Personal Resilience in your quest for personal excellence

Once again I am pointing you to an article on the Leader to Leader Institute website, and this time it covers being 'prepared to start over - again and again'. I like this article because it talks of personal resilience and learning from personal experiences.
I doubt if anyone has had setbacks in their career or personal lives, but not everyone chooses to learn from these experiences and consider how future circumstances can be influenced by the learning. Setbacks can be losing your job, not winning that promotion, failing your finals, project failure, etc. All these experiences can be tough, but they can also be sources of learning and personal development.
The article doesn't just talk about behavioral adjustment; it also discusses the importance of ones associates and friends who influence and color our lives. In essence, it suggests that after a setback you take a look at your network who will support you and refer opportunities to you. In my experience, my network is a valuable asset when bouncing back from a setback, providing it is filled with positive, supportive and aligned people. Your network is the vein, artery and capiliary of opportunity and like the analogy the less clogged and more free-flowing they are the better for you.
And lastly the article talks (in a roundabout way) about personal confidence and the application of You Inc. - the skills, tricks and relationships you've built up - into new opportunities that you will create, or will come to you. After a setback, e.g. being laid off, you is all you have. If you don't believe you will pull yourself out of the mire, you probably won't. So sell the services of You Inc. If you have technical skills that can be applied to new situations, dust them off, set up your stall.

I strongly recommend you read this article, whether you're in tough times or not!

The link: http://www.leadertoleader.com/knowledgecenter/journal.aspx?ArticleID=694

No Excuse Leadership

Below is a link to a great article that discusses No Excuse Leadership, which I think you should read. Why? Well I think it discusses an important aspect of leadership (and I stress leadership and not management) - creating a vision that inspires an organization to break down resistance to change and to set behavioral standards.

The article delves into how excuses are used to avoid change in an organization, particularly in the public sector, and they are often a behavioral norm. How often do you hear in a meeting that something won't work because because because? Listen during your next few meetings to see if you spot a pattern.

Excuses cripple innovation and progress in business and in organizational performance. Its a way of giving up without even trying. Sometimes the reasons given for not changing are out of date or invalid, but the excuse goes unchallenged.

Its true (in my experience) that technical functions are the most excuse-driven. So much is invested in tools, technologies and methods (especially in the skills and know-how of staff) that change is resisted and excuses positioned as battlements. It feels strange that the organizational functions who are most adept at delivering innovation in the business are inept in delivering innovation in their own department.

I think the key to resolving this is in the article. As excuses are offered, a leaders role is to ask how the objective can be reached whilst overcoming the excuse. Put the ball back in the court of the person with the excuse - they're probably best positioned to know how to overcome it. By playing on their pride you may create the necessary motivation to overcome the excuse, especially if, in conjunction, you articulate a compelling vision of what is being created. Overcoming excuses is a behavior that should be embedded into an organization for it to become innovative.

The link: http://www.leadertoleader.org/knowledgecenter/journal.aspx?ArticleID=664

Perfectionism vs Pragmastism: Career Implications

This is a debate I often see in technical circles, mostly between technicians and their less technical managers or stakeholders. It’s a debate that often leads to conflict or a reduction in morale or motivation in each party. It has career implications too; as technical leaders aiming to build a career, its something we need to be aware of.

Perfectionism is a belief that perfection can and should be attained. It is a belief that there is only one truth. In its severest form, a perfectionist believes that anything less than perfect is unacceptable. Pragmatism, on the other hand, is a belief that there are many truths, often in conflict, and that a balance can be attained to honor each truth.

My experience of working in IT with technical specialists is that this community often sees a technical issue as black or white, i.e. it is perfect or totally dismissible. In my early career working on technical infrastructures, I exhibited that too. I was a perfectionist. Only the best laid out solution that worked perfectly in all instances was acceptable to me. It's perhaps because technical professionals are very invested in their subject matter, and that there is a real perception that a compromise on the quality of deliverables in their chosen subject reflects badly on them. However, as I’ve worked my way through the ranks and become more ‘commercial’, I realised that a perfect state is often very difficult to achieve, and later still, in many cases shouldn’t be achieved. Let me illustrate.

