The Value of Why

It's not unusual for people to be so busy and pre-occupied with the
immediacy of their responsilities that after setting goals or expectations
for someone(s) they fail to take the time to explain why the job or the
schedule is as it is. When we discuss the why, we engage others in the
process and make them feel valued. And because they feel valued, their
willingness to make the extra effort or work the extra hours is likely to be
greatly enhanced. There's an old saying, "We never have time to do it right,
but we always have time to do it over." However, consider how much time and
money whould have been saved by doing it right in the first place.

People need to have a sense of belonging, a sense of feeling a part of
whatever they do, which is fundamental to feeling valued and honored. While
justified praise and recognition are equally important, merely engaging
people in a conversation about the reasons for doing a job in a particular
way go a long way toward motivating productive behavior. It's treating
people the way they want to be treated that provides much encouragement and
positive response.

Next time: Being sure they know how

Good day and good work,

Norman

Norman J. York, President
York Career Development, Inc.
3307 Northland Drive, Suite 280
Austin, TX 78731
Austin: 512-502-8258
Houston: 866-502-8258
Cell: 512-656-8239
Web site: www.yorkinc.com

"Your vision will become clear only
when you look into your heart.
Who looks outside, dreams
Who looks inside, awakens"
Carl Jung

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3:22 PM

Setting Expectations and the heirachry of belief

Whether your job is to lead others or only yourself, it is critical that you
set reasonable expectations for those you lead. Unless people have clear a
understanding of what's expected of them, they can hardly be held
accountable for their actions or activities. Are the expectations that you
have for yourself and your own achievement, realistic? If you are missing
your own mark, perhaps it's because the target that you're aiming for is not
achievable? Fundamentally, it's all a matter of belief; your's or your
group's. While it may sound like an old saw, it's absolutely true that
"What you believe, you can achieve." However, genuine belief is not just
saying words, belief is the internalization of a truth or a knowingness that
creates the outer expression. Indeed, belief is a hierarchy. The first
step in the belief hierarchy is hope. We hope we can achieve a goal, but
beyond wishful thinking we are yet unsure. The second step is realization.
With consistent commitment and action to achieve, we realize that what we
are doing will bring success. The third step is conviction. With continued
action producing interim successes, we become convinced that we will
succeed. And the fourth and final step is knowing. When we know something,
we have achieved the ultimate of believe.

An example might have been getting a degree. In your freshman year hope may
have prodded you forward, although many doubts may have existed. In your
sophomore year, you came to realize that your effort would produce ultimate
success. As a junior your became conviced that with commitment and
continued determination you would succeed. And as a senior, you knew you
would achieve your goal, despite the need for another year of effort.
Building belief comes only with experience and effort and a willingness to
commit to worthy endeavors.

Next, taking time to explain why.

Good day and good work,

Norman

Norman J. York, President
York Career Development, Inc.
3307 Northland Drive, Suite 280
Austin, TX 78731
Austin: 512-502-8258
Houston: 866-502-8258
Cell: 512-656-8239
Web site: www.yorkinc.com

"Your vision will become clear only
when you look into your heart.
Who looks outside, dreams
Who looks inside, awakens"
Carl Jung

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4:48 PM

The DATA Model-Part Four

The second A in Williams Bridges' DATA model stands for Assets. While
Abilities can be acquired through education and experience, Assets are the
gifts you have received from nature; those characteristics that make you
unique and help differentiate you from others. It's not that you don't have
these gifts and talents, the problem is that more often and not we don't
recognize them for their true worth.

For example, age is an asset if you take it where it's appreciated. If you
see an ad in the paper for a beginning accountant and you're fifty years
old, don't bother answering it because those who placed it are likely
looking for someone young, and cheap. However, if you connect with people,
you will find an organization who needs the maturity and dependability that
your asset value represents. If you're loyal and considerate of others,
those assets have value, especially when you connect with organizations that
value such attributes.

Most of all, recognize your assets and appreciate the value that they can
bring to the right organization. It's not necessary for you to focus your
conversations on your assets. Be yourself and remember what Emerson said,
"Who you are speaks so loud, I can't hear what you say."

Good day and good work,

Norman

Norman J. York, President
York Career Development, Inc.
3307 Northland Drive, Suite 280
Austin, TX 78731
Austin: 512-502-8258
Houston: 866-502-8258
Cell: 512-656-8239
Web site: www.yorkinc.com

"Your vision will become clear only
when you look into your heart.
Who looks outside, dreams
Who looks inside, awakens"
Carl Jung

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3:08 PM

SUCCESSFUL TEAMS

Successful Teams

 

Recently a city organization decided to have a strategic planning retreat for their senior staff.  Part of the two day event was to include the use of an assessment to facilitate the learning of each other’s leadership style(s).  Unfortunately, some of the members of this team believed, and openly stated to the local news reporter, that this kind of interaction was ‘touchy-feely’ and hardly a necessary component to a strategic planning session. How unfortunate it is that a leader of a medium size city believes and voices such a backward opinion about team development. 

