GottaGettaBLOG! has Split in Two!

Please note that GottaGettaBLOG! posts from the years 2003 through 2007 will be permanently archived, here, at www.ggci.com/blog, under the heading of "GottaGettaBlog! 2003-2007". But,

Starting January 2008, new postings
for GottaGettaBLOG! will be posted at:
>>>>>> www.ggci.com/blog2 <<<<<<.

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Thanks!

http://www.ggci.com/blog2/

Wynton Marsalis: Leadership Lessons

1. THINK BIG, BUT DON'T BE IMPATIENT. Deferring the rewards of long-term success is difficult but necessary if you are going to have the mental fortitude to achieve them.
2. BE PERFECT IN INTENTION; YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE PERFECT IN EXECUTION. Mistakes, by you and your staff, will happen.
3. YOU CAN ONLY 00 THE BEST THAT YOU CAN DO. Keep your goals high, but don't set yourself up for failure. Be patient.
4. DON'T APOLOGIZE FOR A MISTAKE. APOLOGIZE IF YOU DON'T PLAY. Knowing that effort is what matters gives people the courage to always try their hardest.
5. STAY INSIDE YOURSELF; WHEN YOU DO, YOU'LL TAKE A RISK-BUT YOU'LL MAKE AN INTELLIGENT DECISION. Know your strengths and weaknesses.
6. BELIEF IN OTHER PEOPLE'S CREATIVITY ALLOWS PEOPLE AROUND YOU TO BE THEMSELVES AND ACHIEVE THEIR INDIVIDUALITY. If your staff members have the freedom to achieve as individuals, the returns will be manifold.
7. APPROACH YOUR TASK VERY SERIOUSLY-BUT WITH HUMOR. Discipline should never come at the expense of closing one's self to new ideas, and vice versa.
8. SOMETIMES YOU HAVE TO MAKE TOUGH DECISIONS, AND MANY TIMES THEY ARE UGLY. It's best to be very direct.
9. IT ISN'T MY WAY OR THE HIGHWAY. Learn to compromise and be flexible.
10. WHEN YOU'RE A LEADER, SOMETIMES YOU HAVE TO FOLLOW, TOO. Good leaders know they don't have a monopoly on brilliant ideas. Be objective and willing to follow Insights you may have missed.
11. HUMILITY INSPIRES PEOPLE; ORGANIZATION INSPIRES A STAFF. Always try to give your staff clear plans and goals, but allow them room for self-empowerment.
12. RESPECT THE FREEDOM OF OTHER PEOPLE AND THEIR CREATIVITY. JAZZ MUSIC TEACHES THAT ABOVE ALL ELSE. Giving your staff the freedom to improvise opens the floodgates on innovation.
13. YOU CAN'T LOOK AT ANY PERSON AND TELL WHETHER THEY CAN PLAY. ALL KINDS OF PEOPLE CAN PLAY. Some of the best talent can be found in the most unexpected places.
14. THERE IS NEVER ANY LIMIT OF WHAT YOU CAN DEMAND FROM SOMEBODY ELSE. Nothing erodes the spirit like a boss who can never be pleased.
15. BE FUNDAMENTALLY TRUTHFUL. Without truth, your success will unravel.

---

from Success Magazine, July 2007

Who Said Quitters Never Win?

As reported in the December 2007/ January 2008 issue of Scientific American Mind magazine:

"Psychologists asked 90 adolescent girls about their tendency to hold on to unattainable goals. Over the next year, they found that the girls who said they never gave up had more quickly increasing blood levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) as compared with the girls who were moderately good at letting go. High levels of CRP often precede the development of heart disease, cancer and diabetes."

Add to that the teachings of Seth Godin in his 2007 book, The Dip: A Little Book That Teaches You When to Quit (and When to Stick):

"What really sets superstars apart from everyone else is the ability to escape dead ends quickly while staying focused and motivated when it really counts. Winners quit fast, quit often, and quit without guilt..."

So, as you look to complete the final month of 2007 and get ready for 2008, what "unattainable goals" might it make sense for you to quit?!

----
Thanks Eddie!

Wall Street Journal quotes Barry Zweibel

Perri Capel, columnist for The Wall Street Journal quotes Barry Zweibel in a 12/4/2007 piece titled, "When a Boss Is Unreceptive To New Views" published in both the on-line and print editions of the paper.


An expanded version of the article was also published by WSJ CareerJournal under the title of "How Can I Defuse TensionsWith a Difficult Manager?".

Chuck Norris is afraid of choking

The Chicago Tribune reported today that movie star Chuck Norris re-affirmed his intent not to run for public office ... for fear of "choking." Norris? Afraid? Choking? Well, sort of ...

In the tough-guy's own words:

"Let's say I run for a position in politics and I am debating my opponent and my opponent starts attacking my character and I leap over the bench and choke him unconscious, it's not going to help my campaign."

Ohhhh! Norris! Afraid! Choking! I get it now!

Isn't it interesting how a little context can so completely change the meaning of a message?

The underlying coaching questions, of course, are these:

How might YOU be misinterpreting others and how might THEY be misinterpreting you? And assuming it's happening, what do you want to actually DO about it?

Vulnerability, Teamwork, and Personal Growth

Last week I had the opportunity to spend two days on a rustic team building retreat at Joy Outdoor Education Center in Clarksville, Ohio, courtesy of a corporate client, Hill-Rom, where the group learned about their Insights^® colors (courtesy of Scott Schwefel), did a high ropes course and related activities, endured gusts up to 34 mph and wind chills down to the teens (brrr!), shared emotionally-moving and personal stories deep into the night by light (and warmth) of a bonfire, slept in cabins, ate camp food, and stretched and grew in ways that were truly amazing. And that was Day One!

Day Two included a morning of coaching and facilitation, courtesy of yours truly, and an afternoon of detailed departmental planning and goal-setting, led by Phillip Saxton, president of MiTowne.

Initially, I perceived, and prepared for, my role as that of catalyst: "an agent that provokes or speeds significant change or action," as Merriam Webster might say. But as I settled into my bunk that first night it struck me that the 'change' I was there to provoke had actually already happened. Every single person, in their own special way, had already become so much more open, courageous, real - and vulnerable - with each other. The team knew it, liked it, and matched it, with a collective support, respect, regard, knowing, and appreciation.

That was the good news. The not-so-good news was that pretty much everything I had prepared for the following morning was now unnecessary and wrong! I no longer needed to help them change; my job was to help them solidify their changes.

It's one thing to watch others being vulnerable; it's something entirely different to be vulnerable oneself. Yet to be truly in service of the group I was there to coach, facilitate, and support, I knew I needed to honor and respect where the group now 'was' - and be completely present to, and enabling of, whatever needed to unfold from that point forward.

So, pre-dawn, and in keeping with the "Pushing the Limits" theme of the retreat, I decided to take what was to be the 'end' of my facilitation - an article called "Life is a ten-speed Bicycle," - and use it to start a conversational unfolding, if you will, where I would rely on my coaching instincts and the collective wisdom of the group to reach for something essential, but as of yet, unknown.

And so, for the next 3½ hours, quite powerfully at times, we explored, realized, agreed, and fine-tuned, what else was needed for this group of smart, capable, and caring professionals to truly coalesce into a single, unified, and unshakable, whole.

The ultimate outcome? Well that remains to be seen. To be sure, they're off to a very good start, but the team must consistently apply the Lessons Learned, aha's realized, and courageousness experienced for the ongoing magic to happen.

Will it be easy? Probably not. Is it doable? Definitely so. Is it likely? I actually believe it is.

As for me, I know that like everyone else, my comfort zone was significantly stretched these last few days - and in a number of different ways! (As I reflect on what that means, I feel a contented little smile coming to my face.) So for that, I thank each and every one of you who helped make that my new reality.

Now if I can just get that campfire smoke smell out of my clothing, I'll be all set!

Julio Olalla: ICF Conference Keynote Speaker

The opening keynote speaker and Honorary Conference Chair of the International Coach Federation's 2007 Annual Conference was Julio Olalla, MCC, founder and president of the Newfield Network, an international education, coaching and consulting company.

A very engaging speaker, Julio spoke about the 'cognitive schizophrenia' that has developed in the modern world. He suggested that the world insists we focus on our exterior knowing - science, business, objects, the 'real' world, etc. - which we dutifully do. But lost in the process is our ability to connect with our interior knowledge - our hearts and souls, passions and beliefs, hopes, dreams, values, love, loyalty, appreciation for the wisdom of others and the very "cognitive possibilities" that flow from emotion.

The answer is not to swing the pendulum all the way to the other side, or even learn how to ably switch between exterior and interior paradigms in an effort to achieve so-called balance. Rather, he said, the answer is in learning how to unify our exterior and interior knowledge into a cohesive whole. (Coaching, by the way, is one of the few mechanisms available for directly enabling this type of learning.)

Easy? No. Possible? Absolutely.

Our existing 'cosmology', says Olalla - the story we've created for ourselves about how we fit into the world - is externally based:

O --> A --> R

Observers (us) take Actions that yield specific Results. Should we not like the Results, we simply change our Actions and try again. Note that we don't typically consider how we might change ourselves to modify the outcome.

What if we allowed ourselves to change in addition to (or even in lieu of) changing the actions we take? How might we more consciously and intentionally incorporate more of our interior knowing into the "O --> A --> R" model?

Quite possibly, the Actions we'd subsequently take (and want to take, for that matter) would be sufficiently different to enable some completely new Results heretofore unavailable to us.

Easy? No. Possible? Absolutely.

It's Not Still Spelled "Busy-ness" for a Reason

It was a good idea gone bad. "Let's call it 'busy-ness'," they said, "because that's what we want people to be at work - busy."

And so it was for about 200 years until, around the 14th century, some bosses started realizing that being "busy" wasn't exactly what they were looking for from their underlings. True, they did want diligence, but it had become apparent that what their minions diligently worked on made a huge difference in the profitability of the company. Who knew?!

So with this subtle, but powerful, distinction now understood, a similarly subtle, but maybe not as meaningful spelling change was agreed upon. The "y" was dropped, and an "i" was put in its place, and the word "business" was born! (At least that's the story that I made up about it.)

The problem, though, is that so many people are still so busy being busy, that they haven't stopped to read the memo.

So for the record, there is a difference between doing 'stuff' and getting stuff done. There is a difference between driving to work and driving key business results. And there is a difference between the busy-ness of work and the work of business.

Take a moment and review this with someone you're mentoring, would you please? It is a subtle, but powerful, distinction that everyone deserves to understand.

Taking it Off-Line

Scenario: You're attending a staff meeting, tensions are high, pressure is rising, and your boss turns to you and asks a very pointed, but tangential, question that the answer to which is likely to drag things (and possibly you) down further. You try to take it off-line, that is, suggest you talk about it later, but the boss says "No. We're talking about it now."

What to do?~

Talk about it now, responding as quickly, crisply, and in as a respectful, non-defensive manner, as possible, pushing back when necessary, but doing so because it's called-for, not just because you feel like it or don't know what else to do. And hope that it doesn't turn into an inquisition, of sorts.

That said, what can you do to increase the probability that your next 'off-line' request will be agreed to and accepted ? Here are some ideas:

1. Stay calm and composed - Nothing encourages a boss to go on the offense more than someone's defensiveness. Practice poise under pressure. It will serve you well.
2. Frame your rationale - There's a huge difference in wanting to talk about something later because it makes more sense to, and wanting to do so because you're trying to avoid even having the conversation. Clearly frame your reasons accordingly, citing one of two compelling reasons why a different time and/or different setting for the discussion would better serve to boss and be advantageous to everyone else.
3. Leverage your reputation - If your boss already knows you as a trusted advisor, this whole process becomes much more simple. Showing you're not afraid to 'dig in', 'hit things head on', and 'make the tough choices' - on a daily basis - will go a long way in times like these. Building a reputation that says 'credibility' gives you a foundation to stand on in such circumstances.

Higher Understanding through Ping-Pong

An absolutely wonderful article in today's Chicago Tribune titled, Mastering the art of Ping-Pong: Sensei says you must become 'calm and rushed' by By Kevin Pang:

Young Grasshopper hopes to one day become master of the Ping-Pong realm, but Young Grasshopper lacks the wisdom of Ardy S. Taveerasert, flower shop owner by day, sensei by night. Listen to the words of the sage in T-shirt and short shorts:

"Table tennis is like chess and running at the same time," Taveerasert dispenses, encapsulating 30 years of Ping-Pong perspicuity into one sentence.

Young Grasshopper nods. He absorbs. He understands. Everything Young Grasshopper has learned about Ping-Pong must be unlearned.

The setting: A warm, pastoral evening at Daley Bicentennial Park, steps from the Pritzker Pavilion, an iron monkey's leap from Lake Michigan.

The apprentices: Members of the Chicago Slam Table Tennis Club, a faction of all ages and nationalities. Five nights a week, they clash in the struggles of competition (and ostensibly, mankind), and to take in the knowledge of one Taveerasert.

The sage hails from Thailand. In his youth, Taveerasert's older brother forced him to play Ping-Pong. One day Taveerasert finally bested his brother, and then he did it again, and again, and again. A dream was born: to assemble a legion of Ping-Pong warriors, and to make the sport as ubiquitous in the U.S. as Little League baseball. A year ago, the sage became commissioner of the Chicago Slam Table Tennis Club, and a dream was realized.

On this night, Young Grasshopper enters the dojo with a dozen combatants of Ping-Pong at various levels of mastery. One student is Mike Mezyan, a 27-year-old from Jordan, who wears a royal blue athletic crew shirt, collars popped. He shuffles his feet from side to side like Baryshnikov over hot coals. His forehead glistens with sweat. He owns not a paddle, but a blade, which costs $500, and some $300 more a year to maintain its rubber surface.

As blade contacts ball, Mezyan grunts with a feral rage emanating from the depths of his soul.

"You need to be calm and rushed," Mezyan explains. To acquire swift instincts, one's inner-self must remain calm.

Mezyan goes on: Wait for the ball to reach the crest of its arc. The ball will momentarily stop in mid-flight and freeze.

At which point, Taveerasert says -- now standing opposite Young Grasshopper -- do not try to hit the ball.

A counter intuitive strategy, it seems. But soon, the sage's wisdom becomes clear: Trying to hit the ball means one is aiming to hit the ball. One should not aim to hit the ball. One should not try to hit the ball.

One should hit the ball.

"Harder," Taveerasert implores.

Young Grasshopper's guards prevent him from hitting the ball as hard as he could. He does not trust, nor does he realize, his untapped powers.

