Coach2Coach : Messages : 353-382 of 676

Drafted by Thomas Jefferson between June 11 and June 28, 1776, the Declaration of Independence is at once the nation's most cherished symbol of liberty.

The political philosophy of the Declaration was not new; its ideals of individual liberty had already been expressed by John Locke and the Continental philosophers. What Jefferson did was to summarize this philosophy in "self-evident truths" and set forth a list of grievances against the King in order to justify before the world the breaking of ties between the colonies and the mother country.

Keep in mind that everyone who signed the Declaration was putting his head in a noose. When our Founders pledged their lives, their fortunes and their sacred honor, that wasn't just rhetoric. They were up against the greatest military power on earth and had very little military experience. They had no money--there wasn't a bank in all of America in 1776. And no colonial people had ever successfully revolted against the mother country. Everything was against them.

Only about a third of the country supported the Revolution. Another third was opposed--the Loyalists or Tories, who saw themselves as the true patriots because they were standing by their King. The remaining third, in the human way, were waiting to see who won.

When the Founders wrote in the Declaration of Independence about "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness," what they meant by "happiness" wasn't longer vacations or more material goods. They were talking about the enlargement of the human experience through the life of the mind and the life of the spirit. And they knew that the system of government they were setting up wouldn't work if the people weren't educated. "If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization," Jefferson wrote, "it expects what never was and never will be."

Jefferson and John Adams, who more than anyone got the Continental Congress to vote for the Declaration, served their new country well and then died on the same day, each in his own bed, surrounded by his books. And it wasn't just any day. It was the 4th of July, 50 years after the Declaration of Independence. People at the time saw it as the clearest sign imaginable that the hand of God was involved with the destiny of the United States--and who could blame them?

Source: Abstracted from a public lecture delivered at Hillsdale College on March 31, 2006 by David McCullough who was born in 1933 in Pittsburgh, PA, and was educated there and at Yale University. Mr. McCullough is the author of 1776, John Adams, Truman, Brave Companions, The Path Between the Seas, Mornings on Horseback, The Great Bridge and The Johnstown Flood. He has twice received the Pulitzer Prize and twice the National Book Award.

Multi-Rater (360-degree) Feedback Tips

The purpose of any performance management system should be to guide the individual employee and groups toward desired outcomes, provide reinforcement and supply corrective feedback for making adjustments.

The 360-degree feedback report gives participants a fair and well-rounded impression of how others view their work. When the person who is rated agrees to share the results of this multi-rater assessment with management, the supervisor gets an overall perspective about the individual�s skills/abilities in order to facilitate process improvement, remove barriers to success and acquire needed resources. Feedback is provided from multiple sources (raters) including self, boss, peers, direct reports, and, in some cases, customers and suppliers.

Why use Multi-Rater assessments in the Executive Coaching?

Allows the person being coached to gain perspectives from others in an objective, non-threatening, confidential manner.
Provides the individual with data for self-reflection and self-awareness.
Assists in identifying individual development needs and action items.
Helps surface patterns of behavior, especially when used in conjunction with other assessment tools during the coaching process.
Provides a platform for dialogue between the outside coach and the executive.

Tips When Selecting a Multi-Rater Instrument

Research validity, design and intended use/audience of assessment.
Determine additional development tools and complimentary assessments available through assessment tool vendors. Note: It is not recommended to start out with a 360-degree assessment in the self-awareness process. Before taking the 360-degree feedback assessment, allow the person being rated to get a feel for their strengths and behavioral tendencies using one or more other self-assessment tools.
Understand the cost of the instrument (often there is a processing charge per report and/or number of raters).
Review layout and ease of understanding 360-degree feedback report.
Check to see if a certification process is required to interpret report to the person being rated.

Tips for Ensuring Success When Utilizing a Multi-Rater Process

Fully understand the dimensions the 360-degree feedback is measuring and how to interpret the meaning of the results to the person being rated.
Allow the person being rated to select the �raters� with guidance from the coach or the corporate HR representative. Selected raters should be individuals who:
Have observed the performance of the person being rated on a regular basis.
Have first-hand knowledge of the person being rated's work behaviors.
Have worked/interacted with the person being rated for a minimum of 6-months.
Are open to providing honest and accurate feedback � both positive and developmental.
In order to protect the anonymity of individuals and maintain the credibility of the instrument, a minimum of three raters should be used for each category except boss.
Make sure a process has been established to protect the confidentiality of the process.
Incorporate results of the 360-feedback with other assessments used as part of a development/action plan.

Proper Implementation of Multi-Rater Assessments is Critical to Success

When the person being reviewed knows that the 360-degree feedback results are meant solely for his or her personal development (and will not be shared with others within the company without his or her permission), he or she will carefully compare their self-ratings with all the other respondent ratings. When there is a significant gap between the self and respondent ratings, the rated employee will usually swallow that bitter pill and almost immediately develop a personal strategy to get back on track.

However, if the person being rated is not ready to accept this powerful 360-degree feedback and/or learns that his or her results have been shared with others without permission, trust in management will be lost and negative performance or even employee-driven legal action can result.

With proper implementation policies and procedures, the 360-degree feedback from multiple work associates can be highly motivating. Used as a springboard for professional growth, the multi-rater assessments can make a powerful impact on an individual�s career by focusing work effort on company goals. Applying this valuable 360-degree feedback information, participants can continuously improve their leadership and management effectiveness.

Developing a Moral Compass

While on our life journey, we each need an internal compass as a way to deal with tension and change both in business and in our lives.

Ethical sensitivity is a state of mind and needs to be developed. As we work out our intangible assumptions/beliefs, values, vision and guiding principles, we will create better tangible business plans that will be tested by others; each test is an opportunity to learn and grow.

A new book, Living into Leadership by Bowen H. ("Buzz") McCoy (Stanford Business Books), tells us that if we don't intentionally choose ethical models, both personal and intellectual for our behavior, our journey will continually be subjected to the winds and tides of the moment. When the good people are unwilling to speak out and be counted, the bad people drive the day. Groups of individuals, organizations, and even society itself can be defined by their ethical code.

A problem is that most of us are not trained in ethics, nor are many of us exposed to deep ethical discussions on a regular basis. Business and economics education in general is oriented toward winning--maximizing profits, optimizing outcomes and prevailing over competition. The emphasis on outcomes rather than values tends to create an impression that issues of ethics, spirituality or religion are inappropriate in a business situation. As a former corporate executive, business owner and management consultant, I understand that in the business world, we don't speak much about the heart. Yet, since all businesses are ultimately people serving people, our life's work should come from the heart. Long after your products or services have been delivered, the feelings and knowledge shared during the business relationship remain.

A key task of a business leader is to get inside the ethical culture of the organization. Individuals will be far more productive if they can align their personal values with those of the enterprise. The most difficult challenge for a leader is to change that culture if appropriate, especially when the values are deeply entrenched. Without having a core ethic in place, a leader cannot successfully create a valid ethic for the business and the employees who make the business work.

Click for ordering Living into Leadership: becoming a more effective leader

The Power of Perception

Consumers are flooded by corporate marketing campaigns linking to social issues.

Indeed, the public now expects just about every company to be allied with a cause, according to Carol Cone, whose brand-strategy firm recently conducted a survey on cause-related marketing. The best corporate reputation belongs to Microsoft Corporation, according to one of the oldest and most respected indexes from Delahaye. It's top spot is cemented by its well-publicized philanthropy.

A more sophisticated understanding of the power of perception is starting to take hold among savvy corporations. More are finding that the way in which the outside world expects a company to behave and perform can be its most important asset. A company's reputation for being able to deliver growth, attract top talent, and avoid ethical mishaps can account for much of the 30%-to-70% gap between the book value of most companies and their market capitalizations.

A company's message must be grounded in reality and its reputation is built over years. In the late 1990s, investors began to recognize reputation was in part responsible for the sky-high market values of the likes of Cisco Systems and Amazon.com Inc., companies with relatively few brick-and-mortar assets such as factories, machines and real estate.

Interest really took off after the tech bust and accounting scandals of 2001, which made investors more aware of risks if a company's reputation is trashed by governance and leadership lapses. Companies also realized their shares were increasingly vulnerable to negative publicity over employee and social practices.

Reputation is a big reason Johnson & Johnson trades at a much higher price-earnings ratio than Pfizer, Procter & Gamble than Unilever and Exxon Mobil than Royal Dutch Shell. And while the value of a reputation is vastly less tangible than property, revenue or cash, more experts are arguing it is possible not only to quantify it but even to predict how image changes in specific areas will harm or hurt the share price.

Source: BusinessWeek, July 9, 2007

Growing Your Nest Egg?

Are you getting the right advice about your 401(k)?

If you hope to retire early, you need your company retirement account to earn as much as possible as quickly as possible without taking big risks. More employees are hiring outside advisors to help them manage their 401(k)s, says David Wray, president of the Profit Sharing/401(k) Council of America. These personal planners offer much more customized attention than the educational material, interactive Websites, 24-hour help lines and even third-party consultants.

Jim Kruzan, head of Kaydan Group of Clarkston, MI, says, "An early retiree probably shouldn't have much invested in cash just as he's about to leave the company. A good chunk of that money has to last another 30 to 35 years, so the portfolio still needs plenty of growth."

If you're thinking of springing for a 401(k) advisor out of your own pocket, use these questions to help find one who's right for you:

1. How well does the advisor know your plan? Ideally the person should be familiar with or willing to learn about how your 401(k) works and the investment choices available.

2. How will your adviser find the right investment mix for you? Smart asset allocation and consistent rebalancing are the main investing strategies that can make early retirement a reality.

3. How closely will the adviser monitor your plan? Through the Internet, 401(k) investors can keep an eye on their account daily if they so choose. Your advisor should be watching regularly, too, and sending you alerts if you need to rebalance or make other changes. In most cases, advisers do not actually make the trades, but rather notify you, then follow up to be sure you've pulled the trigger.

Source: BusinessWeek, July 9, 2007

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#354

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Wed Jul 11, 2007 4:39 pm
Subject: Newsletter---Technology Updates

johnagno

Send Email

Here is your Coach to Coach Network (C2CN) Newsletter:

What is Web 2.0?

Birthing of the semantic Web

Eco-Awareness

Getting Serious About Tech Transfer

The Laws of Golf

If you enjoy and learn from this newsletter's content, please tell others about it. www.Coach2Coach.info

What is Web 2.0?

A core trait of Web 2.0 is the delivering of technical, primarily software, services using a subscription-based model, often with a "lite" or introductory version at no cost to the user.

Web 2.0 services are designed to scale in a cost-effective way and eliminate the need for packaged software on user's computer. This has changed how we share, consume, collaborate, evaluate, purchase, pay and market online. The trends and user behaviors manifest themselves under a variety of acronyms: blogging, tagging, user-generated content, RSS, syndications, the read/write Web, mashup, podcasting, community-based support, social search, and Web services. Taken together, they are this new Web 2.0.

The greatest impact of Web 2.0 comes from adopting browser-based non-infrastructure dependent applications to achieve value that is equivalent to, if not greater than, pricier integrated business management applications which traditionally had to be purchased and run in house.

Here are common Web 2.0 terms to know:

A blog (short for web log) is a user-generated website where entries are made in journal style and displayed in a reverse chronological order.

RSS is a family of web feed formats used to publish frequently updated content, such as blogs, news feeds or podcasts.

Web syndication is a form of syndication in which a section of a website is made available to other sites to use.

A mashup is a website or application that combines content from more than one source into an integrated experience.

A podcast is a digital media file, or a series of such files, that is distributed over the Internet using syndication feeds, for playback on portable media players and personal computers.

Source: Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, en.wikipedia.org

Before Web 2.0 After Web 2.0

Personal Web pages Blogs

Web portals RSS

Software licenses Software as a service

Banner impressions Cost per click

DoubleClick Google AdSense

Mass media Sliver niche media

Closed content User-generated content

Eco-Awareness

Recently, I attended a TechKnow: Alternative Fuel Cars forum on the University of Michigan campus where automotive industry experts, including engineering managers from automotive OEMs (Toyota, GM, and Ford) briefed us on the status of hybrid and alternative fueled vehicles along with forecasts of fuel sources. For more on the forum, go to: www.techknowforums.org

The United States is a country unlike others in the world where government and industry work together to develop products that can be sold globally. For example, in Japan automotive manufacturers, suppliers and government researchers have been actively co-funding the research and development of commercial hybrid vehicles for over 25 years. Whereas, the US government has been more interested in funding the global policing of Middle Eastern religious wars than working with the automotive industry to make US products more globally competitive. Today, the US Congress debates raising the fuel economy standards---as their current answer to forcing US automotive manufacturers to be more fuel efficient and globally competitive. "There are all kinds of dire warnings. The fact of the matter is that Detroit has done nothing about mileage efficiency for the past 20 years and the time has come," said Senator Dianne Feinstein.

One significant question raised for discussion at the TechKnow Forum was how knowledgeable and motivated automotive consumers would be as these new eco-vehicles are mass produced and available for worldwide purchase? Would mainstream automotive buyers continue to buy large energy consuming vehicles rather than more fuel-efficient and kinder-to-the-environment eco-vehicles? If the price of gasoline slides back down to below $2.50 per gallon, will large gas-guzzling SUVs again become hot sellers while eco-vehicles sit on the sales lot?

The hope is that people across the globe will recognize that global warming is a life and death issue for future generations and that we must take necessary steps to change our automotive purchasing and usage behaviors to conserve the Earth's natural resources. To make this hope a reality will require a huge change in the way 'we see our world.'

When we become attuned to the many voices of the natural world, this communion instills a transformative reverence for life.

The experience of interconnectedness contains a paradox---for we sense not just the profound beauty of life but also the pandemic of human violence and the existential anxiety that it causes.

For the most part, the human species has lived peacefully for 98 percent of our evolutionary time on Earth. Archaeological evidence suggests that until a few thousand years ago, we lived in nature-based cultures that revered life. Neolithic villages arose 12,000 years ago along with the domestication of plants and animals that gave rise to agriculture. Many scholars believe that life-affirming practices, equality between men and women, and the absence of warfare were also common before and during the Neolithic period. They argue that the Indo-European and Semitic invasions beginning 6,000 years ago mark the onset of the dominator warrior cults of Europe, the Middle East and North Africa.

Both historically and today the moderate incidents of violence found in nature-based cultures stand to sharp contrast to estimates that in the last two centuries 191 million people have died in wars and another 262 million have been killed through "democide"--the killing by government (see Death by Government by R.J. Rummel: Transaction, 1994). Such distorted models of governance are the major sources of global violence, oppression and consequent trauma in the world today.

The American Psychiatric Association (APA) made posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) a diagnostic category in 1980 with the publication of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders III. This is when the effects of trauma upon veterans of war were brought into the mainstream culture, along with other 'direct traumas' such as sexual and domestic violence.

Most Western psychological models and practices reflect our individualistic worldview and alienation from life. They are not ecologically grounded. To begin healing what is broken in ourselves and in our relations to the natural world, we need to see and feel what is within us and all around us. Not perceiving the sacred presence of nature and not experiencing oneself as interconnected with life is arguably the greatest threat facing the Earth today.

Sources: The Associated Press and The Eco-Trauma and Eco-Recovery of Being by Tina Amorok in SHIFT: At the Frontiers of Consciousness, June, 2007

Getting Serious About Tech Transfer

Although the value of university research has been evident ever since a University of California biochemist co-founded Genentech Inc. in 1976, much of American higher education is still struggling to transform ideas into cash.

Brain-power isn't the problem nor is a scarcity of funding. University-based research spending has jumped nearly 45% since 2000, to $42.3 billion in fiscal 2005, according to the Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) survey. Yet, the pool of university money earned from license fees has risen at half that pace, to $1.6 billion, excluding lumpsum payments. Half of the universities in the survey have fewer than six people in tech transfer.

The University of Florida is best known as a sports juggernaut but the university whizzed past all the rest of the 228 AUTM survey respondents, including such better endowed universities as John Hopkins and Harvard. The payoff is tangible: Florida's license income jumped from $11 million 10 years earlier to $40.3 million, more even than MIT or Caltech. Its office of technology licensing is now a profit center. The licensing office has an annual budget of $5 million and plays matchmaker, chasing down investors and executives who might be interested in commercializing their inventions. The out-of-nowhere success at Florida shows there are effective ways to attract capital and nurture campus-born technology industries.

The rise is the result of a change in strategy, which boils down to treating intellectual property like merchandise and then marketing these products to targeted customers. In a break from conventional wisdom, the university also shuns its own inventors when it comes to running startups, relying instead on hired guns who have proved they can make a go of business.

Florida chose to go after small businesses that don't require blockbusters to thrive. And it linked up with two underutilized business incubators in metro Gainesville to provide subsidized homes for these just-born businesses. The university's Sid Martin Biotechnology Incubator, a 40,000-sq. ft. facility, outfitted with 19 wet labs and $1 million in gear, is fully occupied today by a dozen startups.

Ross C. DeVol, an economist at the Milken Institute in Santa Monica, CA, warns: "If universities don't get actively involved in technology transfer, there are so many others around the world who will, and will be more successful."

Source: BusinessWeek, May 21, 2007

The Laws of Golf

LAW 1: No matter how bad your last shot was, the worst is yet to come. This law does not expire on the 18th hole, since it has the supernatural tendency to extend over the course of a tournament, a summer and, eventually, a lifetime.

LAW 2: Your best round of golf will be followed almost immediately by your worst round ever. The probability of the latter increases with the number of people you tell about the former.

LAW 3: Brand new golf balls are water-magnetic. Though this cannot be proven in the lab, it is a known fact that the more expensive the golf ball, the greater its attraction to water.

LAW 4: Golf balls never bounce off of trees back into play. If one does, the tree is breaking a law of the universe and should be cut down.

LAW 5: No matter what causes a golfer to muff a shot, all his playing partners must solemnly chant "You looked up," or invoke the wrath of the universe.

LAW 6: The higher a golfer's handicap, the more qualified he deems himself as an instructor.

LAW 7: Every par-three hole in the world has a secret desire to humiliate golfers. The shorter the hole, the greater its desire.

LAW 8: Topping a 3-iron is the most painful torture known to man.

LAW 9: Palm trees eat golf balls.

LAW 10: Sand is alive. If it isn't, how do you explain the way it works against you?

LAW 11: Golf carts always run out of juice at the farthest point from the clubhouse.

LAW 12: A golfer hitting into your group will always be bigger than anyone in your group. Likewise, a group you accidentally hit into will consist of a football player, a professional wrestler, a convicted murderer and an IRS agent -- or some similar combination.

LAW 13: All 3-woods are demon-possessed.

LAW 14: Golf balls from the same "sleeve" tend to follow one another, particularly out of bounds or into the water (See Law three).

LAW 15: A severe slice is a thing of awesome power and beauty.

LAW 16: "Nice lag" can usually be translated to "lousy putt." Similarly, "tough break" can usually be translated "way to miss an easy one, sucker."

LAW 17: The person you would most hate to lose to will always be the one who beats you.

LAW 18: The last three holes of a round will automatically adjust your score to what it really should be.

LAW 19: Golf should be given up at least twice per month.

LAW 20: All vows taken on a golf course shall be valid only until the sunset.

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#355

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Wed Jul 18, 2007 2:47 pm
Subject: Newsletter---Coaching versus Mentoring

johnagno

Send Email

Here is your Coach to Coach Network (C2CN) Newsletter:

In Business, is it Coaching or Mentoring?

The Leadership Vacuum

Leader as Coach and Mentor

Retirement Choices on Where to Live in the U.S.

If you enjoy and learn from this newsletter's content, please tell others about it. www.Coach2Coach.info

In Business, Is It Coaching or Mentoring?

Published in the ADHD Coaches Organization (ACO) Circle Newsletter, July 6th, 2007

We know what coaching is: �partnering with clients in a thought-provoking and creative process that inspires them to maximize their personal and professional potential. The coaching relationship is a strong, resilient, dependable and safe vehicle in which change can take place for the person being coached. The coach�s job is to provide support to enhance the skills, resources, and creativity that the client already has. Coaching is most often characterized by one-to-one interactions that often are provided through face-to-face or telephone conversations.

These interactions share three essential core competencies: connection, clarification and commitment.

But what of Mentoring? How are coaching and mentoring different?

mentor Mentors tend to be highly visible � perhaps an experienced company executive advising a rising star.

Coaches are generally drawn from the outside to provide individual executive support on personal and business matters. Therefore, coaches can be less visible but still very much present.

Mentoring can occur naturally, informally or formally. It can be part of a formal program with a mutually agreed upon contract for meetings or other arrangements or it can last a lifetime.

Mentoring most often includes an exchange of wisdom, support, learning or guidance for the purpose of personal, spiritual, and career or life growth. In the workplace, mentoring is sometimes used to achieve strategic business goals, such as retaining new employees and/or leadership succession planning.

Mentoring programs can be very helpful in achieving corporate objectives:

Developing emerging leaders
Retaining highly qualified employees
Used as a recruitment tool and getting new staffers up-to-speed
Provide guidance on work-life balance, navigating company culture, handling conflict resolution and learning specific skills

Across the country, senior managers are influencing young talent by being matched up with junior staffers interested in the opportunity to understand the corporate culture.

The mentor and mentee relationship is one of mutual benefit. The mentor gains the satisfaction of helping develop the talent and mentees get access to �someone who has been there� as knowledge and experience is shared from one generation to another. This knowledge sharing is important today as Baby Boomers exit the company for retirement.

Companies are hot on the practice these days, believing it encourages loyalty, diversity, and cohesion. Fully half of the 500 biggest businesses in the U.S. now offer mentoring, up from about 10% five years ago, according to Menttium Corp., which sets up such programs for corporations.

Mentoring takes on many forms. It can be a one-shot intervention or a lifelong relationship. It can be carried out informally, as relationships develop on their own, or formally as part of a highly structured program. However, one of the most common problems, especially with formal programs, is simply that the mentor and mentee are incompatible. Even the best intentions and most thorough questionnaires can�t always identify what might really irritate you about the other person. Many companies have discovered that it is best for the mentee to choose his or her mentor rather than having the company do the matching.

Knowing the difference just might make you smarter with your next business client. Be sure he or she understands what they�re getting from the coaching relationship.

The Leadership Vacuum

When it comes to people and organizational development, from the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) on down, C-level executives are relatively poor performers.

Rajinder "Raj" Gupta, adjunct professor and executive director of the CEO Perspective Program at Northwestern's Kellogg School of Management, has interviewed more than a dozen CEOs from companies including Walgreen's, AON and Northern Trust about competencies data. "In general, I found that the premium for CEOs, as they rise through the ranks, is a deep understanding of the business and customers, not necessarily on how they manage their people. The CEOs I spoke with are definitely aware of the need to focus more of their attention on people development," says Gupta.

According to Gupta, CEOs want strategic-minded C-level executives. For example, the biggest deficits CEOs see in the current crop of information technology (IT) chiefs are the lack of a deep understanding of business opportunities and the inability to communicate strategically with high-level internal and external stakeholders. "In industries where business is closely entwined with technology, or where it can be used as a competitive advantage, that's where CEOs are looking for Chief Information Officers (CIOs) with high executive quotients (EQ)," says Reynold Lewke, Egon Zehnder's North American CIO practice leader.

Talent assessment and recruitment firm Egon Zehnder International assessed 25,000 executives on C-level competencies. Outstanding CIOs perform significantly better than average CIOs in all competencies except for people and organizational development, which is relatively low for all types of executives assessed. Outstanding CEOs perform significantly better than outstanding CIOs only in market knowledge and external customer focus.

Do you know your executive quotient (EQ)?

By figuring your EQ, you can determine how well you're positioned to be the strategy-oriented executive that businesses are demanding. A simplified public version of the self-assessment tool is available at: www.cioexecutivecouncil.com/futurestatecio

Source: The Secrets of C-Suite Success, www.cio.com July 1, 2007

Leader as coach and mentor

Many executives decide not to coach and mentor associates because they are uncertain as to how to approach them and concerned about the time it would take away from their functional duties.

However, leaders as coaches and mentors can make a huge difference in a person's life with little effort. And coaching isn't a distraction from getting work done, it's about building trust with the people where you work and managing the relationships that gets the work done. Results are achieved while people understand what they need to learn through your coaching and mentoring.

By learning how to become a better leader through coaching and mentoring, you personally develop your emotional intelligence, character and leadership style. �The crux of leadership development that works is self-directed learning: intentionally developing or strengthening an aspect of who you are or who you want to be, or both.� Primal Leadership by Daniel Goleman, Richard Boyatzis & Annie McKee (Harvard Business School Press)

To maximize our potential in a rapidly changing global economy, people recognize the need for leadership ethics more than ever before. Developing commitment in a world of "free agents" and "volunteer" talent is not an easy assignment and requires the development of leadership skills; effective leadership ability that you didn't learn at the university or in executive education.

Retirement Choices on Where to Live in the U.S.

You can live in Phoenix, Arizona where...

You are willing to park 3 blocks away because you found shade.

You've experienced condensation on your butt from the hot water in the toilet bowl.

You can drive for 4 hours in one direction and never leave town.

You have over 100 recipes for Mexican food.

You know that "dry heat" is comparable to what hits you in the face when you open your oven door.

The 4 seasons are: tolerable, hot, really hot, and ARE YOU KIDDING ME??!!

You can Live in California where...

You make over $250,000 and you still can't afford to buy a house.

The fastest part of your commute is going down your driveway.

You know how to eat an artichoke.

You drive your rented Mercedes to your neighborhood block party.

When someone asks you how far something is, you tell them how long it will take to get there rather than how many miles away it is.

You can Live in New York City where...

You say "the city" and expect everyone to know you mean Manhattan .

You can get into a four-hour argument about how to get from Columbus Circle to Battery Park, but can't find Wisconsin on a map.

You think Central Park is "nature."

