leadership skills – Tom Fuszard's Business Builder

Develop unconventional leadership skills for better results

December 11, 2015May 14, 2014 by Tom Fuszard

This month’s meeting of The Business Building Academy offered two outstanding presentations on developing and offering strong leadership. The presenters were Susan L. Farrell, MBA and Lt. Cmdr Chip Lutz USN (ret.). I discussed Susan’s presentation in another column.

Chip, president and founder of Unconventional Leader, LLC, offered several very useful pieces of advice, including suggestions for leading in an unconventional way.

Some of the takeaways include:

– Appreciate those who are your friend; those who stick up for you. “If I’m loyal to my people,” Chip says, “they’ll be loyal to me.”

– Humility is important. Don’t take life too seriously, and be able to laugh at your mistakes. “It’s OK to fail,” Chip says. Employees feel more comfortable when managers step out of their comfort zones.

Effective leadership rooted in respect and assertive behavior

December 11, 2015May 11, 2014 by Tom Fuszard

This month’s Business Builder Academy meeting featured two outstanding seminars on effective leadership. The presenters were Susan L. Farrell, MBA and Lt. Cmdr. Chip Lutz USN (ret.).

This column recaps Susan’s presentation. I will discuss Chip’s seminar in my next column. Susan taps into her 25+ years of management and training experience to help women in management roles develop leadership, managerial, and interpersonal skills.

Author of “Don’t Act Like Prey!: A Guide To Personal Leadership for Women,” Susan stressed that if we’re going to lead, we must be assertive.

To set the stage, she offered the 3 R’s needed to manage a business properly.

Relationships: She reviewed personal and professional relationships and how they affect how we lead.

Rights: In addition to the common ones found in the US Constitution, Susan reminds us that we managers/business owners have the right to be treated with respect and dignity.

Develop leadership skills for efficient, motivated staff

December 11, 2015February 2, 2014 by Tom Fuszard

Leadership is critical for any organization, according to Kerry G. Denson, but often managers just don’t have the “tools”–the training–to be effective leaders. That can hurt the organization at any level.

Denson is a retired brigadier general from the Wisconsin Army National Guard and operates his own business, Applied Leadership. He offered his thoughts during a presentation to the Wisconsin Business Owners Lunch & Learn on Friday. During his 40-year military career, Denson observed what motivates people. Knowing this allowed him to create “Leadership Tools” for his own “Leadership Toolbox.” Through his leadership workshops and other presentations, Denson shares these tools so that managers can become leaders.

Leadership is a universal human trait. “We all respond favorably to good-quality leadership,” he said. True leadership results in a motivated, efficient organizational culture.

A successful business requires strong organizational skills, branding efforts

February 2, 2016September 10, 2011 by Tom Fuszard

Running a business is no easy task. Owners wonder how they will juggle all the duties and still run a profitable business. That’s understandable, says Christine McMahon, a performance trainer, business coach, and consultant. A lot hinges on being organized and disciplined, McMahon says. And a big part of that discipline involves organizing your time.

McMahon, president of Christine McMahon & Associates LLC, in Milwaukee, says that business owners must first determine which tasks are essential. “Define what’s negotiable; what you can give up and what you are not willing to give up,” she says. “What is on your docket today is most important.”

Be committed to the project. Don’t let interruptions (noise, phone calls, and such) distract you. Also, be willing to share the workload. Don’t try to dabble in all facets of your business. While that helps you stay abreast of the various functions, it’s simply not possible to do everything well. Outsourcing some tasks, such as bookkeeping, may prove beneficial, she says.