doug smith training

How do you feel about what change does to the past?  Or, not even the past, how about the present? So often it feels like we trash what is in favor of what could be. While change IS inevitable and necessary, it is NOT necessary to create bitterness and resentment in the process. What was got us to where we are and now that it's time to move on (because it is ALWAYS time to move on) we can take what was wonderful and leave the rest. We can honor the past without living there.  Renewal does not need to mean rejection. Go for the new, yes -- while remaining grateful for whatever got us where we are. We've done much recently to destroy tradition. Maybe we could explore what makes some of that tradition worth holding onto. What do you think? -- doug smith  

  A problem is a change in need of a push. Push. -- doug smith

  Have you ever felt a sudden change that you did not approve of? Maybe your company decides that you have reduced hours. Or, maybe your boss decides that the promotion you were counting on is best given to someone else. Change is like a dance we did not choose the music to. Change is like an invitation to a party filled with strangers. Change rocks our world, and only sometimes makes it better. How are you using change to makes things better? Good luck is a change you can approve of. Bad luck is a change that you do not approve of, but that happens anyway. Change basically does not care what you think. The choice is still up to you. Which next change gives you positive choices? Where is your best choice? -- doug smith

Have you ever struggled with a change? Struggled to adapt to someone else's change? Struggled to influence others to follow your change? Change can be tough. Balance may be the key. Balancing stability and change, so that you avoid being overwhelmed, seems like such a great idea. Shouldn't it be easy? Balancing stability and change is the easiest thing in the world -- just like riding a bike in a hurricane. No, it's not so easy. If discouragement sets in, remember all those times you've changed before and roll with it. Change isn't hard -- it's unavoidable.   -- doug smith

You've probably heard this expression since you were a child: "do as I say, not as I do..." or some variation. And yet, as leaders, we often expect people to adopt a change we haven't fully supported or even adopted ourselves. That new software. That new attendance policy. That reviewed customer service skill. We cling to the past even as we promote the future. That's not for you. If you are a leader in a hybrid environment and you spend every working day at the onsite work location -- what kind of picture of hybrid does that paint for your team? How supported will your hybrid team members feel if they can only gain your support in the office? If you catch yourself promoting something that you don't do, that's cause for reflection. Asking someone else to change something you haven't already changed is curious indeed. If people have to ask "why" then it's clear you're not already doing what you want them to do. -- doug smith  

"I don't like change..." "What is it about change that you don't like?" "All the disruption! All the chaos! I just get used to something and someone changes it." "What's your plan?" "Excuser me?" "What do you plan to do about it? "What CAN I do about it? Change just keeps coming at us relentlessly. I hate it!" "What if things are actually getting better?" "Impossible!" "Think about it. What if you could have frozen time fifty years ago? Would you really rather work in a coal mine? Would you really rather deal with unchecked disease and infection? Sure, things are challenging now, but if you go back into any period of time in recorded history, things were much worse." "So what should I do about that?" "Maybe stop complaining. Maybe stay positive. Maybe, as as responsible high performance leader work to create positive change." "Hmmm." What do you think...

What you don't change changes anyway. Why not choose?  Take charge now. -- doug smith  

  What do change and negotiation have in common? They are both: Asking people to change Easier planned than executed Subject to opposition  In today's edition of the Harvard Law School Program on Negotiation Sunday Minute , James Sebenius provides seven tips on how to handle a big negotiated deal that is falling apart or facing opposition. He states the Amazon decision to back out of an agreement to build a major business center in New York as an example. It seemed like a done-deal, (a meaningful change) and then it fell apart.  Change management efforts also frequently fall apart. That's frustrating and career-impacting for anyone involved in the change. Like a deal gone sour, a failed change project is agonizing. Here are seven tips from the article. I think that they are excellence advice for managing a major negation AND managing a change project: Never take success for granted in a complex, multiparty setting. Stay informed about local opinions regarding the issues...

Do you like it when someone or something forces you to change? Me, either. We can sometimes (often) avoid that, though. Initiate change. Stir up improvement.  Change before something requires you to change. Get ahead of the current and ride the wave. -- doug smith Action Plan: Ponder your business a bit. What hasn't changed for awhile? What is due for some disruption? What's your next move?

It's hard to convince someone that their solution to a problem doesn't work, until it doesn't work. We cling to our idea. Our experience clarifies our expectations.  When I'm trying to influence someone to consider the ramifications of their ideas, I've learned to first validate the idea (identify whatever is useful about it or appealing) before guiding them thru any analysis of the idea. Seeing the truth can be tough enough, without adding emotional resistance to the mix. It's easier for someone to convince themselves. Convincing them is hard. Let them convince themselves. -- doug smith  

Things change fast. Things don't ask, they just change. Where do we go from here? Wherever you are, there is room to grow. We may stay idle for awhile. We may sleep, rest, nurture. When we are ready, let's grow. Where to begin? Start with what's possible and grow. Ready when you are... -- doug smith

Are you keeping up with change? I find myself sobbing just a little every time my mobile phone wants to install an update. How do I know it'll be better? Can't I just wait a little while? What if I like things the way that they are? High performance leaders are in the business of change. We rock the boat for a living. As Tom Peters once said "if it ain't broke, break it." That quote is more than twenty years old and we've been rocking the boat constantly since then. What about the people who fall off of the boat? What about the details that are tried and true and tradition? Is there a place for tradition in today's rapidly changing world? Yes, there is. Tradition is more than the way things used-to-be. Tradition is more than old habits. Tradition is a topic worthy of a book, but for now here are a few things tradition means. Tradition is honoring the past and the people who built that past. That past got us to here, so they must have done somethi...