Harder! Taveerasert's brows furrow.

Young Grasshopper must release his inhibitions.

Harder! Harder! Harder!

Young Grasshopper, with all his might, swings his right forearm in a blur, the blade striking the white ball at the apex of its course. The ball streaks over the net, curves to the right, strikes the table once, past Taveerasert and his outstretched hands. It bounces several times off the floor before coming to a rest. The young apprentice scores one point off the sage. Eyes bulge with shocked disbelief. The student is humbled and the sage smiles.

Through the silence, Young Grasshopper and his master achieve a higher understanding.

-----
Copyright © 2007, Chicago Tribune

For Future AND Incumbent Executives - Today

What are the most desired management abilities for Future Executives (and incumbent leaders, too, if you ask me)?

According to Right Management Consultants, they are as follows:

1. Motivate and engage others
2. Communicate effectively, strategically, and interpersonally
3. Think strategically
4. Lead change
5. Create a performance organization

Sure, these elements make sense, but let's make them relevant to you and your world. Therefore,

• What will you do to better motivate and engage others - today?
• What will you do to improve how effectively, strategically, and interpersonally you communicate - today?
• What will you think more strategically about - today?
• What will you do to more assertively lead change - today?
• What will you do to actually create that performance organization you've been talking about - today?!

Think about it - and then do something desirably executive-like - today - whether you're an incumbent leader, or not.

The Doubting Loop and the Confidence Radial

In thinking about confidence, many people get discouraged because of a non-supportive doubting loop they have that has them circle in and around not feeling particularly confident, trying again anyway, but messing things up ... again ... which only strengthens the I-don't-feel-so-confident part all the more.

Can anything be done about this?

Well, you can certainly try to not try as much! But, if it's your turn to step to the plate, more likely than not, you really can't say, "Sorry, I'd rather not." If you can, though, it might be a nice temporary respite for you every now and then.

More likely, though, when it's your turn, it's your turn, and there's no getting away from it.

Enter the Confidence Radial^©.

Developed several years ago by yours truly, the Confidence Radial recognizes the circularity inherent in the confidence dynamic, but puts it to better use, as the following diagram shows:
It all starts with acting like you already have the power. But this simple notion goes beyond just trying. It speaks to trying ... again ... with the expectation that you can, indeed, succeed. In order to succeed, though, you need to "know what you know." And to do that, some research is required.

Then, armed with that research, you can begin to interact with others on that topic - not so much to show off what you know, but to find out what they know. And, because you'll likely understand what they're saying, they'll be likely to help you expand the conversation by referring you to other knowledgeable/interested contacts (if you ask).

From there, you network with them on the same topic, which will help them get to know who you are and how you think. And from there, you now have several new connections who can help you feel more confident as you talk about this, and other topics of interest to those you do and don't know. (I'm defining contacts, here, as people you know, and connections as people who know you.)

So the key to jumping out of that Doubting Loop? Jump in to the Confidence Radial. All you need is something you're interested in knowing more about.

For more on the Confidence Radial: www.ggci.com/confidence.

What Goes Around, Comes Around

Which is really harder?

• To be creative enough to create a hit song out of thin air, or to take that song on the road and play it consistently and passionately, night-after-night-after night?
• To do what it takes to drive a high-profile project through to its successful completion or to seamlessly operationalize the significant changes likely resultant from that project's completion?
• To lose 20 pounds, or to not regain them?
• To get a new job when you're unemployed, or to stay positive when you're unemployed and not getting any job offers?
• To significantly improve your performance or to ably sustain those improvements over time?

There's a tendency in business -and in life - to judge others by what they do, or don't, do particularly well. Prematurely. Repeatedly. Unfairly.

Given that you're, quite probably, already familiar with what it feels like when others - prematurely, repeatedly, and unfairly - judge what you do, how might you actually be prematurely, repeatedly, and unfairly judging others and what they do or don't do?

Remember, what goes around, comes around.

Creative Listening, redux

Back in March of 2005 I wrote a post titled, "How are you at Creative Listening?" I mention it here, again, because, just today, the idea that employees might not communicate as clearly as we might hope came up - not just once, but twice. Here, then, is an expert from that post:

"People are always telling us things. And more times than they probably realize, WHAT they tell us doesn't always make sense - at least not at first. One way to deal with that is to ignore whatever doesn't make sense. But that's a lesser strategy.

"The stronger approach is to become a Creative Listener, listening not just to what IS said, but to what might be MEANT by what is said, as well. This is particularly important when the subject matter is emotionally-charged."

So the next time that someone says something to you that doesn't quite make sense, give them the benefit of the doubt. Be patient. Ask questions. Say back what you're hearing to see if it's correct. Assume that there is an excellent nugget that's just too important to miss buried somewhere in their words.

You might be pleasantly surprised to learn that there actually is.

Getting a SLANT on Doing Better

A while back, the University of Kansas created a "Starter Strategy" to help students learn how to engage more thoroughly in their classes, called SLANT.

• S - Sit in the front of the room
• L - Lean forward
• A - Ask questions
• N - Nod your head
• T - Talk about the material

As with SMART goals, there are several variations as to what the letters in the SLANT mnemonic actually stand for, and I've used the ones that resonate best for me. Regardless, the idea behind SLANT is that if you do the five things more consistently, you can't help but do consistently better in class.

But not only does practicing SLANT make the student a better learner, it also makes the teacher a better teacher! Why? Because when students sit toward the front of the room, lean forward, ask questions, nod their heads, and talk about the materials they're learning even after class has officially ended, well, how can a teacher not be jazzed be by that?!

Given such a receptive audience, who wouldn't want to prepare more thoroughly so they could ineract that much more engagingly and communicate that much more persuasively?!

Now, let's consider how this might apply in a business setting. Ever been in a really boring meeting?! No?! Oh, well then never mind!

The point is that you might just be able to help your boss, and coworkers, for that matter, become more engaging ... and compelling - and end up doing a better job with that yourself - by regularly practicing SLANT.

Try it for a week or so and see for yourself.

Check Email MORE Regularly

Time, again, to play the Contrarian.

Much talk these days about how email is a huge time-management saboteur. As such, many experts are recommending that we only check emails twice/day ... to minimize our interruptions. But I think that's a pretty bad idea. Here's why:

1. Checking for emails only twice a day will likely result in an inability to keep our inbox current. The resultant Inbox Overload, which I believe is one of the main triggers of workplace overwhelm and procrastination, is a centerpiece of poor time management.
2. Checking for emails only twice a day will likely result in us missing important, time-sensitive, communications that, quite possibly, could save us from a LOT of unnecessary make-work ... if we only knew that priorities had changed ... before we did all that work we just did.
3. Checking for emails only twice a day signals to your coworkers that you don't really care much about what they have to say. Being so disrespectful (intentionally or not) is hardly a smart move for anyone who has to depend on collaboration, teamwork, and cooperation to get things done.
4. Checking for emails only twice a day undermines our cogitation, that is our thoroughly thinking things through before reacting or responding to them. You have to know it's out there before you can even start to think about it.
5. Checking for emails only twice a day makes you a bottleneck which means that an increasing amount of what you have to do will be under increasingly tighter time frames.
6. Checking for emails only twice a day prevents us from productively using our in-between moments. Consider:

• Time you loose while waiting for meetings to officially begin.

  Time you loose while waiting for meetings to officially end.

  Time you loose while waiting on conference calls for others to finish discussing what doesn't involve, or impact upon, you.

  Time you loose while waiting for your boss to finish that umpteenth phone call interruption.

These in-between moments are absolutely ideal for quickly checking your email and getting a meaningful leg-up on reading through some of those FYIs you typically ignore, or replying to the easy-peasy requests you know are buried in there somewhere, or previewing (so you can start cogitatating on) the more complex ones that probably just arrived. Go for it I say.

Can checking email too frequently become a time management problem? Sure. But because of the reasons just stated, I think checking your email too INfrequently creates even more time management problems than it solves.

Goals, Priorities, Procrastination, and Deadlines

According to Dictionary.com, the word goal was coined in 1275. (I actually thought it would have been penned earlier than that. You, too?) In contrast, the word procrastination didn't get formalized until the mid-to-late 1500's.

So it sure must've been a particularly productive 300 intervening years, don't you think?!

Or maybe, just maybe, they had the word procrastination all ready to go, but just kept putting it off, day after day, until someone finally put their foot down and made it a priority. (The word priority was formally recognized sometime between 1350-1400, placing it after the goal was established - and after it was probably due - but before anyone really got around to working it!)

So let's review:

• Goals were established in the late 1200's.
• Some 75 years later they were made into priorities.
• About 150 years later people started to admit that, yes, maybe there was a bit of procrastination going on.
• And 450 years after that, the boss got totally fed up and invented the word, deadline!!!

Perfect, no?!

Maximizing the Probabilities of Agreement

I was going through some old papers last night and came upon an article I saved from the August 2005 issue of Business 2.0 magazine. Titled "This is Your Brain on Advertising," it offered a three-step process for "deliver[ing] the right sensory elements, at just the right time, to maximize the impact" of what you have to say:

1. Establish the Mood


2. Build the Tension


3. Deliver the Message

Yet while these three steps (in this particular order) have worked very well in B-to-C (Businesses selling to Consumers) communiques, don't automatically assume that they're the solution for B-to-B-type communications - like when you're trying to sell your boss or coworkers or customers on a new idea or creative solution.

My suspicion ... the steps to take, and order to take them in, are decidedly different for such B-to-B interactions.

If so, how?

Handling Your Mistakes

It's often said that if you're not making mistakes, you're not learning. But in that mistakes can sometimes be messy, how you clean them up after them is an important skill to learn.

1. Respond quickly. Once you realize you've made a mistake, deal with it sooner rather than later - even if what happened was completely unintentional, or not entirely your fault.
2. Apologize, thoroughly. Don't just regret that you did something wrong; apologize sincerely for what you did wrong - even if it resulted from the best of intentions.
3. Take responsibility. Sure there were probably mitigating circumstances, but in most cases, they're irrelevant. These situations are often more about insuring that whatever you let happen (or failed to make happen) doesn't happen again. Resist the urge to blame others or wiggle out of things. That rarely works as well as you think it might.
4. Check in. See if your apology was received as complete and sufficient. Remember, while it starts with how you clean up after yourself, it doesn't end until your apology is actually accepted.
5. Accept accountability. Sometimes, you'll still be warned or reprimanded for what you did. If that's the case, accept whatever lumps you have coming. Hopefully, they'll be few.
6. Get back to work. You made a mistake, responded quickly, apologized thoroughly, took responsibility, checked in, and accepted accountability for your actions. Now it's time let it go and refocus back on the tasks at hand.

Failing to take responsibility for the mistakes we make can often have career-limiting implications. But if handled appropriately, mistakes can actually help one's career - by showing others how we deal with pressure, how we handle criticism, how we learn from what doesn't go well, etc.

As with so many things, the choice of how you respond is up to you.

In Lieu of Email Abandonment

More and more, people are wanting to literally abandon their email inboxes. And increasingly, messages like this are wanting to be sent:

"Sorry, but in my effort to catch up on my unread emails, I've "accidentally" deleted most everything in my inbox. If you've been patiently waiting for me to reply to something you sent - or waiting not-so-patiently, for that matter - please resend it at this time."

If this feels like a breath of fresh air for you, maybe you need to start training your associates how to send better emails. Here are some suggestions:

• Inform others that each new topic within a given email is to be numbered and bolded to make identifying their segues not only possible, but easy.
• Inform others that email subject lines are to be used more meaningfully and to indicate more precisely what is to follow and what is expected from you - Approval Needed, Vacation Request, Policy Issue, Project Status, Critical Update, Some Good News, Yikes!, etc.
• Inform others that their FYI-type updates and emails providing answers to your questions are to be obviously marked as such.
• Inform others that you're now scheduling your email inbox 'work' (not unlike how the USPS schedules their suburban mailbox pickups) so that the onus is on them to send emails needing your attention on a more timely basis.
• Inform others that time-sensitive queries are better made in person or by phone, and NOT by email, unless you prefer otherwise.
• Inform others that 'reply all' responses are to be used judiciously and cc's selectively.
• Inform others that you will, unabashedly, and as a matter of courtesy, return to sender any email messages that do not comply with these simple criteria. (After all, they'd probably appreciate knowing that you're ignoring whatever it is that they wrote because you don't have the time or interest to try and decipher whatever it is that they intended for you to glean from the obfuscated email they just sent you, right?!)

Sound harsh? Maybe, but the July/August edition of Fast Company (page 46) indicates that improved email sending practices is saving Capital One approximately 11 workdays - that's more than TWO WEEKS - per employee per year, and that Union Bank is saving in excess of $750,000 (based on employees spending just 30-minutes less per week reading emails) per annum.

If none of this works for you, don't worry - there's always Email Abandonment!

Keys to Personal and Professional Growth

Consider how this works:

• If something is New Information AND Relevant, it's likely to be Important.
• If something is New Information AND Resonant, it's likely to be Meaningful.
• If something is Relevant AND Resonant, it's likely to be Memorable.
• And if something is Memorable, Meaningful, AND Important, it's likely to enable Growth, on either a personal or professional level, yes?

When the cat's away...

What's it like when you return back from a conference or seminar or vacation? Are things running smoothly or are they coming apart at the seams. Which do you prefer? Regardless, each scenario says things about you as a leader - quite different things, actually:

1. Things are a mess upon your return and you don't like it one, single, bit - Welcome back! And if every fiber in your being is trying to prevent yourself from screaming "Did you do anything right?" at your direct reports, the problem has probably a whole lot less to do with your team than you realize. Chances are that much of the angst can be traced back to you doing a very poor job in preparing them for your absence, or dealing with some long-standing performance issues. Grade: -10.
2. Things are running smoothly and you don't like it - Welcome back! Your staff did a great job! Every thing's fine, except ... you're suddenly feeling like you're not as needed as you used to be. An extra cog in the wheel? Better off not even being there? Oh my. Is my job at risk? Oh, dear, my job is at risk. Rather than being happy for all that went well in your absence, you're acting small and disrespectful to the people who really worked hard to keep things going. Grade: -5.
3. Things are a mess and you kinda like it like that - Welcome back! Clearly, you were missed and it's good you're back because you're needed, hero. And yet, if this is the case, it's likely that your ego is getting in the way of you properly challenging and developing your staff. Grade: -15.
4. Things are running smoothly and you like it - Welcome back! Some good stuff happened while you were away and they're glad you're back. It isn't easy filling in for you when you're gone, but they did a really nice job of it. And now, they're ready to turn the reigns back to you. It's not easy doing what you do. They have a much better understanding of that now. And they're that much more appreciative of just how good of a boss you really are. Bingo! Grade: +10.

