Often just being at work is. . .well, a lot of work. Plus, as a leader you want to put your best foot forward for your team, you need to manage competing priorities and be a key contributor to the enterprise. The net result is that you need an amount of energy approximately equal to what it takes to light up a small city. It's important, then, to realize both the opportunities to save energy and how to create energy.
Don't fret about rumors. Rumors are rumors; if they were facts we might actually be able to do something about them. In the workplace, especially in corporations, there will always be rumors about mergers and department changes and strategic turns. The only positive thing you can do is not honor these time detractors and keep your team moving forward.
Do Include Your Team in Decision Making. If your team owns the decision, they will be diligent in executing it. . .vs. you trying to justify your decision and end up doing everything yourself.
Don't Engage in Internal Warfare. It's an incredible waste of time. The mission of the enterprise is to be a strong competitor in the outside word, not to be it's own worst enem . Work for collaboration, not collision.
Do Take Time Away from Your Desk. Often we sit at our desks and end up staring at situations from quite literally the same perspective. Get up. Take a walk. Go to Starbuck's. Challenge your perspective and accompanying conclusions. . .bet you'll come back with a better, more efficient way to deal with the challenge at hand.
Don't Do Things Because "They've Always Been Done." Priorities change, group dynamics evolve and information is only useful if it's timely. Consistently challenge the way things have been done and look for new efficiencies.
Do Share the Workload. I have been so guilty of trying to do everything myself because either I didn't trust anyone else to do it or it just seemed easier to do it myself. Bad ideas - both short term and long term. By not sharing the workload, you are not advantaging your work of the diverse viewpoints teamwork brings AND you are disabling your work team by not teaching them how to do the work.
Don't Ignore Reality. Sometimes there is a situation we just don't want to deal with. . .and the longer we wait, the more challenging and time consuming it becomes. Make sure you know the facts and then deal with it already.
Don't Dwell in the Past. It takes you backward and that's a huge waste of power.
Do Learn from the Past. Make efficient use of past successes and perceived mistakes by learning and then continuously and consciously moving forward.
By editing when it is unnecessary to spend energy, and combing that with opportunities to create energy, you truly will be creating more sustainable leadership.
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Brent Frerichs is the author of "Courageous Questions, Confident Leaders" available for e-readers, tablets, PCs and Apple products on Amazon Kindle.
Wednesday, July 31, 2013
Wednesday, July 24, 2013
You Must Remember This
Great leadership is more complex than a series of phrases. There are, however, some fundamentals that support both leadership and teamwork. . .both in the workplace and at home. Here are a few:
Leadership is a selfless act.
Leaders know when to lead the charge. . .and know when to get out of the way. . .all in the name of progress.
Great leaders celebrate the diversity of the workplace.
People listen in different ways; leaders know how to maintain consistency in their messaging while tailoring their delivery for maximum effectiveness.
Compromise and collaboration are words of progress.
Extremism is seldom, if ever, necessary. The ability to balance is essential.
Humor is not a detractor; it is an activator.
Time spent listening to team members is an investment in the future. Time spent with team members does not get in the way of getting work done; it is getting work done.
Learning means that you are regarding nearly everything as information; be it good or bad it will help you formulate opinions and actions. Information presents opportunity.
Never stop learning.
There will always be bad times and good times; it is the leader's core beliefs that allow the leader and the team to survive the former and truly celebrate the latter.
Every individual, every issue is multi-dimensional. Nothing is as simple as it initially presents itself.
Success is not just the completion of a major project; success is also small moments of positive interaction that make the workplace better for all.
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Brent Frerichs is the author of "Courageous Questions, Confident Leaders" available for e-readers, tablets, PCs and Apple products on Amazon Kindle.
Leadership is a selfless act.
Leaders know when to lead the charge. . .and know when to get out of the way. . .all in the name of progress.
Great leaders celebrate the diversity of the workplace.
People listen in different ways; leaders know how to maintain consistency in their messaging while tailoring their delivery for maximum effectiveness.
Compromise and collaboration are words of progress.
Extremism is seldom, if ever, necessary. The ability to balance is essential.
Humor is not a detractor; it is an activator.
Time spent listening to team members is an investment in the future. Time spent with team members does not get in the way of getting work done; it is getting work done.
Learning means that you are regarding nearly everything as information; be it good or bad it will help you formulate opinions and actions. Information presents opportunity.
Never stop learning.
There will always be bad times and good times; it is the leader's core beliefs that allow the leader and the team to survive the former and truly celebrate the latter.
Every individual, every issue is multi-dimensional. Nothing is as simple as it initially presents itself.
Success is not just the completion of a major project; success is also small moments of positive interaction that make the workplace better for all.
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Brent Frerichs is the author of "Courageous Questions, Confident Leaders" available for e-readers, tablets, PCs and Apple products on Amazon Kindle.
