Another Paradigm Shift

Last week, I canceled the phone number to my fax machine and then unplugged the machine. After only getting 3 faxes in the last year, it was time. Nowadays, everything comes via e-mail and as a PDF. Still, for me, it was the end of an era.

I am old enough to remember running a business before there were fax machines. We mailed everything to everyone or just called them on the phone. Time and expectations around communication were different back then.

Then one day about a year or two ago, I realized I was behind the times. I was talking with a client and I said to them, “Just fax it over to me when you are done.” 

There was a long pause, and then the person responded by saying, “I don’t know if we have a fax machine and I don’t know how to use it if we do. I’ve never sent a fax before.”

I just smiled and thought “my how time flies when we are having fun.”

From the perspective of doing business for 35 years, I remember when the fax machine was cutting edge technology. As Don Peppers and Martha Rogers, Ph.D wrote in their book, The One to One Future: Building Relationships One Customer at a Time (Currency Doubleday, 1993): “In late 1991, the telegraph industry's life was taken suddenly and brutally, by the facsimile machine. For more than 150 years, the telegram stood for immediacy and importance. It was an icon for urgency. But now, Western Union has closed down its telegraph service around the world. The fax was a new technology the telegram could not survive. The shift from teletype and telegram to facsimile represents one aspect of what business consultants term a "paradigm shift" - a discontinuity in the otherwise steady march of business progress.”

My first fax machine was the kind that used thermal paper on a big roll. Plain paper faxes were very expensive so most of us got the one with the large roll of thermal paper. Once we received a fax, we needed to cut the paper into pages. If it was something really important, then we would make a copy of it because over time the thermal paper would fade.

For many years, having a fax machine and a dedicated fax line was standard business practice. On one level, it revolutionized communication with clients. Things speeded up and so much information could be communicated quickly and efficiently.

Now there are new ways of doing things and new frontiers for communicating with people. However, after many decades, it is not the loss of a fax line and a machine that concerns me. Instead, it is the worry that people who are communicating in new ways may loose perspective about two important things. 

First, they may forget that the goal of communication is to build and maintain a relationship, not just push data and information faster and faster to people. And, second, upon receiving the desired information that all involved reach a greater depth of understanding rather than simply a degree of awareness that the message has been received. 

As Margaret Wheatley wrote in her book, Who Do We Choose to Be? Facing Reality, Claiming Leadership, Restoring Sanity (Berrett-Koehler, 2017): “We may be in contact, but we’re not connecting.” The goal is connecting whether that is by phone, fax, e-mail or text message.

For now, I will focus on making better and better connections during the coming weeks, months and years. I will miss my old fax machine and I will donate it to a place to be recycled. But, when it comes to having a big picture perspective, I will continue to focus on creating new and better connections, because I know we all have important work to do as we slowly transition from a global pandemic to a time of recovery and reintegration. 

Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Thinking Strategically Is Still Important

As we enter the second year of this global pandemic, we have all learned an important lesson, namely that thinking strategically is still important. Our first and correct response to the arrival of COVID-19 was to make sure our day to day operations could continue being operational. We did a lot of work around this and had to modify many systems to adapt to the new ways of doing things.

Yet, by the middle of April, some of the best leaders I worked with realized that their organizations were drifting strategically. In their rush to solve operational problems, they had stopped trying to understand the long term implications of the global pandemic and how to create an effective and adjustable business model. In simple terms, they got the trains to run on-time during the pandemic, but had stoped asking the important questions related to whether or not anyone was waiting at the station or actually riding the trains.

As this depth of clarity surfaced, the best leaders I know paused and created time for some important work. They realized that they needed to slow down and think deeply. By creating adequate space for mental stillness, they were better able to see what was happening now and understand the impact of it all during the next 12 - 18 months. Once they had achieved perspective within the midst of their busy days, they choose new and better pathways to move forward individually and collectively. At the same time, they avoided what was very common last spring and during parts of last summer, namely analysis paralysis. 

This spring, we need to again create time for slowing down and thinking deeply. We now have a sense of what could happen during the next 6 - 9 months. Our goal is to be well prepared and well positioned for the future. Therefore, we should not rush to action given we are in the beginning of the end of a global pandemic. Instead, we should continue on a thoughtful and disciplined step by step process of delivering operational excellence in combination with strategic clarity and commitment.

This week, schedule some uninterrupted time for big picture reflection and thinking. It will make a world of difference during the busy days and months ahead.

Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Being Respectful Is Powerful

The other day while listening to a very complicated situation related to executing a plan, the person who had been sharing it all with me asked what they should do next. 

My response was straight forward and direct: “Being respectful is a powerful first step.”

There was a long pause on the phone before the person responded: “That’s all?”

“Yes”, I replied. “You could become angry. You could choose to be cynical. You could even become aggressive in your demands. None of these things will achieve a great outcome in the end.”

As I continued, “Being respectful starts by recognizing that all involved were doing their best with the limited knowledge they had. When you respect them as people and affirm their dignity, they will receive your feedback and be open to new perspectives and solutions. Kindness and respect are the building blocks of trust. And trust is the foundation of teamwork. If we are wanting people to work as one team, then we must start with being respectful in the way we treat others and communicate with others.”

After another thoughtful pause, the person I was visiting shared, “That makes sense. I guess I hadn’t looked at it from that angle.”

“That’s why we visit,” I responded. “My goal is to help you reach your full potential as a leader. And respect is a good beginning.”

