Falling back to leap forward

Last week we talked about making errors. There is second part to the equation. If we say the right kind of mistakes (and most importantly recognizing all kinds of mistakes) is not a bad thing but can be good then there is a second question that we must ask ourselves which is “what next?”.

Acknowledging that mistakes can be good is important for two reasons:

1) They are going to happen so it is better to recognize and accept that and look for the positive.
2) You can plan for how to recover from mistakes once you have allowed for the reality that they will happen.

And that second point is a key point for world class execution. Why do we practice how to handle an upset customer? We know it will happen so we need a recovery system. Be aware enough to spot a mistake is great; the next step is to try to think through how to respond as quickly as possible. Is there a mistake that you see could happen that you may not be ready for? Whether it is an issue with utilities (think flooding), power outages or good old fashioned equipment issues there are many things that can happen. The more we are ready to respond the higher our performance will be.

While perfection is an ideal goal if our whole operating mindset is based on us being perfect we will be flawed. Because things do go wrong so we must see it, own that it happens and jump on solving these issues. And the more thought we have into these responses before the better. Think about areas where your people can and should be ready to recover and see how you can help them execute this recovery the best way possible.

Flawless execution includes the possibility (and inevitability) or errors but also allows us, and should force us, to plan for these moments and practice our recovery and response. That is one of the keys to excellence and something we should embrace. So it’s OK for us to recognize we will fall back as long as we use it as a chance to plan to leap forward.

To err is human

Last week I mentioned the power of Action steps.

One of the big impediments is the fear of messing up. There are two types of mistakes

1) Doing something that we have done regularly. And this is usually caused by not paying attention.

2) Doing something that we have not really done before. These errors come as part of the learning process.

Of course we want to avoid the first type of mistake. But I want you to seek out the second. We should always be trying something a little new and different to improve. Which means we should always be finding little mistakes to improve on. A new idea that has a mistake may be our best opportunity for learning and finding that next level of excellence. So it is key to seek these moments out.

In order to do this you must pay attention and have a keen eye to which type of errors you are seeing. Most of instinctively know the difference but we do not categorize them differently. A mistake is a mistake. This fear is one of the biggest road blocks you can run into in any situation. There are mistakes to be avoided and those that we should embrace.

Let’s look at these two types of mistakes as two separate functions. The first type of error (of a regular task that comes … #1 above) should be avoided and minimized. The second type of error (from trying something new …#2 above) should not only not be minimized; they should be sought out. Because there is learning there and something good going on. Something you learn, something you can build on and something you can share. Looking at it that way I am sure you will agree that it is not even right to think of it as a mistake anymore.

We all know that everything we try will not work – but make sure that we classify our mistakes correctly because one is a good thing. If it has been a while since you have had a mistake go seek one out. Just make sure it is the right kind of mistake. Then you will be onto something.

Light's, camera....

Action… simple and powerful.

“What next step should I be taking to make my goals happen? “

This one question is crucial. It is a game changing attitude. It takes two key thoughts and makes the go…

1) It is a reminder that we have the ability and authority to act and take control.
2) It forces us to be in a state of doing instead of not doing (or remember as my football coach used to say “don’t-ing”)

Imagine what next week would look like if we all asked ourselves this questions and answered it at every possible moment…

“What next step should I be taking to make my goals happen?”

Yes at times we have to deal with the emergent issue at hand, we all have to put out fires, but imagine a week where every time we got pass those issue we asked the question above and then made sure we started to work on that next step.

We all get caught up in each day and this is a great question to focus us back on running our day instead of our day running us. And whether you are good at running your day or need some improvement we all know we can always get better.

So remember take at least one moment over the next few days and ask yourself the question

“What next step should I be taking to make my goals happen?”

And the stage will be set and then it is time for Action. Sounds pretty good to me.

If you are in the path of the ice storms that never end stay warm and safe and for those of us in the south getting snow enjoy the moment.

Thanks

let someone else do it

A quick thought for the weekend…

I was discussing with someone the other day about the difference between accountability and control. If you control something you are accountable for it completely, you own it and the results. If someone else controls something they have the accountability. In business we often talk about accountability but we are not willing to give the control of that result to the person we hold accountable. This sets up an unavoidable conflict.

As a leader you are responsible for everything that reports to you. But that does not mean you have to control every aspect of it. And if you think about it in order to engage other people and keep them accountable than you MUST allow them more control of the result.

So the challenge and opportunity that I want everyone to think about is this… think of some task that you control right now. Ask yourself do I need to have this control? Find one action and let someone else do it. That is a key phrase. It is weird to relinquish some control and ownership but that is OK. You are control of everything that you lead – your people should feel the same way about their charge and the only way is to make sure they feel that accountability and control.

If you are doing this … great you can find something else! If you are someone who struggles with this – and I know I do at times – take the next few days and find something and make the commitment to let someone else do it.

