Leadership Done Right Blog

4 Leadership Skills Companies Want In Managers

By Brandon W. Jones on September 1, 2017 1

When it comes to hiring managers, companies make sure they do the toughest scrutiny of the applicants. One of the primary skills every company wants in their managers is leadership skills.

4 Leadership Skills Companies Want In Managers — Photo: Pixabay/geralt

For every manager, it doesn’t matter if they have an MBA or Life Experience College Degree, leadership skills are imperative. Managers lead teams of people with different mindsets, skills, technical expertise, and roles and responsibilities. Therefore, having leadership skills allows them effectively manage their team.

4 Leadership Skills for Managers

During the hiring process, every company examines the applicants according to different aspects of their leadership responsibilities. The number of leadership responsibilities is so extensive that it is impossible to compile them all in just one article. Therefore, this article focuses on four of the more common leadership skills companies want to see in their applicants. [Read more…] about 4 Leadership Skills Companies Want In Managers

4 Tips to Build Leadership Credibility

By Brandon W. Jones on August 30, 2017 0

When you are a leader it is really important to have leadership credibility. When you have leadership credibility, those you lead will follow you to the ends of the earth because they trust you, your decisions and your ability to lead.

This credibility is very hard to gain. Leaders constantly face the challenge of gaining leadership credibility from their followers. Additionally, their followers try to test their leader’s leadership credibility. Followers want to know if their leaders are really qualified to be their leader. They also want to be sure that the leader knows what they are talking about. [Read more…] about 4 Tips to Build Leadership Credibility

Podcast Episode #13: Walt Disney Was Nearly a Failure — Leadership Adversity Only Makes Us Stronger

By Brandon W. Jones on August 28, 2017 0

Hello, and welcome to the Leadership Done Right podcast, Episode 13: Walt Disney Was Nearly a Failure — Leadership Adversity Only Makes Us Stronger.

LDR 013: Walt Disney Was Nearly a Failure — Leadership Adversity Only Makes Us Stronger

Walt Disney

There are few who have had as enormous an impact on our culture and entertainment as Walt Disney. As co-creator of Mickey Mouse he helped to create the most popular and well-known cartoon character in the world. As the founder of Walt Disney Studios, he was an artist who changed animation and film-making forever and has been delighting and inspiring audiences for nearly 100 years. And, of course, when he brought us Disneyland he created a place unlike any other, one that still thrills the imaginations of children and adults today.

But the road to this kind of success and influence wasn’t easy, and it couldn’t have happened without Disney’s ceaseless hard work and unwavering belief in his dreams. Disney faced numerous obstacles—he was put to work at just nine years old, had only an eighth-grade education and almost no formal training in art, and suffered multiple business setbacks. However, he saw these not as failings but as leadership adversity that helped to make him the great visionary and businessman he became. http://www.learningliftoff.com/overcoming-obstacles-hard-work-and-persistence-paid-off-for-walt-disney/#.WaNDkq3MyRs

Walt Disney Was Nearly a Failure — Leadership Adversity Only Makes Us Stronger — Photo: Biography.com

Walt Disney’s Failures

Walt Disney have several setbacks early in his career. Here are a few: [Read more…] about Podcast Episode #13: Walt Disney Was Nearly a Failure — Leadership Adversity Only Makes Us Stronger

3 Easy Steps to Become the Fearless Leader

By Brandon W. Jones on August 23, 2017 0

One of the biggest stumbling blocks to success in the business world is fear. Most people face fear in one form or another all the time. Sometimes it is the fear of losing your current job, not getting the next promotion, speaking in front of others, or something else altogether. Fear is the opposite of faith and can be difficult to overcome. This post focuses on three easy steps to become the fearless leader.

