Over the years, I have shared with clients and teams that being a collaborative leader is a learned skill and behavior. Research shows that organizations that encourage a collaborative style of leadership are highly productive companies. Individuals develop collaborative leadership skills in environments that embrace differences of opinion when collaborating across their organization.

I found a relevant and interesting article posted on the Harvard Business Review Blog that supports the importance of collaboration.  Is “Command & Collaborate” the New Business Model? by Herminia Ibarra, Professor of Organizational Behavior and the Cora Chaired Professor of Leadership and Learning at Insead.  Ms. Ibarra discusses the pros and cons of adjusting the old “Command and Control” leadership style to one that embraces more collaboration.  Click here to view her post.

I am currently working on a fun project for a client who recently launched a strategic global initiative to become more collaborative. Their three business units work in “silos” and customers were not responding favorable to their old business model.  The client asked me how to train the entire global sales organization to be collaborative. My answer: “It starts at the top!” All internal and external communications must be aligned with your collaborative strategy.

Not only will a collaborative environment enhance team’s leadership style of behavior, but it will also improve organizational performance. More organizations in today’s economic environment are looking for new and innovative ways to grow their companies. Ask yourself, “Is our company’s culture collaborative? “ If not, how can you help to change it?

Organizations, teams, and individuals will grow when any organization successfully incorporates a collaborative environment.

This blog is in honor my late father, James E. Browning. His passion, vision, commitment and dream for Indianapolis were so admirable.

My father was so proud of our city and its possibilities.   He told me often that, “Indianapolis will be the Amateur Sports Capital of the World.”  Well, Dad this weekend, we were the NFL Pro Sports Capital of the World hosting our first ever Super Bowl.  

A few short weeks after my father’s death, Indianapolis was awarded the 2012 bid to host Super Bowl XLVI.   Dad: you are up there working your magic and orchestrated perfect weather to ensure this event was a huge success. If you were here, you would make sure the NFL Super Bowl Committee and the NFL consider our city again in the future.

I came across this quote that relates to the man and leader my father was in this community:

“Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seeds that you plant.”

-  Robert Louis Stevenson

Indianapolis yesterday was nothing like it looked between 1975 and 1987. Hosting the Pan-American Games elevated our city but building the Hoosier Dome changed the sports landscape dramatically.  Add to that the Indianapolis Sports Center, the U.S. Gymnastics Center, the NCAA, the World Skating Academy, the Colts move, Lucas Oil Stadium, and other major sports developments.  Reflecting back on my father’s dreams for Indianapolis, I can see that Indianapolis today is a result of the seeds a group of amazing visionaries planted nearly forty years ago.  In addition, yesterday, we hosted our first Super Bowl with record warm weather, thousands of people attending from surrounding states, record attendance and amazing reviews.

For most of my life, I listened to my father’s inspiring words about his dreams for this city, his vision, passion and belief that one day, Indianapolis would be the “Amateur Sports Capital of the World”.  However, I believe the World learned just how special our city is this past week and our commitment to make it the best Super Bowl ever!  It was a proud day for those who worked tirelessly to ensure things would go perfectly.  Congratulations to the Super Bowl Committee, the volunteers, and the people of Indianapolis for a great event!

by Maggie Anderson, IWL Intern, Butler University ’13 

Would you ever get in your car and start driving without knowing where you are going?  Would you get on a plane without knowing the destination?  It is fun to have spontaneous moments.  We could hop on a random flight to Lincoln, Nebraska like Jim Carrey and Zooey Deschanel in Yes Man. However ‘seat of the pants’ decisions do not propel us forward in our lives or our careers.  We need a plan and we need to know where we are going.

I just returned from a semester abroad in Spain, four months to travel and explore, and I learned the importance of having a plan.  I missed trains, lost credit cards, slept in airports, and prolonged my return home by 36 hours.  For me, planning when I was abroad meant that I thought through the places I wanted to go, the most important sights to see, when to see them, and where to stop along the way.  It also meant being prepared.  I needed a map, my guidebook, money, and my camera.  The days I planned, I saw more, got more out of my time, and experienced much less stress.  I also had a better idea of what I was seeing and could appreciate things more.   

