Month: June 2011

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Communicating Change: How You Can Make Change Work

Young business man having a video call meeting

Part Two: For front line supervisors and managers:

As we noted last time, communicating change at all levels is critical for a successful change effort. As a front line manager or supervisor, recognize that you are the key change agent in your circle of influence. Your people look to you as they move through the change. Are you for it? Against it? Dragging your feet? They probably take their cues from you. If you are inexperienced, unskilled or uncomfortable about communicating change, learning how to do it effectively is a huge development opportunity for you. Some of the key skills to practice include:

1. Empathetic listening.

2. Helping direct employees reframe thoughts and beliefs.

3. Reinforce and support new behaviors.

Most of this work is done through your team huddles, meetings and one on one coaching. You may also assign self-study, recommend reading and discussion, or even hold a workshop or class to help your direct reports to work through change.

Watch out for these mistakes in communicating change:

Forgetting you are already ahead of the curve. You may have already had days or weeks to adjust to the upcoming change. By the time it is getting communicated, you may be well past any shock or surprise, already comfortable with the change. You may even have moved on to think about the next challenge. You may be ready for action and next steps, but your people may not. It is easy to forget that your direct reports, hearing about this change, may have emotional reactions they need to work through before they can get ready to implement it.

Underestimating your impact on others. If you seem to be “all business” about the change, while others are still reeling or dealing with emotions, they are bound to wonder why. They won’t understand that you have probably already “been there.” If they are worried about their jobs, roles, or how this is going to affect them, they won’t be ready or even able to hear your expectations. As a leader, you need to give them time and space to process the news in their time, not according to yours. Empathetic listening, working through and reframing thoughts and beliefs can take time you don’t feel you can afford. But not taking that time, rushing them to action before they are ready, can have a negative impact on the success of the change.

Not communicating early or often enough. Many times managers know the change is coming, but don’t have all the facts. Rather than talk about it with incomplete information, they stall. “I will communicate when I have the information” can sound to worried direct reports a lot like “I know but I don’t want to tell you because it is so awful.” Not communicating sends a message: it can make you look evasive, indecisive, not fully committed to the change, and not transparent. What is this doing to trust between you and your team? How much better to communicate early, saying “A change is on its way, and I don’t have all the information. What I can tell you now is this….and I will keep you informed as I learn more details.” It is not easy to face your people knowing they may be upset and knowing that you don’t have all the answers for them. But not communicating is so much more dangerous.

Most leaders underestimate the importance of their ability, willingness, and visibility in communicating about change efforts. You can reinforce and support your people as they move through the change by avoiding these common mistakes, and by taking proactive steps to help lead the way.

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5 Ways to Make Training Conferences Rock!

persons-in-a-training-session.

Innovate. Collaborate. Communicate.

So they tell us. I’ve always thought the most valuable part of a conference was the networking and the contacts that I had made. I thought most of the sessions were poorly delivered or that would have been better as a handout or a well-written article or white paper. There are some people who think it is easier and better to do a conference presentation because all you have to do is stand up and read your presentation…and basically tell everyone what you did to get the job done.

There are some people think it is better to do the conference presentation because all you have to do is stand up and read your presentation…and tell everyone what you did to get the job done.

A conference presentation is better only when the information is presented as you would to impress colleagues—with information that will interest them, with information they can use, and takes advantage of the interactive format. Otherwise, you might as well stay home. I think some of the smarter people do.

In my 30 years of government, I’ve been to many conferences all claiming to be a focal point for Innovation, Collaboration, and Communication (you can substitute networking if you want). “WHAT ARE THEY GOOD FOR?” I hear a song from the 1970s coming on… “ABSOLUTELY…” No I won’t say it because they are good for something.

Shopping. Site-seeing. Time-off. If that’s what you make it.

That’s just it. It is what you make it. Unfortunately, unless we are the conference planners, we only have control over how we take the conference. Yes, for some it is always good to put a face to an email or a voice on the phone. Really? I guess to us introverts that doesn’t really matter. However, as I said earlier, the best part may be the networking–the meeting of others engaged in the same or related business you are.

I have an idea that if we took the approach of expecting less than we get and making more out of it when we get there, we might come close to getting something out of it.

