Is your employer contributing to personal burnout??

Careers with high levels of stress, tight deadlines, and family issues are all just the tip of the iceberg when considering actions that contribute to burnout conditions. Some individuals even go so far as to show physical symptoms such as insomnia, depression, negativity, anger, or detachment from friends and family when stressors take over one’s life. Unfortunately, there are several factors that contribute to burnout and excessive stress situations. I will detail a host of causes that are often times correlated to an improper work-life balance.

Generally, employers have an innate sense to increase expected productivity levels. This increases the expected workload which eventually leads to longer hours and time away from home. Not only does this promote the inability to effectively manage one’s personal and professional work-life balance, but your expectations of co-workers and family can increase exponentially.

Furthermore, when your boss becomes reliant upon your “Can Do” or “Yes, Sir” attitude, the individuals who generally suffer are your family, friends, religious affiliations, or volunteer events that rely on your time. Unless you physically take a step back and look at your current situation, in an attempt to address and treat burnout, the effects will continue to erode away at your job productivity. Worse yet, the quality of your work will decrease; the attitude about your job will diminish; and in some cases could manifest into physical ailments or death.

According to the website, http://www.workplaceissues.com/arburnout.htm, “Studies have shown that more heart attacks occur on Monday morning than any other time of the week. The common factor here is that people are going back to work after a weekend off. What a shocking realization, that people are not dying to go to work but are dying because they are going to work.”

Personally, I enjoy the challenge of working a career that keeps me on my toes; however, I have taken a stance that there must be a clear work-life balance. All too often I have seen fellow co-workers, friends, and even family members lose focus of this and have fallen into burnout type of situations. Remember, at the end of the day, you must enjoy the fruits of your labor.

Dr. John Kotter’s 8 Steps for Leading Change

Drawing upon the April 26th class discussion, I was a bit intrigued to investigate Dr. John Kotter’s 8 Steps for Leading Change. The following 8 Steps within Kotter’s theorized process, includes the following key tasks (identified in order of completion):

I. Acting With, or Creating, Urgency
II. Form a Powerful Coalition
III. Develop and/or Create a Vision for Change
IV. Communicate the Vision
V. Remove Obstacles to Empower Broad-based Actions
VI. Generate Short-Term Wins
VII. Build on Changes and Gain Momentum
VIII. Anchor the Changes in Corporate Culture

Derived from Dr. John Kotter’s website, http://www.kotterinternational.com/kotterprinciples.

With over 30-years of research and trial & error efforts to his name, Dr. Kotter has proved that nearly 70% of major changes within organizations FAIL. It is Kotter’s belief, with a high certainty of success that organizations who do not adapt to change will not prosper. Since technology and employee-bases are ever-changing variables, Kotter recommends that executive management teams implement a holistic approach to improve change. Without embracing the holistic approach, the team will identify the lack thereof of change, and management could be taking a one-way ride on a rollercoaster that has already been embarked upon. Remember, the end goal is to Lead Change and eventually Anchor the Changes into the existing framework of corporate culture. Resistance to acknowledge change is only a temporary band-aid to the problem which could ultimately pose negative results.

Five Innovation Principles

After reviewing the basic differences and similarities of Innovation and Creativity, I decided to dive a bit deeper into the Innovation Realm. What I have learned through visiting a host of websites and periodicals has been summarized below into 5 basic principles - obtained courtesy of www.studymarketing.org.

I. Must Be Approached as a Discipline
II. Must Be Approached Comprehensively
III. Includes an Organized, Systematic, and Continual Search for New Opportunities
IV. Involves Everyone in the Organization
V. Must Be Customer Centered

Granted, these 5 Principles are NOT the only means that prospective readers can enhance their innovation strategy; however, embracing the following five innovation principles into your own unique styles and various approaches will make you better-rounded.

Let’s first understand the difference between creativity (coming up with ideas) and innovation (using those ideas to promote top-and-bottom line results for a business or personal success).

