Author Archives

    Developing Your Team

    Posted on

    5 Leadership Lessons Gained from Being a Father

    Father’s Day prompts me to pause and be thankful for having a wife and children.  As I look over memories from the last 14+ years of being a father, I am reminded of some great times spent with my children; from playing games like tag and hide-and-go-seek, to going camping, to watching theater performances, or playing hockey in the driveway.  As I reflect on the importance of being a father, I’ve come to realize that fatherhood not only changes one’s life at home but also impacts your leadership style and teaches you five valuable lessons.

    Leadership Lessons from Being a Father

    Patience

    1. Being a father teaches you to be patient. Our children don’t know as much as we do and are learning how their world works every day. In all honesty, patience is a personal weakness of mine, but I try to improve every day as well.  Patience fosters an environment that promotes learning. This applies not only to life at home, but also applies to the environment at work, which is needed for the next point.

    Teaching Moments

    1. Parents teach their children every day, whether we realize it or not. Our children are sponges that absorb the things they see and hear. They have great memories and want to learn as much as they can.  As father’s we need to take the time to intentionally teach our children valuable lessons.  Ordinary moments, like looking up at the stars at night and showing your kids the constellations, can be a teaching moment that leaves a lasting impression. Ordinary events at work can also be used as teaching moments. Instead of dreading your next meeting at work, view it as an opportunity to create a teaching moment and see the impact it has on your outlook.

    Reacting to Mistakes

    1. We all learn from our mistakes.  Our children are no different.  The laws of probability make it more likely that our children will make more mistakes. We can choose how to react the next time our kids spill or break something. My natural inclination is to respond with anger (see patience above), but fatherhood has taught me to pause before I respond.  I now realize that the mistake in question can be used to reinforce a lesson and discuss how one could improve. A lesson that will carry with them over time. This not only applies to our children, but with our employees (and bosses) at work.  How we react to certain events and bad news forms others’ perception of us and can build or diminish our credibility.

    Role Models

    1. We are role models to our children. Our children are always watching us and learning.  They learn not only from moments when we are at our best, but also include the moments that we are less proud of. None of us are perfect, but our kids not only learn the right things to do from their parents but also learn what not to do from watching us. As Michael Hyatt consistently mentions in his blog, “There’s an old saying about parenting: More is caught than taught.” As fathers, we need to remember that our children will imitate our behavior for good or for bad. Our children will carry some of our behavioral traits into adulthood, just as we carry some of our parents’ behavioral traits (regardless of whether we want to admit it). Our employees at work are always watching their leaders as well. Younger employees see their leaders as successful and will also emulate our behavior to some degree. They too are always watching us and learning.

     Focus on Others

    1. Being a father requires you to focus on the needs of others, especially your family.  When fathers come home from a long day at work, we typically don’t come home and rest on the couch. Fathers are needed to help with homework, practice taking slap shots, or even change a lightbulb. Focusing on the needs of others changes our mindset from one of being focused on oneself to that of being focused on others.  This also applies to our work environment. Being a servant leader is the highest form of leadership, in my opinion. Effective leaders put others’ needs ahead of their own.

    Being a father not only brings us joy and great memories.  Fatherhood bears the gifts of teaching us patience, provides us with opportunities to teach our children, reminds us to model appropriate behavior, and provides us with the opportunity serve others. These gifts provide us an opportunity to shape our children into adults. These opportunities don’t only apply at home, but reinforce leadership principles required to shape future generations of leaders at work as well. Enjoy your Father’s Day and remember the impact that you bring as a father and a leader.

    Posted on

    2 Questions to Improve Your Team’s Performance

    Many leaders want the best performance from their team and their team members.  However, many of us struggle to get the best out of some of our teammates. The solution may not be as difficult as you think.

    2 Questions

    Two Questions

    A few years ago, a mentor of mine described how his boss fully supported him every time they met, which was only once a month. In these monthly meetings, his boss only asked him two questions. These two questions were:

    1. How are you doing?
    2. How can I help you?

    Many people will read these two questions and think, “That can’t possibly be all there is to improve my team’s performance.”  The fact is that you can improve your team’s performance with these two questions, but you also should walk the walk and act on the answers to these questions.

    These two questions demonstrated that his boss supported him, cared about his team, and had complete confidence in his employees.  Let’s explore what is behind these questions

     

    How Are You Doing?

