Patti Cotton

Executive Coach & Career Strategist

managing

3 Things a Leader in a New Role Needs to Know

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3 Things a Leader in a New Role Needs to Know

Congratulations!  You did it. You got the position, the title, and the salary telling you that you have arrived.

They gave you the team and the commission to change the world.

But did they tell you that you aren’t really in control?

That your hard-earned expertise is now for naught?

What do you do, now?

If you’ve done your research, you will have put together a game plan, and you are working on your “first 100 days” in office. You will be gathering and triaging information, building your new tribe, identifying short-term wins and long-term wins – the whole enchilada.

And this is absolutely necessary for so many reasons – you’ll be closely watched by those who chose you for the job. The two times they look most closely are during the first three months of your tenure, and at the end of your first year. A lot of judgment is going on. For you, these days are also critical – you need to quickly build trust with your team, identify and forge your operational network, and above all, avoid political landmines…

But – here are three things that you may not hear, and that you need to know right now:

1. What got you here won’t get you there.

You have been recognized for your success to this point. You were in charge of a certain area of responsibility, and that landscape has now changed. By extension, it’s important to know that your present knowledge base may no longer be useful – that the reasons for which they promoted you are not necessarily the reasons that will help you succeed, now. Your operational network – the network that helps you to get the job done – will now change. And even if you are highly skilled at spinning multiple plates, you will now need to develop the ability to manage the new, different pieces that this promotion brings. In short: ask yourself what the new pieces are – which are “need to manage,” “nice to manage,” and simply “nice to know.”  Keep it streamlined.

2. You aren’t in control – but you are in charge and therefore accountable.

It’s a changing world, and therefore a lot of external factors exist that you cannot control, both in the marketplace, and inside your company. Strategies and tactics will come and go as the company attempts to keep up and remain viable. To be successful so that you do your part to help the enterprise remain profitable and sustainable, you will need to re-examine your own beliefs and how you manage your environment. Why? Because at the end of the day, you can blame the externals for failure, but you are still accountable for what you did to help your area succeed. In short: don’t make any assumptions. Ask questions, stay abreast of trends and what is required to meet this – and ask yourself how this affects you, your team, and the company.

3. Your best game is only as accountable as your weakest link.

Get to know your team, its strategies and ways of operating, and be candid in asking them what has worked in the past, what has not worked, what could be better. Ask them where the team as a whole hesitates – what team behavior holds them back from their best envisioned performance. Ask them what tools and support they need to do their best work. Many team action plans are stuffed away in drawers, unused, because of counterproductive behaviors that keep these from reaching set goals. And many of these counterproductive behaviors are due to not having the resources and tools to do their best job. In short: find out what they feel they need to excel.

Here’s to a successful next professional chapter for you!

Patti Cotton helps executives optimize their effectiveness in leading self, others, and enterprises. Her areas of focus include confidence, leadership style, executive presence, effective communication, and masterful execution. With over 25 years of leadership experience, both stateside and abroad, Patti works with individuals, teams, and organizations across industries, providing executive coaching, leadership development, change, and conflict management. She is also a Fortune 500 speaker. For more information on how Patti Cotton can help you and your organization, click here.

When Your Team Member is Stuck in Story:

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When Your Team Member is Stuck in Story

Helping Them Take Back Control

Do you love stories? So do I!

Stories are entertaining – and they help us make meaning of our world.

Some of my favorite stories are of the Sherlock Holmes type, where solving the mystery to bring solution is key.

But some tales are frustrating, like the kind in which your employee seems stuck. This kind affects everyone on the team. It slows down productivity… energy… motivation…

Is one of your team members holding you hostage to the same script? If you hear any of the following lines on a regular basis, you need to help your team member turn the page:

  • I can’t because…

  • It will have to wait until…

  • That would be nice, but…

  • I would have/could have, but…

I am often called to coach teams, and once coached a small, but key team to help them perform at a higher level. The talents were there. The desire was there. But the numbers were down. And the energy was low.

At one point early on, I asked them to walk me through a current project to see how they would describe the process of working together. And we hit the jackpot.

Terry, Laurie, and Martin began laying out the pieces of the project, and shared who was responsible for which part of the whole. Then I asked them to draft a timeline to show me how this would happen, and at what pace. At a certain point in the process, Laurie revealed that she was “stuck in story” – that she was unable to work around a chronic issue to move at a more acceptable pace.

“I can’t meet that deadline, Terry, and you know it. It will have to wait until I complete my part of the Blue project we are currently working on.”

“Oh– you still have that piece to complete?” asked Terry.

