Archive for the ‘Leadership Development’ Category

Not so long ago, leaders were once thought to be like ogres. The employees tiptoed around the workplace like busy ants, doing their very best not to get reprimanded or be sent to the “principal’s” office.  They did their jobs but couldn’t wait to leave and go home. There was gossip, a lack of communication and no trust. Furthermore, a sense of hostility coupled with miscommunication can lead to disaster, especially when the stakes are high and accuracy is a must. Although the leader may have been respected, it was respect out of fear, rather than respect of admiration.

Wouldn’t you rather be admired and liked by the employees?  More and more leaders of today are learning to push the “ogre mentality” aside and embrace the opportunity to get to know the people they serve. They are finding that trusting them, caring about the wellbeing of their employees and families, teaching them and communicating with them goes a lot further to create a healthy workplace.

If your goal is to promote low staff turnover, improved customer loyalty and better quality produicts, here are Three Leadership Don’ts to stop immediately:

1. Don’t be the Alone Ranger! Your job is to get results through others, not to do everything yourself. The key to achieving greater results is through delegation. Trying to take on every task yourself will lead to burnout and destroy trust among subordinates.

2. Don’t Jump to Solutions! When faced with a problem, stop and think. It is a common human trait to point fingers, act upon instincts or even to fly off the handle when problems occur unexpectedly. Before jumping to solutions involve others. Together, define the problem, and then gather data to determine possible causes. Next, identify the root cause. Instead of trying to solve the problems on your own, propose solutions as a whole team. Other people may have ideas how the problems could be solved, some of which you may have never thought of before. Brainstorming can lead to everyone coming up with a great solution together.  When you jump to solutions and react on impulse, you waste time and frustrate others, especially when the solution is wrong.

3. Don’t Suffer in Silence! When things go wrong (and it will happen!), don’t become withdrawn and quiet. Even if it is your nature to try to deal with problems on your own, the silent route will only eat you alive. Problems kept internally can cause you to lose sleep, or they can even mess up relationships with your employees, friends and family. This is the time to rally up the troops and share in the reality of the situation, rather than trying to deal with all of these issues on your own. Whether it is a personal issue or work-related problem, other people are willing and love to help, if only they know what you are going through. Talking out loud gives them the opportunity to make a difference.

The leadership don’ts can be very easy to fall into, especially when you fail to realize it is happening to you. Hence, perhaps the biggest realization in all of this is the aspect of accountability to oneself. Unfortunately, people rarely like to admit their own faults; it is a natural inherent desire to be founded and grounded to our belief system. But those leaders who are the most successful are those who are able to grab hold of the concept, admit their mistakes and embrace the need for change.

Take the time now to reflect upon and truthfully answer these questions:

• Do your employees trust you?
• Do you feel like a prisoner of your own thoughts?
• Do you analyze a situation before jumping to conclusions?
• Do you sometimes feel helpless or like things are out of control?
• Do people open up to you with their concerns, issues or problems?
• Do you feel frustrated by the workplace atmosphere at the moment?
• Do you fly off the handle or immediately react when a problem arises?
• Do you keep your problems to yourself and rarely share them with anyone?
• Do you wish you had more help but don’t trust others to do the tasks you need done as well as you could do them yourself?

If you answered “Yes” to one or more of these questions, fear not. You are not a bad leader or a poor manager. And you probably don’t have bad employees, either. There can be a lot of relationship or communication issues in the workplace gone awry, but it can be improved slowly and trust can be repaired. Start by ditching the three leadership don’ts and accept that you DO need others. Also, remember employees WANT to be needed. They are not at work just to receive a steady paycheck. Instead, they want to work in an environment in which they can contribute their full creative powers to make a difference in the lives of others.

I was asked this question after sharing with an employee who was hurting that I understood how she felt. The minute the she said, “Do you really understand!” my heart sunk. Then it hit me, I had just made the #1 listening mistake…sharing that I understood when I had not validated how she felt. Her facial expressions and tone of voice signaled you just think you do. I quickly said, “May I share how I think you feel?” She nodded yes. I said, “You feel scared and unsure of yourself and believe you will be blamed for anything that goes wrong.” She said, “Yes I feel like a scapegoat and dread coming to work every day.”

