Reward for Risk

Reward for risk.  This is a great idea, right?  I mean, tech giants like Google do this kind of thing all the time.  They give people the latitude to try new things and reward them when it goes well; sometimes people are rewarded when it doesn't go so well - the bigger consideration is that when people fail (and put in their best efforts) they aren't punished for it.

I've seen many organizations try to replicate this.  They like the idea of innovation and of gaining critical competitive edges against their opponents and let's be honest, who wouldn't?  Yet, when put into practice this often seems to fall apart, and from my experience, it comes down to a single flaw in leadership.

If you want to implement this kind of program you need to not only communicate to your team that they will be rewarded for taking risks, but you need to mean it.  That last part, that is the critical flaw.  Most people don't like to fail, leaders included, so when they tell people to take risks, somewhere, deep down, they aren't willing to accept the consequences.  Your team will figure that out very quickly, and while you may be preaching that they need to be innovative and take more risks, if you won't back them on it, no one will stick their neck out.

This phenomenon happens not only with risk and reward but with many aspects of leadership.  If you talk the talk, make sure you walk the walk, and who knows, you might be rewarded for that risk.

-Alexander Cook MEng, MBA, PEngg, PMP

Photo Credit: http://1000lifelessons.com/risk-vs-reward/

Where does the leader stand?

I've just recently come across the now debunked wolf-pack photo, described as having the sick and elderly at the front, backed up by the strongest, followed by the rest, and finally, followed by the leader.  The leader at the rear watches the entire pack, seeing the big picture, the complete vision, and safeguarding everyone.  It's a nice visual.

This created an internet firestorm however.  Even if we neglect the fact that that is not how the wolf pack operates, there are many who are eager to point out that the leader at the back of the pack is unable to provide immediate feedback and direction, and could possibly be hiding behind their team (ready to sacrifice them as needed).

The truth is, everyone is right.  There is no one perfect method of leadership that applies to every situation.  There may be situations with teams where it is best to provide big picture guidance from the rear and situations and teams where getting in the trenches is the best way to lead.

This is just talking about a leader at the rear or the front but there is everywhere in-between.

Where do you think the leader should stand?

-Alexander C. Cook MEng, MBA, PEng, PMP

Debunked wolf article and photo credit: http://www.snopes.com/wolf-pack-photo/

Celebrating Everyone!

Waking up from celebrating Canada's 150th birthday reminds me that not just momentous occasions need to be celebrated, but the little ones too.

Everyone's leadership style is different, and everyone is different, so it is important to find a point where those two things mesh.  Some leaders praise small and large successes regularly, while others give only hard earned and well-deserved compliments.  In a similar manner, some people need regular praise to stay motivated, while others need only the occasional nod of approval.   It's kind of like a car.  If you try and change gears and the gears aren't going at the same speed, they groan and grind and can sometimes explode, so it's important to make sure you are on the same page.

As a leader, we need to think about more than just ourselves.  Forget your natural tendencies for celebrating success, and think about those around you.  What speed are they going at?  Do they need constant praise, or will it make them feel like you are babying them?  What does the person need?

Maybe celebrating the momentous achievements of a country is enough, but for some people, it is celebrating the little victories that really shows you've been paying attention, and really has the power to motivate.

-Alexander C. Cook MEng, MBA, PEng, PMP

Image Source: http://www.digitalistmag.com/lob/human-resources/2014/12/24/5-ways-to-celebrate-success-with-your-team-in-2015-01967947

Why Trust is Important

It's twice as hard to watch your front and back at the same time as it is to just watch your front.  Actually, it is probably more than twice as hard.

In order to achieve the highest levels of productivity, a team must be immersed in trust.  This means that followers need to trust their leaders as much as leaders trust their followers.  If we want people to be open, and honest, and provide their best ideas and efforts, they need to know that they are in a safe place to do so.  They also need to know that if you let them go on a limb, and it snaps, you'll be there to catch them.

There are so many reasons why we need trust in our working (and all other) relationships, but it still seems to be absent in many teams.  Just remember, without that foundation of trust, people will be reserved, and will always keep one foot out the door.  Build that trust.  Build loyalty.

Our Check Ride assessment looks at a number of criteria surrounding trust because we know that without it, your team will never truly be successful.  Sure, you might complete your projects successfully, but without that trust, your team will never reach its full potential.

Just think, have you ever worked with someone that you knew would have your back, and you knew would support you no matter what out-of-the-box idea you threw their way?