    • Empathy.  The question “How are you doing?” shows that you care about your employee, soldier, or direct report.  In order for the question to have meaning, it must be asked while making eye contact. This question will backfire if you ask it at a superficial level because people can sense insincerity.  You must truly care for your employee’s well-being to have an impact.

     

    • Service. “How are you doing?” also shows that you, as a leader, are present to support and serve your direct report.  Leadership is NOT a one-way street, where employees execute tasks as the boss directs.  True leadership is, in fact, a two-way street in which managers and leaders serve their employees’ needs. Serving your people and taking care of your team defines leadership, not a title or job description.

     

    How Can I Help You?

    • Support.  The question “How can I help you?” demonstrates that you not only serve your employees but that you are there to help them succeed.

     

    • Trust.  This question also provides employees with a sense that you have confidence in them and trust their judgment.

     

    • Confidence.  Your confidence in their performance, in turn, gives your employee confidence in themselves.

     

    • Empowerment.  Asking your team members what they need from you to complete their job empowers your employees. They feel that they have more latitude in performing their duties.  Empowerment boosts performance as those that are empowered feel that they have agency in the organization.

     

    Conclusion

    Nothing motivates people more than knowing that their leaders care about them, support them, and have confidence in them.  Employees are motivated when they trust that their leaders essentially have their back.  Does your motivation when you trust your leaders and they trust you? The same is true for your team members as well.

     

    Try asking these two questions of your team members next time you meet with them. Ask with genuine interest and act on the answers.  See what impact it has on your people and your organization.

     

    Question:  In what ways do you demonstrate trust and service to your team?

     

    Subscribe to Developing Your Team

     

     

     

     

    Posted on

    Frame of Reference: Who Do You Work For?

    This post was written by a friend who wanted to share some lessons learned from an experience he had in the Army.  Reading his perspective provided me with the realization that you must have a conversation early with a new boss to ensure you both see your duties in the same light. This story was truly eye-opening for me. I typically view my own role as being in service to the organization and its people, not necessarily to my boss as a single individual.

    Frame of Reference

    Who Do You Work For?

    I recently had a chance to catch up with a friend as he was heading to my old job. We discussed a variety of topics. When he asked me, “What was your biggest lesson learned,” my answer surprised me.

    With almost no hesitation, I replied, “You first need to determine whether you work for your Commander or do you work for the unit?  And your Commander has to answer that question.”

    Frame of Reference

    Though these thoughts are directly connected to different “styles of leadership”, I had never given much thought to who I worked for until asked in this conversation. Of all the units, I had ever been a part of in 15 years of service, this question had never entered my mind.  In all my previous experiences, the answer was unequivocal, “you worked for the unit.”

    Of course, the Commander was critical in making key decisions, providing guidance, intent, direction, etc. However, we were expected to operate within the Commander’s intent, which included making decisions. In this scenario, every product, meeting, etc. was for the betterment of the unit because the Commander was not entrenched in the day-to-day activities. Instead, the Commander was providing the long-term vision and getting appropriate updates to offer course corrections as appropriate, especially in areas that seemed to be outside of the bounds of the original guidance or intent.

    New Paradigm

    As we talked, I recalled finding myself in a position where I clearly worked for the Commander, not the unit.

    For the first time in my career, everything we did was driven by a single individual. Comments and phrases like “the staff doesn’t make decisions, only Commanders make decisions” became a staple. My previous experiences of operating inside the Commander’s intent and ability to exercise disciplined initiative were no longer valid.

    Organizational Impact

    The Commander’s battle rhythm became the unit’s battle rhythm. Subordinate units struggled to keep pace with the changing of meetings and events because of the Commander’s dynamic schedule. The staff was only able to achieve marginal results because of the constant state of frenzy and unpredictability. Instead of attempting to solve greater problems for the unit or improve day-to-day operations, we found ourselves saturated with a variety of tasks to collect data that often were not connected to impending decisions.

    The culture of the unit began to shift. People were more concerned about getting ahead of the Commander’s questions instead of getting ahead of the unit’s problems. This phenomenon only amplified the frenzy.

    There is no doubt that the Commander is in charge. The individual controls the focus of the unit at all times. However, the Commander must also have a deep understanding of our most precious resource, time.

