When you think about leadership, what do you think of?

Do you think of people leading the cause, marching up front, moving ahead, intent on vision and ddressing whatever challenges may come their way? Serious, intent, focused?

Do you think of people setting the course, “bringing people with them,” moving ahead of everyone else, “daring to go where no other man has ever gone”? Engaging, trustworthy, risk-taking, empowering?

These are pretty common images that come up with leadership. But what about these:

·         The individual who leads from the back, making sure that no one is left behind, that people continue to move forward, that the guy in the front has what he/she needs to be successful?

·         The individual who stands on the side, cheering people on, giving them direction, letting them know when they’re getting too close to the edge, or moving off course? Challenging and championing those on the trek to be their best, hit their goals and stay engaged as a team?

·         The individual in the middle who champions and support those around him/her, see’s opportunities that those in the front or the back may miss (and points them out), turns complaints into requests, and serves as a core piece of the puzzle? This person engages with each person in different ways, his/her main focus being to “help us all achieve success and lead in our own unique ways”?

·        Or the individual who dances with all 4 spots, leading in the front, from the back, on the side or from the center, going wherever he/she is needed to get the job done?  

It is easy to forget about these “places” as opportunities for leadership. Often leadership is abdicated to the “guy up front” or the person in the official “leadership role.” The secret is that we all have an opportunity to lead. All of the time. The roles, and what leadership requires of us may just look different.

For sometimes we’ll be driving initiatives, setting direction, “leading the way”, while at others, it’s our job to serve the people we lead. To be great “participant leaders”, to practice “servant leadership”, to do whatever we need to do to ensure that the mission is successful, that we’re all successful; to stay engaged.

To forget that we have an opportunity to lead in every situation, is to give up a huge place of power in ourselves that enables us to be strong, productive, engaging human beings that make contributions in the most useful ways. It is also a lost opportunity for growth and deep connection with others.

Complaining, abdicating, sitting back and watching someone else lead; waiting for “leadership do its thing” will “get you nowhere fast.” But showing up as a leader in your life, in even the simplest way, and creating an impact with that leadership, will move you forward in big ways. When we move from “waiting” to “leading” - it’s powerful. We step into places we didn’t know we had in us, and we inspire the same in others. Inspiring others to lead? Yet another act of leadership. 

Regardless of where we stand in any situation, there is always the opportunity to “lead from where you stand” or to “lead from where you sit.” It’s up to you to step into it. What do you see that needs leadership? Where can you support others who have the responsibility of “up front” leadership? Where can you evoke leadership in those around you? Where can your authentic leadership help move your team, and the initiative you are working on, forward? It’s worth thinking about. And it’s definitely worth doing. In fact it’s vital. To your success, to your team’s success, to the cause you support. We can’t do it alone. We need leadership in every direction. 

So go forth and lead. And consider: Where am I truly leading in my life and organization? Where am I missing opportunities for leadership? Where am I waiting for leadership? Where can I be empowering more leadership? Where (or who) can I help move things forward? Where might I be sitting on my complaints? What am I going to do about it? 

Answer just one of these questions, do something about it, and see what you can shift today. You may be surprised at what even the littlest act of leadership can do.  

And this, my friend, is how mountains get moved.  

 



Thanks to Anese Cavanaugh for contributing this article to our Leadership Development blog:

Developing Leadership Qualities

Mediocre sales people are notoriously bad planners. It can be said that they habitually “play” more than they “practice”. Going into most sales interactions unprepared, thinking they can “wing it” and negotiating “off the cuff”. Top negotiators know differently. Top performers know that in order to successfully negotiate with clients they must plan carefully or risk being left vulnerable. Without proper strategy, your opponents will use your lack of preparedness to their advantage. In other words, you are likely to give up more than you intended because you didn’t have a plan.

Here are 9 areas of planning to consider before you start a negotiation with a client:

1) Determine your goals.

Negotiation is the art and science of reaching an agreement that meets your and your client’s goals. Your strategic goals create the measure you judge yourself by at the end of the processes and need to be set before the negotiation begins. Your goals also will act as your guide during the negotiation, supporting everything you say, every move you make and every agreement you reach. Carefully planning your strategy in advance will ensure you reach the goals that you and your company want to achieve. Remember that all goals should be set using the S.M.A.R.T. formula (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Time bound).

2) What’s your BATNA?

What will happen if you do not reach an agreement with your client? One of the biggest negotiating dangers is being too committed to gaining an agreement and being unduly pessimistic about what would happen if the negotiation fails. In my experience, most sales people are overly committed to having to reach an agreement (sometimes at the expense of all profitability) when they have no other options. Do yourself a favor. Ensure you have at least 3 opportunities waiting to close (or negotiate) for everyone that you are negotiating now. These 3 other qualified opportunities are your “Best Alternative to a Negotiated Agreement (BATNA)” because they ensure you will never feel desperate to close business.