Martin joined in. “Can’t we figure out a different way to pace these things?”

“It’s not that – it’s just all the interruptions I get during the day. I can’t just tell people to go away.”

At this point, I interrupted.

“Are you saying that the interruptions are what is holding you back from being able to complete your work in a more timely fashion?”

“Yes,” Laurie answered. “The guys here know that my office is the first on the hallway, and that I’m seen as point person for the team. That means people coming in and out all day.”

I turned to Terry and Martin. “How does this slow down what you are able to complete?”

“Are you kidding?” said Martin. “We are constantly telling leadership they will have to wait because of this.”

“Okay,” I answered. “So what’s the solution to this?”

“You mean to the interruptions?” asked Laurie. “There is none. Like I said, my office is first, we are asked to be responsive, and if it isn’t office visits, it’s e-mails and phone calls. All day. I could be much faster – but I can’t because of this.”

Laurie was stuck in her story – the story that she had to operate in a certain way because of her role, even though it held her work back – which held back the entire team.

It was time to rewrite her story.

“Laurie, let’s brainstorm,” I said. “We need Terry and Martin’s help, here. If you weren’t there in that office to field interruptions, what would happen?”

“Good grief, if they couldn’t find me, they’d barrage me with e-mails and phone calls on my cell.”

“Your cell?”  I asked. “Colleagues here call you on your cell for work questions?”

“Well, yes – if they can’t find me. They know they can chase me down on my cell. And then, the e-mails keep coming.”

“Laurie, what would happen if you turned off your cell and scheduled time twice daily to look at your e-mails?”

Terry sat up. “I said that months ago!” he said. “Why does the entire work floor have to hold you hostage, Laurie?”

“Hostage?” responded Laurie. “That sounds like I’m a prisoner.”

“Well,” I said, “The way you describe things, you have pretty much said so. I mean, you’ve said you cannot control it. But…”

“But, what?” she said.

“But – you can control yourself and what you choose to do with the barrage coming your way.”

“But if I do that, I’ll have piles of e-mails and calls to return – and that will put me farther behind.”

“Laurie, it sounds like people are depending on you to drop everything and help at any time,” I countered.

“Hey,” said Martin, “Patti’s right. Actually, you have a bunch of people who look to you to help them out all the time when it’s actually not your job or place.”

“Well…” Laurie got still. “I guess it’s true.”

“What are you getting out of fielding these cries for help all day long, Laurie?” I asked.

She got quiet.

“Laurie,” I moved forward gently, “Are you getting some satisfaction out of helping?”

“Well, yes,” she said. “And if I am honest with myself, I guess that most of it isn’t even related to our department. I know I said I was point person – but it’s much more than that. In truth, maybe it’s just a way to feel valuable.”

“Valuable?” asked Terry. “You think you aren’t valuable to our team?”

And then, our real work began. And although we had to do some deep work, it paid off.

I’m happy to report that a few months later, the team members were working at top performance, with all members understanding and appreciating each other’s value.

Don’t you love a story with happy ending? I certainly do!

Patti Cotton helps women executives optimize their effectiveness in leading self, others, and enterprises. Her areas of focus include confidence, leadership style, executive presence, effective communication, and masterful execution. With over 25 years of leadership experience, both stateside and abroad, Patti works with individuals, teams, and organizations across industries, providing executive coaching, women’s leadership development, change, and conflict management. She is also a Fortune 500 speaker. For more information on how Patti Cotton can help you and your organization, click here.

Pushing Beyond Success

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I worked with an impressive executive last year, whom I will call Jerry (not his real name). Jerry managed an area of responsibility generating more than $20 million in annual revenues, and top leadership was considering him to succeed the COO in future.

He reached out to me for help because he really wanted that position. “I’m ready for a new challenge,” he said. “I get bored easily when success becomes routine. Taking on the role of COO has been in my sights for some time.”

If the reader is thinking, “Boy, what an ego,” there may be an element of that. However, most people who desire to lead love to be challenged, and routine anything can quickly demotivate.

So Jerry had set his sights on this promotion.

There was just one problem. Jerry wasn’t ready.

Jerry was leaving money on the table within his current responsibility, and he’d known it for a while. The company should have noticed, too, as they considered him in future planning.

You see, Jerry’s current team had worked with him for almost 10 years, and they knew how to work with him to get things done. And they’d always hit their mark of $20 million. Always. But the needle hadn’t moved for 10 years.

How could Jerry be effective in a larger role if he didn’t know how to maximize the current potential in front of him?

