Self-regulation -Curiosity to LEARN

 Self-regulation -Curiosity to LEARN 

(Execution Excellence -"Ability to get things done" Series)

 

As we outlined self-regulation practices to keep our energy level, we mentioned the mindset of acceptance, enhancing the circle of care, looking at everything from a TIME perspective, etc. One more important aspect i have observed in most effective people is a curiosity to LEARN.
 
Curiosity to LEARN :

Curiosity to learn means a strong desire to learn something NEW in the domain or field we work or something beyond the domain or field.

Learning continuously enhances our perspective about the domain, and the intent to learn makes us more energetic.

One interesting personality i came across in my consulting experience. I always admire his curiosity to learn something. Whenever i interact with him, he used to display pleasant looks and a high energy level, which i attribute to his interest in learning something new.

He has been from the financial domain throughout his career and claims to be a senior citizen!. Still, he works in a manufacturing organization to engage himself and actively contribute his experiences. He used to attend all my sessions. In one of the sessions, i  taught the complicated manufacturing system concept, which most engineers usually find difficult to understand and apply with ease. Even though he is from a financial background, he took the lead in using the concept in his manufacturing division and brought some clarity to his colleagues.
 
He could have excused himself by stating that the concept is far from his core finance domain or age limitations. What made him learn some complicated manufacturing subject is his curiosity to learn. He keeps himself engaged and displays high energy in his work.

Even today, he is a voracious reader of books on management, leadership, and philosophy, and he regularly recommends some books to me. Some of the books we mentioned here are all from his recommendation only.

i am correlating his energy level with his curiosity to learn.

The important learning is, irrespective of our age and background if we develop the curiosity to learn something new and keep ourselves engaged, it brings a unique perspective to our lives and makes us more energetic. 

People follow the person who displays energy in the workplace than passively.

 Have a great week ahead.

Self-regulation practices to maintain high energy level

 Self-regulation practices to maintain high energy level

(Execution Excellence -"Ability to get things done" Series)
 

In continuation of last week's discussion on how to manage energy levels when things are not going well in the workplace either on a specific day or specified duration, one  of the powerful self-regulation practices discussed was "Acceptance." The practice of acceptance will help to realize the reality and move along with the flow rather than fighting and losing energy.
 
The other methods by which we can maintain our energy level during low-energy situations from my experience are as follows
 
Looking at the situation from the TIME perspective:
 
Any low or high-energy situations never last forever. It looks unmanageable during the tough time, but when we look at the event after some time, it seems to be nothing. For example, we were clueless during covid lockdown, and for most of us, that situation was challenging. Looking back now, the situation's intensity seems small after three years.

The point is any good or bad situation does not last forever, and from a time perspective, any event becomes insignificant from a longer time perspective.

That is why philosophically, there is a saying This too shall pass.
 
Create a space for your inner comfort :

We need to enhance our circle of people, places, or activities which can boost our energy level and make us comfortable when we are down in a workplace situation.

For example, one of my friends was not adequately recognized in his organization for a long time, and others perceived it as an injustice to him. However, he never bothered about that recognition and constantly engaged in charity work and volunteering in NGO activities. I realized he was more comfortable in the workplace because he had other activities to compensate for his energy level.

At least we need to have some trusted people in our circle( could be spouses or friends or mentors) with whom we can share everything by which we can feel comfortable.

The key point is that we need to find a space to be comfortable in low-energy situations.

There could be some other self-regulation practices each one can find to manage the low energy situations
 
The idea of self-regulation practice is to manage any situation with a balanced approach so that our energy level will be high at the workplace to get things done.

Have a great week ahead!

How do effective people manage their energy? Self-compassion

 How do effective people manage their energy?

 Self-compassion 
(Execution Excellence -"Ability to get things done" Series)

 

In continuation of last week's discussion on how effective people manage energy levels at the workplace so that they always display enthusiasm and balanced mental emotions to get things done, one more energy booster is self-compassion.

Self-compassion:

Self-compassion is being kind to ourselves whenever we fail, make mistakes or feel low.

For example, when some of our friends feel low due to a mistake, we tend to look at things from a distance and be kind to our friends. But, when we make mistakes, we are harsh ourselves and self-critics. That is due to a lack of self-compassion. When we do not understand ourselves and are kind enough, that moment drains our energy level further.

