Assessments

Most business professionals today seek a worklife that makes a positive difference. But, don’t know how to create it. Since you spend most of your waking hours at work … it’s important to take the initiative in how you handle work responsibilities, develop relationships and pursue goals. This gives you the opportunity to achieve other goals in your life too.

9 Keys to Create a Great Worklife

1.Stay Focused. Many imbalances today are due to allowing distractions and disruptions to get in your way. When having a conversation or participating in a meeting, put away electronic gadgets and listen. By actively participating, you can guide the direction and development of new products, systems and/or policies…reducing the stress normally caused by change.

2.Keep It Real. Many people today believe if they say something often enough it will become true. The reality is, saying it doesn’t change the facts. Talk straight. Learn the facts. Listen and incorporate people’s concerns when you are making decisions to ensure win-win outcomes.

3.Honor Your Word. The word integrity can evoke a lot of defensiveness. However, it’s important to get real about what you are promising and what you actually do! Actions speak louder than words. Nobody cares about your excuses. When you promise to return calls or send additional information, follow-up and follow-through quickly. Simply, do what you say you will do.

4.Prioritize. Remember, not everything is a priority. Make a list of everything that you believe needs to be done. Circle the top ten. Now, cut the list down to the top three. Rank them 1, 2, and 3. Do number 1 now. When it’s done, move on to number 2. Now, it’s time for number 3. Celebrate the completion of each task.

5.Delegate and Expect the Best. Your employees or co-workers won’t complete a project or task the same way you would. However, if you provide the training and address the purpose of the task, they usually will do it even better than you!

6.Hire Right. Incorporate objective data into your company’s strategic hiring process. It can and will make a positive difference in how you hire employees. Hiring right will also make a positive and significant impact on your relationships with employees, co-workers, boss, board, clients and vendors.

7.Schedule Time for You. Create a block of time each day for yourself and honor it. Read a chapter in a book, listen to a short podcast, dance to music, doodle, meditate, go for a walk, etc.  It’ll make a big difference in rebalancing you after handling a stressful project or situation.

8.Stop Avoiding Difficult Conversations. Be responsible for handling conflicts quickly and responsibly. Remember, listen to others and repeat what they’ve said before you offer your own opinions. When someone feels heard and valued, it will help in resolving any issue.

9.Hire a Coach. A sounding board allows you to talk confidentially about your concerns. It also helps you streamline your activities, provides a broader perspective when resolving challenges and reminds you that you matter.

Creating a worklife that makes a difference will have a profound and positive impact on your entire life. The time to make it happen is now!

©Jeannette Seibly, 2018

Jeannette Seibly has been recognized as a catalyst for the past 25 years. She is an executive coach, advisor and consultant who provides straight talk with dynamic results.  Are you seeking a worklife that makes a positive and profound difference? First, you have to admit you are committed to having one. Then, check out SeibCo’s website , or contact Jeannette for a free confidential conversation.

Many leaders today believe they know how to get the results required. The question is, are you achieving the needed results through force or are you influencing others to be part of the change? Becoming aware of your mindset and how you use it to influence others will determine your results.

Let Go of 5 Limiting Mindsets:

I Already Know Myself. We want to believe that others see us the way we see ourselves. Unfortunately, we are often incorrect in this assumption, and our lack of awareness limits our ability to influence people and change. If you really want to know how you are perceived (and real leaders do), get real by using qualified assessment tools and work with an executive coach to go beyond what you believe is true about yourself and others.

Failure is Not an Option. We were taught to believe there is no such thing as failure! And yet, at times, all of us fail. Being able to admit and take responsibility for mistakes encourages others to embrace and follow your leadership style.

All Change is Good. Yes, change can be great and is necessary for a company to grow. But, first slow down. Build trust and inclusion in the decision-making process. Listen and learn, then listen and learn more before you make any changes – no matter how small.

