Archives for the Leadership category

In this post, our leadership trainer Matt runs through what it means to be charismatic and why it is such an important trait for great leaders. Confidence plays a big role in having charisma; something we emphasise on our Confidence and Assertiveness Course.

It’s always interesting when you are running a leadership course and the subject of charisma comes up.

When I ask the question “what is the difference between leadership and management?” you can pretty much guarantee that someone will say “managers don’t need charisma, but leaders must have it”.

I often then ask delegates who their examples of people with charisma are, and this is where it gets intriguing. You get such a wide variety of suggestions.

Amongst the choices people have put forward have been: President Obama (a popular choice), Simon Cowell, Sir David Attenborough (he seems to be universally admired), Karren Brady and Richard Branson. It’s also very touching when people name previous teachers or managers as examples.

What I think is notable is that often one person’s choice will surprise other delegates and sometimes will elicit fierce debate.

Read the rest of "Leading With Charisma"

Posted by Matt in Leadership, News on February 26th, 2013| 1 Comment »

‘He was a wise man who invented (management)’!

It might not seem apparent at first, but Management and Philosophy go together like Kant and the Categorical Imperative.

Management, among other things, seeks to provide a structure to get the best from people, to understand business and make people (customers, staff, bosses) happy.

Philosophy, among other things, seeks to provide a structure to get the best from life, to understand the world and make people (society, individuals) happy.

So can managers learn anything from the great philosophers? Certainly.

If you’d like to learn how to be a great manager, why not try our Management Skills Courses?

This post will be part of a series called ‘Management Lessons From Philosophy’ we’ll start with the ideas of the ancient philosophers from Greece and work our way up to the modern thinkers, exploring everything that can be applied to management along the way.

This week we begin with the man who started it all: Plato.

“The Unexamined Life is not Worth Living”

The Godfather of everything philosophical, Plato is the man when it comes to wise one-liners that make you re-evaluate, well, everything!

With this quote he is arguing that to make the most of life, one really needs to inquire and seek knowledge, both about the world and oneself. Read the rest of "Plato’s School of Management"

Posted by Jackson Rawlings in Leadership, Management, News on January 8th, 2013| No Comments »

Here our trainer Graeme guides you through how to be more productive as a manager.

Make the Most of Your People

I am sure we have all seen those leadership and management quotes over the years: ‘His team would follow him anywhere, but only out of morbid curiosity’ (anon) and other such pearls of wisdom.

However leadership and management have never been so important. In these tough times for businesses small and large the question is: how do you keep employees motivated and focused when uncertainty is high and pay rises are low?

You can learn all the skills you need to keep employees motivated, and much more, on our Management Training Courses.

Here at Silicon Beach we believe in the old maxim that people are your greatest asset and that it is our leaders and managers who can really make the difference to how employees feel and perform.

That’s why we concentrate on offering support to managers in the areas that we feel matter.  Experience tells us that employees value recognition, feedback and a sense that they have a role to play in the organisation. It also tells us that these are the areas that can be challenging to managers.

So whether it’s having difficult conversations, giving feedback or adopting a coaching culture our approach is designed give practical tips & techniques in these areas. Read the rest of "Management: Be More Productive"

Posted by Graeme in Leadership, Management, News on December 20th, 2012| No Comments »

You did it! You got that promotion or new job that means you’ll be leading a team. It’s an achievement in itself, but here’s where the really hard-work begins!

If you’re new to management, taking charge (and responsibility) of a group of people can be a daunting task, but fear not; help is on hand. We’ve compiled this handy guide to give you some ideas as to how to go about approaching your new role. Of course, you can always try our Management Skills for New Managers Training which teaches you everything you need to become a confident and successful manager.

If you’re managing your own start-up rather than changing roles within employment, try our 8 Management Tips for Start-ups blog post.

1/ Prepare

We all know the classic adage “failing to prepare is preparing to fail” but in this circumstance it most certainly holds true. As you are a new manager, it’s unlikely that you’ve done much research into it before now. Well, now is the time!

You’ve made a good start by reading this post, but there are literally hundreds of resources available to you on the subject (that go into much more detail on specific areas within management) so make use of them. In terms of research prior to starting the job, this is what you should be looking at:

• Management definitions – know exactly how your new job will differ to your old one in terms of roles and responsibility.
• Management styles – be aware of the different management styles that can be adopted and begin thinking about the style most suited to you.
• Techniques – everything from how to go about hiring and firing to how to talk to staff, it will all help in the long-run. Read the rest of "Managing your First Team"

Posted by Andy Trainer in Leadership, Management, News on December 14th, 2012| No Comments »

Throughout history there are certain figures who stand out as naturally great leaders. It is always useful for managers to focus on the qualities that made these people great and try to emulate them.

You can learn how to develop these qualities and much more on our leadership and management courses.

