Change takes longer than we think and the process is difficult.
Acknowledging these facts can make your attempts more successful.
Marshall Goldsmith, one of my favourite coaches, researched why people give up on their goals.
He discovered that there are five common reasons. Understanding these roadblocks will help you apply some preventive medicine — and increase the odds that you and your reports won't fall into the same old traps.
See his findings below.
Colm
1. Ownership"I wasn't sure that this would work in the first place. I tried it out — it didn't do that much good. As I guessed, this was kind of a waste of time."The classic mistake made in leadership development, coaching, and self-help books is the promise that "This will make you better!" After years of experience in helping real leaders change real behavior in the real world, I have learned a hard lesson. Only you will make you better. To have a real chance of success, you have to take personal ownership and have the internal belief that "This will work if, and only if, I make it work. I am going to make this work."
2. Time"I had no idea that this process would take so long. I'm not sure it's worth it."Goal setters have a chronic tendency to underestimate the time needed to reach targets. In setting our goals for behavioral change, it's important to be realistic about the time we need to produce positive, lasting results. Habits that have taken years to develop won't go away in a week. Set time expectations that are 50% to 100% longer than you think you will need to see results — then add a little more.
3. Difficulty"This is a lot harder than I thought it would be. It sounded so simple when we were starting out."The optimism bias of goal setters applies to difficulty as well as time. Not only does everything take longer than we think it will, but it also requires more hard work than we anticipate. In setting goals, it's important to accept the fact that real change requires real work. Acknowledging the price for success in the beginning of the change process will help prevent the disappointment that can occur when challenges arise later.
4. Distractions"I would really like to work toward my goal, but I'm facing some unique challenges right now. It might be better if I just stopped and did this at a time when things weren't so crazy."Goal setters have a tendency to underestimate the distractions and competing goals that will invariably appear throughout the year. A piece of advice that I give all of my coaching clients is: "I'm not sure what crisis will appear, but I'm almost positive that some crisis will appear." Plan for distractions in advance. Assume that crazy is the new normal. You will probably be close to the reality that awaits.
5. Maintenance"I think that I did actually try to change and get better, but I have let it slide since then. What am I supposed to do — work on this stuff the rest of my life?"Once a goal setter has put in all of the effort needed to achieve a goal, it can be tough for him to face the reality of what's needed to maintain the new status quo. When one of my high-potential leaders asked his boss, the CEO, "Do I have to watch what I say and do for the rest of my career?" the CEO replied, "You do if you plan on ever becoming a CEO!"
Here are the cold, hard truths. Real change requires real effort. The "quick fix" is seldom a meaningful one. Distractions and things that compete for your attention are going to crop up — frequently. Changing any one type of behavior won't solve all of life's problems. And finally, any meaningful change will probably require a lifetime of effort.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Sunday, August 23, 2009
“You’ve allowed me keep my job. Now give me back my dignity!”
Type “dignity in work” into Google and you get a number of hits mostly dealing with how organisation can best implement redundancies while treating those been asked to leave with respect and dignity.
But what dignity for those who are being retained by companies? How dignifying are your methods in retaining talented employees?
Lets use George as an example.
George is a coaching client of mine - he was identified as a high potential director by his company 10 months ago.
Yet last month George and his four peers were told that they each had to do a twenty minute presentation as a part of an overall one hour interview to justify why they should be retained for one of them would be let go.
George did a good presentation and interview and in fact got put into a higher profile role but a month latter he is still raising in our coaching sessions the questions “Did my successes and commitment of the last 8 years mean nothing?” He resents the X-factor nature of fighting for his career – one hour of show time to demonstrate his worthiness.
And the extra kick in the arse – none of the management level above George were forced to go through a similar exercise – they all retained their roles automatically.
George continues to feel anger at the hypocrisy and continues to struggle with his 8 plus years of commitment to a company that have made that commitment null and void.
Take Ann as one more example.
