Being predominantly EXECUTIONAL

The 34 Talent Themes, as researched and defined by Gallup in the late 90's, was later "clustered" into four different groupings.  Although ongoing research is backing this specific grouping of Talent Themes, one should still realise that talents cannot be treated as a specific formula.  Instead, it is much more like art - mixing different colours bring forth a unique blend. The same with the art of cooking: you could formulate a recipe, but mixing unique ingredients and spices always has its own aroma and taste. And talents are about a unique mix...
Gallup research has shown that the 34 Talent Themes (and, note that it is called "themes" for a reason) are used within specific context most of the time. The 34 different themes of predominant thinking, feeling and behaving can be divided into four clusters, namely "Executing Themes", "Influencing Themes", "Relational Building Themes" and "Strategic Thinking Themes". (You can read more about the research on this in "Strengths Based Leadership" by Tom Rath (Gallup Press).

In the next series of posts I would like to elaborate on each of the four "clusterings", as I like to call them.  First, the Executional Themes...

Gallup sorted the so called Executional Themes as Achiever, Arranger, Belief, Consistency, Deliberative, Discipline, Responsibility, Restorative and Focus.

The first thing to keep in mind when studying these themes as being "executional", will be to keep in mind that each one refers to a predominant pattern of thought, feeling and behaviour. Interaction and dynamics between two or more talent themes has a definite and strong impact on each theme...thereby influencing and colouring the way the specific theme is manifested and used.

Overall, the 9 Executional Themes has shown to have a definite drive towards "getting things done".  You could relate it to the so called "task orientation", or, when referring to the DISC profile, towards the D and C quadrants (generally speaking, but not as simplistic). Again: this should be approach as dynamic and interdependent.

Within the drive towards getting something done - mostly something tangible - each of these themes has a specific strong element. This element can be explained as follows:

• Achiever - goal oriented; "ticking the to-do list"
• Arranger - multi tasking; organizing the bigger picture
• Belief - value driven results
• Consistency - meet the ends within fairness and boundaries
• Deliberative - questioning the outcome and facts
• Discipline - results through routine and structure
• Responsibility - driven towards results through ownership
• Restorative - the drive to fix things, make it work or restoring wholeness
• Focus - hitting the target; zooming into the details.

Should you have some of the above Executional Themes within the higher level of your Talent Profile, it is most likely that the specific talent(s) will be the dominant drive towards getting things done or you reaching specific goals.  A combination of two or more of these themes - especially within the top 5 grouping of your talents, will have a definite effect of an overall pattern towards executional (task oriented) thinking, feeling and behaving.

Sometimes you get it that someone has an overwhelming mix of a specific clustering - like 4 or even 5 out of 5 within their top 5 Talent Themes. In such instance someone will be an "do-er" or executioner to the extreme... they will be very strong in getting things done, reaching goals and hitting the target.

The cluster trap

Something that one must be very careful not to do, is to fall into the trap of generalization of these clusterings.  Not having specific Executional Themes high in your mix, does not mean that you cannot get things done, hit the mark, reach the goal or be responsible for executional duties.  Skills can be learned. That is the edge we have of being human.  But when it comes to sustainable energy, and outlasting the rest within a field, someone with strong Executional Themes will be more suited towards a situation of getting things done, in the same manner that someone with strong Relational Themes will be more suited towards a situation where people and relational interaction is predominant.

I would love to hear your views and experience on specifically the Executional Themes.  If you have some of them, how do you experience them in practice?  If you do not have them high, do you compensate? How?  If you are a coach or Talent Guide, what is your experience of this topic?  Please post your comments.

Next time I will elaborate on the so called "Influencing Themes".

- by Dries Lombaard
Founder and Owner: Africanmosaic

Visit our Website:  www.africanmosaic.com

3 Reasons Why Young Leaders Neglect Relationship

"How do I get more influence?"

I hear this question a lot. Every time I sit down with a young leader, in fact. I hear it at the end of the day, too, ringing in my ears. Because it's something I often ask myself.

For most of my life, I've wanted to be popular. Isn't this what we're plagued with for most of our young lives -- the seductive temptation to be "cool"?

In grade school, I used to watch the other kids play outside while I remained indoors, lamenting to my mom that no one wanted to play with me.

"Why don't you just go join them?" my mother would ask, sighing. I never did.

In high school, in between being bullied by upperclassmen, I would watch movies, drink too much soda, and complain that I never had anything to do.

"Why don't you call someone, Jeff?! Be the initiator." She had memorized the script by now.

Eventually, I did. But it took an inciting incident as powerful as a friend collapsing dead on the gymnasium floor before I would get off the couch. Sometimes, it takes a tragedy for us to realize what's important. For me, it was the realization that relationships matter, but that they take intentionality to build.

We all want influence, but very few of us are willing to do the work earn it. Influence begins (and ends) with relationship. A lot of young leaders overlook this. Here are three reasons why.

1. Pride
I think I'm hot stuff. So do other young leaders. We all want to be self-made men and women. We've got a degree, a great skill set, and ambition. Isn't that enough? No. No it's not.

Excellent leaders recognize that they need the help of others to succeed. They count on it. They build teams of people who are strong in the areas that they're weak. And they're humble enough to admit what those areas are.

2. Laziness
Relationship takes work. A lot more work than just sitting in a corner with all your great ideas and vision, waiting for someone to notice you.

Relationships are "squishy." They require a certain amount of intuition. For a task-oriented person like me, they're easier just to skip. But if you do that, you forego the opportunity to influence. You end up with no one to lead and no real work to do.

3. Fear
Relationships are risky, especially new ones.

We may say that we're "not touchy feely" or "Type A," but let's call it what it is: fear. We're afraid to risk rejection or failure, so we avoid the messiness of relationship.

Fear holds us back from being our true selves. Fear is a liar. Fear will raise irrational doubts and fears in you that you never would have thought on your own.

Fear is the enemy to success. And you must slay it today if you're going to lead tomorrow.

What do you do?

There is no magic bullet or formula for working through each of these obstacles. We must simply choose to make relationships matter.

The most successful leaders in the world are not successful merely because of their abilities or their accomplishments. They're successful, because they've learned how to build and harness important relationships.

In fact, successfully building influential relationships may be the hardest skill of all.

So how do you become a person of influence? You do the opposite of the above:

1. Serve
You humble yourself. Join someone else's dream before trying to launch your own. Come alongside someone else's dream before trying to launch your own.

