O.D.  or  D.O.A. ?

When O.D. (Organizational Development) fails to resuscitate a dying enterprise, there are seldom more than two options to pursue. The first, and most prevalent, is to simply roll the victim organization over and declare it D.O.A. (Dead On Arrival).

The second is more challenging and sings to the accompanyment of opportunities: It’s called O.R. (Organizational Rebirth) and is cornerstoned by an massive infusion of E.L. (Entrepreneurial Leadership).

Every size and type of organization —profit AND nonprofit— comes face-to-face with life-threatening problems at some point (and at least once) in it’s lifetime. Most often, it appears that the malignancy stems from some form of poor management, and more often than not appears to evidence itself as an issue of financial shortcoming.

Example: You can’t run a nonprofit organization that’s not conducting ONGOING fundraising and grant procurement efforts. Regardless of good intentions, without money there’s nothing to run.

When the principals who are involved decide that it’s time  to overhaul, restructure, refurbish, rearrange, rebuild, reinvent . . . go for it! BUT, call it something that organization people can relate to, feel positive about, commit to and enthusiastically support. Ask THEM to brand the project with a name and identity.

It’s the leader’s job to determine the purpose, intent, mission, goals/objectives, strategy, and tactics. It’s the leader’s job to “rally the troops,” motivate and guide, to solicit feedback, to listen 80% of the time. Make-believe leaders push. Real leaders pull!

Remember leaders can delegate authority,

but not responsibility.

When it’s time to choose to fold up or buckle up, don’t choose to make it hard. Don’t choose to make it daunting. Don’t choose to make it more stressful than it may be. Don’t choose to make it overwhelming. Don’t be a drama queen. Don’t be overbearing. Choose instead to think like a leader and act like an entrepreneur.

Reinventing yourself as a person or as an organization doesn’t have to be drudgery or negative or threatening unless you choose it to be. Choose for it to be fun! Choose for it to be easy! Choose for it to be positive! Choose to go with the flow instead of over-analyzing what went wrong.

Choose to keep EVERYTHING

in the “here and now”!

Reality: It’s a far deeper process than changing facepaint. The reinventing-survival experience is rarely a simple one, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be fun and easy. Simply choose –and constantly REchoose to reinforce– for it to be easy and fun. With vigilance, the challenges can turn into opportunities in a blink.

Oh, yes, and it’s okay to blink.

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Hal@Businessworks.US

FACE SMASH

STOP thinking for a minute! STOP analyzing. STOP worrying. STOP strategizing. STOP getting to the bottom of things! It’s ridiculously easy to trip over our own feet the minute we lose touch with where we are. As soon as we start focusing on anything other than what’s right in front of us– where we want to be, for example (or worse, where we’ve already been), we run the risk of face smash!

Every great management leader, expert, book, course, and guru — and, for those with religious leanings, even the Bible– urges us to stay focused on HERE AND NOW as much of the time as possible. The minute we divert attention from that power saw or computer app or steering wheel we’re using, CHOP, CRACKLE, BOOM! Am I just imagining this? No, of course not. It’s reality.

Common sense, huh? But how many of us have the ability to exercise common sense once we’re absorbed with past or future issues which are not here, now, and are therefore actually make-believe? And how much of our “life is short” time gets wasted fantasizing? I’m not talking about dreaming. Every great leader makes time to be a dreamer, but great leaders stay in control. They use dreams.

So how — what steps can we use to prevent many of those lost opportunities? How do great leaders keep from falling on their faces? There are as many answers to this as there are great leaders (and there are many!). But all the contortions aside, it seems to me that it all reduces itself to: What is your trigger p0int?

In other words, what happens to you physically when you spin off into the clouds or fly off the handle or back quietly out the side door? Your stomach growls, you get a stiff neck, feel edgy, jiggle a foot, play with a flash drive, get a headache, or backache, or crave something sweet? Each of us is different. But each of us has a trigger. Talk to yourself about it.

When each of us can identify our own individual, unique trigger point and become aware of it when it surfaces, we immediately put ourselves on the path toward advanced leadership driven by present moment happenings. That’s a GIANT step in the self-control arena. And, guess what? the more you tune in to your SELF and what makes you tick (especially if you’re in sales — and who isn’t?), the happier and healthier you can be — and you won’t need special vitamins or skin products or addictive behaviors to stoke your euphoric fires.

