Category: Blog

Do you have courage in your convictions? Courage of your convictions happens when you stick by your decision, even when you’re faced with people who don’t support you. This isn’t always easy to do. Yet it’s critical for leaders to develop courage of conviction. When Yum! Brands was being formed, the executive team hired someone who ended up not being a good fit for their culture. The team had to decide between letting that person go, which would lead to a dive in stocks, or keeping him, and consequently communicating to their staff that culture wasn’t as important as they had claimed.

You see, decisions are more difficult as you move up. Leaders have to make the most difficult of decisions and in retrospect, letting the person go was the right decision. But in that moment, the executive team was scared of what would happen. And in reality, the stock did tank and they had to deal with the consequences.

The definition of courage is moving forward in spite of your fears. If you are waiting for fear to go away, that’s not going to happen; that’s where courage of conviction matters.

Building courage in your convictions starts with listening.

Listen to input and reactions from others with your mind open to the possibility that they might be right. But when you feel strongly that the input is not right for you, then you have to choose courage in your convictions and move forward with your plan. People will respect you for listening, considering all opinions, and then making a decision and moving on. Don’t cave to people’s ideas to make them feel validated or to avoid conflict. Rather, seriously consider what’s said and make the right call. If you are still unsure, seek any additional knowledge needed by conducting research and/or asking a mentor or trusted colleague. Then move ahead by turning your intentions into action.

Where do you need to find courage in your convictions? Use the tips above to help you.

If you want more great leadership tips, check out our leadership course, which gives in-depth advice on how to become the best leader you can be.

As a leader, your mindset influences everything. It affects your attitude, how you handle challenges, and ultimately your success.

If you have the wrong mindset, it will show.

You know the kind of leader who has the wrong mindset. He is negative and difficult to be around. He’s out of touch with his team, to the point that they have lost all confidence in his ability to lead them. Basically, he is the kind of leader who is impossible to follow.

If you don’t want to be that guy, here are three principles that will help you choose the right mindset:

Leadership is not just a job, it’s a purpose.

A leader’s role is to inspire, motivate, and provoke others to be great at what they do. If you are the person who has been chosen to do those things, then it’s important to realize the privilege you’ve been given. When you recognize this responsibility, it transforms your behavior. Have you ever noticed how people flock toward leaders that acknowledge how fortunate they are? A grateful leader is more inspirational than one who disregards the influence they’ve been given.

Recognize people are counting on you do to your job.

The best leaders know their purpose is to support their team. By doing your job well, you enable them to do their job well. If you aren’t helping them, you’re hindering them. Goals can’t be met efficiently if you don’t give your people the resources they need. Success remains untapped if you don’t give your team clear direction or set expectations. As a leader, you set the precedent for others. If you do your job well, others will win. And remember, when they win, you win.

You cast a shadow.

Whatever a leader does, others follow. This is true of every organization. People will look to you to model their behavior. If you’re always scowling and pointing out the negative, your team will feel the effect of it; and that gloom will trickle throughout the organization. But if you’re energetic and passionate about what you do, others will do the same. Think about the behaviors you want to inspire in your team and live them out. As a leader, you make or break the culture.

Do you want to transform your leadership? The Heartwiring and Hardwiring Your Leadership™ Program is designed to help you become a stronger leader. It teaches you how to lead yourself and how to inspire others to do their best and make a positive difference in the world. Sign up for a free demo of the program at learn.ogolead.com/demo.

Want to know one of the secret ingredients to becoming a great leader? Become an avid learner! One of the most effective things you can do to continue to grow as a leader is to always be learning. In fact, I believe that being an avid learner is the single biggest thing that separates a good leader from a great one. There is always more to know, and when people ask what I look for when hiring someone, an avid learner tops the list. People who are avid learners love what they do and seek out know-how wherever they can find it, which makes them a whole lot smarter and their results a whole lot better. Someone with a voracious appetite for knowledge is bound to inspire others with their passion and curiosity and can energize an organization by bringing to it new ideas.

