Seven Ways To (Really) Engage People

Seven Ways to (Really) Engage People

This article is in response to:

http://bnetworking.info/?p=2369

Interesting article on Seven (7) Engagement Motivators. Question: What brought this group together in the first place? It's a generic question, but usually points to the issue that people are passionate about working on and trying to solve. The more that people care about the problem they are trying to solve, the more energy, effort and fighting spirit that they will put into the project. As you pointed out, a project that has personal meaning and SMART goals remains tangible to the whole group. Relationships are formed as people discuss various aspects of the problem, ways towards the solution, and fight over the best course of action. Commitment becomes a self motivator that prevents apathy from setting in. Belief is a tricky issue though, yes I would want people to believe in my abilities, but I think belief goes much deeper than that. I suggest that you take more time to delve into how belief affects individual members, the group as a whole, observers, peers no in the group, and people who don't care about this issue. I think there is a lot that will affect the human psyche from each of these perspectives. Freedom arrives as, you mentioned, managers learn to stop micro managing the process, and rely on subordinates to follow the ISO documents that describe the step by step process. However, as long as managers are tasked with gathering metrics against the ISO documents, their ability to provide freedom may not be permissible. And, subordinates may have to rely on other venues to provide feedback into the system. As described through "The Toyota Way." Work Ethic and Integrity. The Social Contract. Whether written or verbal is an agreement and understanding about the quality of the work that needs to be performed, what each person is responsible for, and why they are there - usually their expertise. These points, in turn, point back to each individuals intentions for being part of the project. Only 10 percent of the each persons intentions will ever be exposed to the group. As a leader, following the definition of leadership, "Guiding Intent with Integrity" towards a goal, these categories plus the additional 600+ out there, need to be thoroughly understood to properly master leadership. I look forward to reading your thoughts on how the rest affect leadership, followers, non-followers, outsiders, and observers. For example, a topic you touched on, and could discuss further is, how facilitation affects a leaders ability to build stronger relationships with everyone.

Incorrect Definitions of Leadership

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/what-makes-leader-dr-travis-bradberry

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Summary Points of the article:

Leadership has nothing to do with seniority or one’s position in the hierarchy of a company. 

Leadership has nothing to do with titles. 

Leadership has nothing to do with personal attributes. 

Leadership isn’t management.  

So, again, what makes a leader?

Peter Drucker: “The only definition of a leader is someone who has followers.”

Warren Bennis: “Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality.”

Bill Gates: “As we look ahead into the next century, leaders will be those who empower others.”

John Maxwell: “Leadership is influence – nothing more, nothing less.”

So what is leadership?

DEFINITION: Leadership is a process of social influence which maximizes the efforts of others toward the achievement of a greater good.

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Definitions should be simple and elegant, to which you definition is not, and my research contradicts your definition.  

1st - Any definition of leadership must account for both the Light side and Dark side of Leadership - from Gandolf the White through Emperor Palpatine.

2nd - Leadership does not require followers. There is self leadership.  

3rd - The "Greater Good" is of no consequence to the definition of leadership, as pointed out in point #1.  Leaders can and do use the "Greater Good" to mis-guide followers.

The definition of leadership is, "Guiding Intent with Integrity".

Guidance, like coaching, depends on what the goal is, and how all parties wish to achieve it.  What you call, "Social Influence". Psychologist determined that teams follow a coach's instructions directly - tell them what not to do and they do it; tell them what to do and they do it.

Intentions are the a mix of: interests, problems, expectations, values, motivations, feelings, wants, desires, goals, rules, beliefs, education, psychological, physiological, fears, cravings, obligations, experiences, needs, strategies, issues, habits, expressions, ... to describe these visually, think of intentions as the wax in a lava lamp flowing up and down.

Integrity is maintained or broken based on the social contract between the leader and the followers. There are many cultural issue to take into account when looking into the social contract between leader and followers.

There is a lot more, for example there are 3 classes of followers, and observers.

