Do You Follow the "Rule of Tongue"?

According to Bill Hermann, of Plante Moran, leaders need to be evaluated by the number of ridges or scars on their tongues. The more scars, the better. These ridges are formed by biting your tongue when you have the impulse to speak out, at a time when discretion says "be quiet and listen." Here are a few instances of when you can apply the "The Rule of Tongue":

1. If you feel like you need to call someone out in a public   situation, bite your tongue and wait until you can talk to the person privately. 

2. When you've said what you have to say, bite your tongue and stop talking. Over talking is a major bane of people in leadership positions.

3. When someone is learning a new skill and they are about to make a mistake, bite your tongue, because learning occurs through making and correcting mistakes.

4. Bruce Shapiro, of Plante Moran, says it clearly, "I never got in trouble for something that I didn't say".

5. Another way to say this, God gave us two ears and one mouth for a reason: next time try keeping your mouth shut and listening with both ears.

I am giving a free copy of my book, "Balanced Leadership in  Unbalanced Times" to the person who can provide the best example of a time to apply  the "The Rule of Tongue" .

Coach Rob Pasick

Email: rob@leadersconnect.com

Website: www.robertpasick.com

How to Manage De-energizers in the Workplace

“I read your Dr. Rob tips last week”, said Stephanie, a physician friend of mine. “I have some of those de-energizers at work. What do you suggest I do about them?” Here are a few of the suggestions I gave her:

1. As much as possible, ignore them. No matter what you do, these folks are  unlikely to change. Don’t waste your energy and time. Instead, focus on reinforcing the “energizers”.

2. If possible, remove them from supervisory positions. It’s bad enough they bring negative energy to work, but do what you can to avoid having them spread their negative vibes.

3. Consider having them work with a coach who is skilled at handling executives who are         de-energizers.

4. To counteract de-energizers, focus on becoming a “compassionate manager”. According to Peter Frost in his book Toxic Emotions at Work, a compassionate manager is one who:

       a. Reads emotional cues (their own and others)

       b. Keeps people connected by engaging in “human

          moments” with their colleagues and staff

       c. Builds a team environment where acting compassionately

           is encouraged and rewarded

       According to Frost, “managers who possess such skills

       can keep their people happy and productive in the face of

       de-energizers in the organization”.

Coach Rob Pasick

Email: rob@leadersconnect.com

Website: www.robertpasick.com

Have You Identified the De-energizers in Your Organization?

In Dr. Kim Cameron’s recent CEO Connect talk (see video link below), he described how de-energizers in the workplace can sap not only the morale of an organization but can also negatively impact performance. Here are some of the ways that they sap the energy out of organizations. They:

1. Always see roadblocks & have criticisms

2. Fail to create opportunities for others to be valued

3. Are often inflexible in their thinking

4. Fail to show concern for those around them

5. Often fail to come through on commitments

6. Just get louder when people don’t listen

7. Seldom smile

8. Are superficial and inauthentic

Is it possible you have some of these de-energizing behaviors? Unfortunately, too often executives can be the chief           de-energizers. This week assess your behavior to see if you may be perceived as a de-energizer.  Next week, I will discuss how to manage the de-energizers in an organization. I would appreciate your ideas on how to deal with de-energizers. Thanks once again to Kim for his excellent research and teaching skills.

Link to CEO Connect video: http://www.robertpasick.com/ceo-video-gallery/

Coach Rob Pasick

Email: rob@leadersconnect.com

Website: www.robertpasick.com

Have You Identified the Most Positively Energizing People in Your Organization?

Last week at Rob Pasick’s CEO Connect, Kim Cameron  presented on his research about positive energizers at work. He has found that positive energizers not only are higher      performers but tend to enhance the work of others. Furthermore, high performing firms have three times as many positive energizing networks than low performing firms. Click on the link below to see Dr. Cameron’s presentation. Have you identified and reinforced your energizers at work? According to Dr. Cameron, here are some of their characteristics:

1. They connect with others as people

2. They are trustworthy, have integrity and are dependable

3. They use abundance language

4. They are fully engaged in conversations and are heedful

5. They solve problems

6. They see opportunities

7. They smile

8. They are genuine and authentic

9. They express gratitude and& humility

When you form teams, be sure to by include positive energizers. Next week we will discuss how to deal with de-energizers in the workplace.

LINK TO CEO VIDEO GALLERY: CEO Connect Video. Please note that the video will not be posted until later today.

Coach Rob Pasick

Email: rob@leadersconnect.com

Website: www.robertpasick.com

Are You Ready to Practice Positive Leadership This Week?

I am excited to have Dr. Kim Cameron, Associate Dean at Ross School of Business and one of the founders of Center for Positive Organization Scholarship at U of M, as the speaker at CEO Connect on March 29. In honor of this event, I suggest you all practice positive leadership this week. Here are a few of my favorite ideas on how to be a positive leader:

1. Rather than dwelling on deficiencies, you can focus on the strengths of your peers, bosses, and direct reports

2. Rather than kicking yourself in the butt for your own inadequacies, keep track of your own considerable achievements

3. Rather than dwelling on how people screwed up, you can tell stories about people’s outstanding achievements and the way they have gone beyond the call of duty

4. Rather than worrying about what may go wrong, you could visualize and talk about what could go right

If you have not signed up for Kim’s presentation or if you haven’t read his latest book on positive leadership, please click on the links below.

LINK TO CEO CONNECT: Kim Cameron CEO Connect

LINK TO KIM CAMERON'S BOOK: Positive Leadership

Coach Rob Pasick

Email: rob@leadersconnect.com

Website: www.robertpasick.com

Dr. Rob’s New Process for Decision Making

I’ve just finished reading The Signal and the Noise by Nate Silver based on his observations, I have developed a new model for decision making. The model could be used to help an individual, family, or team reach a decision. Please take a look at the model and communicate with me about your reactions.

1. What do I want to create by taking this action?

2. What is the likelihood on a ten point scale that this action will lead to the goal I want to create?

3. What may be the unintended consequences of pursuing this goal?

4. If I succeed, is this really what I want?

5. What effort (time, stress, money, etc) will this action require (on a ten point scale)?

6. What part of myself is driving this action?

The Signal and the Noise by Nate Silver is available on Amazon. Here is a link to order the book: The Signal and the Noise. 

Coach Rob Pasick

Email: rob@leadersconnect.com

Website: www.robertpasick.com

When to Give Yourself a Timeout

Timeouts are not for kids only. Next time you get worked up, try giving yourself a timeout and try Dr. Rob’s steps to calming down:

1. To decide when to do a time out, recognize when you are getting angry, and before you explode, say “I need to take a break.”

2. Go somewhere quiet, where you can get away from people, especially the person with whom you are upset.

3. Take several deep, calming breaths.

4. Write down what is upsetting you:

    a. Describe what lead up to you being upset

    b. Write down any “stinking thinking” you are doing about what happened

    c. Write down some rational thoughts that

       counteract the “stinking thinking”

    d. Make an action plan of what to do next

5. Sit down and do nothing for 5 minutes. Be sure you are calmed down enough before reentering the situation that upset you in the first place.

Coach Rob Pasick

Email: rob@leadersconnect.com

Website: www.robertpasick.com