| | | |  | | LEADERSHIP COACHING | | | - Featured Articles - | |
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| | | LEARN TO BE ALONE AS LEADER: OTHERS WILL FOLLOW! | | | Bob Benwick, MSc. OD, MCC, PCC, CPCC | | | “If you want others to follow, learn to be alone with your thoughts” Is the advice that William Derisiewicz delivered in his lecture to a plebe class of the United States Military Academy at West Point a few years ago. A colleague had passed a copy of a lecture Derisiewicz gave to these young leaders [...] | |
| | | It's Painstaking Work | | | noreply@blogger.com (Pearl Mattenson, CPCC, ACC) | | | Have you ever watched a programmer coding? On a recent 6 hour flight I watched a woman coding a website. (At least, I think that is what she was doing.) She would type a few keystrokes into a window that had lines and lines of text, then check another window with what looked like a website and see the impact. Back and forth. Back and forth. For hours. That is what programmers and designers do, right? Somehow we expect certain kinds of work to require patience and repetition and revision. Architects come to mind, and engineers. Accountants? And yet when it comes to working with people- our peers, our bosses, our employees...we just want them to "get it". We don't want to repeat ourselves. We don't want to have to work through slow change efforts and revised approaches. Who are we kidding? People are infinitely more complex than numbers and code. And far more unpredictable. And far more valuable. So keep in mind: Patience my dear friends, patience. | |
| | | Hard Truths | | | noreply@blogger.com (Pearl Mattenson, CPCC, ACC) | | | In the past month I have encountered a school, a healthcare company and a large non-profit all experiencing communication breakdown. By which I mean, people at all levels of the organization are not having direct conversations with each other. And when they are, they are being less than honest. They are talking about each other, not to each other. “ Can you believe s/he... ” “ I am so frustrated with... ” “ How could s/he have been promoted?” They are seeking out managers and supervisors. “ You really need to do something about... ” “ S/he is ruining the morale in... ” There are many reasons why this could be happening. Let me mention two. Your people might be thinking... If I take my issue up with the person directly, I might have to change too. I might have to be part of the solution. If I speak directly, I might face an angry response or even retaliation. We would find ourselves in conflict and things would get worse not better. Can you hear the sense of defeat and the fear underlying these? There is also powerlessness and a lack of trust. If you are a leader in your organization, noticing this same behavior, you probably already know that you can’t mandate it out of existence. Simply telling everyone to stop back channel conversations and work things out with each other directly is pretty useless. What you really need to do is tackle the underlying obstacles. 1. It goes without saying that the first place to look is in the mirror. What are you modeling? What are you afraid of? What do you need to learn how to do? Having trouble being honest with yourself? Get a coach! 2. You may need to help your people develop better communication and conflict resolution skills? First name the problem to your people. Come right out and say what you are seeing and why you feel it is tearing at the fabric of your organization. Then bring in some outside expertise to jump-start the process and continue to provide group opportunities to practice. Here are some resources to explore: Fierceinc. : Susan Scott’s organization gives your people a no nonsense approach to developing the skills that build powerful organizations. The Center for Non Violent Communication : A deeply respectful approach to communication. You can request a certified trainer to come to your organization. 3. Read Five Dysfunctions of a Team together. Use the self-assessment in the back of the book. Work through each level of the model beginning with trust. There is no quick fix on this issue and there is no way around—only through. There will be discomfort and there will be growth. And when there is growth, there is a healthy organization. | |
| | | NEGATIVE FEEDBACK: DISENGAGING & DEMOTIVATING! | | | Bob Benwick, MSc. OD, MCC, PCC, CPCC | | | In a recent blog titled ‘Negative Feedback Is Disengaging and Demotivating to Talent’ by Ken Nowack, he quoted Bill Walsh’s observation that “Nothing is more effective than sincere, accurate praise, and nothing is more lame than a cookie-cutter compliment”. Ken’s blog was so profound that he was kind enough to give us permission to share [...] | |
| | | HIGH PERFORMANCE EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP TEAM COACHING! | | | Bob Benwick, MSc. OD, MCC, PCC, CPCC | | | Susan Robinson, CEO, IRLY DISTRIBUTORS LTD., (center) with Ron Short and Jan Johnson, Principals of Learning In Action (Leaders in the field of EQ) In a recent edition of BLUEPRINTS, an internal publication of IRLY DISTRIBUTORS LTD., a leading Canadian materials distribution firm, their CEO, Susan Robinson, shared her executive leadership team’s (ELT) year-long coaching experience [...] | |
