Tips, Tools, & Techniques for Becoming the Best Leader You Can Be!!!

February 2, 2011 in Leadership with 0 Comments

Introducing The Leader Know How Blog

WELCOME!

As I work with Leaders around the country here’s what they tell me:

▫    The pace of work is still increasing…
▫    The amount of work is still increasing…
▫    The expected quality / standard of work is still increasing…
▫    And I want to be an increasingly better Leader.  For the most part I know what I should be doing, but with the increasing ‘everything’ it would be helpful if someone could boil it down into some practical tools and tips that I could easily implement.

Thus, the idea for Leader Know How was born.  Because, you know: it’s not enough to know; you need to Know How

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To Pee or Not To Pee?

November 14, 2011 in Communication, Interviewing, Strategy with 0 Comments

outhouse-wide

Is That a Powerful Interview Question?

A little humor around Behavioral Interviewing…

Last week I was teaching a class to hiring managers on how to ask Behavioral Based Interview Questions:  questions that give hiring managers the highest probability of getting useable information from the job candidate.  As I was going over the part about – all your questions need to be directly related to the job – not only to stay within legal guidelines, but also to give you directly relatable information (not to mention keeping a professional image of your company), one of my participants raised her hand.

She wanted to share one of her favorite questions, that didn’t fit within this guideline, but strongly felt that it was very effective.

Okay, please share.

I like to ask at the end of the interview, what animal is most like you?

zoo animals

Keeping my composure, I asked, “And what important information do you gain, by asking that question?”

Well, most of the answers feel so canned and contrived, so I want to shake things up and see how they think ‘out of the box’.

Ok, well…  if ‘thinking out of the box’ is a key requirement of the job, I can see how this might be of value.  BUT… how are you going to evaluate a good response from a poor response?  One person might say they are most like a eagle because they like see the big picture before they begin on the details.  Another might say I’m like a turtle, because I need to stick my neck out to make things happen.  Or I’m like a pig, because I love the color pink and I don’t mind rooting around and getting ‘dirty’ to get things done.  What criteria are you going to use to say an answer is good or poor?  Hmmm….

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Be Wacky – Helping Your People Un-Stick Their Thinking

February 4, 2011 in BrainPower, Problem Solving, Strategy with 0 Comments

wacky |ˈwakē| (also whacky)

funny or amusing in a slightly odd or peculiar way

eccentric, unconventional, uncommon, abnormal, irregular, aberrant, anomalous, odd, queer, strange, peculiar, weird, bizarre, outlandish, freakish, extraordinary; idiosyncratic, quirky, nonconformist, outré; way out, offbeat, freaky, oddball, kooky.

 Brain Ruts

Why do we get stuck in our ways of thinking, such that new possibilities keep eluding us?   Brain RUTs!  It’s as if the wagon wheels on our thinking trails, just keep carving deeper and deeper ruts.

Wagon Wheel Ruts

Try this to see how deep our “thinking ruts” are.

Ask people to give you a color, a type of furniture and a flower.  Did you hear a lot of red or blue, chair or table and rose or daisy?

Established patterns in our brains can be a good thing.  It helps us tie our shoes without thinking. It helps us attend to the whole and not have to painstakingly think about the parts.  It is why we can see the forest, and not just the trees. These patterns help us.  But sometimes these thinking patterns can get us stuck.  They can hinder us from finding that break-through idea.

Get out of the Rut:  Be Wacky!

Being WACKY can help us break out of our repetitive ways of thinking. Teams begin to see what was hiding behind their mental blinders when they take diverse, creative, and even silly perspectives. These out-of-the-ordinary perspectives can then be used to generate new paths of action.

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Trust-Full Relationships Part 2: How do we build Trust?

February 4, 2011 in Communication, Leadership, Trust with 0 Comments

free-summary-7-habits-highly-effective-peopleWe all know what a financial bank account is.  We make deposits into it and build up a reserve from which we can make withdrawals when we need to.  An Emotional Bank Account is a metaphor that describes the amount of trust that’s been built up in a relationship…If I make deposits into an Emotional Bank Account with you through courtesy, kindness, honesty, and keeping my commitments to you, I build up a reserve.  Your trust toward me becomes higher, and I can call upon that trust many times if I need to.  I can even make mistakes and that trust level, that emotional reserve, will compensate for it. — Stephen R. Covey on The Emotional Bank Account

How do we build Trust?  The Trust Bank Account

By looking at the different facets of Trust we get an idea of how we can build Trust – as Stephen R. Covey (the senior) would put it – How do we make deposits?

piggy-bank

Sincere – we both mean what we say; There are no hidden agendas between us

If we notice hidden agendas or question another’s motives, there is a breakdown in trust.  To repair this breakdown we might:

  • Ask people to share what’s in it for them, in being part of this initiative
  • Have everyone share what ‘success’ means for them
  • Ask the other person to clarify what they mean by _________

Competent – we have the skills & motivation to do what we commit to

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Trust-Full Relationships Part 1: What is Trust and Why is it Needed at Work?

