Are you rowing or steering? Part 2 of 2

In our last blog post below, we discussed whether you’re rowing or steering your business and said it depends on which way you’re facing.

Today, we want to give you simple sentence to remember the difference. Read each sentence below and note the preposition (short italicized word).

Rowing: You work IN the business instead of ON the business.

Steering: You work ON the business instead of IN the business.

If you’re rowing, you’re bogged down in the day-to-day operations of your business. In contrast, if you’re steering, you’re in the ideal position to take it to the next level. Which sentence best describes you?

TAKE THE NEXT STEP
To learn more about rowing versus steering or see if you qualify for a free assessment, contact:

Tom Moellering, president
tmoellering@moellering.com
888-906-4111, x302
moellering.com

Are you rowing or steering? Part 1 of 2

Look closely at this picture. What do you see? A speedboat and a rowboat, right?

These two boats symbolize two very different approaches to running your business—and it all comes down to the 1) direction you’re facing and 2) what you’re focusing on.

For instance, if you’re rowing, you’re positioned so that you’re always looking backward. Steering, on the other hand, puts you forward facing and in the driver’s seat, focusing on future opportunities. Think of the implications for your business.

Rowing makes you tired and grouchy. Steering invigorates. What business boat are you in today?

TAKE THE NEXT STEP
To learn more about rowing versus steering, or to see if you qualify for a free assessment, contact:

Tom Moellering, president
tmoellering@moellering.com
888-906-4111, x302
moellering.com

Is Your Leadership Boxed In?

What box are you in? How does your box effect your corporate profits, your leadership, your decision making, and your employees?

Are Your Emotions Boxing In Profits?

Do your emotions impact performance and profitability? The answer is yes, but whether it has a positive or negative impact depends on you.

No matter where you are in your career, no matter what industry your organization focuses on, the desired outcome is high performance that leads to sustained profitability. The centerpiece of high performance is a combination of good decision-making and your emotional intelligence. Whether the decisions to be made impact hundreds of people or they are the smaller ones made on a daily basis, these decisions and your emotional intelligence make all the difference.

As a leader, you have tremendous impact on the tone and culture of the organization. Your emotional intelligence affects the team’s emotions and actions. These interactions generate a response which travels down the chain in your organization impacting the culture, employee engagement & performance, and ultimately the bottom line through your customer’s satisfaction & buying behaviors.

Sadly, most leaders fail to recognize this connection and unintentionally “box in” the ability to generate profits. When the negative consequences of the emotional boxes of mood, emotions, frustration, anger, etc. are overlooked they impact and distort decision-making for everyone in the company. The result is a cascading effect in your organization of negativity, anger, resentment, self-protection, and employee disengagement. The focus shifts from profitability to self-preservation, and in that environment no one wins.

The key factors in emotional intelligence are:

1. Self-Awareness – The ability to recognize and understand your moods, emotions, and drives, as well as their effect on others.
2. Self-Regulation – The ability to control or redirect disruptive impulses and moods and the propensity to suspend judgment and think before acting.
3. Motivation – A passion to work for reasons that go beyond money or status and a propensity to pursue goals with energy and persistence.
4. Empathy – The ability to understand the emotional makeup of other people.
5. Social Skills – A proficiency in managing relationships and building networks.

Think about your own organization for a moment; over the last six months how many of your decisions have been “boxed in” by poor emotional management? How many of your people are “boxed in” by their emotions? Which of the five areas of emotional intelligence are boxing in your profits?

Emotional management is crucial in leadership. You can either capitalize on it as a competitive advantage or let it continue to decrease profitability.

To truly benefit from your emotional intelligence you must accurately identify where your strengths and weaknesses are in this area. We can help you determine your emotional intelligence and how to leverage it to your advantage. Isn’t it time to take the lid off your box?

How Do You Measure Success? Servant Leader Round Table

How do you measure success in your business? What kind of measurement tools are you using? Do you use Biblical Principles?

A Powerful Approach to Accomplishing Your Goals

Here’s a simple yet powerful approach to accomplishing your goals. Start by thinking of the word “goals.” Envision the word “goals” as an acrostic, with each letter standing for a word or phrase.

For example:

Goals
Objective results
Activity results
Length of time
Schedule

Now let’s explore what you would do in each step.

1. Goals
List a few specific goals you want to accomplish. Write them so they are clear and measurable. Now, pick one of your goals and apply the following steps.

2. Objective results
Define the results you hope to obtain as you accomplish this goal. Since many goals are large and overwhelming, break the goal down into small, measureable steps.

(A side note. . . Train yourself to think in terms of results. That is, focus first on the results required to accomplish your goal, instead of the activities needed,)

3. Activity results
Next, define the activities you must accomplish to achieve your first step. For instance, your first step may be “To develop my overall plan to accomplish this goal.” Other steps may include smaller projects, assignments to others, or “to-do” activities.

4. Length of time
It’s critical to make each goal time-sensitive. Specify both the time you will need to achieve your results and the completion date. Be realistic and allow ample time to get the job done. In addition, if your next action step requires someone else’s help, make sure you get their “buy-in” and commitment.

5. Schedule
Finally, block out the time you need on your calendar to accomplish your goals. Begin by blocking out half-hour to an hour (at the most). Remember, you still have all of your normal activities to perform, too.

Now that you have your GOALS and steps recorded, you will need to visit them periodically. I recommend reviewing them and assessing your progress on a weekly basis.

Tracking your progress is what helps you become a top performer.

Finding & Fixing Performance Potholes

We all know the damage a pothole can inflict upon a vehicle. Just imagine what performance potholes are doing to your company.

The simple truth is no pothole ever filled itself.

In today’s changing and competitive business environment you cannot afford to leave the “potholes” unfilled. Your role as a leader is to initiate and sustain the momentum around performance improvement for your people. It is essential that you equip your leaders with the right information, tools, metrics and actions to fill the performance potholes in the organization.

I suppose you could say that your people have a lot in common with roads. Over time, their deficiencies become more obvious and present greater challenges. In a road the weak points grow into potholes. In employees they develop into lower productivity, missed business goals, squandered opportunities, and ultimately lost revenue.

One of the best methods to fill “potholes” is conducting a 360 survey assessment. The 360 process provides your people with accurate, quantitative information about their capabilities, while making it easier for you to identify their key strengths and development needs. Ratings are collected from multiple perspectives – self, manager, peers, and direct reports. Then, the results are analyzed and reported back in a way which makes it easy to determine which issues are most important.

By using a 360 assessment your organization can quickly and accurately diagnose the strengths and weaknesses of an individual employee in key areas like:

Leadership
• Visioning & Strategic Focus
• Driving For Results
• Building High Performance Teams
• Acquiring & Developing Outstanding People
• Interpersonal Skills
• Leading & Managing Change
• Leading Through Personal Excellence

Management
• Make Things Happen
• Problem Analysis and Decision Making
• Communication Skills
• Interpersonal Skills
• Leadership Skills
• Technical/Functional Expertise
• Leading/Adapting to Change

The result is a real opportunity to develop and grow your people in ways which increase profitability.

Stop hitting performance potholes.

Our 360 process and tools are easy to use, accurate, cost effective and help you to maximize performance and positively add to your bottom line.

Your Achilles Heel

If your Achilles Heel left unchecked it can become fatal to you as a leader. If what you say and what you do doesn’t align you create a negative gap … or Achilles Heel.

Don’t Be Dull

As a leader are you sharp or dull?

Return on Leadership – Quantum Leaps for Leaders

How do you get the best return on your leadership? Do you spend your time with your top performers or your “B” players? What kind of increase can you bring about?