I interviewed a young and highly successful executive in the German IT sector recently. I asked him outline a few of his thoughts on leadership, because having seen this man in action, it is clear that his team are truly fond of him. He's held in high regard. The owner of the company explained that his CTO had a secret magic formula of making every person feel valued. "I swear the guys would come in to work for free, just because of how he makes them feel," Dietmar added. In short, he makes every single one of them feel special."

"I aim to lead by doing; to be like plasticine," the young leader explained. "Sometimes, I'm amongst the desks and in the dust plugging things in if needs be, then in the helicopter leading the company, or maybe in silent mediation."(Was he inspired by Tony Hart's plasticine hero, Morph?)  

Make problems delicious!

"I like to supply enough information that a problem is not solved, yet not too little information that it is like climbing Mount Everest. I look to make problems delicious; to create the right balance for the right problem and ego. I don't treat anyone differently. My aim is to allow the team to self-manage. We put the work into the pipeline and they figure out how to deliver it. They ask for help along the way. If it needs a course correct, we jump in. We have daily check-points. They push. We tune. 

In the middle of the office there is a centre piece, a huge 450 x 600 cm whiteboard on the wall. It belongs to the team. They manage it. On the left side is incoming, the middle is for things that are moving along and the right side is stuff that's done. All around are little constellations of interest or discussion. For this tooling is very important and without prejudice (within reason) the team will always get the best tools for the job. 

If an employee goes out of their way to do an extra shift or put in extra hours, I like to take him and his partner out for a meal. I look to find little ways to say thank you."

He went on explain his methods of recruitment, why his team is like United Nations, and to extol the virtues of autonomy, mastery and purpose in a fresh and engaging way. I don't know about you, I'd enjoy working on this guy's team. I love his perspective. I was attracted to his self-confidence yet his humility was disarming. He was eager to share the credit with others. Perhaps we can all learn from him. How do you make people feel? Some people light up a room as they enter; others when they leave...

Read more on balance in Don't Taunt Elephants.

More Mount Everest...

Tune into this Podcast on flexibility. It's a direct cousin to plasticine :) Expert mountaineer Cathy O'Dowd expands her theories and experience of being the only woman to climb the mountain from both sides. 

Stephen Law-Lyons shared "27 Things Truly Exceptional Bosses Do Every Day"

Think of the best boss you've ever known. Here are 27 things he or she probably never stopped doing. To the list I'd add:

28. Be like plasticine 

29. Make problems delicious.

My speaker buddy, John Murphy emailed me this item. "Saw this article and I thought you would find it interesting Eilidh. Here's the link: Stop Chasing the Wrong Kind of Growth

Finally, why have one Ted Talk suggestions when you can have five? Check out: 

 TedTalks Issue 1 - Eilidh's Viewing List (1038 KB) 

Okaydokee that's me signing off for today. Enjoy a couple productive weeks playing with delicious plasticine! #EverPositive Eilidh

Your life, your pace, your way... what a great 'modus operandi' for a care provider... indeed for us all. Now we love to personalise and brand materials for our customers. So we've created this image using my client's tag-line for their upcoming training event. And the company's phrase, got me to thinking... does this not encapsulate happiness? Is it not up to each and everyone of us to decide what to do in the future?

1. Do I want to fly a kite?

2. If so, how high?

3. When, where and how?

Which segues seamlessly to my new CCG Podcast. If your life, your pace, your way falls in line with your goals and how you see life how do you ensure success? Tune in to my new interview with goal-setting expert David Hyner. 

How to Set and Achieve Massive Goals?

During the Podcast, David explains, "Most people will do the easy stuff first and therefore the big stuff that scares them is at the end when their time, energy, motivation and resources are at their least so if we attack the big scary blocks at the beginning, the things we don’t understand the research, overcoming hurdles, picking up the phone if we don’t like picking up the phone, doing the horrible things first, if we get all of those out of the way while our time, energy, motivation and resources are at their greatest, our goal can only therefore get easier.

EM: That makes jolly good sense. I know where I’m coming from on this but I’m going to ask you a question and then tell you my tuppence worth. Do you still focus on the to-do list?

DH: I pulled this off my wall. This is a pyramid for a project I’m doing. I put a to-do list into what I call a pyramid or a triangle and I put each task on my list, the hardest things into the bottom rows and blocks. That way if you cross the scariest things off first you’re crossing off the foundation blocks and then the least important towards the top. Now, I’ve got about three or four pyramids on the go. One is my daily or weekly list and then I’ve got others for very specific large goals I’m working on. I’ve got this visual reference to my goals stuck to the wall, shrunk down on my phone, my laptop, even on the sun visor of my car sometimes if it is a personal goal and if I’ve got a spare moment, instead of wasting my time playing Candy Crush or Solitaire like I used to do, now I will look at the pyramid and go, is there something I could do right now that will help me cross off that block?" Here's full interview transcription.

Every day if you can do just one thing that will take you closer to your goal you will be more effective than most people walking this earth.

Here's a range of materials for you to save for later. First up is Simon Sinek on The Millennial Question. Then for fun, the delightful robot assistant PEEQO by Abhishek Singh. If you're feeling philosopical, check out Carl Sagan's Pale Blue Dot and finally I've created this brand new Pdf with links to 7 Ted Talks which explore the topic of success esp. when applied to goal-setting.  

 7 Ted Talks to Help You Achieve Your Goals (1467 KB) 

OK that's it for this edition. Want to read more? Then check out The Confidence Blog or Back Copies of Confidence Strategies. Thank you, as always, Eilidh

The 7.17 to London is always a busy train and ten days ago the trip was no exception. I planned to overnight in the capital, so had a larger suitcase than usual. I struggled to get it between the seats and sat down in frustration with the case under the table. A few moments later my future travelling companion came along and offered to stow the awkward item.  

What did he do? 

Well believe it or not, Chris merely turned it on its side and hey presto the case was tucked away. As he sat down, I declared "Spatial awareness is not my strong suit." We laughed! And went on to share an entertaining breakfast. Chris as it turned out, is an orthopaedic surgeon and a fascinating man to listen to. We have since connected on LinkedIn. Learn how to do likewise on my networking courses. 

What's the moral of the story?

1. Acknowledge your weaknesses while you play to your strengths 
2. Be willing to seek and accept help
3. Simple solutions are often obvious to others even if not to you
4. Be the first to go the extra mile; it's not a busy road
5. Offer your skills to assist others

Returning to London

As the horrendous, tragic terror attacks in London and Manchester unfolded recently, the culture of love triumphed over evil. The groundswell of hope, strength and peace was tangible. Total strangers reached out to each other with a depth of humanity that is hard for onlookers to truly comprehend. They bonded like family. There were many unsuspecting and unsung heroes such as the homeless man who rushed to help the injured. These people touched the lives of others. Such acts renew your faith in humanity.

ISMA UK Friday 16th June

Next week I'm back in London at the ISMA conference. If you are available, please drop me a line as I may be able to organise a free ticket; especially if you involved in stress management, promoting stress prevention and wellbeing? ISMA UK I'd love to meet up with you at the event. 

Tune in to this fun teamwork video that proves the power and value of working together. Long-term success does not come when you work by yourself, it comes when you work together. There's an African proverb that says, "to go fast go alone…. to go far go together.” 

Can you guess your age by your music tastes? Take the quiz.

Read more on Cookies Crumble and Not Confidence... on both offering and accepting help .

Finally you'll find my regular Ted Talk recommendation on the Cookies Crumble link above.

Look to find ways help and find the good in others. More on: "How will you touch the life of another today?" 

#EverPositive Eilidh