Clear as Mud

Sometimes what your boss expects of you is as clear as mud. What do you do?

Usually, you roll right along doing what you think you understood or what you think your boss really wants. And guess what? You bring the finished product and after reviewing it, your boss looks at you through beady eyes and shouts, “What is wrong with you? Don’t you listen? Are you stupid or something?” (Yes, there are actually bosses out there who talk like that.)

So how do you solve this problem? Well, here’s one way. Look your boss square in the eyes with your beady eyes and say, “Don’t you ever talk to me that way again. I am not stupid. You're stupid for not giving me clear instructions in the first place. You talk to me that way again and you will truly regret it.” 

 If you don’t like that way, here is a another way. Your boss has just told you what is expected and it is clear as mud. Just before leaving the office, say to your boss, “Let me get this straight. You want me to do A, B, C. Right?” The boss answers, “No, I want you to do D, E, and F.” You say, “I will get on it right away and give you D, E, and F by next Thursday at 10:00 AM."

So what do you think? Which of these responses would you use? Do you have other suggestions?

Three Secret Steps To Motivate Employees

Cal, I have several employees who are slackers.  They waste precious time every day being nonproductive.  It has gotten so bad that I now have a morale problem.  The productive employees are starting to complain.  I’m afraid if I don’t do something, the productive employees will slow down and my organization will suffer as a result.  What can I do to get my nonproductive employees to stop wasting time and get their work done?”

This is a question I get in every supervisory class I teach.  It is a great question.  Sometimes I ask them a question before I answer. “What's the first step you would take to motivate them?” I get answers like praise them more often, give them more money, let them participate in my decision-making, help them with their personal problems, etc.  All these answers are great but the employees remain unmotivated.

Motivational experts have been doing research and publishing books on this subject since the early 1900s.  By reading these books, you can get excellent theoretical approaches to motivating employees.  That is what many contemporary managers do.  They read the book, find a motivational scheme that sounds great, put it into place and six months later, the scheme dies.  Then they try something else and that dies.  Why?  In my view, the reason these schemes die is they don’t address the root cause of the lack of motivation.  Before I proceed further, let’s define what I think motivation is.  After a observing employee behavior for over 50 years, I believe motivation is stimulation of an internal drive or impulse to do more good things and less bad things.  The internal drive or impulse is already there in most people.  For many people it is just lying there dormant, waiting for someone to wake it up.  That's the supervisor’s job.

Motivating employees can be done easily in three steps.  The first step is to get to know the employee like the back of your hand.  Know what their habits are.  Know their likes and dislikes.  Understand their attitude toward the work and the workplace and the people.  You find this information through daily communication and observation.  The reason you are taking this first step is to determine the internal drive or impulse that might be lying dormant.  Don’t stop until you know the employee so well that you clearly understand what turns them on and what turns them off.  In the unlikely event you don’t find an internal drive or impulse, work with the employee and place one there.  Then nurture it with some water, sunshine and fertilizer, and it will grow.  Once it is grown enough, stimulate it and the employee will respond in a positive way.  That leads to the second step.

Once you understand every employee’s internal drive or impulse, you should act.  You should, each day, find an employee doing something right and stimulate that employee’s internal drive or impulse.  It might be praise for a job well done, some time off, some additional responsibility, a special choice project, a letter of appreciation.  Each employee is different.  Therefore, the items you select will be different for each employee.  Just make sure that the employees understand your motivational methods so you will not be accused of favoritism.  Employees like nothing better than the personal attention they get from their supervisors.

If supervisors would follow these three simple steps they might find that motivating employees to do more productive work is a very easy task and, in fact, can be fun. 

Bring It On--8 Requirements for Great Leaders and Supervisors

So you have worked hard for ten long years doing everything you were required to do and more besides. It has paid dividends. The people you have worked with to get things done now work for you. Yes, you got promoted to supervisor. And you ask yourself, now what? Well, let me tell you what. You have to bring it. No, not bring it, bring them, eight of them. As a new supervisor, there are eight things you have to bring to the table: Expectations, X-RAY vision, Communication, Empowerment, Leadership, Energy, Nudging, and Teamwork.

The first morning you come to work as the new supervisor and face your employees, you will have Expectations of them and they will have expectations of you. In some cases, the employees will not be able to meet all the expectations you have of them. Likewise, you might not be able to meet all the expectations they have of you. In the event either of these situations exist, it will be your responsibility to bring the employees to the table and negotiate a mutually agreeable solution.

