— To follow is a bullet of wisdom on leadership. It comes from Tom’s rifle, named Shot, who has seen it all. You’ll get the drift by clicking Blog in the menu at www.tomnewhouse.com. —
I RECOMMEND ONE—a recoil cushion, that is. You see, as a rifle, I know that the relationship between me and the shooter is key to a good shot. A cushion helps manage that relationship. The shooter is more relaxed, ready to take on the challenges to be faced. In other words, because the shooters know they will be okay, they concentrate on the tasks before them.
The recoil cushion is to rifles and shooters, what relationship management skills are to a leader who is emotionally intelligent. Such skills permit leaders to accept themselves, even control themselves, and attend to others. In other words, they manage their relationships. And what might they attend to? Try openness, listening, trust building, caring, and empathy. Those may seem reactive. Let’s also get clearly proactive: giving constructive feedback, undertaking tough conversations, and being the real you while being other-oriented.