Make sure you communicate effectively...

Here’s how the dictionary defines frankness:

frank·ness

/ˈfraNGknəs/

noun

1.      the quality of being open, honest, and direct in speech or writing.

 

Read that definition again because that’s what everyone expects. In life and at work. In surveys we’ve conducted, the overwhelming number of responses reflect that employees at all levels are unhappy with workplace communications. Employees too often don’t think that management tells them what’s going on and managers don’t feel they’re getting honest feedback from their employees. It goes both ways. And it affects your business. 

 

To me, that means that communications should be management’s #1 focus. Simple, clear, honest, and effective communications. Focus on getting communications right: make it a strategic initiative, get help designing and implementing an effective two-way plan, assign responsibility for it to a senior executive, train your managers, encourage your employees, communicate often and listen more, and make sure everyone practices what you’re preaching. It will take work, but it will be worth it. The results will include improved satisfaction, morale, overall performance, trust, and respect. Be open, honest, and direct with your employees and they’ll be the same with you today. 

 

Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882): American essayist, public philosopher, and poet.

Liar, liar, pants on fire...

It's not ok to tell lies, even if they're “little” or “white” lies. 

 

·      Big or small – it creates a gap between you and others.

·      It's still a lie and is misleading. 

·      And unfair to others.

 

When I was growing up, we were instructed by parents and teachers not to lie. Period. Even if it was uncomfortable to tell the truth. End of story. Everyone I know got the same training and that was that. So, when did it start to be ok to lie? I always held if an applicant lied on their application, it was grounds for rejection or, later, termination. Little or big didn’t matter. We wanted truthful and honest people working for us. Don’t get me wrong, this can be an uncomfortable situation to be put in or put others in. My boss always said we could deal with a difficult truth, but not a lie. Be the kind of boss that helps people with the truth and don’t fire the messenger. Be above that and help people learn from the truth. You’ll all be on the same page and dealing with it openly and together. As children, we sometimes went to the woodshed, but our parents also used that as a lesson in honesty. Don’t let lies go unchallenged, and don’t let anyone lose because they were misled today.

 

Stephanie Ericsson born: 1953): American writer, screenwriter, advertising copywriter, author (of ShameFaced and Recovering Together), and frequent speaker about loss.

Don't be so scary...

To be an effective leader, people must respect you, not fear you.

 

·      A leadership role can be intimidating.

·      Best to infuse the role with humanism.

 

The org chart says you’re oveDon't r others. The perception is that you have more power than them. The reality should be that you care about, listen to, understand, and help them. That’s why they respect you. But nothing is more despicable than respect based on fear. And whether we like it or not, bosses make us nervous. That’s why it’s so important to spend a portion of your day interacting with the people you supervise, getting to know them and visa versa, and building relationships that align your interests and goals. Relationships that help get you all through the tough times and share in the good ones. Think of your leadership role like it’s a conductor of a symphony – keeping everyone on the right page and at the proper tempo. Be aware of what you say and how you say it, control your body language, and remember how you felt when the roles were reversed. Be mindful of what intimidates people and seek to always put others at ease. Build respect, not fear, today.

 

Albert Camus (1913 – 1960): French philosopher, author, dramatist, journalist, and political activist. He was the recipient of the 1957 Nobel Prize in Literature.

Let people know you care...

Most of us walk past countless people each day. It’s always good to acknowledge them.

 

·      Treat everyone the way you want to be treated.

·      You never know when that might make a difference.

 

Leaders walk past any number of employees each day, often more intent on where they’re going than who they’re passing. I suggest, however, that when doing that, you plan your time accordingly to allow you to stop and talk to as many employees as possible, or at least to acknowledge them. Employees want to see and hear from their leaders, and it means a lot to them when that happens. Conversely, it sends a bad message when that doesn’t happen. I was always surprised when casino employees referred to the company’s bosses as those who worked upstairs, like they were separate. The people I looked up to back then always advised me to get out of my office and spend time with employees. So, I made it a point to spend at least 4 hours each day walking around the many work areas, talking to employees, eating with them in the Staff Dining Room, and generally being accessible. Because I realized that while it might be nothing to me, it could mean everything to them. And it did. Spend time walking around and talking to your employees today.

 

Robert T. (Bob) Bennett (1957 – 2018): Southern Rhodesia born author of The Light in the Heart.

To be prepared is a sign of respect: especially to those who are counting on you...

Speaking from experience, you must have your act together if you want to lead others effectively.

 

·      The people you lead are watching you all the time.

·      They want to know if you’re capable and prepared.

·      If you are, that’s a sign of respect for them.

 

As you prepare each day to lead others, you must reflect on whether you’re prepared to provide the leadership needed for y9ur team. Meaning: knowing what needs to be done, having a knowledgeable plan, preparing for any questions or obstacles, and formulating a workable schedule. That’s the basic minimum, and with it you should have the confidence to command the respect of your team. Because a leader’s role is all about the people they’re leading, not themselves. You’re there to help each of them achieve their purpose and objectives. So, put your ego aside – again, from experience I know that’s difficult; but if you’re focused on your team it will show. And conversely, if you’re not, that will show too. The first will show and be met with respect; the latter will not. Because there is no respect for and from others without humility in oneself. To be effective, focus on your team today.

