SHUFFLE Your Way to Success

I once heard a story about a semi-trailer that became wedged under an overpass.   Transportation authorities and engineers puzzled over the problem for hours. Finally, they resolved that the only way to get the truck unstuck was to raise the bridge - a very costly solution.  About that time, a man and his young son were driving by slowly in the backed-up traffic.  The young boy, watching everything intently simply asked his dad, "Why don't they just let some air out of the tires?"  The story goes that the man stopped his vehicle and told the workers what his son had just suggested.  And it worked.

Sometimes greater success is unlocked as the result of gaining a different perspective.  We see a problem from a different point of view and suddenly the answer becomes clear.  My wife and I like to play scrabble.  We'll sometimes spend a quiet evening passing our iPad back and forth playing the electronic version.  Often, I'll have a rack full of letters that show no promise.  I'll stare and stare at the letters and the board and see no possible way to spell a word worth more than six points.  That's when I hit the SHUFFLE option.  This little trick simply rearranges the letters on my tile rack and gives me a fresh look at my opportunities.  Often, this is just what I need: a new angle on the same resources.  I have gone from spelling "CAT" to "THATCH" with the help of the shuffle.  That's a 20 point swing (and I need all the points I can get when I'm playing my wife.)

From a leadership perspective, we can sometimes spend a tremendous amount of time and energy staring at the same resources, wondering how we will ever get the company to grow, the team to advance or the project unstuck.  Here are a few simple ideas:

• Ask a disconnected member of another team to get their eyes on the obstacle.  
• Look at the issue from the opposite side, a sort of reverse engineering perspective.  
• Take the team and the issue into an unrelated setting.  Sometimes fresh surroundings can reset our critical thinking skills.  

The bottom line is that you can't be afraid to shuffle the tile rack, your answer may be that small adjustment away.

Lead Strong

How have you SHUFFLED your way to success? Share your comments at

http://goleaderslead.blogspot.com/2016/01/shuffle-your-way-to-success.html

CLARITY: Clear Skies Ahead

Almost every day I check the forecast on my weather app.  Living in Ohio, I am just hoping that I will get to see that little sunshine icon and a 0% chance of precipitation.  I often wonder what it must be like to live in a climate where the sun is always shining and the skies are clear nearly every day.

There are likely many employees, team members and volunteers that are hoping the same thing about their climate at work. They wake up to a brand new day and are just hoping that things are going to be clear.  They long to hear clear direction, measurable outcomes and to have a good sense of what success might look like.  As leaders, we can create a little sunshine in our organizations just by simply providing clarity for those we lead. Here's how:

1) Give as much detail as needed.  The best way to do this is to offer as much information as you believe is necessary, then ask for a summary of the goals from your team.  Hearing them repeat the assignment will help you understand what they heard and gives you the chance to clear up any misunderstandings.

2) Assume there will be questions.  We should never really waste our time with the phrase, "If you have any questions..." We know there will be questions because, as leaders, we field them all the time.  Instead, spark confidence in your team.  Let them know you know there will be more they need to know.  You might even try saying it this way: "I know you will have questions, and when you do, please communicate them to me right away."  This removes the fear of asking and places value on a culture of clarity.

3) The last tool I want to share today is the idea of opening up the dialog.  The more room there is for others to have ideas, the more clarity you will have as a team.  After all, it is much easier for one to remember what one is thinking than it is to remember what someone else is thinking.  Healthy collaboration often breeds clarity.

Give these three tips a try and see if they might provide some clear skies for your team.

Lead Strong!