Managing What You Can’t Measure

When we talk with leaders about improving performance there is often initial skepticism.  After all they have typically been leading their organization for several years and they ‘know’ what to do.  In fact they may actually be successful in several tangible ways.  However, with several minutes of open conversation there is usually some source of frustration that comes to light.  It often is something they haven’t been able to change because they have not figured out how to measure it.  If they have data it is most often a lag measure rather than the lead measures which predict the end results and can be influenced by actions of one or more employees.  It is not always easy to do but most every aspect of business can be measured and when it is results tend to improve.  Contact us and we'll show you how it can be done.

Extraordinary Politeness

During the early stages of the first Gulf War the US Army experienced a recurring cycle of declining morale.  It would gradually improve and then decline again about every three weeks.  After several unsuccessful interventions they finally found a solution – extraordinary politeness.  In addition to adhering to standard military courtesies they found that by having servers in the mess hall provide extraordinary service and attention to soldiers as they went through the serving line the morale increased and the cycle of declines was broken.  By interacting politely with focused attention on each individual and their specific preferences among the available choices they significantly reduced complaints and irritations about food.  Although everyone was not 100% satisfied, most people had a positive experience and did not join in to create a growing chorus of complaints when someone expressed dissatisfaction.   The real success however was that breaking those negative attitudes went beyond the mess hall to their regular duties.  If attitudes did turn negative, three times a day there was a positive experience of service and politeness to counteract it.

Fortunately most of us are not in a war zone.  Yet complaints about the boss, employees, customers, vendors, co-workers, the government, the economy or other unpleasant situations can dominate conversations and create a cultural climate of low morale and disengagement.  Whether we are leaders of an army, a large corporation, a small business, head of a household or simply a member of a work team or informal social group we can change a negative climate by consciously being extraordinarily polite to those around us;  not complaining; and not joining in when we hear others complaining.  We encourage you to try it for three weeks at least three times a day and then let us know what you experienced.  We look forward to getting your feedback!

There is Only One Letter Difference Between Networking and Not Working

Business Networking has delivered more return on investment than any other business building tool. Both financially and in non-monetary terms, networking has proven to deliver exceptional value to any business new or established.

Did you know?

 

Networking is the number one recommended business building tactic guaranteed to boost business growth.

 

Business Networking will…

 

Attract new customers by building your profile, facilitating connections, and showcasing your products and services…

 

After all …..

 

People do business with those they know and trust. What better way is there to develop these types of strong business connections?

 

Bottom Line….

 

It works!

 

Critical to YOUR success and the success of your BUSINESS is BUSINESS NETWORKING!

 

The Peak Pathways Omaha Leads Club is designed to help YOU do just this!  We meet every Monday at noon.  If you are in the Omaha area and would like to visit the club to see if it is a fit for you please let one of us know or send an e-mail. 

Optimism and Happiness

The stock market is at record highs and spring is beginning to edge out the cold dark days of winter.  At the same time there are news stories of uncertainty about government taxes and spending; international threats of hostility; and various criminal activities.  Is it the best of times, the worst of times or both?

 

One of the elements of emotional intelligence and a key determinant of success at work and life is general mood, generally defined as happiness and optimism.  Most people have higher self regard when their mood is happy and optimistic and other people like to be around them making for generally rewarding interpersonal relationships.   

 

As simple as it may seem, happiness and optimism are essential for sustained success as a leader.  No one wants to follow a sad pessimist, except perhaps another sad pessimist!  Unfortunately many leaders face tremendous challenges and pressure that may make it quite difficult to remain happy and optimistic.   A good practice for recovering from negative circumstances that have you feeling sad and pessimistic is to go to ‘neutral’.  Halfway between sad and happy; pessimistic and optimistic is a reasonable goal in those situations.  A good analogy is the fuel gauge in your car.  If it indicates it is near empty, getting sad and angry because it won’t stay full is just as foolish as hoping it will be full again on its own.  The wise response of course is to take the fuel level as a neutral indication of fact and then respond with an action –such as stopping to fill up the tank.

