The Ever-Evolving Concept of Leadership in the Workplace

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Like any other field, leadership goes through various trends and changes. Because of this, it is imperative that we understand these inclinations in order to be successful.

When we think about leadership, we can argue that there are only a few things that are more important than this skillful governance. The reason why is simple. Efficient and effective leadership helps nations through times of peril. It solidifies success within various businesses. And most importantly, it enables organizations to develop and grow each and every day. Any absence of leadership is equally dramatic in its effect. These negative ramifications can force organizations to move slowly, stagnate, or worse case scenario, lose their way.

With our ever-evolving world, we as business leaders need to internalize the beliefs and ideals of our times in order to move forward in a more positive and lucrative manner. To understand leadership, we first need to be able to separate historical thought from current practice. In today’s world, leaders must be able to provide inspiration, motivation, and direction to their team. Ten-fifteen years ago, this idea did not exist. Instead, leadership was defined by experience and age.  While that still holds some weight, today, leadership requires authenticity and transparency within a person’s tactics. To be inspirational and transformative, a leader’s employees need to understand the vision, goals, and beliefs of a person and their organization. Any type of cover-ups or dishonesty can compromise the overall trust your employees have for you. This in turn can even negatively impact their work.

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In addition to honesty, a true and impactful leader needs to have a positive brand. Think of your brand as your reputation. It is used to be that when people talked about your reputation, they focused on your public character and your past. Today, your personal brand is your reputation. Your actions, your work, and most importantly your attitude truly define who you are as an individual. If you are able to show a more positive gung-ho approach with your employees, fantastic! Keep in put! If not, try and figure out various ways in which you can build those foundational blocks with your team. Remember, if you are not social, you are missing the boat. As a leader, you need to be able to communicate at a certain level. Don’t hide behind a closed boardroom door. Instead, approach your team and ask how they are doing. This will boost morale in two ways: 1. Gives you various updates of daily task and 2. Gives support to those who really need it.

One of the most beneficial things you can do as a leader is build leadership from within. By creating a mentorship within your team, you are building a strong foundation for success. When mentoring, two things can happen. First and foremost, you will find your employees rise beyond their expectations when given a chance.  This goes back to trust. By entrusting these individuals to step up and assume a leadership role, you are giving them an opportunity to show them their worth. Most case scenarios, you will see individuals rise to the occasion by taking ownership in completing and perfecting this task. Secondly, you will find that mentoring teaches you as much as it teaches the mentee. That is because when you give away the knowledge and skillsets to perform at a higher caliber, it becomes a living and breathing entity. It takes a physical form that passes from one person to the next. From there you learn the impact of your work as well as the impact other individuals can have on the rest of the group.

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One of the last things is that you need to be honest to yourself.  There is a famous saying that, “if you are not prepared to be wrong, you’ll never come up with anything original.” This is true in the business world. Comprehend and internalize your own inconsistencies and failures. Only by understanding these weaknesses can you truly develop in becoming a better leader. This can be done by asking yourself various questions. Ask yourself if the previous year or month went exactly as planned. If not, ask what you could have done to change it. By developing that sense of honesty with your own shortcomings, you will be able to grow and develop as a more impactful leader. At the end of the day, true leaders do not just rely on their strengths. Rather they leverage their weaknesses to move towards their goals.

Life of an Entrepreneur: the Five Dark Truths

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Since the early 90s, many people have taken the plunge to become an entrepreneur expecting the journey to be like what they read in the papers or on television. However, like many of the veterans will say, starting a business is like diving head first into the deep end without known how to swim. Many people are often mistaken because of the fantasies of being your own boss and creating your own hours is exciting. While at times it can be exhilarating, overnight success is incredibly rare within the field. For those business leaders thinking about getting things started, start off by understanding the overall risk you will be taking the minute you become your own boss. Once you do that, you can begin preparing your next steps of the business.

While all of the dark truths portray a negative perspective of the life of an entrepreneur, this should not deter you from trying. This article is meant to educate and prepare you for the unknown and uncertainties to come.

