Because you get out what you put in
High performers in any organisation aren’t easy to manage. With their uncanny ability to produce outstanding work and an appetite to solve tough problems, they demand even greater attention and engagement from their managers.
And these managers are so busy putting out fires, attending meetings, convincing stakeholders, and solving poor performance that they fail to prioritise the one thing that deserves their time and energy: their top performers.
With an excuse of a busy schedule, they fool themselves into believing that their high performers are already doing great and are invested to excel in their role, which is sufficient to…
And what to do instead
Do you feel exhausted, even frustrated, from working hard, putting in extra hours, sometimes even on weekends and late nights trying to catch up on work, but not being able to make progress on your own goals?
Is it the demands of the workplace that’s eating up into your time, or the fact that you don’t have control over your own schedule? Do you create value or are you simply working to satisfy the expectations of others?
Jumping in to solve every crisis at work, saying “yes” to new projects even when your plate is full, staying late to help…
How to make better decisions
As we get down to work, our mind is flooded with thoughts — should I respond to that email I got last night or a message from my boss, how about a cup of coffee, why not start the project I have been avoiding this entire week or maybe just a quick catch up on the meeting I missed yesterday…
A series of these small decisions scattered throughout our day may seem harmless in the moment as they seem to demand only a small fraction of our mental energy. …
Maintaining focus in a distracting world
In a world that’s designed for interruptions, we are all vulnerable to distractions.
The sense of accomplishment that comes from producing great work rewards and energises us to strive for more, be better at our tasks, and generate higher quality output.
We have all the necessary information, the right tools, and resources at our disposal to achieve excellence, and yet we rarely see it in practice.
The feeling that most people describe at work is one of relief as opposed to accomplishment after finishing a task. …
As a leader of an organisation, the question “what needs attention” was always top of my mind. I realised that without taking real inputs from people in the organisation, any decisions I make and the direction I provide will be nothing but my own biased view of what people want, not what they need.
Looking down from 10000 ft above the ground, you may see the greenery of the forests, ice-covered mountains, beautiful terrains, and vastness of the oceans. It’s only when you get to the ground, the rough patches start to surface. …
Instead of letting our reaction slip through our unconscious, we need to take charge of it in conscious awareness.
An argument with a coworker — conflict of opinion. Working on a project that doesn’t energize you — conflict of interest. Didn’t get the promotion — conflict of growth. Working super hard with no time for personal life — internal conflict. Saying yes to work that doesn’t align with your goals — conflict of priorities. Committed a mistake, but can’t come to terms with accepting responsibility — conflict of values. We don’t realize it, but most interactions at work lead to a major or minor conflict.
When it’s a minor conflict, we feel a sense of discomfort in our body…
Constructive criticism and positive feedback require a different art altogether
When we think of giving feedback, we promptly think about correcting others. But giving feedback is as much about telling others what they are doing right as it is about telling them what they are doing wrong. It’s as much about reinforcing good behaviours as it is about eliminating bad ones. It’s as much about singing praise that comes off easily as it’s about giving constructive criticism that makes you uncomfortable.
If you are a manager or a leader, telling people what they ought to hear is not your job — it’s your responsibility. You are the person standing in…
Asking for help is not a weakness. It’s a strength
When we were small, we asked for help all the time. Dependent as we were on our parents, friends, teachers, and siblings to help us navigate the complexities of life, asking for help seemed like the most natural thing to do. As a child, I don’t remember dealing with any painful emotion while asking for help, or worrying about what it would do to my self-esteem or the damaging effect it could have on the image I’d built for myself. I was simply happy to learn from everyone around me, knowing I could rely on people to give me useful…
Mistakes are not terrible personal failings that need to be denied or justified, they are inevitable aspects of life that can help us grow.
We are programmed at an early age to think that mistakes are bad. Don’t make a mistake, you won’t get good grades. Choose the right career, there’s no going back. Make up your mind, there won’t be a second chance. You will regret this decision later. What were you really thinking? All this well-meaning advice rings loud and clear in our heads, conveying a simple message — stay away from mistakes.
Living in a mistake-phobic culture that links mistakes with stupidity and incompetence, it isn’t easy to admit a mistake. While most of the decisions we make aren’t about life…
In most organisations, big picture thinking comes off as a seasonal flavour often appearing every few months. Mental gymnastics that goes with determining the “why” — meaning or purpose of goals, promise of a better future, and the excitement of doing something new definitely gets the creative juices flowing. Though not for all, most people in the organisation find this phase highly energising and exhilarating. But does this motivation last long?
The big picture thinking soon goes out of the picture being replaced by its nitty-gritty sister who’s only concerned with the “what” — the actual mechanics of getting from…
Vinita
I write about ideas to sharpen your mind and keep you learning to be effective in your work and life. Writer. Techie. Thinker. More@ https://www.techtello.com/
