doug smith training

Sometimes we have to avoid the problem in front of us to solve the problem ahead of us. -- doug smith

When was the last time that you said something that you should not have said? I've said the wrong things enough times to nearly always know when I'm saying the wrong things -- which proves there's always more to learn. Like, how to get ahead of the oops; how to avoid saying something embarrassing or offensive. I'll try to pause. I'll take a moment to breathe. I'll do my best to keep my size 13 feet out of my mouth. -- doug smith

The trouble with production quotas is that they cause people to do anything necessary to meet them. Cheat. Lie. Cover-up. Bend the rules. Break the rules...if the stakes are high enough and the pressure is strong enough people may feel forced into doing whatever it takes to win. That's not winning. Leaders do need to measure success and we do need to identify key activities on the path to that success, but we must constantly be careful about the means as well as the ends. How strong is your focus on quality? How committed are you to integrity? Are people on your team rewarded for supporting the team? The problem with competition is that someone always loses. It does not need to be your team. -- doug smith

When are you at your best? It's probably not when things are the easiest. It could be when you are wrestling with a problem and use your skills and talents to forge a fabulous solution.  Problems give you the platform to promote your best you. Faced with a problem, give it your best. -- doug smith

A technician may criticize your technique but never your heart, never your intention, never your joy. Hear the feedback from your own place of calm. -- doug smith 

Do you like it when other people make decisions for you? Me, either -- and neither do the people on your team. That's all the more true about decisions that become, or feel like, rules. Our inner rebel will rise. A rule we didn't make seems much easier to break.  If you want your team to keep certain rules, first find out how they feel about those rules. -- doug smith

It's fairly easy to get pushed off-center, which makes regular practice at re-centering essential. How do you re-center? What's your favorite way to get back on track, calm your inner wildness and focus? Deep breathes? Meditation? Long walks? Quiet focused attention?  Whatever works, do that. Why not practice right now? -- doug smith  

It hurts when a trust has been broken. It might even feel unforgivable.  It should be possible for someone who has broken trust to rebuild it -- but it won't be fast, and it won't be easy. When in doubt, for all you are worth, maintain that trust. -- doug smith  

As frustrating as it is, some people don't care about your problem until you make it their problem, too. But you don't have to manipulate them into it. Talk about it. Share your concerns. Find the connections and you'll also find their investment. Once they are in, collaboration is far more likely. -- doug smith  

Beyond the present solutions there are even better solutions to nearly every problem. -- doug smith  

Fighting a problem does not require us to fight other people. We don't need to agitate when we can collaborate. Fix the problem (which is likely caused by flaws in the process, design, or environment) and the people will be fine. -- doug smith