The Four Stages of Flow

The Four Stages of Flow

by | Jun 24, 2018

ā€œWe canā€™t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created themā€ ā€“ Albert Einstein

When was the last time you experienced true flow?Ā  This would have been when you were doing something you loved and time just flew by.Ā  You were acting from your strengths and doing something that you were TRUSTed in delivering.Ā  How would it be if you had a process to tap into your floe whenever you wanted? Then great, tread on as getting into a flow state does not need to be by accident.

In his book, The Rise of Superman, Steven Kotler, a super-expert on flow describes how elite athletes and extreme sport-people get into flow, and what we can learn from them. Stephen has teamed up with many of the leading action and adventure athletes along with top scientists to decipher what these athletes are doing to harness flow.

What does this mean to you and your business? How can flow improve your results? Steven calls flow ā€œthe source code for our intrinsic motivationā€ and he cites many studies from McKinsey to the US Army, that have found that people who harness their flow state can increase productivity and results by 200% to 500%”

As the McKinsey Quarterly states:Ā ā€œThe opportunity costā€¦.is enormousā€¦.Most report that they and their employees are in the zone at work less than 10% of the time.Ā  (But) if employeesā€¦.are five times more productive in flow than they are on average, consider what even a modest 20-percentage-point increase in flow time would yield in the overall workplace productivity- it would almost doubleā€.

Here are the four stages that Steven explains that we go through in order to get into flow:

Stage One ā€“ STRUGGLE

The first stage of the four stage flow cycle seems like the opposite of flow. This is when youā€™re working hard, pushing to train, research, brainstorm ā€“ when youā€™re overloading the brain with information until it feels like your head is about to explode.Ā  Most people never push past this first stage far enough, why is why they constantly miss the doorway to the flow experience.

Stage Two ā€“ RELAXATION

This is when you take your mind off the problem entirely, taking a break, going for a walk or doing something physical. Thsi isnā€™t the same as watching TV or some other distraction that keeps the brain busy. Itā€™s about relaxing the brain so the conscious mind lets the subconscious mind take over. Many people miss this break and as a result are constantly in overload and burnout missing flow altogether.

Stage Three ā€“ FLOW

This is the superman experience when inspiration takes over and where your preparation and relaxing express themselves almost magically. You come up with the best ideas, you achieve results almost effortlessly, and you often surprise yourself by your own performance. Itā€™s almost an out-of-body experience whether itā€™s a mastery of a physical, emotions or mental activity.

Stage Four ā€“ CONSOLIDATION

The final stage is where learning and memory is amplified dramatically, consolidating the experience of flow into your unconscious. Thereā€™s also a downside, where you come off the high of the feel-good neuro-chemicals released during the flow state. You go on a down which often leads to self-sabotage or an emotional reaction to try and regain the flow state. The key here is not to let this stress block the learning or reverse the results of being in flow, but to move smoothly back to the next phase or struggle and repeat the cycle.

Most people arenā€™t aware of the four stage cycle and so we end up either not getting into flow, or we mess things up when we get there. Knowing the cycle exists gives you a mp to know where you are, and what to do at each stage.

What challenge or task do you have where it would really help to step into your flow to conquer it?Ā  Use these four steps to get going today and please let me know what happens.

 

 

Are You Suffering From Decision-Making Fatigue?

Are You Suffering From Decision-Making Fatigue?

by | Jun 19, 2018

I recently heard a story that shocked me. Three judges sat on a parole board, where they got to decide which prisoners would be granted parole. On this one specific day, three different prisoners came in to have their cases reviewed. All three had served two-thirds of their sentence, but only one was released. Why?

It turned out that the determining factor had little to do with crimes or rehabilitation, but rather the time in the day that their case was heard. One case was heard in the morning at 8:50, the other two in the afternoon at 3:10 and 4:25 respectively. Which prisoner was released? The one whose case was heard first thing in the morning. A further study of 11,000 parole decisions revealed that 70% of prisoners who had a morning appearance were granted parole, compared with just 10% whose case was heard in the afternoon.

When people become tired and fatigued, they switch to a quicker, more efficient, and less energy-consuming form of decision-making.

The challenge is that this is more fallible. When leaders are fatigued they struggle to communicate effectively, collaborate, and compromise. Often they actually avoid making decisions and revert to established patterns of thinking.

