I’m told that one quote preachers try to live by is, “If it’s foggy in the pulpit, it’s cloudy in the pew.” In other words, as the leader and communicator, if you’re unclear about any part of your message, it’s a sure bet everyone else is as well.

You don’t have to be a preacher to risk setting unclear expectations. If you’re responsible for performance outcomes of any kind, unclear expectations could be your biggest kryptonite. In fact, if the expectations you set are unclear, you force members of your team to work as much as three times as hard.

Consensus on the Intention Must Be Reached

With unclear expectations, before any work can be done, the folks performing the work must determine what they think the expectations are. Depending on the size or scope of the project, this could require significant time and energy. When an entire team is involved, the level of effort, time and cost adds up quickly.

The Original Work Must Be Completed

Regardless of expectations, the team must complete the initial set of tasks.

Constant Troubleshooting Must Be Performed

This is where the cost really multiplies. Whenever new information comes in, the team must halt their progress and redirect. In many unfortunate cases, additional re-work is required.

And this doesn’t factor in the cost of morale lost in the process!

So how can you make sure you’re expectations are clear as crystal?

First, always assume that the expectations you give will be misinterpreted. Then go the extra mile to reiterate your message. At the very least, for everyone performing the work, provide clarity of outcome and clarity of role.

One of the reasons the best bosses have the highest engaged teams is because everyone knows where they stand in relation to the goal. No one has to wonder and feedback can be more focused on what’s next, not what’s wrong. So go the extra inch – or mile – to create clarity from the start. Everyone comes out on top.

Giving great feedback isn’t easy. It’s tricky, it’s not much fun and to top it off, none of us were born knowing how to give great feedback. We have to learn how over time – often the hard way.

If you’ve struggled with giving feedback before, here are some tricks to get you pointed in the right direction quickly.

Identify Your Feedback Bias

When it comes to giving feedback, leaders tend to fall into two categories: they’re usually too quick (e.g. unprepared/knee jerk response) to give feedback or too slow (e.g. allowing too much time to pass, or never get around to it). In both cases, your lack of feedback effectiveness can make the situation worse instead of better. The first step is to identify which end of the spectrum you start from. Are you too proactive or too reactive? When you know your default setting, it’s easier to shift from there.

Avoid Common Feedback Pitfalls

Part of a leader’s job is to give appropriate feedback in appropriate ways to the right people at the right time. But there can be several pitfalls along the way. Here are some of the most common:

• Giving feedback in the heat of the moment when emotions are high – give yourself a cooling off period if you need one!
• Being unprepared when giving important feedback – decide what you want to accomplish before you begin.
• Declining to give necessary feedback due to fear, intimidation or procrastination.
• Not giving enough positive feedback – if you have the reputation for being a Negative Nancy, you’ll always be start feedback conversations at a deficit.

Ace Positive Feedback

Let’s be honest, it’s not impending positive feedback that keeps people up at night. But that said, the quality of your positive feedback will determine the responsiveness to your constructive feedback. Great positive feedback should be:

• Quick – to immediately reinforce the positive action.
• Often – to sustain motivation. (If you ever wonder whether you are giving enough positive feedback, you aren’t!)
• Specific – to make the action easy to replicate in the future.

Make Negative Feedback Constructive

Negative feedback is by far the most tricky type of feedback. Keep in mind that negative feedback shouldn’t be personal – it shouldn’t be about the person but about the behavior or action. To make negative feedback constructive:

• Create a “safe zone” – Let the other person know you’re here to share some input with them, not attack them. Make it easy for them to listen and overcome their initial defensiveness.
• Make it specific – Make it simple for the other person to understand how they can improve next time (and give them positive feedback when they do!).
• Tie it to something the other person wants – Show that by following the feedback, the other person is more likely to achieve something that is important to them.

Keep Growing!

One of my favorite books on feedback is Thanks for the Feedback by Douglas Stone an Sheila Heen. Crucial Accountability by the Vital Smarts authors is another. Both have too many helpful tips to share here. There are many other books, articles and resources as well. Bottom line: giving feedback won’t become easy overnight but more help is available.

As leaders, it’s our responsibility not only to give feedback, but to give great feedback. If you stumble, don’t give up. Keep trying. The better your feedback, the greater your influence.

