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Listening and hearing are critical skills for every boss today. But they are not the same skill!

• Listening is paying attention to a message to hear, understand, and physically or verbally respond to it.
• Hearing is the process, function, or power of perceiving sound. (HandyHandouts.com)

When you listen to what your teams and employees say, you’ll gain respect, solutions, honesty, and better results. If you are hearing the words (like many bosses do), it’s not good enough. You will lose customers, top talent, and career opportunities. (The list is endless!)

Listening to Be a Great Boss

Be Present! Focus and stop multi-tasking. While listening, set aside electronics, negative feelings, replaying old conversations, and other distractions (e.g., people-watching). When listening or speaking, stay focused on the current discussion! You’ll be amazed by what you can learn, even if you believe you already know it all!

Breathe to Stop Triggers! When you notice you are triggered or offended, breathe in for 5 counts. Pause. Exhale for 5 counts. (Or any number that works for you.) Repeat this breathing pattern 3 times. Breathing reduces the fight, flight, or freeze stress response triggered in your brain. Note: If you need to do this often, discuss it with your executive coach and/or a therapist.

Let Them Finish! They’ve been rehearsing what they want to say for a while. If you cut them off because you’re impatient or think you know what they will say, they will start all over again … at the beginning! Since some people are poor communicators, they may ramble, lack clarity of what they want to say, or fear saying what they really want to say — help by inviting them to share the main point of what they want to say. Pay very close attention to your tone of voice – remember, you’re asking them, not ordering them.

Check Back! Being on the same page in a conversation is crucial to being considered a great boss and listener! When someone is finished sharing their thoughts or ideas, check back to be sure you heard them. Never assume you did! The best practice is to use the same words they used. For example, if they say “generous,” use the same word, not something else. Then ASK THEM, is this correct? Note: Refrain from using slang or inappropriate words since the conversation will be repeated with others!

Build on Their Ideas! Working together, take their ideas and build on them. This not only improves your results; it keeps others in the conversation. Be open to listening to their additional ideas, too.

Expand Your Perspective. Listen and honor differences! If you have difficulty listening to others’ points of view, you will limit your ability to be a great boss. Participate in training programs and workshops, and hire an executive coach to help expand your thinking. I have found that while qualified assessments significantly improve job fit, they also provide an ability to listen beyond your perception of what others can accomplish on the team!

©Jeannette Seibly 2023 All Rights Reserved

Jeannette Seibly is a champion for success. As a leader, do you have bosses that are difficult for teams to work with? Jeannette’s depth of experience and wisdom can transform those bosses from hated to respected! Contact Jeannette for a confidential discussion.

Crossing the finish line and achieving the goal requires believing AND doing the work required!

The challenge? We give up too soon … and spend more time creating excuses and talking with others who support our reasons than looking for guidance to cross the finish line!

We have heard of the fable about the tortoise’s and the hare’s efforts to cross the finish line. Today, most people believe they must be the hare to cross the finish line — be faster, smarter, and make more money. But it’s the tortoise that crosses the finish line to win! The hare burned out, stressed out, and gave up too soon due to poor job fit, poor work practices, and an overconfident ego.

Example: Jeremy got his degree in engineering due to his parents’ expectations and financial support. But his genuine desire was to start a nonprofit to support refugees. After getting his engineering degree, he worked for an engineering company. He took advantage of the company’s education and volunteer programs to learn how to establish and run a successful nonprofit. Jeremy honored his commitment by not giving up, crossed his finish line, and now runs a nonprofit. Currently, he’s looking for the next finish line (a new goal)!

What Do You Need to Do to Cross the Finish Line?

Know Your True Self. Take time to get honest about what you’d really really really like to accomplish. Use a qualified job fit assessment to clarify your strengths, and work with an executive coach to develop them. (Just because you’re a math whiz doesn’t mean you should be an accountant or a financial planner!) Remember, no one is born a leader, design engineer, or financial trader … it all requires doing the work!

Set a Timeline. When do you wish to achieve your goal? Be realistic and work with a career coach. In your current job, use the company’s education plan to get the training and certificates required to support your goal, or seek out other options.

