In the Ditch

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Phillip’s team looked at each other, across the table, and for the first time saw something different. No more were they simply co-workers, but now interdependent members of a group whose success depended on those connections.

We were talking about changing habits.

“No one succeeds by themselves,” I said. “At least for anything of significance. Sure you can think you are the Lone Ranger and prance around like you are someone important, but to achieve anything of real significance, you need a team. Each of you will, at some point, stumble, make a mistake, misjudge a situation. Each of you will, at some point, become discouraged, or become a Prima Dona, full of yourself.

“And when that happens, you will not recognize it in yourself, soon enough. You need each other to tell you those things, to make each of you better. Without each other, you will end up in ditch somewhere and no one will notice.” -TF

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Our next Leadership Program begins in Fort Lauderdale on February 26. We have one seat available. For more information, visit www.workingleadership.com.

Sustaining Change

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Phillip had assembled his sales team. They had promised to meet to look over their schedules for the following week. One or two had substantial clutter on a spreadsheet looking paper. Others had something tucked away inside a folder, a corner peeking out, but nothing available for casual inspection.

“Phillip tells me, you all decided to make some changes with the way you go to market,” I started. “I am very interested to hear about your plans.”

There was some shuffling of bodies around in chairs, everyone trying to get comfortable with this new accountability.

“I see some schedules for next week,” I continued. “Let’s get the cards out on the table.” Everyone looked to their left and then to their right, some schedules appeared, then more, then all. Some were full of chicken scratch, some were sparse.

I asked Phillip to explain, again, the purpose of the meeting, the purpose of the schedules, the purpose of this change of habit. We went around the circle, each explaining their schedule.

“Here is the secret,” I observed. “This is what will make this work. And if you don’t do this, the likelihood for success is slim.

“Many people think that making this kind of change is noble and the nobility will sustain it. Others think that if they don’t make this change, they will feel guilty and the guilt will sustain the change. Neither of those thoughts work.

“The only thing that will sustain this change will be to gather those people around you who will not let you off the hook, who will hold you accountable for what you promise to each other. It is the only thing that will sustain you through those time when you want to quit, or when you feel lazy.

“So, look around the table, my friends. This is the group that will help you to the next level. You just have to give them permission to hold you accountable.” -TF

Changing Habits

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Phillip arrived at the appointed time. “I think I am ready,” he announced. “You asked me to think about where we will be, what our target is.”

He described in some detail the three goals his team had set, what success looked like. It was my turn.

“So, now that you have painted this picture of the future, what habits will serve you? What do you need to do every day, every week that will deliver consistent results?”

It took Phillip some time to get cranked up. “My team is a sales team. Our job is to be in the field talking to prospective customers, every day. We sat down yesterday and looked at how much face time we really have with customers. We were shocked when we mapped it out. Only forty five minutes a day, on average for each of the five days last week.”

“So, what do you need to change?” I asked.

“I know it doesn’t seem like much, but we are going to try to double our face time. Ninety minutes per day spent with prospective customers.”

“And how are you going to do that?”

“We have been in the rut of just waiting for the phone to ring, so we haven’t been thinking very far into the future. We have been just reacting. As a team, by 5:00pm on Friday, every week, we will have met and shared our appointment schedules for the following week. We are going to keep a rolling calendar 7 days into the future. The target is to get seven hours of face time scheduled by Friday for the following week.”

“Good,” I said. “I will see you here on Friday. I would like to sit in and see how this works for you.” -TF
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Our next Leadership Program begins on February 26. Visit www.workingleadership.com for details.

Start at the Finish

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Phillip was interested because his team performance, heck, his performance wasn’t getting the results he expected. It wasn’t getting the results he wanted. We were talking about habits.

“So, how do I pick the right habits? Just tell me what to do and I will do it,” Phillip asked, sounding this side of desperate.

“I can’t tell you what habits to choose,” I replied. “You have to pick your habits, they have to be yours.”

“Yes, but where do I start? Everything sounds like a Boy Scout promise. Trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly.”

“That’s not a bad list, but a random list of Pollyanna habits will only get you to a random destination. You have to be much more deliberate. You asked where to start? Where do I always want you to start?”

It took a second to kick in, but Phillip knew the drill by now. “You always want me to start where I plan to finish.”

“Exactly. Work backwards from your destination. You have to build into your thinking, those habits that will carry you in the right direction. Here is your assignment. Meet me here tomorrow with a word picture (your vision) of what life is like when you get there. Then we will talk about the habits you may want to choose.” -TF
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Our next Leadership Program in Fort Lauderdale begins Monday, February 26. Visit www.workingleadership.com.

Not Because We Choose

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“Seventy percent of goal.” Phillip was exasperated. Month end review was not kind.

“So, what is causing the shortfall?” I asked.

“Well, for the past two years, we have only had to answer the phone, but the market is getting tighter. We are trying hard to get more proactive, but it’s not enough.”

“So, what has to change?”

Phillip was quiet. I knew he had been working long hours, but not getting the right results.

