Category Archives: Leadership

3 Ways to Ignite Your Leadership Connection

Posted on by • Posted in Communication, Connected Relationship, Heart, Honor, Inclusion, Leadership, Leadership Commitment, Leadership Culture, Leadership Listens, Leadership Respect, Leadership Trust, Mindfulness, Respect, Trust • Leave a comment

3 Ways to Ignite Your Leadership Connection

The longer I live, the more convinced I am of the power of connection—and especially connections of the heart. Unlike computers, rocks and steel, we humans have emotions and spirits that can be lifted, energized and ignited by a relational connection. We know it but grossly underestimate the power of those connections.

Our Strongest Connections  

When conducting workshops, I often ask participates to think of a time when someone connected with them, asked about their dreams, believed in them, and spoke into their lives in a way that fueled them upward and onward in their life and career. The stories they share are sometimes emotional and always inspiring to everyone in the room.

Now, pause to reflect on the person who connected with your heart and helped fuel your dream job, or provided a booster rocket along your path. What did they do or say made a difference? Now, what about your leadership? How could you be a “launcher” who impacts and influences another person’s career? Recently I’ve learned more about how this works.

Connection is Scientific

Dr. Richard Boyatzis has studied, researched, and written about emotional intelligence and resonant relationships for decades now. The data is clear that, what he calls, resonant relationships are the most powerful method known for coaching and developing people.

In his new book coming out this month, Helping People Change: Coaching with Compassion for Lifelong Learning and Growth, Dr. Boyatzis describes a resonant relationship as one that is built on a positive emotional tone and a genuine, authentic connection with the other person.

His research shows conclusively that –

“positive relationship connections help people create change that is holistic and sustainable.” [Tweet This]

This is the principle that is borne out in the stories that people share about their positive experience with the one who launched them into the success they now enjoy, living out their dreams of many years ago.

Applying this Heart Strategy

We’re excited because now we can better understand and be even more confident in the process we call “Connecting with the Heart”.

Let’s look at some practical ways that you can be a career and life coach that launches people into being their best authentic self –

  1. Become mindful (aware) of yourself and the other person. Lower your intensity, relax, and set all your problems and concerns aside for a moment to focus on the person in front of you. Give them your full attention. Act as though there is nothing else in the world more important than them.
  2. Let your emotions show that you are excited to be around them and interested in what they are interested in. Ask them about their dreams and passions. Listen and resist judgement or temptations to correct, change, or fix any response they give.
  3. Let them know that you believe in them. Stay positive and share something you have seen in or about them that supports their vision. For several years I’ve facilitated men’s small groups where we do an exercise like this to affirm each other. We refer to it as “calling out your glory.”

My Heart Connecting Leaders

As a young college student, one of the most influential and respected men in my small hometown spoke into my life. He always gave me a big smile when we met. Knowing I was very committed to Air Force ROTC, he would often greet me by saying, “Well hello general, how are things with you?” The message I received was his confidence that I had what it took and that I was going to go a long way.

Later as a young fighter pilot in the Vietnam war*, my Wing Commander, Colonel Bob Maloy, would greet me with a genuine smile and act like he was delighted to be flying with me. He let me fly most of the time and asked my opinions and respected what I said. Then he chose me to fly with him on the day we flew the 3,000 combat sortie for the Gunfighter wing at Danang. The amazing thing was that these were very busy, very successful people, old enough to be my father, yet they set everything aside, and cast their focus on me long enough to encourage my future.

Lee squatting down by the staff car and sign was at the completion of the 10,000 sortie for the Danang 366 TFW Gunfighters. He was selected to fly with him on that special commemorative mission.

Slow Down and Connect

“In an incredibly busy and often results-focused world of the 21st century, it’s easy to overlook the power that we have to inspire others by connecting with their hearts.” [Tweet This]

We need to pause and remember how crucial it was for us—and now it’s time to pay back the bank. Will you be one who reads this blog and becomes more intentional building resonant relationships? I hope so. I wrote it and I am. Let’s see how many of us can give a positive report before the September blog comes out. LE  [Tweet this Article]

P.S. Don’t forget to look for Dr. Richard Boyatzis’ new book mentioned above releasing the first week of September. You don’t want to miss it.

NEW! A Self-Study Training Course for Your Team

We’ve just released the new Engage with Honor Group Training Guide as a self-study leadership development course for your team. Used with the award-winning book, Engage with Honor, this training guide provides everything you need to build a culture of courageous accountability.

“Connecting with the Heart” is a training session in this course.