Her function also went through redundancies - she has been retained and actually presented with a new role that has been described as putting her into her “sweet spot”
The following 3 months have seen Ann move from feeling appreciative, valued and excited to now feeling devalued, demotivated and micromanaged as her “sweet spot” role has resulted in her bosses focusing, not on her great strengths, but on things she doesn’t like doing and knows she does not do well.
Ann is losing her self belief as she is forced to be what she is not.
George and Ann are talented people. Considered good enough to survive aggressive redundancy programs. And yet both are questioning how the organisation is treating them as a survivor.
For the organisations involved, they are freezing talented individuals – freezing them with fear for the next round of redundancies, freezing their loyalty to organisations that they have given so much to, and freezing their instinct and talents.
Organisations need to plan and demonstrate a lot more empathy and support to those they retain – for these are the people who will get companies out of this current situation.
But what dignity for those who are being retained by companies? How dignifying are your methods in retaining talented employees?
Lets use George as an example.
George is a coaching client of mine - he was identified as a high potential director by his company 10 months ago.
Yet last month George and his four peers were told that they each had to do a twenty minute presentation as a part of an overall one hour interview to justify why they should be retained for one of them would be let go.
George did a good presentation and interview and in fact got put into a higher profile role but a month latter he is still raising in our coaching sessions the questions “Did my successes and commitment of the last 8 years mean nothing?” He resents the X-factor nature of fighting for his career – one hour of show time to demonstrate his worthiness.
And the extra kick in the arse – none of the management level above George were forced to go through a similar exercise – they all retained their roles automatically.
George continues to feel anger at the hypocrisy and continues to struggle with his 8 plus years of commitment to a company that have made that commitment null and void.
Take Ann as one more example.
Her function also went through redundancies - she has been retained and actually presented with a new role that has been described as putting her into her “sweet spot”
The following 3 months have seen Ann move from feeling appreciative, valued and excited to now feeling devalued, demotivated and micromanaged as her “sweet spot” role has resulted in her bosses focusing, not on her great strengths, but on things she doesn’t like doing and knows she does not do well.
Ann is losing her self belief as she is forced to be what she is not.
George and Ann are talented people. Considered good enough to survive aggressive redundancy programs. And yet both are questioning how the organisation is treating them as a survivor.
For the organisations involved, they are freezing talented individuals – freezing them with fear for the next round of redundancies, freezing their loyalty to organisations that they have given so much to, and freezing their instinct and talents.
Organisations need to plan and demonstrate a lot more empathy and support to those they retain – for these are the people who will get companies out of this current situation.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Transforming Employee Morale – a case study
Background:
Twelve months ago 70 people in a localization department in a multinational IT company based in Dublin completed an internal employee survey in which the majority said they would not recommend their department and employer as a place to work.
Average tenure was above five years, the department had seen its numbers reduced from 110 to 70 in the space of a year and the leader of the department described the culture at the time as “stale”.
The same internal employee survey, 12 months later in April 2009, and 75% of the department say they would highly recommend their department and employer to a friend. The department is “buzzing”.
What happened in twelve months? What is the business impact and how can you apply the lessons to your department or organization?
What happened?
Dynamic Leadership Development (DLD) began working with the leader and the management team in June 2008, just after the poor scores from the survey were published.
There are many aspects and components to the extraordinary turnaround in employee satisfaction but to summarise a few key success factors:
The Leader’s vision – the leader had a vision of a new culture within his department but more importantly his commitment to that vision was crucial. Hiring an external consultant such as DLD was an early signal of this commitment to the vision.
The Guiding Coalition – an early insight was the need for the full management team to be given the opportunity to become more involved, more of a decision maker and hence more engaged. There was no longer just one internal champion but seventeen, as managers and supervisors were brought into the coalition of change.
Discovering people’s strengths and passions – in a series of one to ones with all management and staff, DLD created an inventory of everyone’s strengths and passions, as well as their views on the current and desired culture. They were asked whether they were currently experiencing a “career best” in their role and, if not, what was missing for them. These interviews ensured all staff contributed to the key initiatives required to build the new culture.
