Jumping Into the Deep End of Leadership by Donna Karlin

04:58 pm | 0 recommendations | Be the first to comment

Leadership: Working in the Twilight Zone

There’s a quote by Monica Baldwin that goes something like “The moment when you first wake up in the morning is the most wonderful of the twenty-four hours. No matter how weary or dreary you may feel, you possess the certainty that, during the day that lies before you, absolutely anything may happen. And the fact that it practically always doesn't, matters not a jot. The possibility is always there.“

My clients, and me, by virtue of my days becoming theirs, live in a world where it practically always does happen. No two days are alike even if it’s planned that way.

To lay out a bit of context for you, here is a global organization that is in the midst of major structural changes. The top three in positions of leadership are new, my client is fairly new, and on top of it they are doing a structural change that affects all of management, all departments as their structure and mandates will change as well. No two days are alike as they are still finding their way. The first thing I asked them was to define the differences between defining their roles and designing them. I wanted to them to take control over whatever it was they could control and if that was working together to define roles and responsibilities, reporting structure, deliverables and to a great extent, even where their offices were located, at least they would feel as if there was some order to the chaos.

Well today defied all the norms and I decided that if I was to break the acute tension that was so tangible you could reach out and touch it, I would have to ask or do something outlandish. So I asked the client I was Shadow Coaching what her day reminded her of. She paused for a moment and answered “I can’t say because I have never experienced anything like it! I’m in the Twilight Zone!”

Talk about being given a gift. We looked at the concept of that old favorite show and how it did indeed define their world today. It really was perfect. As we ran from meeting to meeting, watching others stressed to the nines, I engaged my client to partner with me and have a dialogue about working in the Twilight Zone and how even best laid intentions turned out completely different because the world wasn’t in our control. It brought a hint of humor to the entire building which immediate lessened the stress that was tangible the moment you walked through the doors.

It’s true that humor conquers all. The entire management team went from survival mode to what I call 'thrival' mode. When I left this afternoon they were pumped, smiling and even though mentally exhausted by the sheer volume of work they know they'll have to do in order to make this a success, at the back of their minds they have this vision of working in the Twilight Zone that they will remember with a smile for the rest of their lives.

We changed an environment that wasn't sustainable and put a new twist to it so it just might work. What are you dealing with that you might want to turn around and bring a whole new perspective to? A question that I often ask clients and will leave you with is “What if the next thing you did or said could transform the organization? What would that be? And what would that look like?”

Donna Karlin • Executive and Political Shadow Coach™ • Ottawa, Canada • •www.abetterperspective.com

07:57 pm | 0 recommendations | 7 comments

Leadership: It's Perfect...Just Perfect

Today was a fascinating day. I started with a new client, someone very high level in the organization and wasn’t sure what to expect as not only was she a new client but was new to the organization, so I hadn’t yet seen much of her in action.

As I usually do before starting my day Shadow Coaching™ my client is to see ongoing clients for a few moments for reality checks, scheduling, contracting and just to touch base. Today was no exception. What is different is that this organization is going through a major restructuring at all levels. Every department is short-staffed and on top of this, all the systems have to be changed to meet the growing needs so their entire world is in flux. Those in positions of leadership are doing twice the hours they were doing before to pick up the slack and to create a strategy for implementation of this giant re-org. Needless to say, tempers are short, people are burned out and there doesn’t seem to be an end in sight.

Strangely or wonderfully, I’m not sure which would be the most appropriate term, today seemed to be a turning point for me in my work because it was as if a switch was flipped and all of a sudden, many of my clients ‘got it’, i.e. they realized why I was saying what I was saying and gave it back to me in spades.

When this re-org began and they weren’t quite sure which foot to put in front of which first, a couple of my clients were having a very rough time. In our sessions I turned to them, separately and at separate times and asked, “What is so perfect about this when it clearly isn’t?” One almost threw something at me and the other cracked up because he’s never quite sure what will come out of my mouth. It was the start of a long insightful conversation.

