zen & the art of constructive critique

 Monday 31 July 2023

Giving Hard Feedback Is...Hard. Here’s How to Do It ! 

Giving your employees tough feedback can be painful, but it’s a requirement for any leader. Here’s how to navigate the discomfort and apprehension that comes with difficult conversations so you can say what needs to be said. 

(1) Start by challenging the assumption that critical feedback makes you a difficult or mean manager. Instead, focus on the rewards of clear, honest communication; your input may be exactly what your employee needs to finish a challenging assignment, and it could help them grow in new, productive ways. 

(2) Then, before you actually deliver your feedback, consider the worst, best, and most likely outcomes, and come up with a game plan for each.

 Plan your opening remarks: (a)  Use “I” statements, (b) be specific, and (c) strike a respectful, honest tone.

(3)  Finally, make feedback a regular, predictable habit, rather than an occasional “big” conversation. The more you practice giving feedback in lower-stakes, everyday scenarios, the better at it you’ll become. Remember: You’re not criticizing your people; you’re nurturing them. And you’re certainly not being a villain; you’re being the leader they need.

This tip is adapted from “Overcoming Your Fear of Giving Tough Feedback,” by Melody Wilding

3 imp traits of leader

 

Tue 01 Aug 2023 . 

Don’t Lose Sight of These Critical Leadership Behaviors

Consider this paradox: As you grow in your career, your brain develops in ways that undermine your ability to excel as a leader. Here are three essential leadership behaviors you need to commit to and protect as you develop professionally.

(1) Being future-focused. 

The higher up the ladder you climb, the farther out you need to think. Resist the urge to value the immediate and short-term future over the long term. Rather than just ensuring the quality of today’s work, you must constantly scan for what’s next—and ensure your team is prepared.

(2 ) Being good with people.

 As you accrue responsibility, it’s easy to give too much attention to high-level strategy and not enough to your relationships. Becoming a truly transcendent leader means finding a balance between technical and social skills and between goals and people.

(3) Being able to drive realistic results. 

More power tends to make leaders more optimistic about what’s achievable. Make an effort to stay grounded: Pay attention to the data, details, and your employees’ perspectives and set sensible targets accordingly.

This tip is adapted from “3 Ways Our Brains Undermine Our Ability to Be a Good Leader,” by Cian McEnroe and David Rock

Underperforming employees - what to do ?

 Wed 02 Aug 2023

Is Your Employee Falling Short of Their Potential?

Your employee has shown flashes of competence in the past, but they aren’t taking initiative to do more with their talents. Instead of getting frustrated, guide them to reach their potential. 

(1) First, consider whether a personal issue is at play. People often fail to reach their potential because they’re totally unaware of it in the first place. If this is the case, hold up a (metaphorical) mirror, communicating your belief in your employee’s abilities and explaining what an excellent performance really looks like. If it turns out a lack of motivation is the issue, have an honest conversation to get to the bottom of it—and be prepared to provide the support they might need. 

(2) Next, see if an interpersonal issue is standing in their way. If your employee is dealing with tricky team dynamics, have an honest discussion with them. By talking through the issue, you can identify opportunities to reframe or mediate the conflict—and, if necessary, move them to a new role where they’ll be more likely to succeed.

 (3) Finally, it’s possible that, despite your intentions, you could be limiting your employee’s performance through micromanagement, overly loose supervision, or poorly communicated objectives. 

Reflect on your performance as a manager, ask your employee for feedback, and adjust your approach as necessary.

This tip is adapted from “When Your Employee Isn’t Reaching Their Full Potential,” by Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic and Dorie Clark

Bring Mother Nature to work place ? Here's how !!

 

Thu 03 Aug 2023

Boost Productivity by Bringing Nature to Work

Studies find that being exposed to nature at work boosts people’s productivity, helpfulness, and creativity—with no evidence of negative side effects. How can you build little moments of nature into your team’s workplace (without breaking the budget)? Here are some strategies that can help. 

(1) First, give employees opportunities to access the real thing: indoor fountains, natural sounds from the outdoors, and windows with views of gardens, trees, or landscapes. But keep in mind that people benefit from even artificial experiences of nature. Murals, photographs, paintings, noise machines that simulate nature, and artificial plants will give your team a little boost throughout the day. 

(2) Next, think beyond the office. Encourage employees to spend some time outdoors each day at lunch, after work, or in the morning (if the climate allows). 