    Delegate with Trust

    I once had a Commander tell me, “Delegate until you feel uncomfortable, then delegate some more.“ There truly is some power in that statement, because, in the end, it is about trust. Trust that your team is doing the right thing. Trust that people are working to build better solutions today to tomorrow’s problems. Trust that your team knows you have confidence in them and have your support.

     

    Question:  So, who do you work for?

     

    For another perspective on this topic, see Dominic Caraccilo’s article on micromanagement (https://www.ausa.org/articles/micromanagement-can-cripple-command).

     

    Subscribe to Developing Your Team
    Posted on

    The Value in Setting Priorities

    Do you struggle with achieving your organization’s priorities? Do you know your organization’s priorities?

    Priorities

    I know that I have served in many organizations that either had no stated priorities or tried to make everything a priority, which in effect meant that nothing was a priority.

    Why is it that many organizations have no stated priorities that are understood by their people, while other organizations (the lucky few) organizations have clear priorities that enable the organization to move in the same direction?

    Why Units Lack Priorities

    Some commanders never set their priorities in the first place. There may be several reasons for this.

    • Awareness-Some leaders don’t realize their organization needs priorities to work more effectively.
    • Confusion-Some leaders may not know which areas are most important within their organization.
    • FOMO-Others don’t want to set priorities for because they want to be able to do it all. Being able to do everything is generally a fallacy and may be a symptom of fear of missing out (FOMO).
    • Flexibility-Some leaders don’t set priorities because they want to maintain organizational flexibility and don’t want to be pinned down to a specific direction.

    Impact of Not Having Priorities

    Organizations that lack priorities typically manage to get by on day-to-day activities, however, this comes at a cost.  Lack of clarity and a common sight picture within the organization typically translates into confusion and friction within organizations.  Friction occurs as different parts of the organization are moving in different directions based on their interpretation of what is important to the greater organization.

    Secret Priorities-Some leaders set priorities but don’t effectively communicate them to others. This is usually based on the assumption that everyone “knows” what is important.  If a leader were to query his most senior leaders, it is a variance in understanding will be present. The impact of not communicating your priorities relentlessly to your organization are the same as not having priorities in the first place.

    There is a way you avoid confusion and friction within your organization: setting and communicating priorities.

    How a #1 Priority Can Help

    As a squadron operations officer for a cavalry squadron, I noticed that our unit did a poor job of communication in the early days.  Since the unit had rarely performed its traditional mission since its inception years earlier, it was weak at one of our core competencies.  Two of our three troops did not know how to use their High Frequency or Satellite radios.  Our squadron communications section had trouble learning how to use our advanced radios.

    We struggled with improving our communications as we were fighting our way through numerous training events and projects. We soon welcomed a new commander who provided us with a one-page document that captured his vision for the unit along with its priorities.  The one-page format was not the typical 5-page commander’s philosophy.  The document contained a few simple priorities.  Of these few priorities, the number one priority was communications.

    Once the new commander issued his priorities and subsequently repeatedly communicated them to the squadron, we knew what was important to our boss and the organization’s future.   The organization set forth to work hard at mastering the basics of multiple communications systems.

    At first “emergencies” and other urgent issues kept grabbing our attention.  Each time this happened, our commander reminded us that our top priority was mastering communications. This reminder allowed us to refocus on what was important to him.  He gave us permission to assume risk on things that were less important.

    After just a few months, the squadron transformed from a unit that only knew how to operate one type of radio system, to an organization capable of communicating with three different types of radios and three different types of data systems, including the ability to transmit photos in near-real time to the rest of the Brigade.

    Value in Having Priorities

    Your #1 priority’s greatest value is that it is most likely to be achieved. After all, it’s the top priority and should be accomplished before any other issue or priority.

    There are many benefits to having numbered priorities, but the following are the ones that drive change in your organization.

