Business

How to Rock the Boat for Better Results

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Making a commitment to stand up and speak up can rock the boat with any team. It requires courage and an ability to take have the right, sometimes, tough conversations to produce better results.

The challenge is not everyone will agree with you; and, not everyone will support you, even if you are correct.

So, it begs the question, “Why bother?”

Ask yourself, “if I’m not willing to rock the boat, who will?”

The underlying problem is fear and it creates the ostrich approach.

Some excuses are:

  • “I’m uncomfortable saying anything.”
  • “No one will like me or listen to me if I say anything.”
  • “If it doesn’t bother me, it shouldn’t bother you.”

Taking the ostrich approach ignores obvious matters and pretends they don’t exist. But, when problems do exist, avoidance doesn’t support the intended results.

Successful teams know that being clear of the costs of poor outcomes and making the commitment to rock the boat will produce better results.

It Takes Courage

Ignoring an issue until it can no longer be avoided is not a good practice. Provide training on how to conduct effective meetings (group and virtual). Use an executive coach to get the team unstuck and guide the creation of viable solutions. Encourage each and every team member to stand up and speak up. These will build communication, trust, accountability, and amazing results.

Rock the Boat Responsibly

  1. Voice your concerns in a positive tone. Remember, some team members will be unwilling to listen and consider there is a problem. Be prepared to review the objective facts before addressing less-factual concerns. Be respectful when addressing differing POVs.
  2. Brainstorm solutions with the team. Focus on creating win-win-win outcomes by brainstorming solutions with the team, not relying on one person for the answers. Don’t jump on selecting the first idea that resonates with the team. Explore ideas by taking the time to ask the right questions and deep dive into who, what, when, where, why, before addressing how. Use persuasive listening techniques to build alignment before revising the plan or project.
  3. Implement changes immediately. After alignment has occurred, it’s time to implement the change immediately. Remember, change can be difficult for some people and waiting will have people get cold feet. Make sure the person responsible for implementing the change has the interest and ability to do so. If there is a problem, immediately set up a meeting to talk with them. Before offering solutions, address: What has been done? What do they view as the next step? What, if anything, has stopped them from taking the new action?

©Jeannette Seibly, 2017-2019

Being proactive as a boss is one of the most difficult challenges you will face. It’s difficult to know when to stand up and speak up. Jeannette Seibly has been an award-winning champion for people for the past 26 years. She has guided bosses and teams to excel. Contact Jeannette today for straight talk with dynamic results.

Is your team over budget and missing their milestones? Why? Get your answers: http://ow.ly/Maox30oTBr6

How to Be a Proactive Boss and Stop Fire-Fighting

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boss.fire fighting.proactiveEverywhere, exhausted bosses hate having to put out “fires.” The sad truth is, many of these “hot issues” are preventable by being proactive.

I remember reminiscing with a former coaching client last year. We laughed at the many stories we had addressed when he was the director of a technology company.

One of the most powerful stories was, he never seemed to worry about anything. His normal response, “I understand that maybe I should be worried … and I am concerned … but, I don’t see how running around will change anything.”

His new version: “If there is a fire in the building, I need to get involved instead of sitting and roasting marshmallows.”

He was right. Over-reacting is just as bad as not-reacting. It’s why our coaching calls focused on becoming a proactive boss that prevented “fires” from occurring.

Get Into Action Now

Stop Waiting for “The Perfect Time.” It’s a myth! Waiting until the situation or issue is “really hot” makes it more difficult to “put out the fire.” Attempting to drench it with a fire hose only has team members drown in chaos. In the chaos, the real core issue is camouflaged by smoke and mirrors. Listen up! Be open to hearing what you don’t want to hear. It’s the only way to be proactive and put the fire out now.

Two co-team facilitators sniped at each other during team meetings. Many team members stopped attending and blamed each other for the conflicts. When the boss heard about it, she simply stated, “People will be people.” It wasn’t until her top employee left that she decided she better listen! He blamed her for his need to leave. Perplexed, the boss asked why he felt that way. He replied, “All you had to do was care enough to be proactive, instead of waiting for the inevitable fires.”

