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Articles from Angie Thompson | Selfgrowth.com
- How to Start Coaching Existing Team Members - by Submitted on Apr 06, 2015 from Angie ThompsonAs a leader/manager/supervisor in an organization, part of your responsibility, obligation and an implied (if not stated) expectation is to be a coach. Recently I was asked a very valuable question about that role, and the reality that many leaders live in. The question came from someone ...
Views: 946 - Five Songs From My iPod That Will Make You a Better Leader - by Submitted on Nov 23, 2015 from Angie ThompsonMusic can move us, make us smile; bring back memories - both good and bad - and many other things. Today, I plan to show you how music can help make you a better leader. Everyone has a connection to at least some music; everyone has favorite songs, genres and more. In this article, I am not ...
Views: 946 - Five Keys To Great Questions - by Submitted on Dec 09, 2007 from Angie ThompsonToby was a young and ambitious salesperson. Part of his training had been to spend time with Janice, a veteran and very successful salesperson at the firm. As Toby went on sales calls with Janice he took notes, and one of the things he marveled at was Janice’s ability to ask great questions. In ...
Views: 945 - Getting Your Whole Team Pulling Together - by Submitted on May 18, 2015 from Angie ThompsonWhat we want is everyone working together, pulling in the same direction, striving for the same goals. It seems like it ought to be easy. After all, everyone is on the same team. But the more people who are involved on your team and in your organization, the harder this becomes. People create ...
Views: 944 - What I Learned at My Class Reunion - by Submitted on Aug 19, 2015 from Angie ThompsonRecently I attended my 35th High School Class Reunion. Actually, I did more than attend it; I hosted it at our farm. I graduated with about 115 other kids in 1980, and as Class President, I have been involved in the planning of all of our class reunions (though early on, my role was much ...
Views: 943 - What Do You Believe? - by Submitted on Jan 26, 2015 from Angie ThompsonI’ve certainly opened with a big question, and it is a question I want you to think about as you read, and hopefully far into the future. Specifically, I want you to think about the beliefs and expectations you hold about those you lead. But before I get back to you personally, let me give you ...
Views: 935 - What Leaders Can Learn From Charlie Brown - by Submitted on Nov 16, 2015 from Angie ThompsonCharlie Brown. He is one of the best-known fictional characters of the last 75 years (though he first appeared in a different strip earlier. The first Peanuts Strip was published October 2, 1950). He is known by many as a lovable loser, has been often bullied, and called names (“You Blockhead, ...
Views: 935 - Five Ways Confident Communication Builds Trust - by Submitted on Feb 23, 2015 from Angie ThompsonThe leader purposefully strides to the front of the conference room table and is prepared to begin. Smiling warmly, she turns to the group, and asks the group a question. Since she wants their response she allows the pause to encourage people to participate. After creating a conversation, she ...
Views: 934 - Seven Leadership Lessons from Great Basketball Coaches - by Submitted on May 18, 2010 from Angie ThompsonThe first thing I remember purchasing with my own money that I earned was a basketball. Basketball GymAs a boy, when I wasn`t working on the farm, often I was shooting baskets. While my high school career stalled for a variety of reasons (being small, 5`9", and having mononucleosis as a ...
Views: 934(4 votes) - What Is My Trust Set Point? - by Submitted on Nov 09, 2015 from Angie ThompsonTrust is something we’d all like more of. We’d like to be able to trust more people more. And we’d all also like more people to trust us more. These are universally true statements, even for those who have lots of trusting relationships. While this is true, it only considers part of what ...
Views: 934 - How “U-Pick” Your Relationships and Results - by Submitted on May 11, 2015 from Angie ThompsonNote: The essay that follows was written several years ago and comes from my book Vantagepoints on Learning and Life. The lessons are as true as ever. I share this as a day-after-Mother’s Day tribute to my mom. Thanks Mom – I love you. My mother emailed me about an experience she had last week ...
Views: 929 - What Adults Can Learn From Show and Tell What Adults Can Learn From Show and Tell - by Submitted on Jan 12, 2015 from Angie ThompsonApparently today is Show and Tell Day at Work. Who knew? When I read this fact, it got me thinking . . . I went back to Mrs. Fredrick’s kindergarten classroom on a warm spring day. I was called to the front. It was my turn to share! No, I don’t remember exactly what I showed off, but I ...
