How to increase your influence as a leader

Being able to influence people is very important for a leader. In fact, people will only follow a leader if he or she is able to influence them! Afterall, it’s about how impactful you are as a leader. And to be able to create that influence, a leader needs to have that capability. And if he doesn’t have its, it’s one that he can develop through a leadership training program.

Being a leader is all about having people look up to you and follow you. And this can only happen if you are able to influence your people.

So how do you create that influence as a leader?

Well, a leadership training program covers a lot of things that help in creating an influence as a leader. Let me help you with a few:

·         Giving responsibility – This is the most important thing that you need to do as a leader. Delegate tasks and give the authority to your people to complete them.  By doing this you give them an opportunity to do tasks and take the accountability for it. This will also make them feel that you believe in them. It’s definitely worth attending a good leadership training program to understand how to delegate well.

·         Supporting them – This will make your people feel that you are always there for them. Provide them with any kind of support they need to perform better in their roles and deliver better results.

·         Develop them – Take the initiative of their development. That is your responsibility as a leader. Coach them as and when required. By developing your people and upgrading their soft skills, they will do a better job and will also feel that you care about their development and growth.

·         Motivate them – Encourage your people at all points of time to achieve more than they think they can. Uplift them when they are down.

·         Lead by example – As they say, ‘practice what you preach’. If there is something that you expect your followers to do, ensure that you yourself practice that first. https://theyellowspot.com

5 Things to learn from the world’s top leaders

Recently, we witnessed one of the greatest events in our country; the landing of Chandrayaan 2 on the moon. I know it didn’t go as well as we all would have wished for, but the entire event was no less than a leadership training program for me!

It was a spectacular event. One of those rare occasions where the entire country was awake post mid night, cheering on for science and showing their support to their nation. We may not have been entirely successful that day, but there was definitely plenty to learn from. And a lot that we would love to reflect on in a leadership training program.

That night, we witnessed two great leaders – our Prime Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi and the ISRO Chief Dr. K. Sivan.

It was amazing to see how the prime minister of the nation managed to be there for our team of scientists throughout the process, really not caring about what time it was! In fact, that particular night and the next day morning he attended multiple events and meetings back to back at different locations of the country. But he still made it a point to go back to ISRO to meet the scientists again in the morning. And the best part about it was that he did all of this travelling, contributing to each event and being there for his countrymen with the same enthusiasm.

There were three big things here that we can learn from a leader like him. One, be there for your team fully and look forward to their work and achievements. Two, support and motivate your team when they fail and show them the positive side of those failures. And three, be enthusiastic about each and every task that you do irrespective of its importance. And always remember, enthusiasm is infectious and can spread extremely fast!  And that I can vouch for when we conduct team building activities as a part of our leadership training workshop!

Coming to our second leader; Dr. K. Sivan. Two qualities that I absolutely admired about Dr. Sivan were his humbleness and ability to express his true emotions in front of the entire nation. Although Dr. Sivan was the leader of the nation’s space research organisation and was highly educated, he was so humble. And he was not afraid of showing his emotions when he broke down while talking to the Prime Minister. Now that, I would say that is true emotional intelligence, an important aspect of every leadership training skills!

It takes courage to do that. To cry when you fail especially when you are in a position like him. And that too with the whole world looking at you! He could have been afraid of being judged as weak and incompetent. But he didn’t let that stop him. Instead he did what felt right in that moment.

There is a common myth that a leader can never be weak. He can never show his vulnerable side to his people. But I think it’s quite the contrary. True strength comes from being who you truly are and not being afraid to show it to the world, even if they tag it as weakness! And that is what is truly inspirational in a leader, his human-ness.  

How to choose a leading corporate training company in Bangalore?

I received a call from a prospective client the other day. She had been searching on google for a corporate training company in Bangalore which could help her provide soft skills trainings to her employees. And as always, google had thrown up a long list of such companies leaving her completely confused! In fact, the reason why she had called us up was because she liked the way our website looked. And that’s the only thing which she had clarity on at that point of time!

She started off by explaining her predicament to me in great detail.  And I responded by telling her not to worry. I would definitely help her find a good corporate training company in Bangalore which would help her fulfil the need.

So, off I went trying to first figure out what her need was…

She went on to tell me that her organisation was based out of Bangalore and required a corporate training company in Bangalore that could help her cover her entire training calendar at various levels.

After some questioning, I also came to know that although the headquarter of her company was in Bangalore, the organisation also had factories located in 6 other cities across the country. These factories had mainly blue collared staff which had never been through any kind of training before.

Post hearing all her inputs, I gave her some insights on how to select the right corporate training company for her organisation. Here are some insights into my insights…

·         Appearance – Never judge a book by its cover even if the cover is really attractive. Yes, she had called us because she liked the way our website looked. But that was definitely not something on which she could take a decision! She had to do her homework well and check if the attractive cover also had substance which could really make a difference to the lives of her employees.

