101 Common Sense Tips (continued)

Manage Yourself

Being a good manager isn't just about what you can encourage other people to do, it's also about managing your own performance.

This is the fourth in our series on common sense leadership tips. (If you missed the others, go on our site and read it....)

32. Be accessible. Don't hole up in your office all day — come out and visit with your employees. Let them know that they can always come to you with problems and concerns.
33. Be open to constructive criticism. It may not always be what you want to hear, but listening to constructive criticism gives you the chance to learn and grow from your mistakes.
34. Accept responsibility. Part of being the boss is accepting responsibility for the mistakes of all that you manage, not just your own.
35. Know there's always room for improvement. No matter how good you think you are, your job can always be done better. Always be willing to learn.
36. Improve your skills. Learning is a lifelong process. You're never too old to take a class or ask a co-worker to help you improve your knowledge.
37. Explain things simply. Don't use big words or technical jargon just to sound smart and impress others. Your employees will understand and perform better if you explain simply and clearly what you need.
38. Instruct rather than order. You may be the boss, but you don't have to be bossy. You'll have more success if your requests are more tactfully delivered.
39. Include your staff in your plans. Don't make your work top secret; let your employees know what's going on and how they are expected to contribute.
40. Know your subordinates' jobs. You don't want to be caught with inferior job knowledge.
41. Be flexible. It's fine to be firm in what you expect, but allow for flexibility in how it gets done.
42. Get regular feedback. Your employees and superiors can give you valuable feedback on how to improve your performance. Use this to your advantage.
43. Know your limitations. You can't be everywhere doing everything all at once. Know the limits of your time and abilities and say no to things you know you can't do.

...to be continued...

101 Common Sense Tips (continued)

Getting Along with Employees

A happy office is a productive one. Everyone will be more cheerful if you follow these simple rules.

21. Don't make your employees come in on days they're normally not scheduled to work or call them while they're on vacation. A surefire way to make employees resent you is to invade their personal time for nonpressing work. Unless you have something that absolutely has to be done, let time away from work stay that way.
22. Don't play favorites. Playing favorites can bias your judgment and impair your leadership abilities. Treat your employees equally.
23. Give credit when it's due. Don't take credit for your employees' ideas or hog their limelight. This action not only fosters resentment but also makes you seem untrustworthy.
24. Don't micromanage. While it's fine to keep up with what your employees are working on, don't constantly look over their shoulders.
25. Never discuss employee matters with their co-workers. This kind of gossip always gets back to the person and will make you look unprofessional.
26. Don't interfere with employees' work. If your employees are getting work done, don't stress about how it gets done. Even if it's not being done they way you'd do it, it's best to let employees use their best judgment.
27. Don't push unreasonable deadlines. You don't want to spend all of your time at the office, and neither do your employees.
28. Keep your promises. Barring some catastrophic event, you should always keep promises you make to employees, especially about pay and benefits.
29. Keep work about work. Don't require employees to run your personal errands. Take care of your own personal business or hire an assistant.
30. Reward hard work. Make sure your employees feel valued for the work that they do. Employees will be more willing to put in extra effort if they know it's noted and appreciated.
31. Provide motivation. Sometimes employees need a morale boost. Provide them with encouragement to get a project rolling.


...to be continued....

(from www.focus.com)

101 Common Sense Tips (continued)

Meeting Deadlines

We continue our series of tips for good leadership. No one will be happy if your team has to rush around at the last minute to complete a project. Follow these tips to make deadlines less stressful for everyone.


11. Only promise what you can realistically deliver. Don't create deadlines that you know you can't meet. By only promising what you know you can do, you'll be able to finish on time.
12. Set clear goals. Once you know what you need to accomplish, it helps to know how and when you want to do it. Put your goals down on paper and make sure everyone on your team gets a copy.
13. Organize a team. Many of your employees will have unique strengths and training that can make them great assets to certain projects. Pick a team that has the right skills to carry out the job.
14. Delegate tasks. Spread work among your employees in a way that doesn't leave anyone overburdened while also allowing the project work smoothly.
15. Create milestones. Creating milestones for you and your team will help you keep track of your progress and also give you a sense of accomplishment as you reach each milestone.
16. Keep communication open. Keeping everyone in touch with the status of the project is key to making sure it's completed on time.
17. Do it right the first time. Planning ahead will help prevent you from delivering a substandard product. Having to redo something for a client costs money, and, more than likely, future business opportunities.
18. Stay organized. Staying organized will help keep you from wasting time chasing down important documents and information.
19. Make sure expectations are clear. Be sure that each member of your team knows what their specific responsibilities are. This will save time and prevent tasks from being overlooked.
20. Create a plan. Compile your goals and milestones into a comprehensive plan for attacking any project you are given. This way, you can make sure you're staying on schedule and that all of your employees will be clear about how and when things should be done.

