BECOMING YOUR BEST: PRINCIPLES 9 - 12

SHARED FROM THE BOOK:

BECOMING YOUR BEST

(THE 12 PRINCIPLES OF HIGHLY SUCCESSFUL LEADERS)

STEVEN R. SHALLENBERGER

McGraw Hill Education

260 pages

 

 

 

 

PRINCIPLE 9: TRANSFORMATION LIVING: BE ACCOUNTABLE

 

Take responsibility and do what you say you will do

 

Take responsibility rather than blaming something or someone.  Evaluate what you could have done better.  Being accountable goes beyond just taking responsibility for your actions.  Being accountable requires a determination to never give up.

 

3 ACCOUNTABILITY STRATEGIES

1. Control what you can control

Control how you response to challenges, frustrations, and aggravations

Control your actions, thoughts and responses

You can’t change circumstances but you can change yourself

 

2. Develop relationship agreements

Helps avoid misunderstanding and sets clear expectations

 

3. Eliminate procrastination and follow through

Distractions are the doors for procrastination

 

 

 

 

 

PRINCIPLE 10: TRANSFORMATIONAL LIVING: APPLYING THE POWER OF KNOWLEDGE

 

Learn, learn, learn, and apply what you’ve learned to reach new heights

 

Actions and behavior follow the thoughts.  It will have an enormous impact on the ability to achieve dreams.  With knowledge and experience comes wisdom; which then allows us to make better use of knowledge.  Gaining knowledge will allow one to see things more clearly with a better understanding.

 

Humility is one of the most important qualities for leaders.  Humility allows us to be open to new thoughts and ideas.

 

 

3 APPROACH TO THE POWER OF KNOWLEDGE

1. Hunger to learn

2. Humility

3. Willingness to try new things

 

 

3 DYNAMIC WAYS TO GROW THROUGH KNOWLEDGE

i. Stimulate and exercise the mind

The quality of life is directly affected by the choices made

3 game changer:

a. develop the habit of reading at least one book a month

b. invest 3% of income acquiring more knowledge through seminars, training, books and personal development courses

c. surround yourself with people who inspire and lift you

Look for wise mind to consult

 

ii. Regularly access the external environment

The things that worked yesterday may not work tomorrow

Forces of change (external environment) are things outside your control

 

iii. Invite and get feedback

Use it as an improvement tool

Effective keys to gaining knowledge through feedback:

Assemble a network of people who will provide honest, insightful opinions

Know how to solicit and accept feedback through questions

Be prepared to accept feedback

Be quick to listen, humble, open and willing to learn from others

Feedback is a powerful way to get valuable information

Foster feedback by:

Complementing those who gave it

Taking it into account in visible ways

Giving positive responses

Best way to ask for suggestions and advice in an informal settings

 

 

 

 

 

PRINCIPLE 11: TRANSFORMATIONAL LIVING: LIVE IN PEACE AND BALANCE

 

Peace is not only in a place where there is no noise, trouble, or hardwork.

Peace is in the midst of things as they are,

When there is calm in your heart.

That is the real meaning of peace.

 

 

4 STEPS TO FINDING PEACE AMID TURMOIL

1. Increase balance in your life

Finding peace and balance requires inner strengths.

The 6 areas of circle of peace and balance:

i. Physical and emotional health

ii. Mental health

iii. Financial aspects

iv. Security and safety

v. Social life and relationships

vi. Spiritual life

if your life is not in balance, cruise along for a while, but remember: problems will occur and breakdown may be inevitable

 

2. Increase your peace through meditation

Taking a few moments during the day to relax or meditate can increase performance and effectiveness.

 

3. laugh often

Laughter and sense of humour are infectious

Laughter triggers healthy physical responses in the body

Strengthen the immune system

Increase energy

Reduces pain

Relieves stress

Humour can lighten burdens, brighten spirits, inspire hope, connect top others and help to stay focus

Laughter and a good sense of humour can change a tense situation into more inviting and relaxed

The ability to laugh at yourself maybe the beneficial form of humour

A strong sense of humour can help

Reduces stress

Overcome challenges

Strengthen relationships

Enhance physical and emotional health

 

4. See yourself in a positive light

Accept yourself, love yourself

Accept that you can’t always be perfect

Forgive yourself for mistakes and failures

Commit to learning from mistakes and failures and move forward

2 powerful tools

i. self affirmation (a positive, uplifting phrase that is repeated throughout the day)

ii. positive self-talk

 

 

 

 

 

PRINCIPLE 12: TRANSFORMATIONAL LIVING: NEVER GIVE UP!

 

Persist – and you will succeed.  Nobody is exempted from life’s challenges.  You should never fear failure.  Virtually everyone will experience failure or setback at some point.  We can learn great lessons from our failures and from the failure of others.

 

Our greatest glory is not in never falling,

But in rising every time we fall

-Confucius-

 

 

3 KEYS TO NEVER GIVE UP

1. Defeat the enemy

The greatest enemy is yourself

 

2. See the value of failure

As a learning process rather than a roadblock

 

3. Hold to a purpose that inspires you

Something that will drive you on

 

….the end….

WHISTLE BLOWERS: HEROES OR VILLAINS?

          Whistleblower, a hero to some and a villain to others.  A whistleblower stands on two diametrical ends of the spectrum and more often than not walks the lonely path of a no man’s land.

 

          Until the Enron saga unfolded, whistleblowing always had an uncomplimentary slant.  Whistleblowers themselves stigmatized as disloyal employees who create trouble for their employers.  Only now are perceptions beginning to change, as whistleblowing is now viewed as an accountability and risk management tool that can be used to safeguard the interest of the company and the public.