A perfect system that will never fail and always meet its purpose is an ideal, but one that in most cases is very costly to achieve. Unless you remove all human error in all layers of a solution, it won’t meet this ideal. This should apply to safety systems in space shuttles, but we all know that doesn’t happen either. To seek this perfection is to seek it at any cost. As a business, it’s very rare that ‘any cost’ is a viable business justification. Stockholders and Execs don’t subscribe to this, so business decisions are made which create constraints like a budget.
So it’s pragmatism that in this context is what most frequently wins out, whether you like it or not. Projects have to the best with the budget and resources it has. Now as a technical professional on a project or operation, you have a choice as to accept this position or not, and you will exhibit it in your behaviour. Those that do will do what they can to make the outcome as near-perfect as they can, and may indeed build a case for extra budget or resources – this is still pragmatism. But those that don’t tend to moan about it or engineer the situation so they can say ‘I told you so!’ The latter state of mind is very dangerous for career builders. Senior managers don’t want to hear it, particularly as they (more often than not) are aware of the compromises that have been made.

Of course any senior manager worth their salt should listen to grave concerns about compromises, to manage risks or learn of innovations for a better way of doing it. But once a decision has been laid out in concrete, it should be accepted by all and the best made of it.

In terms of career implications, managers and leaders will almost always be working with a compromise. As a budding manager and leader, demonstrating that you accept this is positive, as is a demonstration that one has the skills and tools to manage the situation. Basic Project Management instruments come into play; maintaining a Risk Log and Issue Log are some examples of how managers will consciously manage information and base decisions from. Leaders will work with the people to overcome their concerns and motivate workers to do their best in the knowledge that the risks are known and will be mitigated. These are positive responses to compromise. Indeed these are positive responses to further your career.

Using the Power of Pride in an organization to generate motivation

Despite Pride being one of the Seven Deadly Sins, it is a powerful if not underused means of getting things done in the workplace. Pride is an emotion of self-respect.

It is an emotion that, if tapped into, you can use to motivate others, particularly in technical job areas. I use pride as a trigger often – I don’t consider it as manipulative as in almost all circumstances its exhibition benefits you and the person or persons it is triggered in.

As an example hereon, imagine you need some thorough technical documentation to make a decision from. You have three options; document it yourself, buy it, or delegate it. Documenting it yourself might be impossible if you don’t have the time, knowledge or skills. Buying it might be costly or impossible if the subject matter is particular to your technology or its application. You might not be in a position of authority or power to formally request the work to be done. So what should you do?

If the documentation needed can most efficiently be created by knowledgeable colleagues, then this is the way you should go. In fact not doing so, i.e. having the documentation created by some other way, could be perceived as a threat by the colleague. The better option is to motivate them to do the work by creating in them the purpose to do so. Pride could be the key.
Imagine then that the trigger for pride is to give your colleague the opportunity to be great. ‘Great’ in the sense that they will be saving the day, or correcting a mistake that you have made. So imagine then that you ask your colleague to do the work under some big cause for the greater good by articulating how the documentation is pivotal to making the big business decision (big is relative to your colleagues sphere of awareness). You might say (but do it honestly) that a senior manager or exec needs the decision to be made. Offer the recognition to your colleague at a senior level, even if you have to ask for an intermediary manager to request the recognition. Ensure you always follow up on the recognition, and of course your own gratitude is important and sometimes enough.

I’ve found that technical professionals like us are very proud and love to point out the mistakes of their peers. If you think it is a big ask to request your colleague to do the documentation from scratch, then start the documentation to your best knowledge. It’s OK to not be 100% confident in its accuracy. If you could do that then you should do the documentation yourself. Once you’ve completed your draft (and perhaps where you have gaps put in the title headings of what you need) then ask your colleague to review it and fix any mistakes. I bet you’ll find the mistakes are corrected first before any gaps are filled! Once you’ve got what you need, again make sure that your colleague is credited for their contribution.

Pride is a simple but powerful motivator. Don’t be afraid to use it. Develop this as a skill and you’ll find that it happens naturally and if you do feel it is manipulative at first, it's possibly because you've done it a bit clumsily, but you’ll find with practice you become more adept at doing it smoothly and with integrity.

Of course this doesn’t just apply to getting documentation, and indeed just with your colleagues and peers. This is technique you can use with anything and anyone. It is an application of reward power, and everyone likes rewards!