....to be continued...

101 Common Sense Tips...

Leadership is more about basics than anything else. For the next few days we will publish a list of practical "to-do's" for leading well, - we got it from www.focus.com).

This is not rocket science. But it is also too often neglected.

The list is too long to try and keep all...but take note of it. This is more caught than taught.

First set of tips is all about....

Body Language

Like it or not, your body speaks volumes, even when you are silent. Here's how to express an attitude that's appropriate for a leader.

1. Stand tall. Keeping your shoulders back and holding yourself up to your full height will give you an air of confidence.
2. Take your hands out of your pockets. Putting your hands in your pockets is often seen as a sign that you have something to hide.
3. Stand with your arms crossed behind your back. This will help you adjust your posture, and it leaves your hands in a position that is open and not intimidating.
4. Make eye contact. Always look directly into the eyes of the people you are speaking with. This shows you're interested and also gives you a sense of confidence.
5. Sit up straight. Even if you're at an 8 a.m. meeting and feeling tired, it's important to sit up straight in your chair. Slouching makes you look disinterested and can give off an unwanted air of laziness.
6. Face the person you're talking to. This shows you are interested and engaged in the conversation.
7. Shake hands firmly. For many, a handshake is a reflection of the person you're shaking hands with. You don't want to come across as unsure or overbearing, so make sure yours is professional and confident.
8. Always smile. Smiles are contagious and will make others feel positive when you're around.
9. Look your best. You don't have to be model perfect every day, but you should dress appropriately and neatly. Clothes can have a big impact on the way you're perceived.
10. Walk confidently. Keep your head up and take even strides.

.....to be continued....

Styles of Conflict Management

According to Kinicki and Kreitner (2009), we find five different conflict styles. Each style has strengths and weaknesses and is subject to situational constraints.

We can see these five styles playing out in talents as well. It is important to note that, although some talents gravitate naturally to some styles, we can all learn skills to enhance our conflict styles in different situations. Take specifically note at when certain styles are appropriate and inappropriate.

The five styles are:

Integrating (problem-solving): parties confront the issue and, working together, identify the problem, generate and weigh alternative solutions, and select a suitable solution. This style is appropriate for complex issues where there is a lot of misunderstanding. It is inappropriate for resolving conflicts that are rooted in opposing value systems. It's strength is in the lasting impact because it deals with underlying problems, not just the symptoms. It's primary weakness is that it is very time-consuming. Talents like Strategic, Intellection and Learner could find this style of conflict more natural. Which of the other talents would you place with this style?

Obliging (smoothing): the concern of others seems to be more important than the concern of the obliging person. The focus is on commonalities and not differences. This styles is appropriate when there is the possibility that the person will eventually get something in return. However, it is inappropriate when the problem becomes complex or worse. It's strength lies in the fact that it encourages cooperation, but it's weakness is that it is a temporary fix that fails to confront the underlying problems. Thus the problems don't go away. Talents like Harmony and Empathy could be more obliging than others. Which of the other talents would you place with this style?

Dominating (forcing): this person has a high concern for him/herself. They want to win, and the other party must loose. The other party's needs are ignored. It relies on formal authority to force compliance. This style is appropriate when an unpopular solution must be implemented, the issue is minor or a deadline is near. It is inappropriate in an open and participative climate. It's primary strength is speed and it's weakness is that it often breeds resentment. This style could fit talents like Command, Competition, Belief and Analytical. Which other talents would also have a natural tendency towards this conflict style?

Avoiding: this person either avoids the problem or suppresses their feelings about the issue. This tactic is appropriate for trivial issues or when the costs of confrontation is bigger than the benefits of resolving the conflict. It is inappropriate for difficult or worsening problems. The strength is this style is that it buys time in unfolding or changing situations. It's weakness is that it provides a temporary fix that sidesteps the underlying problem. Harmony, Relator, Includer, Responsibility and Individualization could find avoiding conflict easier than other talent themes.

