Our “energy crisis” is a prime example of how fear metastasizes. We are becoming acclimatized (forgive the pun!) to $150-per-barrel oil prices and pundits are forecasting $200 by year end, and 2000 futures contracts have been sold for delivery of oil at $300 by the end of 2008. While this is all painful, in real terms, oil prices have remained steady – in early 1980 oil peaked at $39.50 per barrel, which is about the same as today’s price, adjusted for inflation. But since then, cars have become, on average, 35% more efficient and there is an ongoing, extraordinary effort to boost that trend? – Toyota’s next version of its successful hybrid, the Prius, will have solar panels on the roof. John Kanzius is experimenting with generating energy from salt water. Fridges use a quarter of the energy today that they did in the 1970s. The Swedes are using the body heat of the 250,000 people who rush through Stockholm Central Station each day to heat the building next door. Kenichi Horie just traveled 4,800 miles from Hawaii to Japan in a catamaran powered solely by wave power. A device has been developed that straps to the knee and can generate and store enough power from walking to power ten cell phones. Costa Rica aims to be carbon neutral by 2021, and Norway by 2050. We will overcome our energy crisis – through innovation, inspiration and hope.

Leadership and communication styles based on fear achieve the exact opposite of what we are trying to accomplish because fear builds on itself, causing an acceleration of the cycle of being frightened. One idea feeds upon another until we lose sight of the rational and the inspiring which is within everything.

Humans are inquiring, curious and innovative beings who yearn for leadership that offers hope. In our work in organizations, one of our first activities is to halt the practices and behaviors that generate fear, including our fear-based language, and replace them with hope. Generally speaking, hope is not a leadership style in which we are practiced or competent. Although we do not need to become Polyannas, we do however, need to become dealers in hope. As the Dalai Lama replied when asked why he was always happy, “It makes me feel better.”? That’s how inspiring organizations feel for those who work in them and do business with them.

To read more articles like this go to http://www.secretan.com/blog/

About the Author

Dr. Lance Secretan is one of the foremost thinkers about leadership and an innovator in inspiring people and organizations. The former CEO and acclaimed business school professor, Lance Secretan strives to transform companies and revolutionize the way they think about leadership. He is the best-selling author of 14 books on leadership, an award-winning columnist, teacher, corporate coach and mentor, keynote speaker, retreat leader, and business advisor. http://www.secretan.com

All too often, leaders of all fields consider welfare for their subordinates as a “good to have”, a benefit that could be given when the targets are met and the goals achieved. Some even go to the extent of viewing welfare for subordinates as a trade-off with standards, that should too much benefits be given, standards will drop. With such limiting beliefs, it is no wonder that an effective and functional team sometimes seem elusive.

So, is it really possible to achieve standards and ensure welfare at the same time? Of course! First, let us differentiate between welfare and benefits. I view welfare as the basic care and support for each individual for their services to us as their leader and the larger organisation. They are entitled to no less. Benefits on the other hand, would be rewards that are granted to individuals for a job well done, and would be subjected to the performance of the individual.

As can be seen from the above definition, welfare is, in fact, a prerequisite for standards. In other words, welfare has to be present BEFORE our subordinates are willing to follow our leadership to produce standards. Another way to look at the matter is this: People do not willingly follow a leader due to threats or slave driving tactics. Only when they recognise that their leader understands their issues and problems and genuinely has their well being at heart will they follow this person.

By caring for subordinates and placing their well being before your mission, you will find that you are able to inspire them to go beyond their line of duty to contribute, hence increasing productivity. Moreover, they do so happily and of free will and this will only serve to foster teamwork when a group of motivated people come together, focused on a goal. This is especially true in the military. Military leaders will know that regardless of the level of regimentation, a soldier’s fear of death on a battlefield would far outweigh their fear of punishment by their superiors. As such, in order to convince them to risk leaving their loved ones and way of life and step onto the battlefield, a military leader would have to inspire dedication in his soldiers through showing that he understands their difficulty and cares for them.

