Clear the Fog for Better Decision Making

Entrepreneurial Freedom, Process, Vision

How often do you pay “Dumb Taxes” in your business?

I just finished the Audio Book The Road Less Stupid by Keith J. Cunningham and, spoiler alert, the book is about why smart people do dumb things. The author asks the reader, “how much money would you have right now if I gave you the ability to unwind any three financial decisions you have ever made?” Cunningham calls this “paying a dumb tax”. He says, “we don’t need to do more smart things, we just need to make fewer dumb mistakes. Every one of those three decisions you would love to unwind was an avoidable mistake.” The vast majority of our dumb tax is a direct result of emotional, overly optimistic, and poorly thought-out decisions. The solution to paying these types of taxes is allowing yourself thinking time.  

When we run ourselves to the ground by constantly “doing”, we are not thinking at our highest level. We are much smarter than we allow ourselves to be at times. True wisdom is tapped into during dedicated moments of deep reflection, what we at Next Level Growth call a “Clear the Fog” Break.

What is a Clear the Fog Break?

Keeping your head clear and your focus strong is what this tool is all about. Great leaders have the habit of taking quiet time to think. That means escaping the office on a regular basis for 30 minutes or more. By working on yourself and the business, you will rise above feeling frustrated and overwhelmed, to a clear-headed and confident state. As a result, when you come back into the business, you will be laser-focused and in the right leadership frame of mind. 

During your next break, use any one of the Clear the Fog Questions to get started:

  1. What is one thing my business, my team or I should start doing that we’re not?  
  2. What is one thing my business, my team or I should stop doing?  
  3. What is one thing my business, my team or I are doing that is going well?
  4. What is a major hassle (for our team members, for our customers/clients, or for our vendors) that needs to be resolved?
  5. What can we do to be more proactive versus reactive?

So, instead of paying avoidable “dumb tax”, choose the road less stupid by scheduling regular Clear the Fog breaks for better solutions than what your emotional, untamed brain will come up with in a reactive moment.

Free Clear the Fog Worksheet

Use these questions to help to see clearly in your business and gain the confidence to simplify procedures and efficiencies.

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The First & Second in Command Relationship (Founder & Operations)- Building Trust

People, Process, Team Health

As a former “Second in Command/Change Agent” inside organizations working directly with, and for, CEOs, I know what it’s like to feel as though you’re on a whole different planet, or at least speaking a different language. These relationships are typically Yin and Yang, and when operating in harmony, can bring beautiful balance. But when forces are opposed, this can create chaos and destruction.

Now, as a Next Level Growth Business Guide, I often see this dynamic play out as an outsider witnessing the Integrator/Operations Leader/Second in Command (insert #2 title here) feeling frustrated that the Visionary/CEO doesn’t trust them to do their job for one reason or another.

From my experience if you’re the Second in Command, here are 3 ways to build trust with your CEO:

  1. Start by asking the right questions and listening to their story. Understand their WHY.
  2. Make them feel heard before moving on to implementing a solution- sometimes they are not looking for the execution of an idea, but rather a sounding board. When in doubt, ask.
  3. Choose empathy. Before approaching a topic, try figuratively sitting in their seat. Attempt to understand their perspective, needs, and fears. Assume the best intent.

Zoom out and try to see things from their vantage point. Remember…

  • Trust is scary. The stakes are high.
  • Handing over a piece of your business and putting someone else in charge can be nerve-wracking.
  • They may not be able to see how the pieces come together in the same way that you can.
  • They need to feel included. Consult and inform them on the decisions that are important to them using a Decision Matrix (available below). Ultimately, it’s their name, reputation, and resources on the line.

If you’re working with an entrepreneurial founder or CEO, and you’re saying to them, “just trust me,” stop. They want to be able to trust you. That’s why they chose you to work as their right hand, they just might not know how. It’s your job to figure that out. You’re the one who puts ideas to action, you may also need to be the one to extract their ideas and implement the right ones effectively. Be their guide, and make it a safe place for them to live 25,000 feet above the business.

