What Makes An Exceptional Team Leader?

Lately, I've been assessing the usefulness of team captains. Logistically, it's nice to have them so that there's someone to lead off-season workouts and things like that...but I'm not sure if they need to have a "captain" title in order to rally the troops to go to the weight room.

What happens when the leadership is in the lower classes? What if we've got a sophomore who's an amazing leader...but she's on a team with four seniors? That could be a team dynamic nightmare.

I believe in leadership training and its benefits to our athletes while they're on the team and afterward...I just don't know if they need that title to receive those benefits. At the end, I'll ask for your help with a couple of questions, so be prepared!

3 qualities our captains should have in order to lead effectively

Clear strategic focus. I know that seems obvious, but I've coached teams where the captains didn't know what was important to them. If it's more important to the captains that the team jumps when they say to jump than it is for the team to accomplish its goals, then the focus is off.

Open to new ideas. By the time players get to the collegiate level, they've been on many teams, been coached by many coaches, and have been led by lots of captains. This means that, even though a player may not be a team leader, they may have great ideas about how captains should behave. Great captains will listen to their teammates and maybe even take them up on a suggestion they make.

Forge strong bonds. The best captains I've had mobilize the team and are laser focused on their goals. They squash petty issues and internal fighting before I even know it's happening. They create time for the team to bond and hang out outside of practice time so they really get to know one another. Great captains make the team into a family.

Questions for you, dear reader

Do you pick your captains or does the team pick? How much input to you have in the process? What about not having team captains at all? Have you done it and did it work? What do you look for in team leaders? Do you think the "captain" title is necessary? Hit me up on Twitter with your answers.

The thing is, great team captains are amazing...they can transform a team from okay and full of cliques, to united and focused. On the flip side of the coin, bad captains can wreck team chemistry and any chance your team has at success. Let me know what you think.

Dawn Redd is the Head Volleyball Coach at Beloit College. Come visit Coach Dawn's community of coaching nerds and team leaders over at her blog, http://www.coachdawnwrites.com/, where she teaches how to become an excellent coach, motivate individuals, and build successful teams.

Her book, Coach Dawn's Guide To Motivating Female Athletes, is available for purchase on her website.

Follow Coach Dawn on Twitter: @CoachDawnWrites

Original article

Action And Integrity, Not Rhetoric, Makes A Leader

After over three decades of working closely with well over a thousand individuals in leadership positions, in training, qualifying, identifying and consulting, as well as having been both a volunteer and a paid leader for both for- profit and non- profit organizations, I have grown weary of late at the ever- increasing usage of fancy rhetoric, techno- jargon, platitudes, generalities, etc., that seem to be appearing in ever- increasing abundance in far too many organizations and their leadership. True leadership has never been about great words or oratory, nor using impressive technical sounding language. As it has always been, it is what a leader does, what actions he takes, and his personal and professional integrity that makes someone a great leader. It has never been about the rhetoric! Rumi wrote, "It is the inner bond that draws one person to another, not words."

1. Although many wannabe leaders have always resorted to rhetoric, why is it that it seems even more widespread today than ever before? Part of this is that there appears, in most organizations, to be far less competition for leadership positions than in years past. This often creates lower quality leaders, as organizations and their members are thus forced to accept less quality to be their leaders. Because there is so much competition for individual's time, effort, and resources, and because we have observed a diminishing number of individuals who even belong to organizations, both membership rolls and thus the choices for potential leaders have suffered.

2. Far too many of the individuals thrust into leadership positions are either unwilling, unable, or insufficiently committed, to undergo effective training and learning. While in better times, many organizations did not envision the need to professionally train its leaders, in these leaner times, when in many cases there is an apparent dearth of leadership in many cases, this lack of leadership preparation has come back to haunt them. People are not born as leaders, but leadership is a combination of training, personal qualities, traits, and an attitude that makes someone a truly great leader. Many people, unfortunately, have only minimal training, and often only take away from the training some expressions or words that trainers often use. True professional training is multi-faceted, and involves continuous and ongoing work, and development of an understanding that true leaders take action in a timely basis rather than resort to mere rhetoric.

