Smile

It's easier to face the future if you embrace the present with a smile.

"Is that your answer to everything? Smile?"

"Nah -- but it serves me better than frowning."

"What if you don't know whether to smile or cry?"

"Even a curious smile is better than no smile at all...smile? Yes!"

The more you make yourself smile, the more you will need to because there will be more to smile about -- smiles will start coming more often on their own. People will smile back. The smiles will multiply.

It's harder to be mad at someone who likes you enough to smile for you, to smile toward you, to smile with you.

Smile!

-- doug smith

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Give People A Voice

How do you feel about rules that are imposed on you? A new procedure, a different process, some change that feels awkward and unwelcome? Most people hate that sort of thing. That means that when we as leaders seek to make a change it's worth considering how many voices we've allowed into the conversation. Do people feel included? Are they likely to approve of some new restriction? It's harder to follow rules that you didn't approve. The best way to influence that challenge is to give people a voice, and, then listen. -- doug smith

Help them find their flow

Sometimes a normally great performers gets in a slump, like an athlete who can't find their flow. Whatever the job, it's possible to get in your flow and it's possible to fall out of your flow. The flow is the place where you do your best work, where the conditions that create your own personal space for success propel your performance forward. When our team members fall out of their flow (maybe they've got an emotional challenge, maybe their favorite piece of equipment is malfunctioning, maybe more problems than usual are bombarding them...) we can help. By coaching constantly we can recognize each team member's flow AND recognize when they are out of their strength and into trouble. Coaches don't fix people but they can help them find their flow. Who needs your help at finding their flow? What feedback can you share that will help them get it back? -- doug smith More On Flow Distinctive to each person, although you may observe similarities Requires the righ

Commitment

How important is commitment to you? When someone tells you that they will do something, are you fine with a casual "maybe they will, maybe they won't" or are you looking for a true commitment? It's not always easy to find these days and yet it is more valuable than ever: commitment. If you want high performance results it takes commitment. If you want quality service for your customers it takes commitment. When there is an easy way out, people will find it unless they are committed to excellence. Everything is optional until you commit. -- doug smith

Debrief Your Mistakes

We do have time for mistakes. We don't have time to ignore them. -- doug smith

Increase your odds

Your best chance for success is to do what you do best. -- doug smith

Track Your Results

Do you keep score on yourself? When you set a goal, do you record your progress? How do you know when you're doing a great job? Track your results if you want to improve them. It works. -- doug smity

Stay With Compassion

Leaders need courage. They also need compassion. We can use our compassion to balance our courage, and use our courage to increase our compassion. Compassion is so vital we must never give up on it. No matter how angry we are, no matter how disappointed we feel, no matter how high the stakes -- stay with compassion. If it cannot be done with compassion, it should not be done. -- doug smith

More On Truth

Whatever the reason is for telling a lie, it's not a good reason. A noble purpose never justifies telling lies. For now, and forever, tell the truth. -- doug smith

Don't Surrender

Conflict is not always bad. Sometimes it is necessary. We do get to choose how we approach it. Do we treat the opposition respectfully? Do we include dignity and opportunity as we negotiate? Even when we are uncomfortable with conflict (which is most of the time for many of us) it is only thru conflict that we can resolve issues of inequity. Peace is an excellent first choice, but not always available. Completely avoiding conflict could lead to complete surrender. Don't surrender. Negotiate. -- doug smith

A Pair, Not a Paradox

Discipline gives us the power to do what we want to do -- and that comes from developing discipline by doing work we don't want to do... That might sound like a paradox but it's more like a matched pair. I'm not saying that we should do a lot of work that we don't like, but rather that sometimes within the work that we choose are tasks that we would not have chosen. Those necessary but unappealing tasks give us the opportunity to persist -- to stick to our goals because of and sometimes in spite of the details. Discipline. You can live without it, but you probably won't achieve your goals that way. -- doug smith

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