Coaching to Success

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KOOL AND THE GANG HAVE IT RIGHT… CELEBRATE GOOD TIMES, COME ON!

Back in January I wrote a blog all about increased productivity through enjoyment and what is the country like at this moment in time, what with the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, and so many of us getting the feel good factor let alone mixing up the celebrations with friends and families?

We feel so much better when we celebrate and this isn’t restricted to just personal areas. Within work, how much better do we feel when someone recognises something we’ve done or the power that the simplest of words ‘thank you’ have on the way we feel and act within our work?

As a leader, a manager, or a peer to others recognising and celebrating employee achievements or events in their personal lives as well as the workplace can help keep up employee morale and commitment to company objectives.

Here are some very simple steps to consider when at work, as you see the opportunity, to use them on your team or peers or, come to that, your line managers and superiors (it doesn’t have to always go down the line!), grab that chance as a happy workplace is a really conducive one that has the same ‘positive’ wave that ripples out as does those negative ones we all too frequently receive.

1st Step: Look for and find everyday reasons to celebrate

Don’t just wait for Birthdays or someone leaving to create a celebration. Every month celebrate … it’s easy to find something if you simply look for it!

2nd Step: Set up a group whose job it is to celebrate!

Look within the organisation and find those who can get involved with getting the message out. Find scouts who can report back on items the company can celebrate. Is someone doing a charity run, maybe even the Marathon, celebrate what they aim to do and when they’ve done it… create a celebration committee, let others help you find the good news.

3rd Step: ALL employees count, acknowledge everyone’s input

Morale in the workplace can suffer, especially if their work is great but no-one tells them! Exemplary work by a team, in larger organisations, or a member of staff are great for reasons to celebrate but don’t just wait for the ‘Big’ success. At every opportunity, express your thanks and gratitude and in larger organisations, where everyone doesn’t necessarily know what everyone else does, use this platform to elucidate the roles in which certain people or departments play in the company.

4th Budget for Celebration

This doesn’t have to be a massive outlay but even the smallest amount spent out will reap huge benefits in return. Insure this is consistent and not just a one-off but don’t just offer lip service, it has to be sincere and have substance otherwise it will be viewed as nothing more than a pointless PR exercise.

5th Step: Let everyone know through mementos

Take your team to an off-site venue, maybe an annual employee celebration awards ceremony or if a smaller organisation, the Christmas bash. Wherever, create a day if needs be and offer out mementos on a yearly, bi-annual or even monthly basis and give out Key-fobs, Pens, T-shirts, whatever your budge can spread to so this acts as a reminder of achievements and instils a feeling of wanting to repeat again.

Remember how you feel when something you’ve achieved is celebrated by someone else! Think positively of how you feel when outstanding work that someone else has done has been recognised and the recognition this brings! Hopefully this will start you on your path towards celebrations but if there is or are some areas that you feel you could still do with some additional support, Coaching to Success are here, just call Neil (07761 187238) to arrange a free consultation on how we can help. We’d also appreciate any feedback on these blogs as to whether you find them interesting, beneficial or otherwise (neil.nutburn@coachingtosuccess.co.uk). Many thanks.

CONFIDENCE… WELL, IT’S EASY FOR YOU TO SAY BUT I’M NOT SO SURE I HAVE IT!

In every walk of life we see those individuals who appear to have their heads held high and strut around like proud peacocks but even those majestic and seemingly confident people can have elements of doubt when it comes to doing something they’re not familiar with or, as the expression goes, when stepping out of their ‘comfort zone’.

Flipping it back to the positive, how do these people build this sense of balanced self-confidence? Well It’s not about waving a magic wand and creating a quick fix solution but with confidence comes confidence and it’s like the building of a home, spend some time to get the foundations right and then the house goes up quickly thereafter.

There are many ways that Coaching to Success can help and part of what we do is to encourage a set of 9 exercises as listed below.

1 – BREATHE:  When you are nervous, you should not talk, but breathe until you calm down. This also works in cases where one is preparing for a big event and is stressed out.