You believe that being able to swear at people in their own language makes you multi-lingual.

You've worn out a car horn.

You think eye contact is an act of aggression.

You can Live in Maine where...

You only have four spices: salt, pepper, ketchup, and Tabasco.

Halloween costumes fit over parkas.

You have more than one recipe for moose.

Sexy lingerie is anything flannel with less than eight buttons.

The four seasons are: winter, still winter, almost winter, and construction.

You can Live in Texas where...

You can rent a movie and buy bait in the same store.

"y'all" is singular and "all y'all" is plural.

"He needed killin' " is a valid defense.

Everyone has 2 first names: Billy Bob, Jimmy Bob, Mary Sue, Betty Jean, Mary Beth, etc.

You can live in Colorado where...

You carry your $3,000 mountain bike atop your $500 car.

You tell your husband to pick up Granola on his way home and he stops at the day care center.

A pass does not involve a football or dating.

The top of your head is bald, but you still have a pony tail.

You can live in the Midwest where...

You've never met any celebrities, but the mayor knows your name.

Your idea of a traffic jam is ten cars waiting to pass a tractor.

You have had to switch from "heat" to "A/C" on the same day.

You end sentences with a preposition: "Where's my coat at?"

When asked how your trip was to any exotic place, you say, "It was different!"

Or You can live in Florida where...

You eat dinner at 3:15 in the afternoon.

All purchases include a coupon of some kind -- even houses and cars.

Everyone can recommend an excellent dermatologist.

Road construction never ends anywhere in the state.

Cars in front of you are often driven by headless people.

Author Unknown

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#356

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Fri Jul 20, 2007 7:23 pm
Subject: RFP for Executive Coaching and Leadership Development Training

johnagno

Send Email

Executive Coaching and Leadership Development Training

The US EPA Region 6 intends to award a fixed-price Purchase Order for Executive

Coaching and Leadership Development Training for Senior Managers.

More information at:

http://www.fbo.gov/spg/EPA/OAM/RegVI/RFQ-TX-07-00058/SynopsisP.html

The due date is July 30.

John

_________________________________________
John G. Agno, certified executive & business coach
Signature, Inc., PO Box 2086, Ann Arbor, MI 48106
Telephone: 734.426.2000 (US Eastern Time Zone)
mailto:JohnAgno@...

Truth flows from universal law, not from personal views.
www.MENTORINGandCOACHING.com

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#357

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Fri Jul 27, 2007 1:43 am
Subject: Newsletter---Your virtual coaching business

johnagno

Send Email

Here is your Coach to Coach Network (C2CN) Newsletter:

Is a Virtual Coaching Business for You?

Business Coaching: Achieving Practical Results Through Effective Engagement (Book Report)

Neuro-Leadership

Searching for People Online

Discover The Elliott Wave Principle

If you enjoy and learn from this newsletter's content, please tell others about it. www.Coach2Coach.info

Is a Virtual Coaching Business for You?

What does it take to build a coaching business that is portable, but also financially and psychologically rewarding?

Some 12% of sole proprietors are engaging in ecommerce, up from 9.4% in 2005, says a survey of 1,235 businesses this year by IDC, a Framingham, MA market-research concern. For many, says IDC analyst Ray Boggs, the Internet "is what's making it possible for them to do business."

These virtual business entrepreneurs must have all the usual assets and capabilities for starting a business; a profitable niche, risk tolerance, marketing and financial skills, and an advisory support system in place. Beyond that, they also need to be nimble and persistent in marketing, savvy with technology and skillful at building relationships online.

After moving to Argentina, back to the U.S. and then to St. Petersburg, Russia, for her husband's career as a foreign-service officer, Margarita Gokun Silver, a former international development consultant, started a life and executive coaching business for expatriates. "As long as you have the Internet, you can have clients anywhere," she says. While she does her coaching by phone, she also runs live workshops that arise from word-of-mouth referrals where she's living.

Source: Work & Family, The Wall Street Journal, July 26, 2007

Business Coaching: Achieving Practical Results Through Effective Engagement (Book Report)

The aim of this book is primarily to enable those wanting to invest in coaching to be able to do so in the most effective way whether they are doing this as an organisation or as an individual. It illustrates the impact coaching can have and identifies changes in leadership and management demands and expectations. We consider what a coachee gets out of coaching, different formats for coaching and its potential value at Board level, including for the Chief Executive Officer, and for other individuals or groups such as new recruits or those who have just been promoted.

We look at the difference between coaching and mentoring and the potential benefits that both can have, especially in combination. We look at how coaching programmes can be introduced effectively and how a leader might introduce coaching in their organisation. We address the international dimension with many organisations looking to ensure that leadership is based on similar values throughout its global reach.

This book is unashamedly about business coaching. Quality coaching engagement will impact into an individual's wider life priorities and use of time and energy. However, the effective delivery of business priorities has to be at the basis of introducing business coaching.

About the Authors:

Peter Shaw has worked in five Government Departments covering Education, Treasury, Employment, Transport and the Environment and held three Director General posts within Government. He is often working at the interface of the public and private sectors and assisting Chief Executives and Board members in taking on new roles and in major organisational change.

Robin Linnecar has a wealth of experience from the private sector having worked in Arthur Andersen, Shell International, Deloitte, Haskins and Sells, Coopers and Lybrand and KPMG. Wide exposure to and understanding of business organisations, combined with over fifteen years of coaching experience, means that Robin brings a wealth of questions in exploring perspectives and options with his clients.

Both authors continue to have non-executive and part-time roles in addition to their coaching work. Peter and Robin are partners with Praesta Partners, one of the global leaders in executive coaching, and the leading coaching organisation within the UK. Over 6000 leaders in some of the greatest organisations in the world, including Microsoft and Shell, have chosen to work with Praesta to help them raise their game in coaching.

For a complete index of this report click on:
http://www.researchandmarkets.com/product/c5561d/business_coaching_achieving_practical_results

Neuro-Leadership

Business school professors at Arizona State University (ASU) and Emory University are working with neuroscientists to use electroencephalograph (EEG) machines and fMRIs to study the brain waves or images of executives.

For what they have found, go to:
http://coachingtip.blogs.com/coaching_tip/2007/07/neuro-leadershi.html

Searching for People Online

Google leads in general search at nearly 50% of all searches according to June figures from market researcher comScore. Google's share has remained high despite competition from Yahoo (25% of searches) and Microsoft (13%). In some niches, the search game is still a wide-open field. The key is identifying the right niche.

Roughly 30% of the 7 billion-plus Web searches performed in the U.S. each month relate to individuals. A Google search for an individual may return tens of thousands of links in milliseconds, but it's hard to tell unless you click on one if it's the person you're looking for. The results list won't distinguish between, say, leadership coach John Agno, Microsoft executive John Agno or Honolulu Police Sgt. John Agno.

That's where Jay Bhatti's company, Spock, comes in. His people-specialized search engine scans social networks and other sites where people regularly post information about themselves and others. It then pulls that information into a concise summary about a person, such as his occupation, interests, age, marital status, and hometown. A click on the summary reveals related Web sites and known associates.

Source: BusinessWeek, July 30, 2007

Discover The Elliott Wave Principle

July 17, when the Dow made its all-time intraday high, was not the time to be on the "outside" reading the Elliott Wave International's (EWI's) free content. EWI can't just give away its forecasts that subscribers pay for � forecasts like Bob Prechter published on July 17 in his Interim Elliott Wave Theorist.

Before & After Analysis: Which Do You Prefer?

Today (July 26, 2007), the Dow Industrials fell more than 300 points, its strongest one-day decline in more than five months. Yet the media trotted out a logical fallacy to tell the story: It's called post hoc ergo propter hoc, or "after this therefore because of this."

Click here to read more about the Elliott Wave Principle

My guiding principle with Wall Street investment is "when in doubt, get out."

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#358

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Tue Jul 31, 2007 4:25 pm
Subject: Newsletter---Your intuitive judgments

johnagno

Send Email

Here is your Coach to Coach Network (C2CN) Newsletter:

Intuitive Judgments

Who to call for advice?

Performance Culture Coping

Obsessed with U.S. Presidential Campaign

If you enjoy and learn from this newsletter's content, please tell others about it. www.Coach2Coach.info

Intuitive Judgments

Leaders, as all people, make their decisions in an instant based on their gut instincts.

Our intuition is nothing less than pattern recognition in our highly efficient emotional brain--making quick and effortless judgments and taking action. We form positive or negative impressions in a mere "blink" or "thin slice" of time as described in Malcolm Gladwell's bestseller, blink (Little Brown, 2005), which promotes decision concepts around what Gladwell refers to as the adaptive unconscious: "Decisions made very quickly can be every bit as good as decisions made cautiously and deliberately."

However, we can be blindsighted by costly intuitive errors when our quick pattern recognition leads us astray. Our unconscious, implicit and emotional attitudes---which typically manifest wariness toward those unfamiliar to us or those who resemble people with whom we have negative past associations---may not agree with our analytical brain. Intuition is powerful, often wise, but sometimes perilous, and especially so when we overfeel and underthink.

Our limbic brain (the emotional brain) works in concert and sometimes at odds with the neocortical brain (that directs the abstract mind--the cognitive functions of language, problem-solving, physics, mathematics). We know much about the neocortex's power to weave and unravel abstractions. Mirror neurons (the cells of nerve tissue) are connected to the brain's emotion region, the limbic system, and re-create the experience of others intentions and feelings within ourselves.

Leaders know, and science has discovered, emotionality's deeper purpose: the timeworn mechanisms of emotion allow two human beings to receive the contents of each other's minds. Emotion is the messenger of love; it is the vehicle that carries every signal from one brimming heart to another.

Intuition is fast, automatic, unreasoned thought and feeling that harvests our experience and guides our lives. The shadow of intuition is the fear factor:

We fear what our ancestral history has prepared us to fear. With our old emotional brain living in a new world, we are disposed to fear confinement and heights, snakes and spiders, and humans outside our tribe.

We fear what we cannot control. Behind the wheel of our car, but not in airplane seat 17B, we feel in control.

We fear what is immediate. Smoking's lethality and the threats of rising seas and extreme weather are in the distant future. The airplane take-off is now.

We fear threats readily available in memory. If a surface-to-air missile brings down a single American airliner, the result will be traumatic for the airline industry. Intuitive fears will hijack the rational mind.

Cognitive science reveals a two-track mind, featuring a deliberate, analytical brain and an automatic, intuitive/emotional brain. Through life experience, we gain intuitive expertise and learn associations/patterns that surface as feelings. As studies of implicit prejudice and misplaced fears illustrate, unchecked gut feelings can lead us astray.

Source: The Powers and Perils of Intuition by David G. Myers in Scientific American Mind, June/July 2007

Who to call for advice?

Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) say it's tough to get advice they can trust.

Consultants tend to be abstract and concerned with keeping their contracts, they say. Lower-level executives are too deferential. Friends often don't have the business experience. So as pressure builds from activist shareholders, fast-moving competitors or stricter boards, chief executives are increasingly banding together in formal peer groups.

These executives typically run small, closely held companies. But heads of big public companies also join in. Leaders of publicly traded companies say they often turn to peers with issues too small or unformed to raise with a board of directors. In an era of increasingly arm's-length relationships between boards and CEOs, top executives say they also use the sessions to talk about their directors.

The companies that run the peer meetings typically make participants sign nondisclosure agreements. Such peer groups typically meet for a half or full day each month. Some executives say it's not worth the commitment. After seven years in a group, Barry Shames, owner of a construction company in Livermore, CA, says he wasn't getting much new management advice. "It got a little stagnant," he says. Though he quit, he says he continues to confer with some of the executives he met.

Source: The Wall Street Journal, July 26, 2007

Performance Culture Coping

In a highly competitive, globalized world, psychological health is increasingly taking a back seat. People and culture management come in last place when leaders think about future business growth.

In a June 2007 Leadership Pulse survey (www.LeadershipPulse.com), only 55% of leaders were confident that the resources within their organization for managing employees and the overall organization's culture could help drive growth in the next 12 months.

For what you can do to reduce stress at work, go to:
http://coachingtip.blogs.com/coaching_tip/2007/07/performance-cul.html

Obsessed with U.S. Presidential Campaign

Major social networking sites, like Facebook, MySpace, and Eons (that focuses on the over 50 crowd), are bringing together the 2008 U.S. presidential candidates in virtual forums.

�The top candidates in the 2008 presidential race have created presences on Eons because they know that the boomer generation has always fought its political battles by mobilizing behind their political beliefs, and the ballot box is their weapon of choice,� said Jeff Taylor, founder and CEO of Eons. �This is the generation that cut its political teeth on the statesmanship of John F. Kennedy and that took to the streets to support the Civil Rights Act. As the 2008 campaign heats up, boomers are turning into Web activists, and www.eons.com is where they�re learning about the candidates and then joining ongoing discussions about the issues that mean most to the nation.�

Among the findings of the Eons Boomer Campaign Track of more than 4,500 Eons members:

Almost 80 percent of the 50-years and older respondents (with 60% being Baby Boomers aged 50 to 60) are already following the campaign closely or somewhat closely.

The major political parties were represented about equally, with 38 percent of respondents registering as Democrats, 36 percent as Republicans. Nineteen percent reported they were not affiliated with a political party and 8 percent were registered as members of other parties.

More than two-thirds of respondents (68 percent) said they had visited a candidate�s Web site, and 66 percent said they had received e-mail from a candidate. Eighteen percent reported that they had donated to a candidate online, and 4 percent had added a candidate as a �friend� on a social networking site.

Asked to predict the party of the next occupant of the White House, Eons members said the Democrat (64 percent) would defeat the Republican (32 percent).

Asked, �If the election were held next week, who would most likely get your vote,� 46 percent said they would vote for the Democrat, while 36 said the Republican.

Source: The results of the Eons Boomer Campaign Track were compiled from more than 4,500 50-plus respondents as of July 13, 2007. The survey can be viewed at http://question.eons.com/survey/welcome/8.

�The boomers are more politically engaged online than their kids,� said Don McLagan, CEO of online market research firm Compete, Inc., an Eons partner. Compete compiled its data from the industry�s largest database of consumer behavior online. �People 45 and older spent, on average, 9 percent more time viewing the sites of Giuliani, McCain and Romney, though Romney�s performance heavily skewed the average, with older visitors spending 31 percent longer on his site than did younger visitors. Among Democrats, the margin was narrower but still noticeable; 45-plus Web visitors spent about 2 percent more time on the sites of Clinton, Edwards and Obama than their younger counterparts.�

Said Taylor, �Eons knows that 50-plus adults are obsessed with politics. More than 75 percent of citizens in that age group are registered to vote, and 9 out of 10 of those registered voters actually cast a ballot during the 2004 presidential election, according to U.S. Census Bureau data. This is the first presidential election in which the Web will play such a pivotal role in electing a president, whether it means enabling candidates to become part of people�s social networks, raising money or debating the issues."

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#359

From: "John Agno" <leadershipcoaching@...>
Date: Thu Aug 9, 2007 1:01 pm
Subject: People are searching for personal and business coaches today

johnagno

Send Email

During the first week of August, 2% or 88 visitors of the

4,284 people who were looking for a personal or business

coach on the Google search engine visited the Coach to

Coach Network website (www.Coach2Coach.info) listing

of member websites.

If you haven't included your coaching services website

on the Coach to Coach Network, you may be losing

potential coaching clients...who are looking for you.

This listing is free to all active Coach to Coach Network

subscribers. Just go to:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/coach2coach

Sign in with your Yahoo ID and password

Click on "Links" to go to the Links page

At the Links page, click on "Add Link"

A box will appear on the screen to fill in the URL,

title and description of your website.

It's that easy.

John

Truth flows from universal law, not from personal views.
www.MENTORINGandCOACHING.com

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#360

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Thu Aug 23, 2007 5:57 pm
Subject: Newsletter---Why executive coaching?

johnagno

Send Email

Here is your Coach to Coach Network (C2CN) Newsletter:

Why Executive Coaching?

Team Leadership

Dante's Leadership Tips

Questions That Haunt Me

If you enjoy and learn from this newsletter's content, please tell others about it. www.Coach2Coach.info

Why Executive Coaching?

Too many executives receive poor or no coaching.

They miss opportunities to become more effective in their positions of influence and are often denied promotions they deserve. Hiring an executive coach can help them enormously. It's the right tool to alleviate common leadership problems.

What Is Executive Coaching?

Broadly defined, executive coaching is a one-on-one consulting relationship dedicated to improving high-level managers' leadership capabilities and performance. Close to 60 percent of U.S. corporations employ coaches, and approximately 10,000 executive coaches are practicing today.

Coaching helps conquer ingrained leadership behaviors in ways that few other developmental approaches can muster. Senior executives value the privacy the experience affords, while managers appreciate learning how to coach their reports.

No coach, no matter how talented, can effect change and development in a leader who fails to understand how barriers can sabotage one's efforts. When executives agree to change and improve, coaching works. When they see themselves as responsible for making change, coaching once again works. The return on investment for organizations is exponential.

For the barriers to executive coaching, go to: http://home.att.net/~coachthee/Archives/barriers_executive_coaching.htm

Team Leadership

The role of teams is growing, spurred by globalization and the enabling factor of communications technology.

Given the importance of work teams, it is more than a bit remarkable how much our society's perspective is focused on the individual. We school our children as individuals. We hire, train and reward employees as individuals. Yet, we have great faith that individuals thrown into a team, with little thought given to composition, training or leadership, will be effective and successful. Science strongly suggests otherwise.

One of the most important things a team brings to a task is what its members think, the relevant information they carry in their heads. The ability to access and use this distributed expertise efficiently is one characteristic of successful teams.

Here are three considerations for building better teams:

1. An effective work group should be designed well from the start, bringing together people who can contribute to the right mix of knowledge, skills, tools and other resources necessary to succeed.

2. Face-to-face meetings, social interaction among members and a leader who establishes a good relationship with every worker help a team make the best use of its expertise and create a cohesive mission.

3. Generic teamwork skills such as setting goals, adapting to change, resolving conflict and providing feedback allow teams to learn from each challenge and continually improve their performance.

Source: The Science of Team Success, Scientific American Mind, June/July 2007

Dante's Leadership Tips

Dante Alighieri (1265-1321) stopped seeing himself as a figure of tragedy and saw his life as a comedy. He wandered in exile for nearly 20 years. Under desperate conditions, homeless, anonymous, he wrote his masterpiece, "The Divine Comedy."

Of the "Comedy's" 14,000 lines, the most unnerving are the 143 that comprise "Inferno 26": the circle of liars, thieves and consultants.

In this circle, Dante encounters the hero Ulysses. His soul, no longer hidden by his mortal body, is not a pretty sight. He had been a deceiver, a trickster who won the battle for Troy by creating the Trojan Horse, promising gifts of peace and then murdering the Trojans he deceived. Ulysses burned with brilliantly clever ideas in life; in hell, he simply burns. This leader, this enflamer of men, is now encased in fire.

For a terrifying moment, Dante sees himself in Ulysses. Dante, too, revels in the art of persuasion. Is his own journey to Paradise another mad pursuit, his own cleverness a form of deception? Dante reasons that to Ulysses, virtue and knowledge were the same thing. But Dante concludes that they are not. To use superior wisdom in deceiving others is spiritual theft. Leaders must use skill and cleverness not for personal gain but to promote honor, to create a just state.

Personal happiness is not possible in a divided state. And ambition without virtue is madness. This realization makes "Inferno 26" the turning point of "The Divine Comedy" and conveys how Dante's entire masterpiece may be read at a deep level---allowing readers to discover that they, too, may find the ascending path to a happy ending.

Source: Dante's Self-Help Book by Harriet Rubin, author of "Dante in Love" (Simon & Schuster) in The New York Times, July 28, 2007

QUESTIONS THAT HAUNT ME

Can you cry under water?

How important does a person have to be before they are considered assassinated instead of just murdered?

Why do you have to "put your two cents in".. but it's only a "penny for your thoughts"? Where's that extra penny going to?

Why does a round pizza come in a square box?

How is it that we put man on the moon before we figured out it would be a good idea to put wheels on luggage?

Why is it that people say they "slept like a baby" when babies wake up like every two hours?

If a deaf person has to go to court, is it still called a hearing?

Why are you IN a movie, but you're ON TV?

Why do people pay to go up tall buildings and then put money in binoculars to look at things on the ground?

Why do doctors leave the room while you change? They're going to see you naked anyway.

Why is "bra" singular and "panties" plural?

Why do toasters always have a setting that burns the toast to a horrible crisp, which no decent human being would eat?

Why does Goofy stand erect while Pluto remains on all fours? They're both dogs!

If corn oil is made from corn and vegetable oil is made from vegetables what is baby oil made from?

If electricity comes from electrons, does morality come from morons?

Do the Alphabet song and Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star have the same tune?

Did you ever notice that when you blow in a dog's face, he gets mad at you, but when you take him for a car ride, he sticks his head out the window?


Do you ever wonder why you gave me your email address in the first place?

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#361

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Mon Aug 27, 2007 10:29 pm
Subject: Newsletter---Professional Women Challenges

johnagno

Send Email

Here is your Coach to Coach Network (C2CN) Newsletter:

Remember Chrissy Snow?

Professional Women Retirement Challenges

Women Approach the Executive Suite

Your Leadership Checklist

1943 Women Hiring Guidelines

If you enjoy and learn from this newsletter's content, please tell others about it. www.Coach2Coach.info

Remember Chrissy Snow?

Chrissy Snow was the dumb blonde played by Suzanne Somers on the TV show, Three's Company, that ended in 1981.

Suzanne says in the March 2006 issue of Inc.Magazine that, "I learned packaging is important. Chrissy was packaged as a sexy, dumb blonde. I didn't look right standing in front of these corporate men at the network saying, "I would like you to pay me equal to what you're paying the men." If you're playing the dumbest blonde on the planet, and you're standing there talking like some sort of feminist, it just doesn't work. The response was, 'Who do you think you are?' In retrospect, even though I was devastated at the time, it forced me to reinvent myself."

As a certified executive and business coach, I coach many women executives and business owners to perform as effective leaders in their business and personal lives. Since the culture at most companies has been shaped over time by male executives, women are at a disadvantage when it comes to gender-based differences in communication styles.

Learning how to be heard in business matters.

Do these marketing problems sound familiar to you?

=> Not enough people know what you, as a coach, does

=> Not enough people have heard of your coaching business

=> Not enough people are moved by your message

=> Not enough people can find you online (even if you have put your website URL on www.Coach2Coach.info)

The Blog Squad is giving the first ever teleseminar on Branding AND Blogging, along with branding guru Ruth Klein.

Many experts consider branding and blogging to be the new 'success secret' of smart professionals with online businesses. There's no charge to
attend. It's a preview class to their super 4-week workshop.

Branding and blogging may be two missing pieces to your marketing puzzle that can ramp up your marketing and blow the lid off your business.

Not sure how the two tie-in?

Join The Blog Squad and Ruth Klein next Wednesday for a complimentary teleseminar.

Branding & Blogging: The new 'success secret' of today's smart professionals

Wednesday, August 29, 2007, 5:00 p.m. ET (2:00 p.m. PT) .......at no charge!

Register here: http://www.1shoppingcart.com/app/?Clk=2079790

You'll get the dial-in number and information about how to listen live online via simulcast, if you prefer.

Professional Women Retirement Challenges

Because women leave the workplace to have babies and raise them, they have developed significant gaps in retirement savings.

When professional women decide to have children, they often also cut back their hours at work or travel less. Some women change jobs entirely; taking staff positions with more flexibility to handle family raising responsibilities. A 2002 Harvard Business School survey of alumnae from the classes of 1981, 1986 and 1991 found that 62% had left the professional world.

Executive and professional women are perhaps more susceptible than most groups to ignoring their own personal financial affairs because they spend what little free time they have focusing on helping others, such as their children, family and friends, before themselves.

Women generally live longer than men: 80 years to 75 years, according to a February 2005 report by the National Center for Health Statistics. As life spans lengthen, women professionals risk outliving their savings if they do not take steps to plan for longer retirements. Women carry only half the amount of life insurance coverage that men carry and are generally underinsured, according to "Trends in Life Insurance Ownership Among Americans," by LIMRA International, 1999.

More than 70 percent of nursing home residents are women, according to the 1999 National Nursing Home Survey. Two-thirds of people receiving home healthcare are women, according to the 2000 National Home and Hospice Care Survey. Long-term care is likely to be a pressing issue for many women in retirement.

Click here for some retirement tips.

Source: January/February 2006 issue of Consulting

Women Approach the Executive Suite

The Harvard Business Review (Sept. 2007) reports that the scarcity of women at the top reflects "the sum of discrimination that has operated at all ranks," and not any particular obstacle to advancement as women approach the executive suite.

Most efforts aimed at increasing the presence of women in the upper echelons of U.S. business focus solely on bridging the final step between the middle tiers and the top ranks. But Alice H. Eagly, a professor of psychology at Northwestern University and Linda L. Carli, an associate professor of psychology at Wellesley College argue that smaller, more subtle reforms are needed to address the more fundamental problem.

A multipronged approach will be the only way to lift women to the top of more companies.

Women executives need to ask themselves if the timing is right to consider?:

�       Transforming your work and your business relationships?

�       Re-energizing yourself and your career?

�       Learning the unwritten Rules of Success for any business woman?

A NEW Women�s Only Group Coaching Club entitled Same Workplace/Different Realities begins in October. It is being offered to help women learn the invisible Rules of Success and start doing things slightly different to move up the corporate ladder.

Both McEwen and Agno have assisted numerous women executives take a look at ways in which they can improve by helping them:

� Focus on their communication and listening skills

� Hone their leadership abilities

� Learn to manage and delegate more efficiently

� Key into the importance of influencing up

� Gain improved negotiating skills

� Deal with difficult people or handle conflict better

You and your clients can register for the Group Coaching Club at: www.SameWorkplace-DifferentRealities.com

Your Leadership Checklist

Even outstanding leaders struggle through career stretches during which they feel off track. It can be hard to spot the specific problem when you�re in the middle of it. But successful leaders develop techniques for recognizing their vulnerabilities and making rapid adjustments.