Well a few months have passed and here I was with this new client standing at the elevator to go to a meeting when one of my other clients asked me how my day was going. I smiled and said “Fascinating” because it was….but they always are! He started grinning and turned to me and asked “What is so perfect about it when it clearly isn’t?” I told him just being asked that made it absolutely perfect!

He got it. He knew what I was dealing with, new leadership and all, and although I love chaos and the unexpected, after all it’s my life in a nutshell, he knew I saw it as perfect, just as he started seeing his chaotic world. Because of the change in perception, he started having fun with the craziness. Bottom line is, if you can’t enjoy the most intense, unpredictable times and those times are going to be sticking around for a while, then get out because in the world we live in, things are no longer predictable, no matter if you’re at the top of the totem pole or the bottom.

When I got to the meeting room another client who was having a really rough day saw me Shadowing my client and started smiling. When I asked why the smile? She said “I was just trying to figure out how I could tell you just how perfect this craziness is”. Yep….life is just perfect.

Can you look at something that happened to you today and ask yourself “What was so perfect about this when it clearly isn’t?” and have an answer? It works. And it’s contagious. Try it with your staff or peers when they’re going through a particularly rough time and see how the attitudes change on a dime. Fascinating!

It might sound simplistic, yet defining perfection for you is never simple. What it does is put things in perspective, take the power away from the chaotic moments and put it back in your hands. Nothing simple about that, not by a long shot.

Donna Karlin • Executive and Political Shadow Coach™ • Ottawa, Canada • •www.abetterperspective.com

09:12 am | 0 recommendations | 9 comments

Leadership: Defined?

What is a great leader exactly? That is one of the questions consistently tossed about all over the world. I've read books upon books on leadership, write about leadership but is it defined in the true sense of the term or does a leader's unique style define it along the way?

If defining a leader was based on proficiency or criteria, would that align with the individuality of the organization or the people within it? Is it something one can be measured against now or after the fact? Think about it. How many people are considered great leaders the moment they walk into the position? They don't. That is earned after they've achieved success.

A catch 22 perhaps?

Theodore Roosevelt said "The best executive is one who has sense enough to pick good people to do what he wants done, and self-restraint enough to keep from meddling with them while they do it."

If you take that quote and take it to mean a person in a position of leadership (who else would be picking their people?) then does it mean someone that gives direction and then backs off?

A constant complaint from clients.....their work is checked and rechecked and half the time discarded. It’s demoralizing to them and deflates their desire to produce. Yet how many leaders do that?

Ralph Marston wrote "Let go of your attachment to being right, and suddenly your mind is more open. You're able to benefit from the unique viewpoints of others, without being crippled by your own judgment." By doing that, you not only empower those who work with/for you but grow and learn at the same time. Is that a better definition of leadership?

Ask yourself this question....if you lost your title, position and power tomorrow, would others still support you and want to work with you? A difficult question to ask, but an important one at that. It's a question many don't want to be asked because they're afraid of hearing the answer. In this day and age that question is translated into a 360°. You're told in every which way whether or not staff, peers and superiors would follow your lead. But what is done with those 360s afterwards?

I know...many questions. Coaches are great at asking questions for clarification. And as there are many of you out there who are quick as a whip, have insight, opinions, ideas and perspectives I'd love to throw a few questions out at you..

1. How do you define a true leader?
2. Should there be a tool or assessment for a future leader to be measured against before taking on the position?
3. Should peer assessments be done on a regular basis to see if that leaders is measuring up?
4. In some organizations, staff is now choosing their leader. Does that ultimately make a difference in the success or an organization?

Looking forward to your three cents.

Donna Karlin • Executive and Political Shadow Coach™ • Ottawa, Canada • •www.abetterperspective.com

08:17 pm | 0 recommendations | 7 comments

Leadership: Hard to Imagine What It's Like to Not Know What We Know

I recently reviewed the book "Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die," by Chip Heath and Dan Heath.