A note… follow up is not controlling. It is a chance to coach and make sure that things are done – especially as someone is newly learning accountability. So find something… let someone else do it… see when it gets done… give them food positive feedback and make sure they know they can do that again.

It is not a loss of control it is a way to build accountability.

The manner of "how"....

A quick thought for the weekend…

This week’s has had a huge amount of coverage of the political election in Massachusetts. One of the most important messages of this election is not about specific policies, political parties or ideology. What one of the key points that was made this week was people’s general dissatisfaction with the process of how politicians go about making laws and deals. And it extends to both sides of the aisle – remember no sex, religion or politics!

What was key was the importance that people put not only on the “what” (or goal) but also on the “how” (or process for achieving the goal). We all (myself included) get very focused on the “what”. Rarely do we stop and ask ourselves in depth questions about “how” we achieve that objective. This week the American people gave everyone a valuable reminder that the way in which you approach a goal is as important as the goal itself.

Take a moment over the next week and ask “have I thought about the manner in which I am achieving my goals?”. If you (like all of us) have neglecting this question as of late, take 5 minutes and think about the “how” of achieving our goal and the impact it can have on that success.

Remember it’s is not just where you go but the road you travel to get there.

Have a great weekend.

Don't-ing

So I was thinking on some of the gems my football coaches in high school used to tell us. I would like to share some of the all-time classics with everyone.

- “Line up in a circle”
- “Pair up in threes”
- “Gentlemen, allow me to iterate this for y’all”
- “We are gonna have an hour and a half practice…45 minutes on offense…45 minutes on defense…and 45 minutes on special teams”
- “Boys remember there are 5 ‘S’s of defensive football: Stance, Stalemate, Separate, ‘ccelerate and Tackle!”
- Player looking at a lake with the team””Sure is a lot of water out there right coach?” Coach: “yup, and that’s only on the top”

And yes… these are all true (you cannot make these things up).

But there was one comment that stood out that seemed meaningful. Especially as we are beginning the year and begin to move from thinking about goals and objectives to executing on these goals. During practice one coach used to tell us:

“Son, if you are going to make a mistake, make a mistake by doing instead of don’t-ing”

Grammar aside this one always struck a chord in me. It speaks to the power of being active. In trying to achieve any goal, big or small, you have to actively pursue that goal. And the active pursuit of a goal brings something into play that we all are concerned about. Failure. But what we should remember is that if something does not work out but we are actively trying to hit the objective – that is not failure – that is called trying or learning.

Frankly, if you try something and you see it won’t work and you say we cannot achieve the objective but that is learned from action and learning – that is not failure either that is called experience.

So the only thing to worry about is if you have an objective and you refuse to try to achieve it. That is the only failure, or as my coach used to call it “don’t-ing”.

A mistake from an action is much better than one from inaction – that is where learning and experience come from. Anything that we can actively do can make us better and grow and therefore we should not fear it or avoid it, but search it out and embrace it.

Intention and action are the fuel for our success and anything that comes from that we can make into something positive and something great. Even things that people may label with that word “failure”. So the only thing we have to avoid is being passive. If you have a choice and one involves taking action and one involves sitting back – I suggest we always look at the active step as our default choice. Yes there may be times where waiting back and not taking action makes sense but it should be the exception after thought (an action) and careful consideration because remember what the coach said:

“Son, if you are going to make a mistake, make a mistake by doing instead of don’t-ing”

That one made sense to me.

The best way to predict the future....

Now is the time of year when people want to make predictions about the future. And I am a huge proponent of that as well. Predicting the future is fun way to hone and check your thinking skills. Predictions also allows you to mentally prepare for the future by creating a picture of it so that when things begin to happen you have already started planning for it. Strategic planners call this effect “creating a memory of the future”. So as you see I am big fan of predicting the future as an exercise. But one point that is important to remember with predictions is that you may be dealing with things that are in our areas or spheres of interest we usually do not deal with things that are in our sphere of influence. Or said differently we may care about it but cannot do anything about it to impact the result.

So if you want to accurately predict the future think about the world we control. So when thinking about your predictions it is OK to look at who may win the Super Bowl or what may happen in the November elections but these are not items where will spend our energy because we have no influence. When thinking about 2010 I want you to think about what you can control and think about your predictions there. Abraham Lincoln said “the best way to predict the future is to make it” – and we should all take this advice to heart.

While we may care about many areas we should really focus our forward thinking on the areas that we can control and execute plans to make that future happen. It is very empowering to remind ourselves that we do control our futures in many ways and we should grab that ability and take advantage of it every day. So you and your team’s sphere of influence is take this time to make a bold and specific prediction in your mind, make sure you can control that prediction and spend the year making it happen. It is a great opportunity to focus on that which matters and that which you can do and drive your way to the future you want to see happen.

And our whole advantage comes from our focus and this gives us the ability to be the best in the world at what we do. So in looking forward to the year be focused on what you can control and then see that future you want and then go about making it – it really is the best way to predict the future.

Have a great weekend