21 Mar
[email protected] Leadership, Success

Goals and Measures – Keys To Success

People with goals succeed because they know where they are going.
–Earl Nightingale

We’ve discussed how VISION statements are dreams or aspirations that provide direction and also how MISSION statements provide us with clarity and personalize our VISION statements. The next key elements for success include GOALS and MEASURES.

GOALS add even more clarity to our vision and mission statements and ACTION is required.    Think in terms of what, when, and how the actions will be executed, by whom, and in what time frame. (Dates must be identified, even if they are only target dates).

GOALS keep us moving forward. They help us focus and track progress towards what we’d like to achieve. No one knows why a written goal is more effective than one that’s known and understood but not committed to paper. Some psychologists theorize that writing triggers important processes in the subconscious, which in turn inspires action towards achieving those written goals. So, don’t keep your goals in your head, document and share them!

It’s okay to start small. Consider one to three goals you wish to accomplish this year. Make sure they are clear; if the goals require others to be involved ensure that the “supporting” cast knows their roles, and that time frames, tasks, and ownership are assigned. (ex. Who’s going to what by when with weekly check-ins).

Note: Understand that goals can be changed or dropped – the idea is to keep on target with your desired results. Sometimes goals must change when dependencies or personal or organizational strategies and priorities change. That happens. Communicate the “what and why”, and document and share the new goals.

Don’t neglect to include measures that track your progress. Have milestones been met? Why or why not? Celebrate your successes and assess any misses (what kept you off track? What’s needed to gain momentum and move forward?)

What would it take for you to get excited and motivated to realize your goals? Determine what you want to achieve, make a plan, commit to it, and go for it!

Sticking to good habits can be hard work, and mistakes are part of the process.   Don’t declare failure simply because you messed up or because you’re having trouble reaching your goals. Instead, use your mistakes as opportunities to grow stronger and become better.—Amy Morin

14 Mar
[email protected] Leadership

Vision versus Mission

Outstanding people have one thing in common: An absolute sense of mission.
–Zig Ziglar

Last week we talked about VISION statements and shared that they are a dream or aspiration that provide us with direction. This week we’ll take it a bit deeper and talk about MISSION. Mission statements bring clarity to our vision; it represents what we must do to support realizing our vision, and it personalizes it for us.

Below are a few comparison examples of vision and mission statements:

ZAPPOS
VISION: Our purpose is to live and deliver WOW!
MISSION: As we continue to grow, we strive to ensure that our culture remains alive and well through our 10 Core Values:

Deliver WOW Through Service
Embrace and Drive Change
Create Fun and A Little Weirdness
Be Adventurous, Creative, and Open-Minded
Pursue Growth and Learning
Build Open and Honest Relationships With Communication
Build a Positive Team and Family Spirit
Do More With Less
Be Passionate and Determined
Be Humble

AMAZON
VISION: To be earth’s most customer-centric company; to build a place where people can come to find and discover anything they might want to buy online.
MISSION: Amazon is guided by four principles: customer obsession rather than competitor focus, passion for invention, commitment to operational excellence, and long-term thinking.

MICROSOFT
VISION: To empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more.
MISSION: Empower people through great software anytime, anyplace, and on any device, and to help people and businesses throughout the world realize their full potential.

TARGET
VISION: Make Target your preferred shopping destination in all channels by delivering outstanding value, continuous innovation and exceptional guest experiences by consistently fulfilling our Expect More. Pay Less. Brand Promise.
MISSION: We fulfill the needs and fuel the potential of our guests. That means making Target your preferred shopping destination in all channels … Besides getting paid, the “company mission” is the most important thing for a Target employee.

Note: Target also stated that comparably data clearly shows that a focused mission statement and cohesive core company values are vital to maintaining employee alignment.

PEOPLETEK
VISION: Creating Worldwide, Individual, Team and Organizational Excellence
MISSION: Connecting leaders, teams and organizations to the coaching development and tools they need to be successful

As you read through them, did you think the MISSION statements added clarity each VISION? Does your workplace have both VISION and MISSION statements? Do you know how to support them?  Stay tuned!

