Jack Welch on the Cruelest Environments

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Jack Welch and candor come together.

It didn’t take long for the topic of candor to come up at the dinner I attended after the Chick-fil-A Leadercast. In his usual no-nonsense fashion, Jack said,

“If your employees don’t know where they stand, you have no right to call yourself a manager.”

Here’s what I’ve been thinking since dinner Friday night.

Sick, stressful environments include behaviors where:

1. Side-stepping and pretending is normal. Candor is taboo, even offensive.
2. Leaders “protect” others by massaging the message.
3. Confronting issues is rare.
4. Postponing, rather than addressing, is standard operating procedures.

Leaders who replace candor with hiding the truth become dishonest manipulators. They are either confused or self-absorbed or both.

Candor is kind; uncertainty is cruel.

Candor is kind because it generates clarity.

“Everyone wants to know where they stand.” Jack Welch

Dancing around feelings and ignoring issues:

1. Creates uncertainty.
2. Undermines credibility. You can’t trust leaders who don’t or won’t speak the truth.
3. Prolongs agony.
4. Encourages dishonesty.
5. Discourages excellence. When leaders avoid tough conversations, excellence doesn’t matter.

Dishonesty, in the name of “not hurting”
someone, hurts everyone.

Behind mediocrity is a tough conversation someone didn’t have.

Credible leaders speak with:

1. Courage.
2. Clarity.
3. Conviction.
4. Compassion. Give improvement a chance.
5. Optimism. (Another “c” would be perfect)

Credible leaders say what everyone already knows, but are afraid to say.

Kind candor:

1. Speak unvarnished truths. “Your angry outbursts frustrate your co-workers,” for example.
2. Reject excuses and blame – quickly, clearly, and firmly.
3. Develop clear pictures of “better” in terms of behaviors and outcomes.
4. Provide training, support, and resources.
5. Explain consequences.
6. Establish deadlines.

Kind candor stabilizes organizations, validates performance, lowers stress, enables excellence, and simplifies relationships.

See comments on cruelest leaders on Facebook (5-11-13).

What are the key success factors for developing candor in organizations?

Sour Faces Whining About Sour Faces

I’m sick of organizations that don’t measure what matters.

Production targets flash on computer screens. Today’s production target: 1,500 widgets. Current: 837 widgets. The message: people are tools.

Measurement reflects value.

Where is the morale meter? Morale doesn’t matter when you don’t measure morale building behaviors.

What isn’t measured doesn’t matter,
even if you say it does.

Organizations must measure widget production. No argument from me. But, where the heck are the:

1. Smile meters.
2. Compliment counters.
3. Laugh tracks. (pun intended)
4. Pat-on-the-back targets.

I’m tired of complaints about sad environments. Do something about it.

Place smile-counting buttons on every computer screen. Every time someone smiles at you, push the smile icon. Position a smile-tracking-board in the lobby for everyone to see. I’m not joking.

Go large and create columns on a public board to record: smiles, laughs, compliments, and pats on the back. Go crazy and count the number of jokes told in the office. Give extra credit for bad jokes.

Skeptics:

“What if they don’t mean it, you ask?” Who gives a crap? Just do it. Sarcastic smiles are funny. A begrudging grin is better than no grin.

Smile even if you don’t mean it.
After a while you will.

I’m sick of hearing leaders with sour faces whining about sour faces.

I’ve been places where smiles appear briefly on full moon, when the brave crazies come out.

You’re so full of yourself that you don’t dare measure morale building behaviors because morale sucks so bad in your organization. If you don’t do something about it, learn to enjoy it.

Measure:

Happiness matters. Measure it. What gets measure gets done. By the way, people aren’t tools!

How can leaders focus on happiness without losing sight of results?

Do something to enrich your personal morale. Join me, April 4th, for a FREE – LIVE conference call with Dr. Henry Cloud. Learn the surprising truth that setting boundaries extends results. INFO

8 Secrets to Eliminating Negativity

One bad experience outweighs one good. A gallon of bad weighs more than a gallon of good.

Setbacks nag; success whispers.

You overemphasize what went wrong and minimize what went right. Down is easier than up.

Small setbacks increase frustration
more than small successes enhance satisfaction.

One negative defeats one positive. It’s worse! One negative defeats two positives. It takes three positives to off-set one negative. It takes 2.9013 gallons of positive to sweeten one gallon of negative.*

One gallon of positive won’t sweeten one gallon of negative.

Now you know why negative environments are easy.

Boats with holes:

There’s a hole in your boat. Bad experiences gush in; good experiences jump ship.

Find the good before the bad sinks you.