February 4, 2011 in Leadership, Trust with 0 Comments

 

Speed of Trust“There is one thing that is common to every individual, relationship, team, family, organization, nation, economy and civilization throughout the world — one thing which, if removed, will destroy the most powerful government, the most successful business, the most thriving economy, the most influential leadership, the greatest friendship, the strongest character, the deepest love.  On the other hand, if developed and leveraged, that one thing has the potential to create unparalleled success and prosperity in every dimension of life.  That one thing is trust.” — Stephen M.R. Covey

 What is Trust?

Trust is the critical element of a relationship.  As Stephen M. R. Covey (the junior) puts it… Lack of trust destroys; Presence of trust creates.  My favorite definition of Trust is ‘firm reliance’.  As leaders we must ask ourselves – how would I describe the bond between the people I work with and myself?  Is it Full of Trust?  When I work with others – do we seem to give each other the benefit of the doubt – or is there constant doubt and questioning.  Would people say you are credible or question the accuracy of your statements?  Do others know we mean what we say, or do others always check for a hidden agenda?  When we hit a roadblock in a project, does the team seamlessly adjust to overcome, or does the roadblock stop the team in its track – needing crystal clarity to proceed.

iStock_hands joined Medium

At work, we want relationships where we can firmly rely on each other, so that even when the inevitable problems and issues arise, we can continue to adapt and move forward.

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Are Your Circuits Overloaded?

February 4, 2011 in Brain Power with 0 Comments

Brain functioning tips to help you focus and get more done!

Stressed businesswomanMany leaders that I work with tell me that they feel overwhelmed with how much they are asked to do. Quite simply too much to do plus too little time equals stressed! These same leaders search out time management techniques that will allow them to cram more into their very full days. But I wonder? Are they focusing on the right culprit? Is it really a lack of time? Or is it a lack of energy (mental energy that is)?

Here’s a easy to read Harvard Business Review article written by a medical doctor that helps us understand what goes on in our brains when we try to cram too much into our days:

Overloaded Circuits: Why Smart People Underperform - Dr. Edward M. Hallowell of the Hallowell Center, - HBR: January 2005

Attention Deficit Disorder – This is the focus area of Dr. Hallowell’s practice. Dr. Hallowell was seeing an emerging trend in his practice. Adults were showing up in his office, complaining of ADD symptoms, but their brain was functioning properly.   In sum, they couldn’t focus – seem scattered and overwhelmed.
The Big Question: So what might be going on in the work environment that is causing the lack of focus?
Conclusion: Overloaded Circuits – Dr. Hallowell calls it ADT: Attention Deficit Trait

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Body Stance: A Communication Tool for Receiving and Sending Information

February 4, 2011 in Leadership with 0 Comments

Recently I was asked to give a talk on body language. People wanted to know: What does it mean if I cross my arms? Should I be leaning forward or leaning backward when giving feedback? Is it okay to talk with my hands? What about eye contact? Should I…? Shouldn’t I…?

Well… the answer is… IT DEPENDS!

Communicating through body language is less about specific gestures and more about what the entire stance communicates. This applies to both Receiving and Sending information through body language. Here’s what I mean.

Receiving Information through Body Stance

stress-women-istock_000003830772small-300x198Receiving information through body stance is intuitive. In my talk I show this picture. Everyone instinctively knows this woman is stressed. We don’t need a degree in Body Language Interpretation to understand what is going on internally. However, the part of understanding body stance where leaders often need development is the emotional intelligence connection, i.e., is my empathetic sensor working such that I slow down, interpret what I’m seeing and adjust my conversational approach? When she’s in this stressed-out body stance, saying to her, “What’s going on with project X? Why is it behind schedule and over cost?” is not a very effective way to start the conversation. I know this is blatantly obvious, wrong behavior, but I’ve seen leaders do this many times; not observe the audience, fail to adjust the approach and then act shocked when the message is poorly received!

So the first lesson of interpreting body stance is: Remember – what’s happening on the inside is creating what is happening on the outside. So use what you perceive on the outside as clues to what’s happening inside and SLOW DOWN – ADJUST YOUR APPROACH!

Sending Information through Body Stance

To quote Niels Bohr:  “The opposite of a correct statement is a false statement, but the opposite of a great truth is another great truth.”

