Patti Cotton

Executive Coach & Career Strategist

Patti Cotton

Three Things Your Team Needs from You Right Now

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Three Things Your Team Needs from You Right Now
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As you confront change, the most critical thing you must do as leader is to support the cohesiveness of your executive team.

This means that they must be aligned and coordinated in their thinking and actions.

Having a plan of action is the rally cry to move forward together, but it isn’t the answer.

During the current COVID crisis, I’ve reached out to several of my former clients to see how they are faring. Most report what is probably familiar to you: shock and paralysis, replaced by a scrambling to redirect resources and keep business going.

I talked to Bob, CEO of a software tech company, about three weeks ago. He expressed great frustration around being stuck in place.

“We are so busy putting out fires,” he said. “And they all need extinguishing. But how do we move forward?”

“That’s the question, Bob,” I said. “Most of the world is caught up in a mode of urgency and this is their current way of operating. But they are missing the boat entirely.”

“I hear you, Patti,” he answered. “But how do I get my team to move forward? We have an interim plan – you taught me the value of plotting a short-term direction in times like these. But I’m not seeing the action of which I know they are capable.”

“Bob, having your interim plan is the first of three things your team needs to move, and move quickly,” I said. And I outlined the following for him.

1. Clarity.

Your team needs a short-term, interim plan that plots a clear direction. Centering the plan around a particular theme will serve as a galvanizing rally cry to bring the team together and help them to coordinate more easily. Remember to ask yourself what will best serve your customers at this time and position your business to meet the undefined future.

2. Trust.

How well do team members trust each other? Revisit your trust charter and facilitate discussion around what the team needs more or less of from each other in order to trust and be able to count implicitly on each other in this critical time.

3. Replacing effectiveness with efficiency.

In times of transition or change, people seek comfort in the familiar. This means that you and your team members may find you are focusing on being efficient instead of being effective, because being busy feels like you are moving ahead when you really may not be. Once you have determined your interim plan, be sure to identify those other projects, tasks and activities that lie outside the plan parameters. Decide how you want to handle these in light of the current clime and be ruthless about holding each other accountable.

Bob called back a few days ago to report that moving through these steps did the trick. He first worked with the team to revisit the trust charter to discuss what everyone needed from each other in order to take action. The team then performed a quick audit of activities and identified some of those that needed to be placed on pause. And finally, Bob and the team communicated the interim plan to the entire employee base and have pledged to bring weekly updates on progress to the organization.

Which of these three things does your team need to focus on in order to move forward more effectively? Providing a unified direction and deeper conversations around what is needed to trust more will open doors to a much richer future.

HOW MUCH

DO OTHERS REALLY TRUST YOU?

​Learn the two vital parts to trust and how they can help you become a more highly effective leader.

GET THE INFOGRAPHIC

© Patti Cotton and patticotton.com. All rights reserved. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express written permission from the author is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that attribution is made to Patti Cotton and patticotton.com, with links thereto.

Leading with Greater Inner Agility

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Leading with Greater Inner Agility
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You are moving an entire business through uncharted waters right now. A lot of people are depending on you.

Grit isn’t enough to meet the challenges you are facing. You need to increase your inner agility in two ways to deal with the complexity occurring right now.

Owen, president of a manufacturing firm, reached out to me some time ago to help develop talent for the company’s succession planning.

“I’m tired,” he began. “And I think the company needs new blood. Can you provide executive coaching for my second in command?”

“I’d be pleased to help you, Owen,” I answered. “But if I can ask, why do you think the company needs new blood? You seem like you have more good years to give.”

“Truth be told, I’ve been perplexed by the business scene,” Owen answered. “Strategies that used to work don’t cut it. The challenges that we are presented with are new. I can’t refer back to anything I’ve dealt with before in order to create a roadmap out that makes sense.”

“Owen, you aren’t alone,” I responded. “Today’s business landscape is changing so fast that it’s hard to stay on top of what’s in front of you.”