The ultimate litmus: If your staff works harder when you're out of the office than when you're in - and you're properly appreciative of the fact - you're probably a pretty good leader.

Practice 'Flexing' your Style

We all have 'default' ways in which we respond to difficult situations at work. Some people react quite seriously - they default to an almost Zen-like belief that when we work we should work. Others default to a far more casual affect. 'Not to worry,' they say, before digging in to get things done.

Even though our natural tendencies may suggest otherwise, there is no one right way to "be." Consider:

• Sometimes, people need a stern talking-to to get them going;
• Other times, they need support, encouragement, and a friendly smile more than anything else;
• And still other times, they don't need much of anything but to be left alone to do what they know they need to do!

A range of possible scenarios implies a range of responses.

So, when faced with a difficult situation at work, it is advisable to stop your 'default' reactions before they happen, and instead, purposefully choose a response that will best serve you - and those around you.

Admittedly, such a 'flexing' of style takes a bit of practice. After all, you don't have to think when you respond out of habit - you just respond! Too, there's that pesky issue of not being able to initially calibrate your flex as accurately as you'd like. Again, it takes practice.

It's like asking a power pitcher to learn to throw a slow curve ball for strikes. At first, it isn't easy - some might say it's impossible! But with practice, he learns how. And once he does, it makes his fastball – and all his pitches for that matter – much more effective.

Similarly, if you typically react one way to problems at work, it may not feel natural to react any other way. But once you learn how, flexing your style actually increases your effectiveness. Why? Because it gets people to naturally pay more attention to you, that's why.

And for a variety of reasons that could be a very good thing, yes?!

Hobson's Choice and the Counteroffer

Ever been in a situation where a boss has given you a choice between two or three equally UN-appealing alternatives? That's called a Hobson's Choice, named after Thomas Hobson, (1544–1630), "a livery stable owner at Cambridge, England who, in order to rotate the use of his horses, offered customers the choice of either taking the horse in the stall nearest the door—or taking none at all." (source: Wikipedia.)

If so, how do you handle it?

Keep in mind that often times, a Hobson Choice is often less about reality than a lack of imagination, flexibility, and creativity. While, true, you may sometimes just have to comply, it's quite often possible that your boss would actually be open to another idea or suggestion - a counteroffer - from you.

In the case of Hobson, himself, I could see you proposing a counteroffer whereby, for an additional fee that you'd be happy to pay, he'd send his apprentice to fetch you when your horse-of-choice is 'next up.' (Did you like how I used the word 'fetch' to give it a late 1500's/early 1600's feel?!)

In the case of your boss wanting several things done by the end of the week, I could see you proposing a counteroffer that has you completing his/her topmost priority by Friday morning, and finish the rest up over the weekend.

What has been your experience with proposing counter-offers? How have they actually expanded your discussions (and rapport) with your boss?

Use Your Resources

One of the main ways people become successful is by doing what they do really, really, well. That often leads to them being promoted, which is generally a step in the right direction. But one of the main ways people fail to remain successful is by continuing to do what they did really, really, well in their prior position, in their new one.

Classic Example: The analyst who's promoted, but acts more like the work group's super-analyst than its supervisor.

(Surely you know someone like that. Odds are you've been someone like that - I know I have!!)

It's not easy to let others do what you know you can do so much better yourself ... if you only had the time to do it yourself. But therein lies the rub because you don't have the time to do it yourself. It's likely that you barely have the time if someone does it all for you!

No, relying on others isn't always easy. But it is important. And as we move up-the-chain, it becomes increasingly imperative - not just advisable or desirable, but imperative - for you to fully utilize the "people" resources available to you. And you've likely got more of them than you realize:

• Direct Reports
• Peers
• Staff in other areas doing related work
• Vendor personnel
• Colleagues
• Customers
• Other outside contacts and connections
• Even your boss!

So what do you need some help with? Identify three people who could provide you with some meaningful assistance on it. And ask them to help.

Even if two of the three say no, you'll still be better off than trying to slog through it all yourself.

You know I'm right.

What Next? By When?

"I'm in a real backlog situation, Barry. How can I dig out?"

Although it may seem a bit odd to phrase it this way, the problem here isn't so much that there's too much to do as much as it is that not enough is getting done soon enough.

Phrasing it in terms of having too much to do can actually slow you down. Why? Because the time spent thinking about how much there is to do is time no longer available to get 'er done.

Conversely, phrasing it in terms of not enough getting done soon enough begs the question "What Next?" which is the key to moving things meaningfully forward. Many (most?) managers have a pretty clear sense of what needs to be done, but far fewer really grasp what needs to be done ... next.

Starting there is always a good idea.

A corollary of the "What Next?" question is "By When?"

You don't leave for work in the morning without any sense of when you'll get there, do you? You didn't do your taxes without any sense of when the 15th was, did you? But you probably do assign tasks to your staff without telling them when you need them completed by.

"Jimmy, take care of this," is not nearly as effective as "Jimmy, take care of this by the end of the week," or "Jimmy, take care of this before leaving for lunch today." Deadlines not only help things get done, but they also help things get done sooner. And that's the point, right?!

So the next time you find that not enough is getting done soon enough, try managing based on deadlines rather than just on deliverables and see what "What Next?" and "By When?" can do for you.

Procrastination DNA

Last week I wrote about using the T-O-P-3 approach to priority management. If you haven't tried it yet, I strongly suggest you do. Why do we get so distracted from our priorities, though? (Embarrassing Disclosure: I'm writing this blog now instead of working on one of my so-called priorities!)

I think the answer is typically one of three:

1. Procrastination Trap #1 - Distractions - Best intentions aside, we keep getting caught up in other things. So, we basically forget it ... and time passes.
2. Procrastination Trap #2 - Nonconcurrence - We reject the very notion that this particular task really is a priority - or believe that working it will result in something bad instead. So, we basically dispute it ... and time passes.
3. Procrastination Trap #3 - Avoidance - We just don't like to do what we don't want to do, or are too uncomfortable with doing to do it. So, we basically ignore it, hoping it goes away ... and time passes.

I suppose we could call these traps Procrastination DNA (Distractions, Nonconcurrence, and Avoidance). That might even explain why procrastination feels so ingrained in us!

In my case, I think I've been trapped by all three: I've been allowing myself to work on other things (distractions) because I really don't think that there's a sufficient upside to working it through (nonconcurrence), and, so, I've just been ignoring the whole thing (avoidance).

So many hours later the work is still not done, but at least I got a blog posting out of it!

Stay tuned.

Always Complete Your "T-O-P-3"

We all have to-do lists. But sometimes (often?) the things on our lists never seem to get off our lists. That's where the "T-O-P-3" comes in.

The way it works is this:

• Identify three of Today's Overriding Priorities - that is, your T-O-P-3 things to complete today, no ifs, ands, or buts.
• Don't end your workday until you do complete them.

Can it get any simpler than that?!

Each morning (or the night before) write down your T-O-P-3 for the coming day. Then, go do them.

No excuses, justifications, or rationalizations allowed. No complications, turn-of-events, or surprises matter. Notwithstanding anything else that does or does not happen - or anything else that you do, or do not, do - these are Today's Overriding Priorities. Period. Paragraph. Post.

Upended Pareto

You're probably already familiar with the Pareto principle, or 80/20 Rule, as it's also called, which suggests that 80% of your results come from from 20% of your efforts, or words to that effect. Well here's a variation on the theme, one that I call, the Upended Pareto:

"Eighty percent of whatever's wrong with a situation doesn't really matter."

Your job is to identify the 20% that does matter ... and work exclusively on that.

So pick a situation you're dealing with and ask yourself, "What is the 20% that does matter?"
Start there and see if you're not better off for doing so.

"How to Succeed Like a Workaholic"

Well this is something fun: I did an interview with careerbuilder.com a while back for a piece on what we can learn from "workaholics" and to my surprise and delight, it's instead been published on at jobs.aol.com - on Page One ... and above the fold, no less! [4/23/7: at least it was through Sunday!]

Here's an excerpt:

If you want to have the success of a workaholic and still have your down time, Zweibel offers five strategies you can employ.

1. Put in the hours at the right time. "There is a benefit to being seen in an organization," says Zweibel. If you are working late or are in on the weekend, pass by your boss's office for some face time. Not only will you get kudos for the extra effort, but you might get the opportunity for valuable one-on-one time.

2. Pay attention to time stamps. If you are sending an assignment to your boss via e-mail after hours, the e-mail will indicate the extra time you are spending. Pay attention to when you are sending these messages -- they could demonstrate your commitment. However, Zweibel cautions against going too far. Sending messages at 11 p.m. on a Saturday night or at 6 a.m. on a Sunday morning could indicate that you are not able to manage your time well, and there is something to be said for being able to get the job done early. "You could make a better impression if you can do the same work in a shorter amount of time," Zweibel says.

3. Talk up your successes. Don't be afraid to be your own cheering section. Make sure your boss knows about your achievements and the extra time you put in. More importantly, have other people talk up your successes. There's nothing like a good word from another respected co-worker or client to make you look great.

4. Be the "go to" person in a crunch. You don't have to work every weekend, but make sure your boss knows that you are someone who is willing to go the extra mile when needed.

5. Strive for perfection, but know when to settle. One thing most workaholics have in common is the pursuit of perfection. This drive to be perfect brings about results, but can also wear you out. On the continuum between lousy work and perfect work, there is what Zweibel calls "merely excellent," which, he says, is "pretty damn good." He suggests you strive for greatness, but allow yourself to settle for "merely excellent" work most of the time and reserve absolute perfection for those really special projects.

Full text: AOL: Succeed Like a Workaholic; GGCI archive.

You May Be Happier Than You Think

According to a study by the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago, and as reported in the Chicago Tribune today, money really can't buy happiness - when it comes to work.

The top occupations in job satisfaction?

1. clergy
2. physical therapists
3. firefighters
4. education administrators
5. painters/sculptors

The bottom occupations in job satisfaction?

1. roofers
2. waiters/servers
3. laborers (not construction)
4. bartenders
5. hand packers/packagers

But the bigger part of the story, I think, is this: 47% of all workers surveyed said they were "very satisfied" with their work and 33% of all workers reported being "very happy."

What that means is this: If the person next to you isn't "very satisfied," or the two people on either side of you aren't "very happy," chances are that you are!

And isn't that a nice thing to realize?!

Choosing to Choose

Typically, people get stuck because they can't figure out what they really want:

• What do I want to be when I grow up?
• What do I want my next job to be like?
• What do I want to do about this issue at work?
• What do I want to do on my next vacation?

Sometimes, though, this issue is not so much about what to choose as it is about choosing to choose:

• Should I accept this new job offer?
• Should I push back on my boss?
• Should I go back to school?
• Should I exercise today?
• Should I pitch it all and just chase my dream?

With this, you probably know exactly what choice you want to make, but something's holding you back. And that something is almost always fear:

• Fear of it being too difficult (or you thinking that maybe you're not good enough)
• Fear of it being too different (or you feeling that it will take you too far outside of your comfort zone)
• Fear of it being too dicey (or you believing that you can't recoup if things don't go right)

When fear keeps us from making foolish choices , fear is good. But when fear keeps us from owning our own lives, well, that's an entirely different matter.

Only you can choose what's right for you. But it's your responsibility to choose, even if your choice is to defer the decision for a period of time, or to gather more information so that you can choose more wisely. After all, choosing not to choose is a choice, too, you know.

But not choosing, simply because you're too afraid to choose, is not what you want to do - it's not who you want to be. So step into the fear, step through it, and step out the other side, so you can choose, whatever you choose to choose.

Bye-Bye, 1q7

So does time go fast, or what?! Before it's too late, then, how did you do with with respect to:

1. Things you hoped to get started in 1q7?
2. Things you hoped to get finished in 1q7?

Now, while it's still early,

1. What do you want to do more of in 2q7?
2. What do you want to do less of in 2q7?

Put some reminders on your calendar to help keep you on track.

Labor of Obligation

Some of the work we do falls under the category of Labor of Obligation:

• quote/unquote "important" assignments that we may think are trivial
• urgent requests for any of a variety of things
• monthly or quarterly reports that no one really reads, but cause all sorts of consternation if they're not submitted on time

Other things we do fall under the category of Labor of Love:

• pet projects of ours
• things we feel truly make a difference in the our world (no matter how big or small we happen to define that world at any point in time)
• certain types of work that we just happen to particularly enjoy and/or find fulfilling in some way

Too often, though, we spend so much time with our Obligations that we run out of time to work on the important stuff - the things that really matter to us.

There's no easy answer, but more than likely, it has something to do with getting through the stuff you don't like doing more quickly so that there's time left to do what you do like to do.

You might even say that we each have an obligation to create the time needed to work on what we love doing - an obligation to ourselves.

What, then, are three things you can do to: (a) reduce the number or scope of - and amount of time spent on - the obligatory things you do so that you can; (b) increase the number or scope of - and amount of time spent on - things you'd do for the sheer love of being able to do them?

Go there for a while and see what that does for you.

What Do You Really Care About?

Talk is cheap; actions are what matter. But even actions have gradations.

• You may care enough about something to be willing to let it happen.
• You may care enough about something to be willing to help it happen.
• You may care enough about something to be willing to make it happen.

What, then, do you care enough about to be willing to make happen?

It's an interesting question because not only does it tell you what you really are interested in - it also tells you what you really are NOT interested in.

And that's something that others probably already know about you whether you realize it or not.

Bad News and the Two-Question Set

A system failed. A human error occurred. A competitor won out. An audit failed. A process broke. Or any of a variety of other unfortunate circumstances. Regardless of the cause, it's now your job to tell someone the bad news!

While you can't prevent that someone from ultimately shooting the messenger, you can make things easier on yourself by having clear, crisp, answers to the following Two-Question Set:

1. How did you solve/meaningfully address this problem?
2. What have you done to insure it never happens again?

If you cannot answer these two simple questions in a confident and articulate manner, don't kid yourself - you have some important work yet to do.

Now, sometimes, it's more important to be timely than thorough - especially when it's new news, as it were. In those cases, it's perfectly reasonable to say something like this:

"This is a conversation where I tell you something's broken; it's not the conversation where I tell you it's fixed."

