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| What Lies Ahead? |
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Happy
New Year! Twelve fresh, new months lay ahead of us like a newly paved
road stretched out and inviting our travel. What is around the first
corner or over the next hill? What will 2004 bring for each of us?
Around
this time of year I am often asked to write articles or columns
predicting the year ahead. What a useless exercise that is! I have no
idea what lies ahead of us. Researchers, such as William Sherden in his
outstanding book, The Fortune Sellers: The Big Business of Buying and Selling Predictions,
prove that forecasters, economists, futurists, planners, and other such
soothsayers are less accurate than flipping a coin. Of the sixteen
different types of forecasts he analyzed over a twenty year period,
only one-day-ahead weather forecasts and the aging of the population
were accurate beyond pure chance.
But
there is one prediction method that's eerily accurate. It's often
called imagery, visioning, or self-fulfilling prophecy. We foresee our
preferred future and then make it so. Psychology, science, medicine,
sports, and other fields are just beginning to tap into this incredible
life force.
This is the where my major
life change from a high school drop-out, Mennonite farm boy began.
Vision, values, and purpose make up what I have been calling Focus and
Context for over 15 years of speaking, workshops, consulting, and
writing. Focus and Context have been at the core of my last three books
and the hub of our "Leadership Wheel" for Growing the Distance:Timeless Principles for Personal, Career, and Family Success and The Leader's Digest:Timeless Principles for Team and Organization Success.
Focus and Context are the very heart of leadership.
Here are some of my favorite articles on visioning or imagery. Most are excerpted from Pathways to Performance: A Guide to Transforming Yourself, Your Team, and Your Organization.
How Visioning Changed My Life
Visioning
is where my personal effectiveness quest began, in 1974. Even now, as I
recall that turning point in my life, a shiver runs up my spine.
www.clemmer.net/excerpts/how_visioning.shtml
How Visioning Helped My Passion and Persistence
Create
strong passion with a clear and compelling vision, and hang in there
during the inevitable downs and defeats until dreams are realized.
www.clemmer.net/excerpts/powerful_pictures.shtml
Personal Visioning Pathways and Pitfalls
Discover the personal visioning approaches that can help you avoid the pitfalls and pave your organization's pathway to success.
www.clemmer.net/excerpts/p_visioningpp.shtml
Visioning Harnesses the Power of Our Pictures
The
"power of positive pictures" is a skill, habit, and technique often
called visioning, imagery, and visualization. It has a power for
change, improvement, and energy creation that we're only beginning to
understand.
www.clemmer.net/excerpts/vision_harnesses.shtml
What We Get is What We See
Personal effectiveness efforts should include changing your personal pictures and self talk. Changing input changes output.
www.clemmer.net/excerpts/whatwe_are.shtml
Yield of Dreams
Extensive
research in the last few decades on peak performance, leadership,
personal effectiveness, adaptability to change, world-class athletes,
and even the healing process, clearly shows the central role vision
plays in success.
www.clemmer.net/excerpts/yield_dreams.shtml
Visioning
and many powerful strategies for leading ourselves and others are the
focal point of my new workshop and follow-up process, entitled Practical Leadership Strategies for Peak Performance. Click here for details.
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| Keys to Effective Reward and Recognition |
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A reader from Australia e-mailed me:
"to
seek your professional opinion on the current situation I am facing as
the R & R strategy leader for a large organisation and its customer
contact call centres.
My question
to you is, is it best to slowly eliminate ineffective parts of an R
& R program or just start totally from scratch with a brand new
concept? We obviously would like a strategy with the least impact on
our people and their high expectation (developed over the years) that
rewards are for 'everyone,' regardless of performance levels.
My
proposed strategy is to re-educate our people first on what R & R
is all about, and then go out with a brand new program. What are your
thoughts on this?"
Here's my response:
You're
asking me to give you a prescription without a thorough diagnosis.
That's a dangerous thing to do. I can only give you a generalized
answer to your specific situation.
One of
the two main factors in deciding whether to completely reengineer any
process or program versus incremental improvement is just how badly
broken your existing Rewards and Recognition process really is. If it's
creating a huge amount of distraction and really getting in the way, it
probably needs to be started from scratch. But don't allow a few
managers or support professionals to make that determination. Ask a
good strong cross-section of the people in your call centers.
