Lead Artfully

Author: LeadArtfully

  • What makes a good leader?

    What makes a good leader?

    So, what does make for a good leader?  Each of us must ask this question if we lead a team, aspire to be in a management role, or run a business.  It surely must be more than personal traits or physical strength, as no two leaders are the same.  And our concept of a good leader has evolved over the last hundred, fifty, or event twenty years, as society has changed.  “What makes for a good leader”, in the twenty-first century differs from the twentieth century.  And it might surprise you it actually relates to management.

     

    What do you spend your time managing?

    The old-school company hierarchy put bosses at the top of the pyramid and workers at the bottom.  A hang-over from the industrial revolution, leadership was about directing workers to build widgets, weave fabric, type documents, and maintain output to certain levels.  You managed output by managing people.

    These days we are all a lot more educated, and our jobs are generally more skilled.  Automation and artificial intelligence have replaced or are replacing the menial production-line tasks.  When hiring experienced and skilled staff into a role, the best way to drive them away is micro-managing them.

    Ronald Reagan once said, “The greatest leader is not necessarily the one who does the greatest things. He is the one that gets the people to do the greatest things.”

    A good leader today manages things, not people.

     

    Leading people and managing things

    Simon Sinek says, “a good leader makes people feel safe”.

    In other words, today’s great leaders care for their team and take care of their needs.  These needs become the “things” they need to manage.  They communicate the vision, articulating the requirements.  But they also trust the individuals to achieve the required tasks.  For that, a good leader needs compassion, empathy, great communication skills, and a mindset focused on being present with the team.   If a leader trusts the team, the team will trust the leader.

     

     

    Also, see our related articles:

    Servant leadership and how organisations benefit, located here.

    Building trust with remote teams, located here.

    The differences between leadership and management, located here.

  • What to do when everything becomes urgent?

    What to do when everything becomes urgent?

    When work becomes constant firefighting

    There are things we can do to protect our teams against urgencies.  The behaviours we model and the culture we encourage has a lot to play in this.  Who does not like the thrill of fixing a new problem, or offering up some intoxicatingly innovative new solution to a client or our bosses?  That hit of dopamine we all get from putting out fires.  How many of us have called the team in to reward some heroic act of last-minute action to resolve a problem?  Thanked for dragging that proverbial cat back safely from the flames?  These behaviours do nothing but celebrate and reinforce urgent, selfless, reactive actions.  Sure, urgencies happen in every job.  But what to do when everything becomes urgent?

    Naturally, we should recognise it when our teams go above and beyond.  But when we only reward responses to urgent tasks, it should be no surprise that everything becomes urgent. That is where our focus is.  As leader you have a choice to lay off the self-induced dopamine hits.

     

    When the flames of urgency remain uncontrolled

    So, when this occurs, we naturally see less focus on planned and proactive work that ultimately would make the team or company function better.  When everything becomes urgent, and firefighting becomes the norm, your credibility suffers.   Your team grows weary of the constant fire fights.  If you do not learn from this, you may soon find yourself needing to look for a new role.  And what well run organisation needs a firefighter, especially one who fans or lights fires?  Subsequently, you would likely find yourself in another firefighter role, in an organisation where everything is urgent.  This situation is both stressful, and extremely career limiting.

     

    So, what to do when everything becomes urgent?

    1. Assign reasonable timeframes and due dates on activities.
    2. Start rewarding behaviours that lead to fire protection, rather than just firefighting.
    3. Prioritise planned work, and factor in time for surprises. Well-run projects always include something for contingencies.
    4. Encourage innovative ideas but be careful not to create new urgencies. New ideas still need to follow the first three steps.
    5. Recognise that you as leader may be the source of some urgencies, when in fact it is your role to help your team identify and work on urgent, and proactive efforts. Not create fires!
  • Building trust with remote teams

    Building trust with remote teams

    Remote working is far more commonplace today than ever before.  But there are new challenges for us as social beings when it comes to physical separation.   In this article we provide advice on how building trust with remote teams is critical, but does not need to be difficult.

     

    The relationship chasm

    Things we took for granted by being in a shared workspace, and being able to see and hear our colleagues throughout our day, can create a chasm between us when we are all physically distant. Casual greetings, water cooler conversations, posture, and body language, all become lost opportunities for us to communicate in unplanned and unstructured ways.   But the technology is available to support remote working like never before.  It enables us to continue on with a level of structure to our day.  But without some form of unstructured interplay, it is a lot harder for each of us to understand how our remote teammates are faring.

    In addition to communication gaps, lack of trust with remote teams or workers is the other reason remote teams fail.  When a team has trust they operate understanding they are all in “it” together.  A communication issue or gap is more quickly overcome as people look for ways to help each other.  When trust is low, communication gaps increase as people stop talking.  They withhold information.   Likewise, jealousy and dislike between teammates creep in.  In extreme cases behaviours like schadenfreude, or individuals taking pleasure at another’s misfortune, appears.