We recently gave some tips for managing a start-up but in this post we will focus on the more general skills that can apply to anyone in a leadership position, whether your business is just getting off the ground or you’re an established manager with years of experience. And we’ll be having some fun with it too… hopefully.

John F. Kennedy – Aspire to Greatness

JFK was perhaps the most youthful, vivacious and daring president there has ever been (and we’re not just talking about his extra-marital exploits here).  While this sometimes got him into trouble (*nearly caused the apocalypse) he will be remembered as the man who dreamed of putting a man on the moon, reversing the centuries-old persecution of African-Americans and bedding Marilyn Monroe!

Dare to dream like JFK. Aim for the stars and still land on the moon, aim for Mila Kunis and still land on…actually, I think we’ll leave that analogy there. Aspiring towards greatness instills a confidence in your employees in both you, and themselves. Be like JFK. Be remembered. Be great. Read the rest of "5 Management Lessons From History’s Greatest Leaders"

Posted by Jackson Rawlings in Leadership, Management, News on November 14th, 2012| 2 Comments »

So your world-beating idea is becoming a reality, your business plan is flawless and you’ve hired the right people. Think that was tough? Well the hardest part is yet to come! Now it’s time to actually begin managing your start-up. Luckily we’ve laid out this handy guide of management skills to help you get the most out of your new enterprise. All these tips are covered on our 1-day New Managers Course, the best way to start off your Management Training.

Be Calm and Confident

You’re the boss, so act like it! Sure, you’ll see managers flying off the hook once in a while but you should try to maintain a calm and collected exterior as much as possible. Think about some of the best business leaders out there: people like Richard Branson and Bill Gates.

You rarely see them looking anything other than calm and cool because it instills confidence in employees, as does being assured in yourself. This is your start-up so be proud of where you are and how you got there and display that pride to your employees. Read the rest of "8 Management Tips For Start-Ups"

Posted by Andy Trainer in Business Skills, Leadership, Management, News on November 5th, 2012| No Comments »

Students all over the UK are either celebrating their A level success and looking forward to a future at University with excitement or have been shocked into a “What am I going to do now?” dilemma when they didn’t make the grade.

If you or your offspring are faced with the latter it’s not the end of the world. Do not despair, some of the richest and most successful entrepreneurs in the world dropped out too! In fact 6 out of 10 of the world’s richest people have no formal higher education qualifications, and some no qualifications at all. Great leadership skills are rarely learned at school or even university, although our training will give you some insights. Determination, hard work, enthusiasm, dedication and motivation may get you a lot further than you think.

Bill Gates – Microsoft

Co-founder of Microsoft Corporation, Bill Gates was the world richest man for thirteen consecutive years. Worth $62 billion he is still number two, second to Carlos Slim Helu. Bill dropped out of Harvard.

Bill Gates says: “We were young, but we had good advice, good ideas and lots of enthusiasm.”

Good ideas and enthusiasm can earn you lot more than qualifications.

Amancio Ortega Gaona – Zara

Spanish billionaire Ortega had no higher education and began working for a shirt maker at the age of 13 and continued to work in the textile industry until the early 1960s.

At the age of 27 he founded his own company manufacturing fine bathrobes.

Today he is worth $37.5 billion according to Forbes. Read the rest of "Failed Your A Levels? Don’t Despair! Read About The Billionaire Dropouts"

Posted by Andy Trainer in Business Skills, Leadership, News on August 17th, 2012| No Comments »

Every natural leader needs guidance…

A manager’s role is to be able to effectively deal with all the types of individuals they may have to manage during their career. For a group of people to work as a team, their various personality types and skill sets must be nurtured and developed.

Some people are trickier to manage than others, but this doesn’t make them any less valuable to the organisation – sometimes those who may initially seem hard to deal with can become one of the team’s strongest assets and a source of great support to their manager.

In some cases, such as with natural leaders, traits which initially present as challenging behaviours can be turned into strengths. Or, looking at it a different way, the things you find most challenging in some people are so interlinked with their strengths that to try and eradicate them would be to lose the good stuff as well.

When it comes to managing natural leaders, it’s very important to be aware of the difference between a leader and a manager. Managers need good leadership skills as well as knowledge of how to manage. Similarly, for a strong leader to become a manager, they’ll need management training just like anybody else.

This article will help with what to do when the first signs of leadership show themselves in a member of your team – and how to make it work for you rather than against you.

Recognise the Leader

As it says above, the unrecognised traits of a natural leader may at first be challenging – they will ask a lot of questions and make suggestions for how to improve processes. Other signs of leadership are that others will go to them for advice and guidance, and that they will instinctively guide and advise others. Read the rest of "How to Manage Natural Leaders"

Posted by Andy Trainer in Leadership, Management, News on June 25th, 2012| 2 Comments »