WELCOME TO
THE LOXENTUS SHOW
A podcast for the passionate leader on a mission to create and lead a better business
Being responsible for the overall success of a people-centric organization means attracting candidates that will thrive in your business environment, retaining these amazing individuals by supporting them and setting them up to flourish, while ensuring the structure is financially, strategically, and operationally resilient.
Listen in as I share stories, pass on lessons learned the hard way, and present potential solutions to challenging obstacles.
And if you prefer a different medium, this information is also available on YouTube and in article format.
Episode #35
Environment Where Values Thrive
As we know, the world of business can change rapidly. And as we’re being drawn into the demands of the everyday, it can be easy to lose sight of the organization’s values. But it’s when we become overwhelmed and stressed and challenged that we need to lean into those chosen values the most. Otherwise, we risk running an organization that is based on empty promises.
In this episode, I share tips on what can leaders do to help create an environment where values thrive?
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Episode #34
Planning for the Next Twelve Months in Business
As entrepreneurs, we’re frequently required to navigate the challenges that come with a dynamic and often unpredictable business world. We create forecasts and budgets for the upcoming year, strategies and goals, and metrics to measure it all. But as the year marches along, we need to stay on top of this roller coaster of highs and lows.
In this episode, I share tips on what leaders should consider when planning on a rolling twelve months?
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Episode #33
Growing by Obtaining More Frequent and Transparent Team Feedback
As leaders, we rely on obtaining frequent and transparent feedback from our team members both for personal and organizational growth. Constructive feedback not only helps us make better-informed strategic and operational decisions, but it also helps foster a culture of open communication. And as most leaders know, it’s a lot easier said than done.
In this episode, I share tips on what leaders should consider when working at drawing out more quality feedback from their team.
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Episode #32
Struggling to train someone on a delegated task?
Finally, you found someone to replace you and perform a specific task. Maybe it’s even a task that you never liked doing and you cannot wait to get this off your plate. You set up a meeting, start training the person, and then… you find yourself wanting to nudge them aside and take over.
In this episode, I share tips on what leaders can do when they’re struggling to train someone on a delegated task.
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Episode #31
Dealing with Imposter Syndrome
As a leader, no matter at what level, you will likely at some point find yourself wondering whether you’re making the right decision. The degree of self-questioning will likely vary depending on your knowledge, skills, experience as well as how you feel about your role as a leader. It may even devolve into an actual case of imposter syndrome.
In this episode, I share tips on what leaders can do to recognize and conquer imposter syndrome.
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Episode #30
Time to Delegate?
If you’re a solopreneur who has been juggling all the tasks in your business, you may be feeling the pressure of getting it all done. But not JUST done. Done and with quality. You may have considered hiring some support but are unsure what you could be delegating. Or even whether you should.
In this episode, I share tips on what solopreneurs and microbusiness entrepreneurs can do to determine what and whether they should delegate.
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Episode #29
Tips for Triumphing over Tough Tasks
In the course of leading an organization or growing your own business, there will be times when you will need to take care of something you really don’t like doing. Suddenly, you need to return this call. Or review that document. All VERY essential and… helping delay that inevitable dreary task.
In this episode, I share tips on what leaders and entrepreneurs can do to triumph over tough tasks.
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Episode #28
Being an effective leader includes managing differences -- Part II
In response to the episode “Your new leaders are technically proficient but are they effective?” someone asked: “What about cultural differences and background in the team or with the new leader and what about levels of experience and skills and the difficulty to reconcile them?”
We addressed what new leaders can do to help address cultural differences and backgrounds between themselves and/or the team in Part I. Now, let’s address the second question (and thanks again for asking!).
In this episode, I share tips on what leaders can do to help address varying levels of experience and skills and the difficulty in reconciling them within a team.
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Episode #27
Being an effective leader includes managing differences -- Part I
In response to the episode “Your new leaders are technically proficient but are they effective?” someone asked: “What about cultural differences and background in the team or with the new leader and what about levels of experience and skills and the difficulty to reconcile them?”
Let’s start by addressing the first question (and thanks for asking!).
In this episode, I share tips on what leaders can do to help address cultural differences and backgrounds between themselves and/or the team.
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Episode #26
Savvy strategies for leaders to survive “traffic control days”
There are days, as a leader, when it feels like all we’re doing, all day long, is directing traffic. Getting individuals unstuck by answering their questions, course-correcting projects by providing needed feedback, slowing some down who might be skipping a few steps and getting a little too far ahead.
In this episode, I share tips on what leaders can do to get through these “traffic control” days as best as possible.