Download a free sample in the Leading with Honor Store

Purchase your copies – bulk savings are available

 

 

 

The Dalai Lama on Why Leaders Should Be Mindful, Selfless, and Compassionate

Posted on by • Posted in Altruism, Anxiety, Cooperation, Fear, Humanity, Interdependence, Kindness, Leadership, Mindfulness, Peace, Responsibility, Selfness • Leave a comment

https://hbr.org/2019/02/the-dalai-lama-on-why-leaders-should-be-mindful-selfless-and-compassionate?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=hbr&fbclid=IwAR1V6SVujsniYZwOQMFJNIeg9po7ojuHG6NBaMJ_qtcwNOaUeJ3LYj86qog

Over the past nearly 60 years, I have engaged with many leaders of governments, companies, and other organizations, and I have observed how our societies have developed and changed. I am happy to share some of my observations in case others may benefit from what I have learned.

Leaders, whatever field they work in, have a strong impact on people’s lives and on how the world develops. We should remember that we are visitors on this planet. We are here for 90 or 100 years at the most. During this time, we should work to leave the world a better place.

What might a better world look like? I believe the answer is straightforward: A better world is one where people are happier. Why? Because all human beings want to be happy, and no one wants to suffer. Our desire for happiness is something we all have in common.

But today, the world seems to be facing an emotional crisis. Rates of stress, anxiety, and depression are higher than ever. The gap between rich and poor and between CEOs and employees is at a historic high. And the focus on turning a profit often overrules a commitment to people, the environment, or society.

I consider our tendency to see each other in terms of “us” and “them” as stemming from ignorance of our interdependence. As participants in the same global economy, we depend on each other, while changes in the climate and the global environment affect us all. What’s more, as human beings, we are physically, mentally, and emotionally the same.

Look at bees. They have no constitution, police, or moral training, but they work together in order to survive. Though they may occasionally squabble, the colony survives on the basis of cooperation. Human beings, on the other hand, have constitutions, complex legal systems, and police forces; we have remarkable intelligence and a great capacity for love and affection. Yet, despite our many extraordinary qualities, we seem less able to cooperate.

In organizations, people work closely together every day. But despite working together, many feel lonely and stressed. Even though we are social animals, there is a lack of responsibility toward each other. We need to ask ourselves what’s going wrong.

I believe that our strong focus on material development and accumulating wealth has led us to neglect our basic human need for kindness and care. Reinstating a commitment to the oneness of humanity and altruism toward our brothers and sisters is fundamental for societies and organizations and their individuals to thrive in the long run. Every one of us has a responsibility to make this happen.

What can leaders do?

Be mindful

Cultivate peace of mind. As human beings, we have a remarkable intelligence that allows us to analyze and plan for the future. We have language that enables us to communicate what we have understood to others. Since destructive emotions like anger and attachment cloud our ability to use our intelligence clearly, we need to tackle them.

Fear and anxiety easily give way to anger and violence. The opposite of fear is trust, which, related to warmheartedness, boosts our self-confidence. Compassion also reduces fear, reflecting as it does a concern for others’ well-being. This, not money and power, is what really attracts friends. When we’re under the sway of anger or attachment, we’re limited in our ability to take a full and realistic view of the situation. When the mind is compassionate, it is calm and we’re able to use our sense of reason practically, realistically, and with determination.

Be selfless

We are naturally driven by self-interest; it’s necessary to survive. But we need wise self-interest that is generous and cooperative, taking others’ interests into account. Cooperation comes from friendship, friendship comes from trust, and trust comes from kindheartedness. Once you have a genuine sense of concern for others, there’s no room for cheating, bullying, or exploitation; instead, you can be honest, truthful, and transparent in your conduct.

Be compassionate

The ultimate source of a happy life is warmheartedness. Even animals display some sense of compassion. When it comes to human beings, compassion can be combined with intelligence. Through the application of reason, compassion can be extended to all 7 billion human beings. Destructive emotions are related to ignorance, while compassion is a constructive emotion related to intelligence. Consequently, it can be taught and learned.

The source of a happy life is within us. Troublemakers in many parts of the world are often quite well-educated, so it is not just education that we need. What we need is to pay attention to inner values.

The distinction between violence and nonviolence lies less in the nature of a particular action and more in the motivation behind the action. Actions motivated by anger and greed tend to be violent, whereas those motivated by compassion and concern for others are generally peaceful. We won’t bring about peace in the world merely by praying for it; we have to take steps to tackle the violence and corruption that disrupt peace. We can’t expect change if we don’t take action.

Peace also means being undisturbed, free from danger. It relates to our mental attitude and whether we have a calm mind. What is crucial to realize is that, ultimately, peace of mind is within us; it requires that we develop a warm heart and use our intelligence. People often don’t realize that warmheartedness, compassion, and love are actually factors for our survival.

Buddhist tradition describes three styles of compassionate leadership: the trailblazer, who leads from the front, takes risks, and sets an example; the ferryman, who accompanies those in his care and shapes the ups and downs of the crossing; and the shepherd, who sees every one of his flock into safety before himself. Three styles, three approaches, but what they have in common is an all-encompassing concern for the welfare of those they lead.