2- GET A NOTEBOOK: Record all the good things that you manage to do. Write down everything that you do well from your workplace or from home, you will start to gain a decent level of self-confidence. Whenever you feel down, open this notebook and start reading it. These are evidence based notes.

3- BODY LANGUAGE: The next time when you feel down, look at your posture. You are probably walking with a very bad posture. If so, change it right then: eyes forward, back straight, keep your head high.

4- SET GOALS: If you do not have goals in your life then you do not know where you are going. Set goals in every area of your life. Every area! Work, personal life, social life, health and fitness, and everything else that is important to you. Set goals that are very clear and have a certain deadline on them. Put numbers in all your goals because that is the best way your brain works.

5- EXPAND: One of the simplest confidence building exercises is to expand one’s knowledge area. Try to find the areas that you really need at work or at home and start becoming better at those because they will help you the most. The more you know the better you will feel. Just get out of your cosy comfort zone and build your confidence! It’s not hard to read a couple of pages from a coaching related book each day. With competence, comes confidence

6 – COMPLIMENT YOURSELF: Have you ever complimented yourself on a daily basis? If not, set about changing that. You don’t need to let someone else see you while you are doing this. Say things like: “I am truly amazing! Just to think of how fast I solved that problem!”, “Wow, Fred came to me to help him as he knew I could help and I did”

7 – EXERCISE AT WORK: If you have been in a working environment, you have surely started to notice the things that you seem to do better than others. Maybe others even told you that you have a special something about what you do at work. What can you do better than others and with no effort? There is surely at least one if not more things that you really shine at. Find these things, then, admit to yourself that you can do this better than others and commit to becoming even better on it. Congratulate yourself from time to time about your particular ability and cherish it.

8 – THE MINDSET: Get into a CAN DO mind set”.  Become a person that rarely says “No”, “I can’t do this”, “Have to”, “Should”, “Must”, “I’ll do it later”.  These words are toxic for your self-confidence. Slowly and very surely killing all the self-esteem and self-confidence you have. Use strong, motivating words like “I will do this”, “I am doing it”, “Sure”, “Yes”, “Of course I can do it”, “I can”.

9 – SELF-HYPNOSIS: At night, when you feel sleepy, lie in your bed and repeat this simple affirmations:

“I am a unique creation. I am special with every single cell in my body. I can do anything. Anything. Anything that I set my mind to do. There is no one and nothing that can stop me. If I truly want something I will achieve it. I will put all my strength in my actions and I will break any obstacle that may rise. I am a great person! I feel positive energy running through my entire body. I know now that I am confident in my abilities and in myself. I am amazing!”

These are intended to make you feel better about yourself and to start making you more aware of the extraordinary powers you have within your soul. Another positive affirmations for the morning, just so that you start you day in a positive way:

“This day will be wonderful for me! I will live one of the best days of my life today! Everything in the Universe will help me with every step that I make! I feel like a new man/women! I feel amazing! I am certain that this day will be one of those days that I will remember my entire existence! I feel self-confident and sure that I will do great things today! I am a person who does things! I am a winner!”

Make sure that you say this as soon as you wake up because that is one of the moments when we are most receptive.

Hopefully this will start you on your path towards confidence but if there is or are some areas that you feel you could still do with some additional support, Coaching to Success are here to help, just call Neil (07761 187238) to arrange a free consultation on how we can help. We’d also appreciate any feedback on these blogs as to whether you find them interesting, beneficial or otherwise (neil.nutburn@coachingtosuccess.co.uk). Many thanks.

OH-LÀ-LÀ, THE FRENCH ARE IN FOR SOME MAJOR CHANGE… ARE YOU CONSIDERING CHANGE?

With Francois Hollande taking up the reins of French Government, there are to be many changes as a result of Nicolas Sarkozy’s departure. Much like their situation, should you be in the process of or considering change within your company or personal life, then this may well help get or keep you on track for a successful outcome.

