Thought for The Day
performance
6 Ways To Add Value To Your Team
I don’t think there is ever an instance where one person is the team, or where one person is responsible for the success or failure of the team. Whether at work or within the family, I believe it always involves a team effort.
As I continue my leadership journey, identifying areas of improvement within myself and when coaching leaders, I am convinced success is always a team effort. Sure, there is always someone who leads the way, but I believe they are supported by the team who is like-minded and supportive of their ideas and efforts.
Experiencing what it really means to add value to a group, I have identified 6 ways to increase the value as a team member.
Here they are:
- SUPPORT THE VISION – Support the vision and direction of the team leader or team itself. You must be honest with your thoughts and ideas, but in the end be a verbal proponent of the team and the direction the team wants to head.
- RESPECT OTHERS – You must comply with the ideas and or concerns of others. Never just dismiss what others have to say or the direction they believe in. But rather, listen to what they have to say and consider the overall impact it has on the team goal.
- BE PREPARED TO GO ABOVE AND BEYOND – Teams need members that are willing to go above and beyond. You might have to do more, take more and work more. Be prepared to give it your all to the success of the team. Be a better planner. Be a better goal and objective setter and by all means be prepared to hold yourself accountable!
- BE THE EXPERT – Great team members are informed by team members. The best performing team is the most knowledgeable team. What is our objective? What do we want to accomplish? What is my role? Remember, information is knowledge. The more knowledgeable the Team is, the more likely they are to be successful.
- CELEBRATE SUCCESS – Most do not do this well. How often have you achieved a goal and there was no fanfare? No celebration? It almost seemed success was expected. Maybe so, however, I believe celebrating your successes (regardless of how small) is the key to future encouragement. Honestly, don’t be afraid to tell others how much you appreciate their effort and help to accomplish the team’s goals and objectives.
- BE A GO TO PERSON – People appreciate those they can go and talk to. Individuals who can simply listen and those who convey confidence and support and who are viewed as discrete and trustworthy? A person that you can bounce off ideas and concerns and know they will simply be heard.
Consider these when working with a team. Only small visions can be achieved without a team. However, one can achieve endless visions with active teams!
What Message Are You Sending? 8 Principles for Sending Effective Text- Part 3 of 3
Here are seven (8) texting principles I found to be very helpful:
- Be careful with abbreviations. Texting is meant to be a fast form of communication, so we tend to use abbreviations and shortcuts such as “np” (no problem) or “u” (you). But there is such a thing as an inappropriate abbreviation and acronym.
- Watch your tone. Texting is a fast and easy. Make sure you use words that set your intended, not perceived tone.
- Never send bad news via text. I had a CEO fire two VP’s via text. I was shocked. Guess he was scared of them. Keep texting positive or neutral.
- Don’t change meeting times or venues in a text. However, you can confirm meeting times or places through text.
- Double check when using the voice-to-text feature. The translation can be tricky.
- Don’t text during a meeting or presentation. This action is just rude! Even if you are doing it under the table or behind a book, the presenter can tell. As a speaker and trainer, it offends me when I see people looking at their phones.
- Darn, autocorrect! This feature bites me often. Watch the auto correct feature. An excellent way to fix this is to READ your text before you hit send.
- Don’t text and drive – This is a killer. 35% of all vehicle fatalities involve texting and driving. Even people who text and drive, hate people who text and drive.
By following these simple rules and abiding by proper etiquette, mastering the ability to craft and send valid emails and text can be easy. I crafted this blog, not only because of my shortcomings but also my frustrations.
How we respond to emails and text can result in positive or negative consequences and determine our influence on others. Spend the effort and time to make sure your texts and emails reflect your intended message.
What Message Are You Sending? PART 1 of 3 – 10 Rules and Etiquette for Crafting and Sending Effective Emails
You’ve been there. You get an email accusing you of some action or lack of action. The tone is rude and inappropriate. The sender includes several people, many who have no reason to be involved. As you read what is written, the words spark enraged anger from deep within your soul.
You immediately react by hitting “Reply All.” In fact, you want to vindicate yourself, so you “Bcc” your supervisor. Through your rage, you unleash a barrage of words that support your position.
Immediately, after hitting the send button, you receive a text from your boss. Yes! He wants to congratulate you on an excellent response! Only when you open the text, it says “meet me in my office first thing in the morning.”
Emails and texting, perceived in the wrong way, can lessen or eliminate the influence 
you have with your staff or groups. The relationships you spent months or maybe years to build and foster are now in jeopardy.
Email and texting should never be a substitute for face to face communication or phone conversation. However, if crafted properly, these can be useful in reinforcing your ideas and increasing your influence.