It is your responsibility to map out where you want your organization to go—what you want the employees to achieve. In order to do this, you have to bring X-RAY vision to the table. You have to be able to look into the future, see what the future holds, establish a vision and plan how you’re going to achieve the vision.

You must become a Communication expert as soon as possible. You have to Communicate up the organization with your managers, down the organization with your employees, across the organization with other departments, and outside the organization with your customers.

Great supervisors have the ability to bring Empowerment to their employees. This means giving them a task to do and along with the task giving them the tools, the resources, and the authority to carry out the task.

You must become a great Leader. Great leaders have the ability to bring a vision, communicate that vision to the employees, and motivate the employees to a high level of achievement thus accomplishing the organization’s mission.

You must bring a high level of Energy to your new supervisory job so that you can motivate your employees to a high level of energy. You motivate your employees by first finding out what it takes to motivate them and then do that. At the same time find out what turns them off and don’t do that. I'll talk more about how to motivate employees in an upcoming post.

You must bring the ability to Nudge your employees back on track when they go off the rails. Sometimes employees will do what is forbidden or fail to do what is required. When this happens, you have to do what is necessary to set them back on the right path.

There is a saying that working Together Everyone Accomplishes More—TEAM. As the supervisor, you have to bring Teamwork to your organization. This means getting every person to contribute their fair share to the workload.

If you do these eight things, you will be an "EXCELENT" supervisor.

Your Resume is not About “You,” It’s About “Them.”

     I read so many comments about the lack of response to resume submissions.  In one case I read that the applicant submitted 250 resumes and did not get a single response.  In another case, a person submitted a resume and did not get a response only to discover the hiring organization had the wrong e-mail address.  After providing the correct e-mail address, still no response.  So there must be something wrong with this picture. 
     My thought is that we are now in the “me” generation.  This is “my” resume and it states what “I’ve” done and what “I” can do.  I’m going to throw it out there and see if someone is interested in hiring “me”.  To me, it’s like shooting at a target in pitch blackness and hoping to hit the bull’s eye.  Let’s face it.  The reality is it’s not about “you,” it’s about “them.”  In this economy, businesses never want to make a hiring mistake.  It doesn’t matter if the applicant is a veteran or not, it’s too costly to hire someone, find out it was a mistake, and start all over again.  So where does that leave us? 
     Well, look at it this way.  Businesses have two major issues: they have goals, like increasing the bottom line, they are trying to achieve and problems and challenges that get in the way.  So, when they hire somebody to fill a position, they are looking for someone who can help them achieve their goals or solve their problems.  If the resume is not written to show how the applicant can help, it’s just another shot in the dark that will never get a response.  It just doesn’t right to expect the recruiter to read between the lines to see what the applicant can really do.  That is the applicant’s job.
     So what’s the solution?  I think the solution is very simple.  If you want a job at the ABC Corporation, you should do your homework and study the ABC Corporation in as much depth as possible.  Visit their website.  Study their brochures if available.  Read about them.  If physically possible, visit their offices to see what the atmosphere is like, what the people are like, and how they dress for work.  Talk with people who already work there.  If the company has its own cafeteria, eat lunch there and listen to the conversations around you.  All of this homework is for the purpose of discovering the company’s goals and challenges.  Then write a resume that shows how you can help achieve their goals and resolve issues. 
     A resume written in this fashion may not get you a job, but it stands a strong chance of getting you an interview.  And that’s what you want your resume to do – get you an interview.  Once you get the interview, you demonstrate verbally how you can help the organization reach its goals and solve its problems.  It doesn’t matter if you are applying at the entry level, the executive level, or somewhere in between, this process stands a much better chance of landing you a job.  So what’s the bottom line?  Getting a job should not be a shot in the dark process.  It is shooting in the bright sunlight at a target you can see—showing how you’ll contribute to reaching the goals and objectives of the company and demonstrating that you’re the one who can help solve its problems.

