According to a group on Facebook, April 29 is National Pay It Forward Day. What does that really mean? It means simply a time to do something for a stranger somewhere, just do it, as a way of paying it forward. Think about how our world could be different on that day if every single person did that.

Several years ago I saw a show on Oprah about random acts of kindness. It became a thing with me, that I still do today. When I go through a toll booth on a highway, I always pay for the car behind me. It’s just a little something to brighten the day of folks, something done by a total stranger, and something for which nothing is required. While I imagine it made them feel good, it always made me feel awesome. It was just about a little something to make someone’s day where they didn’t even know who did it for them.

Tonight my brother, husband and I attended a concert. As we left the parking lot, we noticed that nobody was allowing any cars to get in the line. We eased out into the line with the help of the parking lot attendant, and joined the long line of cars heading toward the exit and the highway. Along the way there were several cars trying to get out of the parking lots, just waiting for anyone to offer them a break. We decided to do a little experiment. At each entrance, I let at least 2 or 3 cars go in front of me. I imagine there were some folks behind me who weren’t too happy, but those who were allowed to get in the line were sure glad. An interesting thing happened. Each car that was let in then stopped at the next entrance and let someone else in. And on it went. It was pretty fun to watch. Sure, it took a little longer to get to the entrance to the highway, but it was so worth it.

Another idea that is a fun thing to do is to see someone who serves in our military in a restaurant. Get in touch with their server and offer to pay, anonymously, for their meal, with a message that just says “thanks for your service.” Having lived out of the country the last two years, I am so thankful that I now live close to a military base and actually get a chance to do this now and then.

What about your neighbors? See some way you could do a little something to help them out? Don’t ask, just do it. Then watch what happens.

What can you do in a random act of kindness? Will you join me in the next week to find one random act of kindness a day that you can do for someone? I believe after the week, you’ll want to continue. Let’s see how many people we can influence. Enjoy it and I’d love to hear what you did and how it went!

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“What comes first, the compass or the clock? Before one can truly manage time (the clock), it is important to know where you are going, what your priorities and goals are, in which direction you are headed (the compass). Where you are headed is more important than how fast you are going. Rather than always focusing on what’s urgent, learn to focus on what is really important.”

Priorities are important, no matter what aspect of life you’re talking about. Operating on a simple to do list isn’t very effective if you don’t know which things on that list are really important. Without prioritizing those things, the juggling we do feels like we are juggling huge boulders instead of simple foam balls. And when one of those things falls to the ground, it creates a much bigger ripple effect.

Take a look at your to do list. Things are easy to prioritize if you make those lists according to your values. What is most important? What will have the biggest impact? Too often in our attempt to juggle things and get it all done, we neglect some of those things that we say we really value.

I’d like to say juggling all of the priorities in my life is easy and I’ve accomplished it. I haven’t. There are days when I realize that, while I may have gotten all of the “work” done for the day, I haven’t done much with family or friends. Balance in that area is important.

I like to start by looking at my list of values. Then compare that to my list of priorities. Do they all fit within that list of values? If not, perhaps it doesn’t belong on my priority list. I then take that list and put a simple A, B, C to it. A means it is important and urgent and must get done today. The B list are things that are still important and need to get done, and yet if they aren’t finished today, it’s okay. Those things on the C list are my “wish” list of things I’d like to do. This helps as I can attack the A list first, then move to the B list, and if there’s time in the day, I can do some of the C’s. If something doesn’t get done on my B list, I move it to the next day. It’s a simple system, but one that seems to work.

How do you juggle your priorities? What challenges do you have in doing that? Let’s have some dialogue!

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As leaders, it is so important that we “walk the talk” in our lives. Leaders are watched all the time to see if they are actually doing what they tell others to do. This is true no matter where you are, your work, your family, friends, and coworkers. It is disheartening to have a leader who you believe in and see them not do this. And yet, it is perhaps one of the most challenging things we must do as leaders.

Take a few short minutes and watch this film and then I’d love to hear your comments below. What is your biggest challenge and how will you meet it today?

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Have you ever had one of those days, or weeks, when you’re the leader and you work to motivate the folks around you, yet nothing you do seems to work? Or something you tried just fell flat and didn’t work at? I think we have all had those times and they sure aren’t fun. What happens then? Who motivates the motivator?

A friend of mine once said “leadership’s not for sissies,” and I sure agree with that statement. It’s tough work. There are days when it just seems too much to keep going and you want to quit. What do you do then? Well, a good leader just bucks up and moves on, right? Yes, and if only it were that easy.

