It’s a New Year for Innovative Thinking
It’s a New Year for Innovative Thinking
Do you see yourself choosing personal goals like these at the beginning of a new year? I need to lose weight, go to the gym, eat healthier, spend more time with family, plan that dream vacation, or find a new job. We make goals or resolutions with good intentions and the expectation to accomplish them.
According to survey results published by Forbes Health on New Year’s resolutions for 2024, 48% of respondents set goals to improve fitness, 38% to improve finances, 36% to improve mental health, 34% to lose weight, and 32% to improve diet. These results also include stats on how long the resolutions lasted. The results showed that 57% of the respondents maintained adherence to their goals for 2-4 months. What do you think prevented the respondents from obtaining the outcomes they desired?
We need a strategy that helps with goal completion and desired outcomes. SMART goals are one such method. SMART stands for: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-bound. A SMART goal needs to be specific by clearly stating the outcome expected. An example++ might look like this: I will lose 15 pounds in 3 months. That goal is measurable and time-bound. What about specific, attainable, and relevant? Questions to ask yourself are if you can lose 5 pounds in a month. Is that attainable? What do health experts say is the safest amount of weight to lose per week? The CDC recommends that losing 4 to 8 pounds per month is a healthy goal. Your weight loss goal needs to be attainable for long-term success.
What does relevance have to do with goal achievement? The goal needs to be realistic or results-based to increase your ability to achieve the perceived outcome. Fad diets and over-the-counter remedies promise quick weight loss but without long-term results. A question to ask yourself is if you can adhere to the specific dietary requirements for the long haul.
What about the specifics of the goal? How will you lose the weight? Diet and exercise, specific calorie counting, etc. How will obtaining this goal help you in the long term? It may be you want to decrease your BMI or increase your agility to be able to walk 5 miles a week.
Take the time needed to give thought to answering these questions when setting a goal, as this will help keep you accountable to specific outcomes and allow you to celebrate the small wins along the journey. Celebrating your weekly wins will give you momentum to continue toward the desired outcome. Sharing your goals with friends or family can help keep you moving in the right direction and add another layer of accountability.
As we enter the new year of 2024, let’s consider using innovative thinking through the use of SMART goals to bolster our commitments to self-development and personal growth.
It’s Time for a Change- What's really HOLDING YOU BACK?
We all get that unique question that pops up in our heads before the New Year arrives. You know the question; what would I like to change professionally, personally, or in my business or organization? It’s a natural progression to think about a do-over, a new start, or a fresh perspective, right? Yes, to some degree but hear me out on this.
The graph below depicts the percentages of the top New Year’s resolutions for 2022.
As you can see, the first three resolutions are focused on personal improvement. Sixty-four percent of those surveyed want to improve their health by living healthier, losing weight, or through personal improvement to increase overall happiness.
These kinds of resolutions are prevalent in western culture and are not usually kept for the long term.
But what if there’s something else sabotaging our efforts to make lasting change that moves us closer to the outcomes we want in our lives starting in the 2023 New Year?
“The fears we don’t face become our limits. ”
While the word fear encompasses a multitude of different reactions we can have in different situations like fear of failure, fear of rejection, fear of embarrassment, and fear of criticism, it’s important to find out what is driving this strong and overwhelming emotion.
What if I were to tell you there is hope in overcoming the obstacle of fear when it comes to moving closer to our goals, dreams, and objectives?
There’s a coaching term that we use in situations when a coaching client is presented with an obstacle preventing the next step toward success. It’s called a limited belief.
In order to explain, I’d like to give an example from a recent coaching client. The client was promoted to a new position within their organization and received negative feedback within the first three months from the CEO about the performance of the team.
Since this was a new and growing area of the organization, the initial processes with the set-up were less than optimal which caused delays affecting the productivity of the team.
My client knew what he needed to do but was paralyzed by fear to move forward. Underneath his fear were his limited beliefs.
In order to move forward, the client had to identify and challenge the limited beliefs he had about his potential as a leader for success in this situation and identify the specific fear it created.
By asking introspective coaching questions about the validity of his fear of failure, the client started to understand there was a limiting belief about having to make a difficult decision.
Do you think anyone else as a leader has been in the same situation you are in right now? What are two action steps you can take to move this situation in a more positive direction?
We manage the fear and illuminate the false limiting beliefs.
The true power of the client in the coaching process is to be open and responsive to the coach’s questions that direct them through the fear and challenge their limiting beliefs.
Is it time for a change? Let me know how I can help you or your team overcome the obstacles and challenge the limiting beliefs preventing you from achieving the next level of success.
Coach Denise
Give Thanks in Your Organization- Increasing Employee Engagement & Retention
While we are in the season of giving I wanted to share my leadership change management experiences with organizations that made simple but powerfully effective changes to develop a unique culture that includes servant leadership as a core value. How many times a day does a team member or front-line staff member need to be thanked by leadership in order to feel gratitude for their work?
