Why leaders need regular "I" checkups

Why leaders need regular "I" checkups | Focus on the "fight to live," especially in tough times | McDonald's CEO firing shows leaders' actions matter Created for {EMAIL} | [Web Version]( November 20, 2019 CONNECT WITH SMARTBRIEF  [LinkedIn]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [SmartBrief on Leadership]( [SmartBrief on Leadership]( Innovative Ideas. Ahead of the Curve. [SIGN UP]( ⋅ [FORWARD](  [] Leading Edge [] [Why leaders need regular "I" checkups]( Leaders should do regular "I" checks by reviewing how often they use first-person references instead of "we" and other team-based words, writes Ken Downer. "If we hope to build trust, encourage engagement, and engender a strong, positive culture, we have to have an inclusive mindset in our leadership," he writes. [Rapid Start Leadership]( (11/19) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] [Focus on the "fight to live," especially in tough times]( Focusing on the "fight to live" instead of the "fight to not die" after two rounds of cancer taught executive coach Josie Thomson a valuable lesson in pursuing what you want in life. "It was a journey of self-awareness and self-reliance that I now draw on to enable business leaders to construct more adaptive, innovative, and creative solutions to their everyday challenges," she writes. [Strategy+Business online (free registration)]( (11/14) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( Join World-Class Leaders Moving up in your career requires a smart investment in your leadership potential. Exceed your goals without interrupting your career path through the Kellogg Executive MBA program. [Choose a program format: semimonthly in Evanston or monthly in Miami]( ADVERTISEMENT [] Strategic Management [] [McDonald's CEO firing shows leaders' actions matter]( The firing of McDonald's CEO Steve Easterbrook over his consensual relationship with an employee was the right call, says Wharton management professor Stephanie Creary, because such relationships create "asymmetric power relationships" that can affect the entire organization. "The attitudes and behaviour of employees are impacted much more strongly by the actions of their bosses than by their words," writes University of Toronto adjunct professor Hugh Arnold. [The Conversation]( (11/17), [Knowledge@Wharton]( (11/8) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] Smarter Communication [] [You can't find common ground if you avoid the conversation]( We can practice "the art of productive disagreement" by not avoiding confrontation and conflict, all the while understanding that having better arguments is difficult and slow work, says author Buster Benson. "If anything we should be yelling more, because there are very important things to discuss with one another, and our emotions should be invited to the table," he says. [Nir & Far blog]( (11/19) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] [Strategies go over better through stories]( Storytelling as a way of communicating strategy needs to share what's happening, what needs to be done and why it matters, but it also should connect with the heart, writes Paul Smith. He uses an example from the cough and cold industry that used a fictitious news article and a basketball metaphor to explain the brand's marketing strategy and thank employees for their hard work. [Great Leadership]( (11/19) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] Customers First A weekly look at serving customers better [] [Make service easy for the customer, not the employee]( Companies should audit their customer service experience regularly to ensure the process is easier for customers than it is for those helping them, writes Paul LaRue. These pain points can include an unreliable or unhelpful website, rude employees and inflexible policies. [The Upwards Leader]( (11/17) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] In Their Own Words [] [Author seeks to inspire more girls to be CEOs]( Successful female CEOs and entrepreneurs don't seek permission or take no for an answer, says Diana Kapp, author of "Girls Who Run the World: 31 CEOs Who Mean Business." "My personal belief is that equity in the workplace is going to happen when girls and young women grow up expecting to be CEOs and founders," she writes. [Parade]( (11/18) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] Daily Diversion [] [Ancient beetle provides clues to why we have flowers]( Evidence of pollen on a tumbling flower beetle encased in Burmese amber some 99 million years ago pushes back the known date of pollination of flowering plants by about 50 million years, researchers say. The discovery could help explain why flowering plants began to appear in the Cretaceous period, something Charles Darwin had called "the abominable mystery." [Atlas Obscura]( (11/19) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] [] In a world of diminishing mystery, the unknown persists. 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