If Delivering Results Is the Goal… Why Are You Missing the Mark?

June is a great month.  For many it’s a time of celebration. School’s out, vacations and family reunion season starts.  But it is also a time when we are looking at our goals and our results over the first half of the year.  Now I’m willing to bet if you’re reading you are either  A) having a panic attack,  B) thinking “I still have time – no worries or c) thinking “Goals: A painful exercise in futility”.

Achieving results or performance is a simple idea. But over the years, it has been complicated by frankly a lot of people selling products based on poor or bad science to a bunch of people who don’t know better.  And that lack of knowledge on what works is costly. The Gallup Organization estimates businesses lose about $350 billion (yes BILLION) in productivity annually.

So what do the numbers mean to you?  Well, according to Gallup’s survey of employee engagement about 54% of employees are not engaged (meaning not doing the right things to produce results) and another 17% are actively disengaged (meaning they act out their discontent and sow seeds of negativity at every opportunity). Assuming this makes up about 70% of your employee population and being conservative in thinking about 50% of the time they are working on activities that don’t provide value you now have an idea of the size of your problem. How many more sales are needed to overcome that negative number?

So what’s the problem?

1)      Most performance management systems are designed to measure unworthy performance. Harold Stolovitch said it best “working hard and long, being knowledgeable and being highly motivated without equal accomplishments is unworthy performance.”

2)      People don’t know how to write goals.  Goals cascade down through an organization and are dependent upon each level understanding what are the critical RESULTS that deliver value.

3)      Most managers focus on behavior not accomplishments. Don’t believe me? Take a moment and answer this question. In a week, how many assignments and conversations do you have with your middle performers and lower performers? Be honest and ask yourself why? Is it because it’s easier to be with your top performers. Let’s face it they’re eager all the time – they’re engaged and excited. There may be others who are fun to be with but nothing like the excitement from your top performers.

As I started, achieving results/performance is a simple idea.  If you are not celebrating your accomplishments to date, take some time to think about what you are going to do differently for the second half of the year.  We learn through a combination of doing, reflecting and guided learning. Make 2010 your best year ever. It’s not too late.

N Joy

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When your child turns on you

I’m a good networker or at least I thought so until last night. Every third Monday, Charlotte Business Professionals holds a face to face networking meeting. I’m the Membership Chairperson for the LinkedIN group of over 6,000 members.  Last night I was working the door, collecting money and talking with each person.  What was different was I brought my daughter Regina.

Regina is 23 soon to be 24 years old and looks like she’s 16. She’s incredibly shy and still enjoys standing under my wing.  So imagine my surprise when I cut off registration and people started coming up to me to compliment me on my daughter.  Several said they wish they had her confidence and ability to engage people – she was simply charming.

If you’re a parent then you know what it’s like when you hear something great about your child. Your first thought is  – “who are you talking about ‘cuz you definitely didn’t see that child’s room or weren’t there when I had to threaten her within an inch of her life to do the dishes”. But then you realize they really are talking about your child. The one that’s now grown up, networking for a job and also trying to get people interested in her dream of having a non-profit business to help kids in trouble.

I turned to see her at a table holding 4 people in a conversation. Fascination and awe was on their faces but I also saw deep interest in what she was saying. As I watched my child explain her dream, I felt the proud rush of a parent who knows her child is spreading their wings. It was a moment I’ll never forget.

And then reality hit. I realized that having my child there also made me an unforgettable figure in the room. Now I have to live up to the bar my child set. I only hope that I have as much grace, charm and fearlessness as she displayed. When you’re young the world is yours. As we get older or “vintage” as Linda likes to say we lose something. Sometimes we become small. We take things for granted and the excitement and awwww that makes people want to be with us is lost. So now looking at her, I realize that I’ve got to find the charm of youth.
Regina, my child, has set the bar very high. I only hope that I can live up to it.

N Joy

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Saturday – a day to love yourself

It’s Saturday.  For most women, the weekend is a time to focus on housework, the kids, pets, cleaning – you know the drill.  I was in the grocery store and noticed how even at 7:00 a.m. on a Saturday we are driven to finish our task.  It made me think of Karen Heck’s post When I love Myself.  Yesterday, I while working with a client she mentioned she used to be playful and fun at the work. I asked her what happened to make her change”.

She said “If you work at Goldman Sachs and are playful, relaxed or fun you’ll be eaten alive.  I guess I learned to be to a b**ch there”.  “Now it’s a habit” she finished.

