doug smith training

Can you stand still on a bicycle? How about a unicycle?  I remember trying to learn a trick during my Mustard Seed Theatre Company days that involved juggling while standing on a teeter-totter. "You've got to keep moving..." said Peter. "Standing still won't get it done." In today's world balance is highly prized. We want balanced, centered lives where our work hats do not prevent us from wearing the other hats of our lives. But, balance doesn't require stasis. Instead, to stay balanced, we need to keep moving. Steady, controlled, disciplined, calm, we move and find a rhythm that works. How is your balance today? -- doug smith 

What happens if you start working before you have set any priorities for the day? It might cause you to miss a high priority item. What happens if you always prioritize work over your own needs? Well, you decide that, but often it leads to dissatisfaction, trouble in the home life, and burn out. Your work matters, of course. Your own well being matters even more. Your work matters most when you matter first. Better you = better results. What do you think? -- doug smith  

How often do you set goals? While goals do come in all sizes, from task level to life-changing, I set a few goals each day. Honestly, most ARE task level: "follow-up with Kellie..." "Send syllabus to Holly..." "Invoice client XYZ by 3:30..."  but they are still goals. Finding the right number (fifty is too many!) and prioritizing the order is and essential part of planning and it all starts with setting goals. Write it all down, and defer what does not matter. Focus on what you care about now. Setting goals for each day keeps your days productive. Even if (especially if!) one of those goals is "take a walk and rest..." -- doug smith

The art of leadership includes knowing when to be sensitive and when to be tough. It could even be a combination of sensitive (caring about the feelings of others) AND tough (standing your ground.) High performance leaders balance sensitivity and toughness to make sure they don't break themselves or anyone else.  -- doug smith  

You've heard it so many times you could be tired of the expression: color outside the lines. I'm all for creativity, but let's face it, boundaries are also important. Sometimes a leader needs to make those boundaries clear and certain and keep things within those boundaries. The art of developing leadership includes some lines we need to color inside.  Knowing what those lines are is part of our job, especially when they change. It can feel like a paradox, but high performance leaders must balance clarity and creativity.  -- doug smith

A great person, who used to be a friend of mine, once wrote a song called "Slow Down and Enjoy The View." It was a wonderful song but at the time, neither one of us really had much to slow down from. We had time, we had music, we had friendship, we smiled all of the time. Then we got busy. Life got busy. Work got busy. Does it ever feel to you like you're just too busy? Even in the middle of a crisis, it can feel like there is too much busyness to take care of business.  The other day I was taking a walk and after several minutes realized that I was hardly experiencing the walk at all because I was thinking so intently about work. I physically stopped in my tracks, took a deep breath, and started walking again. It was time to slow down a moment, see what was around me, and breathe again.  Slow down.  When I worked at GE we had an expression, "sometimes you've got to go slow to go fast," and while that meant something slightly different than simply slowing do

A high performance leader is tough without being abusive and tender without being soft. Find the balance and the magic is yours. -- doug smith

What are you good at? Really, really good at? What can you do that is absolutely wonderful? How many people know about that? Here's a tricky trick - how do you do your best, give your best, and let other people know about it without letting your ego take over? We have many essential leadership skills to choose from. I find it useful to think of these five essential leadership core strengths as a place to start: Clarity - know exactly what our purpose is and setting clear goals to live that purpose. Courage - speaking and acting assertively without getting aggressive. Creative - discovering and expanding our possibilities Compassion - caring about and for others Centering - staying mindful, in the moment, flexible, and able to use whatever core skill we need You're really good at one of those. Better than most. It's your core leadership strength. Bringing that core leadership strength to work with your team is doing it a wonderful service. The world needs wha