Chang Chats with Stu Chang

In his book Good to Great, author Jim Collins talks about the 5 levels of leadership.  Before we jump into what those levels are, a brief summary of the book. Good To Great examines what it takes for ordinary companies to become great and outperform their competitors by analyzing 28 companies over 30 years, who managed to make the transition or fell prey to their bad habits. In his book, Jim talks about 4 stages to developing great companies. Stage 1 is having Disciplined people (this is where he identified the 5 levels of leadership Stage 2 is having Disciplined Thought. Stage 3 is having Disciplined Action. And Stage 4 is Building enduring and sustainable greatness that lasts. Let's take a look at the 5 levels of leadership Level 1: Highly Capable Individual At this level, you make high quality contributions with your work. You possess useful levels of knowledge; and you have the talent and skills needed to do a good job. Level 2: Contributing Team Member At Level 2, you use your knowledge and skills to help your team succeed. You work effectively, productively and successfully with other people in your group. Level 3: Competent Manager Here, you're able to organize a group effectively to achieve specific goals and objectives. Level 4: Effective Leader Level 4 is the category that most top leaders fall into. Here, you're able to galvanize a department or organization to meet performance objectives and achieve a vision. Level 5: Great Leader At Level 5, you have all of the abilities needed for the other four levels, plus you have the unique blend of humility and will that's required for true greatness. They were the first to own up to mistakes, and the last to take credit for success. So how can you become a Level 5 leader? Develop humility. Level 5 Leaders are humble people. So, learn why humility is important, and make sure that you understand – at a deep, emotional level – why arrogance is so destructive.  Ask for help. Level 5 Leaders are sometimes mistakenly thought of as "weak," because they ask for help when they need it. However, learning how to ask for help  is a genuine strength, because it lets you call upon the expertise of someone stronger in an area than you are.  Take responsibility. A top attribute of Level 5 Leaders is that they take responsibility for their team's mistakes or failings. Develop discipline. Level 5 Leaders are incredibly disciplined  in their work. When they commit to a course of action, no matter how difficult it is, they stick to their resolve. Find the right people. Level 5 Leaders depend on the people around them. They spend time finding the right people , and helping them reach their full potential. Lead with passion. Level 5 Leaders are passionate about what they do, and they're not afraid to show it. Research has shown that leaders who have brought the ‘Good to Great’ transformation are not the ones who are charismatic or big personalities but are rather quiet, shy, and deliberate. They are the ones who have the combination of humility and professional will. Organizations that strive to become great need to have a Level 5 leader. What level of leader are you? --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/stu-chang/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/stu-chang/support

In this chat we cover how to present to Executives.

We start by understanding what executives think and care about.

We then talk about 6 tips that can help you to put together and then deliver your your presentation.

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In this chat, I review the distinction between a coach and a mentor and share the TAPS model to help you understand when to use each tool. In short, coaching is helping someone else to reach their full potential.  By coaching, you are helping them to learn how to think instead of teaching them something.  Coaching is a good tool to use when their problems are personal, emotional, or complex. Mentoring on the other hand is a good tool to teach something linear or procedural. The TAPS model is a 2x2 with a vertical axis that on the bottom has TELL, and on the top has ASK.  On the horizontal axis, on the left it has PROBLEM, and an the right it has SOLUTION.  The first letter of these words spells TAPS. In the bottom left quadrant you have TELL/PROBLEM - Consulting / Managing In the bottom right quadrant you have TELL SOLUTION - Mentoring In the top left you have ASK/PROBLEM - Counseling In the top right you have ASK/SOLUTION - Coaching In this chat I also cover several examples of each of these quadrants and share some coaching questions. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/stu-chang/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/stu-chang/support

Recently Vice President Kamala Harris went to Central America to find "root cause" for "the problem at the US Southern border".

