San Francisco Bay Area Executive Coaching: 3 posts from July 2017

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3 posts from July 2017

July 26, 2017

The Failure of “Good-Enough” Cultures

The Failure of “Good-Enough” Cultures

Billions of dollars are wasted each year by companies who compromise on standards. Many leaders endanger themselves and their organizations by permitting a “good-enough culture.” Fortunately, this danger of mediocrity has a remedy.

“Only the mediocre are always at their best.” ~ Jean Giraudoux, French essayist

The good-enough culture plagues an organization in every aspect of its operation, all the way down to the most basic:

Lack of productivity
Staff turnover
Defective products
Warranty costs
Safety costs
Inefficiency and waste
Dissatisfied customers
Lost sales
Layoffs
Shrinking profits
Poor reputation

If not corrected, the issues feed on themselves.

Growing the Good-Enough Culture

The good-enough culture flows from the top down. It takes root when leaders believe that a good-enough approach is acceptable.

Typically, leaders who have the impression that life is rewarding enough don’t see the need to make things better for everyone else. Leaders with a self-focused mindset have one or more of the following issues:

Apathy: No real concern for others.
Laziness: No felt need to give more than an adequate effort.
Disengagement: Not enough involvement (or avoidance) with staff or specific operations to know that troubles exist.
Greed: Less monetary reward if more resources are spent on system shortcomings.
Fear of failure: Too much risk in change.
Pride: A need to preserve image by avoiding problems.
Ignorance: No desire to know how the operation works, or how it could be better.
Resentment: A dislike of bad news and the people who bring it.

Leaders who don’t understand the power of excellence don’t care enough about pursuing it. This lack of caring is what author Subir Chowdhury claims is the main cause of a good-enough culture, in his book, The Difference: When Good Enough Isn’t Enough (Penguin Random House, 2017).

When leaders don’t care enough about being the best they can be, why would staff? Leaders often cause slow failure simply by allowing mediocrity to set in. Complacent and falsely secure, organizations are unprepared to respond effectively when the bleeding begins and gradual decline ensues.

Symptoms of “Good-Enough”

Organizations and leaders who don’t care much about excellence will signal this throughout the system:

Leaders often ignore the elephant on the conference room table. Certain bad topics are not discussed. When staff leave a meeting knowing an underlying issue is unaddressed, this is a sign that the status quo is too important to disrupt. Good enough is good enough.

When red tape bogs down a process and is discussed with no effort to get to root causes, this is a trouble sign. Leaders simply want the bottleneck to go away, without concern for prevention. They permit an exception to the rules and everyone goes back about their business because good enough is good enough.

People start blaming one another during stressful situations rather than trying to reach understanding. Leaders don’t regard teamwork worth their time and effort, so they allow people to endure disunity because good enough is good enough.

Leaders are more upset at delivery numbers than product quality. The concessions are easier than diving into the causes and effective solutions, because good enough is good enough.

Employees are skeptical of feedback forms, company surveys, or information meetings because their voices are rarely valued, heard, or acted upon. Any improvements are minor, not requiring a significant investment. Leaders don’t emphasize positive change because good enough is good enough.

Leaders see staff turnover and exit interviews indicate a managerial problem. But they see it more difficult to replace a manager―with a higher salary requirement and a more complex recruitment process―than to continue finding new employees with fairly common skills. Leaders choose to make due, overlooking the manager’s weaknesses because good enough is good enough.

When leaders reveal these symptoms, it is a general indication that they don’t really care enough about excellence to truly implement it, and probably don’t understand how to.

Overcoming the Good-Enough Culture

Author Chowdhury suggests four basic principles leaders can apply to overcome the good-enough syndrome.

Truthfulness / Directness: Instill a culture of transparency and honesty. Deal with trials directly and openly and reduce fear by welcoming feedback. This gives responsibility to staff to bring issues to the table. Leaders who can accept bad news, and respond with fairness and understanding, establish higher levels of emotional safety, accountability, and excellence. Good enough is no longer good enough.

