Do You Have A Super Bowl Mentality to Communication? February 8, 2010
Posted by inspiredleaders in Communication, Leadership, Writing.Tags: Communication, Garth Roberts, inspired leaders, know yourself, Leadership, Super Bowl, Writing
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If you watched the Super Bowl yesterday, you saw superb communication in action. You also saw communication breakdowns. Not all of us recognized each one or understand how many communication breakdowns happened. They happened in an instance when the ball went one way and the receiver another. They happen continuously, and these players have rehearsed their communication, repeatedly!
So why don’t you rehearse most of your communication? Too many of us go to an office or a meeting with a vague idea of what we want to say, but definitely not a plan. Plans work, as both Baltimore and New Orleans can tell you. Both Baltimore and New Orleans can also tell you which communication didn’t work yesterday. Do you have the vaguest idea when your communication fails?
But I’m not a sports team, you say! No, you’re a business or personal team and you rely on superb communication to complete tasks or to get others to complete tasks. Next time you want to have excellent communication, which should be all the time. Pause for a few seconds and ask the following questions:
- Why am I communicating?
- Who is receiving my communication?
- What does heor she need to know?
- What’s the best way to communicate – letter, memo, e-mail or in-person?
- What do I need or want to have happen when I finish communicating?
- How will I know my communication has been successful?
Incidentally, if you can’t answer number five with clarity, stop before you start. If you don’t know what you want to have happen when you finish talking, you shouldn’t waste your time and definitely not the listener’s time.
Have a great Super Bowl day of communication!
Garth Roberts www.garthroberts.com
Lessons from a Bully February 1, 2010
Posted by inspiredleaders in Communication, Leadership.Tags: Communication, inspired leaders, know yourself, Leadership, management, supervisors
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Recently I had an emotional conversation, well, emotional for the other person. It could have been emotional for me; however, I chose not to play. A decision was made by a committee that didn’t fit with my colleague’s viewpoint. As the committee chair I became the point of attack, and it bordered on an attack. You may have had similar experiences at home or at work. Here’s how I handled the situation.
- Keep calm – don’t let emotions take over logic. Emotions only sidetrack you and escalate the situation.
- Listen – eventually the talker will wind down and finish venting. Like a balloon, all the air disappears. If you do say anything, ask questions for clarification.
- Logically respond – logic and facts trump emotion. Again, as you respond, ask questions and paraphrase what you heard. Make sure you have all the information, from the speaker’s point of view, before you begin offering solutions or confirm adherence to the previous decision.
- Acknowledge agreement isn’t necessary – acceptance of the situation or decision is desirable. If the talker won’t change or accept reality, too bad. As the old adage says, you can lead a horse to water but you can’t make it drink.
In my case the talker didn’t like the decision but accepted the reality of it and moved forward. I don’t expect the conversation will have lasting impact to our relationship. Had I reacted to the emotion and bullying, permanent damage would have been done. However, I do expect the same decision to be questioned in the future, but that’s another bridge to cross another day.
Garth Roberts www.garthroberts.com
Are You A Lifelong Learner? January 27, 2010
Posted by inspiredleaders in Communication, Leadership.Tags: business writing, Communication, inspired leaders, know yourself, leaders, Leadership, Writing
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Last night, for the first time in a long time, I conducted a continuing education class in business writing. Eight participants showed up to learn how to improve their business writing skills. As I went around the room to discover why they were in the class, I was pleased to learn how many of them are lifelong learners. Only a couple of people were there because their boss or supervisor suggested that they be there. I like it when people come to class because they want to be there not because they have to be there.
The term “lifelong learner” has been around for a long time and more and more I see people in all types of jobs expanding their education. That bodes well for the workforce. In a previous blog I talked about the concept of having a workforce that’s made up of innovators in North America. We can’t be the innovators if we aren’t continually learning and expanding our minds. How about you, what was the last program or course you took? Why did you take it? How did it help you? I look forward to your comments.