Nathan Magnuson is a leadership consultant, coach, trainer and thought leader. Receive his ebook Trusted Leadership Advisor by subscribing to his website or follow him on Twitter.

The words you use as a leader matter too. Here are some simple but powerful phrases that set great leaders apart from the rest.

“We” (not “me”)

Leaders should think and communicate with inclusive language, as Coach K is fond of saying. It’s not “my” team, it’s “our” team. Shared victories only comes through shared ownership. Along the way, leaders also find a way to share the credit.

“Thank you”

Having a positive relationship with one’s boss is one of the highest drivers of employee engagement and retention. The reverse is also true. One of the easiest (and cheapest) ways leaders engage their teams is acknowledging the contribution of each person. A “thank you” can go an incredibly long way – maybe that’s why Dale Carnegie‘s #2 principle for success was, “Show honest, sincere appreciation.”

“I’m sorry”

Apologizing can be very difficult sometimes and requires self-awareness, objectivity and discipline. “I’m sorry” are important words for a leader because they are steeped in humility and the understanding that none of us are immune to human error (whether consciously or unconsciously), regardless of our position.

“Tell me more”

Great listeners are unfortunately few and far between but perhaps nothing says, “I hear you and I’m interested” more than this little phrase – especially when you mean it. Leaders understand they need the input of others in order to succeed – but ideas don’t come automatically. They must be invited and engaged.

“How can I support you?”

This is perhaps my favorite leadership phrase of all. Leaders often struggle with the time and attention both to delegate and develop key team members. This phrase solves both challenges – it keeps all the responsibility with the team member but expresses a willingness to help when and where able.

Your words will mark you as a leader because words always matter. Which phrases do you need to add to your leadership interactions? And what others might you include in a list like this?

Nathan Magnuson is a leadership consultant, coach, trainer and thought leader.  Receive his new ebook Trusted Leadership Advisor by subscribing to his website  or follow him on Twitter.

A couple years ago I was privileged to have Mark Miller guest post on my site about surviving success. We all need a game plan to kick off a new opportunity. But our behavior needs an adjustment as well.

In his bestseller What Got You Here Won’t Get You There, executive coach Marshall Goldsmith shares twenty habits that can be largely overlooked at lower organizational levels, but have the potential to absolutely derail a senior leader who doesn’t change course. There isn’t room to share them all in this post, but I’d like to highlight five extra critical ones. Fail to implement them, and your best people may go looking for a new leader.

Adding Too Much Value

It’s crucial to learn how to influence when you’re not in charge. But when you are in charge, that same influence gets interpreted differently. As the boss, your two cents’ worth can easily be taken as a mandate. The more you give, the more restricted your team may feel. So resist the urge to share every comment that comes to mind – and when you do, be clear on whether it is simply an idea or a strong preference.

Winning Too Much

Leaders don’t get promoted without demonstrating results. They are often high achievers. But at some point, senior leaders must pick and choose their battles. Some causes are worth every ounce of energy and resources. Many are not. Know which hill you’re willing to die on and when it’s time to move on.

Withholding Information

Practically every organization has a communication problem in some regard – it’s a frequently mentioned employee engagement item year over year. Some leaders refuse to share information in order to maintain an advantage over others – dictator behavior at its finest. Others assume everyone has the information they need because they shared it in a single meeting last quarter. One is egregious, the other is misdirected but both can cause major performance breakdowns.

Not Listening

Goldsmith calls the failure to listen “the most passive-aggressive form of disrespect for colleagues.” Ouch. Failing to listen well may not be a show-stopper at lower organizational levels, but it’s crucial the closer you get to the top. I believe this is one reason coach training for managers has gained such popularity in the last decade. So listen actively, not just to gain information but to truly understand.

An Excessive Need to Be “Me”

We all have our quirks. The problem comes when different standards apply to different parties. When senior leaders insist “this is just how I am” when exhibiting behavior that is unacceptable for others, morale takes a big hit. No one likes double standards.

At the end of the day, leadership is a privilege. Not only that, it’s much easier to lead with a team that has your back. People are smart. They pick up on our behavior – good or bad. So if you’re in a senior role (or better yet, before you get there), do a behavior inventory. Find an area to improve and get to work. You’ll be the one who benefits most.