The ability to differentiate between our decision and self-worth improves our energy level. Some people are trained to be more self-compassionate despite failures or mistakes. They tend to bounce back from low energy levels quickly.

I have a friend who is a serial entrepreneur who has ventured into many businesses in the last 20 years, and unfortunately, many failed or shut down due to bad decisions. From a materialistic perspective, the world may perceive him as yet to be a successful entrepreneur, but what i have observed in him is a real example of self-compassion.

He always presents himself with professional attire and a smiley look and is highly energetic during any conversation. He is very active in the task throughout the day and always strives to be better in his profession. Not even a single instance he regretted his mistakes and self-critic himself.

He is clear in differentiating the wrong decisions and being a good person. That is the essence of self-compassion. He can differentiate his bad decisions/outcomes and himself as worthy. That is self-compassion. ( There is a thin line difference between being self-critical and self-realization of mistakes). i always look up to him whenever i feel low.
 
In professional life, we are bound to make many mistakes due to our decisions, thoughts, and actions. How we react when things go wrong affects our ability to differentiate ourselves and our decisions.

It is challenging to be self-compassionate as most of us choose to be harsh or blame others or the environment. It needs awareness and practice of looking at ourselves with kindness and differentiating from our mistakes.

Being self-compassionate helps to be at a high energy level, at least not at a low energy level.

Pl relate how much you are kind to yourself when you make mistakes..

Have a great week ahead.

How good are you at managing energy?

 How good are you at managing energy?   

(Execution Excellence -"Ability to get things done" Series)

Last week, we discussed the importance of managing energy at the self-level to get things done from others in a professional environment.

I came across a checklist devised by Tony Schwartz, the Author of the book " The power of full engagement," which broadly indicates our energy management level.

This checklist may help assess our energy management level on a day-to-day basis.
 
Please Tick the statements below that are valid for you.

Body

• I don't regularly get at least seven to eight hours of sleep, and I often wake up feeling tired.
•  I frequently skip breakfast or settle for something that isn't nutritious.
•  I don't work out enough.
•  I don't take regular breaks during the day to truly renew and recharge

Emotions

• I frequently feel irritable, impatient, or anxious at work, especially when work is demanding.
• I don't have enough time with my family, and when I'm with them, I'm not always really with them.
• I have too little time for the activities I most deeply enjoy.
• I don't have time to express my appreciation to others and feel grateful for my accomplishments.

Mind

• I have difficulty focusing on one thing at a time, and I am easily distracted during the day by email and social media / WhatsApp
• I spend much of my day reacting to immediate crises and demands rather than focusing on activities with longer-term value.
• I don't take enough time for reflection, strategizing, and creative thinking.
• I work in the evenings or on weekends, and I rarely take an e-mail–free vacation.

Spirit

• I don't spend enough time at work doing what I enjoy best.
• There are significant gaps between what I say is most important to me and how I allocate my time and energy.
• My decisions at work are more often influenced by external demands than by a strong, clear sense of my purpose.
• I don't invest enough time and energy to make a positive difference to others or the world.

How is your overall energy?

Total number of statements checked: __

Guide to scores

0–3: Excellent energy management skills
4–6: Reasonable energy management skills
7–10: Significant energy management deficits
11–16: Energy management crisis
 
Having an awareness of the existing SKILL LEVEL in managing energy level,we can talk about the practical ways to improve energy management in all aspects in the next week.
 
Have a great week ahead.

Managing Energy

  Managing Energy

(Execution Excellence -"Ability to get things done" Series)
 

As we discuss the art of getting things done in the workplace, managers/ leaders must organize themselves effectively.

We have discussed some elements of self-organization like Time Management, Managing expectations, being focused and Building Trust.

The next important element in self-organizing is Managing Energy. 
 
Managing Energy is all about how we are well-being physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.
 
Why is managing Energy essential?

All energies are interrelated.
When we do not manage any one of the energy levels, it will affect other energy. Eventually, it will affect the performance and execution capabilities. For example, when we are not well physically due to some pain, it affects us emotionally as feeling low, mentally we are not in a position to concentrate on anything, and we disconnect from our purpose (spiritually).