While I was CEO of Yum! Brands, when a member of the Executive Team discovered a powerful business book, we would share it with each other, and then cascade the book throughout the organization to other leaders. We didn’t just read the book. We took time to discuss our insights and we looked for lessons that could apply to our business. For example, we read Execution, The Discipline of Getting Things Done by Larry Bossidy, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni and Blue Ocean Strategy by W. Chan Kim. In this way, we were building our know-how and actively encouraging our leaders to become avid learners.

David Novak Leadership was created for avid learners like you. We provide leadership resources to help you become better leaders. Our blogs, like this one, and videos are great ways to gain new leadership insights and approaches that you can apply to your situation. But, the content I enjoy producing the most is my leadership podcast. I enjoy these podcasts so much because it gives me an opportunity to listen and learn from some of the best leaders around the world. Recording these podcasts is one way I stay sharp as a leader and I hope they help you grow as a leader too. One of the questions we typically ask during the podcast is, “What do you do to stay sharp, to grow as a leader?” Here are the answers given by two of the best leaders in the world.

In my podcast with Home Depot Co-Founder, Ken Langone, he said, “who dares teach, never ceases to learn.” In every relationship, Ken tries to learn as much from others as they learn from him.

Former Taco Bell CEO, Brian Niccol has “coffee talk” once a quarter. Each coffee talk is a forum to discuss what the team has learned around a specific topic. The quarterly topics may be around innovation, or design, or what’s happening in food culture, or technology. Since things are changing so rapidly in the food industry, just having a dialogue on them is really helpful. Brian also pulls the team together to discuss test learnings. Sharing what worked and what didn’t work helps everyone benefit from the learnings.

Do you want to discover how to become an avid learner? Then download this guide to uncover more helpful tips on how to become an avid learner. Who can you invite to join you on your quest to become an avid learner? Share this blog and guide with them today, and invite them to learn more with you. Having support on your journey to becoming a better leader can provide motivation and much needed encouragement.

I imagine you’re reading this blog because you are curious. Maybe the word MUST got your attention and you saw this as an invitation, or perhaps a challenge, to see if my three questions really are that important. There are lots of questions you can ask as a leader, so what separates my three questions from the rest?

All I can say is that after 30+ years of leading in both the profit and non-profit sectors, for both large organizations and a small start-up, I know that all organizations, no matter who they are, must answer three questions effectively:

• Who are we?
• Where are we going?
• How are we going to get there?

These three simple questions are important because they provide direction for you and your organization. In fact, answering these questions is the first step in identifying your True North, but more on this in my next blog. For now, let’s dig in to understand why you MUST answer these three questions.

Who are we?

“Who are we?” helps you identify your unique reason for being. In order to be successful in business, you need to attract customers and stand out from the crowd. But if you don’t know who you are or how you are unique compared to other organizations, then how will you stay the course when challenges come your way? If your True North becomes a moving target based on the ebb and flow of change, you may find yourself lost, or even worse, you may fail. Use these questions to define “Who are we?”

• Why did we come together as a team, group or organization?
• What is unique about us? How are we different from all others who are attempting to do the same thing?
• How do we want to accomplish our why? What are the values we never walk away from in accomplishing our why?

People always want to belong to something bigger than themselves and the answer to “Who are we?” provides the aspiration your team needs to follow you.

Where are we going?

Organizations are living organisms. Your organization is either growing or shrinking, alive or degenerating. How you answer the question “Where are we going?” impacts whether you are moving toward organizational life or death.

Use these questions to define where you’re going.

• What are the most important goals we want to accomplish in the next 5 years?
• How will we know when we accomplish them? What will success look like?
• What roadblocks could stop us? What/who could get in our way?

The answers to these questions remind you and your team where you’re going and help keep you on the path to reaching your True North.

How are we going to get there?

Once you know who you are and where you’re going, your next step is to define how you will reach your True North. Answer these questions to establish how you’ll get there.

• What short and mid-term goals must we set and build action plans around?
• What resources do we need? And how will we address gaps?
  • Do we have the right people in the right seats?
  • Do we have our financial resources supporting the right things?
  • Do we have process and discipline around the most important things?
• As things shift and change, how does it fit into who we are and where we are going?

