Abstract
The recent circumstances many organization faced, such as the closure of a business unit and subsequent layoffs, have had a significant personal impact leading to feelings of fear, uncertainty, and grief among employees. These emotions can manifest in various ways, such as a holding back, fear of job loss, indifference towards work, or employees seeking opportunities elsewhere. To overcome these challenges and emerge stronger, it is crucial to develop resilience on both individual and organizational levels (Sedas, 2015; Ginsberg, 2020) *.
To overcome these challenges and develop resilience, your organization needs more than just surface-level motivation. It requires a comprehensive approach to rebuild confidence, trust, and engagement among employees. This involves addressing the underlying emotions and providing tangible tools and experiences that build on the 7 pillars of reslience and empower individuals to navigate through adversity.
I. Introduction
In the face of adversity, both at an individual and organizational level, resilience becomes paramount. For a company and its employees, the ability to bounce back from challenges and setbacks is crucial for not only surviving but thriving in the aftermath of adversity. Resilience empowers individuals to adapt to new circumstances, recover from setbacks, and maintain a positive and determined mindset.
In a personal context, resilience enables employees to navigate the emotional impact of difficult times, foster a sense of hope and optimism, and cultivate the strength to persevere through tough situations. It bolsters their ability to cope with uncertainty, overcome self-doubt, and find new ways to contribute their skills and expertise.
Professionally, resilience equips employees with the mental and emotional fortitude to face dynamic work environments, adapt to changes, and maintain focus and productivity. It helps them embrace new challenges as opportunities for growth, harness their problem-solving abilities, and effectively collaborate with teammates to find innovative solutions.
By nurturing resilience within the company and its people, it fosters a culture of strength, determination, and adaptability. This, in turn, enables the organization to collectively bounce back from adversity, rebuild confidence, and propel forward toward success. Resilience becomes the driving force that allows the company and its employees to not only survive difficult times but emerge stronger, more united, and poised for future growth.
II. The Seven Pillars of Resiliency (Ginsburg)
- Competency: Having the skills and knowledge necessary to effectively handle a situation.
- Self-Confidence: Believing in one's own skills and abilities based on their competencies.
- Connectivity: Feeling a sense of belonging and support, knowing that one is not alone in facing challenges.
- Character: Having a clear understanding of right and wrong, and acting with integrity.
- Contribution: Finding purpose and significance through contributing to others and sharing experiences.
- Coping: Understanding the difference between real crises and situations that feel like emergencies.
- Control: Recognizing that one's decisions and actions have an impact on outcomes, fostering confidence in overcoming challenges.
III. Empower Your Team
To empower your team you need to go way beyond motivational speeches. You need to equip your team with the necessary tools and mindset to work together, navigate challenges, and contribute to the ongoing transformation of your organization.
Through carefully crafted exercises, we can help your team gain practical strategies and insights that counteract fear, resistance, and indifference, and develop clarity and a strong sense of confidence and personal connection within themselves, each other, and the organization. We create a transformative space where they will ideate, work together, rebuild and thrive, contributing to the collective success and growth of your organization.
In addition to gaining trust and connectivity, they will gain clarity through a comprehensive exercise that helps them visualise a path that aligns with your values and a customer and culture centric vision of the future - now.
Call us today and find out how we can help you empower your team to build a stronger Organization for the future.
IV. References
- Ginsburg, K. R., & Jablow, M. M. (2020). Building Resilience in Children and Teens: Giving Kids Roots and Wings. American Academy of Pediatrics.
- Sedas, S. (2015, June 14). A program to develop resiliency, self-confidence, intrinsic motivation, and a sense of purpose in young adults. 122nd ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Seattle, Washington.
IV. Additional Recommended Reading
- Maddux, J. E., Lopez, S., & Snyder, C. R. (2009). Self-Efficacy: The Power of Believing You Can. In The Oxford Handbook of Positive Psychology (2nd Edition). Oxford press.
- Barrett, R. (n.d.). The Barrett Model: The Seven Levels Model describes the evolutionary development of human consciousness. Barrett Values Center. https://www.valuescentre.com/mapping-values/barrett-model
- Chalofsky, N., & Kirshna, V. (2009). Meaningfulness, Commitment, and Engagement: The intersection of a deeper level of intrinsic motivation. In Advances in Developing Human Resources (Vol. 11, pp. 189–203).