     

    Building trust with remote teams

    For a team to succeed and thrive when remotely situated, their manager must have the right mix of attitude and aptitude, combined with applications.   Attitude refers to the leader’s mindset and belief that the remote team can succeed and can trust each another.  Aptitude refers to management and leadership skills required to observe objectively, and support and influence others.  Application refers to the ability to apply the right tools and methods to support teamwork, reducing the impact of any relationship chasm caused by distance.

    Having a trusting attitude

    1. Be likeable.  A warm and consistent approach is important, even when under pressure.
    2. Care for your people.  And let them know you have their back, and they will begin to trust you.
    3. Be positive and celebrate successes.  Remember to say thank you, even for the small stuff.

     

    Having an aptitude for trust

    1. Be reliable.  Stay on top of things and do what say you when you say you will do it.   There is a thin line between an unreliable leader, and an untrusted one.
    2. A leader’s role is to help their team succeed.   So do not try to control everything.  Empower your team to make decisions and be creative.  Share power to grow trust.
    3. Create feedback loops – create ways for individual team members to work together on issues or opportunities and give you updates.  Check-ins are okay, but not to simply check up!   Checking-in builds trust and remind teams you are there to help, but simply checking-up diminishes trust.

    Applications to build and maintain relationships

    1. Over communicate! Well almost.  Use instant messaging often, provide regular email updates, or do daily stand-ups to keep your team engaged and informed.  When you are all no longer in the same building, find ways to compensate.
    2. Work online together but not always in a structured meeting format. Use webcams and microphones just to feel connected.  Encourage others to do this for a time every day.
    3. Have informal one-on-ones with your team over video-conferencing.  Try and spend at least the first 5-10 minutes not discussing work so you can both learn more about each other as people.

     

    Want to learn more about teamwork and collaboration?  See our related article here.

  • Leading in emotional situations

    Leading in emotional situations

    We have all been there.  Someone has triggered an emotional response from you that you almost immediately regret.  That means you are human.  But leading well in emotionally charged situations takes effort.  Understanding what will likely trigger such a reactive from you, and then giving yourself space to choose how to respond takes thought and practice.  Depending on how we are leading in emotional situations effects our leadership credibility.  Poor, angry, or blunt responses can trigger mistrust, fear, or even loathing of you, from those on the receiving end.

     

    Identifying your triggers

    How would your team describe you in moments of stress or if things get dicey?  What about when things are going well?  Their experience and perception of you can give you invaluable insights into triggers you need to be aware of.  Self-regulating your emotions is a critical part of emotional maturity.   Have you ever, in a moment of success, said something that you instantly regretted?  A callous or seemingly arrogant statement that instantly diminishes your credibility?  Or likewise, in a moment of stress when your team is trying to solve a problem, blurting out a harsh command or counter-productive reminder of urgency that only serves to add to their stress-levels?  I sure have.  With a bit more self-control in those moments, I know I could have used those opportunities to better role model my own values.

    As leader it is important to role model your core values through consistent, calm, and thoughtful behaviours.  To use the boat analogy so commonly applied in leadership, your team relies on you to know the direction you are all heading.   Therefore, a steady hand on the tiller (or till!) is one of your primary roles.

    So, first be proactive.  Identify the common themes that are likely to trigger an emotional reaction or response from you.  Ask your team, partner, or family.  Reflect on past actions you have taken that later you either had to apologise for, regret, or wish you could reframe better.

    Want to learn more about how to identify your drivers?  Check out our article on critical thinking.

     

    Choosing how to react

    You are sailing through your day and the afore-mentioned boat hits a rogue wave.  Also known as your trigger.  Your anger, ego, or nerves churn.  It is easy to forget that you actually have a choice in how to react.  But you do have a choice.  In the moment between the wave hitting and you reacting, there is that moment.   In it, you have the power to choose your response.  Take a breath to stop, think, and evaluate the emotion.  This is the key to self-control for leading in emotional situations.  If you need more time to think of a response that better aligns to your values, take it.  Stay calm, at least outwardly if you can.  Disengage from the conversation by doing whatever activity allows you to take more than a moment.  Take a walk or excuse yourself and go into another room.   If you need to, write down your initial response and re-read it to yourself.  Even send it to yourself and check whether it is reflective of your values and how you want to lead by example.

     

    Other people’s emotions

    We often face people that highly emotional and seek to illicit a response from you immediately.  But not every conversation warrants an immediate response.  Do not to get sucked in.  Sometimes a calm response acknowledging the situation is enough.  If an emotional reaction it is out of character for them, it is also good to ask simply and calmly, “are you okay?”, and just be a good listener.  If the situation warrants a response or decision from you, and you need more time, tell them that you will think about it and let them know soon.  But give yourself the space you need.

