Top Cat is Away – Will the Mice Play?

 

 “I always find going on holiday an incredibly stressful experience. Not the trip itself, but finding the right time to go. There’s always something going on at work that you feel like you ought to be there for, or you worry about someone else being away at the same time, or… Well, ok, some of them are probably just feeble excuses for the fact that you just don’t want to leave your baby all on its own. But it is hard to find a good time.”

Do you recognise these words? Spoken or unspoken is this how you feel each year?

Most families take a holiday of some kind during the summer. But I’ve known leaders who don’t really join in.

Yes, the body is there but where is the mind? Oh yes, they leave the office for a week or so. They may even visit their villa abroad or a nice five star hotelsomewhere. But access to a phone service and good wifi are a priority and, back at base, they know to expect a call from the boss at least twice a day.

I wonder if these “supermen” (it does tend to be men) know how silly the blackberry and the laptop look when used on a sun bed. But, of course, they are much too senior for anyone to tell them. Do you know the fable of the emperor’s new clothes?

I’m not talking here about the poor middle manager whose boss only agreed to a break, if they agreed to stay in touch. I’m taking about senior people who don’t feel they have a place in the world unless their work needs them.

In this day and age, it is a dangerous way to think, even if you are at the top of the tree. It is dangerous for you in an age of uncertainty and it throws up questions about your leadership style.

Flexible organisations that can cope with a changing economic climate require distributed leadership. If a change happens locally, you need your local managers to feel empowered to lead a response from where they are without reference to you; you need them to take quick, clever action!

Have you have established a meaningful vision and a broad strategy to achieve it? Do your people feel empowered to make good decisions?   Have you treated them decently? So, shouldn’t you be able to trust them to make good decisions on your behalf?

If you have pointed the ship in the right direction, shouldn’t they know how to keep it going?  Certainly over a one or two week break. Of course you need to be available for a real emergency.

That just leaves you with the problem of how to impress your fellow holiday makers round the pool, of course. But I’ll leave you to meditate on that one.

I am Wendy Mason. I work as a Personal Development Coach,

 Consultant and Writer.I have worked with many different kinds of people going through all kinds of personal and career change, particularly those

• looking for promotion or newly promoted,
• moving between Public and Private Sectors
• moving into retirement.

I am very good at helping you sort out what you want, overcome obstacles and handle change. I offer face to face, telephone and on-line coaching by email or Skype

Find out more at   http://personaldevelopmentcoaching.net/

Email me at wendymason@wisewolfconsulting.com or ring ++44(0)2084610114 or ++44(0)7867681439 to find out more. 

Related articles

• Five Myths of Leadership (thinkup.waldenu.edu)
• What kind of boss do you have? (techwag.com)

What is Personal Development?

    

What is personal development?

Personal development is a way that you can develop yourself; sometimes alone, sometimes with support from others.

Personal development can help you identity and develop your talents and potential.

You can improve your career opportunities, enhance the quality of your life and contribute to the realization of your dreams and aspirations.

What is Personal Development? Personal development includes;

• understanding yourself as an individual
• building your self-image and self-esteem
• developing strengths or talents
• improving your opportunities in the job market – your career
• identifying or improving your potential
• enhancing your quality of life and relationships
• improving health and social abilities
• fulfilling aspirations and dreams
• developing and carrying out personal development plans

What is Personal Development? Personal development enables you to;

• expect to succeed
• take risks and set challenging goals
• keep trying, if at first you don’t succeed
• manage emotions and fears when the going gets rough

Develop the Personal Development Mindset – find out more at this link

Putting a framework round leadership in the NHS

I’ve been looking at the NHS Leadership Website .  It is a very interesting site!

It includes the NHS Leadership Framework   which was announced on the 29^thJune 2011 having been commissioned apparently by the NHS Leadership Council. The framework has the rather super logo shown above.

Development has been informed by analysis of existing NHS leadership data and a review of contemporary leadership literature and best practice.   (I thought most of us stopped using the term “best practice” a while ago opting instead for the more realistic “good practice”. But apparently the NHS is still creating hostages to fortune in flagging up “best practice”.)

The framework sets out a remarkable model for distributed/shared leadership.   It  is made up of seven domains – “demonstrating personal qualities”, “working with others” etc. Within each domain there are four categories called elements.  For “demonstrating personal qualities”, for example, these are

•  Developing Self Awareness
• Managing Yourself
• Continuing Personal Development
• Acting with Integrity

Each of these elements is further divided into four descriptors. The descriptors are statements that describe the leadership behaviours, knowledge, skills or attitudes expected for each element.

In the example above “Developing Self Awareness” has these descriptors

• Recognise and articulate their own values and principles, understanding how these may differ from those of other individuals and groups
• Identify their own strengths and limitations, the impact of their behaviour on others, and the effect of stress on their own behaviour
• Identify their own emotions and prejudices and understand how these can affect their judgment and behaviour
• Obtain, analyse and act on feedback from a variety of sources.

The framework recognises that the opportunity to demonstrate leadership will differ depending on level and discipline.  The context in which competence can be achieved will become more complex and demanding with career progression.

So there are four stages demonstrated to help staff understand their progression and development as a leaders;  from local team to whole organization.