So, how do we go about setting our subordinate’s welfare at the foundation? To start, remember to always think along the lines of “Are their working conditions ideal?” and ” How more can I aid them to achieve our goals?” Also do regularly take the time and effort to communicate with them to find out some of their concerns and difficulties. The key to this is to be proactive. It is easy to rest on our laurels and assume that no news is good news. However, it is often only after some effort and creativity on our part will we be able to come out with how to better their working environment.

Having said this, it would be wise to be very clear between welfare and benefits. After all, the last thing we want is to start dishing out benefits only to have our subordinates start taking them for granted. Remember that welfare addresses the basic needs of our subordinates and create a conducive environment for them to deliver their best. There’s also an element of solving their existing problem and improving their work life, and not making them happy so that they like you for the benefits you give.

A friend called Lionel who was a junior officer in the army once related this analogy to me: After a day of regimental duties in the rain, many of his troopers were wet and cold. Half an hour before the last parade for the day, a subordinate commander came to him to request to cancel the parade as the troopers all felt rather miserable after enduring the rain. After thinking about it for a while, Lieutenant Lionel decided that the parade should still go on, but he’d allow the troopers to turn up in garrison sandals, PT shirt and shorts.

How does this analogy relate to our topic at hand? First, by allowing his troopers to turn up in garrison sandals, PT shirt and shorts, Lieutenant Lionel shows that he recognises the soldiers had a hard time in the rain and that wearing wet clothes for a long time would result in hygiene issues such as foot rot and rashes. Hence, his actions address valid fundamental hygiene issues of the soldiers and allow them to stay fresh for another day of duties. By insisting on the last parade to be carried out shows that he still fulfills the higher intent of gathering everyone at the end of the day to ascertain that the strength is right and to disseminate information. After all, it would be poor repayment to his troops for enduring the rain if someone was injured by possible lightning but was not discovered as the manpower accounting process was not carried out. Canceling the last parade could also be seen as a benefit and could result in the troops taking that for granted every time there’s a downpour.

Ultimately, caring for our subordinates is our duty to them, just as their service to us and the organisation is their obligation. By providing them with the best care, we can ensure that they are inspired and have the best resources to contribute, resulting in our goals and targets being achieved. So maybe you can start now by communicating with your subordinates about their issues or doing something that would improve their work life?

About the Author

Lucas Lin is a renowned expert in the field of leadership and management. Having held leadership positions ranging from management executive to operations manager, Lucas is in the prime position to offer advice on leadership and consulting services to leaders across the hierarchy as he developed an intimate knowledge of value-based leadership.

Visit Lucas Lin for Timeless Leadership Lessons at http://leadership-lessons.com

Becoming a leader is not as difficult as it might sound. There are ways in which you can start to establish your position as a leader – let us look at five simple suggestions that will help you become a leader in online business.

1. A basic requirement when it comes to positioning yourself as a leader is your own positive attitude. Your confidence and faith in yourself will be reflected in your actions, and your belief that you are the best will convince others, too.

2. Knowledge is a crucial part of successful leadership. Learn as much as you can – there are plenty of resources online that you can use to keep up to date with the latest trends in network marketing and the best ways to increase business volumes. You will find books, articles and blogs that offer interesting insights into online business, and can join forums where matters of interest and relevance are discussed.

3. You can also improve your chances of gaining a leadership position by writing articles yourself, thus increasing awareness of your particular online business opportunity so that interest is generated in it. Make sure your articles are search engine optimized so that those who search for information on online business can access your articles easily. And don’t forget to include a link to your website so that prospective customers and potential recruits know where to go when they want to start their own online business.

4. Another good way to position yourself as a leader is to mentor an associate. If you can help someone overcome a business problem, or successfully cross a hurdle, others who need help will approach you too. So get testimonials that speak of your helpfulness and expertise and make sure your prospects get to read these.

