Lessons to Build Effective Leaders

Legend has it that Ernest Hemingway was challenged by some friends to write a story in six words. He responded to the challenge with the following story: For sale: baby shoes, never worn. Hemingway has inspired the Six-Word Lesson series of books.

These brief and highly condensed best practices are for busy leaders and managers who just want the essence of the ideas now.....and maybe more information later.

"Six-Word Lessons to Build Effective Leaders: 100 Lessons to Equip Your People to Create Winning Organizations" is part of this book series published by Pacelli Publishing.

These lessons come from my lifetime of experiences in business, public office and nonprofits. I have served in many roles of leadership and management and learned from many different sources including the school of hard knocks, great mentors and coaches, my competitors, informative books, case studies and travels abroad. Each lesson also links to other related best practices and resources for more depth and detail.

Hire and Retain the Best People

• Right person for the right job
• Job description defines who is needed
• Screen candidates with key job elements
• Don’t wing it; interview with purpose
• Fit employees like hand and glove
• Turn over rocks. Learn before hiring
• Hire more home runs; reduce strikeouts
• Invest in onboarding for successful integration
• Grow your employees; build your organization
• Constantly upgrade your team and talents
• Reduce excessive and costly turnover mistakes
• Weak or inadequate management causes failures

Motivate Employees with Mission and Purpose

• Leadership must have passion and motivation
• Expect excellence. Don’t accommodate poor performance
• Power your business plan with involvement
• Share real information across the organization
• Take safety seriously and reap dividends
• Leaders must define and future culture
• Root out demoralizing practices and culture
• Define and communicate your secret sauce

Power Your Organization with Effective Communications

• Build a culture of shared communication
• “Need to know” undercuts employee empowerment
• Rules of thumb to communicate change
• Method of delivering the message matters
• Talk with, not to or at
• Communications: Erase negative and unproductive communication habits
• Run meetings that people like attending
• Outcomes need positive not negative descriptions
• Stories help us learn and remember
• Newsletters worth reading bind the organization

Bake Trust into Your Organizational DNA

• Accomplish the mission and share success
• Keep your word--the universal rule
• Share information openly; build trusting relationships
• Walk the talk; troops will believe
• Own your mistakes and build trust
• Support people; they’ll support the organization
• Meet deadlines; others count on them
• Excellence is performing above the norm
• Maintain an open and honest environment
• Exercise authority fairly, consistently to everyone

Focus Leaders on Effectiveness not Efficiency

• Effectiveness: getting the right things done
• Manage your limited asset of time
• Outward contribution will move the needle
• Build on individual strengths, not weaknesses
• Determine and focus on meaningful priorities
• Analyze, hone your decision-making skills
• Avoid the consensus trap for decisions
• Build your organization with KISS design
• Use Pareto Principle to focus priorities
• Keep the door open for managers
• Startups demand leaders with extra skills