So what are the dark truths? Below, you will see five of the biggest misconceptions people will face when entering the field of entrepreneurship. Use this knowledge to educate and prepare you rather than scare you from the field. Think about it, for those successful business leaders like Elon Musk or Mark Cuban, success didn’t come immediately. Rather it was a growing process where everyday was a battle.

1. Money that Comes in will Immediately Come out

When starting a business, you need to be aware that you will not make money right away. Starting off, raising capital for your business can be a difficult obstacle. However, the process serves as a financial eye-opener of what needs to be financially achieved in order for your business to grown and thrive each and every day. In addition, for most businesses, the first few years will be spent on foundational and operational cost. While the revenue may be growing, the personal financial gain cannot be the same.

2. You Can’t Do Everything by Yourself

While in the beginning stages of your business you may find yourself holding various titles, an entrepreneur and business leader needs to shed the weight of responsibilities and trust their employees to be accountable for their own obligations. Yes, you know the marketing, sales, employees, and management tactics needed to run a business. But in order for you to grow as a boss, you need to trust your employees with the work. Doing so is a strong sign that your business is thriving. Just because you are holding less responsibilities does not mean you are doing less. Rather you can use that time to optimize and improve yourself as an administrator and CEO.

3. The Organized Chaos

While you may have started off with a clean and efficient business plan, the reality after the first few years of your company may shift dramatically. At the end of the day, it is often hard to predict the overall outcome of where your business it heading. There will be various speed bumps and this will seem to go off course. When this happens, accept it. See how these changes can align with your vision so that you can reflect and transform your company to the best possible position. Remember, adapt or die. Those who live in the old world stay in the old world. For your business, accept change and welcome it as a good thing.

4. Your Decisions will Keep You Up at Night

As a business leader and face for your company, you will oftentimes be the primary decision-maker for those hard-to-make stress-inducing decisions. Yes, some will decisions will haunt you, but at the end of the day, you want to be confident. To make the most logical and sound decision, look at what will benefit your company in the long run Compare and contrast how these decisions will change the work culture and your relationships with those around you. By asking yourself these big heavy hitting questions, you will be preparing yourself for greater things. Just know that whatever decision you make, believe that you are right.

5. Failure will always be an Option

Whether they are massive or minor, failure is undoubtedly inevitable. It is the essential part of being an entrepreneurship. While it is uneasy to accept, you need to understand that you will not have control of everything. Rather than look at these failures as a negative, see them as a window of opportunity. Reflect why this came to be and how you can prevent it down the line.

Why We Love Shark Tank

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Entering into its seventh season on ABC, Shark Tank has captured the mind, the heart, and the essence of the every-day entrepreneurs. With its gimmicky and visually tedious conference room setting, it is no wonder why this show has captured the hearts of the American public.

But what is so special about this show? Why is it so popular?

For those of you who have never seen the show, Shark Tank is a reality television series that gives budding entrepreneurs the chance to bring their dreams to fruition. In the tank, individuals are asked to present a quick five-minute pitch about their idea and their company in order to convince a panel of five successful business titans. After a series of questions on the background, finances, and future planning of the company, the sharks give their decision of whether or not they will invest their money into the entrepreneur’s idea. When more than one shark wants to invest in their idea, a bidding war can erupt, driving the price of the overall investment. On the show, the most notable and recurring sharks have been Kevin O’Leary, Barbara Corcoran, Daymond John, Robert Herjavec, Mark Cuban, and Lori Greiner.

When people first watch they show, they are expecting to see something similar to a “talent searching” scene such as those found in the Apprentice or American Idol because of its stylistic judge-like setting. However, once they continue watching, they see that the overall show is much more than that. It is both informative as it is educational. The dynamics of corporate business found in each and every pitch is something that is interesting and new to television. Beyond, the pitches and products themselves, the knowledge and attitude each judge or shark brings to every episode makes the show that more worthwhile.  With over six million, this once pronounced bland financial cable show is and will continue to be a reality hit.

