Teach Them How To Fish

There's an old saying, usually attributed to Confucius, that goes something like "Give a man a fish, and you'll feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you've fed him for a lifetime." There's an important life lesson in that simple statement. Some people translate it conceptually into something like "Education is the most important thing you can give someone to better his circumstances." For me I don’t believe this gets to the heart of the matter.

The translation I like goes something like this:

Give a man the answer, and he'll only have a temporary solution. Teach him the principles that led you to that answer, and he will be able to create his own solutions in the future.

It's considerably less catchy, of course, but I think this is the true meaning of Confucius’s statement.

Suppose a employee comes asking for information that they could easily collect themselves if they are given the right training and have the necessary skill set. However, you decide to give them that information because you believe it is faster and easier than trying to teach them how to collect that information. You have given him a fish.

FAIL.

Sure, you were able to help that person by solving their problem at the moment, yet you lost time. You were ineffective. Switching costs stole your efficiency.

Why is this considered a fail? If you provide all the answers and solve all the problems, you are not helping the business. If you are the person that is always providing information and yet there are others around you that could support it with the right training and experience, you would be better served to spread that wealth by teaching them how to fish.

We need to transfer knowledge or skill from a single person to others. We need to share that information. We need to train others. Turn them into teachers and allow them to teach others within your organization. They need to teach others how to become as good as they are at that particular role so they can grow and become bigger and better at what they do for the company.

The next time you are learning a new task or a new activity, something that no one else has done before, take the time to find a peer or subordinate that can help you with learning. They can grow alongside you building that new skill. They can share the burden of how that particular process works. In that effort, you are building relationships because relationships matter.

You are also teaching them how to fish.

Avoiding the Pitfalls of Micromanagement with the Power of Trust

Micromanagement: Everyone knows the term. Micromanaging is a method of management in which an individual closely observes or controls the work of an employee. In comparison to simply giving general direction, the micromanager monitors and evaluates every stage in a process, from beginning to end. This behavior negatively affects efficiency, creativity, trust, communication, problem-solving, and the company’s ability to reach its goals.

In the best situations, micromanagement is an impediment to progress and in extreme cases it can cause the organization to stagnate.

In today's changing and fast-paced work environments, it is critical for leaders to foster a culture of trust and support in their teams. Here are a few key ways to avoid micromanagement and highlight the benefits of empowering employees.

1. Build Trust and Strong Relationships:

Trust is the foundation of any successful team. For trust to be established and maintained, employees must have a clear understanding of how they’re performing and how their work contributes to the mission of the company. Holding employees accountable for their performance by utilizing performance management tools and providing clear expectations for “what good looks like” for their work.

However, the act of micromanagement can erode that feeling of trust, and it creates a strained relationship between managers and employees. Conversely, by relinquishing control and giving employees the space to excel, trust is built, and relationships are strengthened. Trusting employees demonstrates confidence in their abilities, which in turn fosters loyalty, open communication, and collaboration. The first step in this process is aligning your expectations with your employees on their role. This can be achieved through a variety of methods, but one method includes updating your employees’ job descriptions and goals on a regular basis. These interactive conversations help employees understand “what good looks like” for their performance, helps them understand their decision rights, and helps them discern when to partner with management on more complex issues.

2. Encourage Creativity and Innovation:

Micromanagement can limit employees' ability to think critically, problem-solve, and generate innovative ideas. Allowing individuals the freedom to explore new approaches and take ownership of their work creates a creative culture. Employees who feel trusted are more likely to think outside the box and propose fresh solutions to challenges.

3. Boost Morale and Engagement:

Micromanagement erodes trust and creates an atmosphere of anxiety. On the other hand, granting autonomy can signal trust in employees' abilities. This leads to increased job satisfaction, higher levels of engagement, and a sense of ownership over their work. Empowered employees are more likely to take initiative, feel valued, and go the extra mile to achieve shared goals. When individuals have the freedom to make choices, they are more likely to take responsibility for the outcomes. This sense of ownership can motivate employees to deliver high-quality results.

Effective leadership lies in striking a balance between accountability and freedom. While it is essential for managers to provide direction and support, it is equally important to avoid the pitfalls of micromanagement. By empowering employees, promoting autonomy, and fostering a culture of trust, organizations unlock the full potential of their workforce.

