No negative people allowed

No negative people allowed. Period. While you can’t control others (and you shouldn’t try to do that anyway) you should be in complete control of how they impact and influence you, your emotions, feelings, behavior and life in general. Negative people should have zero influence over how you feel, think or perform. They have lost already and as such their …

Lead by example

Dear leaders, you must lead by example and as such you should never ask anyone on your teams to do things you haven’t done in the past or anything you wouldn’t do today. While you may not be as good as others on your team in a particular area (out of practice), it is essential to demonstrate your willingness to …

Listen to your customers

Listen to your customers as they are among the greatest sources of information in order to continue to improve, expand and grow. On this improvement and growth process, listen to what folks are saying and engage with them across all avenues, in particular across social media. This focus on customer service and proactive approach is what distinguishes you from others. …

Trust people, empower them and delegate

Trust is the first major prerequisite to teamwork, progress and accomplishments. Without trust, other much needed capabilities can’t be build or utilized to their full extent. While trust is earned by many, I begin trusting people and believing in them and their abilities at first. However, once that trust is lost, it is nearly impossible for it to be regained.

Leadership is not a popularity contest

Leadership is not a popularity contest. Privileges of leadership come with responsibilities to make decisions that positively impact the lives of the majority and the firm as a whole. It is very rare that you will be able to make decisions that will be well received by everyone, by 100% of the people impacted by that decision. With that in …

Social media etiquette

Etiquette in social media is as important as it is in other aspects of life. Unfortunately, this isn’t the case for quite a few people which act as if the keyboard absolves and separates them from reality, courtesy, professionalism and kindness. Speaking to people on social media shouldn’t differ from how you speak with people in person. Having this digital …