Pay Attention! Part 1, Look Around!

Here is a skill set that every leader needs to develop in order to be effective, Situational Awareness. This includes paying attention to what’s happening around you while taking notice of what’s new and different as well as what hasn’t changed.

“You can observe a lot just by watching.” - Yogi Berra

Be, specific! B-E, specific!

People appreciate being noticed, particularly, by those they respect (there’s that “integrity commands respect” thing). Of all the tips and tricks given for maintaining good morale the act of saying “Thank you” is one of the best. If you’re paying attention to the work that’s being done, you are able to thank the individual or group for a specific task or job well done. On the other hand, generic thank you’s, or as I once heard repeatedly “Great Job,” can actually have the opposite effect. Let me illustrate.

Assume the role of a factory worker for a moment. You’re working the factory floor and struggling with getting the product specs within tolerance. The boss’s boss comes through, sees you hard at work, pats you on the back, and says “Great Job!” His credibility just took a hit because he didn’t notice you’ve spent the morning “producing” nothing but garbage. You’re a tad annoyed that he didn’t notice how hard you were struggling AND you now have to wait until he leaves before you can throw that inspection table full of out-of-spec product in the trash. On the other hand, if later that day, after you’ve fixed the issue and started producing good product, your boss comes by and says “thanks for your hard work in getting that issue resolved”, it makes you feel great.

Use the tool, don’t be one.

While you’re paying all this attention you need to be careful you don’t interfere. Micro-managers want to know every detail of what is going on so they can control it, but that is not what I’m implying. It’s tempting to want to meddle but resist the urge. Respect the chain-of-command, as well. With that being said, there may be times when you will have to step in. For example, if you see bad product being packaged for shipping you have to intercede, but know your place. In this case you could have the product set aside and request the shift supervisor send QA to have another look. This prevents bad product from leaving the building and keeps everyone in the loop. It also allows the appropriate supervisor to fix the issue and annotate the substandard performance, as well as provide some training for his supervisees.

As for the case against meddling, let’s just make up an example for argument’s sake. The guy you have in charge of the supply room has been working for months on a color coding system (his own initiative) in which to organize the supplies. You’re down there providing face time and chatting about what’s been going on in his world. He tells you about his color coding project and some of the issues he’s run into that he’s working to overcome. You decide to be “helpful” and suggest he could use a simple numbering system instead. No pressure, just a suggestion.

Do you see anything wrong with that scenario? I can tell you that if it were me and it was my color coding system, I’d never want to see that boss in my supply room again. At least not until I could prove how superior my color codes were working over any simple numbering system. Your reason for hanging out in the supply room was to keep lines of communication open, stay familiar with operations, and get a sense of how things are running in that work center. Possibly, you could have said, “That sounds fascinating, show me what you have so far.” This let’s him brag a little, lets you learn a little about how supply rooms are organized, and gives you an opportunity to offer a real suggestion if you find one to offer.

You want your people to brag about their work and show you what they’re doing. If sharing with you becomes a negative experience you’ve essentially shut down that communication. Don’t make sharing with you a risk. Remember, too, that any suggestions you make carry weight. The boss’s suggestion is not just a suggestion but an opportunity for them to hear an “I told you so” (even if you never say it out loud). Your suggestion may simply be meant to help them succeed but it could hinder their progress instead. Be judicious with any suggestions you make and be careful to couch them so they don’t cripple progress.

Get your hands dirty

Spending time in the trenches is one possible cure for the above scenario as well as many other communication related issues. Roll up your sleeves and help out during normal business events. Let the professionals working for you handle the complicated stuff but take on one of the simpler tasks. Helping with the grunt work puts you in the middle of things allowing you to observe the group when they’re in their element and have their hair down. They may remain a bit guarded in what they say or do but you’ll get closer to the truth of what their world is like than by any other method. You may not have a lot of time to spend doing this sort of thing but you should make it routine enough that they get comfortable with your presence.