Compromising: this approach has give-and-take elements. It is appropriate when both parties have opposite goals or possess equal power. It is however inappropriate when overuse of this style will lead to inconclusive action. It's primary strength is that everyone gets something. It is however a temporary fix that stifles creative problem-solving. Talents like Maximizer and Significance could be more compromising.

The key is to know when certain styles of conflict are most appropriate. Learn the skills to use these styles in the right situations. What types of skills can we learn to use conflict styles in the right situations?

- by Magriet Mouton

Source: Kinicki and Kreitner, 2009, Organizational Behaviour, McGraw-Hill Publishers

Talent & Skill: understanding the difference

One of the most common "mistakes" that we make as managers, leaders, parents or mentors, is to confuse talent and skill. Understanding and recognizing the difference between these two important aspects are crucial when you want to assist or encourage a person to develop, grow and achieve.

Within our culture and our common language, we mistake skill as a talent. We would make observations like "That boy is extremely talented. He scored three goals in the game this morning." Or we would look at a performance within sport, art, of life overall and be amazed at the "talent" we observe, when it is actually skill... built mostly on talent.

My own, basic definition of talent is the following: talent is an inherent drive, energy or longing that fuels and energizes your body, mind or soul to achieve, excel, accomplish or master any specific skill or ability within an area of passion or interest that you identify with.

Then again, on the flip side, you get skill. That I will define as "a specific routine, practice or method that enables you to perform a task to a certain degree of excellence."

You might think that the difference does not matter much, but it matters more than we would know. The first and foremost problem is that confusing talent and skill leads to projection and judgementalism. Skill on its own is not such a good indicator of potential. Talent, on the other hand, is. When we look behind skill and identify talent, our judgement immediately reverts into celebration of potential.

Another important aspect is that distinguishing between talent and skill really helps to enhance fulfilment and avoid weakness fixing. Someone could be brilliant and perform exceptional within a given skill - mostly due to determination and hard work. But it might drain them emotionally, and they might even hate every moment of the activity. That then is a sign that they are not building on talent or strength, but on a weakness. When it weakens you, it’s a weakness.

When you manage, lead or mentor today, be alert to the difference between the skill you observe and the talent behind it (or the absence of talent behind it!). As a leader or mentor, always challenge and push people towards their natural talents, and give them the opportunity to add skill to that. They will excel, and love you for it.
Understanding the power of working, living and thinking from your natural strengths, is a lot more that simple theory. The real test for an individual, or an organization of any kind, functioning out of their strengths, will be found within their corporate language.

When you think "strengths", you speak "strengths". You will have certain ways that would just seem normal within your interaction and conversation with others. The first, and probably foremost, of these, will be that you will naturally seek to identify and celebrate someone’s uniqueness and natural talents.

Celebrating others is something that comes natural to the "strengths-based-mind". As soon as you see someone living out their strengths, you will want to applaud them. You become such an advocate for the idea that one size does NOT fit all, that you just love it to see and experience a perfect fit!

A "strengths-based-attitude" will also naturally encourage others to do better, and to do more of what they find energizing. Natural talent is a beautiful thing to see in action!

There are certain words or phrases that help a lot to encourage the "language of strengths" amongst individuals or teams. Here are a few, just as example:

"Where did that idea / action / deed originate?"
With this phrase we are serious about learning more about somebody’s talent themes, and how they function in practice.

"This is my [talent theme] working, but I was wondering how...."
Putting a specific reference to an action or idea, helps others to understand better where you are coming from, and how they can tap into your talent.

"I really need to give my [talent theme] some space here..."
This encourages others to give you the freedom to use your theme to the best effect.

"May I tap into your [talent theme] with this issue / problem?"
People love it when you see the value of what their themes could offer, and make use of it!

Many of you have done the Clifton StrengthsFinder assessment, but don’t know that there is coaching and training available in South Africa. To book your personal Talent Guide, call (012)345-6833 or go to www.africanmosaic.com.