Consideration for Others: Care about people; be attentive. Engage others, listen deeply, and share understanding. Communicate an empathetic mindset on what people are going through, and how things can be improved for them. Leaders who care enough to be helpful and unselfish will build reciprocity and find that thoughtfulness inspires best efforts. Quality becomes a desired trait, because good enough is no longer acceptable.

Taking Responsibility: Demonstrate responsibility and inspire the same in others. Accept critical feedback but not without viable proposals for solutions. Great leaders prompt everyone to add value and make positive changes. They analyze strategies and potential outcomes for everyone. With a sense of unity, staff go the extra mile because good enough is not an option.

Determination: Lead by example. Make commitments and stay the course. Show that success requires resolve, decisions, and worthy goals. Quick fixes don’t favor long-term improvements. Leaders who don’t give up when things get tough make a lasting impression that drives a can-do culture, because good enough never provides that value.

When leaders care, excellence becomes contagious. People get energized to find ways to combat mediocrity. Leaders bring out the best in people and in themselves when they look beyond the good-enough mindset.

One of the most powerful questions you can ask yourself is “Am I a transformational leader who inspires individuals and organizations to achieve their highest potential, flourish at work, experience elevating energy and achieve levels of effectiveness difficult to attain otherwise?” Emotionally intelligent and socially intelligent organizations provide executive coaching to help leaders create a culture where respect and trust flourish.

Working with a seasoned executive coach and leadership consultant trained in emotional intelligence and incorporating assessments such as the Bar-On EQ-i 2.0, Hogan Lead, CPI 260 and Denison Culture Survey can help leaders nurture strengths-based conversations in the workplace. You can become an inspiring leader who models emotional intelligence and social intelligence, and who inspires people to become fully engaged with the vision, mission and strategy of your company or law firm.

Working Resources is a San Francisco Bay Area executive coaching and leadership development firm helping innovative companies and law firms develop emotionally intelligent and mindful leaders. We help build coaching cultures of positive engagement.

...About Dr. Maynard Brusman

Dr. Maynard Brusman
Consulting Psychologist and Executive Coach|
Trusted Leadership Advisor
Emotional Intelligence & Mindful Leadership Workplace Expert
I coach leaders to cultivate clarity, creativity, focus, trust, and full engagement in a purpose-driven culture.
Dr. Maynard Brusman is a consulting psychologist and executive coach. He is the president of Working Resources, a leadership consulting and executive coaching firm. We specialize in helping San Francisco Bay Area companies develop emotionally intelligent and mindful leaders.

Maynard is a highly sought-after speaker and workshop leader. He facilitates leadership retreats in Northern California and Costa Rica.

“Maynard Brusman is one of the foremost coaches in the United States. He utilizes a wide variety of assessments in his work with senior executives and upper level managers, and is adept at helping his clients both develop higher levels of emotional intelligence and achieve breakthrough business results. As a senior leader in the executive coaching field, Dr. Brusman brings an exceptional level of wisdom, energy, and creativity to his work.” — Jeffrey E. Auerbach, Ph.D., President, College of Executive Coaching

The Society for Advancement of Consulting (SAC) awarded rare "Board Approved" designations in the specialties of Executive Coaching and Leadership Development. Alan Weiss, Ph.D., President, Summit Consulting Group

Are you an executive leader who wants to be more effective at work and get better results?

Did you know that research has demonstrated, that the most effective leaders model high emotional intelligence, and that EQ can be learned? It takes self-awareness, empathy, and compassion to become a more emotionally intelligent leader.

Emotionally intelligent and mindful leaders inspire people to become fully engaged with the vision and mission of their company. Mindful leadership starts from within.

I am a consulting psychologist and executive coach. I believe coaching is a collaborative process of providing people with the resources and opportunities they need to self manage, develop change resiliency and become more effective. Utilizing instrumented assessments - clients set clear goals, make optimal use of their strengths, and take action to create desired changes aligned with personal values.

