Of course, the best way to determine where your time is going is to record what’s happening each day. If you find some of these problems are affecting your day-to-day management of your time, think of what could be done to overcome them. Here are some suggestions:

* Work Piling Up – You need to set priorities, and determine the difference between urgent and important. How many times have you gone home from work and realised you’ve been really busy, but not actually accomplished very much? That shows you’ve been working on the urgent at the expense of the important. Set yourself realistic deadlines and see if you can keep to them. And delegate more often!

* Trying to do too much – As stated before, you must set priorities. If it’s impossible to get everything done, ask which deadlines could be changed. Learn to say no, because if you take on more work, everything else will suffer, especially your stress levels.

* Procrastination – Break tasks down into manageable chunks. Approach it from a different angle. If the task will take 3 hours, do 20 minutes now, 30 minutes later, and so on. You need to control it, rather than it controlling you.

* People interrupting you – Make appointments and ask people to stick to them. If people just drop in, tell them you will get back to them when you can give them 100% attention.

* Phone calls interrupting you – Tell them you will call them back. Use voicemail, if practical. Batch phone calls you need to make all together, so you control the timings.

* Too many emails – Divide them into ‘act now, act later’. Have a special file to put the mails you will be dealing with later. Don’t let you inbox pile up, and try not to use it as your ‘pending’ file. Things will drop out of your view and you will forget them. Create rules for emails coming in. Try not to keep your email server open all the time; emails will rule your time. Devote specific times of the day that you control to deal with emails.

* Too many meetings – Ah, the bugbear of many managers! Review all the meetings you attend and eliminate any that are unnecessary. Set limits to the time meetings take and stick to them. Have an agenda and stick to it. Be prepared for each meeting and identify how you can add value to them.

Naturally, there are many other time management situations you will have to deal with, but if you have the correct mindset to how you view time, you will concentrate on the solutions rather than the problems lack of time causes you.

Thanks again

Nick

Nick Hill

Training Director

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But creativity is never enough on its own, since ideas are only the raw materials for innovation. You need a screening and development mechanism to turn ideas into reality. How, though, so you first develop creative thought processes? Well firstly, you need to identify some barriers to creative thinking:

- You allow your mind to be conditioned into following a dominant pattern of thought, so you become trapped into a fixed way of looking at things

- You fail to identify and examine the assumptions you make, to ensure they aren’t restricting the development of new ideas

- You think sequentially instead of laterally, and are always looking for the best idea, rather than different ideas

- You don’t challenge obvious solutions

- You judge prematurely, not giving yourself enough time to drift over other ways of looking at things

- You tend to conform and give the expected answer

- You fear you’ll look foolish or be put down by others

These rationalisations may inhibit your thought-processes and create barriers to creativity. So what can you do to overcome those barriers?

Firstly, do some self-analysis.

Identify the dominant ideas that influence your thinking.

Then define the boundaries you are operating in and question them. Do policies need re-thinking, or processes re-thought?

Then identify how you will break free from the boundaries, opening up your mind to new ideas

Think, how would a competitor view these ideas? What would a scientist think, or a football manager? By looking from a different perspective, you create different thought patterns and possibly come up with an idea you wouldn’t have considered if you thought the same way as always before.

You may find plausible reasons why something might not work (it didn’t work last time, it’s too risky, it’s too expensive, good in theory but…, the customers won’t buy it, etc.). But it’s the end result that is key here – you shouldn’t worry too much about how you get there.

Incubation is always a good idea. How often have you had really good ideas when in the bath or shower or walking the dog? This is because the mind is working unconsciously on the problem and is able to identify those things that you wouldn’t have thought of on a conscious level.

Lateral thinking is also a good technique. Instead of looking for what is right, concentrating on relevance, moving in a certain direction and leading from one thing to another, Lateral Thinking looks at what is different, makes jumps instead of thinking sequentially, welcomes intrusions and explores many unlikely directions. You need to provocatively challenge the way you’re thinking, and reject thinking that reduces decision-making to a simple ‘yes’ or ‘no’.

When you consider what benefits you gain from thinking creatively, you give yourself the chance to build great ideas and identify various perspectives that you hadn’t seen before. And that’s where innovation and future development really works.

Thanks again

Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Training Course

(Image by Jannoon)

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There are basically only four factors that you need to consider when you are troubleshooting problems, whether they be business or personal. Ask the right questions and you get the foundation laid for solving these situations.

