The difference I believe was during that season they were an engaged ’Team.  As individuals and as a group they had certain critical qualities:

• They were passionate,
• They were friends,
• They respected the manager,
• They were eager to please the crowd (Alan Pardew had said that people pay a lot of money to watch them play so they deserve to see a good entertaining match every time),
• They supported the team,
• They were keen to learn,
• They were respectful of their position – many were local lads, they respected the experience that former international Teddy Sheringham brought to the team,
• There was friendly banter
• They knew what they were aiming for

So what can we take from this?

In my experience I have seen parallels in other sports and in business.  I have worked with teams who had wall to wall qualifications, skills and experience but who were not as engaged as a team and their results were not as successful.  In comparison, teams that consisted of individuals who interacted well with each other, were enthusiastic, had a positive outlook etc had better productivity and achieved more successful results.  I’m not saying that teams don’t need knowledge and skill, but engaged staff have the energy to drive their potential forward and ultimately score more wins.  Perhaps the coaching team at West Ham United could help the players achieve more wins if they focused on improving engagement?  It’s worth a try:-)

But what about your team?

Many we know in L&D deliver back to back, routine training. They have ideas and spirit but little opportunity to explore that spirit within the demands of their job. If you take the analogy outlined above score your team 1 – 10, 10 being the best we can be and decide on 3 actions you can take this quarter that would improve your scores. Remember a little focus and care goes a very long way in the engagement stakes.

Our industry is changing beyond recognition and it’s exciting. It’s a real opportunity to dig deep, get everyone involved in being both a ‘teacher and a learner’ and making a real difference in the way we provide learning and encourage others to grow.

Now is also the time for many to plan their budgets for next year so let’s critically challenge how learning & development interventions have made a difference and will make a difference to your company’s goal and your colleagues happiness within that organisation. That way next year you do your bit to prevent Blue Monday!

To help you do this quickly take 15 minutes out either individually or with your team and work through the following questions:

Q1.  Start off by looking at the pure facts and figures of your contribution to the organisation and list the top 10 ways in which you and/or your team supported success last year.

This list will include things like

• How many people you have developed?
• How many hours learning have you provided?
• The cost of providing this learning
• And most importantly what was the DIFFERENCE of those hours? e.g. reduction in complaints/increase in sales as well as the more subtle changes like reduction in hours a manager has to spend coaching, an increase in delegation (e.g. in attendance to project meetings) so reducing the cost of projects.. really challenge yourself and your team about what difference you have made to operating costs as well as revenue and profitability

This stage is about pulling together diverse information to support the general PR for the department. If you can’t pull this information together easily then now is a great opportunity to plan in how to get it for next year!

Q2 – What were you able to do last year that made a positive difference to the business and /or individuals within the business.

This is about Value added support that is often more intangible than your list in Q1. e.g. through your technical expertise were you able to influence a decision that made a project better/quicker? What ad-hoc support did you or your team provide to individuals that helped them perform more effectively etc?

Q3 – What supported/hindered your achievements

Draw a line down the middle of the paper – on the left list all the elements that supported your success and on the right all the elements that got in the way of success. Consider elements such as:

• Structure
• Strategy
• Style of the company
• Support available
• Systems  & processes
• Shared values
• Staff

For more information on this go to www.12manage.com/methods_7S.html

Q3 – Think about the future. Imagine you are now in January 2012 and you are looking back on 2011 – it’s been the best year possible for the function – what will you have achieved so that you are unbelievably proud of yourself and the team?

Q4 – What changes need to take place in order for this to happen?
Use the thoughts from Q1 – Q4 to help you shape how you can make the biggest contribution you can during 2011.

Remember our actions define us – how do you want yours to define you this year?

“No steam or gas ever drives anything until it is confined. No Niagara is ever turned into light and power until it is tunneled. No life ever grows until it is focused, dedicated, disciplined” Harry Emerson Fosdick

On a recent visit to the hospital I was taken aback by the time taken by all, whether they were the auxiliary staff or the consultant. They were extremely busy but, because of the nature of their job, they knew it was essential to reassure and build trust through the way they conducted themselves not just relying on their technical competence to do that for them.

And it got me thinking about the world in which we live and everyone, it would seem, is running around at breakneck  speed. Do we really take the time  to have those significant conversations at work or at home that will build a strong relationship?

So many jobs are not just about the specialism of that job but just as much about the way that people conduct themselves within that job. A customer service advisor is not just someone to answer queries. You only trust that they will do what’s been agreed when you feel they have empathised with you and they reassure you. So many times customers ring back simply because they are unsure that they can trust that person, no matter how factually correct the answer was. And in turn, when an advisor doesn’t do something that a manager has asked, more often than not, it’s because they don’t trust that person who has asked but rather that the manager hasn’t spent the time previously to warrant that trust and respect.