     

    Leading in emotional situations:

    1. Proactively learn to identify what triggers you emotionally, leading to counter-productive responses.
    2. Think about your core values, and the types of behaviours you want to role model.
    3. Develop strategies that gives you the space to respond in emotional situations, that support your values enabling you to lead by example.
    4. Do not let the emotional triggers of others suck you in. Be purposeful in choosing how and when you will respond.
  • How to have difficult conversations

    How to have difficult conversations

    How do you hold difficult conversations at work without creating a bigger mess or damaging staff relationships? This article holds our top tips if you are struggling with not just how to “handle” these conversations but use them to lead more effectively. Like most things worthwhile, the more you do it the easier it gets to achieve positive outcomes.

    The ability to have difficult conversations at work that lead to positive outcomes is one of the most important elements of leadership. How these situations are handled can lead to anything from transformational results to complete disasters. Unfortunately, the sad truth is that tackling difficult conversations is far too often avoided.

    How to hold difficult conversations

    Step 1: Identify your motive.

    So, what is the core issue and what are you seeking to achieve?  Why do you need to have a difficult conversation? Who will benefit?   If you are the sole beneficiary of the conversation, then the chances are it is ego driven.  You need to stop and re-think having it at all. 

    However, when your intention is to resolve a behavior, work, or performance issue, then it should be easier to identify what you are trying to achieve.  Always try and find the positives!  That way you can re-frame the conversation from a “difficult” one, to a “coaching” one.

    Coaching staff

    Step 2.  Plan, but do not procrastinate.

    Plan out how you will have the conversation, but do not this as an excuse to delay or defer it. In fact, prioritise to have it as soon as possible. Problems left unattended grow. “Difficult” becomes a lot easier if you plan it out in advance.  In planning, role play is a good way to prepare, and in your prep consider bouncing it off someone else first.  This is best done with someone not closely involved and who can keep confidences. Change the names of those involved if necessary.  During the role play process think about excuses, reasons, or likely questions and how you are best to respond.

    Finding the right space

    Step 3.  Pick the right time and location.

    This might sound like a no-brainer, but privacy is key. Having it in the middle of an open plan office space may not be the most prudent choice.  Show respect for the individual.  Use a private office, or quiet space away from prying eyes.  If they are a remote worker, ask them when they will have a moment alone for a private conversation.

    How to hold difficult conversations

    Step 4. Have the conversation!

    Now you have planned out the conversation to at least some level, and have their attention in the right setting, here is some guidance to help you have an effective coaching session:

    Stick to the issue and never make it personal.  Use simple language, stick to the facts, and give clear examples.

    Be honest.  In many situations it is okay to show some vulnerability to break the ice.  Use phrases like “This is really difficult for me to raise with you, but I feel I owe it to you”, “I feel uncomfortable raising this, but I must…”, or, “Please forgive me if this comes across as harsh, as it is not my intention…”

    Empathise by listening and getting their perspective.  Always treat others how you would like to be treated if the situation were reversed.

    Try to disarm defensive or angry reactions.  No one likes to feel like they are being criticised so try and stay positive!  For example, phrases like “I need your help to understand…”, or “take a deep breath, and explain what you think is going on…” can be an effective way to disarm negative reactions. 

    Call-out passive-aggressive behavior.  Staff who are passive aggressive can be highly destructive to workplace morale and productivity. If you believe they are deliberately avoiding requests, gossiping, or not engaging with you fully then give clear examples.  Do not accept excuses but instead ask why they feel the need to act this way.

    Keep confidences. Often these discussions lead to personal details that you may not have been aware of.  Disclosing these to others can instantly lose trust.

    Let them know your perspective, or the perspective of others.  How they see the issue may be different to how others perceive it.  As a leader, it is your job to provide these insights.

    Be open to new information.  The issue may in fact be not as it seems on the surface, so when faced with new information that changes your viewpoint do not be afraid to say so.  Also, if you need to go away assess new information, tell them.  You do not have to make decisions right away.

    Ending them with positive next steps reframes the narrative.  Also, afterward I always summarise the discussion in a private email to them, to capture the key issue and steps required by the staff member.

    Further recommended reading:

    Difficult Conversations: How to discuss what matters most – By D Stone, B Patton, and S Heen
  • What is servant leadership and how do organisations benefit?

    What is servant leadership and how do organisations benefit?

    Servant leaders are revolutionising the art of leadership and the running of organisations.  So what is servant leadership and how can organisations benefit?

    The role of a leader has been traditionally associated with authority, assertiveness and power.  A leader is often perceived as someone who hands down tasks, assigns roles and chastises failure.  This perception is not wrong.  Many leaders possess authoritarian personalities and tell other employees what to do and how to do it.  A workplace may become silent, or staff experience a sense of unease at the prospect of a meeting with the head, for example.

