Karin And David’s Leadership Articles

Winning Well – the art of blending the bottom line with the human spirit

Winning Well gives leaders practical tools to achieve breakthrough results that last.

After training over 10,000 leaders in fourteen countries in our Winning Well practical leadership tools and human-centered approach to management, we’re often asked, “What was the inspiration for your Winning Well philosophy?”

As we celebrate the five-year anniversary of the release of Winning Well: A Manager’s Guide to Getting Results Without Losing Your Soul, that’s an easy answer: leaders like you are our first source of inspiration.

We’ve worked alongside so many leaders who care about achieving results and care about their people. Leaders who do the work. Who won’t settle for the way it was.

We’ve even met leaders around a mountain campfire at midnight who were enjoying a bachelor party – people who cared so much about leading well that when they found out what we do, they asked for an impromptu Winning Well training session.

(So far that’s our only bachelor party engagement – but if you’re in the market for a leadership-themed party, give us a call!)

It’s that passion to help leaders who want to achieve results without sacrificing their humanity that led to Winning Well. We both experienced too many leaders who lost their souls in pursuit of results – because they didn’t care or, more often, because they didn’t know how to take care of their work and their people. Too often, they’d end up bitter, burned out, and alone. And of course, we’ve even experienced a few jerks at work.

We’ve fought these battles ourselves and know firsthand the challenge of investing in results and relationships. So we wrote Winning Well to give leaders the same tools we used in our careers – and that have transformed the lives of leaders around the globe.

What is Winning Well?

If you’re new to Winning Well, you’re probably wondering what we mean by those two words. It’s the heart of our leadership philosophy and the source of every practical leadership tool we give leaders. But first, let’s take a look at what Winning Well is not:

not winning well

Download a FREE chapter of Winning Well here.

That’s a description of what we call a Gamer Manager. They’re no fun to work with as they play their games to survive or build a reputation.

There are two other types of managers who aren’t yet winning well: the User and the Pleaser. User Managers get results, but they come at a high cost as they treat people like a means to an end. Pleaser Managers want people to like them more than they want breakthrough results. They can be fun to work with  – for a minute until they’re held accountable for their lacking results.

Learn More about the Four Types of Managers Here

If you recognize Gamer, User, and Pleaser Managers tendencies in yourself, you can become a leader who is winning well with a few key practices.

How to Win Well: Blending the Bottom Line with Human Spirit

If you’re wondering where to begin (or know a leader who could use a hand) we recommend you start with these Six Concepts You Can’t Lead Without. These are the leadership competencies that apply in every leadership role, in every industry, and in every business culture. That’s why they are the foundation of every leadership program we deliver.

1. Show up with confidence and humility
2. Focus on results and relationships
3. Mind the MIT (the most important thing)
4. Communicate consistently (5 times, 5 different ways)
5. Check for understanding (close the communication loop and know how your team feels)
6. Schedule the finish

Learn more about the fundamental Winning Well leadership skills here

Your Turn

As we celebrate the fifth anniversary of Winning Well‘s publication, we invite you to join the movement of leaders committed to human-centered results. To transform your team, your department, and your business into places that transform the world and the people who work there. Where results exceed expectations, people grow, and everyone feels good about the work they do and the way they do it.

In short, we invite you to be the leader you’d want your boss to be.

hope for frustrated managers

Want more human-centered leaders in the workplace? Share this today!

Want more human-centered leaders in the workplace? Share this today!

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Karin Hurt and David Dye

Karin Hurt and David Dye help human-centered leaders find clarity in uncertainty, drive innovation, and achieve breakthrough results. As CEO and President of Let’s Grow Leaders, they are known for practical tools and leadership development programs that stick. Karin and David are the award-winning authors of five books including, Courageous Cultures: How to Build Teams of Micro-Innovators, Problem Solvers, and Customer Advocates and Powerful Phrases for Dealing with Workplace Conflict. A former Verizon Wireless executive, Karin was named to Inc. Magazine’s list of great leadership speakers. David Dye is a former executive and elected official. Karin and David are committed to their philanthropic initiative, Winning Wells – building clean water wells for the people of Cambodia.

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BUILD CONFIDENCE, TRUST AND CONNECTION  WITH CONSISTENT ACTS OF MANAGERIAL COURAGE

Get the FREE Courageous Cultures E-Book to learn how

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Be More Daring

BUILD CONFIDENCE, TRUST AND CONNECTION WITH CONSISTENT ACTS OF MANAGERIAL COURAGE

Get the FREE Courageous Cultures E-Book to learn how

7 Practical Ways to be a Bit More Daring

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