I have been privy to instances when my employer will try to implement creativity by sending a group of individuals into a ‘think tank’ brainstorming sessions. Granted, our session did unveil several new opportunities and areas of improvement; however, not a single idea was authorized and moved into the implementation phase. Similar to any large corporation and firms with outdated organizational structure and management bases, I soon realized that any unnecessary changes that did not promote growth and/or additional revenue streams would be rejected. What was this whole process supposed to accomplish??

In this instance, nothing happened because innovation was not a discipline, and our newly thought up ideas, no matter how optimistic, were pummeled by the present necessities.

I do not have specific facts to reference; however, I would assume that most organizations today have new ideas that are directed in a top-down fashion. This severely limits the potential innovation and creative means of the ‘workers’ of a company. Furthermore, these established and iconic organizations do not even allow their best assets, employees, to innovate new ideas to actions and activities that they complete on a daily process! I feel that this process has caused the backup and lack thereof of new technology, business process improvements, and the initiative to propose new inventions in the marketplace.

High Altitude Leadership: What the World’s Most Forbidding Peaks Teach Us about Success

In this week’s blogs, I am going to further my examination into the elements (i.e. icebergs, mountain climbing, and extreme sports) and take a few pages from the book, High Altitude Leadership, by the extreme mountain climber, Chris Warner, and fellow scientist, Don Schmincke.

In the book, Schmincke and Warner reveal the secrets to becoming a High Altitude Leader, literally! In fact, according to the book’s official website, http://www.highaltitudeleadership.com, High Altitude Leadership is the travel guide for traversing the dangers on the road to success.

What drew me to blogging about this book were the immediate thoughts generated from a fellow colleague, Professor Tobin Porterfield. The professor drew references to several of Earth’s natural landmarks, such as K2 and Everest, and introduced the concept of leadership and teamwork to achieve a goal. What perplexed me most was Porterfield’s statement, “more people die on the way down K2, than those going up the mountain.”

As is the case with many mountain climbers, the exhilaration of scaling large rocks, the teamwork of working together to reach an intimidating peak, or mourning the death of a careless climber are all parts of the extreme sport. Furthermore, all of the advice provided in the reading is supported by Schmincke's research into team’s and/or group performance and correlates that information into the high failure rate of many management and leadership programs of companies.

According to the aforementioned website, "To thrive in the face of today's business challenges and tomorrow's unpredictable risks, you need to become the type of leader whose career, team, and company excels in the most extreme environments. With so much at risk, you have to be the High Altitude Leader who uses every bit of your talent and every ounce of your strength to guide your team to peak performance," say authors Schmincke and Warner.

Additionally, there are 8 specific ‘dangers’ that Schmincke and Warner elude to that can sabotage anyone – from locations ranging from 26,000 feet above sea level or the 26th floor suite of a corporate headquarters – that include: Fear, Selfishness, Tool Seduction, Arrogance, Lone Heroism, Cowardice, Comfort, and Gravity. By identifying these potential dangers, I plan on implementing a strategy to not only encourage decision-making, but empower team members to lead when leading is imperative.

K2 Climbing to the Summit Shared Summits Expedition from Chris Warner on Vimeo.

Reaction Blog to a Management & Leadership Presentation

This blog makes reference to a presentation that was conducted on April 11, 2011 (my birthday) at Towson University. The guest speaker, one Dr. Robert Hamilton, is the Chief Operating Officer (COO) for the James F. Knott Realty Group, a commercial and residential real estate development company here in the Baltimore, MD area.

What really intrigued me by his presentation was not only the multitude of information that he provided regarding organizational behavior and leadership attributes, but specifically his excerpt on creating self-awareness. Dr. Hamilton broke down the basics of what his interpretation of self-awareness contained: 4 fundamental attributes that included Business Skills, Leadership Skills, Interpersonal Skills, and Intrapersonal Skills. Hamilton provided direct reasoning and ideas behind his ranking of importance of the 4 skill sets, along with real life examples (always a positive in a presentation).

