I am blessed to know some of the most talented and skilled people in the world. Their abilities amaze me.

Some are artistic, like a coaching client who is a syndicated cartoonist, now putting his talent  to work in a very meaningful way. Or my friend Scott Stearman, whose captures expression in sculptures so powerfully, they move people to tears. Some are musically inclined like my friend Jason Garey, or gifted writers and speakers, like my mentors John C. Maxwell and Dan Miller.

So what, of all these abilities, is the greatest ability?  Is it art, music, performing arts, genius?

None of the above, actually.

The late Dr. Bob Jones, Sr. said it best:

“The greatest ability is dependability.”

We’ve all seen talented folks with incredible potential who lack dependability. They don’t have the stick-to-it factor we call dependability or reliability. They may show up to perform flawlessly one week and then fail to show up at all the next. Over time, they lose credibility.

We’ve also seen people of lesser talent exceed the success of the ultra-talented, simply by pushing forward and being dependable.

I think of “A” students – valedictorians – voted “most likely to succeed”, and top in athletic talent (all in one enviable package!) who go into life and do…nothing. This is sad. And I’ve seen “C” students go on to become multi-millionaires.

We are each endowed with a special gift. It is often my pleasure to help folks unearth that gift. But we have a responsibility to use that gift.

This combination of ABILITY and DEPENDABILITY is a tried and true formula for success, and both components are essential.

Take the time to discover your strengths, and then take the initiative to apply them consistently.

Your results will never be the same.

The post What Is Your Greatest Ability? appeared first on Strength Leader.

What one thing do employees dread more than any other?

A.      Going to the Dentist

B.      Attending Meetings

C.      Performance Reviews

You guessed it – “C” it is! At least, that’s the impression you get from a lot of folks. And managers, well, they dread them, too. It’s a once-a-year paperwork fiasco, followed by a five-minute meeting in which an employee finds out what they did wrong (six months earlier!), then three bullet points of positive reinforcements, and a two percent pay raise. Both parties provide the obligatory signatures, and another year of ambiguity ensues.

Now while I do agree that there needs to be measurable progress reporting, I would much rather see it done a little differently. Here are some ways to make performance reviews work more effectively for you and your team.

1.  When someone does something well, recognize it immediately.
Pay raises are great, but a good word or hand-written note of appreciation can be almost as significant. Plus, the immediate feedback guides the employee into knowing what type of work exceeds expectations.

2.  When someone does something wrong, deal with it promptly.
There may be a good reason for it, or it could be a misunderstanding. It could even be – brace yourself – the leader’s fault! Always attack the problem and not the person, and then move on. Dealing with it promptly helps the employee know what not to do going forward.

3.  Get to know your people, and communicate with them in terms they understand.
There’s a scene in the movie The Blind Side where the character playing Michael Oher is not performing up to his coach’s expectations. It appears he just does not “get” the game of football at all. Then Sandra Bullock (who portrays his guardian-mother in the movie), walks over to Michael and explains football in terms he can understand – that he is protecting his family.

I love the part where she says to the coach, “You should really get to know your players, Burt. Michael scored in the 98th percentile in protective instincts.”  

Once Michael understood football in his terms, his strength catapulted him into the record books. What happens when a coach gets to know his players? They do things like win the Superbowl. And, leaders, when your team members win, you win.

4.  Provide regular feedback to your team.
This comes in the form of daily interactions, weekly meetings, and monthly progress updates. Include your team in goal setting and review progress regularly. Once a year is not “regular.”

5.  Listen.
When you only meet with an employee once a year to conduct a performance review, you are not going to be able to give a true assessment, and you are not going to get honest, open feedback. But if you interact with your team on a daily basis and listen to their ideas and concerns along the way, you will be amazed at the results.

This approach to performance reviewing

beats a root canal any day!

The post I’d Rather Have a Root Canal appeared first on Strength Leader.

I hereby give you permission to do something that is normally frowned upon in society, permission to do what some call crazy, permission to walk on the wild side.

Go ahead…talk to yourself!

But there’s one rule  – you must talk to yourself as kindly as you speak to others. You must be polite and encouraging.

Hmmm…do you suddenly find yourself at a loss for words?

Is it awkward?