In part 1 of my 3 part series, I provide 10 rules and etiquette for crafting and sending using emails.
I find these very useful and productive to lessen the chance of responding in a destructive or unprofessional manner.
When preparing or an email consider the following 10 suggestions:
- First, consider a face-to-face or phone call before sending an email.
- Send the email to those that absolutely need to know.
- “CC” people for information only. “CC” responses should only be sent if the data reinforce or add additional pertinent information.
- Make sure the “subject” accurately depicts the content.
- Content must be specifically related to your “TO” group. Be precise, concise, and clear.
- Begin the email with a positive statement. Sets the tone for the responses.
- Continued disagreement or confusion, set up an in person meeting, conference call or video chat.
- READ IT BEFORE YOU HIT SEND AND THEN READ IT AGAIN. Read and re-read your email. Make sure your grammar, spelling, and choice of words portray the intended tone and message.
- Emails should NEVER be used to reprimand, counsel or address disagreements.
- When in doubt…….have a face-to-face conversation.
10 Actions To Increase Your Influence With Others
Want to be influential? Do these 10 things.
- ENCOURAGE – Start every conversation with something positive about the person or group you are addressing within the first 30 seconds. People are motivated by encouraging words.
- UNDERSTAND YOURSELF – When I think about what needs to happen or take place, I reflect on how my actions, my conversations, and my vision will affect others. I’ve realized that my performance is a direct reflection of my leadership.
- KNOW WHAT OTHERS GO THROUGH- Understand the trials and troubles others go through by being a part of their day. Good leaders become someone who listens to their people, not to reply, but to understand. Get in tune and know the people you lead and you will increase your influence.
- REALIZE EVERYONE IS DIFFERENT – They understand Good Leaders Ask Great Questions (read this book from John Maxwell). The right questions will uncover a person’s interests and what motivates them. I think it is important to connect by finding common ground and nurturing relationships.
- HELP OTHERS – I have learned when we are first to offer assistance and aid, we begin connecting in such a way that our relationship allows us to influence. Zig Ziglar said, “You can have everything in life you want if you will just help enough other people get what they want.”
- ADD VALUE – Add value by finding out what is important to those you lead. The value will look different in every situation. A good leader will ask great questions to identify what value looks like.
- SHARE STORIES AND EXAMPLES – As a speaker, I’ve learned the importance of sharing good relevant stories. As a leader and professional, I’ve recognized the importance and effectiveness of sharing good stories with those I influence. People want to see the human side of leaders. I believe stories create a sense of belonging and connect us through life’s similarities.
- NO STRINGS ATTACHED – Christopher Reeve said: “Success is finding satisfaction in giving a little more than you take.” When we give without any strings attached, we will benefit professionally and personally and professionally.
- REMEMBER NAMES -Learn the names of those you meet and associate with. Few sounds are as sweet to a person as hearing their spoken name, few sounds are as irritating when you refer to someone by the wrong name. Remembering names, shows you value them.
- ACKNOWLEDGE STRENGTHS – I think one of the best ways to gain influence is to recognize a person’s strengths. Areas of their personality or employment that seems to tie them well to the organization. In fact, they will want to “Exceed Expectations,” not just meet them.
We all have influence, big and small. We all have things we are gifted or talented. Things we leverage by adding value to others. Whether it is our attitude, problem-solving skills or simply just our ability to laugh, we should be sharing our knowledge, experience, and influence. Employees respond to influence. We should work hard to increase our influence by adding real value every day. Do this, and you will improve your leadership. You’ve heard it before, “Leadership is influence, nothing more, nothing less.” People respond to influence. We must work to increase our influence by adding value every day. Do this, and you will increase your leadership. You’ve heard it before, “Leadership is influence, nothing more, nothing less.”
We must work to increase our influence by adding value every day. Do this, and you will increase your leadership. To lead others, you must influence! Do these 10 actions regularly, and watch your influence grow!
LEADER INFLUENCE LLC, Professional Leadership Coaching, Training and Keynote Speaking
To Improve Performance, Change Your Attitude
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Life has its ups and downs, its turbulence and its smooth flying. We sometimes stall, but hopefully, we change our attitude and recover to make a smooth landing.
I love flying. I am not a pilot, but I have been interested in flying for most of my life. I love watching pilots perform their pre-check routines. I study every move they make and try to identify every instrument on the panel; altimeter, airspeed indicator, vertical speed indicator, magnetic compass, attitude indicator, heading indicator, turn indicator, etc. If you ever see a nerdy guy sitting up front watching the pilot(s) perform their pre-flight checks, it’s probably me.
