Hogan

We've been using the Hogan suite of psychometrics as part of one-to-one work we have been doing with education leaders.  It's a very powerful instrument which is a very effective way of setting the 'agenda' for coaching sessions.  Hogan works because not only does it show how a leader might be perceived in terms of their strengths it also shows what happens when they are under stress.  We all get stressed sometimes, but how we respond to stress can vary.  Hogan calls these behaviours 'derailers' and you can watch some very entertaining examples of people de-railing on their website:

http://www.howdoyouderail.com/?vid=0

Enthios New Year Newsletter - 2012 Summary

Yet again this was a year of huge change for our clients and we’re very pleased to say we have seen a responsive ‘can do’ attitude to making it happen.  They are all still in business – this is not a flippant claim and many have even reported growth.

As a consequence, the work we have been involved in has been in supporting leaders and staff through this period of change, in how they feel and respond, even when there is limited information available on which to base decisions.  We have been surprised by the continued level of investment in people and processes, when the economy is still fairly unknown and believe that this message communicates is a confidence and readiness to deal with whatever comes along both internally and externally.

High on clients’ lists has been performance management and the ability to give good quality feedback in order to move their internal appraisal process into something more meaningful for the individual and in turn drive standards and results for their organisations.

 

Type of work we’ve been involved in 2012

We’ve continued to work one-to-one with senior people whose organisations are looking to them for direction and instilling confidence in those who follow – a tough task.  Getting back to basics has been a theme by revisiting self-management techniques, gaining much needed space for critical thinking and effective decision-making.

In Higher Education we’ve been involved with developing staff’s ability to be more assertive, and communicate appropriately with their interactions, whether they are through ‘enhancing the student experience’ or through the day to day interactions with their colleagues and academics.  Three leadership programmes have seen us working with Principle Lecturers, Advancement and Library Information Services allowing us a good view across the organisation.

Team building has also been in evidence but not just the ‘feel good’ day out.  Organisations have asked for ‘Purposeful Away Days’ which have been targeting topics such as strategy, communication,, inter departmental relations and managing brand.

What else we’ve done…

Elsewhere we worked in the third sector with a new client to develop their managers’ skills in handling their performance management process, getting the best out of the development conversation and not shying away from some of the issues around behaviour and attitude that needed to be addressed.  This came from a failed pitch for a tendered piece of work, but they loved what they saw in Miles and experienced our values in practice when he delivered a taster session.  Note to self – never say ‘never’ and always be you!

A number of our team have added skills this year with accreditations for Simon K in PPD NLP Practitioner and Shelle Rose Charve’s LAB Profile workshop – both apparently hugely insightful.  Liz has continued volunteering at The Christie - Young Oncology Unit- once a  week and I don’t doubt that in 2013 she will continue to lift the spirits of all those around her.

 

We’ve moved the business premises on the 3rd of January 2013 and hopefully none of you experienced any difficulties even though it was not without its challenges (I think that’s what we’re supposed to call them!)

Playing out? Very important to us!!

Well some time spent in France continually trying to conquer the language, alpine and cross country skiing, snowboarding, mountain biking, and anything else the country can throw at us, of course allowing a little time for an apero!

 

As ever Liz has been attacking life at full throttle, progressing 2 belts towards her black belt in Kick Boxing (not a woman to mess with!)  She explored Tuscany on holiday and sang the Carmina Burana in the Alhambra in Grenada. This year she’s aiming to complete a programme of Coaching for the business to set minimum goals for 3 & 5 year development plans and progress with 2 further belts for Kick Boxing.

 

Simon K had a fab trip to NYC with the family in April – beautiful weather, great food and the amazement on his son and daughter’s faces when they first saw NYC in the daylight – priceless! His plans for 2013 are to get out on his bike and enjoy it – that means getting significantly fitter first.  Simon’s commitment is to do this on a pogo stick (taken from one of those conversations over the phone - count me in on being the first to watch)!

 

I started running this year and did a 10k run for the Preston Guild and didn’t pass out, so I’m set for more of the same in 2013. Not sure if ‘playing out’ is the right place to capture this but a major house renovation and building project has become known as ‘Kate’s project’ and eBay’s sales growth can be accredited – in some small part - to the constant desire to keep in budget.  We’ll measure the success of this objective once everything is complete!

 

Miles – had an attempt at completing a Deca Ironman, but unfortunately picked the worst summer to try it.  Dropping out after 24 mile swim and 400 miles on the bike was a disappointment but also a motivation for having another go in 2014 and we still managed to raise £2500 for Right to Play.

So what does 2013 have in store………?

