Category: Lead Yourself

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Go public with your plans — it can get you to success

Repost from CNBC Make It!

By: David Novak, Co-Founder & CEO of David Novak Leadership

Think about the motivational books you’ve read, the inspiring Ted Talks you’ve watched or even the articles you’ve found on Make It. Have you found yourself inspired to make a change? We all have.

But be honest: how many of those inspirational tips have you actually implemented? Three? One? None?

I believe one reason for the lack of success is not closing the Intention-Action Gap.

Failing to turn your intentions, or plans, into actions means you are living in what experts call the Intention-Action Gap. This gap occurs when you have great intentions about making a change in your life, yet you fail to do what it takes to make that change.

As CEO of Yum! Brands, I became passionate about our customers and shared my plans about becoming Customer Maniacs with others. Guess what? Not everyone was on board. In fact, some were shocked that I wanted our team members to become obsessed with customers. I had a choice to make… live in the Intention-Action Gap because not everyone was on board or turn my intentions into action.

I decided to go public with my plan and took action. We trained all our restaurants around the world on Customer Mania. We taught our team members to exceed customer expectations. We gave our front-line team members permission to solve any customer issue that was under $10 without talking to a manager. Our team members learned how to listen to the voice of the customer. They learned how to recover from mistakes.

And guess what? Turning my Customer Mania plans into action paid off – because when you get people capability right, then you are going to satisfy more customers, and that’s how you make more money. That’s the formula for success.

I went public with my plans because it’s a great way to give yourself that extra motivation to see it through. Why? Because if you don’t do what you say, you sacrifice your integrity, you lose credibility, and people will not believe you when you say things. To be a good leader, you have to put pressure on yourself, so if it’s important for you to get something done, take a public stand on it. That’s why I’m a firm believer in “going public so you can’t go back!”

Another thing to keep in mind is our intentions and words without actions and follow-through are meaningless. In fact, this quote from Walk the Talk by Eric Harvey and Alexander Lucia can be quite enlightening. “We judge ourselves mostly by our intentions, but others judge us mostly by our actions. People hear what we say but they see what we do, and seeing is believing.” That’s a powerful insight. In fact, it’s a cornerstone behavior that we teach you in my Essential Leadership Traits Program.

You can choose to stop living in the Intention-Action Gap today. Ask yourself: What’s one intention you have that you want to turn into action? Who can you “go public with” so you can’t go back? Answering these two questions can help you cross the bridge from intentions to action.

Are you willing to take the first step?

David Novak created David Novak Leadership to help people become stronger leaders. He is co-founder and former CEO of Yum! Brands and a New York Times bestselling leadership author. He has been recognized as “2012 CEO of the Year” by Chief Executive magazine, one of the world’s “30 Best CEOs” by Barron’s, one of the “Top People in Business” by Fortune and one of the “100 Best-Performing CEOs in the World” by Harvard Business Review.

Don’t miss: The one skill that helps you get ahead regardless of your degree

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Blog Lead Others Lead Yourself

Why Delegation Makes You a Better Leader

Here’s a secret every leader should know: success isn’t a one-person show. Behind most big successes is a team of great people. A leader’s job is to empower their team to achieve great results, and a strong leader knows the importance of delegation in reaching their business’ goals.

When used correctly, delegation is a powerful tool that helps employees feel more engaged. Plus, goals are much more attainable when one person isn’t accountable for all the work.

It can be difficult to let go of work when it seems easier to do it yourself. But there’s great benefits to giving your team a chance to grow and take on new responsibilities. It’s important to know when to delegate though.

