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Resolutions Require Commitment

The quality of a person’s life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor.—Vince Lombardi

It’s not uncommon for many of us to make New Year’s resolutions. Initially we’re “gung-ho” about our intentions, but all too often by the 2nd, 3rd, or 4th month of the New Year, we’ve put them aside. Success Magazine’s Inga Stasiulionyte recommends:

1. Focus on commitment, not motivation.
Just how committed are you to your goal? How important is it for you?
2. Seek knowledge, not results.
If you focus on the excitement of discovery, improving, exploring and experimenting, your motivation will always be fueled.
3. Make the journey fun.
If you make it too serious, there’s a big chance it will start carrying a heavy emotional weight and you will lose perspective and become stuck again.
4. Get rid of stagnating thoughts.
Thoughts influence feelings and feelings determine how you view your work; focus on the ones that will move you forward (excitement, experimenting, etc).
5. Use Your Imagination
Maintain your energy and rename your situation with a positive twist; find something to learn, and for three days, think and say positive things only.
6. Stop being nice to yourself.
Motivation means action and action brings results. Get out there, challenge yourself, do something that you want to do even if you are afraid.
7. Get rid of distractions.
Learn to focus on what’s most important. Write a list of time-wasters and hold yourself accountable to not do them.
8. Don’t rely on others.
You should never expect others to do it for you; it’s all on you.
9. Plan.
Know your three steps forward; update your weekly calendar with when you will do what and how.
10. Protect yourself from burnout.
Be self aware and recognize any signs of tiredness and take time to rest. Do diverse tasks, keep switching between something creative and logical, something physical and still, working alone and with a team. Switch locations. Meditate, or just take deep breaths, close your eyes, or focus on one thing for five minutes.

What 3 commitments are you focusing on in 2020?

There’s no abiding success without commitment.—Tony Robbins

Just Two Things

The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing.
– Walt Disney

Why “Two Things” you ask? 

  • We’d like you to pick ONE thing (event, process, etc) that worked well for you/your organization in 2019 and will likely continue to add value in 2020. Don’t lose sight of it!
  • Next, pick ONE thing that you will change to make 2020 more successful

The change could be related to you as an individual, or for your team/organization. Some things to consider:

From an individual perspective:

  • Where do you want to be more impactful? (personally or professionally)
  • What development area(s) would help most with your growth? (financially or intellectually)
  • Are there relationships that need to be developed or enhanced?
  • Does communication need to be addressed – is it insufficient or lacking clarity?
  • Are you committed to being a continual learner?
  • How’s your home/work balance?

From an organizational perspective, do your colleagues/direct reports:

  • Trust one another?
  • Engage in healthy conflict?
  • Commit to decisions?
  • Hold one another accountable?
  • Focus on achieving collective results?
  • Does the work culture support the agile mind-set?
  • Is risk taking encouraged?
  • Are differences (values/cultural/strengths/behaviors) recognized, appreciated, and valued?

It all starts with awareness, goals, and taking action. What do you have planned for 2020? How are going to make your plans real? Are there any barriers preventing you from succeeding? What or who could help?

Wishing you success in 2020!

Do what you can with all you have, wherever you are.
– Theodore Roosevelt

Year End Challenge

Challenge Yourself, and Your Team!

Challenge yourself!  Below are our 12 “Courageability” factors that impact leadership success:

  • Live and work with passion
  • Document and share your goals
  • Commit to addressing and tracking your goals
  • Understand and leverage your strengths and the strengths of others
  • Communicate with confidence and clarity
  • Manage conflict and understand how it can be inspirational
  • Develop others
  • Effectively delegate
  • Enrich your skill-set
  • Remain controlled
  • Reward and recognize others with regularity
  • Learn to succeed from your failuresWhich 3 do you find most challenging? Make development plans now to address growth areas.

