VIRTUALLY ALL PEOPLE HAVE THE SKILL.WHAT AFFECTS PERFORMANCE MOST IS THEIR ATTITUDE.
Having the will to succeed is as important as having the skill, for with will, skill is often acquired. But even then, circumstances can conspire against one’s best efforts. External circumstances can and do impact on business results. So, despite the focus in the last section on managing our minds and lifting our own game, circumstances can and do make things tough from time to time.
When judging others who are expected to achieve a result and do not, the reaction is to look to them and their performance. When judging ourselves, the tendency is to look for the reasons that stopped us, and it is the exception to examine first our own attitude. But it is common for the attitude to be a major cause of results that do not come up to what is expected. If the targets are ridiculously high, then shortfall could be expected. But most businesses today understand the process of involvement and ownership to ensure that the targets are achievable – but at a stretch. It is the last bit that can and does cause the problem.
What attitude is a problem? Any that undermines our giving of our best. A perennial problem encountered is in commission sales teams and with some mature people. Assume someone is 45 years old – male or female, it makes little difference. They are very skilled and capable. They own their home, their partner works, a modest income is all they need, so £40,000 is easily achievable for them, when with some stretch, they could make £100,000. But they do not do it. The management of the company can become frustrated, tensions set in and it falls apart. The person is on commission and sees him or herself as self-employed. Who is right? There is no simple answer. Both sides need to make concessions to the needs and pressures of the other. Perhaps a target income figure of £60,000 could be set, and the problem then put from people’s minds.
It should be your consistent experience that you know in your heart when your attitude lacks the vigor it otherwise could have. Where we choose to cease striving just before you are really sure that the result is impossible. It is at those moments that only a thorough-going intellectual honesty, a brutal honesty with yourself can save your efforts.
Management leadership is not conceptually difficult to understand. What must happen is that the concepts should be kept simple and focus on the truly difficult aspect, which is living out the concepts. If there is ever any conflict between the complexity of the concept and ease of living out the concept, then the concept will be simplified to encourage and support action.
Set yourself sensible goals, plan how you will remind yourself of the goals and the actions to achieve the, review progress regularly, reward yourself for gains, forgive yourself for slipping back into old ways (just start again), be persistent and be patient with yourself, very patient. Also, be sure to apply your learning to the people in your team as they also strive to change.
Would you like to see the full summary of the book written by Graham Little? Please visit http://www.bizsum.com.
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