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Archive for the ‘Work’ Category

Leading in a Tough Time

Posted in Leadership, Life, Management, Work, tagged , , , on July 1, 2012| Leave a Comment »

It is July and I am back. Where have I been? Last few months have been another great chapter where I learned more about life and people.

When times are tough, people tend to lose faith and confidence in them and in people around them. Everything around you looks chaotic and there is no hope. I, on the contrary, take this as an opportunity. If I can get though this then there is lot more I can accomplish in Iife. This is the time in which I can create partnerships that would last for long time. And, if I can lead my team through this, it would make them more tenuous in the long term.

But what do you do? Where do you begin?

Do what you do best – before being creative, apply techniques that have been successful in the past. Any success with proven tactics wound only improve the morale and provide a nourishing ground for additional methods. Show progress to regain confidence.

Be bold – don’t be shy of acknowledging mistakes but be bold about the situation. Always remember, a lot worse could have happened. Use this to recharge yourself and your team. Look for the positives to rebuild momentum. This would also calm the noise around you because people know you are taking the bull by the horns!

Be compassionate – Ok, you are the bold one who figured out how to deal with a tough situation. However not everybody can. Understand the people around you and learn more about them. Give support to people who need it, don’t be a bully. Carry your team with you. As much as they need you, you need them as well.

Act wisely and timely – tough situations come with short lead times, impatient people and whole lot of negative energy. In such situations, do the due diligence to frame an action plan but once you have it, act quickly. Think of it as an action movie in which long scenes of silence would make it boring. Quick actions drive a sense of urgency.

Stick to your core values – don’t be an actor. Be what you are and let your core values guide you. It demonstrates strength in your leadership and in turn people around you will develop confidence in you. Be consistent and not a shooting star. You will have to light the night for many.

So did this make me a better person forever? Only time will tell but I do know that the storm is over for now. We all overcame it and we all are better prepared for the next one!

@saxenaas

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Creating Value in Workplace

Posted in Efficiency, Life, Management, Social Networking, Work on August 26, 2011| Leave a Comment »

It’s Monday afternoon and you have just recovered from Monday morning blues! It is time to get back to work with full force and make a difference!

There is one problem – you have this second thought in your mind – am I really making a difference? Is my job and my years of hard work creating any value for the company and in turn for me? And as you start sorting out these thoughts, your Monday afternoon productivity has taken a dive already. However, you are not alone in this world having these doubts. This is normal. There are probably a million people in the United States alone who have this thought every Monday.

This thought is even more prevalent during this economic downturn when many employees feel obligated to prove their relevance in the company. So what should you be doing? Remember, like all management theories, there is no silver bullet. There are several keys to success, most important ones being patience and perseverance.

Create Value at your workplace – not for one day but every day! Infuse some enthusiasm in you and your colleagues. Here are some things you can start trying tomorrow when you walk-in to your office.

  1. Death by Meeting – how many times you have attended a meeting where you felt you were not providing any value or you felt disassociated with the subject? Next time when you get invited to a meeting, reach out to the host and clarify the purpose and your role in advance. Then prepare accordingly – you don’t have to go buy books for that. Read relevant information on your company’s intranet, talk to other colleagues about it and when nothing else works – Google it! So in the upcoming meeting, walk in like a smart individual and share your wealth of knowledge with the other invitees. You will see people will start respecting your point of view.
  2. Socialize and not gossip – you have just come out of a meeting with a great idea and a list of action items. The project you and your colleagues have been working on is going to bring great value for your company. Top management knows it but besides them it is an unknown entity. Don’t stop there. Create wow internally. Water Cooler talk, lunch time conversation, hallway conversations, message on intranet – use all these tools to socialize the idea and its importance. Don’t brag about it but educate and inform your colleagues. And again, your co-workers will start seeing you as an important source of information while management will view this as a great effort to collaborate.
  3. The Need of a new idea – many management gurus talk about innovation and often people associate innovation with a new idea. I have a different take on it. Statistically, only 15% of human beings on this planet have the genes to be exclusively creative. Majority of them are artists of some sort. When it comes down to corporate innovation, the number is probably down to 5% or something. I am not saying don’t develop new ideas, but the concept is don’t over work yourself on it. There is a merit to taking an existing idea and putting it into execution. Make it successful for your customers, your company, your colleagues and yourself! Not everyone who can think of a new idea can make it happen. You can be the “make it happen” person.
  4. Time sharing is not only for vacations – you have a long list of emails in your mailbox. Then there is a laundry list of items from home. Your manager has asked you for 10 high priority deliverables. And the constraint is – you have one soul! There are several things which are wrong with this picture. I am not going to touch the domestic affairs but when it comes to work I am also swamped with millions of things which I took upon myself. There cannot be 10 high priorities in anyone’s work. It’s math, it’s logic! Even your manager cannot handle 10 high priorities. So learn to distribute or re-prioritize. Share the time with other colleagues who may not be as swamped as you are. Believe me, every organization has some. Just look around your office.

These are 4 simple techniques that don’t require extensive training. Try to make them a habit and spread your influence by creating value for yourself and others!

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Heal Yourself!

Posted in Entertainment, Life, social, Society, Work on February 15, 2011| Leave a Comment »

There are moments in life that test your character, test your existence as an individual and test your strength. You may think that these are the worst times in your life and may struggle every step of the way. There is a very unique way to deal with this and believe me when you get past it, you will realize what an amazing person you are.
As human beings we are tuned to think through our brain when there is no pressure. However when we are in a stressful condition, we tend to think through our heart more than our brain. We react quickly and we are on an emotional roller coaster. It is in these moments when you should think of yourself as a two layered organism. An outer layer, which fights the situation, faces the harsh weather and reacts constantly. There is nothing wrong with it, it’s human and it’s healthy. Often human mind and body needs shake ups to ensure it is still elastic and can handle the extremes.
Then there is the inner layer – which is the core YOU! You – when you are happy; You – that has your base personality; You – under normal conditions. In tough situations, it is easy to put on the suit of outer layer but the resolution to the situation is in the inner layer. This is your strength, a zone where you can think through your brain.
So how do you get to the inner layer? By the process of “detachment”. Remove yourself from the tough situation by becoming calm, by becoming quiet, by engaging in something else or by talking to other people. Once you start detaching from the problem, you will start to think through your brain – think how to resolve the issue or how to overcome the problem. It is important to get to the normal state in which we operate at our best. It is in this state where we will understand the situation better and make best decisions.

Easier said than done – right? Remember this is not an antibiotic that will cure your disease in 5 days. It is a habit – something that will make you stronger the more you practice it. So go on try it!

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