    Servant leadership turns this form of outdated thinking on its head.

    What Is Servant Leadership?

    The term ‘servant leadership’ is not new; it was coined in 1970 by Robert K. Greenleaf. In his famous essay, ‘The Servant as the Leader’, the underlying concept is that the leader serves the people they lead. This is radically different from the traditional leader who wants to lead through power and control over others.

    Servant-first and leader-first are two extremes of a continuum where most people fall somewhere in between.  An individual who practices servant leadership focuses on the growth and well-being of their people.  In this case, the employees are at the top of the workplace hierarchy, and the leader willingly occupies the bottom.

    What do Servant-Leadership qualities look like?

    The serve-first mindset motivates servant-leaders to empower their employees instead of brandishing a do-it-or-else approach.  Their primary purpose is not to enforce power, but to unleash the teams creativity and potential.  By doing so, servant-leaders produce positive, lasting results in terms of employee morale, engagement, and retention.  Positive company culture is born, and all these factors ensure that productivity hits an all-time high.  At the same time, the bottom line gets boosted on its own, without negative tactics, aggression or stressful ultimatums.

    Good leadership qualities that reinforce this typically result in performance growth that only gets better.  Most traditional business leaders are positional managers; they oversee transactions that are often conceived and executed by their staff.  Such leaders derive their authority solely from the fact they are the bosses.

    But servant leadership moves beyond the traditional model and does not depend on a sense of entitlement.  Servant-leaders support and encourage staff.   Furthermore, they seek to align the team’s purpose with the company values and mission.

    Driven and motivated staff perform at high levels, feel appreciated, and continue to develop as future leaders.  Moreover, observation and emulation train them to adopt the same leadership behaviours, in turn.  So in addition to producing exceptional results, servant-leadership sets a positive cycle that self-perpetuates.   In this way, servant leadership benefits the organisation.

     

    Servant Leadership Characteristics

    We have seen that the concept of servant-leadership involves letting your ambitions and needs to take a backseat and moving away from autocratic leadership models.   But a good servant leader knows when to find strength in the guidance and feedback from their team.

    It’s not necessary to become best friends with your employees in order to empower them in the right way.  You just need to connect and develop your staff in a safe and supportive way.

    So how do you practice effective servant leadership skills?

    1. Start with on-boarding

    Once new employees have been welcomed and familiarised with their duties, the servant-leader connects with the individual one-on-one.   Next, ask them about first-impressions and their opinions.   This will introduce them to the concept of serving others right at the beginning.

    2. Listen attentively

    Pay attention to your team and listen to what they’re saying.  Seek their feedback proactively and ask for their ideas and opinions.  By observing and listening carefully, you become aware of their strengths and weakness and can adapt your leadership approach to serving them better.

    Influential leaders spend at least 25% of their time developing future leaders.

    3. Give credit where it is due

    Did someone come forward with a fabulous idea to save money or time?   If so, give them their due by praising them (if possible, in front of their peers).   Also, refrain from hogging the limelight and stealing credit.

    4. Make meetings more collaborative

    Do you find yourself talking the most during meetings? If so, control your urge to interupt.  Encourage every member to offer their ideas.

    To Learn more about running effective meetings, see our related article here] .

    5. Accept feedback gracefully

    Conduct anonymous surveys and process negative feedback calmly.   This grows an appreciative culture where employees feel empowered to voice their opinions.  Complaints are reviewed without the fear of reprisals.

    Servant leadership and how organisations benefit

    By practising servant-leadership and serving your team, you can build a better and happier business with a boosted bottom line.   As a result, Servant-leadership is a winning formula that challenges traditional autocratic leadership styles and nurtures a more democratic workplace environment.  Now that is leading artfully!

    Recommended reading:

  • How do you improve team collaboration?

    How do you improve team collaboration?

    The need to work with others  is a given in any job, right?  Even in roles where there are set activities, these contribute to the whole.   A greater level of collaboration is required when these activities change, or need special focus.  But how do you improve team collaboration?  Great collaboration skills require the ability to get on with others, clear communication, and jointly owning goals and responsibility.  

    Moreover, today it often needs to take place in a variety of settings, ranging from an office or workshop to a virtual team connected remotely.  A group works cohesively, combining and contributing each member’s strengths for the overall benefit of a goal. Examples of collaboration are an artist, a photographer, an editor, and a designer working to create the cover of a publication.  Likewise, a group of sales, technical, and customers may need to come together to identify the cause of a problem, and suitable solutions.

    Why collaboration is important?

     

    1. It helps find better solutions.

    The people affected by a problem need to be heard. By bringing everyone affected together, full perspective can be found. There are great benefits in having people collaborating on projects from their outset. With collaboration, problems are easier to foresee, identify, and solve.

