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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
March 9, 2016 11:54 AM
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Critical Skills You Should Learn That Pay Dividends Forever
Mar 2, 2016193,840 views3,802 Likes389 CommentsShare on LinkedInShare on FacebookShare on Twitter
The further along you are in your career, the easier it is to fall back on the mistaken assumption that you’ve made it and have all the skills you need to succeed. The tendency is to focus all your energy on getting the job done, assuming that the rest will take care of itself. Big mistake.
New research from Stanford tells the story. Carol Dweck and her colleagues conducted a study with people who were struggling with their performance. One group was taught to perform better on a task that they performed poorly in. The other group received a completely different intervention: for the task that they performed badly in, they were taught that they weren’t stuck and that improving their performance was a choice. They discovered that learning produces physiological changes in the brain, just like exercise changes muscles. All they had to do was believe in themselves and make it happen.
When the groups’ performance was reassessed a few months later, the group that was taught to perform the task better did even worse. The group that was taught that they had the power to change their brains and improve their performance themselves improved dramatically.
The primary takeaway from Dweck’s research is that we should never stop learning. The moment we think that we are who we are is the moment we give away our unrealized potential.
“Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.” – Mahatma Gandhi
The act of learning is every bit as important as what you learn. Believing that you can improve yourself and do things in the future that are beyond your current possibilities is exciting and fulfilling.
Still, your time is finite, and you should dedicate yourself to learning skills that will yield the greatest benefit. There are nine skills that I believe fit the bill because they never stop paying dividends. These are the skills that deliver the biggest payoff, both in terms of what they teach you and their tendency to keep the learning alive.
Emotional intelligence (EQ). EQ is the “something” in each of us that is a bit intangible. It affects how we manage behavior, navigate social complexities, and make personal decisions that achieve positive results. EQ is your ability to recognize and understand emotions in yourself and others and your ability to use this awareness to manage your behavior and relationships. Decades of research now point to EQ as the critical factor that sets star performers apart from the rest of the pack. It’s a powerful way to focus your energy in one direction, with tremendous results.
TalentSmart tested EQ alongside 33 other important workplace skills and found that EQ is the strongest predictor of performance, explaining a full 58% of success in all types of jobs. Of all the people we’ve studied at work, we've found that 90% of top performers are also high in EQ. On the flip side, just 20% of bottom performers are high in EQ. You can be a top performer without EQ, but the chances are slim. Naturally, people with a high degree of EQ make more money, an average of $29,000 more per year than people with a low degree of emotional intelligence. The link between EQ and earnings is so direct that every point increase in EQ adds $1,300 to an annual salary. Increasing your EQ won’t just pad your bank account, it’ll make you happier and less stressed as well.
Time management. One of the biggest things that gets in the way of effective time management is the “tyranny of the urgent.” This refers to the tendency of little things that have to be done right now to get in the way of what really matters. When you succumb to it, you spend so much time putting out fires that you never get any real work done. How many times have you left work at the end of the day, only to realize that you didn’t move the important things along even one inch? Learning to manage your time effectively frees you up to perform at your absolute highest level, and it does so every single day of your life.
Listening. This one should be easy. If we’re not talking, we’re listening, right? Well, not exactly. A lot of times, we think we’re listening, but we’re actually planning what we’re going to say next. True listening means focusing solely on what the other person is saying. It’s about understanding, not rebuttal or input. Learning how to suspend judgment and focus on understanding the other person’s input is one of the most important skills you can develop.
Listening is a bit like intelligence—most everyone thinks they’re above average (even though that’s impossible). A study at Wright State University surveyed more than 8,000 people from different verticals, and almost all rated themselves as listening as well as or better than their co-workers. We know intuitively that many of them were wrong.
There’s so much talking happening at work that opportunities to listen abound. We talk to provide feedback, explain instructions, and communicate deadlines. Beyond the spoken words, there’s invaluable information to be deciphered through tone of voice, body language, and what isn’t said. In other words, failing to keep your ears (and eyes) open could leave you out of the game.
Saying No. Research conducted at the University of California, San Francisco, showed that the more difficulty that you have saying no, the more likely you are to experience stress, burnout, and even depression. Saying no is indeed a major challenge for many people. No is a powerful word that you should not be afraid to wield. When it’s time to say no, avoid phrases such as I don’t think I can or I’m not certain. Saying no to a new commitment honors your existing commitments and gives you the opportunity to successfully fulfill them. When you learn to say no, you free yourself from unnecessary constraints and free up your time and energy for the important things in life.
Asking for help. It might seem counterintuitive to suggest that asking for help is a skill, but it is. It takes a tremendous amount of confidence and humility to admit that you need assistance. This skill is critical because the last thing a leader wants are employees who keep on trucking down the wrong path because they are too embarrassed or proud to admit that they don’t know what they’re doing. The ability to recognize when you need help, summon up the courage to ask for it, and follow through on that help is an extremely valuable skill.
Getting high-quality sleep. We've always known that quality sleep is good for your brain, but recent research from the University of Rochester demonstrated exactly how so. The study found that when you sleep, your brain removes toxic proteins, which are by-products of neural activity when you're awake, from its neurons. The catch here is that your brain can only adequately remove these toxic proteins when you have sufficient quality sleep. When you don’t get high-quality deep sleep, the toxic proteins remain in your brain cells, wreaking havoc and ultimately impairing your ability to think—something no amount of caffeine can fix. This slows your ability to process information and solve problems, kills your creativity, and increases your emotional reactivity. Learning to get high-quality sleep on a regular basis is a difficult skill to master, but it pays massive dividends the next day.
Knowing when to shut up. Sure, it can feel so good to unload on somebody and let them know what you really think, but that good feeling is temporary. What happens the next day, the next week, or the next year? It’s human nature to want to prove that you’re right, but it’s rarely effective. In conflict, unchecked emotion makes you dig your heels in and fight the kind of battle that can leave you and the relationship severely damaged. When you read and respond to your emotions, you’re able to choose your battles wisely and only stand your ground when the time is right. The vast majority of the time, that means biting your tongue.
Taking initiative. Initiative is a skill that will take you far in life. In theory, initiative is easy—the desire to take action is always there—but in the real world, other things get in the way. There’s a big difference between knowing what to do and being too scared or lazy to actually do it. That requires initiative. You have to take risks and push yourself out of your comfort zone, until taking initiative is second nature.
Staying positive. We've all received the well-meaning advice to "stay positive." The greater the challenge, the more this glass-half-full wisdom can come across as Pollyannaish and unrealistic. It's hard to find the motivation to focus on the positive when positivity seems like nothing more than wishful thinking. The real obstacle to positivity is that our brains are hard-wired to look for and focus on threats. This survival mechanism served humankind well, back when we were hunters and gatherers and living each day with the very real threat of being killed by someone or something in our immediate surroundings.
That was eons ago. Today, this mechanism breeds pessimism and negativity through the mind's tendency to wander until it finds a threat. These "threats" magnify the perceived likelihood that things are going—and/or are going to go—poorly. When the threat is real and lurking in the bushes down the path, this mechanism serves you well. When the threat is imagined and you spend two months convinced that the project you're working on is going to flop, this mechanism leaves you with a soured view of reality that wreaks havoc in your life. Maintaining positivity is a daily challenge that requires focus and attention. You must be intentional about staying positive if you're going to overcome the brain's tendency to focus on threats.
Bringing It All Together
Research shows that lifelong learning pays dividends beyond the skills you acquire. Never stop learning.
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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
February 16, 2016 12:19 PM
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FountainBlue’s February 12 When She Speaks, Women in Leadership Series event was on the topic of Expanding Your Circle of Influence. We were fortunate to have panelists representing different backgrounds, upbringings and perspectives around what it takes to be influential and impactful within an organization. They agreed on the following:
- Knowing who you are, what you’re passionate about, and being committed to delivering results and getting things done are the heart of every influential leader.
- Communicating who you are and engaging and listing others in your web of influence to join in and support goals and objectives comes only after the first step, but is also critical.
- Reaching for more breadth and experience, being open to new people and learnings helped make our panelists the successful and influential leaders they are.
- Taking the high road, seeing the larger picture, and being open and accepting of others helps leaders navigate waters, which can be sometimes turbulent, especially when there’s a lot of change. And even when things are pretty stable, because of the nature of tech companies and the market changes overall, everyone needs to deal with a very diverse base of stakeholders. Learning the motivations of the audience, and communicating in a way they understand is also critical in order to be influential.
Below is advice from our panel for those who want to be more influential:
- Don’t think that to be an influential you have to be a Dragon Lady. Be influential in a direct, positive, collaborative, win-for-all way.
- In the same token, don’t hold back from trying to be influential because you want to be nice, because you don’t like conflict.
- Get your facts straight and focus on the data to influence others on a course of action and decision.
- Have a broad and deep network of connections, spinning a web across all those you touch. Use those connections to get the information, resources and connections you need to get work done!
- Select a leadership team, company and culture that aligns well with your values, who you are, what you’re about.
- Being trustworthy, authentic, goal-focused and direct will help make sure that you are worthy of the influence you wield.
- Pick your battles. Know what you will focus on and change, work with what you can’t change. There will be those Dragon Ladies, those cows-in-the-road, but ignore and push forward to achieve that higher purpose.
In the end, the heart of influence is a brand, a reputation for consistently and persistently delivering results, in a wide range of roles and settings.
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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
January 8, 2016 12:27 PM
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Leadership emotional intelligence, authenticity, and charisma are not enough. Leaders succeed when they add value to others. Without making others better, all the personal qualities of leadership are more self-serving narcissism than true leadership. Good leaders inspire employees to do their best. Better leaders build organizations that outlast and outlive individual leaders. But, the best leaders create investor confidence in future success.
In recent years, investors have begun to look beyond current earnings to determine a firm’s true market value. Investors have examined intangibles like strategy, brand, and R&D to ensure that a firm will produce future not just past earnings. More recently, we have found that 25 to 30% of investment decisions can be traced to investors confidence in leadership.
To determine the quality of leadership, investors can now access a Leadership Capital Index (see the book Leadership Capital Index: Realizing the Market Value of Leadership). This index gives investors a thorough and rigorous way to evaluate leadership. We envision investors starting to access and assess leadership insights much like they do financial and intangible results. The Leadership Capital Index examines both the personal qualities of a leader and the leadership team and the human capital systems that the leader puts in place.
But, how can a leader initiate conversations that give investors confidence in their leadership ability? Here are some tips for leaders who want to realize more market value through their leadership.
As an individual leader, you and your leadership team can inspire personal confidence from investors when you demonstrate: - Learning: Show investors that you are constantly learning and growing in your role. Talk about the future more than the past. Demonstrate to investors personal energy and vitality in creating a future.
- Strategic Clarity: Report challenges you see in the industry and have a clear strategic point of view about how to respond to those challenges.
- Predictable Execution: Deliver on promises over and over and over again.
- Leverage Talent: Say “we” more than “I”; share credit for success; make others feel better about themselves when they meet with you.
- Situational: Know how to adapt your leadership style to the situation. Make your customer brand promises your personal leadership guide.
As a leader, you should create an organization that has unique capabilities to deliver sustainable value over time. Work on creating:
- Cultural Clarity: Make sure that your internal culture matches the brand promises you make your customers.
- Talent Flow: Show investors that you have industry leading ability to bring the best people into your organization, to develop and grow them, and to remove them if necessary.
- Positive Accountability: Hold people accountable for results without becoming locked into burdensome performance appraisal systems. Learn to have positive conversations with employees.
- Information Flow: Be adept at managing the flow of information into your organization through analytics and improve decision making.
- Work Logic: Build a governance system that enables agility and responsiveness.
When you show investors that you have created both individual leaders and organization capabilities, they will respond and give you more market value. This is the next agenda for both leaders who add value and investors who want to realize that value.
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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
December 29, 2015 2:09 PM
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Misconceptions about the brain are embedded in corporate training programs and could be sabotaging their effectiveness. Companies should reevaluate them in light of the latest scientific insights.
Over the years, you have probably gained some insight into how your brain works. You may have taken a course or read a book that promised to reveal the secret of maximizing your mental capacity—a common sales pitch of leadership coaches these days. In the process, you may have read that after a critical period in childhood there is no hope for significant learning, that half of your brain is inactive at any given time, or that you’re capable of learning properly only in your preferred style.
Each of these claims is what we call a “neuromyth,” a misconception based on incorrect interpretations of neuroscientific research. Our experience advising companies on their lifelong-learning initiatives suggests that such misunderstandings remain embedded in many corporate training programs. As companies increasingly pour money into developing their employees, they can no longer afford to invest in training programs based on inaccurate and out-of-date assumptions. In recent years, for example, US businesses alone spent more than $164 billion annually on employee learning.1 The stakes are high and getting higher.
Bridging the gap between popular neuromyths and the scientific insights gathered in the past few decades is a growing challenge. As modern brain-imaging techniques, such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), have advanced scientific knowledge, these misleading lay interpretations by business practitioners have advanced as well. Unless such misconceptions are eliminated, they will continue to undermine both personal- and organizational-learning efforts. In this article, we’ll address the three most prominent neuromyths in light of the latest research and explore some of the implications for corporate learning.
Myth #1: The critical window of childhood
Most of us have heard about critical learning periods—the first years of life, when the vast majority of the brain’s development is thought to occur. After this period, or so the assumption too often goes, the trajectory of human development is deemed to be more or less fixed. That, however, is an exaggeration. Recent neuroscientific research indicates that experience can change both the brain’s physical structure and its functional organization—a phenomenon described as neuroplasticity.
Researchers studying the plasticity of the brain are increasingly interested in mindfulness. Practicing simple meditation techniques, such as concentrated breathing, helps build denser gray matter in parts of the brain associated with learning and memory, controlling emotions, and compassion. A team led by Harvard scientists has shown that just eight weeks of mindful meditation can produce structural brain changes significant enough to be picked up by MRI scanners.2
Organizations from General Mills in consumer foods to digital bellwethers such as Facebook and Google increasingly give their employees opportunities to benefit from mindfulness and meditation. Most such programs have garnered enthusiastic support from employees, who often see a marked improvement in their mind-sets and job performance. For example, employees at the health insurer Aetna who have participated in the company’s free yoga and meditation classes report, on average, a 28 percent decrease in their levels of stress and a productivity increase of 62 minutes a week—an added value of approximately $3,000 per employee a year. CEO Mark Bertolini, who started the program a few years ago, marvels at the level of interest generated across the company; to date, more than a quarter of Aetna’s 50,000 employees have taken at least one class.3 Leaders like Bertolini understand that providing them with the tools to become more focused and mindful can foster a better working environment conducive to development and high performance.