I certainly hope so, and if not, maybe it's time to foster a bit more trust.

-Alexander C. Cook MEng, MBA, PEng, PMP

Image Source: https://i2.wp.com/intelligenthq.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/trust.jpg

Knowing when to Pull Over

You and I lead busy lives. Many family members, life partners, business colleagues and friends depend on us. Some days it is hard to meet all of these expectations. Some days I can't! So how do we make it to the end of each day without 'hitting the wall'. Our daily fuel comes from physical, emotional, and spiritual sources. We hit the wall when we spend more fuel than we take in.

Sometimes these sources of fuel or energy get shut off. Sometimes I don't connect emotionally, spiritually or even physically with energizing and replenishing activities for days. Sometimes this goes on longer. Awareness is the first step towards ensuring a continuous fuel or energy supply. Yes, I'm talking to you-wake up to those relationships, activities and opportunities to replenish yourself. Stop being dominated by those people, causes and news reports that drain your energy. Pull over out of the fast lane to become aware of your refreshing energy sources and depleting drains.

Assert your right to be energized by the things you do, the people with whom you live, work and play. If you do, then maybe, just maybe, you can be that pillar of strength and resilience that so many in your life have come to count on. See picture above of Atlas holding up the world: "MAN Atlante fronte 1040572" by Lalupa - Own work.

-Ron Guidinger BEng, MBA, PEng, PMP

When is the right time for a coach?

When was the last time you saw a football team without a coach?  Or a kid's soccer team?  Or really any kind of athlete (professional or not)?  Pretty much never, because all the time is the right time for a coach.

Coaches/teachers/mentors are invaluable (and often undervalued) influences in our lives that can help us become better versions of ourselves.  Sometimes that means picking us up when we fall down, and sometimes that means knocking us back down a few rungs on the ladder.  The point is, they are there to support us with what we need, not necessarily what we want.

Sports demonstrate some very visible examples of coaches, due to the highly competitive and highly public environment, but business is also highly competitive; so is life.  We all have these influences, from our friends, to colleagues and co-workers.  They help us out along the way.

Not everyone requires a professional coach, but once you find yourself in a more specialized environment (like leading a new team, or an organization, for example) it can be hard to find those supports around you.  That is the time when you need a professional coach, though you can, of course, enlist a professional coach at any time.  Professional coaches are not just there by chance, you can interview several and pick the one with the skills you need and a personality that can drive you to become your best self.

Just think, professional athletes use professional coaches in their hyper-competitive environments, maybe it's time you did too.

-Alexander Cook MEng, MBA, PEng, PMP

p.s. On that note, if you are looking for a professional coach, we can help!

Improvisation

There are more people in the world than you can ever work with; each one with their own unique personality.  That personality and their unique life experiences shape these individuals, creating the potential for an effectively infinite number of human interactions.  No leadership course or school can teach you the algorithm for dealing with each personality and each problem, it simply can't be done.

What can be done is for leaders to learn tools and strategies to help them lead.  They can create a toolbox to draw from but that is all... beyond that, leaders need to improvise.

Leadership is not a static art that has been constant throughout the ages.  There are certain facets and concepts that seem timeless, but as people change, so does leadership.  With that in mind, leaders need to not only be free to improvise, but they need to be encouraged to do so.  This goes back to that "if at first you don't succeed, try, try again," and Einstein's "insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result."

So, try new things, again, and again, using all of the tools in your toolbox, until you find the one that works, then add it to your toolbox.  When that stops working, try and try again.  We need to improvise not just to lead, but also to become better leaders so we can keep leading.

Do the leaders in your organization have room to improvise, or are they caught up in policies, procedures, and standardized leadership training?

-Alexander C. Cook MEng, MBA, PEng, PMP

-Image Source: http://quotesta.com/albert-einstein-quotes-insanity-3/

Nature and Nurture

Nature.  It's a thing.  I have seen compelling evidence that there are core behaviours that are almost, if not impossible, to eradicate (or even change).  At the same time, I have seen people learn and make changes to those behaviours to make themselves better.

So which is it, nature or nurture?

The truth is, it's both.  Just imagine, there is you as a completely clean slate.  The you that you would have become without any external interaction.  Then there is the you as you were raised, being nurtured by those around you.  And finally, there is the you that you have cultivated through hard work and discipline.  There are the layers of yourself, and they are all you - creating a new layer does not eliminate the previous one.

This is from my experience, and how I have seen it work.  Comment below if you have seen differently.

