Coaching to Success

Our business is your success

Neil Nutburn

Here’s a tool to help you make Quick, Decisive decisions!…

Whether you believed in her methods, political standing or manner, in her time, Margaret Thatcher made strong decisions and stood by them. Amending them only if and when proved to be needed and by keeping one step ahead of her rivals!

This is no different in the world of business today and keeping one step ahead of the competition is critical to lead the way forward , making decisive decisions quickly and assertively is more important now than it has ever been.

US Air Force Colonel John Boyd created a model (OODA – Observe, Orient, Decide, Act) whilst looking at the advantages of US aircraft over Russian rivals which, although quicker and more manoeuvrable, didn’t have the visual clarity of the F-86 which won the day.

Business is similar in its deliverance and, as its name suggests, the ‘Loop’ can be entered at any point and continues to revolve and evolve. So how does it work?

This tool helps towards making effective, quick and pro-active decision-making. These four stages are…

  • OBSERVE – Collate and gather information from a variety of different sources. The more information you can ‘observe’ and take in here, the more accurate your perception will be. Question what’s happening in the environment that both directly and indirectly affects me. What’s happening now that may have a lasting affect later on? Are predictions accurate? What’s the difference between these and reality?
  • ORIENT – Analyse and digest this data. Compare it with your own. Boyd identified five main influences: (1) Cultural traditions (2)Genetic heritage (3) The ability to analyse and synthesize (4) Previous experience (5) New information coming in. How you interpret a situation leads directly to your decision. By becoming more aware of your perceptions, moving through the decision loop becomes quicker and more effective. If you can make assessment of the situation and the environment around you faster than your competition, you’ll have an advantage. It’s important to be constantly re-orienting.
  • DECIDE – Establish and determine the course of action to take. Based on the observations made and the orientation used, a stronger evaluated decision can be made. While continuing to cycling through the OODA Loop, new suggestions arrive and these can be incorporated triggering changes in Decisions and the consequent Action. These new ‘understandings’ are brought in during the Orient phase, which in turn influences the rest of the decision making process.
  • ACT – Do it! Follow through on your decisions. Once your actions have been reached, cycle back to the Observe stage, to judge the effects of your action. Keep learning from what your competition is doing as well as being aware of your own developments!

This model is designed to be fluid and not static. Observe the results of your actions, seeing whether you’ve achieved the results you intended. Keep as a continual process, the faster you can move through each stage the better.

The objective of this model is to increase speed through orientation and reorient based on new date forthcoming.

When you start operating within your opponent’s Loop,  your competitor starts reacting to environmental changes as opposed to trying to be ahead of them because that’s where you are. Working on the offensive, making strikes and forcing them to react to you.

Should you, your team members or someone within your team(s) be indecisive or wanting to find better ways to make positive decisions, Coaching to Success utilise these and many other tools to help you and invites you to contact us to open conversations on how we can assist in this or other areas that you, your company or firm are wishing to excel at.

Please contact Nutburn on 07761 187238 or send an email to info@coachingtosuccess.co.uk to arrange a free, no obligation consultation.

Our business is about your success and your future successes are in your hands so give us a call so we can help you turn the ideas into reality.

How do you intend to ‘GROW’ your businesses? This Model may help!

Spring is taking it’s time to start but much like the blossom it brings, businesses need to plant the seeds to develop too and, as a business coach, one model we use is the ‘GROW’ model which is an acronym for Goal, Reality, Options and Will.

This is a great tool you can use on yourself or your team as a progressive leader who wants to encourage the best out of those around them. This tool works particularly well when no assumptions are made. It is the coachee who has the answers in them and, in turn, creates a greater likelihood of the actions (a) being carried out and (b) to a higher standard as it is their Goal and not the Coach’s!

  • STEP 1 – ESTABLISH THE GOAL … What is the goal? What needs to be achieved? What behaviours need to be modified? To grab another acronym, insure it’s SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, Time bound). Know the measure by which the individual or team know they have reached their goal.

 

  • STEP 2 – QUESTION HOW REAL IT IS … This is a critical step allowing you to establish what is happening now and what are the likely outcomes by remaining unchanged? How does the new goal interact with company/firm objectives, do they harmonise or conflict? Have any steps already been taken, if so, what happened or is happening.

 

  • STEP 3 – OPTION EXPLORATION … No ‘idea’ is stupid! It may not fit with the goal at this time but who’s to say it won’t work later. It is often the quiet individual who can go un-noticed due to the more vociferous member(s) of the group! Let ideas fly, use a board to brainstorm, write up everything that’s been suggested. Avoid asking ‘Why’ (justification) question, use more of the exploratory ‘What, Who, How’. Allow free flowing thoughts, without fear of ridicule. The goal is more likely to be achieved as individuals take ownership for them. Where there may be blockage, suggestions such as “What would be the outcome if you were to consider…”. And a favourite of mine “… and what else could you do?” and keep repeating that same question.