Wednesday, July 17, 2013
Good Drivers, Good Team Players
We all spend too much time in traffic - so as you're sitting in the latest piece of congestion you might as well learn something - right? Take a few minutes and actively observe how drivers interact with each other. I have come to the conclusion that there are two types of drivers. . .and they personify two entirely different types of team players.
The first type of driver is one who believes that the road exists for the good of all who use it, and to that end, they conduct their driving with the idea of not only getting to their own destination, but also with the sense that their actions can help everyone on the road get home safely and sanely.
This is the driver who lets people in, who is willing to cede a little bit of ground for the common good. This is the driver who takes action guided by not only what is good and safe for their own vehicle and occupants, but what is in the best interest of all who share the road.
And then there's the driver whose only thought is how fast they can get to their destination; they are not concerned with an orderly flow, safety of others or even the rights of others. They will crowd ahead of everyone else, not give an inch and use the car horn as if it were an extension of their own voicebox.
Therein you have allegories for types of players in the office. Those who will work together and make things happen for the ultimate good; and those who are so interested in just getting to their own goals and fulfilling their own needs that they disregard the needs of anyone else.
Who would you rather share the road with? Who would you rather work with? Who do you trust?
Moreover (and you have experienced this while driving) someone cuts you off, refuses to let you in, cuts in where they shouldn't and guess what? At the next stop light, they really aren't any further ahead than you. Or, perhaps even better, you sail by while they are spending time at the side of the road with that nice patrol officer.
Same is true in the workplace; people delude themselves into believing that selfishly unaware behavior gets them ahead, but in the end, they are disrespected and really, no further ahead. Team players in the workplace who prove, by their actions, that they are aware of a shared responsibility help everyone get to their goals.
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Brent Frerichs is the author of "Courageous Questions, Confident Leaders" available on Amazon Kindle for e-readers, PCs and tablets. http://www.amazon.com/Courageous-Questions-Confident-Leaders-ebook/dp/B0095KPA6A/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1374103502&sr=1-1&keywords=courageous+questions%2C+confident+leaders
The first type of driver is one who believes that the road exists for the good of all who use it, and to that end, they conduct their driving with the idea of not only getting to their own destination, but also with the sense that their actions can help everyone on the road get home safely and sanely.
This is the driver who lets people in, who is willing to cede a little bit of ground for the common good. This is the driver who takes action guided by not only what is good and safe for their own vehicle and occupants, but what is in the best interest of all who share the road.
And then there's the driver whose only thought is how fast they can get to their destination; they are not concerned with an orderly flow, safety of others or even the rights of others. They will crowd ahead of everyone else, not give an inch and use the car horn as if it were an extension of their own voicebox.
Therein you have allegories for types of players in the office. Those who will work together and make things happen for the ultimate good; and those who are so interested in just getting to their own goals and fulfilling their own needs that they disregard the needs of anyone else.
Who would you rather share the road with? Who would you rather work with? Who do you trust?
Moreover (and you have experienced this while driving) someone cuts you off, refuses to let you in, cuts in where they shouldn't and guess what? At the next stop light, they really aren't any further ahead than you. Or, perhaps even better, you sail by while they are spending time at the side of the road with that nice patrol officer.
Same is true in the workplace; people delude themselves into believing that selfishly unaware behavior gets them ahead, but in the end, they are disrespected and really, no further ahead. Team players in the workplace who prove, by their actions, that they are aware of a shared responsibility help everyone get to their goals.
Like it? Share it!
Brent Frerichs is the author of "Courageous Questions, Confident Leaders" available on Amazon Kindle for e-readers, PCs and tablets. http://www.amazon.com/Courageous-Questions-Confident-Leaders-ebook/dp/B0095KPA6A/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1374103502&sr=1-1&keywords=courageous+questions%2C+confident+leaders
Tuesday, July 9, 2013
Building a Team Member's Success
Leaders are judged from all aspects (peers, superiors and direct reports) on their ability to have their team members build successes. The kind coincidence is that the more successful your team members are, the happier you should be as a leader.
The issue of coaching team success is deep and should be approached with critical thought and care. That being said, there are a few rules of thumb that enable you to build the success of your team members.
From the get-go, assure team members are aware of the company's, the team's and your goals. These should be stated consistently and often. There is a mindset of, "Well, we did our annual review of goals - we can cross that off the list for another year. . .or two." Instead, you should treat these goals as foundational to every work discussion and they should be woven throughout your conversations.
Ensure that your team has the tools needed to align themselves with, and execute to, these common goals. Some of the key questions I asked my team were: "Do you know what your role is in accomplishing the goals of the company?" and "Do you have the tools you need to accomplish your job?" These questions require the team member and leader to think about resources that are key to success.
Encourage your team to think of options: different ways to approach a project, new ways to tackle a deadline and several great ideas with which to meet a challenge. The critical exploration of options forces teams to become more familiar with the enterprise, the industry in which it is operating and the customers it serves. It builds tensile strength and creates a competitive advantage.
