Working Resources Blog

Executive Coaching for Achieving Goals: Linking Personal and Business Goals

Achieving Goals

Are you working in a company or law firm where leadership requires people to establish goals when engaged in an executive coaching relationship? How do leaders in your company or law firm assess an individual’s success in achieving goals in their executive coaching program?

One of the most powerful questions one can ask is “Does our company leadership encourage participants in an executive coaching program to link personal and business goals?” Emotionally intelligent and socially intelligent leaders are excited about further developing their leadership skills by achieving both personal and business goals.

Linking Personal and Business Goals

There may be insufficient time and attention during the contracting phase in defining goals and outcomes for the coaching relationship. Surprisingly enough, many executives have trouble defining what they want out of coaching.

There are two kinds of goals for leaders to work on in executive coaching — business goals and personal goals. Getting external results is linked to what the leader has to do differently in order to get business results. The personal goals must follow the external business goals.

During the contracting phase with the executive, it is the executive coach’s responsibility to ensure that the goal-setting conversation is sequenced for best results.

• Encourage the high potential leader to name the business results needed.
• Find out what team behaviors need to be different to accomplish the results.
• Explore what personal leadership challenges the executive faces in improving these results and team behaviors.
• Identify specific behaviors the leader needs to enhance or change personally.

The goal setting process is not as easy as it may appear. Many busy executives have a bias for action and operate in a fire-ready-aim mode. It may be necessary for the executive to slow down long enough to establish clear goals. Sometimes a business situation is ambiguous and it is difficult to clarify what work process or human relationship goals would support achieving the bottom-line result. The coach who persists in inquiring about these specific goals will help an executive toward better focus and effective action.

Working with a seasoned executive coach trained in emotional intelligence and incorporating leadership assessments such as the Bar-On EQ-i and CPI 260 can help you become a leader who links personal and business goals. You can become a leader who models emotional intelligence and social intelligence, and who inspires people to become happily engaged and aligned with the vision and mission of your company or law firm.

I am currently accepting new executive coaching and career coaching clients. I work with both individuals and organizations. Call 415-546-1252 or send an inquiry e-mail to mbrusman@workingresources.com.

Leadership Development for Complaining at Work: The Art of Expressing Discontent

Complaining at Work

Are you working in a company or law firm where leaders recognize the value of people expressing discontent? How do leaders in your company or law firm handle employees complaining? One of the most powerful questions one can ask is “Does our company culture encourage leaders to immediately address the complaints of workers?” Emotionally intelligent and socially intelligent leaders create a culture that encourages open communication and discourages unproductive complaining.

What are people complaining about in your organization?

The objects of disaffections may vary but griping is always in season at work. When things go from bad to worse the discussions end up in the manager’s office. When they don’t, they form an undercurrent of discontent and resentments that is counter-productive.

People spend vast amounts of time complaining. They invest amazingly creative energies coming up with clever ways of expressing their discontent. No matter how sophisticated, however, a complaint is unpleasant to listen to. It can instill an aura of negativity and un-productivity. It becomes contagious. At its worse, it poisons relationships and sabotages team efforts.

We all complain, no matter what our position. No matter what the particular content of complaints, it turns out that most of us have an experience at work that we perceive as obstructing our own well-being, growth and development.

This conversation about what we can’t stand is so universal it goes unrecognized and accepted as normal. Obviously we recognize complaints from others more so than from ourselves. Complaining grows like a weed. The problem is that it does not usually lead to changing anything.

To be fair, complaining may help people let off steam. It can also create alliances and support because one realizes they are not alone. But it rarely accomplishes more than this. It doesn’t transform anyone or anything. It often leaves people feeling worse by virtue of the negative feelings that flourish.

Working with a seasoned executive coach trained in emotional intelligence and incorporating leadership assessments such as the Bar-On EQ-i and CPI 260 can help you become a leader who creates a positive culture that minimizes unproductive complaining. You can become a leader who models emotional intelligence and social intelligence, and who inspires people to become happily engaged and aligned with the vision and mission of your company or law firm.

I am currently accepting new executive coaching and career coaching clients. I work with both individuals and organizations. Call 415-546-1252 or send an inquiry e-mail to mbrusman@workingresources.com

Executive Coaching for Working with Difficult People - The High Costs of Conflict

Are you working in an organization where leaders are good at dealing with difficult people and powerful emotions? Are the leaders in your organization emotionally intelligent?