The NHS Leadership Framework is designed to enable staff to understand their progression as a leader and to support the NHS to foster and develop talent.   It is innovative and, as far as I know, original!  It deserves much wider recognition.

The framework has lots and lots of good things about it but, sadly, and probably,  very realistically, it does seem to have a clear political flavour.   As you read through it you cannot miss the emphasis on managing the NHS’s reputational risk.

For example, I looked at Leadership for Commissioning in which I have an interest and right up there was a course in handling the media with an emphasis on safeguarding the reputation of the NHS.   Sadly, I am sure this reflects the times and something of a siege mentality among NHS top managers.

For all that,  the framework includes lots good stuff too, for example,  it includes the following statement

“Competent leaders:

• Listen to others and recognise different perspectives
• Empathise and take into account the needs and feelings of others
• Communicate effectively with individuals and groups, and act as a positive role model
• Gain and maintain the trust and support of colleagues!”

This may be a bit of an aspiration, but isn’t this what we want really, not just for the NHS, but for all our leaders?

Anyway follow the links above and have a look at the framework for yourselves.  It would be very good to know what you think.

I am Wendy Mason. I work as a Personal Development Coach, Consultant and Writer.I have worked with many different kinds of people going through all kinds personal and career change, particularly those

• looking for promotion or newly promoted,
• moving between Public and Private Sectors
• moving into retirement.

I am very good at helping you sort out what you want, overcome obstacles and handle change and I would like to work with you! I offer face to face, telephone and on-line coaching by email or Skype Email me at wendymason@wisewolfconsulting.com or ring ++44(0)2084610114 or ++44(0)7867681439 to find out more or go to wendy-mason.com

 Related articles

• Becoming a Leader – Managing Your Own Energy (wisewolftalking.com)
• Are you a good leader? Time for a Mini- Stocktake! (wisewolftalking.com)
• Becoming a Leader Today – Manifesto for a Servant Leader(wisewolftalking.com)

 

  

Becoming a Leader – Managing Your Own Energy

We spend a lot of time thinking about  energy.

We do this at global, national and local level – for very good reasons. It has become a daily obsession for politicians and rulers all over the world.

But I want to think about you and your personal energy? For you, it is just as precious!

Your managers will know exactly how much your organization spends on energy.  In an enlightened organization,  they will know exactly how you use what you buy.  But how often do you think about your own energy.  Because, believe me, just like the world’s fuels, your energy can run out.

What are you going to do to renew it?

We all use physical energy in our work, We use emotional energy as well.

Even with very good time management skills, you can find yourself arriving home every night exhausted and unable enjoy time away from work.  This takes a toll on family life and relationships.

The effect is cumulative because there isn’t time over night for true refreshment.

As a leader it is difficult to inspire your team, or even listen to them actively, when you are feeling worn out.

There are steps you can take to conserve your energy and to renew it!

1. Take short breaks between tasks – you can use a simple relaxation exerciseat the desk or even in the washroom if necessary.
2. Gentle exercise is good for emotional energy – can you walk to the next meeting? How about taking the stairs rather than the lift?What about walking a couple of floors of the building each day and talking to people – - get to know your team and feel refreshed at the same time.
3. Do have a short break for lunch – low blood sugar makes you feel tired and miserable, plus you cannot concentrate.  But eat lightly; eating a heavy meal requires more energy for digestion.
4. When in the day are you most creative?  Use that time for your more creative tasks: do routine tasks when you feel less energetic.
5. Be ruthless about interruptions and distractions. Having a “open door” policy can be disastrous for energy.    Make it clear when you are accessible and when not – of course you need to make yourself readily available in an emergency.
6. Review how much you delegate.  Is there more that you can pass on to others?  It will give them experience and you more space to concentrate on what really matters.
7. Worry drains energy!  Work through your worries with a trusted colleague or friend or with a coach or counsellor.  Fix what you can fix, look the rest eye, make any necessary contingency plans and then, with support, stop worrying.  Worry doesn’t put things right, it just wears you out.
8. Sort out those unresolved conflicts, with support if necessary, you really cannot afford the energy that conflict can cost you.
9. Last, but not least, take a step back and think about why you are doing all this.  Take timeout to remember your own dream and to refresh your personal vision.  There is nothing like it for enthusing and energizing – so take it out, polish it up and keep it close.

Try these energisers or at least some of them. You may not aspire to inspirational leadership but all leaders need the energy to inspire sometimes. Right now anyway you need to energy to see your organization through these challenging times – please don’t let your energy just drain away.

I am Wendy Mason. I work as a Personal Development Coach, Consultant and Writer.I have worked with many different kinds of people going through all kinds of personal and career change, particularly those

• looking for promotion or newly promoted,
• moving between Public and Private Sectors
• moving into retirement.

I am very good at helping you sort out what you want, overcome obstacles and handle change and I would like to work with you! I offer face to face, telephone and on-line coaching by email or Skype

Email me at wendymason@wisewolfconsulting.com or ring ++44(0)2084610114 or ++44(0)7867681439 to find out more. 

Related articles

• Leading Change – are we there yet? (wisewolftalking.com)
• Becoming a Leader Today – Can you have friends in the team?(wisewolftalking.com)
• Are you a resilient leader? (wisewolftalking.com)