That’s Good Enough

Sometimes,  to achieve my goals, I tell myself, “Ki, that’s good enough.” Otherwise, I would never get anything done. I credit this small internal dialogue with much of my personal success.

I coach a lot around the ‘knowing doing gap’ – the client knows what they want to do, they know the justification, they have given the matter lots of consideration, yet, the action of ‘release’ or ‘delivery’ is delayed and the only barrier ends up being personal beliefs and behaviors that no longer serve the individual.

I have had my personal progress stalled because I feel an irrational need to have more information, a need to give a situation a more thought, to reach out to yet another source for encouragement and feedback. Then, at some point, I say “Ki, that’s good enough.”

I recognize that by telling myself “That’s good enough,” I’m speaking to the fear that tells me, “It will never be good enough.” But then, I think, “Good enough for what?”

“Is it good enough to be perfect?”
“No.”
“Is it good enough to add to a conversation?”
“Absolutely.”
“Is it good enough to encourage, inspire and prompt someone else to say, ‘That’s good enough,’ and add their light to the conversation?”
“Now that, would be everything.”

Individual efforts are messy, limited and narrow at best. Today’s problems are too complex, ambiguous and volatile for one individual with their limited knowledge, experienced, information and perspective to get very far. Take your issues to your team, enlist the support of a trusted advisor, find a coach or mentor that meets your needs and make drastic moves towards your personal goals and success!!

Final Thought: “Never let better be the enemy of good enough.”

Syzygy – Our World In Alignment

Today, as we watch a total solar eclipse, we’re seeing our corner of the solar system in perfect alignment, right in front of our eyes. This celestial phenomenon is called syzygy. It may be tricky to say, but it’s not a difficult concept to understand. “Syzygy is when the Earth, moon and sun line-up,” according to NASA Ambassador Eddie Mahoney, the director of astronomy. He goes on to share, “Although there’s no measurable gravitational effect, there is certainly an effect — it’s inspirational.”

This is because it’s not just Earth, moon and sun lining-up — it’s you, it’s me – it is all of us, in perfect alignment. Syzygy is both miraculous and wonderful in a world where many so many things serve as distractions to a powerful truth – we all seek alignment, it is a natural and perfect state, and while we desire it greatly, we are often our greatest obstacle to its achievement. In her book, The Opposite of Burnout: 5 Career Strategies to Make You Feel Valued, Be Heard and Make a Difference, Liz Garrett (2016) uses the metaphor of a log set on a dying fire, its embers glowing brilliant and bright. It is fuel, it has served to feed the flames of the fire and has benefited many with heat (cooking), with warmth, with light – serving as a defense against the cold and darkness. She goes on to note this log could have had many futures – it could have served to build a house, a child’s toy, a plank on a pier leading to a still lake. She offers that with early engagement the log could have remained a tree, serving as protection from storm wind or shade from a tormenting sun. In this scenario, each of us is the log and as a log we must determine what it is our best use and what is it we truly want. The great tragedy is that so many believe they must throw themselves on the fire for communal benefit and have not considered the other possibilities to be of service, to benefit and enhance the lives of others. Leaders, especially, tend to make this mistake.

Leaders struggle with the dilemma of whose interests to serve –their organization, their clients, their colleagues, their team, and oftentimes, their own self-interests, compete for the leader’s priority and loyalty. Leaders can win in goal achievement, strategy, organizational design and other key areas – all while staying authentically grounded and in alignment with their personal beliefs and values. It starts with deciding what is of greatest value and making that your personal foundation. The simplest way to describe a foundation is to think of a building’s foundation—the foundation is used to support the structure. If a building’s foundation is faulty or compromised, the building is not safe and will not function as designed. A personal foundation is much the same. Your personal foundation is a combination of your core values and those attributes that keep you strong, focused and effective.