Know, though, that this in no way absolves you from answering the Two-Question Set in the very near future. To maintain your credibility and regard, you must be able to say precisely how you solved/meaningfully addressed the problem at hand, and what you put in place to prevent it from ever happening again. And, of course, your solutions must be good ones.

But if they are, you'll likely find your reputation in the organization increases notwithstanding the problems that occurred on your watch.

Framing Success Stories with with P-A-R

I'm often asked, "How can I be sure to put my best foot forward in an interview? What's the best way to share Success Stories?" My answer: Frame them with P-A-R:

• P - Start by stating a PROBLEM you've dealt with that is relevant to one that your prospective employer might have and/or want you to be able to address.
• A - Next, explain the APPROACH you took to meaningfully, if not eloquently, resolve the problem.
• R - Then share how the RESULTS you achieved not only solved the immediate problem, but enabled additional downstream benefits as well.

Information Technology Example:

"Tell me about an experience you had with handling a major system outage."

Sure, I'd be happy to. The problem was this: All calls into our facility were being improperly rerouted by the phone company to a 'this number is no longer in service' recording.

Obviously, this was unacceptable. So, I took the following approach: Through a series of conversations, I was able to quickly learn the name and number of the specific person responsible for assigning technicians to fix such problems. Unfortunately, she was less than cooperative, at first, to put it mildly! But we didn't have time to go in circles, so I said, "Look, this is a real mess so I need to know: Is it that you don't want to help me, or you don't know how to help me. Now, which is it?"

That turned the tide and in a very short period of time she had her top technicians working to restore our service - which they did in record time. So that was good, but the added bonus was that I now had some new key inside contacts who could be excellent resources for helping us address future outages. And you can be sure that those results have paid multiple dividends since.

Human Resources Example:

"Tell me about your experience with implementing changes to the benefits administration process for a unionized workforce."

Sure, I'd be happy to. The problem we faced was that the benefits staff was spending a whole lot of time checking on the status of pending insurance claims for employees and not getting to other important matters.

So, I took the following approach: I researched, proposed, and got approval to install a web-based claims management system where employees could check on their claims themselves - without HR's assistance. Of course, the biggest key to making something like that work effectively was getting union buy-in, which I was able to do by demonstrating how employees could check status from their home computers anytime, day or night. (Too, I agreed to install several shop-floor terminals for employees who didn't have home computers.)

The results were pretty good: Not only did we save the company tens of thousand of dollars each year in the benefits management area, but we were also able to improve efficiencies in other benefits-related work - and improve union relations, as well. We hit the trifecta on this one!

Everyone has Success Stories to share. But try taking a few of yours and frame them with the P-A-R model. See if it doesn't make them that much more compelling and engaging stories to tell.

Is Employee Retention Overrated?

There's so much written about employee retention problems - how to stop employees from leaving for better opportunities, how to deal with head-hunters poaching the best-of-your-best, how to best allocate your training dollars to keep them from leaving, etc. And while it often is a shame when organizations lose good people, I guess I'm a contrarian about this because I think the bigger problem is that too many employees stay too long with an employer:

• Marginal employees whose performance is sub-standard, but not quite poor enough to justify termination.
• Chronic 'problem children' who've been shuffled around from one department to another so many times that they now feel justified in not doing their jobs well
• Slippery bosses who regularly mess things up but still get tapped to head yet another plum assignment because they know how to play the political game
• Long-term employees (including bosses) who stopped learning anything new years ago, but still insist they're experts on the 'right' way to fix new, and significantly more complex, problems.

My recommendation is this: Don't encourage these people to stay; encourage them to leave.

And why not? There's hardly a better time.

• Bonus monies have been paid out.
• New vacation/personal/sick time allocations have been accrued.
• The motivational aspects from the year-end salary treatments, for better or worse, have worn off.
• Their lackluster performance has already undermined your efforts for a bigger and better first quarter.
• And those fabulous employees who couldn't be retained have created numerous openings in other companies for the very same marginal employees that you'd like to see go.

So who are the people you know you really ought to have some heart-to-heart conversations with about helping them move on? How can you help them be 'discovered' - and poached - by other companies?

Give it some thought. The upside could be considerable to them ... and you.

The Value of DE-celerating

Much is written about the importance of being able to accelerate into new opportunities as they arise. The purpose of this post, though, is to invite you to consider the importance of DEcelerating, when possible - which is likely to be more doable than you realize.

Four reasons why becoming a skilled decelerator makes sense:

1. It gives you permission to be merely excellent, rather than 'perfect' when working on specific tasks and assignments. (The value-added of non-specific perfection is terribly over-rated, and ridiculously time-consuming.)


2. It's easier to see the subtleties of the political landscape and/or project complexities when you're not always pedal-to-the-metal.


3. It wastes less energy - Think how cars get better mileage when you ease off the throttle a bit - as with automobiles, as with people.


4. It shows you're more than a 'one-trick' pony - you definitely don't want to be seen as someone who views all situations as nails needing to be hammered. Different speeds enable a much wider range of responses.

The 5th, and perhaps most important reason to become more skilled at decelerating, though, is this:

Decelerating allows you to subsequently accelerate when the situation warrants it.

Whether it's recovering from a problem, cleaning up a mess, planning for your future, figuring out how to work better with your boss, or just because a way-cool new opportunity has come your way, being able to step up your game is a great something to have in your back pocket.

But you just can't do it if you're always running at full speed.

Quality versus Timeliness and their Downstream Implications

Back in 2005, I did a post called, "Capable of Doing versus Paid to Do" where I made the point that I did not believe that success at work is about doing what you're capable of doing - it's about doing what only YOU can do. I was reminded of this post several times last week when talking with several clients, actually, about better managing the Quality versus Timeliness dynamic:

Many people, given a job to to, will choose to do the best they possibly can. I do not believe that success at work is simply about the Quality of your work. I believe it's more a function of the Timeliness of your work.

Not that Quality isn't important. It just that in most cases it isn't the most important thing. In most cases, the most important thing is Timeliness - perfectionism notwithstanding.

Given that - and feel free to argue the point - the question is not just, "What's the best I can do?" It's this:

"Given the time available to do this, what IS the best I can do?"

It's obvious that the amount of time you have to do something affects what you can do, right? The example I gave was from my own experience: Several years ago I was asked by the CFO of the company I was working for to provide him with a 3-year budget estimate for my department ... by noon! How absurd, I thought. (How impossible!) So I pushed back. To his credit, the CFO said, "Look, I know it's an unrealistic request. But I need some estimates by noon just the same. So SWAG* it the best you can - and don't be late."

I knew I'd have to let my perfectionism go because it was truly impossible to provide him with the detail (and justification) that I would have liked to provide. There really was only one way to look at it: Given the time available to do this, what WAS the best I could do?

Clearly, the CFO had downstream plans for my information and if I didn't provide him with at least some sort of estimate it would create downstream problems - for him and for me! So I took a SWAG and you know what? He said, "Thanks. This is exactly what I needed."

So the next time you're faced with an unreasonable deadline - one that you can't change - accept that there are probably some pretty important downstream implications of you getting your work in on time. And ask yourself,

"Given the time available to do this, what IS the best I can do?"

And if they don't like the output you provide? Just tell them that's why you pushed on the deadline in the first place. But since they said no, you provided them with the best you could provide within the time available to do it ... and offer to improve it, if time permits. (This is a great way, by the way, to train a boss to not set unnecessarily tight time frames on future assignments, too!)

----

*SWAG - The next level of a WAG - wild-ass guess - is a scientific wild-ass guess, or SWAG!

An Argument for Less Simplicity

Leah Eskin wrote a fun little article in her Home on the Range column for the Chicago Tribune magazine section a few weeks back, titled, Get Over the Easy: Effortless Eggs Aren't Worth the Trouble:

"Simplistic propaganda lurks on the magazine cover, best-seller table and annoying pop-up promotion: Declutter, deacquistion, desist. Mottoes that are supposed to relieve the overworked and overwhelmed. But don't.

"You realize you like complicated. Maybe not bacon-on-a-swing complicated. Not spear-it-and-cute-it-yourself complicated. But at the very least the carefully selected and beautifully composed cheese-plate complicated."

On she writes, quite cleverly, in fact, about what seems to be a justification for a quasi-complicated brunch. And as I read, I was struck by the notion that many people, myself included, actually like the complicated! After all, there is a beauty in complexity that simplicity simply cannot hold a candle to, fragranted paraffin, notwithstanding. Like when a basketball team executes a perfect pick and roll, or when a car's anti-lock brakes do their thing, or, in keeping with Ms. Eskin's epicurean emphasis, when all the parts of a Thanksgiving Day dinner are ready to eat at exactly the same time. This is not simplicity. But it is fantastic!

We often complain how office policies and procedures tend to be more complicated than they need be. And many are. But sometimes, there's nothing like a crisp 7-step process to take something through from start to finish. It begs the question:

What might we be trying to make too simple?

In an effort to clear things off our plates (that one was for you, Leah!) what important details might we have overlooked? In an effort to rush through a meeting , what important questions might we never have let get asked? In a effort to hurry home and live a balanced life, who might we have nearly run off the road as we changed lanes without looking back there?

It's complicated when you have to square the corners, polish the chrome, dot the i's and cross the t's. Rarely is it simple.

But a job well done? Now that's simply outstanding!

Who's asking Whom?

Two items-of-note from the February issue of Training & Development magazine:

• Item One - Only 33% of employees surveyed say their bosses seldom or never ask them for advice. Now at first blush, this may seem like fairly good news. I mean if 33% are not asked, then that means 67% are asked. But what remains unanswered is what type of questions are those 67% asked? Are they meaningful and important questions or more trivial in nature? Do they require critical thinking and analysis skills or are they just simply yes/no questions? I have my suspicions, don't you?!
• Item Two - Only 11% of employees see their boss as a source for workplace advice. This separate survey found that more workers rely on a peer (24%), another senior-level employee (15%), a friend outside the company (14%), and a mentor or coach (13%). Have bosses truly become that useless?

So there you have it - bosses don't ask their direct reports questions and direct reports don't ask their bosses questions. No wonder so many organizations are in such disarray.

For the record, asking questions is not a sign of weakness - it's a sign of curiosity. And curiosity is a good thing.

Oh, you say you are asking questions but just not getting the clarity you're looking for? Well ask again. And keep ask. But don't just ask the same exact question over and over again. Be creative. Approach it from different angles. But, above all, be persistent in your pursuit of meaningful information up and down the chain.

Point Last: Who's not been asking you questions lately?! You might want to see if you can stimulate their asking you for workplace advice - especially if you're their boss.

Value-Added Reciprocity

Pick someone you have an important working relationship with, and ask yourself the following two questions:

Q1: What does s/he need from me to feel completely confident in - and appreciative of - my ongoing value-added-ness to him/her?

Q2: What do I need from him/her to feel completely confident in - and appreciative of - his/her ongoing value-added-ness to me?

Share your answers with the other person and ask them for theirs. Compare. Contrast. And repeat as necessary.

Preventing Problems: Non-Event Successes

Which are you better at: solving problems, or preventing them?

People who solve problems are critical to the success of any organization. Bosses tend to adore skilled problem-solvers and rely on them continually - which can be a problem in and of itself. But Problem-Solvers tend to enjoy a higher profile than most. They're often seen as heroes by the Big Dogs and, as such, tend to get bigger raises and bonuses, as well.

People who prevent problems, though, are even more critical to the success of an organization - even if their accomplishments do tend to be unnoticed, overlooked and undervalued. Not having a problem costs organizations far less than cleaning one up.

Why then the disparity in reputations?

The main difference is that while the Big Dogs accept that problems occur and need to be cleaned up, they often never realize that a particular crisis was averted. Needless to say, they also tend to not realize that the non-event resulted from the Problem Preventer's sterling efforts. Simply put, they don't know if they don't know.

So how can a professional Problem Preventer increase the profile of his/her success without being seen as making much ado about nothing? Here are a few ideas:

1. Keep your bosses updated on the issues you're working to prevent - Don't assume s/he doesn't care. And don't assume s/he already knows.

"Hey boss, don't know if you know about this or not, but in doing a routine audit of my department I found something I want to take a closer look at ..."

2. Don't make it look so easy - Let the Big Dogs know that the situation you're dealing with is fraught with danger, mon cherie. Discuss the ramifications of it actually becoming a problem and what you're doing to prevent those ramifications from happening.

"Yes, Big Dogs, while it's great how well our proposal was received, I'm getting a huge push-back from the customer on some contract specifics that could significantly impact our ability to actually close the deal ..."

3. Talk about the forks in the road - No doubt the situation you're facing is complex and nuanced. Seek input from the Big Dogs as to what route makes the most sense given the circumstances. Show them, through requesting their counsel and the dialogue that ensues, that you've got a brain and you're not afraid to use it.

"So, Big Dogs, I want to get your insights at this specific juncture because depending on the Bigger Picture, what looks good to me might not look good for you. As example, should my strategy focus more on ways to reduce costs, or increase revenues ... or just positively affecting the bottom line? ..."

4. Share the Good News - Wipe the sweat off your brow and send a Success Story up the chain. Even better, get someone else to tell your boss what a great job you did to prevent something terrible from happening.

"Hey boss, get a load of this: Remember how we wanted to help Stuart get off to a fast start in his new position as department head? Well I hired an executive coach for him and it's already paying dividends. He dodged a huge bullet in a staff meeting yesterday and came off smelling like a rose ..."

... or better yet ...

(To your boss from one of Stuart's direct reports) "I think Stuart's going to help us do good things - he's not afraid to say what needs to be said. Thanks for promoting him."

Don't underestimate the value of preventing problems before they occur. But don't underestimate the value in increasing the profile of these non-event successes, either.

The Competency Continuum

When taken out of context, some of the best inspiration can come from the Hallmark card aisle and television commercials. Case in point, the latest ad from GMC trucks, which proudly proclaims:

"Amateurs work until they get it right. Professionals work until they can't get it wrong."

Now I don't know if this makes me want to buy a Denali or their new Acadia, but continuing to develop a skill past "get it right" and all the way to "can't get it wrong" is an interesting notion, isn't it?

Case in point: I went bowling last week - first time in a long time - and a Competency Continuum was certainly apparent. Some shots I couldn't make for the life of me - like the 7/10 split. Others - like my strike ball - I could get right sometimes, but not always. And some of the easy-peasy spares I never missed.

So where are you on the Competency Continuum? And what would help increase your pin-count, as it were?

If it has anything to do with a bowling lane, check this out: www.bonuszone.com.

