Circles of Focus

This week the Wily Manager guys talk about using the Circles of Focus tool to better direct our own efforts, and those of others.  It is easy to get caught up in things over which we have very little control, but this must be resisted.  Join the conversation.

Monday’s Tip: Realize you will always have more demands on your time, than your ability to fulfill them.  Some people genuinely believe they should have time to do everything they want – that is what retirement is for.

Tuesday’s Tip: Pick Your Circle.  For any task you take on, you need to consider whether or not you can control or influence the outcome, as opposed to just being something you are concerned about.

Wednesday’s Tip: Don’t under or over estimate your level of control or influence.  Make sure you have accurately assessed the degree to which you may control or influence something.  Under or over estimating your influence can be harmful.

Thursday’s Tip: Minimize time spent in the Circle of Concern.  There is nothing wrong in taking an interest in something you do not control or influence, but be clear you will be most successful when you focus your energy on those things you control or significantly influence.

Friday’s Tip: Remember you can “migrate” things from your sphere of influence to your sphere of control.  You may be able to carefully place your influence to gradually exert more control over some things.

Dealing With Work Overload – The Sequel

Jed & Bob podcasted about Managing Work Overload several weeks ago, and got a fair bit of feedback in response.  Join the guys as they talk about some of the pushback they get from their advice on how to handle Work Overload.

Watch the ‘Dealing With Work Overload – The Sequel’ Video (16 mins 40 sec):


Download the ‘Dealing With Work Overload’ Cheat Sheet, Video, Audio, and Slides

Dealing With Work Overload – The Sequel

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Below we talk about how to manage Work Overload.  Specifically, we talk about how you can better manage Work Overload by better planning and communicating what it is you intend to do.

Wily Manager Member Comment:

“I’m all for taking responsibility for my workload issues and accept that many of my problems are probably my own.  However, how can you tell when you are actually overloaded through no fault of your own?  I took up a new role two years ago and I’m still drowning, but I’ve no benchmarks to judge against other than that I coped fine in my previous role for the same organization.” 

The Tough Talk About Work Overload

  • If you’ve been drowning for two years it’s nobody’s fault but your own.
  • It doesn’t matter whose fault it might be, what you need to do is focus on is how to get out of it.
  • It’s not healthy for you or those around you to be perpetually overwhelmed.
  • It’s not good for your organization in the long run for you to be perpetually overwhelmed as it can lead to turnover, lower quality, missed deadlines,  etc.

The Two Step Solution to Work Overload

While people occasionally have to push themselves to work some extra hours at times when something big is going on, working excessive overtime for extended periods indicates a fundamental failure in two areas:

  1. Planning – What are you trying to get done, and have you set realistic time frames for doing so?
  1. Communication – Have you effectively managed the expectations of your stakeholders?

Planning as a Solution to Work Overload

  • Of all the projects currently under way, what’s the most valuable thing I can be working on?
  • Which project will have the highest direct impact on our customers? How much will the work I am doing benefit them?
  • How much “work effort” will each take?
  • Am I doing something that could be done by someone else?

Communication as a Solution to Work Overload

  • You need to build a plan to communicate and manage the expectations of all your stakeholders:
    • Take your plan to the boss.
    • Take your plan to the team.
    • Talk to the customer.
    • Talk to any other key stakeholders

Push Back on Demands to Manage Work Overload

  • Question the value of every meeting or new project.
  • Filter all requests through your priorities.
  • Make yourself inaccessible at times.
  • Ask for help where appropriate.
  • Delegate whenever possible.

Three Things to Remember About Managing Work Overload

  1. It’s your boss’s responsibility to get as much out of you as she can.
  2. It’s your responsibility to tell her when you’ve reached “overload”.
  3. You have choices.  Do nothing, Do something.

Watch the ‘3-Minute Crash Course’ about Dealing With Work Overload (CLICK THE ARROW TO START THE VIDEO):

Looking for the Full-Length Podcast/Video? …

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Busier Than a Squirrel on Speed

I once worked with a client who was perpetually behind the eight-ball – and not in the “everybody is busy” way, either.  She was busier than a squirrel at harvest time on a triple-Starbucks, and a double-hit of Speed.  She claimed this busy-ness extended to her personal life too, where she never had the time to do those things that were truly important.

Then she told me about her addiction to non-scripted television (I refuse to call it “reality TV” because Stargate is closer to reality than The Apprentice).  As it turns out, her problem was not one of too much work, but too little discipline.

She’s not alone.

Back when I was in University, I elevated procrastination to an elegant form of art.  Around the time every semester when I was supposed to be producing term papers, I would find just about any excuse not to do them.  I would do the requisite scheduling of time to get them done, and lock myself in either the school library or my bedroom so something would get done.

As it turns out, I would have been better off going to the pub (where at least I would have had some fun) because those long lock-down periods produced either:

a)    a thorough reading of the complete poetry works of Ezra Pound (more fun than managerial economics) when I was locked in the library

b)   the cleanest bedroom ever, if I was relegated to home.

