Lead For Clarity

Shandel Sutherland MCC, Melanie Montgomery MA, John Scott Sutherland DDS

Did you get into business to manage people and deal with communication issues? All leaders, crave practical advice to make leading their team and growing their business a positive experience. However, much of the experiences we hear from our clients is anything but positive. Clarity, is our way to diagnose and treat corporations for optimum communication health and satisfaction. We know what it's like to run an organization without Clarity, and once you do have Clarity it will change everything.

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Top 10 Lead For Clarity Episodes

Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Lead For Clarity episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Lead For Clarity for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Lead For Clarity episode by adding your comments to the episode page.

How To Have Hard Conversations

Lead For Clarity

04/10/22 • 20 min

Hard conversations are not easy and those of us who don’t like confrontation do everything we can to avoid it. Why do we fear or avoid confrontation? Perhaps it’s because past experiences involving hard conversations did not go so well. A likely reason for that may be the inability to regulate our emotions.

Hard confrontive conversations said with the right tone of voice, and supportive body language will help engage the listener and enable that person to regulate their emotions.

Hard conversations can evoke strong emotions which then can lead to the down regulation of the higher cortex. When this occurs the conversation is over and defensiveness, combativeness, and justification take over. The positive end result we desire when engaged in a hard conversation is tempered emotions and feeling heard.

Some hard conversations involve personality and behavioral conflict. Someone who rubs you the wrong way. This person seems to know how to push your buttons. Or maybe you push their buttons. Conflict such as this often is a triggering response based on an emotion which evokes a physical neuro chemical reaction in the body that leads to the disabling of the Higher Cortex. This is called the “Amygdala Hijack”

Psychologist Daniel Goleman first used the term “amygdala hijacking” in his 1995 book Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ.

It refers to situations wherein the amygdala hijacks control of a person’s ability to respond rationally to a threat. This then leads to the person reacting in an intense, emotional way that may be out of proportion to the situation.

Without the ability to use their frontal lobes, a person is unable to think clearly. Therefore, they are not in control of their responses.
Going into a difficult conversation? Ask yourself:

How can I best get my message across, strengthen the relationship, build trust, and achieve a desirable outcome?
Check out Scott's video on How to Have Hard Conversations https://studio.youtube.com/channel/UC-hHuramLvFvtXFp670wdcA/videos/upload?filter=%5B%5D&sort=%7B%22columnType%22%3A%22date%22%2C%22sortOrder%22%3A%22DESCENDING%22%7DPlease email us your questions and give us feedback to: [email protected]Subscribe for our free 66 Seconds with Shandel Group at shandel.comVisit our website http://www.shandelgroup.com

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#LeadForClarity #LeadershipDevelopment #Leadership #Growth #ExecutiveCoaching #LeadershipCoaching #EmotionalIntelligence #Clarity #PersonalAccountability #Communication

How Do You Achieve Your Vision? Strategic Planning!

Lead For Clarity

04/15/21 • 11 min

So, what is a strategic plan? It’s the approach you take to accomplish your vision. If your target is synonymous with your vision, and you want to hit that target, you must decide on a strategy that will enable you to be successful in hitting that target. One of the main reasons most businesses don’t reach their potential is either a lack of clear vision or a lack of strategic planning in order to successfully reach that vision.
Some organizations vision may be a Big Hairy Audacious Goal the BHAG. These goals may seem extreme, but they keep you striving. Whatever the vision you must have a strategic plan to get there. If you don’t plan you won’t get there.
In my dental practice I had a BHAG for a vision. I had observed that some of my patients kept having dental problems every time they came in to see me. I realized that maybe I could do something different in order to help them have better check ups. This led to identifying my ideal patient and how I could get other patients to join them. Simply put my vision is to keep my patients out of my treatment room. This may sound like a bad business model but to me it makes sense. First, I care about my patients and I want better oral health for them.
So, in order to move the bus toward the BHAG you need to have a strategic plan. This Podcast is a simple way of understanding why your organizations vision is so important and it must accompany a plan to hit the target you set your sights on.
Please send us your questions mailto:[email protected]
http://leadershipdds.com/

Culture is Everything...How Recession Proof is Yours?