·         Experience – I advised her to first check with each of the prospective training companies which client and industries they had worked with, what kind of audiences they had delivered to and whether they could offer her the spread of solutions that she required to fulfil her training calendar. She could use this as her first criteria, and preferably try and short list companies that could satisfy all or at least most of these criteria. This way she would have a company that understood her industry and its challenges and give examples during the training session that participants could easily relate to. The training company could also be a one stop solution for fulfilling most if not all the training needs and co-ordination would become easy.

·         Presence – Rather than going ahead with a soft skills training company in Bangalore, I asked her to select a company that had a presence in the cities where her factories were also located. That way she could save on costs as the company could deploy local trainers for each training. Local trainers could also train in the local language which helps increase audience engagement, especially with audiences like blue collared staff which may not be comfortable with English.

So, these were some tips I gave the prospective client. And guess what, she landed up selecting us! I guess a helpful nature is important too and can be added to the list😊

Tips to identify best soft skills training companies in Pune

Pune is steadily become a large corporate base. And to cater to the ever-growing need for manpower training, there are a large number of corporate training companies in Pune. On one hand this variety is great for organisations and gives them a large spread to chose from. On the other hand, it increases confusion. And choosing a good company from the large pool available can become quite a difficult task!

So that’s my topic of discussion today. I’m going to help you understand how to choose a good corporate training company in Pune. I’ll give you some tips that will make that ever so difficult decision a little easier.

Here goes…

1. Experience - Pune has a diverse corporate population. On one hand it is an IT hub and has a number of youngsters who have just entered the corporate world. On the other, it has many factories in and around it which have a large number of blue collared staff. And as we all know, the skill set required off the trainer is very different in both these cases! Therefore, it’s important to go ahead with a corporate training company in Pune that has the experience of handling your audience. Always ask the company whether they have trained ‘such’ type of people before and the approximate number of times. This will help you gauge how capable they would be in handling the specific crowd.

The same applies for the industry. Check which industries the training company has trained for before. If they have trained for your industry before, it will be easy for the trainer to give industry specific examples. This will make the training more relatable to your employees.

2. Location – Try to choose a company that is either based out of Pune or has a local trainer from Pune. This again increases relatability for the participants as the trainer can speak in their local language and cite local examples that participants are aware of.

This also helps in reducing overall costs as the trainer will incur local travel expenses rather than outstation travel along with lodging and boarding.

3. Responsiveness – This is another important one considering the previously seen laid back culture of Pune. Go for a soft skills training company in Pune that is quick to respond, is eager to work and is passionate about what they do. This will help motivate your employees and have an impact on productivity too!

These were some points coming to my mind. I would love to hear some more from our local Puneites😊

TIPS FOR EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP

Can leadership be taught through a leadership skills training? Isn’t it a quality that comes from within?

Well, that’s absolutely true. It is a quality that comes naturally to some people and one that many seem to be just born with! But it is also a skill that can be developed over time.  For example, consider the case of people who have newly become leaders in an organisation. Most of them have risen to this level because they were technically very sound and do not have any prior experience in this field nor the natural flare. Yet they flourish. How? By learning the skill. And that’s exactly what leadership skills training is for.

Talking about what effective leadership is, I remember the movie 300. It’s one of my favourite movies. Here I want to make a reference to the prequel, that’s the second part of the movie. The one where king Leonidas is defending the hot gates with his army of 300. That movie really shows what an effective leadership is!

The tips that I’m going to share with you today for effective leadership are with reference to the same movie. They are very powerful and will be able to help you too. So here goes…

1. An effective leader makes his team feel secure when he or she is with them. And that’s when the team completely trusts the leader and looks up to him or her. It’s just like in the movie how the army felt secure with their king. And they trusted him to the extent that they were ready to die for him.
2. Knowing the team and their soft skill set. As a leader you must know the strengths and the improvement areas of your team members. It is only then can you delegate tasks appropriately and trust the team to complete them. Which I must say is a very important aspect of leadership skills training. Leonidas knew the best of 300 that were perfect for defending the hot gates. He also knew who should go back to Sparta during the crucial time.
3. Clarity of goal. An effective leader is always clear of the team goal. It is his vision that makes the team achieve higher goals. For the team to work towards and achieve that goal, the leader’s vision has to be clear. Just like Leonidas was extremely clear of the goal to destroy Xerxes and his forces and defend the hot gates from his forces.
4. Courage and motivation are extremely important. The leader and his team will face many challenges while achieving their goals. However, setbacks should not bring the team’s morale down. And this is the leader’s responsibility. The leader should have the courage to face the challenges and motivate the team to face them too. That one line that kept the Spartans going was, their king saying “Spartans never retreat. Spartans never surrender”. That was all the 300 needed to stand behind their king and ride to glory.

