Recession & The Stress Response

During these challenging economic times it is vital that businesses and individuals keep focused to steer themselves through the bad times. Part of this is about being alert to things that may throw us off course. For example, take the way people react to stress, commonly known as the fight, flight, freeze response, we can look at these reactions from and individual or an organisational perspective, see how we might behave if in their grip and then make sure that we take steps to avoid them.

Fight - Stress can lead us to want to fight our corner, square up to people who may be in competition with us, or raise our defences. There may be elements of these behaviours that are helpful and healthy but what about the possible implications in the long term of a less healthy win \ lose approach?

Flight - We may be tempted to move away from people or activities that we believe are 'costing us' in some way, or that we suddenly think are 'risky', for example spending time communicating with our staff and customers or doing ongoing maintenance to processes, systems or equipment. However we need to take care that these decisions are driven from a rational accounting place rather than from a knee-jerk stress response.

Freeze - Part of dealing with change is a tendency, however brief, to try and ignore what is happening. The danger is if we get stuck here. We may try to carry on as before, ignoring any signs that new actions or behaviours are needed. This too, may have its benefits but doing this out of fear rather than as a considered choice may be a mistake.

Remember - we react from emotion but respond through conscious choice.

What is the link between spring cleaning & your career?

The annual spring clean helps us to shake off the dust and dinginess of winter and prepare our homes for the lighter months when our energy is higher. The better weather provides opportunities for building & planting new things, which we hope will enrich our lives.

There are times when it feels we are experiencing the gloom of winter in our career and in these bleak economic times that feeling is likely to be stronger. Maybe then it is time to do a metaphorical spring clean of your work life.

1. Plan your strategy. Write a career plan, start with your values - what is really important to you? Think about the skills your want to use rather than focusing in on a particular job.

2. De-clutter. Think about what you want to leave behind and what it is important for you to keep. What do you need to stop doing to move forward in your career? What do you need to do more of? What do you need to start doing?

3. Build your skills. Think about how you can make yourself more marketable. For example if you are a manager, what about taking a management qualification such as an ILM certificate in Team Leading or maybe hiring a coach? For other professions, what other vocational qualifications are available? If you are current unemployed, look at government support is available for re-training.

4. Network. Find others who can help and support you. There are lots of new opportunities for networking on the web if you cannot get along to local networking events.

5. Look after yourself. Make sure that you keep your energy levels up. Eat well, reward yourself when you make progress, take regular exercise and get enough sleep.

As in nature, our lives go in cycles but we can take action to navigate quickly through the darker times and emerge stronger and more focused.

Managers Under Pressure

It was reported recently in the press that many managers are foregoing their summer holidays this year as they feel they have to work harder to keep their businesses running profitably in this uncertain economic climate. But what does this mean for employee wellbeing?

When there is an inbalance between the pressures we experience and the resources we have in place to deal with them, we are likely to experience symptoms of stress. In the short-term this may simply manifest itself in low-level health issues, a slight reduction in efficiency, changes in mood etc. In the longer-term this can lead to burnout or more serious illness.

Like electrical gadgets - the more we use our energy, the more we need to have our batteries charged to keep working well.

Each of us will have different levels of tolerance to pressure. This will depend on our physical capability but also on our emotional resilience. Maintaining wellbeing is about understanding our levels of resilience, becoming aware of the things that are likely to drain our energy and learning ways to keep our batteries topped up.

Are you or your employees in danger of suffering the negative effects of overwork and stress?
All employers have a responsibility for the health and wellbeing of their staff and this includes their mental health. A good start is to encourage everyone to take a holiday - it is an investment not a cost. Another way is to educate people on the best ways for them to manage their pressure and for managers to know what to look out for in their staff, which might suggest someone is suffering as a result of too much pressure.

Dealing with Difficult Situations

Despite organisations moving towards a more collborative style, leaders and managers must still be prepared to deal with difficult situations. Dealing with people problems, enforcing unpopular policies and managing issues of potential conflict are all likely to be part of the job. So how can you ensure that you deal with difficult issues in a way that keeps you and others OK?

Here are a 5 tips that may help:

1. Put yourself in their shoes - seeing issues from the other person's perspective can help you gain insights that will help you frame and communicate in the most appropriate way.

2. Ensure that you keep yourself in an I'm OK, You're OK place. Ask yourself, how can I deal with this issue in a way that is respectful of me and others?

3. Remember that avoiding saying or doing what is necessary can often be counter-productive. You may end up rescuing or smothering people who have the capacity and the responsibility to deal with the issues themselves.

4. Make sure that you are in a resourceful state when you make and communicate your decisions. You need to be taking good account of what is needed whilst also being aware of your emotional needs.

5. Get support. Find a valued friend, colleague or coach to help you think things through. Having someone to challenge and encourage you can be very powerful in helping to get things into perspective.

Building better communications

You will often hear business leaders say that people are their most valuable resource. Yet sometimes it is the relationships between people and their communication skills which limit potential. Businesses would get on better if people got on better!

The overwhelming majority of people do the best they know how - and that includes managers, but sometimes they do not get the results they want. That may be because it can be difficult to understand how they are relating to others, what is working for them and what they are doing that might be counterproductive.

The Functional Fluency model provides a framework for building self-awareness in these areas. It describes the four modes of behaving which may limit effectiveness and the 'fabulous five' that are more likely to lead to positive outcomes. Those outcomes can be for managers - learning how best to lead and motivate their teams; for individuals - in how to manage stress and build better relationships; or for teams - understanding how to appreciate and work better with eachother.

Functional Fluency can be measured through a self-score questionnaire called TIFF. TIFF is a powerful tool for personal development. Through TIFF and the associated feedback process, you learn how to use your strengths to make real changes and enhance your effectiveness - enabling you to become more functionally fluent. As a licensed TIFF provider, I have seen how the process helps people see themselves more clearly. Also, by placing emphasis on what is working, individuals are motivated to build on these strengths to enable them to make changes elsewhere.
See more about the Functional Fluency model and the TIFF questionnaire at http://www.functionalfluency.com

What is charisma?

Often, when discussing leadership, the subject of charisma comes up. Do leaders need to be charismatic? If so, is it something you can learn?

The Cambridge dictionary defines charisma as 'a special power which some people possess naturally which makes them able to influence other people and attract their attention and admiration.' Saying people use it 'naturally' may suggest you have to be born with it, is this true?
Well-known leaders such as Ghandi or Churchill are often cited as leaders with charisma, yet we could all probably name others who are very successful but seemingly quite ordinary. So how can you be a leader who is able to influence other people and able to attract their attention and admiration?

Something that helps is being clear about your operating values, the principles by which you live your life and conduct yourself as a leader. Having a strong set of positive values means you are more likely to have a clear sense of self, be grounded and have a framework for decision-making. This strong sense of self is also very likely to be communicated to those around you.
Another factor that is often present with charismatic leaders is a willingness and ability to take a genuine interest in those around them. Charismatic leaders reach out to others and show a real interest. In that way there appears to be an increase in energy when they engage with others. Ineffectual leaders on the other hand, often have little impact on the energy of those around or at worst, even drag energy levels down.

There are of course other aspects that can contribute to a leader's ability to influence and gain respect. Each leader can develop a style that 'fits' with them as individuals as well as meeting the needs of the organisation. This is where leadership training programmes and \ or coaching can make a real difference. Having an opportunity to explore individual strengths, values and style can lead to a real growth in leadership effectiveness and that is likely to translate into better results all round.

What do you think about charisma and leadership?