What’s to lose? Give it a try. Start here with this quick 4-STEP life-saver and then move ahead to taking SELF inventory. It’s not just about what’s good for what ails you. It’s about preventing ailments. It’s about doing a better job of being a leader. Oh, and it doesn’t even cost anything! Have a great awakening!

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Hal@Businessworks.US

MASQUERADING AS 

SOMEONE YOU’RE NOT?

Think about it.  Are you representing your SELF in some way that’s not truly you?  Is it to make a sale? Get a date? Be accepted? Make points? Save yourself from losing face? Is it what you like to see other people do? No? So why pull the covers over the real you? Do you think others can’t see through the façade? Can’t you tell when someone else is faking it?

Authenticity isn’t a make-believe attribute that can be manipulated to suit the occasion. By its very definition, it means being genuine all the time. Authenticity, in other words, cannot exist on a parttime basis, or be in effect one minute and not the next. You either are who you represent yourself to be or you aren’t.

Yeah, some say, but there are always exceptions to everything. Not true! You either believe in God or you don’t. You either love someone or you don’t. You are either real or you’re not. There are no two ways about it. You can’t use Bcc emails to have someone else (or others) know your “secret ” communications and then pretend you are sending someone a private message.

Integrity is often defined as doing the right thing even when no one is looking.

As stampeding technology sweeps us all into lower levels of sociability — actually redefines sociability to be global instead of personal– we can often find ourselves distancing ourselves from others who are physically and emotionally close, in favor of socializing with total strangers who may seem less threatening and who may be more conveniently available to be in contact.

Is this behavior in our best interests career-wise? Possibly. In terms of personal growth and development as a human being who wants to make a difference in the world? Not likely. Performance track-record and familiarity breed trust. People accept and buy from one another (including health services, by the way) because of trust more than any other factor, including price!

How do we take the first step toward becoming more authentic? By recognizing that it is a choice, and then by choosing to live more honorably, and finally by setting up support systems to help ensure continuation of that practice. Is that difficult? If you choose to make it difficult, yes. But, YES,  you can choose to make it easy. Behavior is a choice.

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Hal@BusinessWorks.US  931.854.0474

ENTREPRENEURIAL

LEADERSHIP MEANS…

Being passionate about your ideas and making them work with the help of others. This means, of course, being emotionally committed to what you’re doing 24/7. By doing that, odds are you’ll never have to solicit and recruit others to your crusade. They will see a place for themselves and gravitate there on their own.

When that happens, others’ commitments will be more solid and grounded than if you had gone out hunting for them and then had to talk them into joining forces. It’s a fact: When people make their own decisions about what they want to do, they are happier and more dedicated to achieving results!

Often acting first and planning second. This does NOT mean rashly jumping from the frying pan into the fire. It instead suggests that over-indulgence in evaluating, assessing, diagnosing, and long-term planning (I call it “analysis paralysis”) wastes time, money, energy, and opportunities.

Entrepreneurial leaders take action, make adjustments, act again, make adjustments, and act again. Except for formal loan and investor-required formal business plans, they limit their planning to the short term — hour, day, week, month. And even those plans are temporary and flexible. Watching the finish line causes stumbling and falls.

Always responding instead of reacting. A key ingredient in the success of this pursuit is stress management. Bottom line: If you always respond instead of react, you can never over-react. If you never over-react, you will be faithfully followed. Built snugly into this thinking is this important awareness:

HOW you respond to someone who

or something that is out of control

. . . IS WITHIN YOUR CONTROL.

And we know this because? Because every behavior — yours, your employees’, your customers and prospects — is a CHOICE. It’s just as easy to choose to make a situation easy as it is to choose to make it hard. It may require some conscious stress management effort but, in the end, leadership is measured by ability to gain results through control and responsiveness!

Learning as much as you can about yourself –your SELF– may be the single most important determinant of entrepreneurial leadership because it is the foundation, the cornerstone, of each of the above criteria, and of any others you might add to the list. Without knowing what makes you tick, you cannot pretend to understand others enough to be a true leader. TALK TO YOUR SELF. Oh, and remember to listen!

Hands-on specifics? Keep a journal. Date every entry every day. Separate facing pages into “What Happened” on the left and “How I felt” on the right. This discipline helps sharpen your skills to separate fact and observation from opinion and feelings. Write, draw, diagram, paste photos, spit, whatever floats your boat. It’s YOUR journal.

