Have you ever considered how easy it is to think, talk and feel one way and then to act completely contrary?

Walk the talk leadership -- sxc.hu/ortonesque

For instance, I’ve written several articles on sustainability and honestly believe it is in every person’s best interest to take the greening of America seriously. Yet, there are times (more than I care to admit) when it is more convenient to grab a bottle of water or to use a plastic zip bag.

In the MSNBC.com article,”Few smartphone owners take security seriously,” writer Suzanne Choney writes about the latest figures from The NPD Group’s report, “Emerging Technology Trends: Mobile Security.” What she reveals is that close to 40% of smartphone uses say they worry about security issues such as malicious emails and apps, yet 82% of them don’t have security apps on their cell.

What is Walk-the-Talk Leadership?

According to Washington State University Aristotle’s followers supposedly discussed philosophy while walking with him. This might be an extreme example of walk-the-talk leadership.

In fact, the original saying was, “if you’re going to talk the talk, you’ve got to walk the walk,” referring to the idea of putting into action what you are saying – “actions speak louder than words.” This has translated into the shortened phrase “walk the talk.”

As a small business owner or company leader, when it comes to your business you need to balance what you say with how you act. That means walking the talk.

Actions that Communicate Walk-the-Talk Leadership

There’s a small handbook from Eric Harvey and Alexander Lucia called 144 Ways to Walk the Talk which provides strategies, ideas and techniques of how those in a leadership role can “bring that behavior to life.”

Here are 10 actions that can help you on your journey:

1. Avoid knee-jerk reactions (acting too quickly on a decision) and the paralysis of analysis (stalling a decision with too much research).

2. Involve those who will implement decisions in the decision-making process.

3. Be open-minded. Others might not do things exactly as you would, but they may discover a better way.

4. Use failures as learning experiences by asking, “What’s positive about this?”

5. Focus on what is right rather on who is right.

6. Catch people doing things right and then customize their recognition.

7. Don’t merely focus on the “super stars” and “fallen stars,” notice the “middle stars” as well.

8. Ask your team what you are doing that creates obstacles for them and be willing to eliminate those obstacles.

9. Never share the blame for your mistakes.

10. When it comes to information, have a “no surprise” rule with withholding bad news as the worse violation of all.

Walking the talk is about doing the right thing. Yes, those smartphone users only hurt themselves by not acting on their concerns and adding security apps to their cells. However, walking the talk is about acting on your beliefs. It is about integrity, accountability, trust, respect and more. But these are just words unless you choose to embrace walk-the-talk leadership.

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