Are your leadership habits poisoning the office?

Listen, ask questions to develop team members | Are your leadership habits poisoning the office? | How a grand design strategy helped WeChat succeed Created for {EMAIL} | [Web Version]( October 30, 2019 CONNECT WITH SMARTBRIEF  [LinkedIn]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [SmartBrief on Leadership]( [SmartBrief on Leadership]( Innovative Ideas. Ahead of the Curve. [SIGN UP]( ⋅ [FORWARD](  [] Leading Edge [] [Listen, ask questions to develop team members]( Listen carefully, ask how you can help and inquire about difficulties potential leaders on your team are experiencing rather than "directing and telling," writes Pamela McLean. "Developing talent is one of the most important jobs of great managers and leaders and it all starts with how you show up, communicate and believe about your people," she writes. [SmartBrief/Leadership]( (10/29) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] [Are your leadership habits poisoning the office?]( Leaders can create a toxic work environment when they constantly complain, second-guess themselves in front of their employees, micromanage and play favorites, writes Lolly Daskal. "This misuse of leadership will trickle down into their organization, causing distress, betrayal, frustration and anger, and eventually leading to an unsuccessful culture and working environment," Daskal writes. [Lolly Daskal]( (10/29) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( Digital transformation A suprrising 84% believe they have failed on their digital transformation goals. By channeling multi-disciplinary teams, leveraging change management principles, and prioritizing projects based on ROI, digital transformation becomes something manageable. [Rethink digital transformation]( ADVERTISEMENT [] Strategic Management [] [How a grand design strategy helped WeChat succeed]( The WeChat messaging app has proved successful because it began as a grand design strategy led by founder Allen Zhang, who took a top-down approach to guide its design and create a product that selectively caters to users, write Julian Birkinshaw, Dickie Liang-Hong Ke and Enrique de Diego. The grand design approach, they write, works best in more fluid markets and can be riskier than the traditional design thinking that flourishes in more mature markets. [Harvard Business Review online (tiered subscription model)]( (10/29) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] Smarter Communication [] [What a black bear can teach leaders about empathy]( What a black bear can teach leaders about empathy (Pixabay) Running away after an encounter with a black bear taught Dan Rockwell that fears about respect, trust and communication often keep team members from connecting with their leaders. Asking team members about their struggles, feelings and what kind of help they need can foster empathy and keep employees engaged, he writes. [Leadership Freak]( (10/29) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] [3 strategies to grab an audience's attention]( Grab the audience's attention during your next speech by using a joke, a bold statement or a question, writes Jim Anderson. "The reason that we are willing to go [to] the effort of creating a speech for an audience is because we want to find a way to connect with them and perhaps change their lives using the benefits of public speaking," he writes. [The Accidental Communicator]( (10/29) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( Guide: The Employee Experience Playbook Employee experience is more than just good employee engagement. It's defined by all the ways the workforce interacts and experiences work. How can your organization improve it? [Download our guide]( and learn how to create a great employee experience. ADVERTISEMENT [] Customers First A weekly look at serving customers better [] [Why customer service should remain teachable]( Customer service leaders who think they know everything are missing out on giving their customers the emotional experiences that will keep them coming back, writes customer experience expert Jon Picoult. Don't just remove customer pain points, he advises, hire and train employees who are teachable and want to make customer experiences memorable. [Forbes]( (10/28) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] In Their Own Words [] [St. Vincent's Health coaches leaders in small groups]( St. Vincent's Health in Australia develops its leaders by bringing together small groups from different parts of the organization and conducting coaching sessions, says David Bryant, head of people and culture. "We will meet with them to talk about the big challenges they're facing and what they're up against," he says. [LinkedIn]( (10/28) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] SmartBrief At The Event [] [Wambach says being benched taught her leadership lessons]( Retired soccer star Abby Wambach told the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics' Food & Nutrition Conference & Expo that being benched in the 2015 World Cup taught her valuable leadership lessons she would not have learned on the field. Wambach said women must learn to "fail up" and benefit from setbacks. [SmartBrief/Leadership]( (10/30) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] Daily Diversion [] [Comfort food cravings blow in with colder weather]( A combination of colder weather and seasonal holidays can increase our craving for comfort foods high in fat and sugar, says University of Georgia associate professor Emma Laing. Giving in to the occasional craving is OK "if our diet is otherwise balanced, we stay hydrated and get exercise," Laing says. [WXIA-TV (Atlanta)]( (10/29) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] Editor's Note [] Did you vote in this week's poll? Did you vote in this week's poll? (SmartBrief) On Tuesdays, SmartBrief on Leadership's SmartPulse features poll questions and analysis from ThoughtLeaders managing director [Mike Figliuolo](. Did you vote in this week's poll: What is your perspective on personality assessments like Myers-Briggs? If not, check out [Tuesday's email]( and look at the [voting so far](. [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( Press Releases - [Introducing THAYER Magazine - Your Ultimate Resource to Learn, Inspire and Lead in Today's World]( [Post a Press Release]( [] [] You shouldn't change what you are in the search for success. Sissy Spacek, actress [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email](   [Sign Up]( [SmartBrief offers 200+ newsletters]( [Advertise]( [Learn more about the SmartBrief audience]( Subscriber Tools: [Manage Subscriptions]( [Update Your Profile]( [Unsubscribe]( [Send Feedback](mailto:leadership@smartbrief.com) [Archive]( [Search]( Contact Us: Advertising - [Laura Engel](mailto:lengel@smartbrief.com) Editor - [James daSilva](mailto:leadership@smartbrief.com) Mailing Address: SmartBrief, Inc.®, 555 11th ST NW, Suite 600, Washington, DC 20004 © 1999-2019 SmartBrief, Inc.® [Privacy Policy (updated May 25, 2018)]( | [Legal Information]( Â