10 Simple Things That Teams Expect From Their Leader

I remember the first time I became a leader, I called a meeting with my team and said, "Here are my expectations of you." When I finished, I asked if there were any questions, and one of the team raised his hand and said: "Do you know what are our expectations of you?" As this was my first leadership role, the question took me by surprise -- and to be honest, I didn't, as I had only ever thought about leadership from the perspective of the leader. It was understanding their perspective and what was expected of me that allowed me to improve my leadership.
Here are 10 things teams expect from their leader.

Clarity

Clarity of goals and objectives is essential for success. It allows the team to focus on what's important, which increases their effectiveness and helps them make progress. Teams don't necessarily expect the leader to know the exact route, but they do expect them to be able to clearly define the destination.

Opportunity

Leaders are responsible for the development of the people they lead, and the best way to facilitate that is to give them challenging opportunities that allow them to grow.

Involvement

Teams don't just want to be there to carry out instructions; they want to be able to have some input, some involvement in creating the plans. That doesn't mean that, as the leader, you should defer to your team, but listening to their suggestions does help increase their engagement and commitment.

Keep Commitments

Trust is a key component of leadership, and nothing builds trust faster than keeping the commitments you make. Leaders who fail to keep their commitments quickly lose any loyalty and support that their team was willing to offer.

Consistency

Consistency is expected two-fold: On the one hand, people expect everyone to be treated the same (i.e., no favoritism), and secondly, they expect consistent behavior, that what they did well yesterday will still be perceived as a good job today. Leaders who are inconsistent in how they treat and react to their teams create nervousness and stress, which never aids performance.

Respect

It never ceases to amaze me how many leaders bemoan the lack of respect that they receive, yet fail to respect their teams.
It costs nothing to respect our teams, and the payback can be immense. The simplest way to show your respect is to listen to your team, ask them what they think, or ask for their input.

Honesty

I know that at times you cannot tell certain things to your teams, but that doesn't mean you have to lie. When you lie, it kills trust and respect and will make them doubt you going forward. Teams understand that at times you cannot say anything. One of my best bosses would always just say, "I'm sorry, but I am not allowed to answer that." While I didn't like that answer, at least I respected it, whereas a lie would have cost him that.

Praise

Praise is one of our most basic human needs, and when people do a good job, they expect to receive that from their boss. It doesn't need to be over the top; it can often just be a simple "thank you" or "good job, well done." Praise is one of a leader's most powerful tools, yet too many use it too sparingly.

Timely, Constructive Feedback

We all make mistakes, but criticism rarely helps to fix them. What teams want is timely, constructive feedback. If the result is not what you expect, then let them know, but do it in a way that allows them to learn and improve, so that they will know how to avoid the mistake next time.

Stand Up for the Team

Too many leaders just throw their teams under the bus when things go wrong. But as the leader, when things go wrong you're still part of it, you can't just disassociate yourself from the failure. That doesn't mean you need to put your hands up and say, "My fault," but you should look to defend your team and protect them from criticism. Leaders who do that will find that their teams will stand by them when things are not going well, but when they don't, their teams will leave them to struggle.
I worked for one boss who constantly threw his team under the bus, and then he had a crisis and needed people to work the weekend to save the situation and his reputation. Not one person volunteered. If you want the support of your team, then you need to support year team.
Leaders who meet all 10 of these expectations will have built a loyal, committed team that they can rely upon, a team that is engaged and will do its best to be successful.

Mom Donates Her Weight in Breast Milk — 2,307 Oz. — After the Death of Her 11-Day-Old Son

When Ariel Matthew’s son passed away at just 11 days old, her breasts were still producing milk. So she immediately resolved to pump as much as she could — and donate it all.

“When my breast milk came in I was pumping a whole lot,” Matthews, 25, tells PEOPLE. “I decided right away to donate it, because I knew he wasn’t going to make it.”

The stay-at-home mom to Noah, 3, had a stillborn birth a year earlier and had hoped to donate 1,000 oz. of breast milk. That time she only made it to a still-impressive 510 oz.

“I think because he came early, I just didn’t produce as much,” Matthews says. “So I made it another goal, if my body would let me, to try for 1,000 oz. And then I just decided to keep going with it once I hit it.”

In total, she ended up donating 2,370 oz., about 18.5 gallons, or 148.1 lbs. of breast milk — more than her body weight. Between her pregnancies with all three sons, Matthews donated 2,801 oz.

“It felt really good to donate it all, especially because I would get hugs from the moms when they came to pick it up and thank yous,” Matthews says. “And that the moms were trusting me to give their babies my milk — it feels really good.”

“They would send me pictures of the babies right after drinking my milk, all passed out and full. So that was really cool.”