6 Strategies to Coach Your Employees to Succeed

Coaching is a difficult skill for many leaders to acquire. It’s vague and slow. Leaders tend to want to move quickly toward defined goals, reach those goals, and immediately move on to the next set of goals. Coaching is frustratingly elusive to understand and seemingly convoluted in the doing; it is much easier to direct than to guide.

Coaching is the process of preparing your employees to succeed. It is an ongoing, two-way process that involves using constructive, consistent feedback to reinforce positive behavior, resulting in improved performance.

You develop leader/coaches the same way you coach; by helping them discover what coaching is. Leaders need collaborative and engaging style management. This approach focuses on developing employees in order to achieve business results rather than managing their every move. The mindset of the coach is to create an environment that fosters learning, independent thinking and opportunities to contribute.

Coaching isn’t about telling people what to do but guiding them to uncover their own answers and build confidence. If you want to level up your coaching skills, try these six strategies.

1. Stay curious

Great coaches are insatiably curious. They ask thoughtful, challenging questions that encourage individuals to think critically. Resist jumping to conclusions or making judgments. Instead, stay curious, ask open-ended, probing questions, and let the employee do most of the talking.

2. Listen for intent

The most effective coaches are active listeners. Active listening requires tuning out distractions to be fully present, observing nonverbal clues, and asking clarifying questions to gain a deeper understanding.

If you ask an employee how a project is going and their response is, “Fine,” don’t stop there. Follow up with deeper questions like:

•        What does “fine” look like?
•         What metrics show it’s fine?
•         What would it take to make the outcome amazing rather than fine?

These kinds of questions uncover valuable insights and help employees dig into solutions.

3. Hone your question-asking skills

Effective coaching pushes people to think outside their comfort zones. Strengthening your ability to ask powerful questions helps employees develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills. The most powerful questions are often the shortest, simplest ones. Asking, “And what else?” is a powerful strategy for helping individuals dig deeper.

4. Cultivate trust

Impactful coaching relationships are built on trust. Individuals must feel comfortable enough with a coach to be vulnerable. Maintaining confidentiality and providing psychological safety are essential to any coaching relationship.

5. Incorporate goal-setting and accountability

Coaching is about progress, and progress requires clear goals. Conclude each session with goal setting and follow up in subsequent sessions to track progress or redefine goals when needed.

6. Celebrate success

Committing to and following through on change is challenging. To keep coaches motivated and committed to growth, remind them to celebrate their achievements, regardless of how big or small they are.

Important coaching behaviors to emphasize are many: being open and honest, taking risks, empathy, reflecting, linking coaching and performance, asking open-ended questions, providing emotional support and supporting self-discovery. Coaches are role models for others. They are excellent listeners and communicators, providing perspective and encouragement while also setting high standards and expectations.

Coaching is one of the premier skills of a good leader, but one that is often overlooked. A leader whose goal is to help employees fulfill potential must be an exemplary coach. When you adopt a coaching mindset with your employees, you empower them to grow and give them the chance to feel heard. Staff who feel heard are more likely to be engaged in their work and committed to staying in their positions.

10 Ways to Adopt a Lean Culture Today

Building a Lean culture is not an easy task. A Lean culture starts with managers who understand and believe the implications of the system’s view and know the necessity of serving customers in order to succeed. The result of that understanding is a culture where a positive internal environment and the creation of delighted customers go together. It is a culture that naturally emphasizes continuous improvement of processes, one that results in a healthy workplace, satisfied customers, and a growing, profitable company.

The best leaders understand the present is nothing more than a platform for the envisioning of, and positioning for, the future. If you want to lead more effectively, shorten the distance between the future and present. Inspiring innovation and leading change call for more than process– they require the adoption of a cultural mindset.

Implementing Lean Thinking is a cultural change that requires leadership…because in the end it’s all about people. Here are 10 things your leadership can do right now to change the culture:

1. Define Your Vision and Values

A clear vision and values can guide your organization. A vision statement shows how your company sees itself in the future, complementing the mission and values you've developed. Your vision should describe your purpose, goals, and ideal state. Your values should reflect your principles, beliefs, and expectations. Communicating these throughout the business:

•           Gives employees information about why and how to optimize company processes or protocols
•           Helps employees understand the value of their specific contribution, which builds feelings of appreciation

2. Leaders Must Lead the Way

The leadership of the company has a significant influence on the company culture. For this reason, the leaders must be the ones to lead the way, open the conversation, and make examples. An important point here is that leaders in Lean manage the work, not the people. Focusing on workflow management will also create an environment of shared leadership, where everyone collectively contributes to the end result.

