Giving out some love to my peeps....

Friday on twitter is the day when people tell everyone else who is worth following.  It's otherwise known as the #FF Friday Follow.  In this blog post I will share the love for some people/tweeps/blogs that I follow and recommend to you all.

Twitter users.

• @rgoodchild - this very smart lady does a fanmtastic job as a freelance writer/journalist.  She spreads her time between her family, her work and twitter.  Why follow?  Because she's like a box of chocolates  you never know whay you're gonna get!
• @iceandy - the Icehouse is a business incubator set up and run by Auckland University.  And the person tasked with the immense job of pulling it all together is Andy Hamilton.  Andy is always posting plenty of interesting links and thought provoking stories that stretch our understanding of what it is to be entreprenurial and in business.
• @rotoruanz - why are these guys good? Because it's where I'm from.  Simple.

Blogs.

• paulspain.com - I am biased on this one because I have known Paul for years and years.  One thing Paul does right is he is always ahead of the game as far as technology changes and trends.  Pauls latest project is the NZTechPodcast.
• Advergirling.posterous.com - this canadian girl is all about the marketing.  She has a great blog and is also a great user of twitter and keeps people up to date what's going on in the world.
• SocialMediaNZ.com - these guys and gals serve up all the latest gossip and changes in the world of social media.  The weekly highlight is the Social-Lite video.  This is a 4 minute video that sums up all the comings and goings for the week.
• http://simone-mccallum.blogspot.com/ - Simone is a marketing/media person who works for the ASB bank.  Her blog is a users guide to social media/blogs/twitter and all things connected to them.  A very pleasent read indeed.

Podcasts.

• DFJ Entreprenurial Thought Leaders Series by Stanford University.  This for me is the premiere business podcast available today.  They have all the best speakers covering a multitude of topics.
• Manger Tools - these guys cover every scenario under the sun when it comes to management.  They are fully professional, down to earth and super sensible.  Enough said.

(Source: flickr.com/photos/joathina/)

Feedback the Toastmasters method

One of the key skills that we practice as Toastmasters is how to give people feedback on their performance.  Feedback happens at every single meeting, every single week for every single person.

We have a three step method for giving people feedback that is tried and true and builds people up rather than pulling them down.  It goes something like this -

1. Commend.  Start with telling people what they did right.  Focus on the positives of someones performance.  This way you build them up and they are receptive to receive the recommendation that you have for them.
2. Recommend.  Pick a oint or two (at very maximum three) and let the person know some tips on how they could do better next time.
3. Commend again.  Find other postive aspects of the person and build them up.  This way you leave people with a positive feeling and the person will know that the next time they will be treated the same way.

The great thing about this method is that it suits everyone no matter what level or how experienced they are.  So for new people you spend a lot of time looking at the positives and for the negatives you start with the surface issues and then build them up again at the end.

For people who have been in the game a bit longer you can focus more on the finer points of their performance and hone in on specific aspects.

Another great thing is that in a Toastmasters meeting you only ever have 2 to 3 minutes to comment on someones performance.  There is no time to spare and no time to waste your words.  So the feedback giver needs to be succinct in their approach and wise in their approach.

Management - the truth of it

(Source: blippitt.com)

This picture has two sides to it.  On one side there is a negative sarcastic connotation but at exactly the same time there is a whole lot of truth in it as well.  Here's my take on it -

• Sarcastic take.  If people don't get out of my way then I'm goting to run them over.  So they better move it or else they'll be toast!
• Positive take.  We need to work hard to overcome the fears, rejections, negative thinking of others so that we can spread our wings and soar.

So we need to consciously look at those people around us and think about are they helping us or hindering us from achieving our goals and mission in life?

Cards anyone?

Personality Poker - 5 deck set

Product description

Personality Poker by Stephen Shapiro

5 deck set includes: 5 decks + instruction manual  + streaming video

If your organization is having a difficult time staying ahead of the curve, it’s probably suffering from sameness—the widespread condition in organizations where commonality is valued above individuality. Unbeknownst to most, chronic sameness destroys innovation and creative thinking. 

Introducing Personality Poker, the playing card tool for driving high-performance teamwork and innovation. 

 

http://changethis.com/product/show/4-Personality_Poker___5_deck_set

Mr Maslow still has it right!