Myth #2: The idle-brain theory
A recent European survey discovered that nearly 50 percent of teachers surveyed in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands believed that the idle-brain theory has been proved scientifically.4 This misunderstanding originally stemmed from inaccurate interpretations of activation hot spots in brain-imaging studies. By now, more carefully interpreted functional brain scans have shown that, irrespective of what a person is doing, the entire brain is generally active and that, depending on the task, some areas are more active than others. People can always learn new ideas and new skills, not by tapping into some unused part of the brain, but by forming new or stronger connections between nerve cells.
This insight into the brain’s capacity becomes particularly relevant for the environment and context in which learning typically occurs. Everybody knows, all too well, about the habit of quickly checking e-mails or planning for the next meeting in the middle of a training session. The problem is that such multitasking engages large parts of the brain’s working memory. Without freeing that up, we cannot successfully memorize and learn new information. In short, multitasking and learning cannot occur effectively at the same time.
Some organizations, recognizing this problem, are working to build immersive learning environments where distractions are eliminated. At Lamas Pinto, we’ve created a model factory that participants can walk through to see operating conditions in action. But first, everyone is asked to place their phones and other distractive belongings in a locker, so they can fully concentrate on the learning exercise at hand. At many companies, removing the temptation of using mobile devices during learning sessions is becoming commonplace.
Myth #3: Learning styles and the left/right brain hypothesis
Almost everyone has encountered the theory that most people are either dominantly analytical (and left brained) or more creative (and right brained). However, this either/or dichotomy is false. The two hemispheres of the brain are linked and communicate extensively together; they do not work in isolation. The simplistic notion of a false binary has led, in many businesses, to the misconception that each one of us has a strictly preferred learning style and channel. Recent studies have flatly disproved this idea, suggesting instead that engaging all the senses in a variety of ways (for instance, audiovisual and tactile) can help employees retain new content.
One organization that puts this idea into practice is KFC, which uses multiple forms of learning in customer-service training. Sessions begin with an after-hours board game placing the entire team of a store in the role of the customer. This is followed up by “gamified” learning that fits into roughly 15-minute windows during shifts. These video game–like modules put the employees behind the cash register to handle a number of typical customer experiences, including responding to audio and visual cues of satisfaction. At the end of the online modules, employees physically reconvene at the front of the store to hear feedback, report on what they’ve learned, and receive live coaching as reinforcement.
Although significant progress has been made, much remains to be done to eradicate neuromyths from the philosophy of corporate-training programs. Neuroscience research has confirmed some of the approaches that learning professionals already use, such as on-the-job reinforcement and engagement without distractions. But that research has also contradicted other approaches. Companies should draw on the newly substantiated insights and may need to rethink their training programs accordingly. At the very least, they need to improve their dialogue with, and understanding of, the scientific community.
1 – 2013 State of the Industry, Association for Talent Development, December 2013, td.org
2 – Omar Singleton et al., “Change in brainstem gray matter concentration following a mindfulness-based intervention is correlated with improvement in psychological well-being,” Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, February 18, 2014, frontiersin.org
3 – David Gelles, “At Aetna, a CEO’s management by mantra,” New York Times, February 27, 2015, nytimes.com
4 – Paul A. Howard-Jones, “Neuroscience and education: Myths and messages,” Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 2014, Volume 15, Number 12, nature.com
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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
December 19, 2015 1:07 PM
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In Silicon Valley, where we wear failure like a badge of courageous, we must consider that not all failures are *good* failures. Having witnessed first-hand and indirectly ranging from small to spectacular, my rule of thumb when experiencing failure is whether the failure moves you forward. - Moving forward means that you've learned something new about yourself, and what you do well, and not so well.
- Moving forward means that you are less likely to do a similar thing again, for very specific reasons.
- Moving forward means that you build new relationships in your life that adds more meaning and perspective to what you do at work and at home.
- It also means that some important existing relationships are different and/or better.
- Moving forward means that you see the overall experience as a net positive one, despite the short-term pain and upset.
- Moving forward means that you are stronger and better and more grounded overall.
- Moving forward means people who know you and used to know you may see you now in a different light.
- Moving forward means that you can forgive yourself, and others involved and know better what to expect from yourself and those same others in future projects.
- Moving forward means that you have a broader, deeper view of the world, and the people and technologies and things in it.
- Moving forward means that you are better and braver and more prepared for the next adventure.
As we go into a new year, look for opportunities to succeed, reach for stars, and if you have to fail, fail forward.
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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
December 14, 2015 10:38 AM
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FountainBlue’s Dec 11 Pre-Launch event for the VIP roundtable series was on the M&A Strategy and Execution Best Practices! We are grateful for the leaders and companies represented around the table, for sharing their wisdom and experience so graciously and generously. Please also join us in thanking our gracious hosts at Altera, who made our pre-launch event possible, and who had the original idea for the series. Below is a list of best practices around strategy and execution when managing an M&A event. Strategy Best Practices: - Find a synergistic and/or complimentary offering, one that provides an expansion opportunity into new markets that are growing, and fills a gap in your technology direction and abilities.
- Focus on the purpose of the acquisition – is it for the IT, for the talent, for the market share, while planning and executing on the M&A event.
- Factor in whether there will be a leadership and cultural synergy between the two entities. Sometimes companies get so excited about the tech and market acquisition up-sides that they dismiss the cultural and leadership mis-matches which could make an integration difficult at best.
- Look not just on whether the technology is the right match, but whether the team being acquired will also have the talent to market and sell that technology and product. Don’t just assume that the acquiring company will take over that piece.
- Consider collaboration and defensive objectives in M&As, buying the leaders in a competitive landscape market.
- With that said, even if it makes sense to buy the market leader in a market which is being consolidated, make sure that the major customers would back the acquisition or they might make it difficult and even impossible to complete the M&A process.
- Look beyond the factors that drive your decision for today, and look at what’s best for the company in the 2-3-year timeframe.
- Consider whether the longer term benefit worth the short term integration cost and pain and whether the revenue model be bigger and better now and 2-3 years from now.
- When there are competitive bids for a company to be acquired, consider not just the dollar value offered, but also how much independence is likely valued by the company to be acquired.
- Larger companies can consider the option of being bought out by smaller companies in the same space, if they have the revenues to buy them, and if the leadership has the humility, strength and character to ensure the integration. Success for both sides means that the larger brand lives on and the smaller company provides the financial and leadership strength to expand.
Execution Best Practices: - Decide on common definitions for terms like ‘revenues’, ‘market’, ‘opportunity’, ‘partner’, ‘results’ etc.,
- Whether you’re the acquiring or the acquired company, make sure that you have all the information and the right information throughout the due diligence process.
- Have realistic objectives based on the information you have and agree on how success will be measured.
- When a decision is made to start the M&A integration process, have enthusiasm and be optimistic, but don’t wear blinders. Pay attention to any red flags you might see and be curious about why they are there and whether there are more.
- Proactively manage the brand strategy for both the acquiring company and the acquired company. How will the brand be improved and enhanced post-acquisition? What is the consistent communication and message about the M&A? Communicating in words and actions in alignment with the M&A objectives is critical to the success of any integration.
- Leaders must manage their own emotions and help their people to manage theirs throughout the M&A planning and integration process. Ongoing transparent and open communication and alignment of words and actions will help ensure successful integrations. Keep the communications consistent and positive and insist that people communicate with respect.
- Insist on making decisions when they MUST be made quickly, selecting the best of all options, based on objective criteria which focuses on the M&A objectives, rather than deferring discussions, conversations and decisions.
- Adopt a balance of structure and agility throughout the integration process. Have a plan, but be willing to drift from it as each integration is different.
- Adopt a ‘Shut-Up and Eat’ principle as it helps people from both companies adopt a disagree-and-commit mentality and unity that helps moves things forward and discourages politicking and second-guessing, even when a unpopular decision has been made or when factions are divided on a decision that has been made.
The collective predictions for M&As include: - A continued consolidation of companies, particularly in the semiconductor space. It’s a ‘eat-or-be-eaten’ mindset right now.
- China will play a role in semiconductor industry as it has billions to spend and is prospecting. Integrations with Chinese government or companies may be difficult because of cultural differences.
- The digitization trend will continue to disrupt companies and industries, particularly industries which are not traditionally in tech! This poses new opportunities and challenges for acquiring and acquired companies.
- Larger companies will have more spin-outs to support their innovation efforts in specific areas. Entrepreneurial teams can be more agile with their innovation, and can be more easily integrated back into the company once the technologies have been developed and the company’s brand and channel become more important.
- Larger companies will have more splitting between business units and technologies as market opportunities and tech evolution favors that the entities divide up again. This is frustrating to many as these entities were purposefully integrated in the first place, so leaders must manage communication and motivate all players involved in order for the split to be successful, retaining technology and talent.
In the end, the secret to successful integrations is to have a future-perfect vision of the combined company, and to ensure that the technology is robust and scalable, the processes support the people and technology, and that the people and culture are in alignment to address an opportunity in a growing market.
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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
November 25, 2015 2:17 PM
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Procrastination affects everyone. It sneaks up on most people when they’re tired or bored, but for some, procrastination can be a full-fledged addiction. They avoid all day the work that is right in front of them, only to go home and toil late into the night, frantically trying to finish what they could have easily completed before dinner. “Procrastination is the thief of time, collar him.” –Charles Dickens With the holidays approaching, the high season for procrastination is upon us. It’s even more difficult to get work done when you’re stuck at the office, wishing you were enjoying time with family and friends. Still, the procrastination cycle can become crippling at any time of the year, which is troubling, because recent studies show that procrastination magnifies stress, reduces performance, and leads to poor health. Psychologists at Case Western Reserve University conducted an interesting experiment where they offered college students a date range instead of a single due date for their papers. The researchers tracked the date that students turned in their papers and compared this to their stress levels and overall health. Students who waited until the last minute to turn in their papers had greater stress and more health issues than others did. They also received worse grades on their papers and in the class overall than students who turned their papers in earlier. A study published earlier this year by Bishop’s University explored the link between chronic procrastination and stress-related health issues. The researchers found a strong link between procrastination and hypertension and heart disease, as procrastinators experienced greater amounts of stress and were more likely to delay healthy activities, such as proper diet and exercise. Procrastination is fueled by excuses. We cannot expect to overcome procrastination and improve our health and productivity until we’re able to overcome the negative mental habits that lead us to procrastinate in the first place. What follows are the most troubling excuses we use to help us procrastinate. They’re troubling because they’re the most difficult excuses to conquer. For each, I offer preventative strategies so you can overcome procrastination and get productive, even when you don’t feel like working. “I don’t know where to begin.”Paradoxically, we often find ourselves frozen like a deer in headlights when confronted with a difficult task. As well, much like deer, the best thing we can do is move in any direction, fast. When a task is particularly difficult, you need all the time you are given to complete it. There’s no sense in wasting valuable time by allowing yourself to be overwhelmed by the complexity of the task. The key here is to not allow fear of the whole to stop you from engaging in the parts. When something looks too difficult, simply break it down. What can you accomplish in 60 minutes that will help you slay the beast? Then, what can you do in 60 more minutes? Breaking your task into shorter periods (where effort is guaranteed) allows you to move out of the “deer in headlights” frame of mind. Before you know it, you’ve accomplished something, and the task goes from way too hard to absolutely doable. When it comes to challenging tasks, inactivity is the enemy. “There are too many distractions.”For most of us, getting started on a large project is a challenge. We stumble over all sorts of smaller, irrelevant tasks that distract us from the real assignment. We answer emails, make calls, check the news online…anything to avoid the elephant in the room. Being busy is not the same as being productive. When you find yourself avoiding a particularly sizeable task, slow down and visualize what will happen if you continue to put off the task. Distractions numb you by shifting your attention away from these consequences (a.k.a., away from reality). Reminding yourself of what will happen if you continue procrastinating is a great way to make distractions less enchanting so that you can focus on your work. “It’s too easy.”Tasks that are too easy can be surprisingly dangerous, because when you put them off, it’s easy to underestimate how much time they’ll take to complete. Once you finally sit down to work on them, you discover you have not given yourself enough time to complete the task (or at least to complete it well). If a task is too easy, draw connections to the bigger picture, because these connections turn mundane tasks into a fundamental (and do it now) part of your job. For example, you might hate data entry, but when you think about the role the data plays in the strategic objectives of your department, the task becomes worthwhile. When the smaller, seemingly insignificant things don’t get done or get done poorly, it has a ripple effect that’s felt for miles. “I don’t like it.”Procrastination isn’t always about a task being too easy or too hard. Sometimes, you just don’t want to do it. It can be very hard to get moving on a task in which you’re disinterested, much less despise. Unfortunately, there’s no foolproof way to teach yourself to find something interesting, because certain things will never draw your attention. Rather than pushing these tasks to the back of your plate, make it a rule that you cannot touch any other project or task until you’ve finished the dreaded one. In this way, you are policing yourself by forcing yourself to “eat your vegetables before you can have dessert.” When you do get started, you can always turn the task into a game. How can you achieve your task more efficiently? How can you change the steps of the process and still produce the same result? Bringing mindfulness to a dreaded task gives you a fresh perspective. The task itself might not be fun, but the game can be. “I don’t think I can do it.”You are assigned a new project by your supervisor. In fact, it’s one you’ve wished he or she would give you for a while. However, now that it’s in your lap, you simply cannot get started. You cannot get past thoughts of failure. What’s going to happen if I blow it? How am I going to do this? Could I be fired over this? It can reach a point where avoiding failure seems like the best possible option. After all, if you never engage in a project, you’ll never fail. Right? Wrong. Procrastination itself is failure—failure to utilize your innate talents and abilities. When you procrastinate, you’re failing to believe in yourself. Remember when you were learning to drive and you could only look straight ahead, because if you looked at something off the road, you’d unwittingly turn the wheel in that direction? Worrying about everything that might go wrong if you fail has the same effect. It pulls you toward failure. You must shift your mind in a confident direction by focusing on all the positive things that are going to happen when you succeed. When you believe you can do something—and you visualize the positive things that will come from doing well—you equip yourself to succeed. This thought process gets your mind headed in the right direction. Worrying about everything that could go wrong only binds your hands. Break the chains and get started! Bringing It All Together Fighting procrastination teaches us to fully engage in our work, get more creative with it, and, ultimately, get more done.