The four factors are: People, Systems, Structure and Circumstances.

Firstly, People:

Ask these types of questions when things go wrong;

1) Have mistakes been made, and why? Are staff not capable, or have they been badly managed? Do they lack confidence or competence?

2) If management is at fault, was it the system that let them down, the hierarchy or the managers themselves?

3) If the people are incompetent, what can be done to recify the situation? Train them? Coach them? Move them on?

Secondly, it’s Systems:

1) How culpable are the systems currently being used?

2) Is the fault the systems themselves? Are they badly designed or not appropriate to the way of working?

3) Are the people who run the systems at fault?

Next, there’s Structure:

1) Has the organisation or management structure contributed to the problem?

2) Do people understand the expectations of the structure?

3) Can control be exercised over the structure, or is it too unmanagable to work?

4) Are team members clear on what their responsibilities are for maintaining control, and are they effectively carrying out these responsibilities?

And lastly,there’s Circumstances:

1) Are circumstances within the control of the people managing the situation? Are external forces (the economy, weather, government activity) affecting the results?

2) Are measures in place to minimise the affects of these external forces?

3) Have adequate resources been put in place to counteract circumstances that may affect results?

Each of these factors can influence the problems you face to some extent or other. You need to analyse the end results before assessing what can be done. But if you ask the right questions, you stand a better chance of diagnosing the situation and determining the right steps to take to prescribe the answers.

Thanks again

Sean

Many managers panic or resist problems, thinking that by ignoring it or passing it on, somehow it’s solved. Firstly, assume there is an answer out there… it just needs to be found. Worrying about it gets you nowhere; working towards the answer will get you everywhere. I’m not just referring to being positive, but the state of mind you decide to choose will play a big part in the way the problem will be handled.

Now, ask yourself ‘what are the facts?’. Many problems are not as big as they seem at first, once everything is known. Also, facts will help you find a better solution, faster. Knowing this is the next step allows you to think logically about the situation. If you encounter a problem, simply begin asking questions and gather the facts. Sometimes you have dig to get to the real problem! This is where your quality questioning comes in.

As a manager, sometimes you get involved in situations that don’t need too much of your time. You might be able, having summarised exactly what the situation is, to put the problem back to someone else or identify how it can be dealt with in a different way. If you are the best person to deal with it, think of what you, personally can do to deal with it. Brainstorm some ideas. Expand your thinking to identify what alternatives you might have

Consider what research you might do to solve the problem- maybe the internet could help, asking other people, or reading how others have solved the problem might help. Don’t make the mistake of thinking you know it all, and that your first instinct for an answer is necessarily the best. Bounce your ideas off other people, even if you think they know less on the subject. Sometimes the more you know, the more you can overlook the obvious.

Finally, make your decision, and put it into action. Think short-term as well as long. Follow through properly. Allow yourself the time to pick the right solution and set milestones to measure its effectiveness. Monitor those solutions and make sure you have some contingencies, just in case.

By following logical steps, you identify what progress you can make with specific problems and will soon have them under control.

Thanks again

Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Course

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So what parameters might you be working under and how can you start making effective decisions with your team?

Naturally, it all depends on the situation, but there are guidelines you can use to identify the best way to make decisions. Here are just a few:

If you’re under extreme time pressure:

Think about using a directive style, as any other may not yield results in time. Remember though that you might gain compliance but not commitment.

How important is it to have full commitment from the team?:

If it needs commitment, consider a consensus agreement with team members, remembering it will take more time

Can the team make the decision?:

If not, maybe someone with expertise can be brought in from another department or from outside. This has to be agreed by the team to gain commitment.

Do team members need to be involved in the decision-making process?:

Some of the team may be able to take responsibility and accountability, and remember to gain the agreement of all team members for this to work effectively.

Assess how much team involvement is needed:

If you have full agreement of the team to allow you to make decisions, then ensure you have a firm process for communicating decisions.

Do you need full commitment from all the team?:

If so, you need to consider how best to sell the decision to the team. Remember, they will commit to most things if they see the benefits and opportunities that go with the decisions.

Always tell the team the process you will go through to make the decisions. This will help your team gain confidence that your chosen method will be right for all concerned, and you’ll get the support you need to implement the decision.