As usual our commitment to personal and organisational learning is never over.  Miles and I are becoming accredited in the Hogan Personality Inventory in January. I’m intrigued to find out both his and my ‘dark sides and de-railers’ that’s if I get chance of a peek at his report! Miles is about to become an accredited user of AQR’s mental toughness psychometric inventory (MTQ48), as managerial resilience is a hot topic at the moment.  He also commences his professional doctorate in Elite Performance.

Big chunk..

We’re very excited to be working with a new client in Financial Services on a large change programme.  The main outputs will be to re-energise the staff and lift engagement after a number of disruptive internal restructures.  The focus will start on the impact of the changes on ‘self’ and then move to a ‘team’ involvement to create the future going forward.

We’re lucky enough to be in our 5^th year of an internal ‘Executive Development Programme’ which focuses on working with senior leaders in the organisation who are selected as significant contributors within their business area. This is self-directed learning on a one-to-one basis, a combination of coaching, mentoring, sounding board and training – whatever is required by the individual at the time. One of the most successful organisations we have worked with who have great people – game on!

Another new client brings Enthios into a new sector.  Although we have worked extensively in Higher Education we are now entering into the life of the leadership team in a high performing Academy.  Enthios’ involvement will be coaching individuals, with additional facilitation of team action learning sets to complement their existing Leadership Programme.  We have a great deal to learn from this organisation who are already being invited into other schools to drive standards and raise expectations for both staff and pupils to ‘want to’ and ‘be better’.

We’re still involved within a large Council delivering the organisations PRD system, ‘Meaningful & Effective Goal Setting’, ‘Coaching Conversations for Success’ and ‘Meeting the Feedback Challenge’, along with ‘Performance Management’ and hope to widen the work we do with this fantastic organisation in a beautiful part of the world.

In line with one of our strategies for securing additional ‘long term business’ we’re currently awaiting the outcome of a number of tenders which would be 4 year  framework agreements around coaching and facilitation so fingers crossed Enthios’ national reach continues its progress to date.

We still love working one-to-one with individuals whether they are running their own business or part of a wider organisation. These relationships continue to cause us to raise our own professional standards to meet the demands of their ever-changing circumstances and environments. Thank you for the push!

And more thanks…

For those of you who know us well (or have taken a look at our website) you’ll know that one of our values is that we work with people we like. While this may sound ‘twee’, it’s the best way we know how to do the work that needs to be done, in the most honest way possible and have a brilliant time which is enjoyable for everyone involved. It’s how we build our own team and how we target organisations and individuals to work with. So thank you for supporting us through 2012 and let’s have another brilliant year together in 2013.

Kate Peacock

 

Day 31: Celebrate

This is the final day of our hints and tips on turning your New Year resolutions into real achievements.  In the last month we have talked about how to make your goals clear and compelling, how to take action, how to keep going if times get tough and in this last week we have looked at how to get the most from the challenge you have set yourself.  If you have already achieved your goal, WELL DONE!  You have already done something amazing.  For many of you it is likely that you are still on the journey to achieving your goals.  But I wanted to finish with some advice for when you get to the point where you can say, 'I made it'.  Our tip for today is:

Tip 31:  Celebrate, review, ask, 'What else can I do?'

Celebrating is a key aspect of achieving goals.  We tend to underplay our achievements but celebrating is a good way of keeping your motivation up, whilst also acting as part of the review process.  It can help to heighten your awareness so that you get maximum learning from your adventure.

Reviewing is something you will be used to now if you have been following our tips.  So, certainly cover the usual questions (What did I do?  What did I learn?  How can I generalise from this?  What will I do differently next time?). However, at this stage you might want to widen your perspective.  What does this goal say about you?  (Particularly important if you have overcome a fear or difficulty in order to hit your target).  What does it say about your ability to learn, to persist, to take a risk?  What does it say about your character?  Where else in your life would these attributes be useful for you?

Finally, a common experience I frequently encounter with people who set themselves audacious goals is they say something like, 'If you had told me 6 months ago that I would be doing X, then I wouldn't believe you, but here I am, I can't believe it!'  My instant reaction is to ask, 'If you can do this, what else could you do?'  Goal setting is all about growth and stretching yourself.  If you have achieved something that once you thought was impossible you have just done something amazing.  Perhaps (as Nelson Mandela said) you are powerful beyond measure.... so.... what's next for you?

If you have enjoyed this month's blogs on goal setting, you can find lots more hints and tips on a whole variety of topics on our website www.enthiostraining.co.uk.  Click on Executive Lounge and have a browse!  Thanks for visiting our blog.