Attend group and individual “personal and professional growth and development”-type discussion and counseling sessions. Take advantage of local adult education programs that focus on self-expression — from giving speeches and stand-up presentations to writing or painting or photography or music or handicraft courses. DISCOVER YOUR SELF!

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WANT TO BE MORE OF A LEADER?

TALK AND WRITE LIKE A LEADER.

Over 30 years of writing and training business, industry,

healthcare, and academic leadership have taught me

some important words I now share with you . . .

People who regularly incorporate the use of the following kinds of words in their daily conversations and written messages stand tall among the most successful of worldclass leaders.

This magic pack of words is just for openers. You need to be willing to raise your own consciousness about whether the words you use every day are helping you perform to the best of your own leadership ability. This list can, in other words,  get you started. But only you can decide what works best for you and your personal leadership comfort zone.

The point is: Take a couple of minutes to review this list, think about it and assess yourself. If you can change some words you may presently be emphasizing that are not helping you perform, change them! It’s your choice.

Opportunity. Becoming. Challenge. Team. Can. Forward. Focus. Here and Now. Let’s. How? What will it take? Go! Do I understand you correctly to mean . . .? Us. We. Our. Fun. Enjoy! Together. For example. Passion. Try. Enthusiasm. Empathy. Customer. Diagram.  Innovation. Client. Partner. Listening. Self-esteem. Service. Needs. Desires. Learning. Facts. Exciting. God. Illuminating. Choice. Value. Timing.  Self-confidence. Trust. Authenticity. Genuineness. Objectives. Goals. Strategies. Tactics. Specific.  Flexible. Realistic. Ignite. Timeline. Activate. Boost. Stimulate. Care. Compassion. Spark. Consistency. Measure. Hustle. Effort. Reward. Share. Accurate. Recognition. Implement. Respond. Energy. Responsive. Responsible. Behavior. Spirit. Assist. Invigorate. Results. Invest. Humility. Grace. Please. Thank you. Respect.  Grow. Patient. Happiness. Family.

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When Followers Lead Leaders

You think only a weak leader would step aside when followers close rank and try to take over? Maybe you’ve seen too many wild-eyed-pirate-and-rats-desertion-of-sinking-ship themed movies. You may want to revisit your thinking because in a lot more than some cases, stepping aside is an indication of truly superior and truly successful leadership!

There are probably as many avenues to leadership roles as there are leaders, yet none of them reflects the inherent strength-of-leadership qualities of authenticity and transparency as –like raising world-class children— being able to move confidently out of the way when followers (or your kids) take up the flag and charge forward with it.

No one ever said that being a parent or playing a parental role in business and professional practice development would be easy. In fact, parenting of any kind may well be among the hardest of life challenges. On the heels of committing to the ongoing practice of nurturing and investing in self-responsibility, personal and career parenting is certainly job one.

Why would self-development come first? Because if you cannot be true to yourself, you cannot be true to others. If you don’t know and aren’t continually searching out what makes you tick, you can’t possibly be in a position or mindset to lead others. If you don’t value your self and appreciate your own strengths and weaknesses, how can you measure and guide others?

When followers lead leaders, it may be because the leaders have faltered or it may be because the leaders have thrived on showing the way, on lighting the path, on motivating others to see that light AND the path, and on stepping out and onto it.

Weak leaders work at keeping followers following.

Truly great leaders

inspire followers to become leaders.

Which are you? Which are you becoming? Where are you aiming? What’s your target? Your goal? Your objective? How will you get there? The more you help others to grow as leaders, the more you grow as a leader. And since all of this swirls around what you think and how you behave, it’s worth remembering that thoughts and behaviors are a choice.

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Yada, Yada, Yada,

 Blah, Blah, Blah…

Odds are that your best leadership response to other people’s yackity-yack is probably NOT:  yeah, yeah, yeah!

When someone who follows your lead is being busy saying nothing (hmmm, sound familiar?), try taking the person off to the side — or into a private setting — and explain that you want to share the value of some of what you’ve learned from successful sales leaders.

Start by noting that virtually EVERY exchange we have with others EVERY day –both on the job and off– constitutes an attempt to sell SOME thing.

Yes, “EVERY” and yes, “SOME.”

Think about it before jumping down my throat with some condemnation for using “ALL OR NOTHING” language. Before you throw exceptions at me, take a minute to dissect them. Odds are you’ll discover that at least one individual in every interaction has a mission to sell her or his self, or ideas, or products or services, or brands, or affections, or . . .