This week, choose respect. It is the foundation for successful results.

Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Regular Communication Is Critical

Routinely during coaching sessions, I will hear the following statement: “I told them but they did not understand.” It reminds me of the common phrase I used to hear in the world of education: “I taught them but they did not learn.” Communication problems are one of the most common problems in the world of leadership.

First, I have to point out that just because you are a leader and you say something, it does not mean that anyone understood it or was even paying attention. Given the amount of pandemic fatigue throughout the nation, most people are just exhausted. They have little time and energy for another message about what’s next or what’s most important. Many employees are just trying to get through the daily grind of endless projects and adaptations.

Furthermore, I have to remind many leaders of an old adage, namely “leaders die with their mouths open.” Most people in management and leadership positions are in constant “send information” mode. They are overwhelming every one around them with more and more data and details. There is no time to process or think about what is being said or shared. Instead, there is only time to react and know that more is coming behind it.

Next, I explain to leaders that regular communication is critical. The word communication is the key word in that statement. I did not say that regular speaking was critical. I did not say that standing up and giving a speech was the foundation to sustainable results. Instead, I said that regular communication is critical. 

Regular communication involves speaking and listening. It is the later that makes the former effective. The problem is that the ratio between speaking and listening is totally out of whack. The best leader is someone who spends a great deal of time listening and learning. They know the art of a good question and the importance of in-depth listening. They recognize that inquiry is the successful pre-cursor to advocacy. 

This week, communicate regularly. Start by listening better, being more fully present when you do it, and asking better questions. Then, over time, more and more people will be willing to hear and understand what you want to share.

Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Adaptive Is Messy & We Are Stronger Together

On March 8, 2020, the first COVID-19 case in Iowa was announced to the public. A lot has happened since that date. And we are still responding at work and at home to the challenges that COVID-19 has created.

During recent executive coaching sessions, we have been discussing the various lessons learned during the past 12 months. When I am asked what I have learned, I have always started by sharing the following: adaptive is messy and we are stronger together.

As the news and impact of COVID began to be felt last March, we responded by going into emergency operations mode. People came together and figured out how to deal with multiple technical problems and some adaptive challenges so they could continue to meet the changing needs of their customers, and the changing needs of their employees. There was strong teamwork and collaboration. 

However, as the spring unfolded and we had stabilized day to day operations, more and more people in leadership positions began to realize that this global pandemic could last 12 - 18 months in length. We were going to be in it for the long haul.

This realization was when we entered the adaptive stage of COVID. Here, the problems were not technical as much as on-going adaptive challenges. They required all of us to reframe what was happening and come up with new solutions. In simple terms, our business models were changing and we needed to get out in front of those changes lest the organization decline.

Here is where the messy part surfaced big time. Some of the problems required us to learn more, and often, in this learning, fundamental assumptions and beliefs about how to do business were called into questions. People had to change the way they worked and embrace new habits and often new technologies. In short, we had to think differently which is not something most of us try to do on a regular basis. It is just too much work and it ends up being messy before it becomes clear.

The other thing that started to surface during this time period was that dysfunctional teams became more dysfunctional after the emergency period and healthy teams became even more functional over time.  When I listened to leaders talk to me about teamwork during this time period, the leaders who were successful always had one clear: “We are stronger when we work together.” Over time, this message became condensed into “we are stronger together.” I believe this is a powerful message and that it made a big difference.

When we look forward to the next 12 - 18 months and the gradual ending of the global pandemic plus the return to something which will be “normal”, I think we will need to continue reminding people and ourselves that adaptive challenges will continue to show up at work and at home. And they will continue to be messy. Furthermore, we need to continue reminding ourselves and others that we are stronger when we work together. 

As our hopes and joys rise with the return of spring, let us make time as individuals and families, teams and companies, to reflect on the lessons learned, Let us mourn those who we have lost to COVID, celebrate the children born during COVID, and count our blessings that we have made it this far in the midst of a global pandemic. Remember we can and we will make it through these challenging days.

Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

How do we build and maintain trust during these difficult times? - part #4

The next step to building and maintaining trust is to create and execute a relationship building strategy. As I have often pointed out in seminars, organizational change is the sum of individual change. Yet, none of us work alone. We are always working in, with and through relationships. Therefore, organizational change is really the sum of relational change.

When I no longer see or frame you up as “the other”, i.e. us vs. them in the dualistic sense, and instead see and frame you up as part of “us”, i.e. we are on the same side or team, then we can begin to trust each other.

The best leaders are social change or relational change strategist. The way they do this is through creating strategy and social dialogue within safe relational spaces. In the world of fund raising, I have learned from professionals that friend-raising always comes before fund-raising. In the world of trust building and trust maintaining, relationship raising always comes before planning and the execution of a plan.

So, what does this look like in a mostly digital connected time period?

When I listen to people in leadership and management positions who grasp the question, they tell me it is choosing to make one to one connections with a wide diversity of individuals. One leader told me he is routinely calling all 48 people downline from him to visit and ask a series of questions. Mostly, he just wants to listen and learn what they are seeing, feeling and experiencing. This helps him discern whether or not there is clarity or lack of clarity about focus and goals. Then, he can build strategic level trust in the areas where relationships are strained or unclear.

This week, become a relational change strategist and build a plan to reach out and connect with more people. Then, you will know where to focus your trust building activities.

Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257