Keep in mind that how you reach your destination will change over time, so it’s critical to always connect your “how” with “where you’re going.” And remember, with every decision, to always be consistent with “who you are.”

When I became President of KFC, we had drifted away from our true identity. We were trying a bunch of new products, like salads and roasted filets, which really weren’t aligned with who we are or who our customer was. The test markets were throwing things against the wall, hoping one of the new products would stick. After a period of failed test markets, we were forced to go back and remember who we were. We defined our True North (more of that in my next blog), and our True North became our focus. It was a journey to rediscover who we were, and once we did, it made all the difference. 

Keep this in mind: While “How we are going to get there?” changes frequently as you discover tactics to get to your True North, “Who are we?” and “Where are we going?” rarely changes because if you don’t remain constant to these things, you won’t make sustained progress. However, it’s easy to drift as you can see from my KFC example. KFC drifted a few degrees away from who we were and where we were going, and over time, we forgot our true identity. Learn from KFC’s mistake. Resist throwing new identities against the wall and hoping they stick. It’s so important to keep who you are and where you’re going top of mind all the time.

Answering the three questions takes time. It requires you to go slow now so you can go fast later. Remember, you don’t have to do this alone! In fact, inviting others to help shows humility and builds engagement with those who may join you on the journey. Not to mention that it takes some pressure off you having to provide all the answers!

This learning guide will help you answer the three questions every leader MUST ask and answer. Schedule some time to work through the guide. Then invite some trusted colleagues to share their thoughts on who you are, where you’re going and how you will get there. Be on the lookout for my next blog in this series: Why Identifying Your True North Makes You a More Effective Leader.

So, what do you think? Are these three MUST ask questions for leaders? If your answer is yes, then take time to pay it forward and share it with someone else. The minute it takes you to share this could make a long-term positive impact on someone else. Go Lead!

Develop a passion for learning. If you do, you will never cease to grow.” Anthony J. D’Angelo

I have a confession. There was a time in my 20’s when I viewed my boss as my nemesis. In fact, I was so frustrated with my boss, I used to imagine finding him in the parking lot after a late night of work and running over him with my car. Why would I have these extreme feelings of frustration? The answer is simple. Every time I became comfortable in my role, he chose to move me to a new position I knew nothing about. I never got to live in a state of confidence, and this was incredibly frustrating.  

For example, when I was in my early 20’s, I worked in Field Human Resources as a Human Resource Generalist. One of the most challenging tasks I encountered was negotiating labor contracts with Teamsters. Keep in mind that I’m negotiating contracts with people much older than me, yet I learned how to do this well and after 3 ½ years, I was finally getting good at it. My confidence was growing.

Guess what happened next? My boss recognized my newfound confidence and moved me to Compensation Manager at the corporate office. I was not excited about this position. In the field, we made fun of corporate, calling it the Ivory Tower. And now, I worked in the Ivory Tower. But that wasn’t the worst of it. The Compensation Manager role was a difficult assignment. Not only was it analytical in nature, but I also needed to attend training and learn the language of compensation, which was gibberish to me when I started. I was an incompetent manager leading people who were completely competent. My confidence was shaken. This was not an easy transition.  

Because my boss kept challenging me with new roles, my resume included diverse knowledge and experiences. I moved quickly through the ranks and became a leader among peers who were much older than me. These diverse roles and experiences greatly helped me when I became an Executive. Much to my surprise, the compensation role helped me learn how roles and processes interacted within an organization and this knowledge allowed me to successfully lead multiple organizational restructurings as a Senior Executive. The role that was such a struggle prepared me for the future.  

Many years later, I had a lightbulb moment. I finally realized my nemesis boss taught me how to grow and accelerated my learning by putting me in positions that I knew nothing about. While I didn’t initially understand my boss’ intentions to develop me quickly, over time, I came to appreciate what he did.  When I reflect on how I became successful more rapidly than others my age, I discovered it was from getting in the Learning Zone. My boss knew the secret of the Learning Zone and I became its student. The Learning Zone separates those who top out in their position from those who have potential for greater roles. Those who stay in their Comfort Zone top out, while those who get in the Learning Zone have greater potential for growth within an organization.