(3) Finally, find unused spaces and put them to use. For instance, you might add some flowers to the office kitchen, or on a larger scale, you might consider planting some trees in your office’s overly industrial parking lot.

This tip is adapted from “Research: A Little Nature in the Office Boosts Morale and Productivity,” by Anthony Klotz et al.

presentation skills - audience engagement

 Monday 07 Aug 

Keep Your Audience Engaged in Your Presentation

To become an excellent presenter, you need to master the art of grabbing your audience’s attention—and holding it. Here are three techniques you can use to engage any audience like a pro.

(1) Physical. 

Whether you’re giving an in-person presentation or conducting a virtual meeting, think about how you can get your audience moving. A simple invitation to “Turn to the person next to you and greet them” or “Raise your hand if X, Y, or Z” can get them involved. Your goal is to turn your audience into participants, not just observers.

(2) Mental. 

Fight back against your audience’s tendency to zone out or multitask by fostering cognitive engagement. You can do this by asking direct questions, incorporating provocative statements or data, and introducing smart, surprising analogies.

(3) Linguistic.

 Use language to invite your audience in. Mention participants’ names when you can, and use phrases like “As you know…” or “Today, you will learn…” to directly address the crowd. You can also spur your listeners’ imaginations with phrases like “What if you could…” and “Picture this…” to help them visualize the future, or “Remember when…” or “Think back to when…” to bring them back to the past.

This tip is adapted from “3 Ways to Keep Your Audience Focused During a Presentation,” by Matt Abrahams

How to ethically employ contract workers

 Tuesday 08 Aug 2023 

How to Ethically Employ Contract Workers

Outsourcing labor to full-time, third-party contractors has become increasingly common. While some want the flexibility a contract role can provide, research shows that these workers—who are more likely to be Black, Indigenous, Latinx, women, and nonbinary—often do the same work as their directly employed peers while making less money, receiving fewer benefits, and experiencing significant job precarity.

 As a leader, you can pursue the following strategies to reduce harm and mitigate company liability when it comes to contract work.

(1) Fair pay.

 To ensure your contract workers receive family-sustaining pay, be explicit about how much you expect staffing agencies to pay them. Make sure you’re paying them the same rates as full-time employees who do similar jobs.

(2) Workplace safety protocols and worker voice.

 Create clear channels for contract workers to report problems, and include them in company-wide communication streams. This will boost morale and your organization’s accountability around how these workers are treated.

(3) Pathways to direct employment.

 Provide contract workers with development training and meaningful career pathways to full-time employment. This has the added benefit of building a pre-qualified, diverse pool of talent for your company.

This tip is adapted from “A More Ethical Approach to Employing Contractors,” by Catherine Bracy

How , remote work can become toxic too ?

  Wednesday 09 August 2023

Keep Hybrid Work from Turning Toxic

If you’re not careful, hybrid work can change the dynamics between your employees, create an imbalance between in-person and remote workers, reduce cohesion and trust, and make it harder for everyone to resolve issues. 

(1) To keep hybrid work from turning toxic, start by educating your employees. Have an open conversation as a team, defining a toxic workplace as one in which employees feel disrespected, abused, or excluded—and discuss how this could happen in a hybrid context. The goal isn’t to identify specific issues or point fingers, but rather to increase employees’ overall awareness and vigilance.

(2)  Then focus on promoting a culture of empathy and psychological safety, both of which help ensure employees feel comfortable speaking up about the behaviors they perceive as toxic. Check in periodically to keep tabs on how everyone is feeling. 

(3) Finally, be prepared to intervene quickly when an issue comes up by helping all parties engage in a dialogue to reach a mutually acceptable soluti

s tip is adapted from “Why Hybrid Work Can Become Toxic,” by Mark Mortensen

Using visuals in PPT & presentation

 

APRIL 5, 2012 Thursday

Boost Your Presentation with Great Visuals

Most people respond better to visuals than the spoken word alone. But, not all visuals enhance a presentation: Inaccessible graphs or nonsensical clip art will detract from your message. To create visual aids that give your presentation impact, engage your audience, and make your points stick, follow these rules: Keep them simple. If your audience can't understand the visual within 30 seconds, remove it. Don't get too artistic. Only use graphics and icons to reinforce key concepts. Don't try to pretty up the presentation with irrelevant pictures. Edit heavily. Each slide or handout sheet should only convey one concept. Include no more than six lines of text, or else it's no longer a visual.

Today's Management Tip was adapted from Guide to Persuasive Presentations.