As Human Resource teams continue to struggle with staff and team shortages, hiring new team members that exhibit an organization’s key core values is critical for a cultural fit. As the market for talented and experienced workers decreases, the demand for the successful transition of new team members into the organizational culture increases.
According to the Harvard Business Review in an article entitled “Recruiting for Cultural Fit”, the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) stated the turnover from team members with a poor culture fit can cost 50-60% of a team member’s annual salary.
The article goes on to say the core values of an organization need to set the objectives and goals of those recruiting new hires so they fit. As an example, if gratitude is a core value then asking questions in a job interview that discuss a candidate’s skill in showing gratitude and thankfulness would be helpful for culture fit.
In this post-pandemic market, the resources we utilize to hire new talent may need to be tweaked to contain questions that give opportunities for recruiters to validate a potential team member’s cultural fit.
Other opportunities may exist for organizations to develop or revisit their core values and establish those that reflect its primary purpose and mission.
See you next time for, Leadership on the GO!
Coach Denise
Leadership is Influence-Making the Greatest Impact in Our World Today!
It has finally started to cool off in the great state of North Carolina! The ninety-degree temperatures that began in June of this summer are cooling off as we move into autumn. In this blog, we will compare our leadership influence not to the highs and lows of the external temperatures but to the internal temperatures of our organization’s current growth and development.
As John Maxwell so eloquently put it,
“Leadership is influence, nothing more and nothing less.”
Our influence as a leader grows exponentially when we put ourselves in challenging positions and circumstances that stretch our skills and experience. We make the biggest difference in the world when we bravely step forward into the sea of chaos and uncertainty of our culture.
Since the worldwide pandemic, there is a heightened need for leaders of influence to step inside the difficult arenas where innovative and fresh solutions are needed to solve our current problems. This is not a time for leaders of influence to shy away from the heat of division and brokenness occurring in our culture. No, this is a time to be revolutionary leaders, running towards the problems of our day and influencing those around us to do the same.
Our young people need leaders of influence to come alongside them and invite them on the leadership journey, one where unity and purpose collide to form the foundational building blocks of a healthy organizational culture.
This is our time, this is our leadership calling! Our world cannot wait another minute for the changing of the seasons. No, we have to be the ones who initiate the change and influence those around us to come along.
“Be the change you wish to see in the world” Mahatma Gandi
As we leave this season of summer and move into the season of fall, let us equip ourselves with a new level of personal growth and invest our energy in seeking greater problems to solve leaving behind the burden of failure nipping at our heels. Let us influence other leaders to let go of their fear of failure and dive into the abyss of fresh ideas and innovative thinking. This is a time for revolutionary thought and enlightened wisdom and discernment.
Let us be bold and daring leaders as we stand in the gap and offer our leadership influence as a bridge to new beginnings and a deeper and more valiant purpose. This is our time leaders; this is our calling!
It’s Time for a Change!
We recently went on vacation to a sandy, white beach for some R&R. We brought an oversized umbrella and a bright colored, lightweight canopy.
Each morning we left for the beach with anticipation for fun and adventure. One particular morning, the westward breeze was nonexistent so our new- fangled, canopy laid lifeless on the sand.
When we experience barriers in our personal or business lives, are we adaptable? Do we see the setbacks as opportunities for greater growth and development?
Innovation and creativity abound when the winds change direction or don’t blow at all. It’s all in the way we perceive our current situation that will propel us forward or keep us stuck in old patterns of fear and self doubt.
Look for these priceless opportunities and welcome them as gifts for business and personal growth.
“Change is the catalyst for innovation and growth.”
Coach Denise
The Power of a Coaching Relationship
Happy Wednesday!
I have been thinking about my life and it’s protectory over the last ten years in regard to my career and life’s purpose. There have been many changes in the direction and purposeful plans I have made to accomplish the goals I set out for my life.
I recently found a list that I wrote down over ten years ago with my top five goals and how I was going to accomplish them. As I began to reflect on these goals from the past, I could see where I started and where I have landed. Some of those goals were met and others were changed according to several things I could not control.
The economy
The pandemic
The culture
Anyone who wants to increase their success in life will have times when their plans and goals need to be adjusted. Life does not always give us what we want. The need for adjustment can be a humbling one; one that can distract us and cause us to quit all together. This is where a coach can help us work through the barriers and unfortunate changes that obscure our progress.
The coaching process provides:
A confidential space to explore new ideas and solutions.
Accountability towards the progress of actionable goals.
The uncovering of internal barriers and self-defeating behaviors.
Open-ended questions that increase awareness and objectivity.
Self-directed thinking and problem solving to increase one’s potential for success.
When I think about how the past two years have affected the goals and dreams for my business and personal growth, I see the opportunity I was given to expand the vision and mission of my life in a positive and impactful way. Although my plans changed, I can see the growth and development of new skills and a flexible attitude that has bubbled up!