The TV show “Undercover Boss” highlights just how out of touch some managers and executives are with what is happening below. We’ve all heard the joke that corporations are like a tree full of monkeys. The ones at the top look down and see a tree full of smiling faces looking up. The ones at the bottom look up and see a tree full of assholes. The CEO or Sr. Vice President might be a very nice person and want what’s best for the company but if they’re out of touch they can’t be effective in correcting problems happening below. They may be too aloof or too busy (either one is bullshit) to spend time rubbing elbows with those in the lower echelons of the organization but the amount of time spent in the trenches speaks volumes to me about the integrity and priority of the boss. As busy as a General is during a campaign, Patton took time to march alongside his troops.

...did you cut your hair?

Noting change, whether it’s big change, little change, or no change, let’s others know you notice. Don’t set yourself up to fail though. If you notice the normally messy supply closet is neat and organized make sure the transformation happened recently. The individual responsible doesn’t want to know it took you a year to notice. I realize everybody’s brain works differently so I can only speak to how mine works. The biggest way I note change is through constant exposure. When I worked in Facilities, or Buildings and Grounds, I made a point to take a “walk about” almost daily. I would end up visiting every project site, work center, and the current “areas of interest” no less than weekly. I would make a mental note about something in each area that impressed me. At the earliest possible convenience, I would strike up a conversation with those involved to get their take on how things were coming along. During the course of the conversation I would mention that item that impressed me. Maybe something as simple as the custodian taking the time and effort to strip the old wax off the edge of the floor where the buffer doesn’t reach. People tend to take direction more readily when they know you’re paying attention.

Breaking Bad(ly)

Break area at break time can provide a source of information on an informal level. Being human and approachable is constructive but being “one of the guys” typically isn’t. Having the boss hanging around the break area during break time can take all the relaxation out of a break. Having the boss show up occasionally during break time can offer your team an opportunity for some informal feedback. My experience taught me that showing up during break time typically extended the break time and wasn’t a good idea during busy times. I usually “dropped in” during slower periods when the group would be generally more relaxed. The ruse of seeking another cup of coffee would put me in the breakroom and the group demeanor would tell me if I should hang around.

And put it in our handy dandy… notebook?

Keeping notes on what you observe while you’re paying attention fills another vital role: your annual performance appraisal of each team member. Pulling together your notes on each individual every quarter will allow you to sit down with them and review their performance. Wouldn’t it be great if your boss told you several times a year that he thought you were doing a great job and then proved it with a list of your accomplishments? By basing those quarterly feedback sessions on the company’s annual performance appraisal format, you write their annual review over the course of the year. No surprises, lots of opportunity for performance improvement, and no insulting “Here, fill out your performance evaluation and have it back to me by the end of the week.” It will also allow you to differentiate between hiccups in performance and possible protracted morale/performance issues.

It is tough, amongst all the tasks and managerial responsibilities, to spend time paying attention. As a leader you have to know what’s happening around you. You need to have Situational Awareness, otherwise you’re clueless...a bit harsh, I know.

Destination and distraction, you need one despite the other.

In the realities of life there are many, varied circumstances that distract us and cloud our ability to see beyond the task at hand. These distracting circumstances keep us from taking the proper steps to deal effectively and efficiently with those very circumstances. It can become a vicious cycle. The only way out of this vicious cycle's ever tightening spiral is knowing where you're headed and knowing how you intend to get there.

As an example: you’re assigned the project of fitting up the marketing department with new office furniture. Sounds pretty straightforward: inventory what they have for furniture and order new replacements. We all know it's never that easy. Just think about replacing your refrigerator. The 25 year old model you have isn't made anymore and the new ones aren't the same size. Besides, your family needs a bigger one but the space in the kitchen where the old one was won't fit a bigger one. So, the dominoes start lining up. I think you get the idea.

Let’s enumerate some of the vast numbers of potential circumstances that can distract us from our prime objective. They steal our time, motivation, and attention. They must be seen for what they are: obstacles. Developing skill sets that allow you to deal effectively with these obstacles, whether through experience, training, or education, will increase your ability to reach your destination with the greatest amount of success.