Stay focused on the mission.
— Naveen Jain

07 Mar
[email protected] Leadership

Having A Known Vision

VISION = A dream or aspiration that provides direction and guides us to a place far away. It may be unattainable, but we can focus our attention and make strides for ideally getting there.

Having written VISION, MISSION, GOALS, and MEASURES is old “news”, but they are essential elements for achieving the results we (and our organization) desire. Not everyone has a vision statement and struggle creating one, so we wanted to share a few:

ZAPPOS: Our purpose is to live and deliver WOW!

AMAZON: To be earth’s most customer-centric company; to build a place where people can come to find and discover anything they might want to buy online.

FORD: People working together as a lean, global enterprise to make people’s lives better through automotive and mobility leadership.

MICROSOFT: Empower people through great software anytime, anyplace, and on any device, and to help people and businesses throughout the world realize their full potential.

DISNEY: To make people happy.

CVS: We will be the easiest pharmacy retailer for customers to use.

TARGET: Make Target your preferred shopping destination in all channels by delivering outstanding value, continuous innovation and exceptional guest experiences by consistently fulfilling our Expect More. Pay Less. Brand Promise.

And ours:
PEOPLETEK: Creating Worldwide, Individual, Team and Organizational Excellence.

As you can see, some visions are very simple and to the point, and others add a bit more detail. There is no right or wrong vision statement as long as it’s a dream or aspiration that provides direction.

Do you have and support a vision statement? Is it understood and shared across the organization?

Good leaders have vision and inspire others to help them turn vision into reality. Great leaders create more leaders, not followers. Great leaders have vision, share vision, and inspire others to create their own.– Roy T. Bennett, author The Light in the Heart

28 Feb
[email protected] Leadership

Listen for Energizers

One of the most sincere forms of respect is actually listening to what another has to say.
—Bryant H. McGill

When you saw “Listen For Energizers” what came to mind? That it was a weird subject? Energizers are a part of magic dust and should be both listened for, and shared.

When you’re having one on one feedback or update sessions, do you listen (and watch) for excitement? Enthusiasm? Joy? Do you watch for levels of engagement? Does the person lean in?

This is all part of someone’s magic dust and as leaders it’s something we need to pay attention to. Not only is this respectful, it provides us with an understanding of how others feel, and shows that we’re interested in the person.

We don’t always have a lot of latitude when assigning work, projects, or tasks, but whenever possible, it behooves us to consider the requirements and match them with not only the skill-set, but with each person’s magic dust. Note: Often skills that are well done are linked with magic dust, but not always.

As leaders it’s important to pay attention to the type of work that others thrive on, and it’s equally beneficial for us to share our own interests with those we report to. We’re not saying you’ll only be given work that you enjoy doing (wishful thinking!), but if we’re candid about what kind of work we find most enjoyable, maybe we’ll be lucky enough to get more of those assignments.

Capitalizing on personal strengths will help with achieving results, as well as increasing satisfaction levels within the work culture.

Do you listen for energizers?

Listening is a master skill for personal and professional greatness.
—Robin S Sharma

21 Feb
[email protected] Leadership

Known and Unknown Gifts

One of my greatest talents is recognizing talent in others and giving them the forum to shine.—Tory Burch

Last week we asked if the happy factor was part of your magic dust. Was this hard to answer? Did you think about your general disposition and how you view life? Perhaps you considered whether you think more about the negatives in your world than the positives?

How you view the world is likely to be impacted by your magic dust. (For those that missed it, we suggested thinking of magic dust in terms of what you’re good at, what comes easy to you, your unique skills and abilities, and what you enjoy doing.)

Remember the Johari Window? It consists of four window panes:

OPEN: This is our conscious self – our attitudes, behaviors, motivation, values, way of life – not only are we are aware of them, but they are also known to others.

HIDDEN: Our hidden areas are not known to others unless we choose to share them.

BLIND: There are things about ourselves which we do not know, but that others see. (This is when feedback is invaluable).

UNKNOWN: We and others are not aware of what falls in this quadrant. Sometimes something new reveals itself.  Ex. Art, sports, or other new talents and skills are discovered.

