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The Working Supervisor's Support Kit is a collection of information and tools to help working supervisors do a better job. It's based on what Wally's learned in over twenty years of supervisory skills training.

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Independent business blogs are blogs that aren't supported by an organization like a magazine, newspaper, company, or business school. Those people provide lots of great content, but they don't need any additional exposure. In this post, every week, I bring you posts of quality from excellent bloggers that don't get as much publicity.

This week, I'm pointing you to posts on leadership lessons from raising guide dogs, mentoring made fuss-free, fear, well-connected leaders, and dumb management mistakes.

From Envisia Learning: Leadership Lessons in Raising a New Guide Dog #1: Lack of Sleep and Emotional Intelligence
"An early lesson in raising guide dogs is just how important sleep is for both the puppy raisers and the dogs!"

Wally's Comment: Ken Nowack and his wife raise puppies that will be trained as guide dogs. Their last charge, Ajax, is in formal training now and they have a new puppy, Rocco. Ken's post draws usable leadership lessons and will be good introduction to an excellent blog. Full disclosure: Ken is a friend and I also post on this site on the subject of talent development.

From Mary Jo Asmus: How to Be a Great Mentor Without All the Fuss
"Did you know that there can be great satisfaction in formally mentoring others? It’s a way of “giving back” and can also be a way to learn some new things yourself. I have had my own share of satisfying as well as frustrating mentor-mentee relationships, and it's taught me that the person I am mentoring should be taking responsibility for the logistics of our time together as well as their own growth and learning. A discussion of your mutual roles and responsibilities at the beginning of the relationship will increase the odds that you will enjoy the time in your mentoring role. Some tips to help you start off on the right foot with the person you are mentoring:"

Wally's Comment: Here's some mentoring wisdom from Mary Jo Asmus. I've been both mentor and protégé and reaped huge benefits in each situation.

From Tanveer Naseer: Managing Fear and Change in the Workplace
"Several weeks ago, I received a review copy of Dr. Brenda Shoshanna’s latest book “Fearless”. Dr. Shoshanna is a practising psychologist and therapist and has made appearances on national television networks ABC, CBS, and MSNBC, as well in numerous publications including Boardroom, Mental Health News, and Publisher’s Weekly. Although her book looks at managing fear from the lens of personal self-improvement, I found that many of the ideas and concepts she shares in her book relate directly to the issues leaders face in managing their organizations. As such, instead of writing a review of her book, I invited Dr. Shoshanna to discuss with me some of the ideas she shares in her book and what leaders and businesses can learn from them."

Wally's Comment: Fear is a powerful emotion that often surprises us. It's part of life and, therefore, part of business and yet it's a subject we rarely address directly. This interview will give you some perspective and some ideas that can improve both your life and work performance.

From LeaderLab: Well-Connected Leaders: Who Cares?
"How important is it for leaders to be seen by their constituents as well-connected? Does a leader’s perceived status in the network matter less to some followers than others?"

Wally's Comment: Bret Simmons interprets the findings of research into the impacts and dynamics of "well-connected" leaders.

From Art Petty: 10 of My Favorite Dumb Ass Management Mistakes
" In the spirit of my post, “At Least 20 Things to Stop Doing as a Leader,” which has grown well north of 50 thanks to a deluge of reader comments, I’m back with a list of some insanely stupid and all-too-common management mistakes. These focus more on the decisions, actions or inactions that contribute to creating even bigger problems. While I’ve remained on the positive side of the law here (felons, you’ve had your day!), some of these mistakes are truly criminal. Please feel free to chime in with your additions."

Wally's Comment: This post is both fun and insightful. I found myself saying, "Yup. Did that. That one, too. And that one …" 

That's it for this week's selections from independent business blogs. If you liked this piece you may enjoy my regular post on "Leadership Reading to Start Your Week" which features five choice articles from the business schools, the business press and major consulting firms. The last issue had pointers to articles about Zappos after the acquisition, praise and punishment, automated decision making, strategy questions, and coping with limited career advancement.

Here, on Three Star Leadership, I post things that will help a boss at any level do better and live a better life. At Results vs Activities, I join other bloggers with posts on talent development. My blog at the Toolbox for HR is People and the Changing Workplace .

Find out more about my latest book, Ruthless Focus: How to use key core strategies to grow your business or just jump right over to Amazon and buy a few copies.

If you're a boss, you should check out my Working Supervisor's Support Kit.

And be sure to stop by at Weekly Leader where I'll try to get you thinking about The Challenge of the Week.

Wally's Working Supervisor's Support Kit is a collection of information and tools to help working supervisors do a better job. It's based on what Wally's learned in over twenty years of supervisory skills training. Click here to check it out.