In it, they state "To strip an idea down to its core, we must be masters of exclusion. We must relentlessly prioritize. Saying something short isn’t the mission — sound bites aren’t the ideal. Proverbs are the ideal. We must create ideas that are both simple and profound. “A one-sentence statement so profound that an individual could spend a lifetime learning it. Once we know something, we find it hard to imagine what it’s like not to know it. Our knowledge has “cursed” us."

This hit home. This sentence, so profound that a “one could spend a lifetime learning it”, being able to live that would be a dream come true for a coach. As a Shadow Coach™ I have a finite amount of time available for me to coach my clients as we run, as clients live in a world that’s at the center of complex challenges in chaotic times (their definition, not mine). Unlike most coaching sessions, mine are sometimes a matter of moments, two or three minutes where all I have time for is a laser session that zeros in on one dynamic, one situation or moment in time.

To spend a lifetime learning is one thing, but integrating, reinventing and living what is learned is what it’s all about for me in my work and for the leaders that lead organizations and their people to their level of excellence..

Often, all it takes is one statement or question that captures their attention. Then they fly.

How powerful would it be if that kind of immediate feedback, two minds working as one, was available to all organizational leaders? Have you ever worked with someone at the speed of laser? There’s nothing like it. You not only get multiple viewpoints but integrate change on the spot, review, retweak and then put in place something that works so much better. Not later, right then.

If we held each other accountable for our leadership in all meetings and conversations, how much more effective would they be? That's one kind of feedback or peer coaching. How would that work in day to day leadership? Heath and Heath were right when they said it’s not about making things shorter; it’s about simplicity or simplifying so the impact is at the point where there are no more questions in anyone’s minds as to what you mean and why.

Clarity is key.

Life is continually becoming more complex. We, as leaders, have to in turn simplify to the point where clarity is the standard and when things aren’t crystal clear they know to ask and make sure they get the answers. And if we're not paying attention to what's happening, to have a peer or coach give you the non-judgmental feedback you need to reinvent what isn't working.

We waste so much time in life trying to figure out what’s on another person’s mind. Why in the world would we do that when it is so much easier to ask them what they did mean and act on it? Think of all the time and energy wasted when struggling could be replaced with energy, flow and evolution. Think of all the perspectives that are lost when we're not paying attention to our own roles in the scheme of things.

There’s no place to go but up.

So why in the world aren’t we practicing these ways of being?

Next time you take for granted that everyone in the room knows what’s needed and what you want from them, remember…they can't read your mind any more than you can read theirs. That’s a part of taking responsibility for yourselves. If you don’t understand, ask and if you still don’t understand ask for more clarification. Why waste a ton of time and energy on something you don’t understand? One of the key characteristics of a leader is ‘getting it” then sharing it. When they don’t get it, they ask until they do. They contextualize, grow and move forward, as does everyone around them.

Donna Karlin • Executive and Political Shadow Coach™ • Ottawa, Canada • •www.abetterperspective.com

02:59 pm | 0 recommendations | 10 comments

Leadership: Organizational Authenticity vs. Integrity

This afternoon I answered the question “What does it mean for an organization to be authentic? A few answers came to mind one of which involved whether or not there’s a difference between Organizational Authenticity and Organizational Integrity. Is there a difference or are they one and the same?

An organization can be in alignment with its vision, mission and mandate but walk all over people to stay authentic to that. At the same time, that organization can also align with human values and ethics creating an entirely different organizational culture. Is that what it means to have organizational integrity? Or not?

I’d love your opinions on this.

Along with looking at this question, I’d like to bring to the table organizational sustainability. Does an organization have to exist from a basis of integrity to be sustainable and successful? Or do the ‘cut throats’ ultimately win out and force the ‘good guys’ out of business?

I think if we asked the same question in many different fields and professions, diametrically opposed opinions will emerge. If you’re leading in any capacity, this is a question that needs answering at some point. If you don’t define it, someone else will.

Care to play and discuss this?

