September 2020 Email Newsletter Huddle

Full Time-Out: September 2020

This past weekend I ran in the Last Man Standing Ultramarathon in Maine. It was an epic experience. I ran alongside several superhuman endurance athletes and I connected with several super humans. I was able to run 9 full loops (just under 40 miles – a new personal best).

If you’d like to hear more about my experience and the lessons I learned, please listen to this episode of the Raise Your Game Show.

Click here to listen

The next challenge on my calendar will be a Rim to Rim hike in the Grand Canyon at the end of October:

“This north to south traverse of the Grand Canyon is a once in a lifetime “bucket list” achievement! Starting at 8,250 feet, we will descend a vertical mile over 14 miles on the North Kaibab trail to historic Phantom Ranch. After the most refreshing lemonade to ever quench your thirst, we will climb 10 miles and 4,700 feet via the Bright Angel trail to the promised land of the south rim. Bring your “A” game…this hike is not for the faint of heart or weak of mind!”

List

The 3 most important abilities for leaders:

Accountability: taking full responsibility for your actions and performance. No excuses.
Dependability: holding yourself accountable to do what needs to be done, when it needs to be done.
Coachability: the desire to improve by remaining open to feedback and instructions.

Your Game Plan: Coaches Edition

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Check http://www.MakeYourGamePlan.com for details!

Read

8 thoughts for leaders:

Do you have a reserved parking space? A giant corner office? What is the unconscious message you are sending your team? Does it tell them you are with them or above them?
Block off time on your schedule to ‘walk amongst the people’ (shadow different departments, check in personally with as many people as you can). This is not extra work… it is the work.
Block off time for Systemized Thoughtfulness…like hand-writing thank you notes. Little things make a big difference when done consistently.
Do you preach work/life balance? Do also you send emails during non-work hours? Do you pressure your team to come in early and stay late? What is the unconscious message you are sending your team?
Keep all meetings – especially on Zoom – as concise as possible. Design and distribute a minute by minute agenda in advance and use a ‘shot clock’ if necessary (to stay on schedule).
Beware of comparing team members to each other (instead of comparing them to their own previous efforts).
Make sure your team knows someone is always watching (catch them going things right and praise them!).
Your primary job is to create an environment where your people enjoy coming to work every day. Where they feel appreciated, valued, respected, inspired, empowered, and challenged. Where they know they have the resources and support to star in their specific role and make a meaningful contribution to the team.

30 Second Time-Out: September 2020

Watch

List

3 things leaders must understand, embrace, and use compassionately:

Authority (the formal right to make decisions)
Power (the ability to withhold resources or cooperation)
Influence (the ability to have an impact on others over others)

Nothing is better than a leader that uses these responsibly.

Nothing is worse than a leader that uses these recklessly.

Thought

How intentional are you about supporting team member engagement?

Do the members of your team feel heard? Feel valued? Feel appreciated?

Do the members of your team know exactly how the contributions they make fit into the big picture?

How do you measure team member engagement?

Do you send a team member engagement survey throughout the year?

If so, what % respond? That alone will tell you how engaged they are!

If you do send out a team member engagement survey, here are two excellent questions to ask:

“How are we doing?”

“How motivated do you feel?”

Whatever you do, don’t make assumptions about team member engagement. A Gallup Poll found that only 3 in 10 employees feel engaged at work.

Key Concepts for Improving Team Member Engagement:

What people do at work doesn’t matter nearly as much as how they feel when they are doing it

Team member engagement starts by attracting and hiring the right people! Shift your mindset from what you need to who you need:

Why you do what you do attracts talent
How you do what you do keeps talent

Why does this matter?

When team member engagement goes up… customer service/experience goes up

When team member engagement goes down… customer service/experience goes down

If you are open to new strategies for improving team member engagement, you should consider investing in one of my keynotes or workshops (with both virtual and in-person options available!).

Overtime: September 2020

Listen

In case you missed it:

Up Next!

Season 5, Episode 16: How to Train and Lead Both Men and Women

Season 6 is coming soon!

As much as I enjoyed sitting down with myself to interview me… the next season of the Raise Your Game Show will feature heavy hitting guests from sports and business as I find out how they’ve been able to SUSTAIN THEIR GAME! I will unpack, dissect, and deconstruct how they’ve been able to effectively manage stress, avoid stagnation, and beat burn-out throughout their long, successful careers.

This may be our most powerful season yet!

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