Simplify or Amplify

Sometimes it helps to make complex issues less so; other times it helps to make subtle issues more obvious.

The next time someone doesn't understand what you're trying to say, consider whether it's more likely because you're being overly complex, or "underly" obvious.

Adjust your approach accordingly.

People behave as they're incented to behave

That old axiom is true: People really do behave as they're incented to behave. It's just that sometimes we don't realize exactly how we are incenting them to behave. A quick and easy way to understand the real picture is by using a 2x2 Awareness Matrix:

Start with a question, like this one: Why don't managers do their employee year-end reviews on time? Then, answer the "What are the..." questions posed by each quadrant:

For Quadrant I: What are the Rewards for Complying, that is doing the reviews on time?

Probable Answer: There are no rewards, excepting a pat-on-the-head from the boss and some dirty looks from their coworkers who haven't finished (read: even started) their reviews yet.

For Quadrant II: What are the Punishments for Complying?

Probable Answer: Having a set of miserable conversations with employees about their shortcomings.

For Quadrant III: What are the Rewards for Not Complying?

Probable Answer: Not having to have those miserable conversations with employees about their shortcomings. (Sometimes the avoidance of pain is the most powerful motivator of all.)

For Quadrant IV: What are the Punishments for Not Complying?

Probable Answer: A slap-on-the-wrist, maybe, but more likely than not there is no real punishment, just a revised due date and some knowing smiles from their peers.

Given the results of the Awareness Matrix, why would managers do their employee year-end reviews on time? There's no real up-side for doing them - the up-side is for not doing them. And there's no real down-side for not doing them - but there is a down-side for doing them. So you may want to spend some time considering how to realign the Rewards for Complying and the Punishments for Not Complying.

And you may want to notice, as well, that the Probable Answers for Quadrants II and III are very similar - they both have to do with the managers' beliefs that these year-end performance discussions will likely go poorly. That means if you can help your managers learn how to make these conversations even a little bit less miserable, you'll be on the right track.

So how do you make these conversations less miserable? Well one way is to order a copy of Employee Performance Discussions: 10 Important Things a Boss MUST Know How to Say for everyone. By helping them learn how to take better control of their year-end performance discussions, they will likely improve the quality of those discussions, and thus significantly reduce their concerns with Quadrants II and III.

That's not to say that you absolutely must purchase this Special Report. You certainly do not. But if the other things you've tried haven't worked, consider sending your managers to www.employee-discussions.com and suggest they take a look around.

You owe it to yourself, your managers - and your employees - to make this year's year-end reviews as meaningful as possible. But time's running out.

Creating a Portfolio of Mentors

For an innovative approach to establishing an entire network of mentors interested in your success, read my latest article, Creating a Portfolio of Mentors. It was just published by TheLadders.com - exclusive partners of the WSJ CareerJournal.com and Business Week online.

Climbing the Job-Hunting Ladder

Did you know that September and October are some of the busiest times of the year for interviewing? So says The Ladders, the most comprehensive source for $100k+ jobs. With summer winding down, companies are gearing up for a strong fourth quarter and they're looking to hire - just like you! So if you've been thinking it's time for a change, I whole-heartedly recommend you subscribe to TheLadders Career Newsletter.

What's in it for you:

• You'll gain access to 25,000 exclusive quality job leads at the $100K+ earning level, at top companies.
• Openings are sorted by job function, such as: Finance, General Management, Human Resources, Law, Medical, Management Consulting, Marketing, Operations, Real Estate, Sales, Science, and Technology.
• These are executive-level jobs only. No low-level fluff. All real, open, $100k+ jobs.
• In that they have an exclusive partnership with the WSJ Career Journal, you know they've got all the best jobs.
• And if you subscribe in early September, you'll get a full month of their weekly newsletters, one of which is scheduled to include a brand new article written by yours truly!

What's in it for me:

• TheLadders is increasing its commission payments for this month and offering a $1,000 bonus to the first affiliate to add 20 new Premium-level subscribers.
• I get to help a number of you who have been wanting to step-up your job search but haven't really dug in as of yet.

To sweeten the pot, if you sign up in September - and use coupon code 39408 -you can save $15 off your first month's Premium membership. Consider it a little extra incentive from TheLadders ... and a little extra push, from me!

Just click on any of the links above.

What Makes an Excellent Team?

"The ability to sustain outstanding results over time is the most obvious characteristic of an excellent team." So says Jesse Stoner, EdD in his work called Benchmarks of Team Excellence.

But if team excellence is the outcome, what then are the benchmarks that enable that outcome to occur? Stoner identifies six of them:

1. Alignment - whereby team members share a common vision or purpose for the team's existence.
2. Processes - whereby the policies and procedures enable team members to coordinate their efforts smoothly and effectively (Stoner calls this Team Effectiveness, but I like using the term 'Processes' better as it's more about the infrastructure that required than the outcome resulting from it).
3. Empowerment - whereby team members feel authorized to do what's necessary to get the job done, and supported in their efforts in doing so.
4. Passion - whereby each member brings a high level of enthusiasm, energy, excitement, excellence, and confidence to the group.
5. Commitment - whereby each member feels a deep commitment to purpose of the team ... and to each other.
6. Standards - whereby the group purposefully raises the level of performance above and beyond what is necessary. (Stoner calls this Results.)

If your team isn't operating at as high a level as you'd like, take a look at where they are on these 6 benchmarks. Start with alignment and work your way down the list.

Describing Team Performance

In his work Benchmarks of Team Excellence, Jesse Stoner, EdD identifies 5 levels of team performance. Where does your team place?

• Excellence - Teams at this level produce consistently outstanding results. Meetings tend to be more about the future than on today's crises. Conflict is handled openly and directly.
• Effective - Teams at this level produce consistently good results. Team member passion and energy is noticeably lower, though, and they sometimes fail to communicate with each other as proactively as they might.
• Typical - Teams at this level produce good, sometimes even outstanding, results, but tend to do so inconsistently. Team members often do not understand the team's mission, how their goals align with that mission, or how their goals relate to other team member goals. As such, they're typically more focused on performing their own roles and responsibilities than they are on team performance.
• Unfocused - Teams at this level tend not to function well at all. While the work often gets done, it is not through any coordinated effort, unless the group leader directly manages that coordination. Individual team members have very little commitment to the team.
• Unconnected - Teams at this level are not really teams at all; they are just collections of individuals doing their work with little interest in, concern for, each other.

Tomorrow's post will look at the underlying benchmarks, or elements, of Team Excellence and what you might do to help move them up-the-chain.

Making Mistakes ... On Purpose

"While few companies are willing to commit to a course that looks like an error, the power of intentionally taking the wrong road can be seen in the high payoffs that have come from strategies that initially seemed like mistakes."

So say Paul J.H. Schoemaker and Robert E. Gunther in "The Wisdom of Deliberate Mistakes," an article that appeared in the June 2006 issue of the Harvard Business review (reprint R0606G).

One such example of mistakes-on-purpose-being-helpful came courtesy of the Pentagon's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). Mandated by Congress to build robotic, non-remote controlled, ground vehicles, they responded by sponsoring an unmanned-vehicle race, offering $1million to the winner. Purposefully engaging amateurs and university students in Pentagon matters? What, were they crazy?

No one won the race, but the 'losers' helped DARPA identify no less than 13 fatal design flaws that could now be avoided in their own design efforts.

But how can we decide which mistakes are smart ones to make and which ones are just plain dumb? The authors offer these insights:

1. Identify underlying assumptions - focus on assumptions that are core to the issue.
2. Select specific assumptions for testing - focus on the ones where you'd do things differently if you know these assumptions were false.
3. Rank the assumptions - look for where the potential gains greatly outweigh their costs.
4. Create your strategy - craft a meaningful mistake for the highest ranked assumptions.
5. Execute the mistake.
6. Learn from the process.

Admittedly, the authors acknowledge that mistakes made on purpose like this aren't really mistakes as much as experimentation. But I still like the idea. My 'tweak' would be to get real clear - in advance of the experiment - how you will 'mop up' the mess in the even that the 'mistake' goes bad.

That way, you can jump into your mistake-making with both feet without worry and better focus your attention on learning what's to learn.

Elevator Conversations

It's happened before; it will happen again.

You're running late but you are able to step into the elevator just before the doors begin to shut - excellent! You take a deep breath to relax a bit and, as you do, you notice that you're not alone. Standing right beside you is a key company executive ... Looking right back at you.

OMG, what should I say? I can't just ignore him. I've got to say something. But what?! Can't this elevator go any faster? Why can't this elevator go any faster?

Classic good news/bad news situation, this is. You've suddenly got some incredible face time in front of an exec, but you're not ready to do anything meaningful with it.

If only I knew this was coming. If only I had been more prepared.

You try smiling and hope to leave it at that. But it doesn't' work - the elevator's going too slow. You know you have to try and say something. So you do. But it comes out sounding really lame. You feel your embarrassment growing further.

Why is this happening to me? Why is this happening to me ... Again?

Oh, it never has happened to you, you say? Right. If it wasn't in an elevator, it's likely to have been in a conference room, or hallway, or parking lot, or on a phone call, in the bathroom, or at the train station, etc. because it happens all the time.

Want the antidote? It's called getting ready. Here's what you do:

1. Take out a clean sheet of paper and write down the names of all the people who'd likely make you tongue-tied if they appeared in this elevator scenario.
2. Figure out - as in, ahead of time; as in, for the next time - what you want to say to/ask of each of them in the event that they do show up right next to you.
3. Review and update your list regularly.

Good. Now take another deep breath. And get back on that elevator! You're ready.

Dashes and the Spaces in Between

A typical workday usually includes periods of work (represented below with dashes) and periods of not working (represented by the spaces between the dashes):

Although the specific placement of dashes and spaces may vary, what's important to notice is that some of the work-dashes are longer than others -- and some of the non-work-spaces are shorter than others. (For you contrarians out there, note that the opposite is also true!) It's an interesting phenomenon:

• Some people prefer to space their work and take regular breaks throughout the day.
• Some people prefer to bunch their work and then take longer breaks in between the bunches.
• Some people prefer to bunch their work and then leave early.
• Some people prefer to arrive late and then bunch their work.
• Most people, though, never consider that they can even change how they work.

The relevant question, though, is this: What do you want your dashes and spaces look like on any particular day?

Try experimenting with what works best for you. You may be surprised with what you learn.

Influence versus Control

Significant frustration, aggravation, and stress can occur when we think we can control what we can only influence.

As example, let's say you're trying to get your boss to focus on a particularly important, yet subtle, topic of concern. But your boss just doesn't think it's relevant or meaningful. Clearly you cannot control (and are not controlling) your boss' response. But, if you approach the conversation a bit more strategically, you very well might be able to influence the boss' response.

How? Here are four steps that help:

Step One - Think through the issue until you're sure you understand both the obvious - and not-so obvious - implications. (You want to speak from a place of passion and insight, not just from passion alone.)

Step Two - Tell your boss that you can, in fact, do it his/her way, if s/he'd like. (Bosses often look first to see if you're with them - or against them - and if they feel you're against them, your conversation can quickly take a turn for the worse.)

Step Three - Let him/her know that you have a few things you'd like to validate about the matter, though. (Frame your dilemma in terms of a fork-in-the-road, and talk about how your views aligned with the boss' until you hit that fork, but you're not sure you understand why s/he took a different fork than you at that point.)

Step Four - Ask for advice as to how the boss navigated the fork as s/he did. (Ask insightful follow-up questions that start with phrases such as "But wouldn't it work better if ..." and/or "I get that; the part I don't get, though is ...")

While you may not be able to control what happens next, engaging your boss in a meaningful and relevant conversation affords you greater influence over what decisions are made and how things roll-out from there.

Try it and see for yourself.

Knowledge versus Intelligence

Here's a distinction - Knowledge versus Intelligence. Per Miriam-Webster:

Knowledge is the fact or condition of knowing something with familiarity and is often gained through experience or association. In other words, it's what you already know.

Intelligence is the ability to learn or understand or deal with new or trying situations. In other words, it's the ability to successfully apply your knowledge.

Agree or Disagree: It takes both Knowledge and Intelligence to be successful - neither is sufficient on its own.

Everything You Know vs. What's Requested

It's not unusual for vendor sales reps, customer support personnel, account managers, IT directors, and others, to be reassigned this time of year. And it's not unusual for the departing individual to provide all sorts of non-essential "turnover" information to the replacement.

It's not unusual for a boss to ask for a crisp one page memo on a topic. And it's not unusual for the person writing that "one-pager" to actually submit a multi-page report, complete with pictures and charts and fancy headings.

It's not unusual for a co-worker to ask for the facts associated with a problem that happened while s/he was on break or lunch or vacation. And it's not unusual for the co-worker asked to provide all sorts of commentary and opinion before offering one shred of factual evidence on the matter.

In each of these cases, someone (quite possibly with the best of intentions) responded with everything they knew about the matter rather than with what was requested. And in each case, their over-response was unnecessary and inappropriate.

When you ask someone for some information, do they respond with everything they know, or with what's requested?

When someone asks you for some information, do you respond with everything you know, or with what's requested?

Remember, just because someone wants to know what time it is, it doesn't mean that they also want to know how a watch works!

What does your boss want from you?

Some bosses prefer you tell them only good news.

Some bosses insist that whenever you bring them a problem you need to also bring a fix for the problem.

Some bosses are more interested in your information being timely - news - whether it's good or bad, whether you've got a solution to go with it, or not.

Some bosses want you to ask for permission; others want to be updated after-the-fact. Some bosses want to know your underlying strategy; others only want to know if things didn't work out as planned. Some bosses are more relaxed early in the morning; others prefer late in the evening.

Many bosses prefer you to send important messages via email. Others prefer you to send them via voicemail.

Many bosses prefer you to implement sweeping changes. Others prefer you to implement incremental ones.

Many bosses prefer you minimize problems by anticipating them. Others prefer you minimize problems by responding alertly to them.

What does your boss want from you? Clearly, you need to know.

Who Needs to Hear What from Whom?

Conversations can be funny things.

Sometimes we need to have conversations so that we can hear something from someone else. Other times we need to have conversations so that someone else can hear something from us. And knowing which type of conversation to have when is key.

Here's the exercise:

1. Make a list of 3-5 people in your personal and/or professional world who you feel out-of-balance with. Decide whether the issue is you needing to hear something from them (information, acknowledgement, recognition, permission, etc.) or if it's something that they need to hear from you (information, acknowledgement, recognition, permission, etc.).
2. Have that (set of) conversation(s).