Understanding the Learning Zone

The Learning Zone model, created by Noel Tichy, explains how we learn and grow. Let me share a brief description of the model.

• The Comfort Zone is at the center of the model and it’s where we gravitate. It’s the place where we feel, well, comfortable and we do our best to stay in the Comfort Zone. However, no growth or learning takes place here because we are comfortable rather than stretched.  
• The Panic Zone is a place of high stress and drama. Growth rarely happens here because there is a high degree of stress and anxiety experienced in the Panic Zone.
• The Learning Zone is where growth occurs. In the Learning Zone, you have an elevated sense of anxiety and pressure because you don’t have everything figured out. Yet you believe success is achievable and you’re motivated to learn and grow so you can accomplish your goals. 

Once I finally understood the value of getting in the Learning Zone, I started putting myself in the Learning Zone. When I was in my 30s, a university invited me to give a commencement address. My initial reaction was no way I’m going to do that! Yet I knew my gut “no” reaction meant I needed to say yes because it would require me to get in the Learning Zone. I said yes and forced myself to learn how to give an effective commencement address. I chose to lean in and accept the challenge rather than avoid it. The secret to getting in the Learning Zone begins with recognizing your gut “no” reaction, and then choosing to accept it as an invitation to get in the Learning Zone.  

Do You Avoid the Learning Zone?

Great leaders put themselves in the Learning Zone rather than waiting for their boss to do it for them. Consider your own perspective on the Learning Zone. Do you resent living in the Learning Zone? Have you come to appreciate how you grow and develop when you are stretched? What fears keep you from getting in the Learning Zone? Getting in the Learning Zone may be uncomfortable, but you can learn to appreciate it like I did. Download this guide to discover more about the value of getting in the Learning Zone. 

Claude Bernard gives us an important nugget of wisdom: It’s what we already know that often prevents us from learning. I choose to view the Learning Zone as the gift I didn’t know I wanted, but learned to love over time. And the Learning Zone is now a gift I give to myself. Will you accept the invitation to embrace the challenge of the Learning Zone so you, too, can become the best leader you can be?

Implementing new initiatives can be a challenge for any leader, but it is especially tough when you have reluctant people on your team. Whether their hesitant behavior stems from caution, lack of enthusiasm, or because they are simply unwilling to shift, reluctant people will resist change and, ultimately, slow down progress.

Fortunately, it is possible to get reluctant people to move forward. All you need is the right strategy.

Here are two steps to motivating reluctant people:

1. Align your team

Give your team all the facts. Once everyone is on the same page, you should ask for their input. Let your team speak into the initiative, and give your most reluctant team members an opportunity to offer their ideas. Everyone should have a voice. You might end up discovering the reason behind the reluctance, and have the chance to address any concerns.

2. Get them involved

No involvement equals no commitment. After you get input from your team, it’s time to figure out where your most reluctant people will fit best. Give them opportunities to contribute. If they become involved in your initiative, they’ll be more committed to seeing it through.

By communicating to your team that you value their input and believe they are capable of bringing about change, they will be more willing to embrace new initiatives.

For more tips on motivating reluctant people, head over to our podcasts and listen to Blaine Hurst describe how he convinced his reluctant team at Panera to implement their ground-breaking delivery service.

How do you bounce back from failure? The way to overcome setbacks is to adopt a positive mindset and move forward.

Mindset Matters:

What you believe matters. Have you ever thought about how your beliefs impact your success as a leader? Imagine you’ve set a goal for yourself to become promoted within the next year. You’re excited about the thought of leading others, taking on additional responsibilities and being compensated for this promotion. You even have the job title in mind and a list of things you need to accomplish in order to show you’re the best candidate for the job. You are on the right path to achieve your goal.

But before you imagine moving into your new office, stop and answer this question: do you truly believe you can make this happen? Be honest.

If the answer to this question is not an immediate and empathetic yes, then you have some work to do. In order to achieve your goal, you need to cultivate a can-do spirit in yourself. It’s critical that this happens before you move on to the nuts and bolts of getting things done, because no one has ever accomplished big things by starting with the attitude, “I can give it a try, but it’s probably not going to happen.”

