VLC
As a leader, dealing with issues is a daily occurrence. There are always fires. Some of them are large and some of them are small. Sometimes your reactions are near perfect. After you handle something well, you may be looking around for someone to high-five (or at least elbow in COVID times)! But, there are other times where you want to climb into a hole after you handled something completely wrong.
People can say that “business is not personal” all they want. But as long as there are people conducting business, it actually IS personal. And that certainly applies to leaders.
What are you carrying around right now that will affect your decisions later today? Did you take some time this past weekend to burn off some steam or center your thinking? Or, did you re-run your concerns from last week over and over in your head, leading to increased confusion instead of clarity?
Ultimately, your frame of mind is going to have a major impact on the next issue that comes across your desk. When people react poorly to a situation, it is usually not because of that particular situation. It is a response to something that happened days, months or even years ago that is dredged up in this current event.
The solution? Deal with the pain when the pain happens. Don’t let it simmer only to explode at a later date. Only then can you make your response less personal, and more objective.
Compare the times you have responded well to times you have not. What were the key differences?
What kind of situations do you find it hard to let go of?
What can you do to deal with those situations in a thoughtful, positive way before they build?
Be well!
Chuck Ross
John Maxwell Certified Coach, Trainer, Speaker, and DISC consultant
chuckross.net
Author: Change? Whiskey Tango Foxtrot!?
530-277-6161
VLC
One of the things I love most about living in a rural setting is having access to firewood to heat our house. My routine every morning is to get the fire going before I do anything else. But the process of getting the wood has several steps.
1) If there is not a downed tree on my property, I ask around
2) Once I find a downed tree (preferably oak), I bring the chainsaw and load up my trailer.
3) Then splitting
4) Then stacking
5) Then making sure it stays dry.
There are many surface level tasks I need to accomplish before I get to the real task of heating the house. Even that can be broken down further into different tasks: lowering my electric bill and keeping my family warm.
Almost every task you do has one or more tasks that are not readily apparent but are very important. Most of the tasks within VLC come down to taking care of customers. The more we do an exceptional job completing each surface level task, the greater the chance of our customers being exceptionally satisfied with the results. And of course that can be broken down even further into the task of attracting new customers who want exceptional results.
What steps can you take to increase your task completion toward exceptional?
Which tasks involve connection with customers, creating an opportunity to leave them exceptionally satisfied with the results?
Have a great week!
Chuck Ross
John Maxwell Certified Coach, Trainer, Speaker, and DISC consultant
chuckross.net
Author: Change? Whiskey Tango Foxtrot!?
530-277-6161
“They themselves are makers of themselves.” James Allen
VLC
I was driving with my wife in the car on Friday, after taking a hike outside of Nevada City. Yes, we were still in quarantine. But we had to get out of the house, so we went hiking…we even wore masks while hiking just to be extra careful!
On the way home, I started to explain to her how excited I am. I’m going to let you in on a little secret…I’m kind of like a little kid. I get excited at seemingly insignificant things. Going running in the rain. Building a fire. Making breakfast for my family. Blowing off the driveway. Reading a book. Sitting quietly early in the morning. Why do I get excited about these things? Because I choose to.
2020 seemed to drain the excitement out of many things for one reason or another. But it is important to understand that excitement and joy and gratitude are all created inside of each of us. A difficult year, a tough day on the job, or an angry person can’t take excitement, joy, or gratitude from you. If they disappear from you, it is because you let them go.
Don’t get me wrong. There are times when negative emotions like sadness, fear, and nervousness are appropriate and therapeutic. But for the most part, the changes and challenges that we experience day in and day out are judged by something that we have almost complete control over: Our Perspective.
Welcome to 2021! It may be more or less challenging than 2020, but you get to decide if it is better or worse.
Be well!
Chuck Ross
John Maxwell Certified Coach, Trainer, Speaker, and DISC consultant
chuckross.net
Author: Change? Whiskey Tango Foxtrot!?
530-277-6161
“They themselves are makers of themselves.” James Allen
