Maximizing the Human Potential

Effective Communication

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andrew shaffer consulting effective communication

How well are you able to communicate your ideas to another person? Think about it. How many times have you argued with a spouse or significant other because of a communication problem, or lack of communication? What about your children? Have you ever asked a colleague or a member of your team to do something only to be totally disappointed because they did something completely different? The whole “bring me a rock” exercise. Most of the time ineffective communication is the cause of our disagreements and disappointments. This week I am going to share some takeaways from a recent workshop I participated in to learn effective communication.

Effective Communication

I recently had the opportunity to sit in a two-day workshop on communication. I am always willing to explore options for improving myself, and I understand the benefits of being a more effective communicator. However, as you can imagine, two full days seemed like a lot. I have participated in communication training, and by extension leadership communication training before.  Usually they were hours upon hours of hypothetical examples and role playing for scenarios that never actually happen.

To my surprise my expectations were completely wrong! We didn’t participate in role playing with over the top, unrealistic hypotheticals. Instead, during the two days we broke down and explored the causes of miscommunication, and how our own uniqueness contributes to it. It amazed me that just after day one, the workshop participants were sharing how they were taking what they learned and applied it at home that night! I cannot recreate the same impact in a blog that the workshop had over the two days, but I’d like to share some of the takeaways that might impact how you communicate.

How We Communicate

In today’s world there are almost an infinite number of ways to communicate with one another. We have email, text messaging, instant messaging, social media feeds, phones, video calls, pre-recorded videos, and good old-fashioned face to face conversation. Those are just the mediums we use for communication, that doesn’t even consider the message we are actually trying to convey!

When it comes to messaging it gets even more complicated. Have you ever said something (in any of the mediums above) and someone took offense, and you immediately had to clarify because your intent wasn’t understood? Yeah, me too.

Body language, tone of voice and other contextual clues add meaning to the words you’re saying. Most of us don’t put much thought and effort into the messaging and how we are communicating with others. We make assumptions based on our beliefs, what we think is commons sense, and our understanding of specific words. We have mental pictures or conclusions in our mind, and we assume others will have the same. This is far from the case.

When we communicate with others, we all need to be careful to make sure we are clear on what we are trying to communicate, and that our approach (message and medium) are appropriate and can be clearly understood by our audience.

 Language

“The United States and Great Britain are two countries separated by a common language.” – George Bernard Shaw

Did you know there are 645 meanings to the word run? I was surprised too, so I googled it. It’s no wonder why non-native English speakers say that English is the hardest language to learn! In this workshop we played a word association game. The facilitator gave us a word and we each wrote down the next ten things that came to mind. It was a relatively common word, and we all knew the definition of it, but in the entire group we didn’t have one word in common.

The language we use while communicating can, and likely will, conjure different understandings in different people. In the workshop, we had the opportunity to do some group work. We had to answer some simple questions individually then meet as a group and find common meanings. Even with these simple questions, we all interpreted them slightly differently and answered them differently. The questions were about communication, but many people would have different answers if they applied the question to work situations or personal situations. The questions didn’t specify, and we interpreted it based on our experiences.

Clarity

We don’t ask enough questions. I have read Jeffrey Gitomer’s Little Red Book of Selling probably close to a dozen times. In this book he dedicates a whole chapter on asking questions? Why? Because asking questions (he says smart questions) is the only way to get information. I once listened to a talk on successful interviewing. One of the most common mistakes interviewees have is they don’t ask questions. Ironically this was more common in men than women. Why? I suspect we believe by asking questions we admit we might not have all the answers. If we don’t have all the answers the other person might think we’re not qualified.

On the contrary, we must ask questions. Asking questions shows curiosity and a desire for understanding. I’ll never know what you are thinking, how I can help you, or who you are without asking questions. Earlier I alluded to the bring me a rock exercise. You know when your boss asks for a rock, you bring a rock only to find out it was the wrong rock. We’ve all been there I am sure. What would have happened if you took a few minutes to find out what rock your boss wanted in the first place? Would it have been time better invested than to have to go find another rock? I bet it would. Asking questions is an investment in getting the job done right the first time.