The work of leadership involves working without a script. As a result, each leader must eventually define for themselves what type of leader they will be. They must define their own values and use that as their compass. In a survey taken of leaders, many shared that their best leadership day was when they created a vision of what they wanted their leadership to be (Kouzes & Posner, 2012). Hultman (2002) adds that each leader has values which are deeply engrained in their being and are readily reflected in how they respond to their roles in life. For the leader, their values perform the three key actions of: 1) preventing exposure to perceived threats 2) orienting to society and 3) spurring growth.

In ‘right versus right’ decisions, where ‘wrong’ isn’t a factor, we grapple with questions of “Who am I?” and adopt several different perspectives from which to view complex and chaotic situations. Badaracco (1997) advises that we not only consider, ‘How does this align with my values?’, but we must also ask, “How does this align with how I define myself?’

I often find myself asking “How does this action/ decision align with how I define myself as a Christian… an African-American… a woman… a wife… a veteran… a scholar – who I am has great depth, no one is only one thing.  Those are my examples. Everyone shares varying perspectives based on background, upbringing and the way they have experienced the world. When you make challenging decisions in your life, what values do you align with and which definitions of yourself do you most often consider?

Today, as you and the entire planet stand in perfect alignment, relish and really check in to what that feels like and keep it going!!

References:

Badaracco Jr., Joseph L. (1997). Defining Moments: When Managers Must Choose Between Right and Right. Boston, MA: Harvard Business Review Press.

Garrett, L. (2016). The Opposite of Burnout: 5 Career Strategies to Make You Feel Valued, Be Heard and Make a Difference. Kindle.

Hultman, K. (2002). Balancing Individual and Organizational Values: Walking the tightrope to success. San Francisco,CA: Jossey-Bass/Pfeiffer.

Kouzes, J. & Posner, B. (2012). The Leadership Challenge: How to Make Extraordinary   Things Happen in Organizations. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. 5th edition.

Three Shifts That Change EVERYTHING!!!

WhenYouChangeTheWayYouLookAt Things_DyerChange

In Coaching, a shift indicates a transition from one place or position to another. A Coach can create an environment for a shift to occur, but only the Coachee can actually make the shift. In my coaching, I have observed 3 shifts that make a world of difference for clients. And while a shift will mean different things to different people, overall it tends to feel like wholeness and self-acceptance, which are vital to happiness. I share the below tips in hopes that readers benefit from the information below and it moves them towards an increased state of happiness, harmony and wholeness. The three Shifts are:

  1. From Roles to Relationships: Oftentimes, we see ourselves in roles – Wife, Husband, Supervisor, Employee, etc.  Roles indicate duties  – things we should do, would do and could do. Yet these roles also signify relationships and connections – things we get to do, choose to do and want to do. Seeing roles as relationships aligns with one’s values and speaks to who they are.  As a person gains a greater awareness of themselves, roles and accomplishments seem less urgent and they in turn just want to find and enjoy who they are and what they contribute to their relationships. (Gibson, 2016).
  2. From Distraction to Decision: Choice Overload Theory observes that too many options lead to adverse consequences like decreased motivation to choose or a greater chance for dissatisfaction once a choice is made. Today, individuals have an array of choices when it comes to choosing careers, places to live, things to do and places to go (Scheibehenne et. al., 2010). So many choices can be a distraction to the key question – ‘What outcome do you want?’ When one shifts from distraction to decision, they gain focus – and the minute we block out distractions and make decisions, whatever we focus on will inevitably be the best choice.
  3. From Extrinsic to Intrinsic: In his New York Times Best-Seller, Drive (2009), Daniel Pink argues that the secrets to high performance and satisfaction rest in the deeply human need to direct our own lives, to learn and create new things, and to do better by ourselves and our world. This assertion challenges popular misconceptions that money, position and other’s opinions drive us to greater achievement. By connecting with our intrinsic motivations, we make decisions that align with who we are and who we aspire to be, not external influences which can lead to living someone else’s life and achieving someone else’s dreams.