Ariel MatthewsSara Sanders

Her breast milk went to three different moms, two of whom never saw their own milk come in, and another who had adopted a foster baby.

RELATED VIDEO: Brooklyn Decker ‘Livid’ After Missing Flight to Pump Breast Milk in Restroom



The San Jose, Calif.-based Matthews documented her story on Instagram, and as it went viral this week, she started hearing from people who were touched by her donation.

“It’s really, really awesome. If good things can come from a loss — if I can encourage people that this isn’t the end, we can get through this, and live a good life, and not let the bad things tear us down,” she says. “I like to know that there’s actually people being encouraged by this. I’ve even gotten messages on Facebook saying this has really helped me, that I hope I can be like this.”

Uncovering The Customer’s Needs | Dr Fazal Mahmood

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Uncovering The Customer’s Needs

Identifying and uncovering customer’s need is a key starting point in any sales discussion. Sometimes customers will volunteer their needs and priorities, i.e“I'm looking for something that will help us save on our stock holding costs”.

More often, however, needs and priorities have to be explored, and there are three ways you can do it:

§  by asking questions

§  by making statements

§  by using a combination of questions and statements

Questions are generally safer and more productive but they have to be carefully used. There are two types of questions that can be used and each has a particular purpose. The types are open questions and closed questions. Open questions are designed to obtain answers that cannot be answered with a simple yes or no.

Questions will:

§  keep you in control

§  slow down the conversation

§  give you more information to help you to find customer problems and needs

§  give you time to think about your options

§  encourage the customer to talk

§  help to explore feelings and attitudes

§  help to check understanding

A) Open Questions

They are useful for getting facts, opinions and feelings from the other party. Open questions can be identified by prefixes such as: how, what, why, where, who and when. They require the customer to think and give a reasoned response. They provide a means of uncovering needs and opening up an issue for more detailed and closer analysis.

B) Closed Questions

Closed questions are used as a means of focusing on an issue or problem. They can often help to identify an issue more precisely. Such questions often start with: is, could, should, would, can, will, isn’t etc. They require responses such as ‘yes’ or ‘no’, i.e. to agree or disagree; confirm or deny.

Open-ended questions are preferable for two reasons. First, they allow the customer to develop their own answer rather than putting words into their mouth which they may reject. Secondly they encourage them to talk, which at the beginning of a sale is important. You want a dialogue, not a monologue.

For example, if you ask a customer, “Does your organisation carry out training?”The answer will be either yes or no. If you wanted the customer to discuss the particulars of their training policy, you could ask:

“What types of training does your organisation carry out at the moment?”

“What staff skills is your organisation looking to develop in the next six months?”

“What has been the result of having a training policy in your company?”

Use open questions when you want a customer to explain or discuss something. Closed questions should be used when all you need is a ‘yes’ or ‘no’. Use both types of questions to gain better control of your sales conversations. It is also possible to shorten calls by effectively using open and closed questions. At the beginning of most customer calls you need to learn what the customer wants, so you would use open questions. Later, you may need to employ closed questions to get the customer's agreement, to understand a service request or just to manage the conversation and your time.

Open questions begin with:   HOW, WHY, WHEN, WHO, WHAT, AND WHERE

Examples of open questions:

If you were selling Time Management training courses to a HR director you might ask the following:

§  What challenges do you face in completing your day to day planning and prioritising? What processes are used?

§  How do you assist your staff to cope with change?

§  How effective is your sales force?

§  In the ideal world, what is the one thing you would change in your day to make you (the company) more effective?

§  What areas would you like to alter or improve?

§  What do you get as feedback as to problems your people face in terms of productivity and effectiveness?

§  What particular changes are you experiencing at the moment?

§  How happy are you with the performance of your marketing dept?

§  How well do your meetings run?

§  What challenges do you (your team) face on a daily basis?

§  What demands are you experiencing in regards to time and organisation?

§  What seems to be the real issue?

§  What impact would you say this has on you (your organisation’s) results?

§  How is this impacting on (personal time, your company’s quality process, and sales results)?

§  What other effects might it have? (or side effects)?

§  What other issues arise when (delegation isn’t carried out, meetings run late, projects overrun)?

§  What kind of effect does it have on customer service?

§  How do your customers feel about that?

Closed questions begin with words like:   DID, CAN, HAVE, DO, IS, WILL, AND WOULD

Examples of closed questions:

§  Is your company going through change and transition like so many others?

§  Are you happy with the performance of all your sales people?

§  Do you get as much leisure time as you would like?

§  Are you completing everything you would like in a day?

§  Are you satisfied with………?

§  Can you expand on that for me?

§  Are there any other concerns?

Any statement can be “closed” by following it with a question. For example:

“I would like to send you a brochure about our products. Will that be OK?”

“I’ll call you back by four o'clock with the information you need. Is there anything else you’d like to know?”