Bad Leaders Fail 75% of the time

One of the points I made earlier in this conversation was the Bad Leaders make bad choices 75% of the time. Two (2) of those choices are not building coalitions and not looking at how the change will playout like a stage play. Leaders that neglect to build alliances in various the groups - peers, followers, non-followers, outsiders and observers - make the of becoming the issue, instead of leading the change. Organizational members can then ignore the need for change by getting rid of the leader that represents the issue. However, if there are several people trumpeting the same message for change, it is harder to marginalize and get rid of them. The message is usually about what change is needed to the organizational structure in order to accommodate the new world order being brought about by other elements and forces outside the organization. An organization that does not adapt to these changes will eventually die out. However, leaders face a tougher challenge when changing organizational elements because people like certainty. They know where their next meal is coming from now. If you change the rules, they don't know if they will get fed. Change can also affect many other aspects of the organizations psychie, but that discussion is too broad to cover in one paragraph. To summarize, an organization has a history, culture, rituals, pride, and many other facets that need to be accounted for in order to instigate change. If a leader neglects any portion of this, they may be unwittingly building a coalition against them. To understand this last point, leaders need to look at the change process as a play being produced. There is the author who wrote a message into the story, the actors portraying characters in the story, there is the director who is adding and deleting scenes to help focus a message in the story, and then there is the audience who is watching the play. Add scenery, lighting and music to spice up the drama, and you have a play. A leader that can step into all these roles as well as step out and watch how all these roles affect each other, can more accurately tailor their corrective actions. Stories are adapted all the time to summarize longer stories. For example, ReBoot ends with a rendition of "I'm a modern major general".

The problem of the uncomfortable!

The problem of the uncomfortable, is not the goal, it is the journey. Even in project management, there is a lot of energy put towards identifying risks and mitigating them. Another metaphor for this same journey is a Dungeons and Dragons quest.

The Man Kind Project looks at the uncomfortable through many processes, but one identified in the article is "Stretches". Stretches, or SMART Goals, are the steps in the project plan to walking the journey and achieve the goal.

Specific Measurable Attainable Realistic Time Bound

While these steps, ask you to look at the best case scenario outcome, we often forget to examine the worst case scenario outcomes, that most project managers look at on a daily basis.

Dependencies Risks Issues Assumptions Unknowns

For many people, the only worst case scenario they consider is, "Being hit by a train!" They never consider that they might be hit by a body part of someone else's worst case scenario. Or even worse, someone's best case scenario being to push someone into their worst case scenario. (- Sorry, it's a little gruesome for role playing effect! -)

"No strategy survives contact with the enemy.", Helmuth von Moltke the Elder. It is only in recognizing patterns that we find the path of least resistance to the goal. Many Jujitsu students study how to navigate their partners counters to eventually submit them. Chess students also study chess patterns to build strategies.

Like Jujitsu students, members of the Man Kind Project, study processes that help men explore their worst case scenarios. Processes for looking at risks. Holding men accountable to agreements. Ways to cleanly express upset and wants, while acknowledging why those things are important. Seeing judgement and beliefs for what they are .. walls. Understanding that sometimes we have to give up something to get something. and more ...

A process I use and can share from Directed Dreaming, is this: What is the issue? What is causing the issue? What are solutions for this issue? How do I feel about this issue? What do I do when this issue comes up? Can I live with this issue? What am I getting now with things unchanged? What would I get if things changed? What would I have to give up if things changed? What do I want?

The Journey. Not the goal is where the uncomfortable lies. Crossing the mountain through mud and snow. Over treacherous bridges and glide lines. Climbing sheer faces with 1000 foot drops, or being chased by a bear. These are all possibilities on a journey through a mountain pass. Until you meet a troll under a bridge. Or come a cross a home that smells of candied cakes. Or maybe a something else from the Grimm Fairy Tales.

Face your fears and you will conquer the world.

How do you overcome doubt?

How do you overcome doubt?

While the phrase, "Think Positive" comes to mind, it doesn't convey the right meaning of what I would prefer you to focus on. Yes, the Republican's are about smaller government, apparently limited if not incapable of doing anything government, it will eventually back fire on them. No, instead, what I would prefer that you think about is a future where issues are raised, addressed, and dealt with in a positive context.

  If you ever get the chance, watch the first episode of, "How to get away with murder". There they show how court room debates work. Bury the Evidence, Discredit the Witnesses, Provide an Alternative Killer, and finally ... Leave the Jury with an OVERWHELMING Sense of DOUBT.

  DOUBT leaves you dead locked in 2 fears. Damn'd if I do. Damn'd if I don't. What doubt takes away from you, is your ability to see a positive future outcome. A point where the issue can be addressed and resolved.

What should you talk about with a Leader?

When you think about the question, "What should I talk about with my leader?", how do you plan the time you've arranged with them? Do you talk about stuff they already know? Do you provide them with information about what they don't know? Do you ask them to fill in information gaps?