Eight Leadership Traits Great Bosses Share

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eight leadership traitsBeing a great boss isn’t easy, but by following techniques developed by other great bosses an employer can find the best ways to connect with and develop their employees. A company is only as good as its leadership, and a boss will find that as their leadership skills grow, so will their company.

 

1. Understand Your Business

While it may seem obvious at first, a great boss should always understand their business. This means knowing their business inside and out, from the very beginning of a process to the very end. Many bosses believe that they need to focus on higher level ideas, and thus neglect learning about the small components that truly make their business run.

 

2. Value Your Staff

A business is only as effective as its staff. Staff members that are happy and valued work harder, which can directly increase productivity in ways that nothing else can. Employee recognition programs such as service awards and rewards for meeting specific company goals can go a long way in making employees feel appreciated.

 

3. Communicate Effectively

One of the most common gripes from staff is that their boss does not communicate well or even at all. A business can only function properly if everyone is moving together in the same direction, and this can only happen if the boss can communicate well with their staff.

 

4. Create Clear Goals

Goals are the most important part of a company and brings everyone into a team working together. Both establishing clear goals and charting the company’s progress towards them can go very far in creating a more effective company and generating more revenue.

 

5. Be Available

It can be difficult to be on top of everything as a boss, but a truly great boss will always be available to their clients, partners, and staff. This means returning calls in a timely fashion, always responding to emails, and being available in the office on a regular basis. Being absent can lead to many problems, including missing very important information and not noticing major issues until too late.

 

6. Own Your Actions

A great boss never denies their culpability in an error, but rather admits their mistakes and explains how they will fix them. Passing the buck along is not only insincere but it also shakes employee faith, and makes them feel as though they should be doing the same thing.

 

7. Make Decisions

Making the correct decisions quickly is practically the job description for many bosses, but many tend to procrastinate both on the difficult issues and the issues they simply don’t think are important. These issues can quickly add up and become overwhelming, which means that making decisions in a timely fashion is extremely important. It also helps solidify a boss’s position as a leader.

 

8. Go The Extra Mile

Many bosses are content in keeping the business running, but a truly great boss will always be focused on ways to improve the business and make it more profitable.

Household Manager, Jackson, Wy!

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Nanny job, full time, managing the home and helping with the children, excellent benefits and perks and based in Jackson Hole, Wyoming!

We are looking for a household manager for our busy home in Jackson, WY.  The job involves:

* Light housekeeping: mostly dishes and continual straightening up of
rooms, putting away clothes and toys, some vacuuming as needed. We have
a house cleaner 2x/week for heavy cleaning.
*Healthy Cooking: Strong cooking skills are a big plus. You would be preparing full meals or components of meals that can be popped in the oven or on the grill that evening.
* Laundry: spotting kids’ clothes as they spill food! and keeping the laundry moving. Our housecleaner ‘backs up’ on the overflow, and generally she does the majority of the linens.
* Shopping: Picking up groceries and suppplies, as well as maintaining a list of what is needed in the house.
* Help with the kids: Taking kids to activities like swimming classes, Art
Class, Kindermusik for example, and overseeing playdates an
average of twice a week.  As we will be homeschooling it would be great if our nanny was interested in this, and able to help with planning and executing age appropriate learning.

We both have flexible jobs and want to spend a lot of time with
our children, so the job entails ‘managing the home’ as much as, if not
more than, watching the kids. We are seeking someone joyful,
detail-oriented and physically fit, who will reinforce the Christian influence we strive to convey to our children.

Just to be perfectly clear, this is not a nanny job where you will hang
out with the kids watching TV and talking on the phone with your
friends! A ‘day care’ mentality of just ‘watching over’ the kids is NOT
sufficient! Our household manager will work with us to give our children the most nurturing, encouraging, invigorating childhood we can create. If you see nannying as popping in a DVD for the kids when the parents leave the house, this is not the job for you.