Uncover “Why” There Are Upsets and Frustrations. Have you been hearing gossip and sparks of dissension?  If there are complaints, it’s past time to get involved! First, address what you have been afraid of hearing. Then, listen and ask questions to get to the heart of the matter. Don’t fall victim to the popular blame-game often used by others to deflect their responsibility. Straight talk and openness are required to create solutions. Note: If the fire is serious enough, before plunging in and making matters worse, dowse it by hiring an executive coach.

Badgering or Micromanaging Will Not Fix the Issue. Many times bosses feel helpless to resolve a current fire or a spark about ready to ignite. They default to nitpicking, playing the blame game, or steamrolling to get the results. These traits do not build high-performing teams, nor resolve the heart of the issue! When asking good business questions listen to your team members. Remember, you can fix the process, but, you cannot fix personalities.

Everyone Needs Training. Most fires are preventable with proactive actions. It starts with training everyone in how to conduct effective meetings, in-person and virtually. Remember, proactive training is ongoing. Focus on listening, conflict resolution, building trust, and holding each person accountable for the results.

Acknowledgement Work Wonders. It’s the boss’s job to let each and every team member know they are valued for their efforts. This can prevent fire-fighting. Why? When team members feel they matter, they are more likely to proactively prevent sparks from turning into out-of-control fires.

©Jeannette Seibly, 2019

Being proactive as a boss is one of the most difficult challenges you will face. It’s difficult to know when to step in and when to simply advise. Jeannette Seibly has been an award-winning champion for people for the past 26 years. She has guided bosses and teams to excel. Contact Jeannette today for straight talk with dynamic results.

Hope is not a strategy to get your team unstuck! Learn 10 ways to do it now.

How to Be a Great Boss and NOT Steamroll Your Team

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Steamroller.Boss

  • -Do you fail to listen and interrupt your team members constantly?
  • -Do you ignore others’ opinions when trying to brainstorm solutions?
  • -Do you fail to coordinate with others and consider your impact on them?
  • -Do you fail to build alignment to get everyone on the same page?

If you answered yes, you probably consider yourself a results producer and expect others to overlook your steamroller approach. Consider this story.

Joelle was looking forward to working with her new boss, Jake. During the interview, Jake asked all the right questions and said all the right things. When Joelle asked good basic questions, he appeared to listen to her by nodding his head.  She was excited to accept the job offer. However, Joelle had failed to deep dive into Jake’s expectations and management style.  

At the very first team meeting, Joelle experienced Jake’s true style as a boss…a steamroller.  During the two hour meeting, he ignored others’ ideas. When he allowed others to speak, he vetoed them or talked over them or talked as if they hadn’t spoken. He acted like he knew the right way to do everything.

 After the meeting finally ended, Joelle was exhausted. She asked one of her new team members, Jon if Jake was having a bad day. Jon shrugged his shoulders and said, “Its Jake’s normal style. At least he wasn’t yelling and blaming us for the current challenges we’re facing.”

Joelle immediately texted the recruiter and told him to find her another job pronto! She wasn’t going to work for a steamroller.

Steamrollers are considered results producers who know how to get the job done. However, they also are considered pushy people who go to great lengths to get what they want when they want it. They have the need to prove they are right about everything.

The real challenge for a steamroller boss is to learn how to reduce team frustration caused by their steamroller approach.

Managing Your Steamrolling Style

Know Thyself. If you’re a steamroller, it’s important to know why. Use objective data from scientifically validated job fit assessments. This tool allows you to discover your natural style and why teams react towards you the way they do. As a company president once stated, “There will always be breakdowns with team members. Knowing ahead of time what can happen and how to address it allows me to sleep better at night.”

Art of Talking It Out. Not listening and being a “know-it-all” hinder your teams from being top results-producers. When talking with others, it’s important for you to ask questions and listen to their responses. Build on these ideas and deep dive to ensure you understand the meaning of their comments. Be fearless when addressing conflicts and get them resolved for win-win-win outcomes.

Fix Your Own Problems. Too often steamrollers create havoc. They expect others to clean up the messes they make, particularly in relationships. It’s important YOU make the effort to learn from your mistakes. It starts by apologizing (without any excuses) and making amends.

Be Proactive, Not Highly Reactive. Steamrollers are always pushing the panic buttons because they don’t believe their teams are operating the right way. STOP! Your constant badgering and micromanaging are getting in the way. It hurts innovation and team camaraderie. Plan your work and trust others to contribute to the plan. Don’t forget to acknowledge each and every team member for their efforts.

