In preparation for the meeting, to develop an agenda that promotes openness

Any new idea goes through three phases:

"Nothing will come of it."

"This will require a very high cost."

"I have always believed that it's a great idea."

A good leader, knowing that people are changing at once, but gradually, will focus on developing the agenda for the meeting, which will be announced on future innovations.

I propose a general plan, which I use for fifteen years. During this time, he confirmed its effectiveness.

Information. Topics of interest to participants in the meeting, as well as positively colored threads, lifting the mood of people. (This allows the top to hold the meeting at a high level

Study. Questions for discussion, not put forward for voting. (This gives people the opportunity to freely exchange ideas without being bound by clearly express their point of view.)

Action. Questions put to the vote after the debate. (Rounding out the discussion. If significant innovations are planned, should not rush to vote. Duration of the stage of learning must be sufficient to enable people to fully discuss the planned innovations and adopt them.)

 

Encourage informal influence of the most influential members of the community on the other

Upcoming significant innovation should not fall upon the people suddenly. "The controlled leak of information" the best way to prepare people for the meeting, which will be officially announced on the upcoming changes.

I love the parable of the two buckets. Each leader as it brings with it two buckets: one with gasoline, the other with water. When an organization begins the "fire" - quarrels about people's fear of change, leaders will know about it first. What happens next depends on them: either they will pour gasoline on the fire, and then the inevitable major conflicts or inflaming fire flooded with water, and the problem disappears. In other words, these people may become a leader or top aides throughout the organization or a major obstacle in his path.

"Information leakage" should be planned and positive.

 

Show people how they will benefit from the planned changes

The initial premise. The proposed changes should primarily benefit the team, not the leader. In the first place should always be as a people.

If the doors waiting room at the bus station hangs a sign saying, "Please close the door for the convenience of others", the door can be opened wide open until the tablet will not replace the other, "Please close the door for your own convenience." In this case, the door will be closed for sure. Too often, leaders look at things from the point of view of specific people, but from the point of view of the organization and properly organize your leadership style.

 

Make people feel that it is their own innovations

The openness of the leader creates the prerequisites for people to feel themselves masters of the coming changes. Without this, no innovation will not last long. Change the habits of people from the outside, their style of thinking - it's like that in the snow trying to write something in the snow. Any inscription will be immediately covered with snow, and it will have to write again every five minutes.

 

How to give people the opportunity to feel themselves masters of things to come

1. Tell people in advance that they had enough time to think about all aspects of the planned innovations and their potential impact on the future life.

2. Educate people to common goals, which are undertaken for the sake of innovation, the reasons for the beginning of the changes and features of their implementation (time, place).

3. Show how the changes will benefit certain people. Be honest with the people that can change as a result of incurring losses. Warn them in advance if you want to - help them find other work.

4. Ask those who are affected by the coming changes, to participate in the implementation of innovations at all stages.

5. "Channels of communication" should always be open. Provide subordinates to discuss the upcoming innovations, ask them to provide "feedback" in the form of questions, opinions, comments, and other information.

6. In the process of innovation demonstrates the flexibility and ability to adapt. Admit your own mistakes and make changes to the approved plan, when necessary.

7. Constantly exercise faith in the success of innovation and its commitment to them. Exercise faith in the ability of people to succeed.

8. Encourage people involved in the process of introducing innovations, help them appreciate their efforts, to express their gratitude to the *.

* Trusell, Helping Employees Cope With Change: A Manager's Guidebook.

 

Change is inevitable

The question of "Waiting for us to change" is wrong in principle. It should be: "What and how will we change? '. Nothing stays unchanged, except for the fact that things are changing. Perhaps even at the very beginning of the human race, Adam, who had just been expelled from Eden, Eve said, "Honey, we live in an era of change."

Charles Exley, head of the corporation "NCR Corporation ", said:" I have been in business for thirty-six years. During this time I learned a lot, but this knowledge is for the most part no one needs. "

Writer Lincoln Barnett explains how he once shared with his students inspired by his scientific heard lectures on physics.

- How are you doing in science? - Asked one of the students.

- Brilliant! - Barnett said. - Everything we have learned with you last week, was wrong!

Keeping up with the times - not an easy task for any leader. Know about the changes taking place in society and change in accordance with the organization of their lives - the duty of a leader. A change in the community may be more than significant. Richard Keduell wrote an article that compared the fifties of the XX century with the nineties and came to the conclusion that fundamentally changed values ​​*.

