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The Enlightened Leadership Team  & Making Managers into Leaders Institute

How many times have you been in a performance review, either as the reviewer or the one being reviewed, and felt unsatisfied at the end? Having a periodic review is a necessary part of working in any environment and so we’ve all most likely had our fair share of them, but it seems as though often managers are just going through the motions in these reviews.

I feel that is a shame because I believe reviews are meant to be a time to offer congratulations on jobs well done as well as insight to areas where improvement can be made – on both sides. Certainly the focus is on the employee, but as an employee I feel we should also have things to say about what is working or not working for us, too. And we should be made to feel comfortable enough to say them.

At Enlightened Leadership Solutions, Ed Oakley likes to use our own Framework for Leadership™ in his daily work and so when my 90-day review came around recently I was able to experience a review process that was, well, enlightening, compared to what I’ve seen in the past.

Ed began the meeting focusing on what I liked or appreciated about my role. It was right out of Leadership Made Simple, and there was nothing hokey about it! This started off the meeting with a high level of excitement for me as I was able to share what kind of things I really enjoyed doing. I also was able to share some of the things I found challenging or just didn’t agree with and that was a big relief.

Next, Ed asked what was my ideal role. Can you imagine that? He wasn’t saying, “This is what I want you to accomplish before your next review.” I was able to share what I thought would be the best use of my talents and he listened to them! The funny thing is that as I talked Ed become more and more excited. It turned out that some of the things I was really interested in, Ed wasn’t sure I’d want to do and that has opened a whole new area of opportunity, for both me personally, as well as the company.

Finally, Ed’s turn to talk came, but he started with what he appreciated about me and then moved into what he thought my role should be. With my input already out there it was so easy to create mutual goals that we both felt good about.

Many times in the past I have felt nervous going into reviews. I have always believed I do my job well, but I never knew what new roles or tasks I would be forced to take on and whatever those roles were I would have to take them in order to get a good review when the next time came around. With Ed using key parts of our Framework I felt good about myself, my work and my future from the start of the review. And I’m even more excited about our upcoming work because a lot of it fits into my ideal role.

Thank you, Tiffany. There are some great management/leadership tips there.

What are your thoughts on the review process in your company, from either side of the review? We would love to hear your stories, whether it be successes or challenges.

And what else would like us to write about? And yes, we realize we have some requests that we have not responded to.

To Your Continued Success!

Ed Oakley Enlightened Leadership Solutions leadership development programs

Please listen to the podcast here.

The interview starts at about 5 minutes into Waynes discussion, and you can move the slider over to get to it faster.

Enjoy!

The Enlightened Leadership Team

From the first time I saw the video, I felt there was something missing. This might be controversial, and it is my strongly held perspective. And it is important in our leadership roles…

I immediately related the missing piece to the difference between our clients who have been wildly successful using our simple concepts and tools and those who really liked the work, and were only moderately(in comparison) successful in measurable results. The difference is quite obvious to me.

The missing piece of “The Secret” is ACTION! I personally question the value of the powerful concepts of the movie and the book without “action.” I personally have experienced a number of people who have worked hard to have the right thoughts, the right vision, the right clarity and goals, and they are sitting around wondering why nothing spectacular is happening in their work or their lives. The significant words there are “sitting around.” They are not taking action.

Likewise, the simple distinction of our wildly successful clients is that they are the ones that take action. It is really that simple! They aren’t smarter, they aren’t more innovative, they aren’t more fun-seeking, more beautiful, older, younger or anything else. The super-successful ones are simply the ones that use the concepts and tools – they take action.

Because of this realization, the new program we are announcing formally on April 16th, “Leading Change without Authority,” includes 11 months of coaching and group-learning teleconferences to assure follow-through, i.e., ACTION! The action is specifically related to the program’s subtitle, its promise, which is “Optimizing Your High Visibility Project while Strengthening Your Leadership Abilities.” We are very excited about the results we expect for those who participate.

I received a validation of my own thoughts about “The Secret” when I recently ran across an online “video” that addressed this in a presentation that the author, Mark Hendrick, called “The Real Secret.” He gets specifically to “action” about 10 minutes into it. You might enjoy listening to part of it, if not all.

May you use the Secret AND the Action in your leadership efforts!

Ed Oakley

Leadership Development Model

IBM i-Series computers has simplicity as it’s theme. They are advertising the importance of simple and simplicity as the heart of their message. They are even claiming that they have “simple pricing.” Just a few minutes ago, I was glancing through a Business 2.0 magazine, and there was the headline of a VISA Business Card advertisement that read “Business Takes Simplicity” – whatever that means . Keep your eyes open, and I’ll bet you’ll notice this simplicity theme more and more. Let us know if you see it.

Perhaps people are getting tired of complexity, finally realizing that complex solutions seldom work. If we come up with complex solutions to challenges in our company, I encourage us to keep looking. The right solution has not shown up yet. In my experience, effective solutions are usually simple solutions. If you ask someone to do something different, and what you are asking is complex, they are unlikely to do it, because they expect it to be difficult. If you ask someone to do something different that is simple, they can at least imagine the possibility of getting it done. Simple does NOT necessarily mean easy, but simple does mean there is at least a chance of making it work.

Simplicity is a key strategy for us when working with clients in a consultative relationship, and it always has been. It has also been a dilemma, because there is some question as to whether people and organizations value simplicity. Jack Trout, in his excellent book, The Power of Simplicity, said, “You should realize that complexity is at the heart of a bad consultant’s business. Their view of such a consultant, and it may be an accurate one, is that companies won’t pay a lot for simplicity. In fact, it would sometimes appear that the less a company understands about the process, the more it will pay.” It was when we read Trout’s book in 1999 that we knew we would write Leadership Made Simple. It might be a risk if people don’t value simplicity, but we know it works, and we are willing to take that stand!

What simple approaches have you found to work in some problem or challenge area? We would enjoy hearing from you.

Incidentally, if you have not yet ordered the book or received the first few chapters from an earlier offer, you can download the Introduction and first two chapters free now at:
http://leadershipmadesimple.com/intro.html

NOTE: The web page will say that you are also signing up for the LMS journal, but we know you are already registered for that. Not to worry. Also, if you have ordered the book, you should have the hardcover version by the end of July.

Warmest regards!