The fact is, if we talked to others like we talk to ourselves, we would probably get arrested! Think about it. Would you allow someone to call you an idiot and tell you that you can’t do anything right? Would you let them tell someone you love that they are worthless? Of course not. And yet, this is how most people talk to themselves on a daily basis.

It is heartbreaking to see an adult who was verbally abused as a child. They are easy to recognize – shoulders slumped, quiet, head down. They lack self-confidence. They may be highly intelligent, but think of themselves as stupid. They may be attractive, but when they look in the mirror, they see an ugly image. Why? Because somewhere in life, words were said that convinced them they were worthless.

If you’ve ever had the pleasure of seeing someone speak positively and sincerely to someone like this about something specific they’ve done, you will notice that all of a sudden, they stand tall, raise their head, and smile just a little.

This illustrates the power of words and thoughts.

They can be weapons…or tools.

I’ll let you in on a secret: the most successful people I know talk to themselves. They know how to use words and thoughts as tools for success. Their inner conversations go something like this, “You can do it!” Or, “So you made a mistake. You’ll find a better way next time,” Or, “Don’t worry about it – you don’t have to be perfect.” Or, “Maybe you didn’t finish, but you got further than you would have if you didn’t try.” And one of my favorites, “There HAS to be a way, and I’m going to find it!”

Does it really matter what you say to yourself? You bet it does! Our minds tend to interpret our thoughts as reality. So make your thoughts good ones.

Join us Monday night, May 6,

on the Leadership Insight Show

to meet Melissa Malueg,

a very special guest who specializes in successful self-talk.

If you’re guilty of verbal self-abuse, you need to listen to this show!

The post Go Ahead, Talk To Yourself appeared first on Strength Leader.

Boxes are great inventions. They can hold just about anything – from mementos to gifts to files to refrigerators!

On the other hand, they can become depositories for indecision, which is often why, when folks are moving, they come across several “mystery” boxes from previous moves.

Just as a household needs boxes, businesses do as well.

A business needs structure, but it also needs creativity. Where a lot of organizations – especially the larger ones that have been in business a long time – go wrong is they try to put everything in a box. Then there are new, trendy businesses who try to do everything outside the box. Neither is a good model.

How do you know what goes in the box and what does not?

It is really very simple.

Things that need structure and protection go in the box. 

In a business, this includes scheduling, policies, business design, legal, insurance, and financial systems. Having these in place protects the organization. Visit them annually, but don’t change them often. Changing these items on a frequent basis weakens the foundation. Set them up solidly and store them safely.

Things that involve creativity and frequent change need to live outside the box.

Where a lot of businesses go wrong is that they try to keep everything in the box. This limits creativity and results in stagnation. This would include the creative areas like marketing, communications, product development…and to a degree, IT. If your organization has not updated its computer systems in ten years, it might be time to pull that out of the box. If you are doing the same things all the time and getting the same results, it is time to release your more creative players from the box. The results may surprise you.

Time to let your creativity out of the

“mystery” box?

The post What Goes In The Box appeared first on Strength Leader.

Think back – maybe way back for some of us – to chemistry class. There we learned about chemical reactions and how two different substances could be combined and, with the proper catalyst, you could end up with a substance that was totally different from the first two. The catalyst caused the chemicals to combine at a deep, cellular level.

Here’s the thing, this can be used for good–

or it can be used for evil.

Sadly, this week in the Boston Marathon bombings, we have seen the effects of a destructive catalyst. The search is on for this catalyst(s). A pressure cooker, ball bearings, batteries, circuit boards – all of those are simple, inanimate objects. The problem comes when you have a destructive catalyst who uses those components to hurt people on a massive scale and at a deep level.

A destructive catalyst is a person with strengths – often a very intelligent person. But those strengths are grossly misapplied. And that’s when they become dangerous.

We need good catalysts – those who use their strengths to effect good changes on a massive scale instead. In Boston, right after the explosion, we immediately saw these good catalysts surface – they were average citizens who helped traumatized strangers; they were emergency responders, doctors, and nurses. We call good catalysts heroes.

This week is a reminder that we need more heroes – more leaders who are willing to be good catalysts to bring about the changes that are needed in our homes, our businesses, our ministries, and our country.

Use your strengths wisely. Just think how different the world would be if everyone applied their strengths as a good catalyst.

Be a catalyst…and be a great one!

The post Are You A Catalyst? appeared first on Strength Leader.