This phenomenon is known as decision fatigue. and helps explain why leaders can sometimes become emotional and irrational in their decision-making. Leaders simply canā€™t make decisions all day every day without experiencing this kind of mental fatigue. The problem is that many leaders are unconsciously aware of this fact. They blindly continue, thinking that the decisions they make in the afternoon are as well-thought-out as those they made in the morning.

As decision-making fatigue kicks in, leaders respond in one of two ways.

  1. Their decisions become reckless, as they act impulsively instead of expending the energy to think through the consequences. (Just think about how many times you have purchased something you really didnā€™t need — I bet you often made those decisions in the afternoon!)
  2. They do nothing, and so avoid making a decision to mitigate any risks. By doing nothing, leaders exhibit the ultimate form of energy conservation. However, avoiding making decisions now often creates more problems in the long-term.

For the prisoners attending the parole board review in the afternoon, decision-making fatigue meant the judges were less inclined to grant release for fear of making a bad decision. So, effectively, they made none at all and maintained the status quo.

So what can leaders do minimize the effects of decision fatigue impacting their performance?

  1. Ensure that all meetings that require critical thinking are held first thing in the morning when you are more alert.
  2. Schedule creative activities in the morning. I know, when writing my second book, I was always more creative and productive between 5am and 7am.
  3. Use early mornings for planning and scheduling.
  4. Plan difficult conversations, for example with team members, for the morning when you are more alert and can have the energy and ability to pivot and be flexible in your approach.
  5. Use the afternoon for repetitive tasks, that donā€™t require so much mental power, or for tasks where you donā€™t need to make lots of critical decisions.
  6. If you need to get buy-in from the board for a decision, and the rational for the decision is compelling, then try scheduling a meeting in the afternoon. The board may feel less inclined to challenge your well-thought-out logic because of decision fatigue.
  7. In the afternoon, people can be reckless with their decisions; so if you want to implement a process that could help the other person, try promoting it later in the day when they are seeking to sedate their fatigue

Understanding the concept of decision-making fatigue can help explain why sometimes a proposal gets accepted and other times rejected. Itā€™s not because of the quality of the proposal or idea, but rather with the mental state of the recipient. How will you restructure your leadership activities to leverage the power of decision-making fatigue?

5 Reasons Leaders Need Step Away From Their Business

5 Reasons Leaders Need Step Away From Their Business

by | Apr 18, 2018

We’ve all heard the announcements on the Underground (or subway if you live abroad) to “Step Away From The Edge”. In effect they are reminding us that we need to step away and put space between us and our businesses andĀ and yet the reality is that few business leaders really do this, especially in the SME sector. Business leaders struggle toĀ ā€œStop working in the business and start working on the businessā€Ā  The result is that many businesses get stuck at a certain revenue ceiling because they simply canā€™t grow. The business leader/owner has become a bottle neck in the business causing operational flows to slow down and in the worst case stop all together.

Some recent research conducted by Haines Watts, a UK accountancy firm, of 500 UK SMEā€™s revealed that ā€œ(42%) of UK SME owners believe that their business couldnā€™t survive more than a single week without them at the helmā€. I canā€™t imagine what pressure that puts on the business leader just simply to keep things going. Having time to take any vacation, well that simply doesnā€™t figure into the equation. And yet when business leaders step away, even for just a few days, from the daily business operations, they come back renewed, re-energised and with a new perspective on business issues.

Here are five reasons for this very serious business challenge:

  1. Lack of Shared Vision
    Business leaders are very poor at articulating clearly their vision for the business. As such their teams are not on the same page when it comes to the strategic growth plan. These divergent views cause silos to emerge, and create team disengagement as the team members, who could massively drive the business forward, are not engaged and donā€™t feel they know how to contribute to the success of the business.
  2. Poor Planning
    The research revealed that only 84% of business owners are only able to spend between 1-10% of their working week planning for the future. In contrast, business leaders who are able to step back and focus predominantly on planning are more than twice as likely to run fast growth businesses (annual growth greater than 15%).This is the typical chicken and egg situation. The business leader doesnā€™t feel that they has time to plan, and yet without creating a robust, well thought out plan, no-one else can navigate the business, as they donā€™t know where they are heading.
  3. Lack of TrustOnly 60% of business leaders believe that they have the full support of their management team and as a result many business leaders simply donā€™t trust their team to deliver.Ā  Whether this is a perception built on ego ā€“ No-one can do this as well as me ā€“ or a genuine concern, the reality is the same. The business leader doesnā€™t share vital information with team members, and so they feel disempowered to do their role.Concerningly, despite nearly 50% half of business leaders lacking trust in their management teams, the teams themselves donā€™t realise that trust isnā€™t there.Ā  83% of senior managers believe they fully understand the business ownerā€™s goals and 87% hold the, often false, belief they would be trusted to run the business even in the ownerā€™s absence. So, there is a massive gulf in team members perceptions and that of the business leader.
  4. Lack of Communication
    The problem of a lack of trust is compounded by poor communication. 52% of business owners find themselves hiding their concerns from their teams because they are worried about showing vulnerability. And yet we know that being able to display vulnerability is a key skill of a leader. And if the business leader cannot articulate their concerns to their management teams then there is no transparency and courageous conversations fail to occur.
  5. Lack of a Growth Mindset
    For an SME business there is a very real need to focus on sales if the business is to grow, and yet many management teams lack the skillset to help the business leader grow the business. The research revealed that over half (53%) of management teams have never helped grow a business prior to the one they now work in today. This is because in larger organisations there are specific functions dedicated to sales, and yet in a smaller business every single team member needs to be a brand ambassador actively promoting and selling the business at every opportunity

Given that SME sector is the powerhouse of economic growth across the world it is imperative that we help these business leaders elevate themselves out of the day to day operations so that they can become more strategic about their growth. Only by doing so will they be able to fully leverage the power of their teams which will create a more engaged workforce that help deliver more productivity and profitability to fuel business growth.

 

5 Deadly Sins of Conflict Avoidance

5 Deadly Sins of Conflict Avoidance

by | Apr 4, 2018

Over the last few months I’ve been delivering a number of workshops on dealing with conflict, as its one of the top challenges that people have in the workplace.Ā  The problem is that a leader’s unwillingness to address conflict can result in devastating consequences for the business.Ā  Not only that, people can also fail to address this in their personal lives, and the results too can be damming.

Whilst some people enjoy dealing with conflict most of the people I work with would rather avoid it. There are a variety of reasons for this including the need to be liked, the pursuit for acceptance and the desire for stability in one’s life – they don’t want to rock the boat. The irony is that although many people seek to avoid conflict what they are actually doing is internalising their frustration.Ā  This frustration bubbles inside of them and then suddenly, just like a volcano, it erupts leaving a wake of devastation in its path, that other people don’t understand because that are unable to join the dots to see what was the trigger as often this happened days, weeks or even months beforehand.

“Avoidance is the best short term strategy to escape conflict, and the best long-term strategy to ensure suffering” – Brendon Burchard, author The Charge

Unfortunately, great leaders cannot lead effectively without addressing conflict as it arises within the workplace. In fact, if they choose to avoid conflict at all costs, they can put their business at great risk.

Here are five deadly sins of conflict avoidance that I often witness in organisations when the leaders routinely avoid addressing conflict:

  1. Communications Become Strained: Conflict that goes unresolved will only fester and cause communication breakdowns to develop within the workplace
  2. Teamwork Diminishes: As communications become strained within a team, cooperation and teamwork will lessen as animosity builds up.
  3. Productivity DeclinesĀ  When teamwork fail to work together productivity declines. Silo mentality results and often competition rather than collaboration becomes the norm
  4. The Customer Experience Suffers:Ā Ā When team members are not engaged and team become dysfunctional this directly impacts the customer. Typically it is seen as poor quality and reduced service delivery.
  5. Top Performers Leave:Ā Non-one wants to work in a highly tense environment marred by conflict. When leaders fail to address, say the poor performance of other team members, then your best performers become frustrated at carrying the load and may opt to vote with their feet.

What Can You Do to Become Better at Addressing Conflict?