If you’re unsure about how you can best implement delegation, follow these guidelines:

  • The art of leadership is knowing when to give people total accountability, and knowing when they need a little coaching and help. Autonomy is an earned right. Don’t turn someone loose on something until they demonstrate they have the capability to do it right.
  • You want your people to feel empowered. Once you take the joy of the decision away, you take the joy of the job away. As soon as your new team members demonstrate that they have the capabilities to make the right decisions, empower them by giving them more responsibility and influence.
  • Delegation involves knowing when to let go. You don’t want to hover over them and micromanage to the point that they can’t take flight. Let people fly a little bit earlier than you think they might be ready for. By doing so, you show trust and are giving them the opportunity to rise to the occasion. In Jonathan Blum’s podcast, he shares how his boss gave him a huge responsibility early in his career. Find out how that paid off for Jonathan by listening here.

When you delegate, not only do you allow yourself to focus on other things, but you also make your team feel needed and useful. When employees feel like their work matters, they are more productive and work hard for better results. It’s a win, win! How can you start delegating today?

Becoming a better leader isn’t easy, and David Novak Leadership is here to help! Check out our website for leadership advice, blogs and podcasts, all designed to help you become the best leader you can be.

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Blog Conflict Lead Others Lead Yourself Training

Break Through Team Deadlock

One of the toughest spots a leader can find herself in is a deadlock with her team members. Have you ever found yourself in this situation?
Your cross functional team is supposed to make a recommendation to the leadership team on Friday, yet no one seems to be on the same page. Marketing is ready to plow ahead. Finance wants more information before making a decision. The operations and supply chain representatives want to go in completely opposite directions. How do you break through this impasse and get to a unified recommendation?

Why This Tool Will Help You Break Through Team Deadlock

David Novak Leadership co-founder, Gregg Dedrick, commonly uses a tool he calls “beat that.” After listening to the perspectives and rationale from each of the team members, he commonly puts out a straw man recommendation and says “beat that.”
The “beat that” recommendation moves the team’s focus and discussion from defending individual positions to reacting to the recommendation on the table. It challenges people to make the recommendation better, not simply poke holes at it.
By creating a “beat that” recommendation, the team can move past impasse and align on a plan to take to the leadership team. It doesn’t mean the plan can’t evolve over time, but by definition, it is the best recommendation that they have at that time.
The “beat that” tool releases your team from deadlock and often creates the best final solution that everyone can agree on. Try using this tool the next time your team comes to an impasse.
For more leadership insight and techniques to help you become a better leader, check out the leadership resource section at DavidNovakLeadership.com.

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Blog Intentional Job Hopping Lead Others Lead Yourself

Leadership, Horse Racing and the Triple Crown

By: David Novak, Co-Founder & CEO of David Novak Leadership

Donna is an expert in the horse racing field. She rode for 11 ½ years and retired in 1998 as the second leading female jockey in the country by money earned after having won 1,171 races. After retirement, Donna transitioned into reporting on horse racing and currently works as an on-track reporter for NBC. She is also COO of Starlight Racing and co-owner of Triple Crown Winner, Justify.
According to Donna Barton Brothers, winning in the horse racing industry requires leadership, persistence, and finding your niche. And these are lessons that can help any leader.
When I interviewed Donna, I was intrigued by the leadership lessons she shared and how they were relevant to everyone.

Know your people (or horse) so you can lead them well.

Horse racing requires communication, just like your job requires it. Donna learned the importance of communication when leading her horses. Horses communicate by flicking their ears, and this information helped Donna understand what her horses liked and didn’t like. She made adjustments to the way she rode by watching how her horses responded, and that made the difference in her winning races.
It’s important to recognize that people respond to you as a leader too. So, you have to pay attention so you can lead them effectively.
Do you listen and respond to your team and make adjustments? As the late Sam Walton used to say, the most powerful way to motivate people is to listen. Get to know your team. Understand what they like and don’t like. And make adjustments based on what they tell you. This will help you lead a winning team too.

Confidence and persistence can open doors for you.