     

    2. It brings people together and makes organizations more cohesive.

    Avoid situations where certain members of your organization rarely interact with others and departments and work in isolated silos. When such situations exist then collaboration, when needed, is harder to achieve.

     

    3. People learn from each other.

    When give a chance to work together, people bring different skills and experience to the task and everyone involved learns from each other. Collaborating is a learning experience, and you benefit from this in subtle ways.  It teaches those in your organisation how each area functions and contributes.

    4. It improves morale.

    When teams and departments collaborate, people learn to trust each other more, and this improves the morale of the entire organization. When there is a lack of trust and low morale, success is unlikely. This leads to poorer work cultures, strategy that is more difficult to execute, and lower staff retention.

    5. It improves the culture

    Collaboration implies a far better workplace environment.  That is a becoming far more  important to employees.   Also, it is a pre-requesite to attract the best and brightest new recruits.

    6. It improves efficiency.

    There are times when working independently suits a situation.  But collaboration is more efficient for complex and demanding jobs.  Sharing knowledge builds sustainability in your workforce reducing risk.  Cross-skilling and diversity of thought leads to finding new ways to improve efficiency.  After-all, no one person is brighter than all of us! 

    Improving collaboration 

    So if your staff struggles with this, how do you improve team collaboration?  First, let’s look at the skills required.  Then, we’ll look at some recommended steps to lead the collaboration efforts.

    Key skills required

    Because team collaboration is now more important than ever, here are 5 key skills worth working on.  Note, these all work to build trust across a group.

    1. The ability to practice good, open communication.
    2. The ability to achieve consensus. Accept when a good idea, is a good idea, regardless of the source.
    3. The ability to put group goals above personal gain.  Learn to identify and park the ego.
    4. Empathy. Building relationships and working well with others requires understanding other people’s perspectives.
    5. Recognising and admiting errors or mistakes.

     

    Steps to a more collaborative work culture

    Finally, as a leader you must take a lead in nurturing collaboration. 

    1. Find opportunities requiring staff collaboration.  Change things up, seek out opportunities to get teams thinking across groups.  Repeat problems or solving customer complaints are a great way to turn negatives into positives!  Treat them as staff development opportunities.
    2. Practice communicating your goals, or defining problems that needs solving, with your team. Ask for feedback if people seem confused or can’t repeat back clearly what it is you need them to achieve.
    3. Be clear in your own mind as to the mission and strategy of your organization, and the part your team plays in this. From that, all work should be easier to prioritise.
    4. Develop and encourage empathy. Try and sense when your people are uncomfortable, angry, or defensive.  Get others to think this way too if they have interpersonal conflicts.  Tip: Check out our article on body language, here.
    5. Deliberately place your people into other departments for short periods, so that they can see how the organization as a whole work and how they can assist.
    6. Coach your staff to help them collaborate better, share and learn from each other.
    7. Reinforce to those that you lead what the mission of your organization, what’s important, and why.
    8. Provide as much training as possible, to teach staff how to use collaborative tools like Slack, Trello, Google docs, Microsoft Teams, and Zoom. In a post-Covid world, where work offsite will be far more common and important, this is essential.

    Recommended reading:

    Mastering Collaboration: Make Working Together Less Painful and More Productive – Gretchen Anderson

    How to Lead Effective Collaboration with Agile Teams – Marsha Aker

  • Why is critical thinking important?

    Why is critical thinking important?

    Critical thinking is a crucial skill for all leaders because it is the analysis of facts to form a judgment.  Often, when the subject is complex, evaluating evidence in an unbiased way is required. Critical thinking is self-directed, self-disciplined, self-monitored, and self-corrective thinking.  So, why is critical thinking important?  When leaders rely on assumptions, they are really putting their fate in the hands of luck. Instead, when using critical thinking when confronted with a problem, decisions are logical and well thought out.  Facts and evidence are that basis for decisions, rather than anecdote, supposition, and superstition.

    People who think critically are:

    1. Curious and open to new ideas.
    2. Sceptical, they question what they are told.
    3. Humble, and prepared to admit wrong when confronted with evidence to the contrary.

     

    Examples of critical thinking

    Every day most people make thousands of decisions.  While most of these do not require much critical thinking, some will.

    For example, imagine if two patients front a doctor with the same symptoms but vastly different medical histories.  Just repeating two diagnosis and treatments without careful analysis could put a patient’s life at risk.  Serious repercussions can result if prescribed medications conflict with a pre-existing condition.  Such decisions can have life and death consequences.

    Of course, critical thinking goes beyond the medical profession.  In leadership, managers contend with problems and opinions daily.  While not all have life or death consequences, they can mean the difference between success or failure.  Efficiency or inefficiency.  The ability to test opinions and probe issues well help teams identify and resolve problems more effectively.  This leads to better outcomes, improving productivity, staff morale, and customer service.