There are five steps that you can take to be a better leader, even if avoiding conflict is your default pattern.Consider the following:

  • Develop and communicate your vision: Some conflicts can be avoided through clarity. So, develop a clear vision for what your team is to accomplish and communicate it. Help everyone understand what you’re trying to do and how they fit in and contribute to the vision
  • Set expectations: Once the long-term vision is understood, expectations of each team member should be set. Expectation setting is important because it establishes baselines for guiding behavior and results.
  • Monitor progress: By actively checking behavior and monitoring results any needed intervention can be provided earlier and larger conflicts can be averted.
  • Focus on results: You can keep personalities out of the discussion by focusing on outcomes. It’s a way to keep everyone honest without making it personal. Team members that aren’t keeping up with the plan or, otherwise, are not meeting expectations can be “coached” based on facts rather than perceptions–which can make conflicts easier to address.
  • Take Decisive Action:Ā Many of us tend to put off doing things that we prefer not to do. Do not put off addressing conflict situations. If the need to confront someone on your team arises, do it now. There is simply too much at stake to let it go or to wait for things to work themselves out.

I know from my own experience how damaging avoiding dealing with conflict can be as it nearly caused the business unit I was running at the time to implode.Ā  Basically, I failed to deal with a performance issues of one of my team members.Ā  They had some great skills that we needed in the team, but their attitude and behaviour were not aligned with the company values.Ā  I made a bad decision when I hired them but my ego got in the way and I didn’t want to admit this. So I kept making excuses for them.Ā  The crunch came when my team told me, either they go or we all go.Ā  It was what John Maxwell refers to as the case of the bad apple.Ā  The longer I allowed that underperforming team member to stay he more he was affecting the rest of the team.Ā  Taking decision action was the only solution, as I then actively had to manage him out of the business.

And yet managing conflict doesn’t have to be difficult.Ā  My horses are masters at dealing with conflict.Ā  They aIways act immediately giving feedback to each on other on whether their performance is acceptable.Ā They don’t fret about what the other horse will think, or worry about being liked. They don’t worry about the consequences.They just do what needs to be done and then “go back to eating”, Admittedly this is easier as they live in the present moment and don’t have to be concerned that the other herd members will hold grudges for months to come, which is something that many leaders get concerned about.

Always remember, it is a leader’s job to address issues as they arise and take decisive action. If we choose to avoid conflict at any price, the price may be far greater than we are willing to pay. The impact of conflict avoidance can ripple throughout the organisation and cripple the future growth and success of the business. So, embrace conflict resolution. After all, conflict can be very healthy, too. It is often how we get the best answers to the toughest questions.

 

Change Is Messy But The Results Spectacular

Change Is Messy But The Results Spectacular

by | Mar 21, 2018

Just before Christmas I travelled to London for some meetings in the Kings Cross area.Ā  Now I remember the area well from when I first started working in London nearly 25 years ago.Ā  At that time Kings Cross had a reputation for being rather unsavoury. The haunt of prostitutes it was not the place to be seen, or indeed even really safe to hang out here.

Fast forward 25 years and the place has transformed. Now the home of Google and a number of other prestigious businesses, decorated in Christmas lights the place was alive with people.Ā  There was a vibrant party atmosphere and people just wanted to hang out and have fun.Ā  The buzz was amazing and people over flowed from the various bars and restaurants in the area.Ā  What a stark contrast there was to a quarter of a century earlier.

As I stopped to survey the transformation I reflected that what had happened at Kings Cross almost directly paralleled the change I witness in organisations. Often the business owner does not realise how bad things have become. Often it takes a negative event or a very brave leader to decide to embrace change and make a real difference in the organisational culture. Just like it took inspirational, visionary leaders to envisage a better Kings Cross, the same is true in business.Ā  All businesses require visionary Game Changers to challenge the status quo and help transform the business to another level.

And just like the redevelopment of Kings Cross was inconvenient and took time, so is cultural change.Ā  It is often a messy process and at times you might want to give up, but stick with it because eventually a beautiful butterfly will emerge. 10 times better than what was there before, it will shine a beacon on what is possible.

The only question that remains is are you brave enough to transform your business? Are you bold enough to really see what is going on and then get everyone engaged and aligned behind a shared purpose that transforms the business and takes it to new heights?.Ā  If you are then I’d love to chat with you and lets explore what’s possible for you and your business.

Six Ways To Become A More Inclusive Leader

Six Ways To Become A More Inclusive Leader

by | Mar 14, 2018

ā€œSome of the greatest advances happen when people are bold enough to speak their truth and listen to others speak theirsā€.