Donna was passionate about riding for Wayne Lucas, yet she never met him before. So, she took the initiative to meet him. After winning three races at Keenland on opening day, she was the leading jockey. The next day, Donna introduced herself to Wayne and made her intentions known by saying, “Hello Mr. Lucas. My name is Donna Barton. I won three races here yesterday and I know that you are in the habit of riding the hot hand, and right now, that’s me. I was pretty sure you were gonna want to meet me.”
This single introduction wasn’t enough to get her riding in his barn. Donna started hanging out in his barn, sharing her insights on his horses and asking if he needed her to ride in the morning. The answer was typically no, until one day, a jockey didn’t show up and she got the opportunity to ride. Her confidence and persistence paid off and Donna became one of Wayne’s favorite jockeys.
Are you confident and persistent? Decide on what you want and then make your intentions known. Don’t give up after the first few nos. Instead, keep connecting and learning until your intentions become reality.

Instead of comparing yourself to others, find your niche.

Donna’s mother set the bar high for her children. She expected them to be the best at whatever they chose to do. When Donna became a broadcaster, she realized she wasn’t the best at it when she compared herself to other well-known broadcasters like Diane Sawyer. This knowledge really discouraged her.
Her sister helped her work through this by reminding Donna that she was the best broadcaster on horseback – no one did it better than her. Donna used this insight to reframe her perspective and celebrate the unique things she brings to the news, like capturing the emotion of jockeys after finishing a race before the emotion has time to go away and providing real time updates on delays because she’s where the action is. This allowed Donna to focus on being the best in her unique niche.
Do you get discouraged by comparing yourself to others? How can you change your perspective by discovering your niche and being the best in your own unique way?
Knowing your people, being confident and persistent, and finding your niche are powerful leadership lessons for anyone. You have the power to become the best leader you can be if you’re willing to take action on what you learn. It’s time for you to Go Lead!
If you enjoyed these leadership lessons, you don’t want to miss my podcast with Donna where she shares more insight on horseracing, winning, and leading. Listen to it here.

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Blog Lead Others Lead Yourself

How to Handle Unexpected Surprises in Your Career

Have you ever started a job with high hopes only to be surprised by the reality of your responsibilities? Maybe your current job is taking you in a direction you hadn’t planned for yourself, or perhaps you feel stuck and aren’t sure if the organization you work for is a good fit.

How you navigate these unexpected surprises matters. And getting advice from others who walked this road before you can help.

Free Leadership Assessment from David Novak LeadershipFirst, keep in mind that the path to success isn’t always straight forward, and more than likely you’ll end up taking a few pit-stops before you reach your destination.

In the early days of his career, David Novak never imagined he would become the CEO of a multinational company. Like many, he started at the bottom and worked his way up. Whenever he was presented with a new opportunity, he jumped at it.

If you’re like David and want to reach the next level, it’s important to keep getting better at what you do. Read up on the latest trends. Discover better methods. Know what works well and hone in on that. This is called being an avid learner. Choosing to be an avid learner will not only help you grow in your knowledge and skills, but it will also help you grow as a person and a leader.

Everyone worries about their future at some point; however, it’s important to stay focused. Throughout your career, you will probably deal with obstacles and anxieties, but trust that time and experience will take care of everything.

When faced with unexpected twists and turns on your career path, keep pressing on because you never know what you’ll be capable of. Always aim to be the best you can be, and maybe one day you’ll find yourself in a position beyond anything you’ve dreamed of. Then it will be your turn to share your wisdom and advice with others so they can learn navigate the unexpected surprises too.

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How Do You Manage When "X" Hits The Fan ?

The biggest “X” to hit the fan in 2017 had to be the Equifax data breach. After all, when you let 145 million people down, that is a pretty big deal. The embarrassment reached new heights when the CEO admitted he wasn’t sure if the company was encrypting its customers’ data. Out of the millions who were affected, many didn’t feel Equifax was doing enough to handle the crisis.