Here’s what the world’s most successful salespeople know and practice: LISTEN 80% of the time and TALK 20% of the time. Maybe not easy, but it IS simple. And it works! This behavior breeds success in all walks of life with all kinds of circumstances where we seek to make a sale or an impression or gain trust or show understanding.

By disciplining ourselves to listen more carefully to those we are charged with the responsibility to lead, and by being more selective and economical with what we have to say to others, we are also becoming more productive with time and energy spent.

When we can save time and energy by communicating more accurately and productively, we are getting a better handle on what others want and need and suggest, and we are saving on wasted time and energy costs and lost opportunities.

But don’t stop there!

Talking less and listening more does NOT mean talking less and HEARING more. Active listening is an acquired skill that involves open body language (no arms, legs, ankles, wrists, hands, fingers crossed and no peering over the top of your glasses), paraphrasing and asking for examples and diagrams, and nonverbal (e.g., head nodding) as well as verbal acknowledgements.

It means paying attention, staying focused, not allowing distractions. Easy stuff? No. Hardly ever is it easy. Active-listening communication is more work and it takes longer. Ah, but you simply can’t compare the success-level results you’ll get with the productivity (or lack of) that accompanies the typical 80% talking communications that surround our daily lives.

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Your PEOPLE are your

  most important asset.

Do you think your organization’s product or service inventories are the most valuable assets to protect and nurture? You may want to re-visit where you and your organization/business/professional practice/group/ department/team would be without those who comprise the entity that makes you a leader:  your followers, your people.

Failure to recognize this truism is at your own peril.

Often those who work for and with us can –by virtue of the choices they make– unwittingly draw us into the flames they ignite. And leaders often end up compounding issues that arise by adding more bad choices –like throwing gasoline onto the fire. Victims of circumstance? Rarely.

Victims of failure to nurture and challenge and publically reward and frequently appreciate and reassure is more like it. Laziness and slacking off is more like it. So too is getting too big for one’s leadership britches!

Leadership is a fulltime function and minimizing bad choices is job one.

When leaders fully appreciate and frequently celebrate the performances of those who follow, they are ensuring renewal and continuance of loyalty and perseverance. This is the stuff that has built empires and won wars. The world’s most successful leaders know that the single most important craving that human beings have is for recognition, reassurance, and trust.

Seeking recognition, reassurance and trust is the conscious or unconscious pursuit of practically all human beings in virtually every circumstance of life, and –in addition to employees, associates, staffs, and teammates– this includes the vast majority of all physician and healthcare service patients — even those who go to emergency rooms!

It is our nature as people to look for ongoing approval, reassurance, and trust — a sense that we are performing okay, that we are okay, and that we will be okay.

This does not translate to everyone being neurotic or for leaders having to be shrinks, or having to pat everyone on the head and love every follower. Great leadership is not always transparent!

It translates to the need for leaders to appreciate basic human instincts and directly address them with actions and words by communicating directly, with authenticity and genuineness — instead of ignoring, patronizing or pandering, and beating around the bush. Remember poison ivy often grows around bushes!

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With Volunteers,

Exceptional Leadership

Can Bring Exceptional Success

But working with volunteers demands exceptional leadership. Why? Because anything less can spell exceptional failure and — at the very least– produce exceptional frustration. When a nonprofit, for example, needs to depend on volunteer groups to handle special or ongoing projects, the odds are that one or more of five problem areas will surface.

According to Ed Bancroft, world renown leader in organization and management development, community development, and race relations, the five “Common Problem” areas that emerge in working with volunteer groups consist of:

1) Having too many goals

2) Lack of an adequate contract

3) Lack of leadership and accountability

4) Lack of rewards or recognition

5) Lack of attention to group process

When a volunteer group of any composition attempts to get started, there is a tendency to attempt more than can realistically be accomplished. So the basic tenets of effective goal-setting need to be addressed right from the git-go. Those criteria, together with some other goal-setting thoughts, are here and here and here.

After starting with a Priority Task List, Bancroft suggests charting answers to: WHAT will be done? HOW will it be done? WHO will do it? WHEN will each task be completed? and BY WHAT DATE will the goal be accomplished?