Another
key consideration is how strongly the operational managers and their
senior management owns and uses whatever new system you create. A
deadly situation is to boldly declare to the call centre people that
you have a new Reward and Recognition program and then have the
organization's key managers treat it as a "bolt-on" program rather than
a process built-in to the way they manage the organization. In my
second book, Firing on All Cylinders: The Service/Quality System for High-Powered Corporate Performance, I presented this "commitment continuum" chart to clarify this critical change leadership issue:
Assessing Management Commitment
A
woman rushed up to famed violinist Fritz Kreisler after a concert and
cried, "I'd give my life to play as beautifully as you do." Kreisler
replied, "I did."
There's commitment and then there's commitment. Here's a scale of the wide range of executive commitment we often encounter:
- Permission - allows managers or staff support people to proceed as long as it doesn't cost too much and disrupt the "real business."
- Lip Service
- gives speeches and writes memos exhorting everyone to improve. Some
budgets and resources are allocated to a piecemeal series of programs.
There is no strategic improvement plan, the process is not part of
operational management's responsibilities, and the executive is not
personally involved in education or training.
- Passionate Lip Service
- the executive attends an abbreviated overview of the program being
given to everyone else. Some elements of an implementation plan are
shakily in place. Passionate Stump Speeches urge everyone to "get
going."
- Involved Leadership
- the executive attends all training first in its entirety, then gets
trained to deliver sessions to others. The improvement process is the
first item on all meeting agendas and priority lists. Managers are held
accountable and rewarded for their contributions to the efforts. The
executive group is actively leading the way.
- Integration
- day-to-day operating decisions have been delegated to increasingly
autonomous frontline teams. The majority of senior management's time is
spent with customers, suppliers, teams, and supervisors, gathering
input, long-term direction, and managing the organization's Focus and
Context by providing meaning through the vision, values, and purpose.
The degree
of commitment builds and accumulates from #1 through to #5. The
effectiveness and lasting impact of your improvement effort is
exponentially increased the closer you and your executive team are to
point #5.
I hope this generalized advice
is useful. On our web site, you can find a major section with about 10
articles on Reward and Recognition at www.clemmer.net/excerpts/reward.shtml. You can also check out this section with a selection of articles on implementing change plans: www.clemmer.net/excerpts/o_t_transformation.shtml
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| The Motivation Myth That Won't Go Away! |
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In the movie, Groundhog Day,
actor Bill Murray plays Phil, a weather forecaster who spends the night
in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, where he is to do a broadcast the next
day (February 2), broadcasting the annual ritual of the coming out of
the groundhog. He wakes up the next morning, does his story and is
annoyed to discover that he is trapped in Punxsutawney for a second
night because of a snowstorm that comes in after the groundhog
ceremony. Then the nightmare begins. Day after endless day he is faced
with the very same scenario and can't change it.
When
it comes to managers discussing how to motivate people, I often feel
like poor old Phil. I am stuck in an endless loop of repetition over
and over and over again.
Here's an e-mail I received recently:
I've just finished reading your article, "Weak Leaders Try to Use Money as a Motivator" which I think is very helpful.
I would really like your input on the following questions:
- How important is money?
- In addition to money, what else motivates people to work hard?
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When is money likely to be one of the most important motivators (if not
the most important) and when is it likely to finish way down the list?
Based on your answers, what conclusions can be drawn regarding the use
of money as a motivator?
Here's my response:
I am glad you found my article useful. I addressed your questions in my most recent book, The Leader's Digest: Timeless Principles for Team and Organization Success. Here's an excerpt I pieced together addressing your question:
Beyond Manipulating and Motivating, to Leading and Inspiring
When
confronting morale problems, managers will often succumb to the
Victimitis virus and blame the declining work ethic, or any number of
societal factors. But these factors are more imagined than real.
Studies show that people's real needs are much less mercenary than most
managers believe.
www.clemmer.net/excerpts/motivation.shtml
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Permission to Reprint: You may reprint any items from the Leader Letter in your own print publication or e-newsletter as long as you include this paragraph:
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"Reprinted with permission from the Leader Letter,
Jim Clemmer's free e-newsletter. Jim Clemmer is a bestselling author
and internationally acclaimed keynote speaker, workshop/ retreat
leader, and management team developer on leadership, change, customer
focus, culture, and personal growth. His web site is www.clemmer.net."