Make a Financial Plan that Works. It’s the foundation for reaching your goal. Also, create a business or career plan. Know what you need financially to cross the finish line and achieve your goal. Be realistic about the numbers and expenses, and start saving and working on your plan today!

Understand Expectations. Regardless of your finish line (new job, create a business, travel, etc.), ask and learn about the required hours and experience and other expectations. Example: A new air controller was excited about his new job. But when the work schedule for the upcoming month was passed around, he crossed out the times he was listed to work since he didn’t want to work those hours. His new career was short-lived because of his unrealistic expectations.

Ask for Real Help! Don’t be embarrassed to ask for help! Many people have not been where you want to go, and their counsel isn’t based on reality. Look for people who have achieved or helped others achieve your goal. Crossing any finish line requires an industry mentor, executive coach, and other supporters! Beware when someone insists you do it their way. Say, “Thank you,” and move on.

Create Daily Practices. It takes small steps consistently taken over and over, like the tortoise, to cross the finish line and achieve your goal! When you become good at your work, it’s not time to stop! Be a student, be curious, and keep doing the basic work, even when bored! Remember, good basic practices are required to develop mastery to win. (Like building physical strength, it takes many repetitions over and over.)

Develop Communication and People Skills. Regardless of what you wish to accomplish, you need good written and verbal skills (beyond texts and emails) and good interpersonal skills (even though you may not like talking with others). Take workshops, attend a social event weekly, and learn the art of talking with anyone anywhere at any time. If you wish to travel, include a foreign language.

Remember, the tortoise kept going regardless of the circumstances– their commitment to cross the finish line never wavered. It may seem impossible at times for you, but there is no greater satisfaction than honoring your commitment to cross the finish line and achieve your goal!

©Jeannette Seibly 2023 All Rights Reserved

Jeannette Seibly is a champion for success. As a leader, do you have bosses that are difficult for teams to work with? Jeannette’s depth of experience and wisdom can transform those bosses from hated to respected! Contact Jeannette for a confidential discussion.

There is a change occurring! Team members are leaving traditional and metrics-driven leadership. They are seeking leadership that focuses on the human dynamics that impact results. For example, “That’s how it’s always been done.” vs. “Great idea. How do you recommend we put it in place?”

During the past several years, leaders have fallen back into relying on their own opinions and feelings about how to address customers’ projects, solve issues, and execute programs. They feel it’s faster and easier since they lack human interaction and communication skills. The impact? Only 10% of teams actually achieve the intended results!

Develop Your Human Leadership Skills to Stop Team Members from Leaving You

It Starts with You:

Ask for Help. Leaders must learn to ask for help in sticky situations and office conflicts. Doing that provides a marked difference between traditional v. human leadership. Remember, the thought process that created the brouhaha will not solve it! It starts with talking and listening to your coach, boss, co-workers, and team members.

Hire a Coach. Yes, I mention this often. Why? There is a significant difference between coachable leaders and those struggling to become good leaders. It’s why you need an executive coach that has extensive business experience. The guidance is priceless. It opens your perspective when resolving complex situations and decisions while developing your human leadership skills!

Listen … Yes, Really Listen! I know I write about this often too. But the quality of listening is the cornerstone for a leader’s success or failure. An excellent way to determine if you need help improving your listening skills is by pretending you’re a fly on the wall at meetings.

Check for:

• Do you dominate the conversation?
• Are your biases getting in the way of new ideas?
• Are you a naysayer?
• Are you encouraging ideas or judging them as good or bad?
• Do you ask questions to clarify?
• Do you summarize (using the person’s specific words) to ensure you and others are on the same page?

Next, Develop the Team:

Build Team’s Critical Thinking Skills. You don’t have all the answers! (Seriously, you don’t.) Instead of relying solely on your intuition or gut reactions, develop your team’s critical thinking skills. This will expand your and the team’s “knowledge” and “know-how” and disrupt the traditional way of doing things. It also builds confidence and competence to produce the intended results.