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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
November 24, 2015 4:12 PM
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I always thought that being different was a *good* thing, but we've all been conditioned to conform in various ways. There are many studies heralding the business advantages of diversity in the workplace, most notably Catalyst’s infographic listing 39 benefits of Diversity available athttp://www.catalyst.org/knowledge/diversity-matters. Below are suggestions on what to measure, to help leaders from across the organization ensure that diversity, a cornerstone of innovation, thrives within and throughout the organization. - The most obvious thing to measure is the number of new-recruits. But measuring how these new recruits are different than current staff is also important. Consider diversity in gender, culture, orientation, age, background, and other measures as well.
- Another measure is a derivative of the above and often goes un-measured because of it. Measuring the quantity and variety of sources for new recruits helps ensure that a large range of recruits gets considered for employment.
- Some companies run programs to attract people of diverse backgrounds to an organization. Whether it's an innovation competition, a scholarship program, or a community outreach campaign, these types of programs can successfully garner more awareness and more interest from the right people. Measuring the number and impact of corporate programswill also impact the number of job applications received.
- If we move on from attraction to retention and development measures, the first thing to consider is the process for identifying high-potentials. Who gets to decide who the high-potentials are? How many leaders are engaged in the process? What's being measured when identifying these high-potentials? Rare is the organization that has a coordinated, concerted effort to even identify these high-potentials.
- Even those organizations who know who their high-potentials are may not have a plan for developing and retaining them! Measure how successful your organization is in developing and retaining people in general, and high-potentials in particular! How will you have a leadership pipeline if you don't do this?
- It's worth investing in the education of your people in general, and measuring how many of them attend classes and programs and certifications. Emphasize as well *who* gets selected to attend which program, favoring those identified as high-potential.
- A strong measure of success for any training and development program (as it is for any corporate initiative) is the engagement and commitment of senior leadership to the cause. Executive participation must go beyond the thoughts and words, but also into specific, committed and ongoing actions which provide funding and resources behind those words.
- Retention statistics are important, but look not just at the percentage of retention you have, but more carefully at who's leaving. Attrition is part of the game when working in a fast-paced tech environment. Focus on and measure the retention of your best-performing high-potentials, even if that means that you might lose an overall volume of people on the team.
- If you do all the above well, then there should be more high-performing people with diverse backgrounds in the executive and C-suites. Of course you measure how many people there are of diverse backgrounds in those senior positions, but the problem comes when companies don't have the diverse leadership they're looking for and hire outside talent that might not be the right culture/social/program/tech fit rather than look at how to do all the steps above better.
- Of course it's always about the bottom line, so measure:
- The number of technologies you're offering successfully;
- Your expansion into new markets and opportunities;
- The amount of revenues generated;
- The number of new opportunities available;
- The depth and breadth of your partnerships and client base;
- All other corporate and cultural performance indicators.
And if it doesn't add up, how could more diverse and varied leadership and talent make it right?
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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
November 23, 2015 12:47 PM
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Why Doesn't Anyone Ever Feel Rich? (Or Even Happy?)
Nov 17, 2015496,381 views2,948 Likes1,396 CommentsShare on LinkedInShare on FacebookShare on Twitter
One day I'd like to meet someone who is actually rich.
Sometimes I think I've found one but it always turns out I'm wrong. No matter how rich I assumed the person to be... within a few minutes I find out just how "poor" that person really is.
Take the guy who sold his company for more than $40 million. (Well, actually $100 million in total; $40 million is his share.) I was sure he was rich.
Then he told me how for tax and estate planning purposes he had structured the disbursement of funds over 10 years. So sure, on paper he may be "worth" $40 million, but he only gets around $4 million each year. And despite all that nifty financial planning the taxes are still so high he doesn't see nearly that much. It's a bummer.
Or take the guy who just splashed a cool $450 grand on a Lexus LFA with the Nürburgring package. His everyday car is a Porsche 911 Turbo S. I was sure hewas rich.
Then he told me what he wants most in life is a Bugatti Veyron only they cost about $2 million. Sure, he has money, he said, but he doesn't have that kind of money. He thinks about it all the time. It's a bummer.
Or take the guy with the 110-foot yacht. Strictly speaking it's a ship, not a boat, since it's big enough to carry several small boats and a couple of jet skis on a platform at the stern. And it has a pool. I was sure he was rich.
Then he told me how expensive the yacht is just to own: fixed costs like cleaning, upkeep, berth, and crew run over six figures a year. And what about the expense of actually taking it for a cruise? He told me firing it up is so expensive he sometimes has to think twice about whether to take it out of the harbor. It's a bummer.
Or take the guy who -- I know it's a cliché, but it's still true -- started a company in his garage, financing it with credit cards and a loan from his father-in-law. A couple decades later his company owns its building (and a few more), employs 500 people, and generates tens of millions in annual revenue. And he put his three kids through Ivy League schools and then gave them significant seed money to start their own businesses. I was sure he was rich.
Then he explained how he still has to work 60- to 70-hour weeks and can maybe take one week of vacation a year. Sure, he would like to have more free time, but running a company that size requires constant and total attention. Why, it could all go away in an instant, he said. And then what would happen to his family? The very thought makes him shudder. It's a bummer.
So I decided to set my sights on a different target. By definition there can't be that many rich people; maybe statistical probability was the problem? So I decided to look for someone who is happy. After all, not everyone can be rich... but anyone can be happy.
I thought I found one when I met an entrepreneur who had just landed her first big customer. Not just a big customer, a truly enabling customer, one who made it possible for her to hire much-needed employees, make long-delayed equipment purchases, and finally get creditors off her back. I figured that surely made her feel happy.
Then she told me how much she hates to recruit and interview … and then actually having to supervise those employees on a daily basis? Ugh. She told me how adding equipment, maintaining a larger inventory, and managing the huge increase in production was such a pain. Don't get her wrong, she told me as she looked around to make sure no one overheard, but she often longs for the good old days when life was a lot simpler. It's kind of a bummer.
Or take the guy who, after years of putting out feelers and constant hints, was finally invited to serve on the board of a startup. The company has potential, he said, but it's not Twitter. Or Facebook. Or even Fancy. Now serving on one of those boards would be cool. This? He thought it would be fun, but it's kind of a bummer.
The guy who just bought a bigger house? Bummed because it takes so much work to clean. The guy who just doubled his income? Bummed because now his taxes are higher. The gal who just landed her dream job? Bummed because now her daily commute is half an hour longer.
Seems no one I meet, no matter how much money or success they've achieved, is actually rich. Not really. And although I'm stretching the premise to make a point, it seems no one I meet, no matter how fulfilling and gratifying their life might be, is actually happy. Not really.
But that's okay. I'll keep looking. Someday I might find someone.
And hopefully that someone is you.
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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
November 10, 2015 12:48 PM
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I’m sure you’ve been asked many times whether you’re an introvert or an extrovert. For some people, it’s an easy choice, but for most of us, it’s difficult to choose one way or the other.
It’s hard to choose because the introvert/extrovert dichotomy reflects a tired and outdated view of personality. Personality traits exist along a continuum, and the vast majority of us aren’t introverts or extroverts — we fall somewhere in the middle.
Personality consists of a stable set of preferences and tendencies through which we approach the world. Personality traits form at an early age and are fixed by early adulthood. Many important things about you change over the course of your lifetime, but your personality isn’t one of them.
“Always be yourself, express yourself, have faith in yourself, do not go out and look for a successful personality and duplicate it.” --Bruce Lee
The continuum between introversion and extroversion captures one of the most important personality traits. It’s troubling that we’re encouraged to categorize ourselves one way or the other because there are critical strengths and weaknesses commonly associated with each type.
Adam Grant at Wharton set out to study this phenomenon, and his findings are fascinating. First, he found that two-thirds of people don’t strongly identify as introverts or extroverts. These people (aka, the vast majority of us) are called ambiverts, who have both introverted and extroverted tendencies. The direction ambiverts lean toward varies greatly, depending on the situation.
Think of introversion and extroversion as a spectrum, with ambiversion lying somewhere in the middle.
Ambiverts have a distinct advantage over true introverts and extroverts. Because their personality doesn’t lean too heavily in either direction, they have a much easier time adjusting their approach to people based on the situation. This enables them to connect more easily, and more deeply, with a wider variety of people.
Grant’s research also disproved the powerful and widely held notion that the best-performing salespeople are extroverts. He found that ambiverts’ greater social flexibility enabled them to outsell all other groups, moving 51 percent more product per hour than the average salesperson. Notice how sales increased as extroversion increased, peaking with those who were just moderately extroverted.
Grant explained the finding this way:
“Because they naturally engage in a flexible pattern of talking and listening, ambiverts are likely to express sufficient assertiveness and enthusiasm to persuade and close a sale, but are more inclined to listen to customers’ interests and less vulnerable to appearing too excited or overconfident.”
How Ambiversion Works in the Brain
How social you are is largely driven by dopamine, the brain’s feel-good hormone. We all have different levels of dopamine-fueled stimulation in the neocortex (the area of the brain that is responsible for higher mental functions such as language and conscious thought). Those who naturally have high levels of stimulation tend to be introverts — they try and avoid any extra social stimulation that might make them feel anxious or overwhelmed. Those with low levels of stimulation tend to be extroverts. Under-stimulation leaves extroverts feeling bored, so they seek social stimulation to feel good.
Most people’s levels of natural stimulation don’t reach great extremes, though it does fluctuate. Sometimes you may feel the need to seek out stimulation, while other times, you may avoid it.
Finding Out Whether You’re An Ambivert
It’s important to pin down where you fall in the introversion/extroversion scale. By increasing your awareness of your type, you can develop a better sense of your tendencies and play to your strengths.
If you think that you might be an ambivert, but aren’t certain, see how many of the following statements apply to you. If most of them apply, you’re most likely an ambivert.
I can perform tasks alone or in a group. I don’t have much preference either way.
Social settings don’t make me uncomfortable, but I tire of being around people too much.
Being the center of attention is fun for me, but I don’t like it to last.
Some people think I’m quiet, while others think I’m highly social.
I don’t always need to be moving, but too much down time leaves me feeling bored.
I can get lost in my own thoughts just as easily as I can lose myself in a conversation.
Small talk doesn’t make me uncomfortable, but it does get boring.
When it comes to trusting other people, sometimes I’m skeptical, and other times, I dive right in.
If I spend too much time alone, I get bored, yet too much time around other people leaves me feeling drained.
The trick to being an ambivert is knowing when to force yourself to lean toward one side of the spectrum when it isn’t happening naturally. Ambiverts with low self-awareness struggle with this. For example, at a networking event, a self-aware ambivert will lean toward the extroverted side of the scale, even when it has been a long day and he or she has had enough of people. Mismatching your approach to the situation can be frustrating, ineffective, and demoralizing for ambiverts.
Bringing It All Together
TalentSmart has conducted research with over a million people and found that those in the upper echelon of performance at work also tend to be highly self-aware (90 percent of them, in fact). By gaining a better sense of where you fall on the introversion/extroversion scale, you can build insight into your tendencies and preferences, which increases your self-awareness and emotional intelligence. This will help you improve your performance.
So, are you an ambivert? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below, as I learn just as much from you as you do from me.
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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
November 5, 2015 11:38 AM
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How To Use Failure To Your Advantage
Oct 28, 2015415,182 views3,648 Likes664 CommentsShare on LinkedInShare on FacebookShare on Twitter
One of the biggest roadblocks to success is the fear of failure. Fear of failure is worse than failure itself because it condemns you to a life of unrealized potential.
A successful response to failure is all in your approach. In a study recently published in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, researchers found that success in the face of failure comes from focusing on results (what you hope to achieve), rather than trying not to fail. While it’s tempting to try and avoid failure, people who do this fail far more often than those who optimistically focus on their goals.
“Success is stumbling from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm.” –Winston Churchill
This sounds rather easy and intuitive, but it’s very hard to do when the consequences of failure are severe. The researchers also found that positive feedback increased people’s chances of success because it fueled the same optimism you experience when focusing solely on your goals.
The people who make history—true innovators—take things a step further and see failure as a mere stepping stone to success. Thomas Edison is a great example. It took him 1,000 tries to develop a light bulb that actually worked. When someone asked him how it felt to fail 1,000 times, he said, “I didn’t fail 1,000 times. The light bulb was an invention with 1,000 steps.”
That attitude is what separates the successes from the failures. Thomas Edison isn’t the only one. J. K. Rowling’s manuscript for Harry Potter was only accepted after twelve publishers denied it, and even then she was only paid a nominal advance. Oprah Winfrey lost her job as a Baltimore news anchor for becoming too emotionally involved in her stories, a quality that became her trademark. Henry Ford lost his financial backers twice before he was able to produce a workable prototype of an automobile. The list goes on and on.
“If you think you can do a thing or think you can’t do a thing, you’re right.” –Henry Ford
So, what separates the people who let their failures derail them from those who use failure to their advantage? Some of it comes down to what you do, and the rest comes down to what you think.
The actions you take in the face of failure are critical to your ability to recover from it, and they have huge implications for how others view you and your mistakes. There are five actions you must take when you fail that will enable you to succeed in the future and allow others to see you positively in spite of your failure.
Break the bad news yourself. If you’ve made a mistake, don’t cross your fingers and hope that no one will notice, because someone is going to—it’s inevitable. When someone else points out your failure, that one failure turns into two. If you stay quiet, people are going to wonder why you didn’t say something, and they’re likely to attribute this to either cowardice or ignorance.