5. When you prove to the world that you have what it takes to be a leader in online business, people are likely to follow you. Thus, establishing yourself as a leader will result in more prospects being drawn towards your network as people hope to emulate your success by hitching their wagon to yours.

About the Author

Rick Schiffner is a business coach and mentor that assists serious entrepreneurs in building a profitable online business with multiple incomes streams. Rick and his team have assisted hundreds of people in generating profits that exceed $250K or more in their first year. For more information and to contact Rick, visit: http://www.tenthousandaday.com

About the Author

I spent twenty years building and running a million dollar water feature business and am an accomplished steel sculptor. Now i help other people achieve prosperity and create the lifestyle they so richly deserve. http://www.mygainforyou.com

by Michael D. Hume, M.S.

I love my Life today. Because I own my own business, and can work when and where I want, I am able to jump in the car and roll down to Oklahoma to spend a few days with my 94-year-old Granny. And I’m reminded that inspiration is all around me, every day, if I’ll only open my eyes and look for it.

Granny herself is an amazing inspiration. I guess you can be inspired by anyone who makes it to 94, but Granny did it over some harsh adversity and still has all her marbles. And I’m related to her! That inspires me, big-time… I might just make it to 94 with all my marbles, too, and that is a goal worth striving for!

The drive down to see her is always inspiring, too. Today it’s a bright, sunny day, and my route takes me through some pretty country where small-town Americans are out on their farm equipment (and even on their horses), working their own American dreams – driven to varying degrees by their own inspirations.

Even the natural scenery is inspiring. Look on a map, and you might not think the route looks all that exciting – and I’ll admit it’s not the same as driving through the mountains, or through the canyon country a little farther west. But I know something you probably don’t: there’s some modest but beautiful canyon country between La Junta and Kim, Colorado that few motorists get to enjoy. And the rolling hills and wide-open spaces of southern Colorado, the panhandles of Oklahoma and Texas, and western Oklahoma are both serene and inspiring at once.

My trip today is a journey of a little more than 500 miles. Most people would hop on an airplane… and I don’t blame them. Long-distance driving isn’t for everyone. But I love it. It inspires me. And even if I were flying, I’d choose a window seat, because there are few things as inspiring as the view of ANY place on Planet Earth from 30,000 feet.

I probably have some crucial conversations coming up at some point today with folks I’m coaching… a couple of them are struggling to find their way, as leaders, or even as people. They want to inspire others, but in some cases, they lack inspiration themselves. I’ll tell them that in all cases, inspirational leaders are inspired people. You can be told what to do by anyone who wears a suit or has the word “manager” on her nameplate… but you can only be inspired by an inspired person.

So work to spot the inspirations, great and small, in your own life. They’re all around you. And here’s another thing I’ll tell my clients, and you: I believe your Life wants to be inspired. You are meant to be excited, happy, and full of the joy of your life. So don’t just focus on the miles you have to go; rejoice in the miles behind you, and enjoy the moment you’re in.

As you read this, I’m likely approaching another little farming town. I’ll be seeking inspiration from it. And if I blink, I’ll miss it.

About the Author

Michael Hume is a speaker, writer, and consultant specializing in helping people enjoy health, wealth, and inspiring lives. Those who want to make money “one less thing to worry about” can learn more at http://tinyurl.com/myownbiznow – anyone wanting more vitality can browse http://shop.enivausa.com/239824 – visit Michael’s web site at http://michaelhume.net

https://m171.infusionsoft.com/go/gms/kathy/

To your future,

Cally Rao

About the Author

Cally Rao had been a Manufacturing Manager in a F 500 Company, is currently a college instructor and a marketer.She also blogs at http://www.jacobsvalley.blogspot.com

by Michael D. Hume, M.S.

