Your Meeting Habits Reveal Much about You

 

Yet another week, another calendar full of meetings. It can be easy to go through the motions of a daily stand-up or yet another debrief and forget that your contributions, level of engagement and facilitation or participation style in meetings can actually reveal a lot about who you are as a professional.

 

Experts wish professionals took meetings more seriously and learned about the science behind highly engaging, collaborative meetings.

 

There are three foundational areas that effective process leaders master: How to manage themselves so they don’t end up being the cause of a poorly-led meeting, how to manage the process so meetings flow and build logically towards achieving desired outcomes, and how to manage others to maximize participation.

 

Beyond helping you improve these three foundational areas, deconstructing your meeting habits can actually uncover fascinating information about your professional priorities and leadership style and even gear you up for greater career success.

Oftentimes, when you try to implement some of the mentioned elements, you may run into challenges. To resolve this very issue, I wrote my book "The Breakthrough Accelerator - Resolve your Biggest Challenge in 4 weeks"- Receive a Free download of this book by Clicking this Link

Keep in mind, there are three types of meeting leaders: content-focused, process-focused, or a hybrid of both.

The content-focused meeting leader tends to be ‘tell-oriented,’ specifically there to advocate, train, educate. This type of leader holds all the cards in terms of what ideas are put forward. A process-focused meeting leader is there to leverage the wisdom and ideas of meeting participants. They are ‘ask-oriented.’ They are there to ensure the meeting is structured to maximize the engagement of all participants and to ensure all voices are heard and considered. A hybrid meeting leader is excellent at moving back and forth between these roles, ensuring a good balance between telling and asking when required. Understanding where you fall within the spectrum of asking and telling can help you round out your weaknesses and maximize your strengths.

 

Your style may reveal much about you - Do you tend to hog the spotlight or are you focused on getting the best ideas out of the people around the table? Whatever your habits are, they might reveal traits that show up in your day-to-day work life way past the doors of a conference room.

A meeting leader mainly focused on content and tells most of the time tends to be a more ‘command and control’ type. They see themselves as the expert, as those who have the right ideas, and view the audience as not as important or relevant to tap into for alternative perspectives. A process-oriented meeting leader tends to facilitate and be collaborative, seeking out other opinions with the understanding that they may not have all the right answers.

 

Some meeting habits can actually have a negative impact on your career development. Here is a suggested list of meeting habits to avoid as much as possible if you want to get ahead:

 

·      Telling more than asking

·      Advocating policy, process, or organizational change without checking in with those affected and giving them some voice or allowing for venting

·      Having meetings where the purpose and outcomes are not clear

·      Dominating the meeting and swaying decision-making towards one’s own personal agenda

·      Being unclear about how much decision-making authority participants have

Ultimately, you can think of meeting dos and don’ts as an extension of the continuous practice of being an effective, impactful leader.

Leaders that are more facilitative tend to get the best buy-in and follow-through by their team members. This is easily explained by the fact that when my voice is heard, appreciated, and utilized in a final decision, I’m more likely to want to be part of fulfilling that decision.

On the other hand, when a meeting leader just tells and limits input from the meeting participants, most people disengage and feel less committed to the final outcomes.

Do these 3 Things Differently to Get that Promotion

Before envying co-workers, who seem to have it so easy when it comes to climbing the corporate ladder, pay attention to their habits. People who get promoted all the time don’t just get lucky. If you deconstruct their approach, you’ll notice there are replicable patterns in the way they perceive their worth, take action and interact with others. 

The ancient philosopher Plato said, “Excellence is not a gift, but a skill that takes practice. We achieve excellence by acting upon the practiced skills.” Let these wise words inspire you to learn from the things people who advance fast in their careers do differently so you can consistently apply these wisdom's in your own career and you will be reaching your goals in no time.

Oftentimes, when you try to implement some of the mentioned elements, you may run into challenges. To resolve this very issue, I wrote my book "The Breakthrough Accelerator - Resolve your Biggest Challenge in 4 weeks"- Receive a FREE download of this book by Clicking this Link 

Individuals with drive and out-of-the-box thinking do these three things in a unique way to get promoted and score promotions again & again -   

They Deeply understand their own value

 

Those who get promoted all the time understand their own value. It starts with our own assessment of self-worth. How secure do you feel about your skills and contributions? Are you super aware of your strengths as well as your areas of improvement? Having a profound understanding of what you bring to the table is the first step towards being the kind of person who scores promotion after promotion.

