Procrastination is one of the main reasons why we don't perform to our full potential. It is a comfortable human habit and, as such, is not easy to break.
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Most people prefer for things to continue in their same old predictable way. If change is to take place, such people will probably argue that it should happen at some point down the track—when their routines will not be affected. Such complacency needs to be transformed into a sense of urgency—or your organisation will stagnate and you won’t get the staff support you need to make change happen.
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For new employees, those early days in your organisation can be more of a test of survival than a time of growth and development. Often new staff members are thrown into the workplace and expected to succeed with little support and it’s no wonder many of them become disillusioned.
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As a manager, you'll often have to persuade people to believe in your views and to accept your ideas. If you're good at selling your ideas to employees and colleagues, then you'll go further, faster, in your career. Unfortunately, good ideas must first be sold to staff and, if you can't get your proposals across the way you envisaged, then they may well go the way of many other good ideas—into oblivion. So, here are some simple rules that will help you sell your ideas more effectively in the future…
Read MoreYou must provide customers with quality products and services otherwise they’ll go elsewhere. To keep ahead of your game, you may have to abandon outdated notions about how your organisation does its work and start afresh. This is the essence of reengineering—a process of improving the old ways of doing business and seeking to create new and better ways. Here’s how to help your business benefit from an effective overhaul.
Read MoreThere’s more to strategic planning than arranging for a select few to lock themselves away for a couple of days each year to develop a document they hope will lead their organisation to new levels of profitability. Preliminary deliberations and detailed preparation involving a range of people are required. Among the issues for your consideration during this preparatory phase are the following.
Read MoreMeetings have become an unavoidable aspect of a manager's role. Fortunately, it is possible to eliminate unnecessary meetings and to make the remaining ones more effective. An important ingredient is planning and preparation, as the following points reveal…
Read MoreIf you want to change your professional or personal life for the better, you must start with resolve and determination, and the following resolutions are provided to help you improve the way you function as a leader. Refer to them at the start of each month, photocopy and decide which you will focus on. How determined are you to improve?
Read MoreImproving the performance of staff is hard enough; maintaining and building on that improvement present even greater challenges for managers.
Read MorePlateauing is a normal phase in many careers. Usually coinciding with mid-career, employees (and managers) can experience a leveling out of their progress as a result of downsizing, restructuring, or plain old boredom. Previously high-achievers seem to lose their zest, sparkle, and enthusiasm. They become disenchanted, frustrated and, over time, their morale and productivity decline. What can you do to revitalise the career of a stuck-in-a-rut employee?
Read MoreHigh levels of staff commitment to individual projects or to the organisation as a whole are considered to be indicators of an organisation succeeding in its purpose. Commitment, however, cannot be assumed. Rather, it requires continuing, credible and confident actions that result in employee trust and support. Although there is no one way of gaining commitment, there are, however, some key considerations.
Read MoreAs a manager, you are in a position to influence others. Take change, for example. The way you personally relate to change and cope with it will have a lasting impact on your employees. But before you can help others, you must be able to help yourself. When they see how effectively you cope with change, your staff, too, will see change for what it really is—an opportunity to lead a much fuller and productive life. Here’s what you must do to survive in an age of ongoing change…
Read MoreIt has been said that service management is a total organisational approach that makes quality of service, as perceived by the customer, the number one driving force for the operation of any business. But so often managers pay only lip-service to customer service— they're too tied down with the day-to-day concerns of production, union negotiations, meetings, paperwork, budget, and personnel matters. What can you do to improve your organisation's service? Why not start with these basic ideas…
Read MoreSetting priorities is a decision-making process in which you rank in order of importance the tasks you or your staff members must do. By completing the tasks on your list in order, you will achieve your goals. It sounds easy—but it's not. In fact, priority setting and sticking to the agreement you make with yourself will be one of your major challenges as a manager. Here are ten important suggestions to help you draw up a priority list—and make it work.
Read MoreGoal setting has been described as 'the inner technology of success' and is one of your organisation's most important activities. Unless taken seriously, this vital planning task will be a futile exercise, an activity that can produce several high-sounding intentions which, for various reasons, are soon forgotten. So, if you want challenging goals that are, importantly, achievable, then you should consider these basic principles…
Read MoreIf you're keen to display the qualities of true leadership, then risk-taking must become part of your executive weaponry. Leaders must be disrupters of the status quo, something that often requires them to take risks. Calculated risk-taking helps 'creative edge' organisations to thrive and earns an enviable reputation for individuals who deliver the positive results.
But risk-taking requires courage, and an awareness of the following advice….
Read MoreThere is nothing elusive about leadership. Although great leaders may be as rare as great runners, great painters, or great actors, everyone has leadership potential—just as everyone has some ability at running, painting, and acting.
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