Sandy Schwan at Evolving Strategies, LLC

Step Out of the Shade and Into Your Talents

"Hide not your talents, they for use were made. What's a sundial in the shade?"

Benjamin Franklin

I drive my sister crazy with all of the questions I ask people that I meet. But, if one of my life's missions to to help people understand what they are good at, then my questions must remain. [Note to sis: Coleen, I love you, but I've got to keep on keeping on with my questions!]

By paying attention and asking the right questions, you will likely discover many hidden talents among your leaders, peer, team members, family members, friends, volunteers, yourself. 

Many leaders are in a situation know where they cannot hire more talent. Why not ask the following four questions of the talent you currently have to determine how to maximize your resources? 

1. 

Turn a compliment into an interview.

• Congratulate an employee on a job well done; then, ask exactly what helped her succeed. By better understanding her process, you may uncover an unseen strength.

2. Ask why employees prefer certain tasks or projects.

• Preferences can provide insight into someone's talents. An employee might enjoy a project because it involves a product he cares about or because it gave him a chance to interact with customers directly or because... Knowing which will possibly uncover talents.

3. Inquire about dreams.

• Ask your employee what she would do if she had her career to do over again. Dreams often include an aspect of someone that she doesn't regularly share.

 4. Analyze how people think, not just what they do.

• This one is my favorite. What is behind accomplishments is a way of thinking, particular to an individual, that made success possible. Ask your team member to walk you through his thought process on how he arrived at a solution. Articulating this dimension of how his mind works will help you -- and your team member-- identify the other projects that require his inductive talents. It will l also show him that you truly understand the value of his contributions.

I will also suggest that you consider asking these questions of yourself. I know a number of people in the midst of a job search, and they feel at wit's end with what to do next. I am hopeful that these questions may be a source of freeing your thoughts to find what it is that truly inspires you.

Adapted from Steven DeMaio's How to Identify Your Employees' Hidden Talents. 24 June 2009

Two Ears and One Mouth: Use Accordingly

"Listen to the whispers and you won't have to hear the screams."

Cherokee proverb

Starting a new role? You may be tempted to jump in and provide solutions immediately to prove your value, but you might be shooting yourself in the foot with this behavior. There is nothing wrong with being active. Just be an active listener.

There are five key elements of active listening, helping you ensure that you hear the other person, and that the other person knows you are hearing what they are saying.

1.  Pay attention.
Give the speaker your undivided attention and acknowledge the message.

• Look at the speaker directly.
• Put aside distracting thoughts. Don’t mentally prepare a response.
• Avoid being distracted by environmental factors.
• “Listen” to the speaker’s body language. Recognize that what is not said also speaks loudly.
• Refrain from side conversations when listening in a group setting.
  

2.  Show that you are listening.
Use your own body language and gestures to convey your attention.

• Nod occasionally. Smile and use other facial expressions. Just make sure you are natural.
• Note your posture and make sure it is open and inviting.
• Encourage the speaker to continue with small verbal comments (try 'yes' or 'okay').

3.  Provide feedback.
Our personal filters, assumptions, judgments and beliefs can distort what we hear. As a listener, your role is to understand what is being said. This may require you to reflect what is being said and ask questions.

• Reflect what has been said by paraphrasing. “What I’m hearing is…” and “Sounds like you are saying…” are great ways to reflect back.
• Ask questions to clarify certain points. “What do you mean when you say…” “Is this what you mean?”
• Summarize the speaker’s comments periodically.

4.  Defer judgment.
Interrupting is a waste of time. It frustrates the speaker and limits full understanding of the message.

• Allow the speaker to finish.
• Don’t interrupt with counter-arguments.

5.  Respond Appropriately.
Active listening is a model for respect and understanding. You are gaining information and perspective. You add nothing by attacking the speaker or otherwise putting him or her down.

• Be candid, open and honest in your response.
• Assert your opinions respectfully.
• Treat the other person as s/he would want to be treated.

Wishing Kory and Jill, two of my colleagues and friends, the best of luck and continued success in their newly expanded roles.

Adapted from Mind Tools.

"To Get What You Want Don't Go With Your Gut." Wait...What?!

"Where there is shouting, there is no true knowledge."

Leonardo Da Vinci, Italian painter, sculptor, architect, and engineer whose genius epitomized the Renaissance humanist ideal, 1452 - 1519

When a person shouts at you, your gut reaction may be to yell right back. This is one situation when following your gut may not be such a good idea, and may result in a damaged relationship. Instead, try responding to the desired outcome.