The hardest part of planning is not knowing where you want to go.  Nevertheless, we have to start somewhere, make decisions, and not let fear keep us from exploring.  I joined a group of girls who went to Geneva, Switzerland because it was a cheap last-minute flight, and it was safe.  We had a nice weekend.  However, my trip to Marrakesh, Morocco beat Geneva by a long shot.  We planned the details, adventured to a waterfall, held a monkey named Cookie, ate couscous, rode a camel, and befriended a businessman named Mohammed.  We had an incredible time and I learned a lot from that trip.  I learned that two girls could travel on their own in Africa without worry, that we could fend for ourselves, and with the right amount of planning, we could accomplish something completely new and exciting.

Personal Action Plan

So how does this apply to our everyday lives?  Whether you are a business owner, accountant, sales representative, governor, teacher, or coach, we all need to plan.  Our first step is to develop our own personal action plan and take time to examine ourselves critically and honestly.  The true value in planning comes from the planning itself, the time we spend reflecting and evaluating ourselves.  What are my personal values?  What are the most important aspects of my life?  What are my priorities?  What unique talents do I possess?  Once you have reflected on these things, determine the demands you have for yourself in five years.  Where do you want to be in ten years?  Through this process, create a “personal quality checklist” of standards for yourself that you can fall back on.  These are our metrics to track our progress periodically along the way.

Professional Action Plan

After you form a personal action plan, you can apply it to your professional career.  Do your personal plans and goals align with your professional goals?  If not, make changes, reevaluate, and make sacrifices.  Then map out how you are going to get to where you want to be and write it down!  Thinking something and having it written down are two very different things.  I can tell myself I am going to run today, but I can easily justify it in my head if I don’t.  “I just got too busy” or “I had to get things done for tomorrow.”  If you write it down, you will be more accountable and more likely to follow through.  Finally, once you have aligned your personal and professional action plans and mapped out where you are going, think of possible challenges you may face.  When dealing with a challenge, we often problem solve by analyzing, thinking creatively, using prior knowledge, or by relying on our feelings.  If you have a plan in place and think through possible challenges and obstacles, you will be ready to make those difficult decisions and more apt to make the right decisions on your own.

The Lessons

It took a few hard lessons learned overseas for me to understand the value in planning.  Now that I am home, I am back in the planning process again.  This time I’m piecing together my professional action plan and mapping out what is left of my college career.  It is a daunting task, but a necessary one.  In addition, I have mentors and professors readily available to help me.  There are lessons I am still learning from my time abroad. My plan may adjust as I uncover more and more of the changes I have seen in my personal growth over the past five months.  So before you enter a new job, sign another contract, or hop on a plane to Lincoln, Nebraska, do not forget to utilize those around you, make changes as you go, and remember that you cannot move forward without a plan!

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Aristotle said, “We do not know a truth without knowing its cause.” So what is so compelling about strategy? Why does it exist? Why is having a strategy so important?  I was researching and preparing for a client’s Strategic Planning meeting when I realized that many women business owners don’t really understand the power of a Strategic Plan. 

Strategy is necessary in response to two inescapable realities: limited resources and competition. Those two challenges alone force business owners to make choices about where to use their scarce resources to achieve a competitive advantage.

Simply put, strategy is the sum of an organization’s choices about where it will compete, how to create superior value and how it will generate superior results for customers. Through smart choices, a well-executed strategy will win the game.

What Four Key Questions Must A Strategy Answer?

A strategy must define how you will win. Winning in business means winning at value.  It is important to focus your strategic plan on four key areas:

1.       Where will you compete?

• In what market segments?
• Who are your customers?
• What are you offering them?

 2.       What do we want to achieve?

• What is your aim?
•  What is your measure of success?
•  What is your timeline in achieving success?

 3.       How will you win?

• How will you beat the competition for value creation for customers and investors?
• What resources will you need to create value that you don’t have right now?

 4.       What are your key priorities?

• How will you focus your limited resources to achieve success?
• How many priorities do you have?

The answers to these questions will make your strategic plan specific, clear and actionable.

People often struggle to understand the difference between strategy and planning. The fact is there are fundamental differences and it is important to know how they differ. Strategy is about doing the right things – making the best choices for your organization by focusing on the few things that matter most.

Planning is doing things right. It provides a roadmap that includes discipline, logistical rigor and accountability. The purpose of planning is to create predictability and to generate forecasts, blueprints and budgets.

Effective strategic leadership is one of our greatest challenges in today’s competitive environment. Your strategic leadership gives a clear sense of direction that will enable your organization, your people and its stakeholders the ability to prosper.

