The Thoughtful Leaders™ Blog
Posted by Robyn McLeod on December 6, 2012
 “How do I motivate people to want to do a great job and perform at a high level?” It is a question that I am often asked from managers and leaders. It seems that figuring out what is needed to get people fully engaged and highly productive is elusive for many.
My answer generally is, “Find out what motivates your team member, and do that.” For some it may be public recognition; for another it may be a challenging special project; for someone else, an afternoon off to go to their child’s track meet. Motivation is a personal thing, and when leaders take a cookie-cutter approach to dealing with individuals on their team, or worst yet, assume that everyone is motivated by the same things he or she is, they miss opportunities to truly connect with their employees and help them to feel fully valued and engaged at work.
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Posted by Robyn McLeod on November 22, 2012
 My daughter and I watched an episode of The Dog Whisperer with Cesar Millan recently. For those of you unfamiliar, Cesar Millan is an expert in the psychology and behavior of dogs. He helps people work with and solve their dogs’ behavioral issues. On this particular show, Millan was visiting a ranch and teamed up with the Horse Whisperer, Pat Parelli, to help deal with a difficult horse and two troublesome dogs.
As I watched the “whisperers” in action I realized that the approach they took in working with the animals were very similar to the kinds of actions that great leaders employ. Is effective leadership really about being a People Whisperer? Here are a few lessons I gleaned from the whisperers:
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Posted by Chatsworth Consulting Group on October 22, 2012
“The more seriously you take your growth, the more seriously your people will take you.” John Maxwell
I’ve shared a quote from one of my favorite clients – “You have to tell people what you want them to know about you.” Well, I think one of the things you have to tell them is how serious you are about your growth, and you can only do that if you truly are serious about your growth – in your actions not your words.
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Posted by Chatsworth Consulting Group on May 9, 2011
“It’s always too soon to quit!” Norman Vincent Peale
So often I’ve wanted to quit just before a breakthrough. I’ve been at the edge, ready to throw up my hands and give up in disgust, to walk away from what I wanted and what I wanted to accomplish, and for some strange reason, perhaps a bit more determination, a bit more hope, or a bit more prodding from someone else, I’ve held on and given it one more try…and I’ve broken through to my goal.
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Posted by Chatsworth Consulting Group on March 28, 2011
“Be like a duck. Calm on the surface, but paddling like the dickens underneath.” Michael Caine
When things get frantic, do you get frantic? Can those who work with you and live with you notice your frenetic energy? And do they then get frantic themselves? An essential leadership skill – whether you’re leading an organization, a team, a project, or a family – is to learn to flow with the chaos and show a calm demeanor to the people around you.
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Posted by Lisa Kohn on March 4, 2011
 I was really, really tired. It was mid-day and I could feel the pressure mounting of everything that had to get done and all there was to cross off my to-do list…but I was really, really tired. I swear it felt as if my head was pulsing and my eyes just wanted to drift close.
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Posted by Chatsworth Consulting Group on January 3, 2011
“There’s more than one way to look at a problem, and they may all be right.” Norman Schwarzkopf
Have you ever been totally certain you knew the right and best answer to a problem? You knew the best way to approach an issue, how to get the greatest outcome…only someone else was also completely certain that they knew the best answer, and it wasn’t close to the solution you came up with. And what if that someone was someone who really mattered to you, whose opinion mattered, who you needed agreement from, needed on your side? And they were steadfastly asserting that their “wrong” answer was the way to go.
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Posted by Lisa Kohn on December 10, 2010
 The other day I presented a few leadership tips to a group of small business owners and senior leaders of organizations. They all listened patiently, politely, and even with a great deal of engagement. A few even took copious notes – as if to remind themselves of the personal and professional changes they truly wanted to, and planned to, make. And then one extremely honest individual raised his hand.
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Posted by Ben Dattner on December 1, 2010
In many organizations I have encountered during my consulting career, people have complained about “Cobbler’s Children Syndrome”. Like the proverbial children of the shoemaker who go without shoes, I have consulted to technology companies that have outdated computer systems, marketing firms that don’t market themselves in any way, and consulting firms that fail to put into practice for themselves a single theory or model upon which they have built their businesses.
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Posted by Robyn McLeod on October 21, 2010
 I attended the TEDxGotham conference last week at Cooper Union and left inspired and motivated by the wonderful speakers and wave of ideas and new ways of looking at how we work and live. For those of you unfamiliar with TED, it is a nonprofit founded in 1984 devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It began with sharing knowledge and ideas from thinkers in the areas of Technology, Entertainment and Design – and has broadened to a range of topic areas.
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Touché love your candor. We should all get back to simple straightforward leadership.
Yes, as one of my clients used to say: “It’s simple, not easy.”