 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
 |
Peek Inside The Heads of Amazingly Successful Leaders
Would you like to know what really goes on inside the heads of astoundingly successful leaders? Here is your chance. Part of the research for my book Absolutely Fabulous Organizational Change? involved highly successful executives filling-out my Abilities & Behavior Forecaster? pre-employment test. Each of the executives I tested had planned and implemented organizational change resulting in $10-million - $1-billion in profit improvement. They hail from America's best-run companies, including IBM, VF Corporation, Intuit, Ritz-Carlton, Outback Steakhouse, Campbell Soup, Excell Global Services, Robert Mondavi Corporation, and more. In other words, you will discover what the best-of-the-best leaders at top-notch companies really are like. Optimism Fuels the Leader's Success Pessimism never won any battle (a quote by Dwight D. Eisenhower) My research revealed the fact that absolutely fabulous leaders are incredibly optimistic people. These leaders consistently scored high on the Forecaster? test's Optimism scale. This prompts the question: What is an optimist? In a book and audio-book I co-authored, "Spontaneous Optimism®: Proven Strategies for Health, Prosperity & Happiness", my co-author and I defined an optimist as someone who overwhelmingly (1) focuses on solutions, not problems (2) possesses a compelling vision for an exciting life (3) spends most of his or her time working on goals to achieve the vision (4) persists (5) takes total self-responsibility for personal successes and failures For example, Leonardo Inghilleri, senior vice president at The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, emphatically told me, Optimism is absolutely significant. I'm an optimist in life -- both my professional and personal life. You have to be positive. Nothing positive is created through negative thinking. Starting when I was a teenager, I always have had a personal mission statement to help me in my life. It helps me know where I'm going even when I am challenged. Or, as Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm." Highly Creative In order to be irreplaceable, one must always be different (a quote from Coco Chanel). Results on my Abilities & Behavior Forecaster? tests show that absolutely fabulous leaders are extremely creative. On the Forecaster? tests, the leaders' scores show a classic pattern for creative people: Specifically, they typically score both (1) low on the Following Rules scale (2) high on the Creativity Motivation scale If you think about this, it makes perfect sense. After all, what is creativity? It is not always following all the rules, as shown in the leaders' low score on the Forecaster? test's Following Rules scale. But, that is not enough. On top of that, these leaders also feel strongly motivated or enthused to do creative work. This is evidenced in their high score on Creativity Motivation. When you combine creative thinking with motivation to actually do innovative work, you wind up with the hallmarks of intensely creative people. Indeed, absolutely fabulous leaders certainly excel at conjuring up innovative, yet practical, solutions to propel their companies to vastly boost profits. In fact, a chief reason for high-level success in business and in life is a person's ability to continually create desirable opportunities. General Douglas MacArthur summed this up when he pointed out, "There is no security in this life. There is only opportunity." Tremendous Brainpower To the dull mind, all of nature is leaden. To the illuminated mind, the whole world sparkles with light (a quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson). Absolutely fabulous leaders usually are very, very smart people. This was verified in their scores on the Abilities & Behavior Forecaster? tests. Specifically, these amazing leaders scored amazingly high on the Forecaster? test's Problem-Solving scale. This scale measures a person's general level of intelligence or overall brainpower. The successful leaders also scored high on three other Forecaster? test scales of mental abilities, namely, Vocabulary, Arithmetic, and Grammar. What does this mean for you? For starters, if you are a bright person, use your brains! If you have average intelligence, then do everything you can to boost your brainpower. Take advantage of this old saying, "Use it or lose it." First, read books and articles to expand your mental horizons. Second, find absolutely fabulous leaders to be your role models. Carefully observe how they think through situations. Third, get the nutrition and rest you need to use your brain at its peak potential. Fourth, practice thinking through situations, and discuss your ideas with highly successful people who will help you sharpen your thinking. Overall, make sharp thinking into your habit. What's in Your Head? Now, you have the opportunity to examine yourself. How do you stack up compared to incredibly accomplished leaders? What precisely is your own level of optimism, creativity, and intelligent thinking? By peeking into the heads of magnificent leaders, you can use them as your role models when you decide how to improve what is inside your head. © Copyright 2001, 2005 Michael Mercer, Ph.D. Michael Mercer, Ph.D., is a consultant, speaker, and founder of The Mercer Group, Inc. in Barrington, Illinois. Dr. Mercer's "Abilities & Behavior Forecaster?" pre-employment tests are used by companies across North America. He delivers speeches and seminars at conferences and companies. He authored "Absolutely Fabulous Organizational Change?" and also "Hire the Best -- & Avoid the Rest?". You can (a) subscribe to his free e-Newsletter at http://www.DrMercer.com or (b) call him at 847-382-0690.