Thank more. Cheer more. Pat on the back more, much more.

Plugging holes:

When boats are sinking you can bail like hell or plug the damn hole! Preventing one bad creates more buoyancy than appreciating one good because bad outweighs good.

Do more good by eliminating one bad.

1. Eliminate negative employees.
2. Remove obstacles. Organizations create hoops, sign offs, and regulations that make work harder. Ask, “What’s slowing you down?” When you find out, remove it or smooth the way.
3. Stop belittling. Work that isn’t valued isn’t meaningful.
4. End frustrations. Explore frustrations with employees, don’t ignore them, end them.

Throw out bad – good comes back.

Still more:

1. Focus on progress constantly. You’re falling behind if you don’t. Better wins.
2. Transform setbacks into progress by making them learning events.
3. Respect. Welcome ideas, for example. Don’t dismiss suggestions, explore them. Off handed rejection belittles.
4. Agree on outcomes then let go. Freedom energizes; control drains.

The pursuit of excellence is fueled by positive environments.

Positive environments aren’t accidents, leaders build them.

Eliminate bad.

Shout the good.

Whisper correction.

* Research on the bad outweighs good.

How can leaders counteract the pull of negative gravity?

This weeks best FREE opportunity for leadership development:

For All the Danny Downers

You want the people around you to feel up not down, hopeful not discouraged. All successful leaders energize others. But, what if you aren’t the energizing type?

Peter Senge said,

“Your primary influence is the environment you create.”

Leaders often neglect environments in favor of getting work done.

Tending personal environments:

Personal space has energy. Step in and it pulls down or lifts up. Danny Downer is a spiraling vortex of despair. An hour with him drains you. Hours later, you’re still climbing out of his dark hole. Or you’ve given up.

Edna  Energizer amps people. An hour with her boosts you. Hours later, you’re half way up the mountain with energy to spare.

We’re all climbers.

All leaders impact “the climb” of others by establishing starting places. Energizing leaders elevate starting points; low energy leaders lower them.

Successful leaders elevate starting points.

Danny Downer:

1. Fears offending others – lives to please everyone.
2. Imagines obstacles that can’t be solved.
3. Knows all the reasons nothing can change.
4. Questions abilities.
5. Focuses on resources rather than people.

Edna Energizer:

1. Builds and trusts the team. Danny feels alone.
2. Takes small steps without permission. She believes it’s better to get in trouble trying things than doing nothing and staying safe.
3. Sees obstacles but imagines progress.
4. Learns from failure.
5. Expects herself and others to step up.

The difference between Danny and Edna is courage.  Leadership requires courage. Danny’s a coward.

For all the Danny Downers:

1. Admit it. You are darkness with legs. (If you’re tempted to say it’s not that bad, it is.)
2. Confess it. Tell someone you’re a downer. Say, “I want to change.”
3. Get help. Run – don’t walk – to energizing leaders and learn.
4. Define energizing behaviors. Changing attitude helps but changing behaviors changes things.

Everyone feels the environment around you. Energize intentionally. The higher you start the further you’ll go.

How can leaders create personal space that energizes others?

Next week’s best leadership development opportunity is a free conference call with bestselling author, Doug Conant. Join me on March 27 at 1:00 p.m. EST.

13 Power Tips for Leading Through Uncertainty

It’s certain that we live in uncertain times.

13 Power Tips for Leading through Uncertainty:

1. Pull with – not against, higher ups. Grab the rope and pull, even if you disagree. Everyone who pulls in their own direction dilutes potential success. If you can’t pull with, jump ship, now.
2. Aim to make a positive difference. Don’t simply survive. Survival doesn’t inspire.
3. Listen and agree with expressions of fear. People feel minimized when you minimize their feelings. Affirm don’t correct. Ask, “What makes you feel that way?”
4. Schedule a “hard truth” meeting to explore worst case scenarios, fears, doubts, and what if’s. The sole purpose is honest expression without solutions. Paint black pictures. Prevent anyone from minimizing or solving anything. Honor and respect pain and fear. You look like a fool when you ignore the obvious. End “hard truth” meetings with power tip #5.
5. Schedule “tough solutions” meetings.
6. Break challenges and problems into small pieces. Ask, “Can we fix this?” When you find something you can fix, ask, “What can we do?”
7. Develop imperfect solutions. The search for perfect solutions creates uncertainty.
8. Learn as you go.
9. Celebrate small wins. Enjoy how far you’ve come. Momentarily forget how far you must go.
10. Focus on things within your power. Uncertainty focuses on factors outside your control; decisions made by others, economic downturns, or regulatory fiascos, for example.
11. Focus on positive behaviors and less on speculations. Uncertainty always causes speculation. Repeatedly ask, “What can we do.” But remember to embrace power tip #1, first.
12. Speak hard truths optimistically. Express highest points of confidence. “I’m not sure how this turns out but I’m giving it my best.” Pretending everything’s ok doesn’t instill confidence in those who know it’s not.
13. Connect with others who faced similar uncertainties and challenges.