 

Henri Frédéric Amiel (1821 – 1881): Swiss moral philosopher, poet, and critic.

Start everything you do with a smile...

When talking to your employees about customer service, keep it simple: treat them the way you want them to treat your customers. 

 

·      That focuses both you and them on service.

·      It creates an environment of trust and respect.

·      And it aligns and focuses the whole team on what’s expected.

 

Service starts with a smile – everyone knows how to do that, and leaders need to model that behavior. They then must promote, recognize, and reward every smile they see. And since the employees are right there with the customers, they should be encouraged to always be on the lookout for better ways to do that. Leaders should talk to their employees every day, seeking input and feedback on the services they provide – do they need anything more to provide the best service, and what do the customers want. Asking for their feedback is the best way to get them engaged. Your employees are best situated to promote your products and services, and to suggest ways to improve both. Customer service is not a program – it’s a contact sport that everyone needs to actively participate in every day. Keep everyone focused on that today.

 

Milan Kundera (1929 – 2023): Czech and French novelist and political activist.

Happy Thanksgiving...

Wishing everyone a wonderful and bountiful Thanksgiving today.

 

William Arthur Ward (1921 – 1994): American motivational writer.

Don't allow what is to obscure what could be...

7 words that kill creativity and motivation: “that’s the way we’ve always done it”.

 

·      Getting comfortable with something takes time.

·      People get used to what they’re doing. 

·      Then habits become hard to break.

 

Whenever we opened a new casino hotel, we tried to give current employees the opportunity to transfer: the intention was they would bring the seeds of our culture with them. But we also wanted them and all the others we hired from everywhere else to think outside the box and create something new. During times of change people tend to fall back on what they know and have done before, and when they’re coming from lots of different companies that can be somewhat chaotic. It’s easy to come up with new ideas; the hard part is letting go of past practices and habits. Leadership, vision, communications, training, and coaching are critical when leading a team on a journey of creativity and innovation: people love to try new things if they feel listened to, supported, and appreciated. That creates buy-in, and the rest is just good old-fashioned blocking and tackling. Allow your peeps to come up with new ideas try them today.

 

Roger von Oech (born 1948): American speaker, conference organizer, author, and toy-maker whose focus has been on the study of creativity.

Where there's a will there's a way...

It’s time for another update on my recovering fingers.

 

·      The wounds are healed on the outside.

·      The wounds on the inside will take longer.

·      I just have to be patient and learn to adjust.

 

Some of you may know about my dog: her previous owner threw her out the window of their car: she was hit and mangled one of her front legs. The police saw that happen and got her to an animal rescue agency that managed the process to remove the leg; we rescued her from them a month after the surgery. That was 3 years ago: she’s learned to get around just fine on the three remaining legs and has walked me 5 miles a day ever since. Resilient, happy with what she has, and boundlessly optimistic. So, I’ve had a great role model to help with what I’ve been going through these last 2 months since cutting off part of the first two fingers of my left hand. The doctors and physical therapists have since gotten me to the point where I can now make a fist, begin to pick things up, and start getting some feeling back in them. But since the instant it happened, I’ve worried that after 60 years I may have to give up playing my guitars. Here’s where my little 3-legged role model fits into this story: she has shown me that there’s no reason to give up; if I can’t play the way I used to then I’ll just have to learn to play some other way. This week I start taking lessons to play with a slide instead of the tips of my fingers. The moral of this story (my little dog’s and mine): don’t let anything make you think of giving up today.

 

Spryte Loriano (born 1980 ish): Ecuadoran Producer, advertising CEO, speaker, humanitarian transformational leaders. 

Catch people doing things right...

In the 1980s, In Search of Excellence was all the rage and everyone was quoting Tom Peters.

 

·      It was all about empowering people at all levels to solve business problems

·      By eliminating business-process overhead and stressing effectiveness.

 

Early in my career, the notion of catching people doing things right became one of the cornerstones of our employee relations philosophy and corporate culture. We pioneered this idea in the housekeeping department, and it revolutionized the way the supervisors and managers there interacted with their staff. Instead of spending much of their time documenting errors, they focused more on recognizing the things that people did right. From there, we introduced it to the rest of the company, and we went on to become one of the most admired companies in the US. Because more people generally do more things right than wrong, it makes good sense to celebrate the positive things that you want to see more of.  And then, the perfect complement to this is to coach rather than discipline people when their performance needs improving. Together, these two ideas created a culture of excellence for us, and they could for your business too. Consider celebrating what you want to see more of today.

Thomas J. Peters (born 1942): American management consultant with McKinsey & Co. and writer on business management practices, best known for In Search of Excellence.