You may notice that the specific content to be discussed is quite possibly the exact same for either type of conversation. Nevertheless, they are conversations for entirely different purposes.

Knowing who needs to hear what from whom at any point in time is an important realization to keep top-of-mind.

"And what will I do if THAT doesn't work?"

Contingency plans are important. Having a backup plan has saved many an important project, presentation, and/or deliverable. But sometimes it makes sense to have more than one alternative at-the-ready. The key question to ask yourself is this:

"And what will I do if THAT doesn't work?"

Overkill? Maybe. But the logic is clean - if it's important enough to get it right, then best you know what to do if things go wrong.

In favor of (yet another) coffee break

"Don't feel guilty about the breaks you've been sneaking at work - they could be helping you learn." So reports Elise Kleeman in her May 2006 article in Discover magazine, titled, "Relax and Think Like a Rat," based on the work of some neuroscientists at MIT:

The experiment: Put lab rats into unfamiliar mazes and monitored their behaviors upon completion of their exploration.

Findings: The rats routinely rested after each 'test.' But their short-term memory neurons were busy at work repeatedly reviewing the maze's path - in reverse - at speeds up to 10 times faster than the original experience.

Interpretation: "This implies that it's not just during an experience that learning occurs," says David Foster, head of the research team. "If we're right, the period after the experience is just as important, but maybe more important."

Implication: All of those late-morning or mid-afternoon Starbucks' run might not be such a bad thing. Not only do they provide that added caffeine kick, but they might also be providing us the opportunity to integrate the day's learning into our longer-term memories.

Who knew?!

How Companies Deliver Bad News

How do YOU deliver bad news?

source: April 2006 issue of T&D magazine

Um, what did you hear me say?

Here are four ways to tell if someone properly understands the performance feedback conversation you've just had with them:

1. By assuming they just did - know, though, that the reliability of this particular technique can be very spotty.
2. By noticing the actions they take subsequent to your conversation - the reliability of this technique is much higher than #1, but it's also much delayed.
3. By noticing the reactions that other people have to the person you talked with subsequent to your conversation - although used by many as their primary method of confirmation, it is neither as reliable as #2, nor as timely as #1.
4. By immediately asking the person you're providing the feedback to - in the very same conversation, in fact - what they understand your message to be.

How might this last way work? By asking something like this:

"Tell me, what did you hear me just say? I want to see if I can recognize what I meant in the words you use to tell it back to me."

I guarantee that you'll have no trouble recognizing if what they say is - or is not - what you meant for them to hear. And if it's not, you then have the opportunity to clarify your message right then and there - which is a very good thing to be able to do, by the way.

Just think of all the confusion (and time) that little extra step can save.

What problem are you trying to solve?

Managers are bred to be problem-solvers. The problem with that, though, is that they often get confused as to what problem they're supposed to be solving.

While many (most?) managers try to solve the functional problem - which is actually staff's job - the problem that managers ought to be focusing on is this: How do I improve the problem-solving skills of my direct reports?

Solving problems for your staff versus improving the problem-solving skills of your direct reports. See the difference? It's substantive.

Yet I suspect that solving problems for your staff is a lot more comfortable for you. After all, you are a professional problem-solver - it's what probably got you promoted in the first place. Yet if you continue to solve problems for your staff you're actually training them how NOT solve problems themselves ... Which only increases the amount of work you have to do AND demoralizes your direct reports in the process.

The choice, of course, is yours, but if you feel you're overworked and/or your staff is under-performing, the underlying problem might be that you're focusing on the wrong things.

Here's the litmus: When faced with a new problem, ask yourself, "What problem am I trying to solve here?" If your answer has anything to do with the function issue (and little to do with how you can improve the problem-solving skills of your direct reports) then chances are good that you are working on the wrong thing.

Listening Awareness

Still more good stuff from the HBR article, "Listening to People," by Nichols and Stevens. This time it's an exercise they recommend for increasing your awareness of listening. It goes like this:

"[Create] a simple form divided into spaces for each hour of the day. Each space should be further divided to allow [you] to keep track of the amount of time spent in reading, writing, speaking, and listening. "

Then, spend a little time thinking through your answers to the following questions:

• What percentage of the time do you spend listening?
• Is it more or less than you expected?
• What might increasing the frequency and/or duration of your listening do to improve your effectiveness?
• What might it do to improve the effectiveness of the people you listen to?
• How might you listen better? How might you get people to better listen to you?

Hear what I'm saying?!

Giving your Undivided Attention

People listening too little is a BIG problem. And, based on a Harvard Business Review article written in 1957 by Ralph G. Nichols and Leonard A. Stevens, called "Listening to People," this is nothing new. Think about that - poor listening has been a pressing business problem for 50 years!

The authors do what I think is an excellent job of explaining the complexities of the listening process:

"The newspapers reported not too long ago, that a church was torn down in Europe and shipped stone by stone to America, where it was assembled in its original form. The moving of the church is analogous to what happens when a person speaks and is understood by a listener. The talker has a thought. To transmit his thought, he takes it apart by putting it into words. The words, sent through the air to the listener, must then be mentally reassembled into the original thought if they are to be thoroughly understood. But most people do not know what to listen for, and so cannot reconstruct the thought."

Part of the problem is that we are able to think far faster than people can speak. So, when someone's talking to us our mind has plenty of spare time for "mental sidetracks." At first, we can drift off and come back without missing much content. But, as our mind continues to focus on other, more complex, sidetracks we soon lose track of what is being said. Countless messages are lost (or misunderstood) every single day because we basically forget to actually listen while where listening.

That's one of the reasons why, when I was in charge of telecommunications at Chicago Mercantile Exchange, I had staff wear badges that said: "You have my Undivided Attention." I wanted us all to remember to focus our listening on ... listening.

How well do you listen? What would help you give more people your Undivided Attention? What might you try?

Thanks, LK.

Looking at Facial Expressions

Facial Expressions can be helpful. But just because someone looks angry or annoyed, it doesn't mean that they necessarily are. Nor does it mean that they're necessary not.

• Your boss is looking at you with a particularly sour face - Is it because of something you did? Something you didn't do? Or a residual from an especially tart bottle of grapefruit juice s/he just finished?

• A peer can't help notice your furrowed brow and white-hot glare - Is it because you're displeased with something s/he did? Or didn't do? Or is it a residual from a dressing-down you just got from your boss?

Contextual clues can help. Is your boss holding an empty juice box, or a scathing complaint letter about you? Are you glaring at your co-worker of just staring absently into space? The clues provide cues.

But it's also helpful to verify your impression. "Are you mad at me for some reason?" asks your co-worker. "You?" you reply, "Heavens no. I was thinking about a terrible meeting I had with my boss earlier today." "Is that letter about me?" you ask your boss. "Yes it is - and it concerns me greatly."

A simple question can go a long way to avoiding all sorts of misunderstandings. As can some additional research. Here are some steps you can take:

• Visit a webpage called, "Facial Expressions of Emotion." It offers an interactive demonstration of how changing the look of a person's eyes or mouth changes what we infer about his/her mood. Notice what you notice.
• Spend the week focusing on facial expressions. You'll no doubt find that some people look grumpy even when they're not and others look cheerful even when they're not. Notice who tends to do what?
• Spend some time looking at yourself in the mirror. Notice your natural expression and how might it (or might not) accurately reflect whatever mood you're in.

Do your facial expressions help or hinder what you try to do?

Feedback, Tutelage, and Deep Learning

I was watching the latest edition of "The Next Food Network Star" - one of the latest in a series of who-gets-voted-off-the-island-next type reality programs. In this one, the winner gets his or her own Food Network show a la Rachel Ray, Bobby Flay, Emeril Lagasse, et.al.

What I'm finding particularly interesting about this contest, though - and why I'm blogging about it - is all the constructive feedback and tutelage that's being provided to the participants, even though all of them, except one, will ultimately be eliminated from winning. It got me thinking about what it'd be like if businesses interviewed (and selected) employees this way.

You may be thinking that "The Apprentice" (NBC) does this already, but it really does not. Although I haven't watched it this season, Trump and company typically just assign, critique, and eliminate: "Here's an incredibly complex assignment, now go do it," followed by, "Yeah, yeah, whatever," and "You're fired!"

"American Idol" (Fox) doesn't really provide much constructive feedback either. (Well Simon does, but who really listens?)

In contrast, the Food Network show has more than just performance happening. There's Deep Learning, too. And not just about arcane TV production stuff. As example, participants are learning:

• How to effectively multi-task
• How to maintain your composure when things go terribly, terribly, wrong
• How to give a live demonstration
• How to work with unyielding time frames and other constraints
• How to creatively pitch an idea to a decision committee
• How to use supporting materials in a cohesive manner
• How to play big, but keep it real
• and more

Sadly, few companies afford employees such opportunities even after they're hired, let alone as part of the selection process.

Your takeaway question then is this: What are you doing to encourage the ongoing growth, development, and Deep Learning of your employees?

And, for that matter, what are you doing to encourage that in yourself?!

Delegating Outcomes - not just Tasks

Help me think this through: When we delegate tasks - that is frame assignments in terms of processes or steps to take - we run the risk of people doing exactly what we say, but still not getting the job done as we hoped. But if we we delegate desired outcomes - that is what we want to result from the assignment - it's more likely that that's what will be accomplished. Might this be true? Let's see:

Presenting Issue #1: A customer complaint needs to be addressed.

• What delegating the task might sound like: "Here, go talk to this person."
• What delegating the outcome might sound like: "Here, go make this customer happy again."

Presenting Issue #2: A vendor order needs to be expedited.

• What delegating the task might sound like: "Here, go track this order."
• What delegating the outcome might sound like: "Here, go insure the successful - and timely - delivery of this order."

Presenting Issue #3: Recent sales figures are below expectations.

• What delegating the task might sound like: "Here, go research this report."
• What delegating the outcome might sound like: "Here, go determine what needs to be done to get these numbers back on track."

In each instance, delegating the outcome seems like it would yield better results than just delegating the task. But, quite candidly, it took me a bit of time to figure out how to phrase each request in terms of an outcome that was both desired - and meaningful.

So I wonder, is the extra up-front work needed to focus an assignment like this really worth it? If the assignments you delegate sometimes come back to you completed, but insufficiently so, it very well may be.

Are you Un-Ready?

Here's the scenario: You (the boss) have this new assignment that needs to be completed in short order (nothing new there) so you call a quick meeting to let your staff know what you need and when you need it by. But instead of heads nodding, information-clarifying questions, and brain-storming on "here's how we might do this," you get lectured by your staff as to why this is a particularly bad task to undertake.

Ever been there?

For those of you who have, you know you now have more than one problem to resolve. The first problem, of course, is whatever the original assignment is (that still needs to be worked ). The second problem, though, is that your staff is clearly "un-ready" to accept such new and unplanned challenges. And that un-readiness is the bigger problem of the two.

Note that I did not suggest that your staff was unwilling to accept this new assignment (although they very well might not be) - I suggested that they were not ready to accept it.

Now let's flip the table and say that instead of you being the boss, you're the direct report. Your boss has called a meeting and is now laying out the requirements of a new, high-priority, assignment.

Ever been here?!

But this time, I want you to STOP and get totally conscious about your thoughts. Are they actively moving you forward , trying to figure out how you might satisfactorily complete the assignment? Or have they got you stuck in neutral as you hear yourself rant about how much work you already have to do, how ill-conceived the assignment is, or how flat-out wrong this priority is?

Truth is, it's probably one or the other, so which is it? More importantly, which one would your boss say it is?

You see while I usually have no problem railing about lousy bosses and bad management, sometimes there truly is a legitimate need to get something additional done, notwithstanding what's already in process. So do what you need to do to be ready to engage in the "how to" discussion, ASAP.

Even if you have too much work on your plate, the stronger move is still to brainstorm the "how to" ASAP.

Why? Because you can't accurately judge how much time/effort a new assignment will really take if you haven't thought it through. (And don't think your boss doesn't know that.)

By thinking things through collaboratively, you not only can more accurately 'size' the assignment, but you can also use your conclusions to better articulate why you can't just squeeze it in to what you're already doing - if in fact that is the case. Remember: whining is not a cogent argument.

Bottom Line: Don't be "Un-Ready" to think through new assignments that come your way. Ready? Set? Go!

It's time to review your review

Welcome to the second quarter of 2006. It's time to dust off your year-end review to see what "developmental needs" your boss wanted you to address this year. It's also time to get going on whatever it is that you wanted/needed to accomplish before your mid-year performance review.

Hey, I get that it's still early, but I wanted to give you plenty of time to procrastinate and still be able to get things done on time!

So figure out what you need to be doing and let your boss catch you in the act of doing exactly that.

Your boss tends not to notice such things? Not to worry; just say something like this: "Hey boss, check this out - I'm doing exactly what you said I should do on last year's performance appraisal. Good for me, eh?!"

A Peter Principle Antidote

I was recently asked by fellow coach, Christine Pepper-Wong, who my ideal clients are. Here's how I responded:

For me, there's nothing like a good life coaching client, or some occasional coach mentoring, but my sweet spot is really working with executives, managers aspiring to be executives, and other business professionals – especially those who recognize they need some help in improving their leadership, communications, and managerial skills. Often, it's the very successful individual who's been recently promoted into a job where his/her technical/functional skills (the ones that enabled the promotion) are not the same skills that are needed to be successful at this higher level. You've heard of the Peter Principle? I like to think that GottaGettaCoach!, Inc. is its antidote.

Barry Zweibel, CEC, PCC
Certified Executive Coach, Professional Certified Life Coach
GottaGettaCoach!, Incorporated
Executive/Personal Life Coaching
Helping Good People Do Better.

Meeting and Exceeding Expectations

Before becoming a coach, I used to work with a number of pretty large telecommunications vendors. And one of the things that almost every new salesperson would tell me is this: "I want to exceed your expectations, Barry." But whenever I'd hear that, I couldn't help but laugh.

"You may want to re-think that," I'd reply. "You can only lose playing that game."

"Whadeya mean?" they'd ask.

"Well, it's like this. Let's say you develop a well-deserved reputation for excellence so that that's what becomes my expectation - excellence. Now how to you exceed that? Do you become super-excellent? And what if that becomes the norm. To exceed that expectation, you'll need to do better still. And if that becomes the norm, you'll have to do even better than that. And on and on it goes until I start relying on you to be able to make miracles happen - at which point you'll probably fail miserably, right when I need you the most.

"So I'd rather you not even try to exceed my expectations. I'd rather you simply find out what I need to have happen by when ... and just do that by then, time and time again. In fact, if all you ever do is 'just that by then, time and time again,' I'll be your biggest fan."

