Leadership seminars- Worth it or total BS?

[LEAKYSEALS951]

Walking past a trash can at work, I saw some crumpled up wads of flyers advertising a "leadership/management seminar."
Bored, I picked one up. It advertised said course on a Friday at a fancy hotel of some sort with a continental breakfast that I'm sure taste like cardboard.

Immediately, if finding it in a trash bin wasn't enough of a clue, the mind conjures images of Chris Farley, motivational speaker, crashing through a coffee table shouting of "living in a van down by the RIVER!!!"

There was a commercial too, where pinocchio presides as a motivational speaker over a crowd of losers. As he exclaims "I see potential in you all!" his nose grows..

You get the picture.

But I read it anyway, if for no other reason, my wife was bemoaning her position at work, which she has rightly and proudly self carved into a senior management position. She has obtained success by hard work, but it is obvious by the scope of what she has created (essentially two new departments in a company), sheer grunt work on her part will no longer work- from here on out, her success will depend on delegation and leadership skills.

In my line of work too, leadership is a necessary skill which I really can't get enough of.

So as a whim, I took the pamplet back to my wife, and half jokingly presented it to her, and to my surprise, she looked 1/2 way interested.

For me too, it dealt with the typical management conundrums leadership positions face. It was only $200 a head, which to me (used to continuing education classes in the $1000's) seemed like a "oh well... if it's good.. it's good, but if it sucks, no big loss.." type of deal.

Assuming it's a total bust, at least my wife and I could go together and have some quality time-or at least some fun stories of how bad it was. Even if we get just a few good tips, it would seem alright by me.

So....in the interest of finding some good leadership sources... just how much of a waste of money is this? - or does the pelicanite clan have some better input into leadership/ management resources/ books that we can get. Again- my job can always use it, but I can also wing it with the status quo. She on the other hand, is really growing into a leadership position where that is not an option, and can use all the help she can get.

Suggestions?

[LakeCleElum]

Been to several, but never on my dime.........If I had to pay, I'd probably get more out of reading some good books on the subject....

[nzporsche944s2]

Yes Man



Sorry - first thing that came to mind when I read your post...

[Porsche-O-Phile]

Originally Posted by LakeCleElum

Been to several, but never on my dime.........If I had to pay, I'd probably get more out of reading some good books on the subject....

This.

I always take something good away but I question whether it'll ever be "worth it" in terms of cost-benefit. If I don't pay myself it doesn't matter as much. I doubt I'd pay (as a business owner) to send my employees / managers to such a seminar either, which probably says something.

[gassy]

Take her out to dinner and give her a copy of The Art of War instead. Seriously.

[stomachmonkey]

Leaders are not made overnight by sitting in a lecture hall and listening to buzzwords and catch phrases for a few hours.

Find a mentor.

A mentor could be higher up the food chain, a peer, or even a subordinate.

[Dantilla]

I've been to a couple seminars.

Kinda like mining for gold- Ya gotta go through a bunch of dirt to find a worthwhile nugget.

60% is "Duh, everybody knows that, this is a waste of time"
38% is "Yeah, I know, but nice to be reminded of that"
2% is something new that can make a positive difference, either being more productive, or a legal matter that will keep you out of trouble with changing laws.

[porsche4life]

Theres about 100 different guys selling seminars on how to get rich in RE, but amazingly enough, few of theses guys still practice RE. I think that tells you all you need to know. Its the old adage, those who can DO, those who can't Teach.

[LEAKYSEALS951]

Thanks for keeping me straight. She's an avid reader, so that might make a better source. I figured there might be a couple of good nuggets, and the real value would be doing something out of the ordinary together, but for $400, we could probably do something a little nicer.
I can't believe my idea of "together time" is some leadership seminar in a cheesy hotel! Gawwwd I'm sooooooo awesome

[Holger]

All those seminars just result in bad ideas like open space offices and crappy bull**** slogans. I hate it when my managers visit those seminars. The results are only annoying the working part of my company.

[recycled sixtie]

The speaker gets rich. It's that simple.

[URY914]

Like the guys that host "get rich" seminars. They get rich by hosting seminars.

I always sit in a seminar and count the number of people x the cost each paid, subtract the cost of the room and see how much the speaker is earning. Insane.

