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New leaders earn their promotion. They are successful, they have proved their value and now they must lead. Many new leaders, typically, make one of two primary errors:-

They lead from the middle, or
They just don't lead at all

Lead From the Middle
You've just been promoted, or you have come in from outside and are new to the team. You want to prove your worth - what you know, what you can do, how much experience you have. You must 'prove it' to the people who promoted you, and you must 'prove it' to your team. So, you roll up your sleeves and dive right in. You want to show you can do it faster, better, smarter, with fewer resources and still beat the deadline. The more you are at the coalface, the more you are showing everybody just how good you are.

Change is scary.  It can make us feel uncomfortable.  But it is a necessity in the workplace if your organization is going to remain on the cutting edge and evolve over time.  How leaders manage change sets the stage for…

Leaders show the way! That is what the word means. It's a Viking word - 'show the way'. Today's leaders might not actually steer an open boat rowed by their crew to seek out and colonize new lands. But they do the modern-day equivalent - they steer a project, a department, or a whole corporation (staffed by a 'crew'), and they achieve business goals instead of getting to new geographical destinations.

Leif Erikson planned the journey that took him to Vinland. He shared his ideas, motivated his crew to keep rowing through good days and stormy days, days when they knew where they were, and days when they were literally lost at sea. And they got to Vinland - what we call North America.

Unproductive meetings are often a result of poor planning or the inability to stay on task and discuss the topics at hand. More often than not, meetings can turn into rambling chitchat, heated off topic debates and ultimately become an ineffective waste of time. The good news is that meetings don't have to be like this!

Here are 8 tips to help you run a more effective and productive meeting:

Do you ever find yourself bogged down by your list of things to do, and all of a sudden you're wondering how you're supposed to get all of it done and in the time frame that you promised? This happens to everyone, but there are a few steps you can take to ensure that you stay on track and make your team successful.

1. Ask the right questions.

When tasked with an assignment, there are several questions you should ask to ensure that your team does efficient and productive work.

You know the old saying, "The only thing in life that is certain is death and taxes." Well there is something else that is certain in life, change. It is inevitable, at some point we all face a change of some kind. This is a good thing. Change means we are learning, growing, and moving forward. Imagine if you never learned anything new or tried different things. You would still be at home, living with your parents, drinking from a bottle. Not a pretty picture. While this example is extreme the point is the same, growth is good. Change in business is also a given. It can include such things as new procedures, policy changes or new management. As a leader, how do you get your team excited about change?