Fortunately, I quickly recovered and said, “Tell me more.” Then I shut up and listened. Occasionally, I would paraphrase or ask a question to ensure understanding of her intent and emotions. Twenty minutes later, she thanked me for understanding her situation.

Upon returning to my office, I reflected on my poor behavior and asked myself, “Why did I dehumanize her?” The answer was simple; I did not want to listen. I was preoccupied with an upcoming deadline and focused on myself instead of a person in need. Within the first few minutes of hearing her story I began to think to myself, “I don’t have time for this…please hurry up and finish!” The story I told myself drove my emotions and next thing you know I blurted out, “I understand.”

The next time you find yourself not wanting to listen remember there is a cost. When you miss out on key information the organization loses money due to mistakes and wasted time. Besides losing money employees face emotional wear and tear causing relationships to become strained which impact their performance and productivity.

Remember, when people are understood and trusted they will give their best effort and fully invest themselves in their work.

Listening is the doorway to understanding, bridge to connection and the foundation of trust.

~John Bentley

 

Listen as Kevin McNulty interviews me about leadership and influence.

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May your Thanksgiving be filled with family, friends and much love.

John

From the time we are born, listening is a skill acquired and used primarily before any of the other senses.  Throughout youth and the teen years, we rely heavily on listening to learn from school and parents.  It is also during this time that we develop the skills of communicating.

An old rhyme goes like this; “A wise old owl sat on an oak; the more he saw, the less he spoke.  The less he spoke, the more he heard; why aren’t we like that wise old bird?”

Why is it then, with such an aptitude of listening that is developed from the time we are born – perhaps even one the most used of our senses – do we fail to continue listening the older we get?

It seems as though listening is a skill that worsens throughout the growing years, as other skills develop and take precedence. By the time people face adulthood they have also faced many bad experiences.  One human instinct is to “tune it out” after awhile.  For example, a kid who hears his parents fighting a lot growing up may try to drone out the unwanted sound by blaring music loudly in his bedroom.  Or, a child who has faced ridicule from peers may tune out those feelings of rejection by simply not listening to people any longer.

Another reason people don’t listen well as adults is because they have mastered the art of talking.  Naturally egocentric as humans, we like to talk about ourselves or about things we like.  Over time, this can lead to interrupting.  Ifsomeone is not listening to what you have to say they may interrupt frequently.  That is because they are on a train of thought and are too unaware that the natural order of conversing back and forth means

‘You talk, then I listen; then I talk, and You listen.”

Yet a wise old sage once said; “We have been given two ears but one single mouth, in order that we may listen more and talk less.” Good point.

Let’s go back to the owl.  As an observer, the wise owl mastered listening and was able to capture his surroundings.  Think how much more people would be able to take in mentally if they truly heard everything that was going on around them.  In the spy movies, the secret agent is always quiet; hence he always knows what’s going on and is a stealthy step ahead of the bad guys.

In an abstract sense, perception impairs the ability to talk and listen adequately causing gaps between the subconscious intent of the leader and what subsequent results may follow.  Some leaders intend to ‘bring down’ others in order to fluff up their own ego. This can be a sign of self-doubt.  Those are leaders who got promoted because of making their presence known, loudly!  The quiet leaders are the motivators.  They quietly know what the capabilities are of their subordinates, so they don’t need to yell in order to motivate them.  This enforces the aspect of trust on behalf of the leader and the follower.  It could be said that leaders are quiet motivators with abundant wisdom, most of which they acquired by listening more and speaking less.

The people who listen are known as wise, well respected and sought-after for advice. People trust them.  That is because they are leaders, who absorb information by listening more and talking less.  They have mastered the art of listening, hearing and implementing. They have gained respect and trust.

To listen well is as powerful a means of influence as to talk well,
and is as essential to all true conversation.
-          Chinese Proverb

Read the rest of this entry »

Succession planning continues to be front and center for most organizations. Read our article for why succession… http://t.co/aZaTf7TR

Just like a thermostat maintains the ideal temperature in your home, vital leaders monitor and manage their… http://t.co/PaeMtnFq

This week’s article is…align employee strengths with organization goals to accelerate results!