Free Leadership Assessment from David Novak LeadershipWe all face adversity in life, but the way we handle it can have a huge impact on our future success. Here are 5 things you can do when dealing with a crisis:

  1. Don’t panic. We all know that person who doesn’t deal well under pressure. When “X” hits the fan, you don’t want to be that person. Instead, be calm, cool, and collected. If you trust that you’ll get to the right place, those who follow you will too.
  2. Get the facts. Understand what caused the problem to happen. Don’t leave any area untouched. When leaders know exactly what they’re dealing with, they are more prepared to fix it.
  3. Make a good decision based on those facts. Once you determine what caused the issue, the next step is to assess the “X” and make a plan to resolve the problem.
  4. Tell everybody what you are going to do and why. Once you know how to tackle the problem, you need to alert anyone who has been affected by the crisis. Let them know the steps you’ve taken to understand the issue, and then tell them what you plan to do about it.
  5. Layout what you’ll do to make sure it will never happen again. This is most important. As a leader, you need to show people that you care when things go wrong. When an organization proves it has learned from its mistakes, and promises to keep them from happening again, that earns trust.

Another way to earn trust is to make sure your communication is bullet proof and weasel proof. Be 100% clear about what you know. Don’t leave out information or only address certain issues. If you’re being inconsistent, or hiding certain facts, someone will point it out. Be forthcoming and don’t give anyone a reason to question you. You’ll be the leader everyone wants around when the next crisis hits.

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Avid Learner Blog Feature Blog Intentional Job Hopping Lead Yourself Recognition Training

Why Great Leaders Need Truth Tellers

Why Great Leaders Need Truth Tellers in their lives

Were your antennae clipped at birth? This is not your typical leadership question, but let’s consider how helpful this question can be. Antennae provide sensory information to insects which helps them better understand their environment. While humans don’t have actual antennae, we use environmental clues to discover how we are perceived by others. Yet not everyone’s antennae work perfectly, and some seem to have had their antennae clipped at birth. Research refers to this as lacking emotional intelligence, but I’ve found that asking if your antennae were clipped gets people’s attention a lot better!

When serving as the Head of Human Resources at Yum! Brands, I frequently got to help people who were stuck in their growth and performance. Have you ever worked with someone who seemed completely unaware of how their attitude and actions impacted others? Me too – and those are the people I describe as having their antennae clipped at birth. For example, consider the person who talks too much in meetings and constantly interrupts others, yet her behavior doesn’t change. Others dread going to meetings and don’t feel heard because she talks all the time. Because her antennae are clipped, she doesn’t realize how her behavior negatively impacts the team. The truth is, some people don’t have antennae to help them navigate their relationships.

We all have blind spots in our lives, even if our antennae work properly. The key to uncovering our blind spots is giving people permission to give us feedback. When we invite people to serve as truth tellers in our lives, we learn and grow. If we don’t have a few truth tellers, we run the risk of staying stuck with behaviors that are ineffective, and possibly destructive, to our success.
 
I know from personal experience that asking for feedback can be hard because you might be surprised by what you hear. When I was Head of Human Resources at KFC, I was introduced to a feedback exercise and decided to try it out with the Executive Team. We had one minute to complete two statements about each Executive Team Member in a round robin format:
 
  • What I appreciate about you
  • How you can be more effective
I got more feedback from these two questions than I received in an entire year! Some of it was encouraging, some of it was helpful, and one particular piece of feedback was shocking. During this exercise, I found out that one of my peers thought I was going over his head to send him messages. This information shocked me because that was not my intent. Because my relationship with this peer was important to me, I took action to repair our relationship. We started having regular lunch meetings where I shared what was going on and what I was thinking. And over time, we developed a productive relationship because he shared feedback with me and I took action to make changes.
 
The Executive Team Round Robin opened my eyes to how powerful this feedback tool can be. And once I understood the power of receiving feedback, I recruited a few people to become my truth tellers. I regularly asked them to give me straight feedback, and they agreed to be honest. Seeking out feedback has helped me become a better leader in both my personal and professional life.
 
Ken Blanchard coined the phrase, – Feedback is the breakfast of champions. I’m a firm believer in the
truth of this phrase. It’s a simple way to remind you that you need to invite people to give you feedback daily, just like you eat breakfast each day. Both breakfast and regular feedback helps you become more
productive.
 
