Influence – Page 2 – Nathan Magnuson

Getting the Most from the Human Element

If you’ve been responsible for delivering business results for any length of time, you’ve probably hit a wall once or twice with people. Someone’s feelings got hurt, another manager is difficult to work with, company politics create unseen landmines, some colleagues disagrees with you and a couple may be out…

Who All Gets to Be a Leader?

December 1, 2014 Change Influence Leadership Organizational Effectiveness Personal Effectiveness

Who gets to be a leader? From time to time, I hear an someone admonish a group of individuals by saying “you are all leaders.” Other times, I see organizational messaging indicating “leadership” is reserved for a small group of individuals who occupy certain positions. Which is it? Are we all leaders,…

How to Tell Who the Real Leader Is

October 20, 2014 Character Courage decision-making Influence Inspiration Leadership Organizational Effectiveness Personal Effectiveness

I’ll admit I’ve made a lot of mistakes over the years when it comes to identifying leadership ability in others. Some I’ve thought would be great weren’t – and others I didn’t give much consideration turned out to be amazing. It’d be a lot easier if there was a scientific method…

The Reason We Take the Leap

October 6, 2014 Influence Inspiration Leadership Personal Effectiveness

Leadership comes with all sorts of headaches and complications. At some point, I’m sure every leader sits back and asks the question, “how did I acquire all this stress?” Sometimes the magnitude of responsibilities is so overwhelming that would-be leaders count the cost and pass up the opportunity altogether. There’s no…

What Coaching Leaders Do Differently

September 15, 2014 Coaching Influence Leadership Personal Effectiveness Questions

“Coaching” has been trending corporate buzzword in organizational leadership for well over a decade. We’re all familiar with athletics coaches. But when someone asks us to coach someone to learn a new skill or solve problem, it’s usually in a professional work context. What do coaches actually do – or…

How to Ask Great Questions

August 18, 2014 Coaching Communication Influence Leadership Learning Personal Effectiveness Questions

This post is excerpted from Nathan’s book Ignite Your Leadership Expertise. What if I told you you don’t need to have a solution for every single problem that comes your way in order to be a competent and mature leader? That’s exactly what I’m about to propose. Hopefully it’s as…

How to Respond to a Mistake

August 4, 2014 Influence Personal Effectiveness

As an individual, it doesn’t take long to realize Alexander Pope’s timeless line “to err is human.” As a leader, it can be downright frustrating dealing with the errors of those we lead. But it’s how we respond to those mistakes that sets great leaders apart. If someone on your team…

Great Leaders SERVE

July 21, 2014 books Humility Influence Leadership Organizational Effectiveness Personal Effectiveness Values

I had the chance to travel to Greece and Bulgaria recently and give a series of leadership presentations to several university groups with a small team of business professionals. The sights, food and people were reward enough, but getting to share our leadership presentations with the future leaders of two…

The Fear of the Finger

July 7, 2014 Courage Influence Leadership Personal Effectiveness

I’m afraid I’ve come to recognize a serious leadership deficit today in America. It’s probably nothing new. It’s what I call “the fear of the finger.” Not the middle finger, mind you. I’m talking about the index finger. Precious few individuals are willing to risk being on the other end of a…

What Young Professionals Need to Know About Leadership

June 16, 2014 Influence Inspiration Leadership Personal Effectiveness Young Professionals

I recently got the chance speak to several college and high school student groups about leadership. It reminded me of my college experience when the subject of leadership really clicked with me for the first time. As always, our future rests on the ability of the next generation to lead well. So…

Caps for Sale (and the Art of Influence)

June 2, 2014 Influence Inspiration Personal Effectiveness

“How do you get someone to push you?” I was taking a wrestling class as a kid and that was the question the coach posed as he demonstrated a new move. “You push him first. Then he’ll want to push back and you can use his momentum to your advantage.”…

Leadership Myth: You Need a Title to Be a Leader

April 7, 2014 Influence Leadership Leadership Myths

Truth: Leadership is about influence, not position. Leadership is about one thing and one thing only: influence. Leaders use the influence they have to create positive change. The more positive change, the more influence. Go into any corporate boardroom, military garrison or government building and you’re bound to find someone…