One of the most powerful questions one can ask oneself is “Do I effectively deal with difficult people?” Emotionally intelligent leaders deal openly and honestly with difficult interpersonal situations.

Are you adept at managing conflict with others? Do you have a coaching style of leadership that facilitates good interpersonal communication? Are you comfortable dealing with difficult people and strong emotions?

The High Costs of Conflict

Regardless of the form difficult behavior takes, it exacts a serious toll, including high turnover, absenteeism, theft, loss of clients, and low productivity and morale. When managers are distracted and frustrated by difficult behaviors, they have less time and energy to devote to their core responsibility: getting things done through others.

Resorting to firing and replacing people is risky and time-consuming; thus, many executives fail to confront problem behaviors at all. They find workarounds: avoidance, vague feedback, compensation for underperformance by taking on more work themselves. Even worse, they may promote a problem person out of their unit.

With practice, you can improve your ability to deal with difficult behaviors – a move that will free up enormous energy reserves. When conflicts are handled immediately, you and your team will function better, meet deadlines earlier, create more innovative processes and products, and make fewer errors.

Working with a seasoned executive coach trained in emotional intelligence and incorporating leadership assessments such as the Bar-On EQ-i and CPI 260 can help you become a leader who effectively manages interpersonal conflict. You can become a leader who models emotional intelligence, and who inspires people to become happily engaged with the strategy and vision of the company.

Executive Coaching for Working with Difficult People - Emotional Intelligence at Work

Are you working in an organization where leaders are good at dealing with difficult people? Are the leaders in your organization savvy regarding emotional intelligence?

One of the most powerful questions one can ask oneself is “How do I effectively deal with difficult people?” Emotionally intelligent leaders confront and deal with difficult situations.

Are you good at managing conflict with others? Do you inspire others by having a coaching style of leadership that facilitates communication? Are you adept at dealing with difficult people and strong emotions?

Dealing with Difficult People

They’re everywhere. Walk into any workplace and you’ll find them. Regardless of your company’s success or employee-friendly culture, difficult people pose challenges for managers and team leaders each day.

Some are angry; some are anxious. Others are fearful, negative and obstinate. Some spark frequent disputes with their peers. Still others quietly stonewall and fail to follow through on commitments.

You cannot afford to avoid dealing with difficult people. Whether they’re direct reports or peer managers, their frustrating behaviors will take a toll on your ability to manage others and produce stellar results.

The more serious forms of difficult behavior are, in some ways, easier to deal with because they are blatant and often illegal. In cases of harassment, sabotage or physical threats, swiftly follow your clearly outlined company policies and implement the appropriate consequences.

But long before overt infringements arise, there are subtle forms of damaging behaviors that should not be tolerated or allowed to escalate. Confronting and dealing with these sticky situations will prevent more serious problems in the future.

Unfortunately, many managers avoid dealing with difficult people and strong emotions in the workplace. “People problems” are often cited as the most challenging — and time-consuming — part of a manager’s job. One study found that 42 percent of managers’ time is spent on defusing office conflict.

Working with a seasoned executive coach trained in emotional intelligence and incorporating leadership assessments such as the Bar-On EQ-i and CPI 260 can help you become an inspiring leader who effectively manages conflict. You can become a leader who models emotional intelligence, and who inspires people to become happily engaged with the strategy and vision of the company.

Leadership Secrets for Execution – People, Strategy & Operations

Are you working in an organization which values execution by leaders at all levels? Are the leaders in your organization relentlessly focused on achieving significant results?

One of the most powerful questions one can ask oneself in the present moment is “Are we honestly surfacing the realities of the business?” Extraordinary leaders execute and hold people accountable for results.

Are you focused on reality and getting things done? How effective are you at meshing your strategy with reality and aligning people with goals? Are you passionate about achieving goals at work that emotionally engage your people?

3 Core Processes:

People, Strategy & Operations

The heart of execution lies in the three core processes: the people process, the strategy process and the operations process.  Every business uses these processes in one form or another. The three core processes of people, strategy and operations are familiar to practitioners of the Balanced Scorecard and the Strategy-Focused Organization management approaches.