Views: 928 - Business Lessons from a Farm Party - by Submitted on Jul 27, 2015 from Angie ThompsonBefore I get to the lessons, I need to give you a bit of background. On July 4th, we hosted the ninth annual Farm Party at our farm in Michigan. A flag was signed by nearly all of the 88 attendees of this event. Present also were the flags from the last four years, hanging as banners in our ...
Views: 928 - How to Earn People's Attention in Your Next Presentation - by Submitted on Oct 14, 2015 from Angie ThompsonBefore you dive into the details of your next presentation and start preparing your PowerPoint and stressing about how it will go . . . Stop. Ask yourself a more important question. A question that far-too-few people ask. How will I earn their attention? Because if they aren’t paying ...
Views: 927 - What Do You Expect? - by Submitted on Feb 12, 2008 from Angie ThompsonWhen something goes wrong (anywhere – in your office, at headquarters, in the national news, even around the dinner table reviewing your family’s day) have you ever heard (or said), “Well, what did you expect?” Usually that question is followed by a knowing glance, a wistful shaking of the head ...
Views: 926 - Finding Your Leadership Style - by Submitted on Jan 14, 2013 from Angie ThompsonHere is some very good news for you. There is no perfect leadership style, which means there is more than one way to lead effectively. Why is this good news? Because it means you, yes you, can become a highly effective leader. Read that again and let it sink in. Whatever your past ...
Views: 925(1 vote) - Five Things That Matter More When Leading Other Leaders - by Submitted on Oct 27, 2014 from Angie ThompsonYou may be thinking “I don’t lead leaders; I don’t need to read this.” Even if you don’t (yet), there are three important reasons why you need to keep reading: • Some day you might lead leaders – and thinking about these ideas now is worth the minimal effort required. • You may want to share ...
Views: 921 - Five Ways to Create Greater Vision - by Submitted on Aug 24, 2015 from Angie ThompsonEvery leader deals with leading, championing or even driving change. And every book and article about doing that will talk about the importance of the vision for the changed state. There is a good reason for that – a vision of the changed state you want people to move towards is critical to a ...
Views: 921 - Five Ways to Make Your December More Productive - by Submitted on Nov 30, 2015 from Angie ThompsonWhen you hear or think about the word December, many things likely come to mind; but one word that likely doesn’t is . . . productive. Today I want to challenge that thought, and even give you some very specific ways to use the last month of the year to be as productive, or perhaps more so, ...
Views: 917 - What Do You Stand For? - by Submitted on Mar 23, 2015 from Angie ThompsonAs leaders we are in the influence business. Think about it – while it might be desirable and make our lives easier, we can’t make anyone do anything, at least not for very long, and without there being unintended consequences. If we as leaders can’t control others, we must influence or ...
Views: 916 - Building Your All-Star Team - by Submitted on Jul 06, 2015 from Angie ThompsonProfessional sports leagues create special event games called All Star Games. They create teams of the best players from their leagues to play a game, show off their talents and sell tickets. One way or another (by votes of media, players or fans), the players are selected and the game is ...
Views: 914 - Leadership and Juggling – the Unlikely Lessons - by Submitted on Jun 17, 2013 from Angie ThompsonI have used juggling as a way to relax, to start conversations, I’ve used it as a metaphor to teach lessons in training, and as a result have taught hundreds of people how to juggle as well. Since I learned that Saturday was World Juggling Day, I decided to share some connections and ideas ...
Views: 912(1 vote) - Taking Advantage of the Teachable Moment - by Submitted on Apr 05, 2009 from Angie ThompsonTom, a middle-aged CEO, is experiencing some tough times in his business. Changes in economic climate and competitors are leaving him and his team unsure about the validity of their strategy, so he attends an executive strategy workshop. Andrea, a mother of two young children, has the chance to ...
Views: 907 - Conquering the Leadership Paradox - by Submitted on Nov 05, 2012 from Angie ThompsonConquering the Leadership Paradox It happens all over the world, every day. Josie is a great performer. She is very good at her technical expertise, and for that she is rewarded with a promotion. Her supervisor calls her into her office and gives her the good news. Congratulations ...
Views: 906(1 vote) - How Do I Communicate Better With People at a Distance? - by Submitted on Nov 02, 2015 from Angie ThompsonThe saying goes; absence makes the heart grow fonder. While that may be true in some cases, another old saying is also true: Out of sight, out of mind. Both hold shades of truth for any of us wanting to communicate more effectively with people when we are separated by space. More often ...