When a team member comes to you with an idea - don't pounce on what is wrong or why the idea won't work. Back up and think carefully, then positively accentuate the parts of the presentation that are aligned with the overall goals of the team and company. Spend at least as much time reinforcing the positive as you do in constructive criticism.
Celebrate success. In some institutions, success is treated as a mere by-product of work. In turn, the work becomes mundane and team members are uncertain of what it is they have contributed or accomplished. Calling out success builds success: it confirms to team members what it is that they have done correctly and allows them to use that as a foundation for the future.
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Brent Frerichs is the author of "Courageous Questions, Confident Leaders," available for e-readers, tablets and PCs on Amazon Kindle: https://kindle.amazon.com/work/courageous-questions-confident-leaders-ebook/B0095KPA6A/B0095KPA6A
The issue of coaching team success is deep and should be approached with critical thought and care. That being said, there are a few rules of thumb that enable you to build the success of your team members.
From the get-go, assure team members are aware of the company's, the team's and your goals. These should be stated consistently and often. There is a mindset of, "Well, we did our annual review of goals - we can cross that off the list for another year. . .or two." Instead, you should treat these goals as foundational to every work discussion and they should be woven throughout your conversations.
Ensure that your team has the tools needed to align themselves with, and execute to, these common goals. Some of the key questions I asked my team were: "Do you know what your role is in accomplishing the goals of the company?" and "Do you have the tools you need to accomplish your job?" These questions require the team member and leader to think about resources that are key to success.
Encourage your team to think of options: different ways to approach a project, new ways to tackle a deadline and several great ideas with which to meet a challenge. The critical exploration of options forces teams to become more familiar with the enterprise, the industry in which it is operating and the customers it serves. It builds tensile strength and creates a competitive advantage.
When a team member comes to you with an idea - don't pounce on what is wrong or why the idea won't work. Back up and think carefully, then positively accentuate the parts of the presentation that are aligned with the overall goals of the team and company. Spend at least as much time reinforcing the positive as you do in constructive criticism.
Celebrate success. In some institutions, success is treated as a mere by-product of work. In turn, the work becomes mundane and team members are uncertain of what it is they have contributed or accomplished. Calling out success builds success: it confirms to team members what it is that they have done correctly and allows them to use that as a foundation for the future.
Like it? Share it!
Brent Frerichs is the author of "Courageous Questions, Confident Leaders," available for e-readers, tablets and PCs on Amazon Kindle: https://kindle.amazon.com/work/courageous-questions-confident-leaders-ebook/B0095KPA6A/B0095KPA6A
Tuesday, July 2, 2013
Declare Your Independence from. . .
Since the Fourth of July is a celebration of freedom from tyrannical rule, it presents us with a great opportunity to reflect upon our own tyrannies from which we would like to declare independence. If, for some reason, you're short of ideas, here are a few.
Here's the big one: are you happy with what you're doing and where you're at? If not, strategize how to free yourself to be a happier, better and stronger professional.
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Brent Frerichs is the author of "Courageous Questions, Confident Leaders," available for all types of e-readers and PCs on Amazon Kindle. https://kindle.amazon.com/work/courageous-questions-confident-leaders-ebook/B0095KPA6A/B0095KPA6A
- Liberate yourself from the idea that you need to be right 100% of the time. It's not practical or even realistic. Know that great ideas and solutions can, and should, come from all members of the team.
- Equally liberating can be the exercise of balanced, constructive, critical thinking. Not everything is (in fact, hardly anything is) perfect. Find the opportunities for improvement in yourself, your team and your processes.
- Declare freedom from the idea that you need to be a martyr to be really good at your job. Yes, great work requires hard work and dedication; it also requires that you have a life outside of work that nurtures you and allows you to continue to be productive and creative.
- Speaking of which, free yourself from the office. . .escape the cubicle. . .take a few days off. It provides you with a new perspective as well as needed rest; it gives your team the chance to exercise greater responsibility. (By the way, even for leaders and teams that work exceptionally well together - it's good for the leader to spend time away from the team. . .and it's good for the team to spend time away from the leader!)
- Break away from the routine. We establish patterns that work for ourselves at a certain place and time. To a fault, sometimes we carry forward those routines not realizing that they really aren't working for the place, time or us. Feel free to re-invent your worklife and leadership style for greater effectiveness and efficiency.
- Free yourself from group dynamics that are not advantageous to you, your team or the mission of the enterprise. The only way to get out of the ruts, quite frankly, is for you to lead the way out of the ruts.
Here's the big one: are you happy with what you're doing and where you're at? If not, strategize how to free yourself to be a happier, better and stronger professional.
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Brent Frerichs is the author of "Courageous Questions, Confident Leaders," available for all types of e-readers and PCs on Amazon Kindle. https://kindle.amazon.com/work/courageous-questions-confident-leaders-ebook/B0095KPA6A/B0095KPA6A
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