I have been chosen as an expert to appear on radio and TV, MSNBC, CBS Health Watch and in the San Francisco Chronicle, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Time, Forbes and Fast Company.

Over the past thirty-five years, I have coached hundreds of leaders to improve their leadership effectiveness.

After only 6 months, one executive coaching client reported greater productivity, and more stress resiliency helping her company improve revenues by 20%. While this may depend on many factors most of my clients report similar satisfaction in their EQ leadership competence leading to better business results.

You can choose to work with a highly seasoned executive coach to help facilitate your leadership development and executive presence awakening what’s possible.

For more information, please go to http://www.workingresources.com, write to [email protected], or call 415-546-1252.

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Posted by Maynard Brusman on July 26, 2017 in Executive/Leadership Coaching, Leadership Development | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tags: culture, emotional intelligence, executive coaching, leadership development

July 19, 2017

The Problem of Mediocre Cultures

Billions of dollars are wasted each year by companies who compromise on standards. Many leaders endanger themselves and their organizations by permitting a “good-enough culture.” This danger of mediocrity fortunately has a remedy.

“Only the mediocre are always at their best.” ~ Jean Giraudoux, French essayist

The good-enough culture plagues an organization in every aspect of its operation, all the way down to the most basic. Some of the more prominent effects are:

Lack of productivity
Staff turnover
Defective products
Warranty costs
Safety costs
Inefficiency and waste
Dissatisfied customers
Lost sales
Layoffs
Shrinking profits
Poor reputation

Leaders experience many more unseen problems buried down under the details of every department. The issues feed on themselves if not corrected.

Growing the Good-Enough Culture

The good-enough culture flows down from the top of the organization. It takes root when leaders believe that a good-enough approach is acceptable.

Typically, leaders who have the impression that life for them is rewarding enough don’t see the need to work to make things better for everyone else. Leaders with a self-focused mindset have one or more of the following issues:

Apathy: There is no real concern for what the others in the organization endure.
Laziness: There is no felt need to give more than an adequate effort. Adequate often seems heroic to the lazy mind.
Disengagement: There is not enough involvement with staff or specific operations to know that troubles exist. Worse yet, the leader intentionally avoids knowledge of problems.
Greed: There is less monetary reward for the upper echelon if more resources are spent on addressing system shortcomings. This is the age-old deception of not believing a sacrifice today pays rewards tomorrow.
Fear of failure: There is too much risk seen in trying something that could make things worse. This fear emanates from a lack of wisdom or confidence.
Pride: There is a need to preserve image by avoiding the acknowledgment of a problem.
Ignorance: There is no pressing desire to know how the operation works, to grasp how it could be better.
Resentment: There is a dislike of bad news and the people who bring it. And of course, nothing can be improved if it’s not discussed.

When leaders don’t care enough about being the best they can be, why would staff? Each layer in the organization takes its cue from the one above, and all of them ultimately from the top. Uncaring leaders set a strong example that caring is not needed by anyone. The result is mediocrity at best, total failure at worst. Leaders who are excellence-minded see both of these as failure.

Organizations fail, but not always because they’ve crashed to the bottom. Leaders often cause slow failure simply by allowing mediocrity to set in. When things are “good enough,” people are lulled into complacency and a false security. They are unprepared to respond effectively when the bleeding begins, and gradual decline ensues.

Symptoms of “Good-Enough”

Organizations and leaders who don’t care much about excellence will signal this throughout the system. Some signals are subtle, some are clear. Here are some examples:

Leaders often ignore the elephant on the conference room table. Certain bad topics are not discussed. Waves aren’t made. Upsetting bosses with bad news or concerns is avoided at all costs. When staff leave a meeting knowing an underlying issue is deliberately left unaddressed, this is a sign that the status quo is too important to disrupt. Good enough is good enough.

When red tape bogs down a process and is discussed with no effort to get to root causes, this is a trouble sign. In these instances, leaders simply want the bottleneck to go away by any means necessary, and there’s no real concern for preventions or improvements. They permit an exception to the rules and everyone goes back about their business because good enough is good enough.