Offer an explanation, but don’t make excuses. Owning your mistakes can actually enhance your image. It shows confidence, accountability, and integrity. Just be sure to stick to the facts. “We lost the account because I missed the deadline” is a reason. “We lost the account because my dog was sick all weekend and that made me miss the deadline” is an excuse.
Have a plan for fixing things. Owning up to a mistake is one thing, but you can’t end it there. What you do next is critical. Instead of standing there, waiting for someone else to clean up your mess, offer your own solutions. It’s even better if you can tell your boss (or whomever) the specific steps that you’ve already taken to get things back on track.
Have a plan for prevention. In addition to having a plan for fixing things, you should also have a plan for how you’ll avoid making the same mistake in the future. That’s the best way to reassure people that good things will come out of your failure.
Get back on the horse. It’s important that you don’t let failure make you timid. That’s a mindset that sucks you in and handicaps you every time you slip up. Take enough time to absorb the lessons of your failure, and as soon as you’ve done that, get right back out there and try again. Waiting only prolongs bad feelings and increases the chance that you’ll lose your nerve.
Your attitude when facing failure is just as important as the actions you take. Using failure to your advantage requires resilience and mental strength, both hallmarks of emotional intelligence. When you fail, there are three attitudes you want to maintain.
Perspective is the most important factor in handling failure. People who are skilled at rebounding after failure are more likely to blame the failure on something that they did—the wrong course of action or a specific oversight—rather than something that they are. People who are bad at handling failure tend to blame failure on their laziness, lack of intelligence, or some other personal quality, which implies that they had no control over the situation. That makes them more likely to avoid future risk-taking.
Optimism is another characteristic of people who bounce back from failure. One British study of 576 serial entrepreneurs found that they were much more likely to expect success than entrepreneurs who gave up after their first failure. That sense of optimism is what keeps people from feeling like failure is a permanent condition. Instead, they tend to see each failure as a building block to their ultimate success because of the learning it provides.
Persistence. Optimism is a feeling of positivity; persistence is what you do with it. It’s optimism in action. When everybody else says, “Enough is enough” and decides to quit and go home, persistent people shake off those failures and keep going. Persistent people are special because their optimism never dies. This makes them great at rising from failure.
Bringing It All Together
Failure is a product of your perspective. What one person considers a crushing defeat, another sees as a minor setback. The beauty is that you can change how you see failure so that you can use it to better yourself.
How do you handle failure? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below as I learn just as much from you as you do from me.
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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
November 4, 2015 12:41 PM
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Wouldn't it be great if we could logically and methodically think through the most important decisions of our lives and feel confident that we are making the right choice for the right reason, without second-guessing ourselves, without looking back? In working with dozens of professionals at all levels, making decisions big and small, I've come up with ten simple steps to break down the decision-making process. I hope that you also find it helpful. - Decide to decide. There's nothing more crippling and stressful than to know that you have to make a decision, and yet aren't doing it for whatever reason. No matter how high the stakes, how stressed out you are, how many factors are involved, the first step to resolving the problem is to decide to decide. The worst thing you can do is to procrastinate or delay or delegate or rationalize, or whatever-else-you're-doing that's not-deciding! (With that said, you may decide that no decision is necessary, or it's not your decision to make, or that the decision doesn't have to be made right now, and that's ok too. Just let it go then.)
- Identify 5-10 criteria for making a decision. In complex decisions, there are so many factors to consider. Identifying each of these criteria will help you break down the pieces so that you can dissect and analyze in unemotional, methodical and rational ways.
- Decide how important each of these criteria are to you personally. Assign each criteria a percentage of importance and make sure that the sum of the percentages equal 100%. It's important to understand how you personally weigh in on the importance of each criteria before looking at the individual options, before looking at what other people think about the importance of each criteria.
- Then consider *why* each criteria is important to you, and factor in how important each criteria is to other important people in your life. Adjust the percentages based on the reasoning behind your thinking and how important the criteria is for others in your life. Also consider the short-term and long-term importance of the criteria and adjust the percentages as necessary.
- Rank your criteria based on how important each is to you. Do a gut-check to make sure that your prioritized list correctly reflects your thinking. Adjust as necessary.
- Add 2-4 options that you are considering.
- Stack-rank how well each option does compared to the other options for the 3-5 most important criteria. Do a gut-check to make sure that the information is correct.
- Add a new option that you were not considering, but could be an opportunity for you.
- Use the chart to decide what to do. Consider questions such as: Which option looks best? Which option do you prefer? What do you need to negotiate to make your favorite option also the best option?
- Make a selection and move forward based on the many factors you've considered. Stand strong in your decision knowing the data and thinking behind that decision is solid. But also be prepared to re-think your choice if things change.
Best of luck with your decision-making! Let us know your best practice for making decisions and/or how this process helped you make a tough decision. We are also happy to share some thoughts about common decisions people make: job selection, car selection, college selection, candidate selection, etc.,
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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
October 22, 2015 10:58 AM
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The Speed of Leadership
It is a dilemma for today’s modern leader. Expectations are immediate. To delay is to risk missing an opportunity. Yet when we act at the speed of business, we tend to pull from our habit energy.
We are often limited to our first interpretation and could be missing vital aspects of an issue. We are also rushing headlong into situations without taking stock of what is going on in our head and where we are in that moment.
It is for all these reasons that leaders need speed bumps. Bumps that disrupt our habit energy, slow us down so we can better assess a situation, and give us the space to understand what we are carrying with us in our heads and hearts.
Installing Speed Bumps
So what are speed bumps and how do we establish them?
Speed bumps are rituals that we install to create space. Think of them like page breaks on a Word document. They are meant to cause us to look up and take note.
They should slow us down, but not prevent us from taking action. Speed bumps are personal; they should be designed based on your behaviors.
Personal Experience
Here are a few speed bumps I have installed to create space and become a more effective leader.
Habits can run strong. And if you find yourself in a leadership role for any length of time, you become like an offensive coordinator on a football team tending to call plays out of your trusted playbook.
Plausible Alternatives
So, if I am sitting in a meeting and somebody raises an issue, before I respond with my usual play, I have a ritual that I write down that play with one alternative.
It may not change the way I react, but it implants the possibility that there exists a plausible alternative.
This in turn allows me to hold a little more loosely to the idea I bring forward, hopefully encouraging others to submit theirs.
Emotional Responses
We all have preconceived notions, they are our filters and potentially create blind spots. Email is one of the great examples of the dangers of operating from perception and not reality. You can’t emote in email, so emotion is purely left to the perception of the recipient.
Therefore, I have a simple speed bump. If I receive an email that I react to emotionally, I have a rule that regardless of how I respond, I must set it aside as a draft for one hour before sending.
In most cases, I wind up going back in and temper the response, eliminating much of the caustic language.
Breathe In, Breathe Out
Probably the most important speed bump I create is breath. I take three deep breaths before I walk into a meeting or sit with someone for a discussion.
This helps me take stock of what I am bringing to the party.
If I recognize that I am not in the right space, I sometimes ask to reschedule, but at the very least I am aware of where I stand and why I may react in a certain way.
Review Your Habits
Speed bumps are placed on roads to slow people down. This is exactly the same principle. Review your habits, and see if you can identify rituals that you can set up to create that pause. A simple pause could be the difference in the outcome of a difficult situation.
So, what are some of the areas in your leadership that could use a speed bump? How would this benefit you and the people who you lead? And if you have installed some speed bumps to moderate your speed, what have these been? And how has this helped? I would love to hear your thoughts!
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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
February 17, 2016 2:07 PM
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These are not really secrets, nor do they work for everyone, nor do I claim that below is an exhaustive list of strategies. However, the advice below in aggregate can help you rise to a higher level within your organization, if you have reasonable leaders in a growing and successful company. - Decide that you want to level up and rise within your organization, and consistently strive to do so. So many people apply bursts of initiative and effort here and there, which only serves to confuse others – at times you’re seen as motivated and brilliant, and at other times, you fly under the radar. Consciously deciding to level up means bringing your A game every time, all the time.
- This is assuming that your A game is good, that you perform well by everyone’s measure, that you are successful working on a diverse range of projects and a wide range of responsibilities, partners and staff.
- Clearly communicate your role in the success of projects, without taking credit for the work that others have done.
- Watch for people who take the credit for the work that you do and strategize on how to fix that directly or indirectly. In the wort case, the leaders and management will never give you the credit, role, resources, recognition and responsibility you deserve, so if you’re deciding to level up, you are in the wrong company.
- There are more opportunities in companies that are doing well in growing markets of course. However, there are also many opportunities to help stagnating companies in declining markets make a pivot toward a more profitable product, service or market. The key is to understand the needs of the customer in your market and adjacent markets.
- But knowing the needs of the customers and the trends in the market is not enough. You need to know how your company can shift its products and offerings to better serve that customer.
- And knowing that isn’t enough either. You have to convince key stakeholders throughout the organization about this strategy and collaborate with all stakeholders with the objective of better serving the customer.
- Succeeding in the above will change your relationships with many people. Most will be surprised to see a new side of you. Some will not like it, and try to play games and revert the relationship to the way it used to be. Get the support you need to be strong and purposeful. Know who your friends are, and don’t trust those who are only pretending to be your friend.
- Doing the above well means that you will have a larger profile, a broader and deeper network, as well as more credibility, responsibility and resources. You may choose to stop ascending if the responsibilities, pressure and stress are too much, if it’s not what you want or need after all. If you decide to do that, make sure it’s the right choice for you. It would be hard to change your mind later and try again to level up, for there will be those who remember when you last tried to do so. But don’t judge yourself if you decide *not* to ‘swim with the sharks’. It’s definitely not for everyone!
- But if you do decide to continue leveling up, make sure that you’re emotionally, mentally, psychologically and physically up to that level of exposure and pressure, and get the support you need to stay fresh, centered and strong.
Best wishes on your journey up the corporate escalator. We welcome your comments on how *you* would level-up.
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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
January 26, 2016 1:40 PM
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In this very competitive employee market, everyone is looking for that top talent that would best represent the company, best grow the business and best serve partners and customers. But most of us have experienced first-hand the folly and consequences of those bad-hires that have missed the mark – maybe not in a ‘bad’ way, but in a way that means lost opportunity, and lost time. Here are some rules of thumb I suggest, when you face two apparently equally-qualified candidates for that critical position. - Passion vs. Efficiency. Choose the one who is more passionate about the role, the task and the business. Sometimes you might find someone more efficient than passionate, and that’s good too, but the passionate one will more likely have more fortitude, more perseverance and more patience for the long run.
- Education vs. Experience. Some companies and hiring managers look for the right degree from the right school. But I’m personally more impressed by how someone has applied that education in the work context, to produce tangible results. (And I’m personally *not* impressed with companies and pseudo-leaders who are snobbish about educational pedigree.)
- In-depth knowledge vs. Openness to learning. It’s wonderful to meet someone who knows the ins and outs of technologies, processes and solutions, and even more wonderful if he or she is open to learning new ways of doing things. But if you had to choose one or the other, choose the one who is more open. For anyone who thinks that they know how things are done/should be done may not be able to shift with the speed of business, especially when you need to do it quickly!
- Process vs Agility. Of course you want someone who is efficient and puts processes in place so that she or he doesn’t have to re-invent the wheel at every turn. But you also want someone agile and nimble enough to flex with the needs of customers and markets. Ideally you need both, but if you had to choose, go with those who are agile and customer-minded, yet efficient and process-driven.
- In the box vs. Out of the box. When you’re in-the-box, you know the ins and outs of the business, the technologies, the people around you. Thinking and acting out-of-the-box is good, when done well, but it can also be disrupting and disconcerting for those around you, so of course you need a balance. If you have to choose, select the out-of-the-box thinker and doer who knows how to communicate the whys and whats before making others around them feel uncomfortable.
- Speak vs. Listen. Any great leader is also a great communicator. But most leaders don’t know that speaking with impact comes only after listening to those around you. So get the quiet candidates to speak their mind, and don’t assume that they would be too quiet and too complacent for the job. And teach her or him how to speak after listening.
- Thorough vs. Intuitive. If your thorough candidate follows the 80-20 rule, it’s all good. And if your intuitive candidate is basing intuition on data, that’s also all good. And if you have to choose one or the other, for most roles, the intuitive who understand the data is better. The exception is when a role needs to be extremely thorough, and every nuance of data and task is important, and much rides on the data and information available, go with the more thorough candidate.
- And vs Or. You have candidates who are very competitive and speak to their greatness in delivering specific results. And you have candidates who talk about the efforts of the team and how together the team is greater than individual members. This ‘and’ thinking is the kind of collaborative mind set which will better help your company, than the ‘or’ thinking that characterizes how someone is trying to sell herself or himself over someone else who is equally qualified for the role.
- Inclusive vs Selective. You will have candidates who have a track record for working with disparate teams and people, and those who have a track record for working with people just like them. Both are good, but if you had to choose, the one with experience working with diverse people would be more open to working with diverse teams, customers, technologies and requirements.
- Breadth vs.Depth. Although doing a deep-dive in any one technology, industry, company or market is also a very good thing, breadth in education, role, experience, company and industry will bring you a more well-rounded candidate.
These are my opinions based on what I’ve seen over 25 years in working with tech business experiencing much change. I’m sure that your mileage will vary, and I welcome your thoughts! But I also hope that my thoughts above will help you weigh which candidate would work better for you.
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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
December 30, 2015 3:28 PM
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Mindfulness is an increasingly popular notion in the workplace, with companies such as Apple, Yahoo, Starbucks, and Google using it to their benefit. Google, for example, offers employees a 19-hour course on the subject, which is so popular that thousands of Googlers take it each year.
So what exactly is mindfulness?
Mindfulness is a simple yet effective form of meditation that enables you to gain control of unruly thoughts and behaviors. People who practice mindfulness are more focused, even when they are not meditating. Mindfulness is an excellent technique to reduce stress because it stops you from feeling out of control, stops you from jumping from one thought to the next, and stops you from ruminating on negative thoughts. Overall, it’s a great way to make it through your busy day in a calm and productive manner.