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Communicating Effectively

February 4, 2011 in Communication, Feedback, Leadership with 0 Comments

Think (FIRST about INTENT) Before You Speak

Think before you speak.  Have you ever been told that?  It’s wise advice.  When I coach people about being more effective in their communication, I remind them to FIRST figure out what you are trying to accomplish through a conversation.  By establishing the INTENT of the conversation, the right words will form in your brain.  And if the right words form in your brain, it is more likely that the right words will come out of your mouth and the wrong words will not.  Simply put – Your communication mantra should be:  1st Mind (Intent), 2nd Body (Stance), 3rd Mouth (Words)

Businessman With Duct Tape On His MouthExample – Randy, please shut up and listen:  A manager I was coaching a couple of years back, asked me to follow him around for a day to see if I could figure out why people didn’t want to work with him – (that’s the polite way of saying… they thought he was a jerk).  So Randy and I went off to his first meeting.  I asked Randy:

CNM:  “So who called this meeting?”

RANDY:  “The director we are meeting with”

CNM:  “And what is the topic (INTENT) of this meeting?”

RANDY:  “I have no idea”

CNM – to myself:  “OK then, this is going to be good!”

Do you know what Randy did?  He sat down in the director’s office and started talking!  And TALKED… And TALKED… and TALKED…  For 20 minutes, he hijacked the conversation and did not let the director get a word in.  Finally, in frustration, the director said, “Randy! I asked you here today to discuss…”

CNM – to myself:  “Oh, thank goodness she finally stopped him!”

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Be a Better Feedback Giver

February 2, 2011 in Feedback with 0 Comments

Think… 5 to 1

clipart-thumbsup-kids3-150x150Sometimes I think I missed the really good stuff in graduate school. I received my degree in Industrial / Organizational Psychology before the Positive Psychology trend – or shall I say, sharp right turn – really took off. When I went to school, psychologists spent most of their time studying people who weren’t functioning well and then tried to apply the learning to the rest of us. The sharp turn happened when the simple idea was proposed that there is also a lot to be learned from studying successful, well-adjusted people. [Such a simple, yet profound idea]

A quote from www.happier.com on Positive Psychology

Unlike traditional psychology that focuses on deficits, disease, and dysfunction, positive psychology highlights human strengths and potential, and celebrates what is best in life. It emphasizes goals, well-being, satisfaction, happiness, interpersonal skills, perseverance, talent, wisdom, and personal responsibility. Positive psychology is concerned with understanding what makes life worth living, with helping people become more self-organizing and self-directed, and with recognizing that people and experiences are embedded in a social context.

Some GOOD STUFF on Feedback from Positive Psychology Research

When I teach Leader-Managers how to give effective feedback, I often ask them the question, “What ratio between Appreciative / Thank You Feedback TO Constructive / Something Needs to Change Feedback creates the most productive work environment possible?” Most of my Leader-Managers guess 2:1. I then ask, “So what actually happens in your work environment?” They answer, “It’s 1:1 if we’re lucky”. [Of course you know the real answer, because you’re reading this blog.

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Reading about Leadership: If you really want to learn something, you need to do more than read about Leadership

February 2, 2011 in Philosophy, Reading, Strategy with 0 Comments

There is A LOT written about Leadership.  It’s overwhelming!  (And here I am adding to the pile with my blog)  Hopefully, my recommended reading will help focus your reading list.  I’m only going to recommend my favorites – those books and articles that have been helpful to me and those I teach on our journey to becoming better leaders.

And the added benefit of my reading list is it comes with Know How Notes.  Know How Notes are ideas about how you could apply what you are reading to your practice of Leadership.

Because let’s face it – just reading about Leadership won’t make you a better Leader – you actually have to practice the ideas that are suggested in what somanybooksyou read and incorporate them into how you lead.

Sometimes that can be pretty overwhelming, because there are a LOT of leadership ideas to try out.  Remember, becoming a great leader is a life long journey – you’ve got time.  As I tell participants in my leadership classes – it’s just one step forward (towards greatness) at a time.

So each of my book or article recommendations comes with an idea of how you could try out something in the book.  But you can create your own as well.  Here’s how…

1)  Read each article with an ‘eye’ for one idea that would strengthen your Leadership skills
2)  Think of how you would practice that idea – how you will practice, where you will practice it, when you will practice AND THEN TRY IT OUT
3)  After each practice – REFLECT:  What work well (what should I repeat), What will I do differently next time
4)  Practice again – 21 times until it becomes a habit – and the CELEBRATE your learning success
And finally – repeat these steps with your next Leadership Practice