Energy is contagious.
When you observe people with high energy levels, they always display a pleasing appearance, say a smiling face, firm tone, straight posture, and present themselves with enthusiasm. We also tend to be at a high energy level in their presence. That is why when we attend any motivational training program, the trainer displays high energy, and we are also at a high energy level. After the program, we return to our natural energy level and seek a similar energizing experience.

In a professional context, when the leader is not at a high energy level and displays a lack of enthusiasm in walking, talking, and carrying out routines, the followers also lose their energy.
No one would like to work with a lousy person with low energy levels.

You may relate to your experience with some people.

I have worked with one very charismatic, soft, and firm-spoken boss, always with enthusiasm. Everyone liked to work with him, and i never said no to him when he assigned some tasks. Relatively, he used to get things done easily. He was respected by all and quite successful in his career. The one thing i can attribute to his success is his highly energetic, enthusiastic, and influential power in the workplace.
 
From this perspective, maintaining a high energy level and being active are essential.

Let us discuss some practical ways people enhance their energy levels next week.

Have a great week ahead!
 

Being Focused

 Being Focused 

(Execution Excellence -"Ability to get things done" Series)

 

As we discuss the art of getting things done in the workplace, managers/ leaders must organize themselves effectively. In line with this, we have discussed the importance of managing time and expectations. The next aspect of managing self is FOCUS.

What is meant by FOCUS?

Focus means directing our thoughts, energy, and time into something. It is beyond the ordinary meaning of concentration in a single activity.

From an execution capability development of point of view, focus means knowing the priority and pursuing it till the end without distraction.

The priority can be achieving the task or business goal, strengthening relationships with stakeholders, building a foundation or stability, etc.

Most of us need clarity on WHAT to focus on and HOW to remain focused in any endeavor.

Focus is one of the leadership skills which can be acquired through awareness and practice.

Why is FOCUS required for anyone?

• When we don't focus on the result, we quickly get distracted with activities and end up managing activities or being busy rather than getting things done.

• When we do not intend to complete the task or achieve some goal, how can we expect our colleagues, peers, and junior colleagues to stick to our plan? People follow a leader who is focused on the end objective.

A few years ago, Warren Buffet and Bill Gates were asked, "what is the single factor that contributes to your success?" Both immediately responded with one word: FOCUS

FOCUS differentiates between dreamers and achievers in any profession.

Staying focused is essential, but it is not easy for everyone to remain focused as numerous distractions and opportunities will derail.Effective executives always begin with the end in mind and remain focused till they reach the end.Hence they are quite effective in getting things done.

Let us discuss how effective people trained themselves to remain focused and the behaviors they display to others to stay focused next week.

Have a great week ahead.

Managing time for OTHERS

  Managing time for OTHERS  

(Execution Excellence -"Ability to get things done" Series)
 

 As we have discussed the importance of being effective vs. efficient and punctual for managing time for ourselves, the other aspect of time management is how we manage time for OTHERS.

How do we manage time for OTHERS?

It is more about how we organize ourselves effectively so that we are not time wasters for others. Generally, we do not like to work with people who are tardy and waste others' time. When others like us, our ability to get things done will enhance. We need to invest in making ourselves useful to others.
 
We must relook at some of our behaviors and practices, which take others' time.
 
Let me list down some of the behavior which i have observed in many executives in the workplace which affects others’ time.
 

• Talking on our mobile phones or chatting on the computer when some people sit and wait in front of us. We need to attend an incoming call, but we have a choice to have a detailed conversation later. 
• Conducting a meeting without specific agenda, discussing general or day-to-day issues, and wasting all people’s time.
• Even if we meet with some agenda, keeping irrelevant people and discussing with a few people signals disrespect to others' time and low engagement.
• Switching between macro and micro or business and functional activities.

For example, i have observed in one of the organizations, during the monthly business performance review meeting, the business head got into a detailed technical review of the particular quality issue and spent more time on it with a few attendees. Nothing wrong with discussing the technical problem, but the subject is irrelevant for many of the attendees, and their body language reflects their concern about their time spent on the unrelated topic. Also, that forum is meant for business review and not for functional review.

• Coming for the meeting without data/facts and wasting time in setting up the computer/ projectors/ switching between many files and distracting the attention of others.
• Frequent follow-up: One of the ways we can make others waste their time is by not keeping up our commitment. Generally, we may not like to work with a person who needs constant follow-up to get things done. In some organizations, things will be done only by following a person multiple times.

