Dr. Earl R. Smith II

There are lots of discussions about what makes a good leader. Many focus on character issues like integrity, honesty, openness or charisma. Others talk about skill sets like communication, literacy, technical capabilities or understanding of finance.

The last decade has seen a major shift in attitude towards executive coaching. Ten years ago the most likely engagement would have been with a client who was having serious problems. Organizations tended to hire executive coaches when one or more of their people was either having or causing serious problems.

Dr. Earl R. Smith II
Managing Partner, The Federal Circle
DrSmith@Dr-Smith.com
Dr-Smith.com

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The Perfectionist: During a recent coaching engagement, I came to realize that a CEO I was working with had a tendency to accentuate the negative. She was heavily committed to building her first successful business – driven to the point of almost maniacal focus on correcting the mistakes of her team. Her behavior was corroding the enthusiasm of her team. I decided to arrange a one-on-one session focused on her management style. Read the rest of this entry »

I described two approaches to leadership. They were based on two recent conversations with ‘leaders’. Out of those conversations came two different approaches to answering the question ‘what makes you a leader’.

Given all the articles, book, lectures and discussions about leadership, you might hope that CEOs – particularly young ones – might have some idea about what it means to be a leader and, more particularly, what it means for them to be a leader.

Leaders are supposed to have a vision that will guide the team towards victory – at least that is what is taught in the post-Fordist focused classes in most MBA programs. This is particularly true in the entrepreneurial parts of those curriculum.

My leadership coaching engagements tend to focus initially on the habits and leadership style of the client. A first stop on this journey is often the way in which they gather and process information about their team members.

A successful manager is the one who is able to get the strongest performance from his team. Most high-performance managers have employed an executive coach during their rise to the top.

It is the dream of many executives in this world to become a great leader. Some are born leaders while others develop leadership qualities thorough perseverance and diligent work.

Leadership coaching can help you to improve your leadership and personal growth dramatically. You can enhance your professional and personal relationships with the help of an efficient leadership coach. You can gain confidence and increase productivity.