They ask before being offered 

Steve Jobs famously said the one thing that separates those who dream from those who achieve is the simple act of asking. A person who tends to get promoted tends to be the one who asks for it over someone who discounts themselves. Professionals who climb the corporate ladder at lightning speed don’t wait for their bosses to offer them advancement opportunities. They are proactive about their career development and are not afraid to regularly start conversations about new challenges and next steps.

They bring more solutions than problems 

People who get promoted make the job of their manager/director easy. They make themselves indispensable to the team or organization, but not as silent sufferers — as the ones who are bringing solutions and making their boss look good. More often than not, they are operating in the role that they want rather than the one that they have. Think two steps ahead, bring more solutions than problems and watch yourself become a magnet for career opportunities.

In conclusion, be the individual who moves fast and thinks on their feet. You have to be the kind of person who creates opportunities over and over again. This is what differentiates people who get promoted all the time from those who don’t. They seek opportunities out, they create them and when they do appear, they jump. More often than not, the difference came to the willingness to take a risk and act.

 

The Best Public Speakers all do this One Thing

Excellent public speakers come in all shapes and forms. Some people love interjecting humor and lightheartedness into serious topics. Others paint vivid pictures with their use of storytelling. Then there are those who will expertly open and close a loop with a metaphor and those who deliver complex information in a straightforward yet digestible manner. But one thing is for sure: Public speaking is a crucial skill for advancing your career — regardless of your style.

The skill and art of communicating effectively will be used in many areas of your career: running and participating in meetings, influencing and selling, networking with your peers, getting buy-in on an idea of yours or interviewing for new positions. From my years as a Business coach to Entrepreneurs and Businesses, I have seen the higher an individual progressed up the corporate ladder, the more meetings they would attend and facilitate. 

Whether you’re in a senior role and still struggle with the thought of public speaking or you’re just starting to get more involved in activities that require presenting and facilitating, developing your oral communication skills can only benefit your professional aspirations. And, since there is a vast array of advice on speaking, focusing on one important thing to improve can yield more impactful results than trying all the tips out there at once. Plus, it’s easy to get overwhelmed when trying to emulate all the different outstanding speakers of this world.

Oftentimes, when you try to implement some of the mentioned strategies, you may run into challenges. To resolve this very issue, I wrote my book "The Breakthrough Accelerator - Resolve your Biggest Challenge in 4 weeks"- Receive your Free download of my book by Clicking this Link

The no. 1 trait all the best public speakers share

The best trait a public speaker can possess is being relatable. Being relatable means being comfortable with who you are, which will help in terms of being authentic and uniquely yourself. A meeting in front of a board or a sales presentation will run so much smoother when you present or speak from the level of your audience without trying to come across as being better than anyone else in the room.

Spend some time watching different viral speech videos online and you’ll quickly notice that the most powerful speakers always find ways to be relatable to their audience — even when telling extraordinary stories or communicating expert advice.

Cultivating relatability

But how do you go about cultivating relatability? Showing up as your authentic self will help others relate to you. And when you are shaking and sweating and feel butterflies in your stomach, it can be challenging to be yourself. It helps to embrace your nerves and remembering that even the most seasoned speakers get stage fright. Make friends with nervousness because it’s not a sign you’re not good at speaking or unprepared. It’s normal and a natural reaction in your body.

It’s also important to remember that becoming an exceptional communicator requires practice. And the more you practice, the more confident you’ll become, which will in turn make you automatically more relatable. The skill of speaking is a lifelong practice. Each opportunity will enhance your skills and give you more confidence in your ability. Increased confidence will improve your relatability with your audience.

So, go ahead and get cracking on your next big speech (butterflies and all!).

Become Master Communicators

There are good communicators. And then there are amazing, outstanding, powerful communicators who will have you on the edge of your seat with their riveting delivery. But what makes the difference between a decent communicator and someone who will instill awe in the people they interact with?

There are several, sometimes subtle habits that master communicators have truly understood and leverage on a regular basis.

 

If you’re looking to elevate your own communication skills, adopting these habits will help you get to the next level. But it’s important to remember to be authentic and not try to be someone you’re not — it’s not about emulation but learning how to unleash your own strengths and style.

