Blessed is the season which engages the whole world in a conspiracy of love. HAMILTON WRIGHT MABIE I chose the opening quote because love is not just a value to me; it's my core. This past year, I've been fortunate to experience an abundance of love, and I hope that I've embodied this core value more days than not. What's truly remarkable about the work I do is the privilege of connecting with new partners in love and service. To each of you, thank you for being a constant inspiration. The most profound and meaningful love I've encountered comes from my wife and Da Boys (pictured above). Running a coaching and consulting business isn't without its challenges, but they've been my unwavering support, standing by my side and encouraging me at every turn. I'm blessed to have them and all of you on this incredible journey. How does love manifest itseld? Here are a few instances from my experiences this year:
As you know, I'm on a mission to collaborate with like-minded leaders dedicated to making a positive difference. So, in this festive season and beyond, I invite you to conspire with me and others in love, service, and creating a positive impact. In alignment with my central core value of love, I'll be on a soft vacation for the next two weeks, focusing on family, holidays, and personal renewal. While I'll be posting on Facebook and LinkedIn occasionally, there won't be a blog next week. Mikolaj's Monday Maunder will return the week of January 7, 2024. I'll still be checking emails and voicemail messages daily. I encourage you to also take time for renewal and reflection, cherishing moments with loved ones. During this season of love and reflection, I invite you to share your stories of positive impact or reflect on the values that guide you. Let's create a community of like-minded individuals committed to making a difference. Happy holidays and a joyful New Year from our family to yours! Have an amazing journey today! Alan Mikolaj is a coach and leadership development consultant with 15+ years of experience. He is passionate about helping leaders transform their leadership, their teams, and their organizations. Impactful, professional approach driven by a passion for meaning and purpose, a growth mindset, and a commitment to excellence and service in order to drive change and results. Alan maintains the ethics and standards of behavior established by the International Coaching Federation (ICF), including the standards regarding confidentiality. You can learn more about them on the ICF website. Transformational change starts with a conversation! Alan is on a mission to partner with like-minded leaders who want to make a positive difference in the world. Schedule your free, one-hour session by clicking here: Discovery Conversation with Alan Or call or email me: Contact Page
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If we win the hearts and minds of employees, we’re going to have better business success. MARY BARA CEO, General Motors It's that time of the year again. No, I'm not talking about the holidays. I'm referring to strategic planning for the upcoming year. You've likely begun this process. What's on your agenda for leadership development? As you set goals and plan initiatives, the most effective leaders reevaluate their leaders' competencies and frameworks to ensure development efforts align with those goals and initiatives. In a recent post, Rhabit Analytics identified ten leadership development trends for 2024. Let's delve into five of them and explore three simple, cost-effective ways to meet these trends without sacrificing long-term impact and ROI. TREND #1: Growth Unleashed - Fostering a Growth Mindset Most of us have heard of Carol Dweck. In her book introducing the idea of a growth mindset, Mindset: The New Psychology of Success, she said, "The fixed mindset limits achievement" and in describing the growth mindset, she notes, "...no matter what your ability is, effort is what ignites that ability and turns it into accomplishment." Peter Senge, in his book, The Fifth Discipline: The Art & Practice of The Learning Organization, emphasizes that, "organizations that will truly excel in the future will be the organizations that discover how to tap people’s commitment and capacity to learn at all levels in an organization." Simply put, organizations learn through individuals who learn. If you're serious about leadership development trends, then this one is crucial to get right. Canned programs that have people clicking through slides or attending boring SOP updates and software training isn't what leaders want in our fast-paced and challenging environments. While some of this training might be necessary for functional purposes, it doesn't constitute leadership development as implied by this trend and it's not what leaders want. Leadership development programs that foster a growth mindset recognize the value of continuous learning. They challenge and advance skills and competencies, enriching leaders in meaningful ways. These programs equip leaders with tools, strategies, and principles that extend far beyond a few months. The best programs add value that sticks throughout their careers, possessing the power to change lives. TREND #2: Success On-Demand - Leadership in Bite-Sized Brilliance for Busy Leaders Creating growth mindset programs that are truly developmental in today's demanding schedules necessitates breaking the learning into bite-sized, engaging chunks that can be delivered on-demand and consumed on the go. TREND #3: Metrics & ROI Matter - Unveiling Leadership Development Impact Simultaneously, justifying ROI is essential. You and your senior leadership need evidence-based leadership development that impacts key metrics such as employee engagement, productivity, innovation, revenue and financials, well-being, retention, and, most importantly, leadership effectiveness. In addition to advancing, equipping, and enriching leaders, the best programs influence some or all of these key metrics. TREND #4: Fostering Cultures of Feedback & Continuous Improvement As the Rhabit Analytics post says, "A culture of feedback is essential for fostering continuous improvement and leadership growth." I call leadership feedback leadership gold. While most leaders are proficient in giving feedback, the real question is whether they can do it well. Has a safe and open culture been established? The attention given to psychological safety is warranted as many teams and organizations lack it. Gallup's report indicating that globally, 77% of employees are less than engaged is telling. When only 23% of employees are fully engaged, something is amiss, and that something is often attributed to the manager. Gallup also reports that seventy percent of team engagement is attributable to the manager. While leaders may know how to give feedback (whether they do it well or not), very few know how to seek feedback. Organizations must not only encourage leaders to seek and give constructive feedback, but they also need to teach them how to do it and how to create a safe and supportive environment. Senior leaders must model these behaviors for effective personal and professional development to occur. TREND #5: Coaching - Supporting Learning Through Personalized Support Coaching is an essential component of leadership development. It provides leaders with confidential, ongoing support, guidance, and feedback that is goal and