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Posts Tagged ‘communication’
Monday, July 13th, 2009
The author Scott McKain makes a strong case for Organization Distinction. He states that too many organizations have lost customers trying to meet their competition conditions rather than making their own. McKain explains that organizations can succeed by focusing on four cornerstones, Clarity, Creativity, Communication, and Customer.
 The author’s fist cornerstone discussion and one he insists must be first, is Clarity. How can you sell anything unless you know what it is? This concept certainly made me think about my own situation. What is it that makes the organization different than the rest of the pack? I quickly realized that I couldn’t state in “High Concept” what our company really does. High Concept is a short, less than five words, statement of who an organization, a team, or a person is.
The second cornerstone is Creativity. Thank you, Scott McKain for taking me out of the box called “Out of the Box.” I agree the term has become so convoluted that it is confusing. Creativity cannot grow without roots, the knowing why and what we are creating. My manager certainly doesn’t want a song when he needs a story. The author gives a series of steps that are well worth considering and applying to your situation.
At first the third cornerstone, Communication, the process of telling the organization’s story, seemed a bit hokey. Why an organization is created seemed quite obvious to me, the organization wants to sell or promote its product or service. However, the author is saying because your competitor has the same product, you need to tell why you are different. This difference is solely because of your story and includes all of the reasons you chose that particular product or service to support. Secondly, you need to let everyone know what it is that makes you unique. Finally, McKain tells us you can’t sell what you don’t know. I found this was exceptionally beneficial for me. It is well worth the effort to write the story down before you try to sell the world about your passion.
Finally the last corner stone is the customer. Here the author hit the nail on the head. One of my pet peeves is trying to purchase an item only to have the salesperson tell me that I want something else. Just as he stated, I seldom go back to that business. Certainly, customers may not know about or understand new products, but they do know what they are looking for and what they will spend their money on. Taking time to learn the wants of your customer is not only an important way to develop truly impressive distinction, it is critical if you are to succeed.
While reading industry books, I often make write comments in the margin. In this book, “Good Point” far exceeded the “I’ll think about this” or “Missed” notations. This book compelled me to consider what it is that makes me distinctive. What makes my organization distinctive? How I can become distinctive? I highly recommend this book to any organization trying to survive in these turbulent times, and to take up the author’s charge; Don’t be simply value-added; Be Distinctive.
Tags: communication, customer service, fighting corporate competition, how to address competition, standing above competition
Posted in communication, corporate strategy, organizational development | No Comments »
Wednesday, June 10th, 2009
The benefits to building an effective team within the workplace cannot be understated. Yet, after you laid the groundwork for a great team, maintenance is the most important factor.
No one doubts the importance of team building in an organization, but the necessity to maintain the team and continually foster an environment where it can grow is sometimes overlooked. Just like any engine in a car, in order for all the pieces to function perfectly and reliably, the integral parts must be serviced regularly. Effective coaching for your team may mean the difference between significant long-term productivity and a slow decline into obsolesce.
Effective Communication
 The most significant factor in any team is the ability to communicate skillfully. As a leader it is extremely important for you to be honest in evaluating the team’s communication skill. Every system naturally has a tendency to break down. This isn’t just my opinion; it is the way of all human interaction. Without consistent lubrication and preventive maintenance to keep your people performing at their best, your team will digress into a meaningless machine. The key is to think creatively when renewing team purpose and commitment.
Don’t Reinvent the Wheel
Remember, no matter what kind of problem your team may be facing, chances are someone else that someone has already dealt with a similar issue and has a unique way to approach it. Seek these people out with a passion; they will inspire both you and your team to excel. Standing on the shoulders of others is a critical key to transformation and forward progress of your team. You may be able to apply the previously developed method rather than the spending your valuable time on your own trial and error.
Check in Regularly
Good communication means just that – going the extra step to assure progress. Checking in with your team members means more than making sure their productivity is staying high. A teammate who is at the end of his rope when it comes to workload may seem productive; right up to the moment that he ‘breaks.’ When this happens, the personnel gap may cost you more money than if you had checked in frequently with the team member and discovered the issues before they became problems.
