Category: Entrepreneurs

Revisiting Leadership

Paul Wagenaar

Effective leadership is not easy. An effective leader is always learning, always reinventing themselves, and always adapting their skills and approach to the current environment. To be successful, effective leaders cannot be entrenched they must constantly look at different perspectives and be aware of their blind spots.

Effective leaders never forget that leadership isn’t about them, it is about the people they lead. They are facilitators, they empower, and they are whatever the situation, their organization, and most importantly what their people need them to be.

10 Warning Signs Your Meetings are in Trouble.

Paul Wagenaar

We have all experienced them.
The kind of meeting where the clock, if it seems to move at all crawls at a glacial pace. Far from being productive, the attendees have long since stopped paying attention and only want to find an escape so they can get some real work done.

Ineffective meetings frustrate everyone, the people attending them and the people running them.

The first step to resolution is to recognize the warning signs and then start today rectifying the situation.

Culture and Teamwork

Paul Wagenaar

More than ever, I appreciate how an organization uses its culture to develop ideas and concepts through its people.

Systems and processes are important but how an organization collaborates with its people is what really sets it apart. It doesn’t matter whether your organization is small or large, these tools can help everyone.

New Job Anxiety and Tools Everyone Can Use

Paul Wagenaar

Recently I started a new job. The job and people are excellent but I found myself trying too hard and doubting my skills. This anxiety is common and can easily overwhelm a new person in any organization. I recalled the lessons I had learned from my mentors, applied them to my own situation, and sought to share them as well. Please feel free to add your own suggestions and share this post.

Rigidity – People & Organizations

Paul Wagenaar

Rigidity usually happens slowly and without most people noticing.
If we do notice it, we usually only see it in other organizations and in other people. Most people do not even realize it is happening to them, many will deny it, but those who do are only fooling themselves.

The rigidity of thinking and action can stifle growth, success, and happiness, and even threaten survival.

August might seem like a funny time to look for a summer job, but …

Paul Wagenaar

August/September is a good time to look for a summer job. Any time is a good time to remember the skills, attitudes, and behaviors that make any job good for workers and employers. Hiring students is good for businesses and for charities and non-profit organizations.

Be Better.

Paul Wagenaar

I notice skills, attitudes, and behavior. I help people find ways to help them achieve their goals. There are almost as many ways to accomplish this as there are people.

I have listened to, adapted, and distilled some of the very best ideas from people I have met from both the “for-profit” and the “not-for-profit” worlds. They can help make you better, more productive, and help you achieve your personal and work goals.

Anyone can be caught by their ego and silos

Paul Wagenaar

Working effectively with people is fundamental to any success you will achieve. You are learning to recognize and give people around you permission to reign in your ego. Be constantly vigilant to prevent walls and silos from being built around you. Finally, appreciate that you will succeed faster and longer by realizing that you make mistakes.

Working in the Weeds – Front liners

Paul Wagenaar

In my experience and observation the organization that causes the most stress and anxiety for its people and leaders … is usually their organization.

We have a responsibility to recognize, appreciate and acknowledge, and most importantly to help alleviate that stress for our people.
The closer people are to your “front-lines,” the more people “working in the weeds,” the more stress and anxiety they likely feel.

Some stress is good, too much is never good …

Paul Wagenaar

Is your daily focus simply on “surviving” each day? What follows are some simple ideas that can help you have your life again, achieve a better work/life balance, and “grow” your business or organization.

These are not my ideas, these are lessons learned from some of the best leaders and entrepreneurs I have met in more than thirty years in the “for-profit” and “charitable” sectors.