People who go expecting the conference as touted to be a fantastic experience are almost always disappointed. Immediately their attention levels drop. Their enthusiasm for the conference moves on to whatever else is around. Of course, there are always those people who go for those things above. If you pick an uninteresting location, forget it–they’re not coming. Even with the professional enticements you listed below:

  • Do your job better with the knowledge you gain at workshops and plenaries on issues critical to…
  • Expert presenters from around the world will share their knowledge and expertise with you.
  • Network with colleagues in the field, and make those important connections to exchange information and advice throughout the year.
  • Learn about the latest solutions and programs from the Nation’s top providers.
  • Earn your mandatory professional certification credits. (Lawyers are always looking for easy ways to earn CLE credits, and this is one way.)

So, how do you get attendees to come, stay and learn?

You make sure attendees are comfortable, and if that’s not possible, just apologize. It makes the situation more of “we’re all in this together and we’ll make the best of it.” Don’t make excuses. Tough guys and professionals who know these things say it makes you weak. You want to appear strong, confident, and professional. So, you are either a tough guy or a professional. Which do you want to be?

  1. Give attendees something they can use or the motivating to think along the same lines as your speakers’ who are the experts in the fields. Energize them with good new stuff, invigorate the old stuff with exciting new variations that hold promise, and make sure attendees know why by asking for their input throughout, not just at the end. That will make the whole experience interactive rather than a few sessions with exceptional presenters who can handle it.
  2. Treat attendees as the professionals they think they are. Does artificially pumping people up by repeating, “Aren’t we glad we’re here?”–really work? Or, does it just get irritating? It’s cheer leading! No one said (except a cheerleader) that cheer leading is fun. To some, cheerleaders may be fun. There’s a difference.
  3. Ensure what you promise is what you deliver. Granted that is the toughest and you can’t deliver miracles but you need to show you did the best you could. You may not get everyone’s idea of the best seminar or workshop topics, but make the conference flow smoothly–and staff should be as accommodating as possible. If you promise “expert presenters,” do you mean presenters who are experts, or presenters who are experts at presenting? Either way, you have to make it happen. Bringing in the same old presenters or the presenters who did such a bang up job last year is not the same thing.
  4. One networking event is never enough. In fact, breaks are never long enough because professionals have to check-in with the office and family sometimes. Make the breaks long enough–even if it means extending the conference a day–so that people have a chance to network. Here’s a suggestion: instead of one big ballroom mixer, try several in different locations (bars and lounges), etc. Smaller groups tend to get tighter with and without alcohol. Smaller groups of people are easier to remember later when you need them, and since you know each other better than someone you may have met at the buffet for 30 seconds, are more prepared to be a real contact worth having. Just a thought.
  5. If you’re offering certification or credits like CLEs make the process of getting the certification as simple and streamlined as possible. Sign-up, attend, get certificate!

Now you have a conference with some zing.

A final word. Don’t try to make the conference something for everyone. You’ll never make it happen. Don’t focus all your energy setting up a sporting outing because a favorite baseball team is located in this locale. Some people actually prefer to watch sports on television. Some could care less about sports and would rather go to a good play or eat dinner in famous restaurant. Whatever you do, make a list of activities and where to get more information on attending them. Just make sure the hotel actually does have information on hand, and you might be surprised that the hotel has entertainment packages or transportation that can be made available for your attendees–even if they are not hotel guests.

Believe it or not, I have other outrageous opinions on other subjects on my website under What I Say. I even talk about theatre and the practical application of acting skills, review plays, and talk about most communication topics. If you don’t see anything you like, just ask. Feel free to comment on my posts anywhere you find them. I appreciate the feedback and welcome views that differ from my own. Life’s complicated and so are we. If we weren’t, we wouldn’t be very interesting. Although I do try to break down ideas to some basics and take some of the loftiness out of labels and categories, I am a regular guy who works like everyone else at trying to do the thing he loves best for at least a small part of his life. I hope you’re doing what you love. If not, get working on it. Do it for you and everyone around you.

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For more resources about training, see the Training library.

For a look at the human side of training from my Cave Man perspective, please check out my book, The Cave Man Guide to Training and Development. Happy training.

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Three Actions of Leaders

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In Skills for Leading the Fall (May 11, 2011) I wrote about a learning cycle for leaders that has three components:

Self-Awareness: Understanding the forces acting around you and within you, observing your behavior and using this to course correct.

