LESSONS FROM THE PAST YEAR

A YEAR OLD, A YEAR WISER.

ANNIVERSARIES ARE TIME TO REFLECT ON HOW TO BETTER ONESELF AS A LEADER.

 

4 KEY QUALITIES OF TRANSFORMATIONAL LEADER (B.M BASS AND B. J. AVOLIO)
ON TAKING RISKS AND ACTION	I’d rather regret doing something than regret not doing something -       Jams Hetfield	-       Don’t over think decisions -       Indecision is worse than making a bad decision -       Be comfortable with the uncomfortable, and uncomfortable with the comfortable -       Be familiar with the unfamiliar, and unfamiliar with the familiar -       Life is not fair (in the human eyes); deal with it and move on -       Figure out what we don’t want to do -       Small deeds are better than great deeds planned -       Visible output is a good sign of progress -       Ideas that just stays in your head is as good as nothing
ON FACING ADVERSITY	I always think that cynics are really romantics who have been crushed sometime in their lives and have put up this cynical mask to protect  themselves -       Jeff Bridges	-       Prove the critics wrong by showing rather than telling -       When provoked, the best policy is to ignore -       People who love controversy feed on your emotional responses to fuel more controversy -       Play the 80-20 rule: sometimes, in order to fulfill a bigger purpose (the 80%), we have to compromise and do things we don’t fully agree with (20%) -       There are black grey and white scenarios in ethics. o   Never do something in black o   When asked to do something in grey, bring the matter into the white o   When keep compromising values and do things in grey, you won’t know when grey starts becoming black -       Never response to something when emotions are high
ON PERSONAL GROUND	The most important investment you can make is in yourself -       Warren Buffet	-       Your career can only go as far as your personal growth and development -       Curiosity is a huge asset -       People who are curios ask more questions, care more, and learn more -       Resourcefulness is street-smartness -       Journaling forces us to transform the clutter in our minds into coherent stories -       Putting thoughts in words provides clarity and helps us see beyond the negativity -       Live on the 3G principles: o   Be Grateful o   Always Give o   Keep Growing
ON PEOPLE ISSUES	Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle you know nothing about -       Ian MacLaren	-       Trust your guts when it comes to people -       Lear how to have difficult conversation early on -       Humans are very complicated, and sometimes we have to peel a few layers to understand underlying issues -       Build empathy by sharing how you feel -       Start conversation from a more constructive tone -       Offer constructive criticism, delivered in the right way at the right time, rather than assigning blame -       Balance it with praise, appreciation and acknowledgement -       Always proactively think of solutions first before raising an issue
ON LEADERSHIP	Good leaders energize people.  Bad leaders drain life out of people	-       When in crisis mode, pause and take a deep breath; then smile and calmly say that everything is going to be okay -       Leading with vulnerability means that you’re willing to put yourself at risk in the way you communicate and interact with employees -       People trust leaders who don’t need to prove their superiority -       Listen authentically means doing it with the intention of understanding another’s world view -       To influence people to see your way, be open to see what they see and feel what they feel so that barriers that cause people to withhold trust can be broken -       People will move mountains for you if they know that you genuinely care about them and not just about results. -       Leadership isn’t about the leader, but rather those being led -       Take interest in the people’s career aspirations and value their opinions -       Everyone has something that they’re naturally good at -       Accept your own strengths and build a team around you with other superpowers you don’t have
ON SUCCESS AND HAPPINESS	Success is about liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it -       Maya Angelou	-       Write your own eulogy: what people will say about you when you die -       Success is a peace of mind that you did your best to reach your full potential and purpose -       Much of our own unhappiness or dissatisfaction with life is in our heads -       We can choose to change the way we see things -       There are 2 kinds of happiness, internal and external o   External happiness is fleeting, dependent on your environment and what happens day-to-day o   Internal happiness is found within your core; being comfortable where you are in your life, self-accepting, self-confident and have self-love, -       Happiness or success is only real when shared
ON FAMILY FRIENDSHIP AND LOVE	Love cures everything	-       Our upbringing and childhood influences so much of our character and values in adulthood -       Understand your past to understand present behaviours -       Don’t let your past define who you are and who you want to be -       Hurt people almost always hurt other people -       Forgive hurt people so that they can forgive themselves and the people who have hurt them -       Expectations are the biggest cause of unhappiness for most people -       Reduce expectations; just give and love out of abundance -       Have deep connections with others by being open and vulnerable o   Vulnerability leads to authenticity o   Authenticity leads to more meaningful conversation -       Do not take quality time for granted -       The greatest gift is to be fully present for the people you care

Article Shared From

Cheryl Yeoh

Startup Stories

SMEBIZ, Monday, 06 April 2011