The willingness to walk away is the most powerful negotiation leverage you can have. You only will feel able to walk away, if you have something else to walk away to. Yes, you understand me correctly; prospecting is the key to negotiation success.

3) What is your position?

Specific goals for your negotiation can be called positions. Positions are simply your statement of what you need to get in order to accept the deal. You should take some time before the negotiation to document what you want to get, need to get and what would be nice to get out of the interaction. Writing down these positions will make them clear in your mind and will help you focus the discussion. While you are at it, it is good practice to guess at what the client will want and intend to get as well.

4) Hide and Seek.

As well as positions, we all have other things we want to hide from (or avoid) and seek in the negotiation. Often, these are more hidden or more political things. For example, your client may want to save face and you want to augment your reputation. You may want to avoid exposing conflict inside your own company and the client may want to avoid including certain colleagues in the process. During your preparation it’s valuable to ask yourself what you and the client seek, and want to avoid. It’s often the positions in step 2, combined with the needs and concerns from step 3 and the hidden political drivers that position the negotiation.

5) Find the missing link.

So, you know your goals and positions, and you have taken a smart guess at your client’s goals and positions. Now is the time to find the link between the two. Linking your goals to the customer’s goals is a key to effective selling. A negotiated agreement is only profitable if it satisfies all parties. The best way to accomplish this mutually profitable relationship is to focus on finding the missing link between the objectives of you and your clients. Of course it if difficult to do this accurately if you don’t know what your client’s goals are. Think of this as a sales challenge: the better qualified your client is, the more you know about them and understand their goals and the better prepared you will be for the negotiation. Great negotiators start preparing for the negotiation at the start of the sales cycle…. and never stop!

6) What’s your bottom line?

Your bottom line is the absolute, last resort and final offer on each key issue. It’s your walk away point. Setting a bottom line in advance of your negotiation is important because it makes it easier to resist the temptation of agreeing to an unprofitable deal. Setting a bottom line protects you from seller’s remorse and it makes it easier for others to participate in the negotiation with you because you can provide a framework for them to negotiate in. There are some downsides though. The most notable is that having a bottom line can discourage creativity and may limit your ability to capitalize on new information revealed during the negotiation discussions. Be careful not to set your bottom line too high. It’s easy to over estimate the value of what you are selling – especially if it is personal – like your car or house!

7) Identify your trip wire.

The best negotiators document a trip wire for every negotiation, which will indicate to them when they are close to their bottom line. Your trip line is established to ensure you do not enter into agreements that you will later regret. Establish a trip wire by identifying an outcome that is slightly better than your BATNA and bottom-line, but far from perfect. When a trip wire is triggered during a negotiation, commit to taking a break and thinking about the situation before accepting the deal. The last thing you want is to be forced into a position to take a deal that is worse than your trip wire. As a last resort, accept your trip wire and an acceptable end to the negotiation, ONLY if you are able to receive something in return (see my No Free Gifts article for ideas).

Where are you weak?

No one likes to admit they are not perfect. Especially sales people! The truth is, no negotiation argument is perfect and yours are no exception. Everyone and every negotiation argument have at least one vulnerability. Your weakness is that spot that threatens the achievement of any one of your goals based on a real or perceived vulnerability in your argument. Don’t ignore or brush off a perception. Your clients’ perceptions of you are the reality in which you negotiate. When planning for a negotiation its wise to consider your weaknesses and plan for effective responses.

9) Giving concessions.

In my recent No Free Gifts article we spoke about the art of giving concessions. The first concessions you always give need to be “non monetary”. In other words, something that does not sacrifice the price of the product. If the client will not accept a non-monetary concession than it maybe necessary to give a price break (monetary concession). For your point of reference, a concession is the act of granting, yielding or surrendering a right, privilege or gift. Your treatment of concessions will determine your success or failure in a negotiation and long-term relationship building. Always remember the cardinal rule: no free gifts! For a worksheet to help you plan your monetary and non-monetary concessions click here .

Sure, it may seem daunting to prepare for a negotiation. That is because often-sales people don’t like the thought of getting to work! According to CSO Insights, just 10 minutes of prep can increase your effectiveness by up to 42%. Knowing that, doesn’t it make sense too spend a little time thinking and planning before your next negotiation rather than simply jumping in unprepared?



Thanks to Colleen Francis for contributing this article to our Leadership Development blog:

Business Negotiation Training