     

    Critical thinking vs mindless thinking

    Depending on whether you think critically or otherwise often makes the difference success and failure.  The human brain, although an extraordinary often tries to simplify problems by reflex. Prejudices, assumptions, rumour, fake information, and all sorts of other distortions can influence us.  Past experiences can be a great source of information, but can also lead us to incorrect assumptions without some analysis being done.   It is easy to feel rushed into decisions when under pressure.  That is where mindless thinking, or overly relying on assumptions, can lead us down a rabbit hole.  Critical thinking aims to be an antidote for this.

    Critical Thinking:

    – Is domain general. It applies to almost any situation.

    – Leads to better decision making.

    – Is vital for careers advancement.

    – Leads to greater happiness through solving problems more effectively.

    – Improves creativity by thinking outside the box.

    – Helps interpersonal relationships by being balanced, fair, and curious.

    – Leads to being a better and more informed individual.

     

    Critical thinking and work

    There is evidence that past education policies have worked against the this skill, so necessary in professional work environments.

    Critical thinking skills are domain-general because no matter what profession you are in, there are always problems.  When you think critically, you analyse the facts of a problem.  This means gathering relevant information, asking sensible questions, and going through possible solutions.   The process teaches you to test assumptions.

    If someone thinks critically then they are objective.  Solutions to problems are found without preconceived biases, emotions, or unchecked opinions.  Instead, critical thinking only analyses problems on the basis of context and facts.  These skills are desperately needed at every career level.  Good critical thinkers can work independently and collaboratively in finding solutions to problems.

     

    Critical thinking and management

    Individuals in leadership roles who apply critical thinking are far more useful to their enterprise.  A leader who thinks critically constantly reflects and tries to understand his or her organisation and how its parts synchronise.

    A critical thinker sees the big picture.  They distinguish between short-term gains and long-term success and their leadership reflects this.  They come across as curious, fair, and non-judgemental.

     

    The critical thinking process

    The following points highlight useful critical thinking steps, when applied to a problem:

    1. Define the problem accurately.  This requires observation.
    2. Determine how the problem arose and options for resolving.  This requires an open mind, reflective thinking, and good communication.
    3. Capture relevant facts and data pertaining to the issue.  An open mind and an unbiased approach to this gathering is vital.
    4. Analyze the information carefully and in an unbiased way, looking for patterns.
    5. Work through proposed solutions; again, with an open, inquiring mind.
    6. Test solutions through the process of elimination and seeking advice from others.
    1. Improve solutions where possible. Then retest them for any assumptions.
    2. Lastly, once the solution is found, reflection helps with learning.  Consider if there are any lessons to prevent recurrence or improve decision making next time around.

    Finally, the critical thinking process helps you hone the following skills:

    1. Keeping an open mind.
    2. Honest observation
    3. A questioning attitude.
    4. An interest in facts and analysis
    5. The ability to problem-solve.
    6. The drawing of deductions and inferences.

     

    What about gut instinct?

    The topic of gut instinct is very important and is covered in more detail here.  Never ignore your gut instinct, but use critical thinking to test what it is telling you.  Gut feel is a valuable tool in identifying potential misinformation, misdirection, or bad decisions!

     

    10 steps to improve critical thinking

    Lastly, to improve your critical thinking skills:

    1. Practice your questioning techniques and use them frequently. For example, when asking someone a question and they answer, ask why they think that?  Asking why a key place is to start in really understanding a situation.
    2. Know yourself and your biases. For more information, see our article on unconscious bias.
    3. Learn to gather data. Where might you glean specific information relating to particular problems or scenarios?
    4. Identify how to deduce information and possible root causes. Are there any trends?  Patterns?
    5. Learn the skill of analysing consequences. For example, Why was it done that way in the first place? If we change a step what will or won’t happen?  Is it important?
    6. Keep asking questions if something does not “feel right”. Test assumptions.
    7. Be empathetic. Put yourself in the shoes of others. 
    8. Solve some simple problems first.
    9. Reflect on past decisions and outcomes and treat them as learning and improvement opportunities.
    10. Do not be too hard on yourself.  After-all, mistakes are the best teachers and good critical thinking skills take time and practice.

    Recommended reading:

    Guide to Critical Thinking Concepts & Tools – By R Paul

    The Practice of Adaptive Leadership – By R A Heifetz 

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    Free personality test

    First, lead yourself

    Have you ever heard the phrase, “you can’t lead people until you can lead yourself”?   Understanding our own style, working preferences, and weakenesses, is key if we want to engage and communicate with others more effectively.   By taking our free personality test, you will gain better insights on how you come across to others.

    Discover your personality super powers!

