Motivational Idea for Week 35

Motivation is even more important today than a week ago.  Actually, not really more important, but just as important as it was a week ago.  It’s Sunday night, the Packer’s are beating the Bears  so all is right with the world.  Now I am starting to think about my week ahead.  I promised that I would put new motivational ideas here weekly.  Since I couldn’t get it posted on Friday I thought I would add this before the next week started.

Week 35
Start a book club – a business book club.  Put it on the calendar and put it into the work day.  They may (like there’s even a chance) not get time to read during the day.  But talking about the content of the book during the day makes sense as it’s a strong component of leadership development.  The employees build their library, you build your people, you gain a cohesively formed team, and they build internal relationships and grow their resources especially if the club is cross departmental.   Select the list of top business books including a selection of team building, communication skills, presentation skills, change management, innovation or biographies.  When they come to consensus on the books they are using team skills and self forming groups with emergent leadership.  It’ll bring out useful skills in other situations.

Start with one of my great take-aways from grad school which is a book on how to read a book in 30 minutes.   I thought this was an optional book.  But it was THE single best book I bought, EVER!   The book is by Mortimer Adler and it’s called How to Read a Book: The Classic Guide to Intelligent Reading. This book will save you and your people hours of time wading through the pulp of a great book.  They will read more if they can get through the books faster.  So will you.

If your team is dispersed bring them in via teleconference.   The program would be especially effective with a sales team who is separated by distance around the country.

Establish some ground rules or let them form their own group and rules.  Here are sample ground rules:
1.    Get a core group of people to start it.
2.    Establish a regular schedule.
3.    Advertise the program.
4.    Create a simple list of questions to create a dialogue on the book; over all reaction, biggest take away, any surprises, any inconsistencies, anything we can implement, how?
5.    Ask for stand in facilitators to each volunteer to manage a meeting.
6.    Start with a list of books to schedule.
7.    Give it twelve months with a few months off during vacation season or the tough season for your business.

Trust that you employees will be responsible and fulfill their commitment to the group.  They will have to contribute or be noticeably a slacker.  Regardless of how much they read they will get the gist of the book and the benefits of reading the book by attending the meeting or reading part of the book.

I would love to hear how this idea works in your office.

It’s September 1, 2009 – are you ready to succeed in 2010?

Motivation is the new black!

August is over! As we head into the fall (yes, I said fall) have you securely looked at your 2010 plan? As I write I am stunned at how 2009 passed so quickly. For the past three years that I have been in my own business and that has been a blur. To say that I have learned a lot would be the understatement of my lifetime. I have learned a lot about the difference between marketing a product for another company or a service for another company and marketing my own product and company. Entrepreneurship is not for the faint of heart but more satisfying than I would have guessed. Staying motivated to increase innovation to grow business, or grow in your career is a challenge that all my clients address.

What will you do to ensure success in 2010? Need ideas that result with contribution that don’t add much to the expense account and bring out the best in your employees? Need ideas of how to rejuvenate the innovation of your employees to problem solve with a new spirit?  Building morale is a top issue for most companies with the remaining employees.  Please have basic needs that go far beyond money in the workplace.

Here are 5 low cost ideas to motivate innovation and renewed spirit:

1. Reward with time off. Truthfully the team pitches in for everyone else when they are gone knowing they will get their own time. Even an afternoon or a few hours during the day to do “market research” will cost your company very little. Create a team +building experience or send them out to research and report back.

2. Reward with promotional items that only certain levels get but there is a surplus. In fact you could create a point system and then have a “garage sale” like the state of California.  Even items that are in the storage area that still have value.  Do you need to keep all the office furniture of those who are gone?

3. Do you have a development budget? Send them to a class of their interest and don’t require it to directly relate to their job. They will come back with new ideas.   Even a cooking class might bring treats from home.  But there are valuable skills developed in any class.  Completing the class brings a true sense of accomplishment.

4. No budget for development? Create a series of “lunch and learns” taught by your own employees. Someone has greater knowledge of a topic than others. Create a white board for ideas of topics from the group. Then ask people to volunteer to facilitate the experience. Give them guidance on facilitation. You have a development program for each facilitator and the attendees are building new skills. Work related or not the act of learning something new build creativity.

5. Lunch with a leader. Have each business unit or department create the problem to solve with a Big Idea and the best idea wins the contest. The prize is to have lunch with a leader of their choice. Leaders must say yes, and they must have lunch within two weeks. Leaders buy the lunch. You may want to put a hierarchical definition of leader so the employees stretch their comfort level. You may want to suggest talking points or questions to ask those leaders to create more comfort. With this you open new lines of communication and get big ideas!

