9/18/2010

Using Soft Skills to Create a Substainable Career Strategy

Thought of the day: "I thought I already knew what I needed to do - however after talking to the fishing guide - I realized that I needed to make minor changes. And after making them, I started catching more fish with less effort."

More fish, less stress.

What is this - it's Change Management.

Career Strategy: What's your plan?
Function Plan: Layout of outcome.

Skills: Skill set transfer
How am I going to get there?

Financial Plan: Achieve goals
Financial Planner: Success principal

A Plan: A plan is your career investment.

Compound interest effect:

- Education
- Training
- Networking
- Courses
- Appropriate amount of investment

Managing by Momentum
Ex. GM vs. HONDA

GM: listen to momentum; go with wants and expectations
HONDA: one direction and stayed focus

* Momentum: in the flow without stopping to really pay attention. *

"Better Career is a Better Life"
Managing your choices.


Strategies vs. Plan

Strategies: goes with changes; formulate a plan but accept changes; people-skills / pay attention
Plan: static; timelines

Vision

Where do you want to be?
What do they look like?
Where are they?
Who are they?
** Ask these questions with a view on people who are already "there" (vision). **

Benchmarking

What will I do / What did they do?
What are the steps to take / What steps did they take?
Elements that lead to their outcomes...

Secret Lure: Is it "the" thing needed?

"Be who you are, not what somebody else is."
This means: know who you are; know what you represent; play your strengths.

FORMULA vs. FRAMEWORK

FORMULA: recreate the same thing (me too types); what is changed? (nothing...); I have to be ____________; I have to leave __________; etc.

FRAMEWORK: what is it they've "got" that we don't?; flexibility to change; seeing the "Big Picture"; strengths; sense of "Plan"; where have I been successful?; is there a pattern?; etc.

Ask yourself:
"Is that what you should do? OR Is that a "me too" response?"
** Review your Benchmarks **

Know Thyself: only 20% know their strengths.
Learn about you.
Learn about your strengths.
Learn about your patterns / as it relates to who I am.
** These are your personal offerings. **

Branding / Marketing [of yourself]

- Capacity
- Strengths
- Manage your visibility
- Know your values
** These are your internal and external brandings. **

VALUE: I have "it" so I should get it, right?
Not anymore. This view point is "old school".

"Most wealthy people have a financial plan."

See your career strategy / plan the same way.
Best Practices.

Training: Gives you time to think; develops your value(s); get visibility.

Remember: "Your Network is your Net-worth."

"It's not about who you know... but more about, who knows you."

Hard Skills: MBA; PHD; Technical Elements of a profession; sector specific

Ex. MD = gets you to be a doctor.
PROMOTION ASSUMPTIONS

Soft Skills: Gets you to become the CEO of the Hospital

- What extent are they a team-player?
- Behaviour
- Relationship-centric
- Task-centric
- How do you manage your time?
- How do you manage your tasks?
- How do you manage your relationships?

Communication Skills: How do you communicate with people?

Implementing: Do you carry things through?

Project Management is difficult; it requires a lot of SOFT SKILLS; and conflict resolution.

STUDY: Project Management effectiveness (14% Hard Skills) / (86% Soft Skills)

Challenge: Do "we" buy-in to that? (the Soft Skills)

"Less work just more knowledge and applying it properly."

What can I learn from it / from others?

Mental Health = Mental Toughness

"The new norm is crisis."

What is your ability to manage change?
What is your ability to manage change within yourself?

Response Results = Performance

"Got to think outside the Box but somewhat is the Box too."

I'm not just a Project Manager...
I'm not just a ....

What has been working for you?
What are you?
Re-imaging yourself...

Example: Apple (MacIntosh)
They re-imaged themselves; The re-invented themselves; marketed that they are now different; and engaged a new audience.

Example: RIM & Apple
They don't sell, they help people buy.

The companies used a pitch with the end-result in mind.
They're getting the customer to buy the outcome.
They're not in it to sell the product but believe that the product is there to solve a problem so they're there to help the customer find it and buy it.

Training & Coaching: "Be the Guide"
Take the knowledge and turn it into wisdom.

Training & Coaching is a conversation.

"People need to gain the motivation to ask - the generation of need."

Bottom Line:

"Know what you know & Know what you don't know."

www.careerjoy.com

Repairing a Strained Customer Relationship

Where did we go wrong?

Get the Facts.

Acknowledge the complaint.

Listen and repeat back.

Acknowledge the error and regret.

Rectify the problem.

Ask the customer.

Go one better.

Defusing a hostile customer.