Luckily, twenty-five years later I’m starting to understand procrastination for what it is: a total and complete lack of discipline.  Dr. Piers Steel recently wrote a book called The Procrastination Equation to help further understanding of this systemic problem.  According to Steel, procrastination affects 95% of the population (I assume the other 5% are buddhist monks who spend upwards of 20 hours per day in meditation).

Dr. Steel spent about 10 years researching procrastination for his book.  He probably could have gotten the research done in five years, if he was more disciplined, but I’m sure his room was as clean as mine was as a university student.  Interestingly, he tags coffee shops as a huge enabler of procrastination.  Add to this ubiquitous internet, television, video games and other people, and it’s remarkable we don’t all live in a catatonic state that Captain Christopher Pike found himself in in the original Star Trek series.

Now… I better get back to my writing – before I head over to the coffee shop.

Managing Work Overload

This week join the Wily Manager guys as they visit the subject of being overwhelmed at work – again.  Last time, the guys received a lot of feedback pushing back on some of their thoughts on how to manage this common problem with managers.  Join them this week for a follow up.

Monday’s Tip:  Prioritize ruthlessly.  Know what your priorities are, and deal with those things first.  Try to avoid letting the seemingly urgent distract you from this.

Tuesday’s Tip:   Plan with priorities in mind.  This may involve giving up some things you like to do, in favor of those things you need to do.

Wednesday’s Tip:  Delegate or Stop Doing some things.  Make a list of those things you can get others to do, and a list of those things you might be able to stop doing entirely.

Thursday’s Tip:  Manage your stakeholders.  Be careful what you commit to, and keep everyone on the loop as to how things are progressing.  Proactively managing stakeholders and their expectations is key to avoiding overload.

Friday’s Tip:   Commit to doing something different than you’re doing now.  The only thing that is for sure is if you continue to do what you are now, you will continue to feel overwhelmed.  Start slow – pick one thing and commit to doing it differently.

Managing Those With Less Experience: Strategy for an Inexperienced Workforce

This week Jed and Bob talk about how you manage when your entire workforce is seemingly without any experience.  In the old days we used to give people five or ten years to get up to speed.  Now we might only have five or ten months.  This entirely changes the way we need to lead people and manage our businesses.

Watch the ‘Managing Those With Less Experience: Strategy for an Inexperienced Workforce’ Video (15 mins 49 sec):


Download the ‘Strategy for an Inexperienced Workforce’ Cheat Sheet, Video, Audio, and Slides

Managing and Inexperienced Workforce

This week the Wily Manager guys talk about how workplace demographics change everything.  Quite likely, you are managing a workforce that is either over 50 or under 30.  What’s going to happen when your older people start to retire, and you lose the benefit of their skills and experience?  Join the discussion this week at Wily Manager.

Monday’s Tip: Build skills faster.  Regardless of what business you’re in, if you can actively look for ways to build the capability of your organization faster, you’ll be much better positioned to compete.

Tuesday’s Tip:  Build a “Talent Projection”.  Know your normal turnover rate, and how many people you will lose to retirement in the next five years.  Also understand how many more people you’ll need if your business is growing.

Wednesday’s Tip: Become a Capability Building Machine.  Once you know how many new people you’ll need, come to grips with the fact you probably won’t be able to hire all these skills.  Your best bet is to develop the required skills internally.

Thursday’s Tip: Insist Leaders be Coaches.  You can bridge significant skill gaps by having every leader in the organization taking his/her role as a coach and a teacher seriously.  You also need to hire and promote leaders who do this well.

Friday’s Tip:  Don’t wait for HR.  In a perfect world, HR would lead the charge for you.  However, as a leader, you need to take the initiative to make the happen, and not wait for HR.

Strategy for an Inexperienced Workforce

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There is a looming experience gap in your workforce, presenting a significant risk to many businesses.  Here are some specific strategies managers should implement to anticipate and overcome this problem.

The Demographic Reality

  • Most of the population is older than 50 and younger than 30 due to the baby boom
  • Organizations fired most of their middle managers in the ‘90s when they restructured/reorganized
  • As more experienced employees retire, you’re going to have trouble replacing them
  • Immigration only partially addresses the problem
  • Your 20-somethings used to have 15 years to develop their skills, whereas now they might have only 5 years

The bottom line: You need to “skill up” people faster (both accelerated leadership development and technical development).

What To Do?

We need to lead our businesses differently to account for this looming experience gap.  This problem may or may not be addressed by HR in your organization, so you need to go ahead with or without their support.

1. Build a Talent Projection

  • You need to know your situation.  What is the scope of your problem?  What is the gap in your skilled talent?
  • How many people do you lose per year due to normal attrition?
  • How many people will you lose to retirement in the next 5 years?
  • What people demands will the growth of the business place on your talent?