2. Hustle
Notice that I didn't say "stalk." Work hard to deepen existing relationships and build new ones. Go the extra mile. Show up early. Leave late. Show the person that you're trying to build a relationship with that you value their time. Say "thank you."

3. Risk
Saying "be brave" (as a solution to the obstacle of fear) would ring hollow and untrue. It doesn't work like that.

Courage is not just facing fear, but working through it.

Take risks. Make bold asks. Practice being brave, and pretty soon you actually will be.

Jeff Goins is a writer, idea guy, and all-around cool dude. He works with Adventures in Missions, lives in Nashville with his wife Ashley and dog Lyric. You can follow Jeff's blog at goinswriter.com or connect with him on twitter @jeffgoins. Jeff is passionate about words and the difference they can make in the world.

The Era of the Right Brain Thinker

Creativity and innovation will guide tomorrow’s leaders.

Tomorrow’s leaders can’t know for sure what the world will look like when their time to lead arises. No one can. But as we all strive to manage the economic, technological, and social shifts revolutionizing every facet of business, we must take tangible steps to prepare the new crop of leaders for the reality that awaits them.

Where do we start? We must first identify the challenges they will face, starting with the magnification of a burden today’s leaders know too well: increasing complexity. There are more forces affecting every decision than ever before, and infinitely more decisions to make—from social media strategy to the implications of new global power centers. According to IBM’s 2010 Global CEO Study, not only do today’s CEOs expect this complexity to continue to grow, but they feel ill-equipped to handle it.

Another tough issue will be attracting and retaining talent. Workers know they can’t depend on a company for lifelong salary and stability. The best talent wants more than that, anyway—they want to be fulfilled and inspired by their work. It’s no longer enough to say, “I work at a big-name company.” Smart, driven professionals want to say, “I’m working on this incredibly interesting project, and it’s going to change the world.”

It becomes evident that creativity and innovation are critical capabilities for leaders in a future characterized by constant change, created and sustained by employees who seek inspiration and meaning. In fact, IBM’s study found that today’s CEOs are already identifying creativity as the most important leadership characteristic.

To those of us who practice and teach the art of innovation, this makes perfect sense. Creative leaders are more agile, open to change, and highly adaptable. They are better at finding new ways to approach and solve problems. Creative leaders depend less on “the way things were,” and instead are excited to imagine entirely new realities.

These findings dovetail nicely with the case Daniel Pink made in his book, A Whole New Mind. He suggests that the era of the “left-brain” thinker is over. Logical, linear thinking—while still necessary—is no longer a differentiator. “Right-brain” skills such as synthesis, the ability to tell a story, and big-picture thinking will be the hallmarks of success in what Pink calls the new “Conceptual Age.” These capabilities retain value in an era where technological and economic factors can quickly commoditize even the best rule-based thought processes.

To harness and develop right-brain skills in the workforce, tomorrow’s creative leaders will need to be visionaries. The idea of visionary leadership is not new, but a heightened emphasis is necessary to invoke the passion and dedication of future workers. A captivating leader who embodies the best aspects of an organization’s purpose is a uniquely attractive motivator. The new generation of professionals wants this kind of leadership, as they seek inspiration and fulfillment from work in ways that earlier generations did not always demand.

Power “Steering”

Tomorrow’s leaders will be responsible for “steering” more than anything. Whether it’s steering organizations through the never-ending swirl of complexity, or steering employees toward inspirational work that adds value to the company and their own lives, the leaders of tomorrow must leverage creativity and innovation to move forward.

By Lisa Bodell - CEO of futurethink (futurethink.com), an innovation research and training firm.

Debunking the talent retention myth

This article appeared on www.skillsportal.co.za on Thursday, 26 May 2011

South African companies should no longer assume that career path planning, brand loyalty and rewards for high-flyers will retain their valued employees. Instead, they need to recognise that financial rewards and organisational attachment are not a catch-all for retention and that employees in the new world of work have developed an open, flexible attitude to their relationship with employers.

That’s the critical learning to emerge from second National Employee Engagement Survey, which will be presented on Thursday, 09 June 2011 in Johannesburg by its authors, Ruwayne Kock and Dr Kent McNamara.

A registered industrial psychologist, Kock is a shareholder at The Human Resource Practice where he is the head of the consulting service line. His associate there, Dr McNamara is an industrial anthropologist.

According to the pair, their research has debunked several key myths surrounding the retention of employees in South African organisations. For example, in addition to the diminished appeal of the ‘traditional rewards’ (financial, career and leisure incentives), the research found that corporate organisations should place less emphasis on the indefinite retention of employees, and more emphasis on ensuring that while people are in their employ, they are provided with the resources to enable them to perform to a high level and deliver quality results.

This shift of focus involves two strategic steps, namely, moving away from monitoring the ‘exit’ process to placing more emphasis on the ‘arrival’ process, by attracting, screening and on-boarding candidates with the appropriate personal engagement attributes and potential for performance; and creating the environmental conditions for rapidly enhancing employee engagement and performance.

“Our first national survey of engagement, conducted in 2009, showed a phenomenal 64% of South African employees were looking for new horizons within and outside their companies,” said Kock. “It therefore suggested that one way of improving the bottom line without decreasing overheads and expenses was to strengthen employees’ sense of engagement1 to their jobs and their organisations, and as a result, improve their performance.

“The second South African National Employee Engagement Survey examined the relationship between intent to stay, or leave, with those factors that are historically associated with boosting engagement levels, such as career progression, job satisfaction and financial rewards.

“A sample of 406 respondents was electronically surveyed across all nine provinces and across most industry sectors, job levels, population groups and disciplines. The 2010 survey found that respondents’ personal effort that is, the decision to work hard or put in extra effort, is related to their personal identification with their jobs or occupations.

“This finding points to the importance of the content and challenge of the job which can improve organisational identification or association. The study also found that the high risk retention categories were people under 30, with degrees, with 4-10 years experience, managers, African and Indian respondents, people in administration, human resources, utilities and government,” said Kock.

The following retention myths in the management of talent in local organisations were challenged by the survey:

1. Satisfaction with career progress is not a reliable indicator of intent to stay or leave. It is clear that many employees will fulfil career aspirations in different organisations.

2. Professional people in South Africa operate in a ‘new world of work’, characterised by more open and flexible relationships with organisations, where company loyalty and lifelong affiliation is less important than previously.