 

Move away from acute pessimism by taking a few deep breaths while thinking of aspects of the situation that you are genuinely grateful for.  Oxygenized gratitude can do wonders!  Also talk with your coach, colleagues, or family & friends about the situation to get outside perspectives and most importantly simply take it as an indicator to plan appropriate actions to take.

 

To develop and sustain happiness, research has shown the following are good practices to adapt: (1) Three Gratitude Acknowledgments, three new ones each day for 21 days; (2) Journal daily about one positive experience in the last 24 hours; (3) Exercising; (4) Meditation; (5) Random/Conscious Acts of Kindness, one positive e-mail or conversation daily; (6) Limit news consumption; (7) Limit involvement with pessimistic people; and (8) Get 8 hours of sleep nightly.  Try one or more of these suggestions for an extended period of time and you likely will feel happier – and be a better leader!

Four Fingers!

If you see several people holding up four fingers you are either at a remedial safety course for power saw operators or at a football game entering the final period of play.  As time expires at the end of the third period of a football game many players and fans hold up four fingers as a statement of intention to increase focus and intensity to finish the game strong.

 

With October well underway we are all into the fourth and final quarter of the year.  What are your goals for 2012?  Have you already achieved them or have they been revised downward in order to still be attainable?  Either way it is time to hold up four fingers and recognize that it is time to increase focus and intensity to finish the year on an upward trend.  Even if 2012 ends up a little short of the original goal, you will be off to a fast start with positive momentum for 2013.  We are forming Master Mind Groups now so members can develop that fourth quarter intensity all year long.

 

If you need power saw safety, we know a guy who can help with that too!

Lonely Leaders

Leading is a lonely profession and it only gets lonelier the higher one gets in an organization. There is certainly potential for positive relationships with staff members but those have inherent limitations. Of course many professionals and solo proprietors work alone and they obviously have no one else in the organization to talk to. 

Who can a leader turn to when there are uncertainties on the horizon and tough decisions to make? Professional advisors such as bankers, attorneys, accountants and coaches are certainly a good source of outside perspective. Friends and family will likely be willing to talk and share perspective but they may tend to be either too kind or too critical and may not even fully understand the issue. Getting a meaningful perspective other than your own and follow through with effective action is critical to adapt to changing circumstances, threats, and opportunities. Average leaders are reluctant to ask for help, tend to avoid accountability, and choose to go it alone; great leaders however recognize their personal limitations and surround themselves with experts in various fields with cumulative experience that would be impossible for one person to have.

While the concept has been around for many years Napoleon Hill in the classic, "Think And Grow Rich", coined the term mastermind and defined it as: "The coordination of knowledge and effort of two or more people, who work toward a definite purpose, in the spirit of harmony….No two minds ever come together without thereby creating a third, invisible intangible force, which may be likened to a third mind, the master mind."

We have witnessed this concept help many organizations grow and flourish as we coach leadership, teamwork, sales, customer service, and communication skills. However we recognize at times more peer perspective is needed so we are now forming Peak Pathways master mind groups for leaders. Contact us for details at 402.332.3031 or send an e-mail to info@peakpathways.com

Doing What They Know

What do people do when they don’t know what to do?  They do what they know, however that may not be in alignment with what you as a leader want them to do.  It may be obvious that a leader should say what is expected but when it comes to the subtle skills of listening, communication, and generally interacting with other human beings few leaders provide training and direction.  However, those subtle skills and behavioral characteristics are often the critical ones that differentiate great from average.

Beyond modeling their own skills, leaders have three options: hire for those skills; train for those skills; or accept the skills that accompany the technical skills they hire for.  Unfortunately most leaders hire based on if the person can do the job and fire on how they do the job.  Best practice of course selects on both as well as whether the person actually wants to do the job.  We know from Leadership Charisma research that employee engagement and success are driven by fit with the job and a leader who helps them feel and fare better as a person as well as a professional.  Developing the subtle skills of employees is one of the best ways to do that.