Being in the middle of something – by knowing people’s strengths and passions it became easier to identify the right people to drive the right initiatives and hence employees at all levels began to be ‘in the middle of something’. As one person framed it, “we inverted the pyramid” so that the base began to lead and take action as opposed to just the management team.
So what?
Research in Sear’s in the mid 90s demonstrated that a 5% increase in employee satisfaction resulted in a 1.3% increase in customer satisfaction which in turn resulted in a 0.05% increase in revenue. Happy employees treat customers better who in turn buy more from you.
With headcount and resources limited, now is a period when organizations need to maximize the productivity of all existing staff. Tom Rath of Strengthfinder stated that people who get to ulitize their strengths are 20% more productive.
The improved employee morale and productivity in the localization department has resulted in it being asked to only make very moderate cuts in staff numbers over the last 12 months compared to other groups because it is now considered a vibrant productive department.
Are you interested in learning more and seeing the possible applications to your organisation?
A 90 minute workshop has been created by Dynamic Leadership Development to provide you with more detail and insight on this case study plus allow you and your team to start to identify direct comparisons and applications to your organisation.
Call Colm Murphy on +353868304033, email at info@dynamicleadership.ie or visit us at www.dynamicleadership.ie.
Twelve months ago 70 people in a localization department in a multinational IT company based in Dublin completed an internal employee survey in which the majority said they would not recommend their department and employer as a place to work.
Average tenure was above five years, the department had seen its numbers reduced from 110 to 70 in the space of a year and the leader of the department described the culture at the time as “stale”.
The same internal employee survey, 12 months later in April 2009, and 75% of the department say they would highly recommend their department and employer to a friend. The department is “buzzing”.
What happened in twelve months? What is the business impact and how can you apply the lessons to your department or organization?
What happened?
Dynamic Leadership Development (DLD) began working with the leader and the management team in June 2008, just after the poor scores from the survey were published.
There are many aspects and components to the extraordinary turnaround in employee satisfaction but to summarise a few key success factors:
The Leader’s vision – the leader had a vision of a new culture within his department but more importantly his commitment to that vision was crucial. Hiring an external consultant such as DLD was an early signal of this commitment to the vision.
The Guiding Coalition – an early insight was the need for the full management team to be given the opportunity to become more involved, more of a decision maker and hence more engaged. There was no longer just one internal champion but seventeen, as managers and supervisors were brought into the coalition of change.
Discovering people’s strengths and passions – in a series of one to ones with all management and staff, DLD created an inventory of everyone’s strengths and passions, as well as their views on the current and desired culture. They were asked whether they were currently experiencing a “career best” in their role and, if not, what was missing for them. These interviews ensured all staff contributed to the key initiatives required to build the new culture.
Being in the middle of something – by knowing people’s strengths and passions it became easier to identify the right people to drive the right initiatives and hence employees at all levels began to be ‘in the middle of something’. As one person framed it, “we inverted the pyramid” so that the base began to lead and take action as opposed to just the management team.
So what?
Research in Sear’s in the mid 90s demonstrated that a 5% increase in employee satisfaction resulted in a 1.3% increase in customer satisfaction which in turn resulted in a 0.05% increase in revenue. Happy employees treat customers better who in turn buy more from you.
With headcount and resources limited, now is a period when organizations need to maximize the productivity of all existing staff. Tom Rath of Strengthfinder stated that people who get to ulitize their strengths are 20% more productive.
The improved employee morale and productivity in the localization department has resulted in it being asked to only make very moderate cuts in staff numbers over the last 12 months compared to other groups because it is now considered a vibrant productive department.
Are you interested in learning more and seeing the possible applications to your organisation?
A 90 minute workshop has been created by Dynamic Leadership Development to provide you with more detail and insight on this case study plus allow you and your team to start to identify direct comparisons and applications to your organisation.
Call Colm Murphy on +353868304033, email at info@dynamicleadership.ie or visit us at www.dynamicleadership.ie.
Sunday, May 24, 2009
What next for Leadership?
What a 12 months it has been!
