Leadership Lessons

Lao Tzu once said “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” Everyone defines leadership differently in this world. Some believe that a leader exudes charisma, offers a valid vision or inspires the staff to do above and beyond their daily routine. Yet, we’ve all experienced the “good, bad and ugly” in terms of leadership. Consequently, some may try to move forward in their careers by seeking leadership that reflects a balance between a “task manager” and a manager who inspires her team to be innovative every day. Some leaders can provide the right tempo by leveraging leadership lessons that may result in positive influences on their employees.
Effective leaders ensure their team has the tools to get the job done. For example, if you manage a team of web designers and they do not have the latest open source software to create interactive content, then the team will fail no questions asked. Part of the process includes staff asking for the resources they need to get the job done and managers to simply listen to how the latest and greatest tools will amplify effectiveness. Read more.

Amplify your Professional Writing Skills

Some people are natural born writers who can easily string together concise messages with little to no effort. The rest of us are “writers-in-progress” who know it takes time to craft an effective business message. The best approach to strong business writing is varied and based on the several things:

• Solid research
• Editing skills
• Turning critiques into coaching tips

Government communications continues to incorporate plain language, 508-compliant materials as well as solid research to create accurate messages. Consequently, your writing needs to be fact based and verifiable so that senior leaders can trust the messages they are about to convey are credible. It is important to conduct a thorough search regarding your writing topic by viewing diverse data sources to obtain the complete picture.
Moreover, the ability to generate good written products also relies on accepting feedback from multiple editors and then making the changes as necessary. Some of the feedback from editor’s including your boss may be hard to accept. Yet, there is always a lesson to learn from hearing the “hard stuff” at the office regarding one’s writing skills. In addition, sometimes speeches require writing from a team of communications professionals making one cohesive message from a diverse pool of resources. When they collaborate and develop a cohesive message it is the result of everyone agreeing that no one person “owns” the speech. It is a group effort.
Channel writing critiques into lessons learned:

• Listen to feedback and then walk away to absorb the critique
• Ask questions if you do not understand the suggested changes
• Be honest in your coaching
• Learn to be more receptive to input, the bad or otherwise scathing
• Avoid “group think” by using the “tenth man rule” so that you can openly object if everyone simply agrees to maintain harmony
• Cut yourself some slack on the self-criticism
• Try writing a variety of products to enhance your skills

Mic Check: Public Speaking 101

It’s Wednesday and your manager gives you a new task: write and deliver a speech for 100 people at a public event in two days. You will either react in one of two ways: thrilled at the professional development opportunity or fearful of speaking publicly in front of large crowds. Fear of public speaking may happen to anyone at any time. It also happens to veteran speakers because each new public speaking event is a new experience for the speaker.  There are a few quick steps you can take to prepare for your speech using quick and easy microphone (mic) check tips.

Public speaking can bring about great professional development opportunities. For example, public speaking engagements may build speaker confidence. Each time you create an audience-centric approach, you have the ability to engage your listeners using an informative or persuasive message. 

Another way to enhance your speaker confidence includes incorporating research, audience demographics and concise messaging for the target audience. 

In addition, check the speaking event location before your speech as part of your prep work. It is important to know the event logistics, test the microphone and other electronic devices before the speaking engagement. Then conduct a “test run” on your speech to hear the final message aloud and make updates as necessary.

Moreover, according to a Psychology Today article, when a speaker focuses solely on the perfect message, they make the mistake of focusing on the errors instead of messaging. The perfectionist principle is a hindrance that can stop even the most ardent speaker in her tracks. A way to move beyond this type of barriers is by continuing the audience engagement despite any real or perceived missteps. In addition, the ability to avoid high levels of self-criticism may lead to more enjoyable public speaking engagements while boosting one’s confidence.

Also, it is okay to be nervous when you are about to deliver a speech. Instead letting your nerves take you to an extreme fear factor level; try to channel your energy. For example, leverage your internal locust of control to reach a calm and collected mental place. In addition, create a pre-speech music playlist to help amp up your positive energy so you can deliver the best message to your audience.