This post was contributed by Alisa Johnson, a guest writer, who writes about the top online business school. She welcomes your feedback at Alisa.Johnson1982 at gmail.com
Tags: Coaching, communicate effectively, communication, skillful communciation, team building
Posted in communication, sustainability, teamwork | No Comments »
Monday, February 16th, 2009
Leaders and team members need to be perfectly clear when communicating with each other. We cannot assume that the other person will always understand our meaning, and very often we will have to clarify ourselves to be sure that both the message and received message is the same. This lack of common language can be very frustrating when coaching someone on a very sensitive issue.
While my instance didn’t have a dreadful outcome, difference in understanding caused a leader inconveniences, if not major problems. One of the employees at the department store where I previously worked as a manager was a good clerk, but often caused an issue because of the way she dressed. While the elderly gentlemen at the retirement center across the street adored her and would wait in line just to have her talk to them, our women customers (particularly mothers) and the other clerks often complained about her dressing habits. The way she dressed was more conducive to a bar or pub rather than a department store.
It fell to me to discuss the issue with this clerk. Knowing what I know now, my conversation would have been much easier if I had the 8 Step Coaching Model to help me through. In Step 2, Dr. Stowell explains how a coach should Define the Topic and Needs and in Step 3 Establish Impact, always in a supportive way. Unfortunately, when I talked with this clerk, I immediately went to Step 3 – Establishing Impact. “The way you dress is inappropriate, tone it down a bit. Okay?” She showed up the next day in her uniform top still too tight and still too immodest.
 When I questioned her why she still dressed the same way, despite our conversation, she looked at me defiantly and said, “I didn’t even wear any makeup!” She then proceeded to complain vehemently how no one else was told to quit wearing makeup. My communication has been totally misinterpreted. “Toning it down” had nothing to do with her makeup in my interpretation, but that was the way she understood it. I should have taken the time to explain that the “topic” was the provocative fit of her clothes, not her cosmetics. Step 2 of the Coaching Model is to create a mutually understood picture of what is happening.
Something I might have said was, “I can see that you are sincere in doing the best job you can. I am concerned of the representation of our organization through the way you wear your clothing.” After she thought about it, we could talk about why her dress style could affect the organization. She needed to understand how the way she dressed impacts the organization and her team members.
Or maybe I could have said, “Our customers shop here because we serve family needs. So our dress code requires clerks present a family friendly appearance. You are very important to that image because you are one of the last and first people our customers see. What do you think you can do to present an image our customers would be more comfortable with?” This would have given both of us an opportunity to clarify exactly how we could reach the most appropriate result.
When you address an issue, do you slow down to make sure the recipient understands or do you assume you are always understood? Coaching requires that both parties are on the same page before proceeding to “Establishing the Impact.”
Tags: Coaching, communication
Posted in coaching skills, communication, relationships, sales coaching | No Comments »
Wednesday, August 13th, 2008
Getting the message to your team members may not require as much athletic ability as it was for the native peoples in the frozen north, but your intended purpose needs just as much proficiency and dedication.
Every spring, Alaska hosts the Arctic Winter Games. Similar to the Olympics, thousands of athletes participate. However, these athletes are the native peoples from the frozen north, the Yukon, Canada, the Russian province of Yamal, Greenland, and the Sami people of Norway and Finland. The skills of these athletes are quite different from the skills of the modern Olympian as the Arctic Winter Games grew out of native survival skills.
 One event, the High Kick completion, began as a communication technique for a hunting party to send a message his village. When the messenger was within visual distance, he would kick one foot high into the air thereby giving a message that a whale has been shot, or that caribou are running near. A two foot kick meant a whale was caught and the people would immediately prepare themselves for beaching. This style of communication was simple, precise, and completely understood by anyone in the village.
21st Century Communication
Today, we give succinct information to our team mates thought instant methods such as emails, text messaging, and phone messages. It’s easy because it doesn’t require much physical, such as the high kick, effort or thought to type and send a message. You don’t have to travel or struggle handwriting memos, you don’t have to hear your message aloud or have a third party offer suggestions to your ideas. Just jot down a few quick words and push a button.
However, team members perform better if they are knowledgeable about the team’s priorities, goals, and progress. Dr. Steven J. Stowell and Ms. Stephanie S. Mead state in their book, The Team Approach; With Teamwork Anything is Possible, “Good leaders know the power of words; skillful communication helps team members see a leader as a positive force for improving the team.”
