Date: 4/7/2017

Title: THE LEADER’S SURVIVAL GUIDE – Part 1

By Jennifer Erickson

In the January 23rd, 2017 issue of Time magazine, eighteen current and former Obama aides offered words of advice for the incoming administration. These people held positions of Staff Secretary, Senior Advisor, Press Secretary, Chief of Staff, Director of Speechwriting, Former Director of Digital Security, Communications Director, and Senior Advisor to the First Lady. So, this is a group of some pretty important people with demanding jobs!! Their advice was partitioned into sections: on “The Learning Curve”, “The Best Advice”, and “Pacing Yourself”. The instruction is good for all of us leaders, too.

*avoid over-preparing in terms of content. Put something simple out there and pay attention to what people care about, and then develop content toward that.

*Know how to do the “little stuff”. That’s what makes the “big stuff” happen.

*Tell someone you are going to help him/her do the job. Come with a problem, but also have at least two solutions.

*You will mess up something. It’s bound to happen. Just learn from these mistakes, so you can minimize the number of times you mess up!

*To-do lists can become a waste of time. When working in an environment that is constantly spinning on a dime, this may be an exercise in futility. Put your energy into something else….moving the team forward, leading change management, something besides preparing a list.

*Remember, and realize how little you know. Be a sponge. Learn. Better yourself. Surround yourself with people who know more than you do, in areas that aren’t your forte.

To learn more about how to practice this understanding, contact Results Group, LLC at www.ResultsGroupLLC.com or 515-330-2866.