Tag: Leadership

July 6, 2011

Jim Erickson Joins Cydcor as New Vice President of Business Development

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif., July 6, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — Cydcor, the leading provider of outsourced, face-to-face sales teams, announced that Jim Erickson has joined the team as Vice President of Business Development. In this role, Erickson works closely with Cydcor’s Senior Vice President of Business Development and various members of the business development team to identify, pitch, and negotiate contracts with various cable and telecom companies to enlist Cydcor’s outsourced sales services. In addition to Erickson’s primary focus on these industries, he is assisting the business […]

July 5, 2011

Learning by Example

A colleague recently asked me who was the greatest influence in my life. Without hesitation, I replied, “my grandparents.” I recall that my grandfather and grandmother came over every Sunday to be with my family. This was important to me because my dad worked every weekend. They taught me how to read, helped me develop a love of learning and took me to my first ball games. It was their example, however, that inspired me the most. They were selfless in how they […]

June 27, 2011

Advice to Millennials

I believe that you may belong to one of the greatest generations of our time. You follow in the footsteps of other individuals who accomplished amazing things before they were 30. Steve Jobs co-founded Apple at age 21. Bill Gates co-founded Microsoft at age 20, and fellow Millennial Mark Zuckerberg co-founded Facebook at age 19. So be proud of your considerable talents and ambition. Use your mastery of technology, your competitive spirit and intensity, your creativity and your aptitude for […]

June 20, 2011

How to Motivate Millennials

In my previous post, I wrote about the great potential of Millennials. How do we help them reach this potential and motivate them to perform at their best? I think it starts with respect. They have lots of ideas that they will want to share. They are not afraid to go to the CEO during their first week of work and to make suggestions. This happened to me recently, and the suggestions were good. Listen to them. Hear them out. […]

June 13, 2011

Millennials: Leading the Way

We have been blessed with some incredible generations that have built and maintained our country. The founding fathers fought for our independence and constituted the great federal and state governmental institutions that are still the engine of our country. The Civil War generation gave its life and blood to preserve our country and end slavery. The WWII generation toiled through a horrible Great Depression and led the defeat of Hitler’s Nazi regime and of Japanese imperialism. The Millennial generation, which […]

June 9, 2011

Cultivating Potential

A team member who follows Stephen Covey on Twitter recently sent me one of his posts: “Leadership is communicating to people their worth and potential so clearly that they are inspired to see it in themselves. Are you such a leader?” Covey’s post makes me think of The Wizard of Oz. Behind the smoke and mirrors, the Wizard is an ordinary man whose true power lies not in magic, but rather in his ability to help Dorothy, the Scarecrow, the […]

June 2, 2011

10 Ways To Motivate High Performance

Earlier in my career, I had talented people on my team who would perform excellently for a time, and then their performance would deteriorate. My approach was to look first at my own performance as their manager and to see how I potentially contributed to this deterioration. That introspection taught me 10 things I could do to motivate my people to perform at their best: Create a safe, supportive environment that builds their confidence and capabilities. Empower them by delegating, […]

May 30, 2011

“The Brady 6”: A Story of Determination, Dedication and Drive

My wife and daughter recently watched the ESPN special, The Brady 6, about the events leading up to and after the selection of Tom Brady in 2000 as the New England Patriot’s seventh quarterback. I was somewhat surprised that they would watch a one-hour football show but then realized it told an inspiring story that could appeal to everyone. I highly recommend this documentary, which chronicles Brady’s rise to the top from humble beginnings—the story of someone who became great through […]

May 26, 2011

Character of a Leader

I recently spoke with someone who just opened his business but has lost his confidence. He feels that his people do not respect him because of mistakes he has made and because he no longer believes in himself. He asked me: “Have you ever been in a situation in which you’ve lost all confidence and question whether you’re doing the right thing?” “Have you been in a situation in which your people don’t look up to you anymore? If so, […]

May 19, 2011

Leadership Fundamentals

When things are not going as well as we have planned, we should remember what Jack Welch said in his book, Winning: “Whatever you will accomplish is restricted by your ability to lead others.” We measure our success by the effectiveness of our leadership, which takes hard work and skillful practice of the fundamentals. Exude the right energy; teams take their cue from you. Your team feeds off your energy, so demonstrate confidence, enthusiasm, passion and vision in everything you […]