Garth Roberts www.GarthRoberts.com
What Happens When All the “Doers” Are Offshore? January 25, 2010
Posted by inspiredleaders in Communication, Leadership.Tags: Communication, inspired leaders, know yourself, Leadership, management, strategic planning, supervisors
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This morning a colleague predicted in ten years all the real work is going to be done off-shore. Only innovation will be left in North America. How does that strike you? The rationale is engineers, accountants, draftsmen, etc., in countries such as India and China are now trained to the same level as those in North America. Companies will soon be sending work off-shore because it can be done to the same level of competency for a portion of the price.
My colleague suggests that we only have innovation and invention, right brain stuff, as our back-up for growth in business. If this is the case, how many workers in North America are going to be left without jobs? The business model we’ve worked with for generations is going to be challenged. Left brain thinking will still be necessary but right brain thinking will dominate.
It’s an interesting theory. In my work I already see more and more people looking to work for leaders who care about their people. Right brain thinkers, if you will, are the ones who are attracting loyal employees. Left brain thinkers, who can be very, “it’s my way and do it now” employers, aren’t a lot of fun to work with or for. As a leader, how do you envision the future? How practical do you think it will be to have all your firms engineering, or other task related work, done off-shore?
Garth Roberts – www.garthroberts.com
Do you have “trigger” words? January 18, 2010
Posted by inspiredleaders in Communication, Leadership.Tags: Communication, inspired leaders, know yourself, Leadership, management, office politics, supervisors
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What one word should you drop from your conversation? In that question I have included a word I’d love to see dropped from many people’s vocabulary and that is the word “should”. Every time someone tells me I should do something I feel like saying, and you should mind your own business. So what words are triggers for you? Leaders need to understand which words trigger emotional reactions within themselves and within the people they work with. If you have a negative reaction to word, it immediately put you into a negative spin. Whether you want to admit it or not you judge the person who uses the word and your judgment tends not to be favorable.
For me judgment is another word I have a small problem with. I don’t like being judged and I try as hard as possible not to judge others. I’d love to say I’m successful but at least I’m aware when I am judging so I temper the judgment and open my mind to other possibilities.
Take five minutes, a pen and paper, and write down your trigger words. Next time you’re communicating with others remember these trigger words and become conscious of how they impact your reception to what’s being said and your action after the conversation. We become better conversationalist as we better understand our own emotional responses.
Garth Roberts, CSP
www.Garth Roberts.com
Is face-to-face conversation dying? January 13, 2010
Posted by inspiredleaders in Communication, Leadership.Tags: Communication, Havard Business Review, inspired leaders, Leadership, supervisors
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Recently I received notice a contract I’ve had for several years would not be renewed. I received the notice via e-mail. Quite frankly it ticked me off, not that the contract wasn’t renewed but how I was notified. I worked closely with these people and although it was an annual contract and not guaranteed to be renewed, I felt I should have received a phone call. Maybe I’m just not up to speed on 2010 business communication.
Harvard Business Review just published statistic that says 78% of companies are using more electronic means to communicate with their staff. Although the report suggests that 73% feel staff meetings are still important, only 58% still feel face to face is necessary when talking about money.
Every study I’ve ever seen says that face-to-face communication is the most effective method. Why are we moving away from talking with people? When I conduct seminars on communication one of the biggest complaints is the number of e-mails that hit each computer every day, and the fact that the guy in the next cubicle sends an e-mail rather than standing up and talking to his colleague. If the majority of people don’t like constant electronic communication, why do we do it?
Here’s a challenge, cut your e-mail output by 25% and replace it with face-to-face or phone to phone communication. At the end of the week, analyze your results. I think you’ll find your communication is far more successful.
Garth Roberts
www.garthroberts.com
Optimism in 2010 January 12, 2010
Posted by inspiredleaders in Communication, Leadership.Tags: Communication, Havard Business Review, inspired leaders, management, strategic planning
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The Harvard Business Review reports “Employers are juggling selective hiring and incentives with selective staff cuts as they position themselves for business improvement.” The HBR quotes a Mercer survey of 350 mid-sized and large U.S. companies. These companies expect to increase base pay by 2.7%. While lower than the actual 3.2% in 2009, it’s a good sign of optimism.
