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LEADERSHIP THE BARACK OBAMA WAY ABOUT THE AUTHOR Dr. Shel Leanne is President of Regent Crest, a leadership development ﬁrm whose clients hail from Fortune 100 companies located across the world. Dr. Leanne gives talks and conducts workshops focusing on leadership best practices at companies, conferences, and nonproﬁt organizations. Prior to launching her company, Dr. Leanne worked for McKinsey & Company and for Morgan Stanley in New York and London. She then served as a full faculty member at Harvard University from 1997-2001. Educated at Harvard (B.A.) and Oxford (master’s and doctoral degrees), Dr. Leanne’s work has been cited or published in Newsweek, The Wall Street Journal, and Businessweek.com. She is the author of Say It Like Obama and Win!, and How to Interview Like a Top MBA. Dr. Leanne can be contacted at www.drshelworkshop.com. LEADERSHIP THE BARACK OBAMA WAY LESSONS ON TEAMBUILDING AND CREATING A WINNING CULTURE IN CHALLENGING TIMES SHELLY LEANNE NewYork Chicago San Francisco Lisbon London Madrid Mexico City Milan New Delhi San Juan Seoul Singapore Sydney Toronto Copyright © 2010 by Regent Crest, Inc. All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the United States Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher. ISBN: 978-0-07-166809-5 MHID: 0-07-166809-8 The material in this eBook also appears in the print version of this title: ISBN: 978-0-07-166402-8, MHID: 0-07-166402-5. All trademarks are trademarks of their respective owners. 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C O N T E N T S ACKNOWLEDGMENTS xi INTRODUCTION xv PART I LAY A FOUNDATION FOR OUTSTANDING LEADERSHIP CHAPTER 1 FIRST, WINTRUST AND CONFIDENCE 3 Recognize the Power of Early Impressions 5 Create a Strong First Impression Through Image and Body Language 9 Gather the Right Props Around You 12 Form Outstanding Second Impressions Through Voice and Intonation 14 Benefit from Third Impressions: Strong Starts, Ethics, and Preparedness 18 v vi CONTENTS CHAPTER 2 COMMUNICATE YOUR VISION EFFECTIVELY 29 Steer Attention to Common Ground 31 Recognize Others Must “See” to Believe: Words That Resonate 45 Help People “See”: Use Words That Paint a Picture 54 Acknowledge the Terrain 58 Demonstrate Your Logic 60 Elicit a Nod: Skillful Persuasion 63 PART II FORM A WINNINGTEAM CHAPTER 3 LEVERAGE A STRONG REPUTATION 71 Understand the Importance of Teflon 73 Convey Strong Ethics 74 Be a Straight Shooter 76 Offer an Open Ear, Wield a Fair Hand 78 BeTrue to Your Word, Build a Consistent Record 80 Give Loyalty Its Due Place 82 Remain Humble 83 Stay Above the Fray 84 Display Strength 86 Demonstrate Superior Preparedness 87 Remain Cool Under Fire 88 CONTENTS vii CHAPTER 4 MAKE FRIENDS IN UNUSUAL PLACES 93 Employ a Power Analysis: The Pragmatic Side of Friends 97 Go Where Friends Are 99 Never Limit Yourself to Expected Allies 101 Employ a Win-Win, “Both–And” Mindset 104 Meet on Common Ground 105 Speak in Understandable Ways 111 Keep an Eye to the Future 112 Show Respect for Your Potential Friends 112 Recognize a Picture Says a Thousand Words 115 Leverage Friends, Expand Your Network 117 Hold No Grudges 118 CHAPTER 5 BUILD AND LEAD A WINNINGTEAM 123 Pay Attention to Style and Team Culture 125 Identify Key Priorities 129 Determine the Ideal Skills Mix 130 Staff for Excellence: Target the Best, Value Experience 131 Promote Smoother Sailing with Culture and Values 133 When All Else Is Equal, Send a Message 135 Benefit from Mighty Brainstorming (cid:1) (Innovation and Your “Team of Rivals”) 137 Empower the Leads, Make Roles and Responsibilities Clear 138 viii CONTENTS CHAPTER 6 MOVE BEYOND “HIGH PERFORMANCE” TO “ALL HANDS” 141 Understand Key Elements of an All-Hands Culture 143 Promote Culture Through Customs and Practices, Big and Small 146 Provide Affirmation 147 Match Skills and Interests, Make Differences a Strength 148 Reward Excellence 150 Train Well 151 Keep the “Community Thing” Going 155 Usher Abrasives Out 156 Manage Expectations 158 Rally the Troops 161 CHAPTER 7 USE DIVERSITY AS A SOURCE OF STRENGTH 163 Recognize the Array of Diversity 166 Embrace Diversity’s Benefits—Expanded Networks andInnovation 167 Capitalize Where Values, Talents, and Diversity Coincide 169 Draw Talent from Fruitful Sources 171 Invest in the Future: Remember Those Lower Echelons 173 Build Bridges on Common Ground 175 CONTENTS ix PART III ENABLE THETEAM, SOLIDIFY A WINNING CULTURE CHAPTER 8 MAKETECHNOLOGY YOUR FRIEND 179 What’s in a Blackberry? Recognizing Technology’s Game-Changing Potential 181 Choose Partners Excellently (cid:1)(cid:1)185 IdentifyTargetGroup Habits 187 Capitalize on Habits: Channels and Tools 189 Employ Two-Way Technology 190 Build Relationships:Technology and “Customer Relations Management” 191 Keep an Eye on the End Goal: Online-to-Offline 193 Make Masterful Use of Specifics 196 EnhanceInternal Capabilities: Morale, Culture, and Management Processes 197 Leverage Lessons in Future Work 199 CHAPTER 9 MOTIVATE YOURTARGET GROUPS, ORGANIZE TO SUCCEED 203 Recognize the Potential of the Next Generation and Other TargetGroups 207 Avoid the Twin Follies of Neglect 210 Empower Highly Appealing Leaders, Place Leaders Well 212