Self-Discipline: The discipline to be “who” you need to be at the moment to deliver the results you seek.

Self-Direction: Taking the action where it needs to go – operating as both an observer of the larger system, being on the Balcony, and a leader on the Playing Field.

Today I am going to link this to the actions of leading, which I categorize along three dimensions: Doing, Thinking, and Relating.

One leader, who we will call Sam, experienced his leadership as Doing when I first met him: achieving results, making tough decisions, and having authority over others. His leadership style was Pacesetting: focused on his personal achievements, operating from an “expert” stance, and defining success by results only. During this period Sam’s leadership was based on his technical know-how and his ability to personally get things done. This worked well until he became a team leader.

As a team leader Sam’s Pacesetting style was derailing him…fast. With coaching Sam began to experience his success as occurring through the success of others. The Relating dimension of leadership activities emerged and Sam began to see himself as a coach instead of an expert. He shifted his attention to developing others using relationship to create collaboration, effectiveness, and trust. Not only did Sam’s team benefit emotionally, their results improved as their relationships with each other improved. Sam began to show up on the corporate talent radar and within the year he was promoted, specifically for his ability to bring forth a high-functioning team.

Now, when Sam spoke of himself, it was as a results oriented leader of people. This allowed Sam’s Doing to shift from tactical to strategic, which was of particular interest to him. As his team broadened their perspective and used their diversity to accomplish stretch goals they became acknowledged as high-performers. Again Sam was promoted, becoming the leader of a product with a globally dispersed brand team but no direct reports.

In this new role, Sam recognized quickly that too much Doing with too little Relating was threatening his new team’s performance and motivation. Initially frustrated with his lack of power and authority, Sam focused on the Thinking dimension. He began his tenure by meeting and listening to the majority of team members. Then, taking all this as food for thought, he designed a two-day meeting that brought the whole group (around 80 people) together in conversation rather than presentation. It was a stretch for the group and Sam had to tailor the meeting in real time to ensure the mix of Doing-Relating-Thinking was working.

Over the year he spent much of his time thinking and reflecting before acting (Doing and Relating). In this way Sam added multiple new perspectives and actions to his leadership playbook. For example, there were times when he took the perspective of general manager, CFO, and even CEO. At other times he led from the perspective of one of the line functions or external stakeholders. The outcome? You guessed it, Sam was promoted to a position that required him to intentionally weave together all three dimensions.

Lessons for Leaders

Using Self-Awareness Sam intentionally chose which leadership activities to focus and act on in the moment – Doing, Relating, or Thinking.

Using Self-Discipline he continuously integrated the three dimensions so that his leadership balanced organizational functioning (Relating), performance (Doing), and innovation (Thinking).

Using Self-Direction Sam developed himself while guiding the direction of those he was leading.

Now that you’ve met Sam reflect on two questions:

  • How do you define the Doing, Thinking, and Relating activities of leadership?
  • How do your actions as a leader depend on your definition of these?
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What is the CFC and Where to Apply: The Nuts & Bolts

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In workplace giving, workers solicit funds from their co-workers, and the Combined Federal Campaign (CFC) is the Federal government’s workplace giving program.

The CFC is a mandatory, completely voluntary program – and that’s not a contradiction.

It is mandatory because every U.S. Federal agency in the world must conduct a CFC campaign between Sept. 1 and Dec. 15 of each year.

It is voluntary because all of the organizing and soliciting are done by volunteers. And, there are many safeguards built in to prevent coercion from management about donating. This means that all of the nonprofits participating in CFC have anonymous volunteers helping their development efforts.

In the CFC, more than 97 percent of the monies raised are designated to specific nonprofits, and the vast majority of the donations are through payroll deduction.

Office of Personnel Management (OPM)
OPM is the Federal agency authorized to write the regulations to facilitate fundraising on behalf of charitable organizations through the solicitation of Federal employees and military personnel.

OPM regulations state that “The Combined Federal Campaign (CFC) is the only authorized solicitation of employees in the Federal workplace on behalf of charitable organizations.” In effect, a non-profit has only one way to solicit Federal employees for donations.

Think of it this way: this is a potential donor pool of more than three million employees who work for the same employer, an organization that already has a program in place that helps non-profits raise money.

In terms of actual giving, if the CFC were a foundation it would be the 10th largest in the US.