The common theme amongst each shift is the need to get clear on who we are. In the words of John Whitmore (2009), “Self – Awareness leads to Self – Confidence leads to Self – Fulfillment.” Now, GET GOING!!!!

References:

Coach U. (2005). The Coach U Personal and Corporate Coach Training Handbook. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Gibson, L. (2016, April). Your Three Life Goals. Tidewater Women. P.19.

Pink, D. (2009). Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us. New York: Riverhead Publishing, Inc.

Scheibehenne, B., Greifeneder, R., & Todd, P. M. (2010). Can There Ever Be Too Many Options? A Meta-Analytic Review of Choice Overload. Journal of Consumer Research, 37(3), 409-425.

Whitmore, J. (2009). Coaching for Performance: GROWing Human Potential and Purpose – The Principles and Practice of Coaching and Leadership, 4th Edition. Boston, MA: Nicholas Brealey Publishing.

Emergency Management Consulting by Clear and Present Executive

When disaster strikes your business, you need to know how to respond. Clear and Present Executive provides Emergency Management consulting services to prepare your business in the event of a disaster. Does your organization have a line of succession in place in the event that death or illness prevents key personnel from working? Does your business have a way of updating employees on the status of business operations in the event of a serious accident or incident that shuts down operations? Does your business maintain disaster preparedness supplies on site, and does your team know how to use them? These   and several others   are vital questions that your business or organization need to have answers to if it hopes to survive an unexpected disaster. With the help of Clear and Present Executive’s, Emergency Management consulting, your business can equip itself with a disaster preparedness plan for any scenario you can think of.

Our emergency planning consultant, Shekinah “Ki” Magee, is not only highly credentialed and experienced, she’s also a military veteran whose will and resilience have already been tested under pressure. Armed with an M.S. in Public Administration, an M.A. in National Security Strategic Studies from the U.S. Naval War College, and a certification in emergency management, Magee is the type of emergency planning consultant that your organization needs to see it through the toughest times that it may have to face.

There is nowhere on earth free from the risk of some kind of disaster that could bring your business to a standstill. No matter where your business operates, it does so under a risk of fires, floods, earthquakes, landslides, blizzards, tornadoes, or the like. Throw into the equation an increased risk of terrorist attacks for certain businesses in certain industries, and you’ve got a myriad of reasons to invest in Emergency Management consulting from Clear and Present Executive.

In addition to helping businesses create a disaster preparedness plan, Emergency Management consulting can also help businesses figure out their role in the community during a disaster. If a business has resources available that may help in a disaster, then the business may want to liaise with local emergency responders to develop a community oriented disaster preparedness plan.

With the right emergency planning consultant by your side offering emergency management consulting, there is virtually no natural or man‑made disaster that your business can’t prepare for. Emergency Management consulting by Clear and Present Executive will walk you through the Emergency Management process from design and development to implementation. Despite the fact that it is best to have a plan in place before disaster strikes, we can, if necessary, also provide Emergency Management consulting in the midst of a disaster.

When you’re ready to safeguard your business against the risk of natural or man‑made disaster, then you’re ready to speak to the professional and experienced Emergency Management consultants at Clear and Present Executive. Compared to what your business stands to lose by not having an emergency plan in place, working with Clear and Present Executive to create an Emergency Management Plan should be top on your priority list. Contact Clear and Present Executive today to schedule your first emergency management consultation.

Keeping “The Cold Within” Out of Your Team

There is a purpose behind every problem. Oftentimes a really ‘great’ problem will cause you and your team to grow and transform in ways unimaginable. Much like the video portrays, everyone has a “log” to place in the fire. Few teams have everyone contributing at their maximum potential. Sometimes team members feel their contribution somehow leaves them with less, not appreciating that the team (and company) only survives if EVERYONE commits.