Initially, I thought, wow, root cause, good job.  But after thinking about it some more, I realized she jumped ahead a little.  Root cause of what?  What is "the problem at the Southern border"?  From whose point of view?  Who is impacted?  How does that impact manifest itself? What is the context?  What does success look like when "the problem" is resolved.  The issue is that Vice President Harris didn't really define the problem.  As such, what was she searching root cause for?

Following the 8D (8 Disciplines) problem solving methodology would have helped.

1. Create a team to resolve the problem.  In my experience, the team should be led by the person accountable for the process that is causing the problem.
2. Define the actual issue.  Not the perceived issue.  I'd also recommend that you make sure that all your stakeholders agree this is the problem that is being solved.  Define that as who is involved, what is the impact (pain point), what is the context, what does resolution look like and how is that measured.
3. Take containment actions.  Protect the "who" defined in the problem identified in D2.
4. Identify root causes of the issue.  Use techniques like 5 Whys, fishbone diagrams, etc.
5. Define and implement corrective actions.  Fix the issue and eliminate the problem.
6. Validate that the corrective actions are indeed working.
7. Prevent recurrence of the problem.
8. Congratulate and recognize the team.

--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/stu-chang/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/stu-chang/support

Recently Vice President Kamala Harris went to Central America to find "root cause" for "the problem at the US Southern border".

Initially, I thought, wow, root cause, good job.  But after thinking about it some more, I realized she jumped ahead a little.  Root cause of what?  What is "the problem at the Southern border"?  From whose point of view?  Who is impacted?  How does that impact manifest itself? What is the context?  What does success look like when "the problem" is resolved.  The issue is that Vice President Harris didn't really define the problem.  As such, what was she searching root cause for?

Following the 8D (8 Disciplines) problem solving methodology would have helped.

1. Create a team to resolve the problem.  In my experience, the team should be led by the person accountable for the process that is causing the problem.
2. Define the actual issue.  Not the perceived issue.  I'd also recommend that you make sure that all your stakeholders agree this is the problem that is being solved.  Define that as who is involved, what is the impact (pain point), what is the context, what does resolution look like and how is that measured.
3. Take containment actions.  Protect the "who" defined in the problem identified in D2.
4. Identify root causes of the issue.  Use techniques like 5 Whys, fishbone diagrams, etc.
5. Define and implement corrective actions.  Fix the issue and eliminate the problem.
6. Validate that the corrective actions are indeed working.
7. Prevent recurrence of the problem.
8. Congratulate and recognize the team.

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I recently saw an ad where the state of West Virginia is having a lottery and offering custom guns, custom trucks, scholarships, lifetime fishing and hunting licenses, and even cash prizes up to $1.5M if residents get vaccinated.  This is essentially an incentive program to entice people who are resisting getting vaccinated to do so.

I recommend an more holistic approach to getting people to exhibit a desired behavior in order to achieve a desired outcome.

1. All change begins with understanding "Why?"  Give people information about the nature of the change, why it is important, and the risk of not changing.
2. All change requires a personal decision.  You can't make people do something, they have to want to do it.  But you can tell them what's in it for them.  What are the benefits to them.
3. Once people have decided to get on board, they must know how to perform the new behavior.  In WV, do people know how or where to get the shot?
4. All the above doesn't actually accomplish the desired behavior.  In our WV example, nothing changes until more people get vaccinated.  So people must demonstrate the ability that is desired.
5. Finally, all change should be reinforced.  If someone gets their first shot, how do you make sure they get their second.

If you go through this comprehensive approach to managing change and people are still resisting, then take these 10 steps to managing resistance.  It's important to start with the first 4 in order.  Then you can use the rest as applicable.

1. Listen and understand their objections
2. Focus on the "What" and let go of the "How"
3. Remove barriers
4. Provide simple, clear choices, and consequences
5. Create Hope
6. Show the benefits in a real and tangible way
7. Make a personal appeal
8. Convert the strongest dissenters
9. Demonstrate consequences
10. And finally in the case of West Virginia, provide an incentive

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Do you often find yourself talking too much.  Do you get nervous when presenting and ramble on.  Do you feel the need to give context to all the complexities and hard work you have done before telling your solution?