Mom is present more than not, so this is a ‘team player’
position, and good friendly people skills with us are needed, too.
For the pay and benefits we offer (great housing in a pricey rental
market, some neat travel opportunities, car, phone, and the potential for a generous bonus), we expect you to be available for 45 hours per week. Typical previous nanny schedule was M, W, F 8 AM to 6 PM and T, Th 11-9 PM .
* We travel frequently – our nanny keeps roughly the same work hours
then – we have a second home in Scottsdale, AZ . Separate living
quarters typically provided. Helping us pack / unpack and “settle in”
is one of the required ‘chores’ of the job.
* While children are resting, our nanny assists with “household projects” such as packing up off-season clothes, organizing projects to do with the children, hanging a picture if they can swing a hammer, reorganizing a kitchen cabinet, etc.

To apply to this job opportunity please email resume to Steve at [email protected]

Lake Tahoe Accounting Job, Controller For Top Tahoe Ski Resort

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Accounting professionals, work as the Controller at California Ski Resort, twelve miles west of Lake Tahoe, Sierra-at-Tahoe. Does it get any better, a professional full time job at Tahoe Ski Resort receiving an average of 480 inches of snowfall a year?

Summary of Controller job position:

This position is responsible for directing all financial and accounting activities in accordance with corporate policy; responsible for supporting the achievement of revenue and income objectives, market share and guest service objectives; establishes departmental policies and procedures; develops and monitors all departmental budgets to ensure their profitable operation. Management functions include: accounting, payroll, controls, inventory analysis, depreciation, taxes, and information systems. As a customer focused organization, a crucial part of each employee’s job is to get and keep guests.

Manages 2 to 4 subordinate supervisors who supervise a total of 10 to 20 employees in the Accounting Department, Cash Room, and IT.

Responsibilities include interviewing, hiring, and training employees; planning, assigning, and directing work; appraising performance; rewarding and disciplining employees; addressing complaints and resolving problems.

Sierra-at-Tahoe, Lake Tahoe Ski Resort Company information:

Recognized in the 2010 TransWorld SNOWboarding Resort Guide as a Top 10 Overall Resort as well as among the Top 10 Best Parks and Top 10 Best Pipes in the nation and known for its wind-protected slopes, incredible tree skiing and family programs, Sierra Resort is a bastion of the authentic California ski experience. Easy to get to and always laid-back, Sierra-at-Tahoe Resort welcomes skiers and snowboarders to escape from everyday life and enjoy the simple pleasure of winter in the mountains. Sierra Resort and the Eldorado National Forest are partners in recreation.

Summertime in the mountains, ski resorts best kept secret! Ideal time to get yourself happily settled in to the mountain lifestyle.

For more information, a detailed job description and how to apply, Sierra-at-Tahoe, Controller job

Environmental Education Internships In Jackson Hole, Wyoming!

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Jackson, Wyoming, Grand Teton National Park, here is your opportunity to develop your teaching skills and facilitate institutional operations while working in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Environmental Education Internships are now available at Teton Science Schools in Jackson Hole!

Teton Science Schools have been teaching about the natural world and the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem since 1967. Searching for an internship this winter, next spring, or summer? Interested in Environmental Education? Motivated? Hardworking? Check out these positions available within this outstanding organization in Jackson, Wyoming.

Environmental Education Internships

Interns support the implementation of all educational programs for youth, families, adults and conference groups. Interns are provided training and mentorship coupled with the opportunity to develop skills that lead toward successfully teaching lessons on aspects of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Interns will work closely with experienced educators, graduate students and Teton Science Schools’ faculty throughout the internship.

Dates and Positions

Fall, Winter dates
August 17, 2009 – November 1, 2009, February 1, 2010 – May 1, 2010, April 10, 2010 – June 1, 2010

* School Group, Adult & Conference Internship: Interns will focus on residential school programs. Interns will begin their internship in a support role team teaching, implementing food waste curriculum in the dining hall and implementing evening programs. Through team teaching and training, interns will develop science content and pedagogy that will enable them to take field groups out on their own toward the end of their internship. Interns will also have an opportunity to work with adult programs and support multi-disciplinary conferences. Experience working with grade school students is desired.

Summer dates
June 1, 2010 – August 23, 2010

* Teton Junior Science School: Interns will work with our day programs for first through sixth grade students. Experience working with young children is desired.
* Middle School, Family & Conference Internship: Interns will focus on middle school summer programs including residential, front country and backcountry experiences. Interns will also have an opportunity to work with family programs and support multi-disciplinary conferences. Experience working with middle school students and experience with front and backcountry camping is desired.