Great Employees

Do you want to be a great employee?  If the answer is yes, you can become a great employee by doing four things.  First, get a good watch.  Set your watch 5 minutes ahead of the actual time.  This simple step will help you ensure that you are never late.  You get to work on time, you get to meetings on time, and you get your work done on time.  Secondly, buy a tennis racket.  Actually, it does not have to be a tennis racket.  It could be a basketball, a set of exercise weights, or a treadmill.  Any item of your choice that can help you keep your body in shape will suffice.  Don't use your treadmill for a place to hang clothes, actually use it for its intended purpose.  By keeping in good shape you will be ready to take on whatever challenge comes your way.  Thirdly, every organization has goals and objectives.  You must be constantly aware of your organization's achievement goals and seize every opportunity to contribute in a positive way to making them a reality.  Finally, every organization has problems.  You must always be on the alert to recognize these problems even before they occur if possible.  Do your homework on these problems and provide recommended solutions to your managers.  Be prepared to do the work if your recommendation is in your area of responsibility.  By doing these four things, you can be a great employee.  Not only will you keep your job but other good things could happen: awards, more money, promotion.

Stinky Feet

      What should a supervisor do if an employee's personal hygiene is so bad that other employees are complaining? How does a supervisor handle the situation without insulting the employee?
     Since the employees are complaining, this situation is probably affecting work productivity.  Therefore, the supervisor is duty bound to deal with it.  Sometimes a medical condition can cause an unpleasant body odor.  According to the Huffington Post, there are 7 surprising body odor causes:  stinky feet, too much broccoli, stress, dirty bras, a rare genetic disorder, drinking too much alcohol, and diabetes.  The supervisor should first have a serious discussion with the employee to determine whether a medical condition is the cause.  Always start the discussion by highlighting the negative impact the body odor is having on productivity.  If a medical condition is not the cause, then try to get the employee to identify the problem and the solution.  "Pride of ownership" means that employees are more likely to correct problems if they own the solutions.  If the employee fails to identify a solution, the supervisor should offer some alternatives.  If the employee fails to cooperate with this approach, the supervisor would have no choice but to pursue progressive discipline.

Resisting Change

Change is sure to come.  It doesn't matter where we live, where we work, where we socialize, or where we eat, change will come.  Despite the fact that people know change is coming, they will still resist it.  When people get settled into a comfortable routine, they don't like it when someone changes what they are doing and they have a tendency to dig in their heels.  This is particularly true in the workplace when people get used to doing something a certain way, they don't want anybody to upset the apple cart as the saying goes.  If a supervisor in the workplace wants to change the way things are done, the employees will get upset.  There are two possible reasons for their reaction, one technical and one social.  From the technical perspective, people will have to learn something new-a new way of doing it.  That probably means stopping everything an attending training.  For some employees this feels like starting over.  From the social perspective, reorganization probably takes place and the employees will have to move to a new desk, in a new location, and work with new people they have not worked with before.  They were very happy with the previous team arrangement.  Jack sat in the same cubicle with Jill.  Now he's in the cubicle with Rebecca.  Jack and never got along with Rebecca but now he has to work with her.  What a bummer!  If any managers want to manage change, they should recognize the two reasons people resist and take steps to minimize the negative aspect.  Good luck managing change.

Start It Well

The great playwright, William Shakespeare penned, "Alls well that ends well. This statement means if the end is great, don't go back and focus on things that could have made the outcome a disaster. For example, if you slipped and fell in an icy intersection but were able to get up and scramble to a safe spot unhurt, never say, "If a car had been coming, I'd be dead." The fact is a car wasn't coming. Now I would like to take another side of this famous saying and state, "If it starts well, it will end well" or alternatively, "If it starts badly it will end badly." The recent Super Bowl football game is an example. It started badly for the Broncos when, on the very first play of the game after the kickoff, the center hiked the ball over the quarterback's head and it bounced into the end zone to be covered by a Bronco for a safety. The result--two points Seahawks. It was doom for the Broncos after that bad first play. They never recovered. This phenomenon is true in many walks of life. For example, if you are making a public speech and you falter on your very opening statement, it is almost impossible to recover. You will lose your audience immediately. All people will remember is how you flubbed the introduction to your speech. Moreover, it will stick with you a long time also. You will constantly be saying, "If I had just chosen different words." or "If I had not told that joke." Too late!! Using another example, if you are starting a serious budget conversation with your spouse and you open with a statement that makes him or her angry, forget it! The conversation is doomed. Suppose you were to say, "Honey, you are spending too much money that we don't have and you need to stop it!" That will never fly as an opening statement in a budget discussion. Here's a third example: If you are starting a big project, select a starting step that will give you a big success at the beginning and that will motivate you to continue to successful completion because all that "Starts well, ends well." If you are teaching a class, open with some positive statements that create a successful atmosphere. If you are a substitute for the scheduled speaker never say, "I'm here because JillJack couldn't make it." That just tells the audience they are getting second best. In anything we undertake that has a starting point, we should never start with a bust at the bottom and have to climb uphill. We should start with a bang at the top and coast downhill to a successful finish.