I used to have four kids, but they all grew up. Some have kids of their own, some own businesses; all of them are smart, accomplished people. And at least twice a year, I make a point of asking at least one of them for his or her feedback. I seek my kid’s advice… and I take it. I act on their recommendations.

There are at least three good reasons to do this, and why leaders who seek to inspire their teams should consider asking their subordinates for feedback… even advice.

I ask for my kid’s advice because it’s good for me. As smart adults who know me well, and who have a chance to observe me in action, my offspring are in a position to see things in my performance and behavior that I can’t see myself. And since they care about me, they’re in a position to give their feedback in a way that I can truly hear it. When that happens, if I listen, I become a better person. I grow in ways I could not have grown if left to my own self-counsel. And I make myself learn sneaky lessons I wouldn’t otherwise want to seek out. Chiefly, I learn (or remind myself) what it’s like to do what my coaching clients do: put myself in the hands of a coach, and take heed to feedback. It can be humbling, but it’s never humiliating. I need to remind myself, at least every now and then, that I don’t have all the answers.

Advising me is also good for my kids. It makes them learn what I have to keep learning and practicing as an executive coach: to observe with objective perspective, to analyze what I’ve observed rationally, and to deliver my “truth to power” messages with care and empathy. As a father, of course, these are great lessons I want my kids to learn; that’s why it was even more important for me to be consistent about asking their advice when the kids were forming themselves as both individuals and as leaders. Ask them, and they’ll tell you they were advising me on everything from my career to my relationships when they were teenagers. They’ve seen me succeed with their advice, and on rare occasions they’ve even seen me fail with it. It’s helped them become better leaders, and better participants in the leadership development of others.

So it’s good for both of us, advisor and advised. But I’ve found it’s also good for the relationship, and for the general leadership of the family. I am not the only “leader” in our family – indeed, our policy is that everyone’s pretty-much in charge of his or her own life, especially now that the kids are grown – but as one of the first grown-ups these people ever met I certainly have played a key leadership role in their lives. It was (and continues to be) a role I take seriously, and one in which I knew I had the opportunity to go far beyond the “permanent babysitting” methodologies I’ve seen other parents implement, to a position of great trust. I saw myself as teacher, coach, counselor… primary mentor to great future adults, long before I ever started doing the same work for strangers and for money. And by making advisors of my kids at an early age, and by their willingness and ability to take on the challenge of being a coach to their dad from time to time, I believe we’ve all helped create a stronger family of leaders.

As a parent, I strongly recommend that you do the same thing with your kids when they start hitting The Terrible Teens. Making them problem-solvers tends to give them something more productive to think about than how to be problem teenagers. Don’t take every little problem to your kids – that trivializes their help. Don’t put the burden of the biggest life decisions on them, either – that can overchallenge even the best coaches. And don’t ask them to advise you on disciplining themselves, or each other! That can be very destructive to the family, and you are supposed to be the grown-up and have a plan for that stuff. Have the humility to ask for advice on YOUR life, and on what YOU should do. Pick the right topics, and make sure you’re willing to follow-through with whatever they advise you to do. If you do it right, it strengthens you, it strengthens them, and it strengthens your family.

And as a leader and coach, I highly recommend you seek feedback and advice from your team members. Whether you own your own business or run a business unit for someone else, these days you need to be as inspirational a leader as you can be. And making coaches of your people tends to inspire the best in everybody on the team, and quite often, it goes beyond your team to inspire all the stakeholders in the greater sphere of your leadership influence.

About the Author

Michael Hume is a speaker, writer, and consultant specializing in helping people enjoy health, wealth, and inspiring lives. Those who want to make money “one less thing to worry about” can learn more at http://oneyearplan.net/michaeldhume – anyone wanting more vitality can browse http://shop.enivausa.com/239824 – visit Michael’s web site at http://michaelhume.net

I`m not a psychologist, so I can`t comment on why people spend time planning, designing, paying for and dressing as if they are someone else. However, whether it`s for escapism, fun or some other reason, donning a costume on October 31 is something people understand and expect.