 

  • STEP 4 – THE WILL or WAY FORWARD … From ‘O’, establish which would have the greatest benefits. Now it’s time to nail it down by carrying out ‘Specific’ actions, creating a timeline. What is to be done, who else may be involved, when are you going to start. Look at setting rewards for completing tasks or at stages throughout. Establish what will keep them positively motivated. What’s the frequency of review to insure they remain on track.

 

Coaching to Success frequently use this tool and can be used well by those who really show leadership qualities. As a business coach, we know how to delve that little bit deeper to understand obstacles or barriers that may not be revealed due to the closeness or simple fact of both parties being employed by the same company. Being external, we’re trained how to listen intently and ask further incisive questions to find those little diamonds often missed.

Have a go. See how you get on with this and once you’ve seen the success this will bring and would like to explore what other benefits coaching can bring, contact us by calling Neil Nutburn on 07761 187238 or send an email to info@coachingtosuccess.co.uk to arrange a free, no obligation consultation.

Our business is about your success and your future successes are in your hands so give us a call so we can help you turn the ideas into reality.

Four steps to effective decision making…

The CBI and British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) want tens of 1000’s of new homes to be built, creating new jobs and providing affordable homes! Ok, but then there’s the issue of WHERE! Nobody wants loads of new homes built on their own doorstep! But we can all see the benefit of how this will help commerce and firms in general.

So, much like in your own business, it’s down to making difficult decisions. How do you make these important decisions?? Read on to gain Four steps to effective decision making:

Constructive environment.

  • What are you hoping to achieve from this? – Define it clearly
  • How is the decision going to be made? Yourself? A team? What’s the best way of deciding? Ascertain this.
  • Who needs to be involved? Contact all relevant stakeholders and allow them to have input
  • Why are you doing this? Encourage people to step up with their opinions for the better of the whole. (It’s not a competition just to see who can have their idea adopted)

Positive alternatives.

  • Many heads working together create ideas that you simply may have not considered. Use those around you to Brainstorm to generate fresh ideas. (Henry Ford realised the strength of his engineers and used them, as they were hands on, to come up with solutions)
  • Grab a different perspective! Get your team members to swap hats. Sales to look at it from the accountant’s point of view. Logistics from the customer. Solicitor’s language for the client etc.
  • Consider the ‘KJ method’ (Kawakita Jiro). The what? Allow everyone to make random suggestions then group each idea under a title banner (eg. Not enough time to have a break, don’t feel appreciated, get teams together to meet more frequently under ‘Staff Morale’ etc). Then ascertain which topic needs addressing first due to comments made.

Choose the best alternative. 

  • Consider the Grid Analysis tool. Taking Options and Factors and creating a matrix that weighs them together to obtain a strong result where many areas are needed to be considered.
  • Another is ‘Nominal Group Technique’ for decisions across a number of people. Often with outcomes such as spending finance. All ideas are listed. each person puts these in their preferred order, ie favourite is #1, least is #7 (if there are 7 headings etc). When all are received and tallied, the overall decision will be for the item with the ‘lowest’ score.

Communicate your decision, and take action.

  • Critical to any success. Talk about why that particular decision was made (this is no longer open for debate). Openly discuss the potential benefits as well as risks involved, make it balanced. From this point, check out articles on ‘Change Management’ on our web to cover this subject.

These are but an informal way of introducing ways to help decision making. Coaching to Success utilise these and many other tools to help you with the process of this and invites you to contact us to open conversations on how we can assist in this or other areas that you, your company or firm are wishing to excel at.

Please contact Nutburn on 07761 187238 or send an email to info@coachingtosuccess.co.uk to arrange a free, no obligation consultation.

Our business is about your success and your future successes are in your hands so give us a call so we can help you turn the ideas into reality.

If you want to win ‘by-election’!, then you have to first listen

Politics isn’t everybody’s cup of tea but just as a comparison, the current political situation in Eastleigh, Nr Southampton is all about who can shout the loudest, parties all trying to make their point heard and this is no different in the world of commerce… It all comes down to ‘communication’.

In coaching/mentoring, we often refer to ‘Two of these and one of these, use in that order’ referring to our ears and mouth. As an individual, business owner, company, solicitor or practice then this advice rings true too and to succeed, you first have to listen … not just hear but ‘truly’ listen! In this age of whiz-by technology, can we honestly say we do as the next distraction flashes across our retinas?

So, to win the hearts and minds of people, first listen. Here’s 5 tips to help you achieve this:

  • LET ME PROVE I’M LISTENING – Body language and actions that show you are. The occasional ‘Uh-huh’ or ‘yes’ encourages the speaker to continue. Use facial expressions appropriately like smiling. Nod in affirmation. Create a welcoming and open posture.
  • I AM PAYING ATTENTION – Refrain from reading/glancing at those emails or reports that find their way onto your desk. Look at the speaker not at other things. Don’t predict and mentally prepare a rebuttal. Look at the speaker’s body language and listen to that too! Try to put aside other distracting thoughts.
  • I WILL RESPOND APPROPRIATELY – Refrain from letting emotions over-run and take over what you really need to say. By all means, assert your opinion but do this respectfully. Do not hide, be open and honest with your reply and remember to always treat others in the same respect that you wished to be treated yourself.
  • LET ME GIVE YOU SOME FEEDBACK – A great way to repeat back what you have heard or your interpretation of what you ‘believe’ was meant. Turn it back so the speaker knows you are actually listening and has chance to make further clarification should it be needed. Use phrases such as “What I’m hearing is…”, “My understanding of this is …”. Every now and then, summarise back to the speaker just to ensure they know you are listening. And remember, if you are starting to get emotional about what is being said, do not make assumptions and react but ask for further clarification.
  • OK, LET ME HOLD BACK ON JUDGEMENT – As the ratio was stated before, 2-to1. Listen more intently before interrupting to make your point. The speaker will more than likely be put off a logical thought process in their deliverance and the outcome will likely be a more emotive conversation without being able to gain the full understanding. Allow the speaker to complete what they are saying ‘before’ raising questions.

It may sound easy when someone asks of you whether you are an ‘active’ listener… it isn’t. If it were, maybe our politicians would gain much more credence by listening and not just shouting. As a person, you will also gain the respect of those around you whilst also understanding what the people want.

Coaching to Success does just that, we listen first then ask incisive questions to dig further to the truth of what is being said. Should you be looking to develop your business, start off by talking to someone who will listen to your needs, call us to arrange a free consultation by contacting Neil (07761 187238) or throw us an email at info@coachingtosuccess.co.uk. We’re here to help.

MULTITASKING! – Does it Really help you get more done?

To seemingly increase our productivity, many of us multitask with activities like being on the phone to a client/customer while reading through emails. The call ends and as we write up notes, we call a colleague. They answer and during that call we enter appointments in the diary/outlook as well as work through figures for a quote/invoice etc!

People who multitask are seen as effective as well as efficient in this hectic world that we’ve made for ourselves because we all know we get more done when we multitask… don’t we?

The Allegory of Productivity Through Multitasking

In simple terms, Multitasking doesn’t make us more productive! It IS a MYTH.

Studies show we can waste up to 40% of our time multitasking. Not saving time. Not being creative. Wasting it! Contrary to belief, we can’t actually focus on more than one task at a time. But we think we can so that’s the route we take.

Here’s a thought. Try having an emotionally charged conversation about whether it’s problematic or not to have horsemeat in our processed lasagne (hmm, rather topical at the moment) or something based around work that is a bit contentious and do this while writing an important report needing to be presented to the board or partners! Extreme but it sets an obvious benchmark for something that isn’t so obvious due to the extremes, nonetheless, even smaller tasks are affected.

What can I do?

A quick question… when you’ve accomplished something that you have allowed yourself to give full attention to, how satisfied did you feel. Also, to what level of standard was it achieved?

So what can be done? “It’s not that easy, I have soooooo many tasks, jobs, people to see over. I have to multitask” I hear the cries call out. Okay, I’m as guilty as the next person when it comes to attempting more than one task at a time but areas that I look at trying to help me, fall into the following:

EMAILS – Turn off audible or visual warnings that an email had arrived. Helps avoid the temptation to continually check each and every new one.

MONOTASK SETTING – Focus on one task at a time. Although ‘Emergencies’ may arise, can you assess their urgency? Do they all need to be done NOW?

PROCRASTINATION – One of my favourite words! Try to guide your wandering thoughts back to where or what you are doing. If thoughts drift, acknowledge what you’re doing and a little self-talk of getting back onto the item in hand will at least help you regain focus.

BLOCK PLAN – knowing you have emails or calls to make, block in time throughout your day to accomplish these and do it then.

AVOID THE DARK SIDE – (I hope that’s not infringing copyright! hehe). When you are expecting to carry out a task, avoid wandering just to ‘check’ text or emails or even voicemails. Take a deep breathe, resist and get back to the task in hand.

STOP JUGGLING – You will inevitably drift back into to quagmire of multitasking and when you do, take a short break from everything! Allow your mind to re-focus, the stress levels to reduce and concentration to reframe itself.

PRIORITISE – Not only important but ‘urgent’ issues will come, there is no escaping this, however, take note of where you are concerning your current task. Jot notes to help you pick it up again and then deal with the ‘urgent’ (and truly assess its urgency over possible distraction or enjoyment (procrastination!)) issue. Once complete, return to the original task and pick up from where you left off as a result of the notes you made.

With any hope, this blog will have helped towards re-looking at the way we think about multitasking and how it actually reduces the ‘quality’ of our work. The fact it doesn’t normally save but creates more time accomplishing a given task and this is as a result of reducing our ability to focus.

Coaching to Success fully understands that this isn’t going to be an overnight cure for the multitasking junkies, however, with luck and some concentration, it may help you towards focusing better on tasks. We are here to support you in this and many other ways.

Why not read some of the historic blogs again, have a look at the web and then pick up the phone or send an email for an informal chat about how we can help you succeed in your goals or aspirations. Call Neil Nutburn on 07761 187238 or send an email to info@coachingtosuccess.co.uk to arrange a free, no obligation consultation.

Our business is about your success and your future successes are in your hands so give us a call so we can help you turn the ideas into reality.