Breaking Down the Fourth Wall on Project Management

Imagine your manager gives you a new project to manage and you are required to develop a strategy for the next year. A few other requirements are identified and you are sailing along great until it happens. You realize that the program requirements have now put you in a “box” where all the parameters are in a fixed, non-flexible position making it a challenge to move forward. What do you do, especially if the requirements create barriers instead of bridges to your goal?
Sometimes the challenge to starting a new task lies in the ability to see beyond the basic scope of the assignment. For example, maybe your group has a fixed set of templates for project plans based on historical data. While they may provide a spring board to a new endeavor, they may not be the best tools if they’ve never been revised in the past five years. Consequently, it may require you to develop new tools and resources to manage ground-breaking endeavors.
Also, when some project managers receive a new task, they feel beholden to manage the task by only using the processes their boss outlined for them. That is a nice “check the box mentality” but it will not always yield the results you may seek, especially if the resources provided are antiquated.  A good program manager will take a step back before just jumping into the fray, assess the situation from all angles and then develop a solid strategy. Sometimes that includes having the courage to break down that fourth wall of project management to take a few risks.
Take the time to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) to your project by collaborating with internal partners who are willing to see the “big picture perspective.” I’ve learned that leveraging a solid SWOT analysis may help to increase your awareness and acceptance of issues and innovation in project management.
Lastly, there may be an unwritten office rule that that staff may only use canonical documents for all projects as some sort of tribute to the original creator of all things SOP in your agency. This is a direct path to stifle creativity and sink your project plan. Moreover, allegiance to the team is one thing; however projects cannot be managed effectively by tradition. One of the great things about project management is having the ability to explore the unknown using a strategy that acknowledges potential variables, troubleshoots issues that will impact your deadlines.

Office Rebel: Benefits of Coloring Outside of the Lines

Each year, some employees do their best to stay focused by following the office rules and political climate succinctly. While this is a way to play it safe, it often yields the same results: a “check the box mentality” of task management. Yet, have you ever wondered what life is like on the other side of the canonical practice at work? Sometimes, it takes breaking down the fourth wall by “coloring outside of the lines” by moving beyond outdated processes so you can achieve great things.

Welcome to the wild side where office rebels deliver great things daily due to their initiative and innovation. For example, an office rebel will research the historical context of a task, determine the lessons learned then implement new processes to yield better results in a timely manner. This type of industrious behavior comes from living on the fringe as well as knowing how to bend new technology to one’s whim.

Moreover, innovation in the federal space is not confined to a desk for eight hours or more daily. It includes learning from others, networking with thought leaders and trying new things in the pursuit of agency goals. Basically, the ability to innovate does not occur via email. Creative collaborators get out from behind their desk, create a plan and then become a catalyst for positive change.

Also, when an employee continues to approach work in the same manner using outdated rules, their ability to grow and learn new skills becomes limited. Back in the day, some people referred to going above the minimum requirements as “going outside the 9 dots.” When was the last time you achieved more than just the basic goals? Have you ever wanted to do more? An office-rebel-in-training understands the benefits of being an “individual contributor” by creating and innovating off the clock to yield extraordinary results at the office.

5 Tips to keep the low morale vulture away at work

Recently, the news has focused on low morale at work due to a variety of issues. The way some employees view their jobs is through a double lens that highlights either their work or the people around them. Sometimes, when there is a conflict in these realms, an employee's feelings about their job may decrease based on their:

• passion for their work
• work environment

When people select a career, it is usually because they enjoy getting paid for the work they love to do each day. This sentiment may be hampered when there are scarce resources that influence a person's ability to stay happy about their efforts. For example, a lack of advancement, challenging work or professional development opportunities may cause issues with staff who want to strive for great things.

Another effect on a person's morale is their workplace environment. Take a moment and look around the office the next time you arrive at your job. Are the folks engaged, forward leaning and ready to take risks to move the organization forward? Or, are they just getting by to supplement the daily routine because they are inundated with work that truly requires more people to effectively complete it?

Moreover, office politics may cause a reduction in one's passion for work because the "in-group" gains acknowledgment, advancement and recognition based on relational aspects instead of business acumen. Another challenge is preventing the "out of site, out of mind" mentality. For example, some managers may assume that if you are out of the office teleworking or not in their line of sight, you are simply not important enough to them to give you more high visibility tasks. While this is a perception issue, it is still something that needs to be managed with tactfulness and directness to keep you "visible" in front of some managers.

Either way, the problem of low morale is symptomatic of every workplace. While one person may not readily change the issue of low morale, you may possess access to improving your personal feelings about your job.