Women Business Owners:  if you don’t know or aren’t sure how to create your Strategy or build a Strategic Plan, we are here to mentor and coach you through that process.

©2011 IWL, Inc.

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My name is Michelle Meredith Bowen and I am excited to be a guest blogger and expert on the topic of Women’s Health & Wellness. Like Jennifer, I too left corporate America to follow my passion for helping women create positive change in their lives. 

I spent 15 years in healthcare sales, so you could say I have seen behind the curtain of the healthcare system. When I started to see the shift in my business due to healthcare reform, I became concerned.  I witnessed the serious decline in the health of most Americans, especially women.  I also realized that “pushing pills” wasn’t really the answer, but only a band-aid for the bigger problem. My areas of expertise are in cardiovascular disease and diabetes, both of which have been seeing significant increases in the last several years.  This number really shocked me…but I believe it was based on what I saw:  by 2030, 50% of the population will be obese.  The sad reality is, even with our advanced healthcare system, we aren’t focused on the right problem.  What I uncovered in my two plus years of research was that the reason most diets and exercise programs fail to provide lasting results is they don’t focus on helping create total health. 

What is Total Health?  It is not only the absence of disease, but rather a state of complete physical, mental, and social wellbeing.  So, if you are trying to make changes in improving your health, your happiness, etc…you will have more success and are more likely to maintain the changes if you focus on YOU as a whole because everything is connected!  That means focusing on creating positive change in all areas of health and happiness to see the best results.  But to get started on your journey to really finding and living your healthiest, happiest life…you must start with deciding WHAT you want your health and happiness to look and feel like. 

Creating CHANGE in your health and happiness…starts in your head.

Our mindset is a VERY powerful thing…so powerful in fact that it can “make or break” our physical health. 

Most of us know, or at least have felt, there is a link between our mind and our health from our own experiences.    It’s the degree to which our mindset can affect our health that may really surprise you.

To help give some perspective, imagine having an important presentation to give…do you get nervous?  What happens to your body under this acute stress?  Does your heart race or your stomach tighten?  Do you spend a little more time in the ladies room than you wish to?  Imagine if you live with chronic stress or live in a negative mindset…what do you think is happening to your body if you live in that state EVERY DAY? 

Well…nothing good that’s for SURE!

There is a pretty clear link between stress and our physical health and new research is suggesting that stress causes an increase in cortisol levels.  This causes damage to our arteries, a possible explanation of why stress increases our risk of cardiovascular disease.

However, it’s not just stress; it is depression as well, according to Dr. Michael Frenneaux, professor of cardiovascular medicine at the University of Birmingham in England.  Depression doubles an otherwise healthy person’s heart attack risk.

Did you know that your attitude “about your health” can also help determine HOW long you live?  Sounds pretty crazy but that’s part of the power of the mindset.  People with a positive mindset about their health ARE healthier and at less risk of developing disease than their negative counterparts.

A Duke University study found that HOW a person classified their own health was predictive of survival rates.  Now…it’s not just that the people who reported poor health were actually sick so they KNEW it…the researchers controlled for that and all of the patients had significant heart disease.  The 3000 heart patients were asked to classify their health as poor, fair, good or very good.  Those who chose very good were about 70% less likely to die within 3 years than those who answered “good”.  AND they had a three times the survival rate of those who claimed “poor” health.

This same phenomenon was also seen in another study conducted by researchers at John Hopkins University.   They found that, in over 5000 people over age 65, those who had a poor image of their health (regardless of other risk factors) had almost DOUBLE the risk of death within 5 years.  The researchers concluded that a pessimistic mindset proved to be deadlier than smoking 50 packs of cigarettes a year or congestive heart failure.

A person’s OPINION (mindset) of their health stands out as a KEY to their longevity!!!  So how do you feel about that?  Where is your mindset about your health?  Are you positive or negative?  You mindset is a very powerful thing…and guess what?…YOU control it.

What if you already have a positive mindset? How does that help you live your happiest and healthiest life? 

One of the most frequently discussed studies connecting your mindset to your susceptibility to getting sick was conducted by Dr. Cohen, Carnegie Mellon University.  343 healthy individuals were exposed to the cold virus and very interesting things happened!  Dr. Cohen showed that individuals who exhibited a positive emotional style or mindset had a greater resistance to getting the cold.  Not so for the negative nellies! 

