Questions. They are powerful things, aren’t they? They can change how you feel, from sad to happy, or they can change your life, like the question posed in the headline. Questions use what we like to call ‘pull’ communication to bring out your answer, which is the most powerful answer because it comes from you. You own it. Top performance coaches use ‘pull’ communication to get the very best from people and use the directive ‘push’ communication very little. Most people use ‘

My Door is Always Shut “My door is always open.”Do you have managers who say this? It’s a cliché, naturally tripping off the tongue to give the impression of openness to their team and accessibility to the issues that they face. It is also a defensive reaction to prevent further probing into their daily interactions with staff and any subsequent negative information that may come out as a result. Having an open door policy is just not practical in this day and age. A policy l

How To Avoid Misunderstandings We’ve all done it. Misunderstood someone, I mean. We’ve all been less than clear when giving instructions to someone too. We’ve even misunderstood someone when they have repeated their request using different words! Misunderstandings are a way of life and it is our job and our responsibility, as leaders, to ensure that clarity in the task at hand is key. Why do we misunderstand someone, even though the instructions seem clear? There are several

How Well Do You Know Your Team? Many directors and managers I speak to think that they know their team very well. They know their spouse’s name and how many children they have and their names. “I say good morning to everyone.” Is a typical response to this question. Is this knowing someone? Or is this knowing someone within the constraints of work, leaving to one side other personal issues? There is a difference between knowing someone at a shallow “good morning” level and kn

The Number One Motivator at Work Do You Know What it is? I am often surprised that senior managers don’t know what is the most effective motivator at work. Do you know what it is, from all the research that has been done over the years and across the many organisations and over many cultures? It isn’t Money We have many robust conversations in our workshops regarding the effect that money has on people’s motivation. Sure, there are parts of the world that ONLY thinks about mo

The Sharing Couple This week I’ll examine the role of understanding when negotiating. It is a wise person who seeks to understand first and then be understood. (Steven Covey) Many times, Leaders and managers jump into an issue way too early, trying to solve a perceived problem, which with a little bit of thought on their part, would be solved by waiting. Here’s a story I think you’ll enjoy: One day a little old and very cute couple walked into the local fast food restaurant.

The Sharing Couple This week I’ll examine the role of understanding when negotiating. It is a wise person who seeks to understand first and then be understood. (Steven Covey) Many times, Leaders and managers jump into an issue way too early, trying to solve a perceived problem, which with a little bit of thought on their part, would be solved by waiting. Here’s a story I think you’ll enjoy: One day a little old and very cute couple walked into the local fast food restaurant.

Dealing With Complainers I think HR professionals have to deal with people complaining more than most other professions. If you are a manager who has someone that is always complaining, or is always going off to HR to put a word in their ear, then I have some good tactics that will help you cope with them. You need to be strategic with people who complain to you habitually. Their need is to be appreciated, because they can see where the organisation/ department/ management is

I read a lot of advice that is given over to the subject of productivity, team work and effectiveness.We are awash with expert advice in all areas concerning our key disciplines. If we are in Sales, Manufacturing, Finance Oil, Projects, Operations, the messages are similar when it comes to getting more from people. All of the advice has value, some more so than others, I would suggest. Then there’s the type of advice that comes in small, bite-sized chunks. These, I feel, shou

My guess is that your team will carry a lot of this negativity into work with them. What can you do when everyone is down? Look to the coach within you. Now is the time to encourage them, to lift their hearts and minds towards the needed work that must be done. But, you cannot just cheer people up! If it were that easy, there wouldn’t be any need for comedians. Your team will want to vent their  feelings about the company, the work itself, or the competition (who are always n

Is it a good thing to put off a decision? If so, when? How do we know that the time is not yet right to decide? Are we being hesitant for the right reasons, or just risk averse? It is always good to check that there are no personal issues of time management at play. Being risk-averse is ok, so long as it doesn’t tip over into “comfort zone only” behaviour. It is at this point we should listen to our gut instinct, intuition or emotions, if you prefer. Your brain will be tappin