What really struck me most was his reference to leaders and management figures in an awkward, but subtle fashion. Hamilton linked the two designations to an iceberg, ideally a large piece of ice that floats along in the Antarctica continent. As Hamilton explains, "typically, an iceberg only shows the top layers. A GREAT leader who really knows themselves reveals more of their iceberg to their colleagues and staff."

Taking a quick look at the picture, the viewer will notice that most leadership figures will present the highest points and valleys of their iceberg. The very rare leaders will have more of their iceberg floating above the water to expose their true leadership attributes. I'm not one who typically examines, rather describes, a physical reference made within a presentation but I felt this was fitting. Moreover, I am originally from Minnesota where after 4-5 months of a 'short' winter, the spring will emerge and the lakes will become floating mirages of what could be seen as "mini-icebergs" to those unfamiliar with the natural occurrences.

Management of Freakonomics

Deciding to explore other business dialogues, I had to satisfy my curiosity of a reading referenced to me by a fellow economist in my undergraduate studies. The first edition of the book, entitled Freakonomics, (Dubner, Levitt 2005) provides a redefined approach to how business persons and the general public view the modern world. I wanted to obtain a copy of something up-to-date, thus I ‘Googled’ the term and found the authors website: http://www.freakonomics.com/

Since my official blog specifically entertains concepts that pertain to management ideals, I decided to explore the website’s blog section for details. What I uncovered was a breadth of current events that deal with domestic and international occurrences, many that occupied by idle time. The article that really sparked my interest was titled, “Somali Pirates Practice Inventory Management,” and was written on March 16th, 2011.



Apparently, the Somalia Pirates have become more sophisticated in their illegal day-to-day business practices. In fact, a group of Somali pirates announced that “they’re cutting asking prices for hostages by 20 percent — to speed up the negotiation process, make room for more hostages and take in more cash…we want to free ships within a short period of time instead of keeping them for a long time and incurring more expenses in guarding them. We have to free them at a lower ransom so that we can hijack more ships.” http://www.freakonomics.com/2011/03/16/somali-pirates-practice-inventory-management/

This statement is rather bold, considering that the unidentified “spokes-pirate” is starting to apply modern business and economics aptitude into an otherwise psychological ordeal. Unlike ordeals that include kidnapping, hostages, or ransoms, the Somali pirates actually think that the western viewpoints of business will translate into large sums of money. I’m not sure where they obtained their education; however, I will say their ideas sound trivial, but more-or-less rather ludicrous!

Decision-Making Processes

For as long as I can remember, I’ve always utilized a less-than-common methodology involved with everyday decision-making processes. My close friends and family members all agree that I over analyze simple questions and everyday tasks that should take a split second to decide, but somehow turn into a “What if” fiasco.

I decided to research the decision making process and what the definition actually entailed. According to the book titled, Organizational Behavior: Emerging Knowledge and Practice for the Real World, decision making is defined as the conscious process of making choices among alternatives with the intention of moving toward some desired state of affairs (Von Glinow and McShane).

Typically, decisions are made by utilizing clear logic and applying the best available information to determine the best option at hand. Furthermore, our authors categorize the Decision-Making Process into one of 6 Rational Choice Options as follows (Von Glinow and McShane):



1. Identify the problem or opportunity; realize that some decisions may produce results that exceed and/or fail to meet current goals and expectations.

2. Chose the best decision process; determine whether you have enough information available or require the assistance of others to complete the desired process.

3. Develop alternative solutions; if necessary, search for the best solution or modify an existing strategy to help create the best outcome possible.

4. Chose the best alternative; field the possible alternatives with the best outcomes and make your decision based upon the highest utility.

5. Implement the selected alternative; this process is self-explanatory and should assume minimal, if any, problems to implement the alternative decision.

6. Evaluate decision outcomes; generally, the final step should involve information from predetermined benchmark metrics such that any final feedback is easily examined.