When Jerry and I sat down, he shared his revenue projections and showed the potential in additional market share. He shared his team’s roles and responsibilities and current strategies. He said they were all super people who knew how to do their jobs very well. But he didn’t know how to break through the $20 million mark.

How could he get his team to perform at even higher levels?

So I asked if I could sit in on one of his team meetings as they examined the gap and the potential.

After the meeting, Jerry and I sat down. “I believe I’ve identified a key problem,” I said. “And it’s not your team. Jerry. Before we look at your team’s performance, we need to talk about widening your personal perspective. We need to talk about some deep listening.”

“Deep listening?” he reared back. “Isn’t that for coaches and therapists?”

“Jerry, you have helped this company realize great success through what you have done with this team. But the money you are leaving on the table is not the team’s fault. Here’s what I heard in your meeting:  three ideas from your team members that you discounted immediately. You told them why it wouldn’t work. I’m frankly surprised they are still coming up with ideas for you when you ask!  And here’s what I didn’t hear – ‘I’m listening – tell me more. How might that work?’ You simply aren’t allowing your team to participate.”

Jerry paused. “You mean I’m responsible for keeping this team stuck? I’m personally responsible for not generating more revenue?”

I nodded. “The strategies you have taken have gotten you this far – but they aren’t taking you any farther. You have an amazing team!  But you aren’t allowing them to contribute. You aren’t tapping into your team’s perspectives and considering their ideas – new ideas that may likely take you far. You have a choice, here – either continue to do the same thing and get the same results, or allow your team in.”

Of course, this first conversation was just a door-opener. Working with Jerry to widen his perspective, to help him peel off of black-and-white thinking, took longer, because old habits die hard. And we did look at team performance together, as we worked on developing his ability to listen and consider new points of view.

But in the end, it did pay off. After working with Jerry and his team for just 6 months, they began to capture additional market share and increase their revenues.

“It’s funny,” Jerry said later on. “I have a much greater rapport with my team. We enjoy each other more. Work has become fun instead of tense, even though we are performing at higher levels. I guess allowing others in to contribute really pays off.”

I love that deep listening.

Patti Cotton helps women executives optimize their effectiveness in leading self, others, and enterprises. Her areas of focus include confidence, leadership style, executive presence, effective communication, and masterful execution. With over 25 years of leadership experience, both stateside and abroad, Patti works with individuals, teams, and organizations across industries, providing executive coaching, women’s leadership development, change, and conflict management. She is also a Fortune 500 speaker. For more information on how Patti Cotton can help you and your organization, click here.

Is Your Personal Mission Holding the Company Back?

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You have a clear sense of mission, and you are values-driven. And because of these, you’ve contributed great things to your organization or business.

But lately, you’ve sensed some tension. As the company continues to grow, you are getting directives from the top, and they don’t align with what you know to be working. Further, others on the team are jostling around with some ideas that are outside the box.

What’s wrong? Do these people just not know how to stick with a plan? What’s the problem?

Cynthia called for my help when she intuited that her team was restless. “I’m getting a lot of pushback about our annual plan,” she said. “It’s worked quite well for us and I’m not about to let a couple of people who want more power upset things.”

“Tell me more, Cynthia,” I countered. “Are these two team members the only ones pushing back?”

“Well, no,” she admitted. “My board has brought in some out-of-the-box ideas lately – but you know how boards are – they read something or hear something, and suddenly it’s the answer to everything. But it’s happening more and more.”

I did a little more investigating and learned that, six years prior, Cynthia had been first pick for this leadership role. She had shown herself adept at putting a team and plan together that produced amazing results wherever she was assigned, and had been promoted three times within the last 10 years because of this prowess. Each time, she reached or exceeded the goals set for her.

But in this new role, Cynthia had found a breaking point. Her ability to lead team and satisfy top leadership was diminishing. Even though she was firm in her own ability to succeed, the feedback she was getting was frustrating.

After carefully talking through where the company was headed and how she approached her work, we sat down together.

“Cynthia, I’d like for you to remain open to what I have to say, so that we can explore this together. You’ve succeeded in a lot of areas within this company and at others. You have a great ability to form a team and a plan and to produce extraordinary results. But you have hit a roadblock. It isn’t your team. And it isn’t your board.”

“Are you saying it’s me?” Cynthia looked shocked.

“Well…here is what I’m observing. You are accomplished, you know what you are about, you are confident in handling whatever is thrown your way. You’ve always had a clear sense of personal mission that has done great service to the organization well. This has served you well up to recent times – but it’s now getting in your way. It looks like you are having trouble dealing with some of the complex cross-cultural situations the company is now facing due to expansion in China and Europe. And it appears that this tension is due to a firm attachment to your personal mission.”