The CFC Recognizes Three Types of Charities…

National, International, and Local — plus federations for all three types.

National and international charities must apply directly through OPM, and local NPOs to a local board in each region, called the “Local Federal Coordinating Committee” or LFCC. National and international applications are due in January of each year, local applications in late winter/early spring.

The CFC Application Process and Eligibility

General Requirements:
1. The organization must be designated as a tax-exempt non-profit organization
   under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
2. An application to participate in the CFC must provide specific information
   about their auditing, governance and program functions.
3. Applicants must also provide a completed and signed copy of their IRS Form
   990 for their most recent fiscal year.

Requirements for financial statements are based on the size of the non-profit, and can be found at the www.opm.gov/cfc website.

The Federation: A Special Type of Organization
Federations are umbrella organizations that are composed of NPOs with a common theme/purpose, (health orgs, arts orgs, etc.). The Federation submits the application to the CFC, and often creates comprehensive marketing materials targeted at federal employees.

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In the next post in the CFC series, we’ll see why the CFC is the most donor friendly means of donating to non-profits for Federal employees.

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During his 25-year career in the Federal sector, Bill Huddleston, The CFC Coach, served in many CFC roles. If you want to get involved in the Combined Federal Campaign, maximize your nonprofit’s CFC revenues, or just ask a few questions, this is the guy to contact … Bill Huddleston1@gmail.com .

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Ignore the Bull and Get the Training Results

Ignore the Bull and Get the Training Results

A great training package! This outside training group has a super online presence with an impressive list of companies, the right degrees (the right schools, too), tons of publications and pre-packaged training developed by someone else–experts, of course, and best of all–they are going to come in and tell you what they can do for your company. I hope by now you can tell I’m being facetious. I can think of a lot of clichés right now, but I’m going to resist and let you fill in the blanks. You know…the importance of what’s outside and what’s inside.

We all know how complicated the world of business is, and how easy it is to let someone tell us what’s going to work for us because it worked elsewhere. Did it really work elsewhere? This group said it did. There are company testimonials on the fancy, very professional-looking website, or the brochure, or the presentation; however, you know the proof may be in the phone call you asked your assistant to make to all the companies listed as references before you talk too much about business.

There are company testimonials on the fancy, very professional-looking website, or the brochure, or the presentation; however, you know the proof may be in the phone call you asked your assistant to make to all the companies listed as references before you talk too much about business.

If the training group representatives are too busy to wait, maybe they don’t have the time to really take a good look at your company and see where it is differs from other companies, or see what your company really needs in the way of training that really does need customization, or really do the homework required. That’s a problem.

Does this particular training outfit look for ways your company is similar to other companies it has worked with and bring in the same or slightly modified to look customized for your company? Although it may sound a little fishy, it is a business reality in a capitalistic world. Time is money. An easier client may be the next appointment. That’s the reality.

I don’t like a hard sell, and I don’t care for flashy tactics. But we do get busy and the flashier professional look often wins. Why? Because it looks good on paper and can sell, sell, sell. Is that what you really want? To be sold, or to get results? I doubt being “sold” a bill of goods is what made you what you are today. Are you one to order a steak cooked one way and when it comes back another, do not send it back? Not unless you are willing to accept whatever the server brings you. That doesn’t sound like money well spent. The best return on the investment. So, what is? That depends on what your company needs.

I’m not saying the not-as-shiny-looking training group or individual that comes into your office promising results is better either. You want a return on your investment. A little research, a little more time spent checking references can save a lot in the long run. The new guy, the break off company, may take the time to see you get what you want. He has to earn your respect and the respect of those you know. If he broke away from another training group and started his own, check it out. It could be he didn’t like the way the group did business, and wanted a chance to try it another way–his way–or what he thinks is the right way. How does he answer that very tough question? Like someone in business competition or with sincerity you can feel. Feelings are allowed in business I understand. Facts and figures can be made up easier than creating a whole person. Feelings can fare better than facts and figures when personality and character counts.

Don’t be sold efficiency. Demand it. Demand it of vendors, too. Ride the bull if you wish, just watch out for the horns.