3. Satisfaction with financial rewards does not always predict intent to stay and does not offer a ‘catch-all’ strategy for retention. Although many younger people were unhappy with pay and thought of quitting, this was not true for other employees.

4. Supervisors’ are not the ‘front line’ of engagement; instead, the supervisors’ own personal sense of engagement was found to be consistently low across different sectors and must be raised if they are to play a greater role in engaging their subordinates.

5. The Human Resources discipline should be the champion of employee engagement, yet the HR practitioners who took part in the survey revealed a low level of personal engagement, which poses a challenge for any talent retention strategy

Dr McNamara summarised: “Given these findings, the managers of tomorrow need to provide conditions to enhance employee engagement. They need to be self aware; conduct critical performance conversations; conduct realistic career dialogues and coach subordinates to optimal performance.

“Employees of tomorrow will need to be resourceful, demonstrate a positive attitude, be inspired, manage their jobs efficiently and be a team player, if they are to perform under the current economic conditions. This requires a transformation of the employee value proposition to include challenging and meaningful work that will enhance organisational commitment and in turn, retention,” he said.

Three simple tips to Strategize in times of uncertainty

It is no secret that the past few years have been tough on many businesses. During our recent political in-fighting and economic uncertainty, businesses leaders had their nose to the grindstone striving to do more with less.

But as the economy slowly begins to improve and the dust starts to clear, many in management are starting to realize a key problem with the old strategy. Everyone was so focused on surviving and cutting that they have no strategic initiatives…no clear next steps, vision or, in many cases, energy. Leaders are suffering from their own business hangovers.

As a manager, how can you get back to the business of strategizing and leading again? Here are three quick and easy tips that any business leader can practice to immediately improve his/her leadership performance:

1. Focus on energy, not time.
Energy, not time, is an essential element of productivity and growth. Have you ever noticed when you have endless high-energy and excitement you are more alert, focused, positive and productive? In fact, energy is what makes time more valuable. Time is a constant; energy is a manageable, renewable resource. What's burning your energy and what refuels it? Physically? Mentally? Emotionally? Spiritually?

This question applies to your company as well. What's burning the energy of the company and what refuels it with respect to your strategy, operations, financial and people resources? Your answers will influence your strategy for energy management within the constraints of time and how you maximize the year ahead.

2. Focus on each conversation.
Leadership happens one conversation at a time. You are responsible for the quality of each and every conversation. Slow down and brainstorm what you want to say and how you want to express it prior to speaking or typing. Ask yourself, What is the ideal outcome of this conversation? and then focus on two to three thought-provoking questions that you can ask to create your ideal outcome.

The brain is triggered by starts and stops. Create a positive filter when you begin a conversation by having an opening declaration or question that frames your ideal outcome, i.e. How might we best increase our sales 10%? is a much better way to start a meeting than Our sales are down and we better figure out how to turn them around! When you bring a conversation to a close, your last words linger. Utilize action statements to close conversations where you need increased accountability, or use persuasive, emotion laden comments when you need engagement and buy-in. For example, I look forward to seeing your first marketing draft on Tuesday at 4pm or I'm really excited to hear your creative ideas for this exciting new product launch next Thursday at 9am are ideal closers.

For meeting prep, devote at least five minutes to think of three to five questions that will serve as your agenda and foster more critical and creative thinking. These five minutes will save you hours down the road.

3. Focus on creating internal alignment.
Only when your values and passions match your actions will you find peace. Step back and ask yourself: What am I resisting? What am I judging? What am I attached to? When people resist it means they are stuck. Stuck from fear. Uncover the specific fear so you can address it and decrease resistance. Uncovering internal judgments and attachments allows you to uncover tension. Where there's tension, there's no clarity and acceptance. When you gain clarity and compassion you reduce tension and risk and are more willing to try a new approach. Last but not least, what three rules do you live by that you wouldn't change anytime for anyone? Answer these questions and you’ll gain clarity, insight and a foundation for momentous success.

AmyK Hutchens, Founder and Intelligence Activist, AmyK International, Inc., is a speaker, trainer and business strategist. Having made over 800 presentations around the globe and worked with more than 20,000 executives on leadership and sales, AmyK and her team teach executives how to lead and sales teams how to sell…successfully. Follow AmyK on Twitter @AmyKinc or visit www.amyk.com.

101 Common Sense Tips (final)

In the final blog of our series on Common Sense Tips for Leadership, we learn to...

Go Above and Beyond

Managing people isn't just about getting the job done. To truly be a great leader, sometimes you need to go above and beyond what the job calls for.

93. Lead by example. You can talk until you're blue in the face, but the best way to get a point across is to be the model to emulate. Let employees follow your lead.
94. Get your hands dirty. Sometimes you need to show your employees that no one's above doing unattractive tasks.
95. Make a difference to your employees. Don't just be a generic manager — stand out as a leader and role model for your employees.
96. Gain your employees' trust and respect. You'll have a much easier time managing employees when they respect your rules and boundaries and trust your leadership.
97. Be empathetic to personal problems. Whether it should or not, what happens outside of work can have a big affect on the quality of work produced. Be sensitive if employees have personal issues that keep them from concentrating on work.
98. Be unique as a manager. Every position demands something different and you should be proud to be adept at your particular role rather than trying to emulate other managers.
99. Remember that ethics matter above all. Be honest and reliable in all of your business and personal relationships.
100. Be on the lookout for new ideas. You never know where your next great inspiration will come from.
101. Get to know your employees. Learn more than just their names. Get to know your employees' family backgrounds, likes and dislikes. Doing so will make you more personable.


Recognition to www.focus.com for this 101 Tips on Leadership.

101 Common Sense Tips (continued)

Resolving Problems

Whether problems are internal or external, they can make your management duties a nightmare if you don't handle them correctly. Here's how to stay on top of them.

84. Stand up for employees. If other departments or managers are bearing down hard on your employees, stand up for them.
85. Fix what's broken. Don't waste time placing blame. Take care of fixing the problem before dealing with any possible repercussions.
86. Manage and control your emotions. Don't let anger or frustration affect your problem resolution. If you are emotionally invested in a situation, cool down before discussing it or bring in an outside mediator.
87. Learn when to step in. Some problems might resolve themselves if you just let them be, but you need to be aware of times where you'll need to step in and take control of a situation.
88. Take the blame. If you've made a mistake, fess up. It'll give you more time to work on fixing the problem instead of talking your way out of taking the rap.
89. Get the facts first. Before you pass judgment on a situation, make sure you have the whole story. Listen to employees and refrain from questioning anyone's integrity without first ensuring that you've gathered all the data.
90. Rise above the crisis. Learn to separate yourself from the problem and rise above the fray. You'll be able to think more clearly and make a better decision on how to rectify the issue.
91. Don't ignore problems. A small problem can easily snowball and become something much more difficult to fix.
92. Try to depersonalize problems. Let employees know that the problem isn't with them but with their actions. Don't make it personal.

