Archive for the 'effectiveness' Category
Posted on February 26, 2010
Here’s another simple communication tip that’s a lot harder than it seems.
Ban the use of the word “but.”
For example, you’re in a team meeting and people are evaluating whether to open another office location. Paul says, “We’ve got a client in the area. It makes sense to set up an office there to give us a local presence.”
Natalie replies: “But that’s going to cost us for office space and all that.”
The “but” immediately discredits Paul’s idea. What if Natalie had just dropped the “but” and said, “That’s going to cost us for office space and all that.”
See what happens? The critical tone is gone. She is just stating a fact, rather than implying an opinion.
That leaves room for the conversation to continue.
Some people suggest using the word “and” where you would typically say “but.”
For example, “I would really like to see that movie, but tonight isn’t going to work for me.” What happens when you change it to “I would really like to see that movie, and tonight isn’t going to work for me.”
It’s weird and it’s awkward. But (I know) the awkwardness of it will make you realize how often you use the word “but.” Give it a try.
Posted on January 13, 2010
Yesterday I had the privilege of kicking off a Future Leaders program for a professional association. It is such a joy seeing the enthusiasm and openness that the Future Leaders display as they position themselves to grow professionally and personally.
I found this message this morning:
“I’d like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn. I truly enjoyed your class last night and have already used the ‘Help me understand’ and ‘How can I help?’ tactics. No surprise, they worked! Thanks.”
For those who weren’t with us yesterday, here are some communication tools to always keep in your back pocket.
“Tell me more“–for when you didn’t understand or quite get what someone said. It keeps them talking and gives you time to listen for more information. Say this instead of asking a slew of questions that show you didn’t understand what the person said. Save yourself the embarrassment.
“Help me understand“–similar purpose. It may prod the other person to give you more in-depth information or to explain the logic behind their ideas or decisions.
“How can I help?” People like to help other people–it is part of what makes us different from other creatures. It gives you a chance to do a small favor for someone, and, in all likelihood, they will return that favor.
Armed with just those tools, you will grow in your ability to keep a conversation going, to understand what others need or want, and to gather the data you need to help your client.
So, how can you help me? Forward this blog post to friends who could also benefit from having these tools. And be sure to let me know how I can help you.
Have a great day.
Posted on December 7, 2009
Time management is one of the top problems people tell me they struggle with. And I get it–I struggle with it, too.
But let’s look at the truth of the situation.
It’s not how you manage time. It’s about how you manage YOU.
We all have the same 24 hours a day. To my knowledge, nobody has found a way to squeeze another hour or two into a 24-hour day.
Here are some quotes from management guru Peter Drucker. I hope they get you thinking.
“Everything requires time. It is the only truly universal condition. All work takes place in time and uses up time. Yet most people take for granted this unique, irreplaceable, and necessary resource. Nothing else, perhaps, distinguishes effective executives as much as their tender loving care of time.”
“One cannot buy, rent or hire more time. The supply of time is totally inelastic. No matter how high the demand, the supply will not go up. There is no price for it. Time is totally perishable and cannot be stored. Yesterday’s time is gone forever, and will never come back. Time is always in short supply. There is no substitute for time. Everything requires time. All work takes place in, and uses up time. Yet most people take for granted this unique, irreplaceable and necessary resource.”
“Until we can manage TIME, we can manage nothing else.”
Posted on November 16, 2009
I was doing a lunch and learn for a firm recently on how to get referrals and repeat business. Just about everyone I know needs to spend time working on getting referrals and repeat business.
But not Arthur.
Arthur is one of the more experienced (i.e., older) professionals at this firm. He proudly told me he doesn’t need referrals because his client keeps him busy.
“My client just keeps calling me with more work,” Arthur said. “I don’t even have to ask for it.”
“Arthur,” I asked, “what are you going to do when your client gets run over by a bus at lunchtime? Do you know who would replace him?”
This stopped Arthur cold—made him think. He knows his client’s boss, but he doesn’t know others in the firm—the others that might step in after the lunchtime tragedy.
Don’t get cocky like Arthur. Spend time with your clients and the folks who work with them. Develop relationships that will keep your business alive after the rogue bus drivers of this world take out your clients.
Posted on June 3, 2009
Think you’re swamped by information (including this message, of course)? Take a quick break and watch this humorous video from Xerox on information overload syndrome.
http://www.xerox.com/information-overload/enus.html
IS IT TIME FOR A REDUCTION IN WORK HOURS?
From my friend Dave Burstein at PSMJ:
I have been asked many times about whether an across-the-board reduction in work hours is better than a layoff of selected individuals. My answer has always been: Don’t consider an across-the-board reduction until you have laid off every one of your mediocre (or worse) employees. For many A/E/C firms (especially those who are heavily in the developer markets), that time has come. For those firms, I offer the following advice:
1. Don’t cut the hours of people who are busy and highly billable. For example, if your firm does a mix of development and public sector projects, your development group may be very slow while your public sector group is very busy. Cutting hours across the board may seem “fair” but it is self-destructive. Not only will you reduce revenue at the time you need it most, you will also jeopardize client satisfaction at the time that your clients are most vulnerable to approaches by your competitors.
2. To deal with the “fairness” issue, let all your employees know that the key to getting back onto a full work week is increasing revenues - and the best way to accelerate that is to maximize the number of people working productively on paying projects. Also let them know that “dumping” time onto projects in order to keep their chargeability high is self-defeating. What you gain in increased chargeability, you lose in having jobs go over budget.
3. Look into whether your state(s) has a program to help employees whose hours have been reduced. For example, Massachusetts employers can request partial unemployment benefits for groups of employees whose hours have been reduced by 20% or more. Under this program, employees in these groups can receive 30 to 40 percent of their lost wages from the reduced hours.
As of May 27, the following states have adopted some type of unemployment benefits for employees who are in “work sharing” programs that reduce their work hours: Arkansas, Arizona, California, Connecticut, Florida, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Texas, Vermont and Washington. Other states are considering such programs, so be sure to check with your state labor department.
Contact Dave at dburstein@psmj.com with any questions.
Check out their website at www.psmj.com.
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