“You aren’t kidding,” he shot back. “I can’t catch my breath. It’s one fire after another. I guess I’m just too old for this.”

“You aren’t too old, Owen. You are finding yourself in the same situation as most other executives right now. It’s time to increase your leadership’s ‘inner’ agility.”

“I’m ready for anything that helps me stay sane while I move this business forward,” he said. “Tell me more.”

“Well, there are two parts of inner agility,” I shared. “These are emotional and cognitive, and they both play a part in how well you make decisions and take actions. Emotional agility has to do with how well you manage your thoughts and emotions around your experiences. And cognitive agility has to do with your ability to make complex decisions.”

Owen and I talked for a bit about emotional agility and after exploring a bit, it seemed he was on top of things there. If you are interested in working on this particular aspect of agility, see the article Four Steps to Crisis Management.

We then talked about his ability to make complex decisions in light of the current business landscape, and this is where Owen admitted he was struggling. He had no past success he could reference as he confronted presenting challenges – the things that had worked in the past were not relevant.

I shared the following 5 steps to help him begin to develop greater cognitive ability:

1. Stand still while moving.

It’s important for a leader to find time for pause, but it feels impossible when the challenges keep coming non-stop. Yet, pausing is what provides self-awareness, reflection, and a moment to replenish one’s emotional and mental stores. Some executives practice breathing meditations, journaling, a walk around the building once or twice daily, or another habit that creates a moment where they can regroup.

2. Adopt uncertainty.

We are creatures of comfort, and when challenges arise, we run to what feels familiar and safe. Yet, with the world’s volatility and its effects on business, we must learn to embrace what feels new and trade in the hat of “expert” for that of “explorer.” If you find yourself using language like, “When this is all over,” think again. Our mindsets and rhetoric need to change to, “Let’s explore this challenge!”

3. Change Up Your Questions.

Begin by asking yourself where you need to go. Avoid gravitating to “how do we do this?” too soon, and replace this impulse with “What if we could…?” By remaining in the visionary portion of your questioning for a longer brainstorming period, you can begin to think outside the box about the way to accomplish it at a later time. Involve your greater management team and line employees. Tell them what you want to accomplish and get their feedback about what they think needs to change in order to accomplish this. And don’t be afraid to ask, “What am I missing?” Be open to thinking about different ways of moving forward and accomplishing your goals.

4. Focus on the journey, not the destination.

The destination you head for today may not be there tomorrow. Set shorter-term strategies to continue supporting your customers and their current needs, using your values as the foundational rudder that keeps you, the team and the organization grounded in who you are and what you are about.

5. Work on the who of your personal leadership and not the how.

Hard skills and competencies are no adequate to support the business of tomorrow. Your leadership character – your personal values and integrity – along with your agility to move through the unfamiliar – will be what count now and in the future.

I was pleased that Owen decided to work on his inner agility, focusing on the cognitive piece, to help move the company forward. As we shouldered this together, he became more confident, able to read the business landscape and connect the dots to make complex decisions, and at the same time, reported that he was less stressed than he had been in years.

Now is the time to step away from old habits to embrace the new and uncertain as exciting, uncharted territory, full of promise. The landscape continues to shift and evolve. How about you?

The Clockwork of Excellent Leadership:   3 Essential Gears

What makes up excellent leadership? The essential components that go into leadership must all work together, or they begin to wear on one another and bring things to a stop. Learn how to keep them running like clockwork. Sign up to receive the  complimentary infographic.

© Patti Cotton and patticotton.com. All rights reserved. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express written permission from the author is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that attribution is made to Patti Cotton and patticotton.com, with links thereto.

Leading to Recovery While Managing Response

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Leading to Recovery While Managing Response
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Your full attention and energy have been called to manage the current crisis. By now, part or all of your workforce is working remotely. Your executive team is alternating “home days” with “office days” to meet social distancing edicts.

Your entire management team is working on ironing out the systems and protocols that need to help you deliver service to your customers during this critical time.