Employees are a Necessary Evil. Get over it! Employees can make or break your success — they are your most powerful asset when you perceive them in a positive way. If you hire for job fit and engage them, you will be amazed by the value they provide and the results they achieve!

Asking for Help is a Weakness. It is actually a sign of strength. Use your executive coach, mentor and/or boss as sounding boards. Remember, only fools make the mistake of relying solely on their own mental monologue about how to resolve a problem or what’s the next best course of action.

Remember, your results are determined by your mindset and your ability to positively influence others.

©Jeannette Seibly, 2016-2018

Jeannette Seibly has been called a catalyst. She is celebrating 25 years as an executive coach, advisor and consultant who guides her clients to achieve unprecedented results. Remember, mindsets can be expanded with the right sounding board. Are you ready for success? Step up now! Check out her website, or contact Jeannette for a preliminary confidential conversation.

Many of us believe we are not judgmental people. Yet we must make judgments every day about everything from what to wear to work and eat for lunch to who is the best person to handle a project. These often-subjective decisions normally reflect biases that we may not be aware of (pants vs. dresses, sandwiches vs. salads—and our favorite go-to employee vs. our less-favorite employees).

It starts with each of us. As a boss, it’s important to become aware of and responsible for our unconscious biases, especially as they pertain to race, age, gender and culture. If we are not aware of them, these biases will influence our interactions with employees, how we make our decisions and how we manage our teams.

As bosses, we most frequently run up against our unconscious biases while hiring, coaching, managing and training employees. Whether we agree we have them or not, these biases are usually evident to others, especially when we hire and manage based solely on our guts. They will also show up when we communicate in an insensitive manner or make decisions without factual data. They determine the company’s culture.

Biases always impact the company’s ability to hire the right person for the job, coach each employee to succeed, train each team member to develop skills, and manage everyone to meet the customers’ needs in an effective and non-discriminatory manner. Failure to be responsible for our biases impacts our ability to create positive and productive workplaces for everyone.

How to Create a Responsible Workplace Culture:

• Provide communication and sensitivity training to boost awareness for everyone.
• Conduct mandatory bias-awareness training for all employees, including how to handle perceived biases, and repeat this training quarterly.
• Train bosses on techniques for coaching and managing all of their employees.
• Review job evaluations and stats on promotions, hires and pay to determine biases.
• Put together a strategic and tactical plan to correct inequities, and execute it.
• Pay attention to the words you use when interacting with employees.
• Stop trusting your gut when making hiring and promotion decisions–objective information will always improve these decisions.
• Become aware of stereotypes and how your brain will trick you into thinking jokes, comments or innuendos based on race, age, gender and culture are funny.
• Use qualified assessments to help you better hire, coach, manage and train your employees. These objective tools create awareness that each employee has unique skills, behaviors, interests and learning styles beyond your biased perception of who they are. Also, qualified assessments provide a foundation for employees to learn and appreciate each other in a positive manner.

If you want to build a positive and productive workplace culture, it’s critical to become aware of unconscious biases and be responsible for them.

©Jeannette Seibly, 2018

Jeannette Seibly  has been an executive coach, business advisor and management consultant for over 25 years. What coaching and guidance do you need to improve your managerial, executive and leadership styles? Are you ready to let go of what you’ve been doing to do something new? Contact Jeannette for a free confidential conversation.

In our current employment environment, it’s more important than ever for bosses to become coaches. Unemployment is at an all-time low, qualified candidates have become passive job seekers and bosses are still cited as the No. 1 reason employees leave. Instead of relying on performance improvement plans when the employee fails to meet expectations, it’s time to focus on developing employees’ soft skills, their ability to follow established systems and procedures, and a can-do attitude in the face of challenges throughout their employment.

For Success, Become Your Employees’ Job Coach

Coaching is needed at all levels within an organization. Being a boss who coaches employees is important. If you don’t have the interest, make sure to hire an experienced coach to help you and your team succeed.