KENNETH BLANCHARD, AUTHOR AND MANAGEMENT EXPERT

It seems that everywhere I look right now the topic of diversity and inclusive leadership prevails. So what is really is inclusive leadership? In their book Inclusive Leadership: The Definitive Guide to Developing and Executing an Impactful Diversity and Inclusion Strategy, the authors Charlotte Sweeney and Fleur Bothwick define an inclusive leader as ā€œsomeone who has a strong self-awareness about their own preferred work style, but is able to flex this style to connect with all of their team, even those who think and work differently and who may have totally different motivators.ā€Ā Clearly then an Inclusive Leader needs to have emotional intelligence and be self-aware of how others perceive events, as well as appreciating their own unconscious bias and how that could impact their decision making.

The term ā€˜cognitive biasā€™ was coined by Amos Tversky and Daniel Kahneman in 1972 and quite simply it means ā€œour tendency to filter information, process facts and arrive at judgments based on our past experiences, likes/dislikes and automatic influences.ā€Ā In a world that is a flux of rapid change it is natural for leaders to default to what they know. After all this feels safe, but of course it limits the opportunity for innovation and creativity and sometimes can result in wrong decisions being made because what worked in the past may no longer be a viable if the context has changed.

Unconscious bias can often be more noticeable when leaders discriminate against people of a certain colour, race, sex or nationality based on their past experiences with similar people.Ā At work, biases (or the perception of bias) is the biggest contributor to people disengagement and cost of disengagement is huge. According to Gallup in the UK an incredible 92% of team members are disengaged or actively disengaged which is having massive repercussions on productivity and profitability levels and explains why the UK is struggle to compete with other European nations whose productivity levels are higher.

Here are 6 ways to deal with Unconscious Bias and so create a more inclusive workplace:

Become More Self-Aware: Get Conscious and become more fully aware about unconscious cognitive biases. Knowing that they exist is the first important step to tackling them. And they exist in plenty. There are over 150 different types of bias, do you know how all these impact you as a leader?.

Embrace Inclusion and Diversity. Ensure that when you hire you donā€™t hire people just like you.Ā It is essential that every team contains a balanced mix of viewpoints as this leads to more diverse thinking patterns, and so creativity and innovation.

Ask Questions: When considering a decision, ask questions that elicit understanding and clarify details. When you ask questions, you extend an opportunity to others to really express them. You are extending an opportunity to yourself to understand their thinking more closely. Encourage a culture where asking questions is valued.

Look for Patterns. Nowadays we have a plethora of data we can examine to help us identify patterns. Looking for patterns from the results of past decision can lead to important insights and learning. However, beware as sometimes data can be misleading unless the real context of the data and the decisions made are fully understood. Itā€™s easy to look at data out of context and interpret it in a completely different way to that which was intended.

Challenge the Norms. Playing devilā€™s advocate and taking a contrarian view of things is a great skill for inclusive leaders to have. It challenges others to think differently and articulate clearly and concisely their position so you can assess whether their stance is driven by their own bias.

Communicate Clearly. Inclusive leaders appreciate the clarity in communication is key, and so become mindful about their choice of words to describe people and situations objectively. Miscommunication is the cause of so much workplace angst as everyone interrupts through their own filters. In fact it is a wonder that we ever achieve anything at work.

Horses are masters at modelling inclusivity for us, as each member of the herd knows their role and how they contribute to the safety of the group. Indeed for a horse to be excluded from the group is tantamount to a death sentence, as a lone horse, being a prey animal, cannot survive alone. In fact being included as part of the herd is his ticket to safety and security. The herd provides what Simon Sinek refers to as the Circle of Safety for the horse, something he is loathed to be excluded from.

Iā€™m curious what actions will you take to make your workplace more inclusive so you can leverage the benefits of increased employee engagement, productivity and profitability.

7 Strategies To Build Collaborative Relationships

7 Strategies To Build Collaborative Relationships

by | Mar 7, 2018

Today’s workforce is more collaborative than ever. In fact, the time that managers and employees spend collaborating has increased by at least 50 percent over the past two decades, according to the Harvard Business Review.

With more and more people starting their own businesses (nearly 660,000 business were started in the UK in 2016) this trend looks set to continue. Ā as businesses Since success is a team sport finding the right partners to collaborate with becomes a key ingredient to help smaller businesses demonstrate scale and depth of resource whilst retaining the flexibility and agility of a smaller organisation.