How about you? Do you tell people you want to exceed their expectations? If so, try finding out what needs to happen by when ... and just do that by then, time and time again. You can even go a bit above-and-beyond if you'd like, just don't turn it into a game you can only lose.

Are you Asking or Requesting?

Ever notice how some people phrase requests in the form of a question?

• "Would you help me out?" really means, "Help me ... now."
• "Can you have that back to me by first thing tomorrow?" really means, "I actually want this back before the end of the day today."
• "You don't need anything else from me right now, do you?" really means, "I'm outta here, so just let me leave."

Requests-in-the-form-of-a-question may seem more polite to the people asking the question, but they actually are often more confusing to the person being asked. The problem is that questions deserve answers, but requests deserve acknowledgements. And these are two very different things. If you've ever tried to answer one of these cloaked requests you know what I mean:

Boss: Would you help me out?
You: Well actually, boss, I'm kinda busy.
Boss: Don't be a smart-alec; help me out ... now.
You, to yourself: Oh great! Why didn't he just say so in the first place?
Boss, to him/herself: Hmm, I wonder if that an under-the-breath comment was a question or a request?

So how do you make requests? (That's my question.) Try making them more directly. (That's my request!) See the difference?

Better Delegation through Lessons Learned

Many managers have a great deal of difficulty delegating work to others. But here's something to remember whenever you do delegate:

The litmus is not whether the person completes the assignment as you would have done it. Different does not mean wrong. What ultimately matters is simply how well the person's actions addressed the issue that they were designed to address.

The key is in making sure they understand exactly what the issue is that you want them to address - before they take action. Once they're clear on that, you can actually encourage them to take whatever approach they feel most appropriate and see what happens as a result.

You may be surprised at how well they do. And if they don't, you already know how to mop up, so do that. Then, ask them:

• What caused these Unintended Consequences?
• How might they be avoided in the future?
• What are the Lessons to be Learned from the experience?

Then - and this is really important - in that same conversation, delegate something else to them so they can immediately apply these Lessons Learned. (It helps if you already have something in mind.)

Taking this approach will likely improve both their performance, and your comfort in delegating to them. Try it and see for yourself.

Curling and the Rules for Success at Work

While I haven't been watching a LOT of the Olympics, one event that has captured my attention is curling - even though I can't seem to figure out the rules for the game.

Actually, I do know a few things. (Keyword: few.) I do know that there are so many of these teapot-looking things called 'stones' - maybe they're called 'rocks' - that are slid across a shuffleboard-looking court made of ice and if, at the end of the round, your rocks are closer to the bulls-eye-looking target than your competitor's, you win points. (I can't figure out how many points you win for accomplishing what, though.) Meanwhile, your competitor can curl some of his teapots into yours to change their placement, so there's some bocce-like strategy needed to prevent that from happening, too. (Not that I know much about bocce, either!) I think each game has a set number of bowling-like frames, but it might also be that you play until so many points are won, like in ping-pong. I'm just not sure.

Oh, and there are these brooms-like things that are used to either speed up or slow down the rocks, when needed. It's a crazy game and I just love to watch it unfold.

The point of this post, though, is not to show off my ignorance - although I've probably accomplished that quite well. My point is that if you want to succeed at work, you can't just be a spectator - you need to know the Rules for Success.

Too many people think that there's just one rule for success, the rule called 'doing a good job is enough.' You really need to be more savvy than that, though. You need to know the Rules for Success for working up, down, and across the organization. You also need to know the Rules for Success when working outside the organization - with vendors and customers, as example.

Do you know you boss' Rules for Success?

• Do you know what your boss listens for when people speak?
• Do you know how (and when) to give your boss bad news?
• Do you know if it's better to ask for permission or beg for forgiveness - and when to do which?
• Do you know his/her preferred method of communication - email, voicemail, memo, in person?
• Do you know how often - and on what topics - your boss likes to be updated?
• Do you know what makes your boss livid? Ecstatic? Bored? Engaged?
• Do you know what your boss looks for in a go-to person? Are you that person?

In curling, sometimes the slightest nudge is all that's needed to clear the way and enable a score. So too at work. But you need to know the Rules for Success to even have a shot at doing that.

Another Way of Working Smarter

The challenge is this: How can you do twice as much in half the time.

Ask most people, and they'll say something like, "Well, I'd just have to buckle down and really get things done." But while that may be able to provide a 15%-20% improvement in productivity (I'm estimating here), I seriously doubt that simply working harder could ever yield twice as much in half the time.

There must  be a better way. I'm thinking there is at least, and a number of clients are using a new approach that's giving promising results. The process is this - start with the assumption that you must  do twice as much in half the time - not just that you'd like to, or that you hope to, but that you MUST. Now, given that, make a list of what's preventing you from doing that. Your list will probably include some, if not all, of the following usual suspects , but feel free to add additional items as you see fit:

• interruptions
• needing additional information
• needing someone's buy-in
• having to wait for something to happen first
• not having someone you can rely on as you'd like
• meetings, meetings, meetings
• uncertainty about what it is that actually needs to be done
• cumbersome processes/procedural issues
• Monday exhaustion, hump day blues, Friday euphoria (This reminds me of a fun little piece I wrote back in December 2003, "What else TV marathons have to offer", that offered a whole new way to organize your work week. Check it out. It's pretty clever if i don't say so myself!)

Okay, now that you have this list, work it first.

What?! Yes, that's right - work this list first because for every one of these 'time sinks' that you can meaningfully address, you get that much additional time back to work on your most pressing projects and assignments. So, if interruptions slow you down, set something up to carve some privacy into your day - even if it's only for a period of time. Too many meetings affecting your time? Send a surrogate, talk to the meeting leader in advance and give him/her your ideas on the subject so you don't have to attend. Procedural processes got you down? Create a better way, or learn how to step through the existing process more fluidly.

There's an old saying that goes something like this: "It isn't the mountains ahead that wear you out, it's the grain of sand in your shoe." Time sinks are like grains of sand. Take care of them first, and see if you can't climb twice as many mountains in half the time.

Checking the Gauges

Problems, of course, are unavoidable. But if you have a way to tell if things are heading in a bad direction - before it's too late to do anything about them - the problems you do experience will likely be less problematic.

A great way to do that is to develop a set of 'gauges' to monitor on an ongoing basis. When driving, you routinely monitor the gas gauge, the speedometer, the trip-o-meter (if, as example, you're following mapquest directions), warning lights for seat belts, engine repair, etc., blinker lights - there are all sorts of gauges available to insure your safe transit from here to wherever.

So too, at work ... and in life, for that matter.

The operative question is this: What's likely to indicate a problem? Once you know that, you can then build a process to track exactly that so you can find out sooner, rather than later, if things are going awry.

Example 1:

• Potential Problem - Not enough gas in the car.
• Gauge to Monitor - Gas gauge.
• Key Adjustment - Instead of waiting for the gauge to reach "E" refill at the 1/4 marker.

Example 2:

• Potential Problem - No milk for the kids' breakfast.
• Gauge to Monitor - Milk carton.
• Key Adjustment - Instead of waiting for the last carton to empty before buying more, always keep an extra carton on hand

Example 3:

• Potential Problem - Staff's not completing certain work items on time.
• Gauge to Monitor - Items that are "on hold," waiting for additional information.
• Key Adjustment - Instead of assuming "on hold" items cannot be worked, look for inherent bottlenecks to address.

The assumption here is that IF you know about a problem that's building, you'll be far better able to do something about it than if you never know there even is a problem ... until it's too late. In other words, it's probably not that you don't know what Key Adjustment TO make, it's more that you don't know that a Key Adjustment has to BE made ... until it's too late.

So take a look at the things that tend to go wrong for you. What gauges would be helpful to start monitoring so that you can get in front of whatever issues you're currently facing?

Poor Time Management: at the Super Bowl and in Life

Congrats to the Steelers. Even though they were outplayed between the 20's, they made the big plays when they needed to - on both sides of the ball - and showed the world what they were capable of. But I doubt they could have won without the relentless assistance provided to them by the Seattle Seahawks. While the Steelers might have won the game, the Seahawks definitely lost it.

Missed opportunities and penalties aside, the Seahawks were absolutely terrible when it came to clock management - both at the end of the half, and at the end of the game. ESPN called it "poor" clock management. USA Today called it "curious" clock management. Even Sports Illustrated took a swipe at it. Truly, it was just plain awful, regardless of which team you were rooting for.

This post is not about the football game, though. (You probably knew that already) It's about how we manage our own time, at work - and in life. Because the lesson from the SuperBowl is not really about running out of time ... it's about not using the time we have more effectively.

Ironically, this can mean opposite things for different people. If, as example, you're sort of just coasting along, spending lots of time chatting up with your colleagues and coworkers, and not getting much done, it might make sense for you to shorten your breaks from work a bit and dig in a bit more.

On the other hand, if you're feeling really stressed lately, always on the go-go-go, never stopping to relax, or even just pause, then it might make sense for you to lengthen your breaks a bit - or even just take one from time-to-time.

Clearly, one size does not fit all.

So take an objective look at what you're doing with your time. If you need to dig in, then dig in. And if you need to relax, then relax. In other words, drive the way you want to drive, not just the way you already are driving.

After all, you don't want to get caught like the Seahawks did, wanting to hurry, but ending up only going nowhere fast.

Brake or Accelerate?

Things move fast. Sometimes, too fast. When we feel they're moving too fast, our natural inclination is often to try and slow things down. Put to brakes on, as it were.

But bosses often don't like to slow things down - they like to speed them up. They say things like, "The best way to get something done is to finish it," and "In the time it's taking to explain 'why not' you could already be halfway through getting it done."

In times like these, spending time on justifying why a slow-down makes sense may not make sense. A much more powerful conversation would be to discuss what you need so that you can move at a faster pace. In my 4qtr2005 edition of the Not Just Talk! newsletter the feature article was titled, Helping Bosses Help. I suggested that bosses are able to help in four ways:

1. by providing you with ADDITIONAL TIME
2. by providing you with ADDITIONAL MONIES
3. by providing you with ADDITIONAL NON-MONETARY RESOURCES
4. by providing you with ADDITIONAL INFORMATION.

If the goal is to speed things up, consider which of these four ways would help you accelerate results and then ask for exactly that. Well actually, ask for more than exactly that. Why? Two reasons, really.

Reason One - You've probably underestimated how much ADDITIONAL WHATEVER you probably need; and

Reason Two - If you're given exactly what you ask for, you don't want to have to go back later to say that it wasn't enough.

If the issue truly is as important as your boss says it is, you really DO need to be able to answer the question "What do I need so that I CAN accelerate the completion of this work effort?" With this added information, your boss can decide how important the timeline for the assignment really is.

Employee Discussions

I just created a new website for my recently revised e-book about having better employee performance discussions.

The e-book is called, "Employee Performance Discussions: 10 Important Things a Boss MUST Know How to Say" and is available at www.employee-discussions.com.

Whadeya think?

What do you NEED to know about your boss?

Some will say you don't NEED to know anything - just do your job and that'll be enough. I believe that to be a career-limiting approach to your work because if you don't have the active -and consistent - support of your boss, chances are good that you won't get that plum assignment you were hoping for, you won't get those extra bonus dollars you were counting on, and you won't get that added respect and regard that's needed to make doing your job that much easier. So what DO you need to know about your boss? Well here's a start:

• What does s/he listen for? Examples: If s/he listens for problems to solve, there's not much sense in talking about a great opportunity you see in the marketplace. Conversely, if s/he listens for opportunities, then framing an issue as a problem-to-be-solved will likely yield little traction.
• How does s/he like to be updated? Examples: Some bosses like the in-person update. Others, though, are so busy that they prefer updates by email or voicemail. Some prefer the Blackberry or Nextel update; others hate it. The key is to know how to get the info over to your boss before your boss comes-a-lookin' for you.
• How much information does s/he want? I've already written about mysteries or headlines, but let's take it farther. Examples: Does s/he want only problems with solutions in tow, or is s/he willing to engage in some brainstorming with you? Does s/he want line-and-verse of a situation, or just enough to know if things are under control or not?
• What's the ideal frequency of updates? Examples: Something every day or once/week? Something as soon as it happens, or presented in batch-mode with other items of note? How often is too often? How often is not often enough?
• What are his/her hot-buttons? What topics/issues will elicit a greater response (positive OR negative) than others?
• What does s/he look for in a go-to person? Do you truly know what value-added means to him/her?Are you that type of person consistently enough?
• Does s/he prefer that you ask for permission or beg for forgiveness? Example: Does your boss want to refer your plans before you get started on them, or have you run solo until you run into problems?

The more you know about how your boss likes to operate, the better you can tune your performance to provide exactly that. Note that this isn't about the ethics of work; it's about work style and preferences. And the better you can tune your performance to provide exactly what your boss is looking for, the greater freedom, flexibility, recognition, and reward you'll probably be given.

Clearly Unclear

When asking for permission to do something, some people assume the answer is YES unless they specifically hear NO, while others assume NO unless they specifically hear a YES. This is what happened to Mike and Steve.

Both Mike and Steve wanted approval to try out a new procedure at work. So they went to their boss to ask for the okay. The boss pushed back hard, citing a number of reasons why he thought the plan was a bad idea. Steve took that to mean NO that they could not proceed. But Mike said, "He didn't say NO; he just said he thought it was a bad idea. And maybe it is, but the only way to tell for sure is to try it and see. I took his push-back to mean YES, go ahead and try it, but keep your eyes open in case things go south."

So who was right?

On Having to Freestyle in the Overlap

Today's USA Today Snapshot reported that less than one out of every two employees believe their company's culture is widely embraced and understood. Shocking?

Not really. Especially when you consider the conflicting goals and objectives that so many companies (and their departments) have in place these days. Consider the following examples:

• Company A preaches cost reductions AND innovative thinking as two of their key goals.
• Company B touts superior customer service AND maximized productivity as theirs.
• Company C believes in both customer courtesy AND customer safety as their two top priorities.