There are primarily 6 stages for a successful implementation of change, these being…

  1. 1.  Create a ‘Change Plan’ – Before you can start any changes, it is crucial that you formulate a ‘project plan’ that not only looks at why change is necessary but to cater for the timeline, who does what, should they apply logistics, what are the major tasks involved and how it will be implemented. Assess all the possible options available and then select the one most appropriate but should this not bring about the desired results, then you have the other ideas for back-up. Finally, don’t fix this plan in stone, allow it to breathe so it’s a work in progress of which improvements can be introduced.
  2. 2.  Clear Direction (Establish a persuasive case and a sense of urgency) – It’s no good having changes just because you’re bored of the way things are! There HAS to be understanding as to why change is necessary and that a clear set of arguments for change is laid out. Not only this, but a planned ‘action’ timescale for it to be within.
  3. 3.  Clear Leadership (& ownership) – As with ‘Clear Direction’, you also need to establish clarity around who is leading the way. Not only for the leader(s) but for the teams and members of the organisation too. Should there be more than one leader, then a united front needs to be forged which gives out a clear message to all those affected that the leadership team is working in unison towards the same goal. Once this has been established, accountability is given thus introducing ownership. ‘R.A.C.I.’ is a great model for this (Responsibility, Accountability, Consult, Inform). We’re here to help with this should you so wish.
  4. 4.  Consistent Communications (Early and often) – Poor communication is the bane of many a working environment but it is critical that poor communication is NOT a factor when change is imminent. There’s an old adage that goes “Tell them what you’re going to tell them… Tell them… and tell them what you told them” and make sure the message is as clear as day, without it, people perceive things in their own manner which may well be different from the intended outcome. Keep re-enforcing and making sure everyone involved AND affected are kept up to date with progress. Do not simply rely on ‘email’ to get your message out, use all forms of communication from face to face through to conferences to presentations to text (if it helps!). To be kept informed insures that innocent comments or ideas don’t grow to uncontrollable monsters with their own thoughts.
  5. 5.  Maintain & Measure the Progress – Once the change has been started, make sure the momentum is kept up and that communications (as stated before) are flowing because if those involved or affected by change don’t see what’s happening, they can easily ‘presume’ that the change will not be happening, more so, they presume the ‘Need’ has also dissipated! As part of the original plan, develop the relevant milestones which can be celebrated loudly at every juncture. This then keeps the process clear in everyone’s mind so that all can work towards it.
  6. 6.  Anchor New Approaches – From what has been said earlier, people need to see the change and the leadership team’s role is to insure that this is embedded in. This can be brought about by Recognising and reinforcing the positive behaviours in those directly involved; Insure the ‘Vision’ is kept alive by communicating it; Create the ‘We’ approach rather than the ‘Them or They’; Set challenging and realistic goals; Show clear links between the objectives set and the team success; Recognise those individuals or teams that do well and celebrate as a team; Embed a ‘Team’ approach with on-going development and, as important, support. Finally, from the offset, make the ‘New’ way the ‘Normal’ way!

 These are but the outline areas for a successful transition of change but are principally the actions needed to insure a positive outcome. Should you be going through the process of change and feel you could do with that little extra push, then call Neil (07761 187238) to arrange a free consultation on how Coaching to Success can help you. We’d also appreciate any feedback on these blogs as to whether you find them interesting, beneficial or otherwise (neil.nutburn@coachingtosuccess.co.uk). Many thanks.

I DON’T HAVE A TEAM, I HAVE A BUNCH OF INDIVIDUALS!!!

In these times, we are finding people are more inclined to look after themselves first and the team they’re in second. It’s not a detrimental statement and there will be arguments against this, however, in light of what I’m seeing in the ‘uncertain’ job market, this is becoming apparent.

The important thing is though, is that we are pack animals and work so much better in a pack or a team to produce results far greater than doing them alone. There’s a simple statement used in coaching which reads:

INEFFECTIVE TEAMS: The output of the team is MUCH LESS than the sum of the individuals

EFFECTIVE TEAMS: The output of the team is FAR GREATER than the sum of the individuals

So, based on this a vision for the future would be a great way to start and an exercise that will help bond people together to (a) understand as a group and not individually what the company vision is and (b) to get them working together to build that image, literally!

It’s a little bit of fun but with dramatic outcome.