No matter how invincible a CEO might feel, they should never underestimate the value of having a partner. You need someone you can trust, be vulnerable with, and open up to. The yin to your yang. You need someone who will tell you the truth, including when they think you are wrong, so you can keep moving forward in a positive direction.” – The Second in Command, Unleash the Power of Your COO by CAMERON HEROLD

If you’re a Senior Operations Leader in the Second in Command role, remember, you were hired for a reason. The relationship is about trust, and it may require you to manage up so that you have what you need to be successful in your role and execute with the organization’s best intentions in mind. I also recommend picking up a copy of The Second In Command, by Cameron Herold. Read it to learn more about the relationship dynamic between you and your CEO and how to build trust in the relationship.,

Free Next Level Growth Decision Matrix Worksheet

Get aligned with the decisions with important decisions using the Decision Matrix.

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How to Create an Employee Engagement Process

People, Process, Team Health

I recently met with a CEO and, among other things, we discussed issues with engagement on the Board level of his organization. He was finding it difficult to get them committed to showing up, participating, and doing the work that was required. Ultimately, it was resulting in more work on fewer people’s shoulders.

He said to me, “when I make a commitment, I follow through.” I told him I agreed and that’s how I operate as well, and it’s disheartening that others don’t do the same. I said, “It’s up to us to make sure the team knows that engagement IS the expectation and that nothing less is acceptable. We need to look at the process, not the people. Our recruitment efforts should help ensure the right people, but we need to look at our process around engagement too.”

When I hear Employers, Managers, and other Leaders tell me they are experiencing “engagement issues” saying participation is just not at the desired level, they often follow it up with one of two reasons why they think it’s happening:

Reason 1: People.

We have the wrong people.

Reason 2: Expectations.

Our expectations are too high, the world of work is different these days.

I have another Hypothesis.

When I ask Leaders what their employee engagement process consists of, I almost always get a blank stare or some fumbling of information about how they host company-wide team-building events, do surveys, gift cards or other incentives.

Those might be a PART of the process, but my follow-up question is, “what is THE process for getting and keeping employees engaged? And, is it documented and communicated with the right people on the team?” Developing a strong process that is focused on employee engagement makes all the difference.

Your Employee Engagement Process needs an update.

Leaders, remember that you must set AND hold the standard for all expectations in your organization, including engagement. When engagement is the expectation, and you have a process to support that, you will have no choice but to have engaged team members. You’ll know when you have it right when the feeling is… engagement is our culture – it’s just the way it is around here.

When you’re faced with a problem like employee dis-engagement, approach the problem systematically… state the problem, get clear on the specifics of the problem and revisit your process.

When we can clearly identify the problem, and commit to doing something about it, it’s already half solved.

Here’s an example of how to set and keep a standard of engagement inside your organization with an Employee Engagement Process.

HR (or someone responsible for this function) owns the process.

  1. Starting from the Interview Process – check in with the applicant to gauge their interest (monitor the follow-through of candidates in the hiring process as a KPI).
  2. A warm welcome in Onboarding Process.
  3. Set the expectations for engagement in Orientation and all Meetings.
  4. Have a process for gauging training success and onboarding satisfaction within first weeks of new hire onboarding.
  5. Monitor meeting attendance and Average Meeting Scores (if you’re not scoring every meeting, you’re missing a real-time opportunity for engagement feedback).
  6. Formal and informal employee/ manager feedback process. Example: Annual Performance Evaluations and Quarterly Coaching Conversations.
  7. Recognize engaged employees company-wide (positive feedback loop).
  8.  Make it a two way street- ensure their feedback is heard, addressed and implemented where appropriate.

The result?

Engaged employees, by design. Don’t blame the people if engagement is off, blame the process. A well-designed process will help you identify if you have the wrong people.

Free Quarterly Coaching Conversations Download

A key to employee engagement.

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5 Tips to Cultivate a Culture of Resilience

People, Process, Team Health

There is one common trait that all successful entrepreneurs shareresilience. There are two definitions of resilience I like: “the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties – toughness,” and, “the ability of a substance or object to spring back into shape; elasticity.”

