February 13, 2024 • 11 mins
Ever wondered how leadership transcends mere management to truly inspire greatness? Join me as I reveal the transformative principles that can elevate not just your team's performance, but your very approach to leadership. Drawing from my own experiences in the Army, this episode promises to arm you with a mindset that not only lights a fire in others but also sparks the development of future leaders within your team.
Last week, we gleaned incredible wisdom from Wassia Kaman, and now we're harnessing that momentum to challenge the status quo. Discover the strategies that combat complacency, underscore the importance of active listening, and emphasize clear communication. Together, we will navigate the essentials of creating a culture that champions growth, collaboration, and a strategic response to challenges. Be prepared to leave this session with the ability to inspire a legacy of leadership that echoes through the echelons of your organization.
Please connect with me on:
1. Instagram: stephen.mclain
2. Twitter: smclainiii
3. Facebook: stephenmclainconsultant
4. LinkedIn: stephenjmclainiii
For more resources, please visit Finance Leader Academy: financeleaderacademy.com.
- Please download the Goal Setting Workbook that follows Episode 115: here
- On the website, you can download the Become a Finance Leader Guide. You can use this guide to build your Finance Leadership skills so you can help senior leaders develop and execute the strategy.
- I also offer a course, Advance Your Finance and Accounting Career: Developing a Promotion Strategy that Sets You Apart.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Stephen McLain (00:04):
This week I am reflecting on key leadership
principles, so you can beinspired to move your team to a
higher level of performance.
Leadership always begins withyou. Before you can elevate
others you have to elevateyourself. Are you a person of
high character, integrity andvalues? And when faced with a
(00:25):
leadership opportunity orchallenge, do you embrace it or
shy away? During my many yearsin the Army, we practice the
simple principle of when put incharge, take charge, leadership,
set the direction and speed upperformance. Are you ready?
Please enjoy the episode.
(00:47):
Welcome to the finance leaderpodcast where leadership is
bigger than the numbers. I amyour host, Stephen McLean. This
is the podcast for developingleaders in finance and
accounting. Please considerfollowing me on Twitter,
Facebook, Instagram andLinkedIn. My usernames and the
links are in this episode's shownotes. Thank you. This is
(01:08):
episode number 120. And I willbe reflecting on my most
important leadership principles.
Author and motivational speakerSimon Sinek said it doesn't
matter when we start it doesn'tmatter where we start. All that
matters is that we start.
Leadership is a big deal to me,where leadership is lacking,
(01:29):
direction and vision are alsolacking. Standards are absent
and no combined team effort willbe found, effort will be
squandered and resources wasted.
But when we see leadershipexercised, we can see people
start to work on common goals.
People begin to know what thepriorities are. So time, effort
and resources are used morewisely. And we begin to see
(01:52):
excellence in our outcomes beingrealized. When leaders use
leadership to bring peopletogether to collaborate and
teach what is expected. How wewill do things and what the
expectations are, we will beginto see a team come together to
perform in an amazing way. Thisis the level of leadership I am
looking forward to. Last week Ishared an amazing interview with
(02:14):
with SIA come on the VicePresident of Finance and
Corporate Controller for the lowincome investment fund. We
talked about emphasizing yourvalue transitioning to financial
planning and analysis, learningleadership, and the impacts of
artificial intelligence. If youmissed it, please go back and
listen to the episode with SIAshares some incredible advice,
(02:36):
and you will hear some impactfulnuggets of wisdom that can help
you move forward. Leadershipalways begins with us we need to
set the highest example andhighest set of standards for our
team to follow. Your team willemulate your attitude your
approach to work your values andyour standards. If you fail to
(02:57):
deliver results on time, theywill too. I am talking about
developing a leadership mindsetthat inspires others to be their
best to elevate the team'sperformance to think
differently, and to worktogether more. The status quo is
our enemy. The status quo tellsyou that you are doing fine to
(03:18):
convince you that everything isgoing well, so you don't
initiate necessary change. Thestatus quo will blind you to
changing conditions. So youdon't adapt. It will make you
lazy and then you will becomeirrelevant. Leaders fight the
status quo, and we fight goodenough. Establish a balance of
(03:39):
presence guidelines andexpectations to ensure we don't
micromanage so that our team canexecute on their own when they
need to be available. But don'tmake every simple decision. Be
ready to help. But don't lookover their shoulders. Be ready
to lead when an obstaclehappens. Sometimes you only need
(04:00):
to coach your team member aroundthe obstacle. Don't always solve
the issue right away.
Development means working out oftheir comfort zone. And this is
the heart of leadership growingmore leaders. I want you to all
become leaders who grasp thatopportunity when it comes to
take charge. Be decisive and seta way forward. So all can be
(04:21):
successful. Leaders lift thosearound them to become leaders
also. Now let's talk about mykey principles of leadership.