I’ve had the privilege of flying in private planes and charters. One of the coolest things is most of these planes have open cabins. You can watch out the front window and every move the pilot performs. I notice that pilots are always watching their instruments. While we gaze out the window trying to identify landmarks or enjoy the scenery, the pilot is intently focused on his instrument panel. One particular instrument, the attitude indicator, seems to be one they refer to and watch most often. In fact, it is placed in a prominent position within the panel, typically right in front of the pilot. While there are other instruments of importance, I believe the attitude indicator is placed in the most prominent part of the panel, because of its significance to the safe operation of the aircraft.
The Attitude Indicator depicts the position of the airplane in relation to the real horizon. It shows whether the wings are level and if the plane is climbing or descending, or flying straight and level. A pair of wings represents the attitude of the aircraft in relation to the sky (blue) or ground (brown). Basically, if the wings are in the blue, the plane is climbing, if they are in the brown, the plane is descending. The attitude of an airplane indicates its performance. To modify the performance of an airplane, you must change the attitude.
Through my recent studies on personal attitude, I realize there is an analogy between the performance of an aircraft to the performance of a person. Just as an airplane’s attitude determines its performance, the attitude of a person will determine their performance.
What happens when a person attitude dictates unfavorable results? How can that attitude be changed? I believe the key to having a good attitude is the willingness to change. To change, one must choose to change.
If you want to achieve and maintain a good attitude, do the following:
- Evaluate your present attitude – Identify your problem feelings, behavior and thinking. Clarify the truth, secure your commitment and act on your decision immediately and often.
- Realize faith is stronger than fear – To succeed, one must have faith from the beginning knowing he/she will succeed.
- Want to change – When all else fails, desire alone can get you on the right track and keep you there.
- Live one day at a time – Success and failure follow us. Forget yesterday and focus on today. For what we do today, has an impact on tomorrow.
- Change your thoughts – What we focus on and remember, determines our actions. Our attitude is developed through our thoughts and feelings. Change your thoughts and feelings, and you will change your attitude.
- Develop the right thoughts – Our attitude is nothing more than our thoughts. It is as easy to form a thoughtful habit of success as it is a failure. Work to develop the habit of success through positive thinking.
- Choose to have the right attitude – The choice of a good attitude is just the beginning. Attitudes have a tendency to revert back to their original pattern. You must deliberately choose to have the right attitude.
The only way a person’s attitude can change is through their personal desire to change. As leaders, we can influence those we lead to change, but ultimately they make their own decisions. Just as an airplane’s performance changes with a change in attitude, so will the performance of an individual. But remember, attitudes can be bad or good. Make the wrong attitude adjustment in an aircraft and the results can be catastrophic. The same could be said for people. Make a bad attitude change, and the suffrage can be devastating.
Trust, The Glue That Bonds Relationships
“The best way to find out if you can trust somebody is to trust them.” ~Ernest Hemingway
According to Steven Covey, “Trust is the glue of life. It’s the most essential ingredient in effective communication. It’s the foundational principle that upholds all relationships”. Trust is crucial in the leadership process. In fact, trust is required for effective leadership. Trust can be described simply by comparing it to pocket change. Every right decision puts change in your pocket. Every poor decision takes change from your pocket. The key is to increase your pocket change, rather than always paying it out. Sure we all make mistakes. And each mistake cost us some coins from our pocket. However, employees are tolerant of mistakes as long as we are transparent, quick to humility and strive to regain their confidence.
In his book, Leadership 101, John Maxwell shares three qualities a leader must exhibit to gain trust; competence, connection and character. Violate any one of these three qualities, and you will lose the trust of those who follow. Trust is doing what’s right because it’s right. Mackey and Sisodia state in their book, Conscious Capitalism; “the right actions undertaken for the right reasons generally lead to good outcomes over time.” I don’t think anyone can remain a leader if he or she continues to make poor decisions and break the trust of employees. When we break trust, we damage the relationship. Relationships can be repaired, but with much work and effort.
In fact, a leader can’t be a leader if there is no trust because trust leads to influence. If people don’t trust you, you can’t have influence. Without influence, you can’t lead.
Build sincere relationships and out of your sincerity, will come trust. Only then will you be able to influence and achieve effective leadership.
TO COACH IS TO LEAD, 6 Principles to Effective Coaching
It was a scorching Thursday. Sweat was pouring down my face, and my shirt was soaked. As I was leaving the location, I overheard a supervisor conversing with an employee. I stood by (without being noticed) and listened to what was said. It seemed to be a one-sided conversation from the supervisor to the employee. I overheard the supervisor insult the employee over five times within 8 minutes. He kept telling him how “stupid” he was and how a 10-year-old could do the job better and more efficiently than he would ever be able to. The conversation and subsequent insults continued for another five minutes before the supervisor finally stopped and told the employee to go back to work.