Vital leaders practice 6 crucial skills required to unleash the full creative powers of every employee in accomplishment of your most important goals.

1. Listening is the doorway to understanding and the bridge to trust.
2. Expectations of employees when understood drives great performance.
3. Align employee strengths with organizational goals to accelerate results.
4. Develop employees through coaching and delegation.
5. Encourage employees with positive and corrective feedback.
6. Resilience the base for leadership excellence.

Trivial leaders are focused on the achieving business results but never consider employee work preferences when assigning jobs. This lack of awareness and caring by the leader is a major reason employees become frustrated, stressed and unmotivated. The impact on business results is seen in high employee turnover, increased sick leave use and lower quality in products and services.

 From a leader’s perspective, the most serious betrayal has to do with thwarting human potential, with quenching the spirit, with failing to deal equitably with each other as human beings. ~Max DePree

The vital leader aligns employee strengths to business and organizational goals. No matter what job a person is assigned, every role in that job will not be a good fit for the employee’s preference for accomplishing work. Vital leaders understand every job is comprised of both task and relationship roles. They also know whether employees are more task or relationship oriented by understanding their strengths:

Task Oriented Strengths	Relationship Oriented Strengths
Questioning Logic focused Objective Skeptical Challenging	Accepting People focused Empathizing Receptive Agreeable

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Furthermore, vital leaders understand task and relationship oriented behaviors may be presented in a direct or indirect manner. Keeping this in mind, we can now describe four employee work styles and their preferences for accomplishing work.

What Employees are Direct and Task Oriented

You rely on what employees when the job must be done now! They are hard charging with a never fail attitude. You’ll recognize them right away. They are straightforward and ask “What do you want?” and “What’s the bottom line?” Give what employees work that is challenging, stay out of their way and watch them thrive!

Who Employees are Direct and Relationship Oriented

You rely on who employees to persuade and energize others to achieve group goals. Who employees have a gift for connecting people with resources to achieve business goals. You will recognize them when they ask such questions as “Who’s involved?” and “Who can provide recognition and resources?” Provide who employees with opportunities for group activities and you will not be disappointed with the outcome.

How Employees are Indirect and Relationship Oriented

When you need support for team goals give the job to a how employee. How employees are patient and use a calm approach to support others in accomplishment of goals. You recognize them because they ask, ”How can I best support the team?” and “How do we develop a plan for us to follow?” Allow how employees to help others in a stable environment, and they will stay on task until the job is satisfactorily completed.

Why Employees are Indirect and Task Oriented

If work must be done right the first time give the job to a why employee. They are very deliberate in their approach to work and use precision along with analysis to achieve the highest quality outcomes. Why employees give themselves away when you hear them ask “Why must it be done this way?” and “Why did you change the rules?” Give why employees the opportunity to use their expertise for ensuring quality and they will deliver error free products and services.

 Leaders must know the strengths of each employee, then create opportunities for employees to use them. ~Gallup Organization

Armed with knowing the job requirements and the employees natural strengths will allow you to assign employees work that is a natural fit and require less energy for them to perform. Of course this is not always possible. When it isn’t possible, you can inform the employee of the work, which fits their orientation and let them know what about the job may be frustrating. This approach sets the employee up for success while improving employee engagement, and organizational success.

Vital Leader Thoughts on Employee Strengths

1. Identify whether your employees are more task or relationship oriented. Also consider if they are more direct or indirect when communicating with others.

2. Now align their strengths with the jobs required of the organization.

3. Finally, set the employees up for success by sharing how the job aligns with their strengths and is a good fit for how they prefer to work. Also describe which parts of the job are not a good fit and may cause some frustration or stress for the employee. Knowing you care will allow employees to give their best in achieving business goals while feeling appreciated for what they do.

In the next article, I will share my thoughts and experience for developing employees through coaching and delegation.

Unless you are one of the very few people who have been fortuitous enough to be self employed throughout the duration of your career, chances are you’ve had a boss; or several.  Even highly successful CEOs had to work their way up the ladder through the experiences they learned within a corporate atmosphere.  The leader of an organization ideally is one who shapes the individuals of their team in a nurturing climate that helps them to grow, excel and strive for excellence.  There are many different styles that a leader can adopt to ensure the success of their subordinates.