...to be continued...

101 Common Sense Tips (continued)

Keep Up with Change

There is no way to stop the world from changing, so follow these tips to keep up and ahead of the game.

76. Don't fight change. You can't stop markets, trends and technology from changing, so learn to go with the flow.
77. Adopt a predictive managerial style. Don't wait for things to happen to make a move. Anticipate problems and provide contingency plans.
78. Test your contingency plans. Waiting for disaster to strike is a dangerous way to find out if your emergency plans will hold. Test them out from time to time to fine-tune them and make sure they're still relevant.
79. Identify the positives. Even the most negative changes can have positive aspects to them. Being able to identify and maximize them can help make adapting less painful.
80. Be quick to adapt. Learn to adapt to changing situations quickly and be able to change plans on the spur of the moment if the situation requires it.
81. Stay tuned to external factors. Your business is affected in many ways by outside factors. Keep abreast of these so you can anticipate any sudden market changes that would affect how you need to manage.
82. Put in place a Research and Development plan. Encourage innovation and creativity to stay ahead of the demand for newer and better products and services.
83. Keep an eye on the competition. Don't let the competition get the best of you. Keep up-to-date with what they're doing and use it to your advantage in managing your business.


...to be continued...

101 Common Sense Tips (continued)

Communicating with Clients

Whether you're a business owner or a manager carrying out a project, one thing is always the same: The client is dominant voice in decision-making. Learn to communicate with them effectively and you'll set a good example for the people you supervise.

67. Remember that the customer is the boss. At the end of the day, your job is to make the customer happy. Act accordingly.
68. Differentiate your products. Don't get lost in a sea of products and services like yours. Make sure you stand out from your competitors.
69. Retain customers as much as you recruit new ones. While you always want to bring in new business, it's very important to maintain relationships with loyal customers.
70. Provide effective channels of communication. Make sure your clients can contact you easily and quickly if they have a problem, concern or question. They can also provide a valuable source of feedback.
71. Maintain customer data. Use this data to make your customers feel special by remembering occasions like birthdays and anniversaries. It's also helpful for keeping track of purchasing preferences.
72. Segment your customers. Not all customers are alike. Divide your customers into groups that allow you to provide attention and services that meet each customer's unique needs.
73. Provide effective after-sales services. Don't let contact fall off after the work is complete. Make sure your client stays happy.
74. Listen attentively. Pay attention to exactly what clients are asking for to help you better meet their needs.
75. Don't be afraid to say you don't know. It's OK not to know the answer to every question. It's better to say you don't know and get back to a customer than to try to bluff your way through a conversation and have to backtrack later.


...to be continued...

101 Common Sense Tips (continued)

Managing Finances and Resources


Whether you're a business owner or a manager, staying on top of tangible items is vital to success. These tips can help you keep track.

56. Set up a realistic budget. While it's good to be optimistic, don't plan for more spending than you know you can afford. Make sure you plan for emergencies and contingencies as well.
57. Save costs where they matter the most. Don't just pinch pennies for the present. Make sure your savings will pay off in the long run. Compromising on quality might cost you later on in repairs and replacements.
58. Spend only when it's necessary. Don't spend if you don't need to. Every bit you save goes toward your profit.
59. Find alternative sources of finance. Sometimes even successful businesses need a little help. Business loans and investors can help you through leaner times.
60. Stay true to your contracts. Not only will you gain the respect of your clients, you'll also avoid legal battles that can be a serious financial drain.
61. Make sure employees are well compensated. Employees deserve to be rewarded for hard work. Make sure yours are well compensated for their time and they'll be more productive and happier to come to work.
62. Learn to do more with less. Quality is much more important than quantity, so make what you have count.
63. Assign equipment wisely. While it might be nice for every employee to have a PDA, budgets often don't allow for such conveniences. Make sure the employees that need tools the most have access to them.
64. Invest in solid technology. This doesn't always mean the latest technology, but what your office needs to do work effectively.
65. Update when necessary. Using obsolete equipment and programs can really slow you down. Update when it makes sense so you won't get left behind by competitors.
66. Don't be wasteful. Every sheet of paper, paper clip and pen is a cost on your budget. Use materials wisely and don't waste them out of haste or carelessness.

...to be continued...

101 Common Sense Tips (continued)

Boosting Productivity

Getting the most out of your day can be difficult with a busy schedule, but you can use these tips to help you maximize your time in order to be better available to employees.

44. Get the most out of meetings. Be organized and prepared for meetings to increase effectiveness and time savings.
45. Focus your energy on things that matter. Don't let trivial tasks take time away from things that are really important.
46. Identify your time-stealers. Everyone has little things that detract their attention and make them lose focus. Figure out what these are and work to eliminate them, if only for a few hours a day.
47. Be punctual. Being on time is a big deal. Never keep people waiting for appointments or meetings if you can help it.
48. Respond to your correspondence within a reasonable amount of time. You don't have to be chained to your inbox, but make sure you respond to emails within a few hours whenever possible.
49. Do only what is necessary. There are times when going above and beyond works, but doing so on a daily basis can derail your progress on more important issues. Get the key things done first, then see if you have time for additional things.
50. Stick to schedules and routines. While they may not be the most exciting things, schedules and routines can help streamline and improve your productivity.
51. Organize and manage your schedule. Use any tools and utilities you have at your disposal to prioritize your day and keep track of what you need to get done.
52. Plan more than you think you can do. While this may sound stressful, it can actually be a great motivator. If you manage to get everything done, you'll enjoy a great sense of achievement.
53. Get to work early on occasion. Sometimes an uninterrupted half hour in an unoccupied office can help you get key things done or allow you to plan your day before there are any distractions to slow you down.
54. Know that sometimes stress is good. While too much of anything, especially stress, can be bad, sometimes a little stress can be the motivation to get you moving, allowing you to get more done.
55. Do your least favorite tasks first. Get your most tedious and least desirable tasks out of the way earlier in the day. After that, everything else will be a breeze.