Were your antennae clipped at birth? Maybe not, but we can all use a few truth tellers in our lives. Who can you invite to be your truth tellers? Once you identify them, use this feedback tool to start the conversation. And remember to seek out that feedback regularly! Building discipline around asking for feedback can help you become a better leader. Who will you ask for feedback today? Download the Truth Tellers Feedback Exercise to help you get started.
 
David Novak Leadership is all about investing in you and helping you become the best leader you can be. And we invite you to pay it forward by sharing this blog and the feedback tool with others. Who can you share this with today?
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From Trailer Park to Corner Office: How My Past Impacts My Present

back view of programmer sitting with hands behind head at workplace

By: David Novak, Co-Founder & CEO of David Novak Leadership

What do you want to be when you grow up? People are asked this question all the time, especially when they are young. Did you know that only 30% of global workers work in the field of their childhood dream job?1

I have to confess that I did not end up working in the field of my childhood dream job. When I was growing up, I wanted to be a Major League Baseball player before the reality set in that I couldn’t hit a curve ball. At one time, I saw myself as a sports writer.

Because my dad worked for the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, marking latitudes and longitudes for the nation’s mapmakers, we moved every three months from small town to small town. I actually lived in 23 states by the time I was in seventh grade! My dad would hook up our trailer to his government truck and we would move to the next town. We literally took our neighborhood with us as the rest of the surveyors and their families moved together. The largest house I lived in until junior high was 8-foot-wide by 40-foot long. I always tell people I succeeded because of my upbringing, not in spite of it. (This is important to me.) The biggest break I got was having loving parents who wanted me to achieve the American dream.

Who would think that a kid from the trailer parks, whose childhood can best be described as nomadic, would ever have a chance at becoming the CEO of Yum! Brands at the age of 46? Certainly I wouldn’t have. Yet the lessons I learned from my trailer park days actually helped me become a successful CEO. Let me share one particular example about how my past impacts my present.

download the lifeline exercise and discover how your past shapes your futureMy dad has always been tremendously supportive, and he worked his tail off to give us a better life. But in many ways my mother was my first mentor. Every time we got to a new place, she would take me to the local school to get me registered and then say to me, “Look, David, you’ve got to take the initiative to make friends. Don’t hang back and wait for the other kids to come to you. We’re only going to be here for a few months, so make them count.”

That’s how I learned how to size people up in a hurry and how to figure out quickly who the good ones were and who I should avoid. As a result, when it comes to assessing people I’ve got a good gut instinct that I still listen to whenever I meet someone new (which, when you’re CEO, is practically all the time) or have to decide whether to hire or promote someone.

Fast forward… Soon after becoming CEO of Yum! Brands, I went to my first meeting of the Business Council. Its members are one hundred twenty-five of the top CEOs in the country, and I was meeting these captains of the industry for the first time. They are the people who run General Electric, Boeing, and General Motors, and they had no idea who I was. It wasn’t all that different from the first day at a new school. I quickly sized everyone up and, remembering that they all put their pants on the same way every morning, worked my way around the room. If it hadn’t been for those early school experiences, I’m not sure this would have come so naturally to me in my later life.

But I’m not the only one with a humble beginning who ended up in a corner office. Brian Cornell, the Chairman and CEO of Target Brands, also had a humble upbringing with many challenges. But he learned from these challenges and now uses what he learned from his early years to lead many as the CEO of Target. I recently interviewed Brian as part of our biweekly Podcasts. Here’s what he shared.

I grew up in a really humble environment. I lost my dad when I was young and my mom had a series of illnesses, so I had to grow up the hard way. I worked for many years as a little kid – mowing lawns, shoveling snow, and washing trucks. So if you look back in time, when I was a kid, you would say there’s no chance that this person, growing up in this kind of environment, ends up doing what he’s doing.

