Category: Leadership

The leadership category on Jay Wren’s website (jaywren.com) focuses on practical insights and strategies for effective leadership, particularly within a corporate or organizational context. It emphasizes the development of “authentic leaders” who prioritize self-awareness, honesty, and humility, fostering trust and success.

Key themes within this category include:

Authentic Leadership: Building trust through self-awareness, honesty, and humility.
Leadership Development: Providing actionable steps for companies to hire, train, and grow leaders, including principles of responsibility, authority, and accountability.
Creating Future Leaders: Highlighting the importance of internal leadership development for long-term growth, morale, loyalty, and engagement.
Measurable Success: Emphasizing that effective leadership is not just a concept but can be measured by results, with a focus on proactive training and mentorship.

In essence, Jay Wren’s leadership category offers guidance for individuals and organizations seeking to cultivate strong, ethical, and effective leaders who contribute to overall success.

Mentors: A Source Of Power Or A Waste of Time?

Mentors: What is a mentor? How can a mentor help you? What skills do you need to benefit from mentoring? What type of mentoring will work effectively for you?

Mentors: A Source of Power or A Waste of Time?

For many people, a mentor is a source of inspiration, wisdom, and solutions.

Some people rely on their mentor for mental and emotional direction. In my case, I have a friend who has a great ability to see things in perspective. He mentors me when I am concerned about the things that happen in my life.

In other cases, mentors with practical or professional experience can help you make decisions on your education, health, career, finances, or business. Again, in my case, I have had mentors whose professional experience helped me solve problems in my business. In other cases, their knowledge helped me network with people who had experience that my mentors lacked.

“The Coach” Who Mentored Tech Geniuses

From 1974 to 1979, Bill Campbell was head coach of the football team at Columbia University. Later in his career, he became chairman of the board of trustees of Columbia University and chairman of the board of Intuit. Furthermore, he served as vice president of marketing and as a board director for Apple and held other positions on advisory boards and as a corporate executive.

Steve Jobs at Apple, Larry Page at Google, and other tech executives referred to Campbell as “The Coach” for his mentoring skills in helping them with their careers.

Even the superstars of industry have mentors to help them throughout their careers.

Are You Wasting Your Time?

Well, yes, you might be.

The person who is mentoring you might not be able to help you. A valuable mentor is not just someone who listens to your problems.

Specifically, mentors are helpful when they listen to you and help you gain perspective, wisdom, or information to solve problems.

What Qualities Do You Need to Use a Mentor?

People who benefit from mentoring must can keep an open mind. Furthermore, they must have the desire to learn from others.

Specifically, people who benefit from mentoring have the emotional intelligence to park their ego when people tell them things they may not like.

Therefore, to benefit from a mentor, you must have an open mind to accept different ideas. If you are a person who does not like to hear the point of view of other people, you will have trouble listening to a mentor.

Lastly, you must be at a point where you want what a mentor can offer. My first mentor had a very successful business. In this case, I enjoyed his being around him and hearing about his success. Specifically, learning what he was doing helped me learn about the things that I needed to do.

Working with a Mentor Requires a Commitment on Your Part.

Benefitting from a mentor requires that you do a few things.

First, stay in touch with your mentor. At the least, you need to call your mentor. Furthermore, meeting with your mentor once a week or even more often helps a great deal.

Second, you need to listen to your mentor. Some mentors are helpful by listening to you. However, if you do all the talking, you will not learn much from your mentor.

Success Made Simple: Do These Things.

Success Made Simple: What are the things that successful people do differently? How can you simplify your life to simplify your success?

Success Made Simple

There are many things that successful people do. Here are some of those things.

Success Made Simple: Act Once.

Some projects need extra effort and attention. Sometimes completing those projects is frustrating, boring, or even annoying. It is easy to take up a distraction.

When you stop to talk with a co-worker or sneak in a little social media time, you lose your focus. Returning to the task takes time to refocus and find the spot where you left off.

Act once by ignoring distractions and completing a task

Success Made Simple: Own Your Mistakes.

Mistakes happen.

Blaming other people may make you feel better. But it does nothing to correct the problems from your mistakes.

You don’t always have to admit to others that you made a mistake. However, you do need to be honest with yourself and own your mistakes. With a little self-honesty, you can make huge strides in self-improvement.

Success Made Simple: Assess and Adjust.

Owning your mistakes is just one of the steps in assessing and adjusting your behavior.

Every day things happen that can thwart your plans. Successful people don’t focus on the frustrations. They focus on solutions. Immediately, they assess and adjust.

A simple way to assess and adjust is to ask some simple questions.

What is the new situation?

