Hello, I Forgot Your Name

High school students do it, managers do it, grandmothers do it, office assistants do it...everyone lights up and walks taller when they are greeted with their very own name, especially when it comes from someone they barely know. 

It's your first morning at a new job, someone (whose name you probably do remember) is taking you around the office introducing you to your new co-workers. People are smiling, they are shaking your hand, greetings are coming in rapid fire... and names, so many names are being heard by your ears, but will they be recovered later today or tomorrow when you meet again at the microwave or the color printer?

Put your brain to work helping you to remember names:  

• Do your very best to focus 100 percent concentration on the new person when you meet them. Don't think about your lunch, don't think about social your social network. Think about their face and their name, that is all.
• Be absolutely certain you heard their name correctly. Ask again if necessary, and if it's unusual, you can even ask them to spell it, but always end with a compliment about how memorable, beautiful or meaningful their name is once you hear their story. 
• Repeat the name silently to yourself. When you leave the room, tell them it was great to meet them and use their name when you do. Think about their face and their name as you leave. Use the name in conversation occasionally. Either conversations with them or with someone else, it will help your brain make the connection between that person, their face and their name. 
• As soon as possible, write the person’s name down after your meeting. If you have a photo or can find one online, find their picture as well. Writing also helps stimulate memory recall.  
• When you meet a person if they look like someone else, or if they evoke anything vivid or visual in your mind use that association to help with your recall. This can be added to your notes when you write down their name.  
• Think of yourself as the ACE of names. Come up with something Action-oriented about a persons name, a verb; think of something Colorful about them; and finally, maybe something exaggerated. So William, isn't just William, he's Whispering, Wise (like an owl),  William.

Watch William smile when you greet him in the hall the next day!

Mending Meeting Misery

Do you cringe and groan and try to squirm your way out of invitations to meetings? I would rather run out of gas on a hot day in the middle of nowhere than attend a boring meeting with no agenda or purpose. Meetings are necessary, and can be motivating and productive…here’s how:

• Make a plan, have an agenda --  Determine the point of the meeting using words like decide, plan or choose, to convey action. If someone goes off topic, steer them back to the agenda item.

• Get to the point – Administrative information should be kept very brief and targeted, two minutes or less.

• Keep it lean --  Large groups aren’t usually productive. Invite only those necessary to achieve the goal of the meeting and make sure everyone participates, even if you have to call on them to do so.

• Encourage ownership of the meetings -- Assign roles and responsibilities to different team members for some of the agenda items in advance.

• Start with the end in mind -- Have meetings early in the day or just before lunch so they will start and end on time.

• Stress the positive -- Start and end every meeting with positive inspiration. Be generous in your appreciative feedback. If you have anything negative about an individual share it with them privately.

• Don’t do boring things – Going over new forms, company policy, personal disputes and what went wrong might be better in another format. Figure out a better, faster way to communicate.  Try this: Have an instruction sheet for a new form and pass it or email it out.

• Present solutions – Don’t present problems, unless you have soluions to go with them. This rule applies to everyone in the meeting. It gets your team solution oriented!

• Do fun things and motivate -- Give awards and share success stories. Create a contest among staffers to make motivation more fun.

• Do things to develop your team – Something that helps them learn more about their profession, practice skills to make them better at their job.

• No griping -- Remember, challenges must be matched with potential solutions.

• Share success stories – What is working with people? Coach them to share the specific skills they used that helped them see success..

• Summarize action items - What was decided and what was assigned? A quick review helps everyone remember the highpoints.

 

“Excellence is the gradual result of always

striving to do better.” -- Pat Riley 

Visit our New and Improved website at www.chadcarden.com

Six Manager Slip-ups & How to Fix Them

1.    SLIP-UP: Meet sporadically, or not at all for one-on-one communication with team members. FIX: Consistent meetings give each team member goals to work toward and deadlines to meet, keeping them motivated and on task.

2.    SLIP-UP: Always develop their own ideas and strategies without ever asking team members to provide input or allow them to be part of the discussion. FIX: Seek input and creativity from team members. Let them contribute and they will be more invested in projects and outcomes.  3.    SLIP-UP: Fail to clearly communicate what they expect of their team members; leaving them to wonder what is most important, what they should be working on or where their priorities lie. FIX: Set crystal clear expectations with team members so they know at all times exactly what is expected of them, and how to set themselves up for success.

4.    SLIP-UP: Fail to monitor team member’s work and give feedback on it. FIX: Stay in contact with team members on projects and deadlines and give them feedback on how they can improve their performance. Inspect what you expect.

5.    SLIP-UP: Provide feedback in a destructive way by criticizing, insulting or micromanaging. FIX: Give feedback that is goal-oriented, constructive, corrective and appreciative.