Rarely do we get a team solely under our command and solely dedicated to one project. We have to share. This means competing time-lines, scheduling issues, and team members with more than one team leader (“a man cannot serve two masters…” Matt 6:24). Having a clearly defined destination and road map allows you to present a structured approach to your project which can often encourage your team to give your project the priority it needs.

Typically, projects are set in motion to affect change of some sort, whether to a system or an environment. If the objective is to promote the status quo, there’s no real project. People, in general, hate change. How many people you know buy a new computer and then rave about the new Microsoft Operating System it came with? I believe most of this hatred evolves from fear: fear of the unknown, fear of losing the comfort of status quo, or some other phobia. Whatever the cause of the fear, it will be a direct or indirect obstacle that I call fear of change. Let me illustrate:

One of the issues in the layout of your marketing department is the continued growth of paper files and need for additional storage space. Due to overall space limitations you can’t provide more room for additional filing cabinets. Scanning and storing them on an IT server is one option but IT has such a bureaucratic jungle in place it will take 10 lifetimes to make that happen. Using an alternate, more compact filing system is another option. Either one means change and that could be (and more than likely is) a sticking point with your customer.

While I’m making up hypothetical obstacles or distractions, let’s say the marketing department head doesn’t like you. No particular reason for the dislike, he just doesn’t. You may know this from subtle things he says like referring to you as “that F@#%ing guy with the beard” or some such indicator. You can’t let distracting obstacles hamper progress and mission failure is not an option. You have to press ahead as if there were no issue and more often than not the underlings are your primary contacts anyway. Even when seeking design approvals, someone usually steps up to act as an emissary. Not reacting to antagonism, nor trying to overcompensate, but remaining professional will earn the respect of the rest of the group and eventually that of the antagonist (maybe).

Sometimes your biggest obstacle to success is the individual who assigned you the project in the first place. He no sooner assigns you the project and then breaks out the shackles. So often I see managers who got their position for reasons other than their job competency or leadership ability. It shows when they are asked to make decisions. They focus more on the impact it will have on them with little to no regard for the impact it has on you or the customer.

As I said, your new design/layout cannot look like the old layout because it just won’t fit. Showing up in the boss’s office with a total redesign asking for approval is the quickest way to get a “NO.” You have to keep the approving authority appraised of the situation as you go. That appraisal process invites numerous opportunities for obstacles known as “Disapproval.” We had a cynical saying in the Air Force “Disapproved, resubmit in 90 days for further disapproval.” That is not what you need. You need rapid approval of each submission to make your overarching deadline.

I don’t believe in manipulation. I know it works for some people but I don’t think it’s honest and I feel you sacrifice your integrity when you use it. I do, however, feel that sometimes we have to become involved in sales. Finding what is important to your boss, such as cost or labor savings, and then frame the issue so he can view it from his priority. This can help sway a decision. By swaying a decision, I mean helping the boss make the right decision instead of some arbitrary bad decision.

Sometimes it helps to have the customer intercede. This works better if done as the initial sales pitch rather than after your initial pitch fails. The assumed expertise of the customer can add validity to the need for a design change and you’re less likely to hear “disapproved” followed by that parental “because I said so” (As kids we heard it and as parents we say it because it covers up arbitrary bad decisions).

If all else fails and the change is of enough significance to warrant the development of bad blood between you and your boss, you can use the chain of command. Take the idea to your boss’s boss. With the lack of integrity of today’s managers I find this a risky, high stakes gamble so it’s best saved for important causes with clearly defined reasons. I always tried to create a work environment that was free of this sort of pettiness but it’s human nature and will always exist to some degree.

So...if you’re going to lead you have to keep your eye on the prize, as it were. Clearly define that destination and map out the road to get there. It will help you identify the real priorities and see beyond the obstacles in your path.

Are you a leader?