Be prepared.

Take this at the right time.

Maintain self-control.

Depersonalize the issue.

Emphasize that you share a problem and encourage the client to work with you towards a resolution.

Team / People Building

5 Dysfunctions of a Team

1. Absence of Trust.

2. Fear of Conflict.

3. Lack of Commitment.

4. Avoidance of Accountability.

5. Inattention to Results (Goals).

Team Building needs communication; consistency in the messaging and understanding of the message. It also requires chemistry - Right people and trust so that people know and trust.
e.g. "Got your back"; and also sharing even of "Behind closed doors" input.

Negative People

First question: Do they still care?
If no, then it's time for them to move on.
If yes, then find out what motivates them?

What are their strengths?
What do they Love / Hate?
What are they passionate about / good at?
Help put them into a position that best suits them.

* One presenter said: "Sometimes you have those negative people who are just negative about everything. Sometimes you just got to throw them in the fire so that they can see the flames." *

Staffing Recommendations

Put skills where they are needed.

"Fill-in" staff weaknesses.

Build a good company "culture".

Staff need to "Buy-in" to goals of the organization otherwise they're just "working" and aren't looking longer-term.

Find the "Right" people.

What do you want to do at this company?

Know who (types) you are looking for.

Ask the right questions...

Support your staff.

Match weakness and strengths.
Ex. Opposites (sometimes)
(a) Coder & Sales
(b) Coder & Debbuger

(b) always corrects (a)'s code and gaps. However annoying this is it is required to succeed.

Balance is needed to evole.

Know when to give-up some stuff and trust others that can do it well.

Good Manager to Great Leader

Leaders need to know the full battle plan for the whole strategic campaign. Managers are the facticians - they're the platoon leaders and section leaders and section leaders that carryout the orders.

Leaders need to be visionaries and do a good job at selling that vision to others. Managers need to figure out the ways to get that vision.

Know your Team

Be aware of your army's strengths and weaknesses.
Example: Regular testing of skills and inclinations.

* Know which team member would benefit from additional training, coaching or encouragement...

Leader knows which peg to put in the right hole and how much that peg needs to be push down the hole

* This doesn't mean that only people who posses skills for a certain task are given that task though. It's important that you don't pigeon-hole people for their skills.

Build Trust

Employees need the assurance that their leader knows what he is doing and that his decisions take into account their well being. This degree of trust will help ensure that "things get done and the same preferred results are achieved whether or not the leader is present."

People need to be assured that you are who you say you are.

It's also about building a good relationship with your people and obtaining their respect.

Instill Openness

Employees need to know they can always approach you and talk to you even if their views differ from your.

* An important part of this quality is the ability to admit one's own mistakes, accept challenges and new ideas.

Embrace diversity

Leaders need to be mindful and respectful of differences in culture and work practices of employees and learn to use these to the organization's advantage.

Invest in your growth

Don't take on the whole world. To motivate your need to learn to delegate.

A good leader takes time to acquire new skills, keep up to date with industry developments as well as the world in general, to continue being a well-rounded person.

Good is the opposite of great. One of the most enduring qualities of a great leader is their ability to rally people around a cause.

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Proverb: No man on his deathbed says he wishes he spent more time at the office.
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Understand the Business

Start by thinking how can you enable this business user to serve their customers better.

Step back and examine what is the value of what you are doing to the company's customer.

Junk the tech lingo and adopt the biz jargon.

Find a Sponsor

Find a mentor or sponsor who will champion your cause.

Go for Frequent Small Victories

Boost employee morale and gain more recognition by initiating projects that result in a series of small success rather than concentration on a large project.

Zoom in on quick turn around

When the emphasis is on budget slashing, companies are on the look out for low-cost projects with shorter turn around times.

Use tech trends to improve productivity

Business are not focused on looking for people who can invent the technology as they are on people who know how to use the technology to improve productivity or boost profits.

SMART - what does this mean?

S = Streamline

M = Manage

A = Access

R = Retain

T = Toss

10 Stress Management Tips

1. Time in yourself should be viewed as time invested.
Example: maintaining your car --> you should invest in yourself in the same way.

2. Stop Procrastinating.

3. Identify Stress Factors.

4. Choose your attitude .

5. Humour / Laugh.

6. Prioritizing.

7. Learn to say "No".

8. Exercise.

9. Delegate.

10. Be "In Your Control".

Tips for Hanging Picture Frames and Framed Art

To See Visual Examples and Explore more options, visit my one of my Pinterest boards:  http://pinterest.com/tammymathieu   General Hang...