Category Archives: Personal Development

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Sleep that Sabotages Leadership

Today’s HBR recommendation, “Your Abusive Boss Is Probably an Insomniac,” is a summary of findings from a study published in the Academy of Management Journal. The researchers studied 88 leaders and their teams to find out if the leaders’ sleep habits affected performance at work. The result?…you guessed it, but there’s a twist:

We found that daily leader sleep quality, but not quantity, influenced the leader’s self-control and abusive supervision behavior, and ultimately the degree to which his or her subordinates were engaged in their work that day. It is not clear why sleep quantity did not have the effect we predicted, but the effect for sleep quality was very clear; a given leader engaged in more jerky boss behavior after a poor night of sleep than a good night of sleep, and this influenced his or her subordinates to disengage from work.

sleep

Photo by Odi Mitch. Link to photo.
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A Powerful Way to Discover Your Bias

“Whoa, whoa!…What bias?!?! I don’t have any biases!” Was that your response to the title of this post? Well, I had the same thought before I took this test and now I think differently.

Here is a fascinating resource that will help you discover what you think about the world on levels beneath conscious thought. It reveals how your past experiences, upbringing, or even your morning scan of the news can skew your beliefs about race, gender, ethnicity, disability, age, sexuality, and weight.

Why wouldn’t you want to know, especially as a leader, if an unhealthy bias is getting in the way of your leadership?

Bias

Soldiers from Honor Guard Company, 3d U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard) and the U.S. Army Special Forces Command stand in formation prior to the start of a wreath laying ceremony, Oct. 18, at the John F. Kennedy gravesite in Arlington National Cemetery, Va.
(U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Luisito Brooks)
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How to Build a Team of “Yes Men”

Listening to Michael Hyatt’s superb podcast on creating team unity, my first reaction was, “We’re good! The military has got this team alignment thing figured out. We’re focused on the mission, we have a clear command structure, and we follow orders.” But as Michael explained the steps to creating team alignment, he said that to get the most powerful results, leaders must:

Create an environment that is safe for dissent.

Ouch! Ok, that’s not the first phrase most military members would use to describe their work environment. In fact, I think it’s rare that I’ve seen a military leader who embraces dissent in the name of creating unity. I know I’ve never prioritized it.

The result?…we get a team full of Yes Men who not only fail to speak up when they disagree with mundane issues, but are also trained to remain quiet in the face of critical decisions. If you want a team of folks like that, then make sure you do these things.

U.S. Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Caroline Chavez, a senior drill instructor assigned to Platoon 4023, November Company, 4th Recruit Training Battalion, commands her platoon during their final drill evaluation, June 25, 2014, at Parris Island, S.C.
(DoD photo by Cpl. Octavia Davis, U.S. Marine Corps/Released)
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The Post-Active Duty Leadership Environment – Part 2 (Leadership)

This is the second of three posts by an Air Force Major discussing the organizational changes he experienced after leaving active-duty to fly for the Air National Guard and a civilian airline. Read the first post here.

In part one of this series, I described my transition from active duty flying in the US Air Force to my current job as a civilian airline and Air National Guard pilot. I addressed how I found my concepts of service and excellence to be more aligned with my post-separation life than my active duty experience.

I also asserted that many leaders I encountered focused more on serving their careers than serving their subordinates and that this mentality has become a cultural issue within the Air Force’s Air Mobility and Training Commands, if not the Air Force itself.

Today’s post compares the active duty and civilian/National Guard leadership environments that I experienced.

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12 Things Good Bosses Believe (#12)

 Because I wield power over others,
I am at great risk of acting like an insensitive jerk — and not realizing it.

Robert Sutton closes out “12 Things Good Bosses Believe” by citing what I think is the most often overlooked (and potentially the most destructive) aspect of leadership on this list. It is the idea that the very position of influence blinds the leader from truly realizing how his actions impact subordinates.

When you think about it, there is nothing more elemental in human interaction – to understand how we affect other people – but this awareness is often hidden even from those who base their professions on influencing others.

bosses

Army Reserve Soldiers and competitors listen to a class on rifle marksmanship before the inaugural Army Reserve Small Arms Championship hosted at Camp Robinson, Arkansas, Sept. 22. Approximately 70 Soldiers, making up 14 teams, came from all over the country to compete. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class Michel Sauret)
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Join the Women’s Mentorship Network

Mentorship is at the core of military professional development and is a crucial aspect in making the military an elite developer of leaders. Often what makes mentorship successful is a personal and professional kinship shared among the individuals. I look around my work environment and can find no shortage of combat arms officers to engage and learn from.

For women in the military, a pool of available mentors is not so easy to find. Sure, male service members can mentor women service members…but a same-gender mentor provides unique perspective and understanding.

That’s why the Women’s Mentorship Network is such a valuable organization.

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The Principles of Military Leadership [Day 3]

Today, let’s consider some input from General Colin Powell, as well as the classic list of Armed Forces Leadership Principles that most of us grew up with. There are clear overlaps, like “Set an example” and “Know your people and look out for their welfare.” But, how can we update and refine those principles to give leaders a more accurate picture what is necessary in today’s military? I welcome your thoughts and suggestions!

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Why Curiosity Matters

I don’t know about you, but I have noticed that the best leaders are always moving forward. They don’t stagnate, are curious about themselves and their environment, and continually break new ground. They advance their talents intellectually, physically, emotionally, professionally, and so on.

When you think about it, curiosity is required before one can improve at all…it is a prerequisite for growth.

The Harvard Business Review article “Curiosity Is as Important as Intelligence” highlights the idea of a Curiosity Quotient, much like the commonly known psychological capabilities of Intellectual Quotient (IQ) and Emotional Quotient (EQ). The Curiosity Quotient (CQ) is one’s affinity to be “inquisitive and open to new experiences” and, similar to IQ and EQ, improves one’s ability to navigate complex environments.

curiosity

Soldiers at Camp Robinson, Arkansas, trying to get books from the Service Club Library. Miss Maurine Doores is the librarian.  January 22, 1942. Signal Corps Photo #162-42-79 by Weber, 162nd Signal Photographic Company.