Planning for the Year Ahead
Your business plan is essential to the success of your organization. Your plan is your map. It not only describes what you are going to do, but also provides a direction on how you and your team will get there. Without this execution strategy, your plan is meaningless.
Having a solid plan for how your department or organization will run is a key component of its smooth and successful operation. Your plan is critical to achieving success. It’s important to you, your managers and equally important for the staff you lead. Everyone needs to understand how your organization should be run on a daily basis. Your thoughts and expectations should be clearly defined.
Obviously, for smaller organizations, the business will be far more streamlined and less complicated than it is for larger ones, but your plan still needs to demonstrate an understanding of the work required and how you’ll handle the work flow.
So let’s discuss how you can put together a plan that is organized and understood. Your plan should contain the following items.
Mission. Your mission should be clearly defined so that everyone knows what your organization or department does and why you do it. You may be part of a broader mission, but your organization should still have its own mission. A clear and thoughtful mission statement creates a connection with the organization and the people you serve.
Keys to Success. Organizations have a few key factors that lead to success. What are the things your organization must do to be successful? List these factors in your plan.
Analysis of your organization’s position. Think about your organization’s position or circumstances. A good tool to use is a SWOT analysis – Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. What is the present position of your organization and how does it need to grow, or change?
Description of Services. What are the services you offer to the rest of your organization? A clear description of these services, what they do and the benefits they provide are important. You may provide a variety of services, depending on whether your customers are internal, external or both.
Delivery Requirements. You must define the requirements of the services you will deliver. These requirements may be set by your team or defined by an outside source. In either case, deciding the measurements and stating them within your plan is important to tracking success. Your next step is to define the responsibilities around each step and the tactics you will take to accomplish your goals. These requirements will play a key role in helping you analyze the success of your staff and the organization as a whole.
Implementation Plan. How are you going to carry out your plan to provide the services needed by others? Your plan should be strategic. Each task should bring you closer to accomplishing the plan.
Objectives. There is a reason why you are taking certain steps, or actions. These are the objectives – and should be stated in your plan. The objectives also help to define success factors.
Personnel and Expertise Needs. Your managers and staff carry out most of your plan. It’s important that everyone understands his or her responsibilities, as well as the qualifications for doing the job. Our next article provides more detail on roles and responsibilities within the plan.
Leah M. Joppy & Associates would like to be your partner in your strategic plan. We provide training – training for leadership, professional and personal development, and many different types of computer training. Give us a call at 301-670-0051 and let us help you achieve faster results with your team.
Tips for Conveying the Structure of Your Organization
The business plan often starts with an organization chart. The structure of the group may grow with time, or responsibilities may be tweaked, but start with a basic plan.
- One way to explain your organizational structure in the business plan is graphically. A simple diagram or flowchart can easily demonstrate levels of management and the positions within them, clearly illustrating who reports to whom, and how different divisions of the company or organization relate to each other.
- Roles and responsibilities. Of course, you need to surround yourself with good people, but you also have to set things up to enable them to work well with each other and on their own. It’s one thing to have an organizational chart, but another to have the skills needed to carry out your mission. You must define the people who will be providing the service. Who is responsible for what job, and to whom do they report?
- Training needed. The plan should also include a description of the training that will be needed to accomplish your mission.
- Adding talent. It’s important to recognize the types of people you’ll need, how many, what their qualifications should be, where you’ll find them, and what they’ll cost. If your organization plans to use outside consultants, freelancers, or independent contractors, mention this need in your plan as well.
- Future expansion. It’s also helpful for long-range planning to discuss positions and experience you want to add in the future – if you are successful enough to expand.
We can help organizations reach goals by providing the training needed for employees to succeed. Look to Leah M. Joppy & Associates for leadership, personal development and computer training. We help break down barriers to productivity. Give us a call at 301-670-0051 and let us help you achieve faster results with your team.