Use Qualified Assessments. This is where you start. As the boss, understanding who your employees really are is required before you can coach for success. Without this, both you and your employee will feel frustrated. Qualified assessments provide coaching, team and managerial reports to clarify specific areas for coaching. For example, a top-level saleswoman had been achieving great results by opening up new markets for her company. In an effort to help broaden her skills, and improve her patience and diplomacy, her company reassigned her to work larger prospects with a much longer sales cycle. Because she was unable to close a sale quickly and change her personality (remember, you can’t fix and change a person), she left and joined a company where her skill set and job fit mattered.

Focus on Strengths. Focusing on weaknesses is a colossal waste of time. Instead, hire the right people for the right job. Build on their strengths to grow their effectiveness.  For example: A customer service rep was having a difficult time working with a system that did not have a procedural manual. To develop her strengths, her boss advised her work with a longtime employee, take notes and create a procedural manual.  Now, she’s the go-to person when something isn’t working and training is required.

Meet Weekly. It’s important to meet with your employees frequently. When someone is struggling, it’s even more important. Meeting weekly will help them fine-tune their skills and approach, and help you uncover any bad habits early. While habits can be transformed, first the employee must become aware of them and then you must customize an approach that works.

Hire Yourself a Coach. To become your employees’ job coach, it’s important for you to have your own coach to help you move forward. With your own coach, you will uncover your blind spots and improve your decision-making, project management and communication skills.

Hire a Team Facilitator. For those bosses who are not interested in being their employees’ job coach, hire a facilitator. A facilitator will help improve team meetings and communication skills, and keep your team focused on achieving success.

For those of you who doubt the importance of these techniques, one of my clients used all of the methods above, and each of his employees went from managing $750K to managing $1.25M.

©Jeannette Seibly, 2018

Jeannette Seibly has been called a catalyst. She is celebrating 25 years as a business coach, advisor and consultant who guides her clients to achieve unprecedented results. Remember, being your employees’ job coach will be effective, fun and rewarding!  Are you ready? Step up now! Check out her website, or contact Jeannette for a preliminary confidential, laser-focused conversation.

We all want to believe that key employees, leaders and executives get along with one another. However, when issues arise, so do people’s egos. Information silos, inappropriate comments and an inability to resolve differences often get in the way of supporting the company’s success. These conflicts can hurt the profitability, performance and productivity of any company.

While differing opinions and managed discussions can create better decisions, they require using high-level emotional intelligence, listening to understand and employing good business practices. And, when you put the collective success of the company’s management team first, great results can be achieved.

The Only Thing That Matters Is Being Responsible for the Team’s Success

There is no magic formula, and there are no quick answers. Get real and be responsible for your team’s success.

Hire a business advisor. Using the same thinking that created the problem will not provide the solution. I’ve seen companies rely on books, a team member’s strong personality and other non-contributing factors, and still they fail to resolve the true underlying issues. Hoping and waiting for everything to work out is a default strategy that rarely makes a positive difference. Instead, hire a business advisor who can uncover the real issues (not the surface issues) and guide team members to get everyone on the same page by making the required, and sometimes difficult, changes.

Use Qualified Assessments. When attempting to make positive changes, you cannot transform a team without first addressing the truth in a respectful manner. Objective data about the team’s personality can provide insight into how to move everyone forward together.  For example: If you have a team that primarily relies on their feelings to make decisions, interjecting factual information will help everyone move forward.

Listen to Understand.  I remember years ago a business owner stating, “This listening takes too much work.” He’s right. It can when you haven’t developed the necessary communication skills. Always remember when you are feeling impatient that if you take the time to address concerns now, you’ll save a lot of time, money and energy later.

Manage Conflict. Differing opinions, thoughts and feelings can make for better decisions. To make it easier for others to hear you, state your opinions, thoughts and feelings as your own:  “I believe …” “In my opinion …” When listening to others, repeat what you heard them say first and clarify before offering your opinion. You will be amazed at the results. When you see that you agree on some points and agree to disagree on others, you can build better win-win decisions.