You may have a clear destination and road map to get there but that doesn't make you a leader. You may be assigned to a leadership position within your group or organization but that doesn't make you a leader. So what does? What qualities can you identify within yourself that indicate your ability to lead? What qualities do I see in others that tell me they may have the potential to be a leader? Keep in mind two things. First, potential ability means you may need some training and mentoring. Second, leaders come in varying degrees of quality from "piss poor" to "great" with "good" being the cut-off for acceptable.

I have some simple assessment questions I ask myself when I'm looking for team leaders. With a bit of introspection you may be able to use them for your own self-assessment.

1. Do you know how to follow? Be honest and leave the excuses at the door. Do you do what you're told, when you're told, and how you're told to do it? Do you have an authority issue, rejecting any and all of those in authority for one reason or another?

Knowing how to follow is important since you need to know as a leader how your followers need to act. How do you know if you're being followed if you don't know what it looks like? How can you correct behavior if you don't know what it should be? More importantly, it gives you the knowledge of what they will need from you.

2. Do you see the bigger picture? You don't need the “Big Picture” view but you should be seeing things from at least a level or two up. How does your task fit into the team's project? How does your job fill a role in the company's business?

If your only focus is the task at hand, you're probably missing the bigger picture that is required to lead the rest of the group. How do you know if you're producing a usable product if you don't understand how it fits with the others? How do you explain each team member's role if you don't know how they all fit together?

3. Can you give clear, understandable directions? They don't necessarily have to be the most precise or direct directions but they have to be clear enough to follow. Ask yourself, how many times do I have to repeat myself when giving directions to my house? How often do I get that “deer in the headlights” look when explaining how something is done?

You may know something backwards and forwards and be very good at doing it. To lead others, you need to be more than just the subject expert. You need to know how to communicate your directions clearly to others so they understand. Try sitting down and writing step-by-step instructions for a simple task. Then ask a friend or colleague to perform the task based on your steps. This writing and observing exercise can be very instructive.

4. Can you delegate? This is actually a two-part question. First, are you willing to let others do the task and accept the results? Are you a control freak? Does everybody need to do it your way or the highway? Is your standard the only true perfect standard? Second, can you identify strengths, skill levels, and competencies in others well enough to assign the right job to the right person? When you see others, do you see individuals with their own special talents or just a group of drones?

You can't do the job all by yourself. If you can then the company's wasting money having the rest of the team on its payroll. You need your team. You're allowed to set and enforce standards. In fact, it should be a requirement. This only becomes a problem if you’re too big a control freak. Do you set and enforce standards and performance that meet your own peculiarities rather than the company's documented standards? Being able to recognize skills and talents in those around you enables you to delegate effectively. This is a higher level leadership skill but in its most rudimentary form is still a necessity for success. You don't see the starting pitcher for New York Mets batting cleanup.

5. Do you have integrity? You should have anticipated this one because it's at the core of the entire leader role. Without integrity, why would anyone trust what you tell them or have any desire to follow you? Without integrity, everything about you is suspect and needs to be second guessed, right?

From what I’ve observed, the biggest problem in the leaders of today is their lack of integrity. They don't support the mission of the organization first with self interest in the distant background. Selfish motivation, personal agendas, constant CYA (cover your butt) decisions, and so much more indicate a lack of integrity. Trying to cover up a mistake or padding your travel voucher are indicators you may have a problem. So, do some soul searching and examine the motives behind your decisions. True integrity commands respect. Something you’ll need as a leader.

If you don't know what integrity is or what it looks like, you have no business being a leader. Just saying...

In the Beginning...

The beginning always has to start by establishing a definition to reduce the prejudice of preconception on the part of the reader. In this case, I just want to simplify the idea of a leader and then expand it from there in future postings. So here it goes: A leader is the person in a group with the directions to a destination. He knows how to get where we're going-- so he leads, we follow. To be the leader you must fit this definition, no exceptions. Being out in front doesn't count for much if you don't know where you're going.