If you want to amplify your results and scale-up your career and your business in half the time without resistance and overwhelm - start by building your strength: Clear Your Life, Build Your Support and Become a Voice.
Build your support by connecting with people.
Successful leaders like former president Barack Obama, sir Richard Branson & Jimmie Johnson are experienced at connecting with people. And they do this by making you feel that YOU ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT PERSON in their life, at least during the time you are with them.
In his book, "The Motivation Myth", Jeff Haden shares his experience with incredibly successful people:
"There is an old saying "you never want to meet people you admire because in real life they will only disappoint". In the last few years I have met dozens of incredibly successful people and found that nothing could be further from the truth. A famished Richard Branson apologized for having a sandwich delivered during our interview; then he offered me half, saying he wouldn´t be able to eat unless I joined him. Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett´s management rep told me we had twenty minutes max for our interview. Kirk winked at me and did forty great minutes. Then he hung out and met other Inc. staffers. Then he invited my wife and me to see the band perform at Webster Hall. (Best Show ever.) Seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson sat down to talk, even though he was two hours past his scheduled departure time, because he new I had waited. (And then he set me up with his triathlon trainer, Jamey Yon.)"
Here are 3 tips that will help you connect with others. a. When you are with someone, be with them. Remember, they are THE MOST IMPORTANT person in the room. Put your phone in your pocket. If it is an emergency, they will call back. b. Be truly interested not interesting. Ask about them, their goals and struggles. It is all about them, not you. Being interested is much better than trying to sound interesting. c. Kind and sincere gestures make people feel good. Be there to serve. Imagine how you would feel if Sir Richard Branson stood up to serve you a cup of coffee. Now imagine how your guests will feel when you do the same. Keep your eyes open, stay on the edge and be aware of their needs.
Whether they work for you or you just met them on the way to the train, the moment that they are with you, people are your guests. Honor them as such. Treat them as such.
People may not remember what you said. But they will definitely remember how you made them feel.
Remember to leave me your comments below. I will reply. Let´s get connected.
To your success !- Sergio Sedas | Engagement & Leadership Consultant
5 Ways you can help your team open up and bring their guard down
by Sergio Sedas - Helping leaders become the leader that EVERYONE wants to have.
We want people to be creative, to share information, to challenge ideas and the status quo, to take ownership, and to be accountable. Yet we fear people that come to challenge our ideas. We avoid situations where we might have to talk and express your differences, where we might have to confront and challenge someone. We shudder at the thought of making a visible mistake. And we shy away from telling our boss, our colleagues and our investors, what we really think.
However to be creative, to challenge ideas and the status quo, you and every member in your team must be willing to drop your guard, to be uncomfortable, to make mistakes, and to be wrong. You have to be humble enough to listen. Brave enough to express your ideas. And open enough to accept what others have to say. All for a greater good.
Are you and your team ready?
Let me share with you 5 things that you can do to help your team open up and bring their guard down.
5 Ways you can help your team open up and bring their guard down
Although it is a key to effortless success, having a comfortable, open and transparent communication is many times difficult for people in your organization. We tend to keep our guards up which keeps us from expressing our ideas, accepting feedback and great ideas, and actively listening to others.
Here are 7 things that you can do to help you and your team build up confidence and bring your guard down.
1, Use the Gradient Approach
For some people letting their guard down enough to share their ideas, give feedback and listen to feedback is a daunting task. Ask them to do it and they will shut down, they will avoid future confrontation, and it will be difficult for you to get them to open up again. However you can gradually help them bring incrementally increase their level of comfort.
In my workshops I do a number of exercises that incrementally increase their comfort level and ultimately develop trust, confidence and open relationships.
I give them tasks that require people to share and communicate. Now, rather than having one person express their ideas in front of a group, I start by pairing everyone in groups of two. Then as the confort level increases I pair them in groups of 4 and then bigger groups.
What we discuss in each round starts with something that might give people a low level of discomfort. For example each person shares 3 successes they had last week or 3 things they like about another person´s idea.
As the group comfort level advances, we take on more interesting and challenging communication tasks. We continue to build up until the team is ready to participate in very powerful open critique and feedback sessions such as hot-seats, a dynamic in which people present their ideas and purposely request feedback that identifies what works and critiques what does not work. With a high level of comfort, we are ready to have open discussions in which everyone participates, challenges and contributes.