I always say that in order to succeed, you have to be able to picture where you want to be and believe you can get there. It’s a two-part process. And both parts are equally important. Why is this important? It’s because you become what you think you are.

Sometimes the best way to discover “how” to do something new is by learning from those who are already successful, and Rory McIlroy is a shining example of choosing to believe the best and understanding the importance of always growing so he can get better and better.

I recently had the wonderful opportunity to speak with Rory two weeks before his phenomenal win at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.  He role models positive thinking; no wonder he has spent 95 weeks ranked #1 golfer in the world and has joined the illustrious company of Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods as the world’s only three golfers to have won four Major titles by the age of 25.

Listen to Both Parts of David’s conversation with Rory. Start with Part 1!

Rory is what I call the real deal. He possesses leadership qualities I admire: humility, authenticity, and vulnerability, while at the same time being extremely driven. He believes in leading by example and practicing what you preach. He says you don’t want to lead by fear; instead you want to make the people you lead feel a part of things.

That’s a positive mindset in motion.

But we’re all human after all. Rory revealed a time in his life where he didn’t have the right mindset and how he learned from it.

In the 2011 Masters, Rory was winning the tournament and it appeared he would easily become the champion.  And then hole 10 happened.  The drive was a little to the left and landed in an awful spot.  This drive was a major setback and changed the course of Rory’s game. He ended up losing a four-stroke lead going into the final round; and ultimately, he didn’t win the title. 

Rather than letting this setback haunt him and cause him to question his abilities, Rory chose to look at it as a learning opportunity. And today, Rory describes that round at Augusta as the most important round in his life.

The positive mindset didn’t happen right away. At the time, Rory knew it was a failure and that chances like this, to win the coveted Masters green jacket, don’t come along very often. He felt embarrassed and distraught.  But rather than let this define him, Rory decided to learn from the experience. He started by watching a tape of that round, and he discovered something important.  Even before his 10th hole drive, his body language through the first nine holes was negative.  He walked around with his head down and his shoulders rounded.  He spent a lot of time watching what others were doing rather than focusing on what he could do to win.  Rory learned that next time, he needed to focus on what HE could do and control the things HE could control. So, he took this awareness to heart and committed to doing things differently in his next tournament. 

Two months later, Rory came back with a bang! He not only won the US Open, but he also won it with the lowest score in US Open history. How’s that for a turnaround? His driving motivation was to prove to himself that he wasn’t the golfer the world saw in Augusta.  Rory refused to be defined by the outcome of that tournament. He decided to grasp the next tournament with both hands and when he walked out on the US Open course, he was a completely different person.  Rory chose to walk around with his head held high and his chest out.  He kept his eye line above the crowd.  His body language exuded confidence.  He kept his thoughts positive.  And he won.

The lesson here? Rory truly believed he could make a change, and that made all the difference.

The year 2017 was tough for Rory with injuries and not winning any tournament. When I asked Rory about this, he once again chose to believe the best about himself. He acknowledged the reality that golf is very competitive right now, but he sees himself in there. And even though he hasn’t won a tournament since 2016, he’s had 8 top fives and three seconds, so he knows a win is not too far away.

And I was most impressed with his answer to this question: Do you have any fears about winning? His immediate response was: “No, not at all. I know that if I play anywhere near my best, in any given week, I have a chance to win… And once you’re there, you have to grasp it with both hands and hit the shots that matter. I have no doubt if I get myself in that position, the win won’t be too far away.” And sure enough, Rory won the Arnold Palmer Invitational two weeks later and I’m confident he can’t wait to give the 2018 Masters his best shot too.

I have so much respect for Rory’s positive mindset and his humility to learn and grow. No wonder he’s such a successful golfer with a bright future ahead of him!

You have the power choose a positive mindset and believe change is possible too, just like Rory.  It’s not always the easy path; it takes awareness, determination, and maybe even inviting someone to hold you accountable.  But it’s worth it! What is one way you can think positive and choose to believe this week?  Don’t miss this opportunity to make a positive change in your life, because as Norman Vincent Peale says, “Change your thoughts and you change your world.”