But are you leading to recovery while managing response? If you aren’t already examining how to reinvent yourself and your business to meet the “next normal,” you need to shift gears now.

This begins with vision.

If you can envision the new normal, you can already lay the groundwork to meet it. You certainly know who your customers are and what they need from you at present. But can you anticipate what will they need, once this crisis has passed? The ability to look ahead and project what is likely to happen with customer behaviors and desires will help you define the future of your business. Make sure you are careful to access resources to help you project this. Pool your energy and brain trust with a few other forward-thinking leaders on a regular basis to stay current and sharpen your abilities to anticipate.

Plotting a course for the future, now, is paramount.

This may seem challenging when you are dealing with a crisis, but it’s actually the only smart thing to do. Most organizations are drafting plans that allow them to return to “business as usual.” They are doomed to fail. There will be no returning to ways of operating that we have known in the past. Those who recover and thrive understand this and are seeking to reinvent.  This means that if you can respond to current demands in a way that also lays the groundwork for the envisioned future “normal,” you will have moved your organization ahead. Think about how regulatory and competitive environments in your industry may shift. Does this change your thinking around an action you might take so that you not only survive in the immediate, but you also pave the way to thrive?

You are positioned well right now to make change.

The fact is that managing change is never easy. But current conditions have placed the business world in a situation where all must take bold action and take it now. People are looking to make sense of today. They are seeking leaders who embody confidence and character, even if they don’t have all the answers yet. Employees are rallying to the cause as they work together in new ways to deliver service. Your customers are looking for the human part of your business presence and your support.

If you will look to the horizon toward anticipated and yet unseen vistas, while leading the organizational charge to move forward, your business will be primed to succeed.

The Clockwork of Excellent Leadership:   3 Essential Gears

What makes up excellent leadership? The essential components that go into leadership must all work together, or they begin to wear on one another and bring things to a stop. Learn how to keep them running like clockwork. Sign up to receive the  complimentary infographic.

© Patti Cotton and patticotton.com. All rights reserved. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express written permission from the author is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that attribution is made to Patti Cotton and patticotton.com, with links thereto.

Four Steps to Crisis Management

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Four Steps to Crisis Management
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Leading through crisis requires more of you – more energy, focus, and innovation.

Yet, sudden change generates great stress, which actively interferes with your ability to show up as you need to do.

How can you manage your emotions and thoughts effectively during this time so you can lead others through successfully?

Here are four steps that will help you tame stress and develop resilience during critical times so you can operate at your best.

1. Get grounded.

Making critical decisions requires a calm, sharp mind, able to keep all the pieces moving. How can you quickly ground yourself in critical moments?

  • Recognize emotions as useful.

Emotions are simply indicators that we need to pay attention. As you face a crucial conversation or decision, pause to ask yourself what emotions you are experiencing along with the situation.

What can these tell you?

This pause can help to regulate a “hot state” that can interfere with best thinking.

  • Unhook non-constructive thoughts.

What negative or non-constructive thoughts are you carrying with you during this time? Is there a “worry loop” that keeps playing in your head that does not serve you?

Reframe by replacing this with a different track each time the negative thought crosses your mind. This will lessen the stress that accompanies destructive thought patterns, and free you to make better decisions.

2. Create structure.

Structure promotes predictability, which reduces stress.

It is important for you to provide this for your team and organization – but you need to do so for yourself, first.

  • Prioritize what is important.

What is urgent vs. what is really important?

It is important to determine this, and revisit this on a daily basis. Make sure you schedule accordingly so urgencies don’t fill up your calendar.

  • Create a timeline.

This master document should have your priorities outlined so you can keep yourself and your team accountable. Revisit this on a weekly basis to adjust what needs shifting. Putting on paper what you need to keep in mind will free your mind to concentrate.

3. Stay connected.

Who are the industry and other business experts that can serve as a think tank for you? How can you transmit this information to your executive team so that they can work to capacity with you? Decide how you can curate what you need to share, then incorporate this into your briefings.