Talk Straight When Apologizing. Instead of further upsetting the situation with excuses about why you said what you said, simply say, “I’m sorry.” Then, be quiet! While it’s important that leaders develop a thicker skin, it’s also important to be responsible for what you say and do.

Encourage Team Members to Work It Out Now. Another benefit to using a qualified assessment is that the results can be a starting point for difficult conversations. First, have team members review each other’s results, one-on-one. Second, talk about where you are similar and where there are differences. (Remember: Results are not good or bad, right or wrong). When two strong-willed executives started making negative comments about one another, their coach told them to sit down and work it out now. They used the assessment as their starting point. They learned why they were frustrated with each other’s different work and communication styles. They now have an amicable work relationship that they value.

Stop It Now! If you sense a problem brewing, don’t wait. It’s easier to understand the crux of the problem at its infancy then if you wait until it has become a full-blown problem and everyone has taken an inflexible position.

When the Problem Is You. Each person on a management team is responsible for its success. If you and others are not good facilitators, get the team trained now! Learn how to listen to one another’s points of view, value each person’s input, build on others’ ideas and acknowledge each and every person’s contributions. This will build a strong, successful team and company.

If you truly want to master turning around management team conflicts, use these tools for taking responsibility. When every team member takes responsibility, you will be able to build a successful company.

©Jeannette Seibly, 2018

Need a speaker or facilitator to successfully address company issues? As a leader, it’s very important for you to know how to facilitate a group, even if you are not the one leading it. Contact Jeannette Seibly. She will provide confidential, laser-focused coaching that works! 

Jeannette Seibly has been called a catalyst. She is celebrating 25 years as a business coach, advisor and consultant who guides her clients to achieve unprecedented results. Remember, meetings can be effective, fun and rewarding! And, they require everyone to become a meeting facilitator. Are you ready? Step up now! Check out her website, or contact Jeannette for a preliminary confidential conversation.

Note: For those readers with a title, I encourage you to share this article with future leaders.

No one is born a leader. It comes from practice, practice and more practice … until it becomes a natural part of who you are. Developing the right mindset, habits and skills now makes it easier to lead after you’ve received your promotion and title. However, waiting to develop the skills after you become a leader with the title will have you faltering to catch up, if you ever can.

The fastest and easiest way to step up and develop your leadership skills now is to hire a coach to guide you along the way.

8 Important Skills to Develop Now!

1.Listening. This cannot be said often enough! Listen and learn, then listen and learn some more. Fine-tuning this skill will help you hear what others are missing.

2.Decision-Making. Take time to get both sides of an issue–the facts and others’ opinions—before making decisions. Do not rely on tiny fragments of information or base your decisions on your feelings or other biases about the topic or people. Your goal is to develop win-win-win outcomes with those involved.

3.Resilience. Your ability to rally quickly after mistakes and learn from them helps you develop greater confidence. Remember, the key to developing resiliency is to work through the disappointment, embarrassment and other feelings you and your team may experience. Denying these feelings and their impact will come back to haunt you later.

4.Rallying Others. Even without the title, you can learn how to influence others by your actions and attitudes. It starts with supporting the company’s mission, your boss and your team members.

5.Initiatives and Resourcefulness. The mark of a good future leader is stepping up and making things happen, regardless of the budget, or your job title. Become a catalyst for exploring new ideas, creating solutions and understanding financial impacts by working with and through others.

6.Ethics. Be aware of your company’s policies and follow them. If they are not working, rather than ignoring them, recommend changes by communicating with your boss, co-workers and others. Honor your promises, contracts and other agreements, whether they are done verbally or in writing.

7.Developing the Team. To grow into being a savvy future leader, be supportive of others’ efforts. Get involved in the hiring, coaching, managing and training processes!