What I have realized over the past couple of years after completing my undergraduate and graduate studies is that the existence of too much information can be my problem. I have made mind-numbing efforts to better control my overactive brain stimulants; however, I should find an outlet to tap into this surprisingly beneficial attribute to increase my personal net worth. Or, better yet, provide assistance to others who would simply want additional alternatives to a common process that requires revamping.

Sources: Von Glinow, Mary Ann and Steven McShane. Organizational Behavior. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Irwin, 2010, Pages 198-200.

The FISH! Philosophy

Based upon the presentations conducted by fellow classmates on March 30th, I was very motivated to conduct additional research on the FISH! Philosophy. However, I cannot put the cart before the horse, and I will provide a brief description of what the FISH! Philosophy entails.


So, what exactly is the FISH! Philosophy?

The FISH! Philosophy consists of four simple, interconnected practices:


• Be There is being emotionally present for people. It’s a powerful message of respect that improves communication and strengthens relationships.

• Play taps into your natural way of being creative, enthusiastic and having fun. Play is the spirit that drives the curious mind, as in “Let’s play with that idea!” It’s a mindset you can bring to everything you do.

• Make Their Day is finding simple ways to serve or delight people in a meaningful, memorable way. It’s about contributing to someone else’s life, not because you want something out of it, but because that’s the person you want to be.

• Choose Your Attitude means taking responsibility for how you respond to what life throws at you. Once you are aware that your choice impacts everyone around you, you can ask yourself, “Is my attitude helping my team or my customers? Is it helping me to be the person I want to be?”

Through The FISH! Philosophy, we build stronger relationships with the team members we work with, the customers we serve, the students we teach and the people we love. (FISH! Philosophy: What is FISH!)

Planning an overhaul, or merely shaking up habitual office place actions, is not an easy task for many individuals to adjust to. Simply betting on the fact that your team may feel a high level of resurgence in their career may be a reason to actually implement a program along the likes of FISH!. If your HR or Management Team is considering the idea of bringing FISH! to your organization, why not ponder the financial resources necessary to potentially improve outputs of an otherwise stagnate team?


ChartHouse Learning, the founders of the FISH! Philosophy, offer a vast array of services to help clients introduce and effectively use these powerful tools. In my current career as a Financial Analyst, my workplace could definitely utilize the assistance of the FISH! Philosophy to inspire or facilitate the motivation of several co-workers. Unfortunately, due to the bleak economic considerations, I feel that the recommendation to actually implement, much rather suggest the thought; will go by the way-side.

Sources: FISH! Philosophy: What is FISH! 3 April 2011. http://www.charthouse.com/content.aspx?nodeid=22610.

Basics About Employee Motivation (Including Steps You Can Take)

Beyond the obvious financial motivators, I wanted to delve into an employee motivator that could serve as a catalyst for success and personal growth that doesn’t include out-of-pocket expenses. After reading several articles based upon “Steps You Can Take to Improve Employee Motivation” I realized that breaking down the process to fundamental basics may be the best route. My method will include rather basic ideals commonly referred to the acronym “SMARTER” meaning that your goals are Specific; Measurable; Acceptable; Realistic; Timely; Extending of capabilities; and Rewarding to those involved. (McNamara, Carter. N.D)



In addition to the SMARTER acronym, I completed research for basic principles to help motivate employees that you not only work with, but also spend a majority of time with on a daily basis. I uncovered a few examples that will be examined further below.

I. Motivating Employees Starts with Motivating Yourself!

Ever notice that when it seems like you hate your job, it everyone else does too? Or my personal favorite, when you are stressed out, the same can be said for your co-workers? One must realize that enthusiastic actions are contagious. When someone is enthusiastic about their job, others will typically follow suit. This will often lead to a better overall awareness of taking care of yourself, personally and from a career perspective, with a clearer outlook on how others are doing their job, both in a positive and negative manner.

II. Place an Emphasis on Aligning Organizational Goals with Employee’s Goals.

As a manager, you should be excited when your employees are fired up about their work. But, are your employees focused on contributing to a task that is aligned to the goals of the organization? If not, you are essentially paying the employee to complete a project that results in no value added.

