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As described by Martin Seligman in his book “Learned Optimism” the costs of pessimism include:

• Pessimism promotes depression.
• Pessimism produces inertia rather than activity in the face of setbacks.
• Pessimism feels bad subjectively.
• Pessimism is self-fulfilling. Pessimists don’t persist in the face of challenges, and therefore fail more frequently - even when success is attainable.
• Pessimism is associated with poor physical health.

Optimism and pessimism towards life is a daily decision we all need to make. Given the high costs of pessimism I think the choice is clear!

Technorati Tags: Personal Leadership, Pessimism, Learned Helplessness, Optimism, Book

 An article from CNET News.com entitled “Driven to distraction by technology” states that:

The typical office worker is interrupted every three minutes by a phone call, e-mail, instant message or other distraction. The problem is that it takes about eight uninterrupted minutes for our brains to get into a really creative state.

In addition to reducing the distraction of technology we also need to develop our creative abilities, it’s our creativity that enable us to become more effective and productive. Some way in which we can improve our creativity, include:

• Recognizing the importance of daily breaks to stimulate creativity, Curt Rosengren of “The Occupational Adventure” blog asks:

How often do you take a break from the high volume, high productivity pace of life to just let your mind and your creativity come out to play?

Curt suggests that we “Exercise your creativity with the daily action“, I agree, we all need to make some time each day to develop our creative abilities.

• Angela Booth, in a similar post, describes creativity as a cycle. Angela recommends we take a break after intensive projects to allow time to recharge. This is equally true on the macro and micro level. We all have rhythms of during our working day which we should be conscious of, if we are aware of our rhythms we can schedule our daily creative time when our energy levels are high.
• Have a creative space. A place to think your thoughts, here are some suggestions of places to be creative.
• Have a place to capture your thoughts.

Individual creativity and organisational innovation is going to be the keys to career success and competitive advantage in the next few years. We all need to start developing this skills today!

Technorati Tags: Creativity, Distraction, GTD, Lifehack, Psychology

Peter Senge in Edges from back in 2000:

“Facilitation is much like sailing. You’ve got to work with whatever arises. That’s my experience. Whatever arises is exactly what is supposed to arise. Whether or not it is convenient doesn’t matter. And that sort of trust is usually the mark of a masterful facilitator. Good facilitators have actually internalized a belief based on experience, that whatever happens is supposed to have happened — even if it is very problematic and unfortunate. And because of that belief, you don’t waste your energy trying to fight what is going on. Instead you try working with it. If the sailor is pissed off because the wind changes direction, it doesn’t do much good.”

Via: [Parking lot]

Technorati Tags: Communication, Facilitation, Leadership, Meeting, Management

Stever Robbins (one of my favorite authors) wrote an article entitled “The “Pull Leadership” Manifesto“, in describing the difference between push and pull leadership he says:

“Maybe it’s because we use a whacked-out definition of leadership. “Leader” has become code for “rich guy with an impressive title who orders others around.” But leading by giving orders left and right with no accountability doesn’t work. We’re living in a world of low loyalty, high mobility, and extreme uncertainty. “Push” leadership will push people right out the door. We need leaders who inspire others to follow, who engender loyalty. We need leaders who practice “pull” leadership.”

Sterver goes on to describe pull leadership as follows:

• Pull leaders don’t give orders; they create social systems that inspire people to join.
• Pull leaders take responsibility for the success of their organization and their people. Responsibility isn’t given; it’s taken.
• Pull leaders believe that success of the organization is their responsibility, no matter what their job titles are.
• Pull leaders work to become attractive to others. In taking responsibility, pull leaders realize their greatest tool is themselves. So they work hard at perfecting that tool!
• Pull leaders work on their interpersonal skills. They get their own lives in order, knowing full well that if they aren’t successful in their own lives, they don’t have the emotional well to draw from to be there for their people
• Pull leaders align and inspire with values. Values are the second most powerful force for bringing people together to achieve great things. Pull leaders know their own values, and demonstrate them when they act. What matters to pull leaders are their values in action.
• Pull leaders are stewards of their organizations and employees. Stewardship is a key element of pull leaders. A steward is a caretaker of another’s property.
• Pull leaders architect their social and organizational space. Pull leaders don’t just let space and culture happen. They actively shape the environment in which people act.
• Pull leadership isn’t easy. Not many leaders practice pull leadership because, at its heart, it’s about recognizing that the leader isn’t perfect, and that an organization’s power comes from everyone who comprises it.

