Introverts are people who are more inwardly focused – it has been said that introverts find that other people take away their energy, while extroverts, who are more outwardly focused tend to get their energy from other people.

Introverts will find that they need to spend time alone after being with people so that they can recharge their batteries. Extroverts become restless when they spend too much time in isolation.

Sometimes introverts are perceived to be aloof or arrogant because they are less approachable and outwardly warm. The truth is that more introverts are meek and mild and don’t intend to offend anyone. Extroverts are sometimes seen to be obnoxious and yet they are just trying to be friendly and funny.

Q: What impact does this have on the workplace?

Ideally, you want to match an individual’s personality to what the job requires. It makes sense that an extrovert is going to thrive in situations where they can chat with other team members, collaborate on projects, work with customers and have more fun. Introverts are going to have greater satisfaction working on planning activites, problem solving, analysis and individual work.

Q: Is it possible to change?

Yes, introverts can learn to come out of their shell a bit and extroverts can learn to focus a bit more. Introverts can take join organizations like Toastmasters or take the Dale Carnegie program.

We offer a job assessment tool that can help managers put the right people into the right jobs. Visit www.LeadershipWizard.com for all the information.

Just got back from Halifax, Nova Scotia. It was the Canadian Association of Family Enterprise, bi-annual symposium. I spoke at the conference on the topic of “How I Nearly Ruined My Family Business and Lived to Tell About It”.

Q: What is it that makes family business so unique?

A: It’s the fact that we are combining two challenging areas – family, with all of its interesting dynamics, and business with all the competitive pressures of making money and keeping customers happy.

Q: Being part of a family in business must bring some strengths as well…

A: The survival rates of family business and their longevity is because the same bonds that keep a family together, help keep the business together. The family’s values are usually geared to long term success. And family business often contributes alot to the communities they are located in.

Q: So what tips do you have for families in business?

A: Here are a few ideas for greater success…

1. Keep your business from destroying your family and your family from destroying your business. I remember my younger brother, who wasn’t in the family business saying that it was no fun to get together because all my dad and I did was talk about business. We learned to keep the business talk to a minimum and focus on what was happening on a personal level outside the business. Some business families even have special family meetings just so that everyone stays informed. On the other hand, try to keep family issues from impacting the business – I’ve seen family conflicts and sibling rivalries keep a business from growing – or I’ve seen family members become demotivated because Mom and Dad pay everyone the same no matter what their job responsibilities are in the business.

2. Before you ask family members to work in the business, insist that they work outside the business – for as much as 5 years. That experience – working for someone else will teach them alot about job responsibilities and allow them to prove themselves – then they can bring those talents into the family business.

3. Join an organization that understands family business issues. I joined the Canadian Association of Family Enterprise back in 1992 when I bought my business from my dad. I now have a built in support network to deal with both family issues and business issues. To get more information, just visit my website www.LeadershipWizard.com

Topic is celebrating success – since we are celebrating Victoria Day in Canada and our American friends will have Memorial Day next weekend.

Organizations do not take enough time to celebrate their successes.

Build a Base Camp – When you are climbing Mount Everest, you don’t go straight to the top – you take an opportunity to rest, get used to the altitude, get nourished and ready for the next leg of your climb.

Businesses want to reach ever higher heights of performance – as they should – and to avoid slipping down the mountain they need to celebrate success.

Reinforce what you want – A leadership lesson I keep emphasizing is the need for managers, supervisors and work leaders to reinforce the positive things they see in their people. When you focus on positives, people realize that you are noticing them for the good things, and not focusing on the bad things. Remember that people would rather be abused than ignored – and so you might accidentally motivate staff to cause more problems instead of doing more of the good things.

Suggestions for Managers:

1. Build in some time at the beginning of your staff meetings to talk about what is going right – either for the organization or for the individuals. This may take some coaxing at first because people will be used to talking about problems and job tasks. Stick with it and staff will get used to it.

2. Make that any good deed gets noticed – once words gets around that you are focusing on recognizing positives – you will see a boost to morale and attitude.

For a bigger dose of this practical leadership approach, consider attending The Leadership Bootcamp June 3rd and 4th at the Windsor Club. The group size is going to be small and there are still seats available. Go to www.LeadershipWizard.com or give me a call at 1-866-700-9043.

A common complaint I hear from people is that they feel that management doesn’t listen to them, tends to impose decisions and doesn’t let them know what’s going on. Management on the other hand thinks that employees are overreacting, should adapt more quickly to change and thinks that they do give employees an opportunity to provide input.

So why the disconnect?

First, managers need to understand that a majority of employees are uncomfortable making decisions quickly, preferring to be more cautious and thorough. Managers on the other hand often earn their promotions by being decisive and taking calculated risks. Employees are often more sensitive to making sure that everyone is happy, whereas managers know that in most situations it is impossible to keep everyone happy.

So what can managers do?

First of all, managers do have to dedicate a lot of their time to communications. And realize that telling people once is not enough. The manager should always be linking their communication back to their vision. Next managers should take extra time to ask for employee input on decisions. There are two reasons – one is to help employees feel that they have input and ultimately buy in to the solution, and the second reason is that by involving more people, usually a better solution can be created.

If you consult with employees, don’t you create a false expectation that their ideas will be part of the solution?

Yes, there is some expectation that some ideas will get included. It is reasonable to also say that some ideas ultimately did not make it into the plan for a variety of reasons – too expensive, too difficult or not enough payback.

People should consider attending my Leadership Boot Camp – June 3rd and 4th at the Windsor Club. We will be covering all of the essential leadership skills – Dealing with Difficult People, Managing Conflict, Motivating Employees and Communication Skills. It is great for managers, supervisors and even team leaders or lead hands. Only 25 people will be able to join me – check it out at www.LeadershipWizard.com

As part of our leadership training, we use a coaching simulation to teach managers how to be coaches. Here are some of the insights from that simulation:

1. Good coaches don’t have to be the best players – In most professional sports, the coaches are not former elite players. Sometimes a great athlete or a great employee can’t teach others how to get better. Good coaches are good teachers.

2. Coaches don’t demand respect, they earn it – A good coach doesn’t have to threaten his team in order to show them who’s boss. The coach who shows respect to players ends up earning their respect. If a player, or employee gets out of line, the coach can still apply consequences without threatening.

3. Coaches know that players want to succeed – In sports and business, we know that it’s not enough to make sure that everyone is happy – people want to win and succeed. A good coach sets ambitious goals, encourages players and celebrates success.

Consider attending my Leadership Boot Camp, June 3rd and 4th at the Windsor Club in Windsor, Ontario.

Normally I do most of my training exclusively for one organization at a time. People have been asking me if I could offer a public leadership training program so organizations can send one, two or three people. On June 3rd and 4th, I am running my first two-day public Leadership Boot Camp at the exclusive Windsor Club (no roughing it at this camp).

I will be covering all of the skill sets that managers, supervisors and team leaders need to be more effective and achieve better performance.

In order to make sure that each person gets my maximum attention, I am only accepting 25 participants. So if you are interested in joining me for this exclusive opportunity, please visit www.LeadershipWizard.com or call me at 1-866-700-9043.