Common Man Leadership Academy: Recent Episodes

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“Gratitude is the ability to experience life as a gift. It liberates us from the prison of self-preoccupation.”

-John Ortberg

Once this episode goes live, Thanksgiving will have come and gone and most of America will be lining up at the stores ready to cash in on their Black Friday savings. That is fine and all, however, I firmly believe it is important to display gratitude more often than just once a year. There’s literally a meme that states, “only in America can we have a day where we celebrate being grateful for all that we have, then the very next day, rip each other apart for a $10 discount on a new TV.” Obviously there’s a problem there. In this episode I’m going to focus on gratitude and how Leaders can and must show gratitude and humility while working with their teams. No one is born a leader, contrary to the popular saying, “they were born to lead…;” Leaders are leaders because they have people willing to follow them. Leaders who display arrogance and take credit for their team’s hard work aren’t leaders at all.

Gratitude

• There are very few people in this world that can rise to the top without a single person helping them to get there.
• Uplift others
  • Don’t focus on negatives, find a way to improve them and move forward.
• Take time out of your day to thank others for the roles they play in your life.
  • Praise your team even when they accomplish what seems like menial tasks.
    • Compound effect
• Take time to reflect on experiences you’ve had in life and find a way to show gratitude for the experience.
  • We can still find gratitude in bad experiences because they teach us lessons.
• Daily Gratitude Journal
  • Set aside time to focus on at least one thing that you are grateful for that day and record it, then describe the impact it had on your day and why you’re grateful for it.
  • It’s easy to focus on the bad things that happen, not so much to focus on the good.

Humility

• Progress over Perfection
  • Launch a new project before it’s fully ready (learn ways to improve along the way and accept the failings as lessons)
    • This podcast for example
• It is possible to be proud of your accomplishments, no matter how small they seem, while still maintaining a level of humility.
  • Give others credit over yourself
  • Accept that you have much left to learn
  • Continue focusing on improvement over perfection
• Leaders display humility when they mastermind a project and their team accomplishes it, and they give the credit to their team.
• Leaders display humility when they allow constructive criticism from their team without letting their ego block out opportunities to improve.

Social Media
-Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/groups/commonmanleadershipacademy

-Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/cmleadership/

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“If the highest aim of a captain was to preserve his ship, he would keep it in port forever.”

-Thomas Aquinas

True leaders do not wait for permission to be effective. They see opportunities to improve their team and their companies and make decisions based on the opportunities presented. They take initiative and perform their duties with integrity and sound judgment.

• Initiative
  • Initiative is nothing more than recognizing an opportunity and acting on it without being told to.
  • People with good initiative are proactive, resourceful, and focus on solutions rather than getting bogged down by problems.
  • Self-starter
    • Do something without being told to. If the opportunity requires approval, research the opportunity and have ways to implement what that opportunity brings to the team before you seek the approval required. It’s much easier for leaders to approve something when they have the benefits in black and white.
  • Time Management
    • Taking initiative in your life means that you can prioritize your daily tasks to be the most effective you can be.
    • Daily schedule, task lists based on priority, punctuality, etc.
  • Resourceful
    • Being able to find solutions to problems while not having all the resources you need.
    • Implement the “make do” mentality.
    • Improvise, Adapt, Overcome
    • Requires creativity, an open mind, and willingness to take risks.
    • Remember, failure is just a learning opportunity.
• Integrity
  • Be a role model for others
    • Do the right thing when no one is looking.
    • Set the example for others to emulate.
    • Encourage constructive criticism from your team, everyone has other ways to do things, having an open mind to that criticism will allow you to improve as a leader.
  • Keep your agreements
    • As discussed in a previous episode, if you make a promise, hold to it. Find a way or make one. Failing to uphold an agreement and then making excuses when called out is not a sign of a leader with integrity.
  • Stand up for what is right
    • Defend the defenseless. Tell the truth without compromise. Own your mistakes and work to improve. Don’t be a bystander!
• Judgment
  • Good judgment skills depend on your ability to observe the variables in your environment and make sound decisions that benefit your team and mission. Decisions that dampen your team's ability to do their jobs effectively are the adverse of good judgment.
  • Practice the OODA loop
  • Focus on the impact that your decisions have on the team and mission over decisions made purely out of emotion or personal gain.
  • Once again, be open-minded to advise from those with more experience in the matter. The only true way to improve any skill is to simply do it, learn from mistakes and do it again, so on and so forth.