Financial institutions that once swaggered now stagger. Governments are saving banks that still dish out massive bonuses to their executives. Politicians call for us all to tighten our belts while using taxpayers’ money to maintain their expense driven life styles. Once mighty employers shed staff every hour of every day.
And the concept of leadership in the last 12 months? What leadership?!
The 2009 model of leadership is not winning too many awards right now and the brand of being a business leader is tainted in a way that the role of clergy has in the recent past – not to be quite trusted.
So will a new perspective of leadership emerge from the rubble? Will “followers” place different demands based on what has and is happening around the world? What flavour of leadership might we be heading into? Below is a sample of leadership styles that I am hearing more and more about in recent months
The idea of “servant-leadership” is more and more visible in blogs and HR magazines. It sees great leaders as being those motivated by the desire to serve others. Its success is measured by the growth of those being served by the leader, in terms of their development, their autonomy and their wisdom. It seeks to combine two opposite notions of leadership a and service. Simply put, if you lead people, are the growing under you or not?
“Authentic leadership” seems to be referenced in every second email I get from leadership consultant these days. It can mean a lot of different things to different people. The Authentic Leadership in Action council state that when we are authentic and true to “our internal compass” we get the most out of others. So are you truly yourself when you are with your team?
One of my favourite leadership books, “The Extraordinary Leader” by Jack Zenger and Joe Folkman now has a follow up called “The Inspirational Leader”. While initially claming that no one of the sixteen leadership competencies identified in “The Extraordinary Leader” was more powerful that an others, the authors have now identified “Inspiring and Motivating Others” as the one competency that separates good from extraordinary. Do you inspire and motivate your people? Have you asked them this recently?
One of my mentors, Pete Bluckert, has identified the combination of strategy and intimacy as the next focus for leaders with the intimacy element being about the heightened connectedness of a leader to themselves as well as others. Are you capable of real intimacy with your team?
Much more will be heard about these and other visions of leadership but at the core of each of them is the growing importance of connecting with people at an individual and group level through the leader’s use of self.
I am in no doubt that our concept of what it is to be a leader in the 21st century has been changed by the revelations of the last 12 months. Leaders can never again expect their word to be taken blindly without proof of character and deed.
Welcome your comments and thoughts!
Colm Murphy
Financial institutions that once swaggered now stagger. Governments are saving banks that still dish out massive bonuses to their executives. Politicians call for us all to tighten our belts while using taxpayers’ money to maintain their expense driven life styles. Once mighty employers shed staff every hour of every day.
And the concept of leadership in the last 12 months? What leadership?!
The 2009 model of leadership is not winning too many awards right now and the brand of being a business leader is tainted in a way that the role of clergy has in the recent past – not to be quite trusted.
So will a new perspective of leadership emerge from the rubble? Will “followers” place different demands based on what has and is happening around the world? What flavour of leadership might we be heading into? Below is a sample of leadership styles that I am hearing more and more about in recent months
The idea of “servant-leadership” is more and more visible in blogs and HR magazines. It sees great leaders as being those motivated by the desire to serve others. Its success is measured by the growth of those being served by the leader, in terms of their development, their autonomy and their wisdom. It seeks to combine two opposite notions of leadership a and service. Simply put, if you lead people, are the growing under you or not?
“Authentic leadership” seems to be referenced in every second email I get from leadership consultant these days. It can mean a lot of different things to different people. The Authentic Leadership in Action council state that when we are authentic and true to “our internal compass” we get the most out of others. So are you truly yourself when you are with your team?
One of my favourite leadership books, “The Extraordinary Leader” by Jack Zenger and Joe Folkman now has a follow up called “The Inspirational Leader”. While initially claming that no one of the sixteen leadership competencies identified in “The Extraordinary Leader” was more powerful that an others, the authors have now identified “Inspiring and Motivating Others” as the one competency that separates good from extraordinary. Do you inspire and motivate your people? Have you asked them this recently?