Yes, I know what you’re thinking. Movies are larger than life and may be a little beyond reality. I agree. But the motivation and learning we get from them are truly inspirational. And if you look at them closely, you’ll realise that they give some of the tips that are spoken of in a leadership skills training. So, we should make it a point to learn whatever we can from them and try to implement the learning in our day to day lives. That’s what keeps our lives interesting. Isn’t it?

How does personality development help your personal life?

Personality Development Training

Most of the times, personality development trainings are only thought of for professional reasons. An enhanced personality can get me a good job, make me look better at work, improve my confidence at work and so on. But is personality development training limited only to your professional life?

Of course not! You carry the same personality in your personal and professional lives. You’re not two different people, right?

In fact, if you notice, the word personality itself carries the word ‘personal’ in it! That shows how personal it really is!

Your personality defines who you are and how you come across to the world. Not everyone is born with a great and impactful personality. But it’s definitely something that can be improved and enhanced.

Most of the times we mistake personality to be just how we look on the outside. Its beyond that. In fact, most of your personality cannot be seen directly. Its what lies within you. And its what’s on the inside that actually helps you look better on the outside. If you think about it, even your confidence comes from within.

A good personality development training helps you work on your personality both on the inside and the outside. And can help you become a better person overall.

I have been conducting corporate training sessions recently which have components of personality development training in them. It’s amazing to see how people emerge from such sessions more strong, confident and having the motivation to achieve their dreams. They feel empowered enough to be able to create a change in their beliefs and the way they see life. They also learn how to process their emotions instead of suppressing them, unleashing great power within them.

And you know where all of these soft skills really come in use? With family and friends. We are all taught how to manage ourselves at work. But there are very few trainings that actually throw insights on how to be a better mother, father, daughter, son, friend, relative, etc. And that’s something that we make it a point to cover in our personality development trainings.

What to expect in a corporate training session?

The Yellow Spot is a corporate training company in Bangalore.  We offer a number of soft and behavioural skills trainings, functional training, leadership training, sales training and some technical trainings too.

Some of our clients are highly experienced in the training domain and have been arranging for corporate training companies in Bangalore to conduct sessions for their employees since a long time. Others, on the other hand, are quite new to the field and require help. They often ask us what a corporate training session entail. And am writing this blog today especially for their benefit.

While I am of the opinion that I can’t really give them a feel of a session unless they sit in one, I can make an effort to give them a sense of it. And that exactly what I’m going to do. So, here goes…

Practically the aim of all corporate training sessions is one of the following:

1. Creating Awareness – This is what almost all training sessions aim to do. They help create self-awareness amongst the participants as to their thought processes, feelings and emotions or simply their behaviour. This helps participants get a sense of where they may need to work so that they can improve themselves, their interactions with people around them and the work they deliver.

2. Improving Acceptance levels – This is a crucial step which I would say most corporate training companies in Bangalore and even those in other cities forget to focus on! Awareness can never be converted to action unless a person accepts that they need to create a change. You know how difficult it is to take action to lose weight even though you are aware that it’s good for you!

The problem lies in acceptance. Sometimes acceptance is relatively easy as the resistance towards it is only at a conscious level. However, more often than not, its at a sub-conscious level and may take a lot of effort to get passed! Training programs need to help participants identify their subconscious resistance and provide them ways to go beyond it.

3. Planning Action - This is another extremely important step that training companies cover in their action planning modules. Once they have created awareness on what needs to be changed and helped participants accept the fact that they need to change, the next step is to take action on it. Corporate training companies in Bangalore are well equipped with a number of action steps that can help participants successfully create a change in their lives.

Do you know how these companies actually cover these steps? Experientially. They use many different methodologies like games, activities, simulations, role plays, demonstrations, group discussions, videos, etc. And that’s how they make learning fun!

Can a business owner’s personality affect his business?

Personality Development Training

If we say that certain business owners require personality development training, you might find it shocking, right? You will probably think, “a business owner is the whole and soul of a company. He is leading the company and has reached success because he is so good. How can a leader need personality development training?” Right?

Well the truth is, that not all business owners have what we would call a ‘great personality’ although they are very successful. And if you look a little closer at them, you’ll see what I mean.

But does it really matter? Isn’t his success all that matters, even if it is with not so great a personality?

There are many small and medium sized companies that are run by business owners. And to state a fact, many of these owners find it difficult to realize that their personalities affect not only their employees but also their business. How?

