There’s a great scene in one of the original Star Wars’ movies where old Yoda tells young Skywalker to raise his X-Wing fighter out of the swamp using the Force. Luke sighs and says, “All right. I’ll give it a try.”

“No,” says Yoda. “Try not. Do… or do not. There is no try.”

Growing up on the farm, I often felt overwhelmed by the responsibility and tasks my father expected of me. His philosophy was, “Can’t never could”. I admit that is not a very positive viewpoint, but it sure prevented me using “I can’t” as an excuse to not do something.

Effective leaders know when to bring the gift of challenge. When people hit a wall, they are able to help them look beyond the fear, exhaustion and limitation. Leaders show their people what they might become or achieve by pushing through the fatigue, frustration and the consuming desire to quit.

Gene Kranz, of Apollo 13 fame, explained that the magic to saving Apollo 13 was keeping his Mission Control team at NASA “ruthlessly focused on the objective.” He explained, “If you’re thinking about the what ifs you’re wasting time.”

Everyone has limitations in their ability, both real and imagined. The power to rise higher comes from being able to distinguish between the two.

…that it is possible.

Seth Godin shares a great story on his blog today about an ultra-light weight hiker whose trail name is Wolf.  ”Wolf was carrying a super-small pack which weighed 14 pounds including food and water.  When asked how he got his pack weight so low, Wolf would reply, ‘All you need to know is that it’s possible’.”

Leaders across industries and business sectors are facing shrinking resources and fewer qualified people.  Meanwhile, delivering on commitments to clients and meeting profitability goals is becoming more demanding.

Productivity is determined by your philosophy.  If you have a scarcity view of resources you may only focus on why something is not possible.  It’s easy to make excuses and find reasons not to press on, to be creative, to get things done in the face of inadequate resources.  It’s not easy to demand more of self and others.  It’s not easy to figure out how to get by on less money, less people and less infrastructure.

While you may be racking your brain to stretch the few people and little resources you have, all you really need to know is that it’s possible.  It may not be easy, but it is possible.

Speaking of unintended consequences, leaders can do more harm to productivity than good when flying in to check on the troops.

Last week a VP of Operations shared his frustration over the CEO, CFO and President flying in for the day without an agenda. They asked, “What are you guys doing?” and then sat with frowns on their faces as the local team made their presentations. The VP explained that these leaders do not seem to understand that their visits scare everyone to death, distract from real work and consume time and resources in the days leading up to the visit. Productivity tanks as everyone focuses their attention on preparing presentations.

Leaders who want to be visible and connected to the people on the front line should pay close attention to how they will be perceived.  Those who do it best have a clear and purposeful message to communicate and they deliver it in a sincere and inspiring way. More importantly, they are fully aware that people are listening to every word and analyzing body language.

In times like these when everyone is worried about keeping their jobs and being as productive as possible, leaders will do well to communicate candidly on the state of the business, acknowledge the things people are doing well, explain what has to be done in order to succeed and show a little positive energy during the engagement.

Next time you show up, make sure it doesn’t cause your people to slow up.

“In a crisis, people look to leaders’ hearts and their humanity, not just the brilliance of their minds.”  Bill George, 7 Lessons For Leading In Crisis

In my work with leaders, I have observed that coaching highly accomplished professionals and staff to higher productivity and morale requires at least four basic practices.  They are:

1.  The leader must be personally productive.  Few things are more demoralizing than a do nothing leader.  People, especially high performers, are very aware of the producitivity level of their leaders.  It is very difficult to follow someone you view as less productive and less committed than yourself.  Followers are watching your numbers and activities to determine if you are putting forth the same effort and commitment you’re asking of them?

2.  The leader shows colleagues and staff how they can be productive. Less telling and more guidance.  Higher performers who are operating at Maslow’s higher need levels of self-actualization respond best to coaching, not telling.  Individuals with higher self-esteem respond to leaders who ask questions that reveal potential and allows them to see new possibilities and approaches.

3.  The leader eliminates those policies, practices and programs that impede performance. It is very easy to hide behind corporate mandates and blame the pressure on regional or national leadership.  Leaders find a way to buffer those realities and create room for the local team to operate with the least amount of disruption possible.

4.  The leader supports movement and personal accountability. The best leaders watch for results and pay attention to rationalizations.  Alfred Adler, father of personality theory, explained that life happens at the level of events, not words.  His conclusion was that only movement could be trusted.  Leaders put more weight on action and call out those who rationalize inaction.

“Adaptability is not imitation.  It means power of resistance and assimilation”  Gandhi

The most frightening thing I’ve observed lately is an attitude of resignation.  Many professionals appear to have a ‘whatever will be will be’ view of the current economic difficulties.  Continue in that mindset and you are certain to lose.  In every adversity there is a gift of renewal, reinvention and growth. 

Adapt and prosper!

Adaptability means power of resistance.  To build up a resistance to something is to develop the ability to not be affected.  This is especially true of adverse or ambiguous  circumstances.  In tough economic times and crisis, adaptable business leaders develop the ability to overcome adverse conditions and find breakthrough solutions to problems.  They are resilient emotionally and versatile in their approach to challenges and opportunities.  

Adaptability means power of assimilation.  Those who adapt not only develop the ability to not be affected by adversity, they use the situation for the advantage and profit of their organization.  Changing conditions, even adverse conditions, are integrated and used for their benefit.  