    If you want to lead more effectively, shorten the distance between the future and present. Inspiring innovation and leading change call for more than process– they require the adoption of a cultural mindset.
    Mike Myatt Forbes – March 7,2013

Do’s and Don’ts Of Success

Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.
—Winston Churchill

We’ve talked about experiencing failures, learning from our mistakes, and then moving on. It’s something we all experience; what’s also required is that we maintain a healthy attitude and take ownership of our error. 

Additionally, we need to retain the courage to take risks, and when issues arise, honestly assess what went wrong so “it” doesn’t happen again.

Dr. Henry Cloud, clinical psychologist and author, conducted studies and wanted to learn what made people successful in business, life and relationships and provides the following:

10 “doorways” of learning that high performers go through, never to return again:

  1. Return to what hasn’t worked.
  2. Do anything that requires them to be someone they are not.
  3. Try to change another person.
  4. Believe they can please everyone.
  5. Choose short-term comfort over long-term benefit.
  6. Trust someone or something that appears flawless.
  7. Take their eyes off the big picture.
  8. Neglect to do due diligence.
  9. Fail to ask why they are where they find themselves.
  10. Forget that their inner life determines their outer success.Dr. Cloud says: “we don’t need new ways to fail….the old ones are working just fine!”

    All of us make mistakes, even the superstars! We need to recognize what is NOT working for us, and accept when change needs to occur. We don’t always immediately know what those changes may be, but we can immediately know what NOT to continue doing.

    Are you committed to learning and living the “DOs” and DONT’s” of success?

To make no mistakes is not in the power of man; but from their errors and mistakes the wise and good learn wisdom for the future.–Plutarch

EQ and Success

If your emotional abilities aren’t in hand, if you don’t have self-awareness, if you are not able to manage your distressing emotions, if you can’t have empathy and have effective relationships, then no matter how smart you are, you are not going to get very far.
—Daniel Goleman

We’ve written about Emotional Intelligence (EQ) in the past and have shared that EQ can increase through self development and consists of 4 areas: Self awareness, self management, social awareness, and relationship management.

Success Magazine’s Rhett Power shares more. He provides the following about those with high EQ:

  1. They’re change agents.
    They understand that it’s a necessary part of life—and they adapt.
  2. They’re self-aware.
    They know what they’re good at and what they still have to learn; weaknesses don’t hold them back.
  3. They’re empathetic.
    Being able to relate to others makes them essential in the workplace. With an innate ability to understand what co-workers or clients are going through, they can get through difficult times
    drama free.
  4. They’re not perfectionists.
    They know perfection is impossible; they roll with the punches and learn from mistakes.
  5. They’re balanced.
    They know the importance of maintaining a healthy professional-personal balance in their lives.
  6. They’re curious.
    They don’t judge; they explore the possibilities; they ask questions and are open to new solutions.
  7. They’re gracious.
    They believe every day brings something to be thankful for; they feel good about their lives and don’t let critics or toxic people affect that.

Any idea which element of EQ you’d score highest in? Which area do you feel has the greatest growth potential?

Emotional intelligence is a way of recognizing, understanding, and choosing how we think, feel, and act. It shapes our interactions with others and our understanding of ourselves. It defines how and what we learn; it allows us to set priorities; it determines the majority of our daily actions. Research suggests it is responsible for as much as 80 percent of the “success” in our lives. -J. Freedman

The Cost Of Conflict

The better team members engage, speak, listen, hear, interpret and respond constructively, the more likely their teams are to leverage conflict rather than be leveled by it.
–Craig Runde and Tim Flanagan

We’re at it again, that is, sharing information about conflict, and the newly published costs for conflict in the workplace.

Based on results published by the Washington Business Journal, the typical manager spends 25 – 40% of his or her time dealing with workplace conflict. That equates to 1-2 days every workweek!

And, the Cost of Workplace Conflict in the U.S. is estimated at $359 Billion annually (2.8 hours per week @ $17.95 per hour).

Do you find this as staggering as we do? We’ve all experienced conflict in the workplace, and some of us are better at managing it than others, but it looks like it’s time we all make addressing conflict a priority.

