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Change Management skills required when moving office or premises…

I have recently been involved with two organisations who are moving their whole business and people therein to more suitable premises to handle their situations and growth.

In both cases, the whole focus has been on planning the processes, legal documents are converted through soda pdf which you can view in this site http://online.sodapdf.com, logistics of the move and the how and who of doing it but not necessarily what affect the people will have on the success of the move.

All too often we see the bigger picture of what the move will bring but frequently forget the people who will make this move a success or a failure. A quick transition or a long drawn out one. A beautifully smooth passage or one with mental obstacles at every step.

This then got me thinking that as they were caught up in the process, then so will the majority of others. With this in mind, here are Coaching to Success’ tips to increase the odds of making the transition a much smoother experience.

PLAN – As stated, we often look at the expected ‘outcome’ and frequently from our own perspective without giving as much consideration to the people-side where impact on them is concerned.

I look at people’s working environment noticing their little personal touches which will be altered if a new ‘desk sharing’ policy will be the new regime. Consider what impact this will have on them. And what of those little quirky habits may be associated with the current location compared to the new place, since moving the equipment is easy with the help of services from adtmoving.com but making the people get used to this will be way more complicated. Simple things like mini catch up meetings in the kitchenette while grabbing a coffee that may no longer be available.

Discuss with all stakeholders to allow them the opportunity of raising ideas and concerns. This allows you to squash negative thoughts that likely don’t exist other than in their beliefs. Or to address those that are real.

COMMUNICATE – Communicate often and via different means. Not everyone understands the need for change to their settled working environment or see the benefits. As well as the message itself, think of how you are going to relay it.

I lose count of the times people simply send an email/message! Think of the times you are sent important information via email and leave highlighted as un-read until you get the time to look at… and then forget?

Sending messages is a slippery shoulder exercise of thinking you have informed someone so it is no longer your responsibility or fault if they didn’t read or act on it! Bad news, just because you’ve passed information on, does not negate your responsibility or ownership.

Consider all means to pass vital information on: (i) Face-to-face (ii) Email (iii) Intranet (iv) Presentations/workshops and (v) Social media. Keep in mind, people pay attention to people, so engaging in face-to-face and verbal communication will be key to getting your message across. Email/messaging is useful and timely, but consider that the mood the receiver reads it will dictate their interpretation of what the meaning really is.

OWNERSHIP – Involve everybody in the process. We are communal creatures and even the quiet ones among us like to feel they have a part to play.

Engage ‘Move Champs’ to relay the message and motivate the teams they have been given responsibility for. Not simply the message of process and order but utilise their skills to get the feel-good buzz concerning the benefits of the move.

This requires more than mere buy-in or passive agreement that the direction of change is acceptable. It demands ownership by leaders willing to accept responsibility for making change happen in all of the areas they influence or control.

Ownership is often best created by involving people in identifying problems and crafting solutions. It is reinforced by incentives and rewards.

LISTEN – Be conscious of who your naysayers are and consider what their arguments will be. Better still, invite them (rather than simply ignoring them) to put their points forward.

As a business coach, the most frequent obstacle I observe is leaders expressing their beliefs and demands on others without considering that the other party may actually have a better way of resolving a given situation.

Listen to your people. Do not simply TELL them what they need to do but ASK what they believe to be the best solution. You could be pleasantly surprised if you open your mind to others possibly having an idea you may not have thought of yourself!

“The art of conversation is the art of hearing as well as of being heard.” (William Hazlitt)

PREPARE FOR THE UNEXPECTED – Be understanding but realistic about expectations for the move! We all have our own thoughts on how things should be done or what the outcome looks like for us and this may be somewhat different to reality if we are not kept informed and up to date.

Even the obvious may not be! There will inevitably be changes to the best laid plans and it is not about how these changes affect us but how we deal with them and relay the message to others.

Consider other factors as well, such as staff who may well have had the same regime every day, been located in the same place for years and probably have an emotional attachment to their locale. There can often be a feeling of loss.

Remember, change programmes rarely go to plan. People have an uncanny ability to confuse what we believe to be the perfect solution and the odds of a smooth transition reduces further still the greater the number of people which are likely to be affected. There is no intention to upset the apple-cart but we are dealing with emotional states that rarely are controllable.

Effectively managing change requires continual reconsideration of how individuals will adapt to what comes next. Knowing, analysing and understanding this live data feed, those responsible for change can make real-time adjustments towards reaching the desired outcome.

MAINTENANCE AFTER THE EVENT – So you’ve moved and through careful planning and adapting you have reached your new location, woohoo … but it does not stop there!

Support needs to remain for a while after the transition. Catering for new technologies such as items like the new telephone system, desk sharing, office layouts and many other changes need to constantly be addressed to ease people into the new environment.

Finally, close the door on the old place, both literally and metaphorically by celebrating the success of the move by having an open day or ‘welcome’ event where not only staff are invited by so are suppliers, customers, those involved with the logistics.

