Last June, Stephen Covey was the guest speaker at The Board’s 120th Annual General Meeting. He captivated the audience with his wisdom on leadership and community–all while standing with crutches, due to recent knee replacement surgery. One of his most profound messages was this: "A good leadership team is a complementary team where people’s strengths are made productive and their weakness made irrelevant by the strengths of others." There is probably no better description of teamwork than this. Is this your vision?
To learn more, join Stephen Covey’s top Canadian trainer, Patricia Lambert, at the Leadership Skills Bootcamp on April 8.
 Canadians are watching the U.S. economy go on a bit of a roller-coaster ride as it deals with the news of Bear Sterns, the "R" word and fluctuations in the U.S. dollar. And though our 2010 countdown is giving us momentum, there are lessons to be learned from our neighbours to the south. On Harvard Business Review’s Conversation Starter blog, John Baldoni, a leadership coach and consultant, writes about Leading Through a Downturn. He cites ways to demonstrate leadership when you are sitting "up front" for what could be a wild ride:
"Focus on your team. When it comes to the people you lead, action is a given. A leader must always look for ways to keep his team engaged. Waiting to act does not mean doing nothing for the team. You always keep the lines of communication open; this is especially true in times of uncertainty. People will want to talk, even vent. Listen to what they have to say. The simple act of listening is an action step that helps keep teams together. At the same time, you must keep attention focused on the task at hand. People have a job to do in order to keep the enterprise afloat. Remind people that what they do matters to customers, shareholders, and fellow employees."
 Imagine being in any social situation and knowing that you can affect how others interact with you. Too bad they didn’t teach us that in kindergarten, or high school or university. By understanding social intelligence you can affect social interchanges, including those in business, in more positive ways. These recent findings are discussed by Daniel Goleman in his book: Social Intelligence: The New Science of Human Relationships. Goleman has been a leading voice in redefining what it means to be smart since he first wrote his international best seller Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ (1996).
 If someone says "you are messing with my mind," they’ve actually got it right. That’s because the latest generation of MRIs have allowed scientists to see what happens in the brain when two people interact. Goleman says it’s these very recent findings in the emerging field of social neuroscience that proves we are "wired to connect." Want to learn more about this fascinating concept? Join the Leadership Skills Bootcamp on April 8 where Daniel Goleman is the keynote luncheon speaker.
 Did you know that "emotions are contagious?" In an article on social intelligence written by Gayle Hallgren in the March 2008 Sounding Board, she explains why. "It’s thanks to mirror neurons, a newly discovered class of brain cells, which Daniel Goleman says, ‘act like neural WiFi. These neurons specialize in tuning into the person we are with and creating in our brain a replica of the other’s emotions, actions and intentions.’"
To illustrate her point, Hallgren asks: "Have you ever had a conversation that simply stalls, or worse yet, one where ‘the wall’ drops down? Things go from warm and friendly to downright chilly and that loud hissing sound you hear is your positive energy deflating as you react to their reaction. Your body stiffens, your smile tightens and you catch their negative virus. If you feel someone shutting down do not mirror that behaviour. Instead, stay relaxed, continue to smile and stay confident. Now they are catching your positive virus! The person who just tried to shut you down—tried to get you to catch their emotional virus—may walk away from that exchange wondering why they feel so good about you and the experience. Learning the skills of social intelligence, making that brain-to-brain bridge, is the difference between mere social ease and full rapport." – excerpt from article Wired to Connect by Gayle Hallgren, co-author, WORK THE POND!
 As part of its 2008 International Women’s Day initiatives, Accenture released its latest research report: One Step Ahead of 2011: A New Horizon for Working Women. There were some surprising results from this online survey of 4,100 men and women across 17 countries. Their study shows that "the majority of businesswomen in India, South Africa and China believe they are better equipped to succeed in the global world of 2011 than do their female counterparts in many developed markets such as the U.S., U.K. and Europe."
Individuals rated their "skills readiness in six categories: agility, social responsibility, global skills, technology, inclusion and diversity and business relationships." Technology skills topped the scale as the area where both men and women felt they were most ready.
And what was the area that both women and men felt the least ready? Business relationships. "While two thirds of the U.S. respondents said they believe that men and women are equally effective at building business relationships, more than three times as many male and female respondents said they believe that men are more effective in this area than said women are (26 percent versus eight percent)." To top it off, women believe that having a global professional and social network is very important to succeed in 2011. So, let’s recap. Women think it is important to build a network, believe they can be effective at building a network but still believe that men can do it better. All the more reason to get involved with the Women’s Leadership Circle®!
Read the full report: One Step Ahead of 2011: A New Horizon for Working Women.
A PINK EXPLOSION
 A few years ago, Linda Poole decided what Vancouver needed was a celebration of one of our city’s most amazing spectacles – the blooming of 36,000 Japanese cherry trees. Now in its third year, our cherry blossoms have taken centre stage from March 25 to April 20, thanks to the Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival, of which Linda is the Festival Director.
The Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival website has lots of great ideas on where to take in this explosion of pink. You can bike the blossoms, take walking tours, trolley tours and even indulge in a Cherry Blossom Martini. Why not get a group of friends together or find an older woman friend who you’ve been too busy to spend some quality time with – and yes, it could be your mom – and pick an activity from the festival website you can do together?
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Apr.8, 2008
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