The Failures That Helped Me Become a Better Leader
Years ago, I was thrust into a position where I had absolutely no experience. It would’ve been easier if I'd had a mentor to guide me along the way. But sometimes, the best way to learn is by making mistakes… or even failing.
Here are some examples that helped me become a better communicator, manager and leader.
Assuming Expectations are Met or Understood
Just because information is communicated does not mean that the message has been received. Was the communication too broad or not direct enough? Were expectations assumed?
Case in point: A third party was hired to develop new software and I was assigned to oversee its implementation. But things quickly began to fall between the cracks. The third party seemed extremely overwhelmed and became reactive instead of proactive. Stakeholders were frustrated that their questions were not being addressed in a timely manner and they did not know the current state of the project. Internal managers began to question my ability to lead the effort.
What went wrong: Team roles and responsibilities were not clearly defined up front. Assumptions were made on all sides and I could not provide the attention the project needed to be successful. It was an all-around communication failure.
How to prevent: A project kickoff meeting is an absolute must for any project, whether large or small. Communicating the goals/objectives—as well as scope, timeline, team roles and responsibilities—to all team members and stakeholders is critical. Also, having a candid dialog with your manager about your workload will prevent you from biting off more than you can chew.
Making Reactive Decisions Under Pressure
Have you ever been in a situation where you were asked to deliver a project within an impossible timeframe? Instead of panicking, I chose to round up as many people as possible to help meet the deadline. But it didn’t turn out well.
Case in point: I was asked to manage a team of engineers who were assigned to develop a new product within a tight timeframe. We quickly put together a project plan, scheduled status meetings and began working on the new product.
But after a few weeks, it became clear that the team would not be able to deliver the product as expected. Tasks were not being completed on time and stakeholders had their own ideas on how the product should be designed. Because we were under such pressure to deliver, I began recruiting other engineers to assist.
What went wrong: Decisions that were made in haste ultimately led to the cancellation of the project. Throwing more resources at a project in hopes that it will get done faster will not end well. Taking shortcuts will cost the company money and crush team morale.
How to prevent: Planning is crucial for project success. Taking the time to understand requirements, design the best solution and ensure that you have enough resources with appropriate skill sets will increase your chances of delivering a quality product that satisfies customer demand—in a realistic timeframe.
Making the Transition from Team Member to Team Manager
Transitioning from team member to team leader can be a challenge. In moving into a management role, my first concern was to preserve the personal relationships I’d already established. Big mistake.
Case in point: After being promoted to a leadership role over a team that had become friends, I noticed a shift in behavior. I was no longer being included in certain conversations for fear of reprisal.
I scheduled meetings with each team member and assured them that nothing would change and I wanted to be treated the same as before. I would simply be there to help resolve issues, answer questions, and achieve success. As a new manager, I thought this was completely reasonable.
What went wrong: My desire to be treated as a peer rather than a manager led to many authority challenges. There was an expectation of special treatment and a lack of urgency toward assigned tasks and deadlines. I also made the mistake of sharing too much information in hopes that it would help gain respect.
How to prevent: When moving into a management role, know that you were selected for your skills, leadership and drive and accept that existing relationships will change. Effective managers have to make difficult decisions and can’t be everyone’s friend. Your job is to support and develop your team and ensure that efforts are aligned with company goals and objectives.
There will always be roadblocks, setbacks and even failure during the course of your career. Just don’t let them deter you from achieving your career goals. As author J.K. Rowling once said: “Failure is so important...It is the ability to resist failure or use failure that often leads to greater success.”
‘Flexible Passions’ is the Key to Overseas Career Success: Psychology
The latest study by Psychologists has revealed that the key to Overseas Career Success is having flexibility for passions. There is immense pressure on fresh graduates and professionals to identify the ‘Dream Job’. This implies a career that you value and are passionate about.
However, at times, everything does not fall as per our plans. The career that you pin your future happiness does not prove to be equally fulfilling.
Yale-NUS College and Stanford University Psychologists have said that such feelings arise out of the idea of fixed passions in life. Some people are flexible to develop fresh areas of interest and expanding skill sets. Meanwhile, others are rigid with a defined area and reluctant to explore beyond, as quoted by the Study International.
A student with fixed passions realizes that in real passion is a black and white myth. While managing their finances as a business intern or creative freelancer, they are saddled with jobs beyond the job description. Thus, the feeling that their career is going beyond fixed passions can make them feel at loss.
The fact of the dynamic job market today is that positions are rarely confined to niche responsibilities. Automation evolution in the workplace is rewriting the job market now.