results-oriented. Most leadership development programs overlook the value of professional coaching. A Final Analysis In conclusion, our Purpose-Driven Leadership Program, administration of the LPI360, and coaching services uniquely align with these trends. By fostering a growth mindset, delivering on-demand brilliance, unveiling tangible metrics, fostering feedback cultures, and supporting personalized learning through coaching, we provide a comprehensive solution that not only meets 2024's leadership development trends but propels your organization into a future of success. Have an amazing journey today! Alan Mikolaj is a coach and leadership development consultant with 15+ years of experience. He is passionate about helping leaders transform their leadership, their teams, and their organizations. Impactful, professional approach driven by a passion for meaning and purpose, a growth mindset, and a commitment to excellence and service in order to drive change and results. Alan maintains the ethics and standards of behavior established by the International Coaching Federation (ICF), including the standards regarding confidentiality. You can learn more about them on the ICF website. Transformational change starts with a conversation! Alan is on a mission to partner with like-minded leaders who want to make a positive difference in the world. Schedule your free, one-hour session by clicking here: Discovery Conversation with Alan Or call or email me: Contact Page What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals. ZIG ZIGLAR We come to the third and final week of our goal-setting journey here. Previously, we have learned that clearly articulating the why or purpose of a goal, driving commitment to that goal, and creating goals that are specific and measurable that we believe that we can achieve, are strong strategies supported by over 35 years of goal-setting research. Today we turn our attention to the final big moderators of successful goal-setting from the literature: Feedback, task complexity, and satisfaction. Feedback For goals to be the most effective, people need summary feedback that shows them the progress towards reaching their goals. This is connected to the M-measure part of SMART goals. If you don't know how you're doing on your journey towards your goal, it's going to be difficult, if not impossible, to adjust your efforts or your strategies to match what your goal requires. For example, let's imagine that you have a BHAG around communication with your team for the purposes of increasing employee engagement. Let's further imagine that you have created a supporting smaller goal of conducting effective monthly staff/team meetings and that part of that supporting goal is preparing engaging agendas, your regular attendance, establishing and using a rotation of team members who will help you with each month's meeting preparations and facilitation, and a follow-up survey for each meeting. If your not tracking each of those items in some way, how will you know if you're achieving that supporting goal? You can use spreadsheets, to-do lists, dashboards, apps—whatever allows you to track what's important and provides you feedback to let you know how you're doing. Complex goals or BHAGs may require scorecards on which several supporting or sub-goals feed into a total score for the overall BHAG. Let the goal drive what you measure and that can give you the feedback on what timescale(s) you need it (e.g., daily, monthly, etc.). You and your organization are most likely already doing this with metrics for important organizational and department goals, so why not do it for yourself both personally and professionally and for your team goals? Task Complexity For complex tasks, things get a bit trickier. For most goals, people use skills and strategies that they already know how to do—they're more or less automatic or habitualized. But when a task or goal is so complex, that those don't totally serve us and we need to learn new skills and strategies, performance goals actual hinder performance and outcomes. For the most complex goals, the research clearly demonstrates that setting goals about strategy, a learning goal, and/or breaking the complex goal into "proximal" goals—what we've been calling supporting or sub-goals positively impacts outcomes. Remember what we said about telling someone to simply "do their best" and that didn't work? Well, the exception to the rule on that is: Highly complex goals. Take for example research involving an air traffic controller simulation (a highly complex task). When people were given a performance-outcome goal for the simulation, it actually interfered with acquiring the knowledge necessary to perform the task. When people were asked to do their best on the simulation, they performed better. However, when people were given a learning goal rather than a performance goal, those people outperformed everyone else. Can't get no satisfaction? While goals set the target, they also set the standard for satisfaction. Take our example of communication and employee engagement above. When you get feedback from your tracking sheet that you are setting engaging agendas, that your showing up and attending staff meeting regularly, using a variety of team members to help, and the meeting survey results are strong, you feel a strong sense of satisfaction. And if you exceed your expectations and goals? Then satisfaction is even greater, especially if the survey indicates it may be impacting engagement—your ultimate goal. On the flip side of that, if you're not meeting your goals, dissatisfaction grows and that can be used to motivate yourself into action. Some caution here: If you set difficult goals, expect greater dissatisfaction—at least initially. Since the bar is higher, you have a greater gap between current state and future state. It's a difficult and challenging goal. So, your gap between being dissatisfied (current state) and satisfied (future state) is greater, too. Outputs versus outcomes Some people confuse outputs with outcomes when it comes to goal-setting. Outcomes are the events, occurrences, or changes in conditions, behavior, or attitudes that indicate goal success. Outcomes are specific, measurable, preferably simple, and attainable (yet challenging), meaningful, and time-bound. It's what you really, really, want. Outputs are things people do—the milestones or tasks that are part of a change initiative that contribute to achieving the end goal or outcome. While outputs are activities or products of work that support outcomes, outputs will not demonstrate the value of the goal. Take our example supporting goal from above. Having and attending monthly staff meetings are technically outputs. Your outcome expected by successfully hosting and attending monthly staff meetings—the output—is positively impacting the goal or outcome of communication and employee engagement. You don't have staff meetings just to have staff meetings. Similarly, counting how many people attended a training or how many workshops were conducted are outputs. What you want—your outcome, goal, or success measure—is whether they effectively demonstrate a new skill or learning objective. Contacting ten potential clients a day is an output that should impact the outcome or goal of increased sales and revenue. So, while we may measure outputs as part of a journey toward goal achievement, they are not the goal. They support it. And if they don't, then we need to ask why and adjust accordingly. So now that we understand more about effective goal-setting, we can look at it conversely and list some reasons goal-setting oftentimes fails. Some reasons goal-setting fails