Leaders should regularly ask themselves questions that target seven areas, according to Robert S. Kaplan, in a Harvard Business Review article:

1. Vision and Priorities

2. Managing Time

3. Feedback

4. Succession Planning

5. Evaluation and Alignment

6. Leading Under Pressure

7. Staying True to Yourself

For more on these Seven Leadership Checkpoints, click here.

1943 Women Hiring Guidelines

Ever think about what your mother or grandmother faced when interviewing for a job before you were born?

Here are some women hiring guidelines for transit company officers published in a 1943 issue of the national magazine Transportation in the article, �Job Standards and Rules for Hiring Women:�

�Pick young married women. They usually have more of a sense of responsibility than their unmarried sisters, they�re less likely to be flirtatious, they need the work or they wouldn�t be doing it, they will have the pep and interest to work hard and to deal with the public efficiently.

�When you have to use older women, try to get ones who have worked outside the home at some time in their lives. Older women who have never contacted the public have a hard time adapting themselves and are inclined to be cantankerous and fussy. It�s always well to impress upon older women the importance of friendliness and courtesy.

�Retain a physician to give each woman you hire a special physical examination, one covering female conditions. This step not only protects the property against the possibilities of lawsuit, but reveals whether the employee-to-be has any female weaknesses which would make her mentally or physically unfit for the job.

�Stress at the outset the importance of time�the fact that a minute or two lost here and there makes serious inroads on schedules. Until this point is gotten across, service is likely to be slowed up.

�Give the female employee a definite day-long schedule of duties so that they�ll keep busy without bothering the management for instructions every few minutes. Numerous properties say that women make excellent workers when they have their jobs cut out for them, but that they lack initiative in finding work themselves.

�Whenever possible, let the inside employee change from one job to another at some time during the day. Women are inclined to be less nervous and happier with change.

�Give every girl an adequate number of rest periods during the day. You have to make some allowances for feminine psychology. A girl has more confidence and is more efficient if she can keep her hair tidied, apply fresh lipstick and wash her hands several times a day.

�Be tactful when issuing instructions or in making criticisms. Women are often sensitive, they can�t shrug off harsh words the way men do. Never ridicule a woman�it breaks her spirit and cuts off her efficiency.

�Be reasonably considerate about using strong language around women. Even though a girl�s husband or father may swear vociferously, she�ll grow to dislike a place of business where she hears too much of this.

�Get enough size variety in operator�s uniforms so that each girl can have a proper fit. This point can�t be stressed too much in keeping women happy.�

Talk about lawsuits! Can you imagine anyone, male or female, following any of these 64 year-old workforce tips today?

Source: The Lamplighter newsletter of the Broadalbin Kennyetto Historical Society, June 2007

New Women's Coaching Club begins in October 2007: www.SameWorkplace-DifferentRealities.com

Visit www.ExecutiveTeleclasses.com for the Same Workplace, Different Realities teleclass

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#362

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Wed Sep 5, 2007 5:45 pm
Subject: Newsletter---CEO and Leader?

johnagno

Send Email

Here is your Coach to Coach Network (C2CN) Newsletter:

Coaching Connections

CEO and Leader?

Preparing for that Pink Slip

Opting not to Retire

Boomer Women Love Flats

If you enjoy and learn from this newsletter's content, please tell others about it. www.Coach2Coach.info

Coaching Connections

Message from kathy@...

Hello Everyone:

I am a paralegal and certified International Professional coach and Reiki Master. I have worked in the legal field all of my working life and owned and operated a successful paralegal business.

In addition to owning I.M.P.E.L. (www.impelpeople.com), I currently work in Ford Motor Company's Office of the General Counsel in Dearborn, Michigan. I.M.P.E.L. supports lawyers, their clients and their legal staff, through coaching, mentoring, stress reduction, nutrition and complementary alternatives to wellness.

I am currently in the process of filling out the paper work for the PCC credentials with the International Coach Federation.

I look forward to getting to know all of you.

Anti-aging System begins to turn back time in the UK ----- Pre-registration begins today, September 5^th, for the United Kingdom with Arbonne International pre-launch meetings happening in October.

If you live the UK and are interested in anti-aging for Health, Wealth and Beauty, plan on attending one of these Arbonne International pre-launch meetings next month:
October 16^th: Royal Ascot Racecourse; Ascot
October 17^th: National Motorcycle Museum; Solihull
October 18^th: Royal Armouries; Leeds

For more information or to register for one of the above meetings, contact:

Jinger Rausch, Arbonne Gets Results-Listen How Office: 770-559-0878 Cell: 678-467-5341 jrausch@... www.healthandlifestyle.myarbonne.com

CEO and Leader?

The terms "CEO" and "leader" have mistakenly become synonymous.

Nothing could be further from the truth. CEOs are measured by quantitative results. Leaders are shaped and defined by character. CEOs are expected to boost sales, improve profit margins, and make money for shareholders. Leaders inspire and enable others to do excellent work and realize their potential. As a result, they build successful, enduring organizations.

The business community must recognize that finding CEOs who can generate business results is necessary but not sufficient. Those we elevate or hire to become CEOs must also possess the distinguishing qualities of great leaders: the ability to build trust, inspire dedicated and engaged followers, and make service to others their preeminent priority. In other words, the core values of CEOs should be examined just as closely as their drive, intellectual depth, financial acumen, or track record.

To accomplish that, why not start with three small but powerful changes:

1. Corporate board members and others who recruit CEOs must adopt disciplined approaches to investigate a candidate's character.

2. Those who aspire to the CEO title need to understand that the ego-fired, command-and-control, "winning-at-all-costs" approach is no longer viable. Instead, by measuring success through the success of all those they serve, they will achieve superlative, sustainable results not only for their constituents but also for themselves.

3. The media and business need to do a better job spotlighting truly great leaders in Corporate America to present a more accurate picture of today's chief executives.

Source: Henry S. Givray, chairman and CEO of SmithBucklin Corp, in BusinessWeek, September 3, 2007

Preparing for that Pink Slip

What are the common signs that you may be fired or laid off?

A book, "I Didn't See It Coming," by Amy Dorn Kopelan, Nancy C. Widmann and Elaine J. Eisenman provides some coaching tips. Here are some Q&As by Ms. Kopelan that can prepare you for the arrival of that pink slip.

If there is a merger or acquisition, that's a common sign. To expect that anything will be normal is wrong. If a new boss comes into your division, that's a big sign. A less obvious sign may be when a coach is brought in to help with some of your management issues.

Any time you start a new job or get a new title at work, the first thing you want to think about is "What is my exit strategy?" Always have some money tucked aside in an exit fund. The goal is to cover a year's worth of expenses.

You have to think about your marketability. What are you doing to be your own best press agent? Another thing is to be constantly networking--inside and outside your company, as well as inside your industry.

You probably don't like to admit you were fired and would like to reframe the reasons for your exit for your new workplace. The answer comes back to what happened when you left. You should insist on controlling how your departure is framed. You can demand that you are the one to address your staff and your colleagues before anyone else. You can say that you're leaving to explore other opportunities, for example, and there need not be more of an explanation. If you control the official explanation for your exit, then wherever else you go, it's not an issue.

Source: BusinessWeek, June 11, 2007

Opting Not to Retire

A recent survey by Thrivent Financial of adults ages 45 to 64 found that 43% overall (and nearly half of men) plan to work full or part time in retirement. And nearly a third of those surveyed said they plan to work to "stay busy."

While financial security remains the primary reason Americans are working longer, it's not the only one, retirement experts say. Many people who could afford to retire comfortably fear that full-time retirement would erase a key part of their identity. A Schwab Institutional survey of financial advisers found that 97% of their clients who retired from their primary careers, but continued to work, cited a desire to stay active.

In 2006, nearly 30% of Americans ages 65 to 69 belonged to the workforce, up from 18% in 1985, according to the Employee Benefit Research Institute. The percentage of older workers with full-time jobs is also rising, EBRI said.

Retirement experts say the increase in older workers primarily reflects the erosion of traditional pensions, inadequate retirement savings and rising health care costs. And as Baby Boomers enter their golden years, it's a trend that will likely continue. Advocates for seniors say it could alleviate projected labor shortages in fast growing sectors, such as health care and education.

"We're going to be fortunate as a country that so many older people really want to continue to work," says Cynthia Metzler, chief executive for Experience Works, a nonprofit that helps older people find jobs. "There's a need from employers, and there's a talent pool to fill that need."

Source: USA Today, August 31, 2007

Boomer Women Love Flats

Hillary Clinton wears them. So does Sarah Jessica Parker. Ballet-style flat shoes "have become a basic staple in every chic girl's wardrobe," says Sally Ross, a vice president at New York's Bergdorf Goodman.

French ballerinas' flats have been the choreographing stars of shoemaker Repetto's comeback led by Jean-Marc Gaucher, a former head of Reebok's French operations, who bought the Repetto in 1999, when it was selling comfortable shoes popular with seniors.

He asked designers like Issey Miyake and Yohji Yamamoto to create dozens of styles. The goal, says Gaucher: to take what Repetto knew--the imagery of dance--and "introduce it into the luxury sector." Repetto designer flats go for $180 to $400 a pair...whereas professional ballet shoes sell at $70 to $100 a pair.

Source: BusinessWeek, September 3, 2007

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

October 3, 2007: Women Only Coaching Club begins: www.WomenCoachingClub.com

January 9, 2008: Women Executive Teleclass Series begins: www.ExecutiveTeleclasses.com

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#363

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Tue Sep 11, 2007 6:59 pm
Subject: Newsletter---Understanding Our Brain

johnagno

Send Email

Here is your Coach to Coach Network (C2CN) Newsletter:

Understanding Our Brain

Evolution of Social Intelligence

"Just Right" Living

Tough Performance Reviews

Had Your Three Almonds Today?

If you enjoy and learn from this newsletter's content, please tell others about it. www.Coach2Coach.info

Understanding Our Brain

The brain is not the mind, the mind inhabits the brain.

Like a ghost in a machine, some say. Mind is the comforting mirage of the physical brain. An experience, not an entity. An essence, not just a substance. And, of course, the mind isn't located only in the brain. The mind reflects what the body senses and feels, it's influenced by a caravan of hormones and enzymes. Each mind inhabits a private universe of its own devising that changes daily, depending on the vagaries of medication, intense emotions, pollution, genes or countless other personal-size cataclysms.

Sometimes it's hard to imagine the art and beauty of the brain, because it seems too abstract and hidden an empire, a dense jungle of neurons. The idea that a surgeon might reach into it to revise its career seems as dangerous as taking the lid off a time bomb and discovering thousands of wires. Which one controls the timing mechanism? Getting it wrong may be deadly. Still, there are bomb squads and there are brain surgeons. The art of the brain is to liken and learn, never resist a mystery, and question everything, even itself.

---Excerpted from An Alchemy of Mind by Diane Ackerman (Simon and Schuster, Inc.)

We've learned a lot about the human brain: its average size and weight, its various regions, and even how some of its inner circuitry works.

New technology and approaches to brain research have yielded useful findings for a wide variety of fields--psychotherapy, education, law, economics, and nutrition, to name a few--and have also created new fields of study, including neuroethics, neuromarketing, and neurotheology. And although numerous unanswered questions follow every new discovery, neuroscientists are steadily revealing how we can use different capacities in our brain to enhance our well-being.

Scientists used to believe that connections among brain nerve cells were fixed and couldn't change, but with the help of brain imaging they are learning that the brain can constantly develop and evolve. By examining how the brain works when meditating, neuroimaging has opened a new door into exploring higher states of consciousness.

Today, we not only have a greater understanding of the mysterious inner workings of the brain, but we have opened doors into improved psychotherapies, enhanced learning capabilities, and healthier relationships with ourselves and one another.

Source: SHIFT: AT THE FRONTIERS OF CONSCIOUSNESS, September 2007

Evolution of Social Intelligence

Over the past decade, primatologists' work, studying social behavior in chimps, gorillas, macaques, bonobos and baboons, has led to a unifying theory that explains not only a huge range of behavior. Also, why our brains are so big and what their most essential work is.

The theory, called the Machiavellian-intelligence or social-brain theory, holds that we rise from a lineage in which both individual and group success hinge on balancing the need to work with others with the need to hold our own amid the nested groups and subgroups we are part of.

About 15 to 20 million years ago, the theory goes, certain forest monkeys in Africa and Asia developed the ability to digest unripe fruit. This left some of their forest-dwelling cousins--the ancestors of chimps, gorillas and humans--at a sharp disadvantage. Suddenly a lot of fruit was going missing before it ripened.

To find food, some of the newly hungry primate species moved to the forest edge. Their new habitat put more food in reach, but it also placed the primates within reach of big cats, canines, and other savanna predators. This predation spurred two key evolutionary changes. The primates became bigger, giving individuals more of a fighting chance, and they started living in bigger groups, which provided more eyes to keep watch and a strength of numbers in defense.

But the bigger groups imposed a new brain load: The members had to be smart enough to balance their individual needs with those of the pack. This meant cooperating and exercising some individual restraint. It also required understanding the behavior of other group members striving not only for safety and food but also for access to mates. And it called for comprehending and managing one's place in an ever-shifting array of alliances that members formed in order not to be isolated within the bigger group.

Robin Dunbar, an evolutionary psychologist and social-brain theorist, and others have documented correlations between brain size and social-group size in many primate species. According to Dunbar, no such strong correlation exists between neocortex size and tasks like hunting, navigating or creating shelter.

Understanding one another, it seems, is our greatest cognitive challenge...

Source: "The Gregarious Brain" by David Dobbs, www.NYTimes.com July 8, 2007

"Just Right" Living?

Are the laws of physics fine-tuned to support life?

Many scientists hate this idea--what's often called "the anthropic principle." They suspect it's a trick to argue for a designer God. But more and more physicists point to various laws of nature that have to be calibrated just right for stars and planets to form and for life to appear.

For instance, if gravity were just slightly stronger, the universe would have collapsed long before life evolved. But if gravity were a tiny bit weaker, no galaxies or stars could have formed. If the strong nuclear force had been slightly different, red giant stars would never produce the fusion needed to form heavier atoms like carbon, and the universe would be a vast, lifeless desert.

British-born cosmologist Paul Davies calls this cosmic fine-tuning the "Goldilocks Enigma." Like the porridge for the three bears, he says the universe is "just right" for life. Davies is an eminent physicist who's received numerous awards. His 1992 book, The Mind of God, has become a classic of popular science writing. But his new book, The Cosmic Jackpot, will challenge even the most open-minded readers. Without ever invoking God, Davies argues for a grand cosmic plan. The universe, he believes, is filled with meaning and purpose.

What Davies proposes is truly mind-bending. Drawing on the bizarre principles of quantum mechanics, he suggests that human beings--through the sheer act of observation--may have helped shape the laws of physics billions of years ago. What's more, he says the universe seems to work like a giant computer. Indeed, it's possible that's exactly what it is, and we might just be living in a simulated virtual world.

Source: "We are Meant to Be Here" by Steve Paulson, www.salon.com July 3, 2007

Tough Performance Reviews

More than 70% of managers admit they have trouble giving a tough performance review to an underachieving employee, according to a survey by Sibson Consulting and WorldatWork.

Some leaders have a knack for giving the hardest news in a way that leaves employees feeling understood and good about the interaction. One way to do that is by sharing a personal experience with the same sort of developmental challenge, rather than making the employee feel they're the only person in the world with this problem.

There's the awareness of what it's like to be on the receiving end of a poorly delivered performance review. And since the toughest feedback usually touches on deeply ingrained behaviors and personality traits, there's a fear of the intimacy required when offering observations that hit so close to home.

Coaching Tips:

The trick is to deliver the message fully, candidly, and in a timely way while making it palatable and readily usable by the employee; by offering support and alternative behaviors along with the feedback.

Don't wait until the last possible moment to deliver feedback; make it a regular part of your one-on-one interactions with employees rather than an obligatory exchange prior to discussing next year's compensation.

Source: BusinessWeek, September 10, 2007

Had Your Three Almonds Today?

With the stock market dropping faster than plunging hemlines, some boomers are investing in almonds rather than stocks, bonds and treasury bills.

In California, where 80% of the world's almonds are grown, the almond market is looking a lot better than investing in the housing market right now. "Everyone knows that almonds are a great investment," says Monterey, CA, restaurateur Dominic Mercurio, who has teamed with football commentator John Madden to purchase acres of almond orchards, spending more than $3 million since they bought their first 25 acres in the late 1990s.

While some investors have been lured to almonds because of agricultural tax breaks, the recent rush has mainly been spurred by a boom in demand, partly fueled by high-protein diets such as Atkins and South Beach. The industry has also assiduously marketed the cousin of the peach and the plum, touting it as filling, high in antioxidants that fight colon cancer and good for the heart. The upshot: Between 2001 and 2006, the industry says, annual consumption of almonds in the U.S. grew by more than a quarter, exceeding a pound per person.

A report in the April 2001 issue of the medical journal, Cancer Letters, supports the theory that almonds may possess cancer-preventing qualities. Paul Davis and Christine Iwahashi of the University of California at Davis studied the effect of eating almonds on colon cancer in rats.

They fed the rats whole almonds, as well as almond oil and almond meal. They also injected a chemical that induces cancer. After twenty-six weeks on the almond diet, they checked the colons of the rats to see whether cancer was developing. For the control groups, the researchers used rats that were fed either wheat bran or cellulose, two high fiber foods that can help prevent cancer.

The whole almonds, the almond oil and almond meal all had cancer-preventive effects. The whole almonds were especially effective, and were better at inhibiting the cancer than either wheat bran or cellulose. The authors suggest that a combination of compounds only found in the whole almonds is necessary for the full effect. They conclude that "almond consumption may reduce colon cancer risk and does so via at least one almond-associated lipid component."

Almonds are mentioned somewhat infrequently in the Edgar Cayce readings, yet, according to his rather definite statements, apparently have a very important job to do in the metabolism of the human body. Cayce makes no statements about the physiology of the action of the almonds, although in one reading he did state that within the almond was a substance that he called a vitamin. He stated that taking two or three almonds a day would prevent a tendency toward cancer.

That's why I eat three almonds daily. Do you?

Source: The Wall Street Journal, September 6, 2007

"You and I do what many dream of, all their lives."

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

September 18, 2007: B/Coach Systems' Coach2 is beginning another 26-week coaching course: click here

October 3, 2007: Women Only Coaching Club begins: www.WomenCoachingClub.com

January 9, 2008: Women Executive Teleclass Series begins: www.ExecutiveTeleclasses.com

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#364

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Tue Sep 18, 2007 5:52 pm
Subject: Newsletter--We are Learning Partners

johnagno

Send Email

Here is your Coach to Coach Network (C2CN) Newsletter:

Twentysomethings at Work

Extreme Jobs

Instinct to Cooperate

Learning Partners

Less than 50% of Kids with ADHD Diagnosed

If you enjoy and learn from this newsletter's content, please tell others about it. www.Coach2Coach.info

Twentysomethings@Work

The smartest employers are starting to deal with a new generation that expects a very different workplace from the one of their parents.

The desire to hire young graduates is prompted by the retirement of Baby Boomers. Many employers are trying to appeal to Gen Y by making themselves more transparent, flexible, responsive, even nurturing.

So who are these people?

Officially, this generation comprises 1982 and 2000 who began entering the workforce three years ago. They are supposed to be the hothouse kids: praised and coddled from infancy and watched over by their parents well into adulthood. As employees, they are said to have high expectations and demand meaningful work, constructive feedback, and positions of influence within their organizations. In other words, they want a seat at the table, or they'll walk.

It has been said that Gen Y needs buckets of praise. In fact, in many cases these folks are looking for honest appraisals of their work. Andrea S. Hershatter, director of Emory University's undergraduate business program, says, "They don't feel entitled because they're special, they feel entitled to have others support them in their efforts to accomplish and achieve." Twentysomethings want not just honest feedback but also routine conversations about their progress and their career paths.

Source: BusinessWeek, September 24, 2007

Extreme Jobs

Extreme jobs are everywhere. Customers expect systems to function perfectly all the time. Business leaders expect problems to be resolved instantly. These realities, along with intense competition for top jobs, have combined to create a workday with no real beginning or end.

Consultants Carolyn Buck Luce and Sylvia Ann Hewlett put extreme jobs on the map last year when they unveiled a study of some of today's toughest and most consuming careers. The research consisted of two surveys: one of high earners across various professions in the United States, the other of high-earning managers in multinational corporations.

Respondents qualified as extreme if they worked at least 60 hours per week, took home big salaries and held jobs that met at least five of the following 10 criteria:

1. Unpredictable flow of work

2. Fast-paced work under tight deadlines

3. A scope of responsibility that amounts to more than one job.

4. Work-related events outside regular work hours.

5. Availability to clients 24/7

6. Responsibility for profit and loss

7. Responsibility for mentoring and recruiting.

8. Large amount of travel

9. Large number of direct reports

10. Physical presence at workplace at least 10 hours a day

According to the study, the four characteristics thought to create the most intensity and pressure among survey respondents were unpredictability (cited by 91 percent), a fast pace with tight deadlines (86 percent), work-related events outside of business hours (66 percent) and 24/7 client demands (61 percent).

Source: CIO magazine, September 1, 2007, www.CIO.com

Instinct to Cooperate

Until recently, scientists weren't sure how niceness would survive from one generation to the next. Now, some researchers believe that altruistic traits are passed on because cooperation helps entire groups combat enemies.

The hardest things to contemplate in life are failure and age; and those are one and the same. And so every failure becomes a reminder of death. Yet, wait long enough, anything will realize its potential. It's simply not given to us in one lifetime.

The idea that kindness evolved was initially suggested by Charles Darwin, who suspected that wars might create an evolutionary advantage for individuals who worked together over more individualistic foes. Archeological evidence indicates that a period of almost constant war between 100,000 and 10,000 years ago ended with the emergence of super-cooperative groups. The law of reciprocity and selflessness evolved with other genetic traits, such as a desire to conform to a group's norms.

Neuroscientists have found through brain scans that when people cooperate in games in which they share hypothetical money, the reward centers of their brains light up, reflecting a pleasurable experience.

Researchers ran an experiment in which they created a two-person game. To start, player 1 got $10. If that player kept the money, player 2 also got $10 and the game ended. But if player 1 chose to let player 2 take a turn, then player 2 faced a choice: take home $40 and leave nothing for player 1, or take $25 and leave $15 for player 1.

About half the time, finds economist Kevin McCabe and colleagues at George Mason University in Fairfax, VA, player 1 chooses to let player 2 into the game, forgoing a sure $10. In response, nearly three-quarters of the player 2s give up the $40, rewarding player 1's trust by splitting the money $25 to $15.

The functional magnetic resonance imaging ("fMRI") of the volunteers' brain shows that trust is marked by high activity in two brain regions, the researchers reported. Area 10 seems to be involved in delaying gratification, which tends to increase one's final reward. Area 8 figures out what other minds are thinking, in this case registering that the other player is trying to maximize gain through reciprocity. Some people, as the experiment shows, seem wired to delay gratification and act in a mutually beneficial way.

Source: The Wall Street Journal, September 12, 2007

Learning Partners

Executive education programs grew fast during the 1990s, but companies cut back sharply in the 2001 recession. Since then, spending for executive development has gradually rebounded, but now the prime target market of 35 to 45-year-old managers is shrinking as the Baby Boomers age.

"The days of easy growth are over," says Stephen Burnett, associate dean of executive education at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. "To be successful, you have to be far more strategic, smarter and devote more resources to the business." Schools are competing in this crowded market by offering more courses on timely topics like managing the new work force and understanding Asia. They're also targeting certain niches, such as women reentering the workplace.

"In the past, companies were less worried about the ROI on the learning dollar, but now they're much more concerned about bang for the buck," says Eric Weber, associate dean of IESE Business School in Barcelona, Spain.

"We're becoming learning partners with companies and taking on almost a quasi-consulting role," says Anant Sundaram, faculty director for executive education at Dartmouth College's Tuck School of Business. "With projects, a company ends up with something very actionable. We also can do individual coaching to maximize leadership development and conduct follow-up work with the talent-development folks at companies."

Source: The Wall Street Journal, September 17, 2007

Less than 50% of Kids with ADHD Diagnosed

Forget the conventional wisdom on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

U.S. children are underdiagnosed and undertreated for ADHD, not the other way around, according to a new study of kids ages 8 to 15. It estimates that 8.7% suffer from ADHD. But the study, by doctors from Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, found that only 47.9% of children with ADHD have been diagnosed. A mere 32% receive consistent treatment, though some $3 billion worth of ADHD drugs were sold last year.

Those untreated children probably won't be a boon for drugmakers. The study found that the poorest one-fifth of children were the most likely to have ADHD. They were three to five times less likely to receive treatment than other income groups, due to limited or no access to mental health services.

That starts a vicious cycle: Lack of treatment predisposes them to school failure and drug abuse, making upward mobility unlikely.

Source: BusinessWeek, September 17, 2007

"You and I do what many dream of, all their lives."

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

September 18, 2007: B/Coach Systems' Coach2 is beginning another 26-week coaching course: click here

October 3, 2007: Women Only Coaching Club begins: www.WomenCoachingClub.com

January 9, 2008: Women Executive Teleclass Series begins: www.ExecutiveTeleclasses.com

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#365

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Tue Sep 25, 2007 1:40 pm
Subject: Newsletter--Social networking sites

johnagno

Send Email

Here is your Coach to Coach Network (C2CN) Newsletter:

Social Networking Sites

A Leader's Brain

Entitled to Overtime?

