PICTURE THIS…YOU’RE A NEW MANAGER WITH YEARS OF PRACTICAL EXPERIENCE IN LEADING A PARTY OF ONE…YOU! You’ve spent your career exceeding your own expectations of what was possible, as well as those to whom you have reported, and suddenly, one day, your success catches up with you. You are asked to take a step forward and lead a group of people based on the success you’ve achieved and results you have delivered for your company. You are all at once thrilled and intimidated to your very core! You bask in the glow of the moment, you realize that the recognition of great results has now given birth to an amazing sense of fulfillment for you professionally and personally, but…you are also sensing the weight of the responsibility to lead others. Here are 7 smart tips to help you get started, stay focused, and lead effectively: 1. BE PREPARED…A great manager prepares and plans with patience, thought, and guile. As the saying goes, if you fail to plan…you plan to fail. 2. LISTEN…Solicit input and experiential guidance from trusted, seasoned advisors, positive mentors, fellow managers, and from your team. Part of the process absolutely demands that your people see you as a leader that respects their talents, ideas and opinions…This should garner you the same respect in return and more! 3. 5-MINUTE MEETINGS… Hold simple “5-Minute Meetings” to keep two-way lines of communication open at all times. Keep them short and on point. Communicate your ideas, plans, assessments and concerns openly when strategically possible in order to effectively express your direction, vision, expectations for execution. By doing this, we remove unnecessary resistance and potential execution disasters from unclear perceptions, responsibilities, and passive resistance. 4. TRUST…Delegate and demand responsibility based on the latitude you provide your team to make decisions on their own. Always foster environments where they can openly discuss concerns and challenges, but guide them to solutions, don’t fall into the trap of being the only source of solutions. Allow them to “fail with dignity” as long as the intent was in lock-step with the values and goals that you have instilled for your team. Reward those failures for the courage and thoughtfulness they required, because “noble” failures are best when recognized for the opportunity to learn from them. 5. “INSPECT WHAT YOU EXPECT!”…This simple mantra forces everyone to be honest about their performance…especially you! This keeps you on-track, focused and accountable for actions and results. 6. LEADERSHIP…Stick to what got you there in the first place. Your core values guided you this far, so stay true to them and yourself. Don’t pressure yourself in to short-cutting the path the excellence due to internal or external pressures. Long-term, value-based success begs for patience and commitment from true leaders. A true leader “sticks to their guns” in the face of real adversity. As a leader, you can be wrong, but never in doubt. That means making a real commitment to a philosophy, policy, process or decision without wavering. Wavering will smack of weakness, not flexibility. Never underestimate strong leadership’s power to engage, inspire, persuade and direct your constituency. 7. MEASURE & REPEAT…If we are to make improvements in performance, we need to set goals, gauge performance, repeat successes and learn from failure. This is the very essence of understanding the process of continual improvement. Remember, regardless of rank, title or office size, communication will drive your shared success. Respect, discipline and fortitude are hallmark qualities of great leaders and managers. And always, always remember to acknowledge the input and efforts of everyone on your team big or small. Feel free to email any comments or questions specific to your own circumstances at spc@appliedselling.com ! Begin with thought, but finish with action…