Have an amazing journey today! Alan Mikolaj is a coach and leadership development consultant with 15+ years of experience. He is passionate about helping leaders transform their leadership, their teams, and their organizations. Impactful, professional approach driven by a passion for meaning and purpose, a growth mindset, and a commitment to excellence and service in order to drive change and results. Alan maintains the ethics and standards of behavior established by the International Coaching Federation (ICF), including the standards regarding confidentiality. You can learn more about them on the ICF website. Transformational change starts with a conversation! Alan is on a mission to partner with like-minded leaders who want to make a positive difference in the world. Schedule your free, one-hour session by clicking here: Discovery Conversation with Alan Or call or email me: Contact Page It's very easy to confuse confident motion with being productive—and they're not the same thing. Productive to me means measurable outcomes that apply to my most important to-dos that positively affect my life. That's it. TIM FERRISS Do you want to impact performance and outcomes? Then set goals. That's the big take-away from last week's blog as we started, and now continue, exploring successful goal-setting tips and strategies. Don't miss the free SMART Goals worksheet at the end. Yes, over 35-years of research confirm that goals affect performance and outcomes, period. So the question isn't should you set goals, the question is how can you be more successful at goal-setting? Here are the other strong take-aways from last week:
'Do your best' or Specific & Difficult? Have you ever said to someone, "Do your best' when assigning a task or motivating someone towards achievement? Well, to sum up the research, when people are asked to do their best, they simply don't. It's specific and difficult goals that consistently leads to higher performance. With ambiguity removed by a clearly stated goal with enough details to provide a clear picture of what is desired or needed, you eliminate the wiggle room and wide variation of possible interpretations of just what 'doing your best' means. It's more motivating and easier to commit to. Specificity also mean that you can measure outcomes and results. Like Tim Ferriss says in our opening quote, goals should be measurable so that you have tangible evidence that you have accomplished the goal. And if it's a Big Hairy Audacious Goal (BHAG) and more complex, there may be multiple goals and sub-goals to guide you and others on the journey of goal achievement. Let's say you want to learn how to play golf. That's a BHAG, for sure. Here's a goal a new golfer might set for themselves: In 90 days, achieve a golf score of 90. While on the surface that seems specific and measurable, compare it to this goal: In 90 days, learn the rules of golf and scoring; learn how to golf (discover how to hold a club, swing a club, when to use an iron or wood, when to use a specific iron, when to hit short versus long, etc.); and, develop a golfing relationship with at least one above-average golfer. The second goal gets really granular. It spells out exactly what and when and makes it seem much more doable. Compared to the first goal, you get a much clearer picture of what success looks like. It also looks like there might be room for some sub-goals to support the overall BHAG. Self-efficacy Norman Vincent Peale once said, "Believe in yourself! Have faith in your abilities! Without a humble but reasonable confidence in your own powers, you cannot be successful or happy." In fact, a person's belief in their own ability to succeed at a particular task or goal—whether it's actually attainable or not—is also important in goal‐setting in several ways. People with high self‐efficacy set higher goals than do people with lower self‐efficacy. They are more committed to assigned goals. They find and use better task strategies to attain the goals. And, they respond more positively to negative feedback than do people with low self‐efficacy. Leaders can raise the self‐efficacy of their direct reports by:
SMART Goals My big take-away from goal-setting research is that SMART goals are indeed, smart. While there are variations on the definitions of the SMART goals acronym, we can use this to summarize what the research supports: S - Specific: Goals should be simplistically written and clearly define what you are going to do. Specific is the What, Why, and How of the SMART goal model. It should be focused, clearly stated, and there should be enough details to provide a clear picture of what is desired. M - Measurable: Goals should be measurable so that you have tangible evidence that you have accomplished the goal. Usually, the entire goal statement is a measure for a project or achievement, but there are can be several short-term or smaller measurements built into the overall goal. You can choose to put smaller measurements or sub-goals here or create separate sub-goals worksheets that support a larger, more complex goal or project. Take the time to create goals that will drive success, not just what is expedient. As we say in change management and leadership, sometimes you have to go slow in order to go fast. A - Attainable/Achievable: This is the self-efficacy part of SMART. Goals should be achievable; they should stretch you slightly so you feel challenged, but defined well enough so that you can achieve them. You must possess the appropriate knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to achieve the goal. You can meet almost any goal when you plan your steps wisely and establish a time-frame that allows you to carry out those steps. As you carry out the steps, you can achieve goals that may have seemed impossible when you started. On the other hand, if a goal is impossible to achieve, you may not even try to accomplish it. Achievable goals motivate employees. Impossible goals demotivate them. I will share more findings from the research on how to tackle the most complex goals, next week. R - Relevant: Goals should measure outcomes, not activities or outputs. More on that next week, too. Goals should be applicable to your current role and clearly linked to your responsibilities in that role. T - Time-bound: Goals should be linked to a time-frame or deadline that creates a practical sense of urgency, or results in tension between the current reality and the vision of the goal. Without such tension, the goal is unlikely to produce a relevant outcome. If you would like a simple SMART goal worksheet, feel free to download mine: Read Part 3 here: Goals: Feedback, Complexity, & Satisfaction Have an amazing journey today! Alan Mikolaj is a coach and leadership development consultant with 15+ years of experience. He is passionate about helping leaders transform their leadership, their teams, and their organizations. Impactful, professional approach driven by a passion for meaning and purpose, a growth mindset, and a commitment to excellence and service in order to drive change and results. Alan maintains the ethics and standards of behavior established by the International Coaching