Donna Karlin • Executive and Political Shadow Coach™ • Ottawa, Canada • •www.abetterperspective.com

09:23 pm | 0 recommendations | 4 comments

Leadership: Tagged for a Leadership Challenge

I was recently asked to participate in a challenge called “Why Most Leadership Sucks, Including Yours…by John W. McKenna. I wasn’t thrilled with his languaging and told him as much on a previous Fast Company post to which he replied “I could do better”.

”I could do better” Can’t we all? In some way shape or form, even if it’s just subtle, we can do better, different, opposite, or whatever is needed when we’re in a position of leadership as that’s what leadership is. It’s not independent of the organizational culture nor is it independent of context. As it’s the anniversary of 9/11 it’s apropos for me to use the following as an example:

In the book Leadership by Rudolph W. Giuliani and Ken Kurson, “Much of a leader's approach must be formed from the raw material of his own life. There is no substitute for personal experience when dealing with a problem. This is particularly true in a crisis, when there is less time to develop ideas and plans. When Rudolph Giuliani rushed to the scene of the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center, he had already learned the value of seeing things with his own eyes and of setting an example. Those were lessons that had come out of the experiences of his life.”

I'm not here to dictate whether or not how he responded measured up, met expectations etc. I'm saying we operate from a different perspective depending on circumstance and context not to mention pressures, energy levels and all the rest. One cannot use the same style of leadership every day; it changes moment to moment as need be.

We can always 'do better' as leaders in our fields of practice, in life, with family, friends, and to set an example to those who don’t know us and have never met us but who will be touched by the ripple effect of what we do regardless of whether or not there's a personal connection.

As an executive and political leadership coach, I grow people for a living based on where they want to go and who they want to be. They need to define what that looks like for them. There are many factors that determine the impact of our leadership. It not only encompasses vision but personality, languaging, energy and connection.

We have a unique capacity to shape our lives. Leaders have a unique capacity to shape other’s lives.

Leaders are not leaders without followers. We all have the choice to follow bad leaders, or not. Someone who might be a great leader to one might not be to another. It's all personal preference and personal choice. For some it’s easier to let others shape our destiny for in doing that, when we fail, we can place blame.

Under the surface, where the key dynamics of a personality lies is the person that builds pieces of our world as we know it, one who dreams and translates that dream into a vision we can all wrap our heads around. Those leaders are risk takers because to not go after their dreams isn’t even a remote possibility. Their energy, passion is a never-ending spring that never dries up, as with each person who comes on board and wants to ‘live it too’ that passion continues to feed the human spirit.

Before we decide what is good or bad leadership, I think we have to define it on two fronts, ourselves and how we look at the way we lead and for others and who we might want to follow. As for me. I accept complete responsibility for everything I think, say, feel, and do. I am not afraid of making mistakes or of taking reasonable risks. I am a life-long student. I am always ready to learn, and I know growth takes sustained effort. Through that, I own and celebrate my successes and failures as they are both instrumental in that growth. Anything else for me would be existing through life, not 'living' it. Each risk allows us to invent our futures. We all lead the way in our own lives with each choice we make…good and bad.

How do you define great leadership as it applies to you and others? Are both definitions the same or do you look at how you lead differently than the leadership of the person you would and want to follow? How might that affect your view of what an ideal leader should look like or not look like?

Donna Karlin • Executive and Political Shadow Coach™ • Ottawa, Canada • •www.abetterperspective.com

08:58 am | 0 recommendations | 6 comments

Leadership: Acknowledging Leaders

This week I was tagged for a Personal Development List through my personal blog Perspectives. This list grew very quickly and exponentially and soon became a Blogger’s phenomenon as those tagged made recommendations for others to be tagged. The ripple effect was extraordinary. Because of that list I was again tagged to give my opinion for something called “Does Most Leadership Suck Challenge”.

Now I have a fundamental problem with pretty much everything about this so called challenge, from the name, the focus and the reasons behind doing this in the first place because I do feel most people want to succeed as leaders, even those put in the position by chance or default. Blogging is a powerful, far reaching and influential medium. I wouldn’t have a community of subscribers who I dialogue with from 111 countries otherwise. So I’d like to turn the “Does Most Leadership Suck Challenge” around for a moment and ask you, the readers, to tag people who are amazing leaders no matter what their level of responsibility within an organization, so they are recognized for their strengths, not because they might “suck” in someone’s view. Who are they and what stands out about their leadership? Is it their style, their ways of communicating? Their vision or enthusiasm?