As leaders it’s critical to understand benefits to employees shouldn’t be on the chopping block first. So it would be interesting to learn how else these companies are going to reward their employees. Pay is essential but chat with long-term employees in any company and you’ll find that it’s not just the pay cheque that keeps them at the job. Think about your own career and write down some of the realities that kept you working for a given company. Was it the people, the tasks, the atmosphere or the satisfaction? It might be an interesting list that will give you, and others, great insight into the whole concept of rewards and recognition.
Rewards and recognition are critical. Be inventive in your planning in 2010 and become aware of what makes others tick. Your payback can be immense.
Garth Roberts
Common Sense just isn’t so common January 11, 2010
Posted by inspiredleaders in Communication, Leadership.Tags: Communication, etiquette, inspired leaders, Leadership, office politics
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“Common Sense is not Common Practice” is a nifty, little book by Rhonda Scharf. I’m working my way through it to produce a book report for a client. It’s not hard work. Rhonda has captured a wealth of information in 169 pages. The material is drawn from the author’s work in corporate Canada and the USA. My initial response is, while it probably won’t make the best seller list of “business books”, it’s a book leaders should read. It’s about business on the day-to-day level in the office.
Office Etiquette isn’t often a section in the mainstream business books. Neither is Office Harmony or Playing nice the sandbox. They should be. From my perspective too many managers look to the “high level” of office workings and ignore the day-to-day activities. It’s the day-to-day messes that make the business falter and ignoring these messes eventually impact the bottom line in a big way.
Check out Common Sense is Not Common Practice by checking out Rhonda at www.on-the-right-track.com.
A Little Paint Beats a New Year’s Resolution January 4, 2010
Posted by inspiredleaders in Communication, Leadership.Tags: Communication, strategic planning
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If you’ve made a New Year’s resolution or two, congratulations! If you’ve already fallen, don’t worry. Pick yourself up and go forward. Moving forward this year requires the same effort it has for the last, oh, 5000 years or so. Put one foot in front of the other, one plan in front of another and one action in front of another – just do it!
I didn’t make any resolutions this year. I haven’t for many years and I feel a lot better without lofty resolutions. What I did do, in conjuction with my son, is start the new year in December. We looked at our house and decided we’d do much better in 2010 if our home environment was spruced up. So, for the last four days in December we painted half of the interior of the house. What a difference!
The clean, bright look has inspired us to aim high in 2010. Not any higher than we’d already agreed to aim, but with a renewed vigor. New colours in two rooms and the hallway have done more for our inspiration than a dozen resolutions. So, if you’re holding on to your resolutions, great. If you’ve faltered, too bad. Don’t let it get you down. Stand up, look around, and decide what will lift your spirit to make 2010 a fantastic year. Is it a new look, a new address, a new friend or a new client? It doesn’t matter, just lead yourself into a bright new year.
Does Your Company Have a Transition Process? December 16, 2009
Posted by inspiredleaders in Communication, Leadership.Tags: Communication, Havard Business Review, know yourself, Leadership, management, supervisors
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“Hey, George, you’re the new supervisor. Good luck!”
OK, so it may not happen just like that but my experience tells me that most leaders are not given enough training for their job. Harvard Business Review statistics say that only 25% of companies feel they are good at transitioning individuals into their first managerial role. Is your company part of the non-functioning 75%?
Because companies don’t have continuous management shifts, changes in management tend to be an occasional thing. Occasional activities in companies don’t get the attention they deserve so procedures and processes often don’t exist. As a leadership trainer and coach I meet dozens of supervisors and managers who have never had any coaching or instruction on how to function in their new position. In my own history I can see times when I was offered an opportunity to lead and then left to fend for myself. I stumbled, picked myself up and occasionally stumbled again. Fortunately, I was in environments with mentors and role models. Plus, early on I got the opportunity to take management and leadership training. How about you?
My 7 Keys to Inspired Leadership is designed to help the “Georges” of the world who are dumped into management and left to fend for themselves. It’s a program that’s real, action oriented, and results oriented. Key One: Know Yourself – kicks activity off so a participant can really move from management to leadership.