Coaching is an exceptional tool to help the transition go as smooth as possible. Coaching to Success are here to help individuals and organisations to understand how coaching can help them help their teams, contact Neil on 07761 187238 or email neil@coachingtosuccess.co.uk, where you will be assured a warm, friendly welcome and the chance to discuss how change management helps moving to become a pleasure rather than a hurdle to overcome.

Why fight when you can negotiate?

Have you ever noticed how such a simple dispute can erupt into Mount Everest? As that saying goes, making a mountain out of a molehill, so why can something so apparently insignificant become such a momentous problem?

All too often what appears ‘insignificant’ to us can ultimately matter to another person(s) and the way we manage a situation can have positive or diverse effects. This is where negotiation has its strengths. But what is negotiation?

Negotiation is about coming to a mutually acceptable impasse that both parties find acceptable. We all know the saying Win:Win.

Some tasks are easy enough to trade off but others may not be so. In this case, follow this guide:

Preparation

  • Know what you are aiming to achieve and what the parties’ objective will be.
  • How will the more ‘powerful’ party affect the negotiation?
  • Based on knowledge or historic events, what do you consider to be the expected outcome?
  • What do you consider to be a fair outcome and the reason behind this thought process.
  • Gains and losses. Consider what the gains and losses will likely be from both sides, not just your own gains.
  • What’s the trade-off?
  • There may not be one simple solution. Do the homework and explore all the available options.

Rules of engagement (Not quite Game of Thrones!)

  • It can get personal but separate the person from the problem. Stick to the facts.
  • 2 ears, 1 mouth – use in that order. Ask and listen.
  • Understand the other’s views and ask to gain further understanding. Your view is not the only one (sorry, it is a fact!)
  • Respect all involved (even if you don’t like them).
  • Explore options openly without bias. Your view may not necessarily be the only or correct one – I know, it’s hard to believe but there may be a better way that you may not have considered.

Negotiation is about creating a win:win situation, not win:lose or even lose:win (refer to Stephen Covey Habit #4 from ‘7 Habits of highly effective people’).

Consider whether the negotiations are based around Distributive (where things are to be apportioned) or Integrative (where the parties are trying to make more of something) bargaining. This can be a great influencer especially if the relationship is a brief interaction or a longer term development.

Distributive can often be a short term, immediate fix for example, buying a new car so negotiation will be based around gaining concessions. An amount of time will be required to ascertain what is each side’s target price, what ideally is the maximum and minimum price for each side so effective bargaining can be made.

Integrative bargaining is normally based around the longer term relationship building of respect and trust. It looks at collaboration to reach a point where all parties work together to have an outcome that is in both parties’ interest.

In essence, we return to the preparation and to succeed in any negotiation, this is by far the most critical element as it creates the strong platform for all to work to.

Coaching to Success understand conflict resolutions and help their clients to move forward when situations come to a head. We also help clients create plans when negotiation or change is necessary to insure a smoother transition so if you or your team are looking to negotiate, contact Neil on 07761 187238 or email neil@coachingtosuccess.co.uk, where you will be assured a warm, friendly welcome and the chance to negotiate ways we can work together (integrative).

Who took my motivation?

Motivation frequently takes a dip as holidays come to an end, change in weather, drop in seasonal sales and even though we have 9000 channels to choose from, nothing to watch on the TV! All or any of the above can impact our day to day survival and how we feel.

What drives our usually positive emotional state down? Why does our demeanour seem to take a downturn and is it pandemic because everyone else seems down too?

Here are some areas to consider:

  • Lack of a clear goal/focus – no sense of direction.
  • Negative self-talk – putting yourself down.
  • Feeling alone – Struggling with an issue or project and feeling it’s yours alone.
  • No end in sight – Workloads seem to be ongoing without a clear end.
  • Too big – Projects that just seem overwhelming.
  • Inability to start – allowing procrastination to step in.

There are countless others too but you may well resonate towards one or more of the above.

As a business coach I don’t ever suffer with lack of motivation … I stink at being a liar. Of course I too occasionally suffer from lacking in the motivation department. Fortunately for me, it never lasts too long as running motivational workshops and seeing many of our clients succeed in their goals (see above!) means I frequently get uplifted by the success’ around me.

As a result, some tips are shared here to help you get back on the motivational band-wagon for happier times.