Of course, when it comes down to it, busy people skip steps, multi-task, try to do it all; some times that’s not a good idea. Resist the urge. The bottom line is at stake. Yours. Your people trained in the way they need to be trained may not be in the “book” or “pre-packaged proven” tactics. They may be perfectly fine packages and tactics, but I’d rather have someone hash it out with the same kind of passion I have for my company, with my goals in mind–not a group or individual looking for a quick fix to throw together that will impress you and win the contract. Don’t be sold efficiency. Demand it. Demand it of vendors, too. Ride the bull if you wish, just watch out for the horns.

One last word of advice: look at the training representatives and ask yourself some questions. Are they salespeople or trainers? Are they looking to close or looking for opportunity to do it right. It’s all in the perspective.

There’s nothing wrong with big training groups, professional-looking accouterments, and strong, dynamic personalities. Some may be a perfect fit for your company; some not so much. You want employees to fit your company so why not hire the people who train them to be what you want them to be? Shouldn’t they fit, too? If you don’t do the hiring of outside trainers yourself and have an HR or training officer do it, you wouldn’t be wrong to ask them to check references before they bring you the possibly glitzy package they decided on. We aren’t infallible.

Of course, all opinions here are my own. Want to see more on this and other topics, check out my website. You’ll find my training and development articles, right here on the Free Management Library site. I write on other things, too, mostly about communication, behavior and human performance. Want to tell a different side to the story? Please comment here, contact me on my website, or e-mail me–and I promise to respond. Or, do a longer piece by guest writing on The Free Management Library by following the directions at the top of the page.

For a look at the human side of training from my Cave Man perspective, please check out my book, The Cave Man Guide to Training and Development. Happy training.

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Plan and Build Your Social Media Presence

Stacking wooden blocks creating business growth

It All Starts With a Plan and Goals – the Basics

In addition to your primary site, social media sites leverage your messages online. The wonder of social media is that it naturally connects people who have similar interests. You want to reach your friends, and your friends’ friends.

When you engage in discussions online through social media, your message can even “go viral”, gaining momentum and reaching well beyond your friends’ friends. The ultimate goal of an internet marketing campaign is to create a meaningful message that reaches its target audience and is virally spread to others who are interested in the topic.

Build your social media presence and interaction very deliberately. Certain basic fundamentals will make your social media efforts most rewarding:

  • Write down your business goals.
  • Find and listen to the conversations that are already taking place online about you, your products, your competitors, and your competitors’ products.
  • Find and listen to your ideal customers’ needs. Remember, when you offer a solution that solves a pressing problem, fulfills an urgent need, or gives them hope and joy, people will eagerly buy it.
  • Choose key social media sites for your target niche and establish your online profile.
  • Integrate those sites for maximum exposure, brand-building, and traffic.
  • Engage in conversations.
  • Build your network or following. Build your email database.
  • Track and monitor activity and results.
  • Tweak to continually improve results.
  • Repeat.

Tell your story – the social media way

You have a unique story to tell, and social media is your opportunity to join conversations. As we discussed earlier, social media is NOT one-way ‘push’ marketing. It IS about finding online platforms where people have conversations about specific topics of interest, and engage in meaningful, two-way discussion.

A site that allows users to interact and add content (comments, links, photos, video, etc.) is social. Use first person. Make your interaction sound and feel genuine. The people you meet online will be attracted to you (and what you offer) when you add helpful, meaningful input. If you’re new to social media, it is widely recommended that you first LISTEN to the conversation in order to become familiar with its unique style and flow.

What is YOUR unique story?

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For more resources, see our Library topics Marketing and Social Networking.

.. _____ ..

ABOUT Lisa M. Chapman:

Ms. Chapman’s new book has a name change! The Net-Powered Entrepreneur – A Step-by-Step Guide will be available very soon. With offices in Nashville Tennessee, but working virtually with international clients, Lisa M. Chapman serves her clients as a business and marketing coach, business planning consultant and social media consultant. As a Founder of iBrand Masters, a social media consulting firm, Lisa Chapman helps clients to establish and enhance their online brand, attract their target market, engage them in meaningful social media conversations, and convert online traffic into revenues. Email: Lisa @ LisaChapman.com

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Crisis on Stage

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In the midst of a crisis, the spotlight’s on you

Shakespeare penned the famous line, “all the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players,” in the year 1600, but it’s managed to remain quite relevant every since then. Major crises today present perhaps the biggest “stage” of all, as millions of people from around the world are not only able to track every happening via traditional media, but also to contribute their thoughts and discuss those of others using the Web and especially social media.