Far too often, this techno- jargon, or rhetoric replaces comprehension. Individuals unready to lead look to a guru and a quick fix, and thus rely on terminology. Some of these dangerous terms that are both overused and misused include: governance; metrics; teams; next level; etc. True leaders understand that they must develop a true caring bond with those they represent, adopting an attitude that a leader's primary responsibility is to provide value and to serve the needs of his constituents.

Richard Brody, with over 30 years consultative sales, marketing, training, managerial, and operations experience, has trained sales and marketing people in numerous industries, given hundreds of seminars, appeared as a company spokesperson on over 200 radio and television programs, and regularly blogs on real estate, politics, economics, management, leadership, negotiations, conferences and conventions, etc. He has negotiated, arranged and/ or organized hundreds of conferences and conventions. He's a Senior Consultant with RGB Consultation Services, an Ecobroker, a Licensed Buyers Agent (LBA) and Licensed Salesperson in NYS, in real estate.
Richard has owned businesses, been a Chief Operating Officer, a Chief Executive Officer, and a Director of Development, as well as a consultant. He has a Consulting Website ( http://tinyurl.com/rgbcons ), and his company PLAN2LEAD, LLC's site ( http://www.plan2lead.net/ ), and can be followed on Twitter

Original article

Leadership Coaching: Passion That Makes A Difference

"You Have To Wake Up If You Want To Dream" - Paulo Coelho

In this millennial generation, people have been proselytized to pursue their dreams. You have the heart of an artist? Then follow your passion, they say. Purse a course in liberal arts. Be a talented graphic designer or a great writer. Do what you love. And most people think that this will make them happy. But reality strikes, and sometimes it hits hard. In times of a recession when companies have to implement cost cutting measures and even do lay- offs, where does it leave the passionate worker? Following your dream and working for your passion is an all too common tagline, but contradicted by the workings of the practical world, it can leave a person suffering the anguish of an uncertain future.

The generation Y grew up with a jobless generation. Today is a different world. In an era ruled by technology, today's twentysomethings begin to realize the grand betrayal of the idols of passion. The philosophy of following and living your passion does not seem to apply to this generation, or otherwise it would feel incomplete. A different frame of reference is more apt, and it is no longer about passion, but focusing on finding bigger problems.

Fulfill Your Humanity

It is all about focusing on resolving a problem, which then becomes the basis of decision- making. It is no longer about the self anymore. The question is about what you can do. How can you contribute something of value? Working on resolutions to bigger problems compensates a person in bigger ways. Not necessarily in terms of fiscals, but in terms of the fulfillment of one's humanity. The focus shifts from the self to others and the wider world. Rendering your focus outwards makes you less self absorbed. You begin to worry less about what makes you happy, which ironically makes you happier.

Education, poverty, climate change, sustainability, healthcare, technology and urbanization, among others are some of the big problems that call for attention and facility. There may have been too much focus on knowing the self, and this has caused an imbalance. As we have gotten to know and reconnected with ourselves and fortified ourselves, we need to expand our awareness. It is then time to know the world. Be aware and be sensitive to situations around you- the problems of the poor and the marginalized, and so on. The call of the Earth for us to take care of it. What problems affect you in a personal way? If you "feel" for a certain problem, it will be easy for you to be involved and do something about it.

The Fire Of Life To Light The Earth

Passion is what makes people truly live. It is the fire of life. The true balance is when we use this passion not only to fulfill ourselves, but to alleviate the burdens of the world. We cannot do something well if we don´t know ourselves and if we don´t have the drive. Solving bigger problems need bigger people. Bigger people are those who have a solid sense of self and they are willing to extend themselves for the greater good.

By the way, do you want to learn more about leadership in your company? If so, download your FREE eBook here: Guide to Elegant Courage Leadership

Jodi and Mike specialize in executive coaching with individuals and teams. http://lighthouse-leadership.com/

Original article