We may be doing without our consciousness, but it affects others’ time, and if they are our junior colleagues or peers, they may not be able to express it to us as feedback. However, they prefer to avoid us, affecting our execution capability.

It requires consciousness of how we organize ourselves for OTHERS.

 
Have a great week ahead.

Managing Time - Effectiveness & Efficiency

 Managing Time - Effectiveness & Efficiency 

(Execution Excellence -"Ability to get things done" Series)

 

Under the topic, "how we organize time for ourselves, we discussed the rationale behind "being on time" or "being punctual".The other aspects of "managing time for ourselves" are prioritizing the task and execution.
 
Most of us experienced that despite being busy with many activities throughout the day, we do not feel a sense of satisfaction. Time Management conflict on active and impact!
 
Time management is not how we engage in some activities and are busy.

Time management is purely inward motivation than externally monitoring time or counting activities. It is all about being effective and efficient.

Efficiency is how we do things right, and effectiveness is all about how we choose the right things to do.

Efficiency is related to skill, and effectiveness is related to awareness and mindset to choose the right activities.

If we want to excel in time management, in my opinion, we need to be more concerned about EFFECTIVENESS, i.e., awareness and mindset to choose the RIGHT activities.

Once we get into EFFECTIVE ACTIVITIES, efficiency is a matter of skill development.
 
If we choose the wrong task and whatever we do with high efficiency, it is not going to deliver desirable results and impact. There is no sense of satisfaction.

For example, choosing the right path to travel is EFFECTIVENESS. How we travel in the path quickly by walking fast or running or using the vehicle is all about EFFICIENCY. If we choose the wrong path and wildly run fast, we end up with the wrong destination.

Hence, the purpose or result gives satisfaction.
 
In a professional environment, choosing the right task is very important than doing the task faster.

How will you choose the right task?

It is defined by your role and the delivery expected from you from your organization. That is a priority.
 
You are effective when you know your priority as defined for your role or what you're expected to do and engage in that activity.

You become efficient when you execute the priority with speed by upskilling, delegating, and using the tools and techniques.

You need to feel good for having completed priority tasks with efficiency. It is all about time management. It is purely inward motivation and fulfillment.

First, we need to ask ourselves whether we are aware of our priorities; if so, are we doing it with efficiency?

Organizing self-managing Time

 Organizing self-managing Time  

(Execution Excellence -"Ability to get things done" Series)

 

We have discussed the importance of personal leadership or organizing self to improve the execution capability.
 
Let us discuss one of the essential elements of self-organizing, which is "Time Management."
 
We have discussed many aspects of time management in the earlier discussion; let us understand how managing time will impact getting things done at the workplace.
 
Managing Time should be looked at from two angles.

1) How do we organize our Time for ourselves;
2) How do we organize our Time for others

 How we organize our Time for ourselves 

It consists of planning our priorities/activities, making a To-do list, being on time for any events or meetings, and being aware of our Time wasters.

 How we organize our Time for others 

It consists of how we respect others' Time, keep our commitments up without follow-up or reminders from others and be available for others when needed.

Let us discuss all aspects, and the critical, fundamental conduct for any professional is "Being on Time" or "being punctual."
 
In childhood, we used to be punctual in school as an act of obedience or control from teachers and parents, and somehow we have not learned the basics behind it.

Fortunately, i  learned the science behind "being on time" from the beginning of my career. As most of us are aware that TVS as an organization is very specific about being on Time (punctual). They differentiated themselves from others in their bus service business by punctuality when they started the company in the 1910s in the southern part of Tamil Nādu.

When i was working as a trainee in TVS, one day, i went for a learning session late by a minute or less. All my colleagues were inside the room, and then the Vice president sarcastically greeted me as welcome mappillai! (meaning bridegroom). I felt embarrassed and shamed. After the session, i asked him why he was so concerned about being less than 1 minute late. What he said was real learning. He said, "It is not a matter of one minute late, it shows how you look at your work, event, and other people's time. It reflects your attitude".

Very profound learning for me. Since then, i have never been late to any event by plan, and i will keep informing people when unforeseen circumstances beyond my control pull me to be late.

While growing up, i observed that many people who keep up on Time are cool, handle situations calmly, consistently grow, and lead a quality life. Quality of life starts with the right attitude toward managing Time.

