“Drive-by delegation” is a common (but not very effective) way of assigning specialized work.
     No one intentionally wants to create lack of clarity for others.  But it happens.
     Of course, it's easier to recognize "drive-by delegation" when you are the delegatee rather than the delegator.
     I've covered this material in a previous article a few years ago.  It seemed appropriate to share it again after my article last week.  I hope “Winning Over a Boss who Delivers ‘Drive-By Delegation’” is of benefit to you.
     Dennis

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     I'd be interested to know if the kind of confusion described in “Are You Giving Direction or Making a Suggestion” has ever occurred to you.  Maybe you've got a similar story.
     If you are in a position of authority, I suggest you ask those around you if they ever have similar confusion interpreting your comments.
     Dennis

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     I had an opportunity this past week to facilitate an exploratory session for a small group of organizational leaders.
     I had discussed with them what role I could play in managing the process, freeing them to work through all the relevant content information to hammer out their desired outcome.
     One of the individuals said that he'd like to see my description for “Recognizing and Using ‘Content’ and ‘Process’” in writing.  This article is the product I delivered to him.
     Dennis

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     You can't be 30,000 feet up in an airplane and on the ground at the same time.  But you can imagine.  Your daily priorities look very different from way up there.
     You can't look forward in time like you can reflect back on your past.  But you can imagine.  Your daily work is likely to look very different five years from now.
     The more responsibility you gain, the more you need vision, strategic thinking, and perspective: “Zooming in and Zooming Out--A Leader’s Perspective.”
     Dennis

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     This week's article is "Your Position of Authority May not be 'Leadership'."
     The response of many of you when you read the article will be, "There's nothing new here.  Doesn't everybody already know this?"
     Others among you may have a very different response.  You might think, "How dare you challenge my competency as a leader?  You don't know anything about me!"
     If you happen to be among the latter group, I hope you will channel whatever shock you might feel into looking at how you can become a much more effective leader.  If you decide that's what you'd like to do, contact me and let's talk about how you can do this--without my help or with it.
     Dennis

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     "Procrastination" has been a topic of interest for me for fifty years.  Far too many times in high school, I'd wait until about 9pm to start a homework assignment that was due the next morning.
     Was I afraid in some way to start the assignment?  Or did I consider the task to be so easy (or of such little value) that I was apathetic toward executing it?
     Procrastination is rarely something a person does intentionally.  So, as a leader you might ask, “How Can I Help a Procrastinator?”
     Dennis
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     Do you have a tendency to believe that things will work properly and that your expectations will be met?  If so, how do you feel when something doesn't work?
     I typically expect that things will go well, and I'm often surprised.  My outlook is typically optimistic.  Yet our world is dysfunctional, and things rarely work without a glitch.
     Earlier this week, I was listening to a news commentary reviewing the efforts made to reduce the impact of the recession.  There have been unexpected repercussions to just about every initiative.  Should that be a big surprise?  We live in a dysfunctional world.
     Yet you, as a leader, are tasked with making progress where you work.  Wow, that's tough!  How do you persevere in a dysfunctional world?  Perhaps this week's article, “Your Role in Our Dysfunctional World,” can provide some encouragement.
     Dennis
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     I hope you won't consider this week's article, “Reflecting on Progress toward the Vision,” too self-focused.  I wanted an article to commemorate the birth of my grandson.     I also wanted to encourage leaders like you to pause periodically and reflect on the progress that you and your organization have made---and to look repeatedly to the future in terms of the vision of what's possible.

     Dennis

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     Do you ever feel inadequate?  If the feeling of “I’m Just not Good Enough!” starts to envelop you, it can be almost debilitating.
     Read this week’s article for some broader perspective.
     Dennis
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     Today's article, “Are You Ready, Willing, and Able to Be Coached?” is a bit unusual.  First, it refers to a newspaper ad that you won't see.  However, it doesn't take much imagination when you read the article.
     What's more unusual is that the article doesn't focus on leadership.  I decided to focus on "coaching" for a change.  We'll get back to some aspect of leadership next week.
     Dennis
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