One of my mentors, Pete Bluckert, has identified the combination of strategy and intimacy as the next focus for leaders with the intimacy element being about the heightened connectedness of a leader to themselves as well as others. Are you capable of real intimacy with your team?
Much more will be heard about these and other visions of leadership but at the core of each of them is the growing importance of connecting with people at an individual and group level through the leader’s use of self.
I am in no doubt that our concept of what it is to be a leader in the 21st century has been changed by the revelations of the last 12 months. Leaders can never again expect their word to be taken blindly without proof of character and deed.
Welcome your comments and thoughts!
Colm Murphy
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
"No Alarms and No Surprises"
“with no alarms and no surprises,
no alarms and no surprises,
no alarms and no surprises,
Silent silence.”
For many of my clients its coming up to annual appraisal time. And despite the mantra from HR and senior management that a process of regular feedback means that the annual review meeting should not include any surprises for the appraisee, I would feel safe in betting money that for many the annual review is still akin to going to the dentist every five years – there is going to be some unexpected bad news and its likely to be painful.
For me its very clear – it is a manager’s job to provide constant feedback (positive and negative) and support throughout the year, and those who save 364 days worth of feedback for that once a year review are failing their people, failing their organization and failing themselves.
People deserve to get feedback on a timely basis so that they can recognize what they do well and appropriate adjust not so good behaviour if required.
Organisations deserve managers who will earn their salary and actively manage performance.
Managers deserve a team of performers but how can that happen if the manager doesn’t give feedback on what is working or not working?
The authors of Crucial Conversations (a book I highly recommend, that takes the concepts of emotional intelligence and puts them into tools and tips) talk about “Suckers' Choice” being often behind a managers inertia when it comes to feedback.
“Suckers Choice” is about setting the brain a false either/or situation. For example
“I can be liked by my team OR I can be honest”
“I can give tough feedback OR not hurt their feelings”
The point being that this choice makes it simple for the brain to do one or the other.
However can a manage be “liked by my team AND honest” ?– of course but it takes more effort, more preparation, more energy.
We all create “Suckers’ Choices” – but they are short time in value and the easy choice now often results in even tougher conversations down the line.
Never more than now, with the risk of RIFs and redundancies hanging over so many organisations and people, is the need for regular honest feedback required.
Making someone redundant, without ever having given that person the appropriate feedback and the time to address the feedback, is more than a question of fairness or poor management – it’s a human rights violation.
So if you are a manager and you are doing an annual appraisal soon, ask yourself “Have I done enough to ensure there are no surprises for the individual in this review?”
Welcome your comments, and thanks to Radiohead for the title and quote.
Colm
no alarms and no surprises,
no alarms and no surprises,
Silent silence.”
For many of my clients its coming up to annual appraisal time. And despite the mantra from HR and senior management that a process of regular feedback means that the annual review meeting should not include any surprises for the appraisee, I would feel safe in betting money that for many the annual review is still akin to going to the dentist every five years – there is going to be some unexpected bad news and its likely to be painful.
For me its very clear – it is a manager’s job to provide constant feedback (positive and negative) and support throughout the year, and those who save 364 days worth of feedback for that once a year review are failing their people, failing their organization and failing themselves.
People deserve to get feedback on a timely basis so that they can recognize what they do well and appropriate adjust not so good behaviour if required.
Organisations deserve managers who will earn their salary and actively manage performance.
Managers deserve a team of performers but how can that happen if the manager doesn’t give feedback on what is working or not working?
The authors of Crucial Conversations (a book I highly recommend, that takes the concepts of emotional intelligence and puts them into tools and tips) talk about “Suckers' Choice” being often behind a managers inertia when it comes to feedback.
“Suckers Choice” is about setting the brain a false either/or situation. For example
“I can be liked by my team OR I can be honest”
“I can give tough feedback OR not hurt their feelings”
The point being that this choice makes it simple for the brain to do one or the other.
However can a manage be “liked by my team AND honest” ?– of course but it takes more effort, more preparation, more energy.
We all create “Suckers’ Choices” – but they are short time in value and the easy choice now often results in even tougher conversations down the line.
