Archive for the ‘Finance’ Category
March 11th, 2010 | 
Author: Learn How To Get The Most From Your Team
Being a leader isnt easy. Every one looks to you to make decisions resolve disputes and to carry all the responsibility. Being a leader can be a lonely job.
Some of us are born into leadership. For them it is effortless effort. They have no qualms (or at least they know how to hide them) about making tough decisions about taking the responsibility and knowing that it can lead to resentment and isolation from other team members.
Others are forced into it. They find themselves taking over the role due to an unforeseen event and try and balance their friendships and relationships with the requirements of the role. This almost always leads to frustration stress and overall dissatisfaction with the situation from everybody.
Then there are others that grow into the role. They are able to adapt to the pressures the role requires and practice at balancing the responsibilities of the position with relationships both at work and home.
So which one are you? Are you in a leadership role by choice or by accident?
I have found that I was initially the accidental leader. I found myself in the role without quite knowing how I got there. I always knew that to move up in the business world I would need to stick my neck out and risk having my head chopped off but when the promotion happened I was still nervous and largely unprepared for it. What made things even more challenging was the fact that I was younger than those staff members that I was asked to lead.
I found that there is an enlightened approach to being a leader that takes time to develop but has the best results in the long term. This I how I adapted to my new challenge:
I first worked on understanding my team. I found it vitally important that they feel a part of the decisionmaking process and that their opinions were validated.
Secondly I took my time. I never made a decision without gathering as much facts as possible within an appropriate time. I never allowed myself to procrastinate (not too much 
) but I tried hard not to make a kneejerk decision. In doing this I was able to get the teams involvement and support for the final decision.
Thirdly I understood that with any leadership role comes both recognition and risk. I learnt to manage that risk and to some degree embrace it. Some days it was scary and other days I really enjoyed the challenge.
However they key to my success in any leadership role is building respect within the team. There is absolute truth to the expression that you are only as strong as your weakest link. I could not have achieved what I have in my life without the support and respect of those I have worked with.
There were days when I really struggled understanding my team but as long as I gave myself time to learn the role and understand the team members I would usually get the result that I was aiming for.
If you are or you intend to be in leadership in business spend the time to get to know your team and validate their input. You will never make it to the top without at least one other human being helping you get there. A true leader is someone who is able to bring out the best on others.
So what is that expression Together Everyone Achieves More?? Corny but very very true.
About the writer:
Matthew Tibble is passionate about helping small businesses achieve online business success. With 10 years experience in sales and marketing he has developed an enlightened approach to business that combines proven philosophies with practical implementation. For more information email articleinfobusinessplanningmadeeasy.com or visit www.businessplanningmadeeasy.com.
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Learn Currency Trade Intro To The FOREX Market
The Foreign Exchange Market better known as FOREX is a world wide market for buying and selling currencies.
It handles a huge volume of transactions 24 hours a day 5 days a week. Daily exchanges are worth approximately 1.5 trillion (US dollars). In comparison the United States Treasury Bond market averages 300 billion a day and American stock markets exchange about 100 billion a day.
The Foreign Exchange Market was established in 1971 with the abolishment of fixed currency exchanges. Currencies became valued at ‘floating’ rates determined by supply and demand. The FOREX grew steadily throughout the 1970’s but with the technological advances of the 80’s FOREX grew from trading levels of 70 billion a day to the current level of 1.5 trillion.
The FOREX is made up of about 5000 trading institutions such as international banks central government banks (such as the US Federal Reserve) and commercial companies and brokers for all types of foreign currency exchange.
There is no centralized location of FOREX major trading centers are located in New York Tokyo London Hong Kong Singapore Paris and Frankfurt and all trading is by telephone or over the Internet. Businesses use the market to buy and sell products in other countries but most of the activity on the FOREX is from currency traders who use it to generate profits from small movements in the market.
Even though there are many huge players in FOREX it is accessible to the small investor thanks to recent changes in the regulations. Previously there was a minimum transaction size and traders were required to meet strict financial requirements. With the advent of Internet trading regulations have been changed to allow large interbank units to be broken down into smaller lots.
Each lot is worth about 100000 and is accessible to the individual investor through ‘leverage’ loans extended for trading. Typically lots can be controlled with a leverage of 100:1 meaning that US1000 will allow you to control a 100000 currency exchange.
There are many advantages to trading in FOREX including:
Liquidity: Because of the size of the Foreign Exchange Market investments are extremely liquid. International banks are continuously providing bid and ask offers and the high number of transactions each day means there is always a buyer or a seller for any currency.
Accessibility: The market is open 24 hours a day 5 days a week. The market opens Monday morning Australian time and closes Friday afternoon New York time. Trades can be done on the Internet from your home or office.
