Michelle Ray

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Transformational Leadership: Intellectual Stimulation

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“I don’t have all the answers.” “Maybe there’s a better way.” “How can we improve?” Ideally, leaders who have these thoughts are truly open to seeking the opinions of their teams, advancing intellectual stimulation in order to find solutions. As a leader, can you identify with this style? Are you able to let go and encourage your team to think independently? Such leaders exemplify transformational leadership in action. More specifically, these leaders place high value on arousing their team’s creativity and imagination to solve organizational problems. [Read more…] about Transformational Leadership: Intellectual Stimulation

Transformational Leadership: Idealized Influence

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What does “idealized influence” mean? And why is this important for leaders? Leaders play a significant role in the lives of their workforce. Transformational leaders can affect the trajectory of an individual’s professional and personal life. There are many people who have profoundly influenced my thinking and decision-making throughout my career and personal history. The majority occupied a leadership position with a past employer or a client that I have been fortunate to get to know well. Others have been role models, or individuals that I greatly admired outside of work.  They all had one trait in common: The capacity to inspire me to take a positive step to improve myself or take a particular course of action. The degree to which a leader is able to affect people and create a desire in others to willingly change is directly related to their character.

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How to Enhance the Perception of Your Organization’s Reputation

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Reputation management has become increasingly important in the social media age. This pertains to the reputation of individual leaders as well as corporations. What does your workforce say about your brand and your business? Are you able to effectively leverage goodwill that you have worked to establish with customers and staff? These are key questions for all employers because of this simple truth: Perception is reality. [Read more…] about How to Enhance the Perception of Your Organization’s Reputation

Get to Know Your People, Set a Standard and Follow Through

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If you have had experience working with a leader who genuinely gets to know his or her people, sets the standard and follows through in his or her communication, you have indeed been fortunate. Empirical research in many sectors of industry confirms that consistent actions and behaviours on the part of leaders earn the respect and trust of individuals and teams alike. Consider the proverb: “A chain is as strong as its weakest link.” When a leader’s attitudes and follow though are inconsistent, he or she may become the weakest link…i.e. the bigger problem. Unfortunately, many leaders fail to understand the impact of this paradox. [Read more…] about Get to Know Your People, Set a Standard and Follow Through

Is Change Management Really That Hard?

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Why is it that so many change management initiatives fail?  In order to achieve buy-in, the first step involves understanding the impact of change.  Individual perceptions regarding change are based on experiences; both personal and professional. As Newton’s law states: A body at rest stays at rest. A body in motion keeps moving. Change is a choice. The adage: Nothing changes if nothing changes is highly relevant for today’s leaders. When a person discovers his or her “pain point”  then he or she is ready to move forward. The same principles apply for organizations. Change is a visceral, emotional experience. [Read more…] about Is Change Management Really That Hard?

An example of Transformational Leadership: Uber

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An example of Transformational Leadership that continues to make headlines is known to millions of travelers. Travis Kalanick and Garrett Camp are renowned as the founders of Uber. Their respective journeys as technology mavericks have been both lauded and criticized, depending on one’s vantage point. Uber has revolutionized the manner in which we “tap the app” in order to get from Point A to Point B. According to “folklore”, both were attending a technology conference in Paris in 2008 and on a particular snowy night, conceptualized Uber when they couldn’t catch a taxi. The company’s primary competitors in the taxi and chauffeured transportation sectors have been in “reactive” mode ever since Uber burst on the scene a decade ago.

What makes Uber’s founders such a fascinating study? Kalanick and Camp not only identified a consumer need…They successfully anticipated the future by responding to this need in an unprecedented manner. In a nutshell: Uber has transformed an entire market segment: Ground transportation. Kalanick and Camp are transformational leaders who predicted the future by parlaying their vision into a global phenomenon.

Today’s consumers are attracted to companies that offer immediacy, ease of use and tangible cost benefits when it comes to solving their problems. Transformational leaders are always ahead of the curve. They possess a unique understanding of real-world challenges and an extraordinary capacity to create new realities. Travis Kalanick and Garrett Camp exemplify transformational leadership. They’ve changed the way that we go about getting transportation all over the world by making it easier and instantly accessible. What did we do in a world without Uber?

Anticipating the future as a transformational leader is not only about seeing the future and not only responding to change. Leaders who are transformational also possess the ability to predict the future before it even happens. It requires a relentless focus on creating and managing outstanding customer experiences. Uber has successfully gone above and beyond traditional marketing avenues to have brand ambassadors sharing these experiences in their communities, both on and off-line, locally and globally.

If you wish to see yourself as an example of transformational leadership, hone your ability to anticipate, act and trust in your vision. These are some of the most important characteristics of leaders who are cognizant of the need to think forward in times of constant change.

This article is a partial transcript of a video on YouTube.

Michelle Ray (Twitter) is one of the best international leadership keynote speakers in Vancouver. She helps you discover your potential through presentations, coaching and consulting. With over 20 years of experience Michelle has worked with hundreds of companies around the world. She is taking bookings for speaking engagements and can be contacted at MichelleRay.com

What is Transformational Leadership?

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Imagine the possibilities for yourself and your business if every leader within your organization embodied the characteristics of a transformational leader. In order to achieve, or get close to realizing his or her leadership potential, it is important to understand the meaning of transformational leadership, why it matters and where the gaps exist.

[Read more…] about What is Transformational Leadership?

Why is transformational leadership so important today?