Develop Awareness. The good news is a steamroller can produce intended results. The bad news their process can be fraught with upsets and frustrations. Steamrolling discourages team members from wanting to work with you and for you. Hire an executive coach and use a qualified 360-degree feedback tool. These will provide insights and clarity. Ask your coach: “How do I stop being a steamrolling boss and still produce intended results?” Then, listen, consider what has been said, and take corrective actions.

Be a Straight Talker. Remember, just because you have a frank and direct way of speaking does not make you a steamroller. People today feel comfortable with fluff and indirect conversations. However, these types of conversations can be time-consuming and produce limited results. Become the type of boss that talks straight without steamrolling. Remember to let your team know before you make comments they don’t or won’t want to hear.

©Jeannette Seibly, 2019

Developing your team is one of the most frustrating and difficult roles as a boss. Jeannette Seibly has been an award-winning champion for bosses for the past 26 years and has guided teams to succeed. Contact Jeannette today for straight talk with dynamic results.

Is your team stuck? Is the situation only getting worse? How do you fix the #1 issue all teams experience? Get your answer http://ow.ly/Maox30oTBr6

How Bosses Can Overcome the Entitlement Trap

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Entitled Boss.4Entitlement has become an epidemic. Many people feel entitled to have what they want when they want it. However, for bosses, entitlement can become a trap and lead to career and business derailment and failure.

What do these traps look like?

Traits of entitled bosses:

  • -believe they are more deserving than their employees (e.g., pay increases, bonuses, perks, etc.)
  • -lack compassion for others’ challenges and believe they should just get over it
  • -brag about their team’s results using the word “I”
  • -willing to confront anyone to get what they want, regardless of the impact on others
  • -disregard company policies and rules believing they don’t apply to them
  • -considered bullies, egotistical, ruthless, manipulative, or liars

When you “assume you’re entitled to something, you stop working to get it and begin waiting for it to come to you. That’s a sure-fire way to fail.” (HR Daily Advisor)

To avoid these entitlement traps, it requires awareness and emotional intelligence work.

Remember, success is an inside job.

Entitled bosses (this includes both men and women) can be difficult for people to work with and for. Boss entitlement is why top talent leaves, teams fail to perform, customers go to the competition, and the bottom line isn’t so black.

The problem is, entitlement today is so pervasive that it’s like the air you breathe. You don’t think about it until something triggers it.

You’re not entitled to anything in this life!

This statement can be hard to read and harder to accept after listening to many motivational gurus. However, actually, it can provide clarity. The truth is, entitlement creates misery, not success. Developing healthy emotional intelligence and doing the inner work required, creates the real success you desire.

Get Started

Find an industry mentor and hire an executive coach to help you recognize your entitlement traits and develop better strategies.  One common example is when entitled bosses get angry when employees make mistakes. They exclaim, “They should know better, it makes me look bad.”

Become Aware of Common Entitlement Pitfalls that Sound Like These:

“Bad things shouldn’t happen to me.” There is no voodoo or anything else to prevent unfortunate circumstances. Life happens. Life is unfair to everyone. Develop resiliency and compassion for yourself and others.

“What’s in it for me?” Bad decisions are often based on entitled bosses’ self-interest, favoritism, faulty data, and biases. These will derail your team and your career. Use real objective data and create win-win-win outcomes for better decisions.

“I deserve to be respected.” Entitled bosses are easily disappointed in employees, results, and everything else in life. Remember, the attitude you lead with boomerangs back to you! Respect is earned, regardless of the job title. Adjust your beliefs by helping each and every employee, client and vendor excel. Use your coach to help you gain respect.

“I got this handled.” The minute we think we have something handled we stop paying attention. As a management guru once stated, “Then, we’re screwed!” Allow yourself to be a beginner and get back to the basics. Build on success. Mastery requires the discipline of practicing the right things over and over.

“I don’t make mistakes.” Really? If you hear yourself say this, call your coach immediately. Everyone makes mistakes. They either learn from them or repeat them. Learn how to genuinely apologize and correct the mistakes made by you and your team.

“I deserve nothing but happiness.” While the right team members and projects will make you happy for a short period of time, the honeymoon will end. Every project runs into snags or huge mountains. Set aside your ego, believe in your team, and become a resource to bring the project in on time and within budget.