NO: Event - Reaction - Outcome

YES: Event - Outcome - Reaction

Action

When an unsettling event occurs:

1. Pause.
2. Ask yourself

: what is the outcome I want? Instead of reacting to the event, act in alignment with your desired outcome.

Consider the person who yelled at you: do you want an improved relationship with her, or do you want to make her feel as bad as you do?

(If it's the latter, go ahead and yell back.) If it's the former, empathize with his anger and respond to the underlying issue in a calm manner.

Enjoy this great article by Peter Bregman.

Boost Performance By Doing Good

"Devising and maintaining an atmosphere in which others can put a dent in the universe is the leader's creative act." --Warren Bennis

Can doing good keep employees engaged and grow your business? You bet it can.

Ramping up altruism may well be the killer app in 2009 and early 2010 — a time when companies need their top talent to be firing on all cylinders to spur growth and renewal, but where conventional rewards such as pay raises and bonuses are hard to come by, according to Sylvia Ann Hewitt in her forthcoming book Top Talent: Keeping Performance Up When Business Is Down.

Hewitt is an economist, member of the World Economic Forum Council on the Gender Gap, and founding president of the Center for Work-Life Policy where she directs the "Hidden Brain Drain"—a task force of 50 global companies committed to fully realizing female and multicultural talent.

Her research shows that high-potential employees are motivated by a desire to give back to their communities. These employees are increasingly seeking out employers that allow them to do so on the job. Real life examples and the associated returns? By integrating "doing good" into their business strategies, GE's healthyimagination and Pfizer's Global Access programs are expanding company revenue and attracting and retaining these key employees.

Weaving the 'feel good' factor into a go-to-market playbook gives high potential employees priceless psychic rewards, and a reason to stay, play and win, says Hewitt. This approach is certainly working for Ponni Subbiah — one of Pfizer's most talented female leaders. "We all want to feel that we can have an impact on the world. That's why I like Global Access. The fact that we're going to increase access to our medicines in a part of the world where people are very needy .... that's very gratifying for me." And it's good business.

Action

While donations and volunteering are wonderful avenues for allowing your employees to give back, do not limit your company's socially responsible efforts. Explore ways that your company can combine social responsibility and commercial viability by offering lower cost products to emerging markets or developing a new profitable solution to a social problem.

Adapted from Harvard Business Publishing

Using Values to Guide Business Strategy, Keep Employees Engaged and Grow Your Business

"The Cause is Hidden, But the Result is Well Known."

Ovid, Roman Poet (43 BC - 17 AD)

People today are focused on the global economic crisis, but Harvard Business School professor Rosabeth Moss Kanter sees also a global crisis of business.

Has the model of American capitalism that worked so well to raise the fortunes of millions of people last century hit a wall? In its place must arise a new model of the company, one that serves society as well as rewarding shareholders and employees, Kanter argues in her new book, SuperCorp: How Vanguard Companies Create Innovation, Profits, Growth, and Social Good.

Kanter, one of my top tier strategy and organizational change visionaries that I follow and learn from, shared key points and great stories at a leadership learning session I attended with my esteemed colleague from the Northern Trust Company, Jill Nabonsal:

1.  Start with a Sense of Purpose. Lead with Your Principles and Values. Think about how you can apply your products and services to address the many unmet societal needs.

2.  Be Open to Discussions. It is Not Your Words But Your Conversations that Matter. Allow for self-organizing, -governing -policing where possible. Give your employees a voice and you may be amazed what transpires.

3.  Value Relationships. A Sense of Purpose Forms a Strong Basis for Your Relationships and Conversations. Start with 'Who I am, what I believe and what is important to me.' Speak of values first. Think of meeting others' needs before your own. (And you may be surprised how your own needs end up being met way beyond your expectations.)

4.  Use Values to Reduce Risk. Having Values at the Core of Your Solutions Reduces Risk. Your standards seem too high? Help your clients reach the higher standards that you may set. Who wins? Who benefits? Your clients, your clients' clients, your team, you.

Here is a more detailed summary of the book if you are interested in learning more.

But can doing good keep employees engaged and grow your business? You bet it can. Stay tuned for my next post.

Gut or Wallet: Which Matters More When Motivating?You Might Be Surprised.

"Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm."
Ralph Waldo Emerson

Career analyst Daniel Pink examines the puzzle of motivation, starting with a fact that social scientists know but most managers don't: Traditional rewards aren't always as effective as we think. Listen for illuminating stories -- and maybe, a way forward.

Follow this link to learn more about Daniel Pink and why you should listen to him.

Video copyright TED LLC 

The Name of the Game? Integration.

"Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence win championships."