There is no Free Lunch

Impact of High Oil Prices

If you enjoy and learn from this newsletter's content, please tell others about it. www.Coach2Coach.info

Social Networking Sites

Social networking is a better fit for some companies than for others.

Brands that don't create excitement in traditional media will have to get creative to make it in social networking. "Business-only" social networking sites, with groups of professionals, can help bolster your personal bottom line.

Forrester Research senior analyst Brian Haven estimates that at best, LinkedIn (generally considered the leader in professional-oriented social networking) is visited weekly by one in every 20 adult Internet users to select community contacts for insight, advice, or potential job candidates to fill open slots. Personally, I have 67 direct LinkedIn connections, 6,800+ two-degrees (friends of friends) and 918,700+ three-degree (their friends).

Consider that your orbit of contacts can speak volumes to a potential employer or business partner, both good and bad. "I talk to a lot of recruiters who use these tools, and they are being used for reference checking very seriously, considering the cost of a bad hire today," says Jim Dickie, managing partner of CSO Insights and a long-time LinkedIn user.

Consumer-oriented sites like MySpace and Facebook can also provide business value. According to Forrester, more than half of the 27 to 40-year-olds using social networking sites use MySpace, although not necessarily exclusively. "To me, and to a lot of people, it makes sense to have a profile on MySpace, Facebook and LinkedIn. They all serve different purposes," says Haven.

Facebook began as a hangout for high school and college students and last year allowed anyone to join. Eight months later, Facebook did something MySpace still hasn't done: It opened up its network to developers and made it easy for them to make money from their applications. Facebook began allowing programmers to build as many apps for Facebook's 32 million users as they could dream up--and pocket whatever money they made doing it.

To incentivize developers, Facebook is also breaking ranks with rivals by sharing crucial data--such as a user's age, interests and friends--that enables more sophisticated applications. Just about any Facebook app can get into the ad game, but only those with the biggest audiences will earn serious money. Several easy-to-use ad networks are already delivering the ads for a cut of overall sales. Apps currently generate less than $1 for every 1,000 pageviews.

Whether the community is there in support of a brand or a common interest, gathering information on participants not only helps organizations better understand enthusiasts, but also helps to build loyalty through the law of attraction.

Sources: 1to1 magazine, September 2007 and Business 2.0, September 2007

A Leader's Brain

"We're coming up with the genome--the brain map--of the leader," says Pierre Balthazard, an Arizona State University management professor.

Mr. Balthazard is among a growing number of researchers looking inside the brain for business insights. The surge in interest among researchers is fueled by more powerful diagnostic tools and an improved understanding of how the brain influences character, personality and behavior.

Executive coaches and researchers are increasingly tapping neuroscience tidbits to bolster their management theories. Scientists at Gallup Organization, for example, say brain research helps managers understand why praise works: it boosts levels of dopamine, a chemical linked to joy.

Advances in electroencephalogram (EEG) technology make it easier to "map" a brain's electrical activity. But it isn't clear that leaders exhibit defined brain-wave patterns, or that changing such patterns automatically alters behavior. Not all brains function the same way, neuroscientists say. Nor do people with similar brain patterns necessarily act in similar ways.

Robert Thatcher, a neuroscientist who's worked on EEGs and behavior for 35 years, says preliminary analysis of 50 brain maps shows some big differences in activity between managers who rate high on a psychological test of visionary leadership, and those who rate low. The visionary leaders had more efficient left brains, which deal with logic and reasoning, and better connected right brains, which are responsible for social skills.

Mr. Thatcher hopes to find more patterns as more brains are scanned. The patterns could indicate brain activity associated with specific qualities like charisma, or something common to all good leaders. The patterns could just reflect "faster brains--more processing, more power," he says, adding that once the patterns are found, "you can move people" to them.

Source: The Wall Street Journal, September 20, 2007

Entitled to Overtime?

Of course, not everyone is entitled to overtime. Under "white-collar exemptions" to the law, employers don't have to pay extra to various executives and professionals. These exemptions, labor historians say, are rooted in decades-old thinking about a workforce that bears little resemblance to today's. A clear distinction between professional and production classes used to be assumed.

About 115 million employees--86% of the workforce--are covered by federal overtime rules, according to the U.S. Labor Dept. The rules apply to salaried and hourly workers alike.

Today, there are two basic categories of overtime claims. One arises because a company has misclassified employees as exempt from the wage and hour laws, and thus improperly failed to pay overtime. The second is a so-called off-the-clock claim, in which employees allege that some of the work they do is not recorded by the company, sometimes as an intentional way to keep them from accruing overtime.

In overtime cases, Depression-era laws aimed at factories and textile mills are being applied in a 21st century economy, raising fundamental questions about the rules of the modern workplace. Generally, workers with jobs that require independent judgment have not been entitled to overtime pay. But with businesses embracing efficiency and quality-control initiatives, more and more tasks, even in offices, are becoming standardized, tightly choreographed routines. That's just one of several factors blurring the traditional blue-collar/white-collar divide. Then there's technology: In an always-on, telecommuting world, when does the workday begin and end? The ambiguity now surrounding these questions is tripping up companies and enriching lawyers.

Even defense attorneys acknowledge that vast numbers of companies are violating the law. "Industries long steeped in tradition as to who is exempt and who is not exempt...are not necessarily compliant with the letter of the regulations," says Kirby C. Wilcox, a partner at Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker in San Francisco.

Lawyers sue companies for violating "wage and hour" rules, typically claiming they have failed to pay overtime to workers who deserve it. Since the beginning of this decade, this litigation has exploded nationwide. Because wage and hour laws have been so widely violated, undetonated legal mines remain buried in countless companies, according to defense and plaintiff's lawyers alike. No one tracks precise figures, but lawyers on both sides estimate that over the last few years companies have collectively paid out more than $1 billion annually to resolve these claims, which are usually brought on behalf of large groups of employees.

"This is the biggest problem for companies out there in the employment area by far," says J. Nelson Thomas, a Rochester, NY attorney who switched from defense to plaintiffs' work. "I can hit a company with a hundred sexual harassment lawsuits, and it will not inflict anywhere near the damage that [a wage and hour suit] will."

Source: BusinessWeek, October 1, 2007

There's no Free Lunch

Free lunch seminars are a rapidly expanding tactic as investment salespeople target the estimated $15 trillion in assets controlled by Americans 65 and older. The aging bubble of wealthy Baby Boomers makes them "prime targets for scam artists," says SEC Chairman Christopher Cox.

What really happens when you trade surf-and-turf for a sales pitch?

"Huge percentages of these things give out false information, make misrepresentations and sucker seniors in," says Joseph Borg of the North American Securities Administrators Association, which is made up of state securities regulators.

The pressure to reciprocate for even small favors can be a powerful tool in the hands of a con artist, according to an investment-fraud study in 2006 by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Investor Education Foundation.

Here are some useful Websites on avoiding trouble:

The SEC online booklet on scams that are targeting seniors is at: www.sec.gov/investor/seniors.shtml

Brokerage regulator Finra's guide to decoding salespeople's credentials is at this long address: http://apps.finra.org/datadirectory/1/prodesignations.aspx

The AARP Website, www.AARP.org offers tips on avoiding dubious retirement investments.

Source: The Wall Street Journal, September 8, 2007

Impact of High Oil Prices

A thief in Paris planned to steal some paintings from the Louvre Museum.

After careful planning, he got past security, stole the paintings, and made
it safely to his van.

However, he was captured only two blocks away when his van ran out of gas.

When asked how he could mastermind such a crime and then make such an
obvious error, he replied, "Monsieur, that is the reason I stole the
paintings. I had no Monet to buy Degas to make the Van Gogh."

"You and I do what many dream of, all their lives."

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

October 3, 2007: Women Only Coaching Club begins: www.WomenCoachingClub.com

January 9, 2008: Women Executive Teleclass Series begins: www.ExecutiveTeleclasses.com

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#366

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Wed Oct 3, 2007 6:08 pm
Subject: Newsletter---Innate and Learned Leadership

johnagno

Send Email

Here is your Coach to Coach Network (C2CN) Newsletter:

Innate and Learned Leadership

Free Wireless Phones

Neurodiversity

Will You Make it to the Top?

If you enjoy and learn from this newsletter's content, please tell others about it. www.Coach2Coach.info

Innate and Learned Leadership

There are two business bestseller books that you can read to learn how to be a more effective leader.

"Now, Discover Your Strengths" by Marcus Buckingham & Donald O. Clifton, Ph.D. (The Free Press) helps you to identify your innate signature talents so that you can build them into leadership strengths. You can find this book at your local bookseller or purchase online by clicking here: self-directed learning . On the inside of the book jacket cover there is a code number to take the online Strengthsfinder.com self-assessment. When you receive your top five "signature talents" report, you need to keep them in front of you so when a situation arises, you may refer to your top five signature talents and decide which to put into action when facing the situation. Note: At your bookstore there is another book called "Strengthsfinder 2.0" that utilizes the same self assessment.

�The crux of leadership development that works is self-directed learning: intentionally developing or strengthening an aspect of who you are or who you want to be, or both.� Primal Leadership by Daniel Goleman, Richard Boyatzis & Annie McKee (Harvard Business School Press) Your emotional intelligence competencies are not innate talents, but learned abilities, each of which has a unique contribution to making leaders more resonant, and therefore more effective.

Self-coaching helps you acquire useful leadership skills, clarify your values and guiding principles and actively build your reputation. Self-knowledge provides the personal integrity to engage in powerful action oriented relationships.

Seeing ourselves clearly does many things:

� It allows us to control impulses and select the most appropriate behaviors.

� It shows us how to avoid reacting in negative and potentially self-limiting ways.

� Knowing our strengths and limitations makes us more understanding of others.

� Gaining an understanding of issues reduces conflict in ourselves and in others.

Being aware of the affect of your personality and default behavior on the people in your life helps you to engineer a better communication and leadership style. Effective leaders know that what people value deeply will move them most powerfully in their work. Because these leaders are aware of their own guiding principles, values, vision and assumptions/beliefs, they can articulate a vision that has the ring of truth for those they lead.

Free Wireless Phones

A couple of months ago, I paid about $650 for the new iPhone and it has been worth every penny spent. Now, I travel without my laptop while staying connected with family, friends and clients.

As a business coach, who receives over $1,000/month in revenue from Google's AdSense, I am interested in the growth potential of wireless advertising. The more than 2 1/2 billion phones in use worldwide exceed the number of PCs and TVs combined. On September 17, Google announced a Web program aimed at advertisers who have created sites for display on cell phones and other handheld devices.

Like its online ad network, Google's AdSense for Mobile delivers ads relevant to the advertiser's mobile audience. "The sheer volume of users across the globe makes mobile the next channel for information," says Dilip Venkatachari, director of product management for Google's mobile team.

Smaller companies offer a glimpse into how Google might play its wireless hand.

Blyk, a wireless startup that made its debut in Britain on September 24th, offers free mobile phone calls and text messages for people aged 16 to 24 who agree to let companies send text ads to their handsets. Blyk leases space on European carrier Orange's network in Britain, but operates its own billing and marketing system. That lets it retain full control of valuable customer information and avoid sharing ad revenues with the carrier. Users fill out detailed information about their lifestyles, areas of interest, and brand preferences. Those who agree to receive tailored ads get 43 minutes per month of free mobile voice service and 217 free text messages.

Even without a network, Venkatachari says Google plans to connect mobile advertisers with users based on information from its search engine, maps, and other software, just as it has done on the desktop. Via Google search, for example, an advertiser learns a user is at the corner bakery in downtown Chicago. And it learns the person has a taste for sweets.

If Google decides to spend the $4.6 billion that may be needed to win the federal auction early next year for a radio spectrum, analysts speculate that it has several options: continue its broadband expansion, or buy a wireless carrier, such as beleaguered Sprint Nextel. Then it could launch the first ad-supported, and free, nationwide phone service.

Source: BusinessWeek, October 8, 2007

Neurodiversity

A group called "Aspies for Freedom" runs a website that celebrates what it calls neurodiversity, arguing that there are advantages as well as disadvantages in an autistic condition.

The reporter Amy Harmon wrote in the New York Times that some autistics view themselves as part of "an ad hoc human rights movement" and view autism itself as "an integral part of their identities, much more like a skin than a shell, and not one they care to shed."

Asperger's syndrome was recognized by the American Psychiatric Association in 1994. There is no cure for Asperger's syndrome, and there is even some question whether it should be considered an affliction or merely a "difference"--one of many human variants.

The syndrome was identified, in 1944, by Hans Asperger, a Viennese pediatrician, who wrote, "For success in science or art, a dash of autism is essential." Yet Oliver Sacks makes a clear distinction between full-fledged autism and Asperger's syndrome. In the Times some years ago, Sacks wrote that "people with Asperger's syndrome can tell us of their experiences, their inner feelings and states, whereas those with classical autism cannot. With classical autism there is no 'window' and we can only infer. With Asperger's syndrome there is self-consciousness and at least some power to introspect and report."

In his 1998 book, "Asperger's Syndrome: A Guide for Parents and Professionals," Tony Attwood observed, "The person with Asperger's syndrome has no distinguishing physical features but is primarily viewed by other people as different because of their unusual quality of social behavior and conversation skills.

David Mamet, in his recent book, "Bambi vs. Godzilla," discerned redeeming qualities in the condition. Considering filmmakers past and present, he stated that "it is not impossible that Asperger's syndrome helped make the movies. The symptoms of this developmental disorder include early precocity, a great ability to maintain masses of information, a lack of ability to mix with groups in age-appropriate ways, ignorance of or indifference to social norms, high intelligence, and difficulty with transitions, married to a preternatural ability to concentrate on the minutia of the task at hand."

The Asperger's spectrum ranges from people barely more abstracted than a stereotypical "absent-minded professor" to the full-blown, albeit highly functioning, autistic. Symptoms of Asperger's have been attributed ex post facto to successful figures, but these care the fortunate ones--persons able to invent outlets for their ever-welling monomanias. Many are not so lucky, and some end up institutionalized or homeless.

Source: Parallel Play by Tim Page in The New Yorker, August 20, 2007

Will you make it to the top?

That was the question the BBC interviewer asked five mountain climbers that morning before they began their ascent. And, one by one, they gave her the same answer, said in a different way.

"I'll do my best," said a big burly guy with a heavy black beard.

"I'll give it my best shot," said a tall, wiry man with muscles on his muscles.

"We'll see what happens," said a blond headed poster boy for what a mountain climber ought to look like.

"I'll sure try," said a young, dark headed woman with bright flashing eyes.

And finally the interviewer asked the same question to a short, scrawny, red-headed guy about five and a half feet tall who looked like the runt of the litter. And he told her...

"Yes."

"Excuse me?" she said, surprised.

"Yes. I'll make it."

And at the end of the day, he was the only one who made it to the top. Not because he was the biggest, or the brightest, or the most able...but because he was the only one who said he would.

Not 'maybe' or 'I hope' or 'with any luck' or 'I'll give it my best shot' or 'I'll work hard at it' or 'I'll try!'

All he said was "yes".

Because he knew that to 'try' is to die...because when you leave yourself a way out, you'll always take it when the going gets rough.

Getting what you want isn't all that hard or complex or mysterious. Just decide what you want, commit to it, and then do it. One step at a time. The same way you'd climb any mountain.

Climbing Mount Everest is hardly a walk in the park, but despite the risks about 1,500 people try to reach the summit each year. This year, more than 600 climbers made it to the top, and six people died trying.

While in the past those climbers would have been almost exclusively young and male, the demographics of Everest expeditions are changing, with more women and older men in the mix. Age, not sex, appears to affect who succeeds on Mount Everest.

In study by Raymond B. Huey of the University of Washington, the probability of success declined rapidly for climbers older than 40, with those 60 and older (about 4 percent of climbers in recent years) having only a 13 percent chance of making it to the top.

Climbers 60 and older also had higher death rates--about one in 20 did not make it off the mountain alive. And those sexagenarians who were strong enough to reach the summit often paid for it on the way down. They had a 25 percent chance of dying while descending.

Source: The New York Times

"You and I do what many dream of, all their lives."

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

January 9, 2008: Women Executive Teleclass Series begins: www.ExecutiveTeleclasses.com

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#367

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Wed Oct 17, 2007 4:58 pm
Subject: Newsletter---Leadership Training

johnagno

Send Email

Here is your Coach to Coach Network (C2CN) Newsletter:

Coaching Connections

Leadership Training

Living Life as a Dress Rehearsal

Your Leadership Checklist

Executive Communication Style

A Congressman for All Seasons

If you enjoy and learn from this newsletter's content, please tell others about it. www.Coach2Coach.info

Coaching Connections

Please Join Us

Wine and Cheese Reception
Hosted by
The Foundation of Coaching
Friday, November 2, 2007
The Hyatt Regency Long Beach
Regency Ballroom B
5:00 - 7:00 p.m.

Please R.S.V.P. by October 25, 2007
Linda@...

The mission of The Foundation of Coaching is to forward the development of coaching, both as a profession

and a valuable set of skills to evolve humanity.
www.thefoundationofcoaching.org

CERTIFICATION CONFERENCE OF INTEREST TO COACHES

Early registration fee extended to October 22 for:
   - Philadelphia, October 29-30
   - New York to Bermuda cruise, November 4-11
   - Las Vegas, November 15-16
=> http://www.mediationworks.com/mti/certconf/coach.htm

TELECONFERENCE:

The next free monthly teleconference for coaches with a focus on conflict coaching is coming up soon. Please mark your calendar.

DAY/TIME: Monday, October 22, 4:00 pm ET, 40 minutes duration HOST: Dan Dana - http://www.mediationworks.com/DanDana

DESCRIPTION:
Join your coaching colleagues for a discussion of professional
and practice issues with a special focus on conflict coaching.
See: http://www.mediationworks.com/123/coach
Free and open to coaches with any level of experience.

FOR CONFERENCE ACCESS:

Confirm that you are subscribed to the Conflict Coaching
Forum at http://www.mediationworks.com/123/coach

Call 712-432-2222 at the start time, enter code 66208

2008 International Coaching Week

is Feb. 3-9, 2008...the TENTH annual!

Just thought I'd give you a heads up.

Jerri N. Udelson, Master Certified Coach, Entrepreneurial Coaching and Consulting, www.JerriUdelson.com
(505) 988-5533

Leadership Training

Leadership training is not an event---where you learn how to be an effective leader in a classroom or workshop. Leadership development is self-development.

Leadership skills are developed on-the-job through having interactive conversations that pull people toward becoming comfortable with the language of personal responsibility and commitment. Working with a mentor or coach can help an emerging leader's perceptions to evolve over time. As the leader's perceptions evolve, he or she becomes more self-aware and understanding of the dynamics of human behavior.

Albert Einstein once said, "We should take care not to make the intellect our god; it has, of course, powerful muscles but no personality. It cannot lead; it can only serve." Leaders know and science has discovered emotionality's deeper purpose: the timeworn mechanisms of emotion allow two human beings to receive the contents of each other's minds.

After receiving our leadership coaching tips for a year, here is what a subscriber had to say:

"I have enjoyed receiving your coaching tips for the past 12 months and have found them to be very useful. For instance: During our recent manager's Leadership Training Program, I shared a number of your tips with my colleagues and the consultant running our program."

Why not sign up today to receive our leadership tips in RSS format here on The Leadership Blog or get our free monthly leadership coaching tips by entering your name and email address below:

Living Life as a Dress Rehearsal

Most people have decided to live their life practicing in preparation for the real performance.

"I'll be happy when...." is the way many people think they are living their lives. Yet, happiness is not something that happens to you. Happiness is inside each of us now. We are motivated from within. We only have to allow happiness to surface.

Happiness = K (Knowing who you are) X D (Discovering your life's work) X L (Learning not to tolerate what's not important). That's the formula for success and happiness....know yourself, your true calling and that you get what you tolerate.

In medicine, you look at how "well tolerated" a drug will be related to its side effects. At work and home, many people evaluate new opportunities related to what can be well tolerated. Yet, after life, most people don't want their tombstone to read, "He tolerated stuff for other people because they paid him." Especially, when we realize that we can have more fun doing work that engages our passions. Life is too short for doing work you don't enjoy for people you don't respect.

Is your present life half empty or half full?

Here are some stories of half empty lives brought to us by Jared Sandberg in his Cubicle Culture column in the October 16, 2007 edition of The Wall Street Journal:

Carol Birth, a 31-year-old single mother and teacher, dreams one day she will go back to school to get her doctorate. But not before she can provide for her son. "So, you keep going. You keep going because it feels selfish to stop," she says, adding that some days she is pretty sure she would rather clean sewers than do what she is doing now.

David Eddy, a software programmer and father of a high school junior, used to have an entrepreneurial dream with two high-tech start-ups...and now...he is (just) dreaming of the predictability of a cubicle job that will help with looming tuition expenses.

Sandberg tells us that so many people tell you to "follow your dreams"--from commencement speakers to executive coaches--that it is easy to get the impression you aren't. But there is scant evidence that people aren't doing pretty much what they want. He mentions that a Gallup Poll found that 90% of Americans are at least somewhat satisfied with their jobs and 75% say they're satisfied with their pay. Two-thirds would take the same job again "without hesitation."

However, in highly developed countries, there is a growing percentage of people thinking about the meaning of life. This genuine spiritual concern is broader than traditional views of religion practiced in numerous countries of the world. Yet, it is unclear to most how they want to live their life in a meaningful way...afraid or unwilling to follow their dream.

"Nothing happens unless first a dream." Carl Sandburg

There are too many smart, educated, talented people operating at a slow speed in jobs they are just tolerating. They have put their dream in a lock box so they could go out and make a ton of money to support the big house, expensive cars, summer/winter places, private schools, college expenses, etc. The unfortunate outcome of following this path, is that they become emotionally invested in that world--and don't really want to ditch it by opening up the lock box and letting their dream surface.

Such people have decided live their life as a dress rehearsal rather than live every moment to the fullest. They continue to look outside themselves rather than to seek answers within. They continue to paddle upstream rather than cruise downstream living a life of passion...doing what they do best.

Your Leadership Checklist

Even outstanding leaders struggle through career stretches during which they feel off track. It can be hard to spot the specific problem when you're in the middle of it. But successful leaders develop techniques for recognizing their vulnerabilities and making rapid adjustments.

Leaders should regularly ask themselves questions that target seven areas, according to Robert S. Kaplan, in a Harvard Business Review article:

1. Vision and Priorities
2. Managing Time
3. Feedback
4. Succession Planning
5. Evaluation and Alignment
6. Leading Under Pressure
7. Staying True to Yourself

For more on these Seven Leadership Checkpoints, go to: http://home.att.net/~coachthee/Archives/your_leadership_checklist.htm

Executive Communication Style

If you're feeling incapable as a woman in the workplace these days, you're not alone. A poll by Roper Public Affairs shows that three out of five women working in the high-tech industry want to leave because of a perceived glass ceiling - a perception that they are less knowledgeable and qualified than men.

In fact, the 2005 Women's Leadership Index - conducted by Michigan State University's Institute for Public Policy and Social Research and the Inforum Center for Leadership - reported top female executives earn an average of 49 cents to the dollar compared to men.

In October 2006, The Wall Street Journal reported that women are at a disadvantage when they communicate "like a woman" in a male-shaped corporate culture, and 81 percent of women are now "adopting a style with which male managers are comfortable."

Sound like some ridiculous regression of feminism, catering to male-chauvinism?

Not to John Agno, an Ann Arbor-based executive coach. To him, acting more "like a man" is savvy business sensibility.

Talking like a man matters

"A woman needs a male coach," says Agno. "Otherwise she won't have a good idea about how the other gender thinks and feels. It's still a man's world in business. Women need to learn how to talk like a man. They need to learn how to brag. They'll get what they want out of the situation by molding to the environment."

Women have, characteristically, been conditioned to speak a certain way, according to Agno. "They tend to end sentences on a high note, which implies, 'We really want to talk this over,' instead of a low note, which is more of a command."

Along with shaky vocal inflections, Agno says women aren't specific enough about their contributions to the company. They use too many words, downplaying their abilities. In the male mind, this behavior creates doubt.

Communication styles rooted in childhood training or unconscious beliefs can be tough to change. A first step is becoming aware of how you talk at work. Here are some pitfalls that women especially can encounter in the workplace:

--using too many words to deliver serious messages
--downplaying your contributions
--using vague language
--phrasing statements as questions
--using an upward inflection at the end of statements, which indicates doubt.

Working with an executive coach can help you to be clear on the communication style at your level within the company and to confidently practice this style so you will be heard at work.

Source: Lansing State Journal, June 22, 2006, www.LSJ.com

January 9, 2008: Women Executive Teleclass Series begins: www.ExecutiveTeleclasses.com

A Congressman for All Seasons

My congressman, John Dingell, has served in Congress for 52 years and if, there is anything that he has learned in his time in Washington, it's to call them as he sees them.

In his position, as chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, he insists that today's great energy debate result in a bill that actually accomplishes something, and that its pain be borne by all Americans (rather than just his Detroit auto makers).

Americans have been up and down on the price and availability of gasoline since the mid-1800s. The price of a barrel of oil, from time-to-time, spikes and then slowly goes down (at a faster rate than inflation) over time until it becomes too low and the oil producers spike it back up. When the price is low and availability high, people buy bigger cars and trucks in the U.S. When the price is higher, they begin to buy more fuel-efficient vehicles. If the price of gasoline falls back to the $2.50 gallon range (which it will), most consumers will again demand big fuel-inefficient vehicles. That's a huge problem for automotive manufacturers who haven't figured out how to forecast fuel price cycles.

What's the solution?

Take a look at European transportation patterns over the years. Gasoline there has been highly taxed; forcing people to take mass rapid transit to their weekday workplaces while saving their private vehicle usage for weekend travel.