Facilitator Magic

According to Wikipedia, a facilitator is someone who helps a group of people understand their common objectives and assists them in achieving the objectives without taking a particular position in the discussion. It is important to not take a position but remain neutral and objective in order to make quality decisions about controlling the group. The facilitator eases the flow of communication between members of the group. Good facilitation practice is particularly important when training adults. Do you want to be a great facilitator and work magic? Here are ten tips to get you started: 1. Make your participants feel welcome and happy they came to your session. 2. Use unique techniques that keep them wide awake for the total time. 3. Use techniques to keep them actively and emotionally engaged. 4. Always make them feel like they are contributing to the success of the session. 5. Always make the material easy to comprehend and grasp. 6. Manage the session by controlling motor mouths but don’t intimidate them. 7. Make the discussions realistic and interesting by using real work place situations. 8. When people say, “I don’t know,” help them come up with the right answer and then praise them as if they knew all along. 9. Give the participants plenty of “take away” techniques they can put into practice immediately. 10. Always provide an answer to their questions even if you have to research and provide it later.

Overcoming Fear of Public Speaking

Three of 10 people can walk in front of an audience, dazzle them with an opening "grabber" statement to capture their attention, and transition to three key points that provide information or elicit a decision. Three of 10 people can do that with accuracy, brevity, and clarity. Moreover, they can do it without fear. You are probably thinking, "What about the other seven?" Well, when the other seven walk in front of an audience they are trembling with fear. Speaking in front of people is the number one fear in the nation. People are more afraid of public speaking than they are of snakes, ghosts, and even death. What are they afraid of? There are two possibilities. The first is that at some point in their lives, they had a very bad experience in public. That experience is indelibly imprinted in their long-term memory. And now every time they walk in front of an audience that one bad experience bursts forth and the stomach butterflies and the shakes begin. The second reason is they project onto the audience, believing the audience is just sitting there waiting for them to forget their lines or make a mistake. So the self fulfilling prophecy steps in and they make a mistake or forget their lines thus confirming their belief about what the audience is thinking. But hold on! You can overcome this fear with what I call "self talk." Here's how it works. There is something positive and rewarding that you can do better than anybody else, something you have done so many times, you can do it in your sleep. Tell yourself over and over again how good you are at it. In fact, tell yourself so many times that you indelibly write it on your long-term memory, overwriting the one bad experience that you had. Furthermore, when you look out at the audience and see them staring at you, waiting for you to make a mistake (you briefly think), say to yourself, "I bet you can't sing a song, paint a picture, play the piano, or write a poem (insert whatever is your forte) like I can. This "self talk" will put you head and shoulders above anybody in the audience. After all, they need you! That's why you are standing in front of them making this presentation. So seize every opportunity to speak publicly and eventually the fear will be gone.

Email's Darkside

The technique used to move information from A to B dates back to 2400 BC in ancient Egypt. The Pharaohs printed their decrees on scrolls and sent them out to the people by courier. Certainly, that must have taken days, maybe even weeks. We have come a long way since then. Just in the last 60 years our electronic geniuses have led the evolution of information transfer to the point where we can create a decree, click the "send" button and have it appear virtually anywhere in the world in seconds. A round of applause for email, one of the greatest innovations of our time! But, hold on! This is the bright side. Just like yin and yang, email also has its dark side. Similar to a few alcoholic drinks, email can give us the courage to say what should have been left unsaid. To further exacerbate the situation, it's now in writing--etched in stone. Sometimes even for public view, depending on the distribution. And once it's in writing, it can come back to haunt us at a later date. In some instances, email supplants the vital face-to-face communication necessary for effective interpersonal relations. For example, a supervisor, afraid of confrontation, will use email to correct an employee's errant behavior when face-to-face communication would have been much more effective. These are just two examples among many of the dark side of email. In my opinion, before we click the "send" button, we should click the "delete" button and have a face-to-face conversation instead.