Mentors, Emperors and Money

September At C-Level

Chicken Little said, "The sky is falling, Henny Penny."

And with that statement, Chicken Little starts a series of over-reactions by some well-meaning, but short-sighted executives. Okay, not exactly executives, but this is my attempt to remind you: now's not a good time to over-react.

Yes, it's the end of September, and it's been a tough month. Harvey brought destruction to the Texas and Louisiana coastlines early in the month, and we missed Labor Day in the process. Then, Irma wreaked havoc in the Caribbean and across Florida, Georgia and South Carolina, and many of those impacted didn't realize that Monday was the 16th anniversary of 9-11. On the other side of the country, wildfires continue raging across the Northwest, and the responders don't even know what day it is.

We didn't feel like having a little fun celebrating National Grandparent's Day, National Peanut Day, National Cream Filled Donut Day or National Cheeseburger Day, much less another somber remembrance for National POW/MIA Recognition Day.

This month has been another reminder of the influences outside our organizations that we don't control and can't influence. The destructive events are certainly having a negative impact on our productivity at the office. Be cognizant of that -- your staff is watching.

We've left the page up where you can help those impacted by Hurricane Harvey (here) and added links to sites where you can help those impacted by Hurricane Irma (click here) as well. Thank you so much for your generosity in response to last month's At C-Level.

Your folks look to you for calm, direction, and demonstrated leadership. They can panic and worry without your help (some are downright good at it) ... they need you to be the positive example of leadership, setting the stage and direction for their efforts. Regardless of environmental challenges.

These times require a special kind of leadership. One that commands attention, respect, and followership. Finding ways to overcome adversity and deliver success is what leaders do.

Be that kind of leader. And make sure those other leaders in the organization are equipped to do the same.

The sky's not falling, but Q-3 is just about over; have you started thinking about 2017 yet? Are you dreading the upcoming strategic planning offsite? Is your plan just a forecast based on past and current trends or does it actually create actions to reach the future you envision for your company? Before you embark on your next strategic planning journey, check out Applied Strategic Planning: The Corporate Reality Show from our article archives for some ideas on making it really strategic.

Dude, Take the Survey...

Triangle Performance LLC's 2017 Survey of Senior Leadership began last month! This will be our tenth year for the annual survey; the participant rate continues to grow, as does the validity and direct applicability of the data presented. We sent out the notification earlier this month (you should have received), and we've received good responses, but there's still time. We'll close it in October. You can click here to take the survey now.

He Speaks!

Be a Brazen Leader! Let Kevin Berchelmann showcase your next keynote, workshop or session.

"Bold and without shame." I cannot think of a better way to describe successful leadership today.

Let Kevin Berchelmann show your audience just that: how to Be Brazen, and be successful in the ever-changing world of people and organization leadership. More than just business entertainment, Kevin gives actionable advice that people will use immediately.

Favorite topics include brazen leadership (duh!), organizational change, leadership presence, making things happen.

Kevin is an award-winning consultant, entrepreneur, executive coach and in-demand speaker.

The Brazen Leader - it's not just his blog title, it's a way of being.

Featured Articles

Pay Raise: I'm Thinking of a Number between 1 and 10

- Yours may be "0"

by D. Kevin Berchelmann

Picture the Amazing Kreskin with an envelope pressed against his forehead (if you're wondering "who the hell..." ask someone old).

We've all seen the surveys. "3.0% pay increases again this year." Even we at Triangle Performance used to do one annually; we quit out of sheer boredom. An exciting year was when the data moved .1% in any direction. Like watching paint dry. Slow-drying paint.

I've been asked by several leaders and managers, "How in the heck do I reward today's performance, motivate future performance and retain those same performers with a meager 3.0%??

My answer...? "You don't."

Five Thing My Mentors Modeled For Me

by Kevin Ross

A long time ago, in a land far, far away...

Does anyone else remember when being called a mentor was something special? Back before we started using it in performance evaluations? Before we had to ask, and maybe pay someone to mentor us? Before it was a buzzword?

I certainly do, and I'm thankful for the group of professionals who served as mentors to me during my occasionally tumultuous military career. They were leaders all, and as I've mentioned before, leaders develop leaders... that's their job.

Leaders & Laggards

In this section, we take a look at recent news and events, and make a gut-reaction determination for three categories:

Leadership
Leader

Demonstrating Clear,
Personal Leadership

Leadership
Milquetoast

Mediocrity in Leadership

Usually an Opportunity Not Taken, or Similar

Leadership
Laggard

Leadership Has Its Idiots, We Show You Who They Are

Sometimes, we go way back. Waaay back. This month, we went all the way back a couple thousand years so we could discuss a kick-ass leader: Marcus Aurelius.

Marcus was the real deal. An amalgam of unlimited power combined with a knowledge and insight to human behavior. Damn sure don't see much of that combo these days, do we? He actually left us some pearls of wisdom, just as applicable today as they were in 160 A.D.

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