Hold Team Members Accountable for Results. When a team member wants help, a human leadership approach doesn’t give them the solution. Instead, ask open-ended questions that encourage team members to consider the pros and cons of their dilemma or problem. Then, ask what they are going to do. Next, have them provide in writing an outline of what will be done. Finally, manage the project progress by asking, “How have you done? What’s in the way? How can I help?”

Guide the Creation of Win-Win-Win Results. Remember, a successful human leader focuses on everyone winning, not just the customer, team, or team member. So ensure everyone speaks well of each other, supports a good work ethic, and focuses on building a healthy team and customer dynamics.

Using good human leadership skills isn’t necessarily easy. If you want to become part of the 10% that achieve intended results, hire a coach and get in action to adopt human leadership skills!

©Jeannette Seibly 2023 All Rights Reserved

Jeannette Seibly is The Leadership Results Coach. She has over 30 years of award-winning international experience as an executive consultant, speaker, and business author. Her clients surpass the norm by working through sticky situations and challenging relationships to become positive influencers. Contact Jeannette for a confidential discussion.

A note from Jeannette about Developing Human Leadership Skills: Regardless of what you’ve read, traditional leadership still prevails in many companies. As a result, companies are losing team members, quality results, and paying customers! It’s time to develop your human leadership skills mindfully. Contact me for a confidential conversation on how to do it!

Many leaders are experiencing a loss of ambition. They do not feel inspired by their job or lifestyle because of the pandemic, economic uncertainty, and other external factors.

Without ambition, you may feel your leadership and life are falling apart and don’t understand why. While we all experience ups and downs in life, we need to learn how to ride these roller coasters without causing more stress to stay healthy and on top of our careers. But, if you’re like me, you don’t like roller coaster rides!

It’s time to get your ambition back … but on your own terms. Feeling inspired to live an extraordinary life, including your career, doesn’t happen by accident. It requires taking charge of what you can directly impact on making it happen.

Definition of Ambition

• a strong desire to do or to achieve something, typically requiring determination and hard work
• desire and determination to achieve success

(Taken from Oxford Languages)

Tips to Reclaim Your Ambition

1. Get Clear. Clarity is the foundation for reclaiming your ambition. Unfortunately, too many current and future leaders work jobs that don’t fit them. It sabotages their ambition because they hang on due to the paycheck, job title, and/or benefits. Instead, use a qualified job fit assessment to discover your core thinking style, behaviors, and occupational interests. It makes a positive difference when developing your leadership savvy and future ambitions.
2. Hire the Right Coach. An experienced coach is essential when managing team conflict, handling a demanding boss or board, and enjoying your current job or lifestyle. Job satisfaction does depend on job fit (see #1 above!) and the ambition to excel.
3. Work with a Therapist. Improving your mental health is a process that many successful leaders undertake with credentialed therapists. Talking it out is therapeutic. But … I cannot stress this enough … if the therapist has you write a letter to a person(s) you believe has done you wrong, do NOT send it. It’s a great way to derail your career and any future ambitions.
4. Doing Small Things Matter. In the first chapter of Michelle Obama’s book, The Light We Carry, she writes about knitting. I was skeptical about how knitting could make a difference. Yet, I learned that working with your hands, such as knitting or woodworking, simple and soothing tasks can bring a sense of accomplishment. “Yes, I can do it.” It also allows ideas to get created. My “knitting” is completing jigsaw puzzles. What’s yours?
5. Remember, a journal is for your eyes only. Focus on successes, brags, and other ways to feel good about your accomplishments. Don’t forget to write about, explore, and plan your dreams, goals, and other ambitions.
6. Reading encourages ambition, whether it is non-fiction or fiction. It enlightens and stretches your point of view. For me, I love historical fiction that depicts a different time, showing how far we’ve come as people. It feeds my ambition.
7. Relax and Rejuvenate. It’s hard to be ambitious when you cannot plan time for yourself and honor it—also, plan time with your kids, significant other, family member and friends. Having healthy relationships facilitates ambition.