Links:

-Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/groups/commonmanleadershipacademy

-Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/cmleadership/

-Building Initiative in the Workplace - https://climbtheladder.com/initiative-skills/

-Improving Integrity - https://www.jennygarrett.global/5-top-tips-to-develop-your-integrity/

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"A good objective of leadership is to help those who are doing poorly to do well, and to help those who are doing well to do even better."
-Jim Rohn

**In continuation of our discussion of leadership traits, in today’s episode I will be going over the traits dependability, endurance, and enthusiasm. I’ll discuss how to be the leader your team can count on, how to ensure you have the physical and mental fortitude to show up for your team when the going gets tough, and how to uplift your team with positivity and encouragement.

Talking points:

Dependability
Dependability is the trait that defines how much your team can count on you as their leader. If you take accountability of your decisions instead of passing the buck, keep your promises, uphold meetings, etc.**

• Keep Your Promises
• Practice Good Tracking Habits
• Support Your Team
• Be Proactive
• Dependable Leaders are Self-Motivated

Endurance
Endurance is the mental and physical stamina that is measured by your ability to withstand pain, fatigue, stress, and hardship.

• Maintain Momentum and Motivation
• Create Comfort in Ambiguity
• Encourage Effective Collaboration

Enthusiasm
Employees can often recognize a leader that is “faking the funk” so to speak. Leaders who display insincere enthusiasm stick out like a sore thumb. However, leaders who display true enthusiasm for their work pass that along to their team. Sincere enthusiasm is contagious, just like confidence.

• Maintain a Positive Outlook
• Spark Innovative Ideas
• Celebrate Accomplishments

**Links

Links:**

-Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/groups/commonmanleadershipacademy

-Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/cmleadership/

-Three Strategies to Build Leadership Endurance

https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescoachescouncil/2020/06/04/three-strategies-to-build-leadership-endurance/?sh=6814a1486078

-10 Traits of a Dependable Leader

https://blog.stewartleadership.com/10-traits-of-a-dependable-leader

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“A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way.”

-John Maxwell

Up to this point, we’ve discussed the 11 Leadership principles that the Marine Corps teaches to its new leaders, so now we’re going to discuss the individual traits that leaders should hold near and dear to their hearts. Adapting these traits into your leadership style should help you stand above the crowd as a leader. In the next few episodes, I'm going to briefly discuss three traits at a time and how they can help elevate your leadership game, starting with the traits Bearing, Courage, and Decisiveness.

Bearing

• • What is bearing? - Bearing is the way you conduct and carry yourself as a professional. Your mannerisms should reflect alertness to your surroundings, competence in your field, confidence in your decisions, and control of your reactions to different influences affecting you. Basically, don’t let outside influences dictate how you carry yourself as a leader. Make sound decisions based on the variables in your surroundings and execute with confidence. - Bearing begins with confidence. How do I build confidence? Simple, DO things that require confidence. Try something new, ask that boy or girl out on a date that you’ve had your eye on, don’t second guess your decisions. Only by doing things that require confidence in yourself can you truly build confidence. Confidence is really just trying something, seeing how it works out, and eliminating your fear of it. Work on building your confidence and you will ultimately project that confidence to the people around you. Confidence builds command presence which in turn builds professional bearing. Don’t act with haste or be irrational.
• Courage
  • What is courage?
    • There are those that would say that courage is the absence of fear. I’ve heard that several times before, as I’ve also heard the following: courage is NOT the absence of fear, it is the mastery of it. Courage is encountering something that you’re afraid of, but tackling it anyway because of the deep rooted sense of duty that you hold in your heart.
    • As a leader, we must all, at times, act with courage. In the book, The Heart of Leadership by Mark Miller, the A in HEART means to Act with Courage. Leaders are faced with situations every single day that require hard decisions.
  • How do I build courage?
    • Courage and confidence can go hand-in-hand. Build one and you will ultimately build the other. However, not having confidence in yourself doesn’t mean you can’t have courage. Building confidence in yourself and your abilities as a leader starts by acting with courage.
• Decisiveness
  • What is decisiveness?
    • In the episode, Making Sound and Timely Decisions, I harp on this very trait quite a bit. Decisiveness is the ability to make decisions in a timely and efficient manner. As I’ve stated before, however, making NO decision is still making a decision…you’re choosing not to make a decision.
    • Leaders are faced with decisions every single day.
    • A great tool for aiding in decision making is the OODA loop. Created by Air Force fighter pilot, John Boyd. It stands for Observe, Orient, Decide, Act.
      • Observe your surroundings
      • Orient yourself so that you’re in the best position possible
      • Decide on what you’re going to do
      • Act on your decision with courage and confidence. Don’t second guess yourself!

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/groups/commonmanleadershipacademy

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/cmleadership/

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**“You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today.”
--Abraham Lincoln.