  1. Clarity – Get the thoughts out of your head and down on paper! Literally write down lists of jobs you have ahead of you. Problems of existing projects. Areas in your life or work that are preventing you from simply moving forward. Clear your brain of all those thoughts vying for the number one spot.
  2. Music – think about it. Those tears you shed at a cinema/film/theatre. That certain piece that makes you feel sad! The opposite effect happens with uplifting music so listen to your favourite tracks, create a playlist of just them. If not possible within the work environment, take some headphones and listen whenever you get the chance and help boost those motivational feelings.
  3. Head for Wembley! – It’s scoring goals that gets the teams to Wembley. So set about achieving as many goals as you can. Start by addressing the ones you ‘want’ to achieve rather than feeling obliged to (someone else’s motivational driver) as you will subconsciously put more effort into these.
  4. Pyramid building – We look at the pyramids and think wow! But they are only one massive project that was split into millions of components. So for those overwhelming tasks, break them into separate, manageable components. I write, design and present workshops on a myriad of subjects. Although most last half/whole day, the amount of work, research and construction for each can take weeks. Before starting, I break them into manageable parts, set timeline for each and plan when I shall undertake them. Overall, the job seems smaller, it takes less time as I get on with it sooner and more efficiently as I know what I am doing for that part without worrying about the rest as that too has been planed.
  5. Stimulation – All too often we can sit and mull over what is bringing us down. We sit and feed it and sit and put things off and sit. You may notice the theme here so the best thing to do is stand, stretch, walk around a little and even go grab a cuppa, shake off the negative feelings.
  6. Plan it – Whether you prefer the electronic or written form of a calendar, write down when you are going to start and block out the time to spend on any new objective. I use Outlook for everything as either my Laptop, pad or mobile pings to remind me of whatever it was I entered and that’s the key, if you use paper system, insure you devise a way to check it.
  7. Feed me or beat me – It may not be PC these days about beating people but we’ve all heard of the Carrot/Stick analogy. Figure out what your drive is. Mine is a really nice filtered coffee and 10 minutes downtime once I’ve written these features. Scale it up according to the task in hand, as you see, I prefer the carrot as the other really isn’t my thing!

At Coaching to Success, we have other tools in our armoury to help individuals or teams achieve levels of motivation. Each are specific to our client’s needs so should you need that support, contact Neil on 07761 187238 or email neil@coachingtosuccess.co.uk, where you will be assured a warm, friendly welcome and the chance to discuss ways we can work together along with his own infectious levels of motivation.

Building confidence within the workplace…

Whether it be others or the simple state of economy and job security, all too often I’m finding people uncertain about taking a risk. Which has taken an effect on both morale and confidence so how can we turn this feeling around?

What are the signs? Consider the following:

  • Making excuses or giving a reason for actions taken. Sometimes aligned to being self-conscious which in its own turn can contribute to self-doubt.
  • Being antagonistic when replying to criticism! Productive criticism, can actually boost one’s confidence if you refrain from taking it as a personal slant against you.
  • Body language! Crossed arms and legs, stand offish posture. Much along the lines of being over defensive in verbal and physical positioning.
  • Wanting things 100% as opposed to settling for anything less. If we believe that this is the only acceptable level, we set ourselves up to fail and reduce our own levels of confidence.

Now let us start the positive side towards self-confidence:

GET A NOTEBOOK: Record all good things that you manage to accomplish. By writing down everything that you do well at work or home, you will start to gain a decent level of self-confidence. Whenever you feel uncertain, open this notebook to read your evidence based notes.

BODY LANGUAGE: Consider your posture! For example, if slumped, raisr eyes forward, back straight, keep your head high.

SET GOALS: If you do not have goals, then how do you know which direction you are heading? Set goals in every area of your life. Every area! Work, personal, social life, health and fitness, and everything else that is important to you. Set goals that are very clear and have a deadline. Make them SMART (Specific-Measurable-Achievable-Relevant-Timely) too.

EXPAND: One of the simplest confidence building exercises is to expand one’s knowledge area. Try to find areas that you need to work or at home and become better at these. Once you start improving in the areas that you need, you will also gain self-esteem and confidence in your own abilities. The more you know the better you will feel. Get out of your cozy comfort zone and move to build your confidence! It’s not hard to regularly read a couple of pages from a coaching blog, watch videos or Listen to audios. Surround yourself with what you want to learn and you will become a true expert in time. With competence, comes confidence

COMPLIMENT YOURSELF: Have you ever complimented yourself on a daily basis? Talk to others about the great things you have achieved today, this week, in the past. 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”

EXERCISE AT WORK: You will have noticed areas you do better than others. Maybe others tell you that you have a special something about what you do? Admit to yourself that you can do this better than others and commit to becoming even better at it. Read books on the subjects, talk to experts in this field. Get to know it and be seen as the go-to person.

THE MINDSET: Become a person that rarely says “No”, “I can’t do this”, “Have to”, “Must”, “I’ll do it later”.  These words are toxic for your self-confidence. Use strong, motivating words like “I will do this”, “I am doing it”, “Sure”, “Yes”, “Of course I can do it”, “I can”.

SELF-HYPNOSIS: Repeat positive affirmations. Search or create your own such as this one for the beginning of the day

 “I feel amazing! I am certain that today will be one of those days that I will remember for a long time! I feel self-confident and sure that I will do great things! I am a person who does things! I am a winner!”

Make sure that you outwardly verbalise when awakening as this is when we are most receptive or, in the past tense when we are ready to sleep and let the subconscious absorb.

Self-confidence will not happen overnight. There are many factors to take into consideration, the biggest being yourself! How much do you won’t to change? How much effort will you put into the process? How much can you believe in yourself to accomplish this?

It is not a simple journey either, otherwise you would have done this some time ago and support can also be lacking. Should this be the case for yourself or someone you know, take the first step by contacting Neil on 07761 187238 or email neil@coachingtosuccess.co.uk, where you will be assured a warm, friendly welcome and the chance to discuss ways we can work together along with the motivation to build that confidence to an all-time high.