How practical is it to continue with the current plan?

What adjustments will lead to have a successful day?

Success Made Simple: Take Leadership.

Some people think about how great it would be if things changed or if projects got off the ground. However, that is as far as many people ever get.

Successful people don’t wonder how things can change or how projects can get started.

They take leadership and make changes.

Success Made Simple: Organize.

Successful people have a place for everything. They keep the correct things in those places. Saws and hammers go above the workbench. Paper clips go in the top right drawer of their desk.

Successful people don’t waste time looking for the things they use once or twice a year. They know where to find those things when they need them. When the job is done, they return those things to the correct place.

Creating the Story of Why You are Great

Creating the Story of Why You are Great: What makes people want to hear or read about great people? How can you make people want to hear or read about you?

Creating the Story

Think about the simple tools of advertising.

Advertisers use images. They include music. They create a message to try to appeal to you.

But why does advertising work? When does it become effective?

Strip away the images. Turn off the music. Delete the advertising copy. Start with a blank sheet of paper.

What is the story that advertisers want you to know?

The Meaning of the Message

Of course, advertisers are presenting a product or service. Advertisers are giving a sales pitch.

But the message is not just about the product or service. The story is about what the product or service does for you.
Advertisers want you to see how the product or service will surround you with attractive people or take you to beautiful places. They want to show you how the product or services make you feel safe or prosperous and popular.

Advertisers make their story about you.

Creating the Story of Why You are Great

Your story of why you are great works when you present like a rock star. Rock stars become stars when they create a great experience for the audience. The performance is not about the rock stars. It is about the experience of the audience.

Of course, your story is about your accomplishments. The story is about your work and your challenges. It is also about how you turned your work and your challenges into success.

In fact, the audience may care about your success. They may be happy for you.

However, what makes your story effective is how it makes the audience feel and think themselves. Furthermore, telling your story correctly creates positive expectations from your audience. You story will tell people why they should connect with you. It will tell people why they should hire you or buy your product.

Wired For Success: Five Steps to Upping Your Mental Game

Wired For Success: Some people procrastinate, worry, and accomplish very little. However, other people get into action, have peace of mind, and achieve success. What do these people do differently?

Wired For Success: Five Steps to Upping Your Mental Game

Wired For Success: Some people accomplish very little. On the hand, other people get things done and find success.

How are these people different. What are the things that successful people do to get wired for success?

Focus on the Present Moment.

Get out of your head and into the world around you.

Ruminating over the past is painful and unproductive. Furthermore, fretting over the future wastes energy. Both clutter your mind.

Start with a Small Step.

Do you have trouble getting to that long-term project? To say the least, you are not unusual.

Many people don’t start working on a large project until the day before the deadline.

First, don’t decide to tackle the entire project. Just decide to do something simple.

For example, if you have a major presentation to give, just decide to write the outline. Just decide to write one paragraph.
Overtime, things will come together.

Breathe

Just taking a deep breath will help you get back into the present moment. Taking twenty minutes to relax and focus on your breathing will clear your mind and boost your energy.

Snap into Action

You see sports fans standing to cheer when the team takes the field. The energy and the enthusiasm increase when the people in the crowd stand and cheer. Clapping, smiling, cheering, laughing, and standing boost your energy and give you mental focus.

If you don’t feel excited about your work, act excited about your work. Use body language and action to wire your mind for success.

Gratitude Lists

Gratitude lists wire us for a positive state of mind and gives us energy.

Make realistic yet simple gratitude lists.

Everyone has problems. People wired for success enjoy life, even when tackling problems. How do they do this? They remember to see the good things in their life.

How Leaders Create Powerful Teams and Reduce Turnover

Powerful Teams: Leaders use different methods to create powerful teams and reduce turnover. Here are some simple steps that any leader can use.

How Leaders Create Powerful Teams and Reduce Turnover.

Leaders use different methods to create powerful teams and reduce turnover. Here are some methods that simply work.

Keep an open door with your team members.

It is one thing to ask your team members to respect your time. It is quite another to block them off just because you can’t be bothered.

Encourage your team members to give you feedback and updates. Set up a list of things that they must tell you about no matter what.

Give directions that can’t be misunderstood.

Tell the people what you want them to do. Then ask them to tell you what they understand about what you have told them.

Having your team members do work that does not achieve your goals, only to have to do it again, frustrates them.

Giving them clear direction helps them be more successful and feel engaged and successful.

Text and Email with a Purpose.

Before you send a text or an email, write down the purpose of the message.

Make the purpose of the text or email the first sentence in your communications.
Use Critiques to Increase Competence.