    • Clarity. Having a #1 priority makes it clear to everyone on the team of what is important. There is nothing more important than the #1 priority (as long as you only have one #1 priority).
    • Collective effort. Having a #1 priority gives everyone in your organization the same goal at the same time. This allows various parts of your organization to simultaneously work on what’s most important. For our squadron, this meant that our mounted troops, dismounted troops, the communication section, and squadron headquarters all strived to master all our forms of communication.
    • Speed-Organizations with priorities understood by all allow your unit to be in sync, which means it gains efficiencies and moves faster.  Moving at a faster pace, in unison, will make your organization more effective in the long run.
    • Flexibility-Despite a common belief that holding priorities pins leaders down, maintaining priorities can actually improve flexibility within your organization or unit. The fact that your organization is moving faster together, means that it can also rapidly change direction.  Effective communication is key to quickly pivoting priorities.

    Conclusion

    Some leaders don’t set priorities for their organizations to avoid getting fixed to them. Others believe that priorities aren’t needed because everything in the unit is fine. These leaders are potentially missing out on gaining synergy from an organization that pulls together towards a common goal.  Setting and effectively communicating your priorities to your organization can bring clarity, unify collective efforts and increase your organization’s speed and flexibility. These benefits will no doubt improve your organization’s effectiveness.

     

    Question: How have priorities helped your organization?

     

    Subscribe to Developing Your Team
    Posted on

    Perspective From a Current Battalion Commander

    4 Candid Questions and Answers

     

    Command Perspective

    Time seems to be the one resource that we can’t get enough of, whether we are in the military, corporate world, or even simply as parents. This week LTC Glen Helberg, commander of 2-27 Infantry Battalion in Hawaii, provides perspective on how time was spent at the beginning of his command and how he would invest his time if given full control.  We also cover some challenges and joys of command.

    This is the second post in our Battalion Command series.  Last week we covered 4 Things a Unit Needs from its Commander.

     

    How did your first 30 days of command go?  How would you recommend a new Battalion Commander spend their time in the first few weeks ?

    The first 30 days was a whirlwind….I barely remember it.  But I do know that I was out the door to the Big Island for an exercise two weeks into command.  My biggest takeaway from that was to get as involved as you can as early as you can.  I didn’t have much input on the exercise, and I wish I had.  Generically speaking, though, I’d have spent the first 30 days doing more circulation and meeting folks.

    The schedule has been a mess for the past 9 months, and it’s taken me way longer to meet a lot of my Soldiers than I would have liked.  As for preparation, I’d have spent more time doing engagements with key folks around the post.  More specifically:  Range control, Garrison CDR, health care providers, IG, Div SJA, and ASAP.  I intended to schedule those into the RIP, but they were stomped on and it’s been hard to recover.  Also, rest before taking command, because there’s none once you get in the seat.

     

    If you had full control of your calendar, without requirements from higher, what would you invest your BN’s time on?  Where would you personally invest your time?

    Nine months into command and I’m still executing someone else’s calendar….I’ve had very little control over it.  Probably won’t for another couple months.  But, if I had space, I’d spend more time on leader development.

    Everything from LPDs, to TL Academy, to counseling, to PT.  It seems like this is the hardest thing to squeeze in, because leaders are always the busiest folks.  Getting all my rater and senior rater counseling in is difficult.

    This is probably where I’d invest more of my personal time, as well.  I see the impacts of our young leaders on everything we do, both for the good and the bad.  I can’t overstate this enough.

     

    What is your biggest challenge or frustration as a Battalion Commander?

    Not owning our calendar is the biggest frustration.  I’d feel better about things if the calendar was jam-packed with our battalion events. I find it very difficult to free up time to give to the Company Commanders, and I know that they feel the frustration, too.

    Company Commanders continue to take on more and more requirements, without any commensurate staff or additional personnel.  Which leads to another challenge for all commanders….I just don’t feel like I can put enough focus on everything that I want.  The multi-tasking is challenging, and some things ultimately end up having to take a back seat.

    So, I’ve learned I have to prioritize where I want to focus my attention, and then just assume risk on the other stuff.  There simply aren’t enough hours in the day to accomplish everything that has to be done.

     

    What organizational accomplishment are you most proud of in your Battalion?

    Oddly, the thing I’m most proud of isn’t really anything you’d expect of an infantry battalion.  The Wolfhounds have had a relationship with the Holy Family Home Orphanage in Osaka, Japan since 1949.  It’s truly something special.  Sure, we do a lot of great training, and our Soldiers do all sorts of fantastic things….the sorts of things you’d see in a lot of infantry units.  But you won’t find another legacy like the Wolfhounds and the orphanage anywhere else.  And that’s something we’re awful proud of.  We invest a lot of time and energy in the relationship, to include a visit by 50 Soldiers to the orphanage during a recent exercise in Japan…and I wouldn’t trade a minute of that time or energy.

