Self-paced

As an instructor who helps build organizational leadership using improvisational comedy techniques, Sean Monahan believes that the best cultures are those where everyone feels as if their voice is valued. It’s this culture that creates “build-in” vs. “buy-in” – an effective approach to employee engagement and building collaborative, communicative teams. When you aim for buy-in, you’re essentially selling people on something; when you aim for build-in, you get their willingness to participate.

Topics covered are:

•  Differentiate between build in and buy in approaches to engagement
•  Analyze how involvement increases commitment and participation in teams
•  Evaluate leadership strategies that promote shared ownership of outcomes
•  Develop approaches that increase engagement through inclusive decision making

This course includes:

• Approximately 4 minutes of video lessons.
• A quiz with multiple-choice questions to check your understanding.

Dr. Henry Cloud—psychologist, speaker and best-selling author—discusses how to determine if someone is truly working to rebuild trust. Once a person breaks your trust, it takes time to earn it back. How do we know when someone is trustworthy again? Dr. Cloud says to observe the person’s behavior. “What I want you to do is sit in the bleachers and watch them,” he says. Are they truly engaging in the process that will reestablish trust? Are they self-motivated? Watch the video to hear from Dr. Cloud about navigating true change to rebuild trust.

Topics covered are:

•  Identify indicators that trust rebuilding efforts are genuine and sustained
•  Analyze how accountability and self motivation influence trust development
•  Evaluate whether individuals are actively engaging in improvement processes
•  Apply criteria to assess progress in rebuilding trust within relationships

This course includes:

• Approximately 5 minutes of video lessons.
• A quiz with multiple-choice questions to check your understanding.

Dean Harbry—executive advisor, coach, and chief operating officer for Brightworth—explains how leaders can be better delegators for their people. “Leaders can be better delegators [when they] stop making it about them and start making it about the people that work for them,” he says. “Professional delegation requires putting people at different levels of freedom to make sure that they're not stranded or left to do it on their own with no guidance.”

Topics covered are:

•  Explain how effective delegation focuses on developing employee potential
•  Analyze how different levels of autonomy impact employee growth
•  Evaluate how questioning techniques improve decision making during delegation
•  Apply delegation strategies that build awareness and accountability in employees

This course includes:

• Approximately 5 minutes of video lessons.
• A quiz with multiple-choice questions to check your understanding.

Paaras Parker, chief human resources officer at Paycor, shares a better way to view tough conversations. When we put our people first, there are no “tough conversations.” “A ‘tough conversation’ is only tough for you because you're nervous about having it,” says Paaras. “It's actually the conversation you owe somebody.” She explains it in terms of having a family meeting. Oftentimes, family meetings aren’t tough to have because you care about your family members and want to give them the information that will keep them safe or help them grow. The same should exist for leaders in the business world.  Watch the video to hear from Paaras about redefining tough conversations.

Topics covered are:

•  Reframe difficult conversations as necessary responsibilities in leadership relationships
•  Analyze how avoidance of conversations negatively impacts team performance
•  Evaluate how care and respect influence willingness to address issues directly
•  Apply communication strategies that prioritize honesty and accountability with others

This course includes:

• Approximately 4 minutes of video lessons.
• A quiz with multiple-choice questions to check your understanding.

According to research by the project- and issue-tracking software company Atlassian, 47 percent of workers say meetings are the biggest time-waster of their work week. But sometimes people have to get together to get things done. How can you fight the inefficiency and run more productive meetings? Sean Monahan, creative director at L.A.’s Westside Corporate Creativity, works with dozens of leading companies to help them improve productivity and employee engagement through the application of improvisation principles. In this video, Sean offers three keys to improving the way we lead and participate in meetings.

Topics covered are:

•  Set clear expectations at the beginning of meetings to define outcomes
•  Apply techniques that increase energy and engagement during meetings
•  Analyze how collaboration improves idea generation in group discussions
•  Facilitate meetings that encourage participants to build on shared ideas

This course includes:

• Approximately 4 minutes of video lessons.
• A quiz with multiple-choice questions to check your understanding.

Mark Lutz, pastor of growth and healing at Vineyard Cincinnati, shares steps leaders can take when they have a difficult person on their team. He explains there are three things to do upfront to establish a collaborative relationship with the person. The last step is to talk about the discrepancy and set clear expectations moving forward. “[As the leader,] I'm going to have to talk about whatever discrepancy is making this a difficult interaction,” explains Mark. “I declare what I see differently and I have to state very plainly the most I'm willing to do, the least I'm willing to accept, the requirements, and what the consequences will be for not meeting those requirements.” Watch the video to learn more about these four steps on how to deal with difficult people.