In a guest post for the Mr. Media Training blog, crisis management pro Jane Jordan-Meier, author of “The Four Stages of Highly Effective Crisis Management,” took this analogy even deeper as she described the four stages of a crisis.

STAGE ONE: In Stage One, the spotlight is beaming squarely on the incident. This is the “breaking news” stage. “What happened?” is the key question. And the news travels very fast in Stage One to Stage Two – it doesn’t take long for the story to jump the “fire line.”

STAGE TWO: Stage Two is characterized by the focus on the “victims” and the response. The light moves quickly from the incident itself (although new facts will continue to emerge) to the “drama.” How could this have happened? How many people are hurt, missing and/or dead? How is the organization responding? How quickly did the responders get to the scene? The light will shine brightly on the perpetrator – or who we think the perpetrator might be.

This stage is key. This is the make it or break it stage, the reputation forming stage, the stage where the rallying on social media sites, both negative and positive, becomes a focal point.

The spotlight, with widening and growing intensity, points at the organization and persons who appear to be at the center of the storm. It will roam around and catch whoever will talk about what’s just happened. Experts start to appear on CNN, victims start talking in-depth about their experiences, and the organization starts to give its side of the story. And it can last at least 72 hours.

STAGE THREE: Stage Three is the one best avoided, although inevitably we all want to go there – yes, the Blame, Finger Pointing Stage. Think back to the devastating oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico when the executives of the three companies at heart of the massive oil spill were severely chastised over attempts to shift the blame to each other.

In this Finger Pointing Stage – everyone has an opinion about you, your product, your organization, your industry, even your country (ask Iran) – lots of “woulda, coulda, shoulda.”

Stage Three is all about blame with the key question focused on “why.” The spotlight is more like a floodlight. Your crisis is beamed everywhere.

STAGE FOUR: The light begins to dim in Stage Four which is the fallout/resolution stage. The spotlight now dims, but can easily be turned to full glare again if you slip up, or something similar happens in your industry. Your crisis is perpetually in print, on Google, in Wikipedia – searchable and discoverable. Your “sin” will be for everyone to see forever – you can’t take it back.

 

 

 

 

 

Typically, this stage marks the end of the crisis; there is some resolution. There might be a funeral, a government inquiry, or a Senate hearing. Your product goes back on the shelf, workers go back to the plant, victims return to their homes.

Stage Four is perhaps the most dangerous, as many organizations relax too much rather than focusing on the effort to drive reputation higher and regain stakeholder trust. The slip-up can be nothing more than a few errant words spoken by an exec as they leave work late, but make the wrong move and nobody will hesitate to drudge up the recent past and make you pay for it.

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For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Crisis Management
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[Jonathan Bernstein is president of Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc. , an international crisis management consultancy, and author of Keeping the Wolves at Bay – Media Training.]

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Leadership Grace Part 2

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Caren Hamilton & John Watkins share the second part of their blog on Leadership Grace. See last week’s post for part 1

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The Power of Leadership Grace

There are different aspects of power that we have found help us to express and lead with grace. These surround our core and they are the energetic expression of grace. So grace empowers us to lead through clarity, focus, and ease, to achieve recovery, unity, and service. From that work we create the possibility to live a happy, free, and joyous life.

Clarity emerges out of chaos and reveals what needs to be destroyed or created. As we honestly inventory our lives, our recovery and healing begins, and we find ourselves returning to this wellspring over and over. This is the essence of the goddess Kali in yoga philosophy. It is our spiritual compost – the stuff out of which new things are created. Kali is the forth “R” in Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, and Rot. Here is the uncomfortable, yet fertile place, where necessity births invention – the muck out of which the lotus grows and blossoms.

Focus comes from the healthy application of the brilliant searchlight of our mind in service to the Heart. Here we access our knowledge and arts, and we set an intention to apply this wisdom in our lives. In yoga philosophy, the goddess Saraswati represents this power, calling forth discernment and the skillful use of all our resources to achieve unity.

Ease is the beautiful, radiant, and abundant aspect of Leadership Grace. This rich and cultured expression is known as the goddess Laksmi in yoga philosophy, representing the culminating expression of our artistry, beauty, and abundance. We aspire to use this power in service to the Divine in all situations.