The conversations the nurses and consultants had were calm, soft and concise but left you with a sense of confidence you were in the best hands. Let’s face it, if anyone needs to run around with urgency isn’t it all those people that work in hospitals? But yet there is a sense of calmness and thought. So to all of you out there, a question for today. What is your “bedside manner” when talking to your people? I don’t mean that you have to spend significant amounts of time, this level of empathy can easily be demonstrated in a 5 minute conversation too.

However what your people need to know is that they are in the best hands with someone who they can trust and has their best interest at heart.

Go on, select one person, give it a go see the difference you can make today-good luck!

It was a great night in our house for a lifelong Fulham fan (well at least 5 out of his 9 years) and his more recently converted Dad and older brother but as I’m no football pundit I decided to listen to Roy Hodgson’s interview for his views on the secret of their success.

Two things came up very strongly:

1. The team played to their strengths. Even after going 1-0 down following a brilliant Hamburg goal they stuck to their plan and continued to play in a way that suited them rather than making a desperate change. They plugged away and were rewarded with two goals.

2. Once again Hodgson praised the character and determination of the team something he has done consistently all season.

Both of the above are consistent with so much that has been written about great leadership – try any of Marcus Buckingham’s books for a start – and reflect our beliefs at Leaps & Bounds too.

So, are you encouraging your people (at work and at home) to play to their strengths and continually giving them the support and praise that will develop a real determination to succeed?

I do hope Roy can do that for Fulham for one more game. Come on you Whites!

Gill

In the case of Steve Davis and Nick Clegg they had nothing to lose – granted they gain the prestige of wining and being successful but they have come from a very low starting point. Steve Davis was a 500-1 outsider to win the snooker championship. For Nick Clegg, no one expected anything from him until the first debate.This means that they could just go for it and give it all they had.

And in the Premier League yesterday, why didn’t Chelsea let up after the 3^rd goal against Stoke? Because they knew that Man Utd were not going to give up just yet so the title could be decided on goal difference. And what a victory, a 7-0 thrashing.

So what’s the common element between all three examples -they all have everything to gain!

So it got me thinking about their focus and how determined they are to be a success. It is that FOCUS, on the one thing that’s going to make a difference, that stakes out your success. Focusing on what you have to gain, rather than what you have to lose can make the difference between success or failure. Fear of failure itself is often sited as the most significant reason for holding back.

Here’s my question to YOU – Whats YOUR FOCUS today, tomorrow, next week next month that’s going to get you the outcome YOU are looking for?

To develop a clear focus a quick visit with Anthony Robbins will guide you.

To help your people to develop this focus have a look at this – ‘What do I want?’ is a great place to start.

Have the best week.

And that’s the thing with learning – one person’s exploration is another persons inconvenience. The same thing happens at school where the teacher is hoping the class will learn the social skills of sitting nicely, not interrupting and listening to each other, a child is far more interested in learning what happens when they stretch an elastic band as far as it will go.

So it’s hardly surprising that workplace L&D teams find encouraging people to take responsibility for their own learning one of the most difficult challenges they face. At the same time they know that if they can encourage that love of learning into their workforce the pressure on them to provide learning opportunities will diminish and they will be able to focus on what will really make a difference in moving their business forward.

So what simple things can we all do for our families, friends, and work colleagues to help rekindle that ability to learn every day in whatever we’re doing. Here are three to consider:

1. Give people opportunities to make mistakes. It’s like ice skating, the best thing to do when you’re learning is fall over so you realise it’s OK and begin to lose the fear of falling. How at work can you give people low risk tasks that they want do perfectly first time so they can start to let go of that fear and unlock their potential?
2. When people do make mistakes look first for the positive intention behind their action. Your teenage daughter might have burnt your best pan, but she did it while trying to cook you all dinner.
3. When you you think of the positive intention it will help you to be able to respond rather than react. So you will be able to praise the ingenuity of working out how to use an allen key …and then mention where, and when in the future would be a good time to try out that skill again.