3. Challenge the Process

Continuous improvement encourages teams to question the status quo, seeking ways to optimize processes and minimize waste. They use Lean Thinking to look for innovative ways to improve the organization. In doing so, they experiment and take risks.

Don't miss the opportunity to identify the actions you need to improve the improve the process, while also being open to the knowledge and skills you need to develop. Challenging the process, particularly by searching for opportunities and experimenting and taking risks, is a key behavior to adopt in a Lean culture.

4. Eliminate Fear of Failure

Experiments will not always bring exceptional results. Not every new idea will be a winning move. For this reason, in a Lean culture, it is essential to show tolerance to failure. Otherwise, extreme criticism can create fear in your people and block experimentation.

A Lean culture is a learning culture, so it is of great importance to extract learnings from failures as much as from successes. Promote small-batch testing to minimize potentially harmful results from unsuccessful experiments. Also, as a company leader, make sure to speak openly about your failures and the learnings from them to give an example of how they should be analyzed and built on.

5. Empower Employees

Empowering employees is a key aspect of a Lean culture. This means giving employees the authority and resources they need to make decisions and improve processes. By empowering employees, organizations can tap into their knowledge and experience and create a culture of continuous improvement. This can be achieved by providing training, coaching, and support, and by creating a culture of collaboration and teamwork.

6. Train Employees

Training in Lean is essential for employees to understand how they are expected to work in the new culture. This cannot be a one-off activity though. Ensure they are taught specific Lean philosophies and Lean tools and supplement this with periodic training to help them stay current with the latest developments in Lean methodology. Leaders can go a long way to reinforce training by talking to employees about the training they have attended and how it has enabled them to be better practitioners of Lean.

7, Foster a Learning Environment

Continuous improvement depends upon employees learning and choosing to optimize their performance. In a Lean culture, company leaders help every employee continually learn new skills and advance their careers. This commitment to development usually encourages employees to be proactive about continually improving organizational processes. Strategies for fostering an environment of continuous learning and improvement include:

•  Developing internal training opportunities, such as courses or job shadowing
•  Sending employees to industry conventions, workshops, or conferences
•  Providing ways for employees to make suggestions about their department or the company
•  Soliciting anonymous feedback about aspects of the organization

8. Make Change Everyone’s Responsibility

Continuous improvement requires the participation of everyone in the organization. This includes the executive suite, management, and line workers. The continuous improvement program becomes effective when employees are engaged in developing the culture and are proactive in identifying areas for improvement. To do this, everyone should understand their role and contribution to the company’s continuous improvement program. Only by “rowing” together can the goals of the improvement program be achieved. Part of working together on this effort is sharing the responsibility of the program across the entire organization.

9. Create New Habits

Creating a continuous improvement culture requires changing people’s habits. Habits are the set of things that people do subconsciously on a daily basis. They are in fact very difficult to change. Part of the challenge of starting and sustaining a continuous improvement program is identifying a set of desired behaviors and continuously reinforce them. This can include training and retraining employees, helping people understand when their behaviors are misaligned with the continuous improvement efforts, and giving positive feedback to those who exemplifies the desired behaviors.

10. Celebrate success

Continuous improvement is hard. It requires employees to critically think about their work and examine potential ways of improving it. As your continuous improvement program begin to gain more momentum it is important to remember the people who make it possible. One way of sustaining the process is to regularly share success stories and recognize those involved. Many employees take pride in their work and are intrinsically motivated to improve them. They are simply looking for recognition and praise for a job well done.

Constant change is a business reality, and organizations must continually adapt to their environments to stay competitive or risk losing relevance and becoming obsolete. For each change, leaders must define it, create a vision of the post-change world, and mobilize their teams to make it.

Fundamentally, a change of culture occurs when people start behaving differently as a result of a change in the climate of the organization. There are many different models of how an organizational culture is shaped by the prevailing climate and how it can be assessed.