8.Building on Strengths. We all have inherent business strengths and weaknesses. It helps to clarify them by using qualified assessments and 360-degree feedback tools. The best way to build effective strategic and tactical skills is allowing your coach to be your guide when working on specific challenges.

By developing these skills, you will learn a lot about yourself and what it takes to become a great leader, with or without the title!

©Jeannette Seibly, 2018

Need a speaker or facilitator to successfully address company issues? As a future leader, are you ready to develop the key skills now? Contact Jeannette Seibly. She will provide confidential, laser-focused coaching that works! 

Jeannette Seibly has been called a catalyst. She is celebrating 25 years as a business coach, advisor and consultant who guides her clients to achieve unprecedented results. Remember, everyone can be a leader, with or without the title. First, you must step up! Check out her website, or contact Jeannette for a preliminary confidential conversation.

Designing your workplace to excel goes beyond the physical layout of the work space and its location. While these are very important components to consider, the design and development of the company’s culture are often overlooked. (Yes, everyone has a say.) As the leader, you are responsible for a workplace that values and respects people, and promotes opportunities for everyone to excel.

7 Key Elements to Excel

1.Each and every employee is important. Set aside your biases, and value each employee’s contribution. Playing favorites, offering the best opportunities to only a few and dismissing employees’ ideas will hurt workplace morale and team spirit. Design reward programs for both teams and individuals that acknowledge everyone’s efforts.

2.Focus on Work Skills. First, judging work quality and quantity is important. When problems occur, focus on the job skills required, not on the person’s personality. Provide specifically focused training and development programs designed for each person’s needs.

3.Provide Soft Skills Training. Communication, problem-solving, negotiation, critical thinking and other soft skills training is often overlooked. In addition to offering it, provide internal mentors who can be a sounding board for employees and help them fine-tune these skills. Hire an executive coach to guide the resolution of project management challenges and resolve management and leadership snafus.

4.Follow Company Policies. They were designed for a reason … to establish a strong foundation for everyone’s success. They reflect the company’s values, mission and work rules, so it’s important for you and your team to follow them! Be open to expanding on them as needed, when it’s in the best interest of the company.

5.Be a Positive Example. Your leadership style, communication skills and ability to pull together your team are important. Participate in leadership workshops and continue to improve your skills, expand your perspective and be responsible for how, when and why you make changes in your company.

6.Plan Your Work and Work Your Plan. Changing for the sake of change rarely works, and even worse, it can hinder your workplace’s ability to excel. Provide clarity on work assignments and management expectations. This allows employees to feel confident and competent in handling their daily work activities, sharing ideas and developing their skills.

7.Select the Right Person for the Right Job. Job fit is the No. 1 reason employees will excel or fail in their work activities. When your people have work responsibilities that fit their thinking style, core behaviors and occupational interests, they will communicate better, be a valued member of the team and help customers resolve their issues the first time. Remember, a well-designed strategic selection process that objectively recognizes job fit is critical in determining if a person can and will do the job successfully. Don’t forget to customize onboarding and learning and development opportunities to personally and professionally grow each employee.

Design a workplace where everyone can excel to make it a culturally rewarding place to work!

©Jeannette Seibly, 2018

Need a speaker or facilitator to successfully address company issues? Which of the seven key elements have you been ignoring that need to be resolved for a successful 2018? Contact Jeannette Seibly. She will provide confidential, laser-focused coaching that works! 

Jeannette Seibly has been called a catalyst. She is celebrating 25 years as a business coach, advisor and consultant who guides her clients to achieve unprecedented results. Remember, everyone has a say when designing a workplace that promotes positive interactions, teamwork and learning and development opportunities. Check out her website , or contact Jeannette for a free confidential conversation.

A man hit a wall of resistance in his professional life. He was earning just enough money to pay his bills. He knew he was a results producer not producing results and blamed his work environment. Although he had hired a coach, the coach wasn’t able to guide him to turn around his results. When someone tapped him on the shoulder to interview for a job, he jumped on it. His comment was, “It must be meant to be.” Look out! When you’ve hit a wall, realize that the grass is rarely greener someplace else! Instead, clarify the beliefs, habits and words that got in your way!