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The Great Debate Continues:
Giving a Team Member an Attitude Adjustment |
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In November's Leader Letter
I reported how a reader handled a situation with an administrative
support person who often brought down the mood of the whole office. You
can read/refresh the story here.
In December's Leader Letter
I reprinted a passionate response from another reader who felt very
strongly about how poorly "Linda" handled the situation. "Susan" raised
a number of very good points. You can read her views here.
I
then invited readers to send me their thoughts on whether they agreed
with Linda's or Susan's approach to this difficult – and all too common
– problem. The responses were split 50/50 in favor of Susan or Linda.
Following is a sample of the e-mails I received. Thanks to everyone for
your participation.
Business
lunches/dinners are no place for discipline (evidence that this is what
it was; "quite an afternoon" and "no tears"). Linda appears to have
offered very little in the way of praise or support for her employee.
Nor does she appear to have discussed performance: how well job
objectives were met.
She went in
with the agenda to change her employee's behavior, not partake in 2-way
problem-solving. Basically: wrong setting, wrong time and wrong
approach. I agree with Susan.
Someone
going in to a performance review has the expectation that they will
discuss performance first, career second. While the three questions are
great for individual contemplation, jumping directly to career before
discussing current situations can put someone off guard by not setting
ground work first.
"Is your
future with (their organization)? If so, then we need to know where you
are now, where you want to be, and the steps to get to where you want
to be." This could be interpreted several ways depending on the
employee-boss relationship. For example: "You're doing a good job and
I'd like to help you advance," or " I really don't know how you're
doing, why don't you tell me," or – "You're doing a really poor job,
tell me why I shouldn't fire you right now."
Meetings
called performance reviews are perceived as "formal" discussions and
are no place for "surprises". It would have been better if she went
into a separate meeting to truly listen to the employee's concerns and
to voice her concerns. Then set a time to meet again for discussion
after some reflection (by both) on what was said and heard.
- Manager
I
think, for the most part, Susan has overreacted to Linda's approach. I
think Linda restricted the topics of discussion to workplace issues
only, which are certainly her purview. I think Susan is right to point
out that, as her manager, she should also be sensitive to creating an
environment where the subordinate should not feel pressured to respond.
All this leads to is a response the subordinate feels the manager wants
to hear, rather than a constructive dialog.
The
fact the support staff feel a regular need for "the secretaries'
huddle" suggests there might be other issues that need to be addressed
within the office environment. It is good and fine to get them to cease
talking, but what was the issue they felt the need to talk amongst
themselves about in the first place?
Whose
approach is right? Only time will tell. If the subordinate changes her
attitude, feels more empowered with what she is doing, and better about
her role and contribution to the organization - Linda wins. If the
subordinate does not feel this, Susan wins.
- Richard Hewson CMA, Comptroller
You
ask if Susan overreacted to Linda's story - well she seems pretty
opinionated about quite a bit. I reread the original story and can't
make the same assumptions that Susan made based on the information
given.
For one thing, some
employees would much rather be off-site than on-site in such a
situation – especially if they are having problems with colleagues.
They don't feel in the 'fishbowl.' Though what is right for one person
is not necessarily right for another so I don't think we can decide
whether that was the right call by Linda or not. It also doesn't say if
Linda picked the restaurant or if the employee did, so that is another
assumption that can't be made.
Linda
did not say the employee is responsible for others' attitudes; she said
create the situation within you that contributes to a positive
environment. In other words, take responsibility for yourself and it
may have an effect on others or not. Either way, if the employee is
taking a positive approach and a take-charge attitude, what others do
is their responsibility. But the employee is taking responsibility for
her behavior.
Asking the person
what her goals are – in other words, "Do you want to be in this
workplace at this time in this role?" – is legitimate. Personal goals
as they pertain to work, not personal goals as they pertain to your
life when you are not at work, are indeed the manager's right to ask.
Sometimes when people are prompted to think about whether the
unhappiness can be fixed in situ or they need to move on elsewhere is a
way to get them to take responsibility.
