Leading Leaders Podcast by StoryPowerAcademy.com Studio with Host and Exectuive Coach J Loren Norris

LEADERS KNOW HUMAN TO HUMAN CONVERSATION IS STILL THE MOST EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION. “The idea of “private conversations” is officially a thing of the past. The truth is, every device you have is listening in to every form and incident of communication. Some of those listening do not have your best interest at heart. Some wish to steal your financial information, some wish to gain leverage or ranso...

WHOS WATCHING OUT FOR YOUR TEAM? DO YOU HAVE A “Jenny”? “Every team faces the threat of a natural predator. From political or industrial espionage, to the recruiting of top talent or the phishing for internal secrets, every tribe, flock, or family faces the real risk of attack. A keeper of sheep often employs a donkey who will bond with the sheep, acting as if they are family, warning of the immin...

STORYPOWER IS THE LEVER BIG ENOUGH TO MOVE THE WORLD OF ATTITUDE. “We have heard stories all of our lives which inform the way we think and feel about ourselves and others. ‘Big girls don’t cry.’ ‘Real men don’t cry.’ ‘Look how you made me feel.’ All of these comments and sentiments likely harken back to a moment in your life. The incident, the relationship, the emotional drama which surrounded th...

LEADERS ARE AWARE OF THE DESTRUCTIVE POWER OF JEALOUSY IN AN ORGANIZATION. “There are team mates who have an agenda other than the success of the team. These people often has strong skills, great talent, admirable results and an ego larger than life. These peoples also have one potential devastating reaction to their jealousy of playing a supporting role to your success: they would rather sink the...

WHATS IMPORTANT IN PHOTOGRAPHY IS ALSO IMPORTANT IN LEADERSHIP. “Focus, proper light on the subject, good perspective are issues of practice and action equally important to photographers and leaders. Too close to the subject means focusing clearly will be near impossible. The wrong angle, the wrong distance, the wrong light and the wrong focus on the subject will lead to failure for both leaders a...

LEADERS SHOULD CONSIDER THE COMMONALITIES WHICH DRAW THEM TOGETHER. “Every leader who influences others must understand the limit to their influence. Sometimes its based on character flaws of the leader. Sometimes its the limited knowledge of the leader. Sometimes its the existing influences of longer held and valued relationships. What causes those you lead to gather together? Is it just work? Is...

FACT VS OPINION IS A TOUGH DISTINCTION LEADERS MUST UNDERSTAND AND DILIGENTLY GUARD. “The line has been blurred by nefarious means between fact and opinion. Many people who have studied the arts of conversation and persuasion have taken up the mantel of convincing those they influence to accept their opinions as facts. This is a dangerous form of control which has been employed for centuries of hu...

LEADING AND LYING ARE NOT A GOOD MIX. “Leaders should be prompt to admit their errors and wrong answers. Leaders should be committed to the truth. Leaders should be extremely reluctant to speak, do, demonstrate anything they know to be inaccurate or untrue simply for their own gain of power and influence. People who lie well are not people who lead well.” J Loren Norris ​ ​Watch the video #leading...

PREDICTIONS. PREDICATIONS and PROGNOSTICATIONS CAN BE HOAXES OR WARNING SIGNS. “Nothing happening today in cultures, companies, and classrooms is a surprise if you know how to read the signs. “The philosophy of the classroom in this generation will be the philosophy of government in the next.” Abraham Lincoln The ideas which have been brooding in the kindergarten and colleges around the world have...

LEADERS MUST BE PURVEYORS OF HOPE ESPECIALLY IN DARK DAYS. “Whether a leader is the first voice to speak or the last voice of hope, it should be in the compassionate heart of the leader to listen up and speak up. Too many people are looking to self harm or even self destructive behavior because of stress, anxiety and self image who could have been helped if a leader (any person of influence in the...

LEADERS KNOW READING PEOPLE IS THE #1 KEY TO BECOMING AN EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATOR. “Unless leaders learn to read people as frequently, accurately and consistently as they might read their favorite magazine or news paper they will fail to connect with those they lead. Communication is the most significant aspect of leadership because it is essential to influencing others. A leader who cannot communic...

JUST BEING IN CHARGE DOES NOT MAKE YOU RIGHT! LEADERS MUST LISTEN. “Being in charge is not equivalent to being right. Having the power, position and titles do not change the facts, the truth or history. Leaders need to be willing to listen to others’ input, evaluate the new ideas or data objectively, admit when they are wrong, and apply or execute the new ideas with fervor as if they were is their...

LEADERSHIP TRAINING DOES NOT OFTEN LOOK LIKE ONE WOULD EXPECT IT TO LOOK LIKE. ”In all the years I have studied, trained, and been subjected to leadership training, I have learned that classroom training and executive level leadership training are the only ones which ‘look like’ one might expect leadership training to look. The work needed to construct a solid leadership character from most people...