 

          A whistleblower’s act is seen like a betrayal of trust akin to biting the hand that feeds.  Experience has shown that whistleblower find themselves isolated from their colleagues and management, sacked, demoted, sued or otherwise victimized, usually for breach of confidence or for defamation.  The. The wondrous and courages acts of the whistleblower help unearth the Pandora’s box, cobwebs hidden in the cupboards, expose corruption, lay open debauchery and other transgressions which otherwise would remain hidden from the public eye.

 

          A whistleblower is defined as someone who discloses significant acts of corruption, waste, fraud, mismanagement or abuse of authority in contravention of the Country’s laws or regulations in either the public or private sector.  It up holds moral, ethical practices and professionalism.

 

          To blow a whistle, undoubtedly, requires extraordinary courage.  The whistleblowers dilemma is two-fold:

• Risks job and career prospects
• Engaging in what most people would deem slanderous and damaging activities.

credit to shutterstock

 

The truth is, bribery, the bending of safety rules and other unlawful acts are hard to detect without the help of whistleblowers.  It is necessary to protect those providing confidential information.  Few will share such information when the risk of being exposed is high.  Often the whistleblowers are painted to be the bad guy.

 

The law and a change of mindset are required to encourage whistleblowing but it is a difficult task.  The whistleblower will naturally face a dilemma between acting in the public interest and a sense of loyalty to management and colleagues.  It is crucial that this sense of loyalty and respect for authority do not over shadow the more basic values of what is right and wrong.  We must reinforce acceptance that loyalty to employees stop when public harm becomes an issue.

 

Whistleblowers are responsible people who have the courage to do as their conscience dictates.  Despite facing huge risks of reprisal and sometimes endangering their lives and their families, they have the fortitude and strength to stand up against the transgressions and their perpetrators.

 

Whistling is easy but blowing the whistle in business is not that easy.  It requires extraordinary courage and the recriminations that follow such selfless acts can sometimes bring down lesser mortals.

 

Whistleblowers can play an important role in the monitoring.  The presence of whistleblowers bring about a credible threat of discovery and prosecution to those who are guilty of crime, civil offences, miscarriage of justice, danger to health and safety or the environment, and the cover up of any those.

 

A healthy culture of whistleblowing is an essential building block of civil society.  But whistleblowers often face an uphill, seemingly insurmountable task, in bringing their concerns to public light.  The downside is that there are risks too – losing your job, unresponsive agencies who may not protect you, the emotional and mental cost to you and your family, friends may ostracize you,, and of course, retaliation.

 

Whistleblowing carries serious repercussions and you must be mentally strong to withstand the on-slaught of recrimination.  Tips on deciding whether to whistleblower:

1. Remaining strong

• Consider seeing a lawyer.
• Learn about protection against retaliation
• Weight the risks
   

2. Staying safe

• Trusting selected others
• Don’t take unnecessary risks
• Be careful who to trust and keep the number small
• Get all the evidence you can
• Keep a log in a bound book, ensuring no pages can be added or removed.
• Document everything applicable and regularly
• Keep it in a safe place
• Get copies it everything incriminating
• Weight of evidence and totality of the record will matter a great deal.
   

3. Thinking a head

• Prepare an ‘escape plan’ should you need to get out of the situation quickly and safely
• Remove all but essential material from your office
• Mentally practice escaping

 

4. Seizing the initiative

• Choose the time and place to announce your position
• If resigning, include a brief letter generally describing your reasons
• Delivering it in person along with unbiased witness

 

5. Maintaining high ground

• Don’t depreciate your position and cause by acting immaturely
• Avoid screaming and petty behavior.

 

 

Whistleblowers are courages people who act to protect others.  Whistleblowing in essence, comes down to courage to have or have not.

 

 

From article by:

                                                                                                      Eddie Lee

                                                                                                      Accountant Today

                                                                                                      September 2005

INNOVATION QUATIENT

Many people confused creativity with innovation.  Creativity is the ability to bring forth new ideas.  Innovation is the transformation of selected ideas into improved processes, marketable goods and services.  The conversion of ideas into profits is the essence of innovation.  Creativity or the power of idea creation is simply the starting point.  This brings us to the key point - it is innovation, not creativity that ultimately matters.

 

One of the major obstacle to innovation is the lack of creative leadership.  A truly creative leader sets an example for openness and imagination and assessment of ides from any quarters regardless of rank, file and age or source, whether internal or external.  A creative leader creates the conditions where human ingenuity can flourish.

 

Innovation mean relying on everyone’s creativity based on her belief that organizations are living systems rather than machines.  Margaret J. Whitley (consultant and professor of management) outlines 6 principles on the human dimension for innovations:

1. Meaningful engagement

• Discover what’s important
• Engage in meaningful issues
• Notice what people talk about and where they spend their energy
• No 2 people see the world exactly the same way

 

2. Encourage Diversity

• Different people do things differently
• Failure to encourage unique and diverse way of doing things will destroy capacity to innovate.

 

3. Involve anytime who is interested.

 

4. Unity in diversity

• Common purpose is what binds people together.

 

5. People will always surprise us.

• Listen to colleagues
• The act of listening brings people closer together
• Important not to attach any label to anyone.

 

6. Rely on human goodness

• People want to help
• People want to contribute
• Everyone want to feel creative and hopeful again.
• Turn to one another and engage in the intentional search for human goodness.

 

 

Innovation comes as much from the heart as from the head.  Passion for creativity must come first before any innovation can happen.  Creative leader must involve all their people and tap into their creative energies that take into account the human dimension of encouraging diversity, sharing a sense of purpose and recognizing that each person is a talented unique individual.

 

 

Shared from article by:

Yew Kam Keong

Accountants Today

September 2005