The Smart Thinking Podcast

It is critical to create conditions so that the people you serve can be vulnerable. It is a leaders responsibility to employ stratagies for success and this episode explores how to use tools to avoid embarrassing moments for everyone.   Describe how you could increase vulnerability amongst those you serve. List tools you could use to support risk taking and engagement. Analyze what makes you embarrassed and reflect upon what you do to avoid those situations.  

This episode is an interview with Mike, the older brother of Amy. Amy is special because she is fun, funny and loving and also has Down syndrome. This interview is an inspirational story of how three siblings love and care for their 49-year-old sister Amy. Listen as you hear how they work with, care for, and live with all the gifts that Amy brings to them.   Friend: https://www.facebook.com/PORT-YAMAHA-162375717686/

  This episode is a great activity that will support both your own reflection and those that you serve. Be prepared for a wonderful and emotional opportunity to think about who made you - you! Describe how you can support the leadership of others through reflective practices? Who are your four people? What are your four values? If the people on your list were always watching you – would you be modeling those values in your life, action, and decisions?

    This episode is dedicated to a process that will allow you and those you serve to be in a position to reevaluate how you lead, when you address change, and how you maintain your capacity for leading by developing a map to support your system. One change by leadership means ten for those they serve – how’s that resonating with you? Will you develop a process to see the work? When you institute new projects or expectations - -what is your process to ensure those you serve have capacity?

The leadership profile in this episode is going to take a little bit of a different angle. I want to reflect with you upon the people --- behind great leaders and review the idea that leadership is everywhere. Too often we believe that great leaders are born, that there is truly a thing called an overnight sensation. In reality, no one gets where they are without great mentoring, role models, or unique life experiences. List ways that you can send people in a new direction this week. Who in your life needs a little guidance and mentoring? What potential do you see in others when you first meet them? Do you focus on the success of others?  

How you start out the relationship of a team is critical. This episode will provide you the strategies you need in order to more quickly build connections that lead to greater collaboration. Describe how you could start out your next gathering in order to support greater connections. List ways that you can engage people in new ways. Do you have the courage to create connections in the face of the naysayers? Can you create a culture of collaboration in a new way?

This episode focuses on a strategy that can be employed to help you maintain a positive mindset throughout the entire year. Will you take 15 minutes today to ensure you’ll calendar reflection questions for yourself throughout the year? How will you support others if you don’t remind yourself to reflect about your current leadership mindset? How can you better serve others through processes like these? Are you leading today with the same energy you were the first day?”

Leadership is everywhere and anyone who has influence over another person is a leader. Human beings learn best from the example of others and when you have an influential platform you have an opportunity to impact others. This episode profiles a princess who changed the world with a simple gesture.  How aware are you of your words and actions when you are around others? Describe how you use your leadership to support the humility of others so they recognize they’re being studied. Would you have had the courage to take the hand of the man in London? What will you do different today as a leader in order to change the world?

This episode is a discussion about having a “you first” attitude for those you serve. When you have a “you first” mindset -- you are looking for ways to improve others, you are looking for doors to open in other peoples leadership, and you are looking for strategies to support them so that they realize their potential. When was the last time you opened a door for someone? How can you literally and figurative open doors for those you serve? Finally, What can you do to create a culture of “you first?”  

This episode focuses on a process that will allow leaders to support the learning of those they serve. The process allows the audience to think, talk, and work with the new information in a simple way that will encourage collaboration as well as the retention of knowledge. Describe how you currently support those you lead in their ability to reflect upon new knowledge. What process do you have in place to support the retention of knowledge. Do you have time to go onto the CESA 6 webpage and print off the Knowledge of Illusion Brief? https://www.cesa6.org/cms_files/resources/The%20Knowledge%20Illusion-published.pdf Finally, when you are with others how do you support their ability to learn from your shared experience if you are not employing a process?

Did you ever notice that just about halfway through any journey, project, or task – you loose a little motivation? This episode we are going to look at a quick strategy to help leaders reflect upon how far they’ve come and provide some fuel for you or those you serve to get to the finish line.   What journey are you and those you serve on right now? When was the last time you stopped and looked around with your team and discussed the work and efforts? What are your processes for celebration? Do you have money in the budget for colorful post-it pads?

Leaders need to have an understanding of history, understand the immediate situation, and have a strong vision for the future. Too often leaders are good at one of the three critical components needed to make good decisions and in this episode we will explore how one man understood the past, lived in the present, and envisioned the future in an eerily accurate fashion. How often do you allow the cynics to manipulate your mindset? Are you good at acknowledging the past, recognizing the situation and visioning for the future? Are you strong enough to ignore the cynics and do what you believe is the best to meet your informed vision? Do you recognize the benefits of failing and then daring to fail greatly?

What do you do when you have a sense of optimism and you find yourself being actively anchored by pessimists? This episode will explore the mindset of improvement and how important it is to maintain an optimistic train of thought. Are you reflecting in order to grow or are you believing you’re buffalo and accidently admiring the cows? What behaviors do you model around improvement?  Do admire solutions or admire the problem?  Do you fix problems or do you fix blame?  Do you seek strategies or do you seek excuses

This week’s episode is entitled: Graduate and Grow. I explore how we should use every experience each day to review our learning and reflect to be better tomorrow.   How can you increase your own awareness of the contribution of others to your success? Where are you going to get your ticket punched today, tomorrow, and everyday? What risks are you willing to take to grow? List the ways you will live your life so that each day you graduate from one to the other!

As we approach the summer, I want to give you a few texts that I would recommend you read in order to grow your leadership. Each book I have read and I am recommending for a different reason – but each is interesting and will allow you to grow as a leader.  Books: The Power of Moments – Heath Bros. www.heathbrothers.com The Happiness Advantage – Shawn Achor @shawnachor The Captain Class- Sam Walker @SamWalkers Forged in Crisis – Nancy Koehn @nancykoehn When- Daniel Pink @DanielPink