We have all been to a workshop or conference that left us pumped up and jazzed to get business moving at rocket speed. You know, the workshops where we have amazing ah-ha moments, get some great tools, and learn that one thing that will really change how effective we are in business.

The truth is, that is what a professional development workshop is for.  To provide tools and equip people to get things done better, faster, with more ease and less stress.

The trick is taking all that you learned from a workshop and infuse it into your existing systems and processes so that you can replicate the effects you got while in the workshop.

The following are recommendations, key things to consider, and some critical steps to take before the infusion begins.

1.  Write down all that you experienced at the workshop (motivation, master minding, critical thinking, excitement, etc.)
2. Write down all that you learned at the workshop (methods, insights, processes, procedures etc.)
3. Write down all that you accomplished in the workshop (created action or business plans, created scripts for effective communication, updated processes and procedures etc.)
4. Look at the first three items and identify the components necessary and critical for you to replicate what you accomplished but in other areas of your business.
5. Infuse the necessary components in the areas of your business that need to be energized (or re-energized) so that the success from the workshop can be replicated.

While the fourth and fifth items can be done independently, I highly recommend working through them with a coach, a trusted business partner or friend who can provide objectivity and take the “emotional high” out of the decision making.

Don’t let your time, energy, and investment from the workshop be limited to the time you were in it.  Use the recommendations above to help you have sustainable effects from the workshops you attend.

Whether you are a CEO, Entrepreneur, individual contributor to an organization or family, keeping things in perspective can be a challenge but is absolutely necessary.

I am not only speaking about considering the “big picture”, “the grand scheme of things” or “on your death bed will it really matter”, I am talking about coming from the perspective of your values…in ALL that you do.

I recently presented this idea to a mastermind group and the feedback was amazing.  The members of the group said that looking at things from their values point of view was a great concept that they could really see helping them with sales, managing their schedules and all other areas of their business and personal life.  As each member spoke, there was a true sense of relief that they could see how approaching all things from the perspective of values would make their lives easier and more enjoyable.

As an accredited and COACHU trained coach, living from your values is at the core of my coaching. Be it executives or entrepreneurs, I always support my clients in aligning their business actions and way of being with their values.

While my clients usually “get it” right off the bat, the work oftentimes  starts with defining their values or re-defining them, and then moves to aligning thoughts and actions with them. Not just one time, but day after day, week after week until it is ingrained and truly a way of BEING.

It is such gratifying work to support someone moving from “should” based actions (“As his director I know I should address this challenging employee but he is well respected for his technical ability it’s not critical at this moment) to a values based way of being (“As I director I value every member on my team and therefore I will address this potential situation now by having a courageous conversation with the challenging employee in support of the whole team”).

My values are connecting, encouraging, inspiring, influencing, and family and every time I operate from a values perspective things run much more smoothly and I find a greater amount of joy!

Have you defined your values?  And if so, are you operating your business and living from a values based perspective?

If you haven’t yet defined your values, below is a partial list of values to serve as a starting point.

If you are interested in defining or redefining your values, contact me at kim@kimlmiles.com for a list of values to serve as a starting point.

In most organizations there are people titled “Manager” but not “Leader”.  As a matter of fact, the term leader is reserved for the high ranking in the C-suite of an organization – (CEO, CFO, COO, etc).  We seldom hear terms like “mid-level leaders” or  “upper-leadership”.  Why is that?!

In my experience, the word leader evokes thoughts of special characteristics and abilities – primarily to positively influence the masses.  In An Integrative Theory of Leadership, leadership is described as the “process of social influence in which one person can enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task”.

The people that I consider great leaders, not only have the characteristics above but also take initiate, are highly productive, are excellent communicators, manage themselves and interactions well, value and deliver quality work products, strive for a true team environment, support themselves and others in their career path advancement, maintain personal balance, set healthy boundaries, and often times have to “manage up”

Leaders understand that they are a role model to others.  They know they are a facilitator of effective communication.  They realize their duty to empower, inspire, and influence others and receive great satisfaction from a win-win relationship.

The phrase “managers manage things and leaders lead people” really hits home for me.  In many of the companies I have worked, people were indeed expected to manage things (projects, products, etc.) and were not empowered to lead effectively.  These managers had achieved excellence in their engineering discipline, had years of successful project management experience and were considered experts in their fields and yet, they were not empowered to lead.

These managers received “leadership training” that addressed how to manage projects, budgets and matrices.  They did not receive guidance on nurturing, influencing and empowering others.  They also were not required to develop the interpersonal and communication skills necessary to be effective leaders.

There are many managers out there that mange projects successfully but are in the unfortunate situation that others are actually expecting them to lead others.  They are being set up to fail and being set up to fail is not good for the individual or the organization.  No way, no how, never!!

For those who are in a managerial role and believe you are also expected to lead, here are a few things to consider.

1. Focus on people not just projects.
2. Include “relating, modeling and inspiring” in your job duties.
3. View your staff as resources contributing to success.
4. View yourself in a support role to your staff – ultimately their success is yours too.
5. Strengthen your communication style by being intuitive, persuasive, and by becoming a visionary.
6. Learn and develop effective coaching skills, process and methods.
7. Create a win-win environment.

Fortunately I have worked for a handful of managers who were also excellent leaders.  These men and women not only inspired, influenced, empowered and nurtured their staff, they motivated everyone to succeed – and we did!

What leadership traits do you already possess and operate with and what traits need to be developed?