Number one, embrace thatleadership makes a difference.
leading people can bechallenging sometimes, if you
begin with yourself, it becomeseasier to challenge yourself to
(04:41):
set the best example for othersto follow at all times.
Leadership provides theatmosphere of achieving the
impossible. I want you to learnto be a better active listener
to have more engaginginteractions with your team
members. When leadership isMissing effort and resources are
also wasted. There is nocollective effort no strategic
(05:04):
plan on how resources will beapplied and no clear
expectations or communication.
People will be frustrated andyour top performers will want to
leave. People desire effectiveleadership so they know what is
expected and what the toppriorities are so they don't
waste their time. And on theother hand, your poor performers
(05:26):
often like a lack of leadershipso they have an excuse for their
performance, and no one is thereto push them to be better. The
poor performer sits back torelax in their mediocrity.
Number two,when in charge take charge. Your
team wants to see displays ofconfidence and decisiveness.
When you are placed as a leaderof a task or a team or project,
(05:47):
take action, make decisions,show confidence, exercise your
authority and make timelydecisions, you will be respected
for taking charge, you will beeven more respected for being a
leader that everyone wants tofollow. Learn when decisions
must be made without lookinglost. Delegate when necessary
(06:07):
and hold everyone accountable,including yourself, and most
importantly, achieve the desiredresults. Number three, you set
the example of integrity,character and values, your team
will follow your lead and yourexample. If you fall short,
consistently, they will too. Ifyou lie, they will lie. So that
is why it's so important thatleaders set the standard on
(06:30):
values and behavior that youwant their team to perform.
Number four, treat everyone withdignity, humanity and fairness.
You must acknowledge and beaware of the bias you have we
all have bias. When you knowyour bias, you can be more aware
of how you approach peoplerelated decisions and become a
better person. I also believestrongly and moving on quickly
(06:54):
from people who don'tcontribute, but we have to
follow the proper process. Givepeople chances to improve and
change. If no change comes, thenmove on. But do it with dignity.
Additionally, we must reward andgive recognition for desired
outcomes. Number five,facilitate clear communication
and priorities. How many timeshave you heard of Team failure
(07:18):
due to a lack of communicationand having no priorities? I
believe we need team prioritiesso that each team member can
develop their daily priorities.
This guides how and when thework is done, have open
communication, share relevantinformation quickly, plan and
execute a team meeting thatmakes sense and prioritize the
(07:39):
effort so the team workstogether. foster collaboration
always, we don't work in avacuum nor a silo. Number six
set clear guidelines andoperating principles so they can
operate on their own. Provide aleaders intent on what you want
done and what standard youexpect. Establish your standard
(08:01):
of excellence and expectations.
This is why we don't micromanageand your team knows what is
expected. Number sevenanticipate the future leaders
must be ready for change becauseit is inevitable. We will not
allow the status quo to be ourcompany philosophy. You have to
pay attention to changeindicators in your company in
the industry and in the economy.
(08:24):
Number eight, be ready to leadin a crisis. This goes back to
take charge when placed incharge if a crisis occurs. Be
decisive in action, find outwhat happened, develop a plan
with experts if you need to, andthen delegate tasks and
responsibility to overcome thecrisis or emergency or adverse
event. We make no excuses weinitiate action. This is when
(08:48):
leadership is so important.
Number nine lift others up, wemust grow other leaders, we must
ensure that when we see anemerging leader or high
performer, we give themopportunities to excel. And when
our team members are goingthrough a personal crisis of
their own. We offer them a wayto handle it. And we will not
worry about what it means wewill take care of our team. It
(09:10):
is your job leaders to make itwork when people have to be away
from their job, figure it out.
Be there for your team. Andnumber 10 achieve results. As
leaders we must achieve results.
This is what leaders do. Thegreat leaders grow other leaders
so they can more easily achievethe desired results. If your
(09:31):
team is not achieving results,then you must become a problem
solver to figure it out. Now foraction today. How do you
approach leadership is a scareyou a little confused by what to
do. Or maybe you embrace it andlove to see what you can do to
create more positive outcomesfor your team. Be honest with
yourself and how you embrace andexercise your leadership and
(09:54):
authority. review theseleadership principles again To
see where you may haveexceptional talent, and also for
areas of improvement keepworking on your leadership.
Please go to Finance leaderAcademy for more resources. I
offer a self paced online coursecalled advance your finance and
accounting career, developing apromotion strategy that sets you
(10:16):
apart, you will also findseveral free resources to help
you. Again, that's financeleader academy.com. Today, I
reflected on my most importantleadership principles, we are
already expected to be technicalexperts. But it takes leading
people correctly to accomplishorganizational goals that takes
a leader who cares and who cancommunicate clearly to help move
(10:40):
everyone in the same direction.