According to authors Karl A. Slaikeu, Ralph H. Hasson, managing conflict is the largest reducible cost in many businesses, and the most common disruptive behaviors associated with workplace conflict include:

  • Being dismissive
  • Finger-pointing
  • Arguing
  • Not listening
  • Being sarcastic
  • Belittling
  • Gossiping
  • Caving in
  • Being disrespectful
  • Complaining about someone

It’s up to us as leaders to understand how we respond to conflict. We need to increase our awareness of not only our own conflict behaviors, but also those of our colleagues. And lastly, we need to recognize destructive responses and replace them with productive ones.

How well do you manage workplace conflict?  We can help!

If we manage conflict constructively, we harness its energy for creativity and development.
Kenneth Kaye

Feedback Increases Effectiveness

We all need people who will give us feedback. That’s how we improve.–Bill Gates

Can you believe it’s the 4th QTR of 2018? How are you doing?  How are you feeling? Have you accomplished all that you planned for, or will the next few months be action packed?

Hopefully your annual plan included soliciting feedback. Bill Gates’ quote above shares that we need feedback to improve.

As leaders, we may be more comfortable giving feedback than receiving it.  We view giving feedback as part of our job and have scheduled meetings (one on ones, performance appraisals) that lend themselves to discussing the positive behaviors and accomplishments, as well as the missed goals and opportunities.

We all have perceptions as to how our peers, subordinates, and business partners would evaluate us, but we rarely solicit feedback on a regular basis.   So what can we do?

You can start simple.  Ask 3 questions:

  • What do I do that makes a difference that you want me to continue doing?
  • What am I doing that you want me to stop?
  • What could I do better?

You may also want to consider using a formal 360’ feedback program – we use Wiley’s 363 For Leaders tool that evaluates 8 approaches for effective leadership (pioneering, energizing, affirming, inclusive, humble, deliberate, resolute and commanding). (Contact us if you want to learn more).

As leaders it’s pretty much a given that we provide regular and honoring feedback to our staff or team members, but there’s added value to the organization when we extend this to include peers and our boss.

How do you feel about both giving and receiving feedback? Do you find the process constructive and a learning experience?

Make sure any feedback you provide is timely, well intended, and delivered in an honoring way.  Also, when you receive feedback, you don’t necessarily have to take action – listen to what you’re being told, process it, and evaluate if acting on it would serve you well.

Remember, the whole idea of feedback is to grow and improve!

Author Alexander Lucia says:
Truly great leaders spend as much time collecting and acting upon feedback as they do providing it.

Transformational Leaders

All good businesses are personal. The best businesses are very personal.
–Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks

Lately we’ve had a theme around relationships. That’s because without relationship building, we as leaders would not obtain desired results, we wouldn’t have effective and productive teams, and the morale, commitment, and dedication of the team members would be diminished.

Dr. Greg Halpern says: Transformational leadership is about implementing new ideas, continual change to maintain relevance, staying flexible and adaptable, and continually improving relationships with those around them.

He also feels that transformational leaders build relationships by applying or possessing the following behaviors and traits:

  • Charisma
  • Inspirational motivation
  • Intellectual stimulation
  • Individual consideration
  • High morals
  • Trustworthiness
  • Creates an actionable vision
  • Treats everyone as individuals
  • Coaches, mentors, and provides growth opportunities
  • Creates a culture of self-fulfillment and self-worth
  • Provides constant and candid communication

Dr. Terry Jackson adds to this list in his 7 Principles For Developing Quality Relationships where he defines what in his opinion constitutes quality relationships:

  1. Acceptance
  2. Respect
  3. Understanding
  4. Transparency
  5. Non-judgment
  6. Empowerment
  7. Trust

This is quite a list and one that even a seasoned leader will need to review in depth to assess up-skill needs.

We suggest you rate each one on a scale of 1 – 5 to help narrow down areas for development.  You can even ask your peers and direct reports to rate you and compare how aligned you are.

The results may prove interesting!