50-ies of XX century

90-ies of XX century

Economy

Costs

Deferred fun

Pleasure immediately

Confidence

Question

Conventionality

Skepticism

Investment

Loans

Relations with neighbors

Your lifestyle

Middle class

The lower class

Exports

Imports

Shared values

Personal well-being

Mom and Dad

Babysitting and daycare

Progress

Fame

Knowledge

Recommendations

Production

Services

The obligations of spouses

Divorce

"We"

"I"

* R. F. Caldwell. «The Face of Corporate Culture», Santa Clara Today, November 1984 12.

 

Not all change leads to perfection, but perfection does not happen without change

Change = Growth

or

Change = Destruction

The changes provide opportunities for movement both up and down. I noticed that the changes could lead to a degradation in the following cases:

■ The idea of ​​innovation was wrong.

■ The idea of ​​innovation was not the most influential members of the organization.

■ The idea of ​​innovation has not been presented to communicate clearly and effectively.

■ The idea of ​​innovation is beneficial not the whole team, but only the leaders.

■ The idea of ​​innovation was based solely on the past.

■ Ideas innovation was too much, and they are translated too quickly.

In the fifties, the journalists of «Fortune» asked eleven prominent American figures of the time to tell how they imagine a life in thirty years. In those years, the trade surplus amounted to U.S. $ 3 billion, and none of the respondents predicted the emergence of the trade deficit in 80 years. Chairman of the Broadcasting Corporation "Radio Corporation of America », American Belarusian origin David Sarnoff, was confident that by 1980 , the ships, planes, trains and even private cars will switch to nuclear fuel, in the homes will stand atomic power generators, and transport over long distances will conduct a guided missile. Henry Luce, editor in chief of the magazine «Time», predicted in 1980 , the disappearance of poverty. The mathematician John von Neumann believed that the energy of this time will be free.

 

Change is never too late

Max Deprit said: "In the end, it is important to remember that we can not become what we need to be, remaining so, what we are now." * End of change in your life - the end of you and it's true.

* Max Depree, Leadership Is an Art (New York, Doubleday, 1989) 87.

What do you think, hearing the name of Alfred Nobel? Most of all, about the Nobel Prize. However, the famous prize - just a "second chapter" in the history of this man's life. Alfred Nobel - a Swedish chemist, inventor of dynamite and other high explosives, who made his inventions to a vast fortune. When Alfred's brother died in a newspaper obituary by mistake instead of the name of his brother's name appeared. This obituary "late" Alfred called the person who gave people the opportunity to kill each other in previously unheard-of scale and became wealthy through this. Shocked by this assessment of his work, Nobel decided to use his wealth to reward those who have made the most significant contribution to the development of mankind.

At Alfred Nobel was a rare opportunity to hear the evaluation of his life, and to live after this long enough to be able to change this estimate *.

Comedian Jerry Lewis says that was the best wedding gift for his film, shot during the wedding ceremony.

* Ron Jenson, ed. Higher Ground.

When further his relationship with his wife escalated to the limit, Lewis locked in his room, replaying a movie at the end and came out a free man.

It is unlikely that you will have the opportunity to read his obituary in the newspaper or scroll to the end of his life. But you have another opportunity - right now to make a choice in favor of change. If these changes are successful, you'll look back and call their personal growth.

 

 

Chapter Five

The shortest path to leadership:

PROBLEM SOLVING

F. Fournier in his book "Learning to work better" * cites four common reasons why people do not work as well as they could be:

1. They do not know what they are required to do.

2. They do not know how to do it.

3. They do not know why you need it to do.

4. They are affected by conditions beyond their control.

Elimination of these four problems, not enable people to exercise their full potential - duty of leaders

* FF Fournies, Coaching for Improved Work Performance (New York, Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1978).

ditch. This is particularly true of the first three points. A carefully designed training program as detailed job descriptions, essential tools in conjunction with the communication skills a leader - that's the way to solve these problems.

But in this chapter focuses mainly on the fourth group of problems and their solutions. At work, at home and in life in general, all the time there are a variety of problem situations. People do not like problems very quickly get tired of them and try to do everything possible to get rid of it quickly. If you are willing (and able) to cope with the problems of people and teach them how to deal with them yourself, then people will give the reins in your hands. Problem-solving skills will always be in demand, because the problems - is inevitable. The diagram shows, to whom (or what) is most often approached by people looking for help.

