People First.
With people put first, all problems look different. Trying it on, in the moment it is new, may feel wild and crazy because it’s a paradigm shift but think of the possibilities.
In this week’s podcast episode I open by referencing Siegel’s assertion that “your mind is using your brain to create itself.” That said, perhaps my quote from Stephen Hawking is even better aligned with my intended message. I get to the heart of the matter more fully in the stories I use in my newsletter. The Wednesday video on Instagram (abbreviated version) and LinkedIn (full version) is an attempt at being more lighthearted, supporting the core of the theme. This post recaps it all for the week.
People first may be a paradigm shift for most but just think about what we could accomplish if more of us chose this path.
People First in Business?
In 1999 I was asked to be one of five delegates across the huge company, where I then served as a Senior Manager operating a support department, to participate in a week of exploration on a diversity and inclusion project. The consultant hired by the company became a mentor. He made a strong argument for why business, organizations of any kind that employ people need to learn to appreciate the front end of the value chain. That front end is about the people, their growth and their engagement.
A year or so later, still operating my own department but in the role of Senior Performance Consultant, I started reading Marcus Buckingham’s work on how to expand employee engagement. This was initially in response to my internal client, the operation, asking for assistance in reducing attrition and increasing schedule adherence. Notice how the language they used for the metrics are not very people friendly!
The Business Case
There is a business case for putting people first. Engaged people perform at a higher rate. Moreover, they are happier and work harder as a result. I recall my mentor on diversity and inclusion, Dr. William Guillory, mentioned above, framed it as a business advantage. The organizations that recognize the power and impact of putting people first will reap the rewards.
Since working with Dr. Guillory, almost two decades ago, the world of work has changed a lot. It’s becoming more automated. Furthermore, this trend is likely to explode. Does this mean it’s no longer critical that business, organizations, governments or communities put people first? It actually may make it more critical for every aspect of our society to put people first.
We are all connected. While some may benefit exponentially from this new reality, these perks will have a short shelf life in a world that continues to carry such disparities between the haves and have-nots. For example, who will buy all these goods and services, even when generated automatically? Especially, in a world where only the few can indulge? Additionally, what kind of world will it be when those with wealth must hide even more deeply within their privilege?
Policy and practice change when decision makers consider the impact on the people they serve.
People First: What’s the Point?
First, putting people first takes effort. What is the point in making all this effort? The benefits below speak mostly to those who need to generate support for ideas or projects. The person known for being able to build support for their ideas is more likely to inspire a raise or a promotion.
Second, putting people first is not about being all things to all people. It is not about being a people pleaser. In fact, it is the opposite of putting people first. Ultimately, the first person one needs to learn to put first, first, is them self. When a person has self-compassion and is deeply self-aware they are better equipped with the vision and perspective to put a community or another individual first in a meaningful way.
Third, putting people first expands perspective. The person with the broadest network or reach will garner the most influence because they have the biggest frame of reference.
3 Benefits
I outlined these in this week’s newsletter but they are worth recapping here. While these are specifically related to leadership roles they are not exclusive to a formal position.
Make Bigger Things Happen
People will get enthusiastically behind a project or idea in a meaningful way when they know their needs come first. This generates improved performance and outcomes. In the newsletter I tell a story about how a person on the front lines of a project was throwing his hands up about the problems. When he felt valued for his perspective, he solved the problem. He was innovated. He was solution oriented. Moreover, he put the needs of people first.
Great things happen when people are encouraged to engage and solve problems for others.
Expanded Influence for the Next Time
As Maya Angelou said, “people don’t remember what you said and people don’t remember what you did. People always remember how you made them feel.” Ultimately, by putting people first, trust is built. Leaders will take risks when they trust. They’ll aim for the stars, or perhaps the moon. Expanding influence is a significant benefit of putting people first. Moreover, it must come from a genuine place and be sustained.
Expand Bench Strength
When people know they matter and their perspective is valued, confidence grows. With confidence, capacity expands. Every organization, team and community benefits when the capacity of each member grows.
People First: What’s Makes it Hard?
In this week’s Wednesday video I declare a phrase and a belief I hold dear – “people are annoying.” They are. I am. It’s part of our charm. Perhaps it is embedded in our operating system. Moreover it just may be a part of how our brains are wired.
Our Social Brains
Human beings are easily triggered. It is how we evolved. In fact, it is one of the reasons we survived. Moreover, it helps to know we trigger each other. It is part of the dance we enjoy together.
There are five domains worth exploring to see how we can put people first by understanding or reducing the pain caused by the triggering. I am basing this loosely on the NLI SCARF model that relates to how the human amygdala (a set of neurons located deep in the temporal lobe and part of the limbic system of the brain.)
1. Do I matter? Where am I in the pecking order?
Think about a child, perhaps we’ve all had this experience, told it is time for picking teams for an activity for which they are extremely skilled and ready to shine. This child will be confident and will not be triggered. They matter. Now consider the child who is not at all skilled. How do they feel?
2. Are things around me predictable and do I feel I am kept informed?
Think about the employee who knows the market place is volatile. They see anxiety in the leadership of their company or perhaps they witness poor decision-making and see the results of those decisions in their own work. This employee is anxious. Moreover, their judgment and commitment to the values of the organization may be threatened. On the other hand, what about the team who is kept abreast of the changing dynamics in the company and invited to offer input and solutions as the leadership team navigates the difficult situation. Who performs better?
3. Am I able to make decisions about the things that impact me most? Am I respected by others in this way?
Think of the young adult starting their career and feeling respected and valued for their unique and varied interests and skills. Perhaps they chose a field of study or work that is more tenuous. Still, they feel freedom and support for honouring their own desired path. Are they more likely to succeed and live a prosperous life than one who feels bullied or trapped in a lucrative career track without any joy or intrinsic value for them? Who is living a more meaningful life?