But the rest of the year, people don`t expect a costume, they want the real you.

In my work with leaders, I find that far too often many leaders are wearing costumes more often than on Halloween.

What do I mean?

Leaders want to feel more confident, so they hide behind a superhero costume hoping to be seen as powerful.

Leaders want to be successful so they emulate a leader they admire sometimes going so far as to copycat a costume, rather than learning from mentors and integrating those lessons into their own style.

Leaders want to be liked, so they wear costumes that attract attention and help people like them.

These are just a few examples – the causes and types of costumes are wide-ranging and very prevalent.

Sometimes these costumes are worn consciously, but far more often it is more subtle and less obvious to the leader/wearer and yet very obvious to the follower/observer.

The problem isn`t necessarily the goal – to be more confident, for example – but that the intention is lost in the costume. Rather than helping leaders get their desired result, the perceptions of those seeing the costume are reduced belief, credibility and trust.

As a leader if you want to build genuine relationships and create real organizational results, you must take off the costume, remove the mask or the makeup and be real.

Today, rather than giving you solutions or a list of ways to remove the costume (perhaps that is for another day), I will challenge you with some questions that must come first. Read these questions slowly, and take some time reflecting on them. If you don`t like your answers, your next step is to put the costume away.

What costumes do you wear?

What benefits do you gain from wearing those costumes?

When or in what roles do you wear them?

Are you gaining the desired benefit from wearing them?

I could go on, but I leave it with just these four. Please take these questions seriously. They may take some time to understand – however, it is time and thought worth investing.

Your answers will help you understand at least one reason why the results you are getting as a leader aren`t the ones you are hoping for.

Enjoy Halloween – just remember to take off your costume when the party is over.

About the Author

The best leaders recognize that leadership is a complex web of skills and because of the complexity they sometimes need help in creating the needed clarity. Leaders from around the world have decided to continue their personal and professional development and discover that clarity using the Remarkable Leadership Learning System – a one skill at a time, one month at a time approach to becoming a more confident and successful leader. This system allows you to learn without travel and with materials available whenever and wherever it works best for you. Get more than $748.25 worth of leadership development materials including two complimentary months of that unique system today as part of Kevin Eikenberry’s Most Remarkable Free Leadership Gift Ever at http://MostRemarkableFreeLeadershipGiftEver.com.
Kevin is a bestselling author, speaker, trainer, consultant and the Chief Potential Officer of the Kevin Eikenberry Group (http://www.KevinEikenberry.com).

The soaring popularity of store units is due to the various reasons. Some of them are:

* They are an affordable solution to increasing storing needs.

* They are safe and offer various facilities to the customers.

* The cost of real estate is high and people prefer smaller homes. In such situations storehouses come handy.

With the rising demand of store units, many people have started the business of warehouse. The competition in this field is tough and the customers are making most of it by getting cheap store units or additional facilities that are free of cost. Self-storage has undergone major makeover in the past few years. These are no longer just buildings with several store units. Nowadays, you would find several self storage units providers offering loads of facilities to woo their customers.

One of such facilities is a special climate-controlled unit for the storage of delicate items that cannot withstand high variations of the temperature and humidity like electronics, books, and wines. Packing and storing supplies are also available at the self storage to facilitate the customers in keeping their goods at the store unit. There are moving carts and lifts to carry items from one place to another. Some self storage unit providers have collapsible store units, which can be adjusted according to the size requirements of the customers. These are very cost effective for the customers as they have to pay only for the area they require for storing. Some self storage unit providers also have moving services so that the customers do not have to undergo the hassle of hiring the movers for shifting items to the store unit.

The security arrangements at the warehouse too have undergone tremendous changes. Traditional warehouses used to just employ security guards at the storing premises for ensuring the safety of the goods. But today, the warehouses use different kinds of security arrangements like CCTV cameras, theft alarms, biometrics entry system, swipe card entry system, and electrical fencing to safeguard their warehouse premises. Since the customers can secure the unit with their own key and lock, they can enjoy peace of mind.

