TECC 291: Mastering Success Behaviors as an Engineering Leader

In this episode, I talk with Wayne Brown, an author, speaker, organizational coach, and the principal founder of Skills 4 Executives Limited, about leadership in engineering and how you can master success behaviors to become a more successful engineering leader. Engineering Quotes: Here Are Some of the Key Points Discussed About Mastering Success Behaviors as an Engineering Leader: Throughout his international career, Wayne has developed an understanding of the importance of having others in his world supporting and guiding him. He highly recommends having mentors, coaches, and advisers in your life — people who can help you to develop faster and become smarter. Wayne has been passionate about coaching, education, facilitation, communication, and mentoring for the last 30 years, which led him to recognize the career path he should follow. One of his long-term mentors is Tony Robbins, who has been very influential and helped him to understand how decisions shape our destiny. One of the common quotes he learned from Tony was that most of the time we operate on autopilot and in an unconscious way, and when we are in this mode, we are not in control of our lives. The increasing degree of uncertainty and complexity that we are facing in organizations in the 21st century is challenging for current leaders. It is due to technological advances and the rapid changes in how leaders must change the way they look at the business side of things. Leaders today must be able to see the business from the outside in and not be overwhelmed by the challenges they come across. There is no unique style to being a leader. You must be able to adjust depending on your circumstances, situations, and where the changing world takes you. There is a high demand for leaders who are agile, adaptable, and catalysts. A leader is not expected to know everything, and cannot have all the answers, but a leader can bring together the best team to identify the right solutions. Modern leaders must be visionary catalysts — people who can look to the future, see the disruption on the horizon, and then plot their strategies to mitigate the disruption, but still be agile in changing their strategies to steer the company in the right direction. It will make them the disruptor rather than the disrupted, and be the driver in the changes rather than following others’ changes. To become a value creator, you must establish a mindset where you are here to serve others rather than control and command them. It will let people be more inclined to follow you. The best way to do this is to create incredible value for them. You must focus on making money for the company while looking for values specific to your stakeholder's needs. Never try to do things on your own. Every successful person has a team that they work with and that supports them. To become a master of your behaviors, you must be self-aware of your behaviors, which can be a challenging task. To change your behaviors, you must set the intention that you want to modify your behavior. Once you have the intention to change your behavior, you must be clear on what it is you want to change. When you know what you want to change, you must then be deliberate and consistent in working toward making the change. If you want to make a conscious change, start with changing the story that plays in your head when you wake up in the morning. Starting your day with something more positive will help you to make the transitions throughout the day. More in This Episode… In the Take Action Today segment of the show, Wayne provides three valuable points you can follow to become a curious listener, an acknowledged broker, and a thought leader. About Guest, Wayne Brown When Wayne Brown is not deep in conversation with his clients, you can find him equally engaged in activities with...