Lead For Clarity

08/03/22 • 23 min

6 Ways to Recession Proof your business. We use the acronym STEADY to drive home the point that the best way to recession proof your business is to master the basics in order to weather any storm that may come.
Our motto: "Stay Steady and Thrive." Emphasis on the Thrive part!

STEADY:

Simplify Everything

Train, Teach & Invest in Your Talent

Elevate Structure

Attitude is Everything

Double Down on Culture

Your Leadership First

Today we are talking about CULTURE. We at Shandel Group believe Culture is driven by not only YOU as the leader but by the purpose, mission, vision and values of the organization.
Are you and every member of your team, living and breathing the purpose, mission, and values? If not, make a fast effort to get back to them. If you are not clear on them, get us on board with you ASAP to discover and define those values. It is not that you ‘have'' them, it is that you live them, and make decisions with those values in mind.
DEFINE IT CLEARLY. Do you define your culture or are you defined by your culture? What I mean by that is that we all have a company culture and it has its embedded norms...like it or not? For example, in your culture, do you run on time, or it is fine to be 5 minutes late? Some cultures do not embrace change, others demand it. This is the time to make sure that your cultural norms are the ones that you are driving and are helping you achieve your purpose!
Check out our newsletter: 6 Ways to Recession Proof Your Business
https://satchel.works/@shandel/6-ways-to-recession-proof-your-business
Check out shandelgroup.com/CAVU for weekly tips for all levels of leadership in your organization.
Please email us your questions and give us feedback to: [email protected]Subscribe for our free Daily Quote with Shandel Group at shandel.comVisit our website http://www.shandelgroup.com

Truth, Trust, and Humility: Keys to Escaping the Cycle of Misery and Reconnecting to Values-Based Growth

Lead For Clarity

11/28/23 • 20 min

In this episode, Shandel Sutherland and Melanie Montgomery discuss the dangers of "off ramping" from sustainable growth and entering an "unhealthy cycle of misery." They provide frameworks to identify unhealthy vs. healthy leadership cycles and steps to get back on track.
Off ramping occurs when leaders stop investing in growth and instead focus only on short-term wins and survival. This leads to an "unhealthy cycle of misery" characterized by negative mindsets, culture, and lack of positive change.
The cycle of misery centers around having a "victor" mindset of only caring about winning rather than values. Behaviors in the cycle of misery include blaming others, being distracted to avoid problems, and only focusing on short-term dollars and dividends. As the cycle continues, it leads to a culture of dictating orders rather than empowering growth, which disconnects the leader from the team over time.
To get out of this cycle, leaders must reconnect to their values and those of the organization through truth, trust, and humility. Admitting mistakes is key to regaining focus on sustainable growth. The goal is not to never off ramp, as all leaders will occasionally, but to recognize it quickly and take steps to reconnect and get back on track through values-based leadership.
The podcast provides a framework to identify unhealthy vs healthy leadership cycles and emphasizes that all leaders will occasionally off ramp, so the goal is recognizing it and getting back on track as quickly as possible.
Discussion Questions:

Have you ever recognized being in the Cycle of Misery in your leadership?
What phase do you think you may be in now?
How can you reconnect to values and get back on track?

The Process for Sustainable Growth

Lead For Clarity

09/19/23 • 19 min

The Shandel Group team is back for Season 5 to discuss the Process for Sustainable Growth, a framework developed to support sustainable growth of organizations, teams and individuals. It's important to remember that growth is uncomfortable and we have to push ourselves into that discomfort, otherwise we will end up moving forward in an unhealthy way. The Process guides us to consciously think through how we grow to make sure we are growing in the right direction.
The Process outlines the 6 stages you can anticipate going through any time you grow. The stages are - Pain, Purposefully Connect, Plant, Progress, Prune and Profit. Click HERE to see the Healthy Cycle of Growth as well as the Unhealthy Cycle of Misery referenced in the podcast, and to learn more about the Process.
The starting point for any growth cycle is Pain and this is where we enter into the process. In the healthy cycle, everything is centered around our values, understanding what those are and making sure we are focused on living our values. Many pain points come from not knowing our values or compromising them. It’s hard to this work and we can off-ramp into the unhealthy cycle when we are not ready to lean into fixing what isn’t going well. After feeling the pain, the next stage is purposefully connect with our values, others and the struggle we are facing. Planting is a stage full of hard work but this leads to Progress, where we start to see changes coming to fruition. Then we go into the Pruning stage, where we take out the fluff and get rid of things that don’t serve us anymore. Finally we reach Profit, and see that the pain had a purpose and a meaning and we have reached our goal and are profitable.
After going through the cycle, then you start all over with a new pain point! This season is going to be all about how to apply this growth process to all aspects of life and how to get the most out of what you want to accomplish.