Finding fault just discourages your team. Take a minute to ensure that they understand what you expect them to do.

Criticism creates stress. Helpful, clear direction creates engagement and increases competence.

Give Progress Updates and Interim Encouragement.

Check the progress your team is making on projects. Update the team members with changes and corrections as work progresses. Encourage team members to continue the good work they are doing.

Delegate, but don’t abdicate.

Empower team members to make decisions. State clearly how much authority that they have and how you expect them to use that authority.

However, don’t just assume that they will do everything the way you expect. Check in them frequently to encourage them and to keep them focused.

Use Emotional Intelligence as a Tool for Success.

Emotional Intelligence is the process of responding with intelligence and giving direction based on the best interest of the business. It is easy to let your ego take over and run roughshod over your team members.

Sometimes you must be firm. However, angry outbursts don’t work effectively with every team member.

Carefully gauge how you respond emotionally based on the conditions and based on the emotional intelligence of the team member.

Successful Leaders: What is the one thing a leader must do?

What is the one thing a leader must do? There are all kinds of opinions on what leaders must do. But what is there is one thing that all successful leaders have in common.

Leadership Gold by John C. Maxwell

Successful Leaders: What is the one thing a leader must do?

There are countless articles on leadership. These articles seem to miss one critical point. This point is on the things that leaders do.

Many articles define leadership. These articles ask the question between a leader and a manager. The answer to that question seems simple. Leadership is a trait. Management is a job function. Manager is a job title. However, some leaders who have no title at all inspire people to follow.

Common Views on What Leaders Do

Some leaders are inspirational teachers. Other leaders are practical teachers. There are leaders who micromanage. Some leaders delegate. They leave all the decisions on how to do things to the people who are doing them.

Each one of these practices is important. But none of them is essential to the one thing that makes leaders successful.

Successful Leaders State the Mission

A successful leader states the mission.

Build the bridge. Create the product. Design the ship. Write the plan. Seize the city. Whatever mission a group has, someone first must state the mission. Making that statement is the job of the leader.

From the mission statement, all the work can follow. How to build the bridge, create the product, design the ship, and seize the city all follow the mission statement.

If teams do not know the mission, how can they become successful at accomplishing the mission?

Missionaries

Some people wonder at the incredible power of the teachings of Christ. No matter what your feelings about religion, the spread of Christ’s teachings is one of the most influential events in the history of the world.

How did this event happen? Through missionaries, that is, people charged with fulfilling the mission. The Book of Acts has instructions from Christ to go out to nations across the world and teach people what he had said.

The Leaders of the American Revolution

The foundation of the United States began with a mission statement.

June 11, 1776, the attendees of the Second Continental Congress appointed five people to write the mission statement for the birth of a new nation. Thomas Jefferson authored the document. When finished, the Second Continental approved the mission statement titled it “The Declaration of Independence.”

Successful Leaders: Know Your Role

In a leadership role, you may have many responsibilities. Remember that your most important responsibility is to state the mission.

Mental and Emotional Burnout: When Self-Sacrifice Becomes Destructive

Mental and Emotional Burnout: Do you look at your work and say, “I can no longer do this?” How do you recover the energy and excitement to do your job?

Mental and Emotional Burnout: When Self-Sacrifice Becomes Destructive

The term “burnout” in reference to job performance comes from an article “Staff Burn-Out” by Herbert J. Freudenberger, first published in January 1974 in the Journal of Social Issues.

In 1980, Herbert Freudenberger collaborated with Richelson Géraldine to write the book Burnout: The High Cost of High Achievement.

The Adrenaline Rush that Precedes Burnout

Are you pushing yourself into job burnout? Do find that you are working on an adrenaline rush. Are you working under constant pressure from your supervisor or from your working conditions? Do you take shortcuts by eating at your desk, reading your email on your smartphone during breaks, and trying to do several tasks at the same time?

That adrenaline rush that comes from hyperactivity and super performance is often destructive. Your efforts for high achievement can destroy your success.

Saving Your Career from Job Burnout

Here are common symptoms of job burnout.

You lose interest in your job.
You procrastinate, or you simply cannot work.
Your work has lost its meaning.
A feeling of powerless dominates your thinking.
After resting, you still feel exhausted.
Depression and anxiety are symptoms of burnout.
People around you disappoint you easily.
Perfectionist and judgmental mentality hijack your thinking.
You work too long, because nothing is ever good enough.

Job burnout can come from several factors.

Doing endless hours of work that is mind numbing or stressful
Working under constant criticism and correction
Not taking regular breaks to eat or rest
Failing to do things that give your mind a change in activity
Working in a job that is a mismatch
Working too long each day and too many days a week

The solution for job burnout is change.

