Welcome to the Leadership Solutions Blog!

As the workplace continues to shift and contract, future success will be based on leaders demonstrating their ability to collaborate and build effective relationships.  So, in the spirit of collaboration, we boldly request you share our information with as many people as possible as you seek to operate in a mindset of “abundance”.

Recently I achieved my coaching certification as a master practitioner of NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming – the science of how your thoughts affect your behaviors).  During my training I learned that it is possible to train your mind to “think and act within a state of abundance.”

Career success can be attained despite any obstacles you may encounter.  When you practice the key leadership principle of “thinking in abundance”, you begin to recognize that there is more than enough opportunity for everyone who chooses, to create the level of career or business success they desire.  Yes, even in today’s challenging times, you can achieve whatever you focus your mind on accomplishing.  Therefore, you no longer have to fear or be concerned with what someone else has that you may not have.  Thinking from a “mindset of abundance” opens up opportunities to collaborate and freely share information.

When times are tough and challenging, it can be real tempting to fall into the trap of “negativity”, “isolation” and “hoarding information”.  You can easily convince yourself that it is you against the world as you try not to become expendable in this current lean business model of cost cutting.

As an executive coach, I help leaders understand the significance of being a resource to others as a framework to achieve the future success you desire.  You need others just as much as they need you.  No one can stand alone and expect to succeed as the pace of meeting work expectations continues to accelerate.

Over the years as I have navigated climbing the ladder of success as a corporate leader and now as a business owner, I have discovered one guiding principle that stands the test of time:

Your skills will make room for you when you are willing to work with others and openly share your knowledge.

It is only when you share information will people truly understand the value you bring.  Today’s workplace dynamics demand that everyone work in alignment and become more accountable in order to achieve the continued success of the organization.  Your awareness of the direction and challenges within your environment is the first step in creating the necessary organizational alignment for success.

As you improve your awareness, I encourage you to identify the key relationships you will seek to co-partner with in the new world of work that is being created.

If you are struggling with determining your continued path to career success in this environment of constant change, contact me to discuss strategies you can implement to unleash your potential as a problem solver of today’s business challenges.

~Deborah Chambers Chima, CEO, Chambers Consulting Group, Ltd.

Collaborative Leadership Influence: The Secret Ingredient to Business Success

Do you find  the steps leaders must take to be effective can often be a long arduous process? Too often I observe current leaders relying on their position power, rather than their ability to use collaborative leadership influence to achieve the desired business results. As leaders, we must understand the power we have to use a collaborative approach versus a command and control approach is well within our control. Read more about Collaborative Leadership Influence

Collaboration: The Leadership Skill of the Future

Too often, senior leaders are focused on protecting their turf by relying on a leadership style of using command and control tactics instead of seeking opportunities to influence the behaviors of others by teaching collaboration.  They seem to have forgotten the basic management principle that you are only as good as your people make you. Read more about Collaboration as a Leadership Skill

 Why? I lost my mojo for encouraging leaders to show up and demonstrate your ability to collaborate and communicate with passion. I have spent a 30 year career encouraging and supporting leaders who desire to demonstrate a collaborative leadership style for the purpose of working effectively with other people to get the job done.

Yet, I am finding that those same good leaders are losing their jobs like mad. So as a leadership expert, it makes me wonder what does it really take to have a successful career in this new mad world that has been created over the last couple of years?

 If you communicate effectively, seek to collaborate with others no  matter how difficult they may be, strive to demonstrate leadership, and practically do everything right, shouldn’t one expect that they will not be found redundant and terminated?

I keep hearing from leaders who fit this description and who do even more at work and yet they are being terminated. Why? I think it is because corporate america decision makers no longer base their hiring or firing decisions on who has the most talent.

The decision is coming down to how can the company show the best profit to the shareholders regardless of the people who will be impacted.

So what is a collaborative, influential leader to do in order to remain employed? My gut tells me there is no answer other than……it is the luck of the draw so you have to find a way to add a high level of value.