Reaching a high level of comfort and open communication in the team is extremely valuable and will help you and your team enjoy work, meet higher goals and reach effortless success.
2. Be the last to speak
Be aware that many people will hold back from challenging you or your ideas. You can overcome this by being the last to speak. Incite people to give share their ideas. Perhaps organize a round-robin in which every person in consecutive order is given 2 minutes to share their thoughts and ideas. Listen and be aware of what they say. Take it in. After a few rounds, acknowledge them and their contributions and express your idea and/or support the best idea on the table. Remember, you do not have to always have the last word and you do not always have to be the author of the best idea on the table. Let the best idea win.
3. Share a ridiculous idea that everyone can easily tear down
It is easier to critique a bad idea than to come up with a good one. A technique to spark discussion and drive creativity is to blurt out a ridiculous idea that everyone can tear down. Then have everyone in the room tear it down and suggest better alternatives.
4. Incite participation
In order to get buy in, everyone has to feel heard. Make sure that everyone gives their input. Whether they agree or not, make sure that everyone gives their input.
There are a number of techniques that you can use. The VP International at Heineken introduced the concept of 3 colored cards to incite discussion in his team. Cards were laid on the table. At anytime any person could life up one of these cards. The red one said "I challenge your idea". You would pick this one up if you wanted to challenge an idea that was on table and/or that was being discussed. A green card said "Ask me why I agree" and incited the person to express what they agreed with and liked about the idea. A grey card said "Stop beating on the dead horse" and was pulled up when anyone thought that someone in the group was going around and around in circles, effectively "beating on the dead horse", In agreement, people that do not speak up are assumed to be in disagreement and must express why they disagree and what they propose.
Another technique that you can use is "the 6 thinking hats" method developed and published by Edward DeBono. People often see different aspects of a similar problem. Some will see the vision of the future. Some will see the facts. Some will see the problems that may arise. This makes it difficult to carry on a conversations, particularly when each person is viewing the same problem from a different perspective. Having a conversation where each one is talking about a different issue can lead you and your team to frustration and to a feeling that their point of view is not being heard. And when people feel unheard, they begin to take positions, cease to listen and try harder to get their point of view across. "The 6 thinking hats" can help you to get your team to look at problems from the different perspectives one at a time. This allows people to feel heard, view the problems from different perspectives, and come up to a better solution.
Silence is a very powerful technique to incite participation. Look at someone that has not participated and ask them a specific question such as "what do you think we can improve?" or "what do you think could work better?". Once you ask the question be silent until they reply. The awkwardness of silence many times encourages people to express an idea. Once they let their first words out, it will be easier for them to participate.
5. Jumpstart listening, sharing, engagement, and collaboration in your team.
I just shared with you 4 simple ways to help your team open up and bring their guard down, creating a path for fruitful teamwork and collaboration.
However, if you would like to jumpstart listening, sharing, engagement, and collaboration in your team, I suggest you have a Bring Out the Best in You™ session with your team. In just a few hours you and your team will be open and ready to share ideas, collaborate and take your organization on a quicker path to effortless success.
Call us now for a free consultation.
To your success,
Sergio SedasHelping leaders become the leader that EVERYONE wants to have.
Any thoughts or comments ? Leave them here. And let me know, what do you do to be the leader that everyone wants to have.
#engagement #betheleaderthateveryonewants #leadership
[vivafbcomment url="http://sergiosedas.com/are-you-ready/" width="375" count="off" num="10"]La falta de Engagement puede estar matando tu negocio y tu libertad
by Sergio Sedas - Helping leaders become the leader that EVERYONE wants to have.
“SI NO TE GUSTA, búscate otro lugar en donde trabajar”. “Antes dí que te pago”. “Todos son una bola de imbéciles”.
En silencio escuche la voz de mi jefe, que se dirigía en voz alta a todos los del equipo. Teníamos mucho trabajo. Las cosas no estaban saliendo. Y cada semana perdíamos a más y más gente. Y su respuesta era símplemente gritarnos, insultarnos, y exigir que nos quedáramos toda la noche si era necesario, pero eso tenía que salir.
