Carly Fiorina, the first female to assume leadership of a Fortune 100 Company, notes personal accountability as important to her success. She quickly became an influential leader due to her belief that we are “Always on Stage.” Fiorina leads by example. ─ Christy Beem ─ Ken Chapman & Associates, Inc.

By Ken Chapman, Ph. D. Ken Chapman & Associates, Inc. As you have begun to discover throughout this process, the wellspring of personal motivation comes from within yourself. In the very strictest sense, no one can truly motivate another person. A leader can guide another individual toward self-motivation through creating working conditions which satisfy individual needs and wants while meeting organizational goals, but true motivation really comes from within the individual. James Cribbin wrote in his book, Effective Leadership: “To get people to do mediocre work, one needs only ‘drive’ people. To elicit top performance, one must get them to drive themselves . . .” At one time in the not too distant past, many leaders assumed that if they measured how much their reports produced and used this information as the primary document for leading their reports, they had adequately fulfilled their responsibility. Such information, however, measures the effects…

When managing conflict, focus on turning heat into light. Attack the issue or behavior, not the person. Give all parties a hearing. Look for common ground. Work toward a solution everyone can adopt. If winning is your primary objective, prepare to lose your long-term relationships. True leadership creates win-win outcomes for everyone. ─ Ken Chapman ─ Ken Chapman & Associates, Inc.

The great American humorist, Will Rogers, once made this comment: Nothing is more uncommon than common sense. Leaders know that the obvious is not always obvious. Just because something “makes sense,” to me, does not mean it “makes sense” to everyone. Leaders know when to make common sense a bit more common. -Ken Chapman, Ph.D.

A leader knows the value of a positive attitude. You can’t control the daily ups and downs, but you can choose how you react to them. A positive outlook and a belief you can handle any situation fuels self-confidence. Others are attracted to a confident, optimistic leader. ─ Deb Miller ─ Ken Chapman & Associates, Inc

Team members love change — if they initiate the change. Unfortunately, most of us spend a good part of our work life making our way through change we did not initiate. Leaders know that times of change do more than develop character. They also reveal character. ─ Ken Chapman ─ Ken Chapman & Associates, Inc.

Leaders go the second mile. Going the first mile is doing nothing more than what is required us. Leaders know that it is in the second mile that excellence is achieved. Only the second mile, or third, reveals the best players/employees. ─Ken Chapman─ Ken Chapman and Associates, Inc.

Randy Pausch stated “Honesty is not only morally right, it’s also highly efficient.” Leaders know that a safe, open environment allows employees to bring you bad news quickly. Honesty can prevent a molehill from becoming a mountain. ─ Whitney Tate─ Ken Chapman & Associates, Inc.

Leaders recognize the value of trust and build it within their team at every opportunity. Their toolbox is equipped with candor, fairness, predictability, transparency, integrity and competence. Construction is continuous. It’s not possible to overbuild. ─ Deb Miller ─ Ken Chapman & Associates, Inc.

Leaders know diversity is about raising, not lowering, the standard. Teams are measured by the diversity [ethnicity, gender, experience and thinking style] they attain — and the unity they retain. ─ Ken Chapman ─ Ken Chapman & Associates, Inc.