            Yet, there is also one leadership style that does just the opposite. A toxic leader, toxic boss or a toxic manager is a term used to describe the leader of an organization who does more harm than good to the wellbeing of a company.  Instead of using positive reinforcement, employee engagement and encouragement, the toxic leader will be more apt to use bullying, yelling, threatening, punishments, belittling or condescending behaviors to try to achieve results from the staff.  Maybe a simple and easy way to describe this type of leader is the “Boss from Hell”.

            The unfortunate aspect of a toxic leader is that very often the person is completely oblivious of the harm done, or that there is even a problem with this type of leadership style.  They think that in order to get people to do things they want, they must monitor and control the employees by using negative strategies.  Instead of listening to new ideas, they shut people down.  When an employee does something wrong – either because they were not trained properly or just accidently – the toxic leader screams and yells or writes up the employee instead of showing the person how it can be done differently, or better.  They may even carry on these antics in front of other staff to set an example, making the employee feel like crawling under a table with embarrassment and humiliation. Read the rest of this entry »

This week’s article is…expectations of employees when understood drives great performance!

Vital leaders practice 6 crucial skills required to unleash the full creative powers of every employee in accomplishment of your most important goals.

1. Listening is the doorway to understanding and the bridge to trust.
2. Expectations of employees when understood drives great performance.
3. Align employee strengths with organization goals to accelerate results.
4. Develop employees through coaching and delegation.
5. Encourage employees with positive and corrective feedback.
6. Resilience the base for leadership excellence.

Trivial leaders see people as a thing and use the carrot and stick style of motivation. When you do well, you get the carrot. When you don’t do well, you get the stick. Also known as the “Jackass Theory” of motivation. Since trivial leaders treat people as things they can only control, manage, direct and watch the employees every move.

When people are treated as things, they lose trust and withhold their full commitment. ~Stephen Covey

When commitment is withheld employees only do what they are told because you are paying them.  As trust continues to erode employee commitment continues to decline further to malicious obedience. Some people even rebel or quit even though they stay on your payroll. Furthermore, unless commitments are made, there are only promises and hopes… but no results.  

Vital leaders see people as an asset and treat them as a whole person turning their potential into performance and performance into profits. They understand there is a direct relationship between the extent which employee expectations (psychological contract) has been discussed and how much the employee volunteers their highest efforts and energies. Moreover, the employees fully engage themselves in your most important priorities. You can’t buy this level of engagement…you have to earn it.

Without inspiration the best powers of the mind remain dormant. There is a fuel in us which needs to be ignited with sparks. ~Johann Gottfried Von Herder

Vital Leader Thoughts on Employee Expectations 

1. Help people develop a language through which they can efficiently and accurately communicate concerns about their work preferences, attitudes, and satisfaction.
2. Help employees gain a deeper understanding of what brings them satisfaction and frustration on their job.
3. Learn hot to better read the pulse of your departments or organizations to discover potential areas of group dissatisfaction.

Next week I will share my thoughts and experience with aligning employee strengths with organization goals to accelerate results.

This is the first article in a series of 6 helping you answer the question…Are You a Trivial Leader or a Vital Leader…a catalyst for employee greatness! 

Vital leaders master 6 crucial skills required to unleash the full creative powers of every employee in accomplishment of your most important goals. 

1. Listening is the doorway to understanding and the bridge to trust.
2. Expectations of employees when understood drive great performance.
3. Align employee strengths with organization goals to accelerate results.
4. Develop employees through coaching and delegation.
5. Encourage employees with positive and corrective feedback.
6. Resilience the base for leadership excellence.

 

Big egos have little ears. ~Robert Schuller

Trivial leaders are intoxicated by their own voice. They don’t hear the ideas and concerns of others. Trivial leaders do not value the viewpoints of others or understand the importance of listening. Therefore, the only perspective they have is their own and when things go right they take all the credit and when mistakes are made they blame others.