If you need a new vision and mission for your life, business, or career to help move you in a new direction, then I would like to offer you the opportunity for a free coaching session with me. I am confident as a coach who has worked with high-level and mid-level executives when I say there is power to achieve new heights and overcome barriers through the coaching process.
“Self-transformation does not happen without intentional work and accountability! “ Denise D Adocck MHA CMPE
I hope to see you expanding your potential and striving with new energy toward fresh and innovative outcomes!
Coach Denise
New Year Goal Setting for Increased Success in 2022
Happy New Year 2022!
As the New Year brings new challenges, is your leadership team ready to conquer the challenges that lie ahead? Have you developed a strategic plan to increase the leadership potential in your teams?
Organizations around the globe spend millions of dollars each year hiring new team members and orienting them for success in their individual roles. More importantly, are these same organizations investing in the development of tomorrow’s leaders.
An organization’s success depends on the leadership skills of its leaders but what happens when those leaders leave? It’s critically important to have a strategic plan to develop the future leaders that will be needed in the years to come? With our current decrease in the workforce around us, large and small organizations are forced to do more with less. That’s the reality we are all are living in but how we invest in our current teams will be the deciding factor for our future success.
Questions leaders can ask themselves are:
Am I intentionally raising up leaders in my organization?
Does my organization have a culture of growth for potential new leaders?
Does my organization have a method of identifying new leaders?
Does my organization pursue a culture for nurturing and mentoring new leaders?
Does my organization invest in equipping new leaders with the skills they need to be successful?
These are the most important factors needed in the development of a strategic leadership development plan.
Our team is here to help you develop new leaders, create a culture for leadership growth, and provide the tool kit necessary to change the culture to one that builds leaders and their teams for greater success and accomplishing desired organizational outcomes.
BUILDING YOUR CREDIBILITY AS A LEADER
Session 3: Performance Under Pressure
Today I’m outside on my back deck. As you can see, there is a steady wind and it’s overcast with dark clouds moving overhead. We are experiencing the bands from Hurricane Dorian that is 200 miles off the coast of North Carolina. Keeping this in mind, I want to talk about our 3rd session on building your credibility as a leader, performance under pressure. It’s during times of change and stress that our team members get a realistic view of how we react under pressure. What they need and want to see is a steady, rock-solid leader that can direct them safely through the storms, twists, and turns that come from unexpected circumstances or needed change. For us to portray this type of confidence and stability, we must know ourselves and how we portray ourselves to our teams during these difficult times.
Do you know what your stress tolerance is? Can you see and feel how pressure starts to affect your behavior or attitude? Do you know when you have reached your limits? We are honest with ourselves only when can accept our human limitations both in ourselves and the teams that we lead. To earn credibility from our teams, we need to lead well through the stressful and challenging circumstances that will come our way.
What do you do to relieve the stress that comes from being in a position of leadership?
From the Center for Creative Leadership, there are 8 things we can do to make sure we as leaders are handling stress well.
1. Learn your stress signals
Do you clench your fist or tighten up your jaw? Do you get hot or feel your heart rate start to elevate? The sooner you recognize that your body is responding to stress the soon you can do something to manage it.
2. Take a break
Take a physical and mental break several times throughout your day. Get up from your desk and walk around!
3. Learn to delegate
You would not believe how many teams I’ve coached that say they wish their leader would give them more responsibility.
4. Get away!
Set firm boundaries between your home life and your work life. Keep your commitment to having a healthy work-life balance.
5. Exercise regularly
Exercise releases endorphins in your brain that increase positive feelings and decrease stress. Schedule exercise into your calendar.
6. Develop support systems
Develop solid friendships with people with who you do not work with. We all need downtime to recharge our life batteries.
7. Tale time away from work
Make time sure you make time for hobbies and experiences that create joy in your life. I’m a hiker, a biker, and love to kayak. Take a vacation. What about you?
8. Redefine balance
As leaders, if we are not careful, our days can be filled with an over-scheduled, work-related task list. We also need to schedule time off so we can unplug from all things that work.
What does that look like for you? 40-50 hours of work each week balanced with how many hours of play, relaxation, enjoyment!
Today, as you reflect on the last 4 weeks of your life, how much time did you really spend on the things that bring you the most joy in your life?
To increase your credibility as a leader, you must recognize and plan out ways to deal with the stress in your life. Your team, your family, and your health will thank you for it!
This is Denise Adcock with Leadership ON the GO!
Leading Well in a Crisis!
Have you thought recently about how you lead when there is a major crisis at hand? Pressure creates an environment for leaders to grow or go! Here are a few key strategies to evaluate your response when the pressure of a crisis comes your way.
Ask yourself- what good things can I learn during this time?
Few people make bad situations good situations.
“Success in life comes from not holding a good hand but playing a poor hand well.”
Do we have a choice-positive perspective?
Leading in a crisis can make or break today’s leaders. If you need help, reach out to me at denise@denise adcock.com for a free 1-hour strategy session.
It’s better to be over-prepared than behind the 8 ball!