This chapter will focus on two things necessary to effectively address the problems: correct position and the correct action plan.

 

There are problems in all

Sometimes the problem is literally pouring on us one by one. My buddy Joe was once a "cheerful" morning. While he was going to work, the phone rang neperestavaya. Four long-distance calls, four long conversation, four desperate appeal: "Drop everything, get in the plane, I need your help!". At breakfast time was running out.Joe hurried to the garage, but the car refused to start. I had to call a taxi. While the taxi was traveling on a call, there was another phone call, and Joe had to endure yet another desperate cry for help. When the taxi finally arrived, Joe plopped down on the back seat and said with relief:

- All right, now let's go.

- Where to go? - Asked the taxi driver.

- Where do you want! - Joe cried. - Wherever sunsya, there will still be a problem!

Often it seems that nowadays more problems than it has ever been. Such assumptions make me a laugh. Here's what he said about Dwight bombs in his book "With America's all right": "American elders in my life has gone through, in particular, the stock market crash in 1929 that left many families without means, during the Great Depression," New Deal "of President FD Roosevelt, who brought the country out of the crisis, the attack on Pearl Harbor, the loss of the territory of the United States of the Philippine Islands, the second world war, the landing of Allied forces in Normandy, the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki; victory over Germany and Japan, establishing the United Nations, which gave the world a new hope; the implementation of the Marshall Plan in Europe, the war in Korea, an attempt to overthrow the Castro regime in Cuba in 1971, the Cuban missile crisis, the assassination of President Kennedy, Senator Robert F. Kennedy and the famous activist Martin Luther King Jr., the era of the civil rights struggle, the Vietnam War, the landing American astronauts to the moon, the Watergate scandal and the resignation of the president and vice-president of the United States, the energy crisis, the accident at the nuclear power plant Three Mile Island, the attack on the U.S. embassy in Iran and the taking of hostages, the bombing of the U.S. embassy in Lebanon, turning the United States into the country of the debtor to the greatest in the history of the budget deficit - and that's not all. That is life as Life ". We should not forget the words of Paul Harvey: "In times like this is useful to remember that these times were always".

 

Problems make life meaningful

A wise philosopher once said, "The only thing that interferes with the eagle to fly faster and with less labor - is the air." But if the air was not at all proud bird could not fly. The fact that most hinders the flight, at the same time is a basic condition for the very possibility of flying!

The main obstacle for a motor boat - water resistance of the rotation of the screw. But without this resistance, the boat could not move. The presence of obstacles - a condition for success. This is true not only for eagle or a motor boat, but also for human life. In life, deprived of all the problems and difficulties, opportunities, too, would come down to zero. Remove from the life of the problem, and any creativity disappears. The problem of mass illiteracy became the basis for the development of the education system, the problem of disease became the basis for the development of medicine, social problems have become the basis for action by Governments.

In the south of the United States for a long time, the main crop was cotton, "the king of golf." But when infestations (Mexican boll weevil) destroyed cotton plantation, the farmers had to switch to different crops, including soybeans and peanuts. People have learned to breed cattle, pigs and poultry. So much trouble has begun prosperity of farmers. People live much richer than before.

Residents of Enterprise, Alabama, in 1910 in gratitude erected a monument to the boll weevil, forcing farmers to switch from monoculture to a more progressive agriculture and, as a consequence - to a more prosperous life. The inscription on the monument reads: "the boll weevil, the precursor of our prosperity - a sign of great appreciation."

Each of us is a lifetime seeking to get rid of the responsibility, challenges and concerns. When you have a similar temptation, remember this story. One young man asked the lonely old man, "What is the most difficult thing in life?". "When you do not care about anyone," - said the old man sadly.

 

A lot of prominent people have gone through life's challenges

Many of the biblical lines were born in times of disasters. "Most of the Epistles were written in prison. The greatest thinkers of all time in the difficult moments gave birth to their greatest revelation. John Bunyan, the eminent English writer and preacher XVII stoletiya.napisal book

"Pilgrim's Progress," while in custody. Severely ill Florence Nightingale, unable to even get out of bed, developed the reorganization of British hospitals. Semi-paralyzed by Louis Pasteur, even under the constant threat of complete paralysis, did not stop to fight the disease. American historian Francis Parkman, for most of his life he was very ill and could not work for more than five minutes. His eyesight was so weak that he could barely write on a sheet of paper a few words in huge letters. And yet, this man has managed to write for his life twelve great books on the history of "*.

