Simple Subscribe
Adrenaline is a powerful tool. You can do so much with it and usually very little without it. Adrenaline is what can make the difference between doing really good things and doing average things. Channeling your adrenaline is a technique that we struggle to master. Hence my writing of a blog article in the very early hours of the morning. My adrenaline from working with a dynamic and engaged group of people yesterday is still flowing and as a result sleep is not an option.
Yesterday was a powerful day with some great messages around communication, personalities and relationship building. The theme we were working with was “building bridges”. The concept was to take associations from different geographical locations and guide them to a process to work better and stronger together. Within this room of talented and gifted people was passion to provide the best possible service that they could to their clients but more importantly to share the wisdom and knowledge that existed with their colleagues despite the geographical boundaries. Together there isn’t a bridge that we cannot build. Together there isn’t a problem that we cannot solve.
To achieve these goals requires effective communication skills. This skill includes the ability to communicate effectively and to actively listen. To listen is one step but to hear is a completely different step – one that we sometimes miss all together. We are took quick to jump into the conversation with our own thoughts rather than listening to what is really being said. I know that people will shut down and tune you out if it appears as though you are not paying attention to them. The ability to engage those around us is a talent and we sometimes lose sight of that as we are more concerned about our own needs rather than that of others. Part of our communication skill is using the Socratic Method where we ask questions rather than telling people. Not always an easy task and one that requires us to continue to practice the technique. Communicating using this method is so rewarding as you will see people develop critical thinking skills and begin to problem solve on their own. By doing so you help them become more accountable for the outcomes of their decisions rather than pushing that back onto you.
One person cannot build the bridge on their own. It will take many people with each person being unique. Our journey will require us to develop some relationships along the way. These relationships ideally would be trusted relationships. I know that if I reach out to someone for their guidance that they have my best interests in mind. We have two streams to look at with relationships. There are the relationships that I have with my co-workers and then ones that I have with my colleagues from other geographical locations. Of course we would be remiss to not mention relationships that we have in our personal lives. All of these skills whether they be communication or relationship building are transferable skills. Relationship building requires that we have; Empathy, Courtesy, Enquiry, Interest, and Respect. These are five rules that are needed in order to build trusted relationships.
“If you don’t develop meaningful relationships with people you’ll never know what’s really on their mind until it’s too late to do anything about it.”
“When you reach that point in your life where the light bulb goes off, and you begin to understand that knowledge is not gained by flapping your lips, but by removing your ear wax, you have taken the first step to becoming a skilled communicator.”
Yesterday was an awesome day as we had lots of discussion on how we could communicate better, how we could use the Socratic Method, and how we needed to develop trusted relationships. We had to respect that each and every one of us is unique and to be a great leader we needed to be able to figure out how people wanted to be communicated with and what sort of a relationship would best suit their needs. We learned that we needed to “replace ego with empathy” and “speak to groups as individuals”.
We can build any bridge we want when we harness the power of mentoring. Effective mentoring requires that we communicate effectively, build trusted relationships and all with the understanding that each of us is unique. We need to respect what each person brings to the table and value their contribution. We need to help others be successful but at the same time be comfortable to reach out for guidance ourselves. Humility is the trademark of a great leader.
Begin your journey and build your bridge by embracing the “power of mentoring”.
“Can you afford not to?”
References:
1. http://www.forbes.com/sites/mikemyatt/2012/04/04/10-communication-secrets-of-great-leaders/