When you experience fatigue, loss of energy and/or poor results, you’ve hit the wall of resistance. And, no matter what you say, think or do … nothing changes. When your career is stuck, sales are nonexistent or your ideas fail to produce the intended results, it’s time to get real. Short-term fixes won’t produce long-term results. (Note: According to a Gallup poll, over 70 percent of us are in the wrong job or career.) The good news is you can give yourself the long-term gift of blasting through your wall of resistance.

4 Steps to Blast through Your Wall of Resistance

First, remember: it’s an inside job. Write down:

• Five beliefs you are holding on to
• At least three habits that get in your way
• Ten words you use to describe yourself, others and situations

Second, hire the right coach to review your answers and guide you to the next level. Lone rangers usually experience struggle, strife and frustration because they’re doing it alone. Freedom, clarity and ease are available when you hire the right coach. Remember, every successful person has a coach; ask for referrals based on your challenges.

Third, complete the past year by writing down what worked and what didn’t work. Why? This exercise will bring you awareness of the silent growth you’ve achieved. Then, update and write down your Brag! statements as a reminder of your accomplishments (see It’s Time to Brag! Business Edition for details).

Fourth, complete a qualified job fit assessment to understand why your true thinking style, occupational interests and core behaviors may not fit your job or work responsibilities. Review the results with your coach to uncover your inherent strengths and weaknesses to help you break through your wall. This assessment is an amazing gift you give yourself that will support you for a long time!

Now What? Give yourself a gift and apply these same four steps to the following areas where you might be experiencing your wall of resistance:

Career: Work with the right coach to hold you accountable to achieve your newly created game plan. When new walls appear (and they will), listen to your coach and create customized approaches to blast through them. Also, role-play with your coach before having the difficult conversations you’ve been avoiding; they can hinder your job satisfaction. This will clear up any misunderstandings or issues you are experiencing. The clarity this provides will also help you make better choices for what’s next. If you don’t do this, the same issues will repeat themselves.

Business Owner or Entrepreneur: You’re stymied. Your company is doing OK, but you believe you can do better! You have lots of ideas, but few of them have worked long term. You may have settled for mediocrity or quickly ditched ideas when new ones came along. Impatience is not a virtue. Execution has cost you a lot of time, money and sleepless nights. Stop the insanity! Take the time to objectively work through the pros and cons of each idea with your coach and develop a realistic ROI. One successful entrepreneur I coached created a multimillion-dollar business. “We have hundreds of ideas, however only one or two make it through our vetting process.” Hire a business advisor, select the right team and stay focused on the right action steps to achieve your goals.

Sales Teams: You missed the quarterly sales projection … again. You reassured your boss that the team will do better next quarter. For this to happen, remember: success is an inside job. Who are your salespeople? What are their inherent strengths and weaknesses? What training do they require to succeed? Who might be more successful in a different position? Use qualified sales assessments to get real about your team members. Then, have each person create their own Brag! statements and share them. One woman, who had been struggling to pay her bills, received a $20,000 commission check in 45 days by clarifying her sales strengths and weaknesses, and learning how to brag to sell herself first!

When you are clear about your wall of resistance, this gift will support you in taking the right actions to achieve long-term success.

©Jeannette Seibly, 2018

Need a speaker or facilitator to successfully address company issues? What conflicts have you been ignoring that need to be resolved for a successful 2018? Contact Jeannette Seibly. She is the right executive coach and business advisor to provide confidential, laser-focused advice that works! 

Jeannette Seibly has been called a catalyst. She is celebrating 25 years as a business coach, advisor and consultant who guides her clients to achieve unprecedented results. Are you ready to move forward in 2018? Blast through those walls of resistance? Make the right changes? Make the difficult choices? Check out her website , or contact Jeannette for a free confidential conversation.