Finding the right motivation for employees is far more valuable than money especially when money is not available.  Right now, motivate with ideas that you can leverage to give you the lever of strength for 2010 strength. Find even more ways to motivate your clients on a shoestring budget at my blog. I will put a new idea every week from now until the end of 2009. The site is www.sage4change.com/blog and you’ll know what to do immediately!  Post your ideas or successes to motivate your teams!  Everyone needs new ideas on how to grow business!

Just so you know my motivation (mission) is to be a conduit to bring back the light in people’s eyes by energizing leaders and employees with their own strengths and ideas. At the end of the day to be the conduit to senior leaders realizing the improved contribution they make with a few subtle differences in approach or to putting a strategy in place where all the corners of the organization own their value propositions and honor coworker’s contribution.

It’s so satisfying but I don’t always know when that happens. My incentive is hearing from you. Whether you connect with me on Facebook on Twitter @weilandpatricia and follow me or LinkedIn and say hello. I will be even more motivated to write more and research more budget sensitive solutions to grow your business!  Check back here weekly to find a new idea!

Motivation When the Job Search Dries Up

The Pipeline Dry…Now What?

You’re out!  You’ve told everyone you can bear to tell you’re on the market and what you would like to find.  You’re networking like the books say.  You’re doing everything right.  It’s just not falling into place as fast as you would like.   Now what?  Just like you wouldn’t allow your staff or the sales team or your kids to quit until they’ve finished the job, you can’t quit going after the right job until you’re placed in the position which satisfies your career goals.  You have consulted your financial advisor and you know your situation with the impact of losing income.
How do you stay motivated?   You were are so driven in your career that you don’t get why you might be slipping here.

Motivation is intrinsic.   What does that mean?  Yeah, I need a job…so this is brilliant?  Actually “they” have been studying motivating employees since the industrial revolution (20’s and 30’s) where changing the lighting, either making it brighter or darker increased productivity.  One study in the Harvard Business Review from the 70’s from Harry Levinson called the “Great Jackass Fallacy” where the leaders are genuinely stunned the employees don’t actually have the same motivation as they do.  They had no idea that employees should be involved in decision making.  But of course you’re well aware of all that.

McClelland, who widely speaks to the motivation need theory and groups managers three ways – whether they need to be likes (affiliative), ones who need to achieve (achievement) and get things done, and then there are the ones who are driven by power.  I am sure each one of these descriptors has a face when you read through these.
Frederick Herzberg makes more sense to me.  His study from the sixties Motivation-Hygiene Theory proposes that employees are motivated more by the job than the pay or benefits.  The environment, the pay, benefits, social aspects or how you get along with your co-workers won’t actually de-motivate you.  They won’t motivate you beyond a certain point either.  But he contends that the level of challenge in the job, how autonomous you are in your job, your intrinsic interest and how much opportunity for creativity you bring to your job.

Yeah, yeah, get to the part where I can be more motivated in my job search.  Well, glad you’re still reading.  I believe that once your job search is up and running the challenge diminishes. Really your resume looks good and even you’re comfortable with it.  Your contacts all (first tier and part of the second tier) know that you’re looking.  And quite frankly it doesn’t take you all day to do the search.  It’s quiet.  Going from being attached to a bberry 24/7 to managing the search details in a few hours a day is a cultural shift that’s odd.  New behavior is odd.  Silence is de-motivating.  Or is it?

Tactical tips on how to stay motivated using evidence based motivational theory:

• Challenge yourself to sit in the silence – great ideas fill a vacuum.
• Know that doing the same hours from the corporate drive is going to burn you out fast. Put in the effort in 3 to 8 hours a day and then do something replenishing.
• Find a job that you think would be fun but not directly related to your past – challenge yourself to find experience and transferable skills you would bring to the job.
• Go to the library – librarians are the least used resource as a brainstorming partner.
• Go hit balls at the driving range – not as expensive as a round and you never know who will be next to you or in line to get a beverage.  (do something of interest while networking)
• Paint your house.  By doing something outside your norm you are challenged and the head space leaves room for creativity.
• The job search is entirely autonomous as it is up to you to create the pathway to new employment.
• Ensure that your target job search is true to your intrinsic interests and values.
• If there is a to-do item that goes from day to day without?  Take a strong look at it.  Is it important?  What will it feel like to finish?  Either take one step towards it or take it off.
• Work doing something for a non-profit or someone in need, volunteering will at least help you know that you have something to contribute.