| | | Leaders Build Houses | | | noreply@blogger.com (Pearl Mattenson, CPCC, ACC) | | | Once upon a time Josh, a high performing manager in his organization, learned that he was to have a new boss, Pete. He made an effort to get to know him. Josh tried to bring him up to date on all aspects of his area of responsibility. He knew that ongoing communication would be important and asked for a regular meeting with Pete. When they did meet, Josh often felt that Pete was distracted; Josh frequently had to repeat information. Sometimes Pete used the meeting to talk through his own priorities. Josh tried to be a useful sounding board. Over time, Josh’s frustration grew. As his boss’ role grew and his sense of overwhelm increased Pete piled more on Josh’s plate. He never thanked or acknowledged Josh for the results he continued to achieve. Pete made many promises to Josh that he failed to follow through on. Josh would raise concerns and Pete responded by rebuffing these and talking about his own pressures. After a few years- Josh’s frustration leaked into his communication with Pete. Pete came to think he had a problem employee on his hands John Gottman, PhD. may be best known for his decade’s long research on marriage relationships. He developed a theory called the Sound Relationship House Theory . It has become clear over time, however, that many of the principles which emerge out of Gottman’s research apply to all human relationships. In particular the first 3 elements of the sound relationship house seem critical to this story and to relationships in the workplace. I have taken the liberty of adapting Gottman’s language to fit an organization context: Build and Maintain a Road Map : You might assume you already know what your employees world is like or feel you simply don’t need to know too much detail. And yet a foundation stone to your relationship is your interest in what s/he is doing. Do you know how s/he sees the goals? Do you understand the pressures at their level? Above and beyond accountability is a need for compassionate curiosity and understanding. Their world should be familiar to you—this comes with asking the right questions and listening. Scan for Success and Express Appreciation: Pressure to deliver outstanding results usually means we are quick to notice what isn’t working. It requires discipline to take the time to notice that which we respect in our people. For this principle to function effectively it matters most that we thank and appreciate consistently. Don’t wait for the flash. Seek out the seemingly small but valuable ways in which your people are there for you and the organization on a daily basis. Be Responsive: When people spend time together they make what Gottman calls, bids for connection. Sometimes the bids are overt as in asking a question, or making a comment. Sometimes they are more subtle, as in making eye contact or smiling as you both listen to a speaker. When we turn toward these bids by offering a response we are building relationship. When we ignore them or even turn against them by responding with a gruff annoyance we damage the relationship. When you work on these 3 principles, you building a solid relationship house from the ground up. One that will be far better able to withstand the inevitable moments of conflict. Have an opinion about this? Start a conversation with me and others right here... | |
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| | | | Coach Profile Spotlight | | | | | Donna Karlin | | | Internationally acclaimed Executive Leadership Coach, Donna Karlin has pioneered the specialized practice of Shadow Coaching® with global political, business and senior organizational leaders in the public and private sectors. | | | Full Profile & Contact Information... | |
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| | | Jeannie Campanelli | | | Jeannie Campanelli, Ed.D, CPCC, is deeply committed to sparking the hearts of people to experience an inner confidence - that sense of wholeness, aliveness, and serenity that comes from deeply knowing yourself, fully accepting the lightness and darkness of being human, and living freely by standing in your own truth. | | | Full Profile & Contact Information... | |
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| | | Pearl Mattenson, | | | Pearl’s clients become better leaders, and better people. They are better at having the real conversations that create results. They are better at moving their organization towards the changes they believe in. They are working more collaboratively and learning to thrive in teams and partnerships. | | | Full Profile & Contact Information... | |
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| | | | Lowell Ann Fuglsang | | | Just drifting in your career? Could your career be more fulfilling? Is your career serving or consuming you? Take charge of your situation with the guidance of workstyle-lifestyle coach Lowell Ann Fuglsang. Enhance the quality of your career now. You deserve it! | | | Full Profile & Contact Information... | |
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| | | | | | Marcia Dorfman | | | I love to work with busy professionals helping them get to the core of what matters so they can create work and life on their own terms. I help them articulate and focus on their goals, their priorities and their possibilities, as well as learn new ways to bring out the absolute best in themselves and others. | | | Full Profile & Contact Information... | |
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