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Episode #25
Ignite Engagement Through the Art of Leadership Storytelling
Storytelling is a powerful business tool. For those thinking that it is only needed in works of fiction, think again. Storytelling is what will captivate an audience, attract clients and inspire a team. It can even make the driest of stats fascinating.
In this episode, I share tips on what basic structure leaders could use to help carve a more powerful business story.
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Episode #24
The Growth Mindset Advantage for Business Success
These past few years, many of us leaders and entrepreneurs have been forced to focus on operational demands and deal with constant environmental changes. For many, this has led to bad overwork habits and a decline in intentional growth.
In this episode, I share tips on what leaders can do to get back on the learning track when operational requirements have taken over.
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Episode #23
Your new leaders are technically proficient but are they effective?
Promoting leaders from within is a typical organizational practice. It usually starts with identifying an extraordinary team member that has demonstrated leadership qualities in a variety of situations. And although that is certainly a great start, it is only a start. Obtaining positional power changes the dynamics.
In this episode, I share tips on what leaders can do to help ensure that newly appointed managers have been provided with the basic essentials to also be effective.
Episode #22
Choosing to be a solopreneur doesn’t require an apology
In conversation with various types of entrepreneurs, it may be tempting for solopreneurs to stay quieter based on their own limiting beliefs that they are not “a real business” because they don’t have a team.
In this episode, I provide some perspective on putting those thoughts aside and embracing the power of being a solopreneur.
Episode #21
Kicking the New Leader Worry Habit
Being a new leader can be scary. It is natural to feel overwhelmed and anxious about how to handle situations and their outcome. But worrying can be destructive when left uncontrolled. And as entrepreneurs and leaders, we are frequently placed in high-stress, high-impact situations and are required to make decisions caught between the proverbial rock and a hard place.
In this episode, I share tips on what new leaders can do to help manage harmful worrying.
Episode #20
New Leader Development, Key to Unlocking Your Business’ True Potential
To truly unlock a business's full potential requires addressing two complementary aspects in parallel. The first one is the business side: understanding the strategy, financials, planning, operations, product services, marketing, etc. The second one is the people side: the individuals that make the systems work together and fulfill the organization's purpose.
Entrepreneurs who frequently start out by themselves typically will focus more on the functional side until the business is profitable as the business starts to grow, they still tend to heavily favor the functional side to the detriment of the people side.
In this episode, I share tips on what micro-business owners can do to ensure that they are growing the people at the same time as the business.
Episode #19
The Importance of Keeping Your Team Connected to Your Business Strategy
Typically an organization's mission and core values are shared with new team members as part of some form of onboarding activity. For most organizations, that's pretty much the extent of the team member's exposure to ongoing strategy, the mission, and the values.
In this episode, I share tips on why it’s essential to keep the team connected to strategy and what a leader can do to help create more opportunities for team members to integrate that broader picture.
Episode #18
Developing Trust to Build a High-Performance Team
Like many leadership skills, having the ability to build trust begins with recognizing the importance of this activity and understanding the necessity to behave in a manner that will contribute to the development of that much desired trust and credibility.
Although positional power may yield compliance to have a truly highly-functioning team, it's essential to build trust, not just have compliance.
In this episode, I share tips on which strategies leaders could use to help build actual trust.
Episode #17
Creativity in entrepreneurship: The often-neglected key to innovation and growth
When evaluating how our business is doing, we tend to gravitate toward stats. Numbers are that objective measure of growth or signal that there are significant issues that need to be addressed. But, as much as stats are essential, creativity is key in helping entrepreneurs stand out from the crowd and gain a competitive edge.
In this episode, I share tips on which ways entrepreneurs can employ creativity to ensure they’re driving innovation and growth.
Episode #16
Earned Confidence, a Powerful Leadership Tool
You’ve identified individuals that you feel would make great formal leaders at your organization. That’s great! But are you providing these new leaders with ways to build their leadership confidence? There are some very real consequences to both having leaders who are recklessly confident and those who are unjustifiably insecure.
In this episode, I share tips on what an organization can do to encourage new leaders to find that middle ground where they are both confident yet still able to lead with humility.
Episode #15
An open communication culture starts with the leader
Many of us have received the advice that we don’t go to our supervisor with a problem if we don’t have a solution. The issue with that is the leader then is managing without all of the information. And what about the cases when the longer it goes unaddressed, the more damage it causes to the organization?
In this episode, I share tips on what a leader can do to help foster a culture that surfaces issues rather than buries them.
Episode #14
Crazy idea or business opportunity?