Take breaks.
Find emotional support through friendships and family.
Try new things.
Make a list of your work priorities. Do one thing at a time.
Get regular physical exercise.
Learn techniques for resting your mind from work: meditation, pleasant and interesting reading
Watching or listening to television, radio, or video programs that are relaxing, motivational, or inspirational
Change jobs.

The danger of job burnout is that you ruin your health, and you ruin your career. Having a successful career begins with you taking care of yourself mentally, physically, and emotionally.

Learn to Love Your Job.

Isaac Asimov: How Did He Create a Lifetime of Success?

Isaac Asimov: What are the things that Isaac Asimov did that enabled him to become a professor, writer, and success story throughout his life?

Isaac Asimov: The Power of a Lifetime of Learning

Continuing to learn is fundamental to success for a lengthy career. Industries change. Tools change. Opportunities disappear. New opportunities are not always available for a particular skill. Furthermore, creativity that is critical to solving problems needs occasional resets to solve new and unique problems.

On this point, successful people continue to learn and grow as the world changes.

Eleven different companies publish the books and essays of Isaac Asimov. Amazingly, he wrote over 1600 essays and hundreds of short stories and books.

Here is a list of his bestselling books:

The Naked Sun
I, Robot
Foundation
Second Foundation
Prelude To Foundation
The Caves Of Steel
Foundation And Empire
The End Of Eternity

“I couldn’t possibly write the variety of books I manage to do out of the knowledge I had gained in school alone. I had to keep a program of self-education in process. My library of reference books grew and I found I had to sweat over them in my constant fear that I might misunderstand a point that to someone knowledgeable in the subject would be a ludicrously simple one.” It’s Been a Good Life, Isaac Asimov

In another famous quote, Asimov stresses the value of continuing to study after you finish school.

“Self-education is, I firmly believe, the only kind of education there is.”

The Principles of a Lifetime of Success

In conclusion, the principles that Asimov followed apply to success in any career. For example, Bill Gates’ website “Gates Notes” shows Gates’ belief in this principle. The site is a blog about the people he meets and the books he reads to continue to learn and grow. Specifically, the subjects in his blog include

Agriculture
Foreign aid
HIV-AIDS
Polio
Toilets/Sanitation
Vaccines
Saving lives
Energy
Big History
Education

For Asimov, Gates, and other people, the joy of learning creates a life of success that far exceeds the life they might otherwise have had.

6 Signs Your Boss Hates You and 6 Solutions

Signs Your Boss Hates You: What are the signs and what can you do about them? Should you just ignore the situation? Should you act?

6 Signs Your Boss Hates You

#1 Your boss’s criticisms are personal.

Your boss has the responsibility to keep you on task and doing your job on time. However, criticizing your work and criticizing you are different issues. If your boss is criticizing you personally, you have issues that you can’t solve by simply improving your work. This is one of the signs your boss hates you.

#2 Your boss criticizes your work more than your boss criticizes the work of other people.

Bosses have biases. They are humans. One of the signs that your boss has a bias against you is criticism that only you receive. Your coworkers make a mistake and your supervisor overlooks the mistake. You make the same mistake and your boss criticizes you.

This is one of the signs your boss hates you.

#3 Your boss gives your coworkers glowing reviews for the same work that you receive mediocre or poor reviews.

When performance reviews are subjective, they are not tests of your skills. They are your boss’s opinion of your performance. When you learn that people who do equal are less quality work than you and yet that get better reviews, your boss is revealing personal problems with you and not problems with your performance.

This is one of the signs your boss hates you.

#4 Other people are getting pay raises. You are not.

If your boss is paying you less than he or she is paying your coworkers, your boss is taking a risk of losing you to a company that will pay you based the work that you do. When your boss is willing to take that risk, this is one of the signs your boss hates you.

#5 Other people are getting promotions. You are not.

Some people don’t want promotions. However, if you are not getting promotions that you are seeking and other people are getting those promotions, you need to ask yourself why this problem is happening. If you are more qualified and are not getting a promotion, this is one of the signs your boss hates you.

#6 Your boss gives credit for your work to your coworkers.

You know whether you deserve credit for your work. You know when your boss is giving other people some or total credit for your work.

This is one of the signs your boss hates you.

6 Solutions When Your Boss Hates You

#1 Can you discuss the situation with your boss?

If you can talk with your boss about the situation, explain that you want to do a great job. Ask for advice on how you can do a better job. Keep the discussion on your work. Try not to make the issue personal even though your boss may hate you for personal reasons.

#2 Document your work.