...to be continued...

(from www.focus.com)

101 Common Sense Tips (continued)

Manage Yourself

Being a good manager isn't just about what you can encourage other people to do, it's also about managing your own performance.

This is the fourth in our series on common sense leadership tips. (If you missed the others, go on our site and read it....)

32. Be accessible. Don't hole up in your office all day — come out and visit with your employees. Let them know that they can always come to you with problems and concerns.
33. Be open to constructive criticism. It may not always be what you want to hear, but listening to constructive criticism gives you the chance to learn and grow from your mistakes.
34. Accept responsibility. Part of being the boss is accepting responsibility for the mistakes of all that you manage, not just your own.
35. Know there's always room for improvement. No matter how good you think you are, your job can always be done better. Always be willing to learn.
36. Improve your skills. Learning is a lifelong process. You're never too old to take a class or ask a co-worker to help you improve your knowledge.
37. Explain things simply. Don't use big words or technical jargon just to sound smart and impress others. Your employees will understand and perform better if you explain simply and clearly what you need.
38. Instruct rather than order. You may be the boss, but you don't have to be bossy. You'll have more success if your requests are more tactfully delivered.
39. Include your staff in your plans. Don't make your work top secret; let your employees know what's going on and how they are expected to contribute.
40. Know your subordinates' jobs. You don't want to be caught with inferior job knowledge.
41. Be flexible. It's fine to be firm in what you expect, but allow for flexibility in how it gets done.
42. Get regular feedback. Your employees and superiors can give you valuable feedback on how to improve your performance. Use this to your advantage.
43. Know your limitations. You can't be everywhere doing everything all at once. Know the limits of your time and abilities and say no to things you know you can't do.

...to be continued...

101 Common Sense Tips (continued)

Getting Along with Employees

A happy office is a productive one. Everyone will be more cheerful if you follow these simple rules.

21. Don't make your employees come in on days they're normally not scheduled to work or call them while they're on vacation. A surefire way to make employees resent you is to invade their personal time for nonpressing work. Unless you have something that absolutely has to be done, let time away from work stay that way.
22. Don't play favorites. Playing favorites can bias your judgment and impair your leadership abilities. Treat your employees equally.
23. Give credit when it's due. Don't take credit for your employees' ideas or hog their limelight. This action not only fosters resentment but also makes you seem untrustworthy.
24. Don't micromanage. While it's fine to keep up with what your employees are working on, don't constantly look over their shoulders.
25. Never discuss employee matters with their co-workers. This kind of gossip always gets back to the person and will make you look unprofessional.
26. Don't interfere with employees' work. If your employees are getting work done, don't stress about how it gets done. Even if it's not being done they way you'd do it, it's best to let employees use their best judgment.
27. Don't push unreasonable deadlines. You don't want to spend all of your time at the office, and neither do your employees.
28. Keep your promises. Barring some catastrophic event, you should always keep promises you make to employees, especially about pay and benefits.
29. Keep work about work. Don't require employees to run your personal errands. Take care of your own personal business or hire an assistant.
30. Reward hard work. Make sure your employees feel valued for the work that they do. Employees will be more willing to put in extra effort if they know it's noted and appreciated.
31. Provide motivation. Sometimes employees need a morale boost. Provide them with encouragement to get a project rolling.


...to be continued....

(from www.focus.com)

101 Common Sense Tips (continued)

Meeting Deadlines

We continue our series of tips for good leadership. No one will be happy if your team has to rush around at the last minute to complete a project. Follow these tips to make deadlines less stressful for everyone.


11. Only promise what you can realistically deliver. Don't create deadlines that you know you can't meet. By only promising what you know you can do, you'll be able to finish on time.
12. Set clear goals. Once you know what you need to accomplish, it helps to know how and when you want to do it. Put your goals down on paper and make sure everyone on your team gets a copy.
13. Organize a team. Many of your employees will have unique strengths and training that can make them great assets to certain projects. Pick a team that has the right skills to carry out the job.
14. Delegate tasks. Spread work among your employees in a way that doesn't leave anyone overburdened while also allowing the project work smoothly.
15. Create milestones. Creating milestones for you and your team will help you keep track of your progress and also give you a sense of accomplishment as you reach each milestone.
16. Keep communication open. Keeping everyone in touch with the status of the project is key to making sure it's completed on time.
17. Do it right the first time. Planning ahead will help prevent you from delivering a substandard product. Having to redo something for a client costs money, and, more than likely, future business opportunities.
18. Stay organized. Staying organized will help keep you from wasting time chasing down important documents and information.
19. Make sure expectations are clear. Be sure that each member of your team knows what their specific responsibilities are. This will save time and prevent tasks from being overlooked.
20. Create a plan. Compile your goals and milestones into a comprehensive plan for attacking any project you are given. This way, you can make sure you're staying on schedule and that all of your employees will be clear about how and when things should be done.

....to be continued...

101 Common Sense Tips...

Leadership is more about basics than anything else. For the next few days we will publish a list of practical "to-do's" for leading well, - we got it from www.focus.com).

This is not rocket science. But it is also too often neglected.

The list is too long to try and keep all...but take note of it. This is more caught than taught.

First set of tips is all about....

Body Language

Like it or not, your body speaks volumes, even when you are silent. Here's how to express an attitude that's appropriate for a leader.

1. Stand tall. Keeping your shoulders back and holding yourself up to your full height will give you an air of confidence.
2. Take your hands out of your pockets. Putting your hands in your pockets is often seen as a sign that you have something to hide.
3. Stand with your arms crossed behind your back. This will help you adjust your posture, and it leaves your hands in a position that is open and not intimidating.
4. Make eye contact. Always look directly into the eyes of the people you are speaking with. This shows you're interested and also gives you a sense of confidence.
5. Sit up straight. Even if you're at an 8 a.m. meeting and feeling tired, it's important to sit up straight in your chair. Slouching makes you look disinterested and can give off an unwanted air of laziness.
6. Face the person you're talking to. This shows you are interested and engaged in the conversation.
7. Shake hands firmly. For many, a handshake is a reflection of the person you're shaking hands with. You don't want to come across as unsure or overbearing, so make sure yours is professional and confident.
8. Always smile. Smiles are contagious and will make others feel positive when you're around.
9. Look your best. You don't have to be model perfect every day, but you should dress appropriately and neatly. Clothes can have a big impact on the way you're perceived.
10. Walk confidently. Keep your head up and take even strides.

