Book Preview: Take the Bull by the Horns
10 smart leadership questions for 2010
by Gayle Lantz
2009 was rough for most business leaders -- an inescapable result of the worst recession since the 1930s. Now, 2010 is here, and in these early days of the economic recovery, it's time to take the bull by the horns. Smart leaders will bypass the predictable New Year's resolutions and, instead, start '010 with 10 essential questions.
"New year, new thinking," says Lantz. An adviser to CEOs, executive teams, and business owners, she offers leaders 10 smart, straight-ahead questions for 2010:
1. What matters most?
Lantz's advice: What was most important a year or two ago may not be the driving force in the business today. Press the reset button.
2. What is one "problem" I can turn into an opportunity?
Lantz's advice: No need for rose-colored glasses -- just view a current challenge through a lens of opportunity.
3. What do employees need to hear from me?
Lantz's advice: Think from your people's point of view. If they don't feel understood, they won't listen to you anyway.
4. What is our customer's greatest pain?
Lantz's advice: Skip the complicated surveys. Pick up the phone and ask.
5. What new business relationships will I pursue?
Lantz's advice: New opportunities come from new relationships. Start with real dialogue -- not a Tweet.
6. How will I be more strategic?
Lantz's advice: Skip the SWOT exercise. Strategic planning isn't an event -- it's a discipline.
7. How can I make swift yet smart decisions?
Lantz's advice: Clear the clutter -- the "mind clutter" that plagues even the best leaders.
8. What leadership skill can -- and should -- I get better at?
Lantz's advice: Your personal effectiveness affects the business. Pick the skill that most needs your attention -- listening or coaching, perhaps -- and commit to improvement.
9. How will I recognize success?
Lantz's advice: Not all measures of success are quantitative, so consider how you'll know when a result "feels right."
10. What is my biggest fear, and how will I face it?
Lantz's advice: Name it -- and claim it. If you don't, it can be damaging, even deadly, to you and the business.
Bottom line: Good years require good questions. Lantz provides leaders a smart start for 2010.
Gayle Lantz is a leadership expert and president of WorkMatters, Inc., a national consulting firm with clients such as Microsoft, NASA, and MassMutual. She is author of the award-winning book "Take the Bull by the Horns" and host of "Lantz on Leadership" on the WebTalk Radio Network