In short, self storage is a boon for the large number of people who do not have sufficient storing space.

About the Author

Finding the best self storage unit providers is not a tough task, by visiting Self Storage you can find the facilities that fits in your requirements.

When I talk to business owners, I often ask them how they got into their business. More times than not, they tell me they got there almost by accident. It wasn’t because they spent time finding their ideal market or knew there would be great growth opportunities … moreover, it was because they had a talent or ability – and a customer! For years, they would work tirelessly to make the business into what they “thought” they wanted. Then one day they wake up and realize this is not the business they envisioned – at least not anymore.

Many business people often find themselves in this position. It might take a year, five years, or even 10 years, but at some point every business owner needs to take a step back and ask some fundamental questions:

1.How much longer will enjoy doing what I have been doing?
2.Will I be able to reach my financial goals if I keep doing things the way I’ve been doing them?
3.Have I chased opportunities at the expense of what I’m passionate about?
4.Have I chased opportunities that have created a company that is more complicated than it needs to be or is competing in too many different markets?
5.What do we need to do to be more successful? Is there a short list that we can work from?
6.What is going on in the marketplace that could make it impossible for me to keep doing what I’ve been doing?

Answering these questions is the basis of Strategic Planning. Strategic Planning is the process that a company goes through to make conscious decisions about what they are good at, who they serve and how they will make money doing that for those people. Once those answers are clear, then the process continues by making decisions about how the company handles resources (money, management time and attention, etc.) in order to create the type of business being envisioned.

As you can see, these ideas are pretty significant. It’s difficult to think like this while the worries and troubles of the day are right in front of our faces. Therefore, this style of strategic planning is usually done in an off-site meeting or retreat.

Perhaps an example would help. One of the companies with which I worked early in my business was a newsletter publisher. They published an expensive newsletter to a very niche audience, and they had built it up to the point where there were three to four people making a living doing so. But the newsletter was hard to scale, and they were getting feedback from customers stating they needed help implementing the ideas that the company was giving them in the newsletter. Further, the partners were increasingly at odds with each other. There was no clear reason why, but things that had been fun and collegial were no longer either.

Different options were discussed at length. They could continue with the newsletter and add consulting services; they could create products or workshops that the clients could use to make better use of the information. Through this process, one of the partners realized that he had no passion or interest in leading a consulting business. He was looking for something more scalable and less people-intensive. The other partner loved the idea of growing the consulting business and selling much larger engagements than were possible with just the newsletter. They ended up parting ways, with one partner continuing on with the consulting business, happy with his choice; and the other leaving to start a software business, happy with his choice. The partner who stayed began hiring new people and offering different choices to his customer base, eventually moving the business toward larger engagements which, in turn, began de-emphasizing the newsletter. As a result, he was able to grow the business, stay in a field he is passionate about and reach his financial goals.

These changes never would have come about if the partners had just kept on doing more of what they had done in the past. It just wouldn’t have been possible.

The best strategic planning sessions start with introspection – what we do well along with what we do poorly, and where our best opportunities lie. A simple SWOT analysis does a good job of this, but then we have to spend some time looking outside our business at what is happening with our customers and competitors. We also need to pull all of it together into clear statements of where we need to go and what we need to do in order to get there. This is where an outside facilitator becomes essential. It is important to have an independent voice who is completely neutral and not tied emotionally or politically to any one perspective or idea. This person can help you sort through the alternatives and achieve clarity within this quagmire.

So plan a date, get yourself an outside facilitator, and start re-inventing your business. You will be shocked at how much the clarity and perspective renews your energy and enthusiasm for you and your team!

About the Author

This article was written for people that need help with chicago small business services and was written by a chicago small business coach. Please send me an email if you need some chicago small business coaching