Oftentimes, when you try to implement some of the mentioned strategies, you may run into challenges. To resolve this very issue, I wrote my book "The Breakthrough Accelerator - Resolve your Biggest Challenge in 4 weeks"- Receive your Free download of my book by Clicking this Link

 

The tendency to lean in a particular direction is heavily influenced by personality type and this fact alone is often overlooked. When in doubt or ignorant about your communication style it’s easy to overcompensate or adopt a style that doesn’t suit you. The best communicators are comfortable in who they are and their personalities. They are able to authentically connect with their audience because they have first authentically connected with themself. However, if you’re ready to crush it while also staying true to yourself, here are a few pointers to level up your own communication game. 

Leverage your personal experience - There is a reason people say what is most personal is most universal. It turns out that your past experiences that don’t seem immediately relevant or some of the insights you learned the hard way can end up being your edge when transmitting the information. 

Continuously honing your craft and providing value - Master communicators love analyzing their communication habits, strengths, and areas of improvement. Some good communicators enjoy hearing themselves talk. But outstanding communicators transcend their own experience to focus on the experience of the audience they are addressing. They have a value-first mindset. 

Master communicators are amazing listeners - Here’s a secret about the best communicators: They sometimes spend more time listening than talking — and that’s what makes them excel when they do speak. In order to talk about things that are of the utmost importance to others, they have to first be able to form those thoughts. Those thoughts can come from spending adequate time receiving information from others, thinking deeply and being able to see what others are missing. 

So, you can breathe a sigh of relief knowing you don’t need to try to be like the very topmost expert communicators to nail your next presentation and you can forge your own path to create value and earn the respect of your clients and peers.

 

Time-Management tips for your Workplace

Time is our most precious resource. And whether you’re a high-powered executive or just starting your career as an intern, it doesn’t discriminate: We all have 24 hours in a day!

But, when the temperatures get warmer and the A/C is blasting in the office, those 24 hours all of a sudden seem even shorter. Even as a dedicated professional, you might find yourself longingly looking at the clock while trying to power through your tasks as fast as possible so you can head out and dive into the non-working half of your life.

 

The good thing is that depending on how you manage your resources, you can manipulate time and get the most of your working hours — and enjoy life outside of work to the fullest as well. Oftentimes, when you try to implement some of the mentioned elements, you may run into challenges. 

To resolve this very issue, I wrote my book "The Breakthrough Accelerator - Resolve your Biggest Challenge in 4 weeks"- Get your Free download of my book by Clicking this Link

 

So, before you dive in and enthusiastically adopt a new workflow, it’s important to embrace a couple of important mindset shifts.

 

First and foremost, you need to switch your thinking from time spent to results achieved. The most effective time-management tactics are about improving efficiencies and maximizing the impact of every minute spent — not all tasks and activities are even and every working hour is precious.

 

Keeping results at the forefront of your mind will help you get the most of any productivity method. Set the 80/20 rule which  states that 80 percent of results tend to be caused by 20 percent of efforts. Think of your most important project and its most crucial deliverables and outcomes. Are you spending most of your time on activities that move the needle towards the successful completion of that project? Or do you regularly get caught up in things like attending meetings with unclear agendas or answering emails?

 

Next, you must be willing to be real with yourself when it comes to the way you currently spend your time. Are you stuck in a spiral of over-commitment because you’re afraid of saying no? Do you tend to procrastinate or are you a multitasking addict? Assessing the present with honesty and humility is the first step towards building a schedule that allows for more freedom. 

Try time-blocking which is about dividing your calendar into blocks allocated to specific sets of activities. If you’ve got a lot on your plate, you can fight off that feeling of overwhelm by planning in advance how you want to split up your various activities throughout the week.

 

So, as long as you regularly check in with yourself and your productivity levels and are willing to focus on working smarter instead of harder, time management should be a piece of cake to enjoy (watch the calories though!).

New Face of Business during this Pandemic

If anything, maybe you too are getting tired of hearing the term ‘new normal.’ While many people took the pandemic day-by-day for a while, waiting for life as we knew it to circle back, the reality is we’re starting the third quarter of the year already. As many offices come up with contingency and re-opening plans, professionals reimagine job applying and interviewing via Zoom, and everyone adjusts to life through a COVID lens, it’s vital to accept that many aspects of conducting business may be impacted for the foreseeable future. Take, for instance, the handshake. Considering it’s not recommended to go within six feet of another human, greeting someone this way isn’t safe either.