Building Trust and Connecting with Your Team: An Executive's Perspective on Shifting from Boss to Coach

Lead For Clarity

01/02/24 • 19 min

Shandel and Melanie welcome a special guest, Ed Wickman, to discuss his experiences with the Purposefully Connect stage of the Process of Sustainable Growth. The team explores the concepts of the healthy cycle of growth versus the unhealthy cycle of misery. Ed reflects on how early in his career he lacked leadership tools and fell into a "boss mentality." He contrasts this with his current approach of aligning teams around shared values and purpose. Ed shares his insights, favorite tools and leadership approaches!
Key Takeaways:

Focus on building trust and authentic connections with employees. Get to know them as people through daily check-ins and active listening. This helps foster engagement and open communication.
Shift from a top-down "boss" mentality to a side-by-side coaching approach through empathy, shared language, and supporting employees' growth and goals.
Be persistent over time in driving cultural changes through small, consistent actions each day like recognizing contributions and using shared values in conversations. Building trust among peers is also important for facilitating change.

Why Don't We Delegate? Navigating Trust Issues and Pride

Lead For Clarity

03/22/24 • 20 min

In this episode of Lead for Clarity, Melanie and Shandel discuss the common challenges that prevent effective delegation in leadership. They share stories from their own experiences struggling to delegate tasks and identify issues like lack of trust, pride, and not having systems in place. The team also provides strategies for overcoming these barriers, such as embracing mistakes, building relationships, and communicating expectations. They emphasize the importance of delegation for career development and empowering teams. The hosts encourage listeners to recognize excuses and delegate tasks with a growth mindset.
Key Takeaways:

Delegation is a process that requires consistent communication, follow up, and relationship building over time. Simply asking someone to take on a task once is not enough.
It's important to recognize our own excuses for not delegating and have a growth mindset to overcome challenges through practice. Mistakes will happen but that's part of the learning.
Effective delegation empowers team members and supports career development by providing opportunities for growth, contribution and feeling valued in their work. Making delegation a priority has benefits for both individuals and the organization.

Resources:

Click HERE to register for our FREE live webinar, Transformative Delegation: Unleashing Potential in Your Team ! It will be held on Thursday, March 28, 2024 from 12pm - 1:30pm PST.
Article from Harvard Business Review, Management Time: Who's Got the Monkey

Celebrating Milestones: A Key to Sustainable Growth

Lead For Clarity

10/31/23 • 19 min

In this episode, Shandel and Melanie discuss the key stages of the growth process model, with a focus on navigating the Progress stage. The team stresses the importance of celebrating milestones to maintain motivation as changes start to take shape. Checking in on morale and buy-in, simplifying processes, and clear communication are also highlighted as important factors for success during this phase. The discussion provides actionable tips leaders and individuals can apply to stay on track during periods of progress.
The Progress stage of the Cycle for Sustainable Growth is where changes start to be seen. The team discusses what growth looks like in reality vs expectations. Growth is not a straight line, and we need to embrace the ups and downs. Identifying meaningful ways to mark progress and using these milestones to celebrate wins along the way and stay motivated is key.
During this stage, it’s important to check in to ensure everyone remains on board with changes. How is the morale? Check for contentment and discontentment. Simplifying and streamlining as things start to fall into place will set you up for success in the next stage. Communicating progress clearly to build understanding and buy-in helps continue the growth.
The ACTion steps in the Progress stage are:

Acknowledge success – celebrate progress & follow through on celebration plan of milestones.
Check in – continue to guard the culture and make sure people are not becoming complacent.
Take fuel, take a breath – really get to know and invest in your team.