In the workplace, we do our best to collaborate with others and do the greatest good.  Normally we do this with our cultivated selves, but as stress rises, we revert to deeper, more ingrained versions of ourselves, bringing out our nurtured side.  If things get worse, we can be stripped away of that nurture, and revert to nature, where our flight and fight instincts take over.

As an example, you have a co-worker who is treating people poorly at work.  You address the situation directly, explaining why their behaviours are unacceptable.  Over the next several months you see they have improved, as they have taken your feedback to cultivate themselves.  Then, a stressful situation arises, putting a project of theirs into jeopardy, and at once, they seem to revert to their old selves.  People don't react well to this, so this person's career is put into jeopardy, and they fall into a state of fight or flight, relying on their nature, further compromising the situation.

As a leader, if you begin to see this kind of behaviour, what can you do?  The employee would prefer to be their cultivated selves, but they've slipped.  Can you stop the descent?  Can you forgive actions that you know were caused by stress, bringing out potentially unwanted behaviours, or would you try to remove them from the situation?

There is no right answer.  Sometimes people can be helped, and sometimes not, but we need to remember that we are all human, and with the right trigger, we too can be stripped down to nature.

-Alexander C. Cook MEng, MBA, PEng, PMP

p.s. Nature is not a bad thing, depending on their nurture and cultivation, a person's nature may be their best and truest self, or their very worst.

Image Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2016/06/20/onion-health-benefits_n_10572060.html

Three Easy Steps to Improve your Leadership Skills Today

Becoming a better leader, the leader you know you can be, is a lifelong pursuit, so if you haven't started yet, why not start today?  You don't need to sit at the top of an organization, or even formally within one; you simply need to interact with people.

We don't have unlimited time or resources, so instead of trying to make your leadership style perfect overnight, just try these three things.  Try it tomorrow, try it over the next week, make it a habit, make it you; you might be amazed at how much improvement a little intentionality can add to your leadership skills.

1. Vision - This doesn't have to be about curing cancer or feeding the world, it just has to be about you (and your team) and where you would like to go.  The shortest distance somewhere is a straight line, so whether you are trying to get to the store for groceries, or lead your team in developing the next greatest thing, keep your eye on the prize.  Get excited, get inspired, and make that vision a reality!
2. Communication - Have you ever gone bowling, with two carloads of friends following you to the alley, when you make it through a yellow light and they are stuck at the red?  Having a vision isn't enough.  That vision needs to be communicated to those around you so they can navigate through any challenges along the way.  It isn't just you raining down your vision on others, it's a two-way street.  By being transparent in your vision, and your decisions, the people around you can add in their expertise, and together you can come up with a  better, smoother, plan than you could have ever come up with on your own.
3. Be Human - Trust is the foundation of relationships, and relationships are the foundation of teams.  You can't buy trust; you earn it.  You earn it through empathy and compassion, and just being human.  People need to be able to come to you with anything and know that you won't freak out, but that you'll see the situation from their eyes, and you'll help them right the ship.  Sometimes bad things happen, but that doesn't mean we have to throw them to the wolves, it means that is when they need our help most.  If you support your team in the best of times, and the worst of times, they'll do the same to you.

So, three simple things.  Think about it.  Try it.  Try it today, and over the next few days.  Become a better leader.

Make a difference.

-Alexander C. Cook MEng, MBA, PEng, PMP

Image Source: http://www.okclipart.com/Clip-Art-Self-Improvement30lcivpnqc/

Taking Stock

With all of the negative economic and business news cascading over each and every business leader who is tuned in, I see two frequent scenarios: big negative impacts on the business translating into personnel & budget cuts for the short to medium term; or new short term opportunities for growth translating into large surge periods but uncertainty around how long they will last. In both scenarios the increased pressure on existing staff is rising significantly for more production efficiency without sacrificing quality.

To quote a client in this situation: "Just because we've made cuts; people haven't stopped doing stupid things!" In fact my instincts tell me the opposite is more likely true. So what are you doing to improve  your workforce capacity to cater to these imminent, likely already existing, pressures for producing more with your existing or fewer staff? How has your Leadership style adapted to this new reality? How has your Leadership Team changed their approach?

Is it time for you to take stock of your Leadership skills and how well they work in these and inevitable changes to your workplace? Have you taken the time to really evaluate the Leadership skill-set in your Team? What is stopping you from investing in yourself and your Leadership Team to uncover the capacity of Teams that are well-led? If all we have is now, when is the right time?

-Ron Guidinger BEng, MBA, PEng, PMP