LEADERS LOOK BEYOND THE SURFACE WORDS AND ACTIONS TO OBSERVE THE INTENT OF THOSE THEY LEAD. ​“Leaders discover early in their journey, you cannot always trust the words of those you serve or those you lead. There are even times when their very actions are designed to disguise the real intent, plan, or long term agenda. Leaders must learn to read the intent and deeper relationship aspects of those...

Leaders know the power and value of insider information. What’s your source? “Leaders are very aware of the value of information. Business leaders, military leaders, government leaders, elected officials and even candidates for office all invest large sums of money for the most current information. They buy data bases, pay for data mining, hire people to parse consumer buying habits and more. Lead...

LEADERS KNOW FREEDOM ISN’T FREE AND FREE STUFF NEVER LEADS TO MORE FREEDOM. “Leaders know you can choose to pay today and play tomorrow or play today and pay tomorrow, but either way you’re gonna pay. Freedom is not free. Someone had to pay for it even if it wasn’t you. When you get something for free, you might be paying for it with your freedom. Bribes of free stuff are common tools of tyrants.”...

LEADERS KNOW POLITICS IS POLITICAL AT EVERY LEVEL OF EVERY JOB. “If you are a leader who is not aware of politics in your team, you are blind or delusional. Politics exist everywhere humans interact. The real question is, have you learned to separate politics from real issues? Do you as a leader know what the antidote is to political maneuvering and manipulation? Do you know how to lead free of th...

LEADERS KNOW THAT BOUNDARIES LEAD TO TOUGH CONVERSATIONS AND NECESSARY ENDINGS “Nothing is harder for a leader than outgrowing their friends and family on their journey to success. Good leaders know that it is inevitable. As the saying goes, ‘The thinking that got you here will not get you there.’ It is true of friends in many cases. The circle that got you to your current level of success may not...

LEADERS STRUGGLE TO HOLD THE GROUND ON THEIR IDEAS WHEN THEY CANNOT ARTICULATE THEM WELL. “The greatest idea a leader can propose can be overwhelmed, defeated, dismissed by a narrative of the existing ‘status-quo’. Anytime the way things are has a better story than the change proposed, the reluctance to change remains. Any time the pain to change is more than the pain to stay the same - things wil...

LEADERS MUST BE INTENTIONALLY AWARE TO REMAIN RELEVANT. RELEVANT IS THE CURRENCY OF THE INFORMATION AGE. ”Like being in the dark or being out of focus, is a leader who is not relevant to the crowd they are leading or addressing. Too often, leaders feel like what they desire to convey is important to everyone just because they said it. Not true. The digital age makes communication simple to access...

“OWNERSHIP is the currency of maturity.” MATURE LEADERS OWN THEIR MISTAKES AND SUCCESSES. “Leaders who will not own their behavior or the results of their behavior will become a destructive force in any environment. The damage left in the wake of an immature and careless leader can be costly in terms of financial devastation as well as damaged relationships, career opportunities, brand reputation,...

FEAR STOPS MORE LEADERS THAN FAILURE. FEAR CRIPPLES DECISION MAKING. FEAR IS A REAL THREAT TO LEADERSHIP SUCCESS. HOW DO YOU FACE THE FEAR? “Fear is a factor in leadership. Some use it to control others, but some leaders are stopped in their tracks by fear they try to ignore. Decisions like hiring, firing, buying, selling, merging and more are crippled by fear of the unknown. It’s time to challeng...

LEADERS LEARN THE HARD WAY, RANDOM FACTS, EVEN STRAIGHT UP TRUTH WILL NOT COUNTER A FALSE NARRATIVE. SO, WHAT WILL?? “To assume is never a good thing. Here’s one assumption leaders make in error regularly. To assume that a few data points, statistics or facts as you can prove them will create a mental u-turn for people following a false narrative is a disastrous assumption. How then do you overcom...

LEADERS WHO OUTLAW GRAVITY ARE SETTING THEMSELVES UP FOR A FALL. “Leaders cannot create laws that are more powerful than laws of nature. Leaders often insist on behavior from those they lead which is counter to the very nature of those they lead. No policy can force someone to be nice to someone who insists on being a jerk. If you want to see harmony in your team, hire and inspire harmonious peopl...

LEADERS MUST UNDERSTAND AND ACTIVATE THAT WHICH CAUSES PEOPLE TO COME TOGETHER. ​ “Motivating people to participate at a high level requires an understanding of why people come together to begin with. Are they gathering for a check, a cause, the environment they gather in? Do they gather because they are sold out to your vision? Would they show up of you haven’t paid them for three weeks? When you...