February 2020 Leadership Development Carnival

Welcome to the February 2020 Leadership Development Carnival! We’re excited to share posts from leadership experts from around the globe on the topics of  communication, development, engagement, team building, and more.

Communication

Jeff Evans of Designed Learning shared Influencing Without Direct Control. Jeff writes: “As I think about all of the relationships of my life, power seems to have a major role. I believe our search for power is the wrong search. What I want is influence with others so that I am heard, and my ideas are utilized.” Connect with Jeff on Twitter at @FlawlessWrkshps.

Diana Peterson-More shared The Dialogue of Delegation: Be Focused and Intentional. Diana explains: "The ability to delegate is a key leadership competency. Yet many supervisors and managers on the road to becoming valuable and valued leaders fail to do so. As challenging and even daunting as delegation may be, if the delegator communicates strategically, clearly, concisely, and intentionally, it makes the job easier. Key to the successful communication is checking for understanding." Find Diana on Twitter at @DianaPMAuthor.

Eileen McDargh contributed To Survive and Thrive in 2020 - Find Inflection Points. Eileen explains: "Find your inflection points by getting out of your normal 'zone.' Seek people whom you haven’t spoken to and then listen, naively listen." Connect with Eileen on Twitter at @macdarling.

Development

Bernd Geropp provided How to become a better manager at work. Bernd shares: "As a manager today, it isn’t enough to just simply focus on results and the financial bottom line. Today you need also to have good human skills to be successful. Therefore, I'll give you my 3 best tips for how to become a better manager.” Find Bernd on Twitter at @moreleadership.

Joel Garfinkle of the Career Advancement Blog shared Get Promoted at Work: Your 10-Point Plan. Joel summarizes: "Gary had been with his media company for a little less than a year. He recently had a very positive performance review in which he’d voiced his ability to handle greater responsibility. His boss had agreed. However, just after that review, a coworker in the same type of role received a promotion, only a year from her last one." Find Joel on Twitter at @JoelGarfinkle.

Randy Conley of Leading with Trust provided Newly Promoted Manager? Here are 10 Must-Have Items for Your Survival Kit. Randy shares: "Stepping into a management role for the first time is a daunting task for anyone. Wouldn't it be nice if every new manager was issued a survival kit? In this fun post, Randy Conley shares 10 essential items that will help new managers survive their transition into a leadership role." Follow Randy on Twitter at @RandyConley.

Mary Ila Ward of Horizon Point Consulting contributed 3 Tips for Leading Well in 2020. What are your key focus areas for leading well in 2020? Mary Ila shares the ABC's necessary to be a leader in 2020. Connect with Mary on Twitter at @maryilaward.

Marcella Bremer of Positive Culture shared Ethical Culture at Work. Marcella asks, "How many people does it take to change an organization's strategy? Check out these four ethical tests—and see how you can influence others for the better." Follow Marcella on Twitter at @MarcellaBremer.

Steve DiGioia provided Which 5 Traits Would You Choose to Build the Ideal Customer Service Agent?. Steve writes: "Imagine if you could build the ideal customer service agent. What would you do? What skills would you desire? What personal characteristics are so important to you, and your customers, that each new hire is required to possess? Do you need a leader or will other traits be enough?" Find Steve on Twitter at @stevedigioia.

Shelley Row of Insightful Leadership shared To Create an Organizational Vision, Connect the Dots. Shelley considers: "If you were leaving this job in five years, what footprint would you leave behind? Good question. Vision requires you as a manager or leader to connect the dots—first to see them, and then have time to step back and think about how they connect." Connect with Shelley on Twitter at @shelleyrow.

Karin Hurt of Let's Grow Leaders provided Four Words that Help You Build a Powerful Team. Karin shares: "When you can barely keep your head above water, the last thing you feel like doing is to go ask your team how you can help. You’re just asking for more work, right? Actually, no." Follow Karin on Twitter at @letsgrowleaders.

Chris Edmonds of The Purposeful Culture Group shared Culture Leadership Charge: Make Culture Change Stick. In this video post, Chris considers: "How often have you seen change efforts fail? It happens all the time. If your change effort isn’t gaining traction, I’ll bet you’re missing a key element–senior leaders championing the change, daily." Follow Chris on Twitter at @scedmonds.

Ken Byler of Higher Ground Consulting Group contributed Details Matter. Ken writes: "Our grand plans won't execute on their own. Decisions large and small are all about the details." Connect with Ken on Twitter at @kenbyler.