3 Easy Steps To Become the Fearless Leader

So how can you become a fearless leader? How you face your fears determines whether or not you are successful. Fear can be a strong positive motivator when used properly. It can also cause your downfall if you are not careful. You can become a fearless leader and be successful by doing the following three things:

1. Know Your Self-worth

When you realize your own self-worth, the sky becomes the limit to what you can do. Marianne Williamson made a powerful statement about self-worth. She said:

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, “Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?” Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. [Read more…] about 3 Easy Steps to Become the Fearless Leader

Podcast Episode #12: Inspirational Leadership – The Inspirational Story of James Conner

By Brandon W. Jones on August 21, 2017 0

Hello, and welcome to the Leadership Done Right podcast, Episode 12: Inspirational Leadership — The Inspirational Story of James Conner.

LDR 012: Inspirational Leadership – The Inspirational Story of James Conner

The Sports Fan In Me!

Anyone who knows me, knows that I am a major sports fan. I love sports and have played most of them at some competitive level throughout my life. I did baseball, basketball, football, soccer, ultimate frisbee, and the list goes on… Of all the sports I played, football has always been my favorite to play and watch. I follow both college football and the pros. I love football so much it is almost an addiction.

NFL Stories

Last week was the start of NFL preseason and college football starts in just a few weeks. As I have been getting back into the swing of football, I’ve heard many stories about football players and their triumphs to compete in the face of difficult challenges. Of all the stories, one stood out more than the rest. I’ll start by asking… Who is the current NFL football player with the most jersey sales? Your probably thinking, Tom Brady, Dak Prescott, Von Miller, Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers, Colin Kaepernick or one of the other big name players in the league, right? [Read more…] about Podcast Episode #12: Inspirational Leadership – The Inspirational Story of James Conner

What is Your Advice for New Leaders?

By Brandon W. Jones on August 17, 2017 0

New leaders go through a wide range of emotions. There’s excitement about the new opportunities, anxiety about making a mark, and confidence in the skills that brought them to where they are. With all this excitement, they also often lack knowledge and experience. There’s nothing wrong with that. The way to overcome those feelings is to seek advice. Along those lines, I was recently asked, “What is your advice for new leaders?”

Advice for New Leaders

To answer this question, I go back to when I was a new leader. As a new leader, I had many of those feelings going through my head. I felt excited, overwhelmed, nervous, and a wide range of other emotions. Those feelings were and are normal and expected.

As a new leader, I was in a position where I had a lot of control over things that I didn’t have control over in the past. Once I got over the initial range of emotions, I realized I had to get to work. So let’s answer the question… What is my advice for new leaders? I have three pieces of advice. [Read more…] about What is Your Advice for New Leaders?

Podcast Episode #11 — Failure Is Not An Option – 5 Lessons From Apollo 13

By Brandon W. Jones on August 15, 2017 0

Hello and welcome to the Leadership Done Right podcast, Episode 11: Failure Is Not An Option – 5 Lessons From Apollo 13.

LDR 011: Failure Is Not An Option – 5 Lessons From Apollo 13

Apollo 13

Apollo 13 was the seventh manned mission in the Apollo space program and the third intended to land on the Moon. The craft was launched on April 11, 1970, at 1:13 PM CST from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, but the lunar landing was aborted after an oxygen tank exploded two days later, crippling the Service Module (SM) upon which the Command Module (CM) had depended.

The Problems

Following the explosion, the crew onboard realized there were many problems with their equipment. Their chance to make it back to earth kept dwindling as time went on. Flight Control located in Houston, urgently provided assistance in resolving the issues they were encountering. They had to desperately search for answers to unique problems. They listed all the problems they could think of.

Batteries may freeze
Water system may freeze
Propellant may freeze
There were a large number survival issues
How do we get back through the earth’s atmosphere

How Sleep Deprivation Nearly Cost Me My Life – 5 Reasons Sleep Improves Leadership

By Brandon W. Jones on August 11, 2017 0

If your anything like me, you are always doing everything you can to get the most out of every second. You’re always thinking of ways to get more out of your time. Sometimes that means you even cut into your sleep. In the moment, cutting sleep seems like the best use of your time. Getting a few more minutes of work done is much better and productive than the few minutes you would have slept, right? Wrong! Sleep improves leadership!

