business as i see it

this really is consulting 101 stuff here, but it’s also important to point out since it’s the new year and people are undoubtedly going to make resolutions that they end up giving up on in the end.  listen up, because this is important…

when you set goals, you want to make them SMART:

• specific
• measurable
• attainable
• relevant
• time-bound*

example of a really bad goal: “lose weight this year.” first of all, losing weight is a stupid goal to begin with.  most people don’t realize that muscle weighs more than fat does, and working out might cause you to actually gain weight.  you should be looking for a better resolution.

example of a really good goal: “run in four 5k events for charity this year.” it’s specific, not just a random notion of weight loss.  it’s measurable because you can mark off events as the days pass through the year;  make it one run each quarter.  it’s certainly attainable.  asking yourself to run 4 marathons might not be, but a 5k is much more manageable and takes less time to train to.  it’s not an ‘always on’ kind of goal and allows yourself some wiggle room.  it’s relevant because your overall mission is to be healthier.  your soul will feel better too because you’re doing it all for charity.  and that asterisk i placed above is the most important for making goals… although i don’t necessarily see it in the same way as the textbooks do.  instead of time-bound i say to make that T in SMART stand for ‘tell everybody you know’.  telling other people puts that goal up-front and center.  you can’t hide from it because you just might have someone say to you in june, “hey, i thought you were running those 5k things.  what happened to that?”

so when it comes down to business, are you making SMART goals for your organization?  for yourself?  for your career?

it’s a new year, and there are no excuses.  come up with smart goals, write them down, and make sure you’re taking steps towards getting them every day.  start with something specific, measure your progress, make sure it’s feasible, ensure that it’s in keeping with your overall mission, and tell everybody about it.  you haven’t failed in the past because you weren’t good enough; it’s because you weren’t reaching for the right goals.

image from Crashmaster007, flickr artist

it’s easy to tell people what to do or what’s expected of them, but leading by example says a lot about who you are as a person, not just as a leader.

when you’re a leader, one thing you expect from your team or organization is accountability.  you expect your people to embrace their roles, take ownership of their tasks, and ensure that their work is done when it needs to be, at a level of quality that will positively represent your organization.  if you expect that from your people — shouldn’t you expect that from yourself as well?

everything that you expect from your people, you should be willing to do yourself.  work hard, and let people see you working hard.  be prepared for different situations, and let people see you prepare.  you should do what you expect the people following you to do, and you should let them see you do it.  it’s inspirational, it forges trust, it sets a good example.

you can’t tell your people, “stop working so hard and take time for yourself,” and send emails at 1:00a on a weekday or 9:30p on a weekend.  it seems more like a challenge to work harder than a sincere concern about work-life balance.

so as a leader — when you make a promise, or institute new rules, or try to change habits — it’s best if you start with yourself.

leading by example says a lot about who you are.  what are your actions saying about you?

image copyright the walt disney company, all rights reserved

i’m a big pixar fan.

i love everything about their company.  john lasseter’s drive to pursue his dream until it was fulfilled is something that we should all admire and look up to.  then, there’s the unsung heroes of pixar — the animators. every pixar movie made is 100% animation. that means there’s no help from motion-capture tools or other technological devices. the animation is done 100% by hand on computers.

and, of course, there’s the stories!  there’s a reason pixar wins year after year at the oscars for best animated movie despite competition from dreamworks animation, blue sky studios, and disney animation studios.  that reason is their ability to tell fantastic stories that appeal to young and old alike.  they’re stories that we all can learn from.

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when i was growing up in south philly, my family didn’t have much money.  but being kids, my brother and i did what kids do anyway.  we played roller hockey without helmets, gloves, shin pads… pretty much any protective equipment at all.  i tended goal with nothing but leg pads, a — what we called it back in those days — waffle board, a baseball glove, and a stick (all of which was borrowed, hand-me downs, or bought with my paper route money).  i’ve been hit with sticks and pucks in the face, and had more than my share of scrapes and bruises.  looking back at it — it was stupid.  it was dangerous.  but i loved playing hockey!

fast forward about 10-12 years, and i’m wearing a suit and tie — screaming at my team from behind the bench at the penn state ice pavilion with my heart beating out of my chest in my first game as assistant coach for the ACHA division 2 ice hockey team.  my love of hockey that was sown on the streets of philadelphia is the only reason i was able to reach that point in my life.  we beat SUNY stony brook that night by a score of 3-2 — the #1 ranked team in the league.  it was one of the greatest wins in our program’s history, and was the staging point for a season-long run that put us into the quarterfinals of the national tournament in fort collins, colorado that year.

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image by hugh, flickr artist

when i was team manager and assistant coach with the penn state ice lions, we had a saying that we used often:

“stay out of the @#$!!*” … i.e. — poop.

it was a simpler way of saying, when the game degenerates into a bunch of people trying to hurt each other — don’t get involved.

usually when people act out in aggression, it’s because they’re frustrated.  they’re unhappy with the way things are going, and they usually act out in aggression because they haven’t the skills, abilities, or position of authority to change the situation to favor themselves.  people will act out in aggression because it’s the only thing they can do.

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“well, we can’t [blank]. but keep thinking about these things and bringing them up.”

if you hear those words in your job — leave it.

i’m not joking. those are quite possibly the worst words that you could ever hear from your manager. those words say, “we’re not committed to diverse viewpoints.” they say, “we’re not committed to rewarding people for good work.” and worst of all, they say, “we’re not committed to being agile. we don’t like change.”

you don’t want to work for a company that doesn’t want to change. find a new job while you still have one. in your interview process with any new, potential employers, be sure to ask “how do you solve problems?” and “i have big ideas. if i wanted to change things, what kind of resistance would i face?”

you need to feel free to make the changes you see fit, and you need to have leadership that will allow you to change the world… even if it’s their world.

photo by wpmorro, flickr artist

when you’re staring down the barrel of a deadline or a large task ahead, you might be thinking, “how in the ____ am i ever going to get this done?! this is impossible!” but the best way of getting where you’re going is to not think about where you’re going, only about where you are. if you keep thinking about how you’re going to get to your destination, you’ll never reach it. having problems getting that report done for your boss? can’t find the words to put in your term paper? struggling to code that application for the client?

just start working.

forget about the finer details. don’t worry about getting things done right the first time. pro tip: things are never done right the first time! so why worry about it?  just get the ball rolling.

start building up momentum. Read the rest of this entry »