WOW! How many of us have the habit of being driven all the time?  Do we have to be driven to succeed? Are we stuck in driven mode?  And what does being driven all day, every day do to us? For her, it is a major reason for her anxiety, sleeplessness and drive to be right and controlling all the time.

As we continued, I asked her to take Saturday and Sunday and when she thinks about it just notice when she is driven mode, pause and slow down.  “What notice!?!” “What the h*ll does that mean?”, she remarked in a joking manner.  Knowing she needed to continue this train of thought I simply waited on her to think through my request.

After about 15 seconds of silence, she went on by asking, “Notice, does that you want me to do nothing for two days?”

“No”, I said. “It means be active in a different way. Simply noticing means hitting the pause button on what you’re doing and reflect on how your body is feeling, where is the tension in your body and what are you thinking. See if you can notice the level of intensity or how driven you are to finishing”. “You may notice that you are so intent on finishing that you don’t see what’s going on around you.

“ You can be so intent on multi-tasking that you get annoyed when something interrupts your attention”.

So this morning while I was in the grocery store, I began to reflect on all three of these occurrences.  A simple way to love yourself is to press the pause button and enjoy the moment. But to do that maybe we have to be reminded to do that because everywhere else in our lives the performance standard is to be driven.

So today, slow down and enjoy the beauty all around you.  Notice the flowers and the manicured lawns. Notice the lines of the buildings we walk past every day and if you live in an old city you’ll see the craftsmanship it took to make the building beautiful.  Be surprised at how the water at the pool splashes as the kids jump in.  I guess I’m asking all of us to simply enjoy the day.  Know that in doing just this one simple task you are loving yourself.

N Joy

A Courageous Woman’s Journey to a Joyous Life

This blog has a two-fold purpose. One is to invite you to a relaxing and empowering weekend retreat for women. The retreat will be Saturday, October 17 10:00 – 6:00 and Sunday, October 18 from 8:00 a.m. – noon. In this wonderfully relaxing and inspiring weekend retreat, Donáh Ollila and I will give you tools to thrive during times of uncertainty and change. We’re two experts on stress, health, and human potential drawing from latest research and personal insights to help you become more resilient. Everyone finds periods in their life where you feel “stuck”.  Both Donáh and I had to learn how to get “unstuck”.  And now we’d like to share with you ways that will help you get “unstuck”.  To have some fun, laughter and release from the mud.

The other purpose is to tell a bit about my story.  You see my story is probably the same as yours.

From time to time, we all experience “getting stuck”.  Being “stuck” is that feeling of uncertainty, loss or confusion about your next moves in life. Those feelings may come as a result of the end of a romance, the sudden feeling of emptiness as your child heads for college or the death of someone who has long helped you find joy in life.  Sometimes it sneaks up on you. Like when you suddenly realize you’ve lost your passion for the job you once loved, when you ache for intimacy but can’t seem to find it or, like me, you suddenly find the plans for your life off track.

About 10 years ago, I was a very successful, up and coming senior Human Resources Executive.  It was exhilarating to work with (not for) the best teams.

Then, the natural aging process got the best of my parents. I don’t think anyone can understand what it’s like to reverse roles with your parents until you have to do it. There’s no preparation, no training, no nothing anyone can tell you that will prepare you for what you’re going to experience.

That was the beginning of my period of “getting stuck”.  It took me 3 years to finally figure out what I needed to do to move on and re-gain my joy in life.  I spent the next couple of years figuring out what made me happy before.  Those lessons and the lessons of others are the basis for my coaching practice. Now I help others find their way out of a place that isn’t fulfilling into on that is passionate and rewarding.

Now I want to offer to you the chance to take one weekend to participate in exercises and activities that will activate your new life vision. This weekend is especially designed to teach you the how to find your joy.

Are you trying to juggle more and more everyday and feeling like you just can’t take on one more thing? Have you been taking care of everyone else for so long that you’ve forgotten how to value and appreciate yourself? Has your life changed in the last few years and you’re no longer feeling inspired, joyful and confident?  Are you ready for a change?

Do you have the courage to learn how to feel appreciated, powerful and beautiful? Are you ready to embrace happiness again or maybe for the first time?

Join us for an inspiring weekend workshop.  You’ll learn how the way you think prevents you from taking steps to happiness.  You’ll learn how to find the courage and strength to find your passion for living, to find your true purpose, to discover yourself.

Are you ready to:

• Learn how your habits and sense of well-being are sabotaging your happiness.
• Learn how to say no to what you don’t want and say yes to what you do want.
• Learn how to visualize what you want and let your vision inspire you every day.