The minute you stop attempting to influence your organization’s results or stop trying to communicate in a manner that keeps your people informed, you will become an unemployed leader and join all the rest of the people out their trying to survive with no job.

So in order to minimize the chance of this frightening dynamic happening to you, here is what I suggest:

• You can play the blues all the way to work each day and even sing every word to the lowest of the low song you know. But when you step out of the car and go inside; or if you work remotely, when you sit at your computer….you better play to win!
• Never compare yourself to anyone else. Work your heart out to distinguish how your work is the best in the planet. Never stop giving value.
• Create a trigger every time you start feeling sorry for yourself. Remember, if not for the grace of God there go you.
• To do your best to avoid being marginalized. Make sure your boss, your boss’s boss and every other senior leader you can get the nerve to talk to understands how the work you do is highly connected to the long term success of the organization. If it isn’t, you have got a problem.
•  Volunteer on committees.Just do what ever you have to do to find out what is most valued at work right now and then do your best to provide it.

This is not the time to be shy. Create every opportunity to demonstrate the value of what you do and you may make it through the cut. This time.

        You are an insightful and collaborative leader.  How can I help? Wouldn’t it be great to hear these words  immediately after you communicate your vision on an important topic?  Have you ever wondered how great leaders become so effective with the way they communicate? Let’s face it.   A leader’s communication style is a large part of your ability to get others to take action.

     Without action, a vision or strategy is nothing more than a beautiful set of words. It may sound good, but do your words create such an effect that people are compelled to want to know how they can be a part of it? If not, you need to determine the steps needed to powerfully communicate your vision.

     If you appear unsure of your message by the tentative way in which you communicate it, you will struggle with getting your team, your peers, and definitely your boss to believe in what you are saying.

     On the other hand, if you aggressively try to engage people in an attempt  to make them listen, they will definitely tune you out.  So what is the magic answer to get others to listen, understand, and engage with you to bring  your vision to life?

I believe the power of communicating your leadership vision starts with the ability to build a collaborative bridge that compels people to want to know more.

     Here are some examples:

•  When you need to get your peers to buy into your idea, you must first be willing to openly acknowledge that you need their help. Hold on before you say no way.  That simply means you must make sure your initial words communicate your desire to partner with them. If your vision is truly going to have any chance of being accepted, you must make your message about them and not you.

• When you need to get the boss to allow you to take some unproven steps to get the result(s) you know you can achieve, you must immediately communicate your visionary message in a manner that describes how they will benefit. Trust me. Without this step, they are not really listening.
• When you need to get your team or staff to take action on your vision, you must first clearly communicate ‘why” you need their help. Don’t tell them ”how” they can help until you are assured they understand why you need them to be a part of bringing your vision to life.

     Did you notice an unspoken theme in each of the examples? In order to bring your vision to life you must be able to communicate to others that the end result is not about “I” or ‘me”.   The collaborative key message must be how “we” can take action together, so that everyone wins.

What  message approach do you need to rethink in order to ensure your vision is acted upon?

Do you realize one of the best strategies to ensure you reach your career goals is to first collaborate with others to help them reach their goals ?  I know. It probably seems counter-intuitive to expect that in this age of fast pace, ever changing work dynamics,  you need to consider how you can help other people be successful.  Why? Because it is only when you reach out to help someone solve a challenge do they really began to understand all that you have to offer. The more others know about your skills due to a personal interaction, the more they will want to collaborate with you. However, let me be clear. The act of being collaborative must be sincere and authentic if you desire to achieve cooperation and reciprocation. Over the years as I have worked to hone my ability to be an effective leader,  I have discovered a profound truth. I have discovered that the benefits of being collaborative far outweigh the travails of going it alone, 99 percent of the time.

Demonstrating a collaborative leadership style is hard work but the benefits can far outweigh the effort you will make.