In a study of winning companies that spanned more than ten years, professors William Joyce and Nitin Nohria found that there were four primary management practices that directly correlate with superior corporate performance, as measured by total return to shareholders. Winning companies achieve excellence in all four of these primary practices: execution, strategy, culture and structure (What Really Works, 2003).

However, more often than not, these three core processes stand apart from one another like silos. Typically, the CEO and his senior leadership team allot less than half a day each year to review the plans – people, strategy, and operations. Typically, too, the reviews are not particularly interactive. People sit passively and watch PowerPoint presentations.

They don’t debate, and as a result often they get few useful outcomes. People leave with no commitments to the action plans they’ve helped create. This is a formula for failure. What is needed is:
•  Robust dialogue to surface the realities of the business
•  Accountability for results – discussed openly and agreed to by those responsible for getting things done
•  Rewards for the best performers
•  Follow-through to ensure that progress tracks to the plans

Working with a seasoned executive coach trained in emotional intelligence and incorporating leadership assessments such as the Bar-On EQ-i and CPI 260 can help you become a leader known for relentless execution. You can become a leader who models emotional intelligence, and who inspires people to become happily engaged with the strategy and vision of the company.

Executive Coaching Secrets to Jump-Start Your Energy: Goal-Setting at Work

Leaders need a lot of energy to execute strategy. Goal-setting helps you mobilize that energy.

I work with a number of executive coaching clients. The most successful have unbridled passion and energy.

Leaders who are happy and have high energy makes me think of Tim Russert the host of "Meet the Press" who recently died. Tim was an incredible journalist, father and son who set significant goals for himself and others. He was focused on holding the people he interviewed accountable to telling the truth.

Are you as passionate about your chosen career?

Goal-Setting at Work

1.  Define your goal by asking yourself:

a.  Do I need a mentor who can help me see the big picture? Do I need to research data or strategies that will allow me to make a thoughtful, informed choice about my goals and objectives?

b.  Is my goal well defined and concrete? Do I understand all of the components, including the potential obstacles?

c.  Can I personally identify with my goal? Is it worthwhile, given my values and those of the organization?

2.  Strengthen your confidence in your ability to achieve your goals by asking yourself:

a.  What experience do I have in achieving comparable goals? Can I do it again?

b.  Which of my role models can help me understand what it takes to achieve my goal?

c.  Who can give me feedback to evaluate my capacities to achieve my goal? What must I learn to ensure success?

d.  Can I experiment and rehearse critical tasks while pursing my goals?

3.  Overcome negativity and develop positive thoughts and feelings by asking yourself:

a.  Which emotions do I harbor—and what triggers them? Should I change my tasks or goals so that work is less stressful? Do I have healthy outlets—hobbies, sports, friends—for these feelings?

b.  What about my work creates enthusiasm, fun and excitement for me? What do I love doing? Apart from my work, from what personal well can I regularly draw balance or strength?

Working with a seasoned executive coach trained in emotional intelligence and incorporating leadership assessments such as the Bar-On EQ-i and CPI 260 can help you become a more purposeful and productive leader focused on achieving goals. You can become a leader who models emotional intelligence and social intelligence, and who inspires people to become happily engaged with the strategy and vision of the company.

Executive Coaching Secrets for Purposeful Leaders: Organizations That Support Purposeful Action

Leaders very quickly establish the culture and climate of an organization.  They can consciously or unconsciously convey messages to managers that encourages purposeful action and personal responsibility or not.

I recently met with one of my executive coaching clients who is vice president of marketing and advertising for a high tech company in Silicon Valley. She related to me that the CEO will often listen to the ideas of his managers, but offers ideas of his own as better. The unintended message as communicated to me by the VP is that managers are less likely to purposely engage.

The VP indicated that the CEO is likely unaware of the affect his behavior is having on his people. The VP and I are working on his becoming more assertive so as coaching homework he decided to give the CEO some feedback. Fortunately, the CEO is an enlightened leader and is open to receiving feedback and getting better. He wants to have a positive work climate and culture where people are fully engaged.

Are you supporting a work climate that unleashes the willpower of  leaders at all levels?