    We are of course each richly unique.  This assessment identifies your preferences and identifies which, among 16 key personality architypes, fit you best based on your answers.   Each personality type is identifed by how you fit on four scales.  There are of course no right and wrong answers, no good or bad results – just intersting insights into how you operate!   These scales help identify how we each gain energy (socially or internally), communicate, interpret information and make decisions, and perceive the external world around us.   You can then use these insights to play to your strengths to overcome any potential weakenesses in certain situations.

    Personality assessments for your entire team!

    Make it fun!  As we provide this personality test freely, you are welcome to share the link with members in your team.   This is a great team building tool, if you then run workshops to each share your results openly.   The power lies in better understanding each other, so why not include your entire team so they can all learn how to better understand and collaborate with each other.

    Why it is important

    1. By increasing awareness of your personality type, you can develop a better sense of your tendencies and play to your strengths.

    2. It can help you identify how you relate to, and are perceived by others, better enabling you to adapt your style in different situations.

    Note: To learn more about self-awareness, please see our related article here.

    Taking the test

    When you are ready, click the link below to start the test.  The test takes about 5-8 minutes to answer 32 simply questions about your preferences.  You will then receive your own private and personalised assessment results in PDF, specific to yourself.

    Each question has two opposing personality choices at two sides of a five-point scale. For each item you must select an interval on this scale that best reflects your personality or approach; from all of one, to a mix of the two, to all of the other.

     

    For example, if the question was;

    1. I like to…      walk. O  O  O  O  O drive.

    If you like to do both equally, you’d click on the middle point of the scale,

    e.g.      walk. O  O  X  O  O drive.

    Or if you only like to drive, you would click on the point closest to the word drive,

    e.g       walk. O  O  O  O  X drive.

    Or if you prefer to drive but occasionally walk, you could select the second point closest to the word drive,

    e.g.       walk. O  O  O  X  O drive.

    etc.

    Please tilt your phone
    CLICK HERE TO START
  • How to identify workplace bullying

    How to identify workplace bullying

    In order to understand how to identify workplace bullying, let’s start with a quick definition.  Bullying is a negative interaction between people that usually results from a power imbalance.  It is Bullying if this behaviour is repeated.  Both bullies and their victims can have serious and lasting psychological problems.  For those who are the subject of bullying, the impacts on their life and wellbeing can be serious.  In extreme cases it can even lead to suicide.

    Bullying includes unpleasant actions such as threats, spreading rumours, isolation or exclusion from someone or something; or verbal, emotional, or physically attacking someone.  Most people encounter bullying at school, either as a victim, a bully themselves, or both.  However, it is most commonly experienced by adults in the workplace.

     

    What is workplace bullying?

    Workplace bullying occurs at work as verbal, physical, social, or psychological abuse.  While it involves a power imbalance between the victim and perpetrator, the bully is not always the victim’s boss.  A manager may have positional power over an individual, but a workplace bulling can also be the victims peer, colleague, or even a regular customer.  Also, the boss can be bullied by the people they lead!  Individuals hold power over others in different ways.  This can be through physical strength, social dominance, perceived seniority, or skills and knowledge.  Workplace bullying can occur in any workplaces involving human interaction.  Retail, hospitality, factories, workshops, building sites, hospitals, schools, and offices, no environment is immune.   Volunteers, work experience people, apprentices, interns, casual and permanent employees can all be the victims of bullying.

     

    When is not workplace bullying?

    There are also examples where poor performers claim victimisation, when in fact they are the ones letting the team down.  This is where a manager needs to keep recorded records and also be mindful that what they are expecting is fair from an individual.   Setting goals and deadlines for people, rostering staff on/off, and other operational decisions is not bulling if it is fair, realistic, and appropriate for a persons role and experience.  Similarly, informing a worker about unsatisfactory performance in an honest, fair and constructive way is not bullying if you remain professional, calm, and stick to the facts.  This is no different with taking disciplinary action when necessary, it needs to be appropriate, justified, and adhere to a fair process.

     

    What are the effects of bullying?

    Bullying is a serious problem impacting teams and individuals everywhere.  Not only does it cause to serious impacts to the health and wellbeing of victims, but it impacts an employers obligations for providing a safe workplace.  Most countries include it in health and safety laws as a safeguard.  Boards of directors are accountable for protecting staff wellbeing, with managers sharing the responsibility.   So, while the cause of workplace bullying is not always a manager, it is their responsibility to identify it and act to protect their staff.

    Physical symptoms of someone who may be being bullied, include:

    • Sudden changes in demeanour or behaviour
    • Depression and anxiety
    • Type of condition caused by stress (such as high blood pressure, panic attacks, insomnia)
    • Digestive problems, including ulcers, resulting from ongoing persecution
    • Shingles, psoriasis, and other skin conditions

    A bullied worker is unable to perform their jobs nearly as well as if there were no bullying. Reasons include:

    • The health reasons enumerated above and others
    • An inability to concentrate
    • Loss of confidence or self-esteem
    • Feelings of shame and embarrassment
    • Fear and hopelessness
    • A sense of isolation and betrayal
    • Need to defend themselves
    • Avoidance of work that involves the bully.