Connecting With People
In this fast paced world of email and text messaging, we somehow leave out the “connecting” part of our communications. And yet, the connecting part is very important to our own success. How we relate to others, and communicate our desires, makes a huge difference on how the message is received. Have you ever noticed that HOW we are asked to do something, either makes us excited to do it, or makes us roll our eyes and dread the project? It’s all about understanding how human behavior works. We can elevate the performance of those around us if we CONNECT.
In your job, and in your future. Recently I read an article about being a successful entrepreneur. The author mentioned that one of the keys to success revolves around the network of the business owner. Those owners who had a more varied network, with closer ties, were more successful. It wasn’t the NUMBER of contacts that determined the success of the owner, but rather the variety of contacts and the depth of the relationships. Some of the most successful entrepreneurs had close contacts in many different areas – people with whom they could discuss problems, or bounce around some ideas. The sincere advice that was given from this network helped the business owner find answers to various problems.
Not a business owner. Whether you work for the government or have a job in corporate America the concept of keeping close ties with a varied list of contacts is not a bad idea. Even retiring successfully and happily may be influenced by your circle of contacts.
Are you listening? When we truly connect with someone, even if it’s someone we’ve just met, the person we’re talking to feels involved. The connection is subtle. Our body language gives us away. Sometimes I see it at networking events. I’m talking to someone, but I see him or her looking casually around the room. Obviously, we’re just NOT connecting. When we’re not truly paying attention, the person we are talking to reads our body language. And not paying attention is a real hit to the person’s confidence.
Telling stories. I have a friend who always interrupts my conversation with a story about what has happened to them. Admittedly, the stories she tells are always on topic to the discussion we were having, but it’s her story. So my conversation or my discussion gets turned around and is quickly forgotten. The focus is now on her!
Those little words. I notice this mostly when I’m on the phone with someone, but it can happen in person too. The person I’m talking to may use words like, “Uh-huh,” “Really,” “gosh,” or “interesting” – all words that signal to me that they are not really involved in my conversation. Something is distracting them. I’m not connecting.
We all bring value. Can we just agree to that statement? Instead of trying to impress everyone with our knowledge and expertise, it’s so refreshing when someone openly admits that they learned something new for the first time! Such a response makes the person talking feel valued.
Talk about the familiar. In some situations, you may feel out of your element. You walk in a room and don’t recognize anyone, or you see that you are outnumbered – you’re a women and the room is almost entirely men (or vice versa). The situation can be nerve wracking. So rather than try to come up with something clever, just be yourself. Talk about something that interests you – a recent movie, a team that you are following, or an upcoming vacation. People are just trying to connect with you, and even if you never mention your expertise, you’re connecting with them on a more personal level – which is actually better!
Does your organization lack connectivity? Better communication leads to less conflict, decreased ‘silos’, a sense of trust , better collaboration and more fulfilling work. Let us help elevate the performance of your team. Give Leah M. Joppy & Associates a call at 301-670-0051 or email leah@lmja.com and let’s discuss solutions that work!
Success or Significance?
Working hard from day to day, our lives just unfold. Layer after layer, page after page, we strive toward success and financial independence. And we’re certainly not unhappy. Or, at least if someone asks us about our job, we’re probably pretty optimistic. And then one day it hits us – we’re just not as passionate about what we are doing as we expected to be. Is this all there is? Is this what I can expect for the next 5, 10, 15 years?
Somewhere during our years of productivity, we will ask ourselves this question. It’s a scary thought. Have I been alluding myself all these years? Or have I just veered off track? Each of us is different. But before you jump ship and take a drastic turn in your career, consider your options.
Our resumes are full of our skills and virtues. They help reinforce our self-esteem and they provide concrete measurements of success. But what if our success was measured by the value we bring to others? When we focus on significance rather than success our passion reignites. Our jobs become more meaningful as we search for ways to help others. Focusing on significance doesn’t come at the expense of other areas of our life. Instead, it’s a challenge to round out our lives and make them fuller.
What’s significant for you, may even change from time to time. Depending on your position and your responsibilities, we can add significance to the lives of others and have even greater fulfillment in what we are doing.