Leadership requires us to findexcellence in people when they
often can't see it inthemselves. Next episode I will
be talking about how to elevateyour team's performance. I hope
you enjoy the finance leaderpodcast I am focused on helping
(11:00):
this community to become moreconfident finance leaders
capable of transformingorganizations. You can find this
episode wherever you listen topodcasts. If this episode helped
you to say please share with acolleague and leave a quick
review. Until next time, you cancheck out more resources in the
financing category.com and signup for my weekly updates. Don't
(11:23):
miss an episode on the podcast.
And now. Go lead your team andI'll see you next time. Thank
you
This week I am reflecting on key leadership
principles, so you can beinspired to move your team to a
higher level of performance.
Leadership always begins withyou. Before you can elevate
others you have to elevateyourself. Are you a person of
high character, integrity andvalues? And when faced with a
(00:25):
leadership opportunity orchallenge, do you embrace it or
shy away? During my many yearsin the Army, we practice the
simple principle of when put incharge, take charge, leadership,
set the direction and speed upperformance. Are you ready?
Please enjoy the episode.
(00:47):
Welcome to the finance leaderpodcast where leadership is
bigger than the numbers. I amyour host, Stephen McLean. This
is the podcast for developingleaders in finance and
accounting. Please considerfollowing me on Twitter,
Facebook, Instagram andLinkedIn. My usernames and the
links are in this episode's shownotes. Thank you. This is
(01:08):
episode number 120. And I willbe reflecting on my most
important leadership principles.
Author and motivational speakerSimon Sinek said it doesn't
matter when we start it doesn'tmatter where we start. All that
matters is that we start.
Leadership is a big deal to me,where leadership is lacking,
(01:29):
direction and vision are alsolacking. Standards are absent
and no combined team effort willbe found, effort will be
squandered and resources wasted.
But when we see leadershipexercised, we can see people
start to work on common goals.
People begin to know what thepriorities are. So time, effort
and resources are used morewisely. And we begin to see
(01:52):
excellence in our outcomes beingrealized. When leaders use
leadership to bring peopletogether to collaborate and
teach what is expected. How wewill do things and what the
expectations are, we will beginto see a team come together to
perform in an amazing way. Thisis the level of leadership I am
looking forward to. Last week Ishared an amazing interview with
(02:14):
with SIA come on the VicePresident of Finance and
Corporate Controller for the lowincome investment fund. We
talked about emphasizing yourvalue transitioning to financial
planning and analysis, learningleadership, and the impacts of
artificial intelligence. If youmissed it, please go back and
listen to the episode with SIAshares some incredible advice,
(02:36):
and you will hear some impactfulnuggets of wisdom that can help
you move forward. Leadershipalways begins with us we need to
set the highest example andhighest set of standards for our
team to follow. Your team willemulate your attitude your
approach to work your values andyour standards. If you fail to
(02:57):
deliver results on time, theywill too. I am talking about
developing a leadership mindsetthat inspires others to be their
best to elevate the team'sperformance to think
differently, and to worktogether more. The status quo is
our enemy. The status quo tellsyou that you are doing fine to
(03:18):
convince you that everything isgoing well, so you don't
initiate necessary change. Thestatus quo will blind you to
changing conditions. So youdon't adapt. It will make you
lazy and then you will becomeirrelevant. Leaders fight the
status quo, and we fight goodenough. Establish a balance of
(03:39):
presence guidelines andexpectations to ensure we don't
micromanage so that our team canexecute on their own when they
need to be available. But don'tmake every simple decision. Be
ready to help. But don't lookover their shoulders. Be ready
to lead when an obstaclehappens. Sometimes you only need
(04:00):
to coach your team member aroundthe obstacle. Don't always solve
the issue right away.
Development means working out oftheir comfort zone. And this is
the heart of leadership growingmore leaders. I want you to all
become leaders who grasp thatopportunity when it comes to
take charge. Be decisive and seta way forward. So all can be
(04:21):
successful. Leaders lift thosearound them to become leaders
also. Now let's talk about mykey principles of leadership.
Number one, embrace thatleadership makes a difference.
leading people can bechallenging sometimes, if you
begin with yourself, it becomeseasier to challenge yourself to
(04:41):
set the best example for othersto follow at all times.
Leadership provides theatmosphere of achieving the
impossible. I want you to learnto be a better active listener
to have more engaginginteractions with your team
members. When leadership isMissing effort and resources are
also wasted. There is nocollective effort no strategic
(05:04):
plan on how resources will beapplied and no clear
expectations or communication.