Students completing Psychology 101 will no doubt start with Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs.  What Mr Maslow did was map out the pyramid of human needs and calculated which were more important than others.  I tend to agree with Mr Maslow and I think he got it right, very right!

If we apply Mr Maslow's work by looking at the skills of a manager - guess what - nothing changes!

 

 

Physiological Needs
The base needs for people need to be able to breathe - both literally and metaphorically.  That is people need the time and space to express themselves, to let their creativity and ideas flow and to be able to innovate.  ACTION = schedule some creative time for you and your team to relax, think and explore the possibilities of what if?

Security Needs
Knowing that your job will still exist when you come to work tomorrow is pretty important. Sometimes people get too secure in this area but that tends to be the exception rather than the rule (as far as I know).  And sometimes it is good to have tenure or short term contracts to create momentum and fill the gaps but overall security = production.  ACTION = let your employees know you've got their back.  Let them feel secure and that when it comes to the crunch - you're with them through thick and thin.

Social Needs
People need to feel like they belong, have love and affection. One good friend at work is worth thirty acquantainces.  Social needs are quite complex and need fostering. Managers especially are susceptible to closig off and limiting the people they interact with.  This is due mainly to busyness and the pressures of time.  The need hasn't changed but the method for fulfillment does.  ACTION - find a friend and have coffee with them at least once a fortnight.

Esteem Needs
This can be the make or break of a manager/employee relationship.  Everydody, and especially employees, relate better, work better and get far better results whtn they have a high self-esteem, sense of personal worth, social recognition and accomplishment.  ACTION - Praise your people.

Self-actualizing Needs
This is the highest level of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Self-actualizing people are self-aware, concerned with personal growth, less concerned with the opinions of others and interested fulfilling their potential.  So?  Work on developing your people!  Notice that this is the top of the pyramid?  This is the cream on top.  This is where employees move beyond merely showing up and start adding real value to your business.  Let them grow and watch the results come in!  ACTION - work with your people to reflect on their needs and development areas.  Then invest and review.

(For more see: http://psychology.about.com/od/theoriesofpersonality/a/hierarchyneeds.htm)

Growth and improvement is both constant and attainable

While reading the book 'Be Iron Fit' the author shares a very interesting anecdote about understanding what it takes to achieve and to be a better performer.  He shares a story where he was down on himself because he did not achieve the goal he set for himself when he tried.
Upon review he found that there was 1:40 seperating himself from the guy who beat him.  That equated to a 1% increase in performance.  How hard is it to increase performance by such a small amount?
I love the idea of this story in that with concentrated effort and small improvements then big changes can take place.  When you add together a number of 1% performance increases you can quickly move up to a 3% or 4% increase without noticing.
The same goes with being a good manager, marketer or mobiler.  Through changing our manufacturing methods, marketing returns on investment or ability for mobility then we can grow both ourselves and those around us.
Start by asking yourself the following question - where can I improve my performance by 1% in the next month?
Think about it - if you can improve what you do by 1% per month every month by the end of the year you will have increased your performance by a staggering 12%!
Try these quick areas to start changing and growing -

• Communicating with others,  Say it once and say it clearly.  Don't repeat yourself.
• Measure your statistics.  You need to know if what you are doing is actually affecting change or not. 
• Re-evaluate what you do, how you do it, and why you do it.
• Get someone else to assess you and tell you what they see.  Then change.

Growth takes time.

Demonstrating Real Leadership

Real leadership is a persons ability to see a need or a gap and having the courage to take charge. 

Here is my example.  Today we had a large bunch (about 120) school kids jam packed into one small room and area.  They were fidgety unruly and generally noisy.  That's what kids do!

What I really did was show leadership. At this point in time the staff member who was co-ordinating the event had to go elsewhere because other staff members hadn't shown up.

Where the leadership aspect comes into play is where I took the lead and tried to get the kids attention and got them thinking about the environment they were in.  I did this by asking them questions, moving their attention away from themselves and interacting with them.

Then when the appropriate staff turned up I worked with the co-ordinator to get the kids heading in the right direction (focus groups).  In this case leadership was demonstrated through getting the kids (13 and 14 year olds) to focus on something bigger than them and something worthwhile.

Leadership was also displayed by the co-ordinator who made fast decisions, co-ordinated people, got responses and then debriefed at the end.  Leadership is best shown in the heat of the moment that at the end of the crisis.



