GloriousFailure

Leadership Beyond a Handshake Part 1: Adaptability

3/27/2023

Problem:
As a leader, it is tempting to hold onto decisions and projects because that's how it has always been.

This is the way it's always been done.

This is a comment that I hear often when working with teachers on topics like innovating their approach or figuring out how to modify strategies from paper to online tools. There is comfort in the familiar, and sometimes that can become overwhelming.

Try this scenario. The group works on a project that is due at the end of the month. The team works tirelessly to develop strategies and approaches that will challenge and support the stakeholders, encouraging them to make decisions that would ultimately lead to a successful opportunity for growth.

A few days before the due date, the team presents the presentation/ideas to the leader of the group and within minutes the leader changes everything, making the core and purpose of the project dissolve as if they didn't exist. This is how the projects of the future move on, and ultimately the team decides that the time and energy aren't worth the investment to see nothing grow, so they stop trying as hard and work less, making the products more and more sub-par.

Seth Godin (and I'm sure others) describe this as the threshing floor. The place where ideas come to die.

Time is lost. No improvement is made. Instead of seeing an opportunity, the team has been capped with a "because I said so".

What if there was more to the story and the leadership was not about a "final decision" but about trust, development, and improvement over time?

1. Break the Cycle

Kim Scott writes in her book Radical Candor, "Rather than focus on 'giving feedback' to my team, I encourage them to tell me when I was wrong. I did everything I could to encourage people to criticize me or at least simply talk to me" Creating an open culture where the leader can also receive feedback and criticism is important. The most efficient teams have a space of respect and commitment to the vision that will allow for all to grow through feedback without feeling the pressure from above.

2. As a Leader, trust those you have hired to be trusted.
There has never been a person in the history of the world that said, "yes, I will hire you! I have no trust or confidence in you, but you are part of the team!"

Are you trusting the team that you built (or inherited) to complete the job that you have laid before them? If not, changes need to be made. You hire people to your team to be trusted, and outside of grave mistakes and inappropriate behavior, trust can be given and earned.

3. Expect Greatness Beyond your Own Vision or Understanding
Traditional leaders, a.k.a micro-managers. might look at their teams with a close eye, wanting them to hit the objectives and goals that they have laid out on their teams. How often though, do you expect more than the initial vision. Through some self reflection, hope for more is always there, but expectation and reality are sometimes passing in the night. As a leader, if your example provides the team with opportunities to flourish and expand beyond your own expertise, you are creating a culture of discovery and confidence that cannot be forced.

4. If you are going to build the Threshing Floor for projects, be a part of the project from the start
The flaw in the threshing floor isn't the idea. Feedback, discussions, and modifications to ideas are what make successful teams more successful. There is a constant flow of growth and development until the right elements of the idea click. The threshing floor is a wonderful place to build up and tear down ideas in order to craft the masterpiece that all envision. The problem is when the leader takes on the threshing floor at the end and not at the beginning. Be a part of the conversation, not the end voice as you consider what it means to be a greater success.

Build your Adaptability
Jeff Bezos is quoted saying, "People who are right a lot listen a lot, and they change their mind a lot. If you don't change your mind frequently, you're going to be wrong a lot".

Being wrong is the cornerstone of learning. It is the crossroads where failure fuels success. Be wrong! Be adaptable enough as a leader to let yourself be wrong and don't pull the "because I said so" to hold your power. The best leaders are the ones who hire people greater than they are to build their success beyond their own vision.

More parts of the "More than a Handshake" series will be coming soon! Keep an eye out for Part 2: "Datalytics"

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More Productive with GOOGLE Smart Chips and Building Blocks in Google Docs

1/12/2023

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What is your favorite chip flavor? Doritos Nacho Cheese? Pringles Hot Honey? Takis Blue Heat?

No matter what kind of chip you enjoy for your lunch choice, you will fall in love with the Google Smart Chips and Building Blocks that you can find in Google Docs!
What are Smart Chips and Building Blocks in Google Docs?
These are simple quick additions that can increase your productivity and organizational design in a Google Doc.
How do you access Smart Chips and Building Blocks?
In a Google Doc you can type the “@” symbol and then a menu of choices will arise. You can also access within “Insert->Smart Chips, or Building Blocks

What can I Create?