Ellen Langer, a Harvard University psychologist who studies mindfulness, described it this way: “Mindfulness is the process of actively noticing new things. When you do that, it puts you in the present. It makes you more sensitive to context and perspective. It’s the essence of engagement. And it’s energy-begetting, not energy consuming. The mistake most people make is to assume it’s stressful and exhausting—all this thinking. But what’s stressful is all the mindless negative evaluations we make and the worry that we’ll find problems and not be able to solve them.”
And why is mindfulness becoming so popular in the workplace?
While the benefits of mindfulness are many, perhaps the most important reason that companies such as Google are sold on it is its ability to directly improve performance. Langer has conducted a host of studies that show that practicing mindfulness improves your performance on all types of tasks.
Still, the mindfulness movement isn’t all about performance; there are a number of other important reasons why companies are making mindfulness a priority. Five of these reasons follow, all great illustrations of why we should all be using mindfulness to our benefit.
Mindfulness is the ultimate stress-reliever. Stress is more than a performance killer; it’s a people killer. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, roughly two-thirds of all hospital visits are for stress-related problems, and 75% of health-care expenses are stress related. Stress can cause high blood pressure, autoimmune diseases, cancer, heart disease, insomnia, depression, anxiety, and more. Mindfulness is a great stress reliever because it takes you out of fight-or-flight mode and brings you into a relaxed state of mental clarity and calm.
Mindfulness improves your ability to focus. Mindfulness improves your ability to focus on one thing at a time. This focus carries over into everything you do. Mindfulness teaches you to avoid distractions and bring a heightened level of concentration to your work. While you may have fallen prey to multi-tasking in the past, mindfulness will help you to kick this nasty, productivity-killing habit. A focused mind is a productive mind.
Mindfulness boosts your creativity. Creativity hinges on your mental state. Mindfulness helps you to get into a creative frame of mind by defeating the negative thoughts that stifle creative thinking and self-expression. The fact that mindfulness focuses on “the now” helps you to think freely and creatively.
Mindfulness improves your emotional intelligence. Emotional intelligence (EQ) is the “something” in each of us that is a bit intangible. It affects how we manage behavior, navigate social complexities, and make personal decisions that achieve positive results. EQ is your ability to recognize and understand emotions in yourself and others and to use this awareness to manage your behavior and relationships.
Decades of research now point to EQ as the critical factor that sets star performers apart from the rest of the pack. It’s a powerful way to focus your energy in one direction with tremendous results. TalentSmart tested EQ alongside 33 other important workplace skills and found that EQ is the strongest predictor of performance, explaining a full 58% of success in all types of jobs. Of all the people we’ve studied at work, we've found that 90% of top performers are also high in EQ.
The heightened awareness that exists in a mindful state allows you to more clearly feel, label, and understand your emotions. This turbocharges your emotional intelligence because it greatly increases your self-awareness, which is the foundation of a high EQ.
Mindfulness makes you a better person. A Harvard study found strong connections between mindfulness and prosocial behavior. Subjects who meditated showed compassion and kindness to others 50% more often than those who didn’t. There’s something about feeling present and calm that brings out the best in people.
Bringing It All Together
Mindfulness can improve your performance now as well as your capacity to perform in the future. Give it a try, and you’ll be surprised where it takes you.
Have you ever tried mindfulness meditation? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below as I learn just as much from you as you do from me.
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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
December 19, 2015 1:13 PM
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I Spent 5 Years Interviewing the Most Successful People Alive -- They All Have These 7 Things in Common
For my new book, Getting There: A Book of Mentors, I spent 5 years interviewing some of the most successful people alive (Warren Buffett, Michael Bloomberg, Anderson Cooper, Sara Blakely, Jeff Koons, Kathy Ireland, Les Moonves, to name a few). Here are the 7 things they all have in common:
1) THEY UNDERSTAND THEIR “CIRCLE OF COMPETENCE”
In his Getting There essay, legendary investor Warren Buffett explains that it’s essential to understand your strengths and weaknesses. He relays that when deciding what to pursue, knowing what to leave out is as important as knowing what to focus on and quotes Tom Watson (the founder of IBM) who said, “I’m no genius but I’m smart in spots and I stay around those spots.”
Buffett explains, “My brain is not a general-purpose brain that works marvelously in all situations. There are all sorts of things that I’m no good at and there are all kinds of investment opportunities I’m not able to comprehend. I understand some kinds of simple businesses. I can’t understand complicated ones. Coca- Cola, for example, isn’t very complicated. It’s a durable product and the appeal is universal. I try to find businesses I can grasp, where I like the people running them and think the price makes sense in relation to the future economics.”
John Paul DeJoria, billionaire co-founder of the Patrón Spirits Company and John Paul Mitchell Systems, advises, “Do what you do best and try to find others who can fill in by doing the things you are not good at. For instance, I am terrible at details—accounting especially, so I hire accountants to help me. This frees me up to focus on the things I do excel at and I can run a more efficient operation.”
None of my Getting There subjects are good at everything, but they all became incredibly successful by honing in on what they excel at.
2) THEY HARNESS THEIR PASSIONS
You’ve probably heard this before -- and for good reason! The path to success is almost guaranteed to be arduous, but if you love what you do you’ll thrive on the inevitable challenges and have the stamina to achieve your potential. My Getting There subjects express that if you pursue something just for the money or because you “think you should” -- it probably won’t end well.
World famous scientist J. Craig Venter (AKA the first person to sequence the human genome) says, “So many people get pushed along in the “system,” and because they don’t really know what they want to do, they practically let their careers be chosen for them. If you’re not passionate about what you’re doing, it’s hard to be successful at it. You can show up and do what’s required, and you can even do your job well, but that’s not where real success is going to come from. Success comes from doing something extraordinary with passion and intensity.”
World famous composer Hans Zimmer joked in his Getting There essay, “Whenever I need legal or medical advice I go announce my problems to my orchestra…Half are doctors and half are lawyers whose parents forced them into those jobs!”
3) THEIR CAREER PATHS ARE FLUID
My Getting There subjects demonstrate that you don’t need to have your career all mapped out, what’s essential is to always keep your eyes open for new opportunities and be open to change.
▪ craigslist founder Craig Newmark stumbled upon his businesses while trying to pursue a social goal.
▪ Michael Bloomberg only decided to start his own company, Bloomberg LP, after being fired from his job at Salomon Brothers
▪ Jillian Michaels, who runs a health and wellness empire, dedicated herself to that field after being fired as a talent agent.
▪ Les Moonves, the President and CEO of CBS, originally pursued acting, but eventually realized he would be happier on the other side of the camera.
Moonves elaborates, “Things sometimes come at you and hit you in the face. If your path is rigid, you’ll likely miss out on opportunities... I shifted from acting to producing theater and realized it felt great. Before long, I shifted again and got my first job in TV as a development executive at Columbia Pictures Television.”
4) THEY CREATE THEIR OWN OPPORTUNITIES
None of my Getting There subjects waited around for someone to recognize a talent in them and offer them a break. It would be awesome if the world worked that way, but unfortunately it rarely does. If you want something, you have to figure out a way to make it happen.
EXAMPLE:
Anderson Cooper wanted to be a foreign news correspondent but couldn’t even get an entry-level job at any of the major networks. He ended up working as a fact checker for Channel One, an agency that produces news programs for high schools.
Cooper quickly realized that when you are at a job people tend to pigeonhole you in whatever role you are in -- and sometimes you have to do something drastic in order to change people’s perception of you. So he quit his job, borrowed a friend's video camera, and went overseas to shoot stories by himself. Living on a mere five dollars a day, Cooper made his videos as interesting and dangerous as possible, then offered them to Channel One for such a low price that they couldn’t refuse. This bold move is what launched his career and enabled him to live his dream.
Cooper explains, “Had I asked the producers at Channel One if they would be supportive of my going out to make war videos, they would probably have said no. It’s easier to say no than it is to say yes, and they might not have wanted to feel responsible for me in any way. So I just did it. I rarely ask people for advice or permission when I’m planning on doing something I feel strongly about. That only opens the plan up to be crapped on.”
5) THEY QUESTION EVERYTHING
My Getting There subject don’t blindly follow others. They think on their own and understand that just because something has been done one way for years doesn’t mean that it’s the best way, or that another way won’t work.
EXAMPLE:
In the mid 1970’s Gary Hirshberg noticed that we were changing the way food was made, for the worse. (We were injecting our animals with hormones and antibiotics, spraying our fields and produce with toxic pesticides, and using chemical fertilizers, all with no real knowledge of what would happen to kids who grew up on a diet containing these things.)
Hirshberg started promoting organic food before most people knew what the word meant. He soon founded the organic yogurt company, Stonyfield Farms. He recalls, “When I tried to get retailers to carry Stonyfield yogurt, which was a little more expensive than the nonorganic brands, they’d say, ‘Does Organic mean it has dirt in it?’ It was difficult to get stores to carry our products.”
It took Stonyfiend 9 years to make it's first nickel, but it is now the largest organic yogurt company in the world -- and every large manufacturer in the food space has an organic product line.
Hirshberg says, “Challenging conventional wisdom can be scary, but most major changes happen because someone asked: “Why not do it differently?” If you don’t ask, you don’t get.”
6) THEY DON’T LET FEAR OF FAILURE DETER THEM
My Getting There subjects know that trying new things is essential for growth and if you don’t take risks you will never get anywhere. As a result, they view falling down as just part of the process. As super-model-turned- entrepreneurial-mogul Kathy Ireland succinctly puts it, “If you never fail, it means you are not trying hard enough.”
Ireland failed for years at various start-ups (a microbrewery, a skin-care line, and several art projects), before finally launching her own brand, kathy ireland Wordlwide. It is now a $2 billion enterprise with its name on more than 15,000 products.
Fitness expert Jillian Michaels elaborates, “No one likes to feel vulnerable, but the reality is that you can only know as much depth, happiness, and success in your life as you can know vulnerability. If you don’t ask out a girl or a guy on a date, you won’t get rejected, but you won’t fall in love either. If you don’t apply for the job, then you won’t get the position you want. If you don’t try to start your own business, then you’ll never be the entrepreneur you always dreamed of being.”
7) THEY ARE RESILIENT
** This one is the real clincher! **
Every single one of my Getting There subjects have failed, numerous times -- but they found success because they were able to stand back up and try again, or learn from their mistakes and try something new. The point is, they forced themselves to keep moving forward.
▪ Author Jeff Kinney spent eight years writing his first Diary of a Wimpy Kid book only to have it rejected by multiple publishers. Abrams finally gave him a chance and there are now over 115 million Wimpy Kid books in print (not to mention the movies).
▪ John Paul DeJoria was fired from three jobs and lived in his car on two dollars and fifty cents a day. He went on to found John Paul Mitchell Systems and the Patrón Spirits Company.
▪ After establishing his own architectural practice, Frank Gehry found himself on the verge of bankruptcy several times before reaching solid ground
▪ Matthew Weiner shopped his TV show around Hollywood, but it was rejected all over town. Mad Men finally made it to the screen seven years after it was written.
I have come to compare life to a game of Whack-A-Mole. (You know that arcade game in which players use a mallet to hit toy moles back into their holes?) Well, life seems to whack us all over the head from time-to-time. In big ways and in small ways. In ways that have to do with our career and ways that have to do with our personal lives. They all intermingle.
My Getting There subjects are where they are today because, even after getting whacked multiple times, they found a way to lick their wounds then pop back up with a smile. This is what you must do in this world...so the next time you get a whack, recall a specific story that inspires you (Getting There is chock full of them!) then figure out a way to pop yourself out of whatever hole you happen to be in.
Getting There: A Book of Mentors is filled with inspiring anecdotes, actionable career advice, and wisdom applicable to life in general.
Amazon recently sold out (and is in the process of getting restocked), but Barnes & Noble has it!
NO ONE WILL REMEMBER THAT BOTTLE OF WINE -- BUT THE GIFT OF GETTING THERE WILL LIVE ON!
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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
December 19, 2015 11:49 AM
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For something that's been around for only a few years, TED talks have quickly become an important medium for learning and inspiration. They help people in all kinds of pursuits with knowledge and inspiration--and there's something wonderfully accessible about seeing and hearing someone communicate directly.
If you're not already a fan, these 12 TED talks represent some of the best and are a great place to start, especially if you are looking to become a better you.
1. Brené Brown: The Power of Vulnerability
When we work from a place, I believe, that says, "I'm enough" ... then we stop screaming and start listening, we're kinder and gentler to the people around us, and we're kinder and gentler to ourselves.
With insight and humor, Brené Brown shares findings from her research and where they led her in terms of human connection that leads toward knowing oneself and others.
2. Dan Gilbert: The Surprising Science of Happiness
Our longings and our worries are both to some degree overblown, because we have within us the capacity to manufacture the very commodity we are constantly chasing when we choose experience.
The author of Stumbling on Happiness, Harvard psychologist Dan Gilbert takes exception to the idea that happiness lies in getting what we want.
3. Richard St. John: Success Is a Continuous Journey
Why do so many people reach success and then fail? One of the big reasons is, we think success is a one-way street. So we do everything that leads up to success, but then we get there. We figure we've made it, we sit back in our comfort zone, and we actually stop doing everything that made us successful. And it doesn't take long to go downhill.
Richard St. John tells the story of the rise and fall of his business as the basis for a discussion about the importance of tenacity and the nature of success.
4. Shawn Achor: The Happy Secret to Better Work
By training your brain just like we train our bodies, what we've found is we can reverse the formula for happiness and success, and in doing so, not only create ripples of positivity, but a real revolution.
We believe we should work hard in order to be happy, but what if it's the other way around? Positive psychology researcher and teacher Shawn Achor uses humor and rapid-fire delivery to make the case that happiness makes us more productive.
5. Larry Smith: Why You Will Fail to Have a Great Career
If you don't find the highest expression of your talent, if you settle for "interesting," do you know what will happen at the end of your long life? Your friends and family will be gathered in the cemetery, and there beside your grave site will be a tombstone, and inscribed on that tombstone it will say "Here lies a distinguished engineer, who invented Velcro." But what that tombstone should have said is, "Here lies the last Nobel laureate in physics, who formulated the Grand Unified Field Theory and demonstrated the practicality of warp drive."
Larry Smith uses humor and blunt truth to call us out on settling for anything less than pursuing our passions.