“I should always win.” Remember, you are not entitled to have everything you believe you want in the way you think it should happen. (Read that again!)  When you rely on your ego to justify why you didn’t win, you miss out on a critical learning opportunity. Winners ask and answer, what worked and what didn’t work to deep dive into “why.” Then, move on.

If you stay out of the entitlement trap by developing awareness and emotional intelligence, you will become a successful boss. And always remember …  Success is an inside job.

©Jeannette Seibly, 2019

Jeannette Seibly is an experienced award-winning executive coach with over 26 years of experience. Her clients create fun, earn 6-figure incomes, and successfully work through confusing situations. Develop your executive persona and stay out of the entitlement trap. Contact Jeannette for straight talk with dynamic results.

Did you know 90% of teams are not top performing and are unable to produce intended results? Do you want how you can fix the #1 reason why? Get your answer http://ow.ly/Maox30oTBr6

How to Manage #MeToo Fears with Courage as a Boss

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#MeToo.Managing.4“60% of male managers are uncomfortable interacting with female co-workers.” (Sheryl Sandberg, Interview on CBS This Morning, 5/17/2019)

Today, many male bosses are fearful of accusations of sexism or harassment due to #MeToo. It is why male bosses refuse or avoid 1:1 meetings, travel, and work dinners/lunches with women.

This trend is hurting women and others in the workplace.  “Business is a team sport and we must engage all genders in our quest to create a better future.” (Rachel Mushahwar, VP & GM at Intel)

In addition, many women are not mentored and overlooked for promotions. They are rated on “how people feel about working with them,” while their male colleagues are evaluated on “the quality and results of their work.”

Reality: a true high-performing team is representative of everyone.

The truth is, all bosses need to remember ignoring fears won’t make them go away. It requires courage and a new level of awareness for bosses to learn from and move past #MeToo fears. This is how you prevent accusations of sexism, harassment, and other discrimination.

7 Tips for Building Awareness

Job Fit Assessments. These tools help bosses (men and women) manage by reducing subjectivity. They improve the boss’s ability to hire, coach, manage and train with more objectivity. When you use factual data, everyone wins.

Persuasive Listening. When bosses and employees disagree, most do not know how to talk it out before it becomes a conflict. Do not allow conflicts or rifts in relationships to continue. As a boss, it’s your responsibility to learn how to elicit the best in others when talking and working with anyone.

Keep It Business Focused. When meeting with employees, bosses or co-workers, keep it focused on business. Stay away from sharing gossip, jokes, or personal issues. These can come back to bite you.  When hosting events follow these three fundamental rules: 1) hold them in public venues, 2) limit your intake of alcohol, and 3) never gossip about work or people.

Share Selectively. Women are more likely to share personal and family challenges with others than men. Be responsible for what you share and who you share it with. Sadly, studies have shown women can be less supportive of other women’s challenges, particularly when there is a promotion at stake.

Hire an Executive Coach. Take workshops that help you understand human nature and hire an executive coach. This combination will improve your confidence, competence, and courage. Remember, good management and supervisory skills are developed over time.

Mistakes Happen. You will make mistakes along the way. Apologize and don’t do it or say it again!

Commitment to Success. Successful bosses know the commitment to each and every person’s success creates high performing results-producing teams.

My interactions with men and women bosses have shown that both are fearful of #MeToo.  Courageous bosses have the courage to overcome these fears. When bosses overcome these #MeToo fears they creates a workplace free from sexism, harassment and other types of discrimination.

©Jeannette Seibly, 2019

Are you a boss that needs the courage to handle confusing situations with your employees? Jeannette Seibly has been an award-winning champion for bosses for the past 26 years. Contact Jeannette today for straight talk with dynamic results.

Did you know only 10% of teams are top performing results-producers?
Do you want to know why? This download is FREE when you join SeibCo’s weekly eNews.

 

Surprisingly, Listening to Feedback Can Make You Promotable

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feedback.promotable.3A 43-year-old boss was critical and subjective when giving feedback to his employees. They reacted by ignoring him, arguing with him, or simply continue to do it their own way. When his director demanded he learn how to give feedback to motivate his team, he gave in and hired a coach. He quickly learned he didn’t like receiving feedback either! The first lesson for bosses, it’s important to learn to receive feedback as well as give it!