Mr. Dingell, the 81-year-old Dean of the House, argues for new energy taxes because higher energy prices are one of the few things that cause people to cut back consumption. Taxes give policy makers more options in influencing behavior. He uses the example of a gas tax. "Why would I do that? First of all, it means I can reduce the use of gasoline, and I can make it easier for CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Efficiency) to work." He also explains that it allows policy makers to "differentiate between fuels." By taxing gasoline but not diesel, for instance, he hopes to get more people into diesel cars. That would further reduce emissions, he argues, since diesel gets "about a 20% or 25% fuel benefit."

"People have got to understand that addressing the problem we have as the largest user of energy and emitter of greenhouse gases is not something that will exist without pain...It is ultimately going to evolve into a significant cost for everybody, and significant changes in lifestyle. Nobody will put in too much, nobody too little, but nobody will get out of it," he predicts.

Source: The Weekend Interview with John Dingell, The Wall Street Journal, October 6-7, 2007

"You and I do what many dream of, all their lives."

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

January 9, 2008: Women Executive Teleclass Series begins: www.ExecutiveTeleclasses.com

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#368

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Wed Oct 24, 2007 2:03 pm
Subject: Newsletter---Sales Development Tips

johnagno

Send Email

Here is your Coach to Coach Network (C2CN) Newsletter:

Why do Salespeople Fail?

Sales Tip: Earn Trust

Strategic Plan Starting Point: List Critical Issues

Minority Women Leadership

National Forgiveness Day--Saturday, October 27th

If you enjoy and learn from this newsletter's content, please tell others about it. www.Coach2Coach.info

Why do Salespeople Fail?

1. They think they can get away with �winging it.� This expression comes from the theater; where it alludes to an actor studying his part in the wings (the areas to either side of the stage) because he has been suddenly called on to replace another. First recorded in 1885, it eventually was extended to other kinds of improvisation based on unpreparedness.

Being prepared for the customer interaction is important. Knowing what action you want the prospect to take based upon this sales interaction allows the sales person to focus. Having a strategy of what to ask, what to show and tell helps to move the prospect to taking the desired action. Anticipating obstacles to the sale will allow you to plan how to go around or over potential �roadblocks� in accomplishing your sales objective.

2. They don�t understand the impact of their personality on specific buying styles. This shows up in not really listening to the prospective customer and, instead, filling the sales interaction with sales talk. They don�t answer questions well because they don�t listen for the assumptions/beliefs that�s behind the prospect�s words. Their presentations are not in line with what the prospect wants to know. Being out-of-touch with the prospective customer�s personality style insures that the inability to communicate will sour the sale.

To improve your sales ability to sell well, use a proven sales methodology to prepare for every major sales interaction. Understand your personality�s strengths and weaknesses and how to �read� a prospect�s buying style. Usually a sales person�s weakness, in the buyer�s perspective, is an over extension of a strength and can be toned down through self-management by the sales person.

For more sales tips, visit www.SalesTip.info

Sales Tip: Earn Trust

The car salesman is one of the least trusted people in town.

There's history here. Many years ago, people bargained over horses. And since the proud beasts gave way to the horseless carriage, hardball negotiating between buyer and seller has continued on the car lot.

Dump Haggling Over Price

Negotiating price isn't in our culture: haggling is un-American. Anyone can look up the base price of a car online. Using the Web, buyers can negotiate the lowest price.

65% of consumers say they would prefer not to haggle over the price of a car...and...72% of women feel that way. More women are buying cars these days; they bought half the vehicles sold in the U.S. last year and influenced an additional 20% of purchases.

Then there's Gen Y. An important generation that don't like haggling because it takes too long. Did you know that the average car sale consumes 4.5 hours? Who has time for that? That's why Scion, launched to woo Gen Y four years ago by Toyota, doesn't allow its dealers to haggle. The company says it has cut the time it takes to sell a car to 45 minutes. Gen Y buyers also tend to select everything down to the color and options they want online and before they hit the showroom.

And yet, old habits die hard--especially at those brands, mostly owned by the Big Three, that still have too many stores.

Source: BusinessWeek, October 29, 2007

Strategic Plan Starting Point: List Critical Issues

Back in the mid-1980s when I was a management consultant, I often used methods that I had read about in the book, "The Mind of the Strategist: The art of Japanese business" by Kenichi Ohmae, Director of McKinsey & Company, Inc. (McGraw-Hill).

The sole purpose of strategic planning is to enable an organization to gain, as efficiently as possible, a sustainable edge over its competition. This implies an attempt to alter the organization's strengths relative to that of its competitors. Isolating strategic technical and marketing strengths (absolute versus relative strengths) determines how to compete wisely.

The starting point in analysis is to determine the critical issues. This helps in solving the problem, planning for implementation and then taking action. Here are the 10 steps of the process:

1. List the concrete phenomena

2. Grouping the phenomena

3. Abstraction

4. Determination of Approach (very concrete and specific)

5. Formulation of hypothetical solutions

6. Validation or rebuttal of hypothetical solutions by in-depth analysis

7. Emergence of conclusion

8. Giving concrete form to conclusions

9. Draft plan of actions

10. Implementation by line managers

Today, in Japan, there is a new book by a former McKinsey consultant that is meant to help middle and high school students think like a consultant. "The World's Easiest Problem-Solving Class" by Kensuke Watanabe has become an adult best-seller in Japan. This 117-page paperback offers two case studies: a kids' band looking to increase concert attendance and a teenager saving to buy a computer. Both use 'business' graphics like logic trees, along with cute drawings. This simple approach also appeals to adult readers. Perhaps, an American publisher will decide to translate and publish this book for the U.S. marketplace....

Minority Women Leadership

At the Women of Color in Management Consulting Preconference Forum in Atlanta, GA in July 2007, Consulting magazine asked a small group of attendees to join a roundtable discussion. Here is a brief selection of the subjects covered focused on the topic of leadership:

With women making up such a small percentage of consultants, and then with women of color making up a fraction of that, do you feel there is more pressure on you to be a role model?

"The pressure is to really make sure that the few senior women of color in the firm--any firm--are focused on substantive talent-management activities. Not broad programs. But things that are going to substantively help the leadership develop those types of activities--sometimes we call that "each one teach one." Sometimes, it's really trying to help the leadership determine the best way to direct resources. Sometimes, it's helping them determine where the pockets of high potential talents are. That to me is where the pressure is. To make sure that you really direct your efforts in a way that's going to have some substantive outcomes for growth." Tanya Hilton, Principal, Booz Allen Hamilton

What role has mentorship played throughout your career?

"It's everything. As an African-American woman, you need a sponsor. If you are going to get on the prime projects that will showcase your skills to be able to move up in consulting, you need that sponsor who can say, 'Listen, why don't you put her in this position, challenge her to see what she can do?' You need that kind of sponsor to help you and to also help you navigate the firm." Inga Riggins, Recruiting Manager, IBM Global Services

How would you describe your firm's diversity initiatives?

"From our [League of Black Women] research, one of the things we know is that because these women will be alone for a long time in their careers [as minorities], it's essential that the firms bring early leadership maturation to the forefront. Because part of what decimates the numbers of how many people survive are that [they are] facing all sorts of invisible challenges that no one can pinpoint and most others can't see. And so that really takes the numbers way down. You have one when you started out with the potential for so much more. So they have to reverse the strategy. I call it the 'early introduction of MiracleGro.'" Sandra Finley, President and CEO, League of Black Women

Source: Consulting magazine, October 2007, www.ConsultingMag.com

January 9, 2008: Women Executive Teleclass Series begins: www.ExecutiveTeleclasses.com

National Forgiveness Day--Saturday, October 27th

JOY OF LIVING �No More Stress Just Happiness Guaranteed!�

Step One - Declare the day a joyful day when you wake up!

Step Two - Speak the truth with love!

Step Three - Ask questions. Listen with understanding. Think in silence. Love One Another.

Step Four - Do not give permission for anger, fear, sadness and hurt to take away your joy.

Step Five - Resolve conflicts by thinking this thought - Thank You. There is a lesson to be learned. What are you trying to teach me?

Step Six - Restore and rebuild relationships by asking the person what you can do to make the relationship better.

Step Seven - ASK FOR FORGIVENESS AND FORGIVE OTHERS.

Step Eight - Know that distress is caused by having to be right, by finding fault, by trying to control and manipulate, and by being selfish.

Step Nine - Stop doing things that cause stress. Give up bad habits. Say I want to stop. With humility say I can�t stop. Ask for the desire to do certain things be taken away. Go and do random acts of kindness.

Step Ten - Practice the Seven Super Powers that you have the power to control. You have the power to control your attitude, communications, truth, love, encouragement, forgiveness and humility.

Step Eleven - Use these 21 wonderful words as often as possible: I�m wrong. I�m sorry. Forgive me. Thank you. You�re welcome. Please. What is your opinion? I love you. I am. Forgive.

Step Twelve - Know the power of love lives inside you. Know you were created for relationships and to love one another no matter what.

�Positive Peaceful Partners - April 1, 2006 - Robert Moyers

This message created by:

Robert �Mr. Happy� Moyers - Inspirational Speaker - Author

Positive Peaceful Partners Center Of Unconditional Love

4-203 County Rd. U4, Liberty Center, OH 43532.

Call - 419-533-4191. Email - bobmoy@...

The JOY OF LIVING Plan Of Unconditional Love

Is Shared Each Year On The Last Saturday Of October

In Honor Of National Forgiveness Day

www.unconditionallovelive.com

"You and I do what many dream of, all their lives."

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

January 9, 2008: Women Executive Teleclass Series begins: www.ExecutiveTeleclasses.com

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#369

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Wed Oct 31, 2007 2:19 pm
Subject: Newsletter--Measuring People Performance

johnagno

Send Email

Here is your Coach to Coach Network (C2CN) Newsletter:

Why do Salespeople Fail?

Measuring People Performance

What is Multi-Rater (360-degree) Feedback?

Return on Reputation

Executive Engagement: Managing Energy with Stories

If you enjoy and learn from this newsletter's content, please tell others about it. www.Coach2Coach.info

Why do Salespeople Fail?

A major reason why salespeople fail is they think they can get away with �winging it.�

Being prepared for the customer interaction is important. Knowing what action you want the prospect to take based upon this sales interaction matters.

The unprepared salesperson doesn't see himself clearly.

For a closer look at the unprepared salesperson, click on the picture above or go to:

http://coachingtip.blogs.com/coaching_tip/2007/10/the-unprepared-.html

For more sales tips, visit www.SalesTip.info

Measuring People Performance

Organizations place increasing emphasis on measuring results--from financial success to management effectiveness and return on investment (ROI).

While most firms have become adept at defining financial and operational success, most find that the softer side of people performance is often the hardest to quantify. Yet, employees represent the largest cost in most enterprises. Measurement typically is focused on what was accomplished but how things are accomplished within a company is important.

Performance assessments, such as 360-degree feedback, and executive coaching have gained popularity in evaluating and improving individual behaviors and the overall levels of management engagement. While most organizations use feedback mechanisms and outside coaches to gauge the soft side of performance, few take the time or make the effort to connect these measurements to organizational performance.

Most 360-degree feedback assessments fall under the umbrella of organizational development within the Human Resource Department....and....these professionals don't understand the connections these instruments and executive coaching have to the bottom line. Yet, much of the power of these assessments lies in what they predict about future performance; a predictor of bottom-line success.

Source: Training+Development magazine, September 2007

What is Multi-Rater (360-degree) Feedback?

The purpose of any performance management system should be to guide the individual employee and groups toward desired outcomes, provide reinforcement and supply corrective feedback for making adjustments.

The 360-degree feedback report gives participants a fair and well-rounded impression of how others view their work. When the person who is rated agrees to share the results of this multi-rater assessment with management, the supervisor gets an overall perspective about the individual�s skills/abilities in order to facilitate process improvement, remove barriers to success and acquire needed resources. Feedback is provided from multiple sources (raters) including self, boss, peers, direct reports, and, in some cases, customers and suppliers.

Why use Multi-Rater assessments in Executive Coaching?

Allows the person being coached to gain perspectives from others in an objective, non-threatening, confidential manner.
Provides the individual with data for self-reflection and self-awareness.
Assists in identifying individual development needs and action items.
Helps surface patterns of behavior, especially when used in conjunction with other assessment tools during the coaching process.
Provides a platform for dialogue between the outside coach and the executive.

Tips When Selecting a Multi-Rater Instrument

Research validity, design and intended use/audience of assessment.
Determine additional development tools and complimentary assessments available through assessment tool vendors. Note: It is not recommended to start out with a 360-degree assessment in the self-awareness process. Before taking the 360-degree feedback assessment, allow the person being rated to get a feel for their strengths and behavioral tendencies using one or more other self-assessment tools.
Understand the cost of the instrument (often there is a processing charge per report and/or number of raters).
Review layout and ease of understanding 360-degree feedback report.
Check to see if a certification process is required to interpret report to the person being rated.

Tips for Ensuring Success When Utilizing a Multi-Rater Process

Fully understand the dimensions the 360-degree feedback is measuring and how to interpret the meaning of the results to the person being rated.
Allow the person being rated to select the �raters� with guidance from the coach or the corporate HR representative. Selected raters should be individuals who:
Have observed the performance of the person being rated on a regular basis.
Have first-hand knowledge of the person being rated's work behaviors.
Have worked/interacted with the person being rated for a minimum of 6-months.
Are open to providing honest and accurate feedback � both positive and developmental.
In order to protect the anonymity of individuals and maintain the credibility of the instrument, a minimum of three raters should be used for each category except boss.
Make sure a process has been established to protect the confidentiality of the process.
Incorporate results of the 360-feedback with other assessments used as part of a development/action plan.

Proper Implementation of Multi-Rater Assessments is Critical to Success

Return on Reputation

Public relations firm Hill & Knowlton released its "Return on Reputation" report that shows reputation is now perceived as having a direct correlation with financial performance.

Your corporate reputation can be built or wrecked at warp speed on the Internet.

For how your reputation is communicated, go to: http://coachingtip.blogs.com/coaching_tip/2007/04/return_on_reput.html

Executive Engagement: Managing Energy with Stories

The stories we tell ourselves and others drive the way we gather and spend energy.

Jim Loehr�s new book, The Power of Story: Rewrite Your Destiny in Business and in Life (2007), stresses that faulty storytelling drives the way executives gather and spend their energy. Tell yourself the right story, and the dynamics of your energy will change. Stories you tell will either create or sap your energy.

Click here for the complete story.

January 9, 2008: Women Executive Teleclass Series begins: www.ExecutiveTeleclasses.com

Happy Halloween!

Go here to carve your own pumpkin: http://www.cubpack81.com/images/carve_pumpkin.swf

"You and I do what many dream of, all their lives."

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

January 9, 2008: Women Executive Teleclass Series begins: www.ExecutiveTeleclasses.com

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#370

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Thu Nov 8, 2007 3:23 pm
Subject: Newsletter---Now Family Coaches?

johnagno

Send Email

Here is your Coach to Coach Network (C2CN) Newsletter:

Can Family Coaches Bring Order?

Social Networking Tools

Best Practices in Mentoring Awards help Plug the Brain Drain

Not Clicking

Birth Order Matters

If you enjoy and learn from this newsletter's content, please tell others about it. www.Coach2Coach.info

Can Family Coaches Bring Order?

Americans have long turned to fitness, career and life coaches to shape up their personal lives.

Now, they're hiring family coaches to overhaul family life. For fees ranging from about $25 to $90 an hour or $200 and up for several hours' coaching, these self-described experts offer tips, gimmicks and pep talks that aim to stamp out chaos, firm up family ties and free up time for family fun. Family coaching "is a huge domain that is growing," says Laura Atwood, a Phoenix-based trainer for the International Coach Federation. Dallas entrepreneur Kathy Peel has certified nearly 200 "Family Manager" coaches.

For the frazzled, coaches sometimes suggest making a "not-to-do" list. Mary Kay Russell, a Lisle, IL, mother of four boys, was miserable trying to be "the queen volunteer, the stay-at-home mom with the perfect children, making a little money on the side" with a home business, she says. "You can't put that kind of facade on for long before you crack." A coach advised her to cut back the home business and get out more.

Coaches try to get families working together as a team. On a Family Manager coach's advice last year, Laurel Smith and her husband set a timer and do a nightly "7-minute sprint" with their three small children, racing all over the house picking up toys and clutter. The fact that "we're all doing it together" makes it fun, says Ms. Smith, of Germantown, TN.

Yet, no amount of coaching will move the unmotivated.

Source: Work & Family, The Wall Street Journal, October 18, 2007

Social Networking Tools

Companies derive value from social networking tools that allow employees to share ideas and make global connections.

With Web 2.0, blogs, wikis, networked CAD and VoIP, information technology's internal communication infrastructure has expanded to embrace enhanced conversations within the enterprise. In reality, a company's global competitiveness potential is a function of how well people utilize these technology assets.

Social networking tools gain a foothold because they enable people to engage in discussion on a global scale and break through organizational silos. They create a virtual water cooler where conversations can take place asynchronously but still efficiently. People can say, "This is what I'm thinking about, and this is what I'm working on."

As with personal computers, cell phones and instant messaging, blogs and wikis tend to thrive in organizations not because they are blessed by management but because they are introduced and used by employees. Internal blogs start as a grassroots effort set up by employees. Internal blogs allow employees to communicate about what's going on within the company and learn from peers they might not generally have encountered. Better ideas are created when an employee has come up with the concept, fleshes it out in a blog posting, and then seeks feedback.

Discussion across geographies and departments helps build momentum for projects because you get input from people with different perspectives beyond the traditional silos. The blogs coalesce knowledge that you simply couldn't get before. They mine value, expertise and passion that you would not have been able to get in a top-down approach.

If you're a C-level executive thinking about communicating using blogs and wikis (or allowing employees to do so), you need to detach yourself from the notion of controlling the information. Management must realize three things. First, it would be impossible to stop such discussions were they held verbally. Second, the blog represents an important safety valve for employees' feelings. And third, you can gain valuable knowledge about employees' perspectives (in a safe space for constructive confrontation) that would help in managing through transitions.

It's important that these blogs and wikis be accessible only to internal employees so that confidential or sensitive topics can be discussed freely. Management can be sure that basic guidelines are followed by having voluntary "blog ambassadors" who monitor posts and have the power to remove items that are inflammatory, defamatory or violate corporate confidentiality policies.

Note: There is a logical progression of information---from blog to wiki---because the latter is designed to maintain fact rather than opinion. Wikis differentiate themselves as a repository of captured knowledge about specific subjects.

Source: Premier Fit, Winter 2008, www.Intel.com/info/ipip

Best Practices in Mentoring Awards help Plug the Brain Drain

Best Practices in Mentoring Awards will recognize organizations that achieve exceptional employee retention and development results. Enlisting Baby Boomer employees and retirees to mentor and train younger workers can close the corporate knowledge brain drain. In January, the Greater Ann Arbor Society for Human Resource Management (GAASHRM) and the American Society of Employers (ASE) will once again seek applications for the Best Practices in Mentoring Award to be awarded in May 2008.

(Ann Arbor, MI) November 6, 2007 -- To spread the word of best practices in mentoring, the Greater Ann Arbor Society for Human Resource Management (GAASHRM) of Ann Arbor, MI partners with the American Society of Employers (ASE) of Southfield, MI, in May of 2008, will recognize Southeastern Michigan organizations with excellent mentoring programs in place.

After a rigorous application and evaluation process, in May of 2006 American Axle & Manufacturing (AAM), a global Detroit-based automotive supplier, received the first Best Practices in Mentoring Award at a well-attended presentation program. AAM had created a mentor-driven program (where the mentor picked a mentee) in 1999 but found that was too company-oriented. Mentees pushed back. The company recognized their mistake and corrected for it. Today, they have the mentee select the mentor who is in attunement with the mentee's needs.

The AAM mentoring program objectives are to retain associates (their name for employees), prepare emerging leaders for executive roles and broaden and diversify the executive team. Mentee also learn to develop their leadership competencies, engineer a better work/life balance, and navigate company politics in a safe and confidential manner. A comprehensive mentoring scorecard keeps the AAM executive committee up to date on how each corporate location is progressing. Leila St. Clair of AAM said,"The mentor program is one of the best resources that supports retention and development of an organization. Its foundation is built on the principle of people helping people. This can truly be one of the most cost effective benefits to offer your associates that contributes to the bottom-line."

In January 2008, GAASHRM & ASE will once again seek applications for the Best Practices in Mentoring Award to be awarded in May 2008. At a May 2008 awards showcase program, the top three finalists will present their mentoring programs to the GAASHRM & ASE membership and invited guests.

Eligibility: Organizations (both profit and nonprofit) with 50 employees or more in operation for a minimum of five years in Southeastern Michigan.

Backgrounder:

Today, we are all "knowledge workers." Yet, few companies have figured out how to share knowledge among employees or to pass it on when workers retire or change assignments.

Most employers aren't ready for the shift that could affect thousands of their workers, given that the oldest of the 80 million-strong baby boom generation begin to retire and collect Social Security payments this year. Before boomer retirees head out the office door, it is important that they share their tacit knowledge of the company culture with those employees who will remain active in the business. Social networking techniques, phased retirement programs and other innovative methods can link older knowledgeable workers and retirees to current employees.

A majority of Baby Boomers say they want to work in retirement, but U.S. companies are only just beginning to try to figure out how to accommodate that, according to a new study. A survey conducted for financial services firm Merrill Lynch & Co. found that 71 percent of adults hope to work in retirement, with many looking for part-time jobs or an opportunity to move in and out of the work force---perhaps, during a period as a long as 10 years. Asked how prepared their companies were for boomers reaching retirement age, just 24 percent said their companies were "on track" to deal with the retirements. Some 27 percent said they were "in the midst of preparing," 17 percent said they were just getting started, and 31 percent said their companies hadn't given it much thought.

To help organizations retain the Boomer generation's valuable knowledge, mentoring programs are linking older workers and retirees with current employees to help them understand the corporate culture. Some companies are using social networking techniques, phased retirement programs and other innovative methods to link older knowledgeable workers and retirees to the company and its current employees.

The mentor and mentee relationship is one of mutual benefit. The mentor gains the satisfaction of helping develop the talent and mentees get access to "someone who has been there" as knowledge and experience is shared from one generation to another. My successful people believe a key factor in their success was and is having a mentor or coach. Mentoring programs have become popular ways for organizations to groom "high potential" employees for future leadership positions. Companies are hot on the practice these days, believing it encourages loyalty, diversity, and cohesion. Fully half of the 500 biggest businesses in the U.S. now offer mentoring, up from about 10% five years ago, according to Menttium Corp., which sets up such programs for corporations.

Mentoring takes on many forms. Mentoring can be a one-shot intervention or a lifelong relationship. It can be carried out informally, as relationships develop on their own, or formally as part of a highly structured program. One of the most common problems, especially with formal programs, is simply that the mentor and mentee are incompatible. Even the best intentions and most thorough questionnaires can't always identify what might really irritate you about the other person. Many companies have discovered that it is best for the mentee to choose his or her mentor rather than having the company do the matching.

Here are three steps for preventing a brain drain where you work:

Identify your vulnerabilities. Create an age profile of your workforce by work unit or by function. Determine the average age of employees in each unit and identify who's likely to retire or leave the company for other reasons.

Identify types of knowledge at risk. Use interviewing and social network analysis software to find out what knowledge is most valuable. This will help you decide where to focus your knowledge-retention efforts.

Choose your tactics. If you're focusing on transferring "tacit" knowledge, or experience that is hard to catalog, establish mentoring programs that bring older and younger workers together for extended periods.

For more information, call Michele Ruppal, Mentoring Committee Chair, Greater Ann Arbor Society for Human Resource Management (GAASHRM) at: yourHRteam@... or (734) 455-1185

Not Clicking

The truth about online ads is that precious few people actually click on them.

And the percentage of people who respond to common "banner ads" is shrinking steadily. Click-through rates have been declining for years. The novelty of Web ads that helped fuel higher responses in the beginning has worn off as online marketing hits the mainstream.

The so-called click-through rate for those ads on major Web destinations such as Yahoo!, Microsoft and AOL declined from 0.75% to 0.27% during 2006, according to Eyeblaster, a New York-based online ad serving and monitoring firm. It says that last March the average click rate on standard banner ads across the whole Web was 0.2%. This reflects a surge in new ads and Web pages.

To some extent, declining click rates reflect how Web users are getting numb to the least sophisticated Web come-ons. That's bad news for advertisers.

Source: BusinessWeek, November 12, 2007

Birth Order Matters

A long-held stereotype is that first-born children tend to be highly competent, while their younger siblings are more likely to wind up the family laggards.

Increasingly, scientific studies are finding that there is truth behind the typecasting, reports Jeffrey Kluger in Time (October 29, 2007). The studies bring rigor to the notion that birth order affects fundamental personality traits.

Birth order seems to influence behavior in several ways.

Families bestow greater resources and attention on the first-born, and eldest children often adopt the role of caretaker toward younger siblings. A Philippine study found that later-born siblings weigh less than earlier-borns. According to a Norwegian study, the eldest child enjoys on average a three-point IQ advantage over the next eldest sibling, a gap attributed to the older childs' roles as mentors. These advantages might explain why eldest children are overrepresented among board directors, MBAs and surgeons.

Within families, the youngest children tend to have to struggle for attention--and in doing so resort to subversive behavior. While birth order's effects are clearest for the youngest and elder children, the effect on middle children remains murky.

Source: The Wall Street Journal, October 19, 2007

"You and I do what many dream of, all their lives."

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

January 9, 2008: Women Executive Teleclass Series begins: www.ExecutiveTeleclasses.com

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#371

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Wed Nov 14, 2007 4:54 pm
Subject: Newsletter--Boomer Women Executives

johnagno

Send Email

Here is your Coach to Coach Network (C2CN) Newsletter:

Women Executives at a Disadvantage

Big-City Smart Women

Boomer Women Executives

Youthful and Mature Boomer Women

Hopeful Winners

If you enjoy and learn from this newsletter's content, please tell others about it. www.Coach2Coach.info

Women Executives at a Disadvantage

Since the culture at most companies has been shaped over time by male executives, women are at a disadvantage when it comes to gender-based differences in communication styles.