Meeting Notes- Bring notes from another doc that is linked to a meeting in your calendar.
Review Tracker- Creates a table for you to monitor and track to your hearts desire.
Email Draft- Want a more complete space to develop and design your emails? Want to include better pictures and information? Draft your emails in Google Docs, then send them over to Gmail.
Product Roadmap- Need to add a quick project management table to track a certain responsibility?
Drop Down- Create a simple drop down menu to add accountability or check in as we go
More!- Dates, times, past information, names, can all be added using the Smart Chips and Building Blocks menu.

What does this do for me?
When you think about your classroom or organization, creating documents and tools quickly and efficiently is paramount. The smart chips and building blocks within Google Docs offers quick design features that allow for faster organization and accountability.

Needless to say, my life got a lot easier with this flavor of Google's Chip!

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3 Steps of a (BLANK)less team

1/2/2023

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Recently I heard Leadership Guru and Pastor Craig Groeschel share on his podcast “The Difference between a GOOD leader and a GREAT leader is one who learns to anticipate rather than react.” (“Creating a Workplace Your Team doesn’t want to Leave”) This is not a new concept, but it is something that is more and more relevant. As leadership is evolving, new skills and ideas are becoming more important in creating a team that is successful.

Today’s Leadership Check is 3 ways of improving your (BLANK)Less.

First, let’s define ___Less. This is the suffix that you can find in the dictionary behind hundreds of words. The meaning of the suffix ” less” adds the meaning of “without” to any word it is connected. As you start to roll through different __less words in your mind, you might think about the various negative connotations but here are 3 ways to improve your__less as a leader.

1. Is there a Fearless message or a powerless reaction within the team? When a challenge comes before you and your team, what is the reaction? Did you see this concern coming or were you blindsided? Growing into fearlessness is being ready for what could happen while embracing the chaos in the now. Are you communicating expectations and goals?? Do you have a clear communication strategy so that the mission, objectives, and goals are not only known through the organization but also embraced and owned by each individual? Keeping clear lines of confidence and expectation can develop and grow the direction of a fearless and avoid the powerless that might come.

2. Does the team embody doubtless confidence? If one isn’t doubtless then they might be visionless. When there is an absence of vision, continuing to guide the path of the organization, the lines get blurry. People get concerned, feel uncomfortable, and lack confidence in the project, leadership, or organization they are investing their valuable skills too. Build the doubtless culture by opening lines of creativity, trusting the professionals that you have hired, and providing opportunities for your team to grow beyond the expectations you initially had. What happens when a project or idea fails? As the leader is this a moment of failure or an opportunity to invest in the problem and create an even more effective solution? A doubtless culture that has complete confidence that no matter the challenge an idea, product, or solution can be found.
3. Is the team trending to a priceless culture? It might not happen often because humans are not perfect. There are moments when a priceless team comes together to accomplish incredible goals, reimagining the field of work and redefining the industries. Is there creative freedom for the team to own new projects? Are ideas that are outside of the box encouraged? Is the term “the way it has always been” used less often than “yes and”? Fight for the priceless culture and do everything you can to eliminate the leaderless path.

No matter what __Less you find within your leadership, consider the opportunities to find positive opportunities to create that fearless, priceless, doubtless team that can change the world.

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It's time to chase Innovation instead of reacting to the status quo.
-Taylor Williams

Leadership Beyond a Handshake Part 1: Adaptability

Problem:
As a leader, it is tempting to hold onto decisions and projects because that's how it has always been.

More Productive with GOOGLE Smart Chips and Building Blocks in Google Docs

3 Steps of a (BLANK)less team

About Taylor

Archives

It's time to chase Innovation instead of reacting to the status quo. -Taylor Williams

Leadership Beyond a Handshake Part 1: Adaptability

Problem:​As a leader, it is tempting to hold onto decisions and projects because that's how it has always been.

More Productive with GOOGLE Smart Chips and Building Blocks in Google Docs

3 Steps of a (BLANK)less team

About Taylor

Archives

It's time to chase Innovation instead of reacting to the status quo.
-Taylor Williams

Problem:
As a leader, it is tempting to hold onto decisions and projects because that's how it has always been.