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Make Your Message Stick
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Making your ideas "sticky" can help you in many forums, whether it is communicating more effectively with your team, other managers or with prospective business partners. Here is a primer for ensuring that your own messages resonate:
What is the core message? Look at what you are trying to convey to your subordinates or colleagues. It probably includes more than one statement, and has many parts to the concept or arguments. Boil your message down to its essence. Force yourself to prioritize the most critical piece of information that you want your listeners to take away with them.
How can you throw a hook into it? You need to get attention. Are your employees' eyes glazing over when you attempt to rally enthusiasm after a tough 18 months of downward sales? Throw in something that grabs their attention and creates curiosity. Begin your meeting with a statement that won't fully be addressed until you are about to wrap up the meeting.
Paint a mental picture. No matter what situation you are in, use language that paints a mental picture. Remember the Velcro theory of memory--try to hook into multiple types of memory. (Velcro was intended to paint an apt picture in your mind. Did it work?)
Use authorities or details. What makes people believe ideas? We often believe something simply because trusted friends, family or close colleagues believe something. If you are trying to persuade a skeptical audience and you are not a member of one of the three groups just mentioned, you have an uphill battle. Don't overlook the importance of mentioning an authority or a solid detail that will clinch the believability factor of what you are trying to convey.
Who is getting emotional? You, that's who. If you want your listeners to grasp, remember, believe or otherwise buy in to your message, that is. Thinking exclusively about statistics puts people into an analytical frame of mind. Give them an example and you will have a compelling message.
The story clenches the communication. You need a story to exemplify your point. Why did Subway’s sales increase by 18% after the company introduced the Jared campaign? Because the story of Jared, and the weight he lost by going to Subway each day "stuck."
And your message will stick, too, if you follow these fundamental tenets, whether you are running a meeting, selling your products and services or meeting with your business partner.
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Implement Successful Mentoring
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Mentoring is the most effective and least costly alternative for fostering young or inexperienced talent. Developing a mentoring culture in your organization gives you the opportunity to augment learning and better utilize your resources. The benefits of relationship skills learned (by both sides) will spread through the whole organization. As the relationships deepen, people feel more connected to the organization.
Ultimately, the learning that results creates value for the entire organization. An excellent mentoring program is fostered by creating readiness for mentoring, facilitating opportunities and building in support mechanisms to ensure success. Here are some of the hallmarks of a strong mentoring culture.
1. Hold everyone accountable. Accountability measures such as setting goals, clarifying expectations, monitoring results and formulating action goals, will enhances performance and produce long-lasting results. Shared intention, responsibility and ownership go a long way toward a successful mentoring relationship.
2. Share your stories. Share personal mentoring stories with your colleagues. Make yourself one of the leaders who spreads the “value proposition” offered by mentoring by letting your peers know what you have found out regarding best practices, the life cycle and success of your own mentoring experiences.
3. Increase opportunities. Help your organization develop a multi-pronged approach to mentoring; there is no single method for successful mentoring. For example, many organizations couple group mentoring with one-on-one mentoring; the learning from one reinforces the other.
4. Provide training. Ensure that your organization is teaching its leaders to foster a mentoring culture. Encourage the organization to provide overall training, both for the mentor and mentee roles. This will get the ball rolling on fostering mentoring within your organization.
Start your own mentoring by consulting with a seasoned mentor. Ask him or her what you can do to begin networking with colleagues to mentor others who are at a point in their career which would benefit from this kind of relationship. Remember, your organization is bound to benefit, too!
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Situation Room: Proving a Return on Training
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You are the training manager of a large hospital. In the past few years, your organization has moved from an in-house training staff to an outsourcing model. You have partnered with two consulting companies to take care of the organization's training needs, including management development, soft skills training and seminars specific to the health care industry.
Both training companies have consistently fulfilled their contracts; their trainers are professional, their curriculum is on target and the quality of materials and handouts is above average. You feel that these are great long term partners for your organization.
Until now, there has not been a return on investment (ROI) measurement. The hospital's executive board has told you that it needs proof of ROI in order to continue these contracts. Even more importantly to you, the entire staff development and training program is at stake.
When you approach the two companies about the possibility of pre- and post-program assessments or other options for proof of ROI, you were told that it would cost more to embed assessment into their programs. Still, the board did not give you a bigger budget.
From your perspective, you are doing your training partners a favor by giving them an opportunity to prove themselves. What would you do? Send in your solution.
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The Power of Positive Reinforcement: Chester Elton
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Our interview this time is with world-renowned author, Chester Elton. The Carrot Principle by Simon & Schuster has been a New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller, and 24-Carrot Manager has been called a “must read for modern-day managers” by Larry King of CNN. In 2006, The Invisible Employee, from John Wiley & Sons also made the New York Times bestseller list.
Obviously, the Carrot Principle has a real hook for readers. What is it about the Carrot Principle concept that is different from other books and business concepts that are out there?
The difference has been in the research. We surveyed 200,000 people in North America and another 10,000 globally to test our theories on recognition. Leaders appreciate that data, and we also sprinkle in a healthy dose of case studies to show how other leaders have taken these ideas and created better work environments.
What has changed in organizations and the business climate overall, since you first started publishing? Did those changes affect the main idea that you and your co-author, Adrian Gostick spread to the world?
While the economy has collapsed, interestingly that hasn’t changed our message. In fact, it has made it all the more relevant. In fact, we issued the second edition of the Carrot Principle in 2009, with findings from a global study conducted by Towers Watson in the midst of the recession, and the book has actually outsold the first edition. Leaders right now are looking for solutions to engage their people – more than ever.
Does recognition-driven leadership still have the same pull in an organization that is undergoing drastic changes, such as layoffs, closing departments (or whole divisions), change in leadership, etc?
Recognition is even more important when you can’t give substantial raises and bonuses. Great leaders find ways to inspire appreciate and engage on a very personal and human level. That is where the Carrot Principle really has impact: great leaders learn that by caring about their people and recognizing their great work, particularly in tough times, they build higher levels of trust and engagement.
Those are areas that drive superior results and pull companies out of these tough times. After all, it’s not your products or services that will bring you out of a difficulty; it’s the quality of your people. Just about every CEO we talk with confirms that.
And one last point. We love it when we hear from people who have taken the Carrot Principle from the workplace into their homes. It is a principle that helps build better relationships with our spouses, kids, friends, and all the people who are important in our lives. Let’s face it, everyone is having a tough day, and a little carrot, a purpose-based thank you, goes a long way.
Thank you so much for your time, Chester. You can find out more about Chester Elton's books and projects at www.carrots.com
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