Details, qualifications and how to apply, see Environmental Education Internships and Teton Science Schools to view all Teton Science School jobs.

Getting It Right, Teton Valley Idaho

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In your online job search today, you can’t say there is a lack of information out there on how to write the best resume, how to land your next best job in today’s tough economy, and as far as the job boards go, wouldn’t you say that there are now more than too many to choose from? If you are in a mountain job search, though, your challenging quest for information may just be more along the lines of, “if I’m living in a city like NYC or Chicago, what is it going to be like living in a place like Teton Valley, Idaho?”

Moving to a ski town, a resort town or deciding whether or not to stay put in the mountains for the long haul will tend to bring up various questions such as, “Do I really want this as a long term lifestyle, what am I giving up by doing this? What am I gaining? What is the cost/benefit and do people really stay there long term?” The lifestyle is as important a factor as the job search to consider, whether in a good economy or not. This is why in my eyes a mountain job board without the lifestyle aspect wouldn’t make much sense, the two go hand in hand.

Do you (really) want to live in a small mountain town?

Maybe you are just not sure. So a good place to start then would be with the people. They are truly what makes these towns tick. I try to always highlight locals and their mountain lives whenever possible giving you greater insight into these communities. Scouring the web this week, I found this great piece on The Cosmic Apple, an organic farm in Victor, Teton Valley, Idaho.

Take a look at Live to Farm, these photos (click on each one to see and read more) speak for themselves, simply beautiful.

And if I haven’t said this before, I love Teton Valley, Idaho.

Utah And Wyoming Receive Top Ratings In Happiness Survey

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Results from the latest well-being, happiness poll suggest that Utah and Wyoming are two of the “happiest” states to live in. Utah came in first and Wyoming took third!

”Looking for happiness — it’s family-friendly communities for some, tropical paradise or the rugged West for others. A survey of Americans’ well-being, conducted by Gallup in partnership with Healthways and America’s Health Insurance Plans, gives high marks to Utah, which boasts lots of outdoor recreation for its youthful population.”

The survey rated places for their overall mental, physical and economic health.

”The survey attempts to measure people’s well-being. It examines their eating and exercise habits, work environment and access to basic necessities, just to name some of the criteria.”

”It’s not just about physical health,” said Eric Nielsen, a spokesman for Gallup. “It’s about their ability to contribute at work and be more productive, and it’s about feeling engaged in a community and wanting to improve that community.”

They also noted that they ” hope the findings will help employers better understand what they can do to create more productive workers.”

Complete article, Utah, Hawaii, Wyoming top ‘happiness’ poll

Successful companies in the mountain towns tend to acknowledge why their employees are living in the mountains and encourage them to get outside during their breaks, whether it is to ski, bike or just take a walk on a trail. Allowing workers to get out and enjoy the natural surroundings often makes them more productive when they are back at work doing their job. As far as community, residents living in a small mountain resort town have everything to do with the success of the town and getting involved not only helps the community thrive, it can be personally rewarding as well.

There may not have been a huge difference in scores between the best and worse states, but the point that outdoor recreation and community can add to a person’s happiness factor, well-being is a valid point in my opinion. If I was to rate my happiness, well-being level while living and/or spending time in all the different states, Wyoming and Utah would definitely rate in my top five!

Jackson Hole Avalanche Can Give Perspective

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So this past week Jackson Hole has been a very different place. I never thought when I moved out here that someone would die at the place I was going to work, but it has really been a wake up call.

Working in an environment where people are so happy to be is great…it really makes working that much more enjoyable. Sometimes however, we all get so caught up in the pleasures of skiing and boarding, and its really easy to forget that there is real danger in this sport we all have so much passion for. I read on someones blog where a person commented that it was ski patrol’s fault we had a fatality in the recent avalanche at the resort. This really bothered me…ski patrol does so much for the resort and takes on a huge burden to protect our safety. They work diligently to provide us with a place to ski that is incredibly safe compared to the back country. The truth is accidents happen and when we are up in the mountains, nature is in control, not us. That being said I think we should look at the recent conditions and events and think about why we are all here.