Entrepreneurs are usually known for having a ton of ideas. They're idea-making machines. And it might be tempting, as a small business owner who's looking to grow, to try all these ideas.
In this episode, I share tips on what process leaders could follow to rapidly identify whether an idea merits further investigation or should be shelved.
Episode #13
Problems Masquerading as Time Management Issues
As a leader, if you find yourself or your team frequently remarking that there's not enough time, start digging into why that might be and make sure that you’re not in fact setting yourself or your team up for burnout by automatically treating it as a time management problem.
In this episode, I share tips on what process leaders could follow to identify whether what they are facing is truly a time management or motivation issue or if it’s something else entirely.
Episode #12
Where to Start to Craft a Solid People Strategy
In the past few years, there has been a higher focus on improving organizational culture, redefining the employee experience, and leading with positive impact. One of the strategies used to help organizations implement transformational initiatives is to craft a solid people strategy.
In this episode, I share tips on how leaders could start putting together a people strategy.
Episode #11
Essential financial basics for business owners
Even though, as business owners, we're not expected to have the depth of knowledge that accounting professionals have, it's still essential for leaders to understand the basics of accounting to be able to make financial decisions and regularly evaluate the company's financial health.
In this episode, I share tips on what basics leaders need to understand to make better decisions based on the story the financials are telling them.
Episode #10
Collaborating with your past self
Have you ever revisited a past decision but couldn't remember why and how you came to it? Leaders have so much going on, so many decisions to make, that, at some point, some of the details will escape them.
In this episode, I share tips on what leaders can do to help guard against losing too many valuable decision making details.
Episode #9
The quick risk forecast that helps generate a faster, strategically sound solution
Leaders rarely have ample time to dig into a problem before having to choose a solution to implement. In fact, leaders usually have to make decisions essentially while still processing incoming information.
In this episode, I share tips on what process leaders could follow to do a rapid risk forecast.
Episode #8
Favoring year-end investing over year-end spending
Anyone managing any kind of budget has surely come across a version of “You need to spend money to make money”. Without any kind of guidelines or caveats, this can actually be a very dangerous statement. Unbridled, that mindset could actually lead an organization to bankruptcy.
In this episode, I share tips on how leaders can guide their thinking to help them make the distinction between year-end investing and year-end spending.
Episode #7
Being a successful people-centric leader requires perspective
Leaders who are actively seeking to have a positive impact, leaders who genuinely want to understand and support their team members as unique individuals, must expand their own universe.
In this episode, I share tips on how leaders can engage with the world in ways that will help them view it through different lenses.
Episode #6
Are you progressing… in the wrong direction?
Sometimes, the demands of the day pull a leader in the direction that it dictates. Next thing they know, leaders are faced with an ever-expanding task list, constantly short on time, forever exhausted, and the busyness of running a business has caught them in its web.
In this episode, I share tips on how leaders can help ensure that all of their efforts are helping them progress in the right direction.
Episode #5
Teaching the team to fail
As leaders, we will face failure at some point. It’s not a question of “if”. It’s truly a question of “when”. And when that time does arrive, what lessons will you be teaching your team by your behavior?
In this episode, I share tips on how leaders can help ensure they are teaching their team to deal with failures in a productive manner.
Episode #4
Making a positive first impression as a leader
Whether it’s being new to leadership or the first time leading a specific team, making a positive first impression can help set the right tone. Or, at the very least, help start the relationship off the right way.
In this episode, I share tips on how leaders can help ensure a positive first impression on their new team.
Episode #3
Increased efficiency by managing energy
Executives and leaders spend a lot of time and energy in the realm of both strategy and implementation. To accomplish as much as they do while keeping burnout at bay requires them to be extremely intentional about managing their energy.
In this episode, I share tips on how leaders can better manage their energy to sustain high performance for themselves and their team.
Episode #2
Can jargon sometimes be our friend?
Those who have been in a leadership position for a while, or even those who have simply been in the workforce for a while, have likely encountered some version of the directive to avoid or eliminate jargon.
As leaders, though, should we really be discouraging all jargon talk?
In this episode, I share tips on how I help ensure that jargon is used effectively and isn’t in fact covering up issues that need to be addressed.
Episode #1
How can leaders be adaptable yet focused?
Most of us leaders struggle with juggling the demands of our time. Getting priorities addressed while remaining adaptable to deal with the crisis-of-the-day is a constant balancing act. Yet, it’s essential that we continue to run the organization and still be able to adapt to whatever is being thrown our way.
In this episode, I share tips on how to help ensure that we remain adaptable leaders who address the situations that are coming at us while still remaining focused on the “right” path for the organization.