Good leaders take ownership of their respective spheres. Period. If nothing else in this podcast sinks in, allow this to. Take ownership of your actions! Do not blame anyone or anything else for YOUR faults. I’ve harped on this time and again, leaders are responsible for everything that happens in their companies. So, in today’s episode, I’m going to dig into why it’s crucial for leaders to seek out responsibility, as well as how to take ownership of the mission.**

Talking Points:

• Why is it important to seek responsibility?
  • Responsibility is an important life skill that helps people thrive in society. It allows people to take ownership of their actions, both good and bad, and learn from their mistakes.
  • People in leadership roles aren’t the only ones that need to seek responsibility. As I've mentioned in a previous episode, it does not take a title to be a leader. Average Joes can step above their stations in life by simply seeking that opportunity that promotes them and accepting the responsibility that comes along with those opportunities.
  • It’s a chance to show your leadership your worth, which in turn, could lead to promotions within your company down the road.
• What does it mean to take ownership?
  • Taking ownership means that you accept responsibility for everything that happens within your sphere of influence. Regardless of the situation, the outcome of whatever task you are pursuing is directly your fault as the leader. It sounds harsh, but sometimes the truth can be harsh.
• The benefits of seeking responsibility and taking ownership
  • When it comes to success in any field, taking responsibility and ownership of one's actions is key. Whether in our personal or professional lives, owning our decisions and taking responsibility for our choices - good or bad - is essential to our growth.
  • All too often, we see people shying away from responsibility when things go wrong. But it is only by taking responsibility that we can learn from our mistakes and become better people. Similarly, in our professional lives, it is only by taking responsibility for our work that we can hope to progress and succeed.
  • So why is taking responsibility so important? There are many benefits to be gained from taking an active role in our lives and taking ownership of our choices. When we take responsibility, we show ourselves to be reliable and trustworthy. We also gain the respect of others and build positive relationships. Moreover, taking responsibility gives us a sense of pride in our work. It drives us to deliver the result that we were tasked with.
• How to seek responsibility and take ownership
  • - Set high standards for yourself and strive to meet them.
  • - Take responsibility for your mistakes and learn from them.
  • - Be proactive and take initiative on projects.
  • - Go the extra mile to do your best work.
  • - Accept constructive feedback and use it to improve your work.

**Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/groups/commonmanleadershipacademy

Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/cmleadership/**

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**As a leader, you need to know the capabilities of your employees. As mentioned previously in the episode I made about knowing your employees on a personal level, you must also know what each member of your team can and cannot handle. You don’t want to be that leader that tasks a tech wiz with fixing a malfunction on a transmission. The person can probably type hundreds of words per minute and write code all day long, but that’s not going to help him disassemble a transmission and work out the kinks. So, in this episode, I’m going to discuss ways to task your team accordingly.

Episode Outline:

1. Assessing your employees' skill levels**

2. In every company, there are training programs. These training programs are not only meant to improve/teach the desired set of skills to employees, but to also weed out the ones that can’t handle what needs to be done.

3. Not every person is built physically or mentally for every task. The training programs are meant to establish who can and cannot perform to the desired level.
   • This does not mean that a person who can’t perform well in one area won't perform top notch in another, you simply have to have a top notch training program so that each person on your team who is willing to put in the effort will be placed exactly where they will excel.
     • A person’s desires should play a part as well. If an employee has both the skills required and the desire to be where they are placed, it’s a win-win situation.

2. Determining what tasks to assign

• Once the training programs have been accomplished and the employees have been evaluated based on their skills, you should have a pretty firm idea of who you are going to put where within your company.

3. Considerations for task assignments

• • Experience
  • Training
  • Attitude
  • Efficiency

4. The benefits of tasking employees in accordance with their skill level

• • Efficient work flow
  • Less costly
  • High employee morale

5. drawbacks of not tasking employees in accordance with their skill level

• • Setbacks
  • Inefficient
  • Higher costs
  • Low morale

I hope you all garnered some useful information from this episode. You can reach me on facebook at facebook.com/groups/commonmanleadershipacademy and on Instagram @CMLeadership. There will be links in the show notes. I thank you all for listening and look forward to your feedback and insights! Get out there and crush it!

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/groups/commonmanleadershipacademy

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/cmleadership/

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Viktor E. Frankl said “between stimulus and response, there is space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.” Everyday we have a choice. As soon as we wake up, we choose to get up and do what needs doing, or choose to hit the snooze button and stay in bed. Regardless of what choice we make, we have responsibilities that must be handled. How we choose to tackle the responsibilities of the day is entirely our choice. However, letting responsibilities pile up without handling them will do no one any favors. In today’s episode, I’m going to discuss how to accept responsibility as well as develop it among your team.