This Week’s Challenge

Today’s article isn’t going to make you a better communicator all by itself. I wanted to share with you some of the takeaways that I took from this workshop. You may already know and understand these things. For this week’s challenge, I recommend you look at how you communicate and find ways to be more effective. A small investment in becoming a more effective communicator can help your productivity.

If you would like to discuss more ways to help your business grow or if you feel you have a specific problem that needs to be addressed, please reach out to me.

The Importance of Maintaining Curiousity

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maintaining curiousity andrew shaffer consultingThe other day my son asked me a question. “Dad, if you could have one superpower what would it be?” Great question, I mean I could choose anything! What would I choose? What would you choose? My kids will often ask me questions like this. “Dad, what would happen if I …” or the never ending “Why?” They ask these questions because they are curious. They want to learn something they don’t already know. It’s part of their development. For some reason, most adults stop being curious. Is it because we have to admit we don’t have all the answers? I’m not going to get into the psychological aspects here, but I am going to discuss the importance of maintaining curiosity throughout your life.

Importance of Maintaining Curiosity

As the story goes, Sir Isaac Newton was sitting under an apple tree and was hit on the head with a falling apple. This piqued his curiosity and lead to the discovery of the law of gravity. Apples had been falling off trees since the beginning of time (so I assume I am not that old!), why hadn’t anyone else discovered the law of gravity. No one else was curious. No one else asked, why apples always fell to the ground. Sir Isaac Newton’s curiosity, and pursuit of truth lead him to this discovery.

Curiosity doesn’t have to be limited to the field of physics; it can take your business to the next level. Curiosity breeds innovation, growth and discovery of new and more efficient processes and products. Curiosity helps establish your competitive edge and dominate the market share. Without curiosity you are doomed to complacency until you are obsolete and out of business.

Innovation

Do you want to eliminate complacency in your business? Create an atmosphere of curiosity. I don’t have to tell you that complacency kills your businesses, if not immediately it will over time. You have to be at least as innovative and creative as your competition or risk losing customers. Curiosity drives innovation. Innovation brings new products, better service, and higher profits.

Your employees should always be asking themselves:

  • What happens if I…?
  • Why do we do it this way?
  • Is there a better way?

Answering these questions will spark curiosity and help you become an industry leader.

Leadership

Just the other day I was reading something on the differences between millennials and baby boomers in the work place. I read it because I was curious about the comparisons, and I had a few minutes to kill. You don’t need a PhD in sociology to know that there is a huge difference between the way these generations approach work.

Leaders need to maintain their curiosity. There has been a ton of research done, books and articles written about how to become a more effective leader. In most work places, leadership has evolved from the old command and control model to a more empowering and engaging model. (If you are still in the command and control model, please contact me!). Leaders need to be curious about new ways to improve productivity, engagement, profits, and employee effectiveness.

As the work place changes with new technology, and a new generation of workers, leaders need to evolve as well. Being curious about how to improve your skills will help you become better equipped to stay on the leading edge and maintain your competitive advantage.

Lack of Curiosity

A lack of curiosity will doom you to mediocrity or run you out of business completely. I used to frequently comment that Monday is my favorite day of the week, and Friday was always the worse. Why? Well, because on Monday I was excited about all the things I could do in the coming week, and on Friday I was upset because I didn’t get anything new accomplished. This is classic complacency.

Clearly when I’d get in this rut, it was because I lacked curiosity and imagination to be innovative. When I’d recognize this rut, I knew it was time for a change. Sometimes it was that I needed to find a new job so I could grow, or I had to find a new way to do my job and improve effectiveness. Either way I had seen so many talented people get stuck in the rut, and lacked the curiosity to even wonder if there was a better way. A lack of curiosity will kill businesses, leaders, and careers.

