeopardy. Good employees take care of things. Great employees take care of things and make sure others are aware of potential problems ahead of time just in case proactive decisions may help.

Obviously there are a number of good and great answers to this question. "I stayed until midnight to get it done," can sometimes be a great answer, but doing so night after night indicates there are other organizational or productivity issues the employee should raise. I may sometimes be glad you stayed late, but I will always be glad when you help me spot chronic problems and bottlenecks.

Like with any other question, always evaluate a candidate's answers to this question based on your company's culture and organizational needs.

Few candidates can bluff their way through more than one or two follow-up questions. Turning the interview into a fact-based conversations helps you identify potential disconnects between the candidate's resume and their actual experience, qualifications, and accomplishments.

And you'll have a much better chance of identifying a potentially great employee, because a great employee will almost always shine during a fact-based interview.

Courtesy - Inc.com

There is a critical and substantial difference between managing to lead and managing to supervise. Managers who lead show others the way, while managers who supervise tend to direct and control. Leaders are individuals who motivate and inspire the individuals around them, whether they are coworkers or employees.

People often believe that “leaders are born not made,” but this is far from the truth. Most people who have the desire and internal motivation can learn to incorporate effective leadership skills into their style of management. Doing this often includes making changes and alterations in mindsets and attitudes, without which many managers will never become the type of leaders others want to follow.

Individuals who fall into the category of traditional supervising managers find themselves generally directing and controlling the people under them. They tend to be rigid in their thinking, ineffective and unproductive when compared to managers who are also leaders.

Managers as leaders are excellent motivators. They are more productive because they are able to tap into individuals as key organizational resources and rely on their cooperative efforts and results to get things accomplished effectively and efficiently. They ultimately assume cheerleader roles to inspire employees to greater heights of achievement. Most managers are surprised by how much more their departments and units are able to accomplish when they are effectively led.

If managers wish to achieve higher levels of results, they must learn to delegate various responsibilities to their employees and motivate them, rather than simply use control management methods. Due to higher expectation levels, results then tend to increase.

Managers as leaders make certain that employees become empowered to accomplish more through greater levels of autonomy and responsibility. Most importantly, this change allows managers more time to concentrate on the important strategic issues affecting their entire department rather than focusing on daily tactical issues that can just as easily be delegated to individual employees.

Managers who lead are motivated by their own personal vision of what is possible to achieve. They are always focused on the accomplishment of major long-term goals. These goals provide them with deeply held convictions of what they desire to attain and how to go about achieving it.

Their personal determination and perseverance are what attracts others to their vision and motivates them to not only believe in them, but also to embrace their attainment. Traditional managers, on the other hand, do not generally have these convictions or a vision for the future due to their having chosen to operate in a more reactive rather than proactive manner.

Managers as leaders inspire the active participation of individual employees by communicating their vision in a clear and convincing manner. Everything they say and do effuses passion and enthusiasm, which become contagious. Managers who lead are able to easily articulate their message and frequently “talk up” their personal vision. They work to create mental images of their vision that employees can conceptually see and feel.

Managers as leaders tend to have positive self-images. This affirmative sense of self translates into confidence and a keen awareness of their personal capabilities. These managers tend to build and develop similar characteristics in their employees by delegating and effectively sharing their power and professional knowledge. This is in direct contrast to more traditional managers who generally tend to hoard power and information, feeling that any form of delegation undermines their power base and authority.

Many managers are results-oriented with a zero-tolerance for mistakes and failure. This results in employees hiding their failures for fear of possibly severe repercussions. They tend to cover errors and misjudgments by altering information or misleading managers regarding certain results or oversights. This is one of the leading causes of managers being blindsided by unforeseen events and circumstances.

Leading managers, on the other hand, view mistakes and failures as learning experiences. They understand that they and their employees cannot grow and stretch their abilities without making mistakes and failing. They consistently encourage employees to implement new ideas, concepts and approaches and stretch their individual capabilities in order to learn from mistakes.

This often produces more results-driven atmospheres than those seen through strictly supervisory management styles and practices. It enables leaders and their departments or units to react faster to evolving conditions and even anticipate certain changes before they produce negative impacts.

Managers who lead their people build trust and rapport through various mutual learning experiences, which are generally accompanied by trial-and-error approaches and outcomes. They are quick to listen and observe throughout the process, with one of their most positive attributes being their ability to offer appropriate feedback in non-threatening ways.

Courtesy - Leaders to Leader