Trivial leaders who refuse to listen costs their organizations in several ways. Communication breaks down and must be re-accomplished and projects come in over budget and not completed on time. The result organizations lose money each and every month due to mistakes and waste enormous amounts of time. Besides losing money employees face emotional wear and tear causing relationships to become strained which impact performance and productivity.

 

Listening is the doorway to understanding and the bridge to trust. ~John Bentley

Vital leaders begin with the attitude that all people have good intentions and sound reasons for why they are communicating what they are saying.They put people at ease, while letting them know they care and will take appropriate action on employee ideas and concerns.   When people are understood and trusted they will give their best effort and fully invest themselves in their work. 

A vital leader truly listens and pauses after the person finishes speaking to process what was said. The pause allows you to reflect on what was heard or ask a clarifying question letting the person know you were listening. Lastly when people are heard they feel valued and provide creative ways to improve business results and customer WOW!

 

Of all the skills of leadership, listening is the most valuable—and one of the least understood. Most captains of industry listen only sometimes, and they remain ordinary leaders. But a few, the great ones, never stop listening. That’s how they get word before anyone else of unseen problems and opportunities. ~Peter Nulty

Vital Leader Thoughts on Listening

1. Are you hosting listening session with your employees? If not, the employees may not understand what the organization is doing and the challenges you are facing. Listening sessions allow you to share this information so employees can ask questions and provide ideas and feedback to improve the situation.
2. When listening, takes notes and show a genuine interest in others and what they think. If you are busy and cannot be interrupted let the individual know you cannot give your undivided attention and energy right now. Next establish a time for the person to come back so you can listen fully and truly value your time together.  
3. When meeting in your office take the time to unplug the phone and turn off your computer monitor to prevent distractions. This sends a message to the employee that you are important to me!

Please share with us your listen tips to help us become a Vital Leader. Next week I will share my thoughts and experience with understanding employee expectations (the psychological contract) to drive great performance.

The concept of transparent leadership is one that is being adopted by many organizations across the board, yet its core premise is one that has yet to be fully embraced.  At the root of this ideal remains an underlying fear among upper management, executives and CEOs that by accepting such concepts would imply a show of weakness that would trickle down to subordinates and be seen by superiors as a hosh-posh.  In other words, a big mistake.

         This certain hesitation is understandable, however it can be overcome by comprehending the values surrounding the transparent leadership buzz.  When people think of the word transparent, they think of ‘see-through’ or opaque, like glass.  Therefore, applying this term to being a leader doesn’t seem to go together and what people do not fully understand they usually reject.  Read the rest of this entry »

I stopped by a fast food establishment in TN last week and witnessed the following: 

Employee: “Where do you want me to put the new oatmeal marketing displays?”

Manager: “You decide I am busy.”

Employee: “I want to make the right decision…this is my first time setting out marketing displays…where do you think the displays should go?”

Manager: “You will do the right thing…go ahead and make it happen.”

Now for the rest of the story…Once the employee finished placing the marketing displays…

Manager: “You did not do this correctly…I would have never put the displays where you did!”

Employee: “But I…”

Manager: “Never mind I will do it myself.”

What do you think? More importantly have you used this leadership approach before?

If you answered yes then you know that aiming your communication at someone does not improve effectiveness and destroys trust between the manager and the employee.

From my observation the employee wanted to do the task correctly and even asked for help. The manager just wanted the task completed and indicated she trusted the employee to do it correctly.

While the manager granted the employee responsibility for the task the authority for completing the task remained with the manager.

Two thoughts come to mind:

1. The employee’s preferred style for receiving communication was details so she could complete the task accurately the first time. The manager’s preferred communication style was ready, fire, aim…she was communicating at the employee.
2. When delegating to someone recognize not only how to communicate the task but also take into account the employee’s ability and willingness for completing the task.

In this case the manager could have slowed her pace and taken the time to show the employee where to correctly place one of the marketing displays. Next she could have ensured the employee understood the detailed instructions and was comfortable with completing the remainder of the task.

Next time you have the opportunity communicate in a style that connects you with the employee vs. aiming yourself and destroying trust and confidence in the process.

Let me know what steps you will take to improve communication between yourself and those you are responsible for serving…your followers.