Maybe
there are problems in the workplace but there is too little information
to discern this. Sorry, I have to say that from what info was in
Linda's story I just can't see some of what Susan is mentioning. It
would be educational for all of us if Linda is willing to respond to
some of the comments - clarity is a wonderful thing!
- Karin Wills, Human Resources Manager, MDS Nordion
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Thoughts that Make You Go Hmmm...
on Imagery |
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"He who does not know where he is heading will take the longest time to get there."
- Chinese Proverb
"No one has yet computed how many imaginary triumphs are silently celebrated by people each year to keep up their courage."
- Athenaeus (Circa 200 A.D.), Greek grammarian
"See yourself and what you see you will become."
- Aristotle
"You
merely picture in your mind having already accomplished or attained
your goal, whatever it may be. Hold it firmly in your thoughts, picture
it as already being yours, and amazing things will happen."
- Og Mandino, The Choice
"If you can dream it, you can do it."
- Walt Disney
"Studies
on the brain affirm...Imagining something in vivid detail can fire the
same brain cells actually involved in doing that activity. The new
brain circuitry appears to go through its paces, strengthening
connections, even when we merely repeat the sequence in our minds. So
to alleviate the fears associated with trying out riskier ways of
leading, we should first visualize some likely scenarios. Doing so will
make us feel less awkward when we actually put the new skills into
practice."
- Daniel Goleman, Richard Boyatzis, and Annie McKee, Primal Leadership: The Hidden Driver of Great Performance
"When
I examine myself and my methods of thought, I come to the conclusion
that the gift of fantasy has meant more to me than my talent for
absorbing positive knowledge."
- Albert Einstein
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| Improvement Points Subscribers' Top Picks for December |
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Of the eleven short quotes with links to full articles that were e-mailed out as complimentary Improvement Points last month, the most popular with subscribers were:
"An
optimist believes no one ever ruined their eye sight by looking at the
bright side of life. Research on Emotional Intelligence, Attribution
Theory (see Martin Seligman's book outstanding book, Learned Optimism),
and related fields show that optimists not only go further in life,
they also have a much better time on the trip. Optimists are generally
healthier, happier, and leaders in their fields."
- from Choosing Our Reality
www.clemmer.net/excerpts/choosing_reality.shtml
"Effective
leaders use a lot of ways to build an atmosphere of accomplishment and
pride through recognition and appreciation. But the leaders should not
be the central figures in control of the goodies. They should encourage
recognition and appreciation up, down, and across the organization and
within and among teams."
- from Exception is a Poor Rule
www.clemmer.net/excerpts/exception.shtml
"Assuming
we care (if not, we're in the wrong place), the leadership challenge -
even obligation - is to help others care. In today's environment this
is one of the toughest aspects of leadership."
- from Decentralized Organization Structures Empower and Energize
www.clemmer.net/excerpts/decentralized.shtml
Subscribe or view the archives by topic area here:
www.clemmer.net/improvement.shtml.
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Practical Leadership Strategies for Peak Performance:
How to Transform Yourself from a Good Manager to a Great Leader
...and have a life too! |
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If
you're sick and tired of being overwhelmed and overworked, check out my
new leadership/personal development process. Your next big step toward
peak performance can start with my two-day intensive workshop and
follow through/up process. It's jammed packed with as many
self-assessment, reflection, and practical action applications as I can
squeeze in.
Click here for registration and an overview (text and/or audio) of what we'll cover.
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In response to Canada's Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents
Act, we have expanded our Privacy Policy. As always, protecting your
information is of paramount importance to us. Rest assured that we will
not sell or exchange your e-mail address or contact information with
anyone outside of The CLEMMER Group. You can view our expanded privacy
policy here: www.clemmer.net/privacy.shtml
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I would love to hear from you on any of the discussions raised in this issue of the Leader Letter...or
any other matters concerning my work. Of course, I especially welcome
conversations exploring how I might help you or your team/organization
with a keynote presentation, management team retreat, or workshop.
Send me an e-mail at Jim.Clemmer@Clemmer.net or call me directly at (519) 748-5968.
I hope to connect with you again next month!
Jim
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| Copyright 2003, Jim Clemmer, The CLEMMER Group |