Mi nombre es Sergio Sedas. Ayudo a líderes a amplificar sus resultados creando una cultura de engagement, compromiso, y motivación. Y día con día me encuentro con personas así.
Con el tiempo, he logrado comprender varias cosas. Primero, que un equipo de gente que se encuentra unida y motivada en un ambiente en el que reina la confianza, el aprecio y la comunicación - se enfrenta a retos y adversidades con gusto. Lo dan todo. Y comúnmente triunfan. Como si fueran un equipo en las olimpiadas luchando para obtener el primer lugar - se organizan, se apoyan, se ayudan, se motivan, luchan juntos y sea como sea ganan. Y en el camino, LO DISFRUTAN.
Segundo, que mucho depende del líder y de los líderes. Sea el capitán del equipo, sea el coach, o sea alguien del equipo que simplemente tomó el rol - el liderazgo importa.
Te hayan asignado líder de tu equipo, director o gerente, o hayas elegido tomar el rol dentro de tu equipo - tu liderazgo importa.
Y de ti depende madurar al puesto - o no.
Y a qué me refiero con “madurar al puesto” ? Bien simple. Fuiste promovido por tus habilidades y competencias hasta el momento. Tal vez eres un as en la tecnología. Tal vez demostraste ser muy confiable y hábil con el cliente. Tal vez excediste todas las expectativas en los retos que te pusieron. Te felicito. Te llevó a que te consideraran para el nuevo puesto.
Sin embargo - lo que te llevó a alcanzar el puesto no es lo que necesitas para sobresalir en el. ¿Porqué? Porque tus logros al momento - únicamente dependían de ti. De tu esfuerzo. De tu dedicación y de tus habilidades.
Hoy como líder los retos son más grandes, Las metas que te han confiado son mucho más grandes que tu. Y para alcanzarlas, necesitas de las habilidades, conocimientos, dedicación, entrega, y motivación de tu equipo.
Tu rol ha cambiado. Unirlos, motivarlos, desarrollarlos, despertar su confianza, lealtad y compromiso para que puedan sobresalir y entregar resultados sobresalientes - ES AHORA TU TRABAJO. Y hacer bien tu trabajo requiere que desarrolles y muestres habilidades muy diferentes a las que hasta hoy has demostrado.
¿Podrás?
Tomarte el tiempo que necesitas para aprender cómo hacerlo bien te va a brindar noches de estabilidad, satisfacción y descanso sabiendo que ante cualquier reto que les presente tu equipo está ahí.
No hacerlo, te llevará a un camino de frustración, incertidumbre, inestabilidad y constante preocupación.
Tu decides.
Saludos,
Sergio SedasHelping leaders become the leader that EVERYONE wants to have.
Any thoughts or comments ? Leave them here. And let me know, what do you do to be the leader that everyone wants to have.
#engagement #betheleaderthateveryonewants #leadership
[vivafbcomment url="http://sergiosedas.com/la-falta-de-engagement-puede-estar-matando-tu-negocio-y-tu-libertad/" width="375" count="off" num="6"]8 things you can do to increase your visibility and Attract People to your Projects
by Sergio Sedas - Helping leaders become the leader that EVERYONE wants to have.
Are you a manager, project manager or leader and would like to increase your visibility ? Here are 7 things you can do.
1. Become a Kick Ass Problem Solver and Value Creator by fully understanding their "job to be done" and the other people´s needs. I recommend a book titled "Jobs to be Done" by Anthony W. Ulwick
2. Make it about them. Everyone is a hero in their own story. Your job is not to be the hero, but rather to be the guide - the person that enables the hero to overcome their own problems.
3. Take 100% Responsibility. A good project manager fully understands that when things work well and a project succeeds, it is because of the team - the team made it happen. If a project fails it is on you. You have the power and responsibility to manage the project, identify critical issues, resolve critical issues, help your team communicate, help your team succeed.
4. Forget "responsible" and start using "owner". Every task has to be done by someone. Assigning people "responsible" does not give them the authority to do whatever needs to get done, it does not help people see that they have the power and control to make decisions and look for ways to getting it done, it does however assign someone to "blame" if it does not get done. A simple yet powerful distinction is to begin to use "owners" in tasks, projects and initiatives. A person becomes the "owner" of a task with the authority, freedom, and responsibility that it entails.
