One of my favorite things to talk about is goal-setting. And since we're quickly approaching the time of year when many of us create a fresh set of goals, I thought I would quickly post something I bumped across earlier today. After all, each and every one of us is guilty of failing to achieve a goal or two along the way - and we'll do it again in 2010. For some it will be a fitness or weight-loss goal - something pertaining to personal improvement or growth. For others, a financial goal, or perhaps a relational/friendship goal.
Whatever your goal or goals, it's important to consider the top five reasons why people don't achieve their goals:
1) Failure to write your goals on paper. No, your computer doesn't count. Paper.
2) Failure to make a plan to achieve the goals. Without a road map, all your action will be wasted. Remember, vision without goal-focused action is a daydream, and action without vision is a disaster. In your plan, include the resources you may need, including the people who can help you.
3) Failure to post your goals in plain view. This is why you need to get them off your computer and onto your desk, your wall, or your fridge.
4) Failure to live up to the commitments you made. Commit to your commitments. As a famous personal trainer says, "Decide, Commit, Succeed." Now drop and give me twenty...
5) Failure to make goals that are achievable in the first place. It's okay to have your head in the clouds as long as your feet stay grounded in reality. Aim for the stars, but make sure you're capable of building a rocket to take you there.
In addition, make sure your goals are dated and measurable. Charting your progress will build your confidence and increase your level of accomplishment and commitment. There will be obstacles along the way, so try to anticipate those and add them to your goal list ahead of time.
Sure, this is pretty simplistic stuff, but it's time-tested advice that ought to help give us a good start to the coming new year.
J.
Monday, December 14, 2009
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Promises, promises...
Have you ever had the privilege of meeting with a group of disgruntled employees? I've had many, but yesterday was my first since taking the helm here in Toledo. This particular group of employees called a mandatory meeting for the purpose of discussing some concerns, and essentially demanded that my team and I attend. Experience told me that we would be walking into a hornets nest, as these types of meetings are usually hostile at best, and often driven by a "mob-rules" mentality. My operations supervisor and I are both new to our district office, and while we did not cause the problems, it's now our responsibility to fix them. We spent some time pre-planning for the kind of attitude and questioning we might expect, and talked through some potential scenarios for a positive outcome. After all, the purpose of the meeting might be negative, but having the chance to talk with the people who make us successful is a huge positive - and it gives us something from which to build upon. Leadership is problem solving, is it not?
Upon our arrival, we overheard an employee say "...here they come to lie to us again...". Not a good way to start - and quite interesting, considering neither my Ops supervisor nor myself had met them before this moment. However, those comments clearly indicated to us the amount of credibility we had coming in...zero, zilcho, zippo.
As we learned, my predecessor had promised them the world...and delivered a goose egg. They were promised significant cash bonuses, recognition programs, occasional donuts and coffee "on the house", etc. But nothing happened. They didn't even get a bulletin board for communicating important information. The prior regime planted sky-high expectations in hopes of immediately winning them over - rather than speaking in terms of reality - then failed each and every one of them by doing nothing. The end result is a large group of valuable people who don't feel valued at all.
In situations like these, many leaders have a tendency to fix a train wreck by over-promising things that are entirely undeliverable. Hello, didn't over-promising cause the problem in the first place? You betcha, so down the slippery slope we go again and again...
Understand, it's perfectly fine to make big promises and set lofty expectations, but you had better follow through.
Side note: my predecessors are no longer here to tell their side of the story, and the "angry group" mentality surely added some emotion to the conversation. My honest guess is that the truth is somewhere in the middle - but not in the eyes of this group. Their side of the story is THE side of the story that matters to them - which means it needs to be THE side of the story that matters to my team and I if we're going to rebuild the relationship. You can be right but still be wrong.
Okay, so how do we fix the problem? How do we build credibility with this group of lied-to, ticked-off employees who consider us only a little higher than pond scum? We certainly don't want to patronize them by making excuses or going down the "big promise" road again. Instead, we began working this plan (you may find it helpful next time you're in a similar spot):
- We sincerely apologized for anything and everything that had happened prior to our watch. Not our fault, but we're sorry that our folks were treated in such a manner.
- Secondly, we established rapport by listening...and empathizing. It's amazing what happens when you simply keep your mouth shut and listen. Once we heard and acknowledged all of the complaints, we addressed each of them with clarity and understanding.
- Next, we discussed four very easy but important action items that my team would implement within a set amount of days. We also asked them about the kind of rewards and recognition programs that would be important to them, and committed to having something in place next month. We achieved their buy-in on all points, which instantly gives them some ownership of our improvement process and helps to breakdown the "Us vs. Them" wall that so often exists in situations like this.
By the end of the meeting some definite strides were made. Our employees felt like someone cared about them once again, and my team and I began building a foundation with the bricks they initially threw at us. We gained a little credibility, but of course nothing will matter if we don't follow through. This is our one chance to get it right, and I'm confident we are off to a great start.
J.
Upon our arrival, we overheard an employee say "...here they come to lie to us again...". Not a good way to start - and quite interesting, considering neither my Ops supervisor nor myself had met them before this moment. However, those comments clearly indicated to us the amount of credibility we had coming in...zero, zilcho, zippo.
As we learned, my predecessor had promised them the world...and delivered a goose egg. They were promised significant cash bonuses, recognition programs, occasional donuts and coffee "on the house", etc. But nothing happened. They didn't even get a bulletin board for communicating important information. The prior regime planted sky-high expectations in hopes of immediately winning them over - rather than speaking in terms of reality - then failed each and every one of them by doing nothing. The end result is a large group of valuable people who don't feel valued at all.
In situations like these, many leaders have a tendency to fix a train wreck by over-promising things that are entirely undeliverable. Hello, didn't over-promising cause the problem in the first place? You betcha, so down the slippery slope we go again and again...
Understand, it's perfectly fine to make big promises and set lofty expectations, but you had better follow through.
Side note: my predecessors are no longer here to tell their side of the story, and the "angry group" mentality surely added some emotion to the conversation. My honest guess is that the truth is somewhere in the middle - but not in the eyes of this group. Their side of the story is THE side of the story that matters to them - which means it needs to be THE side of the story that matters to my team and I if we're going to rebuild the relationship. You can be right but still be wrong.
Okay, so how do we fix the problem? How do we build credibility with this group of lied-to, ticked-off employees who consider us only a little higher than pond scum? We certainly don't want to patronize them by making excuses or going down the "big promise" road again. Instead, we began working this plan (you may find it helpful next time you're in a similar spot):
- We sincerely apologized for anything and everything that had happened prior to our watch. Not our fault, but we're sorry that our folks were treated in such a manner.
- Secondly, we established rapport by listening...and empathizing. It's amazing what happens when you simply keep your mouth shut and listen. Once we heard and acknowledged all of the complaints, we addressed each of them with clarity and understanding.
- Next, we discussed four very easy but important action items that my team would implement within a set amount of days. We also asked them about the kind of rewards and recognition programs that would be important to them, and committed to having something in place next month. We achieved their buy-in on all points, which instantly gives them some ownership of our improvement process and helps to breakdown the "Us vs. Them" wall that so often exists in situations like this.
By the end of the meeting some definite strides were made. Our employees felt like someone cared about them once again, and my team and I began building a foundation with the bricks they initially threw at us. We gained a little credibility, but of course nothing will matter if we don't follow through. This is our one chance to get it right, and I'm confident we are off to a great start.
J.
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