I’d love to hear your stories from you!

To MBA, or not MBA... that is the question?

Question: Does completing an MBA give you a ticket to success as a business leader?
Answer: No, it doesn't.

The virtues of an MBA are often hyped and rarely understated. So why is it such a big deal? Well the average MBA will cost a student 25K UKP/50K USD, so the universities have a good reason to let you think it is. But I'm not cynical. Quite the opposite. I think that the price of an MBA is worth it, but not for the reasons so many people lament on about. To dispel to some myths: An MBA does not train you as a business leader. An MBA does not open a door to the boardroom. An MBA does not turn you into a commercial genius.

So what does an MBA give you that I think is still a big deal? An MBA gives you the basic education of how an organization in business works; how it makes profit, how it markets its products and why, how business economics and finances work, how strategic decisions get made, etc. etc. It gives you the full business context. Don't underestimate the value of gaining wide and diverse knowledge on business basics. It's what will put you on the path to being a CEO, Commercial Director, COO, or whatever your career goal.

But don't be fooled into thinking an MBA is the end to becoming a business leader. It is merely the start. My concern in general is that MBAs are described as the making of a business leader. This is crap. Why? Well an MBA is an academic course, based on theories and science. It is not a course on people - it doesn't put you in the leadership position in which to learn from. I'm afraid the leadership bit comes when you've gained experience and demonstrated how you can apply the theory in a real business situation, and gained followers who are willing to apply it for you.

The real benefit of an MBA in my experience is that it gives you a vocabulary and context in which to understand and add value to a business. Whats more it gives you confidence and a common language in which to engage colleagues right across the organization. I found that the learning from an MBA removed a cloud of self-doubt when put into new situations outside of my core area of expertise, and it created confidence when taking on new challenges.

In modern times, its possible to do an MBA whilst you still work, as well as the more traditional classroom-based courses. There are a number of affiliations between top Universities and online education specialists. For example, in Europe you can take an online MBA with the University of Liverpool who outsource to Laureate Education. If you want to take this path, I couldn't recommend them more strongly, as it was with these guys I took my MBA. If you're in the States there is an online MBA available with Portland State University for example. For a list of online MBAs available in the US, take a look here. I will be blunt though. Having been through this myself, this is a H U G E commitment both personally and financially - it will be a significant drain on your cash, and if you're in a relationship, it will probably take its toll on that too. If you're serious about doing an MBA whilst still in employment, be 150% sure you can cope with the burden on the effort.

Classroom-based MBAs are still popular, such as the one at Cranfield University in the UK or of course the Harvard Business School in the US. With these courses you'll dedicate your time to your studies and have close interactions with tutors and fellow students. It's perhaps still the best way to do an MBA, as the interaction creates a productive learning environment. However the downside is that you'll have to leave employment for a couple of years whilst you take the course, which might be impossible if you have a mortgage and a family to support.

An MBA will give you a rock-solid and complete education on business context across all necessary facets. It won't be a short-cut to the Executive Suite. But effectively applying your developed skills to a real organization is an opportunity your career will benefit from in enormous ways, so if you can afford it and you have commitment, you should seriously consider an MBA.

Starting afresh in 2008

Its a new year, if you hadn't noticed, and its that time a lot of folks talk about new year resolutions or wiping a slate clean. Cliche? Thats up to you, but its perhaps a good time do something different from this point and see how it goes. What have you got to lose except a little time, pride or pocketmoney?

This year, I've decided to be more cheeky. Not cheeky like a small child who talks about farting. Cheeky in the sense that I'm going to ask for more, push my luck, negotiate, damn well get the most from everything. "If you don't ask, you don't get" wise old buggers used to tell me. Well I'm going to be more cheeky this year and see what happens.

So what can you do? C'mon you can work that out. But here are some starters:

• Try reading more books on business leadership and economics, or other commercial subjects
• Get involved with people more, in clubs or in groups
• Try learning the basics of a new language
• Starting a new exercise regime
• Try going to bed earlier, and getting up earlier.... see the morning sun in its full glory
• Take up photography - its therapeutic

There's loads of things you can do. Just do it and try it. Or what will you have done this year for yourself?