 

 

 

In need of a new lens on demographic trends

Posted on by • Posted in Demographics, Disruption, Health System, Hospital, Hospital Industry, Leadership, Leadership Implementation, Strategic Alignment, Strategic Leadership, Strategy • Leave a comment

As we’ve discussed before, our view is the healthcare system faces two fundamental demographic challenges across the next decade.

The first is how to sustainably accommodate 80M Baby Boomers—all of whom will be over 65 within the next ten years and in the Medicare program. This will entail providers learning to care for seniors in a much lower cost, lower intensity way, and payers (the federal government and insurers) to design benefits, networks and reimbursement approaches that support a more appropriate model of care delivery.

The second, often less discussed, is how to adapt traditional delivery approaches for the (even larger) Millennial generation, who will enter their “fix me” years within the next decade, and bring their high-demand, high-information, digitally-oriented consumption behaviors to an industry that has been built for older consumers more accustomed to the “hurry up and wait” model.
 
Our concern for incumbents, as the graphic suggests, is that they view these two demographic challenges through the lens of their current business models and seek to protect their legacy economics.

We commonly hear provider executives talk about “taking a wait and see attitude” and having a bias toward “no-regrets moves”. Why should we embrace price transparency, destroy demand for our own services, or disrupt ourselves, while we’re still making so much money on fee-for-service medicine?

But self-disruption is becoming an urgent priority as newly-emboldened outsiders look to upend the traditional model. Players like CVS, UnitedHealth Group and others view now as the time to assemble low-cost delivery assets and redesign network and benefit structures to capture the loyalty of those Boomers in Medicare Advantage plans for the next decade or more. And technology companies from Amazon to Google see an immediate opportunity to build new models around consumer loyalty as well, moving at Internet speed.

The sooner incumbents wake up to the reality that these unprecedented demographic forces demand a new approach to doing business, the better their chance of avoiding being outflanked by these kinds of disruptors.

 

Hospital profitability down as operators lack flexibility to cut costs, Kaufman Hall says

Posted on by • Posted in Cost Management, Cost Reduction, Flexibility, Health System, Hospital, Hospital Bankruptcy, Hospital Industry, Leadership, Management, Operating Margin, Operating Performance • Leave a comment

https://www.healthcaredive.com/news/hospital-profitability-down-as-operators-lack-flexibility-to-cut-costs-kau/559705/

Image result for Hospital cut costs, Kaufman Hall says

Dive Brief:

  • Hospital profitability declined for the first time this year during the month of June. Operating margins were down 1.88%, according to a new flash report from Kaufman Hall.
  • Analysts blamed the decline on the inability of many hospitals to rapidly cut expenses to match a decrease in patient volumes. Bad debt and charity care expenses were also up.
  • Meanwhile, non-labor expenses per adjusted discharge rose 5.3% compared to June 2018, while labor expenses per adjusted discharge increased 4.9%.

Dive Insight:

Hospital and healthcare system operations are often so large and complex that at times they can’t act quickly to address declines in profitability. Based on the most recent Kaufman Hall flash hospital report, June 2019 appears to be one of those times.

The report concluded hospitals lacked the flexibility to cut costs as patient volumes decreased. In June, adjusted discharges, patient days and emergency department visits dropped more than 5% compared to May 2019. Operating room minutes declined by 7% compared to May and are down 1.8% year over year, a trend the report said was “most concerning.” At the same time, expenses rose significantly compared to June 2018.

There were some exceptions. Hospitals with 500 beds or more saw an increase in pre-tax profit margins for the third consecutive month, which the report attributed to increased revenues. Smaller hospitals ( fewer than 25 beds and 200-299 beds) also had improved margins, which was connected to increased inpatient volumes. However, mid-sized hospitals (300-499 beds) saw the biggest decline in profitability, while those in the 100-199 bed range also struggled.

Hospitals in the South also fared better than average, which the report attributed to “strong expense management during a period of stagnant volume growth.” By comparison, hospitals in the Midwest, where revenues were flat while bad debt and labor costs were on the rise, had pre-tax margins that were nearly 3.7% lower.

But the report also suggested that most hospital operators are not seeing the big picture. “Nationwide, hospitals continue to be overly optimistic about inpatient volumes, while underestimating the increase in ambulatory care,” it said.

Hospitals also face other potential headwinds: The upcoming Physician Payment Fee Schedule from CMS may not be favorable to providers; federal legislation to end surprise medical bills could wind up being enacted in law; and the courts could wind up striking down the Affordable Care Act, leaving some 20 million Americans without health insurance.

The report concluded “a lack of flexibility is a fundamental risk to hospitals and health systems and something that industry disruptors are likely to use to their advantage in the coming months and years.”