So how do we do that? Some say that a good way to start is to think about what you want people to say at your funeral. (I know, nice thought). But it’s true. Few of us want the people closest to us to say things about our income level or mention the profit and loss statements. Instead, we would like to think that we affected people’s lives.
Making the change from success to significance starts with goals. Experts tell us that our brain is naturally a goal seeking organism – we want to achieve our goals. So start with how you want to affect the lives of others and list the goals you want to achieve in order to make a difference. Some of these may be short term goals and others will be longer. The short term goals will actually help inspire you and keep you directed in order to reach your long term goals.
Need help putting these goals together? Read our article below on Tips for Becoming Significant. And if you’d like to engage your organization in talks on Professional and/or Personal Development, Leah M. Joppy & Associates can help. Give us a call at (301) 670-0051 and let’s discuss your needs.
Tips for Becoming Significant
Moving from a success oriented career to one focused on significance starts with setting goals. Here are some ideas on how you can get started.
- Create a list of goals that you would like to achieve. For each goal, consider the value of the goal to others.
- There are no boundaries to this list. For example, you may still create a financial goal, as long as the stated goal brings value to others. “I will make a contribution of $5,000 to my favorite charity by the end of the year.”
- There are certain key words that might come in handy as you create your goals. Some ideas: Giving, Mentoring, Showing, Leading, Providing, Helping, etc.
- Write the goals down some place where you can view them every day. For some, that might mean writing them on 3”x5” index cards that you can read through daily. Or you could create a vision board, where each goal is represented by a picture. If you like social media, perhaps you could create several Pinterest boards illustrating your goals. Not only will you have fun with these tasks, but the goals will become more real when you’ve spent time writing them down.
- Check off the goals as you achieve them. Celebrate the fact that you have accomplished something!
What’s the end game here? To find significance in your life. But don’t wait until it’s too late. Starting now gives you time to enjoy even more wonders in your life. If you’re interested in engaging your entire staff or department, consider a one-day workshop on Professional and/or Personal Development. We’d love to discuss the possibilities with you. Give us a call at (301) 670-0051 or send us an email at leadership@lmja.com.
Can You Advance Without Becoming a Workaholic?
Your boss spends at least one day out of the weekend in the office. Or your boss is on the job till 7 pm most nights. Does this make you think, “I have to do the same if I’m going to succeed!” Maybe not everyone thinks that way, but I sure did! One of my bosses was in the office every Saturday. And nearly every evening, he was there when I left. I started to think that this was what was expected of me. But I had a family, and kids still at home, I wasn’t sure this was really what I wanted to do.
I decided to mention it to my boss. I wove it into the conversation when we were talking about someone junior to me. He mentioned that he didn’t think this particular employee was dedicated to his job. So I asked him to tell me what he meant when he said “dedicated to his job.” Did he expect overtime? Working on weekends? To my surprise, and relief, he told me that he didn’t expect long hours, and certainly not weekend job responsibilities. He did those things because his family lived in another city and it was easy for him to spend long hours at work. Instead, he wanted to see passion in his employees. He said,“people who work for this company should have a real desire for their work, and demonstrate value.”
So what is expected of most employees? How do you get ahead, without dedicating your life to your organization? Here are some tips from career coaches.
Be engaged. If you are engaged, you’re part of the solution. How can you help? Your attitude shows through and more people want to be around you.
Be a person who takes action. Have you ever been in a meeting where someone keeps telling you, “it won’t work.” It drives you crazy, doesn’t it? Instead of saying it won’t work, try coming up with a solution. You take ownership. Demonstrate the creative problem solving skills you have.
Work smarter. Long hours don’t necessarily mean you are more productive. Take a minute to think through your project and see if there are overlapping areas that aren’t necessary. That’s what business process re-engineering is all about. Companies and organizations start fresh. They look at a process and determine what activity is no longer productive. Working smarter means planning your time more effectively.