It has been estimated that 85% of the jobs that will be present in 2030 are yet to be created. This is as per DELL, the tech powerhouse. Thus, there is a risk that the passions of students could die out in the changing scenario. This is especially for those with fixed passions and struggling to explore beyond.
The report encourages students to accept a mindset of growth. This is accepting the ability of everyone to learn passions and interests. It discourages to view these as innate ideas.
Being flexible instills students with the elasticity to adapt to an unpredictable and dynamic economy. This will also enable to think out-of-the-box for their industry.
More Motivated in Minutes: 5 Science-Backed Tricks To Get You Going
Got a few minutes? Get ready to get more done.
Researchers have discovered some quick ways to get you more focused and motivated at what you do so that you can work smarter, not harder.
Some of these motivation tips take only seconds to do. Others require that you get out of your chair for a few minutes. All of them are derived from the results of recent scientific studies.
For some simple tips and exercises to increase your motivation, we’ll start right now.
1. Strike a high-power pose for a jolt of confidence
Time it takes: 2 minutes
Body language may be a lot more important than you imagined. It affects not just how you’re perceived by others, but also your internal body chemistry.
Amy Cuddy, a professor at the Harvard School of Business, gave a TED Talk in 2012 on the significance of body language. Her premise is that non-verbal communication (i.e. body language) may be just as important as verbal communication. And one of the ways that you can communicate non-verbally is with a “power pose.”
There are two kinds of power poses: high and low. A high-power pose usually means having your body open rather than hunched up. That means chest out, arms spread, no slouch. Most simply, it means that you try to take up a great deal of space.
Here’s an example of what that looks like:
And what does a low-power space look like? Anything that makes you small and bunched up, like this:
The researchers found that simply holding a high-power pose for as little as two minutes increases your testosterone levels, which are associated with confidence, and decreases your cortisol levels, which are associated with stress.
This is a no-tech lifehack that you can do while you sit or stand, while you’re alone or with others: Holding certain poses gives you more confidence and helps you to work better.
Stop slouching and strike a high-power pose. Lean back, put up your legs, and if you have space, make a V with your arms. You can do these while you sit or stand.
Don’t want to look weird with co-workers around you? Do this in a bathroom, or grab a meeting room and close the door.
In addition to striking high-power pose, you can focus on the position of your feet, smile more, align yourself better with your conversation partner, and lower your voice with deep breathing.
2. Tell yourself that you’re going to have a fresh start
Time it takes: 3-5 minutes
Have you ever wondered why everybody chooses January 1 to make commitments?
Yes, it’s a new year. But it’s also an arbitrary point in the lives of most people. January 1 may be a good date to set new commitments, but it’s not much better than July 28.
Here’s the thing: You can give yourself a fresh start anytime. By doing so, you’re going to have a burst of energy. That’s one of the findings from a study by the Wharton School of Business.
The researchers found that these “intertemporal markers” encourage us in two ways: by making people disconnect from past failures, and by promoting a big-picture view of life.
These factors make us more motivated to sequester away our failures and get things done.
So think of a recent event, be it a promotion, a breakup, some other special occasion, and contrive a fresh start. You’ll find it more believable than you think.
Try sitting yourself down to craft a message. Write it down and make it concrete. Here’s an example of a note that you can write, typed or by hand:
“Gosh, I complain of being busy all the time, but how much of it is spent wasted, unproductive? From now on, I’m going to make the most of the minutes every hour, and deliver my work with time to spare.”
Or, try this out:
“I’ve been putting this off for way too long; it’s long past time for me to start the business I’ve been dreaming about. I’ll start slow as a side project for now and see where it takes me. Today I’m going to make things happen.”
Believing it helps make it true.
3. Eat some chocolate – or some other dopamine-releasing reward
Time it takes: 1 minute
Here’s another low-tech hack to increase your level of motivation: Eat some chocolate. Not only is it delicious and easily available—the effects of chocolate on the brain are well-studied.
Here are some of the things that happen when you eat some:
It increases both serotonin, a neurotransmitter that promotes calm, and also phenylethylamine, which promotes stimulation. White chocolate does both even more intensely.
It triggers a release of dopamine, which will elevate your heart rate and significantly increase motivation.
It also results in a mild antidepressant effect, literally because your brain responds to the stimulants by promoting blissful emotions.
Other dopamine-inducing foods that can help maintain a healthy diet: blueberries, spirulina, and fish high in Omega-3 fats.
4. Write a contract – and donate the proceeds to charity if you lose
It’s a platform for writing informal contracts that help achieve goals and form new habits. Put down a concrete goal, on say losing weight or on becoming an entrepreneur and starting a business, then ask a friend to monitor that you’ll get it done. Put up some money, say $50, and if you succeed, you get your money back; if you fail, then your friend donates the $50 to a charity of your choice.