Giving and receiving feedback can be difficult today. The #1 challenge according to research, “we aren’t the reliable raters of other people’s performance that we think we are; …” (HBR, 2019)

As bosses, higher level management encourages us to be critical of others. They believe this motivates everyone to excel. The truth is, most employees don’t listen to feedback, even when it is constructively offered. This hurts everyone’s ability to learn and be promotable.

Consider, you can learn something from anyone. This is feedback and makes you promotable. It requires you to choose to listen and hear what others are saying, particularly when you don’t want to do so. Otherwise, you risk having your career sidelined.

Why We Don’t Want Feedback

When you are emotionally attached to doing it your way, you don’t care what others think and blow off their feedback. You will argue your results are good enough and disregard the outcome or impact on others. This attitude towards feedback will derail your career.

How to Learn from Feedback

Listen Up! Do you want to be promotable? It’s crucial to fine-tune your willingness to hear feedback. When you listen through the filter of being criticized, you will feel criticized. If you listen to someone’s feedback as a gift, you will find it valuable. It’s always your choice!

Role-play from POV. Instead of ignoring feedback, role-play the feedback from the other person’s POV. This is a great way to better understand why they are saying what they are saying.

Listen for Objective Insights. Promotable bosses embrace feedback, even when shared subjectively. Deep dive by asking questions to uncover objective concerns. Remember, there is no absolute correct way to do anything. For example, there are over 100 ways to wash dishes!

Hire a Coach. Learning from feedback gets you promoted faster. Hire a well-seasoned executive coach. This expert will guide you through the unwritten company rules and help you build a strong confident work style.

Build Team Comradery. When you disregard your team members’ feedback, they no longer trust you. Develop an openness and valuing feedback when designing a project or implementing a plan. It will improve your results and limit unwelcomed surprises. Listen and ask good questions to build alignment and don’t ignore nay-sayers. (Hint: Nay-sayers often provide the best feedback.)

Make Feedback Constructive. Use a job fit assessment to objectively clarify why you do what you do. Remember, every strength has an inherent weakness that impacts your outcome. You need feedback to recognize this.  For example, if you are a great listener, you will miss out on being introduced to decision-makers at networking meetings. Why? You allow highly sociable influencers (aka someone who talks nonstop) to get in your way of asking for introductions.

©Jeannette Seibly, 2019

Jeannette Seibly is a well-seasoned award-winning executive coach. She has been a champion for people achieving results for the past 26 years. As a result, her clients have created more fun, 6-figure incomes, and success when working through confusing situations. Develop your ability to give laser-like feedback.  Contact Jeannette for straight talk with dynamic results.

Successful bosses have coaches! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to learn how to solve your 3-P concerns (people, project, and performance). When you register, you will receive FREE “How to Select the Best Coach for You!”

Alert! Overconfidence is the Downfall for Managers Today

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Entefy is building the first universal communicator, an AI-powered communication platform that seamlessly connects people, services, and smart things.

Overconfidence has become a management trend today, according to many studies.

A new manager believed he was ready to lead a $25M dollar project, even though he had never run a $1M project before. He sold himself by making bold promises and embellishing his skills. 60 days later he was fired and wanted to know why. He hired a coach and learned he had management potential, but, he lacked the managerial experience required to manage a diverse team. Later, he found why. His team hadn’t trusted him and disregarded everything he said. They believed he was, “too full of himself.” In other words, he was overconfident in his skills and abilities.

The overconfidence dynamic happens when managers overestimate their abilities to perform and deliver.  When they fail, they are sidelined or fired without understanding the specific reasons why. To develop awareness, they need to set aside their I-got-this-handled attitudes. Then, listen, be coachable, and develop true inner confidence. (Hint: inner confidence is not based on ego or feelings; it’s based on a proven track record)

Are You Overconfident?

Awareness and mindfulness are important. At times, everyone has been or will be overconfident in their life and career. Learn to recognize and adjust the words or actions that signal you’re being overconfident. If you don’t, it may be your downfall.