CŠ¾llŠ°bŠ¾rŠ°tіŠ¾n is all about working together. TrŠ°dіtіŠ¾nŠ° business рrŠ°ŃtісŠµŃ• adhered tŠ¾ thŠµ Š¾ld Š°dŠ°gŠµ thŠ°t thŠµrŠµ wŠ°Ń• not ŠµnŠ¾ugh buѕіnŠµŃ•Ń• to go Š°rŠ¾und, so competition was healthy Š°nd considered thŠµ nŠ¾rm.Ā Suсh ideas as “bŠµŠ°t your сŠ¾mрŠµtіtіŠ¾n” or “ѕtŠµŃ€ Š¾n your сŠ¾mрŠµtіtіŠ¾n” wŠµrŠµ considered trŠ°dіtіŠ¾nŠ°l buѕіnŠµŃ•Ń• vŠ°luŠµŃ•.

However tŠ¾dŠ°Ńƒ, buѕіnŠµŃ•Ń• practice іѕ more ŠµmbrŠ°ŃŃ–ng of the true dŠµfіnіtіŠ¾n of collaboration: thŠµ concept Š¾f working tŠ¾gŠµthŠµr and the vŠ°luŠµ Š¾f іntŠµrdŠµŃ€ŠµndŠµnсу so that the result is bigger than the sum of the parts

Collaboration іѕ a kŠµŃƒ ŠµlŠµmŠµnt in tŠ°kіng уŠ¾ur buѕіnŠµŃ•Ń• practice to thŠµ next lŠµvŠµl. It іѕ a powerful buѕіnŠµŃ•Ń•-buіldіng strategy ā€” an oftŠµn Š¾vŠµrlŠ¾Š¾kŠµd, yet ŠµŠ°Ń•Ńƒ рrŠ°ŃtісŠµ that рrŠ¾duсŠµŃ• рŠ¾wŠµrful rŠµŃ•ultѕ while increasing уŠ¾ur lŠµvŠµrŠ°gŠµ іn today’s market. EffŠµŃtіvŠµlу putting together resources, energy, tŠ°lŠµntѕ and gŠ¾Š°lѕ рŠ°vŠµŃ• thŠµ wŠ°Ńƒ for thŠµ ѕuссŠµŃ•Ń• that you рlŠ°n tŠ¾gŠµthŠµr, Š°Ń• wŠµll Š°Ń• mŠ°nу unexpected benefits.

One such organisation I am part of is called The Change Maker Group. We are a collective of about 25 consultants who collaborate on projects and share resources. This relationship gives us scale and enables us to submit proposals for business opportunities that individually none of us could service, but with our collective depth of experience makes us a stellar choice for companies to engage with.

I’ve always loved collaborating with others on projects and over the years have learnt what works and what doesn’t.Ā Ā Here are my 7 strategies that I always use to help me build collaborative relationships.

  1. Start With The End in Mind ā€“ being clear on what you would like to accomplish opens the opportunity for you to seek out the right resources and collaboration partners who can help you achieve this. Importantly ensure that these partners are aligned with your values or else a cultural mismatch could ensue which could provide very costly at a later date
  2. Be Open To New Opportunities ā€“ when people collaborate a new energy is created which is bigger than the sum of the parts. New ideas flow which can result in projects way bigger than what you initially envisaged
  3. Share a Common Vision ā€“ both parties must essential have a shared vision for the project. When project visionā€™s diverge then one party will usually become disgruntled which doesnā€™t make for an effective working relationship
  4. Be Clear On Your Roles and Responsibilities ā€“ knowing what you are committing to in the collaboration is key. Work to your strengths and have clear action plans so everyone knows what they are doing by when. Recognise that others work in a different way from you and be flexible to accommodate other working practices
  5. Lay Out The Ground Rules ā€“ having clarity over the ground rules such as time and money commitments is paramount. This needs to be done upfront or else it creates animosity at a later stage when confusion emerges about how profits are to be split.Ā  Never assume that because you are collaborating everything is being shared 50:50!!!
  6. Communicate Clearly ā€“ being able to express your feelings, doubts and concerns is healthy in any relationship and collaborative relationships are no different. Each party must feel able to say what is on their mind. Always listen carefully to what your collaborative partner doesnā€™t say as this is where you might find the real gold in your conversations
  7. Collaborate With People You Like ā€“ there are so many collaborative opportunities out there so please make sure you choose a collaborative partner that you like and can have fun working with. The energy dynamic needs to be positive and engaging to attract clients and if it isnā€™t then success will be much harder. After all, typically we are engaging in collaboration to leverage resources and so make work more effortless, not harder.