Speak to strengths, you’ll get more of them. The same goes for weaknesses. It goes back to my post on “I caught you doing something good”. This is “I’m tagging you for being someone great, whether for a day, a month or always.” What do you think? Do you know someone who ought to be acknowledged and recognized for his or her leadership? Let us know who that is and send them a link to your comment so they not only know you’re acknowledging them but telling the rest of the world too.

Call it ‘Acknowledging Leaders Week’. I look forward to seeing how quickly this list grows.

Donna Karlin • Executive and Political Shadow Coach™ • Ottawa, Canada • •www.abetterperspective.com

12:12 pm | 0 recommendations | Be the first to comment

Leadership: Today I Will...

This week I will….

Will you? Best laid intentions…How many leaders brainstorm about changes that have to be made to move an organization forward, arrange endless meetings and retreats and perhaps actually dialogue about what those changes should look like, only to park it all and live with the status quo?

It happens more often than you think. What stops a leader from jumping in with both feet to make it happen? There’s a chemistry that happens in an organization and if your enthusiasm for the results that change might bring isn’t contagious, it won’t be sustainable. So how do you make sure it is? How does everyone have to ‘get it’ according to them so there’s buy in? If the leader hesitates, that in itself sends a message and the ripple effect could make the difference between engagement and having a fight on their hands.

We look at successful leaders as people who move organizations forward and take them on the road to continued success. Some organizations continue to fly and others might succeed for a short while but that success is not sustained. Why do you think that is? Are leaders measured by organizational success or by their style and staff engagement? Is it possible to separate the two? Or can a leader be successful for one organization but bomb in another? A group of us were in conversation about that just last week. Some say successful leaders are measured by who they are, not but the success of the organization they’re working in, yet how in the world can one be separated from the other? If you lead people to failure, yes, you might be great at leading but that gets into good leadership and bad leadership and everything in-between.

Leaders need more than necessary skills sets and a wealth of knowledge to lead an organization into the future. It’s a combination of chemistry, people connectedness and vision. Articulating that vision in such a way where the staff really gets it, owns it and wants to make it happen is the key, so when they say “This week I will _______” or “This year I want to make _____happen” they’ll have the power with people to make it so.

However just because they’re able to do with one group, doesn’t necessarily mean that leader will be embraced by the next. What does a leader have to do give him/her a fighting chance?

Donna Karlin • Executive and Political Shadow Coach™ • Ottawa, Canada • •www.abetterperspective.com

07:35 pm | 0 recommendations | 2 comments

Leadership: Space, A Precious Commodity

Space. Was your first reaction to the word accommodations? Office space? Closet or cupboard space? For many storage space is at a premium so that’s the first thing that comes to mind.

That is not the space I’m referring to. I’m talking about space of time.

I’m currently working on a Time Mastery program that looks at time. It’s not about cramming more into a day than you did before, or scheduling, using a PDA or BlackBerry. It’s about time, the concept of time and how we respect it and ourselves in relation to time. We’re in the midst of looking at leaders and how they seem to fly through their days, directing, delegating, strategizing, making decisions and yes, calling endless back to back meetings.

So I took some time to look at time and see its dynamics. I then started asking my clients what they thought of first when they heard the term “buying time”. In one way or another, the answers revolved around having more time to do things, see things, to play and shelve work for the time being. It was hearing “I wish I could clone myself so I could do more” and “I wish I had more time to…”

Truthfully it had nothing whatsoever to do with having more time or saving time so something else could be slotted into that chunk of time. Rather, what they weren’t saying but meant was they wished they had time. Extra time. Unplanned time. They wanted space….nothingness, quiet time, time to just be, to let the thoughts fly in any direction, to think, imagine and explore possibility.

