What Leadership Is In Times Of Change With Gary Hernbroth

Few business owners predicted the challenges companies face today. In times of crisis and change, no playbook will be able to overcome every new disruption. Leaders have to steer the ships of their companies and navigate challenging waters. According to Gary Hernbroth, ‘A rising tide lifts all boats only if the boat is water-worthy’. Today, we will learn the fundamentals of what leadership is and how they can keep a company afloat.

In this episode, I have an insightful conversation with the speaker and business trainer Gary Hernbroth about what leadership is in this reawakening economy. He shares what makes a good leader during a crisis and leaves takeaways on successfully leading teams and managing processes. His motivational approach and valuable insights will shed new light on staying at the forefront as a leader despite the challenges in business operations today.

Tune in to this episode to discover what leadership is and step up your leadership game.

Here are three reasons why you should listen to the full episode:

Discover five takeaways you can immediately enact for leading teams and managing processes.
Find out how to be a strong leader in times of crisis.
Learn the importance of training people as a business leader or owner.

LISTEN NOW:

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WATCH NOW (and check out the Resources and Episode Highlights below):

Resources

Download the workbook and jot down relevant notes as you listen to/watch the show
Influence real change with your message and build a scalable business you love with Influence Alliance. Visit their website and listen to their free podcast series.
Calling All Leaders: It’s Time To Shine! by Gary Hernbroth – an article about Gary's shifting sand leadership.
Connect with Gary: Website | Twitter | LinkedIn | Email

Episode Highlights

[3:16] The Essence Of What Leadership Is

Gary compares the onslaught of COVID-19 to a meteor hitting the Earth.
No one foresaw the sudden changes COVID brought to the business environment.
Like a firefighter, you must put out the fire immediately with firefighting skills. But you must not just react to putting out fires.
These challenging times call for flexibility and a forward-thinking mindset. Good leadership entails proactive leading, thinking, and planning.
Gary came up with five leadership keys for an evolving picture.

[7:11] Takeaway #1: Communicate The Mission Clearly

Strong and clear communication allows the whole team to understand the mission.
Good communication is the root of success.
To know what leadership is, don’t look at titles or ranks. Look at the way an organisation operates.
You don’t need to go to a leadership school to be a good leader. Gary believes that leadership is in someone’s DNA.
Make sure that you communicate effectively. There’s no guarantee that everyone understands immediately.

[9:25] Takeaway #2: Set Priorities

You have to prioritise because you can’t do everything all at once.
Not knowing your priorities can be counterproductive. Use your time wisely.
The leader must set the rules of engagement for the team to know their priorities.

[11:00] Takeaway #3: Gather Your Necessary Resources

A good leader is responsible for three things: the ways, the means, and the end.
It is essential to know what resources you need to enact the means to your goal.
Time is a resource — the number one resource a leader can manage.
Managing time as a resource can help you be on top of things.

[13:36] Takeaway #4: Show Confidence And Courage

Allowing mistakes to happen is also a way to show confidence and courage.
A good leader allows mistakes to happen because it shows that the person is trying. After this, the leader must step up to redirect the person and give them chances to practise again to fix it.
When making tough decisions, remember that you don't have to please everybody. A good leader also admits their ego.
Listen to the full episode for Gary's insights and stories on how we are all salespeople.

[17:04] Takeaway #5: Be Consistent

Every leader has a peanut gallery.
Not everyone may agree with you, but always remember to stick to your principles as a leader.
A consistent leader holds people accountable.
Gary also advises taking the good things being done before COVID-19 and applying them in the present too. COVID-19 may have changed a lot of things, but it didn’t change everything.

[20:50] The Importance Of Communication and Maturity

Effective communication requires emotional maturity.
It’s easier when you’re not the leader. You may not like everything a leader says, but being mature about it is the way to go.
Maturity also means understanding where the leader or a person is coming from and what they stand for.
Leaders make tough calls; you need to be mature enough to understand them.

[22:30] Shifting Sand Leadership

Shifting sand is a good metaphor for what leadership is in practice.
When a wave passes, the sand shifts away from your feet and toes, and you’re no longer on solid ground.
As a leader, you have to learn to adapt to these shifts, especially during your dark days.
A leader must have grit. They need to have the fundamentals of leadership to utilise the strengths of the team.
Check out this article to learn more about shifting sand leadership.

[25:09] Core Principles As A Small-Business Owner

Make everyone in your organisation a salesperson. They should have the mindset of giving the customers what the customers need or want. Your true north is about keeping and getting customers.
Your two primary missions are customer acquisition and retention.
Break down silos in the team. Silos lead to a lack of communication and productivity.
Ask yourself, ‘How have I helped my customers, my team or organisation, and myself move forward in some little way today?’
Leaders have to build the atmosphere of people wanting to strive and move forward. It is better to be proactive rather than reactive.

[30:45] What Leadership Is During Worker Shortage

A lot of organisations are experiencing worker shortages and other changes due to the pandemic. A shortage is not an excuse for bad service or uncaring employees.
It is critical to figure out how to do more with fewer hands on deck.
Business owners can address labour shortages through training, coaching, and upskilling of workers. In short, invest in your people.
It is essential to keep everyone in the team engaged and well-trained as you navigate through the changes.
Tune in to the full episode to hear analogies and examples of dealing with a worker shortage!

[36:42] Answering Customer Questions

Employees not knowing how to answer questions frustrates Gary.
People are tired of hearing COVID-19 being used as an excuse for inefficient, subpar service.
When customers are treated nicely with a reasonable explanation of a shortage or a time delay, they will usually understand. Sincerity will go a long way in building good customer relations.
You can't get full price for goods and services and give customers less than full delivery — this only reinforces bad behaviour.
If something does not work for the goal of attaining and acquiring customers, then it's not a priority.

10 Powerful Quotes

‘What gets measured gets done, and what gets understood gets done quicker and better.’

‘Every minute you spend with a customer is a minute that your competition isn't.’

‘Let's manage our resources properly, and one of them has got to be time. Because you can be on top of a lot of things but if you let time slip, [it] doesn't matter.’

‘A good leader always allows mistakes to happen because, to me, I would go back to my coaching days, it always told me that the kid was trying, right?’

’Admit your own ego, and go, ‘Okay.' But you're still, even when you make tough decisions, to show that courage and confidence.’

‘Your two key missions [are], and leaders out there, please get this, the acquisition and retention of customers, and everything else falls after that.’

‘It's one thing to say we don't have enough bodies. But it's another thing to say we don't have bodies that are engaged, interested, talented, or trained.’

‘Is it better to have maybe a few less people but be more selective with better people that will then cross-train others and pick up the speed and elevate the group?’

‘A rising tide lifts all boats only if the boat is water-worthy, only if the boat doesn't have holes in it, only if the boat can be buoyant.’

‘[People] model what is modelled to them, and if nothing is modelled to them and shown how to do a good job, they will fill in their own narrative.’

‘You've got to coach. You've got to train. You've got to upskill.’

About the Guest

Gary Hernbroth is an in-demand inspiring and transformative professional speaker, business trainer, and coach. Many call him an organisation strength and conditioning coach.

He is known for his straightforward pull-no-punches approach to helping organisations, teams and individuals kick up the game in the area of sales, leadership, customer care, personal branding and teamwork. Over the years, he has inspired many of his audiences to achieve greater success through his customised programs.

To know more about Gary’s work, you may visit his website. You may also reach him through email and follow him on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

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To staying ambitious,

Annemarie