Your challenge when the immediate energy dwindles is to pull out the motivation to create a list that might be what you thought of second tier.  Maybe you’re on the third tier.  It’s still up to you to come up with new ideas and stay positive and more importantly stay engaged in the search. If you need help find a job search group of like-minded colleagues.  If you can’t find one – start one.   If you want help with ideas, motivation or support — call a coach.

10 Ways to Energize Your Job Search!

What to do if you don’t know what to do.

So I have spent more time procrastinating on this blog than ever before. Oh…I guess I am not counting the time before I even started the blog and posted my first one. It’s amazing what a person can do to distract oneself from the task at hand. Is distract the right word? Or would protect be a better word? I don’t know since blogging is the way I will connect with people who need to change their organization or want to change their career. If I don’t blog my business won’t grow. That seems like that should be incentive enough to move the hands to keyboard right? Well eventually it was or you wouldn’t be reading anything new on my blog. But what was the problem? In looking back I don’t know the exact spot where the problem rises and thwarts my efforts to succeed. What I do know is that procrastination is insidious and comes in many logical rational forms which give appearance to working. It looks like I am actually doing my job but am I doing the most important thing I need to do at the time.

Part of my problem was that I wasn’t really clear on what to write about. I coach on conflict but I see so many people stuck in the hard part of change. What’s more important? Either way it’s a conflict either with yourself, someone in your organization or the change itself. So I sit at a blank page and what? I don’t usually work that way. I do nothing (or so it appears to those watching) and then when I write it takes no time at all. But until I get the idea I am flustered and actually quite hard on myself. So instead of giving you ideas of growing your emotional behavioral self I am going to give you ideas of what to do when you need to germinate an idea, or motivate yourself to write that cover letter or pick up the phone to call someone new in your network.

Ten ways to bring new life into your change process:

1. Take a break from your electronic screen(s). A full cup cannot accept more. With additional room (quiet) you’ll find new ideas. Look away from the screen. Besides you don’t let your kids watch as much TV or play as many video games as they want to and you know why, because it doesn’t evoke creativity.
2. Coach someone on the same topic. Doing something nice for someone else feels good but it makes you aware of what you can do. It’s actually third order of learning which solidifies new information in your own brain and behavioral pattern.
3. Finish something that’s hanging out there. It’s started. It was a great idea when you started it. It’s just hanging out there calling to you. FINISH IT! You get the reward of it being done but positive psychologists connect accomplishment to happiness which I equate to creativity.
4. Give back to the community. Volunteering, positive psychologists show incremental sustainable happiness through helping others. Get involved with an organization that brings out your passion; you’re productive, it feels good and who knows who you might meet.
5. Bring a plant home. Digging your hands in the dirt has great rewards. First it’s good for the planet, second the feeling of your hands in the dirt brings you back to solid ground (no pun intended) and third the physicality of moving dirt around for live entity is empowering. Better yet start a kitchen garden and grow some delicious food that nourishes you body and mind which would be the fourth benefit.
6. Find something, anything to be grateful about. It might even be that your cup of coffee is the exact right temperature. People who are mindful of all the good in their lives are shown to have more genuine happiness.
7. Take a walk even if the weather isn’t optimal. Put your sneakers on and go outside. Say hello to everyone you see. I live in LA and it’s fun to get the surprised response from people. Connecting with people even at that level brings humanity back to your day.
8. Call someone who’s always delighted to hear from you. They may be an Aunt or an old friend whom you know would LOVE to hear from you. Those ten minutes can make their day and yours. If you can ask for their help on your stuck situation you might get a great idea. Who knows? They might have a lead or an idea for you. They have friends who have friends or kids in high places you’d like to be.
9. Plan a future date for something fun. How will you celebrate your new job when you get it? Is it a ski trip next season? A trip to botanical garden? Long lingering lunch with a dear friend before you go back to work?
10. Prepare to be busy. You know this time when you aren’t crazy busy will be gone before you know it and those projects that take time could be moved along now. Get new systems in place so when your time is much more structured things will go more smoothly.

In other words when you’re stuck or at a standstill with the job search or the project at hand do something counter intuitive. It’s amazing what happens when you take a break and replenish the juices. Stephen Covey in his book Seven Habits of Highly Successful People, talks about sharpening the saw using the analogy of cutting lumber (task) with a dull saw takes more time to cut the same amount of wood, than taking the time to sharpen the saw and then proceed with the same task. In that respect you could coach someone else on how to do the same thing you’re trying to do and see how productive you become. Now go play and find some new ideas!