Focus on relationships. Advancement rarely happens in a silo. Instead, managers what to know that the relationships you’ve built are solid. It’s important that people who work for you think highly of you. And in building relationships, you never know what gems of knowledge you’re going to uncover.
Take on new challenges. Do you hide from new projects? Instead of thinking of the work that new projects entail, think about how, if done right, that new project might just help you learn new skills – skills that will be important to the business as you move forward.
Think Big. Instead of being mired in the details, think about how you can achieve more. If you’re going through a checklist, you’re probably thinking of tasks. Look at the big picture instead, and come up with ideas that might grow the business.
When it comes right down to it, the one thing that separates successful people from others is the smart decisions they’ve made – not the hours they’ve spent on the job.
More successful employees result in a more productive organization. Does your organization need help with career development? Leah M. Joppy & Associates provides training at all levels. Give us a call at 301-670-0051 and let’s discuss your needs.
What are the top things that successful people do well?
Successful people tend to think big – looking at the entire picture instead of their particular role. Here’s what they do well.
- They stick to ethics. Whether you are dealing with fellow employees, learning the game of golf or downloading a report, stick to ethical behavior. People will appreciate your professionalism.
- They are social. The most successful people know how to draw out others. They know what questions to ask and what compliments to extend. In the end, they put people at ease. The result is that people want to interact with you.
- They invest in people. Whether it’s someone working for you, or a peer, investing in their future is as important as investing in yourself. Successful people often mentor or coach. They realize that when everyone around them is happier and more successful, they will be too.
More successful employees result in a more productive organization. Does your organization need help with career development? We provide training at all levels. Give us a call at 301-670-0051 and let’s discuss your needs.
Decision-Making Skills of Leaders
The decision-making skills of leaders is often puzzling. And lately, more of these leaders find themselves in the news – and not for good reasons. Perhaps you’ve heard about the CEO who raised a drug price 4,000 percent – now he’s under arrest. Or the Virginia governor who is now pleading his case with the Supreme Court. Obviously, being a leader doesn’t automatically guarantee good decision making.
So how do leaders learn to make better decisions? In this article published by Fast Company, the author points out that good decision making is critical during all stages of your career. Most experts will tell you that good decisions are the result of three factors – knowledge, a gut feeling and careful consideration. Some people seem to have a knack for making good decisions. In this article, Fast Company interviewed some well-known CEOs to find out what their decision-making process entails.
Larry Page and Sergey Brin, Founders of Google. Setting a realistic timeframe to make major decisions is important for this company. Decisions aren’t stalled and business moves forward.
Ursula Burns, CEO of Xerox. The first African-American woman to lead a company the size of Xerox takes into account the customer and innovation in her decision-making process. She asks, “what is the customer’s pain, and how can we use technology to solve the problem?”
Mark Parker, CEO of Nike. The research group at Nike is always looking at hundreds of new ideas. To make the right decision, Mark asks lots of questions so is team has to think thing through.
Dao Nguyen, Publisher of BuzzFeed. The company reaches 79 million people each month. To make decisions, Nguyen says she uses a combination of intuition, creativity and data – each of which are equally important.
Mark Zuckerberg, Founder of Facebook. Zuckerberg seems to move incrementally. Long term strategy is discussed and then broken up into smaller scale projects. His team credits his inquisitiveness, persistence, devotion and ability to deploy resources.
Malala Yousafzai, Founder of the Malala Fund. Yousafzai understands that she can’t know everything, so she asks questions. She has become an adept listener.
Most jobs come down to two factors: making decisions and executing on decisions. Your ability to make good decisions is key to your success. And sound decision making is a skill that can and should be developed, just like any other skill. In fact, your ability to succeed is dependent on the development of your decision-making skills.
Leah M. Joppy & Associates can help. We have multiple workshops that focus on building decision-making skills for leaders, teams and all employees.
5 Tips for Improving Your Decision-Making Skills
- Question Your Data. It’s OK to get data from another department or another colleague. But question what you are reading. Make sure you understand what the data is conveying. Then look at industry standards and research reports on the same information.
