If you ask 15 people what leadership is, you will probably receive 15 different responses. We all know what it looks like when we see it. Leaders inspire and motivate us.

There may be strong leaders among the mix of your employees that you may not even realize. Discovering these employees and fostering a leadership culture may boost profits and create a strong working environment for all employees.

Manager vs Leader

Not every manager is a great leader and many rank and file employees are strong leaders. Although the terms manager and leader are often used interchangeably, they are different roles. Leadership is needed at all levels and positions. Not every strong leader will turn into a manager and that is OK. Embracing the idea that having great leaders scattered throughout the organization is key.

Leadership Style

Everyone leads in different ways. While we will not go into detail here, become familiar with different leadership styles. In a Harvard Business Review study from 2000, Daniel Goleman summed up various leadership styles and research discovered that leadership style was responsible for 30% of the company’s bottom-line profitability. He outlined six different type of leadership. From a pacesetting leader to a democratic leader, different styles can be utilized at different times. Leadership can and should be situational based on the needs of the team.

Getting From Here to There

Cultivating a leadership culture may take time. It may be challenging if the culture did not recognize leaders at all levels previously and may require training implement. The entire organization must buy in and be involved to make it work. Gathering feedback from all levels of employees is critical to the success in building a leadership culture. Schedule regular meetings to obtain feedback from management and employees on what is working and clearly communicate expectations of all employees.

Empower employees in non-supervisory roles to make decisions. Providing decision making exposure to all employees will develop leadership skills. Allow these new leaders to voice concerns and take part in business strategy. Provide opportunities to them to lead projects. Understand that mistakes will be made. Decide how to handle these mistakes ahead of time as the reaction from the boss may make or break a future leader.

After you have current employees on board, the next step to ensure the continuity of this new leadership culture is building it into the hiring process. Review the recruitment process to seek out the people that will fit your new leadership culture. When you identify these individuals, ask them to refer your business to others. Mention the culture in job descriptions and recruiting materials.

Fostering a leadership culture touches all employees in an organization. It takes planning and forethought. Remember, the outcome is worth it.

Success is defined in the dictionary as the accomplishment of an aim or purpose. Seems straightforward, doesn’t it? We all want it. However, it can be such a tricky word and so hard to reach.

If you ask several people what success means to them, you would get completely different answers. And that’s OK. Some define it as receiving a particular job title or a salary threshold. Others define it as spending as much quality time with their significant other or children. All of those are great definitions of success.

A problem lies, however, when someone cannot define success for themselves or they reach success but cannot decide what to do after it. They aimlessly float, hoping to stumble across something great. Maybe they try too hard to define it in one word or perhaps they feel that it is extra pressure to strive for success. Sometimes they are too worried about how others have defined success for them.

Method to Define Success

I have seen that much too often. When I work with a client on career coaching or consult with a business owner, I help the client get specific on their definition of success. I have a method on developing the definition of success with my clients. We explore what gives them joy, what gives them balance, and what they feel is currently missing.  We discuss how to balance their definition of their career with their personal life. We then set goals and draw up plans to reach those goals. When goals are set up in subsets or chunks, it’s much easier to reach.

My Definition

I define success as supporting others on their career journey, helping them achieve their goals in their business and career. My definition of success has changed over the years. For me, success is not stagnant. I need to continuously push myself further and reach for new goals.

I once thought that if I had a certain job title by the age of 30, I would feel I “made it” and was successful. When I received that job title at the age of 28, I felt successful, but I didn’t stop there. I redefined success for myself several times after that. I look at success as a journey instead of a one stop destination.

What is your definition of success? I would like to hear your definition in the comments below.

Internships provide real world experience to gain the skills needed to enter a particular career field. Several movies have come out featuring internships as a main story line. They usually feature interns we don’t typically think about. In the movie, “The Internship”, two characters played by Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson find themselves downsized from their sales roles and they want to get back in the workforce by working for Google despite their lack of technical skills. As a side note, following the release of that movie, I heard about employees requesting sleeping pods from their employer. If you have seen the movie, you know what I’m talking about. In “The Intern” featuring Robert De Niro and Anne Hathaway, a retired executive widower sees an ad for a senior intern program at a fashion startup company. After some struggles in the relationship, Ben, the character played by De Niro, shows Jules, played by Hathaway the leadership ropes in her developing company. I enjoyed both of those movies because I have personally seen non-traditional internships work in business.