“Look, Phillip, what happens to us in life doesn’t happen because we choose it or want it. In life, you will never ever get what you want. You will only get what your habits deliver.

“If you want to make a change, you only have to look at your habits. What you are doing, over and over, day after day, delivers the consistent results you receive. An occasional effort brings an occasional result.

“What are your habits? What habits do you choose to make a change?” -TF

Not a Psychologist

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“So, your bully has to change?” I continued.

“Yes. You have talked about necessity in the workplace,” Miriam replied. “This change is necessary for her to continue to be a member of my team.”

“But, can people really change?” I challenged. “You know, we are not psychologists or social workers.” I was testing Miriam’s resolve.

“You are right, I am not a psychologist. I am a manager. It is not my job to make her change. I can make her aware of the problem. I can create an environment where she can make the change. I can check-in with her about her progress, but you are right, the responsibility for change is hers.

“In the end, I am the manager. It is up to me to determine what behavior is necessary for a person to be a member of my team.”

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Our next Leadership Program in Fort Lauderdale begins February 26, 2007. Visit www.workingleadership.com.

Owning the Truth

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Miriam was calm. She had just confronted a bully.

“Interesting,” I responded, “that you talked about your contribution to the problem. You said that the problem persisted, in part, because you had never confronted her, because you lacked the courage.

“As her manager, doesn’t this show weakness?” I knew this was a critical question for Miriam to understand as she moved to the next step with her team member. She had acted swiftly, but with purpose.

“No, it did not show weakness,” she replied. “It was the truth. Owning up to the truth is not an act of weakness. More important, accepting responsibility is the first step to change. Until I own up to the truth, until I understand the behavior is mine, I cannot change my behavior.

“My team member is in the same position. She also has to change. Her first step will be to own up to the truth and take responsibility for her own behavior. As long as she thinks it is someone else’s fault, she can never take the first step to change.”

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Our next Leadership Program in Fort Lauderdale begins February 26, 2007. Visit www.workingleadership.com.

You Stand For What You Tolerate

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“You stand for what you tolerate.” The words stung. Miriam’s heart skipped a beat. She thought her team was sympathetic with her plight as a manager. Now, she was not so sure.

She didn’t respond. She didn’t ask any questions. She simply stood up and left the room. Miriam was headed for a conversation she should have had months before.

I headed to the coffee room to wait. This would take either ten minutes or an hour.

This was a ten minute conversation.

When Miriam returned, you could see a sense of relief and calm in her face. The tension was gone. She was the first to speak.

“I asked her if she knew that everyone thought that she was a bully. I said that, as her manager, I had contributed to the problem because I never had the courage to talk to her about it.”

“And how did she respond?” I asked.

“She didn’t believe it, I mean, she accepted that it might be true, but she had no clue that is what people thought.”

“How did you leave it?”

“I told her to think about what I said and that we would talk at the end of the day, that, together, we would figure out what had to change.”

“Change?”

“Yes, I said that, as her manager, I could not tolerate bully behavior. That it had to stop.”

Miriam knew her next steps. The difficult part was over. -TF

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Our next Leadership Program in Fort Lauderdale begins February 26, 2007. Visit www.workingleadership.com.

What Do You Stand For?

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Miriam looked wide eyed as she explained what had happened. “I know I should have confronted the behavior straight away, but I didn’t. And now, she thinks it’s okay to be snotty and nasty to people when she doesn’t get her way.”

“How long has this been going on?” I asked. Miriam stopped. She didn’t want to tell me.

“Well, it pretty much started the first month she was here.” Silence. “Okay, about a year and a half.”

“And you haven’t spoken to her about her behavior?”

“At first I thought she was just having a bad day, then it turned into a bad week, then a bad month. By then, nobody wanted to go near her for fear she would rip their head off.”

“That bad?”

Miriam pursed her lips, looking sideways. “Well, not that bad, but she is just plain mean to people around her.”

“And what does your team think about the way you have handled it?”

“Oh, they must think I am very frustrated with her,” Miriam explained. “They know I am just afraid to say anything, even though I am the manager.”

“I don’t think so.” I lowered my eyes to look directly at Miriam. “After a while, you begin to stand for what you tolerate.” -TF

Only Work One Day a Week

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“I know I have to work differently,” Sharon stammered. “I just can’t seem to get everything done. I am pretty frustrated.”

“Sharon, what would you do differently, if I only allowed you to work one day per week?”

She chuckled at the prospect of the idea. “No, way!”

I lifted my eyes and slowly nodded my head up and down. “Think about it. Describe to me what you would do if you came in Monday morning and knew that your team had to work the rest of the week without you?”

Sharon looked down, then up to the left. “I guess I would meet with each one of my supervisors and make sure they knew what needed to get done that week.”

“And what else?”

“Well, I would ask them if they knew of any problems that would prevent them from getting the job done.”

“And knowing that you would not be there to solve the problem for them that week, how would you discuss the issue?”

“Well, we would probably talk about what they would have to do if the problem actually happened, or maybe how to prevent the problem.”

“So, tell me, Sharon. Which one of your team members could you have that discussion with today?” -TF