6. Tony Robbins: Why We Do What We Do
Your model of the world is what shapes you long term. Your model of the world is the filter. That's what's shaping us. It makes people make decisions. To influence somebody, we need to know what already influences them.
Understanding motivation--our own and that of others--is a key to success. Famed success coach Tony Robbins discusses the forces that compel us to do the things we do.
7. John Wooden: The Difference Between Winning and Succeeding
If you make an effort to do the best you can regularly, the results will be about what they should be. Not necessarily what you'd want them to be but they'll be about what they should; only you will know whether you can do that. And that's what I wanted from them more than anything else.
Legendary coach John Wooden shares his thoughts about the meaning of success, the wisdom he gained from his father, and the values and lessons he passed on to his players.
8. Ron Gutman: The Hidden Power of Smiling
Smiling can actually make you look good in the eyes of others. A recent study at Penn State University found that when you smile, you don't only appear to be more likable and courteous, but you actually appear to be more competent.
Learn about the evolution and purpose of the human behavior we call smiling--a behavior that has a surprisingly strong influence on our well-being.
9. Matt Cutts: Try Something New for 30 Days
The next 30 days are going to pass whether you like it or not, so why not think about something you have always wanted to try and give it a shot for the next 30 days?
Google engineer Matt Cutts presents a new way to think about goals. Pick something you keep intending to do and commit to trying it for 30 days.
10. David Steindl-Rast: Want to Be Happy? Be Grateful
Benedictine monk and interfaith scholar Brother David Steindl-Rast shares the "gentle power" of gratitude.
The bottom line is: your life only gets better when you get better.
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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
December 7, 2015 6:17 PM
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The Ultimate Guide to Personal Productivity Methods
by TRICINA ELLIKERNOVEMBER 30, 2015PRODUCTIVITY
The right productivity method can make a huge difference in your work. A friction-less workflow can take you from feeling overwhelmed, unfocused, and unproductive to feeling calm, in control, and prepared to take on even the biggest projects.
The good news is, there are new methods being developed, tweaked, and shared all the time. There’s bound to be a system out there that fits your unique personality and projects. But wading through the thousands of articles about different productivity systems can be a massive time commitment – time you could be using to actually get things done.
That’s why we decided to do the legwork for you. We’ve gathered the most powerful productivity methods and frameworks all in one convenient place. This post will give you a brief overview of the most popular and useful productivity methods, how each works, and what kind of person will find each useful. It’s designed to help you get set up with your ideal workflow as quickly as possible so you can start reaping the productivity benefits right away.
How to get the most out of this guide
First, we broke down the time commitment needed to get started with each method, rated with a simple Low, Medium, or High.
Eager to begin a huge project but feel completely lost whenever you try to start? Start with a method rated Medium or High.
Up against a hard deadline with a to-do list the length of California and a tendency to procrastinate under stress? Jump to the systems with a Low rating.
We’ve also indicated which methods are more Visual, Tactile, or Abstract — many are a combination. If you know which learning/work style you lean toward, you can skim through and jump to the methods that align best with your natural approach:
Visual
If you’re the kind of person who prefers maps over written or verbal directions, you’ll probably find the visual methods more satisfying.
Tactile
If you love the feeling of physically crossing items off a to-do list or you often find yourself strategizing by moving note cards around on the floor, you’ll probably feel most comfortable with tactile methods.
Abstract
If neither of those approaches sound like you — if you organize projects simply by writing it down or you strategize easily in your head with no physical or visual representation — you might find the abstract methods most useful. The upside of abstract methods is that they also tend to allow for more complexity in prioritizing and categorizing.
As you learn about the way that you work best, here are a few things to keep in mind:
The goal is to actually get stuff done. While it’s common for new workflow to take extra time upfront, they should become increasingly effortless over time. If you find that sticking to a certain productivity method is taking up a significant amount of time, energy, and mental bandwidth, it’s probably not for you. That’s totally ok. There are plenty of other options out there.
You’re not married to one productivity method forever. You may find that a given method is better suited to some of your projects, and not others. A method that used to work for you might become a burden to maintain later on. Be flexible and don’t be afraid to make a change.
To borrow a phrase from Pirates of the Caribbean, productivity methods are more what you’d call “guidelines” than actual rules. The methods outlined below are great starting points, but they’re infinitely more powerful when you mold them to fit your specific work style. Experiment with different methods and mix and match to find your ideal workflow.
Personal Kanban
Time commitment to get started: Low
Type: Visual, Tactile
Perfect for people who: Have a tendency to start a lot of projects but finish very few of them.
What it does: Helps you visualize progress on all of your projects.
Personal Kanban is an incredibly simple system. And that can be a good thing. Sometimes all you need to make progress is a way to see the status of your projects laid out simply in front of you.
Here’s how Kanban works: Using whatever medium you prefer (sticky notes or a whiteboard work well), split your projects into three categories: To Do, Doing, and Done. That’s it.
But this simple system is more powerful than it seems.
By using a finite space for “To Do” and “Doing,” you’ll see how quickly those categories fill up. You get a constant, physical reminder when you need to concentrate on finishing your current projects before starting new ones. In addition, having all your work laid out in front of you helps you feel calm and in control of the big picture.
Eating Live Frogs: Do the Worst Thing First
Time commitment to get started: Low
Type: Abstract
Perfect for people who: Tend to put off important items, resulting in missed deadlines or rushed work.
What it does: Helps to avoid procrastination while ensuring that you make progress on the right things.
A lot of productivity systems and tools are all about getting started. They assume that as long as you’re crossing something off your to-do list, you’re being productive. But in reality, it can make a big difference which task you pick first.
If you put off your most important tasks until the very last second, you’re not really improving your productivity on the things that matter. And, worse, you may find yourself missing deadlines or hurting your reputation by rushing through your most challenging work.
The term, “eating the frog first,” comes from that old well of ( delightfully snarky) wisdom, Mark Twain. He supposedly once said, “Eat a live frog first thing in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day.”
To get started, schedule your daily tasks from hardest to easiest. You’ll get your most important, intimidating, anxiety-inducing tasks(aka your frog) done while your energy is high and your day will get progressively better. You’re likely to find the overall quality of your work improves too.
A huge part of learning to be truly productive is accepting that the impulse to procrastinate is inevitable. Learning to work around your own self-destructive impulses is key. As Brian Tracy puts it in his book Eat that Frog: 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time:
Everyone procrastinates. The difference between high performers and low performers is largely determined by what they choose to procrastinate on.
Want to know more?
Must, Should, Want
Time commitment to get started: Medium
Type: Abstract, visual
Perfect for people who: Need to prioritize tasks, but tend to go for lists over graphs.
What it does: Prioritizes your tasks by urgency, ensures that you’re accomplishing the right things.
Must, Should, Want is all about figuring out what’s critical today and what can wait. Write down everything you have to do and then identify each as a Must, a Should, or a Want.
Your Must tasks are non-negotiable. “Pay rent” — that’s a Must if it’s the first of the month.
A Should is something you need to do, but it’s not dire that it be done today. Answering certain emails may be a Should. It’s important, but delaying it a day or two may not be a big deal, especially if you have a list of Musts due tomorrow.
A Want is something you’d like to do, but might not be practical or necessary at the moment. It can be put off for the future, if need be. Learning a new language is a great goal, but if it’s a choice between getting eight hours of sleep every night and becoming conversational in Portuguese, you might not want to risk the long-term effects of sleep deprivation just to learn a new (albeit, beautiful) language.
A popular variation on this method, called MoSCoW, calls the “Want” category, “Could,” and adds another, “Won’t” for those pesky items that always seem to wind up on your to-do lists, but might not be worth your time and energy in the end.
The SMART Method
Time commitment to get started: Medium
Type: Abstract
Perfect for people who: Are in the early phases of a big project and need to strategize before jumping in.
What it does: Turns big, abstract ideas and goals into concrete, actionable plans.
There have been many adaptations and adjustments to the SMART productivity method since it was introduced three decades ago. At its core, SMART is a way to take a big, pie-in-the-sky idea and figure out how to make it work in the real world by asking yourself a series of questions. SMART is an acronym that stands for: Specific, Measurable, Assignable, Realistic, Timely.
Let’s break it down.
Specific:
Meaning the What — what is this project and what, specifically, do you want to accomplish?
Measurable:
These are the individual tasks and steps that add up to a complete project.
Assignable:
Who is going to do which step? Yes, this is another method that can work for teams, but don’t toss out this step if you’re working on a solo project. Chances are, if you’re using SMART you have a big project, and nothing that big can be accomplished 100% on your own.
If you have small children, you might use this step to think through childcare options. If you’re starting a business, you might reach out to a lawyer or financial planner. Every large undertaking requires some help along the way.
Clarifying how you’ll get that help will make it easier to get your project started.
Realistic:
This is the Debbie Downer of SMART. It encompasses all obstacles in your way, everything that could threaten your project. You can’t overcome a problem until you understand it completely. By carefully considering the challenges ahead, you can start mulling over solutions before they even get a chance to trip you up.
Timely:
Deadlines. Deadlines are an important part of nearly every successful productivity strategy, and with good reason. Time constraints force us to be efficient. Come up with reasonable deadlines for each measureable task —ideally giving you more time than you think you’ll need so you don’t fall victim to the Planning Fallacy.
Overall, SMART is perfectly suited for thinking through any big problem or project. However, when it comes to the day-to-day work of a complex undertaking SMART doesn’t have much to offer. This is a great system for anyone who is overwhelmed with the sheer size of their current project and needs a plan to move forward.
It’s simple, it’s easy to remember, and it doesn’t require a lot of reading to get started.
The Action Method
Time commitment to get started: Medium
Type: Abstract
Perfect for people who: Need to turn creative brainstorming into an actionable to-do list.
What it does: Tidies up the messier aspects of creative work.
The Action Method was developed in 2006 by Behance as a way of simplifying creative meetings. The problem with brainstorming and most creative work is that it often needs to be messy to be truly innovative. Thinking outside the box requires untidiness, but actually getting things done requires an orderly system.
The Action Method helps you move from the idea phase to actionable steps with priorities, due dates, and assignments (if you’re using the Action Method in a team). It involves breaking down ideas into three key categories: Action Items, Backburner Items, and Reference Items.
Action Items are the steps you take to get the project done.
Backburner Items are the interesting ideas that don’t directly fit into your plan for this project.
Reference Items are the resources and information you’ll need to complete the project. For instance, your brand’s visual and logo style guide might be a reference item for a homepage rebranding project.
The Action Method allows you to welcome and integrate great, off-beat ideas while still coming away with a concrete plan.
Though there was an online version of this method for a time, Behance pulled support for it last year. There are still Action Method notebooks sold, if you’re into that kind of thing, but you can use the Action Method with virtually any medium.
Timeboxing
Time commitment to get started: Low
Type: Visual, abstract
Perfect for people who: Find small tasks and interruptions are taking over the whole day.
What it does: Holds you accountable to your daily plan by alloting specific periods of time for specific types of work.
Researchers have found that bite-size tasks and interruptions (“Hey, can I ask you a quick question?”) can disrupt concentration for up to half an hour. If you find yourself spending too much of your day dealing with little items that only reappear the next day (like emails) and too little time tackling the big stuff, this method is for you.
To start timeboxing, just split up your day into blocks of time with specific tasks assigned to each one. Here’s what one timeboxed day might look like:
There are number of different approaches to timeboxing, along with a variety of task-specific timeboxing methods like Inbox Zero for tackling your email. InboxZero uses a number of tricks to make it work, but one of the foundations involves dedicating specific chunks of time to reading and answering emails so that they don’t take over your day.
This a great way to keep yourself accountable and prevent the minutia from overtaking your whole day.
An additional timeboxing method is called day-theming.
It’s exactly what it sounds like. Instead of switching between different types of work or areas of responsibility throughout the day, you dedicate each day of the week to a specific theme. Day-theming is great if you need to dig deeper and do more complex work, or for people who have more than one major area of work that they’re responsible for.
Biological Prime Time
Time commitment to get started: High
Type: Abstract, visual
Perfect for people who: Love data and self-experimentation and want to optimize their days for maximum productivity.
What it does: Tracks your biological rhythms to find the best times for different kinds of productivity.
This is a delightfully nerdy method. It requires a lot of research on yourself and a big time commitment up front, but the personal productivity insights you’ll get out of it can pay off in the long-run.
The basic idea here is to track your energy, motivation and focus to get a sense of when, where, and how you’re the most productive.
To start, eliminate any factors that could mess with your energy — changes in caffeine intake is a big one, staying up late is another — then record what you’re accomplishing once an hour, every hour that you’re working for a few weeks straight. The exact details that you record may vary, but to get the most accurate results you’ll need to be be as consistent as possible. Time and activity tracking software like Rescue Time and Toggl can be a big help here.
Once you’ve gathered your data you can comb through it, looking for patterns. You can even turn the data into graphs. Do you have less motivation on the days when you skip breakfast? Start keeping energy bars or fruit and yogurt on hand for a bit of quick energy. Is your most productive hour around 10am? Schedule your most important tasks for that time and push meetings off for later in the day.
The sheer amount of information that you can gather about yourself by doing this little take-home version of a scientific study will astound you. You’re bound to discover some very interesting things about what drives your productivity — just be careful to not let your self-quantification become its own form of procrastination.
If you can diligently track all three weeks, you’ll come out the other side a productivity superhero.
Getting Things Done
Time commitment to get started: Medium
Type: Abstract, visual, tactile
Perfect for people who: Have a lot of loose ends rattling around in the brain and need a way organize it all.
What it does: Gets your thoughts, worries, and to-dos all out on paper (or into an app) and then helps you organize it all into small, bite size tasks that you can tackle immediately.
GTD is easily the most famous and lasting productivity method in the world.
Created by David Allen and made famous in his bestselling book of the same name, Getting Things Done is an all-encompassing productivity system. GTD aims to remove the frenzied stress of having too much on your plate by putting those ideas in an organized system outside your own head.
The basic stages of the GTD method are:
Capture—This is a brain dump. Just write down everything you have to do in any order with any wording. Don’t worry about the how’s and when’s, just get it out of your head in some form. A good rule of thumb: If you’re stressed or anxious about it, add it to your list.
