This Past Week, Four Important Posts

August 24: How to Deal with Resistance to Change

Resisting needed change has destroyed relationships, marriages, families, organizations, companies, programs and nations. Change starts with the individual. On Monday, we provided an 8 step strategy to initiate change. That doesn't mean it will be easy, but it does mean that it is possible. It's going to first of all mean a change of attitude that embraces the new possibilities that change will produce.

August 25: Whose Problem is It?

Knowing who it is that has the problem is the vital first step in finding solutions. Someone else may have projected their problem on you for years. You have lived with the burden of it. No more. If it is their problem, let them live with it. Being released from the guilt or shame will let you establish boundaries,  take better care of yourself and let them know that if they desire solutions, they will have to be the ones to take action and make change.

August 27: What Makes a Good Leader Work with a Coach?

What do great leaders know and practice that the vast majority of other leaders don't? They work with a Coach ... not because they have big problems but because they want to be better prepared to deal with big problems. And not only that, they want to be more aware of opportunity when it shows itself. Coaching for the successful leader is not so much remedial as it is transformational. Thursday's article outlines the top 12 areas that successful leaders and executives have proactively used our coaching .

August 28: An Example of Employee Engagement

On Friday we examined how one company changed their thinking ... and their approach after 50 years. They engaged their employees in the larger context of what the company was doing. It raised a sense of place and contribution. The end result for the company was more engaged and satisfied employees and increased profit. You may have golden ideas hidden in your staff but there is no encouragement or environment to get them out. Achieving employee engagement isn't a 'hope so' exercise. It will require a solid change of culture and attitude. It will require good leadership.

An Example of Employee Engagement

Here's an example of employee engagement that provided a great return on investment. It's from the BDO Dunwoody newsletter article, Tap Into your Staff's Brainpower. It really points out the lurking potential that may exist in your staff, that if harnessed in the right way might unleash a wave of good and profitable results.

The author notes that "companies are just as susceptible to getting stuck in their ways, repeating the same business practices and not realizing that this stagnation prevents reaching full corporate potential."

One such company, having operated much the same for its entire 50 year history were encouraged to have "managers start encouraging their employees to think outside their specific jobs. In other words: Encourage them to start taking a macro look at how their jobs fit into the business structure."

Staff got engaged and ideas started coming in. One such idea actually estimated that a single suggested policy change could save the company at least $100,000 a year. That's pretty significant.

Why didn't it get mentioned before. Probably because the employee saw themselves in a box, thinking only about the one little corner of the operation that was theirs. They were never before encouraged to think bigger, to start seeing what they were doing within the larger context.

Engaged employees can be a gold mine. Never under-estimate what lies buried there.