5. Leave the ego and the fears out the door. Being PM is challenging and will spark a ego and fears - "will the project get done on time", "how will I look if it does not" ... getting the job done is NOT about how you will look or move ahead, it is simply about getting the job done. Do NOT let EGO and fears get in the way. Put them aside. It is NOT about you. And then under the new optic, figure out how you can help your team succeed.
6. Create a safe space. Avoid the "blame game". Blame instigates fear - which in turn will cause your team to hoard information, keep secrets, avoid being exposed, and avoid taking risks to get things done. Do you really want "accountability" in your team ? Accountability will never exist in an environment where people are afraid of being blamed for fails and failure. Create a safe space.
7. Celebrate along the way. Taking the time to constantly and frequently celebrate what IS happening will activate the chemicals in your brain and the brain of everyone in your team that promotes motivation, hope, joy and gratitude. A strong dose of these are needed when you and your team face adversity. I always start my meetings with a round of celebrating "what is new and good" where people ONLY share what worked and what did succeed. This elevates the group frequency and allows us to face what did not work and the challenges that lay ahead in a different light.
8. Network. Give yourself the time to get to know people and become memorable. I was recently at a CEO Space Conference and @Berny Dohrmann founder of CEO Space invited us to get out and meet people. He then suggested something I had never heard of before at a networking event - "Go and meet people. Ask them about themselves. Find out what makes them tick, what they are working towards, what are their biggest concerns, and make sure to ask them what they need and how you may serve them". I did it, and it is very powerful way to network and meet people. "What do you need, and how can I serve you?"
Any thoughts or comments ? Leave them here. And let me know, what do you do to be the leader that everyone wants to have?
Regards,
Sergio SedasHelping leaders become the leader that EVERYONE wants to have.
#engagement #betheleaderthateveryonewants #leadership
[pdf-embedder url="http://sergiosedas.com/wp-content/uploads/securepdfs/2018/11/En-los-momentos-dificiles-¿quien-eliges-ser.pdf" title="En los momentos dificiles ¿quien eliges ser?"]
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Construyendo una Cultura de Alto Desempeño
El Capital Cultural es la nueva frontera en la ventaja competitiva de una empresa. Quien eres y lo que representas se ha vuelto tan importante como la calidad de los productos o servicios que vendes. A lo largo de los últimos tres años, Deloitte, Ernst & Young, y PwC han emitido reportes que destacan la importancia de la cultura organizacional para impulsar el éxito de una compañía.
Ref: Building a High-Performance Culture [pdf-embedder url="http://sergiosedas.com/wp-content/uploads/securepdfs/2018/11/building_a_high_performance_culture_tvdo_2017.pdf"] Ref: Building a High-Performance CultureLiberando el Potencial Humano para Performance y Utilidades
Las organizaciones movidas por valores tienen altos niveles de engagement, generan mayores utilidades; son mas rentables, mas enfocados al ciente, y mas productivas - tienen mayores niveles de retención y bajo ausentismo. También generan mayor lealtad del cliente y mayor bienestar social. El propósito de este documento es explicar porqué esto sucede y dar algunas indicaciones respecto a qué es necesario para crear una organización movida por valores.
Ref: Unleashing Human Potential for Performance and Profit
[pdf-embedder url="http://sergiosedas.com/wp-content/uploads/securepdfs/2018/11/Unleashing-Human-Potential-for-Performance-and-Profit.pdf" title="Unleashing Human Potential for Performance and Profit"] Desatanto el Alto Potencial Humano para aumentar Performance y Utilidad
Ref: Unleashing Human Potential for Performance and Profit
Construyendo una Cultura de Alto Desempeño
El Capital Cultural es la nueva frontera en la ventaja competitiva de una empresa. Quien eres y lo que representas se ha vuelto tan importante como la calidad de los productos o servicios que vendes. A lo largo de los últimos tres años, Deloitte, Ernst & Young, y PwC han emitido reportes que destacan la importancia de la cultura organizacional para impulsar el éxito de una compañía.
Ref: Building a High-Performance Culture [pdf-embedder url="http://sergiosedas.com/wp-content/uploads/securepdfs/2018/11/building_a_high_performance_culture_tvdo_2017.pdf"] Ref: Building a High-Performance Culture
