Leading Relationships

NATIONAL BESTSELLER Eradicate office drama and transform your workplace relationships with proven leadership strategies In Leading Relationships, Steve McClatchy, esteemed leadership mentor and entrepreneur, offers a clear path to improving workplace dynamics. This essential guide tackles the pervasive problems of workplace drama and ineffective relationship management, providing readers with practical tools to build trust, confidence, and respect among colleagues. Delving into his flagship Five Levels of Maturity framework, McClatchy outlines how to progress from basic interactions to deep, meaningful connections in both personal and professional contexts. The book equips leaders with strategies to handle common challenges such as accountability, conflict resolution, and feedback delivery. It also covers specific issues like managing public criticisms, direct disrespect, and workplace gossip, ensuring leaders can maintain a positive environment even in tough situations. You'll: Learn to recognize and enhance the maturity of your workplace relationships to foster a collaborative environment Master conflict resolution techniques that preserve integrity and respect among team members Gain practical advice on providing feedback that motivates and supports, rather than alienates, colleagues Whether you're a manager, executive, HR professional, or consultant, Leading Relationships is your definitive guide to cutting through workplace conflict and enhancing leadership efficacy. Transform your personal and professional relationships and create a more dynamic and supportive work environment by ordering your copy today.

Introduction xi  Part 1 Why You Should Lead Your Relationships 1  Chapter 1 The Role of Relationships in Business 5  My Clients Have Already Answered These Questions for Me 8  This Is Why Companies Should Care About Relationships 10  First, Make Sure You Have the Capacity to Build Relationships 11  Good Relationships Are Crucial to Business Success 13  The High Cost of Low Trust 17  The Health of Our Relationships Has Real Physiological Effects 18  Good Relationships Are Vital to an Organization Accomplishing Their Work 19  Chapter 2 What Builds Great Relationships? 21  What Actions Establish, Increase, and Destroy Trust? 24  What Is It Like to Work in a Low-Trust Environment? 28  Chapter 3 What Gets in the Way of Building Great Relationships? 33  The Ego Is Your Best Survival Tool and Your Biggest Obstacle 35  Relationships Have to Meet the Needs of Both Parties 42  Games and Competition 45  Part 2 How You Should Lead Your Relationships: The Five Levels of Maturity 49  Chapter 4 Level One: Recognizing and Acknowledging People 55  Let the Games Begin! 58  What If Everything Isn’t Fine Between Us? 63  You Don’t Automatically Start at Level One, You Have to Reach It 65  Are You Saying 68  Chapter 5 Level Two: Exchanging Facts and Honoring Agreements 73  Exchanging Facts 75  Honoring Agreements 81  Addressing Broken Agreements Without Damaging the Relationship 84  The Broken Agreement Script: The Four-Part Response for Addressing a Broken Agreement 92  Broken Agreement Examples 98  Conditions for Addressing a Broken Agreement 99  A Dead Moose: A Problem You Can’t Ignore 100  Serial Broken Agreements 105  Playground Rules Don’t Apply Here 107  Chapter 6 Level Three: Navigating Differing Opinions 109  Differing Opinions on Business Strategy: Build a Business Case 114  When Business Case and Mission Clash 119  Chapter 7 Level Four: Playing to Strengths and Working Around Weaknesses 123  Admitting Mistakes and Apologizing When Necessary 126  The Negativity Bias 131  Concentrate on Strengths, Work Around Weaknesses 134  Giving Positive and Corrective Feedback 143  Common Feedback Pitfalls 145  Conditions for Delivering Corrective Feedback 152  The Corrective Feedback Script 157  Receiving Feedback Graciously 167  Chapter 8 Level Five: Understanding Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivators 173  Whys and Wants 176  Level Five Comes with High Stakes 181  When Level Five Is Nonnegotiable 182  Part 3 Use the Five Levels of Maturity as a Leadership Handbook 187  Chapter 9 Managing the Maturity Level of Others 189  What Are Your Relationship Biases? 192  Can You Coach Someone to a Higher Level of Maturity? 194  What to Do If Someone Fails 195  Knowing Which Relationships You Can Take to a Higher Level 198  Chapter 10 What Can Level Five Do for You? 201  Brand Yourself as a Level Five Leader 203  Why Do You Feel Threatened? 206  A Leader Doesn’t Try to Win in a Relationship 208  The Best Criteria for Promotions 209  Succession Planning 215  Level Five Leadership Embraces Change 216  Incorporate These Concepts into All Your Relationships 219  Appendix A: The Concentric Circles of Leadership Model 221  Appendix B: The Dos and Don’ts of the Five Levels of Maturity 225  Notes 227  Acknowledgments 229  About the Author 231  Index 233