Here are three performance metrics that determine success in adverse conditions:  

1.  Capacity.  Winning is determined by the quality and quantity of output of your team.  Increasing productivity and morale involves a combination of willingness to look at things differently and the capability to make adjustments for surviving and thriving.  Now is the time to increase personal and organizational capacity.  

2.  Appropriateness.   Take appropriate risk to leverage your competitive advantage. Think in terms of actions to be taken or arguments to be made that will have a positive impact on the situation and release creativity in your people.    

3.  Effectiveness.  Adaptable leaders embrace ambiguity confidently by asking, ‘what is required’ for us to succeed in the current economic realities?  What will work?  What will not work?  They are concerned primarily with the effectiveness of their team, their decisions and their plans.  

Coach your people to adapt, be their personal best and to win.  

Need coaching and tools?  Give me a call and I’d be glad to help!  

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If you have a few minutes, watch this video of a presentation I gave to a group of 60 Deloitte Senior Managers and Partners…

Here are 6 tips that will enhance your leadership effectiveness, NOW!

1.  Ambiguity is the greatest risk you must help your people and organization manage through in times like these.  Two things to remember: 1) You cannot take away the ambiguity your people are experiencing, so free yourself from the need to fix it.  2)  Keep people busy.  Movement and action is the best way to overcome ambiguity because life is shaped by events.  

2.  Resist the need to manage tasks and focus on tactics alone.  Focus on your people…this will increase the probability of success more than anything else.  Jim Collins says, “If you cannot predict the What, you have to be able to do a good job with the Who, because the What is going to be constantly shifting.”

3.  Pay attention to what is motivating your people.  Their actions will be motivated by self-preservation, love, fear, revenge, recognition, money or any combination of the six.  Understanding a persons motivations will enable you to coach them toward the most constructive and positive outcomes.

4.  Adapt to the needs and objectives of those you’re trying to influence.  The best coaches have flexible attitudes toward change and people who are different than them.  

5.  Master the 3 Proven Secrets to retaining your top people (sorry, must watch video for these and they are worth the time).

6.  For maximum effectiveness in your coaching, be sincere!  Sincerity in your approach to coaching cannot be overstated.  People are constantly verifying their leaders intentions, authenticity and trustworthiness.  

Before you go, please let me know what the biggest challenge is you’re facing as a leader and manager of other people.  I look forward to reading and responding to your comments.  

Wishing you success!

If these economic challenges reveal nothing else, we are made painfully aware that business survival and success comes down to having committed, capable and adaptable people.

You can take the guess work out of finding the right people with the Player-Coach Leader® approach. 

Addressing the turbulence business is encountering, Jim Collins, author of Good to Great, says, “I see nothing to contradict the principle that who comes first and what comes second, for a very simple reason: 

If you cannot predict the what, you have to be able to do a good job with the who, because the what is going to be constantly shifting” (April 2009 Inc. magazine, p. 82).  

How are you doing with the Who?  

To meet profitability goals in the face of downturn, many leaders find themselves terminating the Who.  

The decision to terminate people, even the low performers, has many unintended consequences.  The most significant consequence, however, is the impact staff reductions will have on your higher performers.  Impact that will range from becoming over-worked and losing heart to seeking better opportunities elsewhere.   Read the rest of this entry »

If you’ve heard me speak in a seminar or you’re one of my executive coaching clients, you know that I believe effective leaders are great coaches. 

Leadership changes attitudes, but coaching changes behavior! 

My colleague and co-author of COACHING THE BEST TO BE GREAT seminar, Dr. Michael O’Connor says, “Without effective coaching, past behavior is the best predictor of future behavior for most people.”

People get trapped in comfort zones and unproductive patterns of behavior if their thinking and actions are not challenged in a constructive way.  Effective leaders know this and engage their people through consistent coaching that changes behavior for positive outcomes. 

The current economic turmoil is causing anxiety in your people at a time when you need them to be at their best.  So, the opportunity for you is to transform that anxiety into strategic growth, increased marketshare and personal achievement.  How is this possible, you ask?  It is possible if you coach your best performers to see what’s possible and to challenge the obstacles.

“Giving people self-confidence is by far the most important thing that I can do.  Because then they will act.”   Jack Welch

Read the rest of this entry »

Happy Jack

Embrace your future with the tenacity of a bulldog.

What can be more disappointing than highly talented people who sell themselves short? 

The financial crisis is putting even the most talented and successful people at risk of questioning themselves and their ability.  People sell themselves short when they surrender personal responsibility for their life, career and future. 

Help your people build self-confidence and a positive outlook.  Inspire them to look within themselves for direction, not to the organization they work for.  Adversity presents you with the opportunity to discover how capable you are.  The opportunity to venture into new areas of interest and personal development.

Apply these 7 bulldog traits and continue your success during this financial crisis.

1.  Strong and Tenacious.  Struggle produces strength.  As a parent, I want to protect my children from difficulty and disappointment.  Many leaders and managers feel the same way toward their people.  But we know that isolating those we care about from real world challenges will stunt their development.

2.  Show dominance.  When you feel like avoiding the difficult task or throwing in the towel, do just the opposite.  There is a time to step up and take charge of events in your life.  Now is the time to take charge of your finances and your career.  Refuse to be a victim. Read the rest of this entry »