Those who were classified as Negative Emotional Style (reported anxiety, hostility or depression) were more apt to report cold related symptoms regardless of whether they really developed a cold! 

Your positive mindset doesn’t just stop at helping stave off the common cold (although that’s pretty cool).  A positive attitude may also lower the risk of developing cardiovascular disease…yes the thing that will get most of us.

Having a positive mindset may even help slow the progression of atherosclerosis.  Psychologist Karen Matthews at the University of Pittsburgh observed 209 healthy, postmenopausal women for three years and found that the most optimistic ones had very little thickening in their carotid arteries—just one percent, versus as much as 6.5 percent in the pessimist group.

Dr. Hilary Tindle, of the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, and her colleagues analyzed the information from the Women’s Health Initiative known for its conclusions on hormone therapy.  It included 97,000 women aged 50-74 who did not have heart disease or cancer when they joined the study.  At the beginning of the study, the women answered questions about their attitudes.  According to the survey definitions, optimists expected good things to happen and the cynically hostile women were mistrustful of other people.  After 8 years, the optimistic women had a 14% lower risk of dying from ANY cause compared to their pessimistic counterparts.  Interesting!

So what exactly causes this connection between our mindset and how well or how LONG we LIVE?  Dr. Engstrom, MD of Lunds University, Sweden, has extensively studied the link between self ratings of health and the outcomes.  He says that a positive outlook on your health may decrease mental distress.  This alone can be a big factor against developing diseases.  Also, individuals with a positive mindset often are more likely to exercise and eat healthier.  

There is a lot of research showing that connection between your mindset and your health.  While we may not know exactly how or WHY it happens, we do know this:

• Your mindset about your health…dictates it.  If you are positive about your outlook on your health…you are less at risk for illness.
• The more stress and negativity you carry, the more negative your mindset…the more risk you have for developing diseases and going to an early grave.

You’ve got the CHOICE…Choose a positive mindset for your life and health then reap all the benefits! 

In case you want to dig a little deeper, check out these resources:

Troubled Mind…Troubled Heart
Psychosocial Risk Factors and Coronary Heart Disease

Stress and Your Heart

Guest Blogger Michelle Meredith-Bowen ACSM CPT, Certified Wellcoach® and Founder of CoolLime Life  

We all lead busy and complicated lives, right?  Often, in our quest to be the best wife, mother, employee, sister, aunt, friend, volunteer, parishioner, mentor, boss, (you get picture)…we do the one thing that is most detrimental to our ability to be there for others and excel in our roles…we forget to take care of ourselves! 

Here are a few statistics on the current state of women’s health:

• Women’s reported “happiness” has been in decline despite the positive social changes for women.  The Paradox of Declining Female Happiness
• Only 32% of women 18 and over engage in regular leisure-time physical activity.  CDC’s most recent report on women’s health
• 64.1% of females over age 20 are considered overweight. JAMA 2010
• Social Support is one of the key indicators – and possibly a key driver – of health.  Yet a poll by the National Sleep Foundation shows that 40 percent of women respond to overwork and stress by cutting back on the time they spend with friends and family.  Live A Little, Susan M. Love, M.D. & Alice D. Domar, Ph.D. 

Here’s a term for you to think about…self-care!  Ever heard of it?  Do you practice it regularly?  If you are finding yourself increasingly frustrated, anxious, short-tempered, or maybe you have just lost your bright-eyed smile, maybe you aren’t getting enough of it. 

What is self-care?

It’s the activities, behaviors, etc that you regularly engage in that replenish YOU!  They give you energy; improve your mindset, your mood, your health, etc.  Basically these activities fill up your physical and emotional gas tank so you can be YOU and do all of the things you do! 

If you are reluctant to take this time to “fill up your tank”, just consider what would happen if you had that same attitude about your car?  You would be sitting at home a lot!  This re-fueling isn’t really an optional behavior, although many of us treat it as one.  We feel guilty, and put everything else in priority before it.  But, here are the cold hard facts…if you don’t take care of yourself, YOU, along with everyone you are trying to take care of will suffer. 

Consider self-care any activity that you can get lost in that replenishes your physical and mental energy.  These are different for everyone.  What might strengthen and replenish one person may actually deplete another.  (For example, I have many friends that love to work in the yard, mowing, planting, etc.  …but I wouldn’t step foot behind a lawn mower unless at gun point!)