Leaders who protect the status quo through control must surrender to change in order to secure the future for their organization. Don’t be the leader who rewards herd mentality, and me too thinking. Don’t be the leader who encourages people not to fail or not to take risks. Be the leader who both models and gives permission to do the exact opposite of the aforementioned – be a leader who leads.

Lean success requires a change in mindset and behavior among leadership, and then gradually throughout the organization. So it follows that success in Lean implies a change in what leaders reinforce—a change in leadership behaviors and practices. Change begins when leaders start acting differently. It’s that simple (but not that easy).

Foster a Culture of Accountability in a Lean Organization

Lean leadership emphasizes a culture of accountability where individuals and teams are empowered to take ownership of their actions and outcomes. This fosters a continuous improvement mindset within the organization, driving efficiency and effectiveness.

Lean management is a leadership approach that supports continuous improvement through collaborative problem solving. Rather than leading from the top down, Lean managers strive to actively engage their teams in the improvement process in order to promote personal and organizational success.

The basic components of Lean management are:

• Standard work (SW). Tasks are broken into a series of steps that are followed by all team members. Standard work is continuously adjusted to decrease waste and add value until a state of perfection is reached.
• Visual controls. Team members have an opportunity to track their own performance in real time and adjust.
• Daily accountability process. The group comes together to review progress, refine processes and chart next steps.

Daily accountability throughout the organization, especially at the leadership levels, is the key to sustained transformation. Here are four reasons why accountability is so important to Lean management.

Accountability Builds Trust

Perhaps the most important result of accountability is trust, which is essential in any relationship.  Being accountable to something means that you’re willing to make commitments and be responsible for your own actions. This promotes trust between you and the people around you. When you allow yourself to be accountable to this trust, you’re effectively telling people that you’re going to admit it and make amends when the trust is broken.  In effect, you’re emphasizing how important and committed you are to the strategy.

Accountability Improves Performance

Accountability eliminates the time and effort you spend on distracting activities and other unproductive behavior. Research shows that some people have the tendency to engage in ineffective behavior. Without accountability, you may only catch these behaviors when mistakes and errors have already been made and your organization has already suffered the loss. By building a culture of accountability on the onset, you rid your organization of ineffective behavior, put the right people on the right jobs, and send the message that you’re serious about excellent work.

Accountability Promotes Ownership

When you make people accountable for their actions, you’re effectively teaching them to value their work.  Through positive feedback and corrective actions, they learn that their behavior and actions have an impact on the team. They’re not just floating members without clear roles to play – they’re important to your organization. When people know that they’re valued and important, they’re more driven to work hard. They learn to have a sense of ownership in what they do.

Accountability Inspires Confidence

When done right, accountability can increase your team members’ skills and confidence. Don’t mistake accountability for controlling behavior. The key is to provide the right support – give constructive feedback, improve on your members’ suggestions, give them freedom to decide, and challenge them to think of better solutions as a team.  When people know that you’re listening and concerned about their performance, they’re more likely to step up and do their best.

Given these reasons, it’s important that you build a culture of accountability from the start.  Remember that accountability is building a culture of trust and not fear.  Your goal is not to punish and look for errors and mistakes. Instead, you seek to open multiple feedback mechanisms, fill in gaps, improve on solutions, reward productive behavior, and remove unproductive ones. As a leader, you yourself should hold yourself to the highest level of accountability.

Leadership Lessons from President Donald Trump

Every year, Americans celebrate Presidents Day as a day of remembrance — a day to look back and learn from our nation’s leaders. In today’s competitive market, business leaders are looking for the edge that will put their organization and workforce ahead of the curve.

This Presidents Day, Monday, February 17th, I think it would make sense to look at the leadership qualities by one of the greatest political comebacks in history Donald Trump. Whether you love him or loathe him, there’s no denying that President Trump has valuable lessons to offer business leaders.

Prioritizing Downtime

Trump is famously fond of golf. If a man with such a demanding role on the world stage can carve out time for leisure, why can’t you?

Many small business owners believe they can’t afford to take time off, convinced that everything will fall apart in their absence. As a result, many haven’t had a real holiday in years.

But, if you’re a business owner, there’s a lesson here: prioritize time for yourself and your family. You’ll return refreshed, and your organization will benefit from it.

Effective Delegation

A key element of effective leadership involves delegation of responsibilities to followers. This serves to free up the leader to work on important projects, but it also helps develop the followers’ own leadership capacity. A truly good leader develops followers by giving them increased responsibilities and supporting their efforts. This is a cornerstone of transformational leadership.