It is imperative that management teams who how to motivate employee’s specific to their goals, both individually and as an organization. Determining how to deliver these reports or expectations, from an organizational standpoint, is not necessarily easy. You, as the manager, may need to sit down and clearly identify the organizational and strategic goals set forth by executive management. To ensure that employees are receptive to your requests, ask for their inputs in the matter. This will demonstrate a value of empowerment and a feeling of self-worth that cannot be tracked in financial terms; rather, you should see a higher productivity level!


III. Understand What Motivates Each of Your Employees

The majority of managers realize that every person is unique and can be motivated by a breadth of different things. Whatever steps you take to support the motivation of your employees, they should first include finding out what it is that really motivates each of your employees. Ways to determine what really motivates your employees includes asking, listening, and finally observing them from day-to-day.

IV. Distinguish That Employee Motivation Is A Process – NOT A TASK.

The overall businesses environment and culture changes all the time, similar to a person’s diet. Granted, one can foresee that it is an enduring process to sustain an environment wherein employees can continuously motivate themselves and each other. By maintaining the repetitive nature of sustaining employee motivation as a habitual process, there is a strong likelihood that you will be much more fulfilled and motivated yourself.

V. Utilize A Set of Organizational Policies and Procedures To Support Employee Motivation.

A member of management cannot assume that simply building a strong interpersonal relationship with their employees will spawn teamwork and motivation. The intentions and thoughts of this process are appealing, but the nature of relationships can change without notice.

For example, consider a period where in your direct boss have a verbal scuffle about how to handle a decision. Your stress levels rise, work begins to pile up, and you may speak out in frustration. This could lead to a decrease in productivity and eventually loss of motivation at work.

Instead, reiterate the fact that you allow the employee’s valuable feedback and establish an Organizational Set of Policies and Procedures to help motivate employees and discourage the aforementioned scenario. By establishing this set of policies and procedures, employees will be aware of various systems and structures that will provide a clear understanding and equitable treatment for all persons associated. As an added incentive, management might want to consider the establishment of compensation and performance systems, in addition to the organizational policies and procedures, to better sustain employee motivation.

McNamara, C. (n.d.). Basics About Employee Motivation (Including Steps You Can Take). Retrieved March 15, 2011, from Authenticity Consulting, LLC: http://www.managementhelp.org/guiding/motivate/basics.htm#anchor160017

A Decade of Internet Usage Growth: 2000 - 2010

In conjunction with a separate presentation conducted on the "Growth of Social Media Outlets" I was curious to find out how many users Worldwide now have access to the Internet realm. Making reference to the attached table below, obtained from the following website at , I was a bit awestruck that nearly 29% of all individuals worldwide now have access to the internet! This number equates to approximately 1.97 Billion Internet Users based upon the June 2010 global population estimate of 6.85 Billion people.



What really started to catch my interest was the growth rate of Internet usage from 2000 to present day (or as the Table suggests, June 2010). Concurrent to the final months of my high school tenure, wherein I graduated in 2001 from Shakopee HS in Minnesota, the total internet usage statistics were an estimated 361 Million users worldwide. Now fast forward time a mere decade to June 2010, and the number has compounded itself by almost 4.5 Times! A growth rate of nearly 445% is almost mind-numbing.

Furthermore, this quick observation of internet usage over the last 10-years has allowed me to see the entire spectrum of advancements in technology. The initial 56K dial-up modem has now transformed into an internet connection that is nearly 10 times faster on my handheld Smartphone. Even more, nearly 47% of all users who currently have a so-called Smartphone have access to the something that is still considerably 'unknown' in more than half of the worldwide populace. Unbelievable how technology has transformed our everyday actions!!

An in-depth analysis of perceptual thoughts and biases

Beyond the normal rant and raves of the week, I was intrigued by perceptual factors that are self-induced and often times unintentionally reactive behavior. All individuals, no matter the race, sex, age, or religion, have a personal bias based upon the world and experiences that surround our decision-making abilities every day. These perceptions and stereotypes can be categorized into one of four behaviors that include Halo Effect; Primacy Effect; Recency Effect; or False-Consensus Effect. I will identify each effect in-depth below.

