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What I Learned About Leadership as an ANC Commissioner
| Guest post by: Dia Sutton |
Article Overview: Recently, I got a lot out of a a conversation at the supermarket about my leadership skills.
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Free Download - Political Savvy for the Average Employee By Dia Sutton |
What I Learned About Leadership as an ANC Commissioner
Recently,I ws at the supermarket and ran into a former neighbor and community activist in the District of Columbia. He indicated that he and another community leader were talking about me (in a positive way) the previous night. He gae me feedback on my Commissionership and told me I was definitely missed as the Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner (ANC) in the community. it was truly nice to hear what he had to say. When we parted, I felt good about my four years as an ANC.
After our 10+ min. conversation I began to remember what I had done and accomplished and I linked it to my philosophies and practices in leadership. When I was a Commissioner, I had to use every skill I had ever learned and/or taught. There was not a set formula that indicated when to use the skills - like "I am going in conflict. so I need to use my conflict skills." It was more like use everything you know how to do to resolve this issue and keep out the drama. It became instinctive.
However, I did develop some general thoughts about leadership from my four years as a Commissioner. This may only apply to being a community leader or it could apply to general leadership.
- Listen to what others have to say
- See things from other's perspective
- Separate the people from the problem
- Keep people informed about the issues
- Be able to give and receive feedback (even when the feedback received is unwarranted)
- Be sincere
- Do your homework, keep in the know
- Look to the future, plan ahead
- Be able to effectively communicate with people from diverse cultures, occupations and socio-economic levels
- Lead by example (it may mean walking a lot)
- Know your limitations
- Use the skills and knowledge of others
- Most of all laugh a lot
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About the Author: Dia Sutton RSS for Dia's articles - Visit Dia's website Dianne Floyd Sutton is President of Sutton Enterprises, author, trainer, educator, expert witness, coach and actor. She has over twenty years of combined experience in Human Resource Development (HRD) processes, Diversity, Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO), and Communication training. Sutton Enterprises (SE) is a full service human resource development organization which offers a variety of Human Resource Development (HRD)services, i.e. training, keynotes, facilitations, EEO interventions, organizational development, etc. For more information about SE go to www.suttonenterprises.org Dianne Sutton has the skills to create a safe learning environment where diverse participants are able to ask questions, experiment with new behaviors and development new skills. She also has the ability to present models and techniques in a straight forward, clear and humorous manner. She started her career as a mathematics instructor in the St. Louis, Missouri Public School System while attending graduate school at Washington University. Before founding Sutton Enterprises in 1987, she held a variety of positions at the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in training and employee development. Her most recent publication is Workplace Etiquette: A Guide to Thriving and Surviving in Today’s Workplace. In 2010 Dianne was awarded the Spencer Logan Leadership Award from the Training Officers Consortium (TOC) in Washington, DC. This is the organization's highest honor. For more information go to www.trainingofficers.org Dianne is on a civility crusade as Ms. Etiquette. Ms. Etiquette offers a down-to-earth, in-depth presentation peppered with real life examples and appropriate humor. She demystifies the rules and gives insights into behaviors that increase respect, collaboration and trust in the workplace. Check out Ask Ms. Etiquette for answers to questions about appropriate etiquette in the workplace at www.suttonenterprises.org Click here to visit Dia's website   Cubical Etiquette Your EMail Name Could Hurt Your Career Advancement Managing Your Multicultural Starship Attracting A Mentor Professional Presence Brand Me |
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