Benefits of Being a Collaborative Leader:

• It is the best strategy to lock out the competition. If the best people work together to create the best products and services, who can outdo you?

• Innovation is created because better ideas are produced when your leadership allows the flow of ideas from a group of people to surface
• Your stature as a leader grows as your ability to get others to work effectively together improves
• The speed and response of your team or organization to meet demand and customer needs is significantly improved

The reality is that today’s flattened organizations demand that people learn to collaborate if the organization expects to succeed. Look around and you will see that the day of the individual contributor is slowly disappearing from the way of doing business. So, how much of a collaborative leader will you be?

I recently received some news that rocked me to my core. I admit that even as a proven leader, initially I went through all the emotions one can experience when you receive unexpected news. Do you know what I mean when I say all thoughts of striving to be a collaborative leader just went out the window? I attempted to justify why the decision was totally wrong. I even ranted and raved to my trusted inner circle. I was thrown totally off my success game. I thank them for their patience in letting me get it out of my system.
If you have ever experienced a major disappointment at work after giving your all, then you understand the betrayal I felt when it was determined by others that I had taken the project as far as I could.
To say I was not happy is putting it mildly. Then, something miraculous happened. I remembered the importance of understanding ” what matters most”.
Once I stopped the ‘woe is me” self indulgent thinking and began to behave as the successful leader I am; I was able to remember the undisputed truth.

I created and executed the project at the highest level of performance possible. Everyone connected to the project acknowledges this fact.  The next thing that happened was I quickly realized I  had to put my ego in check. It is often difficult for high performers and high achievers to accept loss.  The reality is that the change in events was not about my performance as a leader.  The need for change just happens sometimes.

Collaborative leaders understand the critical importance of not making everything personal. The revelation that this particular change was totally out of my control helped me to flex my thinking. Yes, it was unexpected, but when has change ever been convenient?

Collaborative leaders must learn to adjust to the change and strive to think strategically.  Don’t ever allow yourself to be the victim. Once I was able to shift my thinking, it is amazing how in a very short period of time, new opportunities started coming my way.  Whenever you allow yourself to wallow in the negative thoughts,  you might miss the new opportunities your skills can create.

I am proud to say I have learned some valuable lessons as a result of this situation.   Here are the key elements:

• No matter what : Never forget the value you provide.
• Always remember: Remain professional no matter what. Yes, even when you get bad news.
• Recognize  when to let go: Give up control over the things you really have no control over.
• When you have done all you can: Stand strong and let the good work you have done speak for you.

So how will you react the next time you receive news that is not the greatest?

On another note: I will be speaking at the National BDPA Conference in Philadelphia on July 24, 2010.  I love helping leaders stand strong despite the odds. Here is the registration link in case you can join me:

http://www.bdpa.org/conf-2010.php

— Niccolo Machiavelli

It is no secret that today’s leaders are balancing a lot of balls. These balls can rightfully be named: nonstop demands, vision, strategy, execution, developing people, managing expectations, communication, and last but not least, managing the unknown.
The stalled economy has created the need for leaders to become comfortable with not knowing in advance if your ideas, goals, and desires will get the desired results and yet you must move forward anyhow.

Dealing with the unknown of what is coming over the horizon yet you stay the course because you believe your team can create something great, is becoming the new normal. This style of collaborative leadership requires guts and perseverance.

Collaboration requires leaders who are comfortable with ambiguity as they seek to bring life to their vision.
Collaborative leaders believe enough in the people they have assembled on the team that regardless of the unknown , they have the ability to help everyone stay focused on achieving the goal.
How can becoming comfortable with the unknown help a leader be successful?
1. You will learn to confidently stay the course as you learn to appreciate the small baby steps you sometimes must take to reach a bold goal.
2. You will be able to accomplish more than you originally imagined because you will release your fear of needing to have all the answers immediately.
3. You will create more opportunities to demonstrate your capabilities because you will stand out from your peers as a leader who recognizes that the rules have changed and therefore the approach to reaching success must also change.
Learn to get comfortable with operating in the unknown. The current terrain demands that leaders recognize the need to take a stand and perform with the attitude that regardless of the shaky environment, you know that you bring value to your organization.
Depending on your industry, the current trends indicate that the economy is slowly trending upward. The reality is that no one knows when things are going to positively turnaround. Yet; leaders who recognize the need to stay the course despite not always having a compass are the ones who will survive.