- Don’t Involve Your Emotions. When our emotions or egos get involved, we tend to make decisions for all the wrong reasons. Instead, put them aside. Focus on the facts and put the business need in the forefront.
- Don’t Delay your Decision. When a decision is big, we sometimes tend to delay our decision because it’s more difficult. Instead, put a block of time aside to do your research. Then consider the pros and cons of your decision.
- Understand The Consequences. As you come to your decision, consider the risks that can result. If the worst case scenario happens, what will be the outcome? If you know the possible outcomes, you may be able to mitigate the result. Thinking of them ahead of time will help you figure out possible solutions.
And what happens if the decision you make turns out to be wrong? First, don’t beat yourself up. Instead, review the decision-making process you employed and see if you can identify something that you missed. We’re not perfect, but if we can learn from our mistakes we can be wiser.
Happier Work Life
Going into the New Year we hear a lot of talk about getting in shape, eating healthily and making sure we exercise daily. Certainly that’s all well and good – especially after our indulgences of the holiday season. But maybe even more important is our mental well-being.
We are often defined by our work. Our work gives us structure and purpose. But what happens when you are sick of your job? Should you quit? While there comes a time when a job change is what we need, very often the fact that we are unhappy at work is the result of our own neglect. Perhaps it’s the routine of going to work every day. Or maybe it has to do with your long standing devotion to the work you do. It’s hard sometimes to shake the feeling of inadequate fulfillment at work.
What can we do? While there are all kinds of ways that you can make your job more interesting, or your attitude more positive (see our Tips for Being Happier at Work), our quest this month is to make that happier attitude a constant in your life.
Two things that are discussed frequently when it comes to work life satisfaction, include:
- Focusing on learning opportunities, and
- Reaching an intense state of focus.
According to a recent article by Fast Company, to achieve real happiness at work, we should focus on what we are learning in our job and building on that set of skills. There are a lot of ways we can go about building our knowledge base.
Research. Fortunately, we live in the internet era. You can find information online about any subject. Stick to known and reputable sites and you’ll likely find lots of information on the skill you are trying to build. And don’t forget to check out podcasts and videos. It’s amazing how much and how fast we can learn about a particular skill by listening to someone, rather than reading and re-reading articles and white papers.
Colleagues. Chances are, there’s someone in your business or association that has the skills you are interested in. Seek out mentors, colleagues and friends. Ask them to give you feedback and point you in the right direction. Having a few conversations can really help you hone in on the areas of development – and in the process, all that talk makes you more excited to learn.
Resources. There are lots of outside resources where you can take a seminar or workshop on a particular subject. These resources aggregate a lot on information, helping you make greater strides in a shorter amount of time.
The second tip for creating a happier work environment comes from a study done by the University of Chicago. The study examined peak performance and found that when individuals were able to reach an intense state of focus (often called “flow”) that they became completely engrossed in a project and free of external distractions.
The benefits of focus. This intense state of focus leads to a kind of euphoria – a mastery of the subject, if you will. The result is happiness, productivity and a new sense of learning. So how do we reach this intense state of focus?
Organization. The key to focus seems to be organizing your tasks and priorities with clear goals in mind that are reachable. As you meet and exceed these goals, focus increases, along with our confidence level. And as our confidence increases, so does our enjoyment of our work. We’ll even put more stress on ourselves to learn more, so desirable is this state.
Continuous enjoyment. There is evidence that we can continue this state of euphoria and focus by setting clear goals every day. Writing down our tasks, setting priorities and accomplishing these tasks are important to our enjoyment and focus.
If you or your organization needs help in the New Year with Individual Development Plans, give us a call. An IDP is critical and fast becoming mandatory in Federal Government for all employees. An IDP is a road map of mostly career goals (some personal goals) and contains a step-by step-action plan to achievement. Give LMJA a call at 301-670-0051, or email me at Leadership@lmja.com. Let’s put some time aside to discuss your needs.