Love Learn Lead November 9, 2017

We’re not even to the middle of November, and yet the Christmas Creep is well underway. Music and displays in stores are already trying to get us to start our gift shopping, when I just want to hold on to the sunny days of fall a little bit longer. So for this reason, no more mention of Christmas.

For today’s Love Learn Lead, I am sharing a recipe I love, a few books that have helped me learn an important lesson about life, and a crucial leadership tip to consider this season.

Enjoy!

Love

One of the things I love about changing seasons, is the food. After avoiding soup almost all summer, it is time to pull out our big pot again and get some broth simmering on the stove. A soup we love because it puts an Asian twist on the classic chicken soup, is this Thai Coconut Soup by Paleo Leap. When we’re not doing Whole30, we add a little coconut rice to it, and it is delicious.

What are your favorite cold weather foods?

Learn

On Monday, I talked about not having a diagram to tell me how to best put together my life. For a long time, I thought it was supposed to look the way our culture tells us, but I am finding that it’s just not true. And one of the things that has opened my mind up to this fact, is through reading or hearing other people’s stories. Reading At Home In The World by Tsh Oxenreider, Why Not Me? by Mindy Khaling, or Falling Free by Shannon Martin, has shown me that there are many ways to live life well. And that adventure is to be found in building and discovering mine.

Whose stories inspire you to live your life to the fullest?

Lead

Leadership Tip #12: Thank Your Team

As it is the month of Thanksgiving, there’s no better time to talk about the importance of appreciating your team. Sometimes, I think as leaders it’s easy to get caught up in our tasks or “the next thing,” and forget to acknowledge the wins. But when we do this as leaders, it can have a diminishing effect on our team. By saying nothing about a job well done—big or small— we are sending the message to our people that their work isn’t enough—or worse, that it doesn’t matter.

Leadership books and conferences talk a lot about vision casting for one’s team or business. They say that without vision, you’re going nowhere. Well, without appreciation, you’re not going to get very far either. People are not machines to do our bidding—they are individuals with the potential to take our businesses or organizations farther than we ever could alone. And as far as technology has come to replace certain jobs, nothing can replace the human touch. But in order to keep and grow a strong team, our people need to know they are valued.

According to this article on Project Management Hacks, showing appreciation for our teams increases their engagement and performance on the job. It builds a trusting and positive work environment, and it also decreases turnover. Sending your team members thank you notes, bringing in coffee or food to meetings, and throwing an impromptu party after victories, can go a long way to show your team they are important to you. If you want to go far as a leader, remember to be good to the people who are going to help you get there.