To a boss, these might seem like completely fine statements. But employees know that they spend an awful lot of time having to freestyle - that is, decide for themselves in the Overlap of conflicting organizational/departmental priorities. Again consider:

• An analyst in Company A has a fabulously innovative idea to improve her area's quality controls, but she needs to purchase some equipment in order to make it happen. She's in the Overlap and must freestyle a decision as to whether to bring the idea up to her boss (and be chided for her lack of cost-consciousness), or forget about it entirely (and be slammed at review time for her inability to think out-of-the-box).
• A customer service rep in Company B has to decide between really helping the end-of-shift customers and meeting his/her productivity metrics. He's in the Overlap and must freestyle a decision as to whether to go-the-extra-mile for a few aggravated customers (and miss his numbers ... again) , or give 'em the bum's rush (and achieve Top Performer status for the week).
• Attendants with Company C can't help but wonder if it is better to be impolite - or even rude - to lessen the possibility of someone getting a little scraped, or just be as courteous as possible to as many guests as possible and only address imminent safety dangers with patrons?

These may not be decisions you want to delegate. Not because you don't trust your employees to make the right decision, but because you don't want them to even be decisions that employees to have to make. Besides, if the USA Today survey is right, chances are that only 44% of your staff would decide as you would.

Right, wrong, or indifferent, that seems like a problem just waiting to happen.

Understanding Your Impact

from 10/31/2005 issue of Newsweek, Why Bad Managers Do Matter:

Bad bosses get a lot of abuse from workers but not much attention from economists. Now, however, a new study by McKinsey & Co. and the Centre for Economic Performance in London says the quality of corporate management accounts for at least 20 percent of the difference between a highly productive national economy and a sluggish one. Even between countries with similar economic policies, like the United States and Britain, better management is responsible for 15 percent of America's 25 percent edge in hourly output.

After grading the operations and internal policies of more than 700 companies, McKinsey found that the best managers are concentrated in industries such as technology and finance, where intense competition weeds out the slackers. Better management often goes hand in hand with light labor regulation, but not always: German managers excelled in supervising day-to-day operations despite complex labor rules, while some managers in the hire-and-fire culture of Britain were the worst of the entire lot.

—John Sparks © 2005 Newsweek, Inc.

The underlying question, here, is this: To what extent is your managerial style increasing your company's hourly output ... or decreasing it?

• How would you answer the question?
• How would your boss answer the question?
• How would your staff answer the question?
• How would your peers answer the question?
• How would your customers answer the question?

Don't guess; find out. Because everyone HAS an impact, whether they realize it or not. Once you understand the kind of impact you're having, you can then decide if it's the kind of impact you want to be having.

Three Quick Pieces of Advice

1. Act more quickly
2. Document more precisely
3. Be more decisive

Pick a problem you're facing - at work or in life - and try these three things. Chances are good you'll move from stuck to rockin' in no time flat.

"You Faker!"

According to a CCH survey of 305 human resource departments, as reported in the Sunday September 25, 2005 edition of the Chicago Tribune (Section 13, Page 1), when you're not really ill, but you want/need/deserve a day off, the solution is to call in 'sick.'

Reasons for unscheduled absences in 2004

• 38% Personal illness
• 23% Family issues - child/parent's doctor appointments, etc.
• 18% Personal needs - personal doctor appointment, trip to traffic court, car maintenance, etc.
• 11% Stress
• 10% Entitlement mentality

Yet from a boss's perspective - especially in an operations environment - unscheduled absences are the most difficult to manage because of coverage issues. So in that more than 3 out of every 5 unscheduled absence could actually be scheduled if handled appropriately, what's a boss to do?

What do YOU do?

1. How do you encourage your staff to tell you about these upcoming family/personal appointments in advance so you can give them the time they need (and will take anyway) and insure proper coverage in your area, notwithstanding?
2. How do you encourage your staff to schedule their mental health days so that you can give them the time they need (and will take anyway) ?
3. How do you respond to these unscheduled absences when they do occur so as to encourage advance notice of them in the future?

You really can't stop people from taking time off when they feel they need to, but you can encourage them to give you enough notice to mitigate the problems their absences will, in all likelihood, create.

The Three Phases (and Songs) of Success

I've already blogged about TheLadders.com as I became one of their affiliates in August. Check it out, and sign up, if you haven't already.

Now, I'm pleased to report, I'm also a contributor to their newsletter.

In the September 26, 2005 issue of Good Advice, you'll find an article I wrote called, The Three Phases (and Songs) of Success. When you follow the link, you'll have to scroll down a bit - mine is the 3rd entry - but that's not too much to ask is it?!

The idea of the piece is that there are three distinct phases we go through in a career and each phase is typified by a popular song title. Check out the titles I chose and then post what ones you'd use for where you're at with your career.

Good fun.

How level is YOUR playing field?

How level IS your playing field? Leadership coach, colleague, and client, Leigh Henderson of the Leadership Training Room, is conducting an on-line survey to find out more about why it is that only five Fortune 500 companies are run by women. She's now gathering information - from both men and women - about what it takes to create a level playing field in the workplace.

If you'd like to share your opinions on this important matter, please link to her survey.

Capable of Doing versus Paid to Do

Contrary to popular belief, I do not believe that success at work is about doing what you're capable of doing. I believe that it's about doing what only YOU can do - and doing it as best as you possibly can. Just because you can do something, doesn't mean you should - especially when other work that only you can do isn't getting done. Consider:

A department manager has a major deliverable due later today. But, instead of working on that, he's sorting the morning mail and distributing it into people's mailboxes over by the copy machine. While he can perfectly justify his actions ("our admin is out sick today") there are any-number of other people who are equally qualified to do this task - and have some time to do it. Yet, he doesn't feel right in asking anyone so he figures he'll just do it himself.

Later that day, as he tries to work on that important presentation, he finds himself continually being interrupted by people wanting his attention. Being unable to concentrate on his assignment - and with the pressure of the deadline looming - he loses his patience and takes it out on an unsuspecting soul who just happened to be "next."

There's more to this story than just a simple case of procrastination-gone-bad. It's about me - so many years ago. Notwithstanding the best of intentions, I forgot that there were certain tasks and responsibilities that were mine and mine alone to do. And because I didn't do them, no one else did, because no one else could.

So the next time you find yourself working on an otherwise routine task, ask yourself, "What is it, that only I can do that isn't getting done right now?" And go do that instead. After all, that's what you're paid for. That's what your job is!

Coaching Question: What routine tasks tend to derail YOU from working on what only you can do? What practices have you put in place to deal more effectively with them?

When are you at your Absolute Best?

So when ARE you at your Absolute Best?

• Morning ... or afternoon?
• Early in the week ... or more toward the middle ... or end of the week?
• With a deadline looming .. or when you have time to be creative?
• When you're particularly well-organized ... or when things are a total mess?
• In times of simplicity ... or in times of complexity?
• In front of your boss ... or your staff ... or your peers ... or your customers?
• When faced with something new and demanding ... or something familiar and comfortable?
• When accountable to others ... or accountable to your self?
• When well-rested ... or highly-caffeinated?
• When feeling ego ... or feeling gratitude?
• When there's a crisis ... or when there's not?

When are YOU at your Absolute Best and, more importantly, how can you spend more time in THAT place?

You're failing to appreciate MY attention span

This is a recent ad from a company called XPLANE, the visual thinking company - providers of clarity at the speed of sight. Now I can't tell from the ad what this company actually offers, but the dialogue between the presenter and her boss is absolutely fabulous.

Boss: Why didn't you boil this down?

Presenter: We DID boil it down, Richard. You're failing to appreciate the time and effort it took to do this.

Boss: You're failing to appreciate my attention span.

If you're already a leader, you'll understand this immediately. And if you're not, well, your presentations and emails and reports and voicemails and assorted updates are probably waaaaay longer than you realize.

So the next time you have some information to share , take a moment and consider the attention span of your intended audience before you begin. Remember, the goal is to be heard, not to impart everything you happen to know on a particular topic.

Get out of jail free ... or not!

Remember the game Monopoly? Well, a number of years ago I decided to try something with my staff and vendor personnel to encourage them to take more risks. But since taking more risks often means failing more, I also gave each of them a "get out of jail free" card -

- and told them that should they ever screw something up really badly, they could give their card back to me and I'd be cool.

Time passed and I saw people post their cards on their cubicle walls and bulletin boards. They told visitors what they were about. Some even developed the ritual of lightly touching the card each time they returned to their work area. And almost everyone starting taking more risks, which was great.

But the one thing that no one ever did, was actually use their card!

Oh, there were times when they should have. I'd even tell them so. "Knowing what I'm about to say and do," I'd begin, "I just want you to know that this would be a particularly good time for you to use your 'get out of jail free' card. Do you want to?" But uniformly, the response was, "No, I want to save it in case I do something I REALLY need it for."

I didn't understand it at the time, but just knowing that they had a Safety Net gave many people the confidence to not need one.

What Safety Nets do you have that you don't use, but are still glad you have?

What Safety Nets can you offer to others to help them move more meaningfully - and confidently - forward?

What do you do with information that others give you?

Most bosses want their employees to be open and honest with them. But depending on what you do with the information they provide, you may have already found that they've stopped giving you anything more than the absolute minimum.

In fact, it's pretty well known that if you "shoot the messenger" - that is, yell at someone who gives you bad news - people will stop giving you ANY news that you might even CONSTRUE as bad. Similarly, if someone gives you some information and you use it to embarrass or discredit them, or make them feel less, it won't take long for people to realize that you just can't be trusted.

It's a thin line to walk. But an important one because having access to NEW INFORMATION is a key component of being a better boss. Without it - or without much of it - you've got nothing to synthesize into new insights and ideas. (Read: no value-added.)

Since it's so much harder to solve a pesky problem if all you CAN know about it is what you already DO know about it,

• How do you keep the flow of NEW INFORMATION coming?
• How do you maintain your trustworthiness even though you sometimes have to use the information you receive against the very people who share it with you?
• What do you do to encourage people to continue communicating with you notwithstanding the consequences?
  

Please share your insights and ideas so others may benefit from them.

Sacred Cows behind Invisible Fences

Okay, well Sacred Cows aren't really pets, but this quirky comic from Non Sequitur cartoonist Wiley Miller got me thinking about how often managers treat certain outdated policies, procedures, and long-standing decisions - a.k.a. Sacred Cows - AS pets. That'd be one big-honkin' (big-moo'in?!) pet cemetery, now, wouldn't it? And it'd be filled with bazillions of living Sacred Cows.

Miller's pet cemetery is ironically protected by an invisible fence. Very clever. Imagine, then, that all of those living-Sacred-Cow-pets out there have invisible fences around them. It's not that implausible. After all, Sacred-Cow-pets MUST be protected ... they surely can't survive on their own merits. Imagine offices, everywhere, brimming with invisible fences protecting all sorts of living-Sacred-Cow-pets! No wonder cubicles feel so cramped.

The interesting coffee break conversation, then, is this: What Sacred Cows do we have around here and how can we get rid of them?

Not sure where your Sacred Cows are? Just nose around a bit and see where you get zapped by an invisible fence! That'll be the clue.

What does showing up mean to YOU?

When our self-esteem takes a hit, it’s not always easy to restore it back to its former level. And even if we do, it often only then becomes apparent that it wasn’t all that strong to begin with. So my advice to you is to go deep inside and decide whether you want to take more responsibility for how you let others affect you. I like what Woody Allen said about this: “80% of success is showing up.”

So what does showing up mean to you?

Managing Results or Decisions

I had a very interesting discussion with an executive coaching client this morning about what to do about several managers not meeting their key performance metrics. Objectively, there were some pretty significant organizational/infrastructure constraints in play that affected their ability to get the job done. But one manager in particular did a particularly poor job in dealing with these constraints. It was my view that to merely evaluate that person on results would miss a true developmental opportunity to discuss the quality of the decisions that manager made along the way.

Better decision-making does not always guarantee better results. And there are times when the right decision still yields the wrong outcome. But by and large, I believe it's a stronger Leadership Move to focus more on staff's decision-making than just on their results.

Results end with the quarter. But the ability to make better decisions lasts a lifetime.

Cultivating Trust - One Breath at a Time

According to an article in this month's Nature magazine (as reported by the Chicago Tribune) people who inhaled a brain compound called oxytocin became more trusting.

Imagine the implications - think used car salesmen, politicians, courtroom lawyers, for instance. Even your boss! What would it be like if anyone - as in ANYONE - could immediately improve your trust in them, without your knowledge or say so, just by spraying something in the air around you?

"When you see your friend walking down the hall towards you, oxytocin is probably released that signals to you that it is OK to approach this person," said Paul Zak, a co-author of the research report. [Our] study shows that sniffing oxytocin instantly produced the sort of trust that would normally build through a history of reliable dealings, he said.

In response to things getting carried away, Zak said, "Sprinkling this [oxytocin] in the air is not going to do anything - it has to be sprayed into your nostrils." But other experts, including Zak's co-author, Ernst Fehr, aren't so sure. "Our results have implications for the idea of free will," he said.

We've known, intuitively or otherwise, that our brains don't function on logic alone. Researchers, believing that humans are hard-wired to seek out trust and strive to be trustworthy, have even developed a new specialty in recent years - neuroeconomics, to study the effect that such biological effects have on economic decisions. Of course advertisers have long tried to manipulate our emotional brains. It's suspected that all those wonderfully heart-warming images and soundtracks actually cause a reflexive release of oxytocin inside our brains.

The implications are plentiful - good and bad. And all the more reason to get conscious and clear about who you are and what you really what so that you're the one who gets to decide about that, instead of someone else!

Now Listen to your Executive Coach - Get your Staff to Schedule THEIR Vacations

Hopefully you've starting at least thinking about taking some time off before too much more time passes. If so, good for you. If not, please reconsider. Remember, as the year progresses, it's only going to get more crazy. So even if you know that you want to take your vacation later in the year, submit whatever approval forms you need to get if officially approved so you can put it in your calendar to schedule around.

That being said, it's now time to turn your attention to your staff and their vacation plans ... or lack thereof.

I believe that bosses encourage (tacitly or otherwise) employees NOT to schedule their vacation. Are you one of those bosses?

Don't be.

Executive Coach Link

Listen to your Life Coach - Schedule a Vacation (a Life Coach Blog Entry)

So, we're several weeks into 2qtr2005 and it's time to start talking about your unscheduled vacation days.

"Vacation?! What, are you nuts?! I'm waaaaaaaaay too busy to be thinking vacation," I can hear you saying.

Yes, that's probably true, but if you think you're busy now, just wait! And don't forget, a full quarter of the year is already behind you. Can you say the same for your vacation days?

Besides, you don't have to necessarily TAKE your vacation now, but you really ought to schedule WHEN you'll take it.

And whatever you decide, be sure to take at least a long weekend for yourself (read: minimum of 4 days) before the end of May. You deserve it, you probably need it, and it's up to you to take it.

Life Coach Link