.....to be continued....

Styles of Conflict Management

According to Kinicki and Kreitner (2009), we find five different conflict styles. Each style has strengths and weaknesses and is subject to situational constraints.

We can see these five styles playing out in talents as well. It is important to note that, although some talents gravitate naturally to some styles, we can all learn skills to enhance our conflict styles in different situations. Take specifically note at when certain styles are appropriate and inappropriate.

The five styles are:

Integrating (problem-solving): parties confront the issue and, working together, identify the problem, generate and weigh alternative solutions, and select a suitable solution. This style is appropriate for complex issues where there is a lot of misunderstanding. It is inappropriate for resolving conflicts that are rooted in opposing value systems. It's strength is in the lasting impact because it deals with underlying problems, not just the symptoms. It's primary weakness is that it is very time-consuming. Talents like Strategic, Intellection and Learner could find this style of conflict more natural. Which of the other talents would you place with this style?

Obliging (smoothing): the concern of others seems to be more important than the concern of the obliging person. The focus is on commonalities and not differences. This styles is appropriate when there is the possibility that the person will eventually get something in return. However, it is inappropriate when the problem becomes complex or worse. It's strength lies in the fact that it encourages cooperation, but it's weakness is that it is a temporary fix that fails to confront the underlying problems. Thus the problems don't go away. Talents like Harmony and Empathy could be more obliging than others. Which of the other talents would you place with this style?

Dominating (forcing): this person has a high concern for him/herself. They want to win, and the other party must loose. The other party's needs are ignored. It relies on formal authority to force compliance. This style is appropriate when an unpopular solution must be implemented, the issue is minor or a deadline is near. It is inappropriate in an open and participative climate. It's primary strength is speed and it's weakness is that it often breeds resentment. This style could fit talents like Command, Competition, Belief and Analytical. Which other talents would also have a natural tendency towards this conflict style?

Avoiding: this person either avoids the problem or suppresses their feelings about the issue. This tactic is appropriate for trivial issues or when the costs of confrontation is bigger than the benefits of resolving the conflict. It is inappropriate for difficult or worsening problems. The strength is this style is that it buys time in unfolding or changing situations. It's weakness is that it provides a temporary fix that sidesteps the underlying problem. Harmony, Relator, Includer, Responsibility and Individualization could find avoiding conflict easier than other talent themes.

Compromising: this approach has give-and-take elements. It is appropriate when both parties have opposite goals or possess equal power. It is however inappropriate when overuse of this style will lead to inconclusive action. It's primary strength is that everyone gets something. It is however a temporary fix that stifles creative problem-solving. Talents like Maximizer and Significance could be more compromising.

The key is to know when certain styles of conflict are most appropriate. Learn the skills to use these styles in the right situations. What types of skills can we learn to use conflict styles in the right situations?

- by Magriet Mouton

Source: Kinicki and Kreitner, 2009, Organizational Behaviour, McGraw-Hill Publishers

Talent & Skill: understanding the difference

One of the most common "mistakes" that we make as managers, leaders, parents or mentors, is to confuse talent and skill. Understanding and recognizing the difference between these two important aspects are crucial when you want to assist or encourage a person to develop, grow and achieve.

Within our culture and our common language, we mistake skill as a talent. We would make observations like "That boy is extremely talented. He scored three goals in the game this morning." Or we would look at a performance within sport, art, of life overall and be amazed at the "talent" we observe, when it is actually skill... built mostly on talent.

My own, basic definition of talent is the following: talent is an inherent drive, energy or longing that fuels and energizes your body, mind or soul to achieve, excel, accomplish or master any specific skill or ability within an area of passion or interest that you identify with.

Then again, on the flip side, you get skill. That I will define as "a specific routine, practice or method that enables you to perform a task to a certain degree of excellence."

You might think that the difference does not matter much, but it matters more than we would know. The first and foremost problem is that confusing talent and skill leads to projection and judgementalism. Skill on its own is not such a good indicator of potential. Talent, on the other hand, is. When we look behind skill and identify talent, our judgement immediately reverts into celebration of potential.

Another important aspect is that distinguishing between talent and skill really helps to enhance fulfilment and avoid weakness fixing. Someone could be brilliant and perform exceptional within a given skill - mostly due to determination and hard work. But it might drain them emotionally, and they might even hate every moment of the activity. That then is a sign that they are not building on talent or strength, but on a weakness. When it weakens you, it’s a weakness.

When you manage, lead or mentor today, be alert to the difference between the skill you observe and the talent behind it (or the absence of talent behind it!). As a leader or mentor, always challenge and push people towards their natural talents, and give them the opportunity to add skill to that. They will excel, and love you for it.
Understanding the power of working, living and thinking from your natural strengths, is a lot more that simple theory. The real test for an individual, or an organization of any kind, functioning out of their strengths, will be found within their corporate language.

When you think "strengths", you speak "strengths". You will have certain ways that would just seem normal within your interaction and conversation with others. The first, and probably foremost, of these, will be that you will naturally seek to identify and celebrate someone’s uniqueness and natural talents.

Celebrating others is something that comes natural to the "strengths-based-mind". As soon as you see someone living out their strengths, you will want to applaud them. You become such an advocate for the idea that one size does NOT fit all, that you just love it to see and experience a perfect fit!

A "strengths-based-attitude" will also naturally encourage others to do better, and to do more of what they find energizing. Natural talent is a beautiful thing to see in action!

There are certain words or phrases that help a lot to encourage the "language of strengths" amongst individuals or teams. Here are a few, just as example:

"Where did that idea / action / deed originate?"
With this phrase we are serious about learning more about somebody’s talent themes, and how they function in practice.

"This is my [talent theme] working, but I was wondering how...."
Putting a specific reference to an action or idea, helps others to understand better where you are coming from, and how they can tap into your talent.

"I really need to give my [talent theme] some space here..."
This encourages others to give you the freedom to use your theme to the best effect.

"May I tap into your [talent theme] with this issue / problem?"
People love it when you see the value of what their themes could offer, and make use of it!

Many of you have done the Clifton StrengthsFinder assessment, but don’t know that there is coaching and training available in South Africa. To book your personal Talent Guide, call (012)345-6833 or go to www.africanmosaic.com.