Traditional Thinking on Internships

Traditional internships provide a bridge in taking what’s learned in a classroom setting and apply it to the real world. We often think of college students taking an internship over a summer or the employer working with the college to provide credit to the student. Many internships tend to be career specific, focusing on a particular interest or the major the student has in college.

Non-traditional Internships

But what about those movies? Do those types of internships exist in real life? Yes. It may look a little different than the movies, but many employers are looking at providing non-traditional internships as a method of recruitment to attract from other sectors of potential employees. Often referred to as “re-entry” internships, they can be a win-win for the employer and potential employee.

These types of internships are designed for job candidates looking at reentering the job market, someone looking at a different career path, individuals returning from military service, or retired workers that discover retirement isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be. It provides a great opportunity for someone getting back into the workforce to gain experience in a different field. In other cases, it provides great purpose to the interns who are more satisfied providing a service to a potential employer.

Re-entry internships allow employers to make a more informed hiring decision on potential employees. These interns often possess great work experience and have a mature perspective. Employers jumping on the re-entry internship band wagon include IBM, GM, Caterpillar, JP Morgan, and many others. I have seen this work in the education field where retired engineering employees earn an education degree. After participating in a teaching internship they have the opportunity to teach math and science courses at a high school. Talk about a win-win.

The future of the Internship

What does the future hold for internships? Many employers are turning to virtual internships. This allows greater flexibility for the employer and intern. The employer does not need an office space for the intern and they have the ability to attract candidates from around the globe. Interns get the opportunity to work with companies that may not be in their backyard. The possibilities are endless in today’s technology for the future of internships.

There may be several times in your career when working with a career coach would be beneficial. Perhaps you are looking for your first job and need some pointers. Or you don’t enjoy your current work and want to explore a change.

Working with a career coach is a great opportunity for both career and personal growth. Here are the top five reasons why working with a career coach is a good choice.

1. Get advice for YOU!

General career advice will only get you so far. Your career situation is unique, so the career advice you receive should be tailored to you.

2. Dedicated time.

This works both ways between you and your career coach. You receive individualized attention from your career coach. This allows the coach to understand your unique situation and provide direction based on

In the same token, you carve out time to focus on your goals and career needs. Time that you may have said in the past that you were too busy for or you thought you would eventually get to. Year after year goes by and   A career coach can show you simple strategic ways to improve your career situation without adding to the mountain of responsibilities you have.

3. Unbiased advice for YOU.

Let’s face it, there are goals others want us to achieve and there are goals we want to achieve. Career coaching allows you to separate out

You have an idea – you want to switch careers, go back to school for a new career, or start a business. So you pitch that idea to your friend and mom. They often give great advice, but the problem is that their advice will be biased because they know you TOO well. They may not have the experience to be able to give you a solid foundation in the area you are seeking.

For example, a common question to kick off an interview is, “Tell me about yourself”. You might not feel comfortable experimenting with your elevator pitch with someone that will respond, “Tell them about the time when you were running late

Sometimes too much familiarity isn’t a good thing. Career coaching allows you to think through ideas and experiment in a low-stakes kind of way.

4. Experience.

A career coach helps you discover your unique strengths. Then they work with you to confidently communicate those strengths in order to reach your goals. A career coach helps you go from ideas to action. They are able to do this through experience. Look for a career coach that has experience in hiring people and managing others. This experience is invaluable as they help you explore your options.

5. Become comfortable with YOU.

You probably have heard about being authentic or branding yourself. What does that really mean?

Let’s say you have a friend that has a job we want. So, we try to copy that friend to land a similar job. We imitate how they dress, speak and even their LinkedIn profile. Then you get that job and you are disappointed. Why? Because you were not being you. You have unique talents and strengths that only you can capitalize on to have a successful and rewarding career. A career coach helps you promote your brand to your employer or prospective employers.

 

This might be all well and good, but who can afford a career coach? The best thing about working with Insight Career Solutions is you receive a free career strategy session and can choose between individual sessions focused on your needs or you can select a package which bundles individual sessions at a lower price. You do not get a cookie cutter approach to your career goals. Get more information at info@insightsolutionspro.com today.