Goal setting through well formed outcomes

I recently spoke at the Fundraising Conference of a well known charity, and in about 90 minutes I managed to cover a whole load of stuff about personal and professional development. Most importantly I spoke about the need to take personal responsibility, as the fact is if you don't no one else will. During the session I spent time with the group (80 or 90 of them) doing some goal setting, but I would like to have spent more time, as I think this is an area that many people find difficult. 

I thought I would share here what I might have covered if we had had that time.

One type of goal setting that I have found really helpful recently is based on the concept of 'well-formed outcomes'. Developing such outcomes helps you define a goal and how to reach that goal. You can do this as part of a process with a coach or mentor, your line manager, or with one of your team.

There are a number of different stages:

1. Set the goal or outcome in a positive way and at a high level
For example if your goal is: 'I don't want to be negative about x any more', that is not a positive goal. If you rephrase it: 'I want to be always positive about x in the future.' that is a bit more like it. Another example. If you have a fear (or even undesired nerves) of public presentation (many people do!) your positive goal might be: 'I want to feel relaxed and confident when speaking in public.'

2. How will you know when your goal is achieved from a sensory perspective?
We all know how we feel physically when we achieve something. But have you ever thought about breaking this down into what you see, hear, feel, smell or taste? Taking the example from above, how do you feel when you speak in public? Do you feel sick, do you need to go to the loo, do you see a sea of faces out there all looking critically at you? Do your shoulders feel tense, do you clench your fists, do you shake? Does your head feel dizzy? Does your sight go blurred? 

Well these are some of the potential negative sensory feelings. But how will you feel when you have achieved your goal? How will you know when you feel relaxed and calm. How will  your breathing feel? Will you have a sense of clarity that allows you to focus on your audience? How will your stomach feel? How will your posture feel? How will the sense of satisfaction manifest itself in your body when you deliver a fantastic presentation? Imagine those feelings now for your particular goal.

3. Break down the steps that will help you get to your goal or outcome
It is your responsibility (and yours only) to ensure you achieve your goal. You may have support along the way, but it is ultimately down to you. So how will you do this? Think about the small steps that will help you get to your goal. When you break things down into small steps things suddenly seem more achievable. 

Continuing with the example of having a goal of being a calm and confident presenter, what are the steps you can take. How can you master the content? How can you test the content? How can you test the style of delivery? How can you make your visuals and examples and anecdotes better? How can you take steps to relax before and during the presentation? How can you measure your success? How will you feel during and after the presentation?

4. Think about the context in which you want to achieve your goal or outcome
Carrying on with the example we have already used, in which context will you be delivering presentations? Is it for a wedding speech, speaking to colleagues at an internal event or meeting, speaking to people you don't know, e.g. at a conference? Where will you be when you make this speech? make your outcome context specific; it will help make it more achievable.

5. Think about the positive effects of the current situation and the consequences of reaching your outcome
Let's take a different example here. Say you are thinking about applying for a promotion to become a manager or head of a department. What are the things that you currently have that you might potentially lose? For example you might not to be able to interact with your current colleagues in the way you do now. You might not be able to go out and get drunk with them! You may no longer be seen as approachable. You may have less time for your family and friends. 

You need to think about the positive effects of the status quo, what are the 'must haves' and what are the 'would likes' when you reach your goal? If you need to give up any of the 'must haves', what can you put in place to replace them? 

6. Set your goals
Just do it!

7. Letter to yourself
One final tip you might find useful. This is about using the future to help you reach your goals. Have you ever tried writing a letter to yourself? Imagine, once you have achieved your goal, in one year, two year's time, whatever. What might you write to yourself? 

"Dear Paul, It is 28th October 2014. I present regularly in public, and I am rated consistently as one of the top ten speakers. I have learnt how to relax before presenting. I feel relaxed, confident and at ease in front of an audience, large or small, and I am constantly aware of their presence and gain feedback from them."

Seeing yourself in the future helps make it real. By saying 'I am', you are more likely to achieve your goals.

8. In summary
Think about your goals. Think about how you might break them down in the way I have described above. This is a really useful way of assessing and setting your goals and putting together a road map of how to get there. I hope you have found this useful. Let me know who you get on!

A dozen tips on delivering bad news effectively and humanely

We keep hearing in the news that the recession is over and that things are getting better out there. I am not a conspiracy theorist but I am not sure how true that is. It's a bit like the weather forecast - I am always deeply suspicious as to whether good weather forecasts for bank holidays are more related to influencing spending and travel over the holiday period rather than the weather itself. 