Clarify—Pluck out the vague ideas and worries and break them down into specific tasks or steps. If you wrote down “Bank” now clarify whether you need to go to the bank to get cashiers check, call the bank to ask about a loan, or just check your balance online. If it’s a big project, like moving all your banking and investment accounts, for instance, you might need to clarify and then break it down into several little steps. The smaller the better. Small steps feel less intimidating, so you’re more likely to want to tackle them first.
Organize—Now that you have the tasks clarified, you need to prioritize them, attach due dates where you can, and maybe categorize them into projects or types of tasks you can tackle all at once(for example, emails or calls).
Reflect—Look over your to-do list on a daily and weekly basis. Are there any steps in your projects that are still too vague? Break them down further. Any due dates that are unreasonable now that you look back? Adjust them. Are any items on the list no longer relevant? Get rid of them.
Engage—Attack that list. You’re ready to get stuff done.
Todoist’s unique system of labels and filters work well with the GTD method. Taylor Martin shared a short video on how he uses Todoist to GTD. And our own Becky Kane recently shared her tips for making the system work even better for you.
Pomodoro/Sprints
Time commitment to get started: Low
Type: Abstract
Perfect for people who: Desperately need to get something done and have a tendency to get distracted.
What it does: Helps you maintain focus for longer by splitting your work into short bursts.
If you find yourself putting off big tasks because the time they’ll take feels too imitating, or you get distracted easily, you might do well with work sprints.
Pomodoro is the most popular variation, though there are many others. With Pomodoro you work for 25 minutes, take a five-minute break, and then repeat until you’ve completed four sprints, after which you take a longer break. It’s that simple.
Work, 25 minutes
Twitter, 5 minutes
Work, 25 minutes
Instagram, 5 minutes
Work, 25 minutes
Facebook, 5 minutes
Work 25 minutes
Half hour break – get up and stretch!
While many people swear by this technique, others find that 25 minutes isn’t enough to time to delve deeply into their work and the five-minute break disrupts their concentration. If that’s the case for you, you can adjust until you find the exact timing that works for you. There are a few time structures others have found helpful, like 52/17 or 90/20.
Don't Break the Chain
Time commitment to get started: Low
Type: Visual
Perfect for people who: Want to adopt new daily habits.
What it does: Encourages consistency in daily habits or tasks.
This technique was made famous by Jerry Seinfeld, who said that he writes a joke every single day. No matter how he feels or whether he has anything to say, he writes at least one joke every day.
And how does he hold himself accountable to keeping this commitment? A calendar — an old-school, hard copy calendar with the whole year on one big page. Each day that he writes, he puts a big X on the calendar. After a few days, a lovely chain of Xs emerges. If ever he’s tempted to skip a day, he just has to look at the calendar where a single missed day will ruin the aesthetic and stick out like a sore thumb.
This is obviously a great technique for adopting or ditching habits. It doesn’t tell you much about your priorities, deadlines, or overall progress, but if you’re trying to write a book or run a marathon, putting in the effort every single day is the only way to get there.
The Eisenhower Matrix
Time commitment to get started: Medium
Type: Visual
Perfect for people who: Like graphs, have trouble seeing things in black-and-white, and would rather prioritize on a continuum than stuff tasks into a few categories.
What it does: Identifies which tasks are priorities and which are just distractions.
The Eisenhower Matrix is another simple method that allows you to prioritize in a delightfully visual way: an XY axis. This is a great tool for visual people. It allows for prioritizing complex projects, yet it’s quick and easy to implement.
Take a piece of paper and draw a very large plus sign; the X axis (a.k.a. horizontal line) represents the level of urgency with the left side being the most urgent and the right side the least. Your Y axis (vertical line) represents importance, with the lowest importance at the bottom, highest at the top.
You end up with four boxes: Urgent and Important, Less Urgent but still Important, Less Important but Urgent, and Less important and Less Urgent. You can place all your tasks on a continuum within the boxes, giving you a clear visual understanding of what really needs to be done now and what can (and should) wait.
The instructions are simple, you can create a new matrix with a pen and a piece of paper any time you like. Just start drawing, and you’re off.
Agile Results
Time commitment to get started: Medium
Type: Abstract
Perfect for people who: Are goal-oriented and/or are tackling complex projects and need to keep to a timeline.
What it does: Focuses on outcomes and prioritization while keeping diligent watch over the scope of your projects and goals.
Agile Results aims to align your day-to-day activities with your larger goals. Like many productivity methods, it encourages working through blocks, but it’s still achievement-oriented. It pushes you to take time to reflect on what’s working and what could be improved. While many methods focus only on moving forward, Agile has one eye on the past and the other on the future.
To start using Agile Results, simply identify three outcomes you want to see for the year, month, week, and day. When setting your daily goals, you should make sure they align with your goals for the week. When you set your goals for the week, they should align with your goals for the month. Same for monthly and yearly goals. At the end of each time period, look back and see how you did. What worked? What didn’t you finish and why? Adjust as needed.
One of the most clever aspects of this method is the way it uses the vision of the finished product as a motivator. By regularly reminding yourself of your end goal, Agile Results re-ignites your enthusiasm and puts it to work for you. It’s also a forgiving method. If you mess up your day or even your week, that’s fine. Agile Results builds in time to think about what went wrong and make better choices in the future.
The To-Done List and the To-Don’t List
Time commitment to get started: Medium
Type: Abstract
Perfect for people who: Spend too much time worrying about how much didn’t get done yesterday/have a lot of bad habits that prevent productivity.
What it does: Flips the traditional to-do list on its head in order to look at productivity in a new way.
The to-do list can feel a lot like a critical know-it-all sometimes. It remembers that you swore you’d get through all your emails by the end of the day and likes to remind you that you still have a big task overdue from last week. It’s easy to lose sight of all of the things you did get done.
That’s where the to-done list comes in.
To make a to-done list, keep track of what you’ve accomplish throughout the day. Rather than focusing on all that’s left to do, keep your focus on your progress. Review your to-done list at the end of every day.
If you try this and it feels a little silly, stick it out for a day or two. You might find that you’ve accomplished a lot more than you thought — and research shows that progress (no matter how small) is a huge motivator.
If you’ve given the To-Done List a shot and find that little tasks (like replies to unimportant emails) are still clogging up your day, you might try the To-Don’t List.
It’s exactly what it sounds like. Make a list of activities and bad habits that you want to avoid and write them down. Then check them off as you manage to avoid each.
This one also has a tendency to feel awkward and obvious at first. You already know what you should and shouldn’t do with your time. But give it a shot. You might find that the daily reminder is an effective way of giving yourself a mission for the day ahead.
And when you reach the end of the day, you have a clear way of knowing if you were productive. Did you manage to avoid repeating those bad habits? Success!
We’re on a serious mission to crowd source as much productivity wisdom as possible. Did we miss any productivity methods that have worked for you? Do you have a twist on any of the productivity methods we’ve listed here that others could benefit from? Let us know in the comments below!
About the author: Tricina Elliker is a freelance writer, content strategist, and productivity nerd in Portland, Oregon.
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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
November 25, 2015 11:57 AM
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I always thought that being different was a *good* thing, but we’ve all been conditioned to conform in various ways. There are many studies heralding the business advantages of diversity in the workplace, most notably Catalyst’s infographic listing 39 benefits of Diversity available at http://www.catalyst.org/knowledge/diversity-matters. Below are suggestions on what to measure, to help leaders from across the organization ensure that diversity, a cornerstone of innovation, thrives within and throughout the organization. - The most obvious thing to measure is the number of new-recruits. But measuring how these new recruits are different than current staff is also important. Consider diversity in gender, culture, orientation, age, background, and other measures as well.
- Another measure is a derivative of the above and often goes un-measured because of it. Measuring the quantity and variety of sources for new recruits helps ensure that a large range of recruits gets considered for employment.
- Some companies run programs to attract people of diverse backgrounds to an organization. Whether it’s an innovation competition, a scholarship program, or a community outreach campaign, these types of programs can successfully garner more awareness and more interest from the right people. Measuring the number and impact of corporate programswill also impact the number of job applications received.
- If we move on from attraction to retention and development measures, the first thing to consider is the process for identifying high-potentials. Who gets to decide who the high-potentials are? How many leaders are engaged in the process? What’s being measured when identifying these high-potentials? Rare is the organization that has a coordinated, concerted effort to even identify these high-potentials.
- Even those organizations who know who their high-potentials are may not have a plan for developing and retaining them! Measure how successful your organization is in developing and retaining peoplein general, and high-potentials in particular! How will you have a leadership pipeline if you don’t do this?
- It’s worth investing in the education of your people in general, and measuring how many of them attendclasses and programs and certifications. Emphasize as well *who* gets selected to attend which program, favoring those identified as high-potential.
- A strong measure of success for any training and development program (as it is for any corporate initiative) is the engagement and commitment of senior leadership to the cause. Executive participation must go beyond the thoughts and words, but also into specific, committed and ongoing actions which provide funding and resources behind those words.
- Retention statistics are important, but look not just at the percentage of retention you have, but more carefully at who’s leaving. Attrition is part of the game when working in a fast-paced tech environment. Focus on and measure the retention of your best-performing high-potentials, even if that means that you might lose an overall volume of people on the team.
- If you do all the above well, then there should be more high-performing people with diverse backgrounds in the executive and C-suites. Of course you measure how many people there are of diverse backgrounds in those senior positions, but the problem comes when companies don’t have the diverse leadership they’re looking for and hire outside talent that might not be the right culture/social/program/tech fit rather than look at how to do all the steps above better.
- Of course it’s always about the bottom line, so measure:
- The number of technologies you’re offering successfully;
- Your expansion into new markets and opportunities;
- The amount of revenues generated;
- The number of new opportunities available;
- The depth and breadth of your partnerships and client base;
- All other corporate and cultural performance indicators.
And if it doesn’t add up, how could more diverse and varied leadership and talent make it right?
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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
November 23, 2015 1:00 PM
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FountainBlue’s November 13 When She Speaks, Women in Leadership Series was on the topic of the Business Case for Diversity. Below are notes from the conversation.
We were fortunate to have panelists representing different backgrounds, upbringings and perspectives around leadership, innovation and diversity. But they had much in common: - they were all exposed to people from many cultures, languages and backgrounds and recognized the importance of having diverse viewpoints and accepting people for their differences;
- they recognized and appreciated that they themselves are different, largely because their mothers helped them be confident in being original and respecting the differences in others;
- they embraced diversity as a business advantage; and
- they generously share their perspectives with their teams, with their company, with their community.
Collectively, our shared the following pearls of wisdom:
- Do accept and respect that others have expectations about where you should fit and what you should do, but be your own person despite what they expect of you.
- Respect that we are all different but equal, and all have something to share. These differences add more varied and diverse elements to work and life.
- Find your talent, find your voice and speak your mind, while encouraging and supporting others to do the same. This takes self-awareness, patience, reflection and is part of an ongoing inner journey.
- Know what you’re good at, accept who you are, and be passionate about what you do. With that said, STRETCH all of the above, don’t just complacently go through the motions. As one panelist puts it, if you are a tiger, be that mover and shaker, if you are an elephant, be that reliable beasts of burden who get the job done but don’t be a hippo who swaddle in mud and occasionally raises his head.
- Be strong, especially when it’s not easy to be different and un-accepted because of the differences. You are not just making a stand for yourself, but for others who are also different.
- Develop and curate your own moral compass so that you can strike that balance between who you are, who you want to become, how you are responding to others, how others are influencing you, what you think is the right thing to do, and how to achieve the best-for-all-results. An integral part of achieving this goal is to embrace the thinking and perspectives of people not-like-you.
- Take charge and reach for what you want to achieve in life and work, overcoming restrictions and barriers, collaborating and working with others.
- In order to take charge, you need to curate the influence and support of those in charge. See what motivates them, show them why embracing your perspective and that of others who are different would provide a business advantage. Speak in a language they understand and respect to earn your credibility.
- Consider that being overly-emotional might make some people uncomfortable and impact the message you would like to deliver, and how you are viewed. Manage your communication accordingly.
- Consider that many people might be influenced by what you wear. For example, wearing skirts and jewelry might limit how others perceive you and take that into account. You could overcome these perceptions with your results and your words, but understanding how you will be perceived and making the other party comfortable and open might make it easier for you to get your message across and focus on the results, rather than gender.
- Be patient with those who are judging you, restricting you, or trying to get you to conform. Understand the influences that have brought them to this state and work with them to embrace the value of thinking and doing things differently.
- Below is advice for facilitating diversity within your organization.
- Communicate the importance of diversity and its impact on products, team and solutions.
- Help teams understand that they are on the same side, but may just perceive and respond differently.
- Show management the data behind the diversity initiatives implemented.
- Put the actions behind your words – encourage out-of-the-box thinking, hire diverse people on to your team, reward different perspectives, listen to those who see things differently, encourage people from different teams to participate, etc.,
In the end, we hope that the panelists and the event encourage all to better embrace diversity as an opportunity for you to rise and shine and find a better, deeper, more complete version of yourself and others around you.
Resource:
Catalyst’s infographic listing 39 benefits of Diversity http://www.catalyst.org/knowledge/diversity-matters
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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
November 13, 2015 12:53 PM
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Relationships are the most important source of meaning at work. Our research shows our relationship with our manager is the most important of all. When you have a great boss you are excited to come to work. When the relationship is off, you tend to hit the snooze button on your alarm.
Unsurprisingly, the number one reason people leave a job is their manager. No manager is perfect, but the better you are at spotting these traits during the interview process, the better chances you will have of finding a job and a manager that are a good fit. Here are some of the most common bad bosses to avoid.
1. The Micromanager
Whether out of a fear of failure, inability to trust other people, or challenges communicating their needs, a micromanager gets involved in all the details of your work. Micromanaging can prevent you from being creative or having the autonomy you need. While we all can get overly particular about certain details, when micromanaging becomes someone’s default way of managing, it can harm the office dynamic. If you sense a nitpicky manager during the interview, you have a couple of options. You can hint that you work best when given creative space. You can also address the manager directly.
Ask: “When do you find the need to be deeply involved with a project vs. letting someone on your team lead?”