Give thought to the 4 window panes:

  • What magic dust is known to both you and others?
  • Do you have a talent/skill that is only known by you? Is there a reason to not share it?
  • Have you ever received feedback or been told you have a special skill or add value in a way that was a surprise to you?
  • For those that have gone through the 363 feedback process, are your “self ratings” aligned with the ratings provided by others? Were there any surprises?

Now think about colleagues and your immediate boss – can you identify their magic dust? What makes them stand out? Take a few minutes to think about what you view as their special skills and talents.

If you’re comfortable doing so, share your thoughts with them. You may have the ability to enlighten them and expand their “open” window!

It’s good to test yourself and develop your talents and ambitions as fully as you can and achieve greater success; but I think success is the feeling you get from a job well done, and the key thing is to do the work.—Peter Thiel

14 Feb
[email protected] Leadership

The Happy Factor

We believe we should work hard in order to be happy, but could we be thinking about things backwards?
—Shawn Achor

Have you ever worked for someone that made you enjoy being around them? That you felt uplifted, happy, and inspired, and that you wanted to help them achieve desired results?  Better yet, that YOU are that type of leader?

Psychologist Shawn Achor’s TedTalk shares that “happiness inspires us to be more productive”. Some leaders have a special gift (aka “Magic Dust”) that authentically influences the workplace happy factor.

Achor’s studies found that it’s not necessarily the reality that shapes us, but rather the lens through which our brains view the world that shapes our reality.

His studies provided some interesting data:
90 percent of our long-term happiness is predicted not by the external world, but by the way our brain processes the world

25% of job successes are predicted by IQ, and 75 percent of job successes are predicted by optimism levels.

He also shares that our brains can be re-wired to become more positive and provides the following five tips for creating lasting and positive change:

  1. Write down three new things that you’re grateful for 21 days in a row (each day must have 3 new items)
  2. Journal your positive experience
  3. Exercise
  4. Meditate
  5. Conduct random acts of kindness

Is an element of your magic dust the happy factor? How do you impact the happy factor of others?

Our greatest happiness does not depend on the condition of life in which chance has placed us, but is always the result of a good conscience, good health, occupation, and freedom in all just pursuits.—Thomas Jefferson

The next leadership tip will include the Johari Window. This is very helpful for expanding on your Magic Dust. Your known and unknown gifts help you to become the very best leader.

07 Feb
[email protected] Leadership

What’s Your Magic Dust?

The meaning of life is to find your gift.  The purpose of life is to give it away.
—Pablo Picasso

Are you familiar with our term “magic dust”?  Some think of fairy dust or Peter Pan’s Tinkerbell flitting about.  Not exactly!

Think in terms of what you’re good at.  What comes easy to you? What unique skills and abilities do you possess that impact your level of effectiveness? What do you like doing? (Chances are you’re good at it).

How do you use and apply your special gifts? Do you make others aware of them? Better yet, do you use them to help achieve results and to develop others?  These skills and abilities are our gifts, and that’s what we call “magic dust”.

Our “magic dust” differentiates us from others and often guides us to the type of work or career we find fulfilling. It’s fairly easy and natural to identify what we don’t like doing, and we generally know what we are not good at, but we’re not always aware of why we feel we had a great day at work and just in general feel good.

Are you able to define a good work day? What gives you a sense of accomplishment? Does it include leading others or contributing to their success? Leadership can be formal (ex. direct reports, matrix management, project manager, mentorships, etc), or it could be informal, where your skills lend themselves to you taking “charge”.

This could be related to your ability to build relationships, achieve common goals and objectives, apply your technical savvy, or simply that you are respected, appreciated, and looked up to.

What leadership qualities do you bring to your team or organization?  Are you able to integrate your gifts/strengths both in your career and in your personal life?  It’s great when your ambition and talents serve you rather than enslave you!

This may sound funny, but we have worked with leaders that excel at what they do, are acknowledged and rewarded for their accomplishments, but they quite simply don’t LIKE what they’re doing!

Hopefully that does not apply to you! What made you choose the position you currently have? Do you find it motivating and energizing?

Knowing what you enjoy and where you add the most value will energize you. Using those gifts and skills will increase your level of fulfillment, and sharing them with others will add to your sense of purpose.