The mountains set us free. I know for me personally when I get on my skis and hit the slopes the rest of the world just disappears. It is my happy place, and I wouldn’t give it up for anything. I feel like most of the locals here in Jackson are on the same page. We all know there is a risk in what we do, but the payoff is well worth it. But we can’t receive it blindly…it’s important to remember that there is underlying risk, and we need to do our best to be prepared for it. So everyone learn about avalanche safety, follow the rules, and buy/wear your beacons!

I have done a lot of thinking about skiing and the danger it brings lately, I will leave you with this quote, which kind of sums up my feelings:

”The person who risks nothing, does nothing, has nothing, is nothing, and becomes nothing. He may avoid suffering and sorrow, but he simply cannot learn and feel and change and grow and love and live.” – Leo F. Buscaglia

Tramformation Proclamation! Jackson Hole Tram Unveiled

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Last Friday night, the Jackson Hole tram unveiling was AWESOME!! Laura and I had to work, but as soon as we got off we rushed down the the lower tram terminal to join in on the celebration. The resort had a live DJ, Nick Wilson’s was exploding at the doors with 24-ounce PBRs, and tram fever was in the air more than ever before! Going into this party I didn’t really know what to expect, but man did JHMR ever put in some work!

I heard from a co-worker that this unveiling party was going to cost the resort 50 grand, I think (mainly because it wasn’t my money) that it was worth every penny! The resort had a slide show and movie about the tram’s lifelong history, and the events leading up to tonight. The movie was so exciting, it gave me goose bumps haha, and it made me realize that I moved here at the perfect time, and this tram was the icon and pinnacle of this part of my life. The unveiling party was like the culmination of all the events I have gone through in the past 6 months, and everyone there was so excited to finally be arriving at this moment!!

After the movie, everyone turned around and stared as the tram descended from tower one, with a large white sheet over it. I would probably compare this moment to my college graduation…so proud, so excited, so stuck in disbelief that this moment has finally come. The sheet dropped and everyone went crazy! I think the tram itself would have been enough to please us all, but then they shot fireworks off the top and Santa Claus repelled out of the bottom! hahaha

Afterward, everyone threw snowballs at the tram in a traditional christening which I hear is usually reserved for the last tram of the season, but I think everyone was just expressing their new-found love and acceptance of the re-born Big Red. After the tram parked, it was a full on stampede to the Mangy Moose! On the way everyone made a pit stop at Teton Village Sports where they gave away free buffalo wings… it was pretty much a feeding frenzy…but at least I didn’t have to buy any dinner that night! That night the moose was packed, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many smiling and jolly faces…I’m pretty sure Christmas came early this year for A LOT of people!

Being a liftie, I heard a lot of gossip about whether or not people would actually be able to ski off the tram on opening day since the snow cover on Rendezvous Bowl was so skimpy. The resort let ski patrol mark the bigger rocks and then let the public have at it…some people were weary about the conditions, but the die hard tram lovers got their laps in for the day. I think mother nature wasn’t going to allow Big Red to have a haphazard opening weekend, in fact I’m pretty sure destiny wouldn’t allow it! Sunday night, we had the first big snow storm of the year, and in the blink of an eye we had over 11 inches of fluffy dry powder at our feet!!

My friend Laura and I thought we were on Cloud 9 already, riding up the tram, the snow still coming down hard…then we look over and nobody other than the world famous snowboarder Jeremy Jones was riding the tram with us!!! Talk about a first tram we would never forget for the rest of our lives!! When we got off at the top, we talked to Jeremy and took a picture (yeah we felt a little bad for harassing him, but it was worth it in the end!) and then made our decent down the mountain. It was the explanation point on a day we would surely talk about for the rest of our lives.

Living The Liftie Life – Living In Jackson Hole

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Being a lift operator, aka a liftie, in Jackson Hole has surpassed all my expectations. I never thought this job would be so cool. Where do I even start? My first day was interesting, that’s for sure haha. I woke up at 5:45 to make the 6:15 bus to the village, it was pitch black out, and the snow had been coming down all night long. There were about 4 inches of fresh snow blanketed across the valley, and when I got to the resort I found out that there was even more snow there.

