In the workplace, leaders are often so busy trying to keep up with their workloads and the responsibility of taking the organization forward that they fail to spend the quality time with their staff necessary to support, guide and build relationships. While the team may be profitable, over time it will lack the depth and quality necessary for long term success.

Effective leaders..

• Appreciate the value of spending time with their team members in support, training and things not related to work.
• Realize that their time is limited and valuable and so think about how and who they will spend their time with. Often it's the "creaky door that gets the oil" and the leaders' precious time is taken up by exceedingly needy and problematic team members. This will impact on the effectiveness of the team, as the team members who want to grow and develop can miss out on this time with their team leader.
• Manage their time well and can say “No!” at the right time.
• Know that for long term success it is important to find a balance between time at work and time at home. What is the value of being successful at work when all of our personal relationships are falling apart?

So, who are the people in your team (and in your family) you need to spend some more time with? How are you going to set this up so that it happens regularly? Are there people in your life that you should be spending less time with?

• Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us by Daniel Pink*
•  Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard by Chip & Dan Heath*
• Trust Agents: Using the Web to Build Influence, Improve Reputation, and Earn Trust by Chris Brogan & Julien Smith
• How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
• Permission Marketing : Turning Strangers Into Friends And Friends Into Customers by Seth Godin*
• Presentation Zen: Simple Ideas on Presenting Design and Delivery by Garr Reynolds
• Freakonomics and SuperFreakonomics by Steven D. Levitt & Stephen J. Dubner
• The World is Flat: A Brief History of the 21st Century by Thomas L. Friedman*
• Crush It! Why NOW is the Time to Cash In on Your Passion by Gary Vaynerchuk*
• The 4-Hour Work Week by Tim Ferriss*
• Shogun by James Claville
• Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand
• The Knack: How Street-Smart Entrepreneurs Learn to Handle Whatever Comes Up by Norm Brodsky and Bo Burlingham

I’ve only read 6 of the 13 (see “*” on the list). What about you? And what would you add to the “blow your mind” list?

Here’s a great article from FastCompany about why investing in your team requires a long-term focus, and is the only thing that will bring long-term results. William Yost argues that if we’re going to succeed, we need to change what we measure (at least the exclusivity of what we measure) and the time frame in which we measure it.

"Every good journey begins with knowing where you are and being willing to go somewhere else." Richard Rohr

“It is easy to trust someone who has never let us down. But if we are taking any level of risk at all there will be breakdowns, some of which will be caused by us. And rarely do we act fully alone – some breakdowns will happen because we have pushed the boundaries of what is possible given the dynamic of our existing relationships. Unless we use the inevitable breakdowns in an uncertain, rapidly changing world to learn how to trust each other more, we won’t grow to meet the challenges we face, let alone be prepared to take the risks required to do the extraordinary together.

“The opportunity of leveraging breakdowns in trust to fuel breakthroughs in relationship is not just a nice possibility. It is an essential skill for thriving in a world that increasingly depends on or ability to cooperate and collaborate to be successful.” - Susan Mazza

“You need to be authentic as a leader — to behave in a way that is consistent with your values. You earn the right to lead. You need a leadership philosophy that's grounded in self knowledge, and that begins with your purpose or passion. Why are you a leader? What do you intend to do as a leader, and how do you bring your values to that intention? Today's environment calls for visionary leaders who have a firm knowledge of themselves — knowledge that can translate into authentic, forward-focused action. The origins of your leadership style are in your life experiences. Determining the meaning of those experiences, and how they have shaped you, will transform the way you lead.”

Todd Henshaw, retired U.S. Army Lt. Colonel