Are you willing to lose your fear of not having all the answers as you make the decisions required to bring your vision to life?

Albert Einstein

As you consider the myriad of leadership challenges you encounter each day within your department, team or staff, would it be productive  to have a host of viable solutions readily accessible?  Too often, leaders do not take the steps to explore how challenges can be resolved by using a collaborative approach. Striving to be a more collaborative leader can result in a plethora of options surfacing as viable solutions to the problem at hand.

Seeking to obtain the consensus of  stakeholders is a strategy many leaders use to  reach closure on a particular  issue.  I believe that striving for consensus  in order to reach agreement can be a limiting approach. In order to achieve consensus agreement, most people need to have a limited number of options to consider in order to make a decision. On the other hand,  using collaborative skills to solve a problem or situation opens up all kinds of possibilities  of the best solutions to take. Leaders must become comfortable using a different set of skills to influence others.

Collaborative leaders must understand the following secrets to unleashing the creativity that allows the best resolutions to surface to the forefront.

• Create opportunities for ideas to be communicated in a non judgmental environment. No idea is to small or too big to be discussed. The focus must be placed on participants using their creative skills rather than their analytical skills initially.
• Create teams or groups of people who typically do not work together yet each person clearly understands how their individual insight contributes to the overall discussion. The focus must be placed on minimizing silos and maximizing potential contributions.
• Create an environment where every one’s input is valued regardless of their title or position. The focus must be placed on breaking down hierarchical mindsets. Many times people on the front line wont speak up because they feel outranked. Yet these same people often have great ideas on how to resolve a problem once and for all.

There are many  benefits to creating collaborative opportunities so that creativity can surface. Here are a few:

• People begin to believe the organization respects their opinion. Feeling respected allows  creative thoughts to surface.
• People begin to view the leader as a collaborative partner rather than being viewed as “the boss”. The subtle difference allows creative ideas to surface.
• People begin to recognize that they have a lot more they can contribute to the long term success of the organization. Everyone likes to be heard and when you are viewed as a listener,  you can be positioned to encourage others to dig deeper and contribute even more.Creating opportunities for the best thinking and best ideas to be communicated is a strategy today’s leaders should place more focus on. Allow ideas to  surface no matter how different they may be.  The end result will be a better product or concept. So what innovative ideas can you unleash by allowing the creativity of others to surface?

Elizabeth Shue

As a leader, have you ever experienced a situation where you recognized that taking the risk to reveal your thoughts to others could make you vulnerable to criticism? Yet, you said it anyway? More than likely, despite your sincere desire to be collaborative by sharing your thoughts,your mind  was in a battle between being cautious and taking the risk to open up.

I have discovered that thinking in a collaborative manner allows the fear of being vulnerable to significantly diminish. How?

• Being collaborative allows you to open up in ways you never dreamed of. As a leader, the opportunity to reveal your insight creates a chance for others to recognize all that you have to offer. The first time you open up can be scary, no doubt about it.  Yet, if you do a good job of formulating your thoughts your confidence will soar as you observe some people responding positively. You may not get everyone on board with your ideas so just focus on initially convincing a few. Having a few  like minded collaborators will do wonders for improving your vulnerability.
• Being collaborative creates a chance to try out new innovative concepts. There is less vulnerability in failure occurring when collaborative partners bring their best thinking to the table. The best ideas are those where everyone contributes to the discussion with no concern of rejection or ridicule.