The 4 most important words

If you subscribe to newsletters, are on Twitter or buy magazines, you can identify with the fact that you have come across many articles that gives you advice starting with the following words: “the 4 most important this or the 5 most important that.” It is as if there is a formula for success, a formula for weight loss, a formula for rising up the perfect kids. But life is not a formula, is it? So, if the heading of this post is, “the 4 most important words”, what would formula are we referring to?

Thankfully, there’s no formula. Tom Peters (www.tompeters.com) says that the 4 most important words is “WHAT DO YOU THINK?”

What does “what do you think” mean? It means YOU ARE A PERSON OF VALUE WHO HAS AN OPINION THAT I WANT TO HEAR! How many times, in the course of a day, do you ask people “what do you think?”

One of the ways to be effective, is by asking the right people “what do you think?”. What are some subjects that you can categorize your question in?

If you want to get something done, ask the Do-ers “what do you think?” The Do-ers have talents like Achiever (hard workers), Arranger (organizers), Consistency (producing standard operating procedures), Discipline (produce structure and routines), Focus (setting priorities for the goal) or Responsibility (committing to getting things done). Who are the Do-ers in your world?

If you want to influence people with your ideas, ask the influencers “what do you think?” Influencers have talents like Activator (getting people to start something), Command (selling your ideas), Communication (getting the message out there), Maximizer (making your ideas better), Significance (striving to make it a success) and Woo (strategic networking). By getting input from your influencers, your ideas will grow into something larger than yourself.

If you want to build better relationships, ask the relation builders “what do you think?”. They have talents like Developer (investing in people), Empathy (feeling what others feel), Harmony (creating peace), Includer (including those that feel left out), Individualization (making people feel special) or Relator (building close and trusting relationships). Who are the relation builders in your world?

If you want to think differently about a problem or an issue, ask the strategic thinkers “what do you think?”. These are the people with talents like Analytical (brings data and facts), Futuristic (how will the future look like if you act), Connectedness (what will the consequence be of your decision), Ideation (thinks outside of the box), Input (resource giver), Strategic (what is the best option). The strategic thinkers in your life will help you to make better decisions.

BOTTOMLINE: Look at your world. Identify those that are do-ers, influencers, relation builders and strategic thinkers. So, in what category do YOU fall? What will YOU answer when someone asks you “what do you think?”

www.africanmosaic.com

Doing what you love...

Knowing the strengths of your team members is invaluable to you as a manager, but that knowledge isn’t something you can obtain simply by observing your colleagues or going through standard evaluations. No, since a person’s strengths are those activities that make him or her feel strong, the only way to know what people’s strengths are is to ask them.

But how can you trust that anyone truly knows what his or her own strengths are? Fortunately, there’s a simple routine that will give your people insight into the activities that strengthen them. Since we just celebrated Valentine’s Day, why not make this a week to focus on what everybody loves?

The technique couldn’t be simpler. Just ask your team members to follow these steps (and do it yourself, too):

First, try to make sure you have a notepad (a plain paper notepad, or a note-taking app on your phone/laptop will do) with you at all times during the week.

Make an extra effort this week to be aware and conscious of those times when you really get into what you’re doing. Stay alert for that “wow, that was awesome!” feeling you have when you’ve finished working on something you love.

Try to jot down those “Loved it” activities as soon as you’re aware of them. If you try to remember them at the end of the day or at the end of the week, you may struggle to recall things.

Remember: this is not about the outcome of the activity or about other people’s reactions to what you did. Getting praised always feels good, but you’re looking for what you loved doing before anybody else even saw the results.

Once you have your list of what you loved, look at each “Loved it” entry and ask yourself: what was it, exactly, that made me love doing that? Do I always love doing that? If not, what was it specifically about this time that made me love it?

For those activities you loved, ask yourself: how can I do more of these in my job? How can I offer these up to the team more often?

That’s it! Once you have your team members go through this exercise, make sure you address it in your next one-on-ones. Be prepared to coach and help them get to the heart of what strengthens them. Their results will provide great food for thought and may give you some insight into how you can use their strengths even more effectively on the team.

by Darren Hammond

Visit our Website www.africanmosaic.com

Solving Problems - Do you know how?

When you ask people, “What is the most effective way to solve a problem?” 83% respond, “Find out what is wrong and fix it.” It seems like common sense. However, the problem with this approach is that attention amplifies everything. You get more of what you pay attention to. So, if you’re paying attention to errors and what is wrong, your mind isn't focusing on what’s right. A more productive and positive approach looks like this:

1. Define the problem as objectively as possible. Leave out any judgments. Simply state the facts as if a video camera were replaying the issue to you.

2. Know that attention amplifies everything, so detach yourself from what you perceive as being the source of the problem. Your focus on it will exacerbate it. You are not fixing the problem. The problem is simply showing you something.

3. Change follows the line of your questioning. Ask, “What does it look like when it’s working?”

4. Define three steps that you can take to shift the situation toward the imagined future that your question helped you create. This is the best use of your energy.

5. Look for evidence that your steps are having the intended result. Keep asking, “What’s working?” and focus on further expanding the success of your intent. The problem will shrivel.

When problems do occur, don’t analyze them, break them down and ruminate over their meaning. They don’t mean anything. They just are. Shift your focus to what working looks and feels like and then dedicate your energy to manifesting that. Problems don’t magically disappear, but they do transform when your attention is given to generating a positive outcome, rather than to the negative that you’re trying to avoid.

-by The Marcus Buckingham Company

Visit our Website - www.africanmosaic.com

Talents and Change in the workplace

The only thing constant in life is change. Change happens in every role we play. As parents, our children grow up. Change. At our workplace, we get promoted or the company downsizes. Change. Our friends move to another city. Change. If change is the only constant, why are we resisting it so much? Here are a couple of reasons as outlined in Kinicki and Kreitner (2009):

An individual's predisposition towards change: some people learn to handle change and ambiguity as a child. These individuals will handle change with patience, understanding and flexibility. Those who did not learn how to handle change, will not trust the changes implemented. Some talents resist change. Gallup's definition of talent is “our natural recurring thoughts, feelings and behaviour”. According to the research done by Gallup, as seen in Clifton's StrengthsFinder assessment, there are some talents that are very comfortable with change, like the talent of Adaptability, Strategic and Arranger. There are some talents that are very resistant to change, talents such as Discipline, Belief, Analytical and Responsibility, Deliberative. It could be that the individual's predisposition towards change is because of the natural way they think, feel and behave. Nature and nurture.