Ask yourself these questions:

1. What do you currently do for self care? 
2. What would you like to START doing? 
3. How would you (and those around you) benefit from increasing your self-care activities? 

Now that you have done a little reflection…are you ready to take action?  Fantastic!  Write down your goals and get started.

BUT, if you are like many of us and you not sure how or where to get started in making these changes to take care of YOU (you might not even know exactly what you want yet), consider seeking the help of a wellness coach to help you find those answers!    

A wellness coach is a certified or licensed professional trained in applying coaching and positive psychology principles to helping people identify and reach their health and wellness goals.  This resource is proving to be so helpful in improving health and wellness related outcomes that many insurance companies, employers and physician practices employ them.

Wellness coaches assist YOU in mobilizing your strengths and realizing your potential by helping you identify the best path for achieving your goals and providing support and accountability along your journey.

You owe it to yourself and to those who rely on you to take care of yourself and your total health (mental, physical, and social).  If you find yourself always putting you last, remember this…you can be even more helpful and successful in all of your roles if you invest some time in taking care of YOU!

Guest Blogger Michelle Meredith-Bowen ACSM CPT, Certified Wellcoach® and Founder of CoolLime Life

In Honor of a Man Who Has Forever Changed our World

“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma—which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice.  And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”

 - Steve Jobs

Several months back, I wrote a blog “Living Life through Intuition.” I believe we have the answer inside us when we stop to listen and hear our hearts to ensure we are making the right choices. The impact for me these past few weeks was reading Steve Jobs’ Stanford University Commencement Speech. He stated, “Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition.”That one statement caused me to pause and reflect on these past 17 months, because I have tried to live an intuitive life. It’s hard!  But I can honestly say that, for the first time in my life, I am listening. I am paying close attention to my surroundings and I am learning how all the dots connect. It is so fascinating that when I am feeling fear or uncertainty, I get a sign. It could be as small as a hand written note in my mailbox, an e-mail or voicemail message with encouraging words to continue our work. Then my intuition kicks in, reminding me to stay true, focused on our vision and passion.

Another quote of Steve’s also had a significant impact on me, “You can only connect dots backwards not forward.”  Wow.  That is such a simple statement, yet powerful one! The reality is, when you try and plan your future, the unexpected happens that changes the course of life.  When defeat is too painful in the moment-as an athlete not winning the most important competition after years of training, getting passed over for a promotion, divorce, the loss of a child, or getting fired,  we reflect years later on those moments you realize how all the dots connect. The dots backwards have put me right where I am right now TODAY! I totally get it!

I am learning you can’t be too attached to your life as you know it, instead trust that all the dots will be connected in your future. That is all part of the plan.  Jobs also said “you have to trust in something-your gut, destiny, life, Karma whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.” I found this statement reassuring and comforting. On days I am feeling scared or frustrated or uncertain about my future, I find peace knowing my journey is from all my dots backwards preparing me for the future.

It is my belief and that of a great writer Paulo Coelho, author of The Alchemist and Aleph, that when you focus on the present moment, that is where all the signs, parallel worlds, and miracles are to be found. I personally have experienced the powerful signs and miracles that have at times emotionally overwhelmed me.  However, they have also brought me peace into my life!  Here is a simple but complex example.  Those that know me will be surprised. Over the years, I would run and gun all day long, high energy, wired and work… work… work…but today, on this rainy Thursday morning, after coaching a client, I crawled into bed and read my book. Trust me when I tell you…I NEVER DO THAT -ESPECIALLY ON A WEEK DAY. I needed to go quiet and I felt my inner peace guiding me to stop my world and chill. I was reading the Paulo Coelho book and couldn’t put the book down.  

Perhaps, maybe it’s because, I will be turning 50 in less than two weeks.  Is it age that brings us closer to our soul or does the wisdom and life experience draw us closer to the spiritual side of life? For me, the journey is out of my control.  Thinking back to April 4, 2010, when I learned I no longer had a job, I remember the overwhelming warmth and feeling come though my body and peace that let me know I was going to be ok. My life was taking a new direction, a new turn and I have learned so much about me. Most importantly, I understand the power of connections and those DOTS. I am finally living an intuitive life entering into a new century. I am so excited to embrace my future dots because I know it will be an extraordinary journey and I can’t wait to experience it.