Be honest about your skills. Take the time to conduct an accurate assessment of yourself. This includes talking with co-workers, bosses, customers, and vendors (a 360-degree review).  Also, use a scientifically validated job fit assessment. This type of assessment goes beyond how you want to be seen. It provides objective insights into your strengths, skills, and abilities needed to excel as a leader or boss.

Stop comparing yourself with others. Too often, when you see someone make a mistake, you may become arrogant and believe you would never make a similar mistake. This is one important example of being overconfident and lacking empathy.

Test your assumptions before declaring your decision. Too often we make important judgments and decisions based on fragments of information. We fail to deep dive objectively into the pros and cons. Contact your network!  90% of the world’s information is in people’s heads, not the internet.  Questions to get answered: Why did it work for that company? What are the differences between the companies? What is the “insider” information? This kind of analysis can help you make confident decisions.

Listen to others’ feedback and concerns. While it may seem easier to only focus on the positives, a healthy skepticism has saved many people’s careers and financial outcomes. All feedback is valuable.

Recognize when it’s the right time. While many ideas may be viable with modifications, it may not be the right time or place to put them into action. Beware if you’ve mulled an idea around in your head too long, it may no longer make a positive difference.

How to Work with Overconfident Managers

Stay aware and mindful in conversations. Listen up when your manager’s decision impacts you, your project, team, budget, etc.  Ask good open-ended questions to learn how the decision was made.

Stand up and speak up. While it’s important to be assertive in these situations, diplomacy is critical. Remember, you may be right…but, overconfident bosses may ignore you in the future if their ego feels threatened.

If their idea or assertion does not impact you, avoid confrontation. Choose which issues to pursue. Otherwise, when a major issue needs to be resolved, overconfident managers will not be open to listening to you.

While we’ve all experienced overconfidence at one time or another, learn from the above strategies to avoid downfalls and create healthy inner confidence.

©Jeannette Seibly, 2019

Jeannette Seibly has been a champion for people achieving results for the past 26 years. As an award-winning coach, she has helped 100s of bosses create more fun, 6-figure incomes, and success when working through confusing situations. Develop a healthy inner-confidence by contacting Jeannette for straight talk with dynamic results.

Successful bosses have coaches! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to learn how to solve your 3-P concerns (people, project, and performance). When you register, you will receive FREE “How to Select the Best Coach for You!”

How to Successfully Overcome Your Professional Failures

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Success.Failure

Consider that one hour out of 2080 work hours in one year is equal to .04 percent (.0004).  Yet, in this minuscule amount of time, you can derail your career and become fired or sidelined.  Worse, you may not even know this has happened until it’s too late.

Joanie, a senior manager of a Fortune 50 company, felt she was right to support her team and the budget for a new project. When Cole, her boss’s boss, asked questions about the numbers, Joanie went on the defensive. As a result, Cole’s ego got in the way. He was offended and embarrassed that he could not logically explain his apprehensions. In that one hour, she didn’t even know she derailed her career and was slated to be fired.

When Joanie shared the situation with her coach, the coach understood the predictable outcome…Joanie was going to be fired.  She convinced Joanie to apologize to Cole. However, Cole would not talk with her. Then, the coach advised Joanie to get transferred to a different department asap. Joanie didn’t agree there was a problem since her boss Kevin hadn’t said anything to her yet.  But, instead of waiting around, she got into action and got a new job in a different department with a pay increase. The first comment Kevin made to her a month later was, “I don’t know what you did or how you did it, but, congrats. Otherwise, I was not looking forward to firing you.”

The recent comeback of Tiger Woods is an international example that you can overcome setbacks, mistakes, and failures. He clearly had done the work required, even when faced with additional setbacks, to win the 2019 Masters Tournament.

Most professionals have experienced difficult situations. The challenge is, are we aware and willing to turn the situation around? Are we practicing and developing the right skills? Do we have the right external coach and internal industry mentor to help us avoid and overcome career traps? If not, it will take longer to transform failure into success.

First, and foremost, hire a coach to avoid the trial and error of “getting it right.” Most successful leaders, bosses, and executives learn this lesson early in their careers. However, it’s never too late.