How do you build a winning team?

Have you noticed how great leaders always praise the people who helped them succeed? How did these leaders build a winning team, and what makes a team great?

Goals can’t be met when teams are disjointed, or lack the skills needed to get the job done. Simply put, a talented team who works well together wins.

A winning team needs four kinds of people:

Promoter
A promoter has plenty of drive. Their strength lies in growing others’ ideas and contributing to their team. They are passionate and energetic.

Supporter
The supporter is the backbone of the team. They are givers who seek to help their team members. They thrive on recognition and value respect.

Controller
The controller is the “doer” of the team. Controllers are decisive, confident, and focused. They get the job done.

Analytic
Analytics are the problem-solvers. They are goal-oriented, detailed, and logical. Their disciplined and systematic approach ensures great results.

Does your team meet all of these categories? If not, you might need to think about rounding out your team’s skill sets. Why is this important? Say you have a team full of ideas-people but no implementers, how would anything get done? An imbalanced team can’t win.

Once you’ve built a winning team, the next step is to lead them according to their strengths. Are you the kind of leader people want to follow? Find out by taking our FREE online leadership assessment.

Imagine the worst has happened. The credibility of your business is on the line. Social media is slamming your organization and you’ve lost goodwill with your customers. Morale is down. People are murmuring negative comments at every team meeting. You’re even wondering if maybe the time has come to call it quits.

Okay, so this example is pretty extreme, but you probably know what it feels like when the chips are down.

When times are hard, maintaining a positive culture can be difficult. How can leaders defy being dragged into negativity?

The answer is simple: you must let your cultural values guide you through the tough times.

People will feel more confident when your values are a main factor in the decision-making, especially when the situation looks bleak. For example, when Yum! was being formed, the executive team hired someone who ended up not being a good fit for their culture. The team had to decide between letting that person go, which would lead to a dive in stocks, or keeping him, and consequently communicating to their staff that culture wasn’t as important as they had claimed.

The executive team at Yum! chose culture, and it turned out to be one of the best decisions they ever made.

Another way you can maintain positive culture is to recognize people who are already doing the things you want to see more of. What are they doing right? Be specific. By recognizing those who bring value to your organization, you encourage others to do the same, and in effect, you promote your goals among the team in a positive way.

Want more great leadership tips? Check out our leadership course, which gives in-depth advice on culture, recognition, and how to become a better leader.

Leaders are like anyone else in the sense that they are human and imperfect. Some leaders are impatient, others are too critical or non-confrontational. Everyone has places where they could use some help.
How do you overcome your leadership shortcomings?
The first thing you need to do is identify your weaknesses. Do you have trouble articulating what you want; are you easily overwhelmed, or just not into details? That’s okay! When you know your weak spots, they are easier to address.
For some leaders, their biggest strength is also their biggest weakness. For instance, you may be very passionate; however, when it comes to working with a team, you come across so passionate that people don’t feel comfortable disagreeing with you. Or perhaps you are very creative and you’re always coming up with new ideas, yet you have trouble completing them because you’re constantly itching to move to the next thing. Is this the case with you?
Once you’ve identified your weaknesses, use these two tools to help you manage them:

Tip One: Be self-aware.
When it comes to your leadership, it’s important to examine yourself across all areas, focusing on the spots that need the most help. Know what your tendencies are. When you can catch yourself operating out of weakness, you’re more able correct it.
Tip Two: Ask others to help you.
Sometimes it can be difficult to know when you’re operating out of weakness. Inviting others to speak up when you default will give you more insight, and you’ll learn how to recognize and avoid those behaviors.
One of the hardest things you’ll do as leader is owning up to your shortcomings. But it’s worth it because humbly recognizing you’re not perfect, and working hard to become a better leader, will make you a leader others want to follow.
If you want to learn more about how to overcome your weaknesses, visit DavidNovakLeadership.com and check out Jason Goldsmith’s podcast to learn how he coaches top rated golfers to manage their weak spots.