Never more than now, with the risk of RIFs and redundancies hanging over so many organisations and people, is the need for regular honest feedback required.
Making someone redundant, without ever having given that person the appropriate feedback and the time to address the feedback, is more than a question of fairness or poor management – it’s a human rights violation.
So if you are a manager and you are doing an annual appraisal soon, ask yourself “Have I done enough to ensure there are no surprises for the individual in this review?”
Welcome your comments, and thanks to Radiohead for the title and quote.
Colm
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
“A worried man with a worried mind"
“A worried man with a worried mind
No one in front of me and nothing behind”
Transitioning into a new role? Excited but feeling a knot of anxiety?
Having a 90 day plan helps you stay focused, gives you purpose, lets your team know what to expect and helps set expectations with the boss
My work with high potentials often (thankfully) leads to them getting promoted and being handed new challenges.
And then the doubt and concern creeps in. The reality of the new position, the task of transforming the existing team, the realization of the resources actually available, and the heightened expectations of the boss who has promoted them – all these weigh on the normally positive and upbeat high-po.
In my experience, it is that last aspect, the expectations of the boss, that most worries the new leader.
With a track record of success behind them, the newly promoted leader has no fear of challenge but they become anxious when considering that they may not match the expected targets and quotas.
The key to removing the anxiety is about actively resetting the expectations with the boss – an open and honest conversation about what the current state is, what is needed, what you plan to focus on and what results to expect.
This is where the 90 day plan provides a vehicle for that crucial conversation with the boss.
Don’t forget – the boss most likely has been involved in your promotion so they want you to succeed. But you need to give them confidence that you are heading in the right direction so that they can breathe in terms of results.
So if you find yourself in a new role, start mapping out your plan and get your boss on board so that you feel them beside you as opposed to being on your back.
Thoughts? Comments? Insults?
Have finally got a Dylan line into my blog title – more to follow.
No one in front of me and nothing behind”
Transitioning into a new role? Excited but feeling a knot of anxiety?
Having a 90 day plan helps you stay focused, gives you purpose, lets your team know what to expect and helps set expectations with the boss
My work with high potentials often (thankfully) leads to them getting promoted and being handed new challenges.
And then the doubt and concern creeps in. The reality of the new position, the task of transforming the existing team, the realization of the resources actually available, and the heightened expectations of the boss who has promoted them – all these weigh on the normally positive and upbeat high-po.
In my experience, it is that last aspect, the expectations of the boss, that most worries the new leader.
With a track record of success behind them, the newly promoted leader has no fear of challenge but they become anxious when considering that they may not match the expected targets and quotas.
The key to removing the anxiety is about actively resetting the expectations with the boss – an open and honest conversation about what the current state is, what is needed, what you plan to focus on and what results to expect.
This is where the 90 day plan provides a vehicle for that crucial conversation with the boss.
Don’t forget – the boss most likely has been involved in your promotion so they want you to succeed. But you need to give them confidence that you are heading in the right direction so that they can breathe in terms of results.
So if you find yourself in a new role, start mapping out your plan and get your boss on board so that you feel them beside you as opposed to being on your back.
Thoughts? Comments? Insults?
Have finally got a Dylan line into my blog title – more to follow.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
"Now you love me as a loser, but you're worried that I just might win"
This week I came across the following Thomas Edison quote in a discussion document about innovation
“I have not failed, I have just found 10,000 ways that don’t work”
Two day later and I am in a coaching session with a client trying to help them to reassess their fear of failure in order to assist them to become unstuck in driving a new initiative.
Fearing failure can become such a huge block, turning bright and successful people into statues of procrastination and paralysis.
As their coach one should definitely avoid the General Patton approach which involves slapping the person in the face and screaming “coward” at them - that nearly got Patton sidelined for the rest of WWII.
So what can you do?
Firstly you need to respect, relate to and acknowledge the clients’s fear of failure – such feelings serve a useful purpose in our lives and generally helps us all avoid huge personal disasters (unfortunately there is a growing section of our society who have been born without any appropriate sense of failure and they all seem to end up on reality TV talent shows).