©Jeannette Seibly 2023 All Rights Reserved

Jeannette Seibly is The Leadership Results Coach. She has over 30 years of award-winning international experience as an executive consultant, speaker, and business author. Her clients surpass the norm by working through sticky situations and challenging relationships to become positive influencers. Contact Jeannette for a confidential discussion.

A note from Jeannette about reclaiming your ambition: Many of us are experiencing a lack of ambition due to external factors outside of our control. Yet, there are many ways we can reclaim our ambition and live a great life and enjoy our careers. Contact me to talk through your ambitious challenges!

Most people would agree that generating ideas is the precursor to creating solutions. It’s how problems get resolved. New business opportunities get created. And team members (and leaders) feel valued and heard.

But there are many times we don’t feel heard or understood because no one is listening.

What do you need to do to get your ideas heard? First, understand why your team members and/or leaders don’t listen to you. Second, share your ideas so that others will listen to you.

Why Are Your Ideas Not Heard?

Ego. Underneath all the excuses, it’s either your ego or the other person’s ego in the way. It can be due to your arrogance or to their skepticism, resistance to change, or because it wasn’t their idea.

You’re Not Listening! If you fail to listen to others first, they will fail to listen to you.

First Time Hearing It. Many times, you’ve been thinking about your idea for a while. But it’s the first time others are hearing it. They need time to think through it, especially if it’s outside the norm.

Thinking Style. People think and absorb new information at different rates of speed. It can be due to thinking at a slower pace than you talk. Or, they think conceptually and believe they’ve already heard it before … so they fail to ask probing questions to understand your point.

Lack of Authority. When your team has no authority, they feel helpless to do anything and will refuse to listen.

How to Present Ideas, So Others Hear You

Before You’re Ready to Present Your Ideas. Make sure to do your research and uncover the “elephant in the room” to get people’s attention. Then, using the facts, you found, outline your discussion points. Talk it over with your executive coach to expand your point of view. Now it’s time to present your idea(s).

Choose Your Words Responsibly. Team members will shut down if you rely on jargon, slang, or acronyms. Many times, it could be you’re not using them correctly. Or, they don’t understand and will not ask you to clarify. They’ve stopped listening to your idea(s).

Use Fact-Based v. Emotional Messaging. If you usually use one or the other, expand. For example, if you rely on “emotional messages” to get people’s attention, share facts and be a contrarian.

Example:

• Start with a contrarian statement: Did you know intuitive hiring is one of the causes of the Great Resignation?
• Then, follow up with a couple of quick facts. Studies have shown that over 90% of hiring is based solely on interviews. And the decision of “yes” or “no” is made within 4 to 15 minutes.
• Now, the emotional message of ‘why it’s important.’ This way of hiring is costly. Here’s an idea that may help us improve our bottom line and our bonuses. (Note: Hire Amazing Employees (Revised Edition): How to Increase Retention, Revenues, and Results! is coming in July!   SeibCo.com/books/)

Use Graphics and Pictures. To get everyone on the same page, use easy-to-understand graphics and pictures to get your ideas across. Or physically show them the issue and how your idea will solve it.

Go Up the Chain of Command. Use this as a last resort. If you do this too often, everyone stops listening. If the idea is important enough, do your homework first. Then, practice presenting the material in front of the mirror before sharing it with others.

Be Open to Other’s Ideas. And build on them. Remember, listening is a two-way street. Get your own ego out of the way and allow others to offer their ideas to create a workable solution.

©Jeannette Seibly, 2022

Jeannette Seibly is The Leadership Results Coach. She has been an award-winning international executive and family business management consultant, keynote speaker, and author for over 29 years. Her focus is to guide leaders to make a positive difference. Feel stuck moving your team forward? Want straightforward counsel on how to do it? Let’s chat! Contact Jeannette for a confidential conversation.

A note from Jeannette about having your ideas heard: to create viable solutions, we all need ideas. But what happens when no one is listening? Read this week’s article for tips on encouraging others to hear you. Do you need an ear to share a concern? Talk through an idea to resolve it? Let’s Chat!

Change is occurring everywhere due to the pandemic, politics, and economy. Some leaders have rallied their teams for positive outcomes…while many have done very little to make change a positive experience.

