Hi Reader,

Last week, we talked about Flexibility as one of the most important muscles a successful business can exercise. Leverage is a kissing cousin of Flexibility because it’s another powerful tool that can increase the resources you need to extricate yourself from a difficult situation.

Many organizations have fewer resources these days, but having leverage in your toolkit is a force multiplier to get more done than you could without it – to maximize your success as well as minimize the chances of failure.

Car jack. Nail clippers. Claw Hammer. Teeter-totter. Tweezers. Nutcracker. Scissors. What do these devices all have in common? They create leverage, a simple but extraordinary force that increases the power of everything to which it is applied.

Engineers and financial analysts use more specific definitions, but in simple terms, you need at least three things to create leverage:

1. A fulcrum, or pivot point,
2. A load being moved, and
3. A force that’s moving it.

Leverage has never been more important for a leader – and is even more invaluable in an uncertain economy. Financial leverage may be one the first things that come to mind, but I want to discuss seven pivot points that can drive your business to greater success.

1. Delegation

Are you doing everything possible to leverage your time?

It’s critical if you’re going to do the things that ONLY YOU CAN DO.

It empowers others to learn and grow while increasing the chances that the most important things won’t get overlooked.

You already know you can leverage your time by delegating responsibilities to others in your organization.

But have you really concentrated on that option lately?

Even if it involves multiple people taking up the slack in only a few small tasks, it adds up – and opens up the time for you to do the things most important to your organization – and WHAT ONLY YOU CAN DO.

(Stay tuned for one of SwordTips’ most popular features - The 8 Principles of Effective Delegation – which will be available soon.)

Make Personal Productivity Your Ally

A personal footnote.

Empowered by the reach and accessibility of the personal computer, executives have worked over the last 20 years with dramatically reduced secretarial and administrative support, in part believing that they could now do much of that work themselves.

While this approach has achieved cost reduction benefits, it has hurt executive performance and productivity more than ever expected.

Just get the ball into the Red Zone

When leaders hesitate to delegate, it’s often because they can’t identify someone who can get it done and get the task or project over the goal line.

But, can’t your teammates and colleagues still be a valuable asset if they can get the ball into the Red Zone (a football term that refers to any time the offense has the ball within 20 yards of the goal line)?

You and other teammates can jump in and get the ball into the end zone!

If you’re just starting a project, hand it off to someone who can get you down the field.

Maybe they can’t get it as far as the Red Zone – but you still have a great start and can get it across the goal line with a different team assembled just for that purpose.

If you limit yourself only to resources that can get the ball over the goal line in every instance, you’re limiting your access to valuable resources that can make a big difference in moving the ball toward the goal line.

2. Outsourcing

Outsourcing can leverage your investment capability while expanding your resources:

• Hiring contract manufacturers to build your products,
• Public warehouses to distribute them, or
• Independent reps to sell them …

... are just some of the ways you can expand your resources on a “pay as you go” basis rather than by direct investment.

I’m a strong advocate of these approaches, for not only their ability to leverage scarce investment resources, but their flexibility when plans change.

You can switch to another contract manufacturer if your customer base shifts.

It’s not so easy to move a plant you wish had been a different size or built in a different place.

3. Create New Partnerships

Creating a partnership may be a “kissing cousin” of outsourcing, but it’s a contractual relationship of a higher order.

It usually denotes a greater commitment of resources as well as a greater responsibility for the outcome.

Engaging with a partner relieves some of your burden – leverages your financial and human resources – and gives you the opportunity to do more than you could by yourself.

Yes, there are risks to “sharing with a partner,” but the rewards from that kind of leverage can also be striking.

Turbocharge your resources by thinking LEVERAGE every time you tackle a project or task.

4. Team up with Other Business Executives

You can leverage your intellectual resources by establishing a board of advisors, or by expanding your board of directors to include outside professionals from different industries and viewpoints.

You can also join a peer group that offers timely and regular access to diverse experiences, insights and opinions.

There's a wide range of options that could include:

• Scenario planning before a board meeting;
• stress-testing a strategy;
• comparing competing proposals;
• preparing questions for a difficult conversation;
• researching unfamiliar subjects with an expert.

Working with a mentor, official or otherwise, is another way to leverage someone else’s experience and knowledge to advance your own.

“Two heads are better than one,” still works.

5. Use Digital Collaboration Tools

The widespread use of personal computers as well as mobile devices has opened up a whole new world of digital tools to enhance, accelerate and manage communication and collaboration among team members across the globe.

Down the road, we’ll feature some of these powerful collaboration tools and suggest some that we’ve tried and used that might help.

The Power of the Video Message

One tool I often recommend to leaders – one I believe is sorely underutilized and yet so easy to use – is a video messaging tool.

Some leaders hesitate because they think it requires a big production team and needs to look perfect. The reality? It only needs to be authentic.

Most of the people receiving a video message – employers, customers, vendors or shareholders – will know who you are and will respond to a meaningful message presented in an authentic and thoughtful way.

You can be emotional and add nuance with gestures and facial expressions – features you can’t duplicate with the written word.

It’s as easy as talking to someone – and there isn’t another communication tool more effective and easily created as a video message to quickly spread the word among your constituents.

You can start using it today.

6. Artificial Intelligence

AI - the ubiquitous shorthand for Artificial Intelligence – is taking all that to an unprecedented level that is only in its infancy. The changes are rapid and often mind-boggling and businesses that ignore its power and impact – do it at their peril.

Think about the leverage AI can provide to one executive or small team:

• A lengthy report can be analyzed and its key issues identified in minutes.
• A rough collection of thoughts can become the first draft of a presentation.
• Customer comments can be reviewed for recurring themes.
• A meeting transcript can become a summary, action list and follow-up communication.
• A spreadsheet can be analyzed for patterns you might otherwise miss.
• One idea can be adapted into an email, social media post, presentation or training piece.

And AI can serve as a thinking partner—challenging an assumption, suggesting alternatives, identifying questions you haven't considered or helping you look at a problem from another perspective.

What the future of AI holds for us is uncertain – except you can be certain it will continue to dominate wider swaths of our lives.

None of this, however, eliminates the need for human judgment. AI leverages it.

7. Leverage Your Online Resources

No matter what platform you choose, you’re making it tougher if you’re relying solely on the phone and email to stay in touch with your customers in a responsive and accountable manner.

There are countless social media platforms … from Facebook to LinkedIn, X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and so many more. You don’t need me to identify all of them, but they’re a powerful way to reach your customers about your products and services.

There are many other online options you can leverage:

• Job boards to place listings to attract new employees,
• Email marketing tools to own your platform to reach your constituents,
• Design tools to create and share graphic assets to strengthen your outreach.

It’s an ever-changing landscape – but don't ignore the Internet tools that can turbocharge your productivity and outreach.

Summary

Here are the 7 ways we've covered to help you leverage your resources:

1. Delegation
2. Outsourcing
3. Create New Partnerships
4. Team Up with Other Executives
5. Use Digital Collaboration Tools
6. Artificial Intelligence
7. Leverage Your Online Resources

The most important takeaway is this: Keep LEVERAGE top-of-mind as one of the most powerful ways to extend your resources.

Every time you have a project or task to complete, think LEVERAGE.

Question: What is one way you have leveraged your resources … financial, human, intellectual or time? What’s working best for you right now?

You can hit reply and share your thoughts – which I read every day – and I’ll share these ideas in future newsletters to advance our discussion.