Open Market: Currency fluctuations are usually caused by changes in national economies. News about these changes is accessible to everyone at the same time there can be no ‘insider trading’ in FOREX.
No commission Fees: Brokers earn money by setting a ’spread’ the difference between what a currency can be bought at and what it can be sold at.
How does the foreign currency exchange market work?
Currencies are always traded in pairs the US dollar against the Japanese yen or the English pound against the euro. Every transaction involves selling one currency and buying another so if an investor believes the euro will gain against the dollar he will sell dollars and buy euros.
The potential for profit exists because there is always movement between currencies. Even small changes can result in substantial profits because of the large amount of money involved in each transaction.
At the same time it can be a relatively safe market for the individual investor. There are safeguards built in to protect both the broker and the investor and a number of software tools exist to minimize loss.
About the writer:
Article by Anna Rowe webmaster of http://www.1stforexonlinetrading.com that assists you with FOREX trading strategies fund analysis and broker tips and offers foreign currency exchange techniques.
Leadership Power Stress: Part 1 Sources
Power stress is part of the experience that results from the exercise of influence and sense of responsibility felt in leadership positions. (Richard Boyatzis and Annie McKee Resonant Leadership Harvard Business School Press 2005)
Leadership requires the exercise of influence or power. It requires having an impact on others to make things happen. It involves responsibility for the organization. Leaders are under continual scrutiny and evaluation. All these things increase the feels of pressure and stress.
For people who head organizations choices are rarely simple and clear. Communications and decision making are incredibly complex. Worse leaders are often called upon to get results and lead people over whom they have little authority.
There is no doubt that it is lonely at the top. Affiliation with others is known to relieve stress yet leaders are selected for their high need for power and achievement. Under pressure a leader will work harder rather than reach out to others.
Furthermore the higher one is in position the less authentic the feedback. Leaders are prone to CEO disease where the feedback going upwards is distorted or diluted.
Sources of Leadership Power Stress
Here are a few sources of stress that are unique to people in leadership positions. Leaders experience increased stress because they:
Must make important decisions with conflicting and complex data
Must influence others over whom they have little authority
Have a high need for power
Are driven by power and achievement over affiliation with others
Must continually get results no matter what
Lack realistic and authentic feedback from others
Constantly fight fires solve problems and crises
Must take responsibility even for uncontrollable events
Are more visible to stakeholders the public and customers
Are subject to unrelenting evaluation from peers boards and competitors
Must exercise constant selfcontrol
Must place the good of the organization above personal impulses and needs
They work for organizations that encourage selfsacrifice and long hours
They work for organizations that undervalue renewal recuperation and relaxation
Such high levels of stress have deleterious effects on the immune system leading to physiological states that cause diseases. Worse power stress leads to destructive psychological states.
A leader may withdraw unto him or herself in an effort to protect from stress. Conversely he or she may strike out at others in inconsistent ways with inappropriate expressions of anger or emotions. The leader may double up his or her efforts to achieve results and in the process miss important information from people. This further alienates people who may begin to perceive the leader as arrogant and no longer receptive. There is no doubt there is a substantial cost incurred as a result of leadership power stress.
Power stress causes a leader to go from resonance to dissonance. Once this happens there is a lack of trust and consequently a lessening of influence over the troops. Results falter and the leader becomes ineffective in a downward spiral to burnout.
The Cycle of Sacrifice and Renewal
The problem is not simply power stress. It has always been a part of leadership reality. The problem is too little recovery time. There is no halftime on the field. While the pressure and stresses will not relent there must also be greater attention to recuperation on both a personal and organizational level.
Leaders sacrifice themselves continuously on the job. Some leaders have learned skills that deliberately and consciously step out of the destructive patterns to renew themselves physically mentally and emotionally.
Leaders who manage the cycle of sacrifice stress and renewal are mindful of what it takes to turn situations around. They are able to motivate themselves and others by being optimistic focusing on values and connecting with others.
They cant do that without mastering stress and renewal. This involves paying attention to mind body heart and spirit. These effective leaders know that without attending to themselves first they wont have the energy to maintain resonance to manage other people.
This is part 1 of a 2 part article on Leadership Power Stress by author Patsi Krakoff. In part 2 we examine the cures for relieving power stress.
About the writer:
Patsi Krakoff Psy. D. writes articles for business and executive coaches and consultants. She provides articles on leadership and executive development for sale and formatted into customized newsletters. Get Patsi’s Secrets of Successful Ezines 7Step MiniCourse to learn what you need to know to publish a successful ezine. http://snipurl.com/Ezine_MiniCourse