The Halo Effect model occurs when someone develops an impression of another individual based upon a characteristic, whether physical, mental, emotional, that distorts and clouds our perception of that person. For example, if you work with another employee that generally stays late and works excessive hours, naturally you may consider that he or she is a “workhorse.” Conversely, you may recall a classmate that is consistently taking frequent smoke breaks. When they excuse themselves early from a group session, you may think they are leaving to smoke when really they were searching for a book.

The Primacy Effect switches gears and is categorized as our natural tendency to form an opinion of people on the basis of first impressions. For example, when you are granted an interview with a local employer, most individuals would want to “Dress for Success” and show up on time. If you are tardy or wear blue jeans and a t-shirt to your interview, the boss may think you are not prepared for the position. The problems with most first impressions, specifically the negative first impressions, are the difficult nature to change someone’s burned thought of you in their mind.

The Recency Effect is a situation where the most recent information stands frontline center of our immediate perceptions. This is a common situation specifically when you are approaching an annual performance review with your boss. If you recently lost a large acquisition for a highly reputable client, this could undoubtedly impact your boss’ thought perceptions and likelihood of receiving a raise even if you promoted an increase of sales in the prior 6-month time frame. The key here is rescheduling your plans and trying to revive your career...quickly!!

The False-Consensus Effect is a perceptual error where we overestimate the extent that others may have similarities, characteristics, and beliefs that are similar to our own. This is quite commonly referred to as “everyone else does it” to reinforce our self-concepts or habits that encourage continuation of those thoughts. I often relate this perception to excessive binge drinking in college because of the belief that most other students "were doing it" and approve of the partying phase. In reality, not every college student binge drinks, rather, a host of students may disapprove of the actions. Other examples include fashion trends or unethical behavior that includes intimidation or bullying.

Characteristics of a Natural Leader

In conjunction with a MBA Management class that I am currently enrolled in, I decided to expand upon what I felt were Characteristics that any Natural Leadership should uphold. This is by no means a mandatory skill-set, or a scientific study, of personal traits that Mr./Mrs. Manager should entail; rather, a suggestion of thoughts and theories that I have experienced through my post-undergraduate career as a Portfolio Manager and currently as a Senior Financial Analyst.


Here are the Top Ten Characteristics that I felt best kept employees, clients, and members of executive management at bay:

I. Motivating / Inspirational
II. Assertive
III. Integrity
IV. Personable
V. Encourages Open-Communication
VI. Visionary
VII. Responsible
VIII. Risk-Taker / Analytical
IX. Diplomatic / Political
X. Intelligent (both Book-Smarts and Common Sense)

This naturally brings about my next topic of discussion: What is the difference between an effective Manager and a Leader? I will try and answer that conundrum within the next paragraph but I must first point out the fact that not all managers are good leaders. There are instances wherein a manager is placed into an executive position based upon their experience, or are fortunate enough to have a direct line to individuals (i.e. Next of kin) who are members of executive management, or are simply filling a temporary void for the time being. I will, however, point out the fact that most leaders could make a great manager. Moreover, as mentioned previously, the managers who do not motivate, or empower their employees with one of the 'Top 10 Characteristics' listed above, may crumble in the adversarial ploys that accompany most leadership roles.

In my short lived, but rather highly accomplished, career to this point, I can state with certainty that I really enjoy a host of management figures that have taken me under their wing. Conversely, there are at least two individuals who I have had difficulties with, but at the end of the day let bygones be bygones for the overall success of the big picture. What I find quite appealing and mind-stimulating is analyzing my prior successes and failures and deciding what steps need to be taken to prevent the same mistakes from reappearing in future occurrences, sometimes defined as the reasoning for studying history.

The Pygmalion Effect

The Pygmalion effect, sometimes referred to the Rosenthal effect, describes the phenomenon in which the greater the expectation placed upon an individual - generally children, students, and employees - the better they perform.