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The pace of technological change necessitates a fluid, flexible approach, a shift in thinking and a willingness on the part of leaders to be ready for on-going transformation of their organizations. In order to meet the challenge, leaders need to be prepared to undertake an honest appraisal of their individual style by asking themselves whether they are effectively setting the vision for future success. The expectations of your workforce, as well as your customers continue to evolve. Therefore, it is a leader’s responsibility to challenge the status quo, take the lead and inspire their employees to transcend self-imposed boundaries, both personal and organizational, in order to adapt and embrace new realities. The transformational leader is able to raise the bar for  all by employing a charismatic, daring an open style.

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This article is a partial transcript of a video on YouTube.

Michelle Ray (Twitter) is one of the best international leadership keynote speakers in Vancouver. She helps you discover your potential through presentations, coaching and consulting. With over 20 years of experience Michelle has worked with hundreds of companies around the world. She is taking bookings for speaking engagements and can be contacted at MichelleRay.com

Biggest challenges in Non-Profits

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Not-for-profit organizations are facing similar challenges to many for-profits. There are parallels in terms of failing to attracting new members and resisting new imperatives such as letting go of the old to embrace the new. Many not-for-profits are steadfastly adhering to practices that have been in place for decades. Some are adopting a defeatist mentality by accepting membership attrition as a natural consequence of changing times. However, nothing can be gained by “shooting oneself in the foot.” By allowing negative mindsets to prevail, some not-for-profits (as well as corporations) will continue setting themselves up for failure. The good news is that examples abound of successful not-for-profit groups that are engaging their communities in new ways. One of my clients recently adopted podcasts as one of their content-sharing tools. The results have been extraordinary, evidenced by the highest levels of membership engagement when podcast downloads were tracked and analyzed. In addition, committees that produce the podcasts have a renewed sense of enthusiasm. The content creators are eagerly seeking out guests and are committed to growing their followings as well as expanding their programming.

Organizations that choose to embrace change, use new technologies, and incorporate social media in their marketing strategies are experiencing heightened interest in their member offerings and benefits. By emulating the success of innovative organizations as well as looking in your own backyard for examples of chapters and community groups that are thriving, it IS possible for your not-for-profit association to grow…and indeed, to flourish in the future.

This article is a partial transcript of a video on YouTube.

Michelle Ray (Twitter) is one of the best international leadership keynote speakers in Vancouver. She helps you discover your potential through presentations, coaching and consulting. With over 20 years of experience Michelle has worked with hundreds of companies around the world. She is taking bookings for speaking engagements and can be contacted at MichelleRay.com

Can you teach an old dog new tricks?

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We’re all familiar with the adage: “Can’t teach an old job new tricks?” Well, I beg to differ for this reason:  If we don’t teach those old dogs new tricks, they simply won’t survive. And if you’re one of those “old dogs”, maybe that’s you as a leader…struggling with the idea of embracing new realities; evidenced by the way that you have been leading your organization.

Like dogs, many humans find it difficult to learn something new when the context changes. In our current business landscape where disruption has become the norm, it is easy to understand why leaders struggle in a “change in context” environment. Humans are also creatures of habit. We become uncomfortable with the unfamiliar and find it difficult when the context in which we are doing business changes. The adage “repeated discomfort generates comfort” is one solution that can be applied in the face of change and uncertainty. However, if we are to accept new realities, we first need to address our mindset.

Thoughts are driven by our deeply held beliefs, which manifest as attitudes that dictate outcomes. The manner in which we interpret situations and events and subsequently make decisions is evidence of mindset in action. It takes years to form habits and may take even longer to break them. For this reason, the idea of altering perspectives may seem overwhelming. Unlike dogs, humans possess a higher level of consciousness and larger cerebral cortex with space for complex abstract reasoning. We have the capacity to shift our thinking in order to embrace and adapt to a new order of things. The difficulty lies in overcoming internal pre-programmed messaging regarding our fears and consequently, our mental roadblocks when faced with the need to do things differently.

Remember that you have invested a certain amount of time choosing to view your enterprise in a particular light. If you suspect that you are resisting the need to move forward and “learn new tricks”, it may be helpful to ask yourself: “How accurate is my perspective? “ Or “Is my fear real or imagined?” You may discover that your frame of reference regarding how you view the business landscape is no longer serving you, and it’s time to muster the courage to take the lead and welcome new possibilities.

Can your organization afford to get stuck in the old ways of doing things? It isn’t unusual for leaders and teams to buy into the chorus of voices that say: “Why do we need to change if everything’s working? We’ve always done it that way so why should we change now? “ There is a new imperative requiring you to be that “new dog” who is willing to practice new tricks.  Are you holding back your organization by accepting the default “we’ve always done it that way.” position?

Change is possible when you decide to let go and to be willing to constantly improve and to try new methods and new ways of doing things. The most successful organizations are embracing innovation and new thinking as part of the normal way of going about their business.

Now, and in the future, learning “new tricks” is essential to not only survive, but thrive. By letting go and changing your habits and the habits of your business,  you will see what is possible… and amaze yourself in the process.

 

This article is a partial transcript of https://youtu.be/nZrtPgctx5k on YouTube.

Michelle Ray (Twitter) is one of the best international leadership keynote speakers in Vancouver. She helps you discover your potential through presentations, coaching and consulting. With over 20 years of experience Michelle has worked with hundreds of companies around the world. She is taking bookings for speaking engagements and can be contacted at MichelleRay.com