The only cross country race I ever won in high school was nearly jeopardized by the fact that I had no idea where I was going. I was leading the pack until the race's course left the dirt road and started down a poorly marked trail, then I was lost. I had to wait for someone from the home team (it was their course) to catch up and take the lead so I could follow. Fortunately, the trail led to another dirt road and I didn't need someone to lead me any further. My point is that being in front with people following you is worthless if you're not headed in the right direction. That's not being a leader; that's just being an egotistical nut case.

So much emphasis these days is placed on getting people to follow. Tips and tricks on motivating people to follow you are pointless if you don't possess a clear direction of where you're going. Shouldn't that be the main emphasis? Won't people who share the same destination goal naturally follow someone if that person knows precisely where he's headed and the best way to get there? Once you've mastered the where and how the rest will naturally follow. Maybe then you can explore the tips and tricks to upgrade your skill set and streamline your team's efforts in achieving the goal.

Let’s break for a moment to take time for a reality check and recognize those individuals whose situation, like so many of mine in the past, doesn't exactly fit the generic mold or case study for the purpose of leadership training. Such as people forced into leadership situations that aren't in the typical 9-5 arena or leaders without the resources to implement the ideas expressed here or elsewhere.

Example: As the team leader you're trying to develop a team goal but the department head lacks any meaningful direction for the department. He hasn't established anything useful to work from in regards to developing goals for your team. Work comes in, work goes out, and priorities constantly shift. It's a tough situation and it is my hope that I will speak to these kind of exceptions. It is frustrating to have a head full of great ideas and an environment bent on stifling them all. If you can't apply the ideas I express because they're too obscure or your environment doesn't seem to allow it give me feedback, ask questions...talk to me.

The fact is, more often than not, we are put into a position that requires us to lead but ignorance hamstrings our efforts. As Gunny Highway would say:

Improvise, adapt, overcome. 

 

There may be times when you’re put in charge of a project with no idea of what it is or what it's intended to accomplish but “tag, you're it.” The rules involved in the role of leader still apply, so you just have to put on your Gunny Highway hat and dive in. First things first, you've got to know where you're going. A destination is essential or you're going to end up traveling in circles in the woods rapidly running out of food and water. Initially, it may be an interim stop, a project benchmark, if you will, that you identify. This will get the ball rolling and the team moving forward but that's a very limited, short term fix. You must determine your final destination. You must.

The much talked about “big picture” is a great place to get started. That bird's-eye view that shows the trail from the trailhead to the campsite and back. Unlike a good forest service trail map, you may have to start with a blurry vision of your destination. Hopefully, your experience can tell you; where to look for answers, how to map a trail, and where some of the rougher terrain lies en route to that obscure destination, but you have to start drawing that big picture. You may need to focus on one piece of the trail at a time, preferably the next leg in your journey, but you should always keep in mind the purpose: you're painting a bigger picture. 

Also, don't forget about the team. Their expertise can provide a wealth of information. It may come in a bucket of seemingly disjointed, non-cohesive ideas but it's information you'll need. Your ultimate goal is defining the destination together with a clear map on how you intend to get there.

The flip side of the I'm-in-charge-but-clueless coin is I’m-not-in-charge-but-clueless-is. In this case, you're the one who possesses the knowledge of where you're headed and the precise directions on how to get there, but you're not the assigned leader. Best case scenario, Mr. Clueless is eager to learn and respectful. More often than not, he's pigheaded and egotistical. 

I've had both. The former was my most rewarding leadership experience; leading a team while mentoring the boss. On the other hand, the latter was the purest form of hell I've encountered to date. In any case the rules apply and, where you're able, you need to play the part. Mission failure should never be an option, no matter how frustrating the environment.

So my point is that to be a leader, to lead, you need a destination and directions to get there. This isn't a new or revolutionary concept but a simple fact. Business and government alike have poured tons of money and manpower into the development of mission statements, goal setting, and quality matrices (and metrics) in an effort to fill this need for destination and direction. 

My question to you is: Do they help you determine where you're headed and how you're going to get there? If not, why not? This is a subject I'll rant about some other day.