Making reference to the last blog that I posted, “What is Leadership Exactly,” I have pondered how the Pygmalion Effect could be an extension of what your parents have instilled in your belief and general value system. I learned from a young age, as most other children have, that you soon learn the differences between right and wrong from several sources. Beliefs systems are extensions of parents, friends, family, teachers, government, society, co-workers, etc. Since this blog makes references back to my education, I will be focusing my analysis on teachers and their capacity to encourage higher learning expectations.

Relating back to the Pygmalion Effect how is it possible that teachers, who are responsible for the education and fostering of our adolescent education, could directly improve a student’s mental capacity in only one year? I am a firm believer in the following quote: “You get back what you put in,” meaning if you are willing to make the effort, you will reap the benefits. Likewise, if you not willing to give an honest effort, or your teacher doesn’t foster a learning environment, chances are high that you will not achieve your desired goals. However, could there be more to education than meets the eye?

In an extension of the Pygmalion Effect, it was determined that higher expectations could also be the results of racially-motivated expectations. Jane Elliott, an American teacher and anti-racism activist from Iowa, created the famous “blue-eyed versus brown-eyed” exercise, first done with grade school children in the 1960s. Today, this exercise has become a common place for the basis of diversity training.
The experiment was constructed as follows: Of the two eye-color groups, one group was given preference and regarded as "superior" because of their eye color, with the other group repeatedly being considered inferior in intelligence and learning ability. On the second day of the experiment, the groups were completely reversed, with those oppressed against one day being regarded as superior the next. Elliott gave spelling tests to both groups on each day of the experiment. The students scored very low on the day they were racially "inferior" and very high on the day they were considered racially "superior." (Peters 1971)

Needless to say, there are several variables that can play in the final reasoning for the Pygmalion Effect; however, in my experiences to this point I can say that individuals who uphold high levels of expectations will generally expect individuals to meet those goals. I consider myself fortunate to not only know these types of individuals, but also have parents who expect this from me.


1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pygmalion_effect . Peters, Williams (1971). A Class Divided, New York: Doubleday and Company.

What is Leadership Exactly?

I was pleasantly surprised by a comment received last week in my last blog from someone who I consider a true leader, my father, Charles. He stated, and I quote, "Always remember to give recognition to the ones that deserve it. Without dropping the ball, always support the ones striving to achieve it."

I was a bit floored by his comments primarily because this was truly a piece of advice that made me ponder his thoughts.

By definition, leadership is an act that involves influencing, motivating, or empowering others to contribute towards an effective and (hopefully) successful endeavor. Now, I haven't specifically geared this towards an organizational thought, but if that was necessary I would have to include ideals such as allocating resources, key personnel, lines of communication, and management tactics (to say the least). What had especially floored me by my father's quote was the tactful sincerity that was offered. Although his words imply a sense of achievement, you must remember those who have fostered your progress from start to present: your parents, family, teachers, etc...

In this case, my business fundamentals were all derived from my parents as I was involved in a family-owned operation when I was only 12-years old. Not only was I involved, but everyday customers asked for me by name as I was the local 'guru' and source of knowledge.


As I review my current level of leadership, I realize that I uphold a host of cultural and personal values, in addition to the fact that envision direct, supportive, participatory, and achievement-focused styles of work. I'm not mandating that my fellow co-workers and/or subordinates tailor their work to this mold; however, it will make my stream of workflows much easier.

I've always said that when all team members are on the same page, completing tasks are much easier than two employees who are in different levels. I'm not about 're-inventing' the wheel, rather making the process smoother and a safer ride!

Re-Organizating A Structured Corporation

In my prior career as a Portfolio Manager in the Automotive Industry, I was curious to know about the internal workings and foundation of an established company. What I had realized, or noticed through my tenure, was a company that had way too many 'ladders' and/or 'hoops to jump through' to simply make a decision. The following blog will address reasons why these ideals could pose a serious problem for a company.