The man buried alive in the snow in the cold winter in 1777, when the defeat of the Americans in the Revolutionary War seemed inevitable, became the first U.S. president George Washington. The man, who grew up in abject poverty, became Abraham Lincoln. The man, from childhood paralyzed after suffering polio was Franklin D. Roosevelt. Human

* AS. Remley, Leaves of Gold (Williamsport, Coslett Publishing, 1948).

century, burned in the fire so that the doctors had predicted their complete inability to walk, was Glenn Cunningham, who established in 1934 the world record in the women's mile. The man who as a child was referred to the ability to learn and mentally sluggish mentally retarded, has become a great scientist Albert Einstein. Two boys who were born in the families of black slaves, became the great American educators Booker T. Washington and John Washington Carver.

The famous American singer and actress Dolly Parton expressed the same idea in a very poetic: "Do you want to see the rainbow - reconciled with the rain."

 

My problem is - it's not "my problem"

A person who has a big problem, and the person making the big problem - not the same thing. For several years, I have twenty to thirty hours a week devoted conversations with people, assisting them in solving various problems. I noticed that not all people who come to me do have a huge, intractable problems. But these people were taking their problems too much to heart. At first I was so naive that he was trying to solve other people's problems. And what happened? Over time, these people again came to me already with new challenges. They looked like Charlie Brown, the hero of the popular comic book. On Christmas Eve, Charlie Brown was not a festive mood. Finally, a friend of Charlie Brown, Linus said: "No one but you are not able to convert a wonderful Christmas time in the problem!".

Linus, I have to tell you something: people like Charlie Brown, a great multitude! Their "problems" - in fact not at all a problem. The problem with these people - the wrong response to the "problem" that caused "problems" to turn them into real problems. It is not important what happens to me, and what is happening inside of me.The researchers studied three hundred biographies of the great and famous people who have achieved great success in various fields - Franklin D. Roosevelt, Helen Keller, Winston Churchill, Albert Schweitzer, Mahatma Gandhi, Albert Einstein and many others. It was found that a quarter of them were blind, deaf or paralyzed people with disabilities. Three-quarters of celebrities had a chance to grow up in poverty or in a single-parent family, or at least experience the truly difficult times.

Why do these people were able to overcome their problems, when thousands of people are buried under the weight of poverty and misery? The winners, unlike the others, did not use them piled on misfortune as an excuse. They have turned their "stumbling blocks" in the step to success. They realized that the freedom to choose his position, his attitude to what is happening, even when unable to influence the circumstances of his life.

I once read a story about how the choir decided to start raising money for a trip to a music contest. To make money, the singers decided to start car is washed and made an announcement about the planned action. At first everything was going well, but the clouds gathered for dinner and the rain poured down. One of the chorus girls took a large sheet of paper and wrote: "We wash", and just below the painted arrow pointing up and the words: "Rinsing OH!".

In the newspaper "Los Angeles Times "one of the articles I found the following lines:" If you can smile when everything breaks down and goes wrong, then you are either an idiot or mender. " I would add: or growing leader. That is the one who understands my only problem - this is what I allowed to be a problem because of the improper relationship to what is happening. Problems can stop you for a while, but you and only you can stop yourself forever.

 

The problem - it's something with which something can be done

This truth is revealed to me my mentor and good friend Fred Smith. If I'm not able to do anything about the problem, then it's not my problem, but simply a fact of life.

In 1925, the American company "Burma Shave ", which produces shaving cream, fought on the issue of the effectiveness of their advertising boards located at the sides of roads. With the advent of "fast" (at the time) car drivers do not have time to read the writing on the billboards. Therefore, the company has developed a short promotional printing arranged so that they can be read, even at high speed. A unique approach to advertising for forty-six years gave the company "Burma Shave "in a number of cutting-edge, and its name was known in every home.

I grew up in Ohio. I remember the time I liked the billboards "Burma Shave ". One of them I remember to this day:

How beautiful peach,

All covered with down,

But the man - not a peach, alas.

Creative Professionals of "Burma Shave "was the answer to the problem. If this problem was not the answer, it would not be a problem, but simply a fact of life. Do not rush to give up and declare that this or that problem has no solution. Maybe someone else will find it.