How much sleep do you need?

Let’s dig a little deeper. According to the Mayo Clinic, the average adult needs between 7-9 hours of sleep. Eric J. Olson, M.D. explained, “Some people claim to feel rested on just a few hours of sleep a night, but their performance is likely affected. Research shows that people who sleep so little over many nights don’t perform as well on complex mental tasks as do people who get closer to seven hours of sleep a night.”

How Sleep Deprivation Nearly Cost Me My Life - 5 Reasons Sleep Improves Leadership — Photo: Pixabay/RobinHiggins

Negative effects of sleep deprivation

People often think that reduced sleep for a little while won’t have any impact on them because they are resilient. In reality, insufficient sleep has negative effects even if it is just a few nights in a row. Healthline.com explains that:

“Your body needs sleep, just as it needs air and food to function at its best. During sleep, your body heals itself and restores its chemical balance. Your brain forges new connections and helps memory retention. Without enough sleep, your brain and body systems won’t function normally. It can also dramatically lower your quality of life. A review of 16 studies found that sleeping for less than 6 to 8 hours a night increases the risk of early death by about 12 percent.”

When we don’t get enough sleep, there are many negative side effects. According to Healthline.com, some of those are:

Trouble with thinking and concentration
More accidents
Mood swings
Weakened immunity
High blood pressure
Increased risk of heart disease and diabetes
Weight gain
Poor balance

What a bad set of side effects from just insufficient sleep! [Read more…] about How Sleep Deprivation Nearly Cost Me My Life – 5 Reasons Sleep Improves Leadership

How To Implement Your Personal Development Plan?

By Brandon W. Jones on August 9, 2017 0

Hi, and welcome to the Leadership Done Right YouTube channel! Whether you are trying to obtain your ideal life, become a highly successful leader, pick up a new skill, develop a new hobby, or improve in some other way, it is very important to have and implement your personal development plan.

This is the third video in the Personal Development Plan Series. In this video, we are going to answer the question, “How Can You Implement Your Personal Development Plan?”

Quick Recap

Looking back at the previous two videos in this series, once you have identified your ideal overall health; your lifetime dreams, goals, and objectives; the details of your Personal Development Plan; and education and other training required to complete your plan, it is time to implement your personal development plan! So how do you do that?

Implement Your Personal Development Plan

In this video, we are going to discuss six steps you can take to implement your Personal Development Plan.

1. Review/Create Your Goals

Once you have you created your Personal Development Plan, it is time to turn the plan into action steps. The way to do that is to follow Step 1 by Reviewing and/or Creating Goals to go along with each point in the plan. Make sure the goals are SMART Goals and follow the proper goal-setting methodology as outlined in my goal-setting YouTube series. [Read more…] about How To Implement Your Personal Development Plan?

Podcast Episode #10 – Have You Experienced the Benefits of Gratitude?

By Brandon W. Jones on August 7, 2017 0

Hello and welcome to the Leadership Done Right podcast, Episode 10 — Have You Experienced the Benefits of Gratitude?

LDR 010: Have You Experienced the Benefits of Gratitude?

Have you ever experienced the joy of gratitude? I would like to start this episode by relating the story of Corrie Ten Boom. She was a prisoner in the concentration camps in Nazi Germany. She was subjected to very harsh circumstances and conditions while she was in the camp. khouse.org relates the story as follows.

Thank You For The Fleas

In her book The Hiding Place, Corrie Ten Boom tells of a time she discovered that God was working even in the most horrific circumstances.

Corrie and her sister Betsie had been imprisoned by the Nazis for hiding Jews behind the wall of their Holland home, and Nazi prison conditions pretty well unbearable. [Read more…] about Podcast Episode #10 – Have You Experienced the Benefits of Gratitude?