Views: 906 - The Truth About Influence - by Submitted on Nov 05, 2012 from Angie ThompsonEight year old Sam Baker was wondering about something, so he asked his parents, "How come our town doesn`t have a Christmas tree lit up for everyone in town to enjoy?" He reasoned that other nearby towns had trees, that they had a tree at the White House, and that he saw them light a tree at ...
Views: 905(2 votes) - Five Ways to Keep People Focused on Their Goals - by Submitted on Dec 28, 2009 from Angie ThompsonGoals, whether formally stated or not, are critical to all organizational success. We (hopefully) all have over-arching organizational goals; but on a more practical and immediately applicable level, we have project goals, productivity goals, quality goals, developmental goals, and the list ...
Views: 902(2 votes) - Four Questions That Will Improve Your Results - by Submitted on Oct 20, 2015 from Angie ThompsonI’ve got four questions for you… four questions that can, as I promised above, change your results. I’m going to say more about each of them, how they can make a difference, and when you would want to apply them, but first, here they are: Why? Why not? Why not me? Why not now? You can apply ...
Views: 902 - Six Ways to Expand Your Perspective - by Submitted on Sep 03, 2013 from Angie ThompsonLast week I wrote about why your perspective as a leader is so powerful. If you missed it, it is a great prelude to this article. Today I give you practical ways to get more and new perspectives into your experience and thought process. Note: None of these are difficult in and of themselves, ...
Views: 901(1 vote) - What to Look For In Future Leaders - by Submitted on Sep 22, 2014 from Angie ThompsonIt is a fundamental quandary in any organization. Someday, the current leaders won’t be there and someone else will need to fill their shoes. It might not be soon, or it might be very urgent due to demographics, turnover or organizational growth. Whatever the reason, the question needs to be ...
Views: 901 - What Leaders Can Learn From Teflon - by Submitted on Feb 13, 2013 from Angie ThompsonPTFE or polytetrafluoroethylene was discovered on April 6, 1938 by Dr. Roy Plunkett at the DuPont research laboratories and it was patented in February of 1941. You know PTFE as Teflon – the non-stick coating used on things like pans, griddles and grills. This chemical now has a growing list ...
Views: 900(1 vote) - Five Leadership Lessons from the Apollo Moon Landing - by Submitted on Aug 19, 2015 from Angie Thompson46 years today and tomorrow (as I post this), July 20 and 21st, 1969, are days that everyone my age or older remembers. These are the days when the Apollo 11 spacecraft landed on the moon (the 20th) and when Neil Armstrong became the first human to walk on the moon (on the 21st). This was an ...
Views: 898 - Five Powers of Encouragement - by Submitted on Nov 03, 2014 from Angie ThompsonI spent most of last week coaching leaders on their skills, abilities and results through the use of 360 assessments. While the experience, scope and overall skill of these leaders varied widely, one of the lessons I received from this process was a reminder of and deepening appreciation for the ...
Views: 898 - How to Implement Your Game Changing Ideas - by Submitted on Sep 21, 2015 from Angie ThompsonIt’s time, and you know it. You and your team have identified the idea that will change your world and results. It’s your Disney World, your iPad, or your DVD player. OK, it might not be that big, but it will be a game changer for you. It is big, it is bold, and it is not like anything you ...
Views: 898 - Be Better Than Your Best - by Submitted on Nov 05, 2012 from Angie ThompsonA No-Excuses Leadership Learning Strategy Leading effectively is a complex mix of skills and behaviors that don`t all come naturally and can`t be mastered quickly (if ever). To put it simply, to be a great leader, you must be a continual learner. That is easy to say. It is easy to believe. ...
Views: 897(1 vote) - The Achilles Heel of Process Improvement - by Submitted on Dec 21, 2009 from Angie ThompsonFrom a fairly early stage in my career I have been involved in process improvement activities. While at Chevron in the early 1990`s, I served as a Quality Training Consultant teaching organizations, among other things, process improvement tools. The goal of the training and the efforts overall ...
Views: 895(3 votes) - Where Do I Belong? - by Submitted on Oct 22, 2007 from Angie ThompsonBefore you read any further, get a pen and a piece of paper. Write down all the groups you belong to. I’ll help you get started. I am a member of the human race. I am a male/female. Keep writing until you have at have at least 10-15 groups on your list. Now that you are back, let’s review ...
