Engaging Leadership: Getting Everyone Involved

An unfortunate reality in the American workplace is that more than half of employees are unsatisfied at work. Research conducted by Gallup Poll finds that this dissatisfaction stems from workers’ feelings of disconnect with their jobs. This feeling costs US companies an estimated $450 billion every year.

Extensive psychological studies have shown that engagement, in all levels of the organization, is a key driver of individual performance. Engaged employees exhibit enthusiasm and positive attitudes at work. They are also logically more productive, and are key drivers of sustainability and profitability of the company.

Image source: gsb.stanford.edu
                                              Image source: gsb.stanford.edu

The task of ensuring employee engagement falls primarily on company leaders. They focus on getting every team member involved, strengthening their capabilities, and guiding them into accomplishing their individual roles.

When employees thirst for responsibilities, but are given what they perceive as tasks for which they are overqualified, it is easy for them to be disengaged and underperform. Leaders should address and correct such perceptions.

While successful, engaging leaders practice varying styles and expertise, they manifest common characteristics such as emotional stability, ambition, and, most importantly, altruism. Interpersonal sensitivity allows leaders to be sociable and communicative with their members.

Seattle-based Emile Haddad previously worked in the architecture field but transitioned into becoming one of the city’s most trusted business coaches. He is a principal consultant at Catalyst Business Coaching and Consulting, LLC, providing clients with the knowledge and skills for entrepreneurial success. Visit this blog for more articles on leadership and business.

Building a More Creative Business Mindset

Financial and business education extends beyond mere mathematics. Analysts are discovering the importance of mindset in achieving economic success. Successful entrepreneurs are the ones who can seamlessly blend analytics with positive ideations. One important mindset is learning to be creative. This is defined as the ability to think constantly outside of the box and view things from different perspectives.

                     Image Source: YouTube.com

Businesses are now likened to an entire ecosphere unto itself. That is, a delicate balance must be maintained to achieve fulfilment. Too much rigidity (i.e. the close following of rules and basing all decisions on historical data) causes stagnation. Businesses do not thrive because they are continually following an old method. Success varies. Some groups maintain a good steady income but cannot hope for anything further. On the other hand, too much freedom or chaos undermines authority. Businesses that allow employees a full range of anything often see themselves going under in a few months.

                            Image Source: LinkedIn.com

However, balance can be found when top executives are creative. They understand the need for this balance and create designs to further this goal. Building this mindset is a skill and is honed through constant practice and research. Essentially it would require having excellent interpersonal skills; listening to other people and filtering suggestions to see which ones can potentially benefit the company. Creativity, it has been studied, is also related to empathy and listening skills.

Another good suggestion is undergoing business career coaching to learn step-by-step how to become more creative. It is a misnomer that one has to be born with this. It can be learned effectively.

Emile Haddad of Seattle is a business coach and consultant. His focus is helping entrepreneurs with their bottom line through simple yet effective learning plans. To learn more, like this Facebook page.

Leadership Can be Kind, Says Studies

Business consultants are now analyzing a fundamental belief regarding leadership. For the most part in the 20th century, leadership was synonymous to a mild form of cut-throat attitude: Its agenda was always financial while individual welfare became secondary. Gentler emotions such as empathy or kindness have been downplayed by literature on effective leadership.

New evidence suggest that kindness is an essential trait of any effective leader. Researchers from various fields have studied recognized leaders in different domains and determined traits similar among them, the starkest of which is kindness.

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Image Source: forbes.com

Researchers defined kindness as the ability to empathize with co-workers, colleagues within the ranks, and subordinates, with the effect of having crucial business decisions take into account how they will affect other people. This is not to say that logic and other forms of rational thinking are disregarded; the results merely show that there are no patterns a propos important business decisions. Every decision is made with potential financial and emotional repercussions in mind.

Individuals who have empathy deeply ingrained in their decision-making process are more likely to become effective leaders. Financial analysts suggest that a basic understanding of human psychology – kindness again being defined here as the ability to empathize – has a direct correlation with economic success. Leaders can then use this to predict outcomes, a crucial skill for handling challenges and developing contingencies.

Image Source: huffingtonpost.com

Image Source: huffingtonpost.com

These surveys conclude that kindness is a skill that can be developed and honed. This suggests that those in upper management should carefully consider including a module on developing kindness in their leadership trainings.

Emile Haddad, a Seattle-based business consultant, is sought out for his practical and effective training programs. Learn more leadership insights by liking this Facebook profile.

Three Things to Remember when Asking for a Pay Raise

Every employee has the right to ask for a pay raise. This is a skill that should not be ignored or avoided for fear of assertion being misinterpreted. One must recognize that many companies do not regularly increase the salary of their employees on a regular basis. Usually a specific event is brought to the attention of management, which either forces or encourages executives to assign salary incentives. But the safest and most controllable means to get an increase is to ask for it. There are three strategies to consider:

Consider the timing: Each company has its own set of rules. Employees should be sensitive to the politics of rewards and increases. Some companies prefer starting the year with a new budget, while others wait for the end of the financial quarter.

Worker Pleading with Manager
Image Source: linkedin.com

Consider the executive: Pay raises are also dependent on who is giving them, and how they are approached. Some executives prefer employees who directly state their intentions, others may need a little back and forth and some negotiations. An employee should then compile all deliverables best as possible, as this would be used to justify the request. Raises should be indicative of the individual output a specific employee has given.

Consider negotiation: Executives and the employee should reach a compromise, in the event that an initial figure for the raise is found insufficient. Employees should never be embarrassed about money or negotiating; these are relevant issues that need to be discussed. Personal feelings should not come into play here.

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Image Source: sheknows.com

Employees should consider seeking the advice of a trained business consultant so that they can practice their negotiation and communication skills.

Emile Haddad, a Seattle-based business consultant, emphasizes the need for proper communication across all company channels for financial success. Learn more of his insights by liking this blog.

Good Leadership: Ways Emotional Intelligence Aids Effective Decision-Making

Image source: diamantvoyance.fr
Image source: diamantvoyance.fr

Many leaders act on or decide upon something based on what they feel at a certain moment, which eventually leads to poor decision making. According to recent studies, the secret to pursuing smart decisions could lie in emotional intelligence.

According to Psychology Today, emotional intelligence is the ability to control and identify emotions, and applying that ability to given tasks.

In an experiment, researchers found that anxiety’s effect on a decision that involves risk-taking seems to be blocked in people who have high emotional intelligence. The people who have low emotional intelligence had their anxiety influence their decisions.

According to researchers, emotional intelligence can help an individual separate emotions and unrelated decisions. EI is not just about managing negative emotions (stress, sadness), but also the good ones.

Image source: medicaldaily.com
Image source: medicaldaily.com

Emotional intelligence should be in the center of business and leadership applications. While this is sometimes ignored, it plays an integral role on how a business or a project will succeed. Leaders should not allow emotions to affect their decision making, and they must not lean towards “affect-driven” biases. They must also train or help their subordinates to get rid of affect-driven bias so they themselves can make better personal or work-related decisions.

Emile Haddad is a Seattle-based consultant who works with company leaders and team members on how to manage life in and beyond the four walls of the office. Learn more about effective business leadership and other similar issues by visiting this blog.