Organizations That Support Purposeful Action

Leaders who make a serious attempt to foster managerial willpower must establish three critical working conditions:

1.   Create space for autonomous action.

2.   Build processes for providing professional, social and emotional support.

3.   Develop a culture that celebrates the exercise of responsible willpower.

Managers must first have sufficient freedom to act, with leaders allowing enough autonomy to grant managers a sense of personal ownership.

Ideally, managers will have informal relationships with peers and mentors who can provide professional support, including the information and resources needed to accomplish their work. They also require emotional support to cope with stress and leverage powerful emotions. An executive coach can often provide support.

To unleash managers’ willpower, leaders must embed purposeful behaviors as a central element of the company’s core values and shared understanding of how it does business.

Developing autonomy, support and a culture that encourages willpower is not intuitive. Personal freedom and shared support are difficult to combine. Highly autonomous managers focus only on their own tasks, often neglecting to share knowledge with others or invest energy in helping them succeed.

Yet, leadership that is courageous, persistent and patient can reconcile these tensions. No quick organizational fixes will create a culture of sustainable, willful action. It results from a long journey, through which leaders continuously demand purposeful action and personal responsibility.

Working with a seasoned executive coach trained in emotional intelligence and incorporating leadership assessments such as the Bar-On EQ-i and CPI 260 can help you become a more purposeful and productive leader. You can become a leader who models emotional intelligence and social intelligence, and who inspires people to become happily engaged with the strategy and vision of the company.

Executive Coaching Secrets for More Reflection and Less Busyness – The Purposeful Manager

Are you unrelentingly busy but not acting on purpose?

I was facilitating an emotional intelligence workshop yesterday. One of the executives was fairly stressed and was waking up in the middle of the night reflecting about work. I suggested that he might be less anxious, and more productive  purposeful if he learned to take time during the day to breathe deeply and reflect and be present in the moment.

Are you frenetically busy or energetic and highly focused and productive?

The costs of unproductive busyness take a toll on both managers and their companies. Managers who identify strongly with their jobs tend to become frustrated or hurt when confronted with setbacks, criticism or mediocre performance. Continual unreflective activity has a direct effect on an organization’s profits and managerial morale, as it’s ineffective and ultimately unsatisfying.

For example, frenzied managers often act in extremely shortsighted ways. Under extreme time constraints and the need to do more with fewer resources, they become adept at finding short-term solutions. As a consequence, they seldom take time to reflect, and neglect long-term issues. Frenzied managers demonstrate a well-intentioned, but desperate, need to do something—anything—which makes them potentially destructive.

Chronic procrastinators are generally recovering frenzied managers. Once they have learned that frantic, desperate actions are unsatisfying, many lapse into procrastination, losing energy and focus. It becomes all too easy for them to put off action altogether.

The Purposeful Manager

What distinguishes managers who take purposeful action from those who do not? Why are some managers highly energetic and focused, while others procrastinate, disengage or invest energy in unfocused busyness?

Managers’ tasks are complex, requiring creativity and innovation. They often strive to meet multiple and conflicting goals, many times on long-term projects that require a sustained effort. Ambitious goals, high uncertainty and extreme opposition can seriously limit many managers’ ability to maintain focus.

When managers can make things happen under these conditions—and when they consistently exhibit purposeful action—they have learned to harness the power of their will.

Willpower is the force behind energy and focus, enabling managers to execute disciplined action. Even when uninspired by the work and tempted by other opportunities, purposeful managers maintain energy and focus through willpower. They are committed to achieving results and, no matter what, will not give up.

Working with a seasoned executive coach trained in emotional intelligence and incorporating leadership assessments such as the Bar-On EQ-i and CPI 260 can help you become a more purposeful and productive leader. You can become a leader who models emotional intelligence and social intelligence, and who inspires people to become happily engaged with the strategy and vision of the company.

Executive Coaching Secrets for Changing a Busyness Mindset: The High Cost of Busyness

My star executive coaching clients have boundless energy and laser-like focus on achieving results. They don't talk about how busy they are, but focus on desired outcomes to be achieved.They often work less hours and accomplish more that their less productive colleagues who have a mindset that busyness is it's own reward.

Do you focus on results or how busy you are? We can all work less and achieve more if we manage our energy and see time as a friend not an enemy.

