Entries by gmader

Stop Prioritizing!

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Crazy advice, right? Perhaps not. “Get your priorities straight” would seem to be the obvious solution to dealing with the overwhelm, stress and burden of too many commitments, too little time and scarce resources. But there is a hidden pitfall to this thinking, which perpetuates the frustration, fatigue and endless lists of incomplete items that occupy our days (and increasingly, our nights and weekends). “Setting priorities” typically involves writing down everything we are supposed to do, want to do, said we would do and have to do. We then typically take that list and through some form of screening criteria, rank each in order of importance, avoidance of pain for neglect, sense of opportunity or […]

Make 2017 the best year ever!

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I love new beginnings. Starting a new year, chapter or phase brings with it new possibilities and hope. Whether you want to improve your financial situation, increase your health or fitness, find true love or find your dream job, at the start of a new cycle we often feel that we have another chance to realize our goals—including those we tried but didn’t achieve before. I find this space of possibility and opportunity extremely empowering and exciting. However, in order to truly experience a fresh start, you have to first understand and accept the fact that new possibilities and hope exist in your own heart and mind, not in the external circumstances. In fact, your […]

Complete 2016 in a meaningful way

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As we enter the holiday season and end of 2016 it seems appropriate and timely to write something about “completing the year.” Completing a phase, period, initiative or task effectively is just as powerful and rewarding as starting or executing these effectively. However, it seems as if most people tend to focus more on the starting and executing part. We underestimate the power and value of completing things effectively, not merely finishing or ending them. The dictionary defines finishing as ‘bringing a task or activity to an end.’ It defines Completing as ‘making something whole or perfect’. We don’t have to do anything for something to end. It is the nature of the world. Things […]

Make your meetings more effective!

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One of the most common complaints I hear in organizations is “too many meetings.” I believe in most organizations there are too many meetings. However, I also believe that what is causing and augmenting people’s frustrations about meetings is the fact that most meetings are ineffective. They don’t produce enough and they don’t leave people with the experience of time well spent and having produced great accomplishments. If you make your meetings much more powerful and effective I believe people will feel differently about “too many meetings.” I want to share two useful and powerful guidelines that if you follow would make your meetings much more effective and productive: Focus your meetings on achieving outcomes, […]

How to make clear commitments and fulfill them

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I was coaching a senior management team of a successful technology company. The management team wasn’t operating or being viewed as a strong leadership team. One of the main complaints managers and employees had was that the senior team didn’t make enough clear decisions in areas that needed change, especially in areas of divide and conflict, where tough and uncomfortable decisions were needed. In addition, when the leadership team did make decisions the leaders often didn’t do a good job following up and executing on what they had agreed to and decided. So, decisions were often ignored, forgotten or pushed aside and deprioritized due to the day-to-day burning topics that constantly came up. After dealing […]

Is your team political and cautious or authentic and courageous?

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Most teams avoid the tough, uncomfortable conversations. In most cases, team members tend to delay or avoid giving honest and direct feedback and coaching to each other. People especially avoid giving negative criticisms and feedback – even if these are necessary and would make a difference. Even when team members do attempt to say what’s really on their minds, their lack of courage often leads to things being said in such a diplomatic and sugarcoated way that the impact of the message is lost in its tepid delivery. While at times diplomacy works and it may allow team members to address some problems efficiently, many critical issues demand an energy, passion and direction that cannot […]

The key steps for transforming your organization

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At any given time I am typically involved in several transformational initiatives around the world. Some are local in nature, and others are global. Some are very complex and others more straightforward. The goals and context of each transformational initiative can also be different: Some are going through major organizational restructuring and they want their people to accept and own these changes quickly. Some want to grow their market share from #5 to #4, or even to #1. Others feel their cultural values, spirit and pride have deteriorated and they want to ignite and energize their workforce again. The dictionary defines transformation as:  A thorough or dramatic change in form or appearance. All successful transformational […]

Is your team a high performance team?

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What is a high performance team? A lot has been written about this topic. I would like to keep it simple. For me a high performance team is: A team that is truly cohesive, aligned and trusting Everyone has each other’s back and people feel they are “in this together” Team members address and discuss any topic, no matter how difficult – in an open, honest, authentic, courageous and effective way People give feedback, coaching and hold each other to account Everyone is comfortable taking a stand and being explicit about what they are committing to And lastly – there is no tolerance for gossip, blame and negative conversations So, how do you develop a […]

Are you coachable?

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When it comes to coaching, it’s important to remember:

– Not everyone wants to be coached
– Not everyone needs to be coached
– Many have no control over who they coach and who coaches them

As a people manager, there is often an expectation that you coach and mentor members of your team. However, being someone’s boss always doesn’t provide a sufficient foundation for successful coaching.

Are you dreaming big enough?

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Most teams approach strategy development by looking in their rear-view mirror. Starting from their present reality, they review their past successes and shortfalls. They analyze their capabilities and means. And, based on that analysis they project their expectations into the future – typically coming up with ‘best case’, ‘worst case’, and ‘most likely case’ scenarios. Sometimes teams benchmark other companies in order to understand industry standards so that they know how high to aim. Benchmarking is often a limiting exercise, as it is merely another way to shape your aspirations based on the past – this time another company’s past. There is nothing wrong with this approach if your business is mature, predictable or you […]

How committed do you have to be?

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Commitment often plays center-stage in our lives. Whether we are trying to lose weight, get in shape, get a promotion, make more money or achieve objectives, we often think in terms of being committed to the cause.

If we want to achieve an objective we know “we have to be committed.” When our friends and colleagues give us advice they often accuse us of not being committed enough, and they tell us to be “more committed.” And, when we fall short in our desired outcomes, we often beat ourselves up and feel guilty about the fact that we are simply “not committed enough”

On the other hand, some of us take commitment to the extreme opposite. We are so obsessed with carrying out our commitment that we often act with extreme intensity and drive ourselves to serious stress. We plan our every action, measure our every milestone or intake, announce our every achievement and fall apart with every setback. Our friends and colleagues often look at us with worry. They regard us as obsessive and fanatics and their advice is often to lighten up, chill or simply “stop taking your commitment so seriously!”

So, the question is: “How committed do we need to be to succeed?”

What is the most important aspect of any Organizational Transformation?

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In most organizations, when people talk about Organizational Transformation, they typically mean a major reorganization or restructuring, a process re-engineering initiative or a system and tool upgrade. These things are very important, and at specific times in the evolution of a company they may be just what the organization needs in order to reach the next level. However, I have seen organizations with best-in-class processes, systems and tools struggle to achieve great performance and results. And I have seen organizations with barely-adequate processes, systems and tools achieve extraordinary results beyond expectations. Why is this the case? The reason is that even in today’s increasingly digital and technology-oriented environment, no matter how high-tech your business is […]