In every work environment, there is a subtle dynamic at play: power dynamics. Commonly referred to as 'office politics', power dynamics refers to the distribution and exercise of power within any organization.

Understanding the nuances of power dynamics and, more importantly, how to use that knowledge is a key part of making any organization run smoothly. On the other hand, the misunderstanding of how power works within a particular organization can lead to a lot of dysfunctional behavior that will place great stress on the organization and may even do great harm to a leader's career. So take some time to learn the basics of power dynamics: who's got it and how to use it to benefit your organization and your career.

When I talk about leadership, many people I talk to don't think the topic relates to them because they mistakenly believe that to practice leadership, they have to be 'in charge;' they have to have an official title to practice leadership.

Nothing could be further from the truth. At its core, leadership is about influence. Nothing more, and certainly nothing less. I have witnessed far too many managers who have official titles but can't lead their organizations because they are clueless about influencing people. I have also witnessed people at the organization's frontline who are not in charge but are tremendous informal leaders because they have developed this knack for influencing people at every level.

In this episode, I explore how to lead when you are not in charge and discuss some practical tips for leading when you're not in charge. Enjoy.

Cybersecurity - that is the security of your digital assets - is important for every organization. In this short podcast, I talk about how the leader sets the tone for creating a culture of cybersecurity within their organization.

In today's ultra-competitive corporate and organizational environment, leaders need to develop a laser-like focus on their customers, clients, and the markets they serve. Leaders must also be flexible, open to change (often at a moment's notice), and also be concerned with always improving their efforts to develop products and services. This is where agile leadership comes into play.

Agile leadership is loosely based on a methodology that was first used in the software development industry in the early 2000s. Agile quickly spread to many other industries and organizations, as the incredible of using this leadership methodology became too significant to ignore.

In this podcast, I talk about agile leadership at length by discussing my journey into the use of agile leadership. Enjoy!

In this final podcast on Emotional Intelligence, I take an in-depth look at some advanced soft skills that are an important part of the emotional intelligence equation; teamwork, problem-solving, and building professional relationships with all of your professional contacts. These more advanced soft skills are often underrated by leaders of all professions, especially the skill and time that it takes to build professional relationships with everyone in the workplace, be it your team, your bosses, your customers, and even your key stakeholders. Yet those that take the time to develop these advanced soft skills will find that they are often called upon to step in as leaders because they are known as having such great abilities to work with people in a wide variety of situations, and will often rise to the top of the organization based on the strength of their relationships.

I apologize for taking such a long time off between podcasts; I had some personal and health issues to attend to. I'm glad to be back.

I want to continue on with our Emotional Intelligence series by talking about the 4th element of EI; empathy and compassion. I've recycled an earlier podcast I did on this subject that is very relevant to our discussion of Emotional Intelligence. Sit back and enjoy.

The internal motivation that drives a leader is an important part of emotional intelligence.  In this episode, I talk about how to improve your own internal motivation and why that is so important to leadership, and why it is such an important part of the emotional intelligence equation. 

Just another shout-out to my continued listener support.

Positive Leadership has now been heard in:

- 28 Countries 

- 34 of the 50 United States (and Washington DC)

- 96 US Cities

We are up to 56 episodes and they've been downloaded 1526 times.  

Again, thanks for your listening support, and as I always say when I sign off, I'll talk to you again ... real soon!

The last time we talked about Emotional Intelligence, we talked about the need for a leader to have a strong emotional self-awareness, especially about being self-aware of how their emotions affect others in the workplace. Well closely tied to this need for self-awareness, Is the need to control your emotions in your interactions with your subordinates, peers, and even your bosses. It does one little good to be self-aware of your emotions if you have little control over them.

NOTHING will strip you of your right to authentic or inspirational leadership quicker than your loss of self-control. One of the hallmarks of great leaders is their ability to stay ‘cool, calm, and collected’ even in the worst circumstance when the world seems to be coming apart around them. Leading during times of great crises requires a great deal of self-control. Improving our self-control is a vital part of improving our emotional intelligence.