But one thing is for sure. Organisations will always need to look at how they spend their money and, from time to time this will mean looking at structures and whether they could be more effective. In some organisations this happens more often than can possibly be constructive, whilst in others the structure should have probably been changed before they got into their current set of difficulties! Change is here to stay, to use a very old cliche.

Now I've been around the block more than a few times and I have seen restructures done very well and others done appallingly badly. One of the common failures in making change in staffing levels and structures is poor communication with the staff team at the time of giving the 'bad news', so I thought it might be helpful if I highlighted what I think is best practice so that, if you need to deliver bad news, you have some helpful hints. The same tips apply whether you are dealing with one or 101 people.

• For me the key thing is preparation. You need to prepare what you are going to say, so that you are confident, credible, concise and congruent. If you fluff your lines and appear nervous and uneasy staff will pick up on this. They need to understand what you are saying rather than be distracted by your demeanour and behaviour. Digesting bad news is not easy when you are on the receiving end so you need to ensure you are as clear as possible. You also need to be prepared for anger and disbelief, and to have prepared for any question you are likely to be asked, including any curve balls.

• Choose the right setting. Ensure you choose the right place for the meeting, and that it is confidential and as comfortable as possible. 

• You should try to assess the feelings of the group early on. Are they surprised by this news or do they seem as though they were expecting it?

• Don't delay giving bad news. In almost every situation, the longer you leave it, the worse it will get. Thou shalt not procrastinate! 

• Don't hide the facts. Do not gloss over the reasons behind the bad news. This just causes suspicion and mistrust. If the bad news is as a result of poor organisational decisions, you need to acknowledge that if you want to maintain trust. At the same time don't bewilder people with too many facts and figures, as they will just be overwhelmed.

• Put it in writing. As we have already acknowledged, hearing bad news is tough and people can only take in small amounts of information. Putting the facts and the rationale behind the bad news is easier to digest after the meeting, and you can also provide helpful Q&As.

• Don't use manipulation. Be as straightforward as you can be. If you need to take personal responsibility for the bad news, do this. Don't blame it on a third party, or treat it as though you are delivering the bad news on behalf of someone else, unless of course you are. Whilst researching this blog I came across a piece of work by Michael Grinder called 'How Not To Get Shot'. I normally like Grinder's work; he has done some really good stuff on communication skills, but I think the approach he takes to delivering bad news is just a bit manipulative. The link I have provided is only two pages, so make up your own mind.

•  Be congruent. You are delivering bad news - now is not the time to be bright and breezy and to be making pleasantries or joking. Make sure your voice tone is credible rather than conversational, don't smile or laugh nervously and be concise and direct. Treat your audience with the respect and dignity they deserve.

• Always justify the reasons behind the bad news. Give concrete reasons, not waffle.

• Look for the positives. Don't try to put a spin on it; you will not get a good response. But if there are any positives, make sure you include them. 

• Similarly be solution focused. If it is likely, for example, that someone is going to lose their job, point out what support can be provided, talk about what other opportunities there might be in the organisation. Explore the alternatives at the appropriate time. 

• Finally, follow up. If you promise to do something after the meeting, e.g. circulate a briefing, do it straight away. If you said you will be available to discuss things individually, make yourself available.

The above tips are all tried and tested by me. They work. Delivering bad news is never easy, but it it it can be far less stressful and deliver the desired results if you do it well. We all like to be liked, even though I have heard many a manager say 'I'm not here to make friends'. Delivering bad news effectively can also help you maintain good relationships at work. 

Good luck and let me know how you get on.

Some useful links:

http://www.trailblazercoaching.com/downloads/articles/How-to-not-get-shot.pdf

http://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesleadershipforum/2012/05/30/10-commandments-for-delivering-bad-news/

http://www.ehow.com/how_2058322_deliver-bad-news.html

http://www.mba-online-program.com/10-tips-for-delivering-bad-news-in-the-work-place

Heaven or hell, or maybe somewhere in between? The crucial relationship between Charity CEO and Chair.

I'm going to put to one side my continued frustration about the highly distracting and damaging public debate about about senior executive salaries in the charity sector. I, like many others, have said their bit. 

This week I wanted to focus on the crucial relationship between a Charity CEO and her or his Chair of Trustees. 