Nathan Magnuson is a leadership consultant, coach, trainer and thought leader.  Receive his new ebook Trusted Leadership Advisor by subscribing to his website  or follow him on Twitter.

I heard these words from an executive at a leadership event a couple weeks ago. His frustrations weren’t anything new. Why can’t employees take more initiative to solve organizational problems?

It’s a common question with a wide variety of possible answers. Unfortunately, we usually get the level of initiative we reinforce. Let’s take a closer look at what initiative really means – and how to inspire the initiative you need to be effective.

6 Levels of Initiative

In his thought leadership on management, William Oncken introduced several levels of initiative a person can take in a given circumstance. It’s quite a wide range. Take a look:

1. Wait until told (lowest level)
2. Ask what to do
3. Recommend a course of action and then act after approval
4. Act and report immediately
5. Act and report periodically
6. Act independently and report if asked (highest level)

Determine the Level Needed

If you’re in the same boat as the executive mentioned above, you probably looked at this list and immediately identified the level preferred. If not, that’s where you need to start. There is a huge difference between level one and level six. We often bemoan a lack of initiative, but depending on the business situation, taking too much initiative can actually be extremely damaging. And don’t forget to factor in your own preference for hands-on or hands-off management.

Communicate Expectations

Once you’re clear on the level of initiative you desire, you need to communicate it explicitly to your employee(s). Until you do, nothing has actually changed. And be sure to differentiate between tasks and situations. Some tasks you may want to be asked about and others you may expect your employee to take care of himself.

As a young consultant, I was often intimidated by the client leaders I supported. They had experience and authority. I didn’t have much of either. But my bosses gave me explicit expectations that my job was to come to the table with recommendations. Regardless of how uncomfortable I felt at times, I knew it was my responsibility to deliver. (This is probably one reason why I now encourage everyone who wants to increase their influence to do the same).

There is no benefit of the doubt when it comes to expectations. Unclear expectations are always costly.

Adjust as Necessary

Aside from results, one of your chief duties as a manager is to develop talent. Let’s face it, if your talent doesn’t grow, neither will you. As your employees’ capacity expands, adjust (and communicate) the expectations for their initiative higher. Take it step by step. Development levels are often different between employees – but each will grow with your support.

When we don’t give more initiative, unskilled employees become stunted and skilled employees start looking for opportunities elsewhere.

The next time you wish an employee would take more initiative, you have the opportunity to turn your focus inward. Do you know what level of initiative you want? Have you communicated clearly? Do you need to adjust? Follow these steps and you’ll see your team’s productivity spike.

Nathan Magnuson is a leadership consultant, coach, trainer and thought leader.  Receive his new ebook Trusted Leadership Advisor by subscribing to his website  or follow him on Twitter.

Here’s the thing: if you wait until you receive a leadership role to get a leadership education, you may be waiting for a long time and you may not last long once you get there. We all need a leadership development plan that includes work experiences, formal training, networking and self-study. But don’t overlook the easiest, cheapest and most accessible one of all: observation.

Here are eight observations to make of the leaders around you.

How They Make Decisions

You can tell a lot about the leaders around you by the decisions they make – or don’t make. makes. One of the biggest frustrations to senior management is middle management who won’t make the tough decisions at their level. As an observer, you obviously won’t have access to all the same information, but you can still learn a lot.

How They Communicate with Their Teams

Engagement studies reveal that the majority of organizations have a “communication problem” – especially in the consistency and cascading of high-priority messages. Good leaders over-communicate what is truly important. Take special note of what the leaders around you decline to communicate publicly.

How They Organize Their Time & Priorities

A leader’s time is of great value. It’s a finite resource that must accommodate a growing number of responsibilities. Observe the systems they use to stay on top of schedule. Pay special attention to what they say “no” to.

How They Respond to Crises and Criticism

When Robert Mueller was confirmed as Director of the FBI, it wasn’t because of his special ability to respond to crises. He specialized in white collar crime. But one week later the World Trade Center was hit and Mueller became a full-time crisis manager. The leaders around you may not have to manage a catastrophe, but pay attention to the way they handle disruptions to their plans – and the public response they receive.