The 4 most important words

If you subscribe to newsletters, are on Twitter or buy magazines, you can identify with the fact that you have come across many articles that gives you advice starting with the following words: “the 4 most important this or the 5 most important that.” It is as if there is a formula for success, a formula for weight loss, a formula for rising up the perfect kids. But life is not a formula, is it? So, if the heading of this post is, “the 4 most important words”, what would formula are we referring to?

Thankfully, there’s no formula. Tom Peters (www.tompeters.com) says that the 4 most important words is “WHAT DO YOU THINK?”

What does “what do you think” mean? It means YOU ARE A PERSON OF VALUE WHO HAS AN OPINION THAT I WANT TO HEAR! How many times, in the course of a day, do you ask people “what do you think?”

One of the ways to be effective, is by asking the right people “what do you think?”. What are some subjects that you can categorize your question in?

If you want to get something done, ask the Do-ers “what do you think?” The Do-ers have talents like Achiever (hard workers), Arranger (organizers), Consistency (producing standard operating procedures), Discipline (produce structure and routines), Focus (setting priorities for the goal) or Responsibility (committing to getting things done). Who are the Do-ers in your world?

If you want to influence people with your ideas, ask the influencers “what do you think?” Influencers have talents like Activator (getting people to start something), Command (selling your ideas), Communication (getting the message out there), Maximizer (making your ideas better), Significance (striving to make it a success) and Woo (strategic networking). By getting input from your influencers, your ideas will grow into something larger than yourself.

If you want to build better relationships, ask the relation builders “what do you think?”. They have talents like Developer (investing in people), Empathy (feeling what others feel), Harmony (creating peace), Includer (including those that feel left out), Individualization (making people feel special) or Relator (building close and trusting relationships). Who are the relation builders in your world?

If you want to think differently about a problem or an issue, ask the strategic thinkers “what do you think?”. These are the people with talents like Analytical (brings data and facts), Futuristic (how will the future look like if you act), Connectedness (what will the consequence be of your decision), Ideation (thinks outside of the box), Input (resource giver), Strategic (what is the best option). The strategic thinkers in your life will help you to make better decisions.

BOTTOMLINE: Look at your world. Identify those that are do-ers, influencers, relation builders and strategic thinkers. So, in what category do YOU fall? What will YOU answer when someone asks you “what do you think?”

www.africanmosaic.com

Doing what you love...

Knowing the strengths of your team members is invaluable to you as a manager, but that knowledge isn’t something you can obtain simply by observing your colleagues or going through standard evaluations. No, since a person’s strengths are those activities that make him or her feel strong, the only way to know what people’s strengths are is to ask them.

But how can you trust that anyone truly knows what his or her own strengths are? Fortunately, there’s a simple routine that will give your people insight into the activities that strengthen them. Since we just celebrated Valentine’s Day, why not make this a week to focus on what everybody loves?

The technique couldn’t be simpler. Just ask your team members to follow these steps (and do it yourself, too):

First, try to make sure you have a notepad (a plain paper notepad, or a note-taking app on your phone/laptop will do) with you at all times during the week.

Make an extra effort this week to be aware and conscious of those times when you really get into what you’re doing. Stay alert for that “wow, that was awesome!” feeling you have when you’ve finished working on something you love.

Try to jot down those “Loved it” activities as soon as you’re aware of them. If you try to remember them at the end of the day or at the end of the week, you may struggle to recall things.

Remember: this is not about the outcome of the activity or about other people’s reactions to what you did. Getting praised always feels good, but you’re looking for what you loved doing before anybody else even saw the results.

Once you have your list of what you loved, look at each “Loved it” entry and ask yourself: what was it, exactly, that made me love doing that? Do I always love doing that? If not, what was it specifically about this time that made me love it?

For those activities you loved, ask yourself: how can I do more of these in my job? How can I offer these up to the team more often?

That’s it! Once you have your team members go through this exercise, make sure you address it in your next one-on-ones. Be prepared to coach and help them get to the heart of what strengthens them. Their results will provide great food for thought and may give you some insight into how you can use their strengths even more effectively on the team.

by Darren Hammond

Visit our Website www.africanmosaic.com

Solving Problems - Do you know how?

When you ask people, “What is the most effective way to solve a problem?” 83% respond, “Find out what is wrong and fix it.” It seems like common sense. However, the problem with this approach is that attention amplifies everything. You get more of what you pay attention to. So, if you’re paying attention to errors and what is wrong, your mind isn't focusing on what’s right. A more productive and positive approach looks like this:

1. Define the problem as objectively as possible. Leave out any judgments. Simply state the facts as if a video camera were replaying the issue to you.