[VincentVega]

I've been to similar seminars and while there is usually something to learn from their material I take another approach. When you are in a similar situation learn from their presentation delivery, timing, lead ins... they are getting paid to speak and are usually good at it even if the material is ho hum. I've learned a few ice breakers, how to stall... from some talks where the material itself was boring.

[Oh Haha]

I have been to many of these over the years, sent by the company. I always found them to be a good getaway from the daily grind. Talking with managers from other areas helped me understand how I could make things better for my team.


I agree on seeking out a mentor. I've been lucky enough to have had 2 good mentors that helped me be a better manager. 2 different companies and philosophies on managing but I took what I thought was important from each and applied it to fit my position at the company.

[MRM]

There is a lot to be said for being taught leadership principles and how to succeed inside organizations. The reason it is so valuable to get an outside view and independent teaching is that what is important to the individual contributor is not always what is important to the organization and is not valued by the people in senior executive positions who make decisions about individuals' careers. The individual contributor can see only a limited amount of the field, so they have no way of knowing whether they are doing the right thing without someone showing them.

Another important point is touched on by the OP. The skills that get you to this level are not his wife to that level are not the skills that are necessary to stay there and to grow to the next level. Hard work, guts, determination, knowing what needed to be done and being willing to do it got the OP's wife to that position. But to succeed she has to start learning how to delegate, how to select and retain people who will get things done that she needs to have done, how to motivate them, and how to make the people who work for her reflect well on her as she reports up to her boss, and reflects well on him or her through her performance. These are new skills and must be learned. Having someone teach you these skills is almost essential. Few people get it right the first time on their own. Delegation. That's the stumbling block to many careers.

So yes, you and your wife are on the right track to go to a leadership seminar where you can pick up some of the knowledge and techniques to succeed at the next level, but there is a better way. Start working with a real life executive coach. Someone who has real live experience making life and death decisions for a large company and who is now consulting. It will cost more than $400, but you'll learn a lot more. My wife and I both work with an executive coach and she has been invaluable to me. We started meeting about every six weeks and now meet about quarterly. We meet for about two hours at a time and there's always an agenda and I have homework to do each time where I demonstrate that I've started doing some of the things she's showed me. You'll learn how to succeed in an organization, select and work with mentors, how to obtain a sponsor, the skills necessary to make it to the next level, all the secrets of successful people. That's the route I would recommend.

[Dantilla]

Originally Posted by URY914

....the guys that host "get rich" seminars. They get rich by hosting seminars.

True.

Big difference between a "get rich" seminar and a real business seminar.

The few seminars I've been to have been attended mostly by attorneys getting their continuing education credit, where I've learned quite a bit about real estate and landlord/tenant law.

Keeps my nose clean and my butt out of court when buying/selling real estate and owning rental properties.

A good seminar says success is hard, here's a couple ideas, now get after it!
A bad seminar says success is easy- just do 1,2,3, anybody can do it.

[gacook]

I've been to countless leadership seminars and courses. It's actually kinda cool to look at how they've evolved over the years, as our vision of leadership itself evolves.

My advice? If your wife and you are 40+ and self-identify as being "old school," go. The workplace environment is changing, and has changed, greatly. The new generation gets motivated by much different sources than "Do the job, make money." Being a leader is all about figuring out what motivates your team, and then manipulating them--err...i mean motivating them...to do what you want.

I'm very much NOT a touchy-feely kinda guy, but I've really learned a few things from some of the touchy-feely seminars I've been through. At heart, I'm still the same jackass, but at least I can identify when I'm doing something "bad" and then correct it. Bottom line to me is that your team needs to know you give a **** about them. Build a relationship.

[VINMAN]

Leadership is genetic. It's either in your personalty, or it's not. Listening to some putz in a cheap suit isnt gonna help you.

[wayner]

Your questions is like asking if a house is worth it. Some are, some should be avoided.

[gacook]

Originally Posted by VINMAN

Leadership is genetic. It's either in your personalty, or it's not. Listening to some putz in a cheap suit isnt gonna help you.

Gonna have to disagree with you, Vin. There certainly are some "born leaders;" however, leadership CAN be taught.