Federation (ICF), including the standards regarding confidentiality. You can learn more about them on the ICF website. Transformational change starts with a conversation! Alan is on a mission to partner with like-minded leaders who want to make a positive difference in the world. Schedule your free, one-hour session by clicking here: Discovery Conversation with Alan Or call or email me: Contact Page The greater danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short; but in setting our aim too low, and achieving our mark. MICHELANGELO As we bid farewell to Thanksgiving and gear up for the grand entrance of 2024, amidst the holiday cheer, it's the perfect moment to hit the pause button, reflect on the past year, and kick off the exciting journey of setting new year's goals and resolutions. Over the next three weeks, join me in unraveling insights, strategies, and tips to make your 2024 goals a reality. The Power of Goals Goals affect performance and outcomes, period. Goals are not mere aspirations; they're the driving force behind exceptional performance and outcomes. It's a fact—individuals and teams that set challenging goals consistently deliver the highest levels of effort and performance. A casual "do your best" won't cut it; specificity in your objectives is the key. Goals: Your North Star Goals serve a dual function—they keep us focused and energized. In a world where attention is the new currency, waking up with a clear goal in mind directs our efforts toward what truly matters, leaving distractions in the dust. Achieving steps toward a goal sparks a self-reinforcing cycle. It's a celebration inside our brains, a recognition that we're on the right path. This positive reinforcement fuels our focus, making the journey enjoyable and the destination even more satisfying. The Why Behind Goals Commitment is the secret sauce to a successful goal achievement journey. Research underscores that the relationship between goals and performance is strongest when there's a genuine commitment to those goals. And how do we foster commitment? By defining a compelling 'why'—a greater purpose that resonates clearly. Thirty-five years of research echo the same sentiment: The significance of goal attainment must be deeply ingrained in the individuals pursuing it. Whether it's a personal goal, a team effort, or a collaborative project, the purpose behind the goal is paramount. A vision, a mission, or a core value driving the goal is the key to unlocking achievements. And remember, the tougher the goal, the more critical the 'why' and commitment become. If you're ready to embark on this purpose-discovery journey, check out these recent blogs for some inspiration::
Support is a game-changer for goal commitment. Be an active listener, reward small victories, and eliminate obstacles standing in the way. It's a collective effort, and every bit of encouragement fuels the commitment to achieving those milestones. Aim High Michelangelo was right. The highest and most difficult goals produce the highest levels of both effort and performance. So if your initial goal was, for example, reaching the 90th percentile of employee engagement on your team, why not shoot for the 95th or the 99th? Keep in mind that more difficult, complex, and longer-range goals need to be broken down into smaller, more proximal goals or tasks. For example, if you're trying to reach out to at least 3,000 potential clients next year, break that down into monthly and daily goals. Even the idea of contacting around 300 people per month might seem daunting. But reaching out to 10 people on average per day seems much more doable. When we break large goals into smaller tasks or goals we increase ours and others' self-efficacy. We need to believe we can do it. Unveiling Persistence Studies unveil the fascinating connection between time management and goal performance. Studies show that when a person is allowed to control the time they spend on a task, hard goals prolong effort. It allows us to take advantage of a known success strategy: Intensify efforts for short bursts of time or maintain a steady, deliberate pace over an extended period. Another key? A clearly defined deadline. Tight deadlines lead to a more rapid work pace than loose deadlines. Whatever the goal, having a clearly defined deadline or time-frame is key. Next week, dive deeper into the world of goals and goal-setting as we explore SMART goals and BHAGs (big, hairy, audacious goals). I'll be including a free SMART goal worksheet. Your journey to a remarkable 2024 starts here—stay tuned! Consider Enlisting an Expert If you would like some expert guidance on goal-setting and/or project planning and achieving amazing results, schedule a free, one-hour discovery session with me: 60-minute Discovery Conversation with Alan Call or eMail eMail: alan@alanmikolaj.com Phone: 346-291-0216 Read Part 2 here: Are Your SMART Goals Really Smart? Have an amazing journey today! Alan Mikolaj is a coach and leadership development consultant with 15+ years of experience. He is passionate about helping leaders transform their leadership, their teams, and their organizations. Impactful, professional approach driven by a passion for meaning and purpose, a growth mindset, and a commitment to excellence and service in order to drive change and results. Alan maintains the ethics and standards of behavior established by the International Coaching Federation (ICF), including the standards regarding confidentiality. You can learn more about them on the ICF website. Transformational change starts with a conversation! Alan is on a mission to partner with like-minded leaders who want to make a positive difference in the world. Schedule your free, one-hour session by clicking here: Discovery Conversation with Alan Or call or email me: Contact Page "Why do you do what you do?" CHRIS MUSSER One Employee Question That Leaders Can't Afford to Ignore, Gallup As a leader you are expected to look at data, make an analysis, and then action-plan based on that analysis. But are you missing a very important piece of data? One that could really be a clear and present danger? A danger to employee engagement, retention, productivity, and more? Record low Gallup has recently reported on the erosion of mission and purpose at work. When you dive into their Global Indicators, question 8 reveals that the connection between the organization's mission and employees feeling that their job is important has taken a cliff dive as we came out of the pandemic. The percent who strongly agree that the mission or purpose of their organization makes them feel their job is important is at a record low at only 33%. Don't miss this data, too You're a conscientious leader in your organization, so you can recite your organization's mission and values. Did you know that clarity of organizational mission and values is not a driver of things like organizational commitment, job satisfaction, turnover intention, and organizational pride? So what is? Clarity of your own mission and values. And the same is true for your team. Why is that? As it turns out, things like employee engagement, commitment, and success are not motivated by external drivers like organizational mission and values. It's not an outside-in thing. Inside-out It's the other way around. It's an inside-out thing. Abraham Maslow noted it about self-actualized people. Stephen R. Covey noted it about highly successful