A report, 'Women and Men in U.S. Corporate Leadership: Same Workplace, Different Realities?', by Catalyst, a New York-based nonprofit, found that 81% of women said that 'adopting a style with which male managers are comfortable' is an important or very important strategy to advance one's career.

Communication styles rooted in childhood training or unconscious beliefs can be tough to change. A first step is becoming aware of how you talk at work. Here are some pitfalls that women especially can encounter in the workplace:

--using too many words to deliver serious messages
--downplaying your contributions
--using vague language
--phrasing statements as questions
--using an upward inflection at the end of statements, which indicates doubt.

Working with an executive coach can help women executives be clear on the communication style at their level within the company and to confidently practice this style so they will be heard at work. Having a game plan to break through the glass ceiling matters.

Big-City Smart Women

Young, college-educated women in Manhattan and other major cities are now earning more than their male counterparts.

The report by Andrew A. Beveridge, entitled "Women of New York City" and published online by the Citizens Union Foundation at its Gotham Gazette site, www.GothamGazette.com, found female New York City residents ages 21 to 30, coming from all educational backgrounds and working full-time, earned 117 percent of men's wages. In Dallas, they earned 120 percent.

According to Census figures, 53% of women in their 20s working in New York City graduated from college, compared to 38% of men in the same age group.

However, national statistics--which include rural and other outlying areas as well as smaller cities and towns--show women earning 89 percent of the wages of full-time working men.

In New York City, the numbers over time are much different than national figures: In 1970, New York women in their 20s made $7,000 less than men; by 2000, they were about even; and in 2005, they were making about $5,000 more.

Source: Human Resource Executive magazine, November 2007

Boomer Women Executives

Today, it is no longer about the lack of a level playing field for women to successfully compete with men in the executive suite.

It's really about women executives not shooting themselves in the foot due to a lack of leadership capability. By developing effective leadership skills, from becoming more self-intelligent and emotional-intelligent to understanding how their behavior is perceived by their direct reports and peers, female executives can achieve success in the executive suite.

If leaders don't make smart judgment calls about people on their teams, or they manage them poorly, then there is no way they can set a sound direction and strategy for their department, business unit or enterprise, nor can they deal effectively with crises.

The most critical knowledge a woman executive needs is self-intelligence or an awareness of her personal beliefs/assumptions, values, guiding principles and vision. And being emotionally intelligent about knowing how the people in the organization will respond, adapt and execute matters. Women executives can also fail when they lack contextual knowledge due to not knowing the territory; commonly referred to as the corporate culture. This knowledge gap can lead to difficult problems from direct reports to the board of directors.

Every department, business unit, division and enterprise has a culture that the leader must respect or the culture will push the leader out.

Carly Fiorina's short stay as CEO of Hewlett-Packard (HP) is an example of not really getting the HP culture. According to Warren G. Bennis of the University of Southern
California, "She leaned too heavily on change and failed to celebrate the tradition of HP."

Julie Roehm, a high-flying marketing executive at Wal-Mart who was fired in December 2006, acknowledged mistakes, among them moving too quickly and not adapting to her new workplace. Her perceptions painted a picture of warring fiefdoms and a passive-aggressive culture that was hostile to outsiders. Wal-Mart, she says, "would rather have had
a painkiller [than] taken the vitamin of change." What has she learned? "The importance of culture. It can't be underestimated."

Most women promoted to general management roles don't have a mentor or coach to help their perceptions to evolve and become a leader. Learning how to build relationships with peers, C-level superiors, key customers and major suppliers matters. Their behavior on-
the-job can come off more like a shop floor supervisor than a polished executive...and....the problem is they don't understand that's the way they are being perceived by their peers and direct reports.

In My Fair Lady, Henry Higgins laments, "Why can't a woman be more like a man?"

PROFESSOR HIGGINS:
Why can't a woman be more like a man?
Men are so honest, so thoroughly square;
Eternally noble, historically fair.
Who, when you win, will always give your back a pat.
Why can't a woman be like that?
Why does every one do what the others do?
Can't a woman learn to use her head?
Why do they do everything their mothers do?
Why don't they grow up, well, like their father instead?

Why can't a woman take after a man?
Men are so pleasant, so easy to please.
Whenever you're with them, you're always at ease.

Since the culture at most companies has been shaped over time by male executives, women are at a disadvantage when it comes to gender-based differences in communication styles. However, these cultural disadvantages can be reversed when women executives learn how to think and act in concert with the existing corporate culture by seeking the help of a mentor or executive coach (www.MentoringandCoaching.com).

If you know women executives in your organization who need to become better leaders, suggest you point them toward:

www.executivewoman.info

Youthful and Mature Boomer Women

Retailers are once again trying to target one of fashion's most elusive markets; middle-age women who don't want to dress like middle-age women.

Overtly courting the roughly 40 million Baby Boomer women, born between 1946 and 1964, can be difficult for retailers. These women spend more than previous generations did at their age. Many of them view themselves as youthful.

In recent years, fashion marketers have set out to capture more of the mature market as they've watched the country get older. Clothing purchases by women over 35 accounted for nearly half of the $102.7 billion in women's clothing purchases in the 12 months ended August 31, according to estimates by market researcher NPD Group.

But the fashion industry has struggled to appeal to such a broad consumer group, which ranges from traditional types who prefer flat shoes and ankle-length skirts to women who resemble characters from "Desperate Housewives." "I don't know of any consumer group that crosses so many price ranges and designs," says Sue Rolontz, executive vice president of Tobe Report, a fashion trend forecasting consultant.

Source: The Wall Street Journal, November 4, 2007

Hopeful Winners

In the palette of human temperament, a rose-colored view of the future is the dominant hue, regardless of culture or nationality.

This sense of hope boosts consumer confidence, creates market bubbles and spurs irrational exuberance. "We don't know whether optimistic people are dumber or better than pessimistic people," said Martin Seligman at the University of Pennsylvania, who helped pioneer the study of positive psychology.

Far from deforming our view of the future, this penchant for life's silver lining shapes our decisions about family, health, work and finances in surprisingly prudent ways, concluded economists at Duke University in a new study published in the Journal of Financial Economics. "Economists have focused on optimism as a miscalibration, as a distorted view of the future," said Duke finance scholar David T. Robinson. "A little bit of optimism is associated with a lot of positive economic choices."

Optimists, the Duke finance scholars discovered, worked longer hours every week, expected to retire later in life, were less likely to smoke and, when they divorced, were more likely to remarry. They also saved more, had more of their wealth in liquid assets, invested more in individual stocks and paid credit-card bills more promptly. "Optimism is more like red wine," said Duke finance professor and study co-author Manju Puri. "In moderation, it is good for you; but no one would suggest you drink two bottles a day."

For the first time, scientists at New York University (NYU) have mapped the upbeat brain--finding in a cluster of neurons the size of a martini olive the seed of a sunny outlook on life. At its core, the brain is built for optimism, their work suggests.

Mapping brain behavior with an fMRI medical imaging scanner, NYU neuroscientists Talia Sharot and Elizabeth Phelps identified the neural networks underlying this optimistic outlook. These rosy thoughts triggered one key brain region most strongly. Called the rostral anterior cingulate cortex, this neural nub is active whenever we think of hopes and aspirations. "This region of the cortex may actually be taking information and transforming it in a way that creates this optimism bias," Dr. Phelps said.

"If even half the time our actions work out well, our life is going to turn out for the better," Dr. Phelps said. "If you are pessimistic, you are unlikely to even try."

The influence of optimism on human behavior is so pervasive that it must have survival value, researchers speculate, and may give us the ability to act in the face of uncertain odds. Indeed, the researchers suspect that the breakdown of this brain network may contribute to clinical depression.

All in all, Dr. Seligman said, optimists tend to do better in life than their talents alone might suggest.

Source: Science Journal, The Wall Street Journal, November 9, 2007

"You and I do what many dream of, all their lives."

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

January 9, 2008: Women Executive Teleclass Series begins: www.ExecutiveTeleclasses.com

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#372

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Mon Nov 19, 2007 2:26 pm
Subject: Newsletter---Guanxi

johnagno

Send Email

Here is your Coach to Coach Network (C2CN) Newsletter:

Guanxi Means Connections

Strategic Thinking Tips

Situational Leadership

Recessionary Storm Clouds

Thanksgiving: 1621 and today

If you enjoy and learn from this newsletter's content, please tell others about it. www.Coach2Coach.info

Guanxi Means Connections

"Just as a fence needs three stakes to make it firm, a good man needs three others to help him." --Chinese proverb--

Guanxi is the first word any business person learns upon arriving in China. Loosely translated, Guanxi means "connections" and is the key to everything. Guanxi goes back thousands of years and is based on traditional values of loyalty, accountability and obligation--based on the Law of Reciprocity; that if somebody does you a favor, you will be expected to repay it one day.

Playing the Guanxi game is still imperative and especially for foreign investors. Knowing that Party boss (or his children) remains not just a competitive advantage but an admission ticket. As China increasingly meshes its economy with the rest of the world, its ascendant professional and entrepreneurial classes are beginning to see the value of networking among themselves. "More and more Chinese who studied or worked overseas understand how to build these networks," says Yang Yuanqing, chairman of Lenovo Group, the big Chinese computer manufacturer.

Here are three steps to better understand the Guanxi game in China:

1. Be prepared still to carry thick stacks of business cards, but don't waste time trying to swap one with every person in the room. Guanxi is about building trust, not about building a personal database.

2. Never pass up an invitation to play golf, badminton or tennis with the locals, although crooning at the karaoke club is no longer de rigueur. Wine tastings and art auctions are good places to network.

3. In traditional Guanxi, if someone does you a favor, one day you will have to repay it. In contemporary Guanxi that follows the Law of Reciprocity, people are more willing to give without expecting something in return.

Source: BusinessWeek, November 19, 2007

Strategic Thinking Tips

The sole purpose of strategic thinking is to enable an organization to gain, as efficiently as possible, a sustainable edge over its competition.

If leaders don't make smart judgment calls about people on their teams, or they manage them poorly, then there is no way they can set a sound direction and strategy for their department, business unit or enterprise, nor can they deal effectively with crises.

The most critical knowledge for an executive is self-intelligence or an awareness of his or her personal beliefs/assumptions, values, guiding principles and vision. And being emotionally intelligent about knowing how the people in the organization will respond, adapt and execute matters. Leaders can also fail when they lack contextual knowledge due to not knowing the territory; commonly referred to as the corporate culture. This knowledge gap can lead to difficult problems from direct reports to the board of directors. Every department, business unit, division and enterprise has a culture that the leader must respect or the culture will push the leader out.

Once you understand your leadership style and focus, it's important to think strategically about the vision you have for the organization. Here are some steps in forming and communicating a future corporate vision:

1. What are the drivers of the business and how does your firm differ from its major competitors?

2. What is your present leadership role in setting the direction of the organization?

3. How strong are you in perceiving the intangible corporate culture---the feelings, assumptions/beliefs, values and vision of the key people within the organization?

4. How would you best play your role in moving the organization to where you think and feel it needs to be without causing a significant push back to your communicated vision?

Situational Leadership

Managers self-attribute ethical and moral leadership traits consistently, but they do not exhibit these character traits in their behavior consistently.

If a leader claims to be compassionate, she will keep claiming to be a compassionate leader....even regarding a wide range of different situations. But, she may not be consistently compassionate. She may exhibit a compassionate leadership style in some types of situations and not in others.

Many managers mistakenly assume that leadership style is always a function of personality rather than strategic choice. Their leadership style is based upon their innate signature talents and this represents their default leadership behavior. However, leaders can choose a different leadership style that best addresses the demands of a particular situation.

Being unaware that we can change our leadership style to match the situation at hand, we unconsciously engage our default behavior. Only when we become aware of something, are we able to make choices as to the action we wish to take. The ultimate leadership responsibility is modeling the behaviors you expect from others. To a large degree, leaders operate in a fishbowl. Employees are constantly watching the leader--and learning from him or her.

Throughout his long and storied career, Colin Powell has resisted chasing the latest management trend or fad. To anyone who would listen, Powell has always advocated the benefits of adopting a 'situational approach' to leadership instead of the 'one size fits all' approach that is favored by so many management consultants these days.

In Powell's experience, flitting furiously from fad to fad only serves to create confusion within your team and diminishes your credibility as a leader. Worse still, blindly following a particular management theory can also generate unnecessary rigidity in your thoughts and actions. This, argues Powell, can be disastrous. To quote Powell, "Some situations require the leader to hover closely; others require long, loose leashes. Leaders must understand that management techniques are not silver bullets or magic mantras, but simply tools that can be reached for at the right times, as circumstances dictate."

Managers often fail to appreciate how profoundly the organizational culture can influence financial results. Organizational culture is influenced by leadership style---by the way that managers motivate direct reports, gather and use information, make decisions, manage change initiatives and handle crises. Changing the organizational culture happens by one enlighten manager at a time improving his or her department's unique culture.

Judith E. Glaser, author of The DNA of Leadership, tells us that culture represents how work gets done: how you make decisions, how you treat customers, how you complete projects on budget, how you reward effort for excellence and innovation, how you develop employees to more productive.

Cultural situation awareness begins with capturing accurate and deliberate business intelligence using the very best diagnostic measurements and precision tools. Today, the Internet allows management to know 'what's happening now' across the enterprise. Since people represent 50-80% of organizational costs and are a flexible resource through learning and innovating, engaging them for enhanced productivity is why effective leadership matters.

Recessionary Storm Clouds

In the past 25 years, Americans have kept shopping through good times and bad.

In every quarter except one since 1981, consumer spending rose over the previous year, adjusted for inflation. The main fuel for the spending was easy access to credit. Banks and other financial institutions were willing to lend households ever increasing amounts of money. Loans to consumers were viewed as low-risk and profitable.

Economists have been complaining about excessive borrowing and spending since the early 1980s. But no matter how many times economists predicted the demise of the consumer, the spending continued. The latest data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis show that the personal savings rate---the share of income left after consumption---fell from 12% in 1981 to just over zero today. And debt service, which is the share of income going to principal and interest on debt, kept rising.

The subprime crisis marks the beginning of the end for the long consumer borrow-and-buy boom. Standards for real estate lending have been raised. Credit cards are still widely available, bit it is only a matter of time before issuers get tougher. Research by economist Carroll suggests that every $1 decline in house prices lops about $.09 off of spending. That accords well with calculations by BEA economists. They figure that households took out $340 billion in cash from mortgage and home-equity financing in 2006. That source of funding could largely disappear over the next couple of years.

What comes next could be scary. Reduced access to credit will combine with falling real estate values to hit poor and rich alike. "We're in uncharted territory," says David Rosenberg, chief North American economist at Merrill Lynch, who's forecasting a mild drop in consumer spending in the first half of 2008. "It's pretty rare we go through such a pronounced tightening in credit standards."

Source: BusinessWeek, November 26, 2007

Thanksgiving: 1621 and today

When the Pilgrims crossed the Atlantic Ocean in 1620, they landed on the rocky shores of a territory that was inhabited by the Wampanoag (Wam pa NO ag) Indians.

In the Spring of 1621, the newly arrived Pilgrims were not doing well in the New World. They were living in dirt-covered shelters, there was a shortage of food and nearly half of them had died during the winter. However, they had the fortune to connect with two English-speaking American Indians, named Samoset and Squanto, who had been hunting in the area that we now know to be Plymouth, MA.

Squanto decided to stay with the Pilgrims for the next few months and teach them how to survive in this new place. He taught them how to cultivate corn and other new vegetables and how to build Indian-style houses. He pointed out poisonous plants and showed how other plants could be used as medicine. He explained how to dig and cook clams, how to get sap from the maple trees, use fish for fertilizer and dozens of other skills needed for their survival.

By the time fall arrived, things were going much better for the Pilgrims, thanks to the help they had received. The corn they planted had grown well. There was enough food to last the winter. They were living comfortably in their Indian-style wigwams and had also managed to build one European-style building out of squared logs. This was their church. They were now in better health, and they knew more about surviving in this new land. The Pilgrims decided to have a thanksgiving feast to celebrate their good fortune. They had observed thanksgiving feasts in November as religious obligations in England for many years before coming to the New World.

Captain Miles Standish, the leader of the Pilgrims, invited Squanto, Samoset, Massasoit (the leader of the Wampanoags), and their immediate families to join them for a celebration, but they had no idea how big Indian families could be. As the Thanksgiving feast began, the Pilgrims were overwhelmed at the large turnout of ninety relatives that Squanto and Samoset brought with them.

The Pilgrims were not prepared to feed a gathering of people that large for three days. Seeing this, Massasoit gave orders to his men within the first hour of his arrival to go home and get more food. Thus, it happened that the Indians supplied the majority of the food: Five deer, many wild turkeys, fish, beans, squash, corn soup, corn bread, and berries.

Captain Standish sat at one end of a long table and the Clan Chief Massasoit sat at the other end. For the first time, the Wampanoag people were sitting at a table to eat instead of on mats or furs spread on the ground.

For three days, the Wampanoags feasted with the Pilgrims. It was a special time of friendship between two very different groups of people. A peace and friendship agreement was made between Massasoit and Miles Standish giving the Pilgrims the clearing in the forest to build their new town of Plymouth.

Now, as U.S. families gather to celebrate this year's holiday, some will remember the story of the first Thanksgiving Day. Here are a few suggestions for a more meaningful family experience:

Fix a plate with five grains of rice, corn or other grains to recall the famine suffered by the Pilgrims after they arrived at Plymouth, as well as the hunger that persists in many places worldwide.

Pass around a bowl of nuts and fresh or dried fruits at the beginning of the meal to symbolize the bounty of the harvest.

Invite each child to ask one question about Thanksgiving or American history.

Have the oldest family member light a candle before the meal to symbolize the guiding light that person provides. The youngest person should blow it out when the meal is ended.

Sources: The Center for World Indigenous Studies, The Fourth World Documentation Project and "The Thanksgiving Ceremony" by Edward Bleier (Crown, $14).

"You and I do what many dream of, all their lives."

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

January 9, 2008: Women Executive Teleclass Series begins: www.ExecutiveTeleclasses.com

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#373

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Wed Nov 28, 2007 4:12 pm
Subject: Newsletter--Growing Leaders

johnagno

Send Email

Easy Information Retrieval

In its first study on worldwide search activity, Comscore noted that more than 750 million people age 15 or older--or 95% of the worldwide audience--conducted 61 billion searches worldwide in August 2007, an average of more than 80 searches per user. It is an understatement to say that the Web is now global.

More at: http://coachingtip.blogs.com/coaching_tip/2007/11/easy-informatio.html

Growing Leaders

Research shows that well over 50% of companies promote their CEOs from within.

Such companies understand a central tenet of business--that a well-crafted succession plan vastly minimizes disruption when the CEO leaves expected or not.

If good succession planning makes so much sense, why isn't it more common? Get the answer is at: http://coachingtip.blogs.com/coaching_tip/2007/11/growing-leaders.html

Successful CEO Traits

What are the traits that chief executive officers (CEOs) of successful companies share?

A new study suggests that hardnosed personal traits such as persistence and efficiency count for more than "softer" strengths like teamwork or flexibility. The study, by three University of Chicago business school professors, draws on detailed personal assessments of 313 CEO candidates to present a starker view of good leadership's ingredients.

More at: http://coachingtip.blogs.com/coaching_tip/2007/11/successful-ceo.html

Women's Leadership Network

Successful female executives used to be seen as loners who shunned helping other women and dutifully stuck to entrenched rules to succeed.

Today, executive women networks are emerging in the corporate world that work to counter the old boy's club. Women are mentoring other women to help one another advance and succeed.

More at: http://coachingtip.blogs.com/coaching_tip/2007/11/womens-leadersh.html

Creative Executive Women

About 85% of the purchasing power is in the hands of women but female creative executives have long been scarce on Madison Avenue.

Yet, the Internet allows creative people to live where and how they wish but come together to make good money working on a project...similar to the way a movie is made.

This has been a problem that has caught the attention of big-name advertisers like Procter & Gamble, whose ads more often target women than men. Jerry Judge, the former chief executive of the Lowe agency, says, "The issue is women want to work, but business doesn't allow them to work the way they can."

For how women are working on their own terms, go to: http://coachingtip.blogs.com/coaching_tip/2007/11/creative-female.html

Teenage Weird Thinking

The ability to document the brain as it matures, made possible by harmless, noninvasive imaging techniques, is transforming our understanding of what it means to come of age.

Not so long ago, scientists were convinced that critical periods of brain development occurred only during the first few years of childhood. Long-term imaging surveys, however, reveal that adolescence also is a crucial time in the life of the brain.

By most measures, the teenage years are the healthiest and most resilient time of life; yet they are also among the most volatile and vulnerable. The mental and emotional turbulence of adolescence may reflect dynamic waves of change in parts of the brain associated with impulse control, judgment, attention and anxiety.

Prompted by puberty, impressionable teenage brain cells radically rewire themselves, researchers have learned. At a neural level, consequently, adolescents often process information differently from either children or adults because the anatomy of reason and decision is in such flux. Unused neural circuits are discarded during normal growth and young adults end up with less of the gray matter of neurons than a newborn, even though their brains may become three or four times as big.

The impulsivity and poor judgment of clinical attention-deficit disorders (A.D.D.) in many cases may be caused by a momentary lag in the timing of cortical growth, researchers at the National Institute of Mental Health report in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Within a few years, they determined, a normal brain will correct itself.

Even the normal pace of development can exasperate parents and teachers. The scatter-brain qualities of the normal teenager arise, in part, because neural circuits that control our ability to focus mentally on more than one thing at a time don't finish developing until late adolescence, researchers at the University of Minnesota reported recently in the journal Child Development.

Source: Science Journal, The Wall Street Journal, November 23, 2007

"You and I do what many dream of, all their lives."

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

January 9, 2008: Women Executive Teleclass Series begins: www.ExecutiveTeleclasses.com

Editorial Note: Over the last couple of weeks, some readers have been receiving our newsletter with lines through the text. In an effort to problem solve this situation, this week's newsletter is sent to you in a different format.

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#374

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Wed Dec 5, 2007 3:00 pm
Subject: Newsletter---Second Career Advice

johnagno

Send Email

Mindset: Why executives thrive or barely survive

Mindset shapes our mental world, influences our outlook, determines the scope of our goals, and ultimately sets us on a path of growth and fulfillment ---or--- one of stagnation.

Executive suites are filled with high achievers who boast high IQs and stellar accomplishments. Still, some stagnate, while others thrive and continue to shine.

The mindset we develop over the years (heavily influenced by our parents and teachers) can have a powerful grip on our attitude toward learning and achieving. In fact, it�s the key to fulfillment, explaining why high IQ scores fail to adequately predict success.

Do you have an open or closed mindset? Click below for the answer:

http://coachingtip.blogs.com/coaching_tip/2007/11/mindset-why-exe.html

Women Leaders in Consulting

Even though women make up only about a quarter of the profession, their collective impact on the industry is far greater.

In November 2007, Consulting magazine recognized five women leaders in consulting. Two of them are actively involved in women's initiatives within their respective firms.

For who they are and what they are doing, go to:

http://coachingtip.blogs.com/coaching_tip/2007/11/women-leaders-i.html

Second Career Advice

Have you begun to contemplate what you really want to do next?

Remember when you believed that you could change the world? Where are those dreams and aspirations of youth? You may feel you are now ready for a life makeover but are not sure what the changes should be. But you know you want more than what is...as you approach your second career.

Imagine what you'd like to do if you had no constraints

Sooner or later, we all yearn to break out of our secure harbors. The heart moves beyond the familiar and convenient into more adventurous realms of possibility. If we don't break out, our future will always remain in the hands of someone else...not as something we claim fully as our own. Living our life with a deeper understanding draws us to realize our ideals, walk our talk, and act in accord with what we know to be true. Begin by turning your attention to new opportunities you want to explore.

Create an 'elevator speech'

This is a 30-second answer to the inevitable question, "What do you do?"

It's how you describe your career transition (where you are and where you want to be) to someone who is riding up the elevator with you. It is brief and to-the-point so that you are able to complete your answer before s/he reaches his or her designated floor. Your distinct answer provides the information the person you are talking to needs to easily remember you and connect you with others (in their personal network) who can help you get to where you want to be. Do not begin networking with people until you really know your elevator speech and can easily recite it. If you are unclear on who you are and where you want to be, people can't help you get there.

Hit the phones and your email list

The relationships that you have built are important as you transition to what is next for you.

Only 10% of all jobs are filled through ads and 10% are filled through search firms. Instead, direct contact and networking are more effective for most searches. For mature workers, the most common way to find a new job is by using one's social networks (51%) versus ads (12%), search firms (8%), mailing/direct approach (5%) and Internet (2%).

Caution: Don't network too soon. If your goals are vague, the contacts you make can't help you much and your contacts may even be put off by your lack of direction.

Get yourself a career coach

The mood is pretty grim around the old water cooler these days. Revenues and profits are down, stock prices have tanked and cost-cutting executives are roaming the compound looking for human sacrifices. How do you avoid the blow from their terrible swift swords? Or, as a career counselor would put it: How do you make yourself indispensable in hard times?

Be careful before you hook up with a career coach. The quality of counsel varies greatly, and choosing the wrong coach can be an expensive mistake. Insist on a free telephone consultation where you can ask the coach about his or her business experience and credentials. Find out whether the coach favors practical assignments or flakier exercises like drafting a screenplay of your life.

