Dr. Angela Love's Executive Coaching & Leadership Development Blog

I am extremely excited to attend this year's Wisdom 2.0 conference in Silicon Valley this week! The conference brings together leaders from companies such as Google, Facebook, Twitter, Paypal and eBay along with speakers such as Eckhart Tolle and Jon Kabat-Zinn. 

If you want to become a better manager, work on improving your empathy. Ask clarifying questions to understand your people's situations better. Be sure to focus on emotional cues. Appreciate not only what others are saying, but also how and why they are saying it. Also listen for what’s not being said.

Empathetic managers are more likely to inspire others. They are generally well liked and command greater respect, which means their direct reports will be motivated to go the extra mile.

Without empathy and focus, you won't be able to communicate effectively and relate well to others. People who lack empathy are sure to face interpersonal difficulties that lead to inferior performance, negative outcomes, and poor relationships with coworkers and customers.

I hear about bad leadership decisions in the work I do, and have found a book that sheds light on what happens. This one is excellent:

I've been trying to understand what goes on in decision making processes. Why do smart people make seemingly stupid judgments?

Each day, intelligent leaders make mistakes, with devastating consequences.

Clash Point #3: Meeting

By 2021, Gen X will be the senior members of the work force, and both Gen X and New Millennials will be in leadership positions. Big changes are already beginning to appear and, in 10 years, the world of work will be significantly different.

What happens when generations don’t share the same values and beliefs about workplace success? Older managers become baffled and confused when what used to work, no longer motivates new workers. In the work I do in organizations, I get asked about this frequently.