Leadership isn't always demonstrated through big events and world changing actions.  Real leadership is displayed when someone has the courage to step into a situation and make a difference. 

(Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/brianauer/2886023344/)

Stay Human

As a manager your primary role is to manage people.  Yes - there are numbers, budgets and time lines that provide constraints and parameters.

Your job is to manage people!

Real people with real lives with real problems outside of work.  Ask them about their real lives.

Peoples working lives are only a small part of who they are as a human being.

It doesn't hurt to ask someone how their kids are doing, how their evening was or what events they might have coming up.

Expressing your human side to others could be the difference between your reports responding well or not responding at all.

(Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/anabadili/3098984064/)

Inside vs Outside Work Concerns

People have a life that exists outside of work.  Yes, it's true.

And sometimes when things aren't going well outside of work - those cares and concerns flow over into the workspace.

Taking the time to enquire about how someone is really getting on can mean a lot to that person.  It could be just the energiser they need to get their day off to a great start.

(Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/kt/103941053/)

Knowing Your Human Rights

We had a great workshop this morning with a lady from the Human Rights Commission.  The main area of discussion focused on discrimination, bullying in the workplace and the ways both positive and negative through which people treat each other.

There are 13 grounds/areas that people cannot be discriminated on according to New Zealand law.  They are-

• Age (from age 16 years)
• Colour
• Disability
• Employment Status
• Ethical Belief (lack of religious belief)
• Ethnic or National Origins (includes nationality and citizenship)
• Family Status
• Marital Status
• Political Opinion (including having no political opinion)
• Race & Racial Harassment
• Religious Belief
• Sex & Sexual Harassment
• Sexual Orientation (heterosexual, homosexual, lesbian, bisexual)  Source: Human Rights Commission.

The reason I am posting this today is because it is easy for people to be unaware or even become blase about what is and what isn't covered in both domestic and international law.  Have another look over the list above and consider - have you discriminated or been voical to another person due to any of those areas?

(Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/daviderizzo/4357936934/#)

Think First

Have you ever acted on a whim, instinct or emotion and found out later that you got it wrong?  That very thing has happened to me repeatedly during the last week.  So here are a few situations where you should think first and act second (based on personal experience) -

1. When booking travel. Just because you can save a few dollars travelling from a close airport but not your home one - is it worth it?  Where will you park your car?  How much extra travel is involved?Spend the extra money and go local.  The benefits outweigh the costs.
2. When you're angry.  This is the ideal time to say nothing.  Nada.  Zilch.  Zero.  Saying nothing means you won't have anything to retract later.
3. When a opportunity to good to be true comes your way.  Just as the old adage says - 'if it's too good to be true, it probably is'.

"We need to determine what activities best utilize our time in order to achieve the results we desire in all areas of our life!"


Catherine Pulsifer, from We Never Seem to Have Enough Time.
 

(Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/anabadili/2804178155/)

Acknowledging Your Team - Lt General Hal Moore

Lt General Hal Moore was one of the great battle field commanders.  He had the ability to lead, inspire and motivate those who were under him - with ease.  In this video the General praises those under him and gives credit where credit is due.



My question is - how do you speak of your team?  What do you say about them?  Here's a thought -

• People will act and react depending on the way you treat them.
• Respect is earned not given.
• Talk your people up not down.
• Tell anyone and everyone about how great your team is and watch the results come flooding in.

Giving respect, honor and priase to others who deserve it is the quickest route to achieving great results.

Saying - Thanks

I found this video posted by Benjamin McCall on the PunkRockHR blog. Lets be honest - this is a damn cool idea and method of thanks from an employer!






How do you thank and acknowledge your employees?  How about giving them a day they will never forget.

Keeping It Real - Motivation

My recent reading list has included a lot of books that look at sports psychology and neuro linguistic programming (NLP).  There are a lot of lessons that are similar in sports excellence and in management excellence as well.

I uncovered the following list of motivating strategies that we can use as managers to ensure we stay focused and on target for our goals -

• Push the edge.  Look for a skill or weakness that needs work and start working on it.  Look for ways that you can encourage others to do better and improve their game. 
• Experience success.  Enjoy improving - an inch at a time.  Remember to enjoy the little successes.  When you string a lot of little successes together - then you will have some big wins.
• Change your thinking.  Learn from your mistakes.  Analyse, review and assimilate.  Remember what you've done well and focus on your wins.
• Get involved.  Be a part of decision making opportunities and involve others.  Take ownership of the goals and mission that you and your team are involved in.
• Praise others.  Look for the excellence in others and tell them.