5 Tips to Improve your office morale

1. Increase your awareness of your career needs and create an action plan to move them forward
2. Build a coalition of trusted advisers who are subject matter experts and encourage them to be your "go-to project team" 
3. Expand your personal and professional network by being actively engaged at work each day
4. Update and practice delivering your elevator speech to promote your skills to others
5. Gain more face time with power brokers

Is your web site a digital file cabinet?

The end of the fiscal year is drawing near and it is also to good time to begin a review of your web content to ensure it is still engaging for your target audience. Over the years, the technology industry developed more diverse online tools to help create interactive web content. However, good web content management still requires a human element to review, revise and update government websites to prevent them from becoming a “digital filing cabinet.” Merriam Webster defines a file cabinet as a place to house documents, which is the opposite goal of an interactive web site. There are several tips that content managers may use to effectively manage their organization's web presence.

The web site review process may include collaborations with your organization web team and public affairs staff to make updates that will meet audience expectations. One way to ensure your web site contains fresh materials is by creating a quarterly web scrub schedule to weed out obsolete content.

Moreover, providing opportunities to foster a two-way conversation with leadership regarding their vision for the agency's web content will help to create a strategic communications plan for the team to implement. Also, the web update process will become a smooth transition when the web content manager leverages her role as a "trusted adviser" to ensure that all internal stakeholders can contribute to online updates.

Also, take the time to check your web links and remove materials that are more than 10 years old. The goal is to avoid creating a “digital file cabinet. ” Avoid the tendency to archive your old web content and develop a plan to remove out dated materials. This may also include informing stakeholders of recent web updates to continue to manage their expectations of online available resources. In addition, take time each month to check your web site links to ensure they still work.
Remove non-working links and encourage your staff to share their ideas to add content enhancements throughout the year via weekly web review meetings.

Some older government web sites also contain a host of data that has not been revised regularly and is several decades old. A common barrier to providing pithy, leading edge content updates is the perception that some government web sites need to “house all historical records” of anything ever published online. However, the consummate web professional will leverage their annual communications strategy along with leadership buy-in to ensure that the agency can maintain a strong, interactive web presence that will exceed the customers’ expectations.

Women in Organizations Series: When was the last time you were competitive at work?

Hope Solo, United States Olympic Goalie once said “I live for competition. It makes my life complete.” It’s Wednesday — have you been competitive at work today? The ability to compete in business is a time honored tradition that is revered much like typewriters, apple pie and baseball. It can also be fun. Moreover, when women compete against their peers to lead high-visibility projects, they have the ability to leverage their creativity, maneuver outside their comfort zones as well as have a little fun at work.

Creativity is one the  “classical arts” of the business world that requires a woman to do more than just “connecting the dots” on a project. A savvy businesswoman will approach a new project by conducting research, consider past practice and then push the limits on new endeavors. For example, when the team considers leveraging traditional modes of outreach, I will suggest leveraging a blended approach that incorporates tech tools such as mobile apps to attract both people from a diverse audience pool and age group. Sometimes it takes a little more effort to be creative so that your work is timely as well as outside of the “cookie-cutter realm.”

It can be easy to complete work in the same method day in and day out because of a lack of interest or feeling complacent with your track record on tasks. Yet if you compete to lead at least one new endeavor each new fiscal year, you will learn something new and enhance your skills.

As a female communications professional, this often includes working with people who are outside of my formal team structure and learning new ways to communicate with staff across geographical boundaries. While this may pose challenges of its own, it shakes up my work week so I can leave my comfort zone behind to try new things. For example, the first time I wrote a memorandum of agreement, I had to work with agency lawyers, public relations professionals, internal and external staff all while learning more about federal laws above and beyond my scope of work. The effort paid off on learning how to create formal collaborations from birth to implementation. This also helped internal partners to contact me regarding future collaborations based on my increasing subject matter expertise.

Another reason for women to increase their competitive edge is the “fun factor.” When was the last time you had fun at work? I recently attended  a training program where some of the participants were so focused on the business, they forgot that the creative process of work can also be fun.