FIRST – Grab all those magazines around the office or ask people to bring them in from home. Doesn’t matter what the magazines are (actually, scrub that, there ARE some that may not be wise to bring in!).

NEXT- Set a time that the team you’re in can all get together and book anything between half an hour to an hour to allow some feedback and discussions.

NEXT- Make sure you have scissors, glue, flipchart or large sheets of paper & marker pens. It’s believed we are inclined to move towards what we ‘think’ about most and this is frequently a ‘visual’ representation. So, create that ‘vision’ that we want the workplace to look like in order for our ‘team’ to function at its peak performance.

NEXT- As a TEAM, set to with scissors and glue to cut out letters, words & images from the magazine and glue them to the paper. Fill in spaces with your own artistic flare using the pens if needs be.

NEXT – Spend just 15 to 20 minutes on this masterpiece and, one by one, sign your autograph so the collage is a clear representation of what you and your colleagues see as the future. Once this exercise is complete, place the collage somewhere that everyone in the team can see it on a daily basis.

NEXT – Print off the following questions, ask them of the team as if someone outside was asking them so everyone can speak freely. (1) How did you ‘feel’ about cutting up magazines and gluing them to a piece of paper? (2) As you got into it, how did you then feel about it? (3) How was the relationship between each member formed? (4) How did it relate to other methods of working together? (5) How much does the collage differ from the present reality? (7) How can you work together to bring this image to reality? (8) What is your own personal role in helping to achieve this vision?  (9) To ensure you reach it, what steps do you individually and harmoniously need to take to start on the route towards it? (10) Once on that track, how do you stay on it? (11) and how do you monitor the progress? (12) What rewards and at what intervals are these rewards taken, finally (13) How many of you noticed there wasn’t a question ‘6’? No reason other than to test observation which will have an impact on your relationship within teams if you are unaware of things that are around you as well as things that are missing!

Coaching to Success is all about working together and should you be in a team, know of a team or are about to create a team to move towards the desired goal and feel that you could benefit from an external expert, all you have to do is call Neil on 07761 187238 or send an email to neil.nutburn@coachingtosuccess.co.uk to book a free consultation and see how reaching the stars isn’t as far fetched or reaching as you may have first imagined. Working together, teams outperform organisations that are just made up of numbers!

NEO’s NOT THE ONLY ONE WITH A MATRIX!

Now the clocks have changed and we have more daylight hours, how come we’re finding even less time to get on and do things and those things we need to do are now ‘URGENT’?

Here’s a simple matrix devised by Stephen Covey that looks at taking control of your time and realising where you’re spending it.

Grab an A4 sheet of paper and divide into quarters. Above the top two, write ‘URGENT’ in the left and ‘NOT URGENT’ in the right. Along the left of the top write ‘IMPORTANT, and left of the bottom, write ‘NOT IMPORTANT…

So, your quarters will be Top Left (No.1) ‘Urgent/Important’, Top Right (No.2) ‘Not Urgent/Important’, Bottom Left (No.3) ‘Urgent/Not Important’, Bottom Right (No.4) ‘Not Urgent/Not Important’, viola, your matrix.

No.1= MANAGE: Crisis, Medical emergencies, Pressing problems, Deadline driven projects etc.

No.2= FOCUS: Preparation & Planning, Prevention, Exercise, Relationship building etc.

No.3= AVOID: Interruptions, Texts, Calls, Some emails, Popular activities etc.

No.4= AVOID: Trivia, procrastination, Mindless TV, Junk Mail, idle telephone call when things need to be done etc.

Now look at where you spend your time. Ideally No.2 is where you will be most productive. Planning ahead so that items don’t suddenly find themselves in box 1!! Look at your own activities during the day or week and see what takes up your time and see where you can plan things in more efficiently.

Hopefully that will help, however, if time management is an area that either you or someone in your team or the team itself suffers from, Coaching to Success has a variety of ways to help with ‘Time Management’ so contact us for a FREE Introductory chat or send an email to neil@coachingtosuccess.co.uk where you’ll be assured a friendly and positive greeting.