What’s your “magic dust”?

Over the years, I’ve learned that a confident person doesn’t concentrate or focus on their weaknesses – they maximize their strengths.—Joyce Meyer

31 Jan
[email protected] Leadership

The Critical “C’s”

The key to an ideal workplace, in one hyphenated word, is this: self-awareness.
–Neil Blumenthal

Awareness continues to be our theme and we suggest conducting a self assessment in what we call the Critical C components.  Rate yourself 1 – 10 in each category (10 = highly effective); any area that scores less than 8 can be considered a target growth area:

SCORE
Clarity                                   _____
Communication                  _____
Coaching                               _____
Courage                                 _____
Compassion                          _____

In the past we’ve only talked about 5 Critical C’s, but we ran across a quote by Zig Ziglar that said “you must make a choice to take a chance or your life will never change“, so we’re adding 3 more:

SCORE
Choices                                _____
Chances                               _____
Changes                               _____

Some may be easier to rate than others; ask colleagues, trusted friends, and even family members how they would rate you. It’s a simple form of feedback that may provide you with some great insights. It’s also a great starting point to identify where you are today, and gets you thinking about where you want to be.

Determine what’s most important to you and listen to your inner voice. What behaviors can you modify?  Eliminate? Incorporate?

We all benefit from increasing our awareness levels as it enhance relationships, improves results, and drives us to be a more effective leader. Where will you start?

Working together on solving something requires a high level of humility and a
high level of self-awareness.–Paul Polman

24 Jan
[email protected] Leadership

What Are You Doing For Others?

Average leaders focus on results, and that’s it. Good leaders focus also on the behaviors that will get the results. And great leaders focus, in addition, on the emotions that will drive these behaviors.
–Hitendra Wadhwa (professor, Columbia Business School / Founder, Mentora Institute)

This week in the United States we once again celebrated the life and memory of Martin Luther King, Jr, a minister, a civil-rights activist, an advocate of nonviolence, and a Nobel Peace Prize winner (1964).

Dr. King influenced so many without being arrogant, without being a bully, without looking down and speaking poorly of others, and without being divisive.  Quite the contrary, his focus was on peace and unity, and one of his most famous quotes was “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?”

He was a leader that held true to his beliefs, and promoted the behaviors required for everyone to be judged on their personal qualities, (not their color) and that violence not be responded to with violence, but rather with actions of peace.

Dr. King shared his “I Have a Dream” speech (and vision) at the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. He wanted to create a national movement to promote equality and economic opportunities for everyone, and that people would not be “judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.”

Professor Wadhwa provides the following insights from Martin Luther King, Jr’s “I HAVE A DREAM” speech:

  • Great leaders do not sugar-coat reality
  • Great leaders engage the heart
  • Great leaders refuse to accept the status quo
  • Great leaders create a sense of urgency
  • Great leaders call people to act in accord with their highest values
  • Great leaders refuse to settle
  • Great leaders acknowledge the sacrifice of their followers
  • Great leaders paint a vivid picture of a better tomorrow
  • Great leaders know it’s always right to do what is right

And we’ll add one:  Great leaders want to make others be their best; they take others where they have not been before, and would not go by themselves.

What are you doing for others?

Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.–MLK

17 Jan
[email protected] Leadership

One Thing

The quality of a person’s life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor.
–Vince Lombardi

If you had to pick just one thing you wanted to achieve or change in 2019, what would it be?

It could be related to your professional life (for you as an individual, or for your team/organization), or it could be related to your personal life.

From an individual perspective:

  • Where do you want to be more impactful? (personally or professionally)
  • What areas would you like to see grow? (financially or intellectually)
  • Are there relationships that need to be developed or enhanced?
  • Does communication need to be addressed – is it insufficient or lacking clarity?
  • Is there a commitment to continual learning?
  • Does complacency have any role?
  • How’s the home / work balance?