people. And, Kouzes and Posner noted it as the means to increasing motivation, commitment, and productivity at work and they added that those leaders with a clear leadership philosophy are more effective than those leaders who don't. Clarity of personal life mission and values matters. Purpose-driven leadership matters. It should matter to you more as a leader trying to build a positive culture and drive your metrics. Only when personal mission and values are clear for you and each of your team members, can you make personal, internal connections to the organization's mission and drive greater meaning and purpose at work. Purpose-driven leadership makes a difference for you, for your team, and for your organization. But how so I do that? As it turns out, it's not that hard. It just takes some empirically-driven guidance and a short-term commitment to learn how to use some simple tools and implement some easy strategies. In just three months, you could be leading with strong and confident purpose-driven leadership and ignite a shared journey of purpose within your team. The Purpose-Driven Leadership Program offers an unparalleled opportunity to skyrocket your leadership impact through two powerful, enriching, empirically-driven, engaging, and self-directed online courses. You also get access to our online community of like-minded leaders participating in the program and our optional, once a month live Q&A and networking event. Group discounts are available. Enroll today or reach out to me. eMail: alan@alanmikolaj.com Call: 346-291-0216 Have an amazing journey today! Alan Mikolaj is a coach and leadership development consultant with 15+ years of experience. He is passionate about helping leaders transform their leadership, their teams, and their organizations. Impactful, professional approach driven by a passion for meaning and purpose, a growth mindset, and a commitment to excellence and service in order to drive change and results. Alan maintains the ethics and standards of behavior established by the International Coaching Federation (ICF), including the standards regarding confidentiality. You can learn more about them on the ICF website. Transformational change starts with a conversation! Alan is on a mission to partner with like-minded leaders who want to make a positive difference in the world. Schedule your free, one-hour session by clicking here: Discovery Conversation with Alan Or call or email me: Contact Page When you meet someone, HENRY B. EYRING Whether you're conducting a one-on-one, networking, chatting with a neighbor, or talking with your kids, there are certain questions and phrases that can take a conversation to the next level. Here's one from the coaching perspective that I've been using lately in almost every single conversation with anyone I want to dive deeper into with or take to the next level: What's your biggest challenge or obstacle, right now? No matter how positive or happy people seem on the outside, almost all of us are dealing with some challenge or obstacle. Like Eyring states in our opening quote, when we approach conversations as if the other person were in serious trouble, we'd be right more than half the time. Some are facing small challenges and others are downright calamitous. But we're all dealing with (or sometimes avoiding) something. That's life. It's amazing how even nearly complete strangers will open up and share. Just recently, I've had people share challenges from needing to increase client acquisition or employee engagement to sharing how they're trying to deal with a toxic leader or childhood trauma. Why do people open up and share? When was the last time anyone asked you that question? Yup. Even though almost all—if not all—of us are facing some type of challenge, almost no one ever asks us what that is. Some places are even dealing with toxic positivity where people seem forced to wear a positivity mask all day and end up cloaking and suppressing their real emotions just to look good and stay in the good graces of the leader. Leaders who genuinely understand their team members' challenges can create a more supportive, safe, and engaged work environment. You may want to consider sharing your own challenges first. This vulnerability fosters a culture of openness and trust. When we ask a question about challenges or obstacles, we open the door for our true shared-humanity to connect us even deeper. We open the door to deeper trust, to empathy, to more authentic compassion, and even to love. Want to take it even deeper? The importance of active listening after asking this type of question cannot be overemphasized. You will gain valuable insights by truly understanding their needs and concerns. As Covey has said, "Listen to understand, not to respond." That also means paying attention to body language, tone, and other cues that might reveal more than words alone. A great follow-up phrase when someone trusts you enough to share their biggest challenge or obstacle is, "Tell me more about that." It gives them the wide open space to expand and explain the back story and context. It opens up space to share feelings and perspectives. It gives you space to ask clarifying questions so you can build even deeper understanding and empathy. You might follow-up with, "How long has this been going on?" or "How do you know this is a problem?" One of the most important things we can do during these conversations is to validate. Validation in active or empathic listening is an oft-forgotten key element. It is how others know that they are heard, cared for, and matter. It might sound something like, "It makes sense that you're feeling frustrated when Mark doesn't acknowledge your contributions" or "I think anyone who had been ghosted like that would be feeling anxious." Listening for why the issue is a challenge for them can reveal what a person truly values and how violating those values is and can impact them. And the best part is, you don't have to fix it for them or offer advice. That's probably a sure-fire way to shut the conversation down and turn them off. Better, ask them what they've tried so far or what their plans are to remedy the situation. You could ask, "Who is someone you trust that might help you?" or "What do you think will happen if you don't do anything?" The overnight miracle Another follow-up question to ask when you've gained clarity about their issue is, "If, when you went to sleep tonight, a miracle occurred overnight and this was completely resolved or achieved, what would have had to have changed?" This helps them zero-in on key issues and actions that they need to take or ask of others. Sometimes, it reveals to them that their issue is out of their sphere of control or influence and it might be time to let it go. But none of those deeper questions and empathy can occur if I don't first ask, "What’s your biggest challenge or obstacle right now?" When we approach key conversations with the perspective of curiosity about a shared common human condition—that we're all facing some sort of challenge, obstacle, or trouble—then we are leading with empathy, compassion, and love. Of course, this isn't the only question you can ask to take a conversation deeper or launch it to the next level, but it's a strong one to add to your toolbox. Key take-aways