Why have I chosen this subject? Well, I have just been elected as Chair of Trustees at the charity at which I have been a trustee since 2009. It is a wonderful international children's charity called ChildHope and I am proud and very honoured to have been given this opportunity. After our last trustees meeting, where my election as Chair was formally announced, my CEO Jill Healey emailed the outgoing Chair and I a paper entitled 'A Marriage Made in Heaven. The Relationship Between Chairs and Chief Executives in Charities' by 2011 Fellow of the Clore Leadership Programme, Penelope Gibbs. This coincided with me having read the previous week an article in Third Sector entitled 'Chief Executives Under Pressure'. So I thought this would be a good subject for my weekly blog.

I was struck by the statistics quoted by Jenny Berry of ACEVO in Third Sector, that almost 50% of the calls to the ACEVO CEO crisis helpline were from CEOs who had a problem with their relationship with their Chair. Penelope Gibbs' paper helps to provide a really good explanation for what can go wrong with the relationship and what can go right, as does Jenny Berry's frequent recommendation to CEOs that they need to work on the relationship 'like a marriage'.

It seems like there are some key factors to the relationship working. The first is a 'flexible understanding of roles and responsibilities'. Now this for me is crucial. The relationship with my CEO will change from how it is now as a trustee to how it will be when I am an experienced Chair. The fact is I have never chaired a board before, so this will be a massive learning curve for me. I am quite clear about my role and how it differs from that of the CEO, but we will need to agree these roles early on in our relationship. My CEO will also have to accept that the way I want to run the Board will be very different to the way it was managed by the previous Chair, as will the way I want to manage her. Note to self: agree the ground rules, roles and responsibilities and keep them flexible.

The second factor is the 'ability to challenge and accept challenge'. Again this is crucial. Going back to my own situation, I am confident that Jill will allow me to challenge things where appropriate and likewise I would expect her to challenge me. We have different backgrounds and areas of expertise and experience, and we need to make sure that the way we lead the organisation takes full advantage of these differences. I look forward to this dynamic greatly and will enjoy the learning I gain from it. Note to self: challenge! If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you always got!

The third factor Gibbs identifies is 'skills of empathy, communication and managing the board'. Well I would like to think I have these qualities and skills. I use them every day in my life as a senior manager, and feel I can transfer them to my role as Chair. The bit I have no prior experience of is managing a CEO. Yes of course I have managed CEOs 'upwards' but never in a formal relationship. Again, I am looking forward to the learning this will give me and I am hoping that my learning will benefit me in my day job as well as as a volunteer.

The fourth factor is 'skills of  on the part of the CEO'. I would have thought this applied to the Chair too. I can only imagine how difficult it must be for a Chair who is passionate about the cause they represent and wants only the best for the organisation to be faced with a CEO who does not have these qualities and skills. What this can cause is conflict between the CEO and their staff team and the CEO and the Board. One hears about these so-called 'psychopathic leaders' and I can only sympathise with the organisations that have to work with them. I am grateful that in my first role as Chair I will not have to face such a situation, and that my CEO has humility, communication and self-awareness!

'Commitment to the cause' is the fifth factor and this goes without saying. I would be surprised if commitment is the issue, but a mutual understanding of the vision and mission might be. I can think of organisations where the CEO and Chair have a differing views on the mission of the organisation, and this can cause issues for both meeting beneficiary needs and trustee and staff morale. A similar situation might exist where the Chair and CEO disagree over vision and mission. Note to self: Make sure we have a common understanding of the vision and mission (I am sure we do, but useful to check!)

The final factor is the rather hard to describe issue of 'getting on'. Now this is about personal chemistry. Do you get on as individuals? You don't need to have anything in common but the organisation itself, but the CEO and Chair need to get on as individuals, and as we saw at the start of this blog, one needs to work on this 'like a marriage'.In my opinion, and that of some that Gibbs interviewed, you don't need to be friends although you do need to be friendly. In fact being friends can make it harder, because at some point as a chair you will have to make a difficult decision or say something that your CEO will not want to hear.

In addition to these factors I would like to look briefly at a couple of things that I think will help make the relationship work. Firstly the Chair should have a good induction. They should meet key staff members to learn about what they do, and what their priorities are. This should at the very least include the entire Senior Management Team. Secondly there should be formal 1:1 meetings between Chair and CEO; action points should be agreed and minuted. Thirdly there should be a formal appraisal process, providing the opportunity for the Chair to collect feedback on the CEO from their team and also for the CEO to give feedback on the Chair. Finally I think there should be a clear 'contract' between the CEO and Chair; this will clarify respective roles and responsibilities and also clarify the level of support the Chair is able and/ or expected to provide. 

I'd love to hear from you if you have any hints or tips about how I can be a better first-time Chair!