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Peek Inside The Heads of Amazingly Successful Leaders
Would you like to know what really goes on inside the heads of astoundingly successful leaders? Here is your chance. Part of the research for my book Absolutely Fabulous Organizational Change? involved highly successful executives filling-out my Abilities & Behavior Forecaster? pre-employment test. Each of the executives I tested had planned and implemented organizational change resulting in $10-million - $1-billion in profit improvement. They hail from America's best-run companies, including IBM, VF Corporation, Intuit, Ritz-Carlton, Outback Steakhouse, Campbell Soup, Excell Global Services, Robert Mondavi Corporation, and more. In other words, you will discover what the best-of-the-best leaders at top-notch companies really are like. Optimism Fuels the Leader's Success Pessimism never won any battle (a quote by Dwight D. Eisenhower) My research revealed the fact that absolutely fabulous leaders are incredibly optimistic people. These leaders consistently scored high on the Forecaster? test's Optimism scale. This prompts the question: What is an optimist? In a book and audio-book I co-authored, "Spontaneous Optimism®: Proven Strategies for Health, Prosperity & Happiness", my co-author and I defined an optimist as someone who overwhelmingly (1) focuses on solutions, not problems (2) possesses a compelling vision for an exciting life (3) spends most of his or her time working on goals to achieve the vision (4) persists (5) takes total self-responsibility for personal successes and failures For example, Leonardo Inghilleri, senior vice president at The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, emphatically told me, Optimism is absolutely significant. I'm an optimist in life -- both my professional and personal life. You have to be positive. Nothing positive is created through negative thinking. Starting when I was a teenager, I always have had a personal mission statement to help me in my life. It helps me know where I'm going even when I am challenged. Or, as Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm." Highly Creative In order to be irreplaceable, one must always be different (a quote from Coco Chanel). Results on my Abilities & Behavior Forecaster? tests show that absolutely fabulous leaders are extremely creative. On the Forecaster? tests, the leaders' scores show a classic pattern for creative people: Specifically, they typically score both (1) low on the Following Rules scale (2) high on the Creativity Motivation scale If you think about this, it makes perfect sense. After all, what is creativity? It is not always following all the rules, as shown in the leaders' low score on the Forecaster? test's Following Rules scale. But, that is not enough. On top of that, these leaders also feel strongly motivated or enthused to do creative work. This is evidenced in their high score on Creativity Motivation. When you combine creative thinking with motivation to actually do innovative work, you wind up with the hallmarks of intensely creative people. Indeed, absolutely fabulous leaders certainly excel at conjuring up innovative, yet practical, solutions to propel their companies to vastly boost profits. In fact, a chief reason for high-level success in business and in life is a person's ability to continually create desirable opportunities. General Douglas MacArthur summed this up when he pointed out, "There is no security in this life. There is only opportunity." Tremendous Brainpower To the dull mind, all of nature is leaden. To the illuminated mind, the whole world sparkles with light (a quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson). Absolutely fabulous leaders usually are very, very smart people. This was verified in their scores on the Abilities & Behavior Forecaster? tests. Specifically, these amazing leaders scored amazingly high on the Forecaster? test's Problem-Solving scale. This scale measures a person's general level of intelligence or overall brainpower. The successful leaders also scored high on three other Forecaster? test scales of mental abilities, namely, Vocabulary, Arithmetic, and Grammar. What does this mean for you? For starters, if you are a bright person, use your brains! If you have average intelligence, then do everything you can to boost your brainpower. Take advantage of this old saying, "Use it or lose it." First, read books and articles to expand your mental horizons. Second, find absolutely fabulous leaders to be your role models. Carefully observe how they think through situations. Third, get the nutrition and rest you need to use your brain at its peak potential. Fourth, practice thinking through situations, and discuss your ideas with highly successful people who will help you sharpen your thinking. Overall, make sharp thinking into your habit. What's in Your Head? Now, you have the opportunity to examine yourself. How do you stack up compared to incredibly accomplished leaders? What precisely is your own level of optimism, creativity, and intelligent thinking? By peeking into the heads of magnificent leaders, you can use them as your role models when you decide how to improve what is inside your head. © Copyright 2001, 2005 Michael Mercer, Ph.D. Michael Mercer, Ph.D., is a consultant, speaker, and founder of The Mercer Group, Inc. in Barrington, Illinois. Dr. Mercer's "Abilities & Behavior Forecaster?" pre-employment tests are used by companies across North America. He delivers speeches and seminars at conferences and companies. He authored "Absolutely Fabulous Organizational Change?" and also "Hire the Best -- & Avoid the Rest?". You can (a) subscribe to his free e-Newsletter at http://www.DrMercer.com or (b) call him at 847-382-0690.
