WINTER 2022 / REAL-LEADERS.COM 63 CEO SUCCESS 4. Mary Barra CEO, GENERAL MOTORS Quote: "It’s okay to admit what you don’t know. It’s okay to ask for help. And it’s more than okay to listen to the people you lead — in fact, it’s essential." Why it Works: Research by leadership development experts, Zenger Folkman, suggests that leaders who exhibit a preference for listening are rated as significantly more effective than those who spend most of their time talking. Pro Tip: According to The 11 Laws of Likability by Michelle Tillis Lederman, effective listening is the single most powerful tool for building and maintaining a climate of trust and collaboration. DO • Maintain eye contact and focus on the speaker • Limit your talking • Confirm understanding, paraphrase, ask questions • Give non-verbal messages that you are listening (nod, smile) • Manage your emotions DON’T • Interrupt or finish someone’s sentences • Assume you’re being attacked • Use condescending or aggressive language • Listen with biases or appear closed to new ideas • Jump to conclusions. 3. Tyler Haney FOUNDER, OUTDOOR VOICES Quote: “You need to have unbound enthusiasm for what you’re building. Energy is contagious, so your team and everyone you interact with feels it.” Why it Works: Leading by example doesn’t start and end with work performance; it comes down to the way you talk about your work and the emotions you express too. If negativity breeds negativity, the opposite is also true. Pro Tip: Founder of Small Business Trends, Anita Campbell, shares three quick ways to spread enthusiasm and inject positive energy into your day-to-day leadership: • Appeal to passions. Try to find out what each person on your team is passionate about and what motivates them. • Celebrate accomplishments. Nothing breeds success like an environment of success, so celebrate team and individual successes no matter how small. • Do something unexpected. Surprise your team with something nice, from bonuses to an afternoon off or an early finish. "MY ADVICE ON FIRING IS SIMPLE: TREAT THAT PERSON THE SAME WAY YOU'D WANT TO BE TREATED IF YOU WERE IN THAT SITUATION. THEY'RE STILL A GOOD PERSON, JUST NOT THE RIGHT FIT." — MARY BARRA
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