Next, Do the Work by Practicing These Skills Daily

  1. Read something that motivates you.
  2. Meditate and visualize positive outcomes.
  3. When driving or riding, listen to a podcast that educates you.
  4. Build relationships daily through positive interactions. It starts with a smile, “hello,” “please,” and “thank you.”
  5. Honor your word by fulfilling your promises and managing others’ expectations of you.
  6. Promote yourself in a business savvy manner…it builds immediate credibility.
  7. Help others succeed by supporting them in word and action. Ask, “How can I help you?”
  8. Respect others’ opinions and ask the right questions in a way to elicit the best from others.
  9. Listen to others’ ideas. Incorporate them into the project or plan where appropriate.
  10. Be fearless in resolving conflicts, criticisms, and complaints for win-win-win outcomes.
  11. Accept those things you cannot change (e.g., people’s personalities, weather, etc.).
  12. Be resourceful and resilient when faced with challenges.
  13. Be kind to yourself in how you think, speak, and write.
  14. Have compassion for others.
  15. Get into focused action…it overcomes procrastination and overthinking.
  16. Apologize immediately if someone appears offended by what you’ve said or done. This is regardless of whether or not you are at fault.

©Jeannette Seibly, 2019

Jeannette Seibly has been a champion for people achieving results for the past 26 years. As an award-winning coach, she has helped 100s of bosses create more fun, 6-figure incomes, and success when working through confusing situations. Avoid career derailment by contacting Jeannette for straight talk with dynamic results.

Successful bosses have coaches! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to learn how to solve your 3-P concerns (people, project, and performance). When you register, you will receive FREE “How to Select the Best Coach for You!”

 

11 Reasons You Are Unaware Of that Make You Unpromotable

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Ghosted.work.2Many seemingly qualified people today are being overlooked for promotions.

If you are one of them, you are probably asking yourself, “why?”

Sally failed in her presentation at a board meeting with insurance executives. She was unable to answer their questions in a tactful manner. Then, making matters worse, she justified her poor performance. She ignored the coaching offered by her boss because she believed her skills were fine. As a result, she was sidelined and when her boss retired, the board gave his job to someone else.

Often, we have an opinion of who we are and what it takes to get the promotion. Often, we are wrong and don’t understand why. The truth is, we have blind spots that get in our way. To be promotable, we need to be coachable.

Joe is a team manager in an engineering firm and hates his boss, Scott, the director. Joe justifies his feelings by sharing examples of when Scott swooped in and took over a couple of projects. As a result, Joe’s team needed to correct Scott’s errors. To make matters even worse, Scott decreased bonuses citing budget issues. Prior to working with a coach, Joe didn’t see his complaints about or conflicts with Scott as a problem. After all, all his co-workers hated Scott too. When the coach said Joe needed to resolve the controversy, Joe got upset. He retorted, “But you don’t understand…no one likes him!” The coach reminded Joe of his goal to be promoted. “To be promotable, you need to build positive working relationships with everyone.” Joe took the coaching and it worked! All of a sudden, Scott became easier to work with. After his co-workers began asking him for advice on how to work with Scott, Joe received an unexpected call from the company president. “I hear you’re doing great work. I want to promote you to an executive position when you’re ready.” Joe had done the work required to become promotable.

What do you need to do to be ready for the next promotion? The short answer is, hire the right coach to champion you to develop the right skills with the right attitude.

Focus on These 11 Key Skills

  1. Listening. Stop mind-reading. Don’t start conversations with, “I know how you feel or how you think about …. This limits hearing new ideas that provide solutions.
  2. Curiosity. High-performance individuals are curious and promotable. They deep dive into learning about their profession, company, and/or products. They develop advanced solid hands-on experience and don’t settle for mediocrity.
  3. Job Fit. The #1 reason promoted people succeed is they fit the job! Before you leap to find the right job, hire a coach to develop clarity and avoid the costly trial and error approach. For fastest results, also use qualified 360-degree feedback and qualified job fit assessments.
  4. Emotional Intelligence. Are you aware of how your words and actions impact others? Mindfulness makes a significant difference in your ability to lead others and have them want to follow you.
  5. Attitude. If you are a know-it-all, you miss out on solutions that save time and money. Appreciate each and every team member and give them credit for new ideas and solutions.
  6. Integrity. When you fail to fulfill promises, stay in communication, and return phone calls/emails, you are labeled a difficult person to work with. Integrity is key…do what others expect of you and do it well. It makes you promotable.
  7. Focus and Resourcefulness. If you are easily distracted by the bright shiny object syndrome, you lack focus. This also happens when you get stuck and lack the initiative to find the resources required to get the job done well. Promotable people blast through perceived challenges.
  8. Resilience. Do you allow team dynamics of conflicts, complaints, and criticisms to get in the way? Promotable people must be unstoppable when working with and through others to achieve intended results!
  9. Positive Interactions. Do you believe you are fearless when you dominate and steamroll over others to get your own way? This approach rarely works in building teams or creating win-win-win outcomes, which are keys for promotability.
  10. Self-Promotion. Being a braggart is not the type of self-promotion that wins you promotions. Learn how to brag in a biz savvy manner to get the promotion you want.
  11. Compassion. Set aside being highly-critical and have empathy. All people have challenges, including you. Learn to ask, “How can I be of help?” Then, follow-through.