Leaders that ‘build bridges’, recognize and address the frictions that lead to a “Cold Within” scenario. They do this in three Ways:

Recognize and Address Issues Directly: Patrick Lencioni (2002) relays in the                         ‘5 Dysfunctions of a Team’, clues a leader has an issue. They are:

  1. Absence of Trust
  2. Fear of Conflict
  3. Lack of Commitment
  4. Avoidance of Accountability
  5. Inattention to Results

Again, diagnosing the symptoms of a problem is only the first step. The leader must address the issue(s), understanding that they build upon one another. For example, if the team is not interested in results, the 5th characteristic, the other four signs likely factor into the issue and must be addressed.

Cultivate Big-Picture Thinking:  In “How Successful People Think”, John C. Maxwell (2009) relays a story about how Jack Welch once told a GE employee that the ongoing relationship with the customer took priority over the sale of any individual product. Managers must remind their teams of the big picture – projects come and go, competitors, consumers and markets change – but a solid team, built on good relationships, will thrive in all circumstances.

Have a Game Plan: Team dysfunction is not a question of “if”, but “when”. The “bridge builder” keeps her tools ready and has already considered their actions in addressing internal conflicts and challenges the team might encounter. They play out potential scenarios, they talk out potential courses with their colleagues, mentors and coaches, to be clear on their plan and intentions. They are ready. This keeps their team on time, on task and on target (Kimsey-House et. al., 2011).

References:

Kimsey-House, H., Kimsey-House, K., Sandahl, P. & Whitworth, L. (2011). Co-Active Coaching: Changing Business Transforming Lives. (3rd Ed.). Boston: Nicholas Brealey Publishing.

Lencioni, P. (2002). The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A leadership parable. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Maxwell, J. C. (2009). How Successful People Think: Change your thinking, change your life. New York: Center Street.

 

Being a Bridge Builder

One of the most important roles of a leader is building and fostering relationships with colleagues and within work groups and teams. The below story provides a little insight into the importance of being the bridge builder:

Once upon a time two brothers who lived on adjoining farms fell into conflict. It was the first serious rift in many years of farming side by side, sharing machinery, and trading labor and goods as needed for mutual benefit. Then, one day things fell apart. It began with a small misunderstanding and grew into a major difference, and finally it exploded into an exchange of bitter words followed by weeks of silence.

One morning there was a knock on the older brother’s door. He opened it to find a man with a carpenter’s toolbox. “I’m looking for a few days work,” said the man.

“Perhaps you would have a few small jobs here and there. Could I help you?”

“Yes,” said the older brother. “I do have a job for you. Look across the creek at that farm. That’s my neighbor, in fact, it’s my younger brother. Last week there was a meadow between us and he took his bulldozer to the river levee and now there is a creek between us. Well, he may have done this to spite me, but I’ll do him one better. See that pile of lumber curing by the barn? I want you to build me a fence – an 8-foot fence – so I won’t need to see his place anymore.”

The carpenter said, “I think I understand the situation. Show me the nails and the post-hole digger and I’ll be able to do a job that pleases you.”

The older brother bought the necessary supplies and then went off for the day.

The carpenter worked hard all that day measuring, sawing, nailing.

At sunset, when the farmer returned, the carpenter had just finished his job. The farmer’s eyes opened wide and his jaw dropped open.

There was no fence there at all. It was a bridge… a bridge stretching from one side of the creek to the other! A fine piece of work handrails and all – and the neighbor, his younger brother, was coming across, his hand outstretched.

“You are quite a fellow to build this bridge after all I’ve said and done.”

The two brothers stood at each end of the bridge, and then they met in the middle, taking each other’s hand. They turned to see the carpenter hoist his toolbox on his shoulder. “No, wait! Stay a few days. I’ve a lot of other projects for you,” said the older brother.

“I’d love to stay on,” the carpenter said, “but, I have many more bridges to build.”