Build a record of your daily performance to show that you are doing a great job. List the tasks your boss gives you. List the results of your work on these tasks. Communicate with your boss in writing.

#3 Seek Personal and Professional Advice

Turn to the people you trust and ask for their advice. Ask the people you trust about what they think about your situation. Ask these people for their ideas on job options and confidential referrals. Get their advice on the best way to protect yourself in your current situation.

#4 Respond Intelligently

Getting angry and lashing out at your boss might be the best thing to do. You do have a right to defend yourself. Perhaps you can intimidate your boss into changing your relationship. However, more nearly what you will do is escalate an already difficult situation.

A better solution might be a conciliatory way to get your boss to help you improve your relationship.

#5 Get the Truth About Your Options

Can you find a job at your current company working for a different supervisor? Should you start looking for another job? Have you polished your resume and have it ready to go? Have you explored the jobs that look like a fit for you at other companies?

#6 Change Jobs

Some relations will always be the way they are. It is not healthy for you to work where you have a mean boss or for a boss who is mean to you. Find a job in a culture where you can be happy and enjoy going to work every day.

Delegating Authority in Large Organizations

Cruise ships are complex organizations. Examining the operations of a cruise ship presents an operating to see the necessity of delegating authority.

Delegating Authority in Cruise Ship Operations. What can we learn from the operation of a cruise ship? How does it compare to other complex organizations? Just because you are the captain doesn’t mean you can make every decision.

Delegating authority is not abdicating.

On the contrary, it is the personal power of becoming bigger by letting go.

Cruise ships have come a long way in comfort and complexity since the Pilgrims crossed the Atlantic on the Mayflower.

In a large organization, each person has a role in the success of that organization. A cruise ship is a complex organization that relies on a wide range the skills. In fact, the range of skills on a cruise liner is wider than the range of skills in most organizations.

Additionally, hiring and training people who can make good decisions is important for any organization.

As an organization becomes more complex, executives must learn how to delegate authority to people at every level of responsibility.

Furthermore, executives learn how to empower people with the knowledge and confidence to use authority and accept responsibility for their decisions.

There are nearly 60 cruise lines currently operating around the world. There are literally cruises to the Arctic Circle, Antarctica, and everywhere in between. You can cruise major rivers and waterways, including the St. Lawrence River, the Mississippi River and 8 of the major rivers in Europe.

Cruise Ships: Floating City Centers

Cruise liners are like city centers or floating malls. The services on board a cruise ship include clothing stores, tuxedo and formal rental stores, barber shops, beauty parlors, dry cleaners, laundries, souvenir shops, liquor stores, jewelry stores, convenience stores, luggage shops, restaurants, snack bars, ice cream parlors, nightclubs, casinos, movie theaters, television stations, Internet services, doctors, dentists, print shops, athletic and fitness centers, a post office, spas, beauty treatments, photo services, and multiple swimming pools.

Delegating authority over each of these operations enables the site managers to do their job.

Businesses on a Cruise Ship

Cruise ships make money from their room and board fees. They make extra money from ship-board sales. Cruise ships rarely stay in port overnight. Every port is a competitor to all the businesses that run within a cruise ship.

Mind-Blowing Size and Operation

Cruise ships are 800 to 1200 feet long and 100 to 155 feet wide. The largest ships have 14 to 18 decks and each deck is the size of 2 to 3 football fields

Cruise ships board and feed 4000 to over 8000 passengers and crew.

The captain of a ship must rely on the cruise lines company to provide highly trained people who have the ability to make good judgments and quick decisions.

These people must have the skills and the authority to make decisions as they interact with the thousands of passengers.

Behind the Scenes

Before a ship goes to sea, a navigation department lays out a course and speed for the ship to go from port to port. Navigators control the ship as it crosses the waterways and passes other ships.

Engineers operate the systems to produce electricity, distill fresh water, and maintain the ballast to keep the ship stable.

The purser oversees supplies such as food and drink, clothing, bedding, and passenger comfort. He or she is the face or liaison of the ship to the passengers on board.

In Conclusion

In a large organization, each person has some role in the success of the organization.

A cruise ship is more than thousands of people floating across the ocean. It is a large and complex business.

The training and performance of the people who work on the ship determine the ship’s success.

An important part of that training is teaching the crew how to use authority and to accept responsibility. People who fail to make good decisions affect the success of the ship’s business.

Likewise, the failure of the captain to empower people with the knowledge and authority to make decisions undermines the success of the ship.

On the other hand, captains who empower a well-trained crew to make decisions can do a better job of running the total operation.

For the captain of a cruise ship, delegating authority is not abdicating. On the contrary, it is the personal power of becoming bigger by letting go.