I learned early in life that there’s only three ways that I could put my economic circumstances aside and just move forward:

  1. In school, because when the test is handed out, nobody cared who my dad was or how much money I had.
  2. In sports on the playing field because there, the playing field was level.
  3. At work, because once you showed up, it was all about performance and execution and doing the things that were put in front of you.

I embraced the level playing field idea early. I didn’t feel sorry for myself. I said I’m gonna perform, excel, and take advantage of opportunities. And somehow it all worked out. It wasn’t some magical path. I didn’t grow up in a CEO’s household. I had to work for literally everything I had by finding part-time jobs so I had money baseball cleats and football equipment. But it all worked out because I found what worked for me.

And I was really fortunate to have great mentors and leaders and people who just cared, like my grandparents who raised me. My grandfather was an engineer and he taught me about hard work, great values and the importance of a great attitude. My grandmother was really focused on education, and she talked about working hard in school, learning, and what that was going to bring to me. But most importantly, my grandparents were two individuals who really cared. They showed me how important it was to have people who cared for you – to give you advice and sometimes to give you tough love.

Brian learned how to work hard and care about people from his humble upbringing and he uses that today in his role as Chairman and CEO of Target.

Walt Disney puts a positive spin on the ways adversity from your past can have a positive impact on your future. “All the adversity I’ve had in my life, all my troubles and obstacles, have strengthened me… You may not realize it when it happens, but a kick in the teeth may be the best thing in the world for you.”

What about you? How does your upbringing or the adversities from your past impact the way you lead today? Download this guide to find out! It provides some questions to help you evaluate your past so you can better understand why you lead the way you do today. Your past can be a powerful tool if you’re willing to revisit it and learn from it. Are you willing?

lifeline exerciseMaybe you know someone who has a challenging past. Would they be inspired by what you just read? Pay it forward today by sharing this blog and guide with them. By showing you care, you may inspire them to become a better leader. Go Lead!

1 https://qz.com/29058/workers-outside-the-us-are-more-likely-to-pursue-their-dream-jobs/

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Blog Lead Others Lead Yourself

To Be Yourself, Know Yourself

By: David Novak, Co-Founder and CEO of David Novak Leadership

Number one on my list of lessons for leadership is to “be yourself.” Yes, you’ve heard this a million times, but it is the only way to gain trust and keep people on your side. Authenticity breeds trust, which will take you pretty far.

Consider the times you’ve seen someone on TV or even in person that you could just tell wasn’t being authentic. It happens all the time with politicians, business leaders, salespeople, and even teachers and parents. They try to be someone or something they aren’t and most often, they will trip up and get caught in the act. Once people see through the show, the trust is broken.

In leadership, you need to realize that everyone is scared of letting their weaknesses show, especially in the business world. By showing your vulnerable side, you can let others know that you’re just like they are. It helps you gain their trust and allows them to more easily open up instead of feeling intimidated by your role or title. It helps you help them be authentic.

As a leader, you need to know yourself in order to help others get better at being themselves. It may take some self reflection for you to realize who you are and where you’ve been. Take a long, hard look at your own past and what events shaped you. Pay special attention to the lessons that weren’t easily learned and how you gained knowledge and grew. These insights will help you further grow yourself and relate to your teams.
To help you teach others to open up and be who they are, consider these tips:

  • Believe in all your people. Celebrating their individualities while keeping them working toward the same goals can be challenging. But by having respect for their styles and values, you can still lead everyone toward success.
  • Give them individual development plans. Appreciate their strengths, and take time to find out what makes each person tick. Then, you can help them find ways to be more effective at what they do.
  • Provide a safe haven for input. Include everyone in discussions and make it easy for them to feel comfortable speaking up. When they disagree with you, listen to their points and thank them for sharing their side.

Remember, we are all works in progress. We are each individuals with unique strengths and weaknesses. Showing your team that you are always working to better yourself can help them accept their own challenges and work on them, too.
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