Surprise and fear of the unknown: when you are not warned of changes, or the changes are so radically different from what you know, you fear the implications of those changes. The talent theme of Futuristic and Strategic has the ability to adapt quickly to the unknown. Could it be that their talents could cause less fear then over the unknown?

Climate of mistrust: mistrust between management and employees can cause the change process to fail, for no other reason than mistrust. Mistrust causes secrecy which causes mistrust. A trusting environment causes managers and employees to be open and honest with one another about the changes that are being implemented and the implications thereof. If there is trust between the parties, both will walk the extra mile to implement the changes necessary for success. Some talents may look like they are mistrusting. Talents like Deliberative and Analytical, Relator, Competition,

Fear of failure: employees and managers alike might cause doubt in capabilities. They might loose self-confidence and their self-efficacy might decline, which has an impact on their work. Loss of status and/or job security: technological changes threatens job security, as technology is doing more and more of the work previously done by employees. Middle management resist changes because restructuring often means they loose status or get downgraded to a lower level. Talents that fear failure are Responsibility, Maximizer, Competition and Significance.

Disruption of cultural traditions and/or group relationships: when new teams are formed, diversity appointments are being done or team members are being promoted, there's a change in the relationship dynamics. It takes time to adjust to these changes, sometimes there is no adjustment. The talent of Includer has a need to feel that no-one is left out. Harmony wants peace. Empathy will feel the disruptions very intensely.

Personality conflicts: conflict between different personalities will cause delay and major disruptions in the change process as some employees will fight change just because they don't like the person implementing the change. Employees that could fight change head-on might have the talent of Command, Belief or Responsibility.

Lack of tact and/or poor timing: the way announcements are made about change can bring resistance to change. No sensitivity or lack of information will bring major uncertainty. Implementing change at the right time is also important. Talents that need time to adjust to change is Belief, Deliberative, Responsibility, Analytical and Intellection

Past success: people believe that strategies that worked in the past will also bring success now. The talent of Context will be the most likeliest to have this view. Context looks at the blueprint of the past, takes the nuggets and wants to implement it in the present.
People might resist change because they are in a comfort zone.


Magriet Mouton is a Level 3 Executive Talent Guide, and Head of Talent Mosaic Association

Retaking the Clifton StrengthsFinder – should I, or not?

Gallup (www.gallup.com) has the following short statement on the StrengthsFinder website regarding this question:

Your first completion of the Clifton StrengthsFinder assessment will yield the purest and most revealing results. For this reason, each Clifton StrengthsFinder access code is valid for only one time through the assessment. Taking the Clifton StrengthsFinder more than once may actually skew the validity of the results. The Clifton StrengthsFinder assessment measures the presence of talents by presenting you with pairs of statements, and by then challenging you to make a top-of-mind choice between the two. The 20-second time limit and your unfamiliarity with the statements ensure your assessment's accuracy by making it difficult to over-think your responses.

Here is a more expansive explanation regarding this question. In my view and experience, having worked with the Clifton Strengthsfinder as a Level 3 Coach daily, for years, I firmly support the view that taking the Strengthsfinder again – especially after you have read more about the 34 talent themes, or even more after you have been properly coached, is NOT a good idea. Here is why:

1. Manipulation: You can, deliberately or subconsciously, alter or manipulate the results by taking the assessment a second or even a third time. The StrengthsFinder assessment was designed in such a way that it assesses your preferences on a wide range of tasks, emotions, actions and situations. When you take it the first time, you actually have no idea what the question is assessing. The more you get familiar with the different talent themes and their working, the more you are able to actually discern which specific talent theme is being measured. Therefor you are able to alter the results – either by choice, or subconsciously.

2. Incremental changes: You talents do not alter or change with time, although the specific sequence within the Strengthsfinder results may alter if you redo it. Our research has shown that your Top 10 talents remain predominately the same within the assessment over time. You might get slight variations within the Top 10, for instance, your nr 3 talent theme might move down to nr 6, and your nr 5 might change places with nr 9…etc. but it nearly never happens that a nr 2 theme, for instance, will “ fall down” all the way to a nr 16, for instance. If you re-do the test, only in the Top 5 report, against what are you going to measure the possible changes? As 34 are measured, and you just see 5, how on earth are you going to be able to make any realistic conclusions about any changes you can see...?

3. Top 5 Report limitations: For the exact reasons given in point 2 above, it will make a lot more sense and be of a lot more value for you and / or your team to rather get hold of your Full 34 Talent Report, than to retake the assessment. In any case, how would you ever know with which exact talents your “changes” changed places with, if you only retake your Top 5 assessment? This makes very little logical sense to redo the Top 5 in this regard.

4. Clustering: Then, if you have been properly coached, you will also understand that the exact sequence of your talents, like for instance from nr 1 – 5, does not nearly play such an important role in understanding yourself than does knowledge and understanding of the effect of the dynamics (mix) between the Top 5 talent themes. Your talents should rather be understood within specific “clusters”, and the importance of the dynamics within those clustering should be understood. So, the dynamics between your Top 5 clustering is vital; then the dynamics between your Top 10. Your lessor talents (i.e,. nr 11-20 then plays a specific role, as does your Non Patterns (bottom 5 clustering). Retaking the Top 5 assessment 2, 3 or a dozen times won’t cast any light on this important aspect.

5. Importance of Talent Roles: If you understand that specific talent themes within your Top 5 and Top 10 combination have specific roles, you will also understand why retaking the assessment serves no real purpose. Understanding your Core Theme, Ignition Theme, Relaxing Theme and possible Guilt Theme, serves a lot more purpose within personal or work environment that being obsessed with the order of a Top 5 report.

Finally, I sometimes come across people who are negative towards the Clifton Strengthsfinder simply for the reason that they say “it can be manipulated”. Well, you should be pretty darn good to manipulate an assessment when you have no clue as to what it is assessing – the way it usually is the first time you take the test. But, sure, I agree it can be manipulated when you take it a second or third time round. Of course! My reaction to this critic is simply: with all due respect, look deep inside your own self as to why exactly you will want to answer honest and straightforward questions in such a way as to manipulate the outcome. What about yourself then don’t you like, and do you want to change?

The Clifton Strengthsfinder is one of the most researched assessment tools on the market, and is backed up by more than three decades of on-going research by the Gallup University. It is a phenomenal tool that leads to phenomenal results…that is, if you simply use it the way it was designed to be used.

By Dries Lombaard, Director: Strategic Leadership Institute