Leading your organization into the black

The quote by Robert Louis Stevenson, "Keep your fears to yourself, but share your inspiration with others" can be specifically applied to today's business leaders. Navigating complex and uncertain economic circumstances requires the best of executives to exercise discernment in their communication to influence and drive organization's morale and productivity into the black.

In our professional consulting practice, we've seen how good economies hide many business flaws, leadership being one of them. Poor leadership is easy to spot: unwanted executive and employee turnover, resistance to change and new ideas, toxic work environments, and reactive management. Today, small business resources are limited and can't withstand the impact of poor leadership. "There's nothing more demoralizing than a leader who can't clearly articulate why we're doing what we're doing."

In our professional consulting, we work with small business executives to refine leadership strategies, improve internal and external communication, bring cohesiveness to the organization and improve employee morale. With today’s challenges, it's easy to get distracted and to quickly assign blame to others. Great leadership today requires creating a vision and clearly articulating that communication.

Good leaders:

Attract commitment and energizes people,
Creates meaning in workers' lives,
Establishes a standard of excellence,
Bridges the present to the future, and
Transcends the status quo.

As a professional consultant, I suggest you take notice as you are going through your day and ask yourself, "What kind of leader am I being right now?" "What results do I expect to see from my leading ability in this moment?" If you aren't satisfied with your responses, consider it an opportunity for professional development for yourself as well as your organization.