Talking Points

• Leaders need to be able to delegate tasks and responsibilities among their subordinates
  • Develops a sense of duty/responsibility among your team members
  • Develops a bond of trust between you, the leader, and your team members
  • Inspect what you expect
    • Don’t just assume your team will go full throttle on their appointed tasks, you have to actually make sure they’re performing to your standards
    • Provide guidance and supervision so that your team can improve where they fall short or build confidence that their leader has their back
• Leaders expect their team members to accept ownership of their tasks, while still bearing in mind that as the team leader, all fault lies with you.
  • Allowing your team to accept some level of ownership further instills within them the responsibility to ensure the task is completed the right way.
  • Develops pride in their work, which in turn, will pave the way for greater responsibilities and promotion in the future.
• Leaders don’t micromanage!
  • Give your team leads the ball and let them run with it. Maintain the 30,000ft view of the situation but allow your team leads to maintain control over the task. Let it be known that you are available if they have questions or concerns. Mission accomplishment is paramount.
  • This allows the leader to know who has what it takes and who doesn’t to lead effectively in your absence.

**Social Links

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/commonmanleadershipacademy**

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cmleadership/

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"We all make choices, but in the end, our choices make us." — Ken Levine

Ultimately, what we decide has the potential to shape our entire lives. In this episode, I will discuss the importance of making sound and timely decisions, as well as how to get better at doing so.

Talking points:

• Making decisions is pivotal to being a great leader. Without the ability to make decisions in a timely manner, one simply cannot lead.
  • Great leaders harness the ability to quickly analyze a situation and make an effective decision based on the available variables.
  • Great leaders are also able to set their ego aside in favor of ideas delivered from their team.
• Task delegation
  • A leader knows their capabilities. They know when to make the decisions themselves and when to delegate that authority to members of their team.
• A leader with a strong team is able to accept feedback from that team and make a more informed decision based on the needs of the mission and the team.
• Decision making skills can be improved by following these steps:
  • Seek out opportunities that require you to make timely decisions, no matter how minute the situations seem (I.e., where to eat for dinner). Limit yourself to 20-30 seconds to make said decisions (based on severity of course) and stick with the decision you made.
  • Embrace change. A plan will inevitably change. Instead of fighting that change, train yourself to embrace it and re-prioritize tasks.
  • Be open minded. Eliminate your ego and accept input from others. We’re all different and experience different things. Don’t let factors like age or education level limit your ability to listen to others. You never know when someone will have valuable input.
  • Trust your initial instinct. Second guessing yourself will most likely get you nowhere and interfere with your ability to make sound decisions. Trust your gut and execute.

**Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/groups/commonmanleadershipacademy

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/cmleadership/**

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This week is about training your employees as part of a team. Succeed or fail, the team will do it together. Training employees as part of a team is crucial to developing unit cohesion and accountability.

Talking points

• A team is only as strong as its weakest link
  • If one member of the team fails, the entire team fails.
  • Peer pressure can be a useful tool if implemented appropriately
    • No beatings or hazings
    • The strong feeling of disappointment that the failing member let the team down.
  • Get every new employee involved with each team member to broaden OJT
• Each member of the team should know the job of each other member
  • In case one member is sick, fired, etc., the “machine” doesn’t break down.

I hope you all garnered some useful information from this episode. You can reach me on facebook at facebook.com/groups/commonmanleadershipacademy and on Instagram @CMLeadership. I’m active on Facebook daily, not so much Instagram anymore but I do check it every now and then. I thank you all for listening and look forward to your feedback and insights! Get out there and crush it!

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Nancy Kline said, “Supervision is an opportunity to bring someone back to their own mind, to show them how good they can be.” In this episode, I will be discussing why it’s important to not only supervise, but to do so effectively. Your team must understand your intent with any task clearly, or the project will have some hiccups. Mission accomplishment is the most important aspect of any mission or task, not necessarily the semantics in between start and finish.

Episode talking points

• Most important “troop leading step” -> Supervision
• Ties in with knowing your employees and keeping your employees informed
• Tasking your employees correctly
  • Asking follow-up questions
  • Checking in at random intervals
• Inspect what you expect
  • Make sure you give clear and precise instructions, don’t get long winded but still convey your expectations appropriately
    • Set realistic goals
  • Be their supervisor, not their micro-manager
  • The only thing that matters is that the task/mission gets accomplished with the desired outcome, not HOW it was accomplished.
    • The team doesn’t have to follow your instructions to the T. If one of your team members knows a better way to accomplish the task, give them the added responsibility of leading the team through that task and see how they handle the leadership role

I hope you all garnered some useful information from this episode. Now go out and apply it! I’m doing this podcast because I wholeheartedly believe in good leadership. Period. If my experiences and insights help ONE person become a better leader, then I have accomplished my mission with this podcast.