2. Know that attention amplifies everything, so detach yourself from what you perceive as being the source of the problem. Your focus on it will exacerbate it. You are not fixing the problem. The problem is simply showing you something.

3. Change follows the line of your questioning. Ask, “What does it look like when it’s working?”

4. Define three steps that you can take to shift the situation toward the imagined future that your question helped you create. This is the best use of your energy.

5. Look for evidence that your steps are having the intended result. Keep asking, “What’s working?” and focus on further expanding the success of your intent. The problem will shrivel.

When problems do occur, don’t analyze them, break them down and ruminate over their meaning. They don’t mean anything. They just are. Shift your focus to what working looks and feels like and then dedicate your energy to manifesting that. Problems don’t magically disappear, but they do transform when your attention is given to generating a positive outcome, rather than to the negative that you’re trying to avoid.

-by The Marcus Buckingham Company

Visit our Website - www.africanmosaic.com

Talents and Change in the workplace

The only thing constant in life is change. Change happens in every role we play. As parents, our children grow up. Change. At our workplace, we get promoted or the company downsizes. Change. Our friends move to another city. Change. If change is the only constant, why are we resisting it so much? Here are a couple of reasons as outlined in Kinicki and Kreitner (2009):

An individual's predisposition towards change: some people learn to handle change and ambiguity as a child. These individuals will handle change with patience, understanding and flexibility. Those who did not learn how to handle change, will not trust the changes implemented. Some talents resist change. Gallup's definition of talent is “our natural recurring thoughts, feelings and behaviour”. According to the research done by Gallup, as seen in Clifton's StrengthsFinder assessment, there are some talents that are very comfortable with change, like the talent of Adaptability, Strategic and Arranger. There are some talents that are very resistant to change, talents such as Discipline, Belief, Analytical and Responsibility, Deliberative. It could be that the individual's predisposition towards change is because of the natural way they think, feel and behave. Nature and nurture.

Surprise and fear of the unknown: when you are not warned of changes, or the changes are so radically different from what you know, you fear the implications of those changes. The talent theme of Futuristic and Strategic has the ability to adapt quickly to the unknown. Could it be that their talents could cause less fear then over the unknown?

Climate of mistrust: mistrust between management and employees can cause the change process to fail, for no other reason than mistrust. Mistrust causes secrecy which causes mistrust. A trusting environment causes managers and employees to be open and honest with one another about the changes that are being implemented and the implications thereof. If there is trust between the parties, both will walk the extra mile to implement the changes necessary for success. Some talents may look like they are mistrusting. Talents like Deliberative and Analytical, Relator, Competition,

Fear of failure: employees and managers alike might cause doubt in capabilities. They might loose self-confidence and their self-efficacy might decline, which has an impact on their work. Loss of status and/or job security: technological changes threatens job security, as technology is doing more and more of the work previously done by employees. Middle management resist changes because restructuring often means they loose status or get downgraded to a lower level. Talents that fear failure are Responsibility, Maximizer, Competition and Significance.

Disruption of cultural traditions and/or group relationships: when new teams are formed, diversity appointments are being done or team members are being promoted, there's a change in the relationship dynamics. It takes time to adjust to these changes, sometimes there is no adjustment. The talent of Includer has a need to feel that no-one is left out. Harmony wants peace. Empathy will feel the disruptions very intensely.

Personality conflicts: conflict between different personalities will cause delay and major disruptions in the change process as some employees will fight change just because they don't like the person implementing the change. Employees that could fight change head-on might have the talent of Command, Belief or Responsibility.

Lack of tact and/or poor timing: the way announcements are made about change can bring resistance to change. No sensitivity or lack of information will bring major uncertainty. Implementing change at the right time is also important. Talents that need time to adjust to change is Belief, Deliberative, Responsibility, Analytical and Intellection

Past success: people believe that strategies that worked in the past will also bring success now. The talent of Context will be the most likeliest to have this view. Context looks at the blueprint of the past, takes the nuggets and wants to implement it in the present.
People might resist change because they are in a comfort zone.


Magriet Mouton is a Level 3 Executive Talent Guide, and Head of Talent Mosaic Association

Retaking the Clifton StrengthsFinder – should I, or not?