StickK is an example of a commitment device, and it’s a remarkable mechanism for getting things done. Rather than a loose determination to make an abstract goal in the future, you have a concrete task to work towards on a specific date, and you lose more than your pride if you fail.
The founder of stickK is a professor of economics at Yale University who used a commitment device himself when he was a grad student. He promised to pay his friend $10,000 if he did not lose 38 lbs by a certain date. Fortunately he succeeded in shedding weight, not dollars.
Why do commitment devices work?
The logic of commitment devices is based on psychology and behavioral economics.
People tend towards hyperbolic discounting, which is a fancy way of saying that they overvalue the short run relative to the long-run. The examples are obvious: Do you sit and watch TV or go out for a run? Do you grab the fruit salad or the cheesecake for dessert?
All of us know that what’s good right now isn’t necessarily good for the long run. Commitment devices try to change this up so that choosing what feels good in the short run gets more costly.
In addition, it requires that you set a concrete goal. Instead of saying that “I’ll lose weight this year,” you’ll have to say something like “I’ll lose 20 pounds by June.” Having something specific makes the task more concrete and more actionable.
And if you don’t make it to your goal after all, you can feel glad that at least a charity of your choice is going to get a donation.
5. See some green
Time it takes: 10 minutes
Certain colors make us think of certain things. Ever wonder why all sales signs are red, for example? It’s because people react faster and more forcefully when they see the color. People tend to associate the color red with a danger cue, and that attracts attention.
Guess which color provides the biggest boost in motivation and energy?
The first study was published in 2012 in the Journal of Environmental Science & Technology via six researchers at the University of Essex.
They asked subjects to perform three cycling exercises while watching a video of a rural cycling course. The videos were randomly selected to have green, gray, or red filters.
The green filter made the cyclists happier and less tired. Simply seeing lots of green made them more motivated.
The second study asked subjects to write as many uses for a tin can as they could think of in under two minutes, and graded them for creativity. Before each test they showed the subjects quick flashes of green, blue, white, and gray. The color that was most associated with encouraging creativity? Green.
A researcher hypothesized that seeing green makes people think of growth. It’s taken as a cue that we can improve task mastery and that we have room to grow.
How can you get more green in your life? Go outside! Take a stroll in a garden, or anywhere with shrubs and greenery. Is there a local park that people around you like to have lunch at? Are there lots of trees that you can walk around? Are there at least a few patches of grass by your workplace?
Go out and walk in these places. In addition to seeing more green; you’ll be a lot more motivated after a brief physical exertion and some fresh air.
Over to you!
Can motivation be hacked? These studies that draw from psychology and neuroscience suggest that there are at least a few things that you can do to boost your motivation right now, whether that’s putting yourself in a certain frame of mind or finding a quick, no-tech way to boost your body and mind.
So take a break at a natural point and try one of these five tricks to boost your energy. Your work will thank you for it.
Now, over to you – What tricks and tips have you discovered to increase your motivation or give yourself a big boost in energy? Have you discovered that any of the ones offered above work particularly well for you? I’d love to hear from you in the comments.
What is a Work Ethic? It is a set of values based on an ideology for achieving the desired result.
Work Ethics changes with the result you require to achieve.
Professionalism is a type of work ethic.
Jugaad is a type of work ethic.
Start-ups have and require a changing work ethic.
Work Ethic focuses on the reliability of deliverance
Work ethic is a state of play without supervision/without a deadline for delivery.
How do you build it? By Forming a Habit
Here are some tips for forming the focus habit:
Timebox – Give yourself 60-90 minutes to work on a particular task. During that time you can’t rest or engage in any distractions.
Accelerate – It can take anywhere from 10-30 minutes to build up a concentrated focus. Give yourself time to accelerate into a focused state.
Cut Distractions – Practice the habit of turning off all outside noise. Phones, e-mail, RSS, Twitter and visitors should be shut out while trying to focus.
Define your Personal Goal & the Professional Goal/result.
Define your parameters for Efficiency.
State your work ethic.
See if it clashes with a define set of ethics which are already in play.
What is Work Ethic?
Work ethic is a person’s belief that the effort they put towards something will lead to a benefit and cause them to strengthen their character and abilities.
It is an internal drive that influences their actions and how much of themselves they will give something to reach an objective.
Having a high work ethic is often part of a person’s identity. It’s not surprising that employers assess employee performance based on work ethic.
A strong work ethic is considered favourably than a weak one.