The art of being collaborative allows true leadership to surface. It is a proven fact that leaders who are open to allowing others to hone and execute the vision, create high performance environments.  Collaborative leadership trumps  the vulnerability of allowing these dynamics to occur every time.   What projects could you accomplish sooner and more efficiently by letting go of your fear of being exposed for the great leader you are?

• You must be learn to be comfortable with being vulnerable.
• You must allow creativity to come full circle no matter how different the ideas may be.
• You must be open to operating in the unknown.
• You must give up having total control of the end result.
• You must establish an environment of trust.
• You must enhance your listening skills.
• You must celebrate success. Even the small wins.
•  You must demonstrate the knowledge of what creating a collaborative environment means.
• You must learn to nurture people and ideas.
• You must be open to allowing mistakes as everyone finds their way in this new way of thinking.
• You must be dedicated to breaking down silos.
• You must be skillful  in getting others to cooperate.
• You must be open to change occurring. At a rapid pace.
• You must be confident in assuring others that you know where you are headed even when you just have a baby idea, vision, or process.

 There are more behaviors we need to discuss but I don’t want to overwhelm you with what it will take to be a collaborative leader during these turbulent times, so I will save them for later.

In this blog, we will take each of the above items and explore what they mean. We will explore the  pros and cons of each behavior for the purpose of educating you on the steps you must take in order to be an authentic, collaborative leader. It is our dream that the end result will be more leaders who understand that collaboration is the new rule for success.

 Are you ready to go on this journey of learning to be more collaborative with me? Get your seat belt on, put your helmet and safety pads on, and let’s explore this concept together. I promise you will grow from the experience.

Bill Bradley

 There is no doubt that most organizations are experiencing change at an unprecedented pace. Collaboration skills is the new weapon of distinction amongst leaders who desire to get to the next level of performance. As a leader in today’s challenging environment, you are responsible for helping people create success despite all the chaos that constant change brings.   Your leadership style will determine the attractiveness others will find in partnering and collaborating with you. There are some key areas that need to be addressed when attempting to achieve a collaborative relationship with others. The following 3 Secrets will enlighten you on exactly what you are getting into when you decide to brand yourself as a ” Collaborative Leader.”

3 Secrets Collaborative Leaders Must Understand:

Secret #1

People are attracted to your personality and your ability to engage them.

If you don’t like people or prefer not to interact with people, you are going to struggle in your quest to become a collaborative leader. Introverts can still apply for the role of being collaborative but in doing so you are stating your willlingness to come out of your comfort zone when it comes to interacting with people. You cannot fake being a collaborator. People will immediately see through any phony effort. Either you are or you aren’t. There is no middle ground.

Secret #2

To simply say that you are a collaborative leader is not enough.  Leave the ego at the door.

There must be proof of your statement with a track record of working effectively with others. How many teams or assignments have you successfully lead that involved utilizing the skills of others to reach success?

To be collaborative or to be in collaboration with others means it is not about you. It is about  us.  To be effective at using a collaborative leadership style means you understand it is not about me, the name of the game to success is about “we.” Everyone must participate in order to be considered part of a collaborative effort.

Secret #3

You must have the ablity to work with all types of difficult persons and within all types of challenging environments.

Leadership is a much needed skill in today’s confusing workplace. A collaborative leadership style of leading is in even more demand. Why? People are searching for the type of leader who is willing to allow them to bring value to the discussion. This leader has no concerns about what I look like, what my ethnic background is, what my gender is.

People want to be recognized for what they bring to the table.  What makes this type of environment difficult is the collaborative leader must be astute in recognizing that at the end of the day, we all want what we want. So if I am willing to view you as a contributor based on your knowledge and experitise alone, I also understand that you are going to also bring your preferences and cultural differences along with you. At some point, these attributes will show up and I have to be ready to deal with it as the collaborative leader to make sure the team and the project doesn’t lose ground.

 Being a collaborative leader is hard work. Make no mistake.

But the rewards are priceless.

 Now that you know the secrets, are you sure you still want to be known as a collaborative leader?