People start blaming one another during stressful situations rather than trying to reach understanding. Gaining clarity and collaboration takes work, sometimes a lot of it. Leaders don’t regard teamwork worth giving of their time and effort, so they allow their people to endure disunity because good enough is good enough.

Leaders are more upset at delivery numbers than product quality when production nonconformance arises. Standards are conceded to get the product out the door, or leaders approve a band-aid for the problem, hoping it’s just a limited issue. The concessions are easier than diving into the causes and effective solutions, because good enough is good enough.

Employees are skeptical of feedback forms, company surveys or information meetings because their voices are rarely valued, heard or acted upon. Suggestions go unanswered, survey results are not shared and organizational information has no real substance. Any improvements are minor, not requiring a significant investment. Leaders don’t emphasize positive change because good enough is good enough.

Leaders see staff turnover in a specific department, and exit interviews indicate a managerial problem. But they see it more difficult to replace a manager―with a higher salary requirement and a more complex recruitment process―than to continue finding new employees with fairly common skills. Leaders choose to make due, overlooking the manager’s weaknesses because good enough is good enough.

When leaders reveal these and other symptoms it is a general indication that they don’t really care enough about excellence to truly implement it, and probably don’t understand how to.

Overcoming the Good-Enough Culture

Author Chowdhury suggests four basic principles leaders can apply to overcome the good-enough syndrome.

Truthfulness / Directness: Leaders who care about truth must instill a culture of transparency and honesty. They are advised to deal with trials directly and openly, and to reduce fear by welcoming feedback. This gives responsibility to staff to bring issues to the table and tackle them, with the incentive to solve them. Leaders who can accept bad news, and respond with fairness and understanding, establish higher levels of emotional safety, accountability, and excellence.

People learn to care about the day-to-day issues, and have a greater sense of empowerment to make things work better. Small successes lead to more, and succeeding becomes attractive. A leader who cares about making things right for everyone will create a following of people who want to do the same. Being truthful and direct builds trust. And trust breeds higher standards. Good enough is no longer good enough.

Consideration for Others: Leaders who care about their people are attentive to them. They show them they’re valued by engaging them, listening to them, and understanding them. Their communications skills demonstrate an empathetic mindset, where the leader is concerned about what their people are going through, and how things can be improved for them. This requires humility and genuineness. Such leaders care enough to be helpful and unselfish.

People respond by returning a leader’s consideration with consideration of their own. They know they’re affirmed and appreciated, and this causes them to care about what the leader cares about, as well as each of their contributions. The staff becomes thankful and returns the leader’s thoughtfulness with their best efforts. Quality becomes a desired trait of their work, because good enough is no longer acceptable.

Taking Responsibility: Leaders who care about excellence demonstrate responsibility and instill the same in their people. They accept critical feedback but not without viable proposals for solutions. They don’t accept a mentality of “it’s not my job.” Everyone participates and is expected to follow through on their assignments. Great leaders prompt everyone to add value and make positive changes.

This encourages engagement, positive outlooks, and a drive for the best ideas. These leaders forge the habit of analyzing strategies and their potential outcomes. An overall aim to enhance things for everyone is established.

The staff responds by getting involved, taking action, and being answerable for what they do. Everyone strives for improvement, and they raise their expectations. People find it exhilarating to be responsible for their portion of the overall success. They feel a sense of unity, and are encouraged to ask for help when needed. Staff go the extra mile because they care, and because good enough is not an option.

Determination: Leaders who care lead by example. They show their people that success requires resolve, and nothing worth achieving comes easily. Leaders who persevere inspire the passion in their people to do the same. It shows the staff that the leader is serious about making commitments and staying the course. That demonstrates the importance of decisions and the worth of the goal. They support long-term improvements and reject quick fixes. Leaders who don’t give up when things get tough make a lasting impression on their people. That impression grows when they understand the struggles their people have, and help them with the needed resources.