It can be challenging for entrepreneurial spirits to understand why others stay stuck or get defeated easily because we see the opportunities for change all around us. When we, as entrepreneurs, face difficulties, we do our best to spring back and recover quickly because we have no other choice. We get a sense of enjoyment from the challenges because we know it leads to growth.

This mentality can be difficult to carry into your organization. When people feel defeated, how do we inspire them to keep pushing through? How do we not allow minor setbacks to stir up negativity and cause major issues?

There’s a unique characteristic many visionary founders have. They are charismatic. They have the ability to inspire others to see what they see through their rose-colored glasses, past the reality of what’s happening in the present. They can paint a picture of a colorful world that does not yet exist through only their words and passionate delivery. They can leave people in awe and excited to follow their lead. They are the changemakers.

These visionary types have a way of understanding people and their needs. When the organization is small, this charisma is what continues to inspire their team to keep going.

But what happens when you’ve grown so quickly that you now have an army of people? At any given time, half the team could be seeing what you see, on the train moving quickly toward all the possibilities in the colorful promised land. The other half, dragging the team down thinking about jumping off at the next station or slowing it down by grasping tightly to the fear of derailment.

If you want to create a culture of resilience and avoid the inevitable setbacks that come from scaling an organization, you need to prepare for this occurrence and prevent poor performance before it starts.

James Baker, former Secretary of State introduced the 5 P’s: Proper Preparation Prevents Poor Performance.

You need to cultivate the type of environment where development, growth, toughness, and elasticity exists, thrives, and becomes the norm.

You’ll need to teach resilience by naming it, discussing how it shows up inside your organization, and explaining why it’s critical to everyone’s success.

It can no longer come from just you as the visionary founder. Resilience will need to exist in every member of the team and be strengthened by its leadership.

“Resilience comes from deep within us and from support outside us. It comes from gratitude for what’s good in our lives and from leaning into the suck.” Sheryl Sandberg, Option B: Facing Adversity, Building Resilience, and Finding Joy.

As people that embrace the suck, we know the trait of resilience comes from within, but we can forget that the support outside of us is what keeps that light on. This is what we need to be for our team. The light that helps others see what’s possible.

How do we cultivate resilience in our organizations?

Brene Brown, American professor, lecturer, and best-selling author writes in the book Gifts of Imperfection: “having a sense of purpose, meaning, and perspective in our lives allows us to develop understanding and move forward. Without purpose, meaning, and perspective it is easy to lose hope.”

If you are working towards building something great, you have a sense of purpose that keeps you going. You may or may not have named exactly what that purpose is, but it gives you hope of a brighter future which helps you overcome adversity more easily.

We know that external motivation only gets us so far. Motivation from outside yourself can be helpful, but being internally motivated by your own values and goals is the only sustainable approach that provides long-lasting and more meaningful results.

To build an organization that cultivates resilience start here:

  1. Help individuals find their own sense of purpose.

Purpose comes from deep within. It’s personal. As leaders, it’s our job to help people discover their own purpose and tie it to their role in the organization.

  1. Create meaning around goal setting.

When people know their purpose, they need to set goals that allow them to live out their purpose. Help your team develop a deeper connection to their goals through the lens of their personal purpose.

  1. Show people they can remain optimistic through gratitude.

A practice of gratitude helps people see the good in everything. When something doesn’t seem great on the surface, we can help others shift their perspective to gratitude and away from negativity.

  1. Tie the company’s goals to the individual’s goals.

Real buy-in only occurs when personal goals and values are aligned with organizational goals. To tie your team’s internal motivations with the goals of the organization you help people show up as their best selves and continue to perform at a high level.

  1. Support internal motivation through external motivation.

Helping people connect with their sense of purpose creates internal motivation. As humans, it can be hard to sustain motivation. High-performers seek out coaches, advisors, and accountability partners but your team might not see that as an option. Weave coaching, mentorship, and accountability throughout the company so it’s reinforced at every level.