Day 30: Work smart

This tip is especially useful for those of you who are pursuing goals with a definite finish point; those events where there is some kind of final performance eg a race, a presentation, a pitch or a test.  (For others, your goals will be ongoing and require a level of continuing vigilence and practise.  For example, if your goal was to stop smoking or cease drinking, these require ongoing maintenance).

Tip 30:  Do the work, but taper before the big event.

The idea of 'tapering' comes from sports.  The basic concept is that over the weeks and months preceeding the athlete's key race, they put the work in, but in the couple of weeks immediately before the big day, they tend to cut back on the amount and type of training that they do.  This is to allow the body to recover and to be in a peak state of readiness on the day of the race.  The tapering process is just a way of keeping the body ready for performing without over-stressing it.  Of course, what makes this short, relatively light period of training effective is all the hours of harder training that the athlete put in earlier.  

The same applies for your own goals.  If you are preparing for a 'peak performance' on a particular date, plan your time so that you have all your preparation done early.  This will allow you time to relax and also cope with any unforeseen events that may crop up at the last minute.  It is not an excuse for finishing early - your taper is an important part of your preparation.  On the other hand if you find yourself still cramming the night before an exam, or stressing over your presentation an hour before you give it, you will probably not be in the best state of mind to give of your best.

Day 29: Make it a habit

Our tip for today is:

Tip 29:  Make it a habit

If you have been pursuing your goal for the last month you have already done a great deal to enhance your chances of success.  By taking 'little and often' action for the last four weeks you will already have started to make your new behaviours part of your daily routine. 

On Day 22, we introduced the four stages of learning.  Making something a habit is part of the last stage, 'Unconscious Competence'.  This means it feels part of your routine.  By now it may even be feeling comfortable or 'natural' to you.  You probably don't have to concentrate too hard to perform your new task, and may even be able to do something else at the same time (Like, for example, driving while also listening to the radio, rather than worrying about what gear you are in).

Habit-forming comes from consistently and frequently performing a behaviour.  Paying attention to the results you achieve will help you repeat your performance.

One other thing.  If your goal is connected to your sense of identity, your character or changing how people perceive you, remember what Aristotle said:

'We are what we repeatedly do.  Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.'

Day 28: Be vigilant

A nice, short tip for today, and something we first introduced on Day 16:

Tip 28:  Learn to spot the early signs of relapse.

Imagine you have just had a bad day in terms of moving towards your goal.  Perhaps you gave into temptation and had that bar of chocolate that was on the counter in the newsagent.  Maybe you looked out of the window, saw it was raining and didn't go running.  Or perhaps you didn't motivate your team in the way that you promised you would.

OK, so you might have had an off-day, but there is still learning to be had from it.  As you review what happened, keep going back in time and try to identify the earliest thing that happened that caused this lapse.  Using the examples above, perhaps the dieter bought the chocolate bar because he/she didn't have breakfast.  Why not? Maybe they were in a hurry that day?  Why?  Perhaps they didn't do all their preparation the night before?  The rule is, try to find the earliest sign that you can do something about.  If you do this each time you have a lapse, you will gradually learn to spot the early signs as they happen, so you can take corrective action before you actually lapse.

If you deviate from your plan, don't be hard on yourself.  Use it as an opportunity to learn.  Plan to do something immediately that puts you back on track.

Day 27: Talk to the experts

Another way to keep going to the end of your goal, and another way of getting support from others is the basis of our tip for today:

Tip 27:  Talk to the people who have got the T Shirt

Sometimes when we start out on a goal we are worried that we might make a fool of ourselves, or that the people that can do this thing that you want to do, will somehow look down on us.  As someone who coaches in our local triathlon club, one of the comments that I frequently hear from new members is, 'I don't want to hold everyone up' or 'I would like to join the run session but you'll all be so much faster than me'.  These things might even be true, but one absolutely certain way of not improving is not to start in the first place! Everyone has got to start somewhere.

However, this will not last for long.  If you have been following our tips and have been doing a 'little and often' every day, then those early feelings of  'I'm not good enough' should already have started to disappear.  If you are now feeling a bit more confident, and you can see that achieving your goal is actually possible, then start talking to the people who have been there, done that.  My experience is that whatever your goal, if you approach these people and are genuinely curious about finding out how they did it, the vast majority will not only want to give you advice but will give you lots of encouragement to keep going.

In an informal setting (like my triathlon club) you can pick up loads of hints and tips just by chatting to people, so get involved, attend sessions and events where you can chat with like-minded people.  (That's why slimming clubs can be so beneficial).  If you are approaching a particular expert, who you have never met before, I would recommend that as part of your preparation you think carefully about what questions you want to ask them.  They will want to help but their time may be short.