Many business leaders struggle with delegation due to various factors, including fear of losing control, a desire for perfection, lack of trust in their team, and a fear of losing significance or influence. This fear of failure can lead leaders to try to control every aspect of a business, which can be overwhelming and lead to burnout.

Management By Exception

President Trump uses more of the “sink or swim” type of leadership, what is referred to as “management-by-exception.” This type of leader allows followers to take on responsibilities, but only intervenes to correct poor performance. In fact, Trump seems to allow subordinates a lot of leeway, but if they step out of line, or disagree with him, “You’re fired!”

Throughout his time in office, Trump became known for his willingness to swiftly fire underperforming staff. His administration saw a higher turnover rate than any in recent history.

Most business owners, by contrast, are slow to let go of employees who aren’t a good fit, particularly in times of low unemployment. The mindset of “a warm body is better than nobody” often prevails.

Trump, however, understands that if an employee’s values or behavior don’t align with the organization, it’s best to part ways. While your values may differ from Trump’s, there’s merit in his approach: firing someone from a role that isn’t working can be mutually beneficial.

If you have employees who aren’t meeting expectations despite your best efforts to support them, helping them transition to a new career path might be the kindest and smartest move.

Playing to Win

Complacency is a common pitfall in small businesses. Leaders often get bogged down in day-to-day operations, too exhausted to focus on long-term goals.

Trump, by contrast, has always played to win. While his tactics and ‘win-at-all-costs’ attitude may be contentious, his focus on success is undeniable.

The lesson here is not about emulating his methods but rather his mindset. Business owners who clearly define their goals and commit to achieving them are more likely to succeed. Unfortunately, many have only vague ideas of what success looks like and lack a concrete plan to measure it.

There are plenty of debates surrounding Trump’s leadership, and most people have formed strong opinions about him.

However, as leaders, it’s crucial to remain open to ideas from various perspectives – even those we may disagree with – and apply the lessons that make sense for our own organizations.

5 Mindsets That Kill Leadership Development

Undoubtedly, leading people is the most complex and challenging facet of leadership. A leader’s mindset might be one of the greatest predictors of success and also one of the most elusive elements to pin down. Leadership happens in the nuanced shifts that occur first in the leader’s mind.

You’ve probably read about, or attended seminars or training sessions, regarding leadership models that make you a great leader. You may have even tried applying them in your organization. But rarely do we discuss mindsets that affect your leadership and plateau in their development.

Here are five mindsets that could destroy your leadership potential and abilities.

1. We’ve Always Done it that Way!

Yes, that may be true, and it may have worked in the past, but the world is very different now from the time a lot of your current systems were introduced. So, when you hear yourself say this, think about whether the fact it’s always been done that way means it should always be done that way in the future

2. My Way is the Best Way!

It could be true, but what if someone else had ideas that post-date yours? Does that mean they are wrong? Instead, become curious and check out if some other way may actually be better than yours!

3. I’m the Boss?

In today’s working environment, old-age management techniques seldom work, and this idea that people still work for us can stifle and strangle your leadership opportunities. Instead, people work with us and that mindset can make a huge difference in the way we gain people’s commitment.

4. I Don’t Need to Develop Leaders!

The potential of your organization rests on the strength of its leaders. Look at yourself and your team. If you are serious about becoming the best leader you can be, your growth and development has to take center stage. Having the attitude ‘I know everything I need to know’ can kill off any chances of progression within a business.

People grow best “in the game.” Don’t create a separate “growth” track or course for a subset of leaders; your whole organization should be on a growth track. Growing leaders is not a program. It’s part of a healthy culture.

5. We Tried That Already and It Didn’t Work!

When companies attempt new ideas or when they try to do things in different ways, they risk failure. And, failure is scary. However, failure is necessary for progress and innovation. Leaders with a fear of failure may avoid taking risks or making decisions, hindering their ability to innovate and adapt. They might also shy away from challenging situations, preventing them from developing essential leadership skills.

Leadership is not just about directing and managing a team; it’s also about cultivating the right mindset to inspire and empower others. As you lead, be on the lookout for these five forces trying to hold you back. As a leader, it is crucial to understand the concept of mindset shifts and how they can greatly impact your effectiveness and success.