Peripheral Vision
January 27, 2007
In the research my team recently completed on what makes certain leaders get started faster than others, we asked a group of 80+ leaders from a variety of organizations what newly-appointed leaders should focus on in the first 90 days. The top vote-getter (in a landslide) was building productive relationships. Stacked up against everything else – getting results, shaping a vision, building plans – more that 80% of those surveyed said that it was very important to focus on building relationships. That’s striking.
It also squares with our own experience working with leaders in these situations. And many may put it in the DUH category – of course leaders should focus on relationships first. But here’s the nuance our experience teaches us. Many leaders focus a lot on relationships up and down – with a boss or direct reports – but surprisingly few spend nearly as much time working with those to the side. A significant number of the leaders we know who have stumbled (or flat-out failed) in new roles have done so precisely because they failed with their colleagues.
It’s a basic lesson I was taught years ago by Tony Kees, the best soccer coach I’ve ever known. When you’re running down the field, you always need to be checking who is over each shoulder. That way, when the ball comes to you, you can avoid a tackle or make a good pass quickly. That discipline – using peripheral vision – often makes a big difference between a good player and really valuable one.
So go ahead and negotiate that relationship with your boss. Get to know each of the members on your own team. But don’t forget to look around you. The higher you go in an organization, your ability to work productively with those in your peripheral vision will increasingly determine your success.
The Need for Speed
January 22, 2007
In a few days, my colleagues and I will be releasing some research. It’s titled, What Makes Leaders Fly Fast, and summarizes results of a survey we did about critical actions high-level leaders can take to get started quickly in executive roles.
I’ll leave the survey summary to another post. For now, let’s look at a message that came through the sub-text of comments from over 80 leaders who responded to the survey. While it’s a commonly accepted belief that speed is the requirement for any new leader (witness Nancy Pelosi’s recent focus on the First 100 Hours!), a notable group of our respondents said something different: SLOW DOWN.
My first reaction to this comment was simple: OK, OK, I got it. What else though? Tell me because I’m in a hurry to hear what you think.
Then I realized that they were talking to me, not just incoming executives. Slow down. Now there’s a counter-cultural message. Take a breath. Listen. Learn. Don’t give in to the pressure to do something big right away. The focus on speed is nearly absurd. What now after we have the First 100 Hours? Will we soon have the First 100 Minutes or First 100 Seconds?
Of course, Normal Thinking says that we live in the internet era with instant everything. But after watching more than one leader implode under that crazy pressure, I wonder whether the road signs in England have better advice: Kill Your Speed.
What do you think? Have we OD’d on speed?
Dirty Word #1: Forgiveness
January 21, 2007
One of the biggest jokes I’ve ever heard in organizational life comes in the form of this innocuous statement:
It’s nothing personal, it’s just business.
Of course, this comment usually follows one of the following:
- We’re going with your competitor.
- We’ve turned down your request for funding on that project.
- I’m voting with (fill-in-the-blank) on that one.
- I’m replacing you in this role.
- We’re letting you go.
Maybe it’s just business to you, but to the person on the receiving end it’s absolutely personal. Money’s lost, dreams delayed, and status jeopardized. And they’re stuck with that feeling in their stomach like they just swallowed a shot of battery acid. No amount of Rolaids will make it feel better.
A friend of mine summed it up after just such a setback. “I’m pissed off!” he said in responsed to my inquiry about how he was doing. Understandable, but what now?
Most people stuff it and move on. They nurse the grudge, privately (or not so much) wish the other person harm, and wait for a chance to settle the score. Is there a better way?
We’re not used to talking about it in the marketplace, but there is: Forgiveness. The best definition I’ve heard of that rare action is “letting yourself and the other person off the hook of your own anger.” In other words, staying ticked off only makes you miserable. Sure, you may get revenge someday, but why wait for that when you can have the pleasure of forgiveness right now?
I’m not arguing a moral point here (though I think there is one). Rather, I’m just suggesting that we can and should say (and mean) both “Sorry” and “I forgive you” even in the rough and tumble world of business. We’ll be happier, do better work, and probably be healthier as a result.
Anyone (including yourself) you need to let off the hook today?
What matters in the First 90 Days
January 16, 2007
Recently, I was on hand for a CEO’s first day on the job. He steps in to lead a $400+ international consulting firm. He asked a small group of his senior people a very important question:
Starting today, what do you think is most important for me to do over the next 90 days?
Imagine you were in the room. What would you say to him?
- Diagnose the business situation facing the company?
- Paint a clear vision of the firm’s future to keep clients and staff on board?
- Figure out a few key projects to get things moving?
- Build relationships with key talent?
- Call on the top clients to reassure them of the firm’s commitment?
- Learn the organization and the culture?
It’s your turn! What would you say?
What my son taught me in piano lessons
January 16, 2007
Do you ever wonder why, despite your best efforts, people you coach don’t get any better? I do. My son helped me learn part of the answer in our piano lessons recently. First, some background:
I grew up taking piano lessons. I was lucky enough to have a top-notch teacher named Stanley Hummel. He was a slender six foot six, had a tall shock of white hair, and made the piano sing. Though four feet tall and chunky at the time, I wanted to play like him. I ended up taking 10 years of lessons. Music opened up all sorts of opportunities for me – social, artistic, and intellectual. (Indirectly, music even led me to my wife!)
So naturally, I wanted to give my son, Cameron, the same opportunity. As a practical matter, I decided to start teaching him myself. We started with the basics of music: notes, rhythm, dynamics. Then I started assigning him homework to practice for our lessons.
When I used to play a piece perfectly, Mr. Hummel used to make a distinctive mark on the page that showed it was “crossed off.” It was a sign of progress to knock off several songs each week. I felt good leaving Mr. Hummel’s house. I put the same system in place with Cameron.
But early on, I noticed it didn’t work very well. He wasn’t getting many songs crossed off and I could tell he hadn’t practiced them effectively. I would sagely say to him at the end of the lesson, “You need to practice more to get that one crossed off.”
Then it struck me: he didn’t know how to practice. I was focusing my lessons on the wrong things. Instead of telling him he needed to practice more and assuming that would solve things, I needed to spend our lesson time teaching him how to practice.
This hit me in the middle of a lesson, so I channeled Mr. Hummel for the most effective five minutes of my short piano teaching career. I don’t remember him overtly teaching me to practice when I was a kid, but he clearly had a method. All I needed to do was put it into language Cameron could grasp.
How often do we talk right past those we coach? A colleague needs to present recommendations more effectively to clients. We tell her, “You needed to prepare better for that pitch.” Afraid to admit she doesn’t know how, she nods her head and thinks, You’re no help at all. We’d be better off by asking her, “Would you tell me what you do to get ready for a pitch?” Or even better, we could prepare with her once, observing carefully what she’s doing (and not doing), and clearly offering her our experience on how to prepare better.
The good news: Cameron started improving his piano skills rapidly. Teaching him to practice has dramatically increased his ability to get songs crossed off. Even better, he’s starting to love the music – and that’s what it’s all about.