Bonus: Remain emotionally steady.

This topic was suggested on the Leadership Freak Facebook page.

Which power tips are most difficult and why?

What power tips can you add to the list?

Memo to the New Team 2/22/13

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To the New Team:

You may be wondering why you don’t have more direction. It’s intentional.

The advantage of new teams is no history.

The advantage of being told what to do is safety. Freedom, on the other hand, makes the storming process more turbulent but the result is ownership.

You have the big picture and I trust you.

Your first few meetings include searching for clarity of roles, function, and identity.

Searching for clarity feels confusing and awkward.
Search for clarity with optimism.

Be realistic about your challenges without becoming pessimists. Don’t bury your head in the sand. If you do, you’ll fail. But…

Trust your ability to find answers.

Norming is the third stage of team formation:

1. Esprit de corps emerges. Respect and connection describe relationships. Norming results from working through storming. Allow time for bonds to form.
2. Shared goals create focus and guide decisions. It takes time for personal agendas to fade and the big picture to come into focus.
3. Rules of relationship are established. Everyone agrees on how to treat fellow team members. Some team members need more prep time than others, for example. This will be acknowledged and respected.

Go to: “Memo to the New Team,” for info on the first two stages of team formation.

Five questions to ask yourselves:

1. How can I help others fit in?
2. How can I support others?
3. How can I show respect to the talent of others?
4. How can we move forward? Teams spiral into negativity apart from forward movement. Small comes before big.
5. How can we be bold without being foolish?

Bonus tip: Put the person with the most complicated schedule in charge of scheduling meetings.

What brings teams together and creates high performance environments?

A VP at Chic-fil-A on Positive Environments

Dripping-faucet-leaders irritate with constant tweaks and suggestions. Your team wants you to shut-up and leave them alone.

Additionally, honest leaders build negative environments by constantly fixing and improving.

The dark side of pursuing excellence is nitpicking.

Perfection-seekers are nitpickers.

Nitpicking:

1. Shows attention to detail.
2. Is different from being particular.
3. Unhelpful, nagging self-doubt.
4. Micromanaging.
5. Contagious.
6. Bullying.
7. Misses the real issue.
8. Typical for a weak link.
9. Negative and unproductive.
10. Is a label used by people who miss critical details.

More useful and humorous contributions on Facebook.

The problem of talent and skill:

Mark Miller, VP at Chic-fil-A and author of, The Secret of Teams, believes focusing on talent and skills apart from the critical third element builds negative environments.

“There are three critical ingredients for high performance,

1. Talent.
2. Skills.
3. Community.”

Mark believes negative environments emerge when leaders focus on talent and skills but neglect community. His book  includes suggestions and illustrations of community building.

Don’t spend all your time focusing on performance. Focus on community, too. Chic-fil-A begins meetings with “family time,” for example. If that sounds weird, you’re pursuit of excellence may create negative environments.

When continuous improvement goes too far:

“If you scored a 97% on the test you don’t need to fixate on 100%.” Mark Miller.

Mark said positive environments include:

1. Focusing on what went well.
2. Talking about what worked.
3. Asking, “Who went above and beyond?”
4. Reinvention. “What might we do differently next time?”

Lousy leaders pursue excellence but
don’t celebrate progress or build community.

The sustained pursuit of excellence requires community building. Caring community takes talent and skill further, faster.

How can leaders pursue excellence and build family environments at the same time?

Connect with Mark: @LeadersServe

Free chapter of The Secret of Teams.

Added resources:

Mark Miller in his own words. (3 min.)

How Zappos builds happy work environments.

Even Whiners Can Lead

Image source by George Hodan

Whiners are potential leaders. But, pessimists can’t lead.

Leader as whiner:

1. Progress could be faster.
2. Quality could be better.
3. Team mates could give more.
4. Organizations aren’t meeting needs.
5. Structures block rather than energize success.

The line between whiner and leader is optimism.

Whiners become leaders when they press through problem finding to problem solving.

The real anchor:

It’s easier for whiners to blame than take responsibility.

Whiners are blamers.
Blamers can’t lead.

The next time you hear yourself whining, take responsibility. Stop complaining about what others aren’t doing. Do something yourself.

Whining identifies potential improvements.