Engagement

John Stoker of DialogueWORKS shared Do people trust you? Advice for building trust and inspiring confidence. John writes: "We don't often realize how our behavior impacts the amount of trust that people have for us. The questions in this post are intended to help you think about how your behavior and whether you need to make some changes to improve the trust people have for you." Follow John on Twitter at @JohnRStoker.

Erik Samdahl of i4cp contributed What I Learned from i4cp's Research on Culture Change. Erik summarizes: "This article looks at four consistent areas of successful culture change, which includes the importance of having a CEO as the ultimate culture champion, and leadership training to embrace any new values introduced." Connect with Erik on Twitter at @i4cp.

Julie Winkle Giulioni shared 2020 Vision: One Thing Leaders Must See Clearly in the Coming Year. Julie explains: "If there’s one thing in particular that demands leadership consideration and clarity as we enter a new decade, it’s the duality that exists between the ideas of progress and pause. Progress or forward momentum and idle, quiet periods of pause are two sides of the same coin. One cannot exist without the other. Cultivating and balancing both are required for sustainable success." Follow Julie on Twitter at @julie_wg.

Ann Howell of Science of Working contributed Build your Diversity and Inclusion Strategy Today. Ann writes: "An inclusive workplace will improve your business and empower employees. These six thought starters will help you build a Diversity & Inclusion strategy." Connect with Ann on Twitter at @drannhowell.

Jon Mertz of Thin Difference provided Three Imperatives for 2020 and One Wish. Jon shares: "Whether you are a business, community, or political leader, we need to embrace these three imperatives in 2020. The future of our business, community, and society depends on it." Follow Jon on Twitter at @thindifference.

Dan McCarthy of Great Leadership provided How to Harness the Power of Empathy for Effective Leadership. Dan writes, "Imagine: a leader who knows how to gain efficiencies, decrease costs, increase employee retention, and inspire customer loyalty based on taking another’s point of view? This is the power of empathy at work." Read Maria Ross's guest post to learn more. Find Dan on Twitter at @greatleadership.

Productivity

Wally Bock of Three Star Leadership provided Doing The Most Important Thing. Wally summarizes: "No matter how many things you have to do, only one can be the most important." Connect with Wally on Twitter at @WallyBock.

Neal Burgis of Successful Solutions contributed Completing High Value Work Instead of Wasting Time with Low Value Work. Neal explains: "Start looking at the work you have to do. Prioritize your work using high-value and low-value. Work on the high-value responsibilities in order to generate revenue producing results." Follow Neal on Twitter at @exec_solutions.

Bill Treasurer of Giant Leap Consulting contributed Do You Know Why Need A Strategic Plan?. Bill explains: "To communicate company goals internally and externally, your business must have a strategic plan. But why? Say your 2020 objective is to increase revenue by 20%, but you don’t tell anyone. How can you reasonably expect to achieve that goal? Don’t carry the burden of a secret expectation and then get mad at everyone else for missing the mark. You need to communicate this objective and find a team of people who are inspired to tie up their laces, show up with their game face, and stick to the plan." Follow Bill on Twitter at @btreasurer.

And More...

Lisa Fain of Center for Mentoring Excellence shared 4 Ways to Test Mentoring Assumptions. Lisa writes: "When mentoring partners make assumptions about one another or about their mentoring partnership without checking them for accuracy, it can lead to misunderstandings and erosion of trust and communication. Here's how you can start your relationship the right way." Connect with Lisa on Twitter at @lzfain.

Simon Teague of New Level Results shared The Incredible Power of Coaching. Simon summarizes: "When planning something as life changing as an expedition, it was essential for the team to have a rigorous selection process for their coach. They were looking to set 2 new world records to row the Pacific Ocean—what was the secret to their success?" Connect with Simon on Twitter at @newlevelresults.

Liz Weber of Weber Business Services provided Think Strategically - Ask Tough Questions. Liz writes: "The questions you do or don’t ask prior to and during your strategic planning process will determine if you create a plan that will actually guide you to a stronger future or a plan that won’t. Are you ready to think strategically & ask the tough questions?" Find Liz on Twitter at @lizwebercmc.

Jim Taggart of Changing Winds contributed From Chaos to Clarity of Purpose. Jim considers: "The beauty of un-predetermined results is the concept of being open to outcome, and which is accompanied by quickly adapting to the change. And from this will emerge the true purpose." Connect with Jim on Twitter at @72keys.

Thank you to everyone who submitted articles for this month's carnival! If you would like to be added to the distribution list for submission calls, please fill out this form and we'll be happy to add you to the list.