Many team members are now standing up and speaking up…making change inevitable. This can be intimidating for even the strongest of leaders because change can be difficult whether or not you believe in the need for it.

The truth is, leaders must manage the process of change in a positive and proactive manner, or it will manage them.

How Do You Move Out of the Way?

Embrace, Don’t Fear of Change. This is a must and required to be a leader, especially in today’s new world of work. Learn to embrace change and be part of its evolution instead of allowing it to happen by default. Be the type of leader that guides teams forward by encouraging innovation along the way.

It’s Not Personal. When team members are standing up and speaking up, it’s not about you. It’s about changes they believe are required of the company’s systems, policies, and/or practices. When you set aside your ego, biases and judgments, you will hear what needs to be heard. Then, you can ask questions to brainstorm ideas that build change and create win-win-win outcomes.

Develop Mindful Resilience. We all get triggered by perceived microaggressions and emotional reactions to certain words, facial expressions, or gestures. Mindful resilience is when we develop a conscious awareness of our triggers and address our reactions in a positive manner. It’s starts with you, as the leader, taking responsibility for your triggers when they occur so they don’t get in the way of change. Remember, clarity of what triggered your reactions is required before you can create win-win-win outcomes. Work with your executive coach or therapist to guide you through these triggered reactions and be a leader others value.

Get Over the Need to be Well-Liked When Making Decisions. It hurts your credibility. Many leaders are afraid to upset others and it is reflected in their decisions. However, change requires fearless leadership to make the tough decisions and manage worthwhile change. Work with your executive coach as a trusted sounding board and focus on understanding the impact your decisions have across the company and with your customers. Include team members in decision-making processes by using facilitated brainstorming sessions. Give them a voice and listen to what they are saying!  You’ll be amazed by their ideas and insights.

Make Your Feedback Positive. Recently a group of people were providing feedback on a project by saying, “I don’t like this or that.” When asked why, they said, “Just because I don’t.” This type of feedback is meaningless and not helpful to any leader. As a leader, discover “why” by asking non-accusatory questions. Otherwise, you and your team will fail to stretch and develop the skills required to make better decisions.

Questions to get the conversation started:

• Tell me more about why you don’t like this idea.
• Interesting…could you tell me what you’re hearing or seeing about this idea that has you say “no”?
• What would make it a “yes”?

Getting out of the way and leading change will make you a better leader. Your career will thank you.

©Jeannette Seibly, 2020

Jeannette Seibly is The Leadership Results Coach. She has been an award-winning executive coach and keynote speaker for 28 years. Her expertise is guiding leaders to get unstuck and achieve unprecedented results. Contact Jeannette for a confidential conversation.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

#1 New Release on Amazon: “The Secret to Selling Yourself Anytime, Anywhere: Start Bragging!” by author, Jeannette Seibly

Aurora, CO – October 7, 2020. In addition to celebrating 28 years as a leadership coach and business consultant, Jeannette Seibly’s newest book, The Secret to Selling Yourself Anytime, Anywhere: Start Bragging! was recently noted as “#1 New Release” on Amazon.

“Learning how to brag has helped 100’s of people win new jobs, careers, promotions, and pay increases. We’ve been taught from a very young age that bragging is wrong. But if you don’t learn how to brag or promote yourself, you will have a difficult time selling your experiences, education, and achievements,” commented Jeannette Seibly.

Jeannette Seibly has been a leadership coach and consultant for over 28 years, and previously worked in manufacturing, insurance, and agri-business. She’s guided the creation of 3 millionaires, helped 100’s of business professionals excel in their current careers or find the right careers (known as ‘job fit’), plus she’s guided companies through the complexities of hiring the right person for the right job the first time.

According to Gallup, over 70% of people today are in jobs that don’t fit them. “This causes many people to get stuck, miscommunicate, and hurt team success. It’s not conscious. It’s simply they don’t fit the job they’ve been hired to do.” Seibly stated. “I help companies and professionals get real and focus on ‘job fit’ to impact a person’s professional success and the company’s bottom line.”

