This week we talk about being an O-ring.  An O-ring is the code word for another word that doesn’t make it through firewalls.  As it turns out, it’s much easier to be an O-ring than you would think.  It’s also easy to avoid being perceived as such by making a few adjustments in how you communicate with people.  This week at Wily Manager we talk about effective interpersonal communication.

Monday’s Tip: It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it.  It really doesn’t matter whether you’re right or wrong.  It doesn’t matter if you’ve got all the data.  If you want to be heard, be very aware of how you are delivering your message.

Tuesday’s Tip: What you intend doesn’t matter… it’s what is heard.  You need to appropriately target your audience every time.  It is also important that you ensure the message you intend is the one that the receiver hears.  Language is an imprecise tool.

Wednesday’s Tip: Delay before responding.  When people aren’t talking, many of them aren’t actually listening to the other person – they are planning what to say next.  Don’t be afraid to take some time to consider what you’ve heard before responding.

Thursday’s Tip: Mind your body language.  Your facial expressions, the position of your arms, where you are looking, and how you move will communicate as much or more as the words you use.  Make sure your body language is deliberate.

Friday’s Tip: Don’t use “absolute” language.  “You never do this”, or “You always do this”, will signal to the other person that you want to debate about the one time they did do what you want.  Absolute language, or overstating a situation is not an effective way to convey your message. 

Most people have goals – even if they are only in their head.  What is the difference between those who achieve their goals, and those who don’t?  Do you really need to spend weeks refining your goals every year?  Are certain types of goals better than others?  What are SMART goals?  What are HARD goals?  What are BHAGs? 

These and other mysteries addressed this week at Wily Manager.

Monday’s Tip: Write down your goals.  It is less important what format or method you use to articulate your goals, but it is critical that you write them down.

Tuesday’s Tip: Don’t have too many goals.  You should have somewhere between 3 and 8 goals at any given time.  If you have upwards of this, you end up with a list of things that do not delineate what is important.

Wednesday’s Tip: Don’t be too narrow in your focus.  If you only have one goal, you need to look more broadly at your business.  While improving revenue or production is an important goal, you must have some goals that articulate how you will do those things effectively.

Thursday’s Tip: Be specific with your goals.  “Increase revenue” is not a goal, it is a wish.  You need to articulate by how much and in what time.  For example, “Increase revenue by 4% in the next fiscal period”, is more specific.

Friday’s Tip: Breach your comfort zone.  Great things only occur when people are willing to take risks and breach their comfort zones.  Caution:  attempting to get 100 hours work done in 40 hours is NOT a stretch goal – it is insanity.  Find something inspiring and create a stretch goal.