I love partnering in collaborative relationships as they create amazing opportunities for me and my business.Ā  This year I am hosting more retreats as a result of the collaborative partnerships I have formed.Ā Ā 

Retreats are by application only so to find out more and then connect with me to explore if this is a great fit for you.

 

15 Ways To Build Trust To Improve Relationships

15 Ways To Build Trust To Improve Relationships

by | Feb 28, 2018

“Make trust an integral part of your professional relationshipsā€”or kiss success goodbye”.
Frank Sonnenberg
Recently I ran a workshop all about the art of communication and how only by communicating effectively can you seek to build great relationships.Ā  These relationship, whether in your personal or work life, are essential if you are to succeed.Ā  How often have you seen a potential client purchase from someone else even though you had a better product or could offer a better service?Ā  I see this all the time and the reason it happens is that people buy people.Ā  We trust people that we have formed rapport with and with whom we have a great connection.
And it was no different on our workshop.Ā  The delegates experienced the most success when they were able to drop into horse-time and really spend time connecting with the horses. From this place of deep connection trust built which eventually led to them developing a magical partnership. A true win-win situation where the horses walked freely around the arena with my clients, with no ropes or constraints. So why did they walk with the client out of their own free will?Ā  Because they trusted my clients and felt safe.Ā  There was the right mix of trust and respect in the relationship which meant that both parties showed up fully present and were engaged in having a meaningful connection.

The insights for our clients was immense as they fully experienced, often for the first time, how true connection really feels and how it impacts each party.Ā  How it is reliant on a combination of trust and respect and how when you have have great connection the horse (or a potential client) will want to be with you and follow you.Ā  No more sales conversations required! How engagement for both parties improves when trust is present.

Trust is everything, especially if you are leading another person, a team or a company toward a shared goal or mission. Without a credible reputation, your followers will be hesitant, uncomfortable and unsure of whom theyā€™reĀ reallyĀ following. And that insecurity, that lack of confidence, can crumble the loyalty and united support thatā€™s vital in an organisationā€™s success.

So how do you become trustworthy? Remember, good intentions are just the beginning. Here are 15 ways to build and strengthen your credibility as a leader, adapted fromĀ Follow Your ConscienceĀ by Frank Sonnenberg, author ofĀ Marketing to WinĀ andĀ Managing with a Conscience.

1. Show people that you care about their needs.

2. A promise should be as binding as a contract.

3. Never sacrifice a long-term relationship for a short-term gain.

4. Donā€™t expect people to look up to you if you look down on them.

5. Give credit where credit is due.

6. The danger of shooting from the hip is hitting yourself in the foot.

7. Take the time to provide the rationale behind your recommendations.

8. Be objective.

9. Stand up for the things that you believe in. (Waffles are for breakfast.)

10. Never ask someone to do something that youā€™re unwilling to do yourself.

11. Your actions must match your words.

12. Think before you open your mouth.

13. You gain more by making others look good than by singing your own praises.

14. Words spoken in confidence are words spoken in trust.

15. Few people will fault you for being tough, if youā€™re fair.

So what are you doing to build trust and create deep, meaningful relationships?Ā  How are you staying connected to your tribe?Ā  What are you giving to the relationship with no expectation of return? What can you do to build better relationships and connection today?

Your investment in building relationships will repay itself 10x over, if you just invest the time and energy to truly connect.

Lack of Trust Leads To Disengagement

Lack of Trust Leads To Disengagement

by | Feb 21, 2018

Trust needs to be reciprocal and shared. We donā€™t trust rules, we trust people. Courage comes from leaders whose responsibility it is to protect the people working below them. People have confidence to do the right thing when they feel trusted by their leaders. It is leaders who energise the business culture to enable team members to reach their full potential, resulting in superior business performance.