With that said, you can reach me on facebook at facebook.com/groups/commonmanleadershipacademy and on Instagram @CMLeadership. There will be links in the show notes. I’m active on Facebook daily, not so much Instagram anymore but I do check it every now and then. I just believe that it’s mostly fluff, but regardless, it’s still somewhat effective at spreading the message, so if you decide to follow me there, I greatly appreciate it of course! Also feel free to message me on Instagram as well. It may not get read immediately but I promise you I will see it within a day. So, I thank you all for listening and look forward to your feedback and insights! Get out there and crush it!

https://www.facebook.com/groups/commonmanleadershipacademy

https://www.instagram.com/cmleadership/

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**There is a very clear difference between a boss and a leader. A boss says, "go." A leader says, "let’s go." 

Today’s episode is going to be a relatively quick one. In it, I will discuss the fifth leadership principle, set the example. The examples we set as leaders set the tone for how effective our teams will be at accomplishing the mission. 

As always, you can reach us on Facebook at facebook.com/groups/commonmanleadershipacademy and on Instagram @CMLeadership. 

I’m active on both accounts daily and read all feedback I receive. Feel free to connect with other individuals in the group and join the conversation about leadership. I thank you all for listening and hope you have an amazing week.**

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Adora Svitek said, “The first thing anyone can do, about any issue, is get informed.” 

In this episode, my friend Mark Harper and I will discuss why it’s crucial to keep your team members informed of what’s going on in the workplace. I was having some internet connectivity issues so at times Mark will sound a little robotic, but what he’s saying can still be understood, so I do apologize about that. 

Mark and I described some experiences we’ve had with being misinformed or not informed at all. We discussed several ways to keep your team members informed as well as the stressors that occur when information is not passed quickly through the proper channels. 

I hope you all garnered some useful information from this episode and as always, you can reach us on Facebook at facebook.com/groups/commonmanleadershipacademy and on Instagram @CMLeadership. I’m active on both accounts daily and read all feedback I receive. 

Feel free to connect with other individuals in the group and join the conversation about leadership. I thank you all for listening and hope you have an amazing week.

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J.W. Marriott said “if you take care of your people, your people will take care of your customers, and the business will take care of itself.” In this episode, I will discuss the importance of putting your team’s needs first. If your team cannot rely on you as their leader, you inevitably will not be able to rely on them to accomplish the mission.
As always, you can find us on the streaming platform of your choice. You can visit our website at www.cmla.buzzsprout.com as well as www.facebook.com/groups/commonmanleadershipacademy.
We also have an instagram @CMLeadership. I am active on FB and Instagram daily, so feel free to contact me through those channels. I appreciate the feedback I have received thus far and look forward to more in the future. Thank you.

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In this episode, I discuss ways to enhance your leadership and your life by going over why it's important to be proficient in your field both physically and mentally. I also explain ways that you can improve the skills that you already have, as well as ways to seek out new skills.

I mention 2 books that can help improve your leadership proficiency so, moving forward, if I mention a book in an episode, I will link them in the show notes here.

Ego is the Enemy by Ryan Holiday
https://amzn.to/3Ao4CHw

Hal Moore on Leadership by Harold G. Moore and Mike Guardia
https://amzn.to/3QQdPiU

We also have a Facebook group located here
https://www.facebook.com/groups/commonmanleadershipacademy
Feel free to join the group and contribute to the discussions.

You can find us on Instagram @CMLeadership
https://www.instagram.com/cmleadership/

I am active on both accounts daily and will answer any questions as quickly as possible.

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Hello all! My name is Tony Griggs, I am the host and founder of the Common Man Leadership Academy and I will be joined by my co-host Mark Coleman II. In this episode, we'll be discussing the first principle of leadership taught to us in the Marines, Know Yourself and Seek Self Improvement. 
We cover experiences we've had with faulty leaders that allowed their egos to interfere with self improvement, which ultimately lead to failed leadership tactics on their parts. We cover four tactics you can employ in your life to level up your leadership potential

1. Read books!
2. Eliminate your ego
3. Do not be afraid to fail
4. Invest in a mentor

Anyway, we hope that you enjoy this episode and look forward to any feedback you have. Positive or negative, it all helps us to improve our podcasting ability so we can deliver top notch episodes to you. Thank you all.