Workers respond to this with a determination generated from within. They take ownership as they are empowered to act and resolve. People adopt a willingness to change and improve, individually and collectively. They reject short cuts. This drives a can-do culture. They care about contributing to lasting value because they learn that good enough never provides that value.

Caring about excellence is everything. A truthful leader molds a team that improves communication, timeliness and a thorough review of all difficult issues, large and small. A leader who’s considerate of others demonstrates the importance of relationships to success. Leaders who commit to such responsibility raise the level of accountability within their staff. Employees who are held to account by their manager also hold each other to account. Determined leaders foster a group spirit that overcomes challenges that once made people surrender.

Leaders can transform their organizations and reach potential never imagined if they put their immediate needs aside and care for their people and the outcomes of their endeavors. Their caring becomes contagious. Everyone’s felt needs will be met more effectively when a caring culture is in place.

Posted by Maynard Brusman on July 19, 2017 in Executive/Leadership Coaching, Leadership Development | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tags: culture, culture change, emotional intelligence, executive coaching, leadership development

July 05, 2017

Four Emotional Intelligence Habits of Mindful Leaders

We provide executive coaching to develop emotionally Intelligent and mindful leaders in a purpose-driven culture

“Mindfulness should no longer be considered a "nice-to-have" for executives. It's a "must-have": a way to keep our brains healthy, to support self-regulation and effective decision-making capabilities, and to protect ourselves from toxic stress. It can be integrated into one's religious or spiritual life, or practiced as a form of secular mental training. When we take a seat, take a breath, and commit to being mindful, particularly when we gather with others who are doing the same, we have the potential to be changed.“
- Christina Congleton, Britta K. Hölzel, and Sara W. Lazar in the Harvard Business Review

Emotional intelligence is the capacity to be aware of, control, and express one's emotions, and to manage interpersonal relationships judiciously and empathetically. Emotional intelligence is the key to both personal and professional success.

Emotionally intelligent and mindful leaders inspire their people. They model leadership qualities such as authenticity, compassion, empathy, grit, positivity, respect, self-awareness and trust. They are collaborative, team players fluent in conversational intelligence.

Becoming a more emotionally intelligent and mindful leader is completely under your control. Unlike innate characteristics such as your intelligence (IQ), EQ is a flexible skill that can be learned with practice.

The following are 4 key behaviors that emotionally intelligent and mindful leaders engage in that helps make them leaders with the conduct and character worth following.

1. They Demonstrate Integrity

Emotionally intelligent and mindful leaders inspire trust and admiration through their actions, not just their words. Many leaders say that integrity is important to them, but emotionally intelligent lawyers walk their talk by demonstrating integrity every day.

2. They’re Interpersonally Savvy

Emotionally intelligent and mindful leaders know how to read people as unspoken communication is often more important than the words people say. They note facial expressions, body language, and tone of voice in order to get what’s really going on with their people. In other words, they have high social awareness, a critical EQ skill. They nudge others to be their best selves, and cultivate a culture of respect.

3. They Radiate Executive Presence

Emotionally intelligent and mindful leaders exude executive presence showing up with contagious energy. Executive presence is comprised of three core elements: how you act (gravitas), how you speak (communication), and how you look (appearance). It can also be described as consisting of the skillful application of emotional intelligence and the effective presentation of your professional skills.

4. They Demonstrate Competence

Emotionally intelligent and mindful leaders understand that sharing knowledge and expertise is critical to their professional success. They have considerable substance and unselfishly share it with others in the workplace.

Putting It All Together

High emotional intelligence and mindfulness results from learnable personal and interpersonal skills that are crucial to your professional success. Develop these four emotional agility and mindful leadership habits with an executive coach, and watch your emotional intelligence and mindfulness elevate to new levels.

One of the most powerful questions you can ask yourself is “Am I a transformational leader who inspires individuals and organizations to achieve their highest potential, flourish at work, experience elevating energy and achieve levels of effectiveness difficult to attain otherwise?” Emotionally intelligent and socially intelligent organizations provide executive coaching to help leaders create a culture where respect and trust flourish.