Fearless Job Search – What’s that?

What to do with the emotional side of unemployment?

No one talks about the dark side of being out of a job.  That place is reserved just for you.  You don’t share with anyone just how scary unemployment can be.  That’s a lonely place.  What do you do when you’ve gotten the thirteenth voice mail instead of talking to a person or the third no?  Do you walk to the kitchen to grab something cool to drink and you look twice at the beer but realize, it’s only 10:00 in the morning?  Nice.  So you’re unemployed and a drinker. That won’t help but it sure would feel good.  Then you realize (again) that you’re still responsible for the safety and welfare of your family and oh yeah and responsible for you.  Uh huh!  It’s no small a task to stay fearless in the face of rejection.  But who wants to hear about the rough side?  Not my ____ .  Fill in the blank with wife, husband, girlfriend, boyfriend, parents, or even my friends.  They can’t stand to see me suffering.  They want it over as badly as I do.   In fact they are going through their own version of this situation.  What do I do?
Does this sound familiar?  When I was “impacted by layoffs” from an offshoot of Disney, I learned a lot about life transition.  Great uh-huh?  Who is up for another life lesson?  Wait we’re in the middle of it.  There is no turning back once you’re laid off you’re going through the process and it’s brutally honest, painful and scary.   What do you do with that?  It’s not all bad but the intensity of these feelings cannot to be ignored.  They can be stuffed but they don’t go away.  You can manage these on your own or you can join a group of people in the same situation as you to discuss the really really of managing the tough emotion of being unemployed or should we call it between employment gigs?

What these calls are:

• Varying topics addressing challenging aspects of the full time job of seeking employment
• Productive way to acknowledge the frustration and release  the feelings
• A safe place to put a voice to the fear without creating a bigger problem at home
• Support through ideation and brainstorming

What these calls are not:

• Tactical approach to the job search
• A bitch fest
• Endless blathering on about the woes of the world

Preview session Thursday  April 9th at 10 am PDT.  Send an email to info@sage4change.com for the phone number a bridge for this complimentary call!  Join us for a real conversation.

Love My Sunday!

It’s Sunday night…do you know where your heart lies? I mean career wise? Sitting here enjoying my Sunday afternoon I am reminded of a time back in my career when I didn’t love what I do. Around 2:30 on Sunday afternoons I started to get a stomach ache. I had to lie down. Really I didn’t think that it was more than just pushing too hard during the weekend and may have stayed out a little too late on Saturday night. Imagine my surprise when my a friend suggested there might be a correlation between Sunday afternoon stomach ache and Monday morning road rage on the drive into work and maybe that I was not suited for that job. What?

My job was great. It was a high profile, prestigious job even glamorous by some standards. So what was wrong with me for not being excited to go hit it hard on Monday morning? Why did I start to worry on Sunday? That job wasn’t right for me.How did I know that? Aside from the stomach ache, which as obvious as hindsight can be, I now see clearly that I had a job fit problem. I didn’t realize something that easily be highlighted by a panel of assessments. Today I would simply read the report from my DISC, which you might be familiar in different forms as a behavioral assessment. Of course since that’s one that I did after I changed my career I and the results were not a big shock. They would be what we call validating or in other words “duh!”

My DISC tells me that highly analytical work takes the wind out of my sails. It’s something I can do but does it play to my strengths? No, I am more about creating relationships and connecting with people than following the strict policy and procedures. My high level of independence doesn’t allow for the rigidity of the environment I was in. That in combination with the tendency to rebel against the rules made for a very difficult working life. The job also called for strong negotiation skills. That was fun but I was a relationship builder and not necessarily a tough negotiator. Life can be so clear when looking at it in the past. Or you can enlist the resources available today. I now realize that I wouldn’t do it any differently. Well, maybe I wouldn’t have taken the DISC earlier and changed to a people oriented job sooner.

Love my Sundays!

Greetings!

Welcome to Sage Strategies!

This is Pat.  This is my area for “story of the day.”  This could be anything from a great flavor a the gelati place on Sunset to amazing insight from clients to presenations a I am researching to make juicier.  I look forward to creating a forum open enough to evoke response and maybe even start some meaningful dialogue on communication and human relations.  Go figure I think studying conflict and human behavior is super fun!  Please feel free to share your thoughts as I enjoy hearing from you.  Enjoy.