What’s Your Edge?

For all those who strive to be successful in their professional lives, whether they work for a corporation or they are an entrepreneur, there are a few things they (or should I say you) definitely need to have in order to achieve and keep their edge.

Having a vision is critical to being able to climb the corporate ladder. Your vision is what will allow you to stay motivated while working toward achieving the goals you've set for yourself. Goal-setting isn't always easy, as there is an art behind it that involves knowing how to set realistic and achievable goals while also managing your time and energy as you spend time completing the necessary actions to meet your milestones along the way that ultimately lead you right into the hands of success.

Knowing your vision and taking action to make it a reality takes more than just yourself. You need a support network that will act not just as cheerleaders to help keep you motivated but also to be the "naysayers" and play devil’s advocate. These elements, when combined, create a recipe for success. In order for you to earn the promotion to the next rung, you need something we call respect. Respect is a two-way street. Not only do you need to hold respect for those to whom you report, but those who report to you and those on the same level must do the same.

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Employee Motivation: A Secret Society?

Motivation is a key ingredient to success. This is not a news flash by any means, and all managers and good leaders embrace some degree of motivational program for their employees; whether they do this consciously or subconsciously, they all do it. Motivation is not some secret society either, but the secret to motivation is the "what" behind it. So what is the "what" anyway?

It's a great question and one that every great leader seeks to answer—although the answer is never the same twice! So that is what makes motivation part of a secret society, remembering and understanding the same employee will have different motivators at different times of her life? And yes, different times can be as often as yearly, monthly or even daily. This is the "what" behind keeping your employees motivated and feeling empowered.

Now that you're a part of this secret motivational society and you’ve been let into the inner sanctum, you're reading this and still thinking, "What? That isn't a news flash, either!" And yes, you would be right—but the news flash is the remembering that translates into engaging in some form of communication with your employees regularly to ensure you're in the know of what their current motivator is or might be. Regular communication is the real secret ingredient to realizing your success as a great motivational leader.

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Business Leadership: Leading with Social Responsibility

Over the last several years that I've been working with business owners, entrepreneurs and those seeking to begin their own businesses, there seems to have been an underlying theme revolving around leadership. I recently wrote an article ("The Meaning and Essence of Business Leadership") and thought it would be beneficial to continue this topic with the focus on Social Responsibility. We know leaders are not made; nor are they "born," even though there are individuals who seem to exude all the necessary qualities that make a great leader and are therefore are referred to "born leaders." But what is this sought-after set of skills and abilities that makes you a great leader, and do you possess the desire to become a great leader? If you are asking yourself these questions (as well as can you do if you want to acquire these leadership skills not just from a business perspective but possibly from a personal one), read on.

The first quality is respect; individuals can easily look up to and respect you as a leader if you respect them. Their respect will be based on your ability to communicate easily and compassionately your expectations of them. This is the second quality of a great leader: being a compassionate communicator. Within your mutual respect, your communication style will be inspiring. Those whom you lead will feel empowered by you to step out and up into their reaching for their goals—one of which will be to "please" you and to live up to your expectations. So the third quality is being able to inspire those who follow you. Now that we’ve covered three qualities that support being a great leader, let’s look at what might be another quality on which we often focus and talk about less but is nevertheless equally (if not more) important; that is, business leadership is based on social responsiveness.

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