     

    Closing Perspective

    While time constantly escapes us, it is important to pause and think through how we use our time, think through how we want to spend our time, and come up with a way to do so.  Many leaders state that they wished they invested more of their time into leader development.  That recurring theme is a large reason Developing Your Team was started.

    It is amazing to see that despite being challenged with time constraints, that the Wolfhounds intentionally uphold tradition and invest their time in serving others, to include a community outside of the military.  Thanks to LTC Helberg for taking the time to answer our questions. He provided candid feedback to some difficult questions. It’s awesome to see a great leader leading a great battalion!

     

    Subscribe to Developing Your Team

     

    Posted on

    4 Things a Unit Needs from its Commander

    Have you ever experienced a Commander that provided little value to your unit? It may be because the commander didn’t communicate his intent or guidance. Conversely, it may be because a commander was suffocating her unit by trying to tightly control every outcome. Some commanders never seemed to advance beyond their previous role as an S3 or XO, continuing to focus on training calendars or wanting to manage personnel or maintenance reports.  Either way, the issue may be that the commander truly didn’t understand how to add value to their unit in their new position.

    5 things a unit needs from its commander

     

    This article outlines four concrete items that effective commanders provide their units with to make them successful.

     

    Direction

    Direction provides a unit with a destination. Here are 3 concrete ways to provide your unit with direction.

     

    • Vision– The word “vision” seems to be too abstract for some leaders. Stated another way, the commander’s vision What purpose does the unit serve? What do we want to be good at?

     

    • Intent-What is the purpose behind the mission given? Why are we doing what we are doing?  If your subordinates understand your intent, they may not even need to be told WHAT to do as they can generally deduce the “what if they understand the “why.” Writing your own intent instead of letting your S3 write it will help ensure it is met.

     

    • Priorities-Where do we focus our attention and energy? Which tasks are the most important? Setting priorities for your organization help your subordinate leaders make effective decisions and allow your staff to make better recommendations.

     

    Culture

    A commander sets the culture of their organization. This is really established by the command team (BN CDR and CSM or CO CDR and 1SG).  If you don’t intentionally pay attention to or set out to establish the culture of your unit, it will be set for you by others. The culture of a unit is set by 3 things:

     

    • Expectations-Commanders set expectations by communicating them with subordinates. There is no way for your subordinates to know if they are on target unless you clearly communicate what you expect out of them.

     

    • Example-The commander’s actions speak louder than his/her words. The example the commander sets will be followed by others over time.

     

    • Norms-Norms are established by accepted practices. Every time someone is punished for an action, it sends a message to others not to repeat that thing. If someone is recognized or rewarded for an action, others know that similar actions are not only acceptable but desired and will come with a reward.

     

    Space

    Once a direction is given and the intent is understood, the commander can step back and let their team get started. Just because the destination is chosen, it doesn’t mean that the same person needs to also dictate the route, determine where the lunch stop will be, or what radio station everyone will listen to.  Getting others engaged in the vehicle will create a sense of ownership and unity in the organization.

     

    Engagement

    Just because the commander provides guidance and space for the unit to achieve the intent, doesn’t mean that the commander cuts all ties to the effort. The commander must check in on the progress of efforts and maintain awareness of the pulse of the unit. You can maintain engagement in several ways:

     

    • Meetings. Talk to leaders in meetings to get a gauge of progress.

     

    • Battlefield Circulation-Bring your S3 or XO next time you check on training in the field.

    Conclusion

    Commanders that provide direction to their unit, intentionally establish the culture, give space to their unit while remaining engaged will ensure not only that you are fulfilling your role, but will make your organization more effective as well.
    Subscribe to Developing Your Team

    Posted on

    4 Steps to Conquer the Impossible

    Have you ever taken on a project that seemed overwhelmingly complex or even impossible?  Or wanted to accomplish an audacious goal, but procrastinated due to the feeling you were in over your head and had no idea where to start?

    impossible

    “Impossible” Request

    When my kids were younger, they asked me if I could build them a treehouse.  The question seemed ludicrous to me as I barely owned any tools.  The fact that I never had a father, meant that I didn’t have any experience in carpentry or woodworking. I had no skill in fixing things let alone building them from scratch.  The project seemed impossible as I didn’t think I could do it.  Someone else might be able to tackle this, not me.