Woten (2014) notes the following as keys to building strong teams – we  will explore each key point in detail in the coming week’s posts,  they are: 1) Fostering high levels of trust and support 2) Establishing/ emphasizing clarity of Purpose and Goals 3) Instilling a sense of identity, commitment and respect 4) Facilitating clear and open communication and 5) Encouraging creativity, innovation, diversity, focus and discipline.

Stay tuned!!!

References:

Woten, M. B. (2014). Team Building in Nursing Care: Implementing. CINAHL Nursing Guide.

LEADERSHIP ETHICS

 

quote-ethics

Many of today’s leaders suffer from a crisis of conscience. Ayers (2006) observes that the moral and ethical void present in many leaders results in lack of vision, confidence and purpose. Experiencing declining effectiveness in their roles and positions, they tend to blame inadequate training and insufficient overall preparation to lead an organization, a department or division. This crisis of conscience is actually a crisis of ethics!

Nouwen (1989) cautions leaders against the temptations of being popular, being spectacular and being powerful. He advises them instead to be thoughtful, to be service  – minded and completely vulnerable, yielding to inner virtues and principles of collaboration.

Leaders must be clear about their own ethics and what they value. Each leader has values which are deeply engrained in their being and are readily reflected in how they respond to their roles in life. Hultman (2002) maintains that values perform the three key actions of: 1) preventing exposure to perceived threats 2) orienting to society and 3) spurring growth. Shared values foster feelings of personal achievement, encourage ethical behavior, foster teamwork and promote high levels of company loyalty (Kouzes and Posner, 2012).

By being clear and transparent about who they are and what they value, leaders can alleviate any confusion or sense of ambivalence about what is considered standard ethical behavior.

References:

Ayers, M (2006.) Towards a Theology of Leadership. Journal of Biblical Perspectives in Leadership. Volume 1, Number 1, pp.3-27.

Hultman, K. (2002). Balancing Individual and Organizational Values: Walking the tightrope to success. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass/Pfeiffer.

Kouzes, J. & Posner, B. (2012). The Leadership Challenge: How to Make Extraordinary Things Happen in Organizations. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. 5th edition.

Nouwen, H. (1989). In the Name of Jesus: Reflections on Christian Leadership. New York: The Crossroads Publishing Company.

Which Wolf Do I Feed….

 

There were two wolves. One wolf’s name was Despair. Despair was full of anger, rage, self-doubt, apathy and negativity. The other wolf’s name was Hope. Hope was full of love, joy, confidence, ambition and positivity. Both wolves were locked in a fierce fight – both wolves were determined, hungry and growing hungrier. The fight goes on for hours. Which one wins???

The answer – whichever one you feed. The wolf that wins out is the wolf you feed.

Which wolf do I feed? I would like to say it was Hope. I want Hope to win out every time, but sometimes I find myself throwing scraps to Despair, not many, but definitely enough to keep him alive (I really hate being cruel to animals). But maybe, just maybe, if I do not feed Despair at all, he will become to weak to fight and will run off to find food elsewhere. Hope would never kill Despair…. Nor will Hope allow Despair to stick around when Hope has been fed properly.

My advise to me today is to make sure I feed Hope – everyday – through fostering positive and productive relationships with others who are trying to do great things; through always being part of the solution; through taking action in faith when situations and outcomes are unclear; by feeding Hope until he is strong enough to not only hold off,  but run off Despair –  because, of course, wolves are very territorial.

A little back story: I was on a flight this week and had an opportunity to watch the movie Tomorrowland, and heard this story. It really resonated with me. Maybe someone else will find it helpful as well. Also, listen to the clip of the speech from the movie. It also made me think about the wolves and why sometimes it seems easier to feed Despair.

 

Getting from Knowing to Doing

Knowing Is Not Enough- Bruce Lee

How come knowing does not automatically translate into doing? Why do leaders, managers, and entrepreneurs fail to apply information they acquire to their efforts in leading, managing and building their businesses? First, let us understand that this is a huge issue – taking the form of procrastination, negative self-talk, self- sabotage and making excuses – all barriers to success.