People will be frustrated andyour top performers will want to
leave. People desire effectiveleadership so they know what is
expected and what the toppriorities are so they don't
waste their time. And on theother hand, your poor performers
(05:26):
often like a lack of leadershipso they have an excuse for their
performance, and no one is thereto push them to be better. The
poor performer sits back torelax in their mediocrity.
Number two,when in charge take charge. Your
team wants to see displays ofconfidence and decisiveness.
When you are placed as a leaderof a task or a team or project,
(05:47):
take action, make decisions,show confidence, exercise your
authority and make timelydecisions, you will be respected
for taking charge, you will beeven more respected for being a
leader that everyone wants tofollow. Learn when decisions
must be made without lookinglost. Delegate when necessary
(06:07):
and hold everyone accountable,including yourself, and most
importantly, achieve the desiredresults. Number three, you set
the example of integrity,character and values, your team
will follow your lead and yourexample. If you fall short,
consistently, they will too. Ifyou lie, they will lie. So that
is why it's so important thatleaders set the standard on
(06:30):
values and behavior that youwant their team to perform.
Number four, treat everyone withdignity, humanity and fairness.
You must acknowledge and beaware of the bias you have we
all have bias. When you knowyour bias, you can be more aware
of how you approach peoplerelated decisions and become a
better person. I also believestrongly and moving on quickly
(06:54):
from people who don'tcontribute, but we have to
follow the proper process. Givepeople chances to improve and
change. If no change comes, thenmove on. But do it with dignity.
Additionally, we must reward andgive recognition for desired
outcomes. Number five,facilitate clear communication
and priorities. How many timeshave you heard of Team failure
(07:18):
due to a lack of communicationand having no priorities? I
believe we need team prioritiesso that each team member can
develop their daily priorities.
This guides how and when thework is done, have open
communication, share relevantinformation quickly, plan and
execute a team meeting thatmakes sense and prioritize the
(07:39):
effort so the team workstogether. foster collaboration
always, we don't work in avacuum nor a silo. Number six
set clear guidelines andoperating principles so they can
operate on their own. Provide aleaders intent on what you want
done and what standard youexpect. Establish your standard
(08:01):
of excellence and expectations.
This is why we don't micromanageand your team knows what is
expected. Number sevenanticipate the future leaders
must be ready for change becauseit is inevitable. We will not
allow the status quo to be ourcompany philosophy. You have to
pay attention to changeindicators in your company in
the industry and in the economy.
(08:24):
Number eight, be ready to leadin a crisis. This goes back to
take charge when placed incharge if a crisis occurs. Be
decisive in action, find outwhat happened, develop a plan
with experts if you need to, andthen delegate tasks and
responsibility to overcome thecrisis or emergency or adverse
event. We make no excuses weinitiate action. This is when
(08:48):
leadership is so important.
Number nine lift others up, wemust grow other leaders, we must
ensure that when we see anemerging leader or high
performer, we give themopportunities to excel. And when
our team members are goingthrough a personal crisis of
their own. We offer them a wayto handle it. And we will not
worry about what it means wewill take care of our team. It
(09:10):
is your job leaders to make itwork when people have to be away
from their job, figure it out.
Be there for your team. Andnumber 10 achieve results. As
leaders we must achieve results.
This is what leaders do. Thegreat leaders grow other leaders
so they can more easily achievethe desired results. If your
(09:31):
team is not achieving results,then you must become a problem
solver to figure it out. Now foraction today. How do you
approach leadership is a scareyou a little confused by what to
do. Or maybe you embrace it andlove to see what you can do to
create more positive outcomesfor your team. Be honest with
yourself and how you embrace andexercise your leadership and
(09:54):
authority. review theseleadership principles again To
see where you may haveexceptional talent, and also for
areas of improvement keepworking on your leadership.
Please go to Finance leaderAcademy for more resources. I
offer a self paced online coursecalled advance your finance and
accounting career, developing apromotion strategy that sets you
(10:16):
apart, you will also findseveral free resources to help
you. Again, that's financeleader academy.com. Today, I
reflected on my most importantleadership principles, we are
already expected to be technicalexperts. But it takes leading
people correctly to accomplishorganizational goals that takes
a leader who cares and who cancommunicate clearly to help move
(10:40):
everyone in the same direction.
Leadership requires us to findexcellence in people when they
often can't see it inthemselves. Next episode I will
be talking about how to elevateyour team's performance. I hope
you enjoy the finance leaderpodcast I am focused on helping
(11:00):
this community to become moreconfident finance leaders
capable of transformingorganizations. You can find this
episode wherever you listen topodcasts. If this episode helped
you to say please share with acolleague and leave a quick
review. Until next time, you cancheck out more resources in the
financing category.com and signup for my weekly updates. Don't
(11:23):
miss an episode on the podcast.
And now. Go lead your team andI'll see you next time. Thank
you
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