4. Do I have the support system necessary to take this risk? Are there people who have my back?
Think of the middle manager who is building support from her peer group, direct reports and the senior team. When it is time for promotion how will she prepare for the next level? Will she feel more supported and confident than the middle manager who has kept his head down? Perhaps he’s won a few big clients and confidently made a few enemies within his peer group. Finally, in a healthy work environment, who is most likely to win an opportunity to lead others?
5. Is the system fair, not only for me but for everyone and do my values matter to my community?
Think about a long time and high performing employee, called to the office on a day when the organization is clearly engaged in laying off a significant group of people. This employee who has just watched, hugged and said good-bye to peers and expects he is next. He is told he is being offered a promotion, in place of a manager he loved, and a raise. How does he feel?
People first isn’t easy. Nor is it a straight line. I wonder though what will become of us as a species if we don’t wake up and realize the importance of loving our differences and learning that it is in those differences that we grow stronger together.
People First, Starts With You – Self Awareness & the BYI System
My Bank Your Impact System is built on the foundation of self-awareness. Performance comes out of one’s behaviour which is built on a series of patterns. One must scuba dive beneath the surface to see what generates the patterns in order to influence them out of a meaningful self awareness. This is the way to build self awareness.
At its core, the BYI System seeks to shed light on the participant’s strengths and values, realizing that everything they produce in their life bubbles out of them through the intervening limiting beliefs, attitudes, mindset, patterns and habits. Our frames offer clues helping navigate our journey to self awareness.
The Bank Your Impact (BYI) System is about both developing and embedding self-awareness. Benefits of expanded resilience, connections built on understanding the impact of belonging and an ability to bolster a professional and authentic presence are foundational.
The current system incorporates 1:1 coaching, roundtable conversations; eventually I’ll add a neuro-social learning experience (currently only available in organizational contracts but will be added to the system for individual engagement in 2021).
My approach is based on the ICF (International Coaching Federation) standards. I’m meeting you (my clients) where you are, both as the coaching agreement begins, and in the moment that exists at the time of each conversation. Progress or growth is not a straight line. The ICA model is the framework for every conversation: Issue/Insight, Choice/Commitment, Action/Accountability. Over the past year I’ve been tightening the model to meet the needs of my clients.
Holding space to support my clients in:
- Developing meaningful insights
- Expanding/deepening perspective on those insights
- Building/designing a practice to try on new ways of being/seeing OR experiment for discovery
- Assessing progress, becoming agile in transfer of learning and application before developing additional insights
An organic experience
The experience is tailored around what you bring to each conversation, in my experience, there are common themes that arise including: self-awareness, mindfulness, mindset, communication, connections, and attitude. Self-awareness stands alone but is also a foundational theme. I have registered upwards of 40 sub-concepts that fit under each of these categories. I bring tools, skills and techniques to respond and guide our work together, informed by positive psychology, neuroscience, and management/leadership research.
Walk With Me, to Where You Want to Be
In April 2018, I was struck by, what felt like, a call of purpose; an insight of sorts. It inspired me to shift the focus of my practice. I’m now walking with 30 somethings. People who are at a pivotal spot in life and career. Whether THERE by age or spirit, I want to walk with people at this place in their life. This is a time in life when we are natural SEEKERS. We’re ready to do some self exploration & find the real meaning of our life? It is also a time when we are more likely to get stuck and make poor choices.
The research suggests people embrace their inner REBEL during their 20’s (the most rebellious after the toddler days in fact). If you are passive in your 20’s you will want to get curious about that too! Most of us slip quietly and comfortably though into ACCOMMODATOR in our 30’s. This documented pattern grabbed my attention and my mission was made clear. Moreover, I’m intent on resurfacing, or igniting, that inner rebel, whose perspective, now shaped with more experience, may offer insights many typically miss when insight and awareness matter most.
In June 2018 I took a course in story telling. I was intent on finding my “Big Why” to help me understand my purpose for shifting my practice. Ultimately, I landed on my story. It spans from my childhood, with a pivotal point in my early 20’s finally culminating in a significant career turning-point at the age of 37. This story revealed an unhealthy pattern while illuminating my new purpose. In fact, I feel motivated when remembering the moment of insight because this transition is difficult. Ultimately though, it adds meaning to my work. Listen below…
Feel like you’re living someone else’s destiny?
If that’s working for you, great. If it isn’t or it starts to be a problem, reach out. I welcome a conversation.
Willing to do the work to find more meaning?
With the skills to unpack the emotions and barriers and triggers and mindset challenges with the skills in my BYI system, participants begin to see the impact in their career and finally begin to discover what matters most to them. The bonus: they begin to see a path to get there. Join me…
My system is intended to be meaningful, relevant, accessible and affordable. With that in mind, there are many ways to engage with me. Below find THREE ways to get started, without spending a dime.
Walk with Me!
- REGISTER for an ASK ROX RoundTable… TWO LIVE 50 minute engagements available at your desk or phone – the second Tuesday and the last Friday of every month – limited to 12 participants in each and FREE in 2019.
- BOOK a complimentary exploratory 1:1 conversation 20-30 minutes.
- SUBSCRIBE to my mailing list from my home page, receive an interactive exercise helping you cope with stress, and a weekly reflection.
Of course I’d love to bring my work to your team or workplace, you can…
- Book me to speak at your conference or to a group in your organization. My workshops on building resilience, improving workplace outcomes through relationships, and increasing performance are big hits!