2. Become a Capability Building Machine

  • You need to figure out how to capture the knowledge of retiring employees, and transition it to younger employees.
  • Training is one method, but should not be the only method (and many organizations default to training).
  • Other more effective methods include mentoring, job shadowing, stretch assignments, and coaching.

3. Insist Leaders Be Coaches

  • If you have an inexperienced workforce, or are anticipating one, your leaders must be coaches.  They must be inspired to bring out the excellence in others.
  • The number one priority of leaders in such situations must be to build skills (both leadership and technical) in the organization.
  • You need to hire, promote, reward, and reinforce for the development of people.

3 Things to Remember About Anticipating and Dealing With an Inexperienced Workforce:

  1. This is NOT an HR problem.  This is a management problem, and a significant risk to many businesses.
  2. Don’t let leaders off the hook because they are technically excellent.  They need to make others excellent.
  3. Think beyond training.

Watch the ‘3-Minute Crash Course’ about dealing with an inexperienced workforce (CLICK THE ARROW TO START THE VIDEO):

Looking for the Full-Length Podcast/Video? …

Get Instant Access to 200+ Cheat Sheets, Videos, and Other Immediately Usable Tools for Busy Managers – Try Out a Wily Manager Membership Today!

Why Socrates Drank the Hemlock

About 2500 years ago, Socrates lamented the work ethic of the younger generation.  Apparently, on the way to his day-job as a stand-up philosopher, he’d stop at the Athens Starbucks and wait in line far too long, while the kid working the La Marzucco machine (who looks like he fell down the stairs with a tackle-box given the number of piercings and jewelry he’s wearing) would casually froth one latte at time.  No wonder he drank the hemlock – he was thirsty.

Fast forward in time a couple of millennia, and not much has changed.  Anyone over 40 has at least a mild annoyance with those under 30 and how they work.  The problem is, the bulk of the population is hurling towards retirement faster than Lindsay Lohan is to rehab, and there aren’t many people in their 30s and 40s to replace them.  This means the 20-somethings will be taking over the world in short order – probably well before they are equipped to do so.

Unless organizations get their heads around this, and act soon, our whole society will be immersed in the whims and fancies of people who think popcorn was actually meant to be cooked in a microwave.  Here’s what you can expect:

  • Recognition certificates for anyone who shows up on time for work five consecutive times.
  • Job title inflation – the barista I mentioned above will hence be called the Vice-President of Local Product Production and Distribution.
  • Not wanting to work on sunny days will be classified as a disability.
  • If you ask someone for the 2nd time to get something done, you will be subject to a harassment suit.

Of course, I might be the wrong guy to comment on this – I spent my whole first day at my first real job walking around with my fly open.

The Bureaucratic Decoder — Unveiled

Several years ago I did some work for a large, bureaucratic utility that had only recently been privatized from being a governmental organization.  In some ways, they made the transition to a private enterprise well, but many old bad habits from a public sector culture refused to die.

Perhaps most obvious to those of us from outside the culture was the quantity and poor quality of the meetings.  It is not an exaggeration to say that many managers spent every day listlessly drifting from meeting to meeting, and occasionally answered an email in between.  This was loosely described as “work”.

Most often, when a meeting was scheduled for 10:00, I would be the only one in the room, causing me to behave like Dustin Hoffman’s Rainman, checking my calendar to make sure I had the right time and place, and repeating the meeting request over and over to myself.  I quickly discovered that I needed to run all appointments through the special Bureaucratic Decoder.  Here’s the formula:

  • Meetings that start before 9am are entirely contingent upon traffic and weather.  If either one is not cooperating, the meeting will start at 9.30 at the earliest, and perhaps won’t occur at all if conditions are adverse.
  • Normally scheduled meetings between 10am and 3pm will start at fifteen minutes past the scheduled time to allow people time to use the bathroom, get coffee, and arrive at the meeting.  There may be some stragglers, so time was allocated to bring all people up to speed as they drifted into the meeting.  For those there on time, they may have to listen to the recap four times before everyone is there, so it was generally agreed that showing up on time was a bad idea.
  • If anyone had a meeting scheduled prior to your scheduled meeting, they would be at least 30 minutes late, because the previous meeting would never end on time, and they need their fifteen minute “transition buffer” (see bullet above).
  • If you scheduled a meeting for after 3.00pm, it was considered optional.  This is because all meetings started late, and ended late, and there was no guarantee that this meeting would be over by quitting time, which was the only appointment that was regularly respected in the organization.

It sounds frustrating, but the spotty attendance at meetings actually worked out well.  Rarely were decisions made, and there certainly was no collaboration.  The most important thing was maintaining the status quo, and any attempt at the smallest change was put down faster than rabid Rottweiler next door to a daycare.

If this sounds like your organization, then you better hope you don’t have to compete in the open market.  You’ll be put out of your misery faster than the dog I mentioned above.  In many cases, meetings are a necessary evil at best, and don’t do anything to move the business forward.

Governmental organizations and big utilities may be able to afford such excess… your organization probably can’t.

 

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