As a leader, your messages must be clear and complete; your reader needs to understand your true meaning. Fellow team mates need to be able to translate your words, into directions, ideas, or suggestions and then into practical application. Queen Elizabeth I was a leader who became admired by millions. Dr. Stowell and Ms. Mead explain, “She was explicitly clear about the reasoning behind her decisions and actions, so understanding and commitment to her leadership was enhanced.”
Tips to Remember
To communicate more effectively always take time to think about what it is you want to say then edit anything you write before sending it out to others. Always use good grammar and complete sentences. Remember, to use periods, commas, and semicolons and that a paragraph develops an idea not three.
Emails and text messages can often be cold, unfeeling, and misunderstood. Face to face discussions with team members can often get your message across more effectively. Body language, eye contact, unspoken emotions or passion can increase the importance of a project; make a larger impact on the receiver. Similarly, a smile or a pat on the back with a verbal, “job well done” can do a great deal to increase commitment.
In the north, the High Kick brought people together; staccato electronic messages can keep people at a distance even though their offices are across the hall. Perhaps, we should be just a bit more athletic in communicating with others by taking time to think about what we want to say or by walking down the hall to talk with our team mates in person.
A Side Note
The rules of the Arctic Winter Games state that a participant must begin the two-foot event standing with both feet on the floor, jump vertically, and kick a ball suspended three feet or more over the participant’s head. They kick the ball with one foot and then land on the same foot, demonstrating balance to the officials. The ball is the size of a small tangerine. The record for this Arctic two-foot high kick is 8′8″. In another event the Arctic one-foot high kick, the sequence is done beginning and ending with the participant standing on one foot. Every movement in the event is done with the same foot. The record for this event is 8′10″.
Tags: communication, leader, proficiency, skillful communciation, team member, work
Posted in communication | No Comments »
Monday, June 23rd, 2008
People often comment to me that they are “uncomfortable” coaching employees when it comes to unacceptable performance issues. While this is not uncommon, it often occurs because people haven’t developed their coaching skills and abilities. When coaching, especially around performance issues, it is so important to address an issue when it arises rather than waiting. By waiting to address the issue, you run the risk of making the coaching conversation more difficult. Chances are the behavior will be repeated and will be assumed acceptable.
In order to become comfortable with coaching, I usually offer two simple suggestions to get things moving:
Suggestion 1: Prepare yourself when the situation is more difficult. A little preparation will go a long way in helping ensure a coaching conversation is effective and doesn’t go off track.
Suggestion 2: Practice coaching where easy and basic opportunities arise and slowly work towards more complex opportunities.
By practicing the coaching process in easy opportunities and preparing for more difficult ones, you will develop your natural ability and the skills necessary to be a great and effective coach.
Example From My Youth
A close friend from my youth had a theory he used jokingly for a number of things in life. He called it the Hot Tub Theory. It goes something like this:
Pretend you have had a long hard day and you’re ready to soak your sore muscles in some hot water. You walk outside to your hot tub/spa. You don’t just throw yourself right into the water do you? No, you probably go through the following steps:
 Step 1: You approach the hot tub and dip your toes in the water to check the temperature. Is it too hot or just right?
Step 2: You step down into the first level of the hot tub (about knee deep). Feels good doesn’t it.
Step 3: You slowly immense the remaining lower half of your body into the water. You’re about waist deep and it feels nice.
Step 4: You let your body adjust for a minute. In preparation for the next step, you might even splash a little water on your chest/stomach/arms so the heat isn’t an immediate shock to your upper body.
Step 5: Now, you’re fully immersed up to your neck. Ah, basking in the warmth. You feel comfortable, relaxed and happy. Everything seems good.
The point of the story is if you throw yourself in all at once, you might be burned or at least feel like you’re being burned. Take this theory to coaching. Ease yourself into the level of coaching you can comfortably engage in when possible. The same goes for coaching discussions, don’t just throw yourself right into the issue or problem at hand, but ease in. Ask how things are going, be supportive, address concerns and listen to the other person. Remember, an effective coach makes the discussion a two-way process. There just might be a side to the story you’re not aware of. By doing this, you’ll feel comfortable and confident in your skills.
Tags: communication, learning to coach, oppurtunities to coach, workplace
Posted in coaching skills, communication | 1 Comment »
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