The two most common reasons many do not achieve great success while knowing exactly what they need to do are:

1) TOO MUCH CREDIT IS GIVEN FOR SIMPLY “KNOWING” – We place great importance on acquiring knowledge. This is indicated by the major efforts in patent development, research, book development and training programs which are geared to manage knowledge, to collect it, trade it, store it and broker it (Pfeffer & Sutton, 2000). However, no action actually gets taken to bring about or implement change.

2) TOO MUCH IMPORTANCE IS PLACED ON “PERFECTION” – We tend to want to avoid disorder. We crave efficiency and avoiding risk. Therefore,  we erect programs, and overindulge in extensive plan development, discussion groups, investigative panels – all precursors to taking actual action (Pfeffer & Sutton, 2000). All the preamble related to these activities overshadows the fact that still no real action is being taken.

Now, having greater understanding of the problem, what is our solution? Simply being aware of these tendencies within ourselves and others is a solid first step. Place more emphasis of what has been actually achieved. Hold yourself and the people you work with accountable to results. Ask pointed questions about how information will be applied. Stick to deadlines and use only a few, high-quality sources when it comes to research and information gathering (Gielnik, 2015). Lastly, recognize the advantages in the greater knowledge to be gained through experience. When we set out on an extraordinary journey, we don’t know what we don’t know. Take action and start finding out!!

Reference:

Gielnik, M.M., Frese, M., Kahara-Kawuki, A., Katano, I.W., Kyejjusa, S., Ngoma, M., Nomatovu-Dawa, R., …. Dlugosch, T.J. (2015). Action and Action Regulation in Entrepreneurship: Evaluating a student training for promoting entrepreneurship. Academy of Management Learning and Education. 14(1). pp. 69 – 94.

Pfeffer, J. & Sutton, R. (2000). The Knowing-Doing Gap. Boston: Harvard Business School Press

Leading The Multi-Generational Workforce

we-need-to-remember-across-generations-that-there-is-as-much-to-learn-as-there-is-to-teach-quote-1For the first time in history, four generations of workers – the Traditionalist, the Boomer, Generation X and Millennial (Formerly Generation Y) have graced the workforce. When different generations come together, they present very unique challenges for the leader whose job is to bring everyone’s talents, energies and passions together behind a common purpose.

By 2020, Millennials will make up more than 40 percent of the work force. They will require a different type of leadership than Baby Boomers and Generation X employees. Most notably, they seek to secure positions of influence earlier. Also, they hold training as one of their highest priorities. Millennials are extremely savvy in technical skills, but often lack skills in the areas of office diplomacy, communication, listening, patience and relationship building (Lykins & Pace, 2013).

For leaders, generational differences will have impacts on recruiting, team building, managing change and handling conflict. Traditionalist employees may not like lots of communication by e-mail, while Millennial workers will not stay in an organization when they believe opportunities for professional growth and promotion are better elsewhere.  Boomers will be motivated by feeling like a valued member of the team, while Generation X  wants autonomy – a chance to do things their own way (Hammill, 2005).

In the above organization, a situational leadership approach works because it emphasizes leadership that is highly versatile and dynamic – sometimes directive and at other times supportive – with the leader matching their style with the identified needs of their people.  The leader is an enabler to task achievement by providing additional training, improved technologies, coaching, mentorship and whatever support is needed to allow  employees to continue to meet and exceed goals (Northouse, 2013).

References:

Hammill, G. (2005). Mixing and Managing Four Generations of Employees. FDU Magazine. Spring/Summer 2005. Last accessed: 5 July 13 at: http://www.fdu.edu/newspubs/magazine/05ws/generations.htm

Lykins, L., & Pace, A. (2013). MASTERING millennial LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT. T+D, 67(5), 42.

Northouse, P.G. (2013). Leadership Theory and Practice. Thousand Oaks, CA, Sage.