If you’re burned out at the thought of another daunting year and trying to plan, you’re not alone. Trying to figure out what will happen and how it will affect your organization seems like a crapshoot.
Yet many leaders who recognize that they need to change still fail to understand how to make the necessary changes in turbulent times. Here are three things you can do with your teams to get your work environment to function better this year:
Play to win
Often, as leaders, we feel too tired to do anything other than be in the game. However, if we want to succeed, we need to change our mindset. Playing to win is a mental concept that enables us to survive tough times.
Sometimes we need something to fight for, to strive for, to achieve. Setting goals that we’re going to accomplish with our team gives us something to motivate and rally our team around.
If we have nothing to strive for, we become bored.
If you want to improve your business, pick some targets and get your people visualizing what it will be like when that happens. A team that has something to play for usually works harder than a team that’s just coming out to play.
Ninety-day planning
It’s said that as much can happen in 12 weeks as can happen in 12 months if you have a group of motivated people. I’ve observed this in my businesses and with many of my clients.
Having two or three goals to accomplish in 12 weeks and working on a plan to achieve them can be significant. When your team is engaged and working together, there’s less pressure on leadership to get the desired results.
Twelve-week planning can be the ticket that gives spark and direction to organizations when properly managed. This type of planning is often much better than long-range strategic planning for employees because they can see results in a short period.
Change it up
Let’s face it, what worked for us in the past usually doesn’t give the same results in today’s ever-changing economic and technological landscape.
While we need to be conscious of the reasons for our past successes, we must adapt to enable our organizations to achieve a bright future.
Loggers transitioned from axes to chainsaws to feller-bunchers and farmers from horses and plows to tractors. We must recognize that there are places and times for the basic tools of our trade. However, in order to keep up with the times, our technology must advance, or we’ll be left behind.
You will find there are people in your organization who will resist change. However, your job as a leader is – when necessary – to convince them that change will be good for their future.
There’s no better time than now to figure out how you can take your organization to the next level. The times may be changing. Are you ready?
Dave Fuller, MBA, is an award-winning business coach and a partner with Pivotleader Inc. For interview requests, click here.
The opinions expressed by our columnists and contributors are theirs alone and do not inherently or expressly reflect the views of our publication.
© Troy Media
Troy Media is an editorial content provider to media outlets and its own hosted community news outlets across Canada.
