Over the years, I’ve talked with thousands of people about servant leadership. Every so often somebody will come up to me after a speech and say to me, “You know, Ken, the style of leadership you just talked about is exactly the way I’ve been leading people for years—I just didn’t know there was a…
“A servant leadership mindset is all about focusing on others rather than yourself,” says bestselling business author Ken Blanchard. As part of research for a new book, Servant Leadership in Action, Blanchard had an opportunity to explore both the mindset and the skill set needed for leaders interested in adopting an others-focused approach to leadership.…
With so much emphasis on setting goals at the beginning of the New Year, why do so many people end up off track by the middle of March? Ken Blanchard discovered the reason early in his career after the release of his all-time best-selling business book with Spencer Johnson, The One Minute Manager®. In working…
The Ken Blanchard Companies just closed out a research survey with over 500 people in management roles to ask them about their experiences when they first stepped up into management. The company will be sharing the results of the research as a part of the rollout of its new First-time Manager program, but some of the initial…
When The Ken Blanchard Companies asked 1,400 people the question “What is the biggest mistake leaders make when working with others?” 41 percent of respondents identified inappropriate communication or poor listening. When these same respondents were asked to look at a list of common mistakes and choose the five biggest missteps by leaders, two responses…
In a webinar on first-time management last week, we asked the 900+ people in attendance to share their biggest challenge as a first-time manager. It was open ended so people could type in whatever came to mind. The chat box was soon bursting with 146 responses. I’ll summarize the major buckets as I saw them,…
As a part of the research into the release of our new First-time Manager program, we have asked people to fill out a survey about their experience as a first time manager. We ask what they wish they had known before they started, what surprised them about their new role, and what mistakes they made.…
Leadership expert Scott Blanchard, co-author of The Ken Blanchard Companies’ new First-time Manager learning program, says new managers sometimes approach their first assignment with the same energy new parents have with their first child—a tendency to overreact. “As a first-time manager, you want to make a good first impression by demonstrating confidence and capability in…
Giving performance feedback is a critical job responsibility of any manager, but it can be a daunting task for many people—especially when the feedback is less than positive. Managers don’t want to generate negative emotions, damage relationships, or make a bad situation worse. As a result, managers often delay or avoid giving necessary feedback, allowing…
Today is the official release date for The New One Minute Manager by Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson. It brings me back to the day I learned about the original The One Minute Manager. Like so many people, I was introduced to the book by someone who loved it—a client who had stumbled upon it…