They wanted creative time, time to conceptualize, to strategize, to play, learn, and get to know others. They wanted time to unwind and relax. Many had forgotten how. They couldn’t remember the last time they just relaxed or didn’t rush to do something else in that tiny bit of time that appeared unexpectedly. They felt guilty if they took time for themselves, so they didn’t. Instead they did something for someone else or worked. Time, space, is such a precious commodity, heaven forbid they couldn’t waste it! And was doing nothing or planning nothing during that short period actually be wasting time or valuing it and themselves? Relax? What’s that? They didn’t remember how to relax. They were wired all the time, literally and figuratively.

People don’t know how to do nothing. They forgot how.

Donna Karlin • Executive and Political Shadow Coach™ • Ottawa, Canada • •www.abetterperspective.com

02:07 pm | 0 recommendations | 1 comment

Leadership: What People Want

Are you inspiring your staff or motivating them one task, one project at a time? One is sustainable and energizing and the other is task oriented and expensive energy. There have been many studies undertaken over the years to look at employee retention, growth of rising stars, employee satisfaction and morale etc, and most of them generate the same conclusions. These studies look at why morale might be low and how the organizational culture might enable poor staff retention. It’s just as important to look at what’s being done to counteract and reverse those trends as it is to study the dynamics and reactions because of them. But is leadership paying attention to studies about their people or just about ones that relate to cutting edge trends and the bottom line? Are the same groups and organizations polled a year or so after the results are in to see if there has been any sustainable change in the status quo? How about again a year after that? And if nothing was done to implement and ensure change, what were the ramifications? Those are the studies I'd love to see.

One of the key research papers by Terry Bacon that we analyzed and discussed at last year’s International Coach Federation Research Symposium delved into what people wanted from their workplace relationships. It was an in depth, brilliant paper that looked at, among other topics, cultural differences, gender, age and level of position. There were quite a few commonalities between the 20 year olds and the 60 year olds, one of which was they wanted to be respected. The younger age group wanted to be respected even though they were the new up and comings and the older, pre-retirement aged group wanted respect because of their experience and wealth and depth of knowledge and weren’t quite ready to be put out to pasture just yet.

Are we living in a world where people are expendable and easily replaced? For if that's the attitude we are dealing with, then all the studies in the world will be a waste of time and money and send morale into a tail spin. It's one thing to ask staff what they're currently living, and quite another to ignore their answers. That's adding insult to injury.

As an Executive Shadow Coach I look at trends, cultures, and organizational climate, however it’s not the organization but the individuals within these organizations that create change and make the difference. What are the behaviors that aren’t serving them? Is there a huge disconnect between what leadership thinks they're doing or is ignoring and what they're actually living and doing?

Is leadership trying to motivate staff or inspire them to do their best all the time? There is a huge difference between motivating and inspiring. The first comes from an external influence such as perhaps a raise, a bonus or award or even to meet stiff deadlines. Motivating is expensive energy. Ultimately the cost could very well be exhaustion and burnout. Inspiring one to be their best, do their best and recognize and speak to their and each other’s best brings a whole new level of energy to an organization.

Take for example a policy that shows staff “I caught you doing something good”. It’s not about a prize or bonus but recognition that people have noticed an individual or group’s good work, creativity, effectiveness and leadership. Don’t you think staff will want to do their best on a regular basis they know people are paying attention? That’s not task oriented, it’s fundamental changes in ‘ways of being’ and communicating. It is a proven fact that staff who feel their leadership cares about them as human beings and not only for the work they pound out will go that extra mile because they know it's noticed. People want to be recognized. People want to be "gotten".

Next time you catch someone doing something great, tell them! You're showing them “you caught them doing something good”, that you noticed and not only noticed but took the time to tell them you noticed. That will make all the difference in the world….their world and of everyone around them.

It’s not about endless studies. It’s about creating sustainable and positively contagious leadership so everyone flies. Are you a part of or leading an organization that is 'positively contagious'?

Donna Karlin • Executive and Political Shadow Coach™ • Ottawa, Canada • •www.abetterperspective.com