I had the joy and honor of meeting Kathy Barnes while visiting my daughter @ Vanderbilt Medical Center today. Kathy was cooking hamburgers in the cafeteria and asked me about the book I was carrying. I shared with her Jon Gordon’s “Training Camp” How to bring out the best in yourself and others.

For a moment, I thought here’s another opportunity to share my leadership and personal development philosophy. However, I was pleasantly surprised as Kathy, the food and beverage manager, began sharing with me the books she reads to connect with those she is fortunate enough to lead. Kathy told me how she uses the appropriate communication style to connect with each employee based on their preferred method of receiving information. Read the rest of this entry »

During this holiday season more than ever, our thoughts of gratitude turn to all who have made our progress possible and successful.

In this spirit we sincerely say
THANK YOU And BEST WISHES For A Safe And Wonderful Holiday Season.

We look forward to working with you in the New Year!

From all of us at Power 2 Transform!
Sincerely,
John Bentley

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With the health of the U.S. economy so much in the news these days, it seems natural to also analyze the health of the average U.S. worker, considering how much influence the latter has on the former. That analysis, considering the current state of the national healthcare system, does not paint a pretty picture.

There are two sides to this issue. The first is the more obvious of the two: the actual cost of healthcare. During the past decade, that cost has skyrocketed in relation to other business costs. In fact, it’s skyrocketed in relation to just about any other product or service, with the possible exception of oil and college tuition. Every year, businesses and corporations have passed more of the cost of their health insurance programs on to their employees. Despite all of this, politicians have been unable to hammer out a workable solution. Read the rest of this entry »

Companies are constantly searching for new and better ways in which to increase the productivity of their workforce, and thereby, enhance their bottom line. They try new tactics and strategies, all of which are designed to help employees reach their full potential and maximize their contribution to the company.

However, sometimes the best solutions are the ones that are so readily apparent they go unnoticed. One such solution involves the health and lifestyle choices of the employees in question.

Factors for success . . . or failure

There are many factors that can impact employees’ productivity levels. They include diet, sleep (or lack thereof), stress, morale, and exercise (or lack thereof). A recent survey conducted by ComPsych, the world’s largest provider of employee assistance programs, sheds some interesting light on these factors and how they can negatively—or positively—affect employees.

ComPsych surveyed more than 1,000 employees across the United States during the timeframe of January 1 through February 15, 2008. The survey involved companies of all sizes and those operating in a variety of different industries. Overall, the survey was quite extensive and unearthed a wealth of data. However, in the interest of brevity, we’ll address a few of the more important findings, as they relate to the factors listed above.

• Diet—Of employees with balanced diets, 73% reported having high levels of productivity and 50% reported having high levels of energy.
• Stress—Approximately 70% of employees with poor diets had high levels of stress. In addition, 76% of employees participating in no physical activity reported a high level of stress.
• Exercise—Over 65% of physically active employees reported high productivity levels, and 67% reported high energy levels, as well.
• Morale—Of course, as you might imagine, the three factors listed above can have a profound impact on morale. About 55% of very active employees reported having high morale, and 51% of workers with ideal weight reported the same.

The power of promotion

So . . . what does all of this mean? You might be thinking to yourself, “I already knew this. It doesn’t help me any!” Or perhaps you’re thinking that you can’t force employees to be healthy, so this information constitutes a moot point at best.

But that would be underestimating the power of promotion. There is plenty that a company can do to build and cultivate a corporate culture that promotes a healthy lifestyle. While it’s true that you can’t force an employee to make healthy choices, you can make it easier for them to make those choices. That’s why it’s imperative for company officials to analyze their culture and ask some tough questions:

• Does our culture promote health and well being?
• Do we make it easy for employees to make healthy choices during the workday . . . or difficult?
• How much more productive could we be through promotion and other health-related programs and initiatives?

The evidence is indisputable. Healthy employees are productive employees, but it even goes beyond that. They’re happy employees, as well, and that combination is almost impossible to beat—especially by your competition.

We encourage your participation and comments.

Also, please feel free to forward this blog to your friends and colleagues and to come back often.
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Sincerely,
John Bentley

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