Tag: Perception
5 Steps to Leadership Growth: #3 Plan
“What exactly is your plan?” I bet you hear that all of the time – as leaders we are constantly being pushed to concretely devise and deliver a step by step description of what we are going to do next.
Why is this important?
In the framework I use with leaders in their development, it’s the third step. As you grow in your leadership – honing your “Power of One,” this framework can help both you and those you are developing to stay on course:
1. Purpose
2. Perception
3. Plan
4. Performance
5. Perpetuation
We hear a lot about the importance of goal-setting, but most of us don’t have clear and measurable goals to work towards. Even fewer of us actually have those goals written down. Lewis Carroll says, “any road will get you there, if you don’t know where you are going,” but how important are goals really and if they are vital, how can we make them most effective? There was a fascinating study conducted on the 1979 Harvard MBA program where graduate students were asked “have you set clear, written goals for your future and made plans to accomplish them?” The result, only 3% had written goals and plans, 13% had goals but they weren’t in writing and 84% had no goals at all. Ten years later, the same group was interviewed again and the result was absolutely mind-blowing.The 13% of the class who had goals, but did not write them down was earning twice the amount of the 84% who had no goals. The 3% who had written goals were earning, on average, ten times as much as the other 97% of the class combined! While this study only looks at earnings to quantify success, I still find it to be an extremely motivating example of why creating clear and measurable goals and writing them down is a key to success. Feeling motivated? Here are four steps to creating clear and measurable goals that will lead you to huge success.
Create a Vision
The first step to creating a goal is to figure out what you want. If you don’t know what you want, you don’t know what you need to achieve to get there. This is actually the fun part. You get to dream. What do you really want to create for yourself? What does your ideal life look like? Don’t be afraid to think big. Take fifteen minutes and document your vision. Take note of the details. What does your day look like? Where are you living? Try to incorporate all senses in your vision to make it most effective. What do you see, hear, smell, taste and feel throughout this ideal day?
Source: What They Don’t Teach You in the Harvard Business School by Mark McCormack
Helping Our Team Members Develop a Plan
Even if you don’t have a coach, you and your team members can get into the habit of having honest conversations about one another’s strengths and opportunities to improve. I often will suggest that leadership teams adopt the practice that Patrick Lencioni suggests in Overcoming the Five Dysfunctions of a Team. On a regular basis, the members of the team go around the table and ask one another, “What is one thing I am doing really well? What is one area in which I can improve that would really help the team?” And then everyone makes a commitment to take that feedback and apply the suggestions.
Of course, performance reviews are an excellent opportunity to get and provide feedback on a 6 – 12 month basis. But my advice is, don’t wait for that. Start asking the questions now from the people who know you well, and take their input to heart. Enjoy!
5 Steps to Leadership Growth: #2 Perception
What do others think of you: your strengths, your impact, how you could be even more effective?
Why is this important?
In the framework I use with leaders in their development, it’s the second step. As you grow in your leadership – honing your “Power of One,” this framework can help both you and those you are developing to stay on course:
- Purpose
- Perception
- Plan
- Performance
- Perpetuation
The first definition of Perception by the Merriam –Webster Dictionary: [Perception is] “the way you think about or understand someone (or something).”
People perceive us all of the time. Sometimes those perceptions matter to us. Sometimes they don’t. It is up to you to decide which ones do.
As a leadership coach and consultant in organizations, I have seen many instances where it would have helped the leader to care about perceptions. Like when a valued staff member left unexpectedly. Or because turnover of the team was high. Or an expected promotion didn’t materialize.
So often, we miss the opportunity to sincerely and honestly elicit feedback and input from the people who see us working, talking, resolving conflict, interacting with customers, cranking out the work, all day, every day. In the workplace, where we work day in and day out with people, we should have a good handle on how people perceive us, particularly those that matter – our boss, our boss’s boss, our direct reports, our trusted peers. And in order to assure that we are really being effective, it is critical that we are getting that information on how others perceive us on a regular basis.
In his seminal book on executive development, What Got You Here Won’t Get You There, Marshall Goldsmith says, “In soliciting feedback for yourself, the only question that works – the only one! – must be phrased like this: “How can I do better?” . . . Semantic variations are permitted, such as . . . “What can I do to be a better colleague at work?” or “What can I do to be a better leader of this group?” . . . Pure unadulterated issue-free feedback that makes change possible has to (a) solicit advice rather than criticism, (b) be directed towards the future rather than obsessed with the negative past, and (c) be couched in a way that suggest you will act on it; that in fact you are trying to do better.”
A 360° Feedback process with a trusted coach is an excellent (and often life-altering!) way to get great feedback from those who know us the best at work. The coach will ask superiors, peers and staff that the leader has chosen questions about the leader’s strengths and how s/he can use them more often, opportunities for increased effectiveness, how the leader reacts under stress, organizational obstacles that get in the way of the leader’s effectiveness, and suggestions on how to immediately improve.
Helping Our Team Members Get Feedback
Even if you don’t have a coach, you and your team members can get into the habit of having honest conversations about one another’s strengths and opportunities to improve. I often will suggest that leadership teams adopt the practice that Patrick Lencioni suggests in Overcoming the Five Dysfunctions of a Team. On a regular basis, the members of the team go around the table and ask one another, “What is one thing I am doing really well? What is one area in which I can improve that would really help the team?” And then everyone makes a commitment to take that feedback and apply the suggestions.
Of course, performance reviews are an excellent opportunity to get and provide feedback on a 6 – 12 month basis. But my advice is, don’t wait for that. Start asking the questions now from the people who know you well, and take their input to heart. Enjoy!