The Inner and Outer Practices of Leadership Grace

Both yoga and 12-step traditions require our regular and consistent practice. A strong inner practice gives us a significant competitive advantage because it gives us access to unlimited resources from which to act. That inner practice involves opening to grace, engaging and hugging to our core sense of meaning and purpose, and learning how to express that outward clearly, skillfully, and directly. A strong inner practice is portable, allows us to be centered, courageous, and steadfast, yet adaptable, dynamic, and flexible in any situation.

Leadership Grace is our divine embodiment fully expressed in the grit of our daily experiences. Healthy and effective leadership is nothing if it is not full engagement. “As much, so much,” goes the yoga expression, reminding us to apply a hundred percent of our power for each place we choose to engage, and yet, never more than is needed. This balanced action keeps us from over-exerting ourselves.

This is not the same as “do-er-ship,” the need to do something to fix things. Instead we can be the calm center that steadfastly holds us and our anxieties about our lives, loves, and work in a place of loving and compassionate reflection. It may be a fiery reflection that allows us to see with discernment the contrasts between our stories of our experience and what is real. It allows us to disengage from what is no longer serving, in order to re-engage healthily in each new moment.

Leadership Grace allows all of us to feel safe enough to open our own hearts and let our innermost selves flow into expression. That leadership connects with our deepest, most heartfelt longings, creates a place that is safe and trusting, yet holds us to high standards of responsibility to self and others, and as a result, frees us to be more whole. Then we can more easily align our “views, means, and fruit.”

Leadership Grace asks first, often, and always, “How might I be of service in this situation?” “How might I act from a place of clarity, focus, ease, and grace?” “How might my service aid recovery (healing) and build unity, such that we may all become more happy, joyous, and free?” “How might I use the power of grace to illuminate the dark places of fear, dissolving away that which is no longer serving, opening to the growth of what is emerging, naming things with clear and articulate words, and supporting the fullest expression of beauty, abundance, and art?” And at each point, Leadership Grace starts with ourselves first, yet also we realize, there is no end, no goal, no final solution. Leadership Grace is a continual process of disciplined practice to allow us ever-deeper access to our divine nature and its ever-fuller expression in this amazing world we inhabit.

Finally, regardless of whether the dis-ease we encounter is within ourselves, at work, at home or next door, it is all a symptom of disconnection and imbalance, a sort of soul sickness. Awareness is the first step, then regular and consistent practice is the pathway that returns us to Grace. We invite you to join us in this practice!

johnw536@mac.com http://johnmw.com

Leadership Grace©,2011

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For more resources, see our Library topic Spirituality in the Workplace.

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Posted on

Busting Down the Obstacles to Growth

Businessman studying graphs and charts on a white board

So your company is working hard, doing everything right, and it just isn’t growing fast enough.

Well, there is the economy. The recession has slowed customer demand in most segments a lot. Still, excel in a recession and life should be even better when the economy picks up.

So, the company has a competitive advantage and it is one that matters to your customers. You have solid, objective evidence that this is true, right?

If so, the issues lie in implementation. Have you investigated buying behavior to ensure your promotional plan will meet prospects when and where they are looking for you? If not, know where to find your prospects and what they are looking for. Your promotional plan needs to take this into account.

With all the footwork done and the strategies and plans set, the key becomes implementation. How to get the message out effectively. How to brand consistently, and build value through the brand. That in itself can be a competitive advantage – with strong equity. Think of Coca Cola.

All prospect and customer touch points become critical. From the first contact as a new lead through to shipping and invoicing. What is your prospect’s or customer’s experience? Try to live it yourself, to understand how the experience REALLY is. Don’t base your decisions on internal company myths. These often hold the company in higher regard than customers do.

Quick surveys can help here. To understand what customers appreciate, would like more of, and how the company stacks up against the competition. Then solve the key issues effectively – turn them into company advantages.

It takes work, dedication, and a solid understanding of your market – prospects and customers alike. Feel free to write, tell me how it’s going, and where you are seeing the challenges and wins.

For more resources, see the Library topic Business Development.

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Tove Rasmussen, of Partners Creating Wealth, offers business expertise worldwide to help organizations grow, and disadvantaged regions thrive.

Photo credit: Hectorir