Month: August 2020

Leave a comment Posted on Coaching, Development, Ownership, Productivity, Professionalism

What happens to YOU when you become a better coach by Jim Johnson

If you lead a team, you are coaching (or, at least, I trust that you are). I gave a presentation a couple of years ago on why coaching is so important for our team members. I also shared the following on what happens to the COACH when he/she becomes a better:

  1. Your reputation improves in your company.
  2. Your influence expands on your team and in your company.
  3. Your voice/opinion is respected on your team and with your colleagues.
  4. Your future will reveal more opportunities for you.

There is no down side to working hard at becoming a better coach.  Yes, your team members will become better, but YOU have benefits when you commit yourself to becoming a better coach.

Remember:  “You influence from a distance.  You impact up close.”  Dwight Robertson

Commit to impact.  You will create a better world around you.

when leaders become beter
1 Comment Posted on Character, Development

Tuesday Tip: Personalize Your Note-Taking

Are you a note-taker? If not, I encourage you to develop the habit of taking notes. “You mean in meetings?” That’s one place. But there’s more times to take notes:

  • Meetings
  • Reading a book
  • Preparation for a meeting
  • Sermon
  • Video content you’re listening to
  • Podcast you’re listening to
  • When an idea hits you and you don’t want to forget it
  • Lectures
  • Reading a blog
  • Reading a magazine

You get the idea. Where do you record your notes? That’s up to you. Carry a small notebook to capture ideas. Use a journal. Use your smart phone/tablet/laptop. Use talk-to-text to capture in-the-moment ideas. Just capture your thoughts.

But here’s the tip that makes the most difference for me. I personalize my note-taking.

When I read a book, I’m a highlighter. When I read, I have a highlighter and a pen with me. I highlight a passage I want to remember. I often write a note in the margin that helps me connect dots (from this thought to a future action).

And once I complete reading the book, I often go back and write in my journal what I learned from that book. So, how do I personalize the notes? I put them in first person even if the author did not write that thought in that way. Here’s an example:

James Clear is the author of Atomic Habits (I highly recommend reading this book and then following him in social media). In the chapter, “How Your Habits Shape Your Identity (and Vice Versa)”, he writes about “new identities” in light of moving away from the person (habits and all) to the person we want to be.

He asks this question: Who is the type of person that could get the outcome you want? In my journal, this would be written: Who is the type of person that could get the outcome I want? Other examples:

I become my habits.

The most effective way to change my habits is to focus not on what I want to achieve, but on who I wish to become.

When I make a specific plan for when and where I will perform a new habit, I am more likely to follow through.

I do this because I want to internalize what I’m learning. Making it personal moves new information and ideas to my heart and to my mind and making the likelihood of me following through much more successful. I create a conversation, of sorts, between me and the author as though she/he is talking to me. I pay attention to the content more. I put more of what I am learning into action.

Next time you take notes – especially when you need to take action on those notes – personalize them. It’s one way you can coach yourself to become better.

1 Comment Posted on Leadership

We’ve Always Done it That Way by Jim Johnson

The story is told of a young newly-wed woman who was preparing a Sunday roast for her husband.  He curiously watched as she cut off one end of the roast and placed it in the pan for cooking.  He asked, “why did you just do that?” 

The new wife replied, “my mom always did it that way.”

Later, this new bride contacted her mother to inquire why she cut off the end of the roast before cooking it.  “I don’t really know, dear,” her mother responded, “I’ll have to call Grandma and ask her.  She taught me how to cook.”

A few days later, the new wife’s mother called her own mother to find out reason behind this cooking secret.  “Mom, why do you cut off the end of the roast before you cook it?” 

Grandma stated, “Oh, I did that because my roasting pan was too small to fit the whole roast in it.”

How often do we approach our work, our relationships, and our lives with this “we’ve always done it this way” mentality? Perhaps it is time to step back and ask some important questions:

  • Why do we continue to do this process in this particular way? I think there may be a more effective way to get it done.
  • What is the legacy behind this process?
  • Is it still valid to continue with this process?
  • What if…?

Unless you are dealing with a natural law (say, like gravity), you have the freedom to think, maybe break some rules, and try something new to bring about efficiencies and create better experiences for your team and your customers.

Spend time thinking about your work. It is healthy to question things from time to time. Great ideas come from intentional thinking. And from great ideas come directional, purpose-filled steps. And from these steps come action that turns your ideas into meaningful things that can positively impact your career and your company’s bottom line.

So, go ahead ask questions to get yourself out of the rut we all get so easily stuck in. And Grandma’s roast still tasted great.

2 Comments Posted on Passion

Be Passionate by Jim Johnson

To many folks, this idea sounds too dramatic.  Why be passionate about your job or even your company?  Well, you are investing a significant amount of time each year at work.  Why not throw yourself into what you do?  Why not seek the real purpose behind what it is that you do?

Do you know what you company’s vision/mission statement is?  If you do, write it down below:

My company’s purpose is to…

Why is this idea so important?  Perhaps this can be answered by asking this question:  would you want to work at a job where there was no meaningful purpose to what you produced? 

But I hear you say, “I just work on an assembly line.”  “I only balance a GL.”  “I have to answer the phone and hope to not get yelled at.”  “I cash checks and make deposits.”  “I have to make sure items are stocked on the shelves on time and answer questions from customers.”

What is the real purpose behind your job?  Do you know? 

Years ago, I traveled from Indiana to Orlando, Florida.  I spent the night in Indianapolis at a La Quinta Inn prior to leaving on a very early morning flight.  I was allowed to leave my car at the hotel instead of paying for short-termed parking (a great service).  I was shuttled to the airport and told to call the hotel back when I returned so they could pick me up.

When I returned, I called La Quinta.  I was informed that their shuttle van was broken down.  I was then instructed to take a taxi back to the hotel and they would pay for the fare (they did).  After I loaded my luggage into my car for the drive home, I discovered that my battery was dead (it was winter and very cold out).  I went inside to call AAA.  While I was on hold, the front desk manager asked what had happened.  I told her. 

“Oh, hang up, honey.  We’ll take care of you!”  And they did!  Within 20 minutes the hotel manager (it was his day off) drove to the hotel, jumped-started my car and I was on my way home.  The hotel personnel all treated me as if I was the most important person around.  They did it with smiles and enthusiasm.  I felt as if I had known these folks for years.  They were genuinely nice.  La Quinta’s brand statement is “wake up on the bright side”.  They certainly brightened my day more than once. 

If you work on an assembly line, focus on the product your team is producing and the part you play in this process.  If it is manufacturing a car, you are not just working on an assembly line.  You are creating a quality driving experience for the consumer. 

If you work in a call center, you are serving your customers by listening to their issues and providing solutions that can help them save them time, save them money or fulfill a need.  If you wait tables at a local restaurant, you are actually selling an experience rather than merely getting hot food to patrons on time. The better the experience, the more likelihood the customer will be back and even recommend others to visit your eatery. 

You can personally impact your company’s success!

Being the right person means you will passionately discover and live the true purpose behind your job.

From The Path to Promotion: by Jim Johnson

1 Comment Posted on Leadership

Creating a Great Customer Experience by Jim Johnson

If you are in business, you deal with customers all the time.  You want to provide a great customer experience, I know it!  And your customers want a great experience as well.

But it doesn’t happen automatically.

Providing a great experience for our customers must be done intentionally.  I created the following to help my team understand how they can deliver a great experience with our customers (we call them members at credit unions).  Does this make sense in your business environment?  Comment below.  We all would love to read your insights.