Try, Try Again

We all deal with frustrations, rejection, and disappointments. It certainly does not feel good, but what matters is how we react to and learn from them.

When things don’t go the way you desire, what behaviors do you exhibit? Granted there are varying degrees of failure, but are you more inclined to rise to the occasion and face the challenge head on, are you more inclined to retreat, or do you re-evaluate the experience and revise or create new aspirations?

A little more persistence, a little more effort, and what seemed hopeless failure
may turn to glorious success.
–Elbert Hubbard

Failures That Turned to Glorious Successes

Abraham Lincoln

  • Experienced 12 major failures before being elected the 16th President of the U.S.

Albert Einstein

  • His teachers said “he wouldn’t amount to much.”

Ludwig van Beethoven

  • Beethoven’s music teacher once said “as a composer, he is hopeless.”

Steve Jobs

  • He felt he was a public failure when he was fired from Apple.

Michael Jordan

  • Was cut from his high school basketball team because of his “lack of skill.”

John Grisham

  • His first novel was rejected by sixteen agents and twelve publishing houses.

Walt Disney

  • Was fired from a newspaper for his lack of imagination.

The Beatles

  • In 1962, they were told they “had no future in show business” and that “groups with guitars are on the way out.”

We can dream, but we must also be realistic.

Self awareness is important. What are your strengths? Can they be further developed?

Passion is critical! What are your aspirations? Do you have a plan in place?

What barriers are getting in your way? What help do you need to navigate around them?

Persistence is a behavior exhibited by the successful; that’s why effective leaders never give up or give in!  How persistent are you?

Networking – It’s Invaluable!

Networking. What does that mean to you? How do you get started?

It’s been loosely defined as a structure consisting of individuals or organizations with some form of commonality. It could be regional, religious, industry specific, fraternity relationships, or any other affiliation linkage.

Why Networking is Important

Clearly, networking is important for leadership and professional success. But why?

We think Matthew Moran says it perfectly:

I view professional networking as the single most important skill in career development.

Some networking seems to happen automatically. A relationship may develop through good work ethics, shared behaviors and values, appreciated skills, or the successful attainment of common goals. Other times a bit more work is required.

To get started, identify your interests. (We’ll stick with career networking.) What line of work are you in? What is your position? What do you aspire your position to be? You may not be seeking a promotion or a new position now, but establishing network ties and having the time to strengthen relationships will serve you well.

PeopleTek’s Networking Suggestions

  • Maintain relationships with past co-workers/customers/bosses.
  • Utilize past relationships to increase your business contacts.
  • Create a “board of directors” that will provide you with impactful feedback and share growth and career opportunities for you.
  • Seek a mentor at work, preferably a higher ranking person that can prepare you for the next level, provide a reference, and possibly open new doors for you.
  • Attend industry/network events.
  • Ask for business cards and send an email as a follow-up.
  • Practice engaging strangers in conversation. A sample conversation could include:
    • What do they like best about their job?
    • What skills do they consider to be their strength?
    • What would they like to see change?

In Summary

Don’t procrastinate! Establish a network now.

Join organizations with the potential to further your career.

Develop your people skills. What could you do better?

Are You Stuck?

Are you stuck? Do you find there are barriers impeding your progress?

PeopleTek’s Leadership Journey may be your solution. Our twelve-session, hands on leadership develop program:

  • Increases self-awareness
  • Maximizes strengths; minimizes weaknesses
  • Helps attendees better understand, coach, and lead others toward achieving shared goals

Leadership is not a one-time event. Learning to be an effective leader takes time, care, and attention. When you complete your journey, you will:

  • Understand your leadership style, and those of others
  • Have the skill to meet difficult situations head on
  • Better relate to and influence others

Whether you’re a tenured or newly promoted leader, or an individual contributor, you’ll learn new behaviors that remove obstacles that help attain desired goals.

We have 2 new sessions kicking off soon!

September 10th        Facilitated via teleconference; attend from any location!

October 15th             Facilitated in person in Phoenix, Arizona

And there’s something new:

Quick Coach. For one year you’ll have 24×7 access to hundreds of tips, techniques, and practice exercises that leaders find invaluable.

The Leadership Journey may also be facilitated in Spanish!

Are you providing your staff with the opportunities to realize their possibilities?

Contact us to learn more!