The most successful volunteer groups start with a (very specific) agreement regarding each person’s role and expectations, and in matching each individual’s strengths to the tasks at hand. (Tight agenda) group meetings, (specific) written job descriptions, and a permanent “How Goes It?” focus on ongoing progress are all means to the ends.

A great many volunteer groups stumble along, reluctant to deal directly with leadership accountability. This single shortcoming can undo the best of intentions and efforts. Clear role definition, including having a fulltime volunteer coordinator (or staff member), who links the volunteers with paid staff, helps ensure that volunteer energies are maximized.

Volunteers work for the good of the cause but also for personal recognition, and some form of reward for specific achievements. And, always praise in public! Volunteers should get priority consideration for staff appointments, be offered as much appropriate training as possible.

Remember to appreciate volunteers for what they give up: Besides time and energy, for example, there are often expenses they absorb for baby-sitting, lunches, and transportation. Free or discounted lunches, work time beverages and snacks can go a long way. Some volunteer programs qualify for Federal funds, United Way, or foundation grants to reimburse volunteers.

Most volunteer groups are not tuned into “Process” — how they work together and how they need to work together. They tend to lack awareness of essential communication and decision-making methods. Workshops focused on these skill sets and an appointed (very objective) Process Observer can be designated to provide ongoing feedback on what she or he observes of group dynamics.

 The excitement and enthusiasm levels generated

 in volunteer groups is directly proportionate to

  the attention given to the issues outlined above.

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Innovators: KEEP OUT!!!

I’ve been called an entrepreneurship evangelist. I’ve worked with thousands of doctors, business owners/operators and managers, market innovators and entrepreneurial thinkers. Like most, I’ve spent a lifetime taking (reasonable) risks, rejecting authority, breaking rules, and regularly working long into the night,

And I developed a nothing-is-taboo attitude. [So don’t tell me what to stay away from!]

But — what’s the old saying?– “The truth will (win) out!” And my experience says that the truth is if we are to make a success of  business, professional practice, career, and life pursuits, we need to set success goals that include what to avoid, as leaders, as people.

My top 7 suggestions of what to avoid and why:

KEEP OUT of jail. Let’s face it. There’s not much of anything positive or worthwhile to be had, or add to your resume, by being in jail. Yes, a handful of inmates out of millions might learn a life lesson or two, but jail is hardly a breeding ground for success at any level. So, stay away from it. Question your motives before you act or speak.

KEEP OUT of courtrooms (unless you’re a lawyer). Courtrooms can be just a stress notch away from jail. The attached anxieties alone are enough to topple years of hard work and good intentions. You may think that courtroom appearances are not always your choice, but if you don’t choose to initiate a legal event, you do choose to set yourself up or put yourself in position that could lead you there. No it’s not always avoidable, but much of it is. Bottom line: Can your business afford for you to put business time, energy, and funds into a pursuit that’s not your business?

KEEP OUT of doctors’ and lawyers’ offices (unless you’re a doctor or lawyer). If you are constantly and consciously choosing to live a healthy lifestyle, you can often avoid doctors and minimize  situations beyond routine healthcare.

Remember that once a doctor sends you to another specialist, you are IN THE SYSTEM, and the most tenacious efforts to escape it’s time and money-consuming clutches rarely succeed. For the same high stress reasons to avoid jail and courtrooms, choose to minimize lawyer visits and limit them to essential  occurrences and preventive maintenance.

KEEP OUT of hospitals (unless you work for one). Contrary to the onslaught of misguided hospital marketing that blankets this country, hospitals do NOT spawn good health. They treat those who no longer have good health, and –in many documented cases– actually contribute to the exacerbation of ill health. This is not to question professional dedication or skills. It is simply a reminder to strive for life directions that have the best odds of helping you avoid hospitals.

KEEP OUT of hiding places (unless you’re playing hide-and-go-seek with the kids) when it’s time for family and church and community. These are the times that define you and what you’re all about as a human being.

KEEP OUT of fights (unless you’re a boxer). Disagreements can be healthy, but disagreements require self-vigilance to prevent them from accelerating to the point of getting out of control. Anger, mean-spiritedness and grudges can ONLY work against you and quickly become the undoing of all you’ve worked so hard at to put together.

KEEP OUT of nonproductive relationships (unless you’re a shrink or a cop and your career calls for engagement). In other words, stay around positive-minded people as much as possible and pursue opportunities to surround yourself with others who consistently demonstrate positive, upbeat attitudes. This: will come back to help you!

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