How Engaged Their People Are

It shouldn’t come as a surprise that employees prefer to work for strong leaders. It’s not because it’s easier – many times it’s not. Followers will usually work harder and stay later for a leader they respect. “A” leaders attract “A” followers who are engaged in the work, with the organization and with each other.

How Many Leaders They Produce

Did you know that leaders actually grow on trees? The best leaders develop and produce more leaders who in turn produce more. This may be most clearly seen in professional football “coaching trees,” where nearly every successful coach cut his teeth under a previous successful coach. Figure out which leaders in your leadership community have the best reputation for developing talent – and take note of their approach.

What Results They Get

Execution is the bottom line of leadership effectiveness. Without it, leaders lose their opportunity, regardless of the circumstances. Leadership is a tough business. Always take note of the results the leaders around you achieve – especially if there are significant challenges. It’s easy to win when all the momentum is on your side. It’s hard when the odds are against you.

The Mistakes They Make

This one is perhaps the most obvious and insightful. Every mistake of someone else’s you learn from, you potentially avoid making yourself.

You’ve probably realized by now that not all the examples around you are good ones. A failure by one leader could mean you receive a new assignment before you’re ready for it. Regardless, you’ll be able to share your informed observations with others. Don’t wait until later to build your leadership competency. Start taking notes today.

Nathan Magnuson is a leadership consultant, coach, trainer and thought leader.  Receive his new ebook Trusted Leadership Advisor by subscribing to his website  or follow him on Twitter.

That’s a question we considered at a workshop I attended recently. Author Mark Miller and a team of facilitators walked a large group through the content of his new book Chess Not Checkers. The boardgame imagery? It’s symbolic for what happens as organizations grow. In the early stages of most small organizations or teams, the rules are simplistic and team members may play interchangeable roles much like the game pieces in a checkers game. But as growth occurs, complexity kicks in. Roles require specialists to address additional complications. The playing field starts to resemble a game of chess, rather than checkers. If we’re not careful, we’ll fall behind.

That’s what the workshop addressed. How do leaders elevate their game to match new organizational complexities? You can find the answers in the book (as well as the digital field guide), but let me share the four big ideas we discussed.

Bet on Leadership

It shouldn’t be a surprise that organizational success starts with leadership. But many organization are extremely reactive in this respect. They place their bet too late by waiting until new leaders are needed to begin looking for them. The best organizations have a strong leadership bench. They know who their future leaders are and work hard to prepare them beforehand so they are ready to go when the call comes.

The other thing to note is that a bet is not a sure thing. Not every leader works out. But in Mark Miller’s words, “You cannot be a great organization without great leadership.” Why? Because leadership growth always precedes organizational growth.

Act as One

It’s one thing for a leadership team to be on the same page. But what about the rest of the organization? It’s true that leadership teams are uniquely responsible for creating clarity. That is one job that cannot be outsourced. But do key organizational messages cascade effectively throughout the organization or quickly go awry like a kid’s game of telephone? Or worse yet, do they even leave the boardroom?

The silver lining in this regard is that nearly every organization struggles with communication at least to some extent. Perhaps it’s just part of the human condition. But great leaders make the extra effort to ensure key messages get to every level using multiple communication methods. And by the way, it’s impossible to over-communicate what’s truly important (in case you were worried about that).

Win the Heart

Great organizations foster a spirit of shared ownership. Instead of working for “the man,” followers and employees show up to work for themselves. It’s a completely different mentality, but it’s starts with leadership.

Has your organization ever helped your followers’ dreams come true? I’m not just talking about their need to make rent that month. Actual dreams. This was a real question posed at the workshop. Everyone present wrote down a life dream and shared it with the rest of the table. It may not be realistic to deliver the final product, but many times we can do more than we think to help followers take the next step on their journey.

Remember this: when you win the heart, you get best of everything else a person brings to the table with them (hands, mind, energy, skills, etc.).

Excel at Execution

Without results, the rest of the discussion about leadership is pretty useless. What’s the point? Unfortunately this is where many leadership initiatives start rather than end. Still, excelling at execution is a leadership responsibility. One way to improve is simply sharing the score. People tend to work harder and smarter when they know where they stand.