All the Casper lifties met in the locker room at 7:00am sharp, where we were given our uniforms and assigned our lockers. We got hardshell jackets, softshell jackets, puffy jackets (that zipped into our shoftshells), and pants. All the jackets and pants were Marmot, and really nice stuff.

After getting geared up, we head down to catch the 7:30 gondola ride. We were the FIRST ones up the mountain, and the snow was still coming down hard. When we got to the top, it was a sight I have never seen before. The top of the gondi station is usually packed with people, but there was nobody in sight. It almost had a ghost town feel. As we looked off the mountain we could just barely see the sun through the snow beginning to rise over the mountains on the other side of the valley. The snow in front of us wasn’t at all what you expect to see at a ski resort. It was COMPLETELY untouched, not a single track before us…at times it was even hard to tell if you were moving because there was nothing in the snow that you could see move by, and the visibility was so low. We were even getting to make turns before ski patrol!

As we made the decent to our lift, we were floating silently through thigh deep powder… it was truly bliss. Being able to ski fresh snow before everyone else is a benefit I will never take for granted…in all my years of skiing I have never had an experience like this…and I’m getting paid?! Something cant be right here! Having to work the day after your birthday at 7am kind of sucks, but hey, this made it all worth it in my eyes.

When we got to the lift, we got it running, set up the maze, and did some ramp work to prepare for the public. Then my boss and I headed up the chair lift to the top shack where i would start my shift. Every day, we have one top shack shift where we spend 2.5 hours at the top, basically just making sure everyone gets off safely. When we aren’t doing this, we rotate between 45 minutes of skiing and 45 minutes of bumping chairs. Being paid to ski for about 2 hours and 15 minutes every day is good in my book. Not to mention loading the public into chairs and watching them fall from time to time is quite entertaining as well.

When my boss and I got to the top shack, a winter storm was in full effect. There were winds reaching 40-50 miles an hour, it was -10 degrees, and the snow was still pounding the mountain. When we opened the door to the shack, the force of the wind was so strong it blew out the plexiglass window, and it folded into about 4 pieces and flew down the hill! Needless to say, I had to go pick up the pieces lol. About 30 minutes later the wind died down, we called into valley dispatch that the lift was open, and my first day of work with the public officially began.

As if my morning wasn’t interesting enough already, just about an hour into my shift I got somewhat of a wake up call. A woman was riding on the lift with her backpack, and when she tried to get off the straps of her pack were caught in the chair. She was screaming and was hanging from her backpack straps, and was now about 10 feet in the air as she went around the bull wheel and began riding it back down the mountain! I luckily was able to hit the stop button on a quick reflex, and she slid out of her backpack straps. I made sure she was okay, and then climbed to her chair and retrieved her backpack. She was very thankful, and very embarrassed. Not a bad start to what I’m sure will be a very interesting season!

The rest of the day was pretty fun, being in a place you love when you “work” and getting to talk to people about skiing is really relaxing. Throw in those 45 minute ski breaks at regular intervals and you have one very happy employee.

Big Mountain Job With Big Mountain Benefits!

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As the season here in Jackson Hole starts to get going, the benefits of being a resort employee just keep coming and coming. After the company-wide orientation, the resort took us all to all over to the famous apres-ski hot spot, the Mangy Moose. The live band was awesome, the resort gave everyone complementary drink tickets, and Smith and Skullcandy were there making sure nobody went home empty handed! Great music, free drinks, free gear, definitely a night that none of us would soon forget.

A few days later, we all woke up to 5” of fresh snow! It is definitely nice to have a free season pass, and just come to the village and hop on a chairlift as I please. Even with 5” of fresh snow it would be hard to shell out $89 for only 6 open trails. Some of my friends who don’t work for the resort still haven’t gotten a chance to ski yet because of this, so I’m realizing early on how nice the benefits of being a pass holder are! After a morning of laying fresh tracks for the first time this season, some friends and I headed to Jackson Hole Sports for the huge employee sale, where EVERYTHING in the store was from 30-70% off!! Needless to say, I may have gone a bit overboard…but hey, at least I will definitely be set up for the rest of the year!

This weekend, the Bridger Gondola and Casper lift will be opening up, making a lot more terrain available. I’m sure the weekend warriors will be out in full force, and I will be too!