• Vary training.  Make your professional development a mixture of technical skills as well as fun.  Focus on compliance and regulation requirements as much as you do for your management and people skills.
• Put yourself first.  Look after your body and yourself.  If you need a day off to relax your mental state, then take one.
• Find motivated peers.  Let others who are better or different from you challenge you and provide you with energy.  Create a support network of people that you can rely on to help you get better.  Hang out with people who will talk you up and will inspire you onto greater things.
• Think positively.  Be aware of the conversations that take place in your mind.  Are those conversations positive or destructive?  Practice focusing on the positive aspects of life. Don't ignore the negative but work on them and make them your areas of strength.
• Remember you dream.  "Spend time frequently  reconnecting with the real reason why you perform".

Adapted from: 'The Sport Psych Handbook' by Shane Murphy.

(Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jontravelphotos/2525995599/)

Understanding Your Place in the Team

Sports provides some great analogies and illustrations for the everyday manager and the everyday employee to use to better understand the workplace environment.  Today let us look at the roles within teams.

Sports teams usually have a combination of the following sorts of players -

• Starters,
• Reserves,
• Developing Talent, and
• New Recruits.

Knowing which one of these positions you fit into and currently hold can help you better understand the whys and how's of your job.

The starter - usually means you have had time to develop your skills, you understand the game plan, you have chemistry with your fellow team mates and you are reliable without being boring.

If you are a reserve - this probably means you are good at what you do but there is someone who is that little bit better than you are.  This isn't a crisis situation but it allows you the opportunity to watch what the starters are doing and to work on your own game out of the spotlight and the glare of watching crowds.

Developing talent - is usually a younger person who has been in the team for a while but still doesn't fully understand the game plan or doesn't yet have the same levels of chemistry with the remaining team members as the reserves do.  Developing talent is also usually on rotation which means they are exposed to the spotlight every so often and then are sent back to training for more development.

New recruits - doesn't need much explanation.  The great thing about being a new recruit is that you haven't yet been in the team long enough for your skills and personality to have been pigeon holed.  So the new recruit can showcase their skills and grasp opportunities that developers and reserves may not have the same opportunity to show off.  Recruits need to make the most of every chance they get to impress and build.

Starting on a team is never a guaranteed position.  Neither is being on the bench.  One thing great coaches understand is the capability and potential of their players and they have the skill to know when someone needs a rest, when they are peaking or when it is time to cut them loose.

So which type of player do you think you are?  Do you understand your role and how pivotal it is?

(Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/brianauer/3766020250)

Relationship Management - Using Remembering Tools

So today I had the opportunity to make a presentation to some of the key people who influence our priority customers.  Sound a bit overblown?  It's not.

I am in the business of recruiting and educating students so that they can become valuable members of society.  They will have careers, employment opportunites, pay taxes and contribute to society.

So who were the key people I was talking to?  The Careers advisors and Transition Educators (or CATE for short).  These are the front line people who can influence students decisions on what they want to do in life and where they want to study.

Last year I had the same opportunity and at that time I gave each teacher a wooden kiwi that had been manufactured by our students.  Today a number of those persons commented on the fact that they still have those kiwi's on theor desks or near their phones.

Another momento we handed out last year were Christmas trees.  At the time they were about 30cm tall.  Students were encouraged to take them home and grow them.  And guess what?  Those students came back 12 months later and commented on the fact that they remembered getting a tree and their tree was still growing.

So my question to you is -

• When you see someone important again in 12 months time - what does that person take with them? 
• and when they see you again in the future - will they remember you?  And how?

(Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sbisson/86164348/)

My Trip to China - Part 1. Understanding The People.

For the first time in my life (so far) I was able to travel to China and get an education (all be it a very quick one) on who and how the Chinese operate.

I loved my time in China. The people were great and appeared really genuine. The structure and systems provide a clean operating area for life and for conducting business.

Yes it was a business funded trip but for this trip I plated the part of observer more than negotiator.  For me this was actually quite a different role to play.  I am used to being a talker and working towards cutting a deal.