What next? I then tend to use a combination of the following questions to raise awareness and help the client reframe their fear;
“Have you failed in the past and what did it do to you?” – we have all had failures but over time we learn and grown from them - we survive - we were not forced out of our town or made to wear a bell around our neck – life goes on and successes still continue to happen to us.
“If you could let go of perfection, what is success for you in this venture?” – accepting that you are never going to achieve perfection - on the golf course, or in every sales pitch you make. or in every bit of marketing you write, - is often so liberating, and allows the person to accept new standards and generate momentum again.
“Think of your many initiatives that have been successes, Did you ever fear failure when you started them?” Working with clever successful people means that the coach can always remind them of their previous successes, some of which would have had a risk of failure initially.
Finally, a question I always find helps raise awareness and generates options; “If I was in your shoes, what advise would you give me?”
These questions are not about dismissing the client’s fear of failure – they are about challenging it, normalising it and reframing it in terms of previous experiences and what is success.
Thanks to Leonard Cohen for today’s title.
Welcome thoughts, ideas and insults as always
“I have not failed, I have just found 10,000 ways that don’t work”
Two day later and I am in a coaching session with a client trying to help them to reassess their fear of failure in order to assist them to become unstuck in driving a new initiative.
Fearing failure can become such a huge block, turning bright and successful people into statues of procrastination and paralysis.
As their coach one should definitely avoid the General Patton approach which involves slapping the person in the face and screaming “coward” at them - that nearly got Patton sidelined for the rest of WWII.
So what can you do?
Firstly you need to respect, relate to and acknowledge the clients’s fear of failure – such feelings serve a useful purpose in our lives and generally helps us all avoid huge personal disasters (unfortunately there is a growing section of our society who have been born without any appropriate sense of failure and they all seem to end up on reality TV talent shows).
What next? I then tend to use a combination of the following questions to raise awareness and help the client reframe their fear;
“Have you failed in the past and what did it do to you?” – we have all had failures but over time we learn and grown from them - we survive - we were not forced out of our town or made to wear a bell around our neck – life goes on and successes still continue to happen to us.
“If you could let go of perfection, what is success for you in this venture?” – accepting that you are never going to achieve perfection - on the golf course, or in every sales pitch you make. or in every bit of marketing you write, - is often so liberating, and allows the person to accept new standards and generate momentum again.
“Think of your many initiatives that have been successes, Did you ever fear failure when you started them?” Working with clever successful people means that the coach can always remind them of their previous successes, some of which would have had a risk of failure initially.
Finally, a question I always find helps raise awareness and generates options; “If I was in your shoes, what advise would you give me?”
These questions are not about dismissing the client’s fear of failure – they are about challenging it, normalising it and reframing it in terms of previous experiences and what is success.
Thanks to Leonard Cohen for today’s title.
Welcome thoughts, ideas and insults as always
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Employee Engagement – "it’s the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine"
If there is one concept or theme that I am encountering over and over again with clients and perspective customers, it’s the idea of Employee Commitment.
At its core Employee Commitment is about gaining the hearts and minds of every person in the organisation so that there is “an environment where people feel motivated, appreciated and fulfilled.” The return for teams and companies is that they get more productive, more innovative and more adaptable employees.
In these times of zero promotional opportunities and pay cuts, it is even more of an imperative, as a leader, that you make sure your employees are not just turning up but are also turned on.
The good news is that pay rises and bonuses are not required to gain this level of commitment. The bad news is it takes time, focus, energy, patience and role modeling
But how do you go about building and retaining employee commitment?
For now, let me just list out a series of steps and initiatives that I have successfully used or witnessed within my clients – I will use subsequent blog postings to explain each in more detail:
- Creating the Vision, and then getting the management team behind it.
- Measure, Measure, Measure employee satisfaction
- Finding out peoples strengths and passions and leveraging these in their jobs
- “Inverting the pyramid” - supporting people to successfully drive initiatives
- Building the Dashbaord – you get what you measure
- Skip level meetings – “hearing and listening are not the same”
- Communicate, Communicate, communicate and …..communicate.