6.    SLIP-UP: Neglecting to transfer acquired skills to their team and trying to do everything themselves.   FIX: Train team members in skills and strategies so they can be better equipped for success and improve their performance.

Learning to March in April

Every soldier and high school band member learns to march. You start off on the right foot and focus on putting it down on the beat to keep leading you onward. The left foot will fall into place, often without really knowing how it got there.

Can you do the same? Can you focus on what is right and positive instead of getting caught up in what is wrong? It certainly is not easy, especially if those surrounding you are doing the opposite.

There are three little ways to achieve this lofty goal. And the littlest things make the biggest difference.

1. Be grateful. Negative events loom large unless you consciously balance them out. To help your brain store positive events, reflect on what you're grateful for and why, at least once a week. Write down your blessings, such as the opportunity to pursue a career you love or a family that supports you. If you prefer to do it daily then keep a log or discuss it with your family over dinner.

2. Coach yourself positive. It’s a proven fact the more often you hear a message, the more likely you are to believe it. The same goes for messages about who you are and what you are capable of doing. Repeating positive affirmations out loud or to yourself makes them more real.

Some examples: “I can handle whatever comes my way,”, “There is plenty of time,” or “I'm getting better every day.”

3. Challenge negative thoughts. Every time something negative comes up, we make a choice with our response. Our brains might like to dwell on the negativity and make it seem bigger or more significant than it really is. Separate yourself from those negative thoughts by looking at them and finding a way to grow from them.

If you have a complaint, meet it with at least two solutions for the problem.

Starting and ending on the right foot can keep the whole day in step. 

Going Nowhere?

My wife, Sarah, our son, Bryan and I welcomed a new baby into our family in January. Charles William (Charlie) is now three months old and sleeping through the night! The rocking chair in our house is getting some use again, and it reminds me of one of my favorite analogies. Rocking chairs are great for babies because you can just sit and rock as long as you want, right there in the nursery. But, you certainly don’t want to spend your career, or your life in rocking chair mode…moving, but going nowhere. What action can you take today that will move you forward? Even if you only move an inch, that’s better than standing still. Can you spend less money? Can you save more? Can you tell someone you care about how much they mean to you? Can you read something that will broaden your mind? Can you do something for someone else? I learned years ago two things which keep people from taking action – fear of failure and fear of people. Failure isn’t the end of the world. In fact, many great leaders have failed, and said those who haven’t, simply haven’t tried anything new. You might do something wrong, you might have to start over, but action creates progress. Either you gain momentum from your actions or you learn from them what to do and what not to do. If you want to start a new business, go back to school or make a relationship stronger, make a plan and start now. You might think it will take years to make any progress, and it might. But if you don’t get started then in 3-5 years you will still be where you are now instead of being where you want to be. You’ll be looking back wishing you would have done something different. As for the fear of people – or more pointedly fear of what people think. Eleanor Roosevelt said it best. “You wouldn't worry so much about what others think of you if you realized how seldom they do.” Today is the only day that you have, yesterday is gone, tomorrow isn’t here yet! We would love to hear from you. Email us at info@chadcarden.com and tell us: What is one thing (professionally or personally) you would like to improve about yourself? Would you rather learn something new in a face-to-face setting or via video in the comfort of your home or office? When should we start Charlie on solid food?... Just checking! See our CREDENTIALS!

Ready Freddie?

Second only to New Year’s resolutions, is the palpable potential we can smell, see and taste as winter turns to spring.

Are you ready for some changes? Really ready?

Answering YES to these four questions can make you successful at whatever transformation you desire in the weeks ahead. Whether you are hoping to clean out your garage, start a new business or take up tai chi – the right attitude makes all the difference.

Do I need to? (clean out the garage)

Write down the reasons. Yes, because I can no longer park my car in there; I’ve seen scouts from the “Hoarders” show driving by when the garage door is open; the cat has been lost in the garage for days at a time over the winter; and my wife has posted an ultimatum on the refrigerator.

Do I want to? (clean out the garage)

Yes and no, but mostly, YES. I want the end result of the clean garage: a place to park; all of that useless clutter gone from my life; rescuing the family pet; and the gratitude from my wife when it’s all done.

Can I? (clean out the garage)

I need a plan. When will I start; how long will it take (realistically); do I need help; how will I haul all the stuff to Goodwill or the recycling center; what if it takes longer than I have planned; is there a deadline on that sign on the frig; and do we have a large supply of Meow Mix?

Will I? (clean out the garage)

I need to; I want to; I have a plan and some friends who said they would help. I won’t let anything else get in the way, I will focus my time and effort, I will buy pizza for everyone involved and I will find the cat!

If all your answers are YES, spring forward my friends!