Have an amazing journey today! Alan Mikolaj is a coach and leadership development consultant with 15+ years of experience. He is passionate about helping leaders transform their leadership, their teams, and their organizations. Impactful, professional approach driven by a passion for meaning and purpose, a growth mindset, and a commitment to excellence and service in order to drive change and results. Alan maintains the ethics and standards of behavior established by the International Coaching Federation (ICF), including the standards regarding confidentiality. You can learn more about them on the ICF website. Transformational change starts with a conversation! Alan is on a mission to partner with like-minded leaders who want to make a positive difference in the world. Schedule your free, one-hour session by clicking here: Discovery Conversation with Alan Or call or email me: Contact Page The more young people throughout the world who are prepared to lead, the greater chance we have of building a thriving global community committed to growth, equity, and impact for all. JOHN R. RYAN President & CEO, Center for Creative Leadership A few weeks ago, I delved into the pressing issue of accidental managers and discussed what organizations and individuals can do to address this growing concern. Accidental managers are individuals thrust into leadership roles without the necessary skills, training, or preparation. They often find themselves navigating these roles by chance, which is far from an ideal scenario. One of the most critical steps organizations can take to combat accidental managers and develop effective leaders who significantly impact various key metrics is to champion purpose-driven leadership, a practice that few organizations are effectively implementing. The emerging leader This absence of a focus on purpose-driven leadership is not only detrimental to accidental and seasoned leaders but is also affecting emerging leaders. A global research study published by the Center for Creative Leadership titled, It's You, Not Them: Why emerging leaders need your support to succeed, reveals that organizations are falling short in helping potential leaders find personal meaning in leadership roles. This deficiency often leads to a significant number of emerging leaders without any plans to pursue leadership roles. They struggle to see how moving into a leadership position relates to their personal goals or aligns with their deeper sense of self. The authors of the study highlight the importance of helping potential leaders reflect on their "why" and see how leading within your organization can connect with their personal goals, sense of identity, and greater sense of purpose. You can support all of your leaders—whether they are accidental, emerging, or seasoned—by helping them make that connection between leading in your organization with who they are and their personal goals and purpose. In today's environment, it's crucial for each team member to understand how they can contribute to bringing their purpose to life and how it aligns with the mission and values of the organization. When this alignment is achieved, your organization can reach new heights in terms of commitment, alignment, and success. But how? A remarkable leadership development experience centered around championing purpose-driven leadership and leveraging it as a leader is readily available to you. The Purpose-Driven Leadership Program offers an extraordinary opportunity to enhance your impact and the impact of your leaders through two powerful, evidence-based, engaging, and self-directed online courses. The program also includes learning pods for those who wish to take it as a team. In addition to top-quality materials and a world-class Learning Management System (LMS) platform, the program provides access to an online, private community, at no extra cost. Participants are also invited to join live monthly virtual networking and Q&A events with like-minded leaders enrolled in the program, hosted by the instructor and facilitator, yours truly. Furthermore, we offer the flexibility to choose hybrid or in-person versions of the program while still providing access to all online content and experiences. This program empowers leaders to make a positive impact on critical metrics such as employee engagement, productivity, innovation, revenue and financials, wellbeing, retention, and overall leadership effectiveness. Don't miss the opportunity to champion purpose-driven leadership within your team or organization. Contact me today to learn more about the program and take the first step toward developing purpose-driven leaders who can drive your organization to new heights. You can watch a video about the program and learn more here: Have an amazing journey today! Alan Mikolaj is a coach and leadership development consultant with 15+ years of experience. He is passionate about helping leaders transform their leadership, their teams, and their organizations. Impactful, professional approach driven by a passion for meaning and purpose, a growth mindset, and a commitment to excellence and service in order to drive change and results. Alan maintains the ethics and standards of behavior established by the International Coaching Federation (ICF), including the standards regarding confidentiality. You can learn more about them on the ICF website. Transformational change starts with a conversation! Alan is on a mission to partner with like-minded leaders who want to make a positive difference in the world. Schedule your free, one-hour session by clicking here: Discovery Conversation with Alan Or call or email me: Contact Page Being in a state of gratitude actually creates magnetism, and of course, a magnet draws things to itself. By giving authentic thanks for all the good you now have, as well as the challenges, through this magnetism you’ll start the flow of more good into your life. Every successful person I know is grateful for everything they have. WAYNE DYER November: A Month of Gratitude November is one of my favorite months. Not only is it pleasant outside here in southeastern, coastal Texas for most of the month, it's also National Gratitude Month. In addition to autumn and Thanksgiving, it nourishes me to know that we have an entire month devoted to gratitude. It's one of my core values, second only to love. Why Practice Gratitude? It's good to celebrate and practice gratitude. Why? Start with money, success, and happiness. The research on money, success, and happiness is quite clear: Money and success do not lead to happiness rather; it is happiness that leads to success—in every major life domain. So if happiness leads to success and it isn’t necessarily money that leads to happiness, the question then becomes, “What does lead to happiness?” Gratitude. Consistently practicing gratitude leads to greater happiness (subjective wellbeing) and fulfillment. Defining Gratitude At the risk of sounding a bit too academic, I define gratitude as a cognitive-affective state characterized by the recognition of having received some good or benefit—a gift—from a benefactor, whether distinct or more ethereal. What's really amazing about gratitude is that it's actually in the middle of a positive cycle or spiral. It starts with a benefactor who feels empathy or concern for someone else. We often associate empathy with someone else's negative feelings and experiences and that is true. Empathy can also be expressed during positive states and events; with someone's joys and triumphs. The benefactor then offers a gift. Remember, these types of gifts can be verbal, written, and simple acts of kindness. Gratitude also fosters a desire to ‘pay it forward.’ The beneficiary often has a sense of indebtedness that is felt towards the benefactor that motivates further giving toward the benefactor or someone completely outside the loop. This then creates a spiral of giving, receiving, and repaying. Amplifying Gratitude Another interesting finding from the research is that you can amplify the power of any gift or act which you are hoping will generate gratitude. More gratitude is created when the act or gift meets three criteria:
The research also shows that unexpected benefits or gifts appear to generate the most gratitude. Some of the best benefits and gifts we receive on our life journey are the ones that come as a surprise and are least expected. Practicing Gratitude One of the best ways to practice gratitude is with a gratitude journal. Simply write down 3-5 things you're grateful for at the end of each day and the reason why. In a series of studies, people who daily practiced this reported being more attentive, determined, energetic, enthusiastic, excited, interested, joyful, and strong than the other participants. They were also happier and were also more likely to report that they helped someone with a personal problem or offered emotional support to someone that day. The Morning Cuddle I know a lot of teams that have the practice of a Morning Huddle. My team practices the Morning Cuddle. A major part of what we do during these cuddles, is to identify a few things that we're grateful for to start the day. We have some staples like the gift of life or a new day, Mommy getting things ready downstairs, our pet love birds, and a warm cuddle with Daddy. We also have an evening version. In our Night Cuddle, we share gratitude for those things that happened during the day that we are most grateful for. It's our audible version of the gratitude journal. FREE GIFT! The Benefits of Gratitude Download my free The Benefits of Gratitude guide where I explain how to conduct the two strongest practices from the literature that boost gratitude and happiness:
You'll also discover the benefits of practicing gratitude and other bonus material. You don't have to enter your email. No irritating pop-ups. No junk mail. It's simply my way of expressing gratitude to you for visiting my site and reading my blog. Celebrate National Gratitude Month! We have so much to be grateful for! Have an amazing journey today! Alan Mikolaj is a coach and leadership development consultant with 15+ years of experience. He is passionate about helping leaders transform their leadership, their teams, and their organizations. Impactful, professional approach driven by a passion for meaning and purpose, a growth mindset, and a commitment to excellence and service in order to drive change and results. Alan maintains the ethics and standards of behavior established by the International Coaching Federation (ICF), including the standards regarding confidentiality. You can learn more about them on the ICF website. Transformational change starts with a conversation! Alan is on a mission to partner with like-minded leaders who want to make a positive difference in the world. Schedule your free, one-hour session by clicking here: Discovery Conversation with Alan Or call or email me: Contact Page 82% of managers who enter management positions have not had any formal management and leadership training—they CHARTERED MANAGEMENT INSTITUTE Up until her recent promotion, Mary was a great frontline contributor and as an additional bonus, she was also popular with her peers and colleagues. So it made sense to promote her into management when a position opened up. Unfortunately, Mary's organization offered little to no training, much less any true developmental opportunities. Oh, she got a brief walk-through on a few, key SOPs and some terse training on the software for budgeting, productivity, and performance management. But that was it. This left her experiencing struggles and challenges trying to navigate transitioning into now being the boss of her former peers. She's feeling anxiety and has this recurring and uncomfortable feeling that she is incompetent and unqualified. She has imposter syndrome. Sound familiar? CMI recently conducted a survey of over 4,500 managers and employees across the UK and they report a whopping 82% of bosses are “accidental managers”--and a quarter of those are in senior leadership roles. Additionally, they report that [emphasis added] "a third of current managers and leaders have never received any formal management and leadership training (33%), including a quarter (26%) of senior managers and leaders." You think that's only happening to managers and leaders across the pond? A number of studies have indicated that employer-paid training has been on the decline in the United States for years. And if you've been in the workforce for more than just a few years, you've either experienced the accidental manager phenomenon on one end or the other, witnessed it, or heard about it from someone who has. What is an accidental manager? Anyone who is thrust into a people management or leadership role without the necessary skills, training, or preparation falls under the accidental manager umbrella. This could be someone who has been promoted because of their technical expertise and track record, but lacks the skills and experience in management. The damage of creating accidental managers Accidental management and leadership is pervasive and it's doing damage to teams and organizations and even to the leaders and managers themselves—more than you might think. Just ask Gallup. They report that bad managers cost businesses billions of dollars each year. The term accidental manager can imply that the person may be incompetent, even though it's through no fault of their own. And because managers are often expected to 'know it all,' this can breed a lack of confidence, anxiety, and a sense of alienation or rejection. Like Mary in our example above, many suffer from imposter syndrome. Many are confused about goals, micromanaged, or stuck without proper feedback and guidance. Accidental managers often can be in a phase called ‘unconscious incompetence’ (I don’t know what I don’t know) breeding a false sense of confidence which then puts them in a state of denial that they even need training and development. Because they're often promoted because of their expertise, they are prone to micromanage their team members that report to them and/or not give them the autonomy they need. They are the expert, afterall, right? Wrong. They may be the expert in their previous job, but they are not management or leadership experts... at least not yet, anyway—and micromanaging and not giving proper autonomy are not behaviors of the best managers and leaders. Unfortunately, accidental managers are often disconnected or detached from their team in the more meaningful ways and that causes their team members to feel demotivated and resentful impacting productivity, engagement levels, and even the well-being of team members. In fact, a report by the Workforce Institute at UKG uncovered that managers have "a greater impact on our mental health than doctors and therapists—and even equal to that of spouses and partners." It's time for leaders and organizations to connect the dots.