Cultivating a culture of resilience strengthens your team’s ability to overcome obstacles and turn threats into opportunities. When everyone inside the organization practices resilience your team will be unstoppable.

Free Quarterly Coaching Conversations Download

A great starting place to cultivate a culture of resilience is to integrate quarterly coaching conversations. Download this overview to get started.

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Confront the Brutal Facts to Create a Culture of Commitment

People, Process, Team Health

“Leadership does not begin with just a vision. It begins with getting people to confront the brutal facts and act on the implications.”   – Jim Collins

In his best-selling book, Good to Great, Collins talks about the need for leaders to investigate the brutal facts and realities of the organization and to have the discipline to call them out. Here we’ll outline the 3 things Elite Organizations do differently to resolve problems swiftly and climb their business mountain with greater speed and agility through a Culture of Discipline.

Many fast growth companies move quickly, but stall in reaching their full potential. There are many reasons why, but often it’s simply a matter of not using their most critical resource wisely: time. We waste time listening more to opinions than facts. We weigh opinions and prioritize emotions, leaving us feeling drained, without truly accomplishing anything. It takes time to think clearly and articulate the facts of the issue. Time spent confronting the brutal facts is time well spent, which increases your forward momentum, and helps you take the right actions, quickly.

3 things Elite Organizations do Differently to Create a Culture of Commitment:

Build a Team of Disciplined People.

The magical power of Elite teams does not exist without great people. People who share the organization’s values, are aligned and driven by an inspiring purpose, and who work towards a shared vision. Great people need to be in the right seat in the organization to excel to their full potential. High performers desire to have their focus on excellence and thrive in a culture that creates, supports, and rewards these efforts.

“When you have disciplined people, you don’t need hierarchy.”   – Collins

 

Train Disciplined People to have Disciplined Thought.

“Simple can be harder than complex. You must work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple.”   – Steve Jobs

Using a framework of rigorous thinking and communication helps identify the true facts, not opinions. When everyone is on the same page using a shared language and structure for communication you get the right things done.

Remember, opinions are not facts. Encourage the team to better define their statements with facts. When you’ve clearly identified the real issue, the problem is nearly solved.

Here is an example of how to state the brutal facts in place of opinions.

“I think we’re growing too fast”

We grew 50% last year, and our capacity only grew 30%

“We’re not looking for the right people.”

We’re not using the Core Values Hiring Guide and Accountability Chart in our hiring process

“Our owner is checked out”

Owner missed half of the Leadership Team meetings the past two Quarters

“We aren’t generating enough leads”

Our sales process requires 30 leads a week to meet our annual targets. We are getting 10.

“Our processes are too complex”

Our production process has 22 steps and 8 of those steps are unnecessary.

“When you have disciplined thought, you don’t need bureaucracy.”   – Collins

Disciplined People with Disciplined Thought Must Take Disciplined Action.

Accountability of a project or task requires clear ownership. Projects that move you toward your larger goals often require involving multiple people in the organization, but only one person should be ultimately accountable for it getting done. When in doubt, consider using RACI. Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed.

      • The Accountable Person– owns the completion of the project and is ultimately accountable for the outcome.
      • The Responsible Person (or people)- own tasks or components of the project.
      • The People Consulted– who needs to provide input for the project? These people should be consulted.
      • The People Informed– these are the members of the team that need to be informed of project status/completion. For example, in your Weekly Tactical these are the people receiving the high level updates.

When you’re laying out projects (ROCKS) it’s important to know who owns the Project and what is the definition of successful completion? Consider using the Next Level Growth Project Planner to clarify the important milestones, timelines and desired outcomes.

Free Next Level Growth Project Planner

Clarify your important milestones, timelines and desired outcomes. ​

When you have disciplined people on your team, involved in disciplined thought, taking disciplined action, you have a better understanding of what is important to achieve and what is not. Your time and energy is better channeled into the things that move the organization forward.

When you combine a culture of discipline with an ethic of entrepreneurship, you get the magical alchemy of great performance.

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