In my consulting experience,i have seen a typical pattern that the leaders who arrive at the organization on Time and start the meeting on time relatively manage the business well in any circumstances. Because they set the tone of their attitude towards Time to others, the organization follows them. The first step towards execution!

When you organize well, obviously, you will get things done efficiently.

Let us discuss some more aspects of time management next week.

Personal Leadership

                                             

 As we discussed, Execution capability comprises three elements, viz. 

1. Personal Leadership or how we organize ourselves
2. Inspiring and Influencing  others to get things done
3. In-depth knowledge about our work or business
 
Let's talk about Personal Leadership or self-organizing. 
 
What is self-organizing or personal leadership?
 
Self-organizing or personal leadership is about proactively preparing ourselves for the position/ title or the job or task we do."

It is all about how we conduct ourselves, shape our character, attitude, enrich our knowledge and skill for the position.

It is all about personal effectiveness.

It is the foundation for getting things done.

For example,

Suppose you are a functional or business head. In that case, this position demands certain behaviors, knowledge, and skills like being a role model for others on respecting time, and people, expertise in functional or business knowledge, and specific skills to demonstrate. How you prepare yourself for those requirements is about self-organizing or personal leadership.
 
Why do we need to self-organize from the "Execution Capability" perspective?
 
1) When you have not organized yourselves, you can not lead others effectively. You can not improve your team's capability without improving your effectiveness
 
As per the law of organized performance, the ratio of a leader's performance to their team remains constant.

For example, if you measure your performance on a scale of 1~10 and your score is 8, your team score would also be eight or less. Hence ratio is 1:1

You can not change your team's performance score to 10 unless you also improve your score to 10; therefore, the ratio remains constant as per law.

The point is your team's execution capability, or effectiveness depends on your execution capability only.

To get things done, you need to enhance your effectiveness first.

2) You will derail any time during the growth stage if you are not organized.

As said, self-organized is more about disciplining yourself. You will get derailed when you do not maintain the discipline as the job demands.

We might have come across many talented people who derailed their careers not just due to performance alone but lack of personal leadership.

Some of the examples could be ICICI bank Ex women CEO or  Satyam computer founder's fall mainly due to governance issues from a business perspective or integrity issues from a personal point of view.
 
The point is self-organizing is very fundamental for enhancing execution capability. Without that, we cannot inspire or influence others. When you grow up, people look up to you for everything.

Let's talk more about personal leadership next week.

Developing Execution Capabilities

Thank you for your feedback last week on my request. When i analyze the input, most revolves around "how can one be effective in a professional life and how we achieve result in work or business." Some concerns about bringing ownership to the young generations to achieve organizational goals.Something related to the family business, conflict management, and delegation in general.

I observe a gap between what we intend or plan to do and what we achieve. That gap is due to execution capabilities. We want to get things done but struggle to get them for various reasons.

                                  

 
Hence, we initiate a new series on "Developing the Execution Capabilities" in a professional environment as an individual and an organization.
 
Why do we need to develop the execution capabilities?

1. One of the studies says that only 8 % of the leaders are good at planning and delivering results. The remaining 92 % of the leaders are either good only at planning but lacks execution skill or struggle with both effective planning and execution.

We may relate these findings with our experience as well.
 
For example, we might have experienced many times that we plan to follow some good habits but give up soon. That is an execution discipline problem at an individual level.
 
Similarly, we may plan to achieve some level of business growth every year at an organizational level. Still, for many years, we may be stagnant at the same level of growth performance. That is due to execution problems at the organizational level.
 
 Execution problems may be a common phenomenon for any professional and organization. Unless we understand the execution process and develop the capabilities, there will not be much progress in professional life.
 

2. Success and Growth come from implementing actions and delivering results, not just from planning or strategy or simply ideas. Execution is the critical differentiator between performers and nonperformers. The world admires performers only.

 
However, developing the execution capability is not as easy as learning concepts, tools, and techniques. It is a mix-up of managerial process and art.

Execution capability encompasses the following.

1. Personal Leadership or how we organize ourselves
2. Inspiring and Influencing others to get things done
3. In-depth knowledge about our work or business environment
 
Let us discuss developing the capabilities, the set of behaviors in each aspect, and some insights from effective personalities in this Series.