One of the keys to leadership development is good problem solving and decision making skills. The key element of both of those skill sets is the ability to understand what the issue or problem really is. A few months ago I wrote an article about the Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion. At a time that was essentially the morning after, I suggested that it might be a little too early to place any specific blame and that a good leader would first strive to gather all the facts.

Though I hate to say I told you so, (OK I like it a little) a recent Associated Press article points out why it's so important to gather facts before taking action. According to the article by Dina Cappiello and Seth Brenstein, the presidential commission appointed to study the mishap found that there is no evidence that British Petroleum made any decision in favor of saving money at the expense of safety. Does that mean nothing was done wrong? Of course not. The final investigation report is not due to the president until mid-January. What it does mean is that a lot of people got themselves worked into a lather over the wrong issue. For instance, there has been a huge boycott effort by those who rushed to conclusions without waiting to determine the facts.

Leadership Strengths - Listening Ability for Building Working Relationships
By Andrew Singer

I have often asked people to tell me the leadership strengths for building better working relationships. As we think about communicating powerfully through listening, consider a good listener as someone who has the ability to:

• Receive spoken words and interpret the whole message (including intonation, rate of speech, gestures, and facial expressions) in an unbiased way.
• Remember or retain the information for use in the future.
• Maintain attention on the speaker.
• Leave the speaker feeling heard and feeling good about the communication process.

While I was debriefing a recent workshop exercise on leadership strengths, one participant said the exercise was useful because "I never really stop to think about listening." This person's insight is instructive and, I believe, common. In reality, many people think of listening as a chance to take a break from talking, not as one of important leadership strengths. It should be exceedingly clear that to become a highly effective listener requires going beyond "taking a break" or "waiting for our next chance to talk."

Anyone who has studied basic management or leadership has heard of Maslow and his Hierarchy of Human Needs. As important as his contribution is to the body of leadership theory, there are probably few leaders who have ever actually read his writings. Frankly it's much easier to read other's synopsis of his work; he isn't the most spellbinding author. First published in 1962, (the second edition was published in 1968) Toward a Psychology of Being examines Maslow's thoughts on the self-actualized human.

Humans have certain needs and when those needs aren't satisfied, the result can be neurosis. A need is defined as that which, in its absence breeds illness, when present prevents illness and if restored, cures illness. Maslow also felt that the need is inactive, at a low ebb, or functionally absent in a healthy person. But, needs exist in a hierarchy and so when one need is satisfied the person becomes aware of another need. These needs produce motivation.

Maslow did not believe that a proper definition of motivation had yet been created, but he uses the concept anyway. The movement from one level of need to the next is what leads to motivation. Some people are strongly driven to grow, to constantly seek out more and more. Simply stated, they experience motivation; the inward desire to improve. It is this group that has reached the self-actualization level.

Should leaders restrict the use of social media in the workplace?

Social media is to the Millennial Generation what email was to Generation X. Just as the telephone made business easier in the mid 20th century and email had the same effect more recently, social media offers some very real advantages. Of course the telephone and email mediums could be abused, but once they were in use, no one considered removing them just because people were carrying on non-work related conversations. Yes, some did try to restrict their use, with varying levels of success. Social media is the new way of communicating. Leaders can place restrictions on it's use; but, unless they also restrict cell phones in the workplace, such a restriction would be impossible to enforce. Here's a better approach. First, make sure your employees understand the mission and their importance to accomplishing that mission. Second, embrace social media as a new tool to help your organization excel. Will there be abuse? Probably. But, the benefits will far outweigh the cost of policing a no or restricted social media policy.

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