Thanks again

Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Course

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Here are some steps you can take to ensure it works effectively:

1) Explain the process you will follow: Encourage the group’s input, while a recorder lists the ideas up on a board. There are no rules or judgments in this phase; people should be allowed to keep an open mind, freewheel, generate as many ideas as possible, building on the ideas of others, and make sure all ideas are visible to everyone.

2) Ask for ideas to generate the thinking: number the suggestions for ease of reference later. Don’t discuss the ideas yet, leave it till later.

3) Synthesise similar ideas: when all ideas are exhausted, identify ideas that are alike or similar. Then compile a statement that incorporates these points into a single idea, removing the superseded ideas from the list.

4) Group the ideas: Many people group the ideas into three levels – the impossible (very little can be done with these) – the unlikely (can’t be ruled out) – the possible (those that can be addressed and given prime attention).

5) Give priority to the best ideas: place the best ones that will be the subject of further discussion in priority order.

6) Develop an action plan: address the problem under review with specific actions, allocated to various team members.

Our brainstorms here in the office have taken anything from five minutes to a week, and they have always proved beneficial, because all the team are involved and everyone has a chance to input. Make sure you encourage divergent thinking and then convergent thinking to get the best results. Our next blog will go into more detail.

Thanks again

Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Course

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Sadly, sometimes it is difficult to determine if what you are feeling is unethical or simply complicated. There is, fortunately, a simple test you can apply to yourself, as outlined by the UK Institute of Business Ethics, to determine if the decision you are about to make is truely ethical.

You must simply ask yourself the following three questions:

1. Would I be proud to share my decision with the public at large (excluding no one)?
2. Are an aspects of my decision potentially harmful and, if so, are they avoidable?
3. Would everyone involved, even far reaching stakeholders, consider my decision to be fair?

If you can’t answer these questions honestly (with YES answers) then you need to seriously take a step back and reconsider the actions you’re about to take. If you’re having trouble, go and find a neutral party (someone who doesn’t feel obligated to you in any way) and ask for impartial advice.

Don’t let anyone force you into beleiving that something unethical is anything but and don’t allow yourself to become blinded by the feelings of importance you may have placed upon yourself because of your position, either. As a good leader it’ll be your job, when faced with an unethical decision, to find the ethical solution.

Thanks again,

Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Training Courses

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Imagine that you work for a company that, for whatever reason, had a workforce that consisted primarily of white males. Throughout the years you have managed to change the face of the workforce and the company now has a significant number of female, African American, Asian, and Hispanic workers.

Your organisation is experiencing severe financial difficulties and you will need to lay off about 1/3 of your 1,000 member workforce. If your plan works you will be able to hire them all back in approximately 6-9 months.

What will you do in order to:

• Choose which employees to lay off while not changing the diversity you’ve worked to hard to create?
• Communicate the decision to lay off a significant number of employees to the rest of the team? and
• Make sure your team understands the change is temporary in nature?

It’s a tall order, for sure. How will you handle the decision making process?

Thanks again,

Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Training Courses

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Think of it this way – a tunnel is very narrow. When you’re in a tunnel you have very few options – either back up or move forward to find the nearest exit. Decision making, when done with tunnel vision, is very similar. Managers with tunnel vision find that they have very few alternatives to choose from when it’s time to make the final decision.

Why would a manager have tunnel vision? He might be biased towards or against a situation. He may also have a limited frame of reference, or experience, from which to draw from. He may be completely unfamiliar with the situation to begin with, making it difficult for him to even think of different alternatives.

Do you have tunnel vision? If so, what will you do to change the way you see things?

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Training Courses

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Imagine for a moment that you are the owner of a huge chain of coffee shoppes. As your chain grows in popularity, a myriad of small coffee shoppes are popping up, hoping to compete with you. You know that this will continue to happen but your chain has a very strong brand. In response to the competition, you decide to open 200 additional stores around the country and begin focusing on opening stores in other countries as well. Before you know it, you’ve beaten your competition to the punch and are now situated strongly in almost every area your competition might want to open a store.

Of course, you probably aren’t responsible for determining when to open a huge chain of stores but you’ll have similarly important situations. Making properly-timed decisions isn’t rocket science. As a matter of fact, if you put the decision making skills you already have to work you’ll find that determining when to release your best decisions isn’t as tough as you thought it might be.

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Training

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