Historically, my former employer, not mentioned to retain anonymity, had engaged in a taller hierarchy with several layers of management. To me, the problems experienced with this situation are readily apparent - "Too many Chiefs and not enough Indians." I'm not trying to ruffle the feathers of readers, but in an organizational level, the employees are the ones who actually make a product, provide a service, or supply the expertise to their direct manager. When there are excessive layers of management, usually the information will become bottle-necked and generally slows down the internal approval process. Furthermore, the actual employees who complete the work are not recognized for their completed work, rather the management officials gloat in their exemplary work. Not only will this lead to poor job satisfaction, but eventually the employee may respond by leaving their job, voicing their opinions to peers and/or management, suffer in silence by remaining meek and reserved, or most commonly - neglecting their work efforts, not paying attention to their quality of work, or arriving late or not showing up at all.

The theory previously mentioned is commonly referred to as the EVLN Model, standing for Exit-Voice-Loyalty-Neglect. A manager who engages with their team will be able to identify these types of actions that may eventually lead to one of these 4 ailments, but changing someone's emotional and habitual actions can be more difficult once they have a problem with a senior co-worker or a member of the management staff.

Taking into account my desire for success and employee empowerment, I decided to take a stand. I often times voiced my opinion, albeit trying my best to avoid inserting my foot in mouth, while playing the corporate political game. I proposed that the corporation 'de-layer' the roles of management, eventually flattening the role of bosses. Theoretically, my plan would reduce labor costs, increase output performance, and reduce the approval time processes. All positive views, however, I forgot to identify the possible negative attributes such as the undermining of managerial functions, increased workloads and stress on managers, and the restriction or absence of managerial career development opportunities. This could definitely have detrimental impacts to the new wave of employees and their viewpoint of where their hard work and efforts could eventually land them in the next 3-5 year timeframe.

Unfortunately, I cannot inform the reader of management's final decision-making fate. You may ask, why not? Well, fortunately for me, I decided to high tail it out the door and let someone else clean up the mess. I had remained loyal to a company that promoted, relocated, and taught me a wealth of knowledge; however, they missed one vital component that any member of management should not overlook: empower your employees to ensure that they feel their work will eventually lead them to a position of power. Management was religiously quoting, "You should all be happy that you still have a job," in an otherwise stagnate or depressed economy. Conversely, members of management should have been stating, "Great job with that last Proposal,” or “That Financial Analysis of Client X was absolutely right on!" Fortunately for me, multi-tasking is in my DNA and I had already planned my exit strategy and my commitment to the continuation of my MBA education. To this point, I have not regretted my decision and look forward to a promising career in future Finance and Management endeavors!

Mario's Personality Profile - ENTJ

As part of a Management MBA class that I am currently enrolled in at Towson University in Maryland, I was instructed to take a Myers-Briggs Personality Profile Test. Previously, give or take roughly 5 years ago, my results were ENTP (Extroverted, Intuitive, Thinking, Perceiving); however, time has shifted my natural tendencies slightly. After re-taking the exam online, my results were ENTJ (Extroverted, Intuitive, Thinking, Judging) with the only difference in the last segment from Perceiving to Judging.

Generally, a common characteristic of a ENTJ is a vision of the future and the ability to make that vision come true. Basically, my thoughts behind this concept are similar to a position such as a Project Manager, Financial Planner, or even your local Wealth Management Investor. I can vouch for the fact that many ENTJs have a high-level of analytical tendencies and businesses will often seek individuals who have these traits to be business consultants, financial or economic analysts, and stockbrokers.

A typical trait of an ENTJ is that many individuals exhibiting this personality set is commonly driven toward leadership and/or roles that exude decision-making responsibilities. In a business environment, ENTJs can be found as top executives or senior management officials. Personally, I am driven by deadlines and goals; furthermore, I allure, if not implore, fellow employees and subordinates to achieve similar expectations. A realization is eventually expected that all individuals cannot have the same personality and work ethics, but if your team works together toward the same goal, the sky is definitely the limit!