From whining to leading:

1. Talk less. Whiners talk too much and do too little. Talking apart from action centers on problems. Talking during action focuses on solutions. “How can we fix this” is better than “Here’s why it can’t be done.”
2. Solve what you can. Postpone the rest. A whiner who can’t postpone or prioritize is an overwhelmed whiner. Everything’s bad.
3. Feeling powerless is a self-imposed myth. You can always do something. (See: Gifts From an Empty Cup”)
4. Plan for the worst. Contingency plans are a pessimist’s gift.
5. Consistently ask, “What’s next?”
6. Move from “What if?” to “We could.”
7. Listen to optimists. Don’t reject optimists because you believe they don’t see the whole picture. You don’t either.
8. Admit shooting things down isn’t a virtue.
9. Substitute lifting up for drag down. Your negativity makes others negative. Welcome to the dark work environment you created. Ask yourself, “How am I making others feel?”
10. Ask, “Where does whining take me?” When it’s a good place, go with it.

Great leaders whine with optimism.

Leaders do more than point out wrongs. They step toward remedies.

I’m a huge fan of whiners who work toward solutions. Beware of whiners who don’t find solutions. They’re destructive anchors.

What suggestions can you offer leaders who tend to whine?

How to Help Snails Keep Up

Who’s falling behind? Thriving organizations leave those who don’t grow, behind. Change leaves those who don’t change frustrated, wondering what happened.

The puzzle changed and they don’t fit.

Helping snails keep up:

Successful leaders are people watchers. Know who’s falling behind.

Watch people first and performance second.

Observe:

1. Energy levels. What drags down?
2. Frustration levels. What frustrates?
3. Happiness levels. What energizes?
4. Development levels. What training or initiatives captivate their attention?
5. Change levels. What’s changing in them or their circumstances?

Performance is about people. Capable people, who fit in, love delivering the goods, when they believe in the mission. How are you enhancing capacity, building health, and aligning with mission? How are you helping others fit in?

Performance is a result; people are the end.

Go positive not negative. Positive motivates. Positive interactions create positive environments. If all you do is fix problems, all you’ll see are problems to fix.

Publically affirm attitude, first.  Praise performance later. Organizations that value transparency and authenticity should publically acknowledge it when it’s seen, for example. If you value positive environments, cheer those who cheer others.

Honor people before praising performance.

Look through behaviors; speak to attitudes. Build spirit and soul. Connect. But, don’t neglect performance.

Performance:

Placing people first builds foundations for tough conversations about performance later. Build relationships. Affirm people. Connect. Think how they think.

High performance energizes healthy people.

Call for exceptional. Low performance frustrates healthy people. “People first” isn’t lowering expectations. Go ahead, raise the bar. Healthy people rise up.

Pour into them if you expect them to pour out for you.

Strong relationships result in strong performance, but you must call for it. On the other hand, when people complain, “They’re never satisfied,” you’ve built lopsided, negative environments.

How can leaders help snails?

Who Cheers for You

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You cheer for others. Who cheers for you?

Some can’t stand it if you’re “too” happy.

Most are ok if you’re a little bit happy or a little bit successful, … if you’re average.

It’s okay to long for more but whatever you do, don’t actually reach for it. And heaven forbid if it happens.

Too Happy:

If you’re too happy, kill-joys give you a good dose of “reality.” Too much success and they’ll warn, “Watch out for arrogance.”

Maybe it’s a parent, spouse, boss, or colleague. You find yourself holding back your enthusiasm around them because you know they can’t stand it.

Vulnerable:

I’m never more vulnerable than when I’m celebrating. Someone comes along and lets me know that I’m not quite there, yet. Ouch!

Ever share you’re excitement and have someone remain detached?  Thanks a million! You learn to keep celebrations to yourself.

Creating cheerleaders:

1. Take a vacation from critiques, tweaks, and improvements. Establish no-negativity time. Saturday morning is positive-time, for example. No improvements. No tweaks. Just positive speech or silence. Make it fun. Establish a fine for violations. Put the money in the pizza fund.
2. Receive praise with gratitude. The problem may be you. The less comfortable you are at receiving praise, the less frequently it occurs.
3. Establish the 3-to-1 rule. Call everyone to make three positive statements for every negative. Positive speech builds positive environments. Words are rudders.
4. Celebrate small. Stop waiting for the big stuff.
5. Find a brag buddy. (An idea I first heard from Jon Acuff)
6. Stop people before they add the negative to a positive.

Bonus: Invite whiners, kill-joys, and complainers to make three positive statements. Say, “I’ll wait.”

How can you build a positive vibe around your life and leadership?