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Coaching Abe Lincoln: An Extraordinary Leader Perhaps noted as one of the greatest United States presidents of all time, Abraham Lincoln's early life may not have reflected his potential greatness. He failed in business. He lost election to the state legislature, Speaker of the House, nomination for Congress, appointment of land officer, U.S. Senate twice and nomination for Vice President. After those eight major failures, Lincoln was elected President of the United States. How many of us would have kept going like Lincoln did? The Greatest Leaders Are Often The Worst Leaders It's a common occurrence, a CEO leads a company to record earnings, retires and in months, those once high-flying earnings are dropping like shot ducks. Abraham Lincoln Is Still Alive Abraham Lincoln Is Still Alive The Incandescence Of The Human Spirit There lives within every individual a power, an energy, an incandescence of spirit that is being constantly held in check, like a dimmer switch turned way down. Choose To Become An Encourager "...I know that the only source of happiness is within me, and I will begin to share it. Like a perfume, I know that I cannot pour it on others without getting a few drops on myself." - Og Mandino, "The Choice" Would Socrates Be A Celebrity Today? Last week, as I was standing in the checkout line of my local grocery store, I found myself staring at the dozen or so magazines on display. As I gazed upon the various photos and headlines praising or trashing the celebrity du jour, I got to thinking. Leadership Development and Jumping Out of Airships A German silent film melodrama depicts an airship bombing London during World War I. Lit up by searchlights and strafed by fighters, the crippled airship loses altitude as the captain frantically jettisons dispensable gear to lighten weight. Eventually, the only weight left is human. So the captain orders members of the crew overboard. A grisly scene unfolds as the airmen, one by one, without parachutes, step up to the hatch, salute the captain and the first mate, then jump to their deaths. Lightened, the airship returns safely to Germany. Building Self Confidence As a hypnotherapist I specialise in helping people to develop confidence and self esteem. Extraordinary People in Mediocre Times My grandfather used to speak of the days when people drove the world. It was a time when people were proud to contribute and move society and industry forward at full steam. But, people were proud of themselves! However, before he died, one of his observations was that "we have come to mediocre times." Mr. Shoaffs Simple Strategies to Success (Excerpted from the Jim Rohn Sampler single CD) Shades of Grey: Government, Religion, & People Some think that everything is black and white. I'm beginning to see everything as different shades of grey. Reveal the Leader Within A Leader is not a certain type of person or position of power. It is not the one at the top of the golf leader board at any specific time or the person at the top of an organisation. It is YOU. In this article we want to show you how to reveal the leader within. To give you some ideas, methods, tips that will make you think and, if you want to, enable you to reveal the leader within you. Leadership Push vs. Pull? At your next staff meeting consider leading your team through the following discussion. Managing Monsters in Meetings - Part 6, Deadlocked Discussions Although a meeting is a vehicle for resolving differences, it can break down when the participants become mired in a disagreement. Leadership Skills - 10 Ways to Beef Up 10 Ways to Beef Up Your Leadership Skills A Call to Men to Live a Strenuous Life! Any man would be justly proud to claim even a portion of what Teddy Roosevelt accomplished in just one of his fields, whether politics, hunting, writing, military, or family. He was an extraordinarily accomplished man with an enormous appetite for life. But he is more than that. For us today, he remains a hero, a patriot, an authentic, masculine role model of success, self-improvement, perseverance and courage. 10 Smart Ways Leaders Can Bring Out the Best in Others You are a leader. Everyone is a leader. It doesn't matter if your title is Chairman of the Board or 3rd Assistant to the Supply Room Manager, you lead every time you influence others to do what you want. It's a skill that starts at birth (doesn't a newborn baby run her house?). As a smart adult, you have refined your natural leadership skills in order to influence others to willingly do what you want. Wanted: A Dictionary-Perfect Leader Answers are often before our very eyes or in front of our noses - particularly if we read the American Heritage Dictionary! F2 Leadership People don't leave jobs; they leave bosses. -- Anonymous The Four Laws Of Leadership (Part Two) In Part One, I described the laws of motivation. In Part Two, I'll examine the laws in more detail.
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