Energy and Focus

People who exhibit purposeful action possess two critical traits: energy and focus. Energy is characterized by more than effort; it requires involvement in meaningful activities, fueled by both external and internal resources. Purposeful action is self-generated, engaged and self-driven.

Purposeful action also demands focused behavior—conscious and intentional, guided by a decision to achieve a goal, disciplined enough to resist distraction and overcome problems, and persistence in the face of setbacks.

If 90 percent of managers fail to act purposefully in their everyday work, what exactly are they doing? How are they carrying out their work? Bruch’s and Ghoshal’s study, conducted over a 10-year period (1993 to 2003), identifies four profiles of managerial behavior.

1. The Frenzied
2. The Procrastinators
3. The Detached
4. The Purposeful

The Frenzied: Forty percent of managers are distracted by the overwhelming tasks that face them each day. They are highly energetic, but unfocused; they are enthusiastic about their work and identify strongly with their jobs. But “the need for speed” prompts them to be unreflective. Instead, they toil ceaselessly and act without hesitation. To others, they appear frenzied, desperate and extremely hurried. They could achieve more if they consciously concentrate their efforts on what really matters.

The Procrastinators: Thirty percent of managers procrastinate on doing their organizations’ most important work. They lack both energy and focus, spending their time handling minor details in lieu of what could make a real difference to their organizations. These managers often feel insecure and fear failure.

The Detached: Twenty percent of managers are disengaged or detached from their work. They can be focused, but have no energy. They seem aloof, tense and apathetic.

The Purposeful: Only ten percent get the job done. They are highly focused, energetic, and come across as reflective and calm amid chaos.

The costs of unproductive busyness take a toll on both managers and their companies. Managers who identify strongly with their jobs tend to become frustrated or hurt when confronted with setbacks, criticism or mediocre performance. Continual unreflective activity has a direct effect on an organization’s profits and managerial morale, as it’s ineffective and ultimately unsatisfying.

Working with a seasoned executive coach trained in emotional intelligence and incorporating leadership assessments such as the Bar-On EQ-i and CPI 260 can help you become a  more energetic, focused and purposeful leader. You can become a leader who models emotional intelligence and social intelligence, and who inspires people to become happily engaged with the strategy and vision of the company.

Executive Coaching for Future Leadership: Five Competencies for Leaders in the Future

In Global Leadership: the Next Generation (Goldsmith, M., Greenberg, C. L., Robertson, A. & Hu-Chan, M.; FT Prentice Hall, 2003), more than 200 executives were selected for their high potential for future leadership from 120 international companies. The results reveal five key competencies for leaders in the future:

1. Thinking globally: Leaders will need to understand the economic, cultural, legal and political environments in which they do business. New skills and knowledge for marketing, sales and international production will be required. A global perspective is a high priority.

2. Appreciating cultural diversity: This competency requires more flexibility and openness than ever before. Cultural tension is a natural by-product of the global business environment and leaders will have to be adept at managing it. The ability to lead disparate groups of knowledge workers to a consensus will be crucial.

3. Developing technological savvy: Information and communications systems are the backbone of the global enterprise. While CEO’s may not be technological experts they must make decisions about which advances to adopt and how to allocate technological investments wisely.

4. Building partnerships and alliances: As a result of all the reengineering, restructuring and downsizing, many activities are being outsourced. This requires an increased ability to negotiate complex alliances and manage network relationships. Joint leadership will be a key.

5. Sharing leadership: Sharing leadership responsibilities will be required to navigate global partnerships. Executive team leaders, keeping in mind a common vision and purpose, will collaborate to make effective decisions and strive for integration, not control.

It is important to remember that leadership is an emergent quality that is produced by the acts of many people in complex systems. The corporate culture must recognize and accept the need for leaders to get help. Leaders cannot walk on water or leap tall buildings, no matter how strong they appear to be. Executive coaches are necessary for the continuing development of leadership strengths, and will be even more so in the future.

Working with a seasoned executive coach trained in emotional intelligence and incorporating leadership assessments such as the BarOn EQi and CPI 260 can help you become a a more inspiring and visionary leader. You can become a leader who models emotional intelligence and social intelligence, and who inspires people to become happily engaged with the strategy and vision of the company.