Topics covered are:

•  Analyze how listening to emotions improves interactions with difficult individuals
•  Apply techniques that validate emotions without agreeing with incorrect perceptions
•  Evaluate how collaboration reduces resistance in difficult conversations
•  Communicate clear expectations requirements and consequences during conflict situations

This course includes:

• Approximately 6 minutes of video lessons.
• A quiz with multiple-choice questions to check your understanding.

Lisa McLeod, author of Leading with Noble Purpose, shares why customer impact stories should be at the forefront of every meeting you have with your team. “Before you introduce any type of initiative, any type of reports, tell a customer impact story because it connects the dots,” says Lisa about team meetings. “People need to know why you, as a leader, are there, and they need to know that their work matters.”

Topics covered are:

•  Explain how storytelling connects employee work to meaningful organizational impact
•  Analyze differences between data driven communication and emotionally engaging storytelling
•  Evaluate how customer stories increase engagement and motivation in teams
•  Apply storytelling techniques to communicate purpose before presenting data or metrics

This course includes:

• Approximately 5 minutes of video lessons.
• A quiz with multiple-choice questions to check your understanding.

In our third video of a six-part series about emotional intelligence (EQ), Dr. Henry Cloud—psychologist, speaker and best-selling author—discusses why leaders must be aware of their own behaviors to develop EQ. Emotionally intelligent leaders know their triggers, but a lot of times leaders are unaware, which can be detrimental to decision-making and lead them down the wrong path. “If you get triggered, you're reacting, you're not proacting,” says Dr. Cloud. “And 99 percent of the time, a reaction never gets us to the results that a strategic choice of the best option chosen of several different options could have afforded us. But we don't know that we're reacting out of a feeling if we're not aware of our feelings.” Watch the video to hear an example of a leader who almost threw in the towel on his position because he was unaware of his triggers.

Topics covered are:

•  Analyze how self awareness influences reactions during challenging leadership situations
•  Identify emotional triggers that lead to defensive or reactive behavior
•  Evaluate how recognizing emotions improves decision making and communication
•  Apply self regulation techniques to respond thoughtfully instead of reacting impulsively

This course includes:

• Approximately 9 minutes of video lessons.
• A quiz with multiple-choice questions to check your understanding.

Tysonn Betts, design vice president of global family care at Procter & Gamble, discusses how storytelling affects empathy. We all have different journeys, and sharing our stories is an opportunity for others to understand our perspectives. “Our ability to be able to tell a story is a way to engage with people,” says Tysonn. “It's a way to tap into their emotion. It's a way to be able to lay out a number of breadcrumbs, and if you can do that through a story, you'll probably establish some point of connection with the person you're talking to.” How are you using storytelling to connect with those you lead? Watch the video to hear from Tysonn about building empathy through storytelling.

Topics covered are:

•  Explain how storytelling builds empathy and emotional connection between individuals
•  Analyze how personal experiences shape perspectives and decision making
•  Evaluate how sharing context improves understanding of others emotions and behaviors
•  Apply storytelling techniques to strengthen empathy in communication

This course includes:

• Approximately 4 minutes of video lessons.
• A quiz with multiple-choice questions to check your understanding.

People on the same team can either compete against each other or collaborate toward a common goal. Kim Hamilton Anthony, four-time U.S. Champion gymnast, UCLA Hall of Famer and author, offers stories of both competition and collaboration from her days as a UCLA gymnast, and the growth that comes through servant leadership.

Topics covered are:

•  Compare individual competition and team collaboration in performance environments
•  Analyze how recognizing individual strengths improves team effectiveness
•  Evaluate coaching strategies that shift focus from individual success to team success
•  Apply techniques that encourage support and collaboration among team members

This course includes:

• Approximately 5 minutes of video lessons.
• A quiz with multiple-choice questions to check your understanding.

Cataloging

Part 1

More about the BLT Series

An introduction to library cataloging and classification for small library directors.

Christine Carter’s presentation “The 1-minute secret to forming a new habit” shares a technique that can help you shift your mindset and stay on track to achieving your grandest ambitions. The sociologist explains why we often lose motivation quickly when we set goals to change our behavior and form new habits, and how to overcome this frustrating cycle.

Learn how just one minute a day can lead to the habit formation you want, and help you make more progress towards your long-term goals. Ideal for both personal growth and coaching employees, coworkers and students, this TED Talk hits on a universal struggle we’ve all faced at least once in both our personal and professional lives.

This course includes:

• Approximately 11 minutes of learning content including video lessons.