  • Lean on your life team.

Make sure you have a life team that you can reach out to, and that has your best interests in mind. Decide together how and when you will connect to support each other, especially during crisis. Having people in your life to whom you can turn and be vulnerable allows you to draw strength for the task before you.

4. Reflect, then act.

Recall other uncertain times to draw from the lessons learned there. This will help you know what to do when you aren’t sure what to do.

For example, look back to a past market crash, or other crisis for comparison. Identify patterns, connect the dots. Notice similarities and take your best shot.

Calculated risks to move forward in such times have proved much better than the risks from inaction or decisions made without these considerations.

One key thing to remember is that crises are usually temporary; but decisions made during a crisis can have permanent implications. Protect your ability to make good decisions by…

1. Getting grounded.
2. Creating structure.
3. Staying connected.
4. Reflecting, then acting.

© Patti Cotton and patticotton.com. All rights reserved. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express written permission from the author is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that attribution is made to Patti Cotton and patticotton.com, with links thereto.

Leading in a Time of Crisis

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Leading in a Time of Crisis
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We are faced in this moment with a crisis that stretches around the world. It is affecting every aspect of our personal and professional lives.

You, as a leader, are being tested with every fiber of your being. The work challenges you were dealing with a few weeks ago have been eclipsed or compounded by COVID-19 and its effects on your business.

How do you lead through this?

The real test of leadership – a leader’s behaviors and actions during a crisis – are what help a company to move through successfully. At this time, you are no doubt being asked to make critical decisions that affect the livelihoods of many.

How can you encourage confidence and stability to bring your people along as we move through this critical period?

1. Educate yourself and others.

Make sure you are aware of federal and state requirements vis-à-vis the current situation so that you are abiding by that which is requested. Additionally, seek trusted sources to learn more about how you can protect your employees, clients, and key stakeholders. Check in with these sources on a regular basis and ask your executive team to do the same. Make sure you are communicating well and often. Dealing with a crisis means that others need to hear from you often and with reassurance.

2. Check your attitude.

The way you see and approach the crisis is critical. It is difficult to use the word pandemic as I write, but we are currently experiencing one. Focus on the things you can control as you lead forward and check your language when talking with others to make sure you are not inciting panic, fear, or stress. Your attitude bears great weight and influences many. In the not-too-distant future, we will look back to see how we made it through. Lead with this in mind.

3. Exercise self-care.

Stress and anxiety can certainly soar during these times. Yet, frequenting public places to exercise and get self-care services may not be your first choice at this time. Think about replacing these rather than foregoing them. For example, if you feel uneasy about going to the gym, find some recorded videos for workouts at home. Avoiding spas or other self-care centers? Create your own spa experience at home with music, hot tub soak, and other ideas.

4. Be decisive.

As you and your team make critical decisions, move forward with conviction to take action. Don’t wait to be the last company on the block to make a move you know you should be making. Part of keeping the employee and client base calm and developing trust is sending a message of strength through taking precautions when you know you should.

5. Feed your executive team.

Don’t forget that your executive team needs increased connections with you during this time. Think about incorporating a daily huddle for updates, a weekly briefing with discussion around next steps forward, and frankly, even stopping by their office during the day to check and see how they are doing. Your team is carrying great weight with you, and they deserve the reminder that they are appreciated as they carry this responsibility. Where you cannot meet in person, collaborate virtually.

6. Stay connected with your life team.

These are the few close people in your life who care about you and who will be supportive and present for you. As a leader, it is hard to ask for this kind of support. It can be difficult to find people with whom you can share not only feelings of celebration, but also feelings of doubt and uncertainty. This is a time to call on your life team even more often to fill your own cup as you continue to care for the well-being of so many others.

© Patti Cotton and patticotton.com. All rights reserved. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express written permission from the author is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that attribution is made to Patti Cotton and patticotton.com, with links thereto.