Gallup (www.gallup.com) has the following short statement on the StrengthsFinder website regarding this question:

Your first completion of the Clifton StrengthsFinder assessment will yield the purest and most revealing results. For this reason, each Clifton StrengthsFinder access code is valid for only one time through the assessment. Taking the Clifton StrengthsFinder more than once may actually skew the validity of the results. The Clifton StrengthsFinder assessment measures the presence of talents by presenting you with pairs of statements, and by then challenging you to make a top-of-mind choice between the two. The 20-second time limit and your unfamiliarity with the statements ensure your assessment's accuracy by making it difficult to over-think your responses.

Here is a more expansive explanation regarding this question. In my view and experience, having worked with the Clifton Strengthsfinder as a Level 3 Coach daily, for years, I firmly support the view that taking the Strengthsfinder again – especially after you have read more about the 34 talent themes, or even more after you have been properly coached, is NOT a good idea. Here is why:

1. Manipulation: You can, deliberately or subconsciously, alter or manipulate the results by taking the assessment a second or even a third time. The StrengthsFinder assessment was designed in such a way that it assesses your preferences on a wide range of tasks, emotions, actions and situations. When you take it the first time, you actually have no idea what the question is assessing. The more you get familiar with the different talent themes and their working, the more you are able to actually discern which specific talent theme is being measured. Therefor you are able to alter the results – either by choice, or subconsciously.

2. Incremental changes: You talents do not alter or change with time, although the specific sequence within the Strengthsfinder results may alter if you redo it. Our research has shown that your Top 10 talents remain predominately the same within the assessment over time. You might get slight variations within the Top 10, for instance, your nr 3 talent theme might move down to nr 6, and your nr 5 might change places with nr 9…etc. but it nearly never happens that a nr 2 theme, for instance, will “ fall down” all the way to a nr 16, for instance. If you re-do the test, only in the Top 5 report, against what are you going to measure the possible changes? As 34 are measured, and you just see 5, how on earth are you going to be able to make any realistic conclusions about any changes you can see...?

3. Top 5 Report limitations: For the exact reasons given in point 2 above, it will make a lot more sense and be of a lot more value for you and / or your team to rather get hold of your Full 34 Talent Report, than to retake the assessment. In any case, how would you ever know with which exact talents your “changes” changed places with, if you only retake your Top 5 assessment? This makes very little logical sense to redo the Top 5 in this regard.

4. Clustering: Then, if you have been properly coached, you will also understand that the exact sequence of your talents, like for instance from nr 1 – 5, does not nearly play such an important role in understanding yourself than does knowledge and understanding of the effect of the dynamics (mix) between the Top 5 talent themes. Your talents should rather be understood within specific “clusters”, and the importance of the dynamics within those clustering should be understood. So, the dynamics between your Top 5 clustering is vital; then the dynamics between your Top 10. Your lessor talents (i.e,. nr 11-20 then plays a specific role, as does your Non Patterns (bottom 5 clustering). Retaking the Top 5 assessment 2, 3 or a dozen times won’t cast any light on this important aspect.

5. Importance of Talent Roles: If you understand that specific talent themes within your Top 5 and Top 10 combination have specific roles, you will also understand why retaking the assessment serves no real purpose. Understanding your Core Theme, Ignition Theme, Relaxing Theme and possible Guilt Theme, serves a lot more purpose within personal or work environment that being obsessed with the order of a Top 5 report.

Finally, I sometimes come across people who are negative towards the Clifton Strengthsfinder simply for the reason that they say “it can be manipulated”. Well, you should be pretty darn good to manipulate an assessment when you have no clue as to what it is assessing – the way it usually is the first time you take the test. But, sure, I agree it can be manipulated when you take it a second or third time round. Of course! My reaction to this critic is simply: with all due respect, look deep inside your own self as to why exactly you will want to answer honest and straightforward questions in such a way as to manipulate the outcome. What about yourself then don’t you like, and do you want to change?

The Clifton Strengthsfinder is one of the most researched assessment tools on the market, and is backed up by more than three decades of on-going research by the Gallup University. It is a phenomenal tool that leads to phenomenal results…that is, if you simply use it the way it was designed to be used.

By Dries Lombaard, Director: Strategic Leadership Institute