Being aware and developing the above listed 11 key skills and examples will start you on the road to be promotion ready.

©Jeannette Seibly, 2019

For the past 26 years, Jeannette Seibly has been a champion for people achieving results. She has helped 100s of bosses create more fun, 6-figure incomes, and success when working through confusing situations. To get promotion-ready, contact Jeannette for straight talk with dynamic results.

Successful bosses have coaches! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to learn how to solve your 3-P concerns (people, project, and performance). When you register, you will receive a FREE guide, “How to Select the Best Coach for You!”

Prevent Your Employees from Making Costly Mistakes

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Mistakes.2As a boss, how do you take an active role in preventing your employees from making costly mistakes?

  • -Address and simplify written employee policies and company procedures.
  • -Develop mentoring programs to help everyone navigate unwritten rules.
  • -Review practices employees have inadvertently created.
  • -Have an open door and open mind to hear what employees are telling you.

As you implement the above actions, be aware:

  • -In the U.S., average reading accuracy and comprehension is 8th-grade level or below. (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development)
  • -Many workers lack experience on how to prevent mistakes from occurring.
  • -Many fail to understand that shortcutting has an impact on others.
  • -Many employees lack the confidence to stand up and speak up.
  • -Employees are afraid of the repercussions from unwritten rules. This often includes “don’t tell or else.”

The good news is, mistakes can be prevented with awareness, training, and focused action.

Pay Now or Pay Later

Take Responsibility. When your employees suspect a problem, don’t downplay their concerns. If you do, you are less likely to hear about future issues. Never assume theft, harassment, or safety violations can’t happen on your watch.

Hire and Promote for Job Fit. When people fit their jobs and have strong work ethics, they are interested in doing their jobs well. Studies show job fit reduces costly mistakes in communication, ability to work with others, and work habits. Job fit also improves effectiveness in handling challenges. Use a scientifically validated assessment tool to determine job fit. Don’t forget to use an honesty and integrity assessment to uncover information about the theft and/or other previous employment issues not found in public background checks.

Review Confidentiality Requirements. People love to gossip. But, you never know who is listening at the next table. When insider information is shared, it hurts sales opportunities, funding, and the ability to launch new products. Remind everyone of their confidentiality agreements and advise them to keep sensitive information private.

Talk It Out. Talk It Out! Preventing mistakes can be a challenge since many people don’t believe there is a problem until after a mistake has occurred. Ethical issues are more challenging since spinning the facts has become an acceptable excuse. Remember, the truth will come out! When mistakes occur, your job is to listen with the intention of uncovering the facts. Investigate immediately before addressing with the person or persons directly involved. Be resilient in ensuring the right things are being done the best way for everyone.

Review Systems. When was the last time you and your employees reviewed policies, procedures, systems, and protocols? (In my experience, these are done maybe once and never reviewed again.) What needs to be updated? Periodically, facilitate a review with your employees. Provide training for how to handle concerns and make changes for the benefit of everyone.

These practices are how you can take a proactive role in preventing mistakes from occurring, now and in the future.

©Jeannette Seibly, 2019

For the past 26 years, Jeannette Seibly has been a champion for people achieving results. She has helped 100s of bosses create more fun, 6-figure incomes, and success when working through confusing situations. To ensure you are preventing mistakes from occurring, contact Jeannette for straight talk with dynamic results.

Successful bosses have coaches! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to learn how to solve your 3-P concerns (people, project, and performance). When you register, you will receive FREE “How to Select the Best Coach for You!”