Tim Irwin

The age-old question for every leader—how do we bring out the best in those we lead? Anyone who has run a company, raised a family, lead an army, or coached a team struggles to find the key to help others excel and realize their potential. It is surprising how often we resort to criticism vs. an approach that actually results in a better worker and a better person. What if we could speak Words of Life that transform those under our influence and ignite fires of intrinsic motivation? What if those we lead found great purpose in what they do and worked at their jobs with all their heart? Isn’t that what leaders, parents and teachers really want? Ultimately, don’t we hope to foster intrinsic motivation so that the individuals we lead become better employees, better students or better athletes? Recent discoveries of brain science and the wisdom of top CEO’s that Dr. Tim Irwin interviewed for this book give us the answers we’ve long sought. In most organizations, the methods used to provide feedback to employees such as performance appraisal or multi-rater feedback systems, in fact, accomplish the exact opposite of what we intend. We inadvertently speak Words of Death. Brain science tells us that these methods tend to engage a natural “negativity bias” that is hardwired in us all. Science in recent years discovered that affirmation sets in motion huge positive changes in the brain. It releases certain neuro chemicals associated with well-being and higher performance. Amazingly, criticism creates just the opposite neural reaction. The most primitive part of the brain goes into hyper defense mode, compromising our performance, torpedoing our motivation and limiting access to our higher-order strengths. How do we redirect employees who are out-of-line without engaging our natural “negativity bias?” Leaders must forever ban the term, “Constructive Criticism.” Brain science tells us that we can establish a connection between the employee’s work and his or her aspirations. This book calls for a new approach to align workers with an organization’s mission, strategy and goals, called Alliance Feedback.

How Great Leaders Bring Out the Best in Others

Extraordinary Influence

Do you know the stories of well-known CEOs who failed as executives of major companies? Learn about these colorful derailers who misread symptoms of their own downfall and failed to take corrective action needed to succeed as leaders. Written for leaders, aspiring leaders, and anyone who makes a difference in the lives of others, author and leadership expert Tim Irwin, PhD, examines how failures of character common to even the most capable individuals - including deficits in authenticity, humility, self-management, and courage - repeatedly lead to downfall. By profiling the collapse of CEOs Robert Nardelli (Home Depot), Carly Fiorina (HP), Durk Jager (Proctor and Gamble), Steven Heyer (Starwood Hotels), and more, this book shows how our failings become more dangerous as we take on greater leadership responsibilities, and how they can cause us to ignore glaring warning signs that might otherwise prevent catastrophe. In Derailed, Tim shares; An outline of the key character traits that prevent us from becoming de-railed Assessments and suggestions on how to analyze your “Character Quotient” What made these business executives fail without demeaning their character By asking what we can learn from those who have fallen, and how we can avoid our own failure, Derailed teaches us to stay on track. Often, derailment happens long before the crash. Learn the character qualities that are essential for successful leadership and how to cultivate them so that you can avoid derailing your own life and career.

Five Lessons Learned from Catastrophic Failures of Leadership (NelsonFree)

Derailed

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER For more than 25 years, organizational psychologist and management consultant Dr. Tim Irwin has worked with thousands of leaders in well-known global companies. He knows most leaders work for recognition and advancement and they want more challenge and responsibility. He's also found this to be true: Most of us want to make a positive difference through our work and to have our lives count for something more than simply making a living. We want to make an impact. Yet when we look around our organizations, we don't see many leaders who have real impact. We see them just managing the daily rat race. Somewhere along the line, many began working for money instead of for meaning, for status instead of for a lasting legacy. In Impact, Irwin identifies the principles and beliefs that lead to great leadership—ways in which you can grow and thrive and be trusted by others. Learn how to be the kind of leader that motivates others in meaningful work and great accomplishments and what you can do to stay on track so you avoid a path of personal destruction so many leaders go down today. Accessible, humorous, and engaging, Irwin's latest book shows you how to live the vision you began your career with and then finish strong for a lasting impact, the hope of every great leader.

Tim Irwin

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