Michael Jordan, (American NBA basketball player, widely considered to be the greatest player in the history of the game, 1963 - )

For companies that care about the client / customer experience (and who doesn't these days?), teamwork and integration is a must.

ACTION

1. Choreograph all your client touch points so the client has a seamless experience whether s/he interacts with your account team, speaks with your finance team, walks into your storefront, contacts your service center, uses your website, or self-serves.
2. Ensure sure the systems and processes that support this coordination are in sync. Often, companies have channel-specific silos that are culturally and logistically at odds.
3. Create incentives that encourage your people to coordinate across those channels. Look out for those who serve as barriers to a harmonized customer experience. If they can't learn to coordinate, it may be time for them to make room for their integration-minded colleagues.

 

Learn more by reading the article upon which this posting was adapted and based: How Integrated Are Your Customer Experiences?,by Jesse James Garrett of Adaptive Path.

Get and Make a Living: [Insert Reward]. Give and Make a Life: Priceless

 "We Make a Living By What We Get, We Make a Life By What We Give."

The Right Honourable Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (1874-1965)

I am looking forward to my first foray this evening with the Northwestern University Alumni Association Council of One Hundred, a women's mentoring organization whose members are willing to share their knowledge and experience to enrich the lives of Northwestern's undergraduate and graduate women students, and young alumnae.

Funny thing is...I always find that I walk away from such events (group or one-on-one coaching) having received MUCH more than I perceive I have given. If you have the chance to connect with someone - young or old - as s/he wanders along a professional or personal shift, I highly recommend it. Everyone wins, really.

ACTION

Prerequisite: Do the 'What to Ask the Person in the Mirror' exercise that I noted on Monday :)

1. Reflect for one minute on someone* in your life that may need mentoring, which John C. Crosby so eloquently describes as "...a brain to pick, an ear to listen, and a push in the right direction." Create an opportunity to be that brain, ear, push.  

2. If you would prefer a more formal, structured approach, many businesses, associations, faith-based organizations, universities, governments, websites, etc. have mentoring programs or materials already. Check out these resources and see what works best for you.

3. You can always contact me if you are stuck. Mentoring is a significant part of my vocation and avocation, and I couldn't feel more fortunate.

* Caveat and lesson learned: you will need to determine if this person wants to be - or is capable of being - mentored. Otherwise, your wonderful energy, ideas and time will be underutilized. More on the 'capable' topic in an upcoming post. I will offer ways to spot the uncoachables.

What to Ask the Person in the Mirror

"...the best way to figure out how you’re doing is to step back and ask yourself a few questions." *

Today, I was just chatting with one of my mentors, John Fowler, a Senior Vice President at The Northern Trust Company, about if and how senior leaders really assess their skills, ethics, etc. Here's why:

1. All leaders get off track on occasion.
2. The higher the rank in the company (large or small), the fewer opportunities exist for honest and direct feedback.
3. If feedback is given, it is often filtered because no one wants to anger the boss. Or, the feedback is completed rejected by the boss.
4. The performance management process does provide the opportunity for feedback, but this feedback often seems more rote than useful.

So then what? How do you really know how are you doing as a leader; the ethics you are displaying; how your peers, subordinates perceive you, your leadership style, progress, capabilities and fit?

John shared with me one of his tactics for receiving regular, honest and direct feedback. He said he has never forgotten the message his dad shared with him years ago:

"Son, you better like who you see every morning while you are lookin' in the mirror and shaving. Because that is the person you have to answer to every day on how you are conducting business and treating people." 

And, as a strong believer in reflection being a key leadership trait, I love Fowler Sr.'s advice. And, I can vouch that this 'high-tech' method John employs on a daily basis works. His leadership and ethics bars are off the charts. Let's hear it for effective self-assessment in action!

In his spot-on article, "What to Ask the Person in the Mirror,*" Robert Kaplan suggests self-assessing your performance as a leader and manager periodically related to seven key leadership challenges. Here is a teaser:

To address this leadership challenge...Managing Time

Ask...Does the way I spend my time match my key priorities?

Because...Tracking your use of time can reveal startling - even horrifying - disconnects between your top priorities and your actions. Such disconnects send confusing messages to employees about your true priorities.

Follow the link to learn more. I think this is a fantastic 'ready reference' that any leader could post on his / her bathroom mirror for daily reflection while shaving or brushing your teeth.  I am sharing this article with the team of senior leaders I am working with now. I will let you know how it goes!

Know Thy Partner: Three Client Types and How to Work With Them

An interesting perspective to consider of the outset of each 'client' and / or organizational change.