So why do we love this show?

There are three simple reasons why we cannot stop watching Shark Tank: the sharks, the pitches, and the negotiations.

The Sharks

While the concept of the show is intriguing overall, the variety of judges that are picked for each episode gives the show an overall edge for the viewers and the public. For these individuals, they are not picked solely on their looks or style. Rather they were assembled based on their resumes and successes. Having individuals like Mark Cuban or Kevin O’Leary giving both the presenter and the audience advice is something you will never see on any other television show. In addition, beyond the drama and banter, the Sharks themselves look to educate and advise the person rather than tear them down.

The Pitches

Beyond the outrageous ideas people have made on the show, the overall pitches shows ingenious well-thought out solutions that everyday people may need throughout their lives. For these pitches, the presenter aims not simply to sell the sharks, but also to sell the mass viewers. Because of this, the overall pitches become an entertaining concept for the viewers. It allows the viewers to agree or disagree with the sharks and channel whether or not the product is viable in its market.

The Negotiations

Probably the most exciting part of the show, the negotiations are the most memorable acts we can see between presenter and shark. Keep in mind, it is not the act of the individual getting the investment, rather how they are able to negotiate and whom they are able to negotiate with. In addition, this is where the business jargon comes to play where quick mental math of ‘valuations’ and ‘equity’ are clearly seen by each and every shark.

How to Effectively Communicate in Business

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Communication is simply the act of transferring information from one place to another. Although this is a simple definition, when we think about how we may communicate, the subject becomes a lot more complex. Your mentality and success rely purely on the idea of what your goal is for the overall conversation.

Within the business sector, communication is incredibly vital for day-to-day operations. To truly stand out with an employee, the manager or supervisor, needs to be clear, precise, and effective when talking, delegating, or presenting his or her ideas. Below, you will find key tips to help aid your communication skills in the private sector. Following these helpful hints will allow you to leverage strong efficient, effective work while adding to a positive and cohesive work environment.

Know Your Goals

Setting and reaching your goals is a mainstay theme in every portion of a manager’s day. Whenever you talking, whether that is in a meeting with your team or one-on-ones with an individual, make sure you there is a point or goal in mind. Supervisors often find themselves rambling on and going off on a variety of different tangents if they are ill prepared for their presentations. To prevent this from happening, internalize your goals for the meeting or conversation. Then revise and simplify your goal so that, no matter whom you talk to, you are confidently able to exert your goals for anyone’s understanding. While this may sound time consuming, this should take no more than a few minutes.

Be Precise

As much as people love flexibility and autonomy in the workplace, more specific and direct instructions can be more effective in achieving your daily goals. Many people can often get confused if you are not completely precise about what the task are. Any tangents or unrelated conversation, while positive at times, can often compromise both your time and your team’s success. The best way to avoid this is to communicate very precisely, usually step-by-step, of what you want to see at the end of the day or end of the week. This gives the responsibilities on the individual who should at that point then execute.

Be Accessible

Many times throughout the day, you will find a variety of problems or misunderstandings that can be easily resolved from a simple one-minute conversation. Being easily accessible for your team and co-workers will provide a sense of trust and support that people often need in order to succeed. Make sure you are positive and personable. Oftentimes people can feel intimidated or unconfident because of certain misunderstandings with the work. Showing these individuals that you are there for them can greatly pick up morale and boost productivity.

Create an Online Forum to Share Information

For many companies and enterprises, having an online social network for which employees can communicate is an incredible tool. These social platforms, like Slack, Google Hangouts, or Skype allow people to engage and interact on various levels such as announcements, knowledge transfers, delegated task, meetings, etc. Utilizing this within the everyday operations can only improve your productivity. Make sure that the overall concept is used in a professional yet positive manner.

Email Etiquettes

When communicating online, especially through emails, try and leverage the subject line. As stated before, be direct and to the point. Often times, employees will misread the title and will often delete or skip opening your email. Being precise about what you want in the subject line will clearly get the immediate attention of your workers so that things are fun smoothly and efficiently.