This trip however required different skills and a different methodology and approach.  So what did I do?

1. Observed.  Watching people in their own environment and the way they interact with others plays a large part in negotiations and in getting along with others.  When in China do as the Chinese do.  This lesson saved my bacon a few times (more on that in future posts).
2. Listened.  We are trying to find some common ground and synergies with fellow educators and agents.  I think I learnt the most from our trip in two different conversations that we had.  I sat and listened and absorbed what was being said. 
3. Asked questions.  When I saw people who could speak English and were open to us I asked questions.  What's the average income?  Where do the students come from? What employment opportunities do they expect when they are finished?  Simple questions but they will help me determine the future approach we will take when we return to China to talk some more.
4. Reflected. Spending time musing and considering what has taken place is just as vital a step as is the actual being there.  I am now 50 times more knowledgeable about the people, their aspirations, their educational setup and methodologies than I ever was before.

I could have expected to have gone to China (or any other country for that fact) and expected that they would listen to me because I showed up.  How wrong would your thinking be if this was the case.

My first trip to China was very much aa reconnaissance mission.  Now I feel I have learnt much from that trip and now I will do everything within my power to assure the success of future plans we have in partnering with China.


(Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/thewamphyri/4530622390/)

People You Don't Get Along With

Nobody gets on with everybody all the time.  It's a fact of life.  So what do you do about it?

1. Be courteous.  Respect is a valuable commodity.  You also never know when you might need a favor or if that perso will ever be on an interview panel.
2. Be polite.  Being rude or obnoxious will only make the situation worse. 
3. Cut to the chase.  Don't spend too much time mucking around with nicities.  When in a meeting, talking on the phone or sending an email - get to the point and get on with it!.
4. Be careful what you say to others.  Playground politics can be incredibly destructive and corrosive.  If you've got anything to say - speak directly to the person.

One interesting situation I have is where I have previously had one person whom I had difficulties working with.  There were a lot of tense moments and no matter what either of us did we could just never agree on anything - even when we agreed!

Nothing changed overnight.  However three years later we can understand each others perspective and have learnt to respect each others work.  The real issue is we are more alike than apart in personality.

And now I have to work with another person (who also has a large personality) and guess what?  We don't get on.  Well, we do get on, but we'll never do coffee.  So whats my strategy for dealing with this person?

The same three points I've listed above.

(Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/tzofia/316646522/)

Leadership Lessons - From the Phillipines

Anna Cleal, a kiwi, is doing some work with people in the Phillipines at the moment and is an awesome representative of what can be achieved through micro-finance and in particular through Kiva.

If you hit the link below you will be re-directed to a fabulous little blog post she wrote on what we can learn from people in the Phillipines. 

It comes highly recommended.

http://fellowsblog.kiva.org/2010/05/11/10-things-the-philippines-can-teach-the-world/

Remember - life isn't just about us.  It's about how we can help and assist others in their lives to be the best they can be - through whatever means we have available to us.

(Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/frisno/2946657474/)

Job Management - It's all in the way you market yourself

Traditional job seeking websites list positions that are put their by employers looking for the right kind of person.  This process involves -

• Having a position to offer;
• Knowing what you are looking for before you advertise;
• Having no idea who is going to apply or what the quality of applicant may be;
• Then spending hours and hours looking through and vetting CV's and reumes that were a complete waste of time.

What alternatives are there?

1. Hire people on short term contracts.  Make an initial contract no more than three months in length and watch how the person goes.  Are they a a fit?  Are they who you thought they would be?  Does their skills match their CV?  If not, you still have an opt out option.  This is fairer on them and you as well.  And if the person fits the organisation they already know the job and can continue on at full speed.
2. Use social media to source people.  Find someone who knows someone who has the skills you are looking for and find out before you hire where they are at.  This is also a great way to pick up people who may currently be overseas and are returning soon but don't want to commit in to big a way upon their return.
3. http://www.greensky.co.nz/  This website reverses the standard 'looking for employment' process.  Employers can browse over the CV's and resumes of potential employees and can pre-decide who looks like a great fit for the company.  It is also a great wat to see peoples CVs and work historys in advance.  This kind of self advertisement also takes a bit of nouse and ago which are probably both skills that your organusation needs.

Try it.  It works.

(Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jfgallery/3537124962/)