Great leaders are obsessed with recognizing, resourcing and advancing the ideas of others in the organization, not their own.
How do you go about…
- Recognizing
- Resourcing
- Advancing
the ideas of others?
Pick one and let us know what you do.
Tag: control
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Quote to Consider: Leaders Are About Everyone Else
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Finding Meaning in the Mean Time
When we talk about “toughing out a tough job,” (our current podcast discussion series), we are not talking about passively enduring an awful situation until something better comes along.We’re talking about finding meaning in the mean time.
We’re talking about making the time work for you instead of against you.
We’re talking about taking control of the tough experience and creating as good an experience as possible.
There are many good reasons to stay put in a less than ideal job situation.
Two questions for you as we begin this discussion:
- Describe a situation where it would be wiser to stay put in a tough job situation.
- What is a goal you could set for yourself in such a situation where you would benefit regardless of the difficulties?
Looking forward to hearing from you.
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Surviving Uncertainty and Stress
What’s the most stressful part of hearing rumors of lay-offs? Possibly losing one’s job? Possibly losing a valuable team member? No. Neither actually. It’s the uncertainty.
Think about it. Uncertainty.
How will the weak economy affect you? Uncertainty. What will happen at your performance review? Uncertainty. The person who hired you is fired. Uncertainty. An unexpected opportunity presents itself. Uncertainty.
Give me a defined problem any day. I can face a disaster. I can get help with a problem. I can develop a new skill. I can confront a bully. But please don’t leave me hanging.
The key to surviving uncertainty is not to beg, bargain or complain, manipulate or manufacture certainty. Certainty is elusive at best and not possible in many instances.
The key to surviving uncertainty is to identify which choices are in your control and which choices are not. By letting go of the things outside of your control (e.g. the economy, a supervisor’s idiosyncracies, the weaknesses over in the sales department, etc.), you can focus on the things you can control.
Where do you have control? Ask yourself, “Where can my choices make a difference?”
You can find new ways to add value and engage more fully with your current position. You can nurture your network of relationships, near and far, so that you have positive connections in a variety of contexts. You can find opportunities to learn new skills and expand current ones, especially skills that are transferable across a variety of fields.
The negative stress associated with uncertainty will be replaced with a sense of purposefulness and personal power. Though those with more power in the organization may make decisions that complicate your life, you will know that you are doing all you can to be a value-adding team member, a well-connected community member, and an irrepressible transferable skill developer.
Instead of worrying, you will be ready to make your next decision. Now, that feels good!
On your side,
– Karl Edwards
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Adding Value Idea: Be a Team Player
One area of work that is always in your own control is whether or not you choose to be a team player.
One thing you can do to shape how others perceive your contribution to the organization is find ways to make the entire team more successful.
This could be as simple as helping an overwhelmed co-worker finish a task. You could compliment someone in front of their supervisor, making them look good. You could add a level of extra coordination to your efforts, so that more of the people affected know what’s going on.
What you’re looking for are opportunities to take the initiative and engage beyond the strict limits of your job description with an emphasis on making the entire team function better.
In light of our podcast conversation topic this week, when uncertainty inserts its unwelcome head, you will already be perceived as a team player… key, if not indispensable, to the organization. One more thing in your own control. One less thing to stress about!
Where have you found opportunities to engage as a team player?
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Listen In -> Uncertainty & Stress #1: Taking the Stress Out of Uncertainty
We are surrounded by uncertainty. Economists can’t agree whether or not we’re in a recession. Large corporations in the news are cutting back on staff and closing factories and storefronts. The government is mailing out stimulus checks to spark some spending.
This week we begin a new podcast series entitled Taking the Stress Out of Uncertainty.
Instead of losing sleep over the things we cannot control, listen in over the next five weeks as Claudia and I discuss what is in our control.
- Week #1: Taking the Stress Out of Uncertainty
- Week #2: Add Value to Your Current Job
- Week #3: Know Where Your Money is Going
- Week #4: Build Your Transferable Skills
- Week #5: Stay Connected to Your Relationship Network
Listen in.
- Week #1: Taking the Stress Out of Uncertainty
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Controlling or Cruising?
Toward which extreme would your planning approach tend? Controlling or cruising?
Do you try to control more than may be possible, humanly speaking? Stick to tight schedules even if it means working nights and weekends. Keep everyone on task even if it means writing standard operating procedures for sharpening pencils. Coordinate activities across departments even if it means nagging people several times a day.
Or have you given up on planning? Circumstances change too quickly on the ground for any plan to stand a chance of being implemented. Technology will change, a competitor will undercut your break even price, a key supplier will go out of business, an important team member will go on maternity leave at a crucial juncture. So you cruise. Go with the flow. Use your intuition. Shoot from the hip. Respond to issues as they arise.
(If you haven’t listened to this week’s podcast, take ten minutes now as Claudia and I take on strategic planning as the second segment of our coaching regimen No Excuses Leadership.)
As you’ve probably guessed, both sets of skills are crucial for successful strategic planning. They each address a stark reality leaders face. They each fail when adopted exclusively and universally. There is a vital proactive, aggressive, intentional component to planning. There is also a vital reactive, responsive, perceptive, discerning component.
Where do you fall on the controlling versus cruising spectrum? What have you learned from veering too closely to either extreme?
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Listen In -> Strategic Planning #2: Shaping the Future
In these fast changing times, is planning worth the effort? Won’t the world be completely different before we get very far along toward our long range goals?
In this week’s podcast conversation, Claudia and I look at strategic planning as a tension between control and change. No we don’t have the control leaders used to enjoy when the pace of change was slower. But neither are we at the whim of the forces around us.
We’re excited because the opportunity to show up and make a difference is huge. Are you excited about your planning efforts?
Listen in.
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