This Week’s Challenge

How curious is your organization? Are you challenging yourself to grow, innovate and dominate your competition? Innovation will help you maximize productivity, reduce turnover, and increase market share. Maintaining curiosity in your business is key to helping your business grow, compete and be the best.

If you would like to discuss more ways to help your business grow or if you feel you have a specific problem that needs to be addressed, please reach out to me.

Use Culture to Gain a Competitive Edge

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Culture to Gain a Competitive Edge andrew shaffer consultingI had the privilege of sitting down with my friend Ben from Global Harvest Networks to share ideas on how to help companies grow. When I first met Ben, his story of growth in his company inspired me, and he hasn’t stopped growing. When Ben and I were talking, he shared that he is always amazed at how his team is willing to step up and take on new challenges. His company has developed a culture that gives him a competitive edge. In light of this conversation I thought I’d share with you how you can use culture to gain a competitive edge!

Use Culture to Gain a Competitive Edge

There are two things I know about your business. First, if you are not making money, you are going to go out of business. Second, your business cannot operate without people. Businesses either grow or die.

According to aei.org: only 12% of the Fortune 500 companies in 1955 were still a Fortune 500 company in 2015. It doesn’t matter how good your product or service is, or how your proprietary information gives you an edge. Without people to sell, develop, and produce the product or provide the service, nothing will get done.

The other little secret, your product or service can be the absolute best today, but if you don’t continuously improve, you’ll soon be left behind. Need proof? Remember the Motorola Razor phone? What happened to Motorola? When I was a kid, everyone in the neighborhood had an Atari 2600 game console. Atari isn’t even in business anymore. Not to mention the number of airlines, car companies, and electronics companies that no longer exist.

Last month we discussed the importance of developing proactive leadership. To take this discussion to the next level, your leaders should be creating a culture that gives you a competitive edge!

Challenge the Status Quo

When you find something that works stick with it. Right? I mean that sounds like good advice. My dad used to tell me, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” This advice was probably sound, when my dad saw me taking a screw driver to the VCR because I wanted to “see how it works” but this mentality can be detrimental to a business.

I have met business owners that have done a decent job of building themselves a profitable business. However, after several years, they find they can’t increase revenue or market share, and sometimes they are even losing revenue. They call in consultants (like me), and when I suggest making changes to the business model, I get immediate resistance. They built their business doing it a certain way and come hell or high water, that is the way it will be done. In the meantime, their competitors have found a way to solve the same problem cheaper, faster and smarter. Who is going to stay in business longer? Create a culture that is as proactive as your leaders.

Develop Friendly Competition

Anther struggle I see in businesses is a culture of cut-throat competition. I mean that culture where everyone is out for themselves and not for the company? Friendly competition is fine, fun, and productive. It is when the competition is mean, undermining, and counterproductive that it becomes toxic to a company.

Let’s use a manufacturing company as an example. This company runs three shifts a day to produce their product. Management decides to help motivate the production floor, that they’ll have a competition over the next month to see how may products each shift can make. In a culture of friendly competition, each shift would work hard and try to produce the greatest number of products. They would get creative to find more efficient and effective ways. Ideally, each subsequent shift will do this. Each team wins, because they learn how to be more effective and efficient. One team may win a prize (or bragging rights), and the company benefits from improved productivity and profitability.

Now, if you have a cut-throat type culture, the results will be extremely different. Here you may have one shift trying to sabotage the next shift. They could damage or “lose” material. They certainly wouldn’t be creative and find innovative ways to be more productive. In this type environment each shift would be out for themselves, and may even hinder production on the other shifts if they thought it would give them an edge.

This Week’s Challenge

This week I have given a couple examples how a culture can help your business gain a competitive edge. By developing a culture that challenges the status quo. What are you doing well today, and how can you make that better? Develop opportunities for friendly competition. This can be in sales, marketing, manufacturing, wherever. Create a culture that encourages innovative and creative thinking, and watch your competitive edge sharpen!