    I also didn’t want to let my kids down, so I said I would give it a shot.  When I asked the kids what they wanted the treehouse to look like, they asked for the world.  They wanted a treehouse with:

    • a ladder
    • a slide
    • a trap door
    • a bucket pulley system
    • a fireman pole
    • a zip line
    • and a bridge (which likely meant adding a second treehouse)

    Before I could get the kids to tell me what the bridge would connect to, my son said he even wanted a zip line that would take him from his second-floor bedroom window to the bridge on the treehouse. I knew I was in over my head, even before zip line idea.

    4 Simple Steps

    We built the treehouse within a couple of months, despite having no clue where to start, nor any confidence in my ability to use power tools.  I took the following steps to get to go from crazy idea to reality.

    1. Visualize success.  Picture the goal and what it would look like. Don’t be afraid to make this a big goal that makes you feel uncomfortable. Michael Hyatt calls this “imagining the possibilities.”  I imagined the joy in my kids’ faces while playing on the treehouse. After consulting with the kids, I drew a concept sketch. We went big. The sketch included two tree houses with crisscrossing slides.
    2. Make a plan. A plan is crucial to outlining the steps to be taken.  You don’t need to figure out the entire plan right away.  Identifying the next couple of actions can help you get started, which will eventually provide insight to the rest of the path.
      • It’s ok to get help. I got some outside help in the form of a couple different treehouse design books and took notes at park and school playgrounds. I also had help from my neighbors and some of their tools when it came time to start building.
    3. Make it manageable.  Instead of trying to tackle everything at once, I broke the project down into phases. I decided that I would just build a single treehouse with a balcony, ladder, and bucket the first year. The rest would wait until the next year.   I wanted to start small and gain momentum to avoid getting overwhelmed and stuck with an unfinished project.  The books also gave me some practical step-by-step instructions along with a starting point for the wood and hardware required.
    4. Take action. With a plan and list of materials needed in hand, we just had to go to the home improvement store and get to work. There’s an old Chinese proverb that says “the best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago.  The next best time is today.”

    Outcome

    We built the first treehouse in less than 2 months. The following year I built the second treehouse and the bridge after seeing that building a treehouse wasn’t impossible. Each subsequent year, we added the slides, a fireman pole, zip line etc. to keep things interesting. You won’t find out treehouse on the show Treehouse Masters, but that doesn’t matter as our family built it together.

    In case you were wondering, the zip line did not run from my son’s bedroom window. It went from the treehouse to our neighbor’s tree instead.  Apparently, my wife (who has better judgment) and our insurance company found that idea problematic.

    We made mistakes, which required multiple trips to the store, but we learned lessons along the way.  My kids also enjoyed helping their old man in the building phases.

    Conclusion

    While the treehouse project seemed impossible at first, it proved to be achievable, even for a person with no experience.  All it took was visualizing success, making a plan, tackling the project in manageable parts, and taking action.

    What seemingly impossible goals have you tackled in your life?

     

    Subscribe to Developing Your Team
    Posted on

    Learn to Be Brief

    Get Your Message Across By Saying Less

    Have you ever suffered through a long-winded and confusing presentation or sales pitch? While the speaker is rambling on, you find yourself wondering what point the speaker is trying to make or lost in other thoughts.

    brief communication

    Nearly all of us have found ourselves in this situation before. Have you ever wondered if your audience feels the same way when you are presenting an idea? Why do we find ourselves in this situation more often?

    While email and the Internet have given us the ability to find information and make purchases much faster, the downside to these tools is information overload. The average office employee in 2015 received over 100 emails each day. This number is expected to increase by 5% every year for the foreseeable future.

    So how do we avoid being “that speaker” that meanders through a discussion with no identifiable purpose?

    Make a Bigger Impact by Saying Less

    Brief: Make a Bigger Impact by Saying Less is a book, written by Joe McCormack, that can make you an effective and “lean communicator” in very little time.

    The book explains not only why it’s important to be Brief, but also gives you the tools to communicate clearly and concisely. Joe even helps you determine when and where to be Brief. The book is easy to read and provides readers with an action plan to put the principles into practice.