Finally, all this talk about employee engagement got me thinking about the work I do for clients – coaching leaders and high potentials, working with teams, delivering training and helping drive cultural change.
And it struck me – all the work I do is about one thing – its all about Employee Commitment.
Let me know your thoughts, questions or insults.
Colm
Friday, March 13, 2009
"Reassurance, Confidence and Belief"
- I am running a coaching session with K, a young dynamic client of mine. K is leading a large sales team which are in the last month of their financial year. Targets are being chased, clients are nervous about committing to deals in this economic environment and K has also been up to his neck in planning for the new financial year.
I ask K “With four weeks to go to year end, what do you need to be focusing on as a leader of this team?”
K pauses for a few seconds and says “The next four weeks are about me providing the team with Reassurance, Confidence and Belief! Reassurance, Confidence and Belief”
“You have obviously thought about this cause that is a heck of a leadership answer”
“ No. Those words have just come to me. Have been thinking about it but only in answering your question has it become so clear!”
In asking K to explain more about “Reassurance, Confidence and Belief” he outlines the following:
- Reassurance – to communicate to the team what next year will look like so that they are reassured that they have a role in next year and to stop them inventing a dooms day scenario. Remove this distraction so the can focus on closing deals now.
- Confidence – in one to one and team interactions, to keep reinforcing their skills and abilities and the quality of the products so that they know we can close the year strongly.
- Belief – to reinforce that we can get through this tough environment now and in the next financial year .Help them belief in the company, the solutions, the plan, in each other and in themselves.
I cannot think of a more powerful mantra for every leader - in politics, in business, in the community – ensure you provide those you lead with Reassurance, Confidence and Belief
Colm
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Captain's Log # 1
As this is my first entry on my blog I would like to provide a brief intro to myself and let you know the kind of things I will be writing about on a weekly basis.
I am a business coach and trainer who, after 15 years in multinationals, went solo in June 08 and started my own business, Dynamic Leadership Development. (http://www.dynamicleadership.ie/)
Starting a business, focused on winning learning and development work from corporations, just as we enter global recession says a lot about my sense of timing. My wife would add that seeing me dance would equally tell you about my timing.
Born and living in Dublin, Ireland, I am a 1 and quarter years away from being 40 and a lifetime away from a respectable golf score.
I plan to use my weekly blog entry to share, discuss and reflect on what I am seeing, hearing and reading about in terms of:
-Leadership Development
-Team Performance
-Business Coaching
-Employee Commitment
Hopefully these key areas will still give me scope to touch upon and incorporate some key personal interests – so expect to see, under any of the headings, references to world politics, history, sport, raising three boys, being a husband, and lots of relevant and irrelevant lyrics from Dylan, Earle, Springsteen & Young (now there is a supergroup!) and many more.
Let me know what you are thinking as you read my entries and..... welcome to my life.
Colm
I am a business coach and trainer who, after 15 years in multinationals, went solo in June 08 and started my own business, Dynamic Leadership Development. (http://www.dynamicleadership.ie/)
Starting a business, focused on winning learning and development work from corporations, just as we enter global recession says a lot about my sense of timing. My wife would add that seeing me dance would equally tell you about my timing.
Born and living in Dublin, Ireland, I am a 1 and quarter years away from being 40 and a lifetime away from a respectable golf score.
I plan to use my weekly blog entry to share, discuss and reflect on what I am seeing, hearing and reading about in terms of:
-Leadership Development
-Team Performance
-Business Coaching
-Employee Commitment
Hopefully these key areas will still give me scope to touch upon and incorporate some key personal interests – so expect to see, under any of the headings, references to world politics, history, sport, raising three boys, being a husband, and lots of relevant and irrelevant lyrics from Dylan, Earle, Springsteen & Young (now there is a supergroup!) and many more.
Let me know what you are thinking as you read my entries and..... welcome to my life.
Colm
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