As the supervisor began walking back to his trailer, I called him over and said I overheard his conversation with the employee and asked him a few questions. I started the conversation by stating that I only wanted to know if he felt his discussion would effectively improve the employee’s performance? The supervisor looked at me with his head slightly tilted, and his eyebrows raised and stated, “I don’t know; if not, I will fire him.”
I continued my questioning:
- Will firing a person solve the overall performance issue?
- What action (or lack thereof) generated the conversation?
- Did he feel his approach was practical?
- Have you had previous conversations with this employee over similar circumstances?
- Do you feel you clearly and effectively communicate your expectations to this employee?
- What could he have been done to involve the employee in identifying why he is not meeting your expectations?
- Do you feel you are an effective leader?
Our conversation went on for quite some time. I could tell the supervisor was frustrated and had no idea where I was going and why I asked so many questions. Typically, no one would question what a supervisor was doing and why. However, after many questions, he finally admitted that he could have handled the situation differently. I asked him what brought him to that conclusion? He realized that embarrassing a person and threatening their job was not very effective. He also stated that he figured out why his crew would not talk to him or interact in conversations. He went on to say that he realized they were not interested in a relationship, and they were afraid to say anything. The next question is obvious, “What did he think he needed to do to change or correct the situation?” The supervisor looked at me and then the ground and back at me and said, I need to talk with the whole group and maybe start over. I agreed, shook his hand, and walked away.
As I was walking back to my vehicle, I realized something. Regardless of position, coaching is critical to effective leadership. If one can’t coach employees, are they able to influence? We know leadership is influence; John Maxwell made that clear. I believe the answer is no.
If you want to become an effective leader, you must become a competent coach. What is coaching? Coaching is a conversational process that aims to improve performance by focusing on the current or immediate performance rather than past or future performance. The coaching process is designed to allow a person to arrive at their conclusions or solve their problems by honestly answering the coach’s questions.
To become an influential leader, the supervisor or manager must transition from a controlling, intimidating, or monitoring role to a partnership between the manager and employee(s). This will create an atmosphere of shared understanding about what needs to be achieved and the process for obtaining it.
Don’t let the word “coaching” confuse you. The coaching process doesn’t mean a hands-off approach but rather an environment of involvement in the employee or group’s progress. One must move from a “checking and monitoring” philosophy to a progressive process for encouraging improved performance. Employees are not free to do as they wish; but are held accountable for their overall performance and meeting the established goals, plans, and timelines. To be active in the coaching process, you must become familiar with the basic principles of coaching and how it works. To better understand, I’ve identified six principles you should remember when coaching.
- Ask Don’t Tell. A coach is NOT an expert who gives advice, but rather someone who asks practical questions to bring the individual to their conclusions.
- Answers are Within. The answers are ALWAYS in the individual. The person is just not conscious of them at the time. The coach’s job is to bring the solutions forward.
- Power is the Process. The power is in the process, NOT the coach.
- No need for Experts. You do NOT need to know how to do something OR be experienced to coach someone to more excellent performance.
- Answers Inform, Questions Transform. The more non-directive you are (in questioning), the more powerful your influence. Asking a particular kind of question is the key to achieving the answers.
- The Process Works. Realize that coaching brings self-discovery, awareness, clarity, responsibility, and choice; it makes the unconscious conscious.
What will coaching do? It will build stronger bonds between you and your employees. It will also help them improve their performance by identifying and solving problems and issues before they affect performance.
Coaching is an excellent way to increase influence and improve employee performance, thus strengthening your leadership.
Listen First, Listen Second, Speak When You Understand
Listening, a task I struggle at. As a coach, trainer and speaker, I tend to be a problem solver. In fact, I think I’m so good, I’ll finish your sentence or thought for you. Why should you waste valuable oxygen. However, I’m finding the oxygen we breath gives a person the ability to take a breath and speak their thoughts, concerns and ideas. In fact, when I allow people to finish their sentence and thoughts, I find many provide valuable solutions or ideas. So as I continue to learn how to control my attention and listen more, I am finding that; from listening comes knowledge and from knowledge comes a true understanding. From understanding comes the wisdom to support or help. And from wisdom, comes the ability to solve problems. The common saying; “God gave you two ears and one mouth for a reason”, continues to be true throughout the ages. Learn to listen, and you will be more successful.
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