Listen for cues in the answer as to the triggers and types of work they mention. For example, they might say that they do it when they are on a tight deadline. Well then, explore how often work is done on a tight deadline in the department.
2. The Rudderless Boat Captain
It is hard to succeed if your manager doesn’t give you the information and direction you need. You are left in the dark about the end goal or expectations of projects. This can be the result of poor planning and/or communication skills.
To get a better sense of their leadership, ask: “I would love to learn more about how your team really works. Can you share a recent project with me and how the team worked on it?”
Listen here to their role in the story and ask follow up about how the goal of the project was defined and how roles and timelines were developed. Does it sounds like “magic,” or a methodical approach to how they lead?
3. The Sleeping Cheerleader
We all need to be celebrated when we do good work and make an impact. While we shouldn’t need constant affirmation, never receiving acknowledgement will turn most people resentful. Managers who fail to recognize members of their team may be too distracted or might not understand the value of praising their reports. Or worse, they might not appreciate the work of the team.
Ask: “What qualities do you appreciate most in your team? Can you give me some examples of times people have stood out to you?”
Asking for specific examples is an easy way to discern a manager’s attitude. If they have trouble coming up with anything positive to say about their reports, odds are they don’t offer many high-fives around the office.
4. The Ghost
With some managers, you may never see them again after the interview. You might have weekly check-ins on the calendar but they always have something pop-up that gets in the way. These managers are typically poor priority setters.
Ask: “How much time do you spend with the team vs. people outside the team? What percentage of your time is spent on client visits or calls?
The answers to these questions will provide direct insights into how the manager prioritizes time and how much of it will be spent with you.
5. The Conflict Averse
Some managers are scared of conflict and as a result never give feedback or stand up for you in the organization. They are so worried about upsetting someone that they can’t be courageous. This can hinder your development in the organization.
Ask: “Tell me about the last time you had to provide someone with really difficult feedback.”
Listen for candid, honest, and constructive feedback in their example. You’ll be more likely to receive it as their direct report.
Remember that an interview is a conversation. You are trying to convince them that you are a good fit for the position, and you also need to find out if the position is a good fit for you. Asking direct and specific questions to your future manager will not only help you decide if you’ll be able to work for them, but will also show them that you care about your work–an attractive quality for any role.
Have you met any of the above bosses?
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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
November 6, 2015 5:45 PM
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What Gear Are You In Right Now?
“Wherever you are, be all there!” Jim Elliot’s advice offers a difficult challenge. “You’re here but your mind is somewhere else” is a common refrain.
Jeremie Kubicek and Steve Cockram, authors of 5 Gears: How to Be Present and Productive When There Is Never Enough Time, write “Every day, millions of people are negatively impacted by the inability of a person to connect appropriately and to be present.” So much drama is created when we don’t know how to shift gears and become present.
5 Gears offers an extremely valuable metaphor for identifying which gear you are in and finding the right gear at the right time in order to connect fully with others. The model is a relationship-driven approach. It is values-driven and helps to counteract self-absorption.
The majority of people are not aware of their social awkwardness and give little time to thinking about what gear the other person is in while they are talking.
When a person’s agenda is the driving force of their life, then they are going to run over people most of the time unless they learn to use their brakes and downshift.
What I like most about the 5 Gears model is first, it gives you language to communicate which gear you are in to yourself and others, and to understand where others are at so that you can be more fully present. Second, it helps you plan what gear you need to be in as you move through your day. And third, it helps to be more self-aware and other-aware.
Like shifting gears in a car, there is a right order and a right time for each gear. Life goes more smoothly when you are shifting through the gears at the right time—and avoiding getting stuck in any one gear.
Here are the 5 Gears:
5th Gear: Learn to Get "In the Zone"
5th Gear is focus mode that allows us to “get in the zone” without interruption. It takes discipline to shut the door, turn off your email, and let people know that you are shifting into 5th gear, but it makes it possible to cruise at a sustained speed for a period of time. The caution is that when you get stuck in 5th gear you miss out on relationships, opportunities to add value, and events in life that matter in the long term.
4th Gear: Leading in a Task World
4th Gear is the task gear that allows us to work hard while also multitasking. Most of the time we operate in 4th Gear so we need to learn to use it well. Waking up in 4th Gear is not the best strategy for your life. Our tasks can begin to control our lives. (Do you normally check your e-mail when you first wake up?) We need to learn how to shift into it and how to shift out of it. They relate the observation of Elizabeth Paul as an example. How many of us are like this:
The personal story for me was realizing that as a woman I have “work” 4th and 5th gear and “domestic” 4th and 5th gear. I thought that because I was being disciplined about putting my devices away during the golden family window of 5 to 8 P.M. I wasn’t in 4th or 5th gear, when in reality I was just putting on a different task hat. When my eyes were opened to that, I realized that I actually have little to no 3rd or 1st gear in my life at all. That was shocking.
In other words, the other gears are not just another 4th Gear task. Each Gear requires a different mindset or approach to your time. If we learn to implement the other gears in our life we will find that our everyday, multitasking 4th gear will become more productive.
3rd Gear: Why Being Social Matters
3rd Gear is the social gear. 3rd gear is a mindset. It is the space between task-driven, hyper focused work and the no-work, relational connection of being with your family, spouse, or close friend. Type-As need to remember that business happens in 3rd gear—in relationships. If you are too important for small talk, you might want to study the chapter on 3rd Gear. Of course you can get stuck in 3rd gear and overdo it. At the same time if you try to control social space it actually becomes a 4th Gear activity for you.
2nd Gear: Connecting Deeply
2nd Gear represents connecting with family, friends, or colleagues. Whether work colleagues, family, or friends, it is time geared toward relationship building without an agenda or pressure to be productive. Some of us have never really learned how to connect. It can’t be forced. It requires making time and learning to truly give of yourself to others.
2nd Gear is a difficult gear to be in because we live in a 4th Gear world. Kubicek writes that while writing this book consumed a lot of time, energy and mental thought, “it is still my responsibility to be the leader worth following in my home. Even with the pressure of a deadline, I still have to practice shifting.” He has found that being present in 2nd Gear leads to healthy relationships that bring peace to your mind and heart, fruitful growth between people, better conversations, likeability and trust, reestablished priorities, less drama and more security, social awareness and emotional intelligence.
1st Gear: Learn How To Recharge
1st Gear represents being fully recharged. Do you know how to recharge? “If you figure out what 1st Gear feels like for you and discipline yourself to spend more time there, more power will flow through you. If you live and lead out of 20 percent battery life then you will never experience what you hope to experience.” The recharging gear if different for all of us. What works for one may not work for another. But we need to find what works for us. Think about this statement: “Working from your rest, not rest from your work, is the goal.” Note to self: “Crashing is not resting; it is actually just crashing.” It is simply stalling out. Truly healthy rest restores you.
Reverse: Learn How to Apologize
Reverse is the responsive gear. It is used when we need to back up and start again or apologize. Too many people operate without a reverse gear.
There are two types of people—responsive and resistant. You hire responsive ones and fire the resistant. Responsive people are self-aware and have a consciousness that is not steeped in victim mentality, but rather responsibility. They understand that they are responsible for their actions and will make amends when they have clearly overstepped their bounds. Responsive people are the best employees, and spouses, and children.
Resistant people, on the other hand, are exhausting. Resistance is basically pride. Resistance will fight rather than resolve, blame rather than admit, and run away rather than run toward reconciliation.
Are there any relationships you need to restore?
Making the 5 Gears Work For You
After explaining the 5 gears, Kubicek and Cockram ask us to find our go-to gear. Where do we like to spend most of our time and what gear is the hardest for us to be in? Learning how to improve on your hardest gears hold the keys to improving your influence in the lives of others.
Next you need to find the right time for each gear as you go through your day. There is a natural time for gears. Your mornings should not start in 4th Gear. Really! When we are in the wrong gear at the wrong time we create disconnects. Shifting well is both an art and a science. 5 Gears offers some practical examples of leading your life intentionally and in the right gear at the right time.
I know this post is getting long, but let me leave you with an example of integrating the 5 Gears into your daily schedule:
6A.M.—Wake Time: 1st Gear
7A.M.—Drive Time: 1st or 4th Gear
8A.M.—Work Time: 4th or 5th Gear
12 Noon—Lunchtime: 3rd or 1st Gear
1P.M.—Work Time: 4th or 5th Gear
5P.M.—Drive Time: 4th or 1st Gear
6P.M.—Dinner Time: 2nd or 3rd Gear
8P.M.—Social Time: 3rd or 2nd or 1st Gear
10P.M.—Bedtime: 1st Gear
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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
November 5, 2015 11:36 AM
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URBAN MEYER is an elite college football coach and currently the head football coach of the Ohio State Buckeyes. In Above the LineLessons in Leadership and Life from a Championship Season he presents the lessons he has learned over his career.
Meyer says, “A leader is someone who earns trust, sets a clear standard, and then equips and inspires people to meet that standard.”
Using ideas he received from Tim Kight of Focus3, he set a standard of Above the Line behavior to coaching. Above the Line behavior is conscious and thoughtful. Below the Line behavior is impulsive and reactionary.
“The performance of a team rises or falls on behavior,” Meyer’s writes. “The simple truth is that getting and staying above the line is the foundation of success in anything you do—work, school, football, and life. Every day is a battle for whether we choose to live Above the Line or Below the Line. The choice we make determines how we treat the people we love, how we interact with colleagues at work, how we do our job, how we learn and grow, how we deal with adversity and disappointment, and ultimately what we achieve.”
Ironically, some coaches are so preoccupied with pushing for results that they fail to build a culture that sustains the behavior that produces results. But winning behavior will not thrive in a culture that does not support it.
If your habits don’t reflect your dreams and goals, you can either change your habits or change your dreams and goals.
Do whatever you can to reinforce someone’s confidence by helping him to achieve small victories. So much of leadership comes down to knowing the people you are leading and providing them with what they need to succeed. It is also about making them confident to take risks and make changes.
When things aren’t going right, the most important thing you can do is slow down, go deep, and figure out why. It is very easy in the world we live in to get so caught up in the tyranny of the urgent that we don’t make time to think. There are many distractions that pull leaders away from investing the time necessary to reflect on the issues and challenges facing their organizations.
Leadership is more about trust you have earned than the authority you have been granted. You must earn the right for people to follow you. It is about equipping people with the tools necessary to get and stay Above the Line. It’s about maximizing their talent and their lives. You are stretching people, helping then change and grow. You are taking people to places they never thought they would reach. You are helping them live better lives. Remember, you can’t lead people to a place that you are not going to as well. If it isn’t happening in you, it won’t happen through you.
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Scooped by
Linda Holroyd
October 23, 2015 11:37 AM
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As I headed to LinkedIn’s Talent Connect recruiting industry confab last week with more than 4,000 of the world’s best recruiters and talent leaders, someone tweeted me this headline:
Why Lou Adler is Wrong About Personality Assessment Tests
As I was leaving the conference a Talent Leader from a Fortune 200 company strong-armed me and said something strange. It went something like, “While we’ve aced our pre-hire quality of hire assessments, we’re struggling with improving quality of hire.”
That’s why I’m not wrong about pre-hire personality assessment tests. If they don't predict quality of hire they are valueless.
Good people don’t underperform due to the wrong personality, the wrong behaviors or some Quixotic definition of culture fit or lack of intelligence or weak team or technical skills. They underperform for one or more of the following reasons:
They’re not motivated to do the actual work required since the job they’re being asked to perform after being hired was ill-defined before they were hired.
Being competent to do something is not the same as being motivated to do it.
Being motivated to get a job is not the same as being motivated to do the job.
The interview focused on assessing competencies, behaviors and depth of skills that only weakly map to the actual work required to be done.
The hiring manager and candidate don’t work too well together.
While actual cultural fit is very important, few managers or recruiters understand what this means and how to measure it properly.
That’s why I’m not wrong about pre-hire personality assessment tests. Nor am I wrong about the continued use of flawed and ill-advised OD interviewing and assessment tests that put people into large groups and expect to hire perfect androids who will fit all jobs for all occasions.
Here’s my simpleminded alternative.
Recognize that there are two job markets. One offers ill-defined lateral transfers; the other offers career moves. People in the career job market won’t take assessment tests nor will they underperform if properly assessed. This huge barrier-to-entry is why I really don’t like these tests. However, even if they’re reasonably good confirming indicators of performance they're only mildly predictive.
Emphasize passive candidate recruiting since these candidates represent 85% of the entire talent market. But they’re only open to consider career moves.
Drop transactional hiring and recruiting practices. Instead use a consultative recruiting process focusing on matching a person’s motivating needs with the real job, the real manager and the actual culture.
A career move must provide a minimum 30% non-monetary increase. This is the sum of job stretch, job growth and a richer mix of more satisfying work.
Use a performance-based job description to define the real work, not one infested with skills.
Use comparable results as the primary means to assess pre-hire quality, motivation and cultural fit. Here’s a super quick summary of the Performance-based Interview process I recommend.
Redefine your culture. Most of a company’s culture is determined by the pace of the organization, the quality and depth of its decision-making process, the flexibility of its infrastructure, its strategy and how well it’s doing in comparison to its competition. You need to match this part before you get into the idealism.
Put compensation in the parking lot. If a person doesn’t find the job intrinsically satisfying, paying the person a salary premium will make things worse.
Get the manager fit part right. Nothing else will matter otherwise.
Make hiring managers formally accountable for the quality of the people they hire.
If recruiters need to present more than four candidates for any open job something is wrong. It’s probably one of the first 10 items listed here.
Maybe assessment tests, competency modeling and behavioral interviewing can help separate the more qualified from the less qualified in a talent surplus environment. But quality of hire will not improve since these people are not being assessed on their fit with the actual job, the actual manager and the actual culture and business situation. In this case there’s a high probability these good people will underperform because the job is demotivating, the hiring manager’s style is demotivating or the culture was ill-defined.
That’s why I suggest recruiters and hiring managers define the real job and the real culture and offer real career moves. Recognize that a career move is not a lateral transfer with more money; it’s doing work that offers more stretch, more growth and more satisfaction. Assessment tests assess none of these things. That’s why I don’t like them.
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Sound, sensible advice that will help you be open and grow