    Also, witnesses to bullying are also affected.

    Workplace bullying affects employers, not only victims. Harmful by-products of this destructive practice include:

    • The work environment is described as toxic, where aggression, fear, blame, and suspicion are common.
    • Wider impacts to other staff who witness bullying behaviour[5].
    • A reduction in productivity.
    • Much higher rates of absenteeism
    • Compensation claims and legal issues​ resulting from breaches in health and safety laws.
    • Damage to an organisations reputation.

     

    How can you identify bullying at work?

    A critical skill in identifying workplace bullying is learning how to read the signs in others.  Often victims will not want to put a target on their back by reporting a bully.

    Can you spot when vitimisation is occuring?  Here are some signs:

    • Their fellow workers seem to shut them out and ignore them.
    • The team exludes individuals from social events, such as morning breaks, lunches, and after work gatherings.
    • Their manager checks on them repeatedly without a seeming reason.
    • Assignment of new tasks occur without proper training or help, even when requested.
    • Their work is so frequently checked and they start to lose their confidence.
    • Unfair criticizm occurs regularly.
    • Individuals are more commonly the target of jests or practical jokes.
    • There is a pattern of documents, files, tools, or their personal belongings going missing.

    Staff bully the manager by:

    • Frequently showing disrespect and even contempt to their manager.
    • Refusing to do what is asked.
    • Spreading rumours about their manager.
    • Withholding key information and/or deliberately making their manager seem incompetent.

    Someone’s body language can tell us a lot more about how someone is really feeling.  For more information, check out our related article here.

     

     How can you tell if you’re a workplace bully?

    How do know if you are a bully? Some signs:

    • You repeatedly upset people around you. Do most people take offence at what you say and do, do they complain about your behaviour, do they express distaste, displeasure even disgust at your actions? If this happens, a red flag has been raised. You should take this very seriously.
    • Do you lack empathy? This means putting yourself in other’s shoes and feeling what they feel. Do you care? You should.
    • Are you aggressive? Aggression is usually a very negative emotion. There are some situations, such as in sport or the military, where aggression is vitally needed but usually not in the workplace.
    • Do you gossip? A spreader of malicious rumours? Bullies often do this.
    • Are you happiest around insecure people? Those who will follow you blindly and those who will be your victims.
    • When someone else fails at some work task or goal, do you feel relieved or happy?
    • Is it common for you to use your position to exert control over people? Common examples include giving forceful directives, using your title to get your way, or even shouting.  This is abuse of power.

    The above are tell-tale signs that you may be a bully.  If you notice any of these traits in yourself then you better do something about it before someone else does.  All bullies eventually get their just desserts!  Still not sure if that’s you?  Then we recommend reading our article on improving self-awareness.

     

    How should managers deal with bullies?

    So, what does a manager do about bullying?  At work, there will be differences of opinions and conflicts can arise; this is quite normal and healthy. However, workplace bullying is fundamentally different and has the potential to undermine an entire team/organization.  As a good manager, you must take bullying seriously and deal with it quickly.

    Here are some steps:

    • Take bullying seriously.  Telling someone to “toughen up” is not an appropriate response.
    • Learn all you can about bullying (additional recommended reading below).
    • Make sure your organisation has a written bullying policy [an example is available here].
    • Learn how to identify victimisation.
    • Gather facts of what has occurred.
    • Make the bully accountable for their behaviour.
    • Try and conduct your dealing with bullying privately.
    • Next, it is best to not have both the bully and bullied together to go through the issues.
    • Make sure you keep accurate records of all bullying and your dealings with it.
    • Remember you may be the bully. Be honest with yourself and ask the opinion of others who you trust (and refer to the next section).

    As a leader, you are responsible for making sure that bullying does not occur and to lead by example.

     

    Dealing with yourself if you’re a workplace bully?

    Earlier we listed some signs that you may be a workplace bully.  If your manager is doing their job then they will know what you’re doing, and you will be held to account.  Either way, identifying that you have a problem is a difficult but most significant first step in dealing with it.   The next is to reduce the power imbalance by apologizing to your victims and asking for their forgiveness.  Followeup immediately by asking them for feedback and advice on removing this negative behaviour from your modus operandi.   These steps are difficult, but critical if you care about yourself and others.   Failure to act will have more dire consequenses for you and your victims.

     

    Recommended reading:

    Take the Bully by the Horns – S Horn

    Successful Leaders Aren’t Bullies – M Paknis

    The Bully at Work: What You Can Do – G Namie