[jit-post-filter]
Welcome to the N2Growth blog, an extensive knowledge center of articles handpicked by our team of thought leaders. Our practice areas cover a broad range of information and knowledge that we regularly share to help you achieve success and create a positive impact in organizations. We encourage you to leave your comments, share your thoughts, and become a member of our growing community of some of the most influential Executive Leaders worldwide.
Successful Leadership Requires The Right Order Of Operation
Ever heard the following statement? “Focus on the what, not the how.” While this may appear to be sage advice, it’s actually quite the opposite. I find it troubling at two levels: Firstly, it’s a horribly incorrect and incomplete message. Secondly, far too many people in leadership positions seem perfectly content to follow this bad advice. In today’s column, I’ll share the reasons underpinning…
Why Your Leadership Is Overrated
How are your leadership skills? Likely not as good as you think. There’s no shortage of independent empirical data generated over the years supporting the fact most people tend to overrate their leadership ability. The best leaders the world has ever known had room for improvement – so do you. I've always said leaders need to get over themselves and get on to the practice of leadership. In…
Leadership Isn’t About Checking Boxes
Today’s post is a short rant, but one every leader should take to heart – STOP CHECKING BOXES. Leadership isn't about checking boxes, anyone who believes leadership can be reduced to task management is simply flawed in their thinking. Here’s the thing - you can manage to a list, but you certainly cannot lead to a list. A check the box approach to leadership accomplishes only one thing – it…
Change: Three Essentials For Every Leader
The sustainability of any organization hinges on leadership's ability to understand, embrace, and implement change. Whenever leaders are surveyed about what keeps them awake at night, “change” is usually at or near the top of the list. When change initiatives fail, so do leaders. When brands fall into decline, and organizations implode, it's often due to a company's inability to change. In…
The #1 Reason Companies Make Bad Hires
Do you ever find yourself wondering how so many good companies can make so many bad hires? The fact is, all the rigorous and sophisticated hiring processes employed by the best companies in the world don’t prevent this issue. The good news is, addressing one single factor can easily prevent bad hires. The #1 reason companies make bad hires is they compromise, they settle, they don’t hire the best…
Leadership and Conflict
Here's the thing - leadership and conflict go hand-in-hand. There's no getting around the fact leadership is a full-contact sport, and if you cannot address conflict in a healthy, productive fashion then you should not be in a leadership role. I would submit effectively dealing with conflict is one of the most valuable skills a leader can possess. From my perspective, the issues surrounding…
A Leadership Job Description
When was the last time you read a leadership job description? We have job descriptions for every position under the sun, but I’ve yet to see one for leaders. Virtually every job description you’ll read lists “leadership ability” as a quality/characteristic/attribute that is valued, and in fact, most list it as a requirement. So why is it we place so much value in leaders, when we can’t even…
Leadership & Curiosity
Have you ever noticed how the best leaders also tend to be the most curious leaders? Great leaders simply aren't satisfied with what they know. They possess an insatiable curiosity for discovery and learning - they are in constant pursuit of what they don't know. Real leaders are not nearly as concerned with the status quo (stasis) as they are with betterment (change). Since the dawn of time, the…
Strategy, Capability & Really Bad Advice
Today’s post is a rather short rant, but one I felt compelled to put forth. I just finished reading an article where the author (a self-professed innovation guru) recommended strategy be aligned with capability, and that to allow ambition to exceed capability is nothing short of a recipe for disaster. If this sounds like rational thinking to you, I’d encourage you to read the text that follows…
Leadership & Perception
We’ve all heard the saying “perception is reality,” but is it true? Does perception never, rarely, sometimes, or always equal reality? While I long ago reached the conclusion perception does in fact matter, it may not be for the reasons you might think. I have found the majority of people tend to be myopic with regard to perception - they understand their own perceptions but are quite often…
Extreme Makeover – Leadership Edition
The fastest transition from inept to adept occurs when leaders turn the topic of change on themselves. When was the last time you changed something about you? Not someone or something else, but your thinking, your philosophy, your vision, your approach, your attitude, or your development. Most leaders are quite skilled at embracing change – except when the focus of the change initiative happens…
Leadership Is About Breaking Things
There's often a very subtle difference between those who lead and those who lead well - those who lead well are very forward-focused. If you're more interested in protecting what is than you are finding the answer to what if you might be in a leadership role, but your likely not leading well. Order isn't all it's cracked up to be. In fact, I'd go so far as to say routine is the great enemy of…
Stop Negotiating – It Doesn’t Work
Negotiation isn't all it's cracked up to be. In fact, I believe this to be an inherently flawed business practice. Negotiation is not an art to be mastered, rather it's a sloppy approach to be avoided. While many consultants, authors, and trainers have made personal fortunes teaching the finer points of negotiation, it is my belief they have accomplished little more than to create legions of…
Leadership and Office Politics
This is the time of year when most of us turn our attention to presidential politics, but let us not forget that business is also political - to think otherwise is simply naïve. Office politics exist in every organization without regard for industry, structure, culture, or values. Good leaders will do what they can to align interests/actions on matters more important than individual political…
Leadership & The Expectation Gap
When it comes to leadership, I can share the issues of creating and delivering on expectations are no small matter. In fact, understanding how to come out on the right side of the expectation curve can often be the difference between being viewed as an average leader and one held in high regard. Let me make this as simple as I can; managing expectations is gamesmanship - aligning them is…
Great Leaders Are Interesting – Are YOU?
Let's face it - the best leaders have always grabbed our attention and piqued our imagination. They have a way of captivating, fascinating, and intriguing us. It’s the interesting people with whom we want to engage, as they’re the ones who inspire and motivate us to be better and do more. The simple truth is few of us desire to be led by those whom we don’t find interesting. So my question is…