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By: Beth Flynn, Tuesday, March 31st, 2020

From: Studer,Q. (2020). The busy leader's handbook: how to lead people and places that thrive. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley and Sons.

  • "Great mentors have done it and/or are doing it.
  • Great mentors are willing to share their knowledge, expertise, and skills.
  • They just don't give answers. Instead, they help the mentee arrive at the answers.
  • They focus on character at least as much as skill.
  • Great mentors aren't afraid to get personal. They know there is no sharp divide between work life and personal life.
  • Great mentors walk the walk.
  • They are honest about their shortcomings.
  • Great mentors know they are not finished products.
  • Great mentors care.
  • They are positive by nature.
  • They help the mentee hold up the mirror.
  • Great mentors teach from experience.
  • They demand accountability.
  • They also help the mentee find other mentors.
  • Great mentors tell the hard truths (but they do it with caring) (p.269-272)."
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By: Beth Flynn, Tuesday, March 24th, 2020

From: Gordon, J. (2017). The power of positive leadership: how and why positive leaders transform teams and organizations and change the world. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley and Sons.

"I'm sure you have heard of Murphy's Law, right? Whatever can go wrong will go wrong- and usually at the worst possible time. Unfortunately, Murphy's Law seems to play out all too often and, when a series of bad things happens, it can lead you to expect more bad things to happen. Instead of hoping for the best, you start to expect the worst and act accordingly. Football coach Gus Bradley, one of the most positive leaders I've ever met, told me about a great way he helps his team deal with negative events and avoid the victim mindset that can accompany them. Gus tells his team about this fictional guy named Murphy, who the law is named after. Murphy is a big jerk who wants to ruin their practice, games, and season. He says that Murphy often shows up at the worst possible time. But instead of being scared of Murphy when he shows up they are going to tackle him. They expect to see Murphy, and when they do they have an even greater expectation that they will defeat him. Life is filled with challenging circumstances, but you can rise above them. Life is hard, but you are strong. The struggle is real, but so is your ability to overcome it (p. 91-92)."

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By: Beth Flynn, Tuesday, March 17th, 2020

"Your purpose provides you with the overarching guide for every choice you make. Aligning with your purpose is key to maximizing fulfillment in your life. It's what brings meaning to you.

Think about it this way. Just as every business has a mission statement designed to guide the company's focus, your purpose acts to give you focus for your life.

Purpose is always tied to your passions, what Inspires you in your life. That is why you're here! When you connect to your passion, you can build it into your life plan so that you are intentionally embracing the best you can be in the world (p. 452)."

From: Kaplan, B. & Manchester, J. (2018). The power of vulnerability: how to create a team of leaders by shifting inward. Austin, TX: Greenleaf Press.

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By: Beth Flynn, Tuesday, March 17th, 2020

     In the interest of the safety of our customers and community, we will be transitioning all of our workshops, individual coaching, and group sessions online, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We will continue to provide high-quality leadership centered education and research through a digital format. 

     During this uncertain time, we hope to create connection and networking opportunities to strengthen our relationships and personally develop. Together, we will come out stronger.

     We would like to take this time to encourage you to join our mailing list, Leadership Moments. This is a weekly email that offers tips, tricks, and resources to be an efficient and effective leader. You are able to sign up by visiting our website. 

     Please continue to check in online and through our social media for the latest updates on upcoming events. If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to us. Beth Flynn, leadership consultant and trainer, is able to assist; Flynn.61@osu.edu

     Wash your hands and grow your leadership, 

     OSU Leadership Center Team 

 

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By: Beth Flynn, Tuesday, March 03rd, 2020

From: Kaplan, B. & Manchester, J. (2018). The power of vulnerability: how to create a team of leaders by shifting inward. Austin, TX: Greenleaf Press.

"Remaining courageous, humble, and fascinated makes us more open to seeing where we have opportunities to grow and learn. And there are other mind-sets we can adopt to keep on the learning path. One I especially like is looking at ourselves and others with what we can call 'The Eyes of Love.' It's about choosing to be gentle with ourselves, especially when life gets tough, rather than giving in to our crocodilian reflex of self-judgment.

We grow so much just by being gentle with ourselves. Think about how quickly children grow when they are in an atmosphere of love rather than judgment. Unfortunately, as adults, most of us have PhDs in judgment. Our inner critic is super strong. We judge and criticize ourselves for not knowing better and for not growing faster, or tell ourselves that growing is too hard, that we aren't worth it, and that we don't have time for it.

Looking at ourselves through judgmental eyes slows down our growth. We end up in a downward spiral. Let's examine how this self-limiting pattern works.

Afraid of judgment if we try and fail, we look the other way from our growth opportunities. As a result, we slowly become unable to see those opportunities - we become deaf to the whispers in our lives, since these ask us to make changes and take risks that our inner critic fears. This means we end up making the same, self-limiting choices over and over again. Then, because we can't easily overlook the consequences of our self-limiting choices, such as dysfunctional relationships, lack of fulfillment, and lack of effectiveness, we start judging ourselves for those self-created misfortunes, feeling even worse about ourselves. As we stay in our unconscious, self-punishing, downward spiral, the layers of self-judgment become so thick that they paralyze us over time. We feel bad about ourselves and bad about feeling bad, becoming ever more resistant to letting go of old limiting ways. With every setback, we judge ourselves more feeling worse and getting more entangled in this downward spiral, which then discourages us even further.

Reflecting on some of the following questions with kindness can help us snap out of a negative judgement spiral:

  • What can this station in life teach me?
  • What old ways of thinking are limiting me?
  • How have these ways of thinking helped me? How are they common and understandable strategies of the mind to help me live?
  • What do I not want to see? What if I allowed myself to see these limiting thoughts?
  • Who would I be without these ways of thinking? What new ways of thinking can I adopt that fuel fulfillment, connection, and effectiveness?
  • How can I respond differently to my current situation?
  • What am I grateful for? How can I bring more of the things that make me grateful into my life?

Or, in one question: 'How am I growing?'

Sometimes, we may find the answer is 'not at all' or 'not in the ways I would like'; that's when we know we need to find the courage and humility to keep pursuing our own expansion, without self-judgment (p. 64-67)."

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