MORE RESOURCES:
Google News |
 |
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Leaders ARE; Are you? Identity CrisisIt's not only the knowledge you carry around in your head. More important to your effectiveness as a leader is your character - who you ARE. The Qualities of Skillful Leadership If you want to be a leader who attracts quality people, the key is to become a person of quality yourself. Leadership is the ability to attract someone to the gifts, skills, and opportunities you offer as an owner, as a manager, as a parent. Get What You Want - Negotiating Skills for the Timid! OK, I know this title sounds self-serving and hard nosed, but the article isn't! Whether it's buying a car, asking for a pay rise, saying 'no' to a friend or renting an apartment - at some stage in our lives we all are going to need to know how to negotiate. Yet, so few of us know the basic skills before embarking on life changing purchases or decisions!This article is written for those TIMID folk who want to feel more confident in the basic skills of negotiating. Exceptional Leadership Inspires the Best Effort in Others There is a steady stream being written and taught about leadership these days. There are tips about leadership, courses about leadership, books, retreats, and continuing education - all focused on leadership. Are You a Leader or a Manager? President Ike Eisenhower once demonstrated the difference between leadership and management to his cabinet by putting a piece of string in a straight line on the conference table. He then asked one of the attendees to put his finger on one end of the string and push it. Heres The REAL Reason Bush Won: The Dark Night Of The Leadership Soul George Bush won the election because he was finally able to break out of the presidential bubble and give "leadership talks" on a consistent basis.But to do it, he had to face the dark night of his leadership soul. Embracing Adversity for Achievement "Show me someone who has done something worthwhile, and I'll show you someone who has overcome adversity." -- Lou HoltzSuccess in life depends upon being strong people with clear goals and indomitable spirits. The Top 10 Questions for Socially Responsible Leaders The assets of your business traditionally include property, plant, equipment, and your customer base. Progressive organizations understand that business assets also include their good reputation, responsiveness to change, the ability to conduct a constructive dialogue with stakeholders, the ability to take advantage of networked resources, and a host of other non-traditional assets. On Being A Born Leader "Leaders are born, not made." Right? Let me ask you a question: do you believe that?I'll give you mine: I *don't* believe it. Managing Monsters in Meetings - Part 2, Multiple Conversations Side conversations ruin meetings by destroying focus and fragmenting participation.Approach 1: Ask for cooperationStart by asking everyone to cooperate. Leadership For Deep Results: Without Them Are You Wasting Your Leadership And Your Life? (Part One) I've challenged all leaders I have worked with during the past two decades to achieve "more results faster continually."They can get on track to start achieving such results not by working harder and longer but by slowing down and using Leadership Talks on a daily basis. Effective Leaders are (#3) Communicative LISTEN, WRITE, AND ARTICULATE EFFECTIVELY: Leadership positions require effective communication skills. Basic confidence in the art of information sharing is absolutely necessary for effective leadership. It's Not All About Cheese: The Missing Component in Employee Development (Part 1) Spencer Johnson really hit a nerve when he wrote Who Moved My Cheese? The book, a best seller still, is a wonderful allegory of the things that drive and motivate us. I personally loved the book, perhaps because I read it in one night. Effective Leaders are (#2) Technical SET CLEAR AND REASONABLE OBJECTIVES FOR THEMSELVES AND OTHERS: Plan? Plan? Plan? Managers need to do their homework. Effective managers know that setting objectives, outlining the steps required to achieve them, and delegating tasks appropriately to each staff person are all necessary components of bringing a project to fruition. Communication Skills & Leadership - Organizational Communications Processes in Leadership Activity "Sooth 't were a pleasant life to lead, With nothing in the world to do But just to blow a shepherd's reed, The silent season thro' And just to drive a flock to feed,- Sheep - quiet, fond and few!" - Laman BlanchardCommunication skills give leaders ways to connect with, understand and influence the needs of people. It would be so very pleasant to live the life depicted in Blanchard's musings. 10 Ways to Develop Your Latent Leader latent (adj.) - Not visible or apparent, but capable of developing or being expressed; dormant. Career Advice for Business Leaders: Empowering Others Many potential leaders in business sabotage themselves and their organizations out of fear of empowering others. In 21st Century Leadership: Dialogues with 100 Top Leaders, Lynne McFarland, Larry Senn and John Childress assert, "the empowerment leadership model shifts away from 'position power' where all people are given leadership roles so thy can contribute to their fullest capacity. Managing Monsters in Meetings - Part 1, General Strategies for Unproductive Behavior It happens easily. You're conducting a meeting and suddenly a small side meeting starts. The Essence of Leadership What is more important, leadership or teamwork? Leadership or consensus management? Today we hear frequently about teams, team-building, and teamwork on the one hand and management by consensus on the other. Although both teamwork and consensus building are critical skills in a leader, neither are substitutes for capable leadership itself. Leadership Training: The Bit They Didn't Tell You About Changing! A willingness to change first is one of the major pre requisites for leaders!If the situation is deadlocked or blocked, they need to find the best opportunity, shift their personal perspective to accommodate it and take action from there. This is no matter how personally attached they are to their current position!Three sixty degree feedback is a great example.
|
|
|
 |
 |