If you would like to discuss more ways to help your business grow or if you feel you have a specific problem that needs to be addressed, please reach out to me.

Accountability

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andrew shaffer consulting accountabilityOver the last week, many people have discussed with me the need for accountability. This might be because the year is still fresh and people know that accountability is necessary to be successful. Whatever the reason, people seem to be looking for guidance on how to hold themselves accountable and how to hold others accountable. This week, I thought I’d share some thoughts on accountability to help you become more successful in business and in life for 2019!

Accountability

We all know that accountability is an important factor to success. Accountability is typically introduced through school. We were held accountable for doing our homework, and if we didn’t do it there was typically some form of consequence. As we move into adulthood, we enter the workforce and there is some accountability there to perform to a certain standard, or lose our job.

I have also found that as people enter adulthood, some people struggle with accountability. Either with holding themselves accountable, or even holding others accountable. Being accountable requires discipline, which can be a struggle for some people. This article is going to explore three aspects of accountability and how YOU can become more successful.

To Yourself

The first person you have to be accountable to is yourself. Now this is probably the hardest of the three categories. I know, from my own experience, once I was on my own certain aspects of accountability went out the window. I no longer had anyone telling me when to come home, when to get up or what to eat. Over time, I had to develop a system of holding myself accountable because the consequences were catching up to me.

Holding yourself accountable requires self-discipline and integrity. You have to be able to do the right thing, even if nobody is watching. This is the most important aspect of accountability and makes it possible to hold others accountable. This is leading by example. You will struggle to hold others accountable, if they see that you cannot hold yourself accountable. To be successful create a system of holding yourself accountable. Maybe an accountability partner, or support group can be beneficial. No matter what you choose to do to hold yourself accountable, DO NOT LET YOURSELF OFF THE HOOK when you slip.

To Your Company

Make a habit of accountability at your company. This applies to supervisors, peers and direct reports. You’d be surprised how much people actually appreciate being held accountable, and how much more you’ll be respected. In the workplace, this can be as simple as a follow up. When you assign tasks to direct reports, follow up to make sure they are done, and done to the level you expect.

When working with peers, follow the same advice. If you need support from your marketing department, or the leader of another team, be sure to follow up. When your boss promises she’ll get you the help you need, follow up with her. I realize holding your boss accountable might take a little political consideration, but if she is honest, she’ll appreciate the accountability. Afterall she expects it from you, right?

By holding people accountable for what they say, you not only help improve productivity, you also prove that what you asked for is important. Another way to look at it. If you asked someone that worked for you to provide a report on Monday, and you don’t read it, why did you ask for it? Sooner or later, it’ll give the impression to your team that the work isn’t important. If you offer support to someone and don’t follow through their trust in you will begin to erode.

To Your Customers

It doesn’t matter if you are in retail or provide a service, you have to be accountable to your customers and clients. This doesn’t mean the customer is always right, although you shouldn’t let them know that. This doesn’t mean you give the client everything they want. It DOES mean that you do what you say and say what you do. Last week I talked about the importance of your companies image and reputation. Being accountable to your clients means saying what you do and doing what you say.

Your customers come to you to fill a specific need or want. They also come with a certain level of expectations.  Being accountable to your customers means meeting (or exceeding) those expectations each and every time you do business. Mistakes cannot always be avoided, it happens, but when mistakes do happen you take every reasonable (and sometimes unreasonable) action necessary to regain that trust. Just like with being accountable to your company, once you lose the trust you may never have an opportunity to regain that trust

This Week’s Challenge

Develop a plan to focus on these three areas of accountability. Even if you already think you are focusing on accountability, take time to identify ways you can become even more effective. Adding accountability to your relationships with yourself, your company, and your customers will help your and your business grow.

If you would like to discuss more ways to help your business grow or if you feel you have a specific problem that needs to be addressed, please reach out to me.