Nothing last forever – not even our troubles. – Arnold H. Glasow

In Bits & Pieces, a story is shared about Somerset Maugham, the English writer who once wrote a story about a janitor at St. Peter’s Church in London. One day a young vicar discovered that the janitor was illiterate and fired him. Jobless, the man invested his meager savings in a tiny tobacco shop, where he prospered, bought another, expanded, and ended up with a chain of tobacco stores worth several hundred thousand dollars.

One day the man’s banker said, “You’ve done well for an illiterate, but where would you be if you could read and write?” “Well,” replied the man, “I’d be janitor of St. Peter’s Church in Neville Square.”

As a leader you will face troubles. In fact, you will probably have more. How you handle the pressures and troubles of life is crucial to your leadership. The truth is no one is immune from troubles, stress, and the pressures that either affect performance at work, or is the source of it at home.

As a leader how you confront those obstacles is what will elevate you as a leader and can be a source of inspiration for those you lead. The choices you make in facing your troubles will define your leadership. Here are three observations to consider.

The troubles that discourage you. The troubles that discourage you are not uncommon. These come as a result of the rough and tumble world in which you live.  They come about as a result of the pressures of work: a deal that didn’t come through, earnings expectations that came up short, low morale, petty office squabbling, etc. These issues and more are things that tend to wear you down and take the edge off of your performance.

Discouragement sets in when you allow these things to shape an unhealthy attitude. Dale Carnegie said, “Develop success from failures. Discouragement and failure are two of the surest stepping stones to success.” This is great advice to consider going forward. How you see and how you react to the troubles you face will make all the difference. When you choose a good attitude you are in a position to emerge from your troubles stronger and more successful.

The troubles that deny you. The troubles that deny you are those that have a way of getting under your skin and preventing you from being the leader you are meant to be. They are caused by a variety of external factors that eventually take their toll and deny you of the joys of leading and serving. Even the best of leaders are not exempt from the grueling daily demands that eventually wear you down.

Unfortunately, some leaders have to learn the hard way that they are not Superman and that at times their setbacks are self-inflicted. Troubles will only deny you if you allow it. The attitudes you choose and your responses to adversity will demote you or promote you. Troubles will reward you or deny you. The choice is yours.

The troubles that develop you. Every leader faces trouble and every leader will have setbacks. The important thing to remember is that those troubles do not define you; they develop you. Many “famous failures” have overcome great adversity and chose not to be defined by their troubles.

Despite the criticism from a newspaper editor for lacking ideas, Walt Disney succeeded anyway. Although he struck out 1,300 times Babe Ruth is a Hall of Fame baseball legend. He was rejected by the US Military and Naval Academies due to poor eyesight, but everyone remembers President Harry S. Truman. As a boy his teacher told him that he was too stupid to learn, but Thomas Edison proved the teacher wrong. This household name dropped out of high school and applied to attend film school three times but was unsuccessful due to his C grade average- but Steven Spielberg has been entertaining us for years.

As a leader you will face troubles. But they do not have to define you. When armed with the right attitude and perspective your troubles can promote you to something far greater than you could have ever imagined.

 

© 2013 Doug Dickerson

Visit Doug’s website at www.dougsmanagementmoment.blogspot.com

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Respect for ourselves guides our morals; respect for others guides our manners – Laurence Sterne

In surveys conducted by Weber Shandwick (http://bit.ly/ieo5oz) in 2011 it revealed what many already know or experience – incivility in the workplace is on the rise and the many place the blame at the feet of workplace leadership.

The online survey was conducted among 1,000 American adults to assess attitudes toward civility online, in the workplace, in the classroom and in politics. Some notable highlights include:

• Over one-half of Americans (55%) believe that civility in the in America in the next few years will get worse.
• Over four in 10 Americans – 43% – have experienced incivility at work. A nearly equal number (38%) believe that the workplace is becoming increasingly uncivil and disrespectful.
• Workplace leadership is blamed for this decline by approximately two-thirds (65%) of those who perceive greater incivility in the workplace.
• After workplace leadership, Americans who perceive greater incivility in the workplace cite employees themselves (59%) for workplace incivility. Other reasons include the economy (46%) and competitiveness in the workplace (44%).

That there are issues that must be addressed by workplace leaders and by employees is an understatement. In addition to the issues of disrespect in the workplace, bullying remains a problem as well.

In a recent TLNT column, (http://bit.ly/14SnSrH) Judy Lindenberger cites statistics from recent studies that she conducted that found more than 50 percent of respondents reported they witnessed or were a victim of bullying at their current workplace, and over 60 percent reported that they witnessed or were a victim of bullying at another company they worked for.

As a consequence of this alarming and growing trend in the workplace, a majority of 67% agreed that there is a critical need for civility training in the workplace.  And with workplace leadership being assigned most of the blame it is imperative that those in leadership lead the way. Here are four small steps leadership can take right away to reclaim a culture of respect and productivity.

Teach it. When your staff has selective definitions over what is or is not disrespectful behavior in the workplace it leads to subjective interpretations of bad behavior. Expectations of positive behavior need to be taught, it needs to be mandatory, and it should be annual. Clearly defined expectations and boundaries helps create a culture of respect and holds everyone accountable. It will also help you weed out those who for whatever reason cannot align themselves with company standards.

Adapt it. Any course on civility, respect, or bullying should be framed within the context of your specific organization. While certain principles are universally accepted such as treating others with respect, communication, and moral behavior, you will be well served to frame your expectations around your company’s unique culture and personality. Be mindful and deliberate about your expectations but not at the expense of destroying the good camaraderie that does exist. A good idea here would be have employees help draft the code of standards and expectations. When they have skin in the game they will be more inclined to live up to it.

Model it. Since the majority believes that workplace leadership is at fault as it relates to a culture of disrespect in the workplace, then those in leadership are going to have to personally step up and take responsibility. While changing a culture of disrespect is a system wide objective it starts at the top. What the leader expects the leader has to model. The leader must also be held to account.

Praise it. Unfortunately, many who experience incivility or bullying at work do so in silence. They feel they have no one to turn to or fear retaliation. Building a culture of respect begins when you teach it, adapt it, and model it. But going forward you must praise the work of your team. Instead of suffering in silence you can create a culture of praising in public. It’s been said what you tolerate you promote. But I also believe what you praise you perpetuate. Lift up the positives of respect, honor, civility, and diversity. These are the strengths of your company and the virtues that make it great.

Building a culture of respect begins with respect, and it begins with you. Are you ready to step up?

 

© 2013 Doug Dickerson

Visit Doug’s website at www.dougsmanagementmoment.blogspot.com