“My personal mission?”

“Yes, your personal mission. Cynthia, you have a clear picture of who you are and what you are about. You have a firm direction and lead from a set of wonderful values. The problem is, the company has grown more complex, and your personal mission – the picture of how you will lead and deal with issues – has been left behind.

Cynthia looked stunned. “Are you calling me inflexible?”

“Let’s just say that we need to work on your leadership agility,” I countered. “This is not uncommon. In a complex, changing business world, acquiring agility is key. You are fielding a lot of changes, both culturally and organizationally. And you deserve to step into more success.”

Leadership agility is the ability to take effective action in complex, rapidly changing conditions. It requires that we let go of what has worked in the past, and ask ourselves what will work, now. It requires stepping out of an “expert mindset” and into that of a “learner mindset.”  It means asking questions, being open to different perspectives.

Agility requires that you are able to see connections everywhere, looking at an issue from multiple angles and seeing the ways that different perspectives overlap. This exercise in itself opens the mind to seeing more possibility. Or more simply put, you get yourself out of the weeds in order to see more clearly.

Have you been called inflexible, or is your leadership being questioned lately?

It may be time to revisit your belief around your personal mission – how you will lead process, involve others, produce, and all other aspects of your leadership.

For more on developing leaders for a complex world, see Jennifer Garvey Berger’s book, Changing on the Job:  Developing Leaders for a Complex World

Patti Cotton helps women executives optimize their effectiveness in leading self, others, and enterprises. Her areas of focus include confidence, leadership style, executive presence, effective communication, and masterful execution. With over 25 years of leadership experience, both stateside and abroad, Patti works with individuals, teams, and organizations across industries, providing executive coaching, women’s leadership development, change, and conflict management. She is also a Fortune 500 speaker. For more information on how Patti Cotton can help you and your organization, click here.

The Problem with Women Rising Above

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Monkey See, Monkey Do

You probably remember the old saying, “Monkey see, monkey do!”

The reference to monkeys is because researchers have noted that when one monkey sees another monkey do something, it quite often does likewise. So we use this old saying when describing the foolishness of one person mimicking another without thinking.

And although you may think that this occurs only with children, or because of a lack of sound reasoning skills, there is actually a scientific explanation as to why all of us do this to a certain extent without knowing it.

In fact, your ability to lead is probably being affected right now.

How can you identify where this is happening, and stop it from compromising your effectiveness?

First, it’s necessary to understand why we copy each other without realizing it.

We are social beings, and Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy has been revised in recent years to reflect that at the foundation of the pyramid is the need to belong. This means that we are wired and hungry to connect and collaborate as a part of a larger body or group.

To help us do just that, our brains are actually wired to act as “social glue” so that we can empathize and connect. Researchers have observed that the mirror neurons, specialized cells in the brain, facilitate this at a subconscious level.

The problem is, that as we seek to connect, empathize, and to belong, we can meld into larger group dynamics. We can blend into the tribe without realizing it and adopt behaviors and mindsets that don’t serve us well.

Think about it. Reflect on the five people with whom you surround yourself on a daily basis. Not necessarily those with whom you feel a particular closeness, but people with whom you are in contact, such as colleagues, co-workers.

A quick assessment will show you whether you are in the right place or not:

  1. Where are members of your group headed – somewhere, or nowhere? Are these people action-oriented and goal-focused, or are they wishing and hoping their career or life would change?
  2. How do these people govern themselves? Are they values-driven, directional, and proactive – or reactive to and blaming the world around them?
  3. What does the group language reflect? Is there a positive tone, or one of negativity?
  4. What does the group focus reveal? Is the focus on the world around them and how to contribute to make it even better – or are they playing “auditory sitcom,” where they talk mainly about other people and situations?
  5. Who is the weakest link in the chain within the group? Surprisingly, this is the one who has the most power to hold the group right where it is – stuck.

If, after diligent assessment, you see room for improvement, as yourself – what are you going to do about this? You can either sink back into complacency – or move the needle by making some game-changing choices.

Up to you – what’s your next move?

Patti Cotton helps women executives optimize their effectiveness in leading self, others, and enterprises. Her areas of focus include confidence, leadership style, executive presence, effective communication, and masterful execution. With over 25 years of leadership experience, both stateside and abroad, Patti works with individuals, teams, and organizations across industries, providing executive coaching, women’s leadership development, change, and conflict management. She is also a Fortune 500 speaker. For more information on how Patti Cotton can help you and your organization, click here.