Who likes change? At one time or another (and probably MOST of the time) we resist change. It's causing us to do something differently and that is an effort we probably did not ask for. If it's not your idea, change is an aggravation. I don't like it when my phone decides to upgrade. Every single new release for the past two years has been worse, not better than the previous one. And yet, I have no control over it other than to switch to another phone that will likely offer the same aggravation. My current choice is to get over it and move on. If I control something, I make the changes that I want (most of the time.) New car? That's up to me. New coffee cup? Ditto. New client? That's in an area of influence, but not control. That's why the flow chart I've created. Do you control it? Then do that. Can you influence the change? Then get busy and build more influence. If you cannot control OR influence a change you still have two choice. You can...

It's tempting as a leader to force people to do things. Influencing them, convincing them takes so much longer. When we're convinced that the change we need to implement is truly a need and not a want and that it will make a necessary difference, we can get impatient. Just do it now, we think. Get on board or get out of the way, we mutter under our breath. Not always, but maybe in those dark times with deadlines pressing and needs to be met. We DO need to achieve that goal, right? People are messy and need time. They need convincing. And the more we take shortcuts by changing the ways that they do things forcefully, without a choice, and even by surprise, the more we face resistance. And rightfully so. Without carefully vetting a change, how can we know that it truly IS the best new choice? Ask. Test. Overcome resistance. Talk about it. Forcing people feels effective but it's really not. Forcing change invites rebellion. And that eventually unravels the relationship ...

When was the last time your team changed? If you answered "today" or "about a minute ago" you are thinking the way that I'm thinking: your team is constantly changing. Every time you add someone to your team, it changes. Every time you say goodbye to someone from your team, it changes. Your team changes when you change a process, when you change a procedure, when you change a rule, when you change the schedule...on and on your team is a relentless mixture of change. The good news is that team leaders can influence that change. You have the opportunity to change in ways that makes your team better, faster, smarter. Your change is open to better change. Changing one person on a team could change the whole team. High performance leaders build constantly, change intentionally, grow patiently. They change on purpose, and so does their team. -- doug smith

When you are solving a problem, do you consider the impact your solution will have on other people? I've seen leaders who impose solutions on their teams that make the job worse, not better. While some degree of resistance to any solution is natural, your problem has a much better chance of staying solved if the solution you pick is supported by your team. Does your solution make the job easier? Does your solution make your customers happier? Is your solution elegant and simple and yet robust enough to solve the problem? The purpose of problem solving is to make life better for you AND for others. Centered problem solvers consider the needs of everyone impacted by the problem AND by the solution. Don't let your solution damage your solution. Change management is part of your task. Centered problem solvers do the whole job. Do the whole job. -- doug smith Leadership Call to Action: Before implementing the next solution you come to, check with the people who ...

Have you ever worked for a leader who is totally dedicated to tearing down what was before in order to move ahead with a new agenda? How did that feel? When you're in favor of the agenda, it could feel fine. But, for at least some of that leader's constituents the tearing down of the past felt like cruelty, like heartlessness. It causes people to dig in, to resist change, to do whatever it takes to repeat past processes rather than proceed past them. High performance leaders have a heart. It is completely possible to build an exciting future while also honoring those parts of the past that got you where you are. There are no perfect organizations. If you care enough to lead a team, please do care enough about that teams heritage to honor the work that came before. It's not a way to get stuck in the past. It's a way to move forward with dignity. Honor your past so that you can avoid repeating it. -- doug smith Leadership Call to Action: Be your best....

Have you ever set a goal you thought was truly great, only to have it highly resisted when it came time for implementation? People resist change. What's inside your head ("this will be so much BETTER!") is exactly that: inside your head. People need to see the value. People need to feel the benefits. If they aren't, it could be one of these two mistakes are happening: 1. NOT communicating the value and urgency of your goal, or 2. Setting a goal that HAS no value or urgency I think you know how to fix whichever it is. Are you getting resistance? That's useful feedback. Fix what needs fixing and the goal will fly! -- Doug Smith ------------------------------------------ Shameless Promotion Department If you'd like to increase and improve your possibilities as a supervisor I can help you with that. It's what I do. If you and others at your organization would benefit from a two-day workshop on high performance leadership, please do contac...

What is the typical reaction to courage? Often, people respond to true courage with resistance. They push back. They run away. They refuse to change. That should not surprise us. We should expect it. I've worked on projects where the biggest part of the goal achievement involved working through the resistance. People didn't want to change software. People didn't want to print less. People didn't want to move from Chicago to Trevose, PA. But in each case the change was inevitable, and embracing that change was necessary. For those of us driving those projects, we had to maintain our courage and conviction even when people were unhappy and rebellious. Courage is more often resisted than appreciated. You won't always get an award. In fact, you will seldom get an award for your courage. But, your courage is still required. Of course it's not easy. It wouldn't take courage if it was. How courageous are you prepared to be to achieve your goals? -- Do...