Moreover, when you take time to brainstorm at the office, it allows you to take a moment to consider the big picture. Instead of just jumping into a project simply because it must get done by a short deadline, take a moment to consider the goals and possible outcomes. It can also be fun working on unique projects with different people on a regular basis. Moreover, when a woman is competitive at work she can help realize her own potential on her own terms. Her peers will notice her zeal and then regularly leverage her expertise.


Tracey Batacan is part of the GovLoop Featured Blogger program, where we feature blog posts by government voices from all across the country (and world!). To see more Featured Blogger posts, click here.

Communication and Conflict: A Positive Perspective

Organizations have diverse teams focused on achieving a multitude of goals often with limited resources. Often, when resources such as staff or equipment are scarce some staff may engage in conflicts at work impacting office productivity. There are several ways to approach business conflicts: avoidance, acceptance or using a litany of anger. Business people learn how to respond to conflict based on good or bad experiences and childhood lessons.

To read more, view the rest of the blog on the Gov Loop Network under the Featured Blogger link: http://www.govloop.com/profiles/blogs/communication-and-conflict-in-the-office-a-positive-perspective.

7 Signs Your Perfectionism is Hindering Your Career

According to Merriam-Webster.com, “perfectionism is defined as viewing something that is anything other than perfect as unacceptable.”   While is it acceptable and expected that federal employees meet and exceed expectations, the pursuit of perfectionism can often lead to a stranglehold on one’s ability to achieve basic work-related goals.

Let’s be honest, every day we go to work with our mental task list prepared to push out tasks and meet stakeholders in support of our organization’s mission. Yet, there are those days that we enter the office and become stuck in a quagmire of “what approach to take” that we simply stop moving forward on our goals.This is an example of "perfection creapage."

Sometimes our focus on perfection becomes a hindrance. It happens to all of us at one time or another because there is someone else in the office trying to do the same thing we do better and faster. Or, we may strive for 100% perfection based on the simple fear of failure which influences every aspect of our decision-making capabilities. Consequently, we become unable to manage projects effectively.

This process is referred to as the “Perfectionist Principle”.

It is one thing to meet or exceed expectations on work tasks. In addition when a person’s individual pursuit of “great things” halts progress in its tracks, the “Perfectionist Principle” takes over and stops everyone from moving forward.

7 Warning Signs of the Perfectionist Principle:

1. Continue to revise project goals without achieving milestones
   
2. Failure to start any project plans
3. Missed deadlines
4. Lack of internal review
5. Refuse to accept feedback from others
6. High levels of stress among an otherwise cohesive team
7. Low team morale because of the unrealistic pursuit of a %100 perfection rate on a base rate project plan

3 Female Business Role Models based on the TV Show "Suits"

Role models are based on real or sometimes fictional characters that possess traits and qualities we like to emulate in our business and personal lives. I recently discovered positive examples of roles models during the summer TV viewing season by watching a legal drama on cable.

The USA Network TV show “Suits” is a drama set in a high powered law office in New York led by a female managing partner named Jessica Pearson. Gina Torres stars as Pearson, a strong female lawyer who leads the fictional law firm through ups and downs much like any seasoned executive. The organization’s ability to rebound is based on the strength and business acumen displayed by several of its three female stars who serve as the organizational role models.

For example, the character of Jessica Pearson is a charismatic leader who can visualize the impact of business on both her staff as well as her business efforts. She leads her team through staff transitions, potential coups from her mostly male-partner organization as well as hold off enemies focused on vendettas. Moreover, Pearson’s character listens to her staff instead of making unilateral decisions that may lead to unexpected outcomes.

Another interesting role model is the character of Donna Paulsen played by Sarah Rafferty is more than administrative staff. She is cognizant of the law firms’ business tactics and she understands each employee’s interconnected cohesion to the office dynamic. Moreover, her loyalty to the entire team makes her a valuable asset to the firm which is the backbone of the firm’s mission.

Moreover, the character Rachel Zane played by Meghan Markle offers the one surprising trait of the show: her humanity. She is flawless as an associate in the firm, yet she understands the human element of an often cold and calculated profession. Each of Zane’s tasks requires research, legalese and attention to detail which she displays on a regular basis. Her ability to create bonds with staff ranging from all levels is daft skill that is not easily mirrored by others. 

Women in fictional "Pearson Spector" law firm portrayed in the TV Show "Suits" represent the diverse world of women in organizations who are strong, personable leaders who display loyalty and business acumen in a competitive environment.