Have you ever heard the saying “Listen twice as much as you talk.” This is based on a quote by a Greek philosopher "We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak."

One of the strengths of listening twice as much as we talk is that it encourages us to carefully reflect on what we are sharing and think about our thinking, and gives us room to see how the audience is responding.

I often tell people to think about communicating as a pyramid.  At the top of the pyramid is literally the point.  What is the point?  Each layer of the pyramid has more detail till you get to the bottom of the pyramid which has all the details.

Many people make the mistake when presenting with an upside down pyramid to build an ironclad argument.  In this style of communication, all the detail is at the top and the point is at the bottom.

The problem with that form of communication is that it is very difficult to accomplish and you also lose people along the way because the audience is literally asking themselves, "What's the point?".

Let’s look at some other reasons why some of us talk too much, sometimes even when we are not presenting, but are in meetings.  In many of these cases, we are not talking for the benefit of others, we are talking for ourselves.

The following is from a post on the The Power of TED* website.  It encourages us to ask ourselves a few questions when we are about to talk.

• Am I talking for approval and to be overly helpful? (Rescuer)
• Am I talking to control and take charge of the situation? (Persecutor)
• Am I talking to complain and whine about all I don’t like? (Victim)
• What is my intention behind what I am about to say?
• Is there a question I could ask that would help me better understand what the other person is saying and perceiving?

How might you simply listen and let go of your urge to talk at this moment?

Try practicing WAIT, which stands for

Why am I talking?

The WAIT habit encouraging us to ask the following questions:

• Is this the time to share?
• Is what I want to share on topic? Don’t divert the conversation away from what they are speaking about just because, “that reminds me of a time when…”
• Is it my turn to share? Are you mastering the pause?
• Is what I want to share going to add to or subtract from what they are sharing? The temptation here is to divert the conversation from them to you.
• Is what I want to share fact or opinion?  If it is not, then WAIT.
• If you do interject, be concise. Add value and then shut up.

If you do need to talk, here are a few steps to help you to keep it concise, even if you are nervous.

• Step 1. Make sure you practiced WAIT
• Step 2. Frame your response at a high level
• Step 3. WAIT. This gives the audience time to process what you said.
• Step 4. Ask the listener if they want more detail or what other information they want.  Remember, the trick is to let them decide the level of detail they want.  They may say, "No, you have my approval", or they may say, "Tell me more about how you know you have the right plan"
• Step 5. Then go back to step 2- frame your response at a high level.
• Step 6. Go back to step 3 and WAIT again.
• Step 7. Go back to Step 4.

By learning and practicing communicating this way, it shows you as someone who can have efficient, strategic conversations.  You build credibility.

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Are you spending too much time in meetings and the meetings you do attend are ineffective?  

In this chat I talk about how to reduce the number of meetings you attend and how to make the ones you do attend more effective.

In order to reduce the number of meeting you are attending, if you are the meeting holder, ask yourself a few questions:

• Do I need outside input to make progress?  If not, then just schedule time to do your own work?
• Do I need real-time input from others?  If not, send an email.
• If you decide you do need real-time outside input then follow the following meeting guidelines to have more effective meetings.

1.  Identify a desired outcome.  What do you want to have accomplished by the end of that specific meeting.

• Direction
• Alignment/Influence
• Decision
• Help Needed

2.  Get the right people in the room to facilitate your desired outcome

• Decision makers
• Stakeholders
• Team members

3.  Properly facilitate the meeting

• Start with articulating the desired outcome of the meeting and the agenda
• Actively manage the agenda
• Resist the urge to work problems that come up

4.  Take notes and send out meeting minutes

• Have a template for taking notes
• A good start is: Context; Direction; Alignment' Decisions; Help Needed; Actions; Next Steps

5.  Have a follow-up plan if you did not reach your desired outcome

• Schedule follow-up meetings for specific outcomes that were not reached
• Set aggressive but appropriate deadlines
• Hold each other accountable for actions and commitments

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In this chat I talk about two very rare qualities of a leader, values and courage.