Gill

So what can we learn from this programme (did I say you simply must watch it). Two things:

1. Lessons from Perry – Dr Doofenschmurtz is so obsessed with showing off to his nemesis Agent P (Perry) that he never manages to fulfil his evil intentions. How much time, money, and resource do you and/or your organisation spend looking at your competition and trying to outdo them? What could you more fruitfully achieve if you spent that time creatively asking and listening to your customers instead? I hear the constant obsession by some organisations with enticing customers from competitors through early deals and seductive promises that we forget the thousands/ millions of customers with whom we already have a relationship. Research shows that businesses are doing everything in their power to make it as easy as possible to switch but are they deploying the same amount of resources on helping customers to stay? Which leads me nicely to the second learning from Phineas and Ferb
2. Each day they invent the impossible. Each episode starts with “Hey Ferb, I know what we are going to do today!” With conviction, passion and enthusiasm their inventiveness has rubbed off on the most unusual bunch of children who gather to help. If you started each day with that same mantra with the same energy and conviction, what new ideas do you think you and your team could have to help your customers stay. Often the boys create inventions to thrill their friends and has nothing to do with their own motives. They get their kicks simply by helping or creating something for others. So why not spend the next week just talking to your customers, delving a little deeper and showing that you really care.  Ask your staff too also. You never know what you mind find out to help them stay loyal to you.

In the news this week, it was reported that in Yorkshire people resorted to crawling across roads to avoid falls on the ice and in Oxford the inner child came out as we saw police officers sledging on riot shields. http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/oxford/hi/people_and_places/newsid_8458000/8458645.stm (couldnt resist posting the bbc link!)

Both of these stories struck a chord with me for different reasons.

Firstly, how capable and tenacious we all can be in the face of adversity. Whether adversity is physical conditions like the weather or increasing pressure at work, if we focus on a solution rather than hooking into the problem, then we can make progress. Pedestrians in Yorkshire simply had enough of falling when taking the usual steps to cross a road so decided to go on all fours and crossed safely without injury.

So how can we apply this lessons at work? Ask yourself these questions:

1. What am I doing that is just not making progress i need/expect? (analyse)
2. What do I want to achieve? (check in the desired outcome)
3. How else can I make progress? (challenge if there are alternative methods.. knwo that there is ALWAYS a different way to make progress)

As we all know, the quality of our solution can often depend on the quality of our questions and it is easy to get hooked into the ‘usual practice’. Take this time to focus on your outcome and try a different way.

More on questioning on our website www.leaps-bounds.co.uk/insights/freereport/

The second story interested me because many people were appalled that police officers were taking time out whilst on duty and using police gear to get them down the slope. On one level I completely understand that judgement but also let’s face it, wouldn’t most of us take a moment to enjoy the play if given the chance? How many people didn’t go into work during the snowy days even when they possibly could have? Let’s watch who and what we judge and checkour own actions before cricising others. We all make choices and decisions that have a knock on effect . For example, in our locality, very few primary schools in our area kept open during the snow. One of them that did was our children’s school (they were gutted ) The reason is because the Head teacher understands her responsibility to the community and that if the children couldn’t go to school, many parents couldn’t get to work and many carers couldn’t get to care for the vulnerable people in the community who need their support. Her teachers come from far and wide and those that could came in. Some parents also mucked in to help. Paths were cleared and salted before the children arrived to make sure they were as safe as possible. They opened and the children had great fun. Just for the record, this school is www.bromptonwestbrook.medway.sch.uk/ These people know that for every action and choice they make there is alwasy a consequence and it is important to think through these consequences befroe taking action.

So maybe we could all challenge ourselves more about what is the right thing before we criticise others. Let them play! I bet these police officers do a great and very valued job when they are off the slopes.

Make this year the year when you think through alternatives when things don;t go quite right or question the consequences of your actions on others and if all of us did a little bit what a great place it would be.  Remember ti is oftne the little things that make the most difference. Take a look at http://www.wearewhatwedo.org/ to help steer your everyday actions. Enjoy

So it caused me to think…

What could organisations give up that actually wouldn’t inhibit their success but instead help to increase their effectiveness?

Here are three ideas to start us off, please add to the list

1. One to ones for the sake of it – I’d replace it with daily listening moments!
2. Team meetings that only share information and don’t involve discussion and ideas generation
3. Meetings – why not use technology to include people and encourage more real time, creative exploration of ideas and issues
4. Any manager who, when asked the question “what difference did you make today/are you going to make today?”, can’t answer or just reels off their action plan for the day – contribution not busyness is everything

I look forward to your additions – what would you encourage your organisation to give up?

This weeks task is all about getting the job done …but interestingly the way we can do that most effectively is by taking a balanced approach to our goals and targets.

The balanced scorecard approach encourages us to consider financial goals, delivering to our customers, looking at our systems and procedures and supporting our people and to link these firmly to our overall business mission and vision.

So how are you doing with your actions? They were:
1. Create a greater balance in your own objectives and targets so you are focussing on all elements of delivering
2. Being consistent in your words and actions so your team know what is expected of them

Let us know how you’re getting on and have a great week

The Leaps and Bounds team