Decide to begin the transition to your second career

Your self-worth is not about identifying with your past job. According to ExecuNet, the average executive had 3.7 jobs in the past ten years. Successful people know their abilities get them to next level. Work with your coach to understand your strengths and learn how to manage your weaknesses. By knowing yourself and being creative, you may opt for self-employment, contract work or other flexible arrangements---rather than full-time work.

Even though you have spent your career in giant corporations, your search may lead you to small or medium-sized companies where less age discrimination and lower salaries exist. By identifying your transferable skills and packaging yourself for a new job function or new industry, you can greatly increase your chances of success.

High C-suite Expectations

Chief Marketing Officers (CMOs) have always struggled to justify their existence.

Jeff Jones, who was the chief marketing officer at Gap for two years before leaving to run ad agency McKinney, says he discussed 22 CMO positions over five months. Not one, has says, spelled out coherently what he would be accountable for. CMOs last 26 months on average these days, says recruiter Spencer Stuart, vs. 44 months for CEOs.

"CMOs are expected to deliver instant results," says Mark Jarvis, Dell's CMO since October. "It makes for a deadly cocktail of high expectations, resistance, and complexity." The CMO job is a lot more complicated and arduous than it was just a few years ago. And that, say recruiters and CMOs, helps explain the high turnover.

Building a brand is a long-term process that requires patience and incremental change. But CEOs operate at a time when investors fixate on quarterly or monthly results as never before. Corporate bean counters, who have long deemed marketing a squishy discipline, increasingly are demanding data to prove that a CMO's strategy is valid.

Few chief marketers understand the importance of being accountable more than James Farley. When he left Toyota Motor recently and joined Ford as global CMO, Farley knew he'd probably fail if his job had no hard connection to monthly sales--every automaker's report card. He also understood that Ford's regional operating chiefs might fight global marketing strategies from a CMO with no skin in the game. So Farley asked CEO Alan Mulally to give him responsibility for sales in the company's most difficult market, the U.S. That way, he'd be in the same pressure cooker as his peers. Now, when Farley tries to globalize the Ford brand strategy, he'll have more credibility. "Being accountable for sales in the U.S.," says Mulally, "will make the team tighter."

Source: BusinessWeek, December 10, 2007

A Christmas Love Story

Divine Law can neither be ignored nor put aside.

Perhaps, the most important of these laws is the 'law of love.'

Put simply, "Love is Law, Law is Love." This amounts to the same thing as "the gift of giving" without the "hope of reward or pay," or serving others.

Here is an interesting story, Christmas Love by Candy Chand, that speaks to the Law of Love:

http://coachingtip.blogs.com/so_baby_boomer/2005/12/christmas_love_.html

"You and I do what many dream of, all their lives."

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

Free women executives-only (not coaches) introductory teleseminar on January 3rd to our
January 9, 2008: Women Executive Teleseminar Series begins: www.ExecutiveTeleclasses.com

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#375

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Tue Dec 11, 2007 2:57 pm
Subject: Newsletter--Confidence or Cockiness?

johnagno

Send Email

CEO Hiring Tips

Don't assume that past success is a predictor of future success.

As Chief Executive Officer (CEO), an executive will face a whole new set of personalities and conditions.

Investigate a candidate's integrity and interpersonal skills as part of a thorough background check. Conduct extensive and confidential discussions with former associates.
In interviews, ask candidates how they have handled setbacks and challenges in the past, as well as personal interactions.
In examining the course of a candidate's promotions, pay close attention to how the candidate reacted when given new responsibilities that significantly increased his or her power.
Determine how much of an executive's career success has been based on favorable economic and industry conditions and the support of colleagues, and how much has been based on the executive's individual efforts. Pay close attention to how candidates performed when industry conditions were bad. Note: bad industry conditions are an excellent time to build market share.
Each finalist for the CEO position should be provided with a detailed job preview.
Be clear about ethics. Provide as much information as possible to finalists about how the board expects shareholders, employees, customers and other stakeholders to be treated.
Offer the new CEO a reasonable compensation package. Once the CEO has demonstrated a high level of competency and integrity, the compensation package can be improved.

It's easy to spot a bad CEO once the damage is done but spotting flaws before hiring can reduce the likelihood of hiring a dysfunctional leader.

Source: The Wall Street Journal, December 1, 2007

Ready to begin or improve your blog?

The Blog Squad is giving you a chance to learn from their mistakes so you can make twice as much money in 2008, in half the time. You don't want to miss this free session on December 17:

5 Internet Marketing Traps That Can Derail Your Business
http://www.1shoppingcart.com/app/?Clk=2198094

Presented by The Blog Squad, Patsi Krakoff and Denise Wakeman, in partnership with Kathleen Gage, of Street Smarts Marketing

Monday, December 17th @ 6 p.m. ET

Of course, you know there's a reason for the freebie: it's a preview call to introduce you to a 4-week, in-depth mentoring program starting in
January 2008.

The best way to find out if they have something worthwhile to teach you is to attend the free class and sample their stuff...

Sort of like a pink spoon sample of good things to come.

Even if the course doesn't work for you, the free call will provide plenty of valuable information you can't afford not to know.

Find out what they are going to reveal on this free call and then register. You've got nothing to lose and everything to gain!

Click here to register >>> http://www.1shoppingcart.com/app/?Clk=2198094

Confidence or Cockiness?

It's not hard to become cocky when you're very good at something.

Somewhere along that mystical self-development path you learn the difference between cocky and confident. John Agno, an executive career coach in Ann Arbor, Mich., has a lot to say about confidence and cockiness. "Confidence is powerful but subtle," he says, while cockiness is often based on an inflated or false sense of your own abilities.

Confident people are better prepared to deal with others, according to Agno. Based upon constant interaction, they've learned how to read people, size them up and, most important, manage them to achieve goals.

Confident managers bring out the best in others. They know how to "employ strategy to get a desired action," Agno says. "They know what questions to ask in order to gather information to make sound, well-thought-out decisions. They've learned how to anticipate obstacles so they can sidestep potential roadblocks in order to reach their objectives."

Cocky people, on the other hand, have a tendency to shoot from the hip and often make rash, illogical decisions. "They don't understand the impact their forceful personalities have on others," Agno adds. One of the biggest mistakes cocky managers make is failing to listen to others, Agno says. If you can't listen to what others have to say, you won't be able to ask good questions and gather and evaluate information so good decisions are made.

Agno says confidence is built through self-discovery and awareness. An aware person is in touch with himself and his surroundings. He doesn't take anything for granted. He's learned to observe and monitor his feelings and reactions before he acts. A cocky person often will act rashly and impulsively and not think about the consequences of his actions. He'll rely more on his instincts than his intellect, whereas a confident person has learned to employ both intellect and instinct and keep his emotions in check.

Source: Abstracted from "The Difference between confidence and cockiness" by Bob Weinstein, Special Sections correspondent, The Tampa Tribune, December 9, 2007

Employee Development in 2008

The U.S. Department of Education has stated that 60 percent of the skills needed in the future are possessed by only 20 percent of the current workforce.

If you are not attending to your talent and keeping them longer, you will be losing extremely vital knowledge and human capital. Your organization will continue to experience significant upheavals in staffing, development, recruiting and retention in 2008.

For three employee trends to focus on in 2008, go to:

http://coachingtip.blogs.com/coaching_tip/2007/12/employee-develo.html

The Slippery Slope of Happiness

Americans report being generally happy but they are less likely to feel good when positive things happen and more likely to feel bad when negative things befall them.

Steering the Law of Attraction in a positive direction of happiness, rather than in the negative direction of things, takes some attentive driving talent.

Keep thinking happy thoughts to remain very happy---because what you think, you get.

For a new study of happiness, go to:

http://coachingtip.blogs.com/coaching_tip/2007/12/the-slippery-sl.html

"You and I do what many dream of, all their lives."

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

Free women executives-only (not coaches) introductory teleseminar on January 3rd to our January 9, 2008:
Women Executive Teleseminar Series begins: www.ExecutiveTeleclasses.com

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#376

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Tue Dec 18, 2007 6:51 pm
Subject: Newsletter---Uncoachable Women Executives

johnagno

Send Email

Uncoachable Women Executives

Zoe Cruz appeared to be surviving the credit crisis that has roiled Wall Street...but...Ms. Cruz's departure from Morgan Stanley came abruptly last week.

The Morgan Stanley co-president's response in the aftermath of the firm's $3.7 billion in losses helped fuel her ultimate fall. The 52-year-old executive didn't take personal responsibility for the losses at Morgan Stanley, according to a report in the December 1, 2007 Wall Street Journal. Instead she lashed out at fellow employees in a series of meetings about the losses, raising questions about her management style. She also had pushed some big organizational changes that some executives thought of as arbitrary and ill-informed.

As a result, Morgan Stanley Chief Executive John Mack lost confidence in Ms. Cruz, whom he had repeatedly backed in the face of opposition from senior executives, these people say. Even before the mortgage-trading losses surfaced, Ms. Cruz's leadership style was an issue.

After Mr. Mack backed Ms. Cruz upon his return to the firm, he thought he could help Ms. Cruz improve her management style, and a personal coach was retained to work with her, people familiar with the firm said. But she didn't always display harmonious teamwork with her co-president, Mr. Scully, sometimes contradicting him in presentations.

Since the culture at most companies has been shaped over time by male executives, women are at a disadvantage when it comes to gender-based differences in communication styles.

A report, 'Women and Men in U.S. Corporate Leadership: Same Workplace, Different Realities?', by Catalyst, a New York-based nonprofit, found that 81% of women said that 'adopting a style with which male managers are comfortable' is an important or very important strategy to advance one's career.

Communication styles rooted in childhood training or unconscious beliefs can be tough to change. A first step is becoming aware of how you talk at work. Here are some pitfalls that women especially can encounter in the workplace:

--using too many words to deliver serious messages
--downplaying your contributions
--using vague language
--phrasing statements as questions
--using an upward inflection at the end of statements, which indicates doubt.

Working with an executive coach can help you to be clear on the communication style at your level within the company and to confidently practice this style so you will be heard at work. Of course, you must agree to be coachable before deciding to work with a personal coach.

If you know women executives who need to become better and more creative leaders, suggest you tell them to check out the Free Women-Only Teleseminar with executive coaches Barb McEwen and I happening on January 3rd. Of course, you know there's a reason for this freebie: it's
a preview call to introduce those attending to our Same Workplace � Different Realities teleseminar---an 8-week, in-depth coaching and mentoring program starting on January 9, 2008. The best way to find out if Barb and I have something worthwhile to teach executive women is for them to attend the free teleseminar on January 3rd and sample our stuff.

Women in management can register today at: www.executivewoman.info Please note that this teleseminar is not for men nor professional coaches of any gender.

Employee Development in 2008

U.S. Department of Education has stated that 60 percent of the skills needed in the future are possessed by only 20 percent of the current workforce.

If you are not attending to your talent and keeping them longer, you will be losing extremely vital knowledge and human capital. Your organization will continue to experience significant upheavals in staffing, development, recruiting and retention in 2008.

For three employee trends to focus on in 2008, go to:

http://coachingtip.blogs.com/coaching_tip/2007/12/employee-develo.html

Subprime Greenback and a Christmas Love Story

While shoppers from overseas are flocking to U.S. shopping meccas to exploit the weak dollar, some are playing the greenback online.

The holiday season may seem, well, subprime. It's hard to keep up calm composures...Totting up last week's foreclosures:

http://coachingtip.blogs.com/coaching_tip/2007/12/subprime-greenb.html

During this holiday season let's all focus on love, hope and charity. An interesting story, Christmas Love by Candy Chand, speaks to the Divine Law of Love (www.LawofLove.com) at:

http://coachingtip.blogs.com/so_baby_boomer/2005/12/christmas_love_.html

A Holiday Gift Suggestion

No publication choreographed the adult life of Baby Boomers as well as Rolling Stone.

Reaching beyond music coverage, Rolling Stone stoked the imagination of America's social revolutionaries, while fueling the careers of brilliant writers and visionary photographers. Boomers, over the last forty years, have immersed themselves in the work of groundbreaking writers like Tom Wolfe, Hunter S. Thompson, Joe Klein, Cameron Crowe, P.J. O'Rourke and perceptive photographers including Annie Leibovitz, Mark Seliger and Baron Wolman.

Won't an exclusive 40-year searchable digital collection of every print edition of Rolling Stone (From 1967 to May 2007) be the perfect gift your favorite Baby Boomer?

Rolling Stone Cover to Cover: The First 40 Years

"You and I do what many dream of, all their lives."

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

Free women executives-only (not coaches) introductory teleseminar on January 3rd to our January 9, 2008:
Women Executive Teleseminar Series begins: www.ExecutiveTeleclasses.com

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#377

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Wed Jan 2, 2008 3:02 pm
Subject: Newsletter---Developing Leaders

johnagno

Send Email

Cincinnati Enquirer, Tuesday December 18, 2007

BY JOHN ECKBERG | JECKBERG@...

Companies that pay for coaching for senior executives expect results to focus on leadership development, according to the third annual international survey from Sherpa Coaching of West Chester Township. The company, which teaches coaching as a profession to students at three universities, surveyed executive coaches from 35 countries, but centered on the U.S. (Sherpa offered university-level executive coaching programs at TCU, Penn State University and the University of Georgia.)

This year's survey was co-sponsored by the Tandy Center for Executive Leadership at Texas Christian University in Fort Worth. The survey, which has grown from 550 respondents in 2005 to 1,300 in 2007, has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

"The industry is placing more and more importance on certification and more and more coaches are getting certified," said Karl Corbett, managing partner at Sherpa, founded in 2004.

"We're finding less and less 'as-needed' coaching. People are going to regular meetings. People also want a more limited scope - six months or less."

The survey found:

Nine of 10 human resources professionals and clients see the value of coaching as "very high" or "somewhat high." The number of business people who rate the credibility of coaching as "very high" or "somewhat high" was 74 percent, up 7 percentage points from last year. The number of people in the discipline who report employers paying for services increased from 71 percent in 2006 to 78 percent in 2007.

More than half of practicing executive coaches believe that a standardized approach to coaching - similar to the standards created for the accounting and financial planning professions - is essential if the discipline is to grow in importance.

Developing Leaders at All Levels

Leadership isn�t just for leaders anymore.

Top companies are beginning to understand that sustaining peak performance requires a commitment to developing leaders at all levels. Management experts Drs. Paul Hersey and Kenneth Blanchard have defined leadership as �working with and through others to achieve objectives.�

To meet the demands of today�s fast-paced and competitive business environment, people at all levels are being asked to step up and assume leadership behaviors. As retired Harvard Business School Professor John P. Kotter explains in the Summer 2004 issue of strategy+business, this means we must �create 100 million new leaders� throughout society.

Companies are investing millions of dollars annually in leadership development training to meet this challenge. Results are positive: Studies show companies that excel at developing leaders tend to achieve higher long-term profitability (Marc Effron and Robert Gandossy in Leading the Way: Three Truths from the Top Companies for Leaders, John Wiley & Sons, 2004).

But it seems there are as many approaches to leadership development as there are leadership developers. An Amazon.com search for leadership development books ( books on becoming a more effective leader ) reveals 12,580 titles. Most leadership programs have a half-life of only a few days or weeks after sessions end. Few incorporate adequate transfer mechanisms to bring leadership skills back to the office.

Programs offer everything from whitewater-rafting trips and bungee-jumping to encounter groups and 360-degree assessments. Executive coaching is a popular development tool, and companies are increasingly investing in these individualized programs.

It is necessary to ask if any of this is working�and, if so, how?

Can we really train leaders?

Which types of developmental activities will have the greatest impact on increasing executives� effectiveness? How can leaders achieve positive long-term changes in behavior? Lured by the promise of instant success, many companies are writing checks without asking critical questions about program design and actual accomplishments.

Leadership programs work very well if they use a multi-tiered approach.

Most fall into one of four types:

Personal growth programs

Skill-building programs

Feedback programs

Conceptual awareness programs

Personal Growth

A simple premise underlies the personal-growth approach: All effective leaders are in touch with their purpose and passions, unafraid of risks and dilemmas; thus, if we teach managers to access their inner callings, they�ll become more successful leaders. To achieve these results, the personal-growth approach to leadership training relies on intense emotional experiences and adventures that become metaphors for risk-taking.

Examples of such leadership-development programs include �survival� hikes, river-rafting trips and bungee-jumping off cliffs. Trainers believe we can create more leaders if we put managers in touch with their passions and power.

But can you transfer the lessons learned from jumping off a cliff to the office setting? Research shows these programs tend to improve participants� personal lives far more than their work lives. Learning can be magnified by risk-oriented experiences that challenge us to act in new ways and see things differently; however, the decision-making skills applied to a cliff jump are quite different from those employed at the office, where problem-solving is more complex.

Skill-Building Programs

The skill-building approach to training is attractive because it turns leadership into a practical, teachable reality. Program designers identify a key leadership behavior that can be taught.

For example, an offsite group may participate in exercises or games, with one individual challenged to lead a team through a task, thereby practicing specific leadership skills (perhaps the ability to mobilize others). The task may involve building toy cars or solving a puzzle. The team leader is then graded on how well the leadership skill was put into action.

But certain skills are more complex than we realize. While communication skills can be straightforward, strategic vision proves otherwise. To truly learn a skill, one needs to spend considerable time studying it, experimenting, receiving coaching and making improvements. Most programs cover several major leadership skills in just a few days.

Despite these shortcomings, skill-building is the most common�and fastest�method of learning and implementing new skills. It should be incorporated in all leadership training.

Programs Based on Feedback

Feedback-based programs may also be conducted offsite and involve team tasks. Team members then grade each other on particular leadership skills, while supervising psychologists simultaneously rate each participant.

This type of leadership training embraces the premise that most of us cannot fully see ourselves. We may be partly aware of our leadership styles, and we possess varying degrees of leadership strength. We simply require a mirror to view ourselves more objectively, allowing us to act with greater confidence and overcome our weaknesses.

For motivated learners, this program produces positive outcomes. One drawback, however, is the risk of being overwhelmed by information. In addition, one usually self-selects the behaviors on which to work. While most participants describe a sincere desire to change their ineffective behaviors when they return to work, this motivation dissipates soon after the program ends. Many report giving up when faced with a lack of support and coaching on the job.

Conceptual Awareness Programs

This analytical approach uses case studies during training, and it�s a mainstay in MBA degree programs. Conceptual awareness helps us intellectually understand the distinctions between managing and leading. But such an approach teaches ideas, not skills.

As adult learners, we need exercises, experiences and coaches to turn concepts into leadership abilities. As such, conceptual awareness is beneficial, but only a first step.

I.Q. and the Achievement Gap

"The mind is much more like a muscle than we've ever realized," says James Flynn, a social scientist at the University of Otago in New Zealand and author of 'What is Intelligence?' (Cambridge; $22). "It needs to get cognitive exercise. It's not some piece of clay on which you put an indelible mark."

The lesson to be drawn from black and white differences is the same lesson learned from the Asian-American success story: I.Q. measures not just the quality of a person's mind but the quality of the world that person lives in.

When an I.Q. test is created, it is calibrated or "normed" so that the test-takers in the fiftieth percentile--those exactly at the median--are assigned a score of 100.

The Black and White Differences

If I.Q. is innate, it shouldn't make a difference whether it's a mixed-race child's mother or father who is black. But it does: children with a white mother and a black father have an eight-point I.Q. advantage over those with a black mother and a white father. And it shouldn't make much of a difference where a mixed-race child is born. But, again, it does: the children father by black American G.I.s in post-war Germany and brought up by their German mothers have the same I.Q.s as the children of white American G.I.s and German mothers. The difference, in that case, was not the fact of the children's blackness, as a fundamentalist would say. It was the fact of their Germanness--of their being brought up in a different culture, under different circumstances.

The black and white gap in the United States differs dramatically by age. Flynn noted that the tests we have for measuring the cognitive functioning of infants, though admittedly crude, show the races to be almost the same. By age four, the average black I.Q. is 95.4--only four and a half points behind the average white I.Q. Then the real gap emerges: from age four through twenty-four, blacks lose six-tenths of a point a year, until their scores settle at 83.4.

The steady decline, Flynn said, did not resemble the usual pattern of genetic influence. Instead, it was exactly what you would expect, given the disparate cognitive environments that whites and blacks encounter as they grow older. Black children are more likely to be raised in single-parent homes than are white children---and single-parent homes are less cognitively complex than two-parent homes. The average I.Q. of first-grade students in schools that blacks attend is 95, which means that "kids who want to be above average don't have to aim as high."

The Asian-American Success Story; may confuse causes and effects

Is this success story a question of whether Asians have a genetic advantage in I.Q.?

In a 1975 study in San Francisco's Chinatown using something called the Lorge-Thorndike Intelligence Test, the Chinese-Americans produced high I.Q.s. However, this test was normalized in the nineteen fifties and would have been a piece of cake for children in the nineteen-seventies. When the Chinese-American scores were reassessed using up-to-date intelligence metrics, Flynn found, they came in at 97 verbal and 100 nonverbal--slightly lower I.Q.s than white Americans.

The Asian-American success story is based upon children not succeeding because of higher I.Q.s but despite their lower I.Q.s: the Asians were overachievers. Among whites, virtually everyone who joins the ranks of the managerial, professional and technical occupations has an I.Q. of 97 or above. Among Chinese-Americans, that threshold is 90. A Chinese-American with an I.Q. of 90, it would appear, does as much with it as a white American with an I.Q. of 97.

There should be no great mystery about Asian achievement. It has to do with hard work and dedication to higher education, and belonging to a culture that stresses professional success. Then success breeds success. The children of that first successful wave of Asian-Americans really did have I.Q.s that were higher than everyone else's--coming in somewhere around 103. Having worked their way into the upper reaches of the occupational scale, and taken note of how much the professional value abstract thinking, Asian-American parents have evidently made sure that their own children wore scientific spectacles.

Source: None of the Above; What I.Q. doesn't tell you about race. by Malcolm Gladwell in The New Yorker, December 17, 2007

"You and I do what many dream of, all their lives."

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

Free women executives-only (not coaches) introductory teleseminar on January 3rd to our January 9, 2008:
Women Executive Teleseminar Series begins: www.ExecutiveTeleclasses.com

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#378

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Wed Jan 9, 2008 3:36 pm
Subject: Newsletter--Ready to hire a coach?

johnagno

Send Email

Ready to Hire a Coach?

A Harvard Business Review article (December 2004) asks this question:

Is executive coaching at U.S. companies destined to play the role occupied by psychoanalysis in some Neil Simon version of Hollywood: A virtual prerequisite for anyone who aspires to be anyone?

Companies should not jump on the coaching bandwagon expecting stellar results simply because other fast track organizations are doing it. Executive coaching is not an end unto itself.

In spite of its apparently robust potential, the very act of hiring a coach will not get the results needed unless there is sufficient preparation and planning. In other words, don�t seek coaching just because other fast movers in the firm seem to be benefiting from it.

Coaching is effective for executives who can say, �I want to get over there, but I�m not sure how to do it.�

Here are some questions for your prospective clients to ask in order to enhance their return on the investment in a coaching program:

As an organization, are you committed to coaching as a process rather than just an event?
Is the coachee�s immediate supervisor committed to the coaching process?
What are the types of changes that you hope will result?
Have you established internal measurements to identify when you have achieved success?
Do you have benchmarks on those measures to identify the baseline?
Are you using the right period of time (at least 18 to 24 months) to properly achieve the results you are looking for?
Have you considered indirect measures such as employee satisfaction or turnover?
Have you ensured that one of the measurements is perceived improvement, as viewed by those who work with the coachee on a frequent basis?

Bottom Line: Based on everything that you and the prospective client know about the coachee, is there a reasonable probability that the coachee will change?

Women Leaders in Consulting

Even though women make up only about a quarter of the profession, their collective impact on the industry is far greater.

In November 2007, Consulting magazine recognized five women leaders in consulting. Two of them are actively involved in women's initiatives within their respective firms.

For who they are and what they are doing, go to:

http://coachingtip.blogs.com/coaching_tip/2007/11/women-leaders-i.html

New Year Resolution Tips

Every year, we gain a clearer understanding that without positive change, decline is inevitable. The challenge is to recognize that what we are now doing can be reinvented by paying attention to our intentions.

Yet, it is very hard to bring about significant change without changes in behavior.

For five reasons why it is so difficult to achieve our New Year resolutions, go to:

http://coachingtip.blogs.com/coaching_tip/2006/12/new_year_resolu.html

Is Your 401(k) Starving?

Just 36 percent of workers had savings in 401(k) or similar retirement plans in 2004, with participation practically disappearing among the lowest-paid workers, the Government Accountability Office reported recently.

For more on the state of 401(k) plans, go to: http://coachingtip.blogs.com/coaching_tip/2007/12/is-your-401k-pl.html

Paying Attention to Your Intentions

Your word has as much power as you give to it.

If you say one thing and do another, you dilute the power of your word. To empower your word, you must align your attention with your intention.

For example, if you are an incessant gossiper and want to stop gossiping, simply set your intention. If you find yourself lapsing, give no power to the unwanted behavior.

Every time you bring your attention to your intention, you amplify the power of your word. Your word has the power to change your life.

If it is love you want to express, set your intention to be more loving. Turn your attention inward, and recommit yourself to your spiritual intention: "I set the intention to be more loving in my speech."

Align your attention with your intention, and watch as the power of your word transforms every area of your life.

Source: Science of Mind, July 2003

The formula for success = your human capital (what you know) times your social capital (who you know) times your reputation (who trusts you).

"You and I do what many dream of, all their lives."

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#379

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Tue Jan 15, 2008 10:29 pm
Subject: Newsletter---Coaching Week 2008, Feb 3-9

johnagno

Send Email

Executive Coaching Research Report

Results of the third annual Sherpa Executive Coaching Survey have just been released today, Tuesday , January 15, 2008.