Manipulative Leaders-Create Distrust and selfishness
Transactional Leaders-Create Mediocrity and complacency
Motivational Leaders-Create Positivity and Action
Influential Leaders-Create Growth and Empowerment
Servant-Leaders-Create Authenticity and Explosive Growth
Transformational Leaders-Create Change and Leave Legacies
― Farshad Asl

 

Bad Boss?

Most people have trouble with about 50% of their bosses.
–Michael Lombardo and Robert Eichinger, FYI – For Your Improvement

Last week we talked about “managing up”; today we’re going to take it a step deeper.

What if you don’t have a strong relationship with your boss? You’re not alone. Per Lombardo and Eichinger, about half of us have boss difficulties.

Some of us may have:

  • communication issues
  • lack of comfort; tense up whenever the “boss” is around
  • respect issues; lack of appreciation for the skills the boss possesses
  • a lack of skills to sufficiently manage the relationship
  • defensiveness and lack of cooperation issues
  • the inability to receive feedback and suggestions for improvement

Guess what – the buck stops with us as we will likely be the one to suffer. We’ll get poor performance reviews, not get raises (or negligible ones), be passed over for the “good assignments”, and probably not be considered for promotions or career advancement opportunities.

We’re not suggesting to become brown nosers; rather identify the top 3 issues you feel impact the relationship and focus on improving them.  What can YOU do to better the situation?

Start with keeping your negative thoughts to yourself.  Don’t get caught up in the coffee room chats that all too often engage in bashing and sharing war stories.

Schedule regular meetings with your boss; don’t avoid the relationship, rather try to build a more favorable one.

If the leader truly has integrity issues and violates the policies, principles, and values of your company, investigate whether your company has an ombudsperson (The typical duties of an ombudsman are to objectively investigate complaints and do their best to obtain resolution). If one does not exist, another approach is to meet with HR or your boss’s boss.

Be realistic about your expectations. Is it only you that has an issue with the boss? Are you being antagonistic and not being a team player? Are you helping support goal achievement and in general being an asset to your organization?

Keep in mind that things may not go in your favor, and changing jobs may be an option (or a requirement!).

Having a bad boss isn’t your fault. Staying with one is.
— Nora Denzel

Managing “UP”

Managing “UP” requires that you manage to the expectations of your boss:
Know their priorities. Speak their language. Anticipate their needs. Be truthful and don’t BS them.
Contract properly at the end of a meeting.–Achim Nowak

How do you feel about the leadership skills you possess?  Would you rate yourself “average”, “above average”,  or maybe even “below average”?

When you rated yourself, which skills did you consider?  Did you limit it to those that impact the  interactions and relationships with your direct reports and perhaps your peers?  What we often forget to include is the critical relationship required with our boss.

In a prior tip, we shared the need to:

  1. Learn your boss’ communication style. – What level of detail do they prefer?
  2. Be proactive – share strengths and ideas and create an executable plan.
  3. Meet regularly – discuss progress against goals and areas for improvement.
  4. Ask for your boss’ opinion – Ask for their perspective on things.
  5. Go to your boss with solutions – ask for help when needed, but do your “homework”.
  6. Develop a power that makes you attractive – stay apprised of changes in your industry, understand your competitors, have a strong customer/business partner relationship. Be indispensable.
  7. Address problems – talk about your differences; remain fact based; keep your emotions in check.
  8. Play devil’s advocate – share your different perspective; say “Let me play devil’s advocate” and add new perspectives.

Nowak also suggests “appreciating UP“. Let your boss know that you appreciate him/her. Be authentic; provide genuine feedback. “Bosses rarely receive a word of praise or appreciation. From anyone. Yes, it’s lonely at the top, in more ways than one“.

In order to “Manage UP“, it’s up to us to build a strong relationship with our boss. We need to ensure our expectations are aligned, that we have a clear understanding of our organization’s vision, mission, and goals, that all of our behaviors support them, that we are committed to making a difference, and that we communicate the role we play!

Are there are any leadership relationship skills you’d like to enhance?

Managing up is about earning the trust and respect of your boss by working together with that person to create the best possible working relationship.
—Lisa Quast