If your team is operating at less than full potential, there’s room to improve your leadership execution. It may be up to you to raise the bar.

So how about you – are you playing chess or checkers?

Nathan Magnuson is a leadership consultant, coach, trainer and thought leader.  Receive his ebook Trusted Leadership Advisor by subscribing to his website or   follow him on Twitter.

In all of these cases, the difference between good feedback and poor feedback can easily be the difference between success and failure. The implications can affect our organization’s market share, our revenues, our project quality or our ability to be promoted.

Great feedback is crucial. But it’s not always easy to come by. So how do we get the feedback we need – either individually or corporately? Let’s take a closer look at seven feedback tips.

Ask For It

If you don’t ask for feedback, you’ll probably still get some. You just won’t get as much. And it will be lower quality and much less organized. The feedback experience will also be much poorer both for you and for the other party. On the other hand, when you ask for feedback, people are much more likely to give it to you – in the time frame and context you want it.

Demonstrate that You Acknowledged It Last Time

If you get feedback but ignore it, it’s much harder for people to take you seriously when you ask for it again. What’s in it for them? Their giving feedback will seem like an extra task that isn’t worth their time because you never completed the previous transaction by acknowledging the receipt.

Tell How It Will Be (or Has Been) Used

If people aren’t sure how you will use their feedback, they’ll be skeptical – and rightly so. No one wants their candor to be taken advantage of. Will their feedback be anonymous? Is there even a chance there will be any repercussions? Be upfront about this – as well as the positive changes that have been made with feedback that was provided previously.

Make it Easy for People to Give It

It is very unpleasant to provide feedback when it doesn’t appear to be wanted. This goes for feedback to individuals or organizations. When there is a poor system to collect the feedback (or no system), it communicates a lack of interest – regardless of the stated request. Make sure people know where and how to provide the feedback you are asking for. Use an easy, time-efficient system. The smoother the process, the more feedback you’ll receive.

Be Specific

If you make generic requests, you’ll get generic answers. The last thing you want is for people to tell you things were “fine.” It’s hard to take action on improving “fine.” So be specific in your requests. Give 1:5 or 1:10 feedback ranges. Provide feedback categories. Or ask different audiences to provide feedback on different areas. Ask what went well and what could be improved. But also ask for specific details on critical areas.

Use it

If you never use any of the feedback you get, eventually, you one will provide you with any more. Like lack of acknowledgement, lack of use means it’s not worth the time to give it. And if you don’t communicate that you will use the feedback you get (or how it was used in the past), it’s the same result. Don’t forget to show your feedback audience how their input will improve things.

Say Thank You

Remember, whenever people give you feedback, they are doing you a favor. You don’t have to use it. You can take it or leave it. But you should always say thank you regardless of the content – especially if you asked for it.

It’s difficult to get good feedback, but it’s a lot easier when you help yourself.

Which of these tips can you use this week?

Nathan Magnuson is a leadership consultant, coach, trainer and thought leader.  Receive his new ebook Trusted Leadership Advisor by subscribing to his website  or follow him on Twitter.

How did it go?

If you had anything to say, share or contribute, chances are at some point you found yourself wondering, “how can I make myself credible to these people?”

The interesting thing about credibility is that it can never been attained for oneself. It can only be conveyed by others. You can only ever be as credible and others decide you are.

So what can you and I do? Quite a bit, actually. Here’s a sample of the ways I’ve noticed people gain credibility with others.

Length of Time

This is probably the most important of the bunch. The longer a person sticks around, the more their history speaks for itself. A school director recently told me that he is building programs now that he could only dream of years ago when he started. The organization became open to his influence over time as he demonstrated value little by little. I wish there was a substitute for time, but unfortunately, there usually isn’t.

Competence

Obviously, incompetence is a quick way to ruin credibility, sometimes permanently. In fact, one of the great risks of being new to any group or team is appearing incompetent based on unfamiliarity with culture, relationships, processes, systems, policies, etc. Appearing incompetent right off the bat is a setback. If you’re new, try to find some quick wins and learn fast!