Other examples of closed questions you can use at the end of statements include:

§  Do you approve?

§  Will you participate?

§  Is that a good time to call you back?

§  Will that be all right?

Short closed questions can also be used to obtain the customer's agreement. For example:

Our representative will be there on Friday. Will that be OK?”

“You have two sides of the business that need improving. Is that correct?”

Some of these examples sound like you are giving the customer a choice. However, you are basically asking for a confirmation of your statement.

Suppose you were arranging an appointment for one of your sales representatives. The only open date you had to offer was Tuesday at nine o'clock. You could say:

“I'm sorry, Miss Johnson, but the only date Mr. Stevens has open is Tuesday at 9am. I hope that will be OK.”

This statement is poorly phrased. It could be stated more positively if you said:

“Miss Johnson, I have arranged for our sales representative Mr. Stevens to visit you on Tuesday at 9am. Will that be all right?”

The customer might still request a different date but your statement sounds like you have taken positive action.

This article has been extracted from one of our training course books. Our training materials are developed by experienced trainers and consultants.

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16 recipes to keep you healthy through the holiday season

The year is almost over, which means the time for New Year's resolutions is almost upon us. If eating healthy is in your future, these 16 recipes can help you. And don't worry: Dessert is definitely not off the table.

1. Chia-pomegranate pudding

Work on bettering your eating habits even while you're asleep. Before you go to bed, stir chia seeds into an almond-milk mixture and place it in the refrigerator. Wake up, and you have pudding for breakfast.

2. Green juice

We can't talk clean eating without sneaking in a green juice somewhere. A glass of this in the morning (or any other colorful juice), and you'll be shining from the inside out.


3. Goji-poppy bran muffin

Greek yogurt takes the place of butter in these wholesome baked goods. The poppy seeds and turbinado sugar on top crisp up for a muffin top you'll actually be proud of.


4. Shiitake mushroom and herb broth

Don't let bone broth get all the attention. Mushrooms' meatiness makes them a fine alternative to an animal-based version of this versatile clean broth.


5. Ford Fry's nam prik pao sauce

One way to make healthy eating enjoyable is by adding a flavor-packed condiment to a plate of "bland" food. The head-clearing spiciness of 10 Thai chiles and a hefty cup of sweet chile paste are sure to perk up any vegetable dish you've been avoiding.


6. Pickled mushroom and miso brown rice salad

This is a salad that will actually fill you up — it has a hearty brown rice base mixed with all that kale. Top with adorable briny beech mushrooms that look like they came straight out of a game of Super Mario Bro., and you're good to go.



7. Sweet green pea and herb falafel

Even when it's winter, you can still make this portable Middle Eastern meal by using frozen peas and pulling the curtains down to hide the snow. We like the falafel in warm pita, but you could just as easily serve them over greens to make it gluten free.



8. Upside-down pineapple granola bars

Snacking is always important, which is why we're big fans of always having one of these granola bars on hand. Mix and match with different add-ins or follow our recipe for a treat that rivals its cake-shaped relative.



9. Spicy stir-fried pork

Eating healthy isn't synonymous with eschewing meat. Strips of lean garlic- and ginger-marinated pork shine in this one-pan meal.



10. The Tasting Table macro bowl

If we've learned one thing, it's that 85 percent of recipes that contain the word bowl in their name are net positive in health benefits. Follow the recipe as is or use our guideline to find your own ideal blend.


11. Green papaya salad

This salad was inspired by a severe noodle rut, so you, too, can put take-out noodles in the corner in favor of this bright textural wonder.


12. Amaranth "polenta" with Tuscan kale

Give cornmeal a time-out and use pint-size amaranth instead for this Italian side. It's also another way to sneak just a few more handfuls of greens into your life.



13. Chicken in whole spices

Creamy tikka masala can take its toll, so swap it for this braised Indian dish. It's worth investing in the various spices if you don't already have them — especially turmeric, which gives the chicken pieces their gilded glow.



14. Matcha gingerbread cookies

Desserts don't have to be gut busters. Balance the green juice in your left hand with a couple of green matcha-avocado cookies in your right.




15. Pink pepper pavlova with grilled cherries

Tracy Obolsky's pavlova is the most delicious tongue twister we've had. When good cherries are elusive, sub in your fruit of choice, a spoonful of jam or just enjoy the cumulus cloud of meringue on its own.




16. Spiced sweet potato bread

Eating your vegetables and calling it dessert is a no-brainer. To make it even healthier, leave out the turbinado sugar — or don't. Live a little.

Tasting Table is a website and newsletter for culinary enthusiasts. We eat high and low to bring you discerning dining, recipe, culinary events, gift guides, and food travel advice you can trust along with news you can use from the world of food and drink.

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