    How to Become Brief

    You can get your own copy of Brief from Amazon, which can also be found on our resources page. I have also attended the Brief course and workshops and highly recommend them to those in the military and executives alike. Check out Joe’s website at http://thebrieflab.com or follow The Brief Lab on LinkedIn.

     

    Subscribe to Developing Your Team
    Posted on

    Check Out Our New Leader Development Resources Page

    Have you ever wished you had a quick reference page of leader development tools and resources?

    resources

    New Resources Page

    After the positive feedback and comments you provided from the 2016 Book Review, we decided to add a Leader Development Resources page. The page contains useful tools for leaders that include podcasts, books, and more.

    A friend of mine provided me with a quick reference sheet which influenced this page.  Thanks, Aaron!

    Subscribe to Developing Your Team
    Posted on

    Improve Your 2017 Without Making Resolutions

    How many times have you made resolutions in the past that didn’t stick? Studies show that most people give up on their resolutions within a few weeks.

    Goals

    Best Year Ever

    Two years ago I wanted to make a change in my life but had failed at resolutions in the past. That’s when I came across Michal Hyatt’s Best Year Ever. Best Year Ever is a five-day course that provides you with an alternative to resolutions.

    I tried it out and accomplished goals over the year that, in hindsight, improved my relationship with my family and church.

    • Marital Goals: These goals included going on regular dates and taking four-weekend getaways with my wife.
    • Parental Goals: I also wanted to spend intentional one-on-one time with each of my children. That year I took each kid on a father-son/father-daughter weekend.
    • Spiritual Goals: I joined a couple of small groups at my church and conducted two ministries that year.

    The methodology behind Best Year Ever can also work for you. Registration for Best Year Ever is closed right now, but I’ll provide you with a quick summary below.

    Goals Not Resolutions

    The difference maker with Best Year Ever is that you create goals and make a plan with a deadline. Resolutions made without a plan or a deadline are merely aspirations. Michael walks you through determining the Next Actions required to get started and gain momentum.

    SMARTER Goals

    Many of you have heard of making SMART goals. Best Year Ever takes it one step further and has you make SMARTER goals. SMARTER goals are spelled out below.

    • Specific. Losing weight is not a specific goal. Losing 3% body fat by June 1st is specific.
    • Measurable. There should be a metric to identify when the goal is attained.
    • Actionable. The goal should start with an action verb.
    • Realistic. Attaining a personal record on a triathlon is realistic for all. Winning a gold medal in the Olympics will be realistic for a select group.
    • Time-bound.  Assign a deadline to your goal.
    • Exciting. The goal should be compelling and stretch you outside your comfort zone.
    • Relevant. As Michael says, we are all in different seasons in our lives. Some goals will be relevant at only certain points of our lives.

    Additional Considerations

    In addition to making your goals SMARTER, there are a few other steps to ensuring you achieve your goals.

    • Identify your Why. Identifying your motivations or reasons behind making your goals will help you when the going gets tough.
    • Limit yourself to 7-10 goals maximum for the year.
    • Share goals with a select group to help you with accountability.
    • Not having everything planned out is OK. Identifying a couple Next Actions required is good enough to get started. The path will become clear as you gain momentum.
    • Schedule time for your goals and put them on your calendar.
    • Regularly review your goals. Weekly is recommended.
    • Keep your goals visible to avoid the old adage “out of sight is out of mind.” Your computer, fridge, or bathroom mirror are good spots to keep your goals visible.
    • Getting help is completely OK.

    Some of My 2017 Goals

    Despite going through the course a couple years ago, I use 5 days between Christmas and New Year’s Eve to go through the Best Year Ever process. My goals this year include starting a Venture Crew (co-ed Boy Scout organization focused on high adventure activities), taking my family on a European vacation to visit our extended family, and increasing subscribers and reach for this website.

    Conclusion

    Make 2017 a productive year by setting goals instead of resolutions. Make your goals SMART or SMARTER and start with the next actions required in order to gain momentum. Maintain momentum in achieving your goals by staying connected with your key motivations. I encourage you to give this process a shot as it can improve your year. It definitely improved mine.

     

    Question: What goals will you set for yourself in 2017?

     

    Subscribe to Developing Your Team