I believe leaders need to have a plan for those times when things just aren’t easy. Here are a few suggestions for you:

• Have someone you can go to who WILL encourage you. It may be your spouse, your best friend, just have it be someone who isn’t on the team you’re trying to motivate. It has to be someone who can and will let you be “human.”
• Read motivational quotes and books. I find some great pick-me-ups in things like this. You can subscribe to daily motivational quotes as a way to start your day.
• Remember the times when sometime DID work. Take a few minutes and remember how it felt when something you did was awesome and you just wanted to push even harder to get more done.
• Network with other leaders. It helps to share challenges with other leaders and learn from each other how someone else has handled a similar situation.
• Take a look at the people you have mentored. For me, that’s one of the biggest feelings of accomplishment, watching someone else grow. It’s exciting to see them come into their own and to remember how they started.
• Take a break! No one can be “up” 100% of the time and sometimes it’s best just to step away and take a break. Imagine a day with no work, no internet, no interruptions, just to relax and do for YOU. It can be quite refreshing.

What have I left out? What other things do you do to find motivation when you just don’t feel like it? I look forward to your comments.

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It’s a strange thing

The minute you think you’ve got it,
You’ve lost it.

Have you known leaders like this? In leadership, it really is about being humble and adopting that spirit of servant leadership. It’s been interesting lately as I venture into new territories with blogging and the internet world. There are so many experts out there and sometimes it’s hard to know who to follow and who to listen to. It seems everyone is an expert and some appear to be quite full of themselves. For me, those aren’t the ones I choose to listen to. The ones who have my attention are the ones who are focused more on how to build a relationship and less on themselves.

Leadership is rarely about “I” and always about “us.” It’s amazing how things change when you don’t care who gets credit for a good idea or a successful project. Good leaders tend to none of the credit, and all of the blame. If something goes wrong, then it falls to the leader to take responsibility for that. When sometimes turns out awesome, it was the team who did it.

What happens when we begin to think too highly of ourselves? I believe that’s when leaders lose their followers. People generally don’t want to work with or follow someone who believes they have all the answers and know THE only way to do something. They sure don’t want to follow someone who takes credit for everything.

Sadly, the loss of humility can be what causes great leaders to fail. When someone loses sight of the fact that it isn’t all about them, it can create that downward spiral that is described in Derailed: Five Lessons Learned from Catastrophic Failures of Leadership (NelsonFree) by Tim Irwin. (This link is an Amazon affiliate link.) We’ve all seen it and it’s pretty ugly to watch that happen to someone.

Does this mean you should think less of yourself and your skills? Of course not. What it does mean is that you develop a mindset that thinks of others first. It makes it all about your audience, about those around you. One of my favorite quotes is “humility doesn’t mean you think less of yourself, it just means you think of yourself less.” In the end, that really is what it’s about.

How about you? What examples of humility have you seen in leaders? Please share your thoughts here in the comments section.

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All leaders must grow to be truly successful. Sometimes as leaders, we just get too comfortable in what we are doing. We believe we have learned everything we need to be successful, and we stop searching for ways to grow. I don’t think we ever stop learning all we need to learn.

So how do you grow? Here are five tips for ways to grow as a leader:

• Find a mentor. There are many different leadership styles. Seek out someone whose leadership style you admire and ask them to mentor you.  Chances are they will be flattered that you asked. In doing that, remember that the mentor isn’t the one who does all the work in a mentoring situation. Learn what you can and apply it. Without that application, it’s not real growth.
• Books.  Read, read, and read. There are a lot of books published about leadership. Find authors you like and be sure you read their books. My goal for 2010 is to read at least one new book. Again, don’t just read. Be sure you apply what you are reading to begin to have more effective leadership.  Some of my favorites are books by Seth Godin, Ken Blanchard, and Andy Andrews.
• Become self-aware. Really sit down and evaluate your motives in leadership. The best leaders are ones who approach leaders from a servant leadership thought process. Leaders who believe they are there to serve the people  they lead will find a much more productive experience.
• You might want to enroll in a leadership coaching class or seminar. These can be very effective in learning new ideas on how to approach things.
• It is also important to remember that all of this learning doesn’t really help unless you apply it. In Seth Godin’s book “Linchpin,” he calls this “SHIP.” You must ship, get those ideas out there, try them, and see what works!

What things have I forgotten here? How have you found growth as a leader? What are some of the ways you have grown in leadership, personally or professionally, and how did you reach that growth?

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Linchpin: GaryVee from Seth Godin on Vimeo.

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