To download the full report at no charge, visit: www.sherpacoaching.com/survey.html

Coaching Week 2008---February 3-9

Coaching Week's purpose is to provide a week each year to educate the public about the value of working with a personal, business or executive coach and to provide an opportunity for coaches and their clients to acknowledge the results and progress made through the coaching process.

In 1999, Jerri N. Udelson, Master Certified Coach (www.JerryUdelson.com), created International Coaching Week as a way to promote the profession of coaching. The intention was to designate a week each year in which coaches could celebrate coaching by offering community events, tele-events and pro bono coaching.

Originally, the first week in February was named "National Personal and Business Coaching Week" and it was listed in Chase's Calendar of Events.

Coaching Week really began to take off in 2002: That year it was celebrated throughout the US, Canada and in Hong Kong, with coaches offering a variety of pro bono services in their communities, including free coaching sessions, lectures and workshops. (In Richmond, VA, the mayor issued an official proclamation; in Boulder, CO, two coaches offered a free workshop for high school seniors and college freshmen on �Majoring in the Rest of your Life;� New Jersey coaches offered 13 different events during the week.)

In 2007, the ICF released the results from the PricewaterhouseCoopers Global Coaching Survey during Coaching Week. This year, a website and blog provide the platform, CoachingWeek.org, on which coaches and ICF Chapters can post their Coaching Week-related activities.

Three Elements of Executive Coaching Relationship

Coaching is a three-way partnership between:

The organization hiring the coach.
The executive to be coached.
The coach.

All involved must agree on specific goals and parameters. The organization needs to have clear goals and a purpose for the coaching program. There must be top-level support and visible links to business imperatives.

The executive has to be willing to accept the process of coaching, including opening up to feedback and making behavioral changes.

The coach must be committed to being candid while fostering a supportive environment. The coach must have a sense of the executive�s world from a personal, business, and social perspective and be able to hold out a mirror to the executive to foster behavioral changes. At the same time, the coach must be able to maintain trust and navigate sensitive political issues with the organization.

As in any triangular relationship, the key is defining and clarifying goals, roles, and accountability. For coaching to produce results, the goals should be measurable. Many times this involves using 360-degree assessments before and after coaching.

Executive coaching may not be for everyone, and organizations and clients should consider their purposes and goals before engaging coaches. While the results may not be directly measurable in dollars, there is no company that can�t benefit from more candor, better communications, and more conscious awareness of how its leaders interact with people in order to maximize talents and resources.

Female Executive Dress Code

Smart dressing involves sending subliminal messages, particularly when a serious job is at stake.

This is something that even high-ranking business leaders can underestimate. "People don't understand the messages that their clothes send," says Dorothy Waldt, a New York executive recruiter. Women sometimes don't realize how often a tight shirt or a low neckline comes across as seductive. People who meet them are likely to assume the sexual innuendo is intentional.

For ideas on looking authoritative but approachable, look at politicians--the most practiced job candidates of all--who are savvy at flashing messages with their clothing. Female politicians know what a tightrope fashion can be: Smart clothes might not win votes, but the wrong style can lose them votes. The wardrobes of female political candidates are so closely scrutinized that the media has reported who shops for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (her husband Paul).

In the ultimate employment interview, for U.S. President, Hillary Clinton wore a looped red scarf in the New Hampshire primary that looked decisive and framed her face, while her dark suit hit that nice-not-loud note that signals that we're supposed to be paying attention to her brain, not her designer.

We haven't yet taken fashion analysis as far with well-known business executives. But job interviewers don't miss much, says Ann Marie Sabath, a business etiquette consultant and author of "One Minute Manners." She is relentless about getting interview clothes right. Her advice includes ironing creases into your pants, investing in a good watch, and wearing a collar. "A collar projects authority," says Ms. Sabath.

Here are some 'dressing to impress' tips:

Dress for the position you want, not for the one you currently have.
The higher a woman climbs on the corporate ladder, the more light-colored suits she can and should wear (to be less intimidating).
Match the culture of the industry: Call ahead or have your personal coach find out the office's style. When in doubt about a jacket, tie or other item, bring one along. You can take it off, but you can't put it on if you don't have it.
The definition of business casual: one notch down from business normal.

Source: The Wall Street Journal, January 10, 2008

What is Google?

The Google story has become a legend of popular culture.

In 1995, Sergey Brin and Larry Page, graduate students at Stanford University, figured out a way to scan and index the Internet. By 1998, they had incorporated Google, coming up with a company name that suggested the audacity of their ambition. ("Googol" is the math term for the figure 1 followed by a hundred zeros.) And they came up with an informal company motto to signal their benign intent: "Don't be evil." Today, Google reaches billions of pages of content. And, according to ComScore, Google does an estimated four hundred billion searches a year.

In 2001, Page and Brin hired their first CEO, Eric Schmidt, who had a Ph.D. in computer science and twenty years of management experience in tech companies; most recently, he had been the CEO of Novell. They settled on an unusual power-sharing arrangement. As Schmidt describes it, "We've agreed that any major decisions the three of us agree."

By 2002, Google had become very profitable, thanks to a novel program called AdWords, in which advertisers bid to display their ads whenever the user searches for keywords. If the user then clicks on the advertisement---a "sponsored link"---Google earns revenue on a pay-per-click basis.

In 2003, Google introduced its second advertising vehicle, AdSense, which sells advertising to content sites. For advertisers, the system is a lot more scientific than the way that ads are placed on television or in magazines, because they can count clicks; for Google, the monetary benefits are obvious. In 2004, Google when public, selling its stock at an opening price of eighty-five dollars per share. Google's stock has at times climbed over seven hundred dollars a share, and a great many Google employees have become fabulously wealthy. Unlike the advertising revenues of many traditional media companies, which have slowed or fallen steeply, Google's advertising revenues have been rising from year to year; for 2007, they are expected to have increased by more than thirty percent.

Google is an Attractive Employer

Google's corporate offices reflect the determination of the two founders to make sure that employees stay focused. Employees are urged to devote twenty percent of their time to developing projects on their own. The company, which now employs about sixteen thousand, receives more than a million resumes a year, and through much of 2007 hired about a hundred and fifty people a week--half of them engineers.

How is Google Viewed by Influential People?

Lawrence Lessig, who teaches law at Stanford and has long been a student of digital culture, says, "Google's brilliant because it architects its system so that, when people do what they want to do, they give something to Google. When I do a search, I give Google my evaluation of what the best search is. Google profits from that. If I want to send an email, I give Google data." This data invites advertisers to bypass traditional media buyers and lets Google manage their Internet advertising.

As Google expands beyond search, the risk is that the company will come to believe that its engineers can master any business, solve any problem, and that Google will lose its focus. Andy Grove, the former chairman and CEO of Intel, believes that there may be more worry about Google than there was about Microsoft. "Microsoft's power was intra-industry," he says. "Google's power is shaping what's happening to other industries." Because of this, he says, Google is increasingly seen as a company "on steroids, with a finger in every industry."

What sets Google apart, says Google CEO Schmidt, is that although people like him always assumed that "Google would be an important company, the founders always assumed that Google would be a defining company."

Source: The New Yorker, January 14, 2008

"You and I do what many dream of, all their lives."

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#380

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Tue Jan 22, 2008 5:55 pm
Subject: Newsletter---Executive Coaching ROI

johnagno

Send Email

The Return on Investment (ROI) of Executive Coaching

�As long as there are human beings doing the work, businesses can profit by creating more fruitful relationships with them.� � Stratford Sherman and Alyssa Freas, Harvard Business Review, Dec. 2004

Many attempts have been made over the past decade to quantify return on investment of coaching programs for executives in organizations. Some spectacular results have been recorded.

Yet, even with the application of ROI standards commonly used for measuring training and development programs, there remain too many variables to establish reliable data. It is difficult to quantify data of a qualitative nature.

In 2003, Anthony M. Grant of the University of Sydney surveyed coaching research and found only 56 studies that met standards of reliable methodology. There were only 131 peer-reviewed studies since 1937. While the outcomes of coaching programs appear to be positive, the quality of research on coaching is extremely poor. There are new studies being conducted currently by academics, but it may be years before there are authoritative guides and best practices for coaching.

ROI may never become a measure of the true success of coaching.

One must assess its value with qualitative data. Any time perceived value is used as a measure, the measurements are subjective and less reliable. It is difficult to implement and replicate a program where the outcomes are perceived as �good� or �very good.�

The marketplace is perhaps the most vocal proponent of the use of coaching for executives for leadership development. Top corporations such as GE, IBM, Hewlett-Packard, JP Morgan Chase, and Goldman Sachs are among those that invest heavily in hiring coaches for their executives. Overall, annual spending on coaching in the U.S. is roughly estimated at $1 billion.

Other companies with smaller budgets are wise to follow this trend. Successful companies don�t throw money at programs that don�t have a positive impact on their bottom line�or, at least, they don�t for very long. Even so, there are some concerns about how much coaching adds to the financial success of the organization.

Improving an executive�s well-being can certainly contribute to improving his or her interpersonal skills...and...hence the productivity of the team, department, business unit, division or enterprise.

Examples of Executive Coaching ROI

Michigan-based Triad Performance Technologies, Inc., studied and evaluated the effects of a coaching intervention on a group of regional and district sales managers within a large telecom organization.

The third party research study cites a 10:1 return on investment in less than one year. The study found that the following business outcomes were directly attributable to the coaching intervention:

Top performing staff, who were considering leaving the organization, were retained, resulting in reduced turnover, increased revenue, and improved customer satisfaction.
A positive work environment was created, focusing on strategic account development and higher sales volume.
Customer revenues and customer satisfaction were improved due to fully staffed and fully functioning territories.
Revenues were increased due to managers improving their performance and exceeding their goals.

For some executive coaching sales tips, go to www.SalesTip.info

Another study conducted by MetrixGlobal for an executive coaching program was impressive. Over 70 executives were coached from a multi-national telecommunications company that included participants in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Brazil.

MetrixGlobal performed an extensive survey of 43 coaching participants that yielded the following results:

Coaching produced a 529% return on investment and significant intangible benefits to the business. Including the financial benefits from employee retention, coaching boosted the overall ROI to 788%. The study provided powerful new insights into how to maximize the business impact from executive coaching.

Boomers Alter Society's Texture

The coming wave of boomer retirees often is discussed in terms of the potential drain on Social Security, but Megan McArdle in The Atlantic (Jan/Feb 2008) says the economy should be able to cope. Funding Medicare, she says, poses a much bigger problem, and there have been few good ideas on how to address it.

The fact that about one in five Americans by 2030 will be retired will change the labor force, the economy and the look of main street, says Ms. McArdle. One-stop retailers such as Wal-Mart will grow at the expense of more specialized local stores. The demand for labor-intensive services such as health care, food preparation and transportation will rise. Growth in both productivity and the labor force will slow.

The U.S. also will have to shift resources from educating children to what some see as the more emotionally difficult work of caring for the elderly. Another great challenge that the U.S. will have to overcome is age discrimination, to ensure that people are kept in the work force longer. Seniors tend to excel in such areas as customer service and management, and it would make sense to tap those skills in more useful places than supermarket aisles. At the same time, workers will have to accept that in later years their wages likely will diminish.

For all the financial dilemmas longevity causes, longevity itself is something to be celebrated. Slowing growth means both workers and retirees still will be somewhat richer than they are now, and they will enjoy that wealth for far longer than their parents' generation.

Source: The Wall Street Journal, January 16, 2008

Is Your 401(k) Starving?

Just 36 percent of workers had savings in 401(k) or similar retirement plans in 2004, with participation practically disappearing among the lowest-paid workers, the Government Accountability Office reported recently.

For more on the state of 401(k) plans, go to:

http://coachingtip.blogs.com/coaching_tip/2007/12/is-your-401k-pl.html

For New Year Resolution Tips, go to:

http://coachingtip.blogs.com/coaching_tip/2006/12/new_year_resolu.html

"You and I do what many dream of, all their lives."

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#381

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Wed Jan 30, 2008 3:14 pm
Subject: Newsletter---Your client's path to enlightenment

johnagno

Send Email

Coaching: Your client's path to enlightenment

Executive coaching is designed to effect sustained behavioral changes to improve performance. To achieve this goal, the coaching program must deliver on these prerequisites:

Provide insight into your leadership behavior and style: Executives often assume their current approach is the right one and are blind to its downside. You aren�t likely to change if you embrace this idea. You must request feedback on the effects of your style and actions. While this may be difficult to hear, your coach can facilitate the feedback process.

Clarify your purpose and interests: The way you lead is intimately connected to who you are as a person. To improve your skills, you must strengthen the connections between your inner self and external actions.

Improve interpersonal relationships: People�s previous experiences with you and their preexisting judgments should be addressed. Involving colleagues in your development process can help change their perceptions of you. This will make it easier for you to alter patterns of interaction with them.

Broaden your perspective: Executives succeed because of their strong abilities to conceptualize and think strategically, but they can sometimes become too attached to being right. In most real-life situations, there are multiple correct answers. The ability to see and understand increasing complexity is essential. Coaching helps develop this perspective.

Develop new leadership skills: What are the key activities in a new role? Where should a newly appointed leader focus attention and energy? A skilled coach can help with role expectations and skills-building.

Identify and overcome barriers to change: Change should occur over time, with assistance from your coach. A coach helps you practice new behaviors in ways that gradually build skills.

Improve your ability to learn: One of coaching�s most important goals is to teach you to internalize the ability to question, learn and continually grow. You must be able to modify your style and behavior as situations demand.

Guidelines for Finding a Personal or Business Coach

As a profession, the personal and business coaching industry is still sorting out best practices and standards. Even professional coaching organizations do not agree on the core competencies of a coach. Coach certifications can come of any one of several organizations, and the requirements all vary.

This is particularly unfortunate for the person charged with finding good coaches for his or her organization. There are no standard criteria for judging a coach�s value or worth. Perhaps, the most reliable indication would be past performance with other clients and organizations.

The problem is confounded by the fact that coaching borrows methods from a diverse background of academics and industries ranging from psychology, business, organizational development, human resources, and even sports. Some excellent Ph.D. level professionals trained in psychology may be suitable for some clients. A retired CEO or entrepreneur-turned-coach may be more suitable for others.

Here are some FAQs with answers before you jump into a coaching relationship:

1. Who are these people?

There are an estimated 20,000 coaches around the globe. You can check out some personal and business coaching websites at the 1,300 member Coach to Coach Network. Although coaching certificates are good things to look for, the most important credential a coach needs is your trust to help you get to that place of self-awareness.

2. What kind of coach is right for me?

Executive coaches, who typically work with executives in large firms and business owners in small companies, are brought in as (mostly) agenda-free surrogate mentors. That's become especially important in this mobile age when it's rare to find a lifelong veteran available to offer support and guidance.

Life coaches, on the other hand, are brought in to help people reorder their life to get to where they want to be. Making hard choices about what's important and paying attention to your intentions requires being listened to by a supportive, brainstorming and independent viewpoint.

3. Who needs a coach?

People seek out coaches for an infinite variety of reasons, but there are two typical coachees: people navigating some significant transition in their life or career and those who have some inkling that their leadership style or personality is holding them back.

FORTUNE magazine reported that one reader said, "I went into the coaching experience kicking and screaming, at the insistence of my then-boss. And what an eye-opener it turned out to be. I won't even go into the grim details of bad management habits I had unthinkingly developed in my 14-year career up to that point--but I will say that since I was 'cured' by 12 weeks of pretty intense coaching, I've been promoted three times."

4. What does coaching cost?

Executive coaching engagements typically cost upward of $6,000 per person over a set period of time and include a few face-to-face meetings followed by email and telephone discussions. To help develop executives internally, rather than look for outsiders, companies are often more happy to foot the bill to fix dysfunctional leaders. It is important for organizations to understand the return on investment (ROI) of executive coaching.

Some enterprising fast-trackers can and do shell out for their own advancement.

5. What should you expect?

Coaching is not a substitute for therapy and it's not business strategy. The clients do the heavy lifting. The coach guides the person being coached by asking the right questions. The client has to figure out what behavior needs to change and how best to change it.

6. Does coaching work?

People seeking coaching are self-selecting, so the answer is yes. However, it is best to maintain a guarded edge during the coach selection process to make a good match between what you want out of the coaching experience and the person who can guide you throughout the coaching process. For why many small business owners resist being coached, click here.

Source: Are You Being Coached? FAST COMPANY, February 2005

Choosing a coach should not be left to intuition, but many times it is. The interview process should center on previous experience and results. No matter what the coach�s background, he or she should have a high degree of self-awareness and an ability to work well with different personality styles while keeping an eye on behavioral changes and business results. The process of designing an effective coaching program does not end with the selection of a qualified coach who is a good fit with the corporate culture.

Coaching is a three-way partnership between the organization hiring the coach, the

An Unfortunate Truth

As Americans cut back on imported LCD TVs and Starbucks coffee, the U.S. consumer slowdown will undermine the world economy.

This consumer slump in the U.S. will affect business investments overseas, including factories that are springing up in China and elsewhere to feed American demand.

The rule for a prudent individual is simple: Don't spend more than you make. For a long time, the U.S. economy obeyed that rule. As far back as the 1960s, personal spending, adjusted for inflation, has basically tracked the overall growth of the economy, as measured by gross domestic product (GNP).

That pattern changed in the 1990s. For the unintended consequences of this change, go to:

http://coachingtip.blogs.com/coaching_tip/2008/01/an-unfortunate.html

"You and I do what many dream of, all their lives."

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

#382

From: "John Agno" <johnagno@...>
Date: Fri Feb 1, 2008 4:20 pm
Subject: Newsletter--Women, Time Management and Stress

johnagno

Send Email

Women and Time Management

The more stress a woman feels, the more overwhelmed she becomes. There are too many things for her to do before she can relax. The more exhausted she feels, the more urgent it becomes for her to get everything done.

In a woman's brain there will always be more to do. That's why she finds it inconceivable that a man can effortlessly sit in front of the TV and not think about things. It has been said that the nicest words of love a woman can hear her man say is, "Shall I clean the house?" When the man in her life offers to help around the house even the small things he does mean a lot to her.

When a woman allows herself to undertake activities that create oxytocin, her stress levels drop, her sense of being overwhelmed disappears, and her energy returns. Oxytocin is a hormone secreted by the pituitary gland that seems to be involved in reproductive behavior in both men and women, and apparently triggers "caring" behavior. Oxytocin is also the hormone which allows contractions of the womb during pregnancy and labor. When women have plenty of energy, they take great pleasure from their responsibilities. Creating a lifestyle and diet that sustains unending energy by producing plenty of oxytocin is key to lower stress levels.

A woman's oxytocin levels fluctuate and must be replenished...often by giving to yourself while reducing your giving to others. Here are some activities a woman can engage in to increase oxytocin by treating herself: getting a massage, her hair done, a manicure/pedicure, a facial, a night out with her girlfriends, a friendly telephone conversation, exercising or meditate while walking, scheduling a walk and talk with a friend, working out with a personal trainer, taking a yoga class, taking a dancing class, listening to music, singing in the shower, plant fragrant flowers in the garden, buy fresh-cut flowers, go to a farmer's market, hold a baby, read a good book, hire a handyman, plan special occasions to look forward to, etc.

Creating a more holistic paradigm of balance to your work and home life will help you from thinking you are running between compartments. This new dynamic equilibrium is meant to allow all the parts of life to work synergistically in a highly interrelated whole. Life balance isn't an "either/or" but an "and."

The roles you play at home and work must be in concert...not requiring you to play different roles. Although there are distinct competencies attached to each role, it is to your advantage to create a powerful synergy among all roles.

This inter-role synergy saves incredible problem-solving time and energy. Understanding that you are accepting personal responsibility for your own life helps you transcend the either/or categorical thinking of others. Research tells us that the so-called feminine attributes (well exercised in parenting) are the critical capacities required to effectively manage in the cross-generational cultures of today's organizations.

In creating this synergistic world of work life and personal life takes some focused self-learning. However, self-learning is not doing it alone without a support system. Get yourself a mentor or coach to help you along your journey to effectively manage your time and live a well-balanced and passionate life.

Source: "Why Mars & Venus Collide" by John Gray, Ph.D. (HarperCollins)

Too Busy for Tough Decisions

The greatest barrier to tough decision-making is a lack of deep thinking.

In today's email/text message/cell phone/BlackBerry world, we're all so busy that we have no time or energy to think deeply about our real challenges. To compensate, we often consciously or subconsciously avoid making clear decisions, hoping to think more deeply about them later.

As a result, development efforts are scattershot. Energy is wasted. Effectiveness is diminished. Combine these factors, and you are left with stunningly poor execution. Most failures that are blamed on poor execution are, in truth, the result of poor leadership early in the process.

A lack of leadership creates a chain reaction of problems:

Product lines are broad but not deep in quality, advertising is unfocused and unconvincing, sales teams are unhappy and unproductive. When Domino's Pizza founder Tom Monaghan simplified his company's menu, he found his stores could offer consistent 30-minute deliveries--a persuasive selling point.

When focus is sharp at the top, great results follow.

Source: Doug Hall, author of the Jump Start Your Business Brain book series in BusinessWeek SmallBiz, Winter 2006

Women Executives and Stress

When a woman executive feels rushed, overwhelmed, or pressured to do everything, her stress-reducing hormones are depleted, and her stress levels increase.

Taking part in testosterone-producing activities at work can diminish a woman's oxytocin levels. Oxytocin is a hormone secreted by the pituitary gland that seems to be involved in reproductive behavior in both men and women, and apparently triggers "caring" behavior. Oxytocin is also the hormone which allows contractions of the womb during pregnancy and labor. When women have plenty of energy, they take great pleasure from their responsibilities. Creating a lifestyle and diet that sustains unending energy by producing plenty of oxytocin is key to lower stress levels.

Oxytocin levels begin to rebuild when a woman feels seen, heard, and supported.

At the end of the day, the anticipation of a simple hug, conversation, and some affection can make a big difference. When she gets home, without an abundance of oxytocin, her roles as a partner, mother, friend and caregiver seem overwhelming. When she expects to have to do more without enough time or energy, her stress levels go up. Her experience is quite different from a man's.

When a man's day is done, he begins to relax. With more responsibilities and less time to recover his testosterone levels, he has less and less energy. Instead of coming home to a sanctuary of love and support, both men and women today are confronted with a new stress. Women need more of their partners' time and support, and men are running out of energy. Consequently, they both have less to give.

Success in the workplace is important for women, but it will never improve the quality of her relationships unless she also takes time to balance her job-related testosterone-producing activities with oxytocin-producing activities and attitudes. It is primarily the quality of her relationships that keeps a woman's stress levels down.

Source: "Why Mars & Venus Collide" by John Gray, Ph.DO.

Performance Gender Gap

The Harvard Business Review (February 2008) reports star Wall Street female analysts tend to maintain their status when they switch firms, but their male counterparts don't.

Boris Groysberg, a Harvard Business School professor who focuses on organizational behavior and management, spotted the performance gender gap while studying earlier research into the work of star stock analysts. The data reveals that top female analysts--defined by their rankings in lists published by Institutional Investor--were more likely than men to have built their success on relationships with clients and companies they covered.

By contrast, male analysts relied more on internal networks within their companies. The women also considered a wider variety of factors in assessing prospective employers. Male analysts tended to emphasize compensation in their decisions to switch firms.

The female analysts more successful transitions might be partly inadvertent--the women could have felt compelled to build external relationships because they had more difficulty than their male colleagues securing in-house mentors. Sexist attitudes could force them to work harder to protect their portability in the industry. And women generally look for organizations "that will welcome them as individuals," raising the odds they will be successful at the new firm.

Source: The Wall Street Journal, January 26, 2008

"You and I do what many dream of, all their lives."

John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@...

Subscribe to Coaching Tip, The Leadership Blog: http://feeds.feedburner.com/CoachingTip

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)

Messages 353 - 382 of 676 Oldest | < Older | Newer > | Newest

What's This?

Messages

Start Topic
Just address an email to Coach2Coach@yahoogroups.com

Jump to a particular message

Search Messages Advanced

Yahoo! Groups

Breaking News Visit Yahoo! News for the latest.

The Yahoo! Groups Product Blog

Check it out!

Group Information

Yahoo! Groups Tips

Did you know...

Messages

The purpose of any performance management system should be to guide the individual employee and groups toward desired outcomes, provide reinforcement and supply corrective feedback for making adjustments.

The Power of Perception

Eco-Awareness

Getting Serious About Tech Transfer

But what of Mentoring? How are coaching and mentoring different?

Leader as coach and mentor

Retirement Choices on Where to Live in the U.S.

Is a Virtual Coaching Business for You?

Searching for People Online

Discover The Elliott Wave Principle

Intuitive Judgments

Obsessed with U.S. Presidential Campaign

Why Executive Coaching?

Remember Chrissy Snow?

Your Leadership Checklist

Coaching Connections

Preparing for that Pink Slip

Opting Not to Retire

Boomer Women Love Flats

Evolution of Social Intelligence

"Just Right" Living?

Tough Performance Reviews

Had Your Three Almonds Today?

Extreme Jobs

Instinct to Cooperate

Learning Partners

A Leader's Brain

Entitled to Overtime?

Free Wireless Phones

Will you make it to the top?

Living Life as a Dress Rehearsal

A Congressman for All Seasons

Sales Tip: Earn Trust

Strategic Plan Starting Point: List Critical Issues

National Forgiveness Day--Saturday, October 27th

Measuring People Performance

What is Multi-Rater (360-degree) Feedback?

Happy Halloween!

Go here to carve your own pumpkin: http://www.cubpack81.com/images/carve_pumpkin.swf

Social Networking Tools

Big-City Smart Women

Youthful and Mature Boomer Women

Strategic Thinking Tips

Situational Leadership

Recessionary Storm Clouds

Uncoachable Women Executives

Developing Leaders at All Levels

Paying Attention to Your Intentions

Coaching: Your client's path to enlightenment

Too Busy for Tough Decisions