Leaders cannot break trust with people and continue to influence them; it simply does not happen. Once trust is lost and the leaders influence is destroyed then team performance dwindles.Ā  Once this occurs sales are impacted as people buy from people they know, like and trust. Without trust, the organisation loses productivity, relationships, talent, customer loyalty, creativity, morale, revenue and results. This is why trust, not money, is the currency of business.

ā€œTrust is like a mirror ā€¦ once its BROKEN you can never look at it the same again…ā€Unknown

Lack of trust is prevalent in business today. Team members no longer trust employers to look after them. Long gone are the days when people had a job for life. Today businesses quickly downsize when economic conditions get tough. There is little loyalty from team members to employers or vice versa. The financial crisis of 2008/9 has made more and more people distrustful of banking institutions, as well as the governmentā€™s ability to handle these situations.

The diagram below clearly illustrates the consequences and impact of high versus low trust in a business:

To earn the trust of their team members, leaders must first care for their well-being and connect with them. To earn trust, trust must be extended. The best way to do this is to create a caring environment that enables people to fully engage their heads and hearts.

High Trust Environments Are Life Changing

In the VUCA world in which we now live there is only one certainty and that is change.Ā  Change is forged through relationships and the foundation of effective relationships is trust.Ā  During change trust will be tested at best and broken at worst which is why high trust relationships are essential to your change effortā€™s success. When you are the people you work with trust one another, you have one anotherā€™s backs as change unfolds. Instead of keeping your head down, you keep an eye on where you can step in and offer extra support. Instead of allowing change to unravel your relationships, you leverage change to strengthen your relationships.

The result is that everyone pulls together in the same direction and no-one is left behind.Ā  Communication and engagement improve as team members start asking how they can best contribute and support the change. How can they make a real difference? When the leader and team members are aligned in the right place, contributing to the right work with the right people then team members feel valued and become more highly engaged.Ā  Which only has positive benefits for the organisation as productivity and profitability increase.

ā€œIncreasing employee engagement by 10% can increase profits by US$2,400 per employee per yearā€. Accenture

if you’d like to learn how to increase trust and employee engagement in your organisation then please reach out to me for a conversation.

How To Build Trust in Organisations

How To Build Trust in Organisations

by | Feb 14, 2018

So how do we build trust in organisations?. What actions can leaders take to create a trust based culture where team members feel fulfilled and give of their best of each and everyday? .

In the book the Trust Edge, eight pillars of trust are identified that when used together help individuals and therefore organisations to become more trustworthy. These are:

1. Clarity

People trust the clear and mistrust the ambiguous.Ā  Clarity unifies and motivates, it increases morale and inspires trust. Clear communication leads to trusted colleagues, happy team members and satisfied customers.

2. Compassion

People put faith in those that care beyond themselves. Caring leads to trust. Great leaders think beyond themselves and put people before thongs to improve relationships.

3. Character

People notice those who do what is right over what is easy. Building integrity tales work but also yields the biggest rewards. Great leaders always ask: ā€œIs this the right thing?ā€

4. Competency

People have confidence in leaders who stay up-to-date with relevant new ideas and concepts. As a leader make sure to continually stretch your mind to discover new ideas, fresh thoughts and concepts.Ā  Engage in continual learning and surround yourself with inspiring and motivating people, who challenge you

5. Commitment

Passion is the essential ingredient of commitment. When people are committed to a cause they will go out of their way to make things happen. People who stick with you when times are tough are those that you can trust.

6. Connection

People want to follow, buy from and be around people they like and trust. As a leader ensure you engage and collaborate with team members and customers and really listen to what they need.

7. Contribution

People respond to results. Give your attention, resources, time, opportunity and talent to make a difference. As a leader you must deliver results in order to be credible and be trusted.

8. Consistency

People love to see the little things done consistently.Ā  It gives them security and comfort. Trust is built over time so ensure the same quality of results is delivered every time to build trust.

When these eight pillars are implemented in organisations then leaders enjoy improved relationships, reputation, retention, revenue and results. Which of these trust pillars will you start implementing in your organisation today?Ā  What will be the impact on your ability to navigate change if you increase trust levels by just a few percentage points.

From my experience the most highly trusted organisations thrive as they enjoy higher levels of team engagement, morale productivity and innovation, all factors which enable the business to be agile and respond on-the-hoof to changing business situations.

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