It's time for organizations to demand that they have great leaders and great managers and to invest in the training, development, mentoring, and coaching to build them up. All of your key metrics and mission are on the line. There are things you can do about it. WHAT ORGANIZATIONS CAN DO CLICK PLUS SIGNS TO EXPAND Succession Planning
Invest the time and energy to develop and deploy an organization-wide succession plan. The One in Ten
Identify the one in 10 people (high-potentials) across the organization who possess the talent to manage—not just those currently in management and leadership positions. High-Potentials
Develop and implement a high-potential training & development program for your one in 10. New Leader & Manager Training & Development
Develop & implement a new leader/manager training & development program. Go beyond the simple SOPs and software training to include foundational competencies and skills such as purpose-driven leadership, how to conduct one-on-ones & staff meetings, recognition, how to drive employee engagement, conflict management, empathic listening, time management, creating a psychologically safe environment, etc. There are few leadership strategies that have the impact that purpose-driven leadership can offer you. Purpose-driven leadership has been shown to positively impact key metrics such as employee engagement, productivity, innovation, revenue and financials, wellbeing, retention, and most importantly, your leadership confidence and effectiveness! Lucky for you, I have a one-of-a-kind, empiracally-driven, and engaging program just for you: The Purpose-Driven Leadership Program. Check it out. If you have any questions at all, just reach out to me. Here's how: Alan's Contact Information Value Continuing Education & Development
Develop & implement a continuing education/leadership development program. Invest in a skills-gaps analysis to narrow-in on key skills and competenices that need to be boosted and amplified. Make sure that includes people skills, leading with meaning, purpose, & values, and mindset gaps. Mentorship
Develop & implement a mentorship program to include identifying and training mentors. Coaching
Coaching isn't just for executives. All levels can benefit from coaching—even emerging managers and leaders. The longterm positive impacts on teams and organizations include leadership confidence, wellbeing, engagement, retention, goal attainment, productivity, finacials, successful change management, and more. So, are you ready to take your personal and professional life to new heights? Look no further! I'm a seasoned coach with a passion for guiding individuals from all walks of life towards success. From front-line employees to top-tier, C-suite executives, I have an impressive track record of empowering leaders to achieve their goals and maximize their potential. Learn more here: Coaching With Alan 360-Degree Feedback
Implement an annual 360-degree feedback & leadership assessment program. Leaders can identify what they're doing well and what individual developmental opportunities and needs they may have. To learn more about the LPI360, just click here: The LPI360 Accountability
Create accountability measures around training and development. Make it part of performance management for all levels within the organization—and that means supporting the time management needed to do that. Ask an expert
WHAT YOU CAN DO If your organization doesn't offer much in training or development. CLICK PLUS SIGNS TO EXPAND Identify What Success in Your Role Looks Like
Schedule time with your one-up manager or director and ask. Let them know that you're setting some first-year goals and need their help doing that.
Get clear about their time expectations and politely point out anything that seems unrealistic and what why you think that is. If they give vague and unclear answers, follow-up and be persistent. You can ask things like, "If I were to measure that somehow, how would you suggest I do that?" Identify Skill gaps
What skills are needed to succeed in your role? Ask your one-up, others in similar roles, and others who have been in your role what skills are most-needed for success? What do you need to know (or know how to do) that you don't even know that you need to know? Then, find the best resources to improve your skills. Find blogs that offer pointers, and tips, or enroll in an introduction to management short course to teach you the basics. Do some research and check reviews. TIME MANAGEMENT
Time management is a universal skill all managers and leaders need to master. There are numerous tools and strategies like the Eisenhower Matrix and the Pomodoro Technique that are simple quick-starters. However, a time management course is worth its weight in gold. Like a skill gap, do your research but don't get bogged-down with analysis paralysis. Remember, time's a wasting. Purpose-Driven Leadership
There are few leadership strategies that have the impact that purpose-driven leadership can offer you. Purpose-driven leadership has been shown to positively impact key metrics such as employee engagement, productivity, innovation, revenue and financials, wellbeing, retention, and most importantly, your leadership confidence and effectiveness! Lucky for you, I have a one-of-a-kind, empiracally-driven, and engaging program just for you: The Purpose-Driven Leadership Program. Check it out. If you have any questions at all, just reach out to me. Here's how: Alan's Contact Information Coaching
Coaching isn't just for executives. All levels can benefit from coaching—even emerging managers and leaders. Are you ready to take your personal and professional life to new heights? Look no further! I'm a seasoned coach with a passion for guiding individuals from all walks of life towards success. From front-line employees to top-tier, C-suite executives, I have an impressive track record of empowering leaders to achieve their goals and maximize their potential. Learn more here: Coaching With Alan 360-Degree Feedback
If you've been in your role at least six months, conduct an annual 360-degree feedback & leadership assessment to identify what you're doing well and what your individual developmental opportunities and needs are. To learn more about the LPI360, just click here: The LPI360 Coaching
Coaching isn't just for executives. All levels can benefit from coaching—even emerging managers and leaders. The longterm positive impacts on teams and organizations include leadership confidence, wellbeing, engagement, retention, goal attainment, productivity, finacials, successful change management, and more. So, are you ready to take your personal and professional life to new heights? Look no further! I'm a seasoned coach with a passion for guiding individuals from all walks of life towards success. From front-line employees to top-tier, C-suite executives, I have an impressive track record of empowering leaders to achieve their goals and maximize their potential. Learn more here: Coaching With Alan Ask an Expert
Have an amazing journey today! Alan Mikolaj is a coach and leadership development consultant with 15+ years of experience. He is passionate about helping leaders transform their leadership, their teams, and their organizations. Impactful, professional approach driven by a passion for meaning and purpose, a growth mindset, and a commitment to excellence and service in order to drive change and results. Alan maintains the ethics and standards of behavior established by the International Coaching Federation (ICF), including the standards regarding confidentiality. You can learn more about them on the ICF website. Transformational change starts with a conversation! Alan is on a mission to partner with like-minded leaders who want to make a positive difference in the world. Schedule your free, one-hour session by clicking here: Discovery Conversation with Alan Or call or email me: Contact Page |
Alan Mikolaj
Alan Mikolaj is a a professional, experienced, positive, and passionate speaker, leadership and organizational development consultant, change agent, author, and coach. He holds his Master of Arts degree in Clinical Psychology from Sam Houston State University. He is a certified graduate coach from Coaching Out of the Box and holds his ACC and membership with the International Coaching Federation (ICF). Free Discovery Conversation!
Impactful change starts with a conversation! Schedule your free, one-hour session by clicking here: Discovery Conversation with Alan
Or call or email: Contact Page In his third book, A Travel Guide to Leadership, Alan offers you simple, fundamental, and powerful lessons that have the power to transform you, your relationships, and your career.
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