Whether you agree with her politics or not, over the past several months, Liz Cheney has demonstrated two very rate and elusive qualities all great leaders must have and those being, values and courage.

Ms. Cheney was elected to the U.S. House of representative in 2016 on a conservative platform of restoring America’s strength and power in the world, and pursuing conservative solutions to create jobs, cut taxes and regulation, and expand America’s energy, mining and agriculture industries.

Ms. Cheney also values truth and the rule of law.  In the recent months, she began voicing her opposition to the former President and in her mind she believed that the former President was not being truthful nor following the Rule of Law as defined by the U.S. Constitution.  Continuing to voice those beliefs, she was subsequently removed from her leadership position as the GOP House Conference Chair.  

In this chat, I share the importance of having values, but also, the courage to be congruent with those values when something personal is at risk.

Think about most leaders you interact with.  Do you know what they stand for?  Are their values clear?  If they are, do they have to courage to stick to those values when things get tough and there becomes a personal risk to them for standing by those values?

In this chat, I talk about the importance of having clear values and beliefs, and then having the courage and fortitude to live those values in a congruent way.

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Think of your comfort zone as things that you can do effectively without much thought or fear. 

The benefit of having a larger comfort zone could simply be stated as a more effective or fulfilling life.  

For a lot of people, the zone directly outside of their comfort zone is their anxiety zone.  

Visualize in your mind two circles, one inside the other.  Let's label the inside circle your comfort zone and the outside circle your anxiety zone.

The key to moving outside of your comfort zone is realizing that there is actually a third circle.  We'll call that circle your learning zone.  

So how do we create this learning zone and then turn it into a comfort zone?

It takes courage to step out of your comfort zone, but it's good to think about courage not as a lack of fear, but as the ability to move forward despite your fear.  Most people can't make fear go away, nor should they.  Fear is an emption we need to survive.  So how do we have courage and move forward despite our fear.

Stepping out of your comfort zone requires you to take risk, but that risk can be minimized if you follow a method of making success more likely while avoiding rash, unproductive, or irrational behavior.  

One such process involves setting goals; determining the importance of achieving the goal; weighing risks against benefits; selecting the proper time for action; developing a plan; and developing contingency plans.

Setting Goals

What does success look like in this high-risk situation? Is it obtainable?  Your goals should be reasonably within reach, not pie-in-the-sky ambitions.  Having your goal is key, because it is the reward at the end of the journey.  As you go through this journey of getting out of your comfort zone, focusing on your goal is what will get you through it if you start to waiver.

Is your goal Import

Just how important is it that you achieve your goal or goals? If you don’t do something about the current state of affairs, will you suffer?  Will you be able to look at yourself in the mirror?  Courage is not about squandering effort on low-priority issues.  Focusing on fewer but more important things.  Pick your battles so to speak, but make sure you don't forego something you will regret later.

Weighing Risks and Benefits

This component focuses on trade-offs. What do you stands to win? What do you stands to lose? What are the chances that your reputation will be tarnished beyond repair if you go forward? Will you lose respect of your friends or peers?  Will you miss out on opportunities?

Selecting the Right Time

Although emotion is always in the mix, and may even be an asset when making a courageous move, consider the timing of making the move now or waiting.  For your situation consider the art of losing the battle in order to win the war.

Developing a plan

If you have determined the timing is right, the next step is to come up with a plan on how you can move forward. 

Developing Contingency Plans

Faced with having to take a risk, most people make only one attempt.  The better developed your contingency plans are, the likelier it is you’ll achieve your goals. 

Moving out of your comfort zone and into your learning zone often requires being what you haven’t been, thinking as you haven’t thought, and acting as you haven’t acted. 

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