So how will we network? What should be the business greeting for now? How can companies attract new business during this pandemic? There are some old and new truths that need to be embraced during this ‘new normal’ (that term again!).

Bowing and nodding could be the new handshake – try using symbolic gestures or mindfulness practices to replace the old handshake. One idea could be bowing, nodding or hand movements that are commonly used in yoga. If you’re familiar with conducting business in Asia, you know that bowing is already considered a way to illustrate respect, so carrying this custom to the west is an easy way to cross borders. Another option may be placing your hand over your heart as a way to say ‘hello’ when meeting a colleague from afar. While these shifts may feel strange to those accustomed to more traditional business environments, we have already seen how quickly social customs can change under challenging circumstances.

Oftentimes, when you try to implement some of the mentioned strategies, you may run into challenges. To resolve this very issue, I wrote my book "The Breakthrough Accelerator - Resolve your Biggest Challenge in 4 weeks"- Receive your Free download of my book by Clicking this Link

Video conferencing and networking on the rise - before 2020, video conferencing wasn’t widely used across all industries. But this year has made this skill that much more imperative. Even once we are able to congregate in person again, video is here to stay. Part of this is due to the versatility that it offers: connecting with your current employees in a personal way, screening possible candidates for opportunities without putting them at risk, or in the future, without requiring them to commute in, and so on. Pre-pandemic, did you frequently have lunch dates with friends? Or check-ins with mentors over a glass of wine or a cup of coffee? Those small touchpoints may not have seemed significant, but they challenged you to remain relevant within your field, and they still matter now but adapting those to not-in-person connections.

Having an online presence will become truly vital - your LinkedIn and online portfolio are in significant need of an update if you intend to land a job during this unpredictable time. Maintaining a substantial online presence will be important as people look for ways to validate who you are. For business professionals and Entrepreneurs, one should think of a few professional contacts who share similar interests and challenges and would be willing to show up regularly and set up a monthly catch-up with that group to share ideas and best practices for current times and network smartly.

Attention to Details as a Job Skill

 

If you’re in the job market, chances are you’ve come across plenty of job descriptions where the requirements say something like, “must have attention to detail,” or some iteration of that phrase. Some of you might even have this desirable quality listed as a punchy bullet point on your resume.
 
Attention to detail continues to top the list for desirable qualifications because it clearly sets up expectations on both sides. You know what a prospective employer wants, and said employer also knows what you can bring to the table. Employees who have exceptional attention to detail, frequently require less supervision, and they don’t tend to make costly mistakes.  
 
Oftentimes, when you try to implement some of the mentioned elements, you may run into challenges. To resolve this very issue, I wrote my book "The Breakthrough Accelerator - Resolve your Biggest Challenge in 4 weeks"- Receive a Free download of this book by Clicking this Link
 
According to experts, poor attention to detail not only impacts the individual but the organization as well. We live and work in a world where change and innovation are happening at a pace never before seen. It is easy to get sloppy when a lot is being thrown at you and where you are expected to make speedy decisions.
 
The result of not focusing enough attention on the details can be devastating professionally, and they will also have an impact on the company you work for. If “attention to detail” falls into your “weaknesses category”, and you skip over certain job descriptions for that reason, there are things you can do to improve it.
 
Get Organized 
 
Whether it’s your calendar, your emails, or even your desk, one of the first steps to sharpening your attention to detail is to get organized. Knowing what’s on your calendar for the week ahead will ensure that you don’t miss any important deadlines or meetings. Moreover, managing your inbox and clearing out digital clutter will allow you to prioritize what’s important. 
 

Make Lists 

This may sound like a cliché, no brainer because everyone does it — but that’s probably because it works. The good news is, it’s as easy as it sounds. Make a list of what you need to accomplish and check each item off as you complete it. And don’t think this is an amateur move. Everyone (even surgeons and pilots) needs a list, a well-designed checklist will lead to better outcomes.

Focus – Don’t Try To Multitask 

Attention is a finite internal resource, and research tells us time and again that multitasking is a myth and we’re not really good at it. While multitasking is often glorified, the truth is it splits our focus and diminishes our attention to detail. To maintain your focus, refer to your list (remember) and focus on one task at a time.