Join Donáh and I Saturday, October 17 at 10 a.m. where we’ll be sharing with you the secrets to finding your passion again.

Insanity is Doing the Same thing over and over, expecting different results.

Are You READY for something different?

Cost:    Workshop $179.00 includes meals and materials

$75.00 for overnight lodging use of hot tub, sauna, and massage facilities.  To register for the retreat copy this URL http://www.coachhr.com/index.cfm/p/pages.women-s-retreat.htm into your browser.

Are You Running Your Business by Design or By Default?

Derrick and I met for coffee one morning. He and I were members of a leads generating networking group and an important part of being successful in the group is meeting with members to understand their business and get to know them. One of the questions I always ask during these meeting is “If you could pass on a lesson or two to someone what would it be?”

“The first two years, all I did was focus on surviving. Cash was king and getting the first few orders meant everything,” said Derrick.  “I had all these grand plans on how I was going to make life different for my customers.”  I read all the books on how to start a business, had a great business plan and enough money to take care of the first year.” “I was a successful executive doing much the same thing as I do now for a large company.  But none of that prepared me for what I dealt with and continue to deal with.”

“What’s that?” I asked curiously.

Derrick looked at me with a puzzled looked. “Ten years in business and it all boils down to executing the plan, being ruthless in your hiring and managing people”. Now half my time is on details of the business the other half is on my people. I make sure every manager and employee understands what we’re about and how we serve our customers.”

I often speak on the three critical areas for a business. When we start a coaching session we cover these areas extensively.

Values – Who are you and what kinds of people do you want to work with?

1. Opportunity – what do you sell and why do people buy from you?
2. People – Do you have A players in your most critical positions?
3. Processes – Do you have enough structure to reliably predict how your business operates and your customers’ experience?
4. Talent – What are your strengths and weaknesses?

Knowing the answers to these questions gives you clarity on what’s your end game. The answers form the basis for your roadmap for success. Without these answers, it’s hard to get capital, acquire and retain customers and get the right employees who’ll help your business thrive.

In the end, successful business owners have a plan on how they will work through the three stages of growth. Once the plan is completed, focus on creating the discipline to execute. So the next time you’re working feverishly, stop and ask yourself, “Am I working on the plan I designed or working on whatever seems right?”

Coach HR specializes in helping executives and their teams achieve peak performance.  Achieve Top Level Performance; Bottom Line Results. Denise Cooper is President/CEO of Coach HR_LLC. She is a professional speaker and coach ready to help you and your team achieve peak performance.  www.coachhr.com

The 4 Secrets of Successful People

No matter who you are at some point in life you want to know that you have been successful.  But how do you determine you have been successful?  One way is found in The One Thing You Ned to Know by Marcus Buckingham, he says “truly successful people think of success as making the greatest possible impact over the longest period of time”. He found they focused on long term strategic objectives not short term goals. They are clear about the difference between goals and strategic objectives.

Unfortunately, most of us aren’t. We use short term goals as the measure of our success. The affect is when you miss a goal you feel like you’ve failed. Successful people see missing a goal as simply one step towards achieving their strategy. Successful people use what they’ve learned from trying to adjust their strategic plan and move forward. Four components are the building block of success?

1. Know Who You Are Today– By knowing yourself, you are more confident in your belief that you can be successful. Knowing yourself means having an integrated character. You are clear on what’s important to you, you understand clearly what your unique self brings and have the ability to appreciate yourself.

1. Know what’s important to you. Success is measured by looking backwards over time. We judge our success not only by what we did but how we did it. The old saying “to thine own self be true” is the best measure of success. Successful people judge being true to thyself as judging how well they lived  by their underlying beliefs and value of life.

1. Take Charge – Create an Action Plan. Your plan acts as a compass guiding you along the way. Successful people have plans and consciously use them as a compass more often than others.

1. Master Change – Change is hard .Successful people know that to remain successful they must master the change process. Nine out of 10 people won’t change. That’s a fact. But one person will. Why? Because they have mastered the three R’s essential to change. Relationships –They have trusted advisors and friends that keep them focused, grounded. Re- frame – they use others to help them see the problem from different perspectives. That’s right! They get other perspectives to help see and define problems from multiple perspectives and seek new ways.  Retrain –Successful people seek out and embrace learning. And they are not dissuaded by failure. They see failure as one step towards success.

So now ponder what the rest of 2009 will be like for you.  We’re 1/3 of the way through the year. How are you doing on your 2009 goals?