brisebois blog

Ask your employees and customers for suggestions, and reward the best ones.
That’s what my alma mater did and it obtained over 100 suggestions.

And they are leaving the suggestion page open…

It works best when you share the spotlight, taking turns talking and listening: Shut up and listen.
Seriously. Shut up. That means more than just quieting your mouth. It means more than simply waiting your turn to talk. It means quieting the noise in your head so that you can really hear what the other person is saying.

Now prove you were listening.
That’s right. Show me you care. Ask genuine questions that send the conversation in new directions. Talk to me about what I’m talking to you about. Otherwise, we’re just making noise.

Don’t worry, you’ll get your turn.
It’s not likely that anyone will listen to you, if you don’t listen to them first. Because when you really pay attention, and you show it, you build trust. You build rapport. You get a reputation for being smart, and thoughtful even, no matter that you’ve said very little. And suddenly people will want to hear what you have to say. (tiny gigantic)

My friend Maureen recently published a short article that discusses:

What is a “Level 5” Leader? How many levels are there? How would I measure developmental levels including “Level 5”? How will understanding “Level 5” leadership impact my organization’s success? How can I use this information to become more successful?

A worthy source for developmental levels of leadership in general and Level 5 leadership in particular.

Have you written your thank-you letters yet? Mother’s words continue to dog most of us for life. They hover like a black cloud over the season of festive giving and partying. We all vaguely expect a letter of thanks, but find them a crashing bore to write. Thanks sent immediately are thanks redoubled, we were told. “No duty is more urgent than that of returning thanks” – Saint Ambrose.(…) The next generation seems content to live in a letter-free zone, as texting and e-mailing suffice. According to a recent survey, a third of under35s have never sent a personal letter to a loved one in their lives. The arrival of post, for them, means bank statements, parking fines, junk mail, offers to take on debt. Envelope-licking, stamp-sticking and walking to a letter-box are effortful.(…) Katharine Whitehorn, author of Social Survival, believes we must all “go with the currency”, accept the changing times, and be content with phone calls, “which are better than no thanks at all”.(…)
Perhaps the boot should be on the other foot, Struther suggested: the host should write and thank the guests for going to all the trouble of uprooting themselves from their cosy hearths and undergoing the expense and discomfort of travel, trains and motorways, packing and unpacking, getting there and getting home. (Of course a guest who received a thank you letter from hosts before having time to write his thanks might feel furious at being upstaged.) (Times Online)

Richard St. John polled a group of very smart people on what it takes to be successful. He presents his findings around 8 keywords (4 min.)

And do we teach from/about/to who they are?

He can do calculations to 100 decimal places in his head and learn a language in a week. And he may hold the key to unlocking similar abilities in everyone.

UPDATE 2-28-2008: Daniel should be a source of inspiration (and study) for the numbers guy.

In his book, Thinkertoys: A Handbook of Creative-Thinking Techniques, Michael Michalko provides a few suggestions for this technique…

1. Select three to five business movers and shakers, living or dead, whom you admire most (real or fictional, living or dead).
2. Get photographs of your Board and pin them up to constantly remind you of the talent at your disposal.
3. Research your heroes. Read everything about your heroes that you can get your hands on.
4. Take notes on your favorite passages. Pay particular attention to the creative techniques they employed to solve problems.
5. When you have a challenge, consult the members of your board and imagine how they would solve it. (thanks Paul)