 

Without an understanding of the gifts and talents each member brings to the success of any team, divisive behavior is often the outcome rather than the solution.  Learning about these gifts can only enhance the effectiveness of the group and reduce tension.  There are a number of adequate assessments that can facilitate this process, and if used by a talented facilitator, can lead to immense understanding of the unique differences each person brings to organization.  However, the best on the market as far as I am concerned is an assessment that has come out of the UK called Insights Discovery.  The ability for each participant to understand their own individual characteristics and then to transform that data to reflect the entire team is extremely advantageous.  When each person can understand how to interact and communicate and, maybe best of all, not communicate with a co-worker, each will be contributing to the success of the mission or project with a strength of purpose they never had before. If this is ‘touch-feely’ than I support it and hope that all companies and leaders embrace such learnings.

 

The talent to lead a team of people through a difficult project or a difficult time for the organization, is not unique but it is unappreciated.  Leaders are people who are able to move forward in good times as well as stressful ones with their staff giving full support to the mission and the leader

 

When we can commit to the idea that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, success is guaranteed.

 

 

Madeleine York

York Career Development, Inc.

Houston-Austin

866-502-8258 office

512-565-8506 mobile

www.yorkinc.com

myork@yorkinc.com

 

The DATA Model-Part Three

The T of William Bridges's DATA model stands for temperament or the fit
between your personal style characteristics and the organization's culture.
More jobs are lost because of issues of fit than for any other single
reason, mostly because organizations generally don't seek to educate new
employees to its culture and most new employees don't seek to learn about it
realities.

A fundamental failure that is directly causal, is the inability of new
employees to seek to development relationships with peers and others who can
help them learn what is expected and how to operate successfully. One
critical thing to remember is to set goals with your boss for the first
weeks or months of your employment. It often happens that you may be doing
things that you think are expected, only to learn, after the fact, that your
boss has different expections. The failure to express expectations clearly
and to explain why the need and to ensure that you know how to achieve,
belongs to your boss; however, the pain most likely will be your's. Next
time, the second A.

Good day and good work,

Norman

Norman J. York, President
York Career Development, Inc.
3307 Northland Drive, Suite 280
Austin, TX 78731
Austin: 512-502-8258
Houston: 866-502-8258
Cell: 512-656-8239
Web site: www.yorkinc.com

"Your vision will become clear only
when you look into your heart.
Who looks outside, dreams
Who looks inside, awakens"
Carl Jung

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5:30 PM

Using the DATA model (Part Two)

Earlier we introduced the DATA model developed by William Bridges and
discussed the D, which stands for desire.

The first A-stands for abilities because your skills and abilities are the
tools you have for sale. However, while the tools are valuable, their value
must be validated by statements of accommplishment demonstrating how you
have used them. The more validation you can provide, the more value will be
imputed to the tools. Where ever possible, quatify what you have done. Make
statements like, "Increased sales by 50% in two years," or Lead a team of 15
engineers to produce 6 new products in an 18 month period. All such
statements should be as powerful as possible and completely true to the
extent of your knowledge.

More on the DATA model later,

Good Day and Good Work,

Norman

Norman J. York, President
York Career Development, Inc.
3307 Northland Drive, Suite 280
Austin, TX 78731
Austin: 512-502-8258
Houston: 866-502-8258
Cell: 512-656-8239
Web site: www.yorkinc.com

"Your vision will become clear only
when you look into your heart.
Who looks outside, dreams
Who looks inside, awakens"
Carl Jung

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7:40 AM

Using your DATA to find right livelihood (Part One)

A while back, William Bridges created a model to help people, in or out of
work, find the right work for themselves. Called the DATA model, it works
like this.
D-stands for desire. Unless you have a true or burning desire for something,
work or anything else, you'll not make the commitment or the consistency of
effort to do whatever it takes to find it. If you have a job you don't love
or you've lost a job you didn't love, but seek to find another just like it;
where will you get the motive for action? If you say you want to eat,
eating will only become a motive for action when you are hungary. Between
now and the time you're hungray, you need something powerful to keep you
constantly making contact with people with whom you build relationships that
lead to opportunities that reveal sources of work.

You can develop a burning desire by creating a vision of the perfect place
or work, that becomes so real within you, that in time it will manifest in
the world. Achiving such a goal becomes a life force when you nurture and
reinforce you ideal to the point that as William Glasser says, you will
become "positively addicted" to achieving it. To become positively addicted
to your goal, spend at least twenty minutes daily, or ten minutes twice a
day, in a meditative state in which you feel secure and relaxed until your
ideal becomes so real in your mind that you can touch the furniture in the
room or smell the auromas of the area.

More on the DATA model later.

Good Day and Good Work,

Norman
Norman J. York, President
York Career Development, Inc.
3307 Northland Drive, Suite 280
Austin, TX 78731
Austin: 512-502-8258
Houston: 866-502-8258
Cell: 512-656-8239
Web site: www.yorkinc.com

"Your vision will become clear only
when you look into your heart.
Who looks outside, dreams
Who looks inside, awakens"
Carl Jung

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7:40 AM