Navigating the "Purposely Connect" Stage of Growth through Effective Alignment, Communication and Trust-Building

Lead For Clarity

10/10/23 • 19 min

Shandel and Melanie discuss the "Purposely Connect" stage of the business growth process. They explore how teams can effectively align around purpose, mission and values through communication. They share tools like DISC assessments, Enneagram and Lencioni's working genius that provide insights into communication styles and working preferences. They emphasize the importance of developing trust within the team and resolving conflicts in a healthy manner. The discussion also covers mindset shifts, accountability and understanding different perspectives. The team shares guidance for teams on navigating the "Purposely Connect" stage through alignment, communication and trust-building.
Introduction:
- Overview of the business growth process stages discussed on the podcast
- Today's focus is the "Purposely Connect" stage
Alignment:
- Importance of aligning the team around shared purpose, mission and values
- This lays the foundation for effective collaboration
Communication:
- Tools for understanding communication styles like DISC and Enneagram
- Leadership's role in over-communicating vision and goals
- Developing communication skills across the team
- Emotional Intelligence training
Trust-Building:
- Trust grows or erodes quietly over time if not intentionally cultivated
- Managing conflicts in a healthy way supports trust
Mindset Shifts:
- Personal accountability, understanding different perspectives
- Avoiding assumptions and seeking others' perspectives
People Practices:
- Hiring for cultural fit based on ideal team player traits
- Scaling communication as teams grow in size
Additional Resources:
- Link to video on story framework mindset - Click HERE
- Contact info to learn more about tools and coaching - Click HERE

Discovering Your Values: The Key to Sustainable Growth

Lead For Clarity

09/28/23 • 19 min

Shandel and Melanie dig into what's at the center of the Process for Sustainable Growth - Values. Living our values (even when it's hard) keeps us in the healthy cycle of growth and moving in the right direction.
Values evolve when we do hard work on ourselves and lean into personal growth. As we grow, we start to uncover parts of ourselves that we weren’t able to lean into before, or find things that we didn’t realize were so important to us. Finding our values is so important and digging into what really drives us?

When we don’t live our values, we off-ramp into the cycle of misery, which results in protecting ourselves instead of our values. Most of the time, people don’t do this intentionally – it’s out of fear, frustration or some hard emotion that we aren’t tackling. We can get off track when we aren’t in tune with our emotions or we aren’t dealing with them in a positive way. But we are able to get back into the heathy cycle by reconnecting with our values. If you find yourself in the cycle of misery and not living your values, it doesn’t mean you're a bad person, it just means you are off track and you need to get back on track! Lean into those hard things that you’re avoiding right now and make sure your values are at the center of your actions.
Truth and trust fuels us through the cycle, which we build through living our values. When we are truth-telling and trusting ourselves and others, we facilitate (fuel) our process through healthy growth.
A great weekly exercise is to look at your values and ask yourself if you’re truly living them, or what is one step that you can do this week to honor that value more? This helps us keep our values at the forefront and allows us to lean into them, even when it's hard!
Listen to the previous episode to learn more about the Process and click HERE to see the Healthy Cycle of Growth as well as the Unhealthy Cycle of Misery.
Below are some additional resources on Values, a topic that we have covered from many aspects!

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FAQ

How many episodes does Lead For Clarity have?

Lead For Clarity currently has 79 episodes available.

What topics does Lead For Clarity cover?

The podcast is about Consulting, Leadership, Entrepreneurship, Podcasts, Education, Health, Business and Coaching.

What is the most popular episode on Lead For Clarity?

The episode title 'Setting & Communicating Healthy Boundaries, Part 2' is the most popular.

What is the average episode length on Lead For Clarity?

The average episode length on Lead For Clarity is 19 minutes.

How often are episodes of Lead For Clarity released?

Episodes of Lead For Clarity are typically released every 7 days, 3 hours.

When was the first episode of Lead For Clarity?

The first episode of Lead For Clarity was released on Jan 30, 2021.

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Lead For Clarity

Shandel Sutherland MCC, Melanie Montgomery MA, John Scott Sutherland DDS

Top 10 Lead For Clarity Episodes

FAQ

How many episodes does Lead For Clarity have?

What topics does Lead For Clarity cover?

What is the most popular episode on Lead For Clarity?

What is the average episode length on Lead For Clarity?

How often are episodes of Lead For Clarity released?

When was the first episode of Lead For Clarity?

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