Appearance

Appearance is extremely fickle because it’s completely surface level. But it certainly plays a role in demonstrating credibility. That’s why we dress up for job interviews. How we look usually has nothing to do with our capability, but it send a huge message about our perceived competence. Image isn’t everything, but it is definitely something.

Communication

How we communicate goes an awful long way in building credibility. In some cases, one careless comment can derail a successful career despite many other positive factors. On the other hand, strong communication can overcome deficiencies in other areas. Incidentally, the most effective communicators place the greatest emphasis on the audience, not themselves. They listen well, care and make their audience feel important and smart – genuinely.

Credentials

In some environments, this is much more crucial than others. If you want to connect with a scientific, medical or academic audience, the more credentials the better. In other fields, high credentials might actually hurt your credibility based on misconceptions or stereotypes. Oftentimes, people are more concerned with fit than the number of letters that following your name.

Relationship Capital

Who you know can go a long way in building credibility with those you don’t know. You may not know a person from Adam, but a phone call or email to a mutual connection can either open or close a door – quickly and permanently. That’s why it’s so important to build and maintain a network.

Character

Character is one of the more difficult aspects of credibility because it takes a lifetime to build but only a moment to destroy. Think of all the high profile leaders who were credible in every way until one indiscretion became public knowledge. Game over. The public may not always notice the presence of character, but they will eventually notice its absence. And the consequences are usually devastating. Character matters.

Remember, you can’t attain credibility, but you can influence how others perceive it.

What shape is your credibility in?

Nathan Magnuson is a leadership consultant, coach, trainer and thought leader.  Receive his new ebook Trusted Leadership Advisor by subscribing to his website  or follow him on Twitter.

Now I was wide awake and ready to learn about Ancient Rome.

This story illustrates the effects drama can have on our words. Oftentimes, it’s not what we say, but how we say it that makes a difference. Here’s why:

A Picture Paints… a Lot of Words

When I was a graduate student, I frequently got the feedback that my PowerPoint presentations had great information but were terribly boring. My interpretation was that meant they were great presentations. When I graduate and joined a consulting firm, I quickly learned that boring presentations don’t make it in front of clients.

I don’t know if pictures are worth exactly 1,000 words, but I do know that busy people usually don’t prefer to read minute data points when a picture, graph or illustration can say the same thing.

We Live in the Days of Showmanship

Incidentally, “Dramatize Your Ideas” is Dale Carnegie‘s principle #11 for winning people to your way of thinking. Why is it so important? According to Carnegie, “we live in the days of showmanship.” It’s not enough to tell why your idea is best, you have to use flair. Think about the advertisements you see in print or on television. You don’t just see laundry detergent facts, you see dirty clothing transformed into spotless. You see the extreme inconvenience of losing cell phone coverage, how crash test dummies always manage to survive accidents in certain cars and that cheap American beer always leads to a big party.

When a man wants to propose to his lady, he doesn’t send her a text message. He gets down on a knee!

Whether you are selling a product or an idea, the experience in the delivery can often make or break the sale.

Drama Helps Your Audience “Find the Feeling”

In their book Switch, authors Dan and Chip Heath relay a story about an intern who thought his manufacturing employer could save $1 billion in over several years simply by controlling purchasing costs. Of course, he knew management would never embrace his ideas unless they believed them for themselves. So he decided to dramatize his ideas using one single item: work gloves. He collected a pair of every individual work gloves from every factory throughout the company and tagged it with the amount the company was paying for it. By the time he was finished, he had 424 different pairs of gloves from many different suppliers and at different negotiated costs. The intern piled all the gloves onto a conference room table and one by one invited all the division presidents to take a look.

When the presidents saw for themselves that some divisions were purchasing the same gloves at three times the price as other divisions, the intern’s point was made. We’ve got a real problem, the presidents thought and determined right away to address it.

Drama doesn’t change the facts. It personalizes them. Lack of drama can undermine your message, the way my boring presentation slides used to undermine my solutions.

So when you find yourself with a point you really need to make, think how you can infuse a little drama!

Nathan Magnuson is a leadership consultant, coach, trainer and thought leader.  Receive his new ebook Trusted Leadership Advisor by subscribing to his website  or follow him on Twitter.