Technorati Tags: Management, Personal Leadership, Leadership

“Do not wait; the time will never be ‘just right’. Start where you stand, and work with whatever tools you may have at your command, and better tools will be found as you go along.” - Napoleon Hill (1883-1970)

[Via Fast Company Now]

Technorati Tags: quote, leadership, execution, tools, procrastination

Research by the Hay Insight, Hay Group’s survey research division found that Companies Risk Greater Employee Turnover and Lower Productivity Without Improved Teamwork.

“Hay Insight employee opinion research confirms that most organizations today are struggling to establish effective collaboration/teamwork and communication across departments. The current research is based on findings from our database of approximately 1.2 million employees in more than 400 organizations worldwide.”

More specifically, the findings suggest that:

• 54% of employees feel that their company has an atmosphere that encourages cooperation and the sharing of ideas and resources across the organization.
• 49% of employees stated that their company had a generally cooperative atmosphere (i.e., various parts of the company working well together).
• 48% of employees rated the teamwork that exists between departments as either “good” or “very good.”
• 33% of employees responded favorably when asked about the level of communication between departments within their organization.

Mark Royal, a senior consultant with Hay Insight, summarises the findings stating that:

“A lack of cross-functional teamwork creates lower levels of productivity and growth and makes it much more difficult for organizations to operate efficiently or achieve their strategic objectives….. What’s more, by making it more difficult for individuals to carry out their responsibilities, employees are frustrated in their current positions and job turnover is much higher.”

Technorati Tags: Communication, Team Leadership, Management, Research, leadership, Collaboration

After reading Learned Optimism : How to Change Your Mind and Your Life by Martin P. Seligman, I was struck by the concept of learned helplessness and it’s impact upon people’s lives. Martin describes learned helplessness as:

“the giving-up reaction, the quitting response that follows from the belief that whatever you do doesn’t matter”

Each of us begins our lives in helplessness, this feeling of helplessness is often reinforced by our families, schools, organisations and society. This thinking style is created through exposure to uncontrollable events and can additionally be developed by failure and defeat. The more we feel we are not able to influence or produce the results we want in organisations and society, the more likely we are to adopt a helpless style of thinking. Learned helplessness manifests itself in our thinking process, specifically the habitual way in which we explain bad events. There are three crucial dimensions in our thinking which affects our tendency towards helplessness, these are:

• Permanence This is thinking that bad events which happen to us are permanent, and that they will always affect our lives. Those who resist helplessness see the cause of bad events as temporary. Do you think in always’s and never’s or sometime’s and lately’s?
• Pervasiveness: Specific vs. Universal Whereas permanence is about time, pervasiveness is about space. People who suffer from learned helplessness tend to catastrophize, seeing failures as affecting the whole of their lives and not just a specific area of their lives. They give up everything if a bad event strikes one area of their lives.

“People who make permanent and universal explanations for their troubles tend to collapse under pressure, both for a long time and across situations.”

• Personalization: Internal vs External This is about who we blame for bad events, either blame ourselves or other people and circumstances. People with a tendency towards helplessness internalize and blame themselves for bad events.

The key to breaking out of the learned helplessness style is to change our thinking.

“Habits of thinking need not be forever. One of the most significant findings in psychology in the last twenty years is that individuals can choose the way they think.”

I found the book really helpful and would recommend it to anyone who can identify with the learned helplessness thinking style and requires additional assistance.

Technorati Tags: Optimism, Book, Personal Development, Personal Leadership

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