PeopleTek’s Leadership Journey guided me through a series of self discoveries that held the secret of improving my effective leadership behavior, techniques and processes. I learnt tools that can connect them to the work I am doing today.
–Lakshmi N Mahate, Engagement Manager, Syntel Inc, American Express Global Prepaid Technologies

The Journey exceeded expectations. It was very insightful learning about “me” and how to relate to others. The tools/instruments were very powerful and certainly increased my awareness levels. All management should take the class. It would facilitate focusing on listening and learning skills. The Journey opens minds to future capacity/growth and assists with how to manage and be managed.
–Dan D., Accelerated Ecom

For more testimonials from our Journey graduates, click here.

Leader Nelson Mandela

Today we want to highlight the leader Nelson Mandela. He is considered to be one of the world’s greatest leaders, and he certainly exemplifies courageous leadership.

In a nutshell:

  • Mr. Mandela was the first black President of South Africa (1994 to 1999) elected in a multiracial election.
  • He passionately addressed racism, poverty, inequality, and healthcare.
  • He was convicted of attempting to overthrow the government and sentenced to life imprisonment (he was released after 27 years).

Was he controversial? Yes! Did he live his life with passion and conviction? Yes! Did he lead with courage? Absolutely!

I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.
–Nelson Mandela

Mandela’s Courageous Accomplishments

  • President Mandela led negotiations to abolish apartheid and establish multiracial elections.
  • He established a new constitution.
  • He created the Truth and Reconciliation Commission to investigate human rights abuses.
  • He was a mediator between Libya and the U.K. in the Pan Am Flight 103 bombing.
  • He created the Nelson Mandela Foundation with the focus on combating poverty and HIV/AIDS.
  • He is recognized internationally for the many challenges he addressed head-on, and as a result, he has received hundreds of awards. Some include the Nobel Peace Prize (1993), the U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom (2002), Order of St. John (from Queen Elizabeth II), the Soviet’s Order of Lenin, the Bharat Ratna Award (from the government of India), and from Pakistan, the Nishan-e-Pakistan.

Quite the accomplishments; quite the courageous leader, one that we should all strive to emulate!

Passion and Persistence

In our CourageAbility series, we talk about “5 P’s.” After watching the movie “Lincoln,” I’m inspired to talk about two of the 5 P traits which are frequently used in conjunction with one another: passion and persistence.

These two traits are a must for any leader. Your passion comes from deep in your soul and must be identified and not feared. (It can be described as courage.) After seeing the movie, it struck me hard as to how determined and passionate Abraham Lincoln was in his beliefs.

If the movie is an accurate portrayal of his leadership (and I have no reason to assume otherwise) then it clearly demonstrates how his passion is applied with a specific focus and purpose. While many were badly hurt and killed during the Civil War, Lincoln persisted in carrying out actions that had some negative impacts.

His passion and persistence were necessary ingredients to carry an entire nation forward. He did not give up; he was determined to free slaves and put a proclamation into law. While it was unpopular by many for all men, women and children to be free, he chose to take a stand. The movie portrayed how difficult this was, and how significant the risks were. I’ve read several books on Lincoln’s leadership and highly recommend them as a study.

Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan press on has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.
–Calvin Coolidge

In the book, For Your Improvement, Michael Lombardo and Robert Eichinger suggest the following skills are needed in a leader. Please rate yourself in these areas. How would others rate you?

  • Doesn’t hold back anything that needs to be said
  • Provides current, direct, complete, and actionable positive and corrective feedback to others
  • Let’s people know where they stand
  • Faces up to people problems for any person or situation quickly and directly
  • Is not afraid to take negative action when necessary
  • Pursues everything with a need to drive and finish
  • Seldom gives up before finishing, especially in the face of resistance or set-backs
  • Relishes leading
  • Takes unpopular stands
  • Encourages direct and tough debates but is not afraid to end them and move on
  • Is looked to for direction in a crisis
  • Faces adversity head on
  • Is energized by tough challenges

As with any skill, if we overuse them they can be a detriment. We need to develop the ability to know how much to apply and when. Are we a master at this? How can we get better?

My suggestion is to delve into your heart and determine what is meaningful to you and document it. What actions are you willing to take for these beliefs?  Will you give up at the first sign of resistance? What will be unpopular? How will you address the resistance?

At PeopleTek we define leadership as inspiring and empowering others to go where they’ve never gone before and wouldn’t go alone.

Think about passion and persistence. What risks are you willing to take to achieve what’s truly important to you?

As always, your comments and critiques are welcome!