 

How to Start Your Business: Six Steps for Success

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Some people call it a calling. Others call it the only option. Regardless of how you put it, there are thousands of people all across the nation taking a leap of faith and starting their own business. This is a very difficult and arduous task that requires hard work, determination, and perseverance. But for those who survive beyond the bleak months or year of pain and failure, they will find themselves at the end of the tunnel reaping the rewards on their road for success.

Starting a business and becoming an entrepreneur is not easy. It takes a special kind of person to overcome the obstacles of failures and go surpass the ideas of settling when looking for success. If you are still interested in starting a business, here is a guide that will aid you throughout the process. These six steps will help pinpoint the dos and don’ts during the beginning stages of your journey.

1. Planning and Developing Winning Ideas:

The next big idea is what drives a business in the first place. Every business begins with an idea. The idea can be a variety of things. They can be something you are passionate about or they can be something that can change the course of everyday life. No matter where the interest lies, there is a way to create it into something great. Remember, Google and Apple didn’t just come out of nowhere. They came from products, or even problems, that have were the markers for their great creation. Once you have picked and assessed your idea, it is important to see the strengths and flaws of pre-existing companies within the chosen field. Understand their take on your concept. Figure out what they were missing or what you can do better, faster, and cheaper. Reflecting on those concepts will allow you to eventually market this concept into a full blown business.

2. Creating a Business Plan

Every great business has planned out the logistics and objective of their overall company. Remember, your company is a novice in comparison to both relevant organizations and competitors. At this stage, it is important you iron out some important questions that will later need answers when you full establish your business. Take into consideration these questions:

  •  What are your company’s objectives?
  •  What are you trying to do?
  •  Who are you trying to sell to?
  •  What are your goals?
  •  How much money will you need to start up? How much money will you need for the campaign?
  •  How many employees will you need to get this off the ground?
  •  What are you planning for advertising?
  •  What are your projections for month three, six, and twelve?

All of these questions can be answered in a well-written business plan. This plan does not have to be terribly long. Rather, the plan itself needs to help you figure out the path for your company and any obstacles you will need to face during the beginning stages once it launches. It will give you an outline of specific things that need to be done so that you are on the right direction for success.

3. Assessing your Finances: Determine how much you need to start

Like the famous saying goes, everything comes at a price. Besides your time and effort, there are costly expenses when building up a startup. Assess your business plan and identify how much you are going to need to cover these immediate expenses will play a large role in how your business is running by month three. Regardless of how much you have, you want to optimize your funds in the most efficient way. The idea of ‘stretching out your dollar’ will be the best mentality to embrace when launching your business. In the past, there have been many businesses that have invested much of their funds on unnecessary or frivolous expenses. By having a well thought-out business plan and a deeper understanding of your finances, you can leverage these expenses. If the expenses are more than you anticipated, take a look at commercial loans or investors. Make sure at this point that your business model is already developed and know what you will use that money prior to any investor meetings.

4. Registering your Business

When registering your business, make sure you have decided on what kind of entity and field your business is in. There are certain legal and structural logistics you need to file, especially in your taxes. Once you have determined the type of business you have, register on the SBA website.

5. Building Your Team

Now that you have established your idea, created a business plan, planned out your expenses, and registered your business, it is now time for you to think about the managerial aspect of your business. Here, think about the type of people you want and the skills they need to have to help thrive your business. If your business is for a tech company, you should be thinking about web developers and IT workers. If you business is for sales, you should be thinking of strong communicators and business minded individuals. Having a grasp of the people you want will ultimately put you at pace if growing your business.

6. Grow your Vision

Here is the stage where you have now established the team, finance, and idea for your startup. What you need to do at this stage is be a leader. Allow your team and company to run on a long-term vision and goal. Make sure you have internalized this goal so that no matter whom you talk to, everyone is on the same page for success.