Views: 895 - The Language of Encouragement - by Submitted on Mar 30, 2015 from Angie ThompsonSome of the most powerful things in life are simple. Such is the case with encouragement. People are more productive, more focused and more successful in a positive and supportive environment than in a negative one. And we can help create that environment by being more encouraging. John Adair ...
Views: 893 - How Leaders Make Hard Decisions - by Submitted on Sep 21, 2015 from Angie ThompsonIf you are a leader, you make decisions, large and small, every day. Many are straightforward and take very little time, but if you have been a leader for very long at all, you have had to face a complex, multi-faceted and difficult problem, where the decision was far from easy or ...
Views: 890 - Gold Star Leadership - by Submitted on May 19, 2014 from Angie ThompsonPicture box of sticky-back stars. This takes me instantly back to my kidhood. The homework or test is handed back to me from the teacher with a grade, and if you did well and got really lucky, it might have one of these stars on it. The star – whether blue, green or gold, made my day. It told ...
Views: 889 - Six Ways To Read More Effectively - by Submitted on May 05, 2008 from Angie ThompsonMaybe you are a voracious reader. Maybe reading has never been your favorite thing (though if that is the case, you’re probably not reading this!) Either way – whether you read a book a week or struggle to finish one a year - it would be helpful to gain more value from the time you do spend ...
Views: 886 - The Keys to Successful Performance Conversations - by Submitted on Sep 02, 2014 from Angie ThompsonIt is likely you have had an experience like this in your past: You are 8 or 10 or 12 years old. You’ve done something wrong, whether you know it yet or not. You certainly know it after you have been told to “stay after class”, “go to the Principal’s office” or “wait until your Father gets ...
Views: 885 - Why You Get Your Best Ideas in the Shower (and Why Matters) - by Submitted on Sep 10, 2015 from Angie ThompsonHow many times have you gotten a flash of insight, a great idea or remembered the name of that person you couldn’t come up with, while taking a shower? I’ll bet it is more than once. In fact, one survey of highly creative people found that 19% of those people get their best ideas in the ...
Views: 885 - How to Lead in Tough Times - by Submitted on May 27, 2009 from Angie ThompsonAs I write this in April 2009, many would say we are living in tough, uncertain economic times. Watching, listening to or reading the news you will "know" that new layoffs are announced every day, a shaky stock market is followed more closely than ever, and uncertainties seem to be ...
Views: 884 - Five Keys to Overcoming Virtual Team Conflicts - by Submitted on Aug 19, 2015 from Angie ThompsonWhen we think about remote or virtual teams, we may think about flexibility, freedom and perhaps even high productivity. And when people are working out and on their own, we typically think that interpersonal issues might not matter as much or happen as often. Unfortunately, this isn’t always ...
Views: 879 - Five Reasons to Read More Biographies - by Submitted on Jun 14, 2010 from Angie ThompsonMark Twain wrote, "The man who does not read good books is no better than the man who can`t." Walt Disney said, "There is more treasure in books than in all the pirate`s loot on Treasure Island." And, more recently, Theodore Geisel (aka Dr. Seuss) taught us, "The more that you read, the ...
Views: 879(9 votes) - Four Lessons Leaders Can Learn from Camels - by Submitted on Nov 11, 2011 from Angie ThompsonLet me start by saying I am not a camel expert. Some of what I know about camels, I have learned from reading throughout my life. Some I learned yesterday when talking with colleagues - people who know more about them than I do. I however have become more interested because of my recent personal ...
Views: 879 - Maya Angelou’s Leadership Advice - by Submitted on Jun 12, 2014 from Angie ThompsonIt is three simple lines and the words I most connect to Maya Angelou. After I heard of her passing, they are the words I thought of . . . “If you don't like something, change it. If you can't change it, change your attitude. Don't complain.” - Maya Angelou The advice is powerful and easy ...
Views: 878 - The Secret of Surrender - by Submitted on Nov 05, 2012 from Angie ThompsonSurrender? When you think about surrender, you don`t likely think of great leadership. People who surrender, lose, right? The dictionary tells us that surrender, as a verb, means things like: "to yield possession or power," "to give (oneself) up," "to give up, abandon or relinquish." These ...
Views: 877(1 vote) - The ABC's Of Coaching Success - by Submitted on May 05, 2008 from Angie ThompsonEffective coaching is a big topic. Here are just a few examples where being a more effective coach can make a difference: at work, for your children’s sports teams, for a friend and in your community. As with anything as important and as pervasive as this topic, there are lots of resources ...
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