From an organizational perspective, do colleagues:

  • Trust one another?
  • Have open lines of communication?
  • Engage in healthy conflict?
  • Commit to decisions?
  • Hold one another accountable?
  • Focus on achieving collective results?
  • Does the work culture support the agile mind-set?
  • Is risk taking encouraged?
  • Are differences appreciated and leveraged? (strengths/behaviors/styles/values)

It all starts with awareness; what do you envision for 2019? How do you plan to make it real, and are there any barriers preventing success?

What’s one thing you want to achieve or change?

We can help!

The only limit to your impact is your imagination and commitment.
–Anthony Robbins

10 Jan
[email protected] Leadership

Confidence, Courage, Success

We gain strength, and courage, and confidence by each experience in which
we really stop to look fear in the face… we must do that which we think we cannot.
–Eleanor Roosevelt

Do you agree that leadership requires courage and confidence?  We do. So much so, we created the word “courageability” and defined it as “The single most important attribute any leader must have in order to be effective and successful”.

Not only is courage required for leaders to be successful, it must be supplemented with confidence.

Leaders are expected to be confident regardless of the situation. They are expected to be authentic (sharing what is meant and felt), they take risks to achieve results (and expect others to do the same), and they must “Take others where they have not been before and would not go by themselves”.

Success Magazine provides the following about CONFIDENCE:

1. Persevere
Take a step toward pushing your big idea off of the ground. Failure is inevitable. Don’t let it stop you from acting on your dreams.

2. Practice self-care
Words have the power to damage our self-esteem and leave us reeling. When this happens, list your strengths and remind yourself of the value you have to offer.

3. Push back
Today, build your confidence muscle by haggling five times. Ask for a complimentary drink at lunch, or request a loyalty discount from your cable provider. Revel in your newfound bravery and commit to negotiating once a week.  Note: This is hard for many!

4. Be good enough.
Perfectionism is good until it inhibits you from completing a task because you’re hung up on the details. Eliminate the word perfect from your vocabulary and accept that sometimes good is enough.

5. Be the calm.
A good leader knows the next crisis is just around the bend. Prepare for the bad times by anticipating various scenarios and planning your response.

They sound pretty simple but we all know that situations will arise that will challenge us. “Gremlins” may have us doubt ourselves and erode confidence levels.  Be aware of them. It doesn’t hurt to re-evaluate plans, but don’t over-think them. If it feels right to you, it probably is.

Bottom line – lead with courage and confidence!

Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.
–Winston Churchill

03 Jan
amplified awareness compass
[email protected] Leadership

How Aware Are You?

Awareness is the ability to perceive, to feel, or to be conscious of events, objects, thoughts, emotions, or sensory patterns . . . it is the state or quality of being aware of something.—Wikipedia

What plans do you have to kick off the New Year? Having defined goals and objectives is always highly recommended, but we suggest that in addition to having clear and communicated goals, you commit to amplifying your awareness levels.

Highly successful leaders are not only aware of their own styles, skills and gaps, they are also in-tune with the styles, skills, gaps, and professional desires of those they lead and interact with.

Additionally, they are keenly aware of their work culture. Why is this important?  The group culture impacts behaviors, attitudes, satisfaction levels, and the comfort of the environment, all which impact the ability to obtain results.

Things to ponder:

  • Every work culture has differing styles – are they all appreciated?
  • Is there tension or cohesion within the group?
  • Does the leader (perhaps you) recognize the style differences and address conflict if it exists?
  • Is the reason for the work/tasks/goals understood and supported?
  • What does the team value most?
  • Does there seem to be negativity in the break room?
  • Do people speak up or have they gone quiet?

Per Wiley’s Everything DiSC assessments, there are 8 components that uniquely define us as individuals, which then defines the style and culture of our team. The styles are measured by how we “live”:

  1. Challenges
  2. Results
  3. Actions
  4. Enthusiasm
  5. Collaboration
  6. Support
  7. Stability
  8. Accuracy

Note: How these components are distributed across the team will impact the overall culture.

How aware are you? Understanding group behaviors, fears, emotions, preferences, priorities and needs positions leaders and teams to be highly motivated and successful; don’t neglect awareness levels!

Every human has four endowments – self awareness, conscience, independent will and creative imagination. These give us the ultimate human freedom… The power to choose, to respond, to change. –Stephen Covey

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