About Jeannette Seibly & SeibCo, LLC

Jeannette Seibly is The Leadership Results Coach and Founder & Managing Director of SeibCo, LLC. She has been an award-winning executive coach, business owner, and keynote speaker during these past 28 years. Her expertise is guiding leaders to get unstuck and achieve unprecedented results. Jeannette loves the positive difference the right coach can provide leaders, business owners, and business professionals. Her expertise has been and remains on people management: hiring, coaching, training, and managing people for unprecedented results.

To schedule an interview or discuss your business challenges, contact Jeannette Seibly at SeibCo.com for additional information.

Old beliefs will hold you back and limit your sales success. When left unmanaged, the little voice in your head will reinforce these old beliefs. They will overwhelm you and your team, especially right now.

Today’s #newnormal is a great time to rethink what you’ve been doing and why you’ve been doing it. It’s a great opportunity to embrace this time of change and be ready for an amazing Q4 and 2021.

Improve Your Sales Results

1. Don’t select sales managers based only on their numbers. This very important position impacts the sales team’s satisfaction and results. Managing sales reps requires different skills than managing sales processes for customers. This is why many successful sales reps fail as sales managers. Use a qualified sales assessment when hiring and promoting. These tools have the highest validity and reliability in the market and ensure you have the right person in the right job!

2. Review and restructure compensation based on the current needs of your sales reps. Not every sales rep can succeed with “straight commission,” especially today. Some may need a base plus a lower commission, while others may need a full salary. If your sales reps are bonus eligible, use individual and team bonuses. Don’t forget to share the numbers that determine these bonus amounts.

3. Say what you mean and mean what you say. Today, what you say is even louder than before due to limited non-verbal communication. 

For example, it is not authentic to say, “I want to be your business partner.” It confuses sales with partnerships. While this sales slogan may sound enticing, the reality is sales reps want to sell a product or service. Sales reps or sales executives are not able to share in the risks that go with true partnerships.

4. Focus on behaviors that produce results, not the most recent motivational technique. Did you know that going for the “no” produces more phone calls? This produces better results than focusing on “yes.” Conduct weekly and monthly 1:1 performance reviews showing numbers and results. Focus on the bigger picture and the details of how the product/service and new technology/digital system works! (For faster, laser-like results, use the assessment report for sales coaching.)

5. Train and develop sales-readiness. Now is the best time to provide weekly training (e.g., sales techniques, product knowledge, and system improvements). Attendance and participation should be mandatory (including you)! Use an outside trainer as the facilitator and focus on key skills (e.g., listening, converting ideas into sales opportunities, online presentations, etc.). Now, it’s up to you to reinforce the training. Be upfront about your own challenges while learning these skills too.

6. Hold sales reps accountable and responsible. While compassion is important during this time, it doesn’t mean that you become lax in your expectations. Keep the sales team up-to-date on changes (e.g., etiquette for conference calls, how to work with remote teams, etc.). Expect them to work with and through others during this #newnormal. Keep them focused on the customer’s needs. 

For example, I recently relied on a remote team to help me work through an online system on behalf of a customer. The team was quick and responsive and made it very easy to follow the steps required. The customer was happy and purchased a larger quantity of assessments.

7. Let uncoachable sales reps go. Several of the behavioral traits we need for sales reps to succeed (e.g., competitiveness and independence) will get in the way of being coachable. Now, more than ever, profitable sales teams must be coachable. 

For example, an entrepreneur was not following-up and following-through. He allowed the little voice in his head to excuse his poor sales behavior. I provided the coaching and role-played with him to ensure he felt comfortable and confident using these new skills. His results have improved. 

8. Don’t change systems for the sake of changing systems. To be customer and digital-friendly, conduct a review of the improvements needed right now. Make the survey quick and focused, not long and never-ending. Seek input from customers, sales team, billing, customer fulfillment, shipping, etc. during design and before implementation! 

©Jeannette Seibly, 2020

Jeannette Seibly is The Leadership Results Coach. She has been an award-winning executive coach and keynote speaker for 28 years. Her expertise is guiding leaders to get unstuck and achieve unprecedented results. Contact Jeannette for a confidential conversation.