Well, in such businesses, many a times the owner himself meets and when the owner of the company is in a meeting, he or she is expected to create a great impression and one that will last forever. Now just imagine if the owner walks in and the client doesn’t feel impressed. It could be due to the way he’s dressed, his business etiquette or even the way he responds to the client and their requests or demands. And this in turn could affect the business. Hence, it’s very important that business owners look into not just the development of their employees but also their own developmental areas. And as much as personality development training might sound very basic a developmental area for a business owner, it might be extremely required.

So, I urge all business owners to stand in front of the mirror and take a closer look at themselves. Do you really have a personality that can influence your employees and clients a-like? Are you really happy with the way you come across to others or is there scope for improvement? Do you respond to situations rather than reacting to them? Hmmm…

If you feel you can afford to go up a few notches, then go out and attend a good personality development training. And believe you and me, it can do wonders to the impression you can create for yourself and your business.

But it is important that they do have an influential personality because the people look up to him or her.

This is how it can affect https://theyellowspot.com/

How Personality Development is equal to Empowerment

Personality development training are still often misunderstood as just trainings for making a person look good. Yes, we still live in a world where people are judged on the basis of their appearance. However, a person’s personality is lot more than what he or she looks like on the outside. In fact, its more dependent on the inner landscape of the person. And therefore, any good personality development training needs to focus on not just the outer but even more on the person’s inner world!

Both the inner and outer personality make a person confident. While some people appear great on the outside, they are often a mess in their inner world! And that’s the reason why many of them have moments where they lack confidence and land up reacting to situations, even though they chose to hide it from the world. On the other hand, there are others that do not look so good. Many of them suffer from a lack of confidence and feel like they are not good enough simply because of their ‘normal’ looks! A good personality development training focuses on both these aspects. It can improve how a mediocre person looks on the outside and can help build a strong and positive inner personality.

Apart from how we look; other important aspects on our outer personality are our behaviourl skills along with our body language, facial expressions, gestures and our voice. Our bodies are constantly conveying information about how we think and feel through these mediums and therefore have a large effect on our personality. It’s not new how body language can show confidence or nervousness, right?

Therefore all these factors empower us. They give us the confidence to go out in this world and do things that really matter. And that’s the reason why so many people come out of a personality development training feeling confident and empowered. Through the training, they have understood themselves and their areas of development well and are committed to making themselves even better. And that’s when they are able to take charge of their life. So, what are you waiting for. Go and attend a good personality development training and see the difference it creates in your life! https://theyellowspot.com

Top 3 new age personality development skills for millennials

personality development skills training

Do you think millennials really require personality development training? They all seem to be well groomed and carry themselves well in the new age corporate attire. They are smart and confident and know exactly what they want in life. They have big dreams and have already paved out the path to reach them well before they leave college. Then why do you think we would still be talking about personality development training for them?

Well, the fact is that personality is made up of two aspects. The outer personality which is made up of how we look and behave. And the inner personality which is made up of our attitude, motivation, values, fears, complexes and other thoughts and emotions. And while the inner personality is typically the one that we tend to ignore while working on changing our personality, its actually the one that contributes to 90% of our personality.

Now let me give you my top three areas which every personality development training for millennials needs to focus on. By the way, I am a millennial myself. So, I’am writing this through my own experience as well as feedback from others.  

1.       1.Openness to others

Though we are in a generation where we expect the world to be open to new ideas and opinions, very often we ourselves struggle to be open to other people’s ideas. We all want a society that is open to diversity and in fact often land up quarrelling with our own parents on their old school thoughts. But how open are we to accept their opinions and ideologies. After all, it’s a two-way street where openness has to be at both ends. Isn’t it?

                                                 

Openness is difficult and can be elusive for many. But if you really want to improve in this aspect, attend a good personality development training and soft skill training. It will show you the mirror and help you get aware when you’re not. 

2.     2.  Being ourselves but considering others

Yes, in this new generation we want to be ourselves and not be judged by the society. But sometimes there needs to be consideration for others. For example, consider the situation on the roads today. More and more young drivers are rash and break traffic rules. While we need to enjoy our drive and get to our destination fast, we also need to ensure that we are not causing inconvenience or danger to others. A quick check to ensure we are being sensitive and not hurting other’s feelings or bothering someone else can really help.

3.      3. Behaviour and focus

We live in a technologically advanced world. We all carry smartphones and smartwatches. No one can deny the influence they have had on us. While they have made life easier, they have also led us to move around in society with literally no clue who is sitting next to us or who has passed by! We no more smile, shake hands, offer seats or talk to each other. Everyone is engrossed in their respective phones. And that’s the precise reason why we no longer feel heard and our suffering from huge complexes. We need to realise what technology is doing and break out of its grip. Come back to being human and corporate training help to fully present in every instance that life presents to us.

So, these are my top 3 skills which are extremely basic, but I see missing in millennials today. And hence, I feel personality development training is definitely an option for them.