......... Mag:OH:zine

Creativity...Motivation...Innovation

2011-02-20T09:14:00.008-05:00

Where is this landmark? First correct response: Surprise!
Photo Credit: Richard Chicoine iCopyright 2011

Creativity....Innovation.... What's the Difference?

I'm not going to answer that question for you.

In fact, we'll be spending some thinking time together on March 10, delving into the many aspects of Creativity and Innovation, for you as leaders,

and for Thunder Bay - in a community perspective.

It's going to be interesting!

To get you started, here's an e-book that links creativity and motivation.

HEY! How's that goal setting coming along?

This will help... (yes, 60 pages...easy read)

Enjoy!

http://media.lateralaction.com/motivatecreate.pdf

Whoppee!

2010-09-13T15:11:00.000-04:00

Photo Credit Richard Chicoine iCopyright 2010

Time to Celebrate!

October 2010 marks my 25th year in the speaking and training biz.

It's time to celebrate... as if that hasn't been my motto anyway!

The MagOhZine will be moving to wordpress...
Watch for the grand renewal
(& have a piece of cake with me...)

Best!
Maggie

Photo of the Year

2010-01-04T10:52:00.005-05:00

Icey Superior Sunset by Richard Chicoine

Photo of the Year (2009)

This year:

We will zig & zag through the crags of Lake Superior Shores to:

Photograph more of nature's brilliance...

Capture more in words...

Bring you the magnificence, spontaneity & spark of creativity through our expressions and pictures.

May you also find joy in the invisible, hope in the visible and laughter in the mundance... all of which changes when you take the time to notice.

Wishing you and yours the best of the best for this decade, and this year.

- Maggie and Richard Chicoine

(photojournalists: Sleep Around Lake Superior)

Mag:OH:Zine for Stuck People

2009-09-08T08:29:00.010-04:00

As Always, An Alphabetical "A"
Welcome to IdeA-Z, your mag-guide to strategies and creative solutions, break throughs for mind-boggling crunches and -guaranteed - finding the funny when you're stuck.
Each TUESDAY - your highest LEVERAGE day of the week (when you're most productive and alert!), IdeA-Z will showcase ways to get unstuck and unbogged. Let's just say, if you stay with me through to Z, your creative genius will be living with your creative muse. Now THAT's a partnership!
A = Alert
Being Alert is so obvious, you might not even notice when you're not. We'll cover the flip side - the Alpha State - where being oblivious becomes the strategy.
You might think that you see everything around you, all the time. Truth be told, you don't. Perception plays a huge role in how your brain connects old information to new, and ping pongs unrelated info in your thought channels. Your brain runs on limited energy (a 40 kw lightbulb's worth), so it tries to save energy by discarding ideas and knowledge as quickly as possible. Conscious Alertness increases your ability to perceive the world around you. Your thinking energy is focussed.
"Limited perception" is the number one reason that your creativity falls flat. Dis-Alert, Un-Alert, Non-Alert, Alert-less...lights on, no-one home...
Here's an example: take a really close look at the photo in this blog. Stare at it for a while. Notice anything unusual?
Hundreds of students walk through this University's stupendous building regularly. Do they see the reflections created to enhance the structure by the architect? Most don't... because their minds are tuned into other channels of thought. They take advantage of the "Function" of the buidling and miss the beauty - the "Form" - as it was originally imagined in the designer's own mind's eye.
Here's your "Creativity" homework assignment for today:
Go for a 10 minute walk. Outside. Stop by a leafy tree or kneel down on the grass. Find a spot - a 2x2 square - to stare at. As you look deeper and deeper, tiny details will emerge - life in the veins and the blades. It doesn't appear immediately. Or, try this: sit on a sidewalk. When is the last time you stopped to stare at an ant carrying a gigantic load?
You can apply the same method to solving a problem.

Go beyond the surface information;
challenge your perceptions about what's going on, and stop defending your own point of view.
Look for the solutions from other directions. (What if you were the ant - what load would you be carrying - where? why? for how long?).
The Alert State of mind brings you into the "now", and as you know, that's all you have: right?

Kids are Alert naturally. They pay attention to everything, don't they? They question, instead of relying on what they perceive to be true.
Link your childhood curiosity to your adult Alertness, and you'll find that your perceptions will expand. Solutions become more obvious...
Become A-LERT - we need more lerts!
See you next week for "ALPHA States"!
- Maggie
PS: Last week's photo: Yes, a Diner! Congrats to our Hawaiian winner.

We Are Naturally Off the Wall

2009-08-31T19:12:00.009-04:00

Welcome Home!

You might have noticed that the lights were on, but no-one was home all summer. Yes, we took a break from the Blog and Twitter and Linkedin... but that's not to say we weren't productive!

The "we" isn't the proverbial royal "we"... my sidekick Richard - or am I his? - and I team up on a number of projects. That wasn't the plan when we were married 2 years ago. Rick retired as a most loved English and Math teacher, and basketball coach and then discovered photography. Funny thing, since I grew up in a photographer's family and spent most of my childhood Saturdays posing for my dad or hand-colouring portraits of brides. That too was a family affair.

So Rick takes great pride in displaying his latest shots, while I use my specialty - creativity - to fit a story to the picture he sends me each week for this blog as well as the Leadership Blog at www.xowhat.blogspot.com.

For the next few months, our focus will be on "how to do and be innovation". My background is in strategic systems thinking, where innovation and leadership reign. We're calling it "IdeA-Z".

We hope that these tips and examples will inspire and amuse you but most of all, help you to get unstuck or un-bogged or feeling like you can solve the problem another way.

Our self-portrait in this issue is an example of just being "off the wall" and doing something which most people wouldn't notice. If you look closely at the photo, you might notice a variety of "systems" at play.

If you can tell us where we posed for this photo (not the exact location, but what kind of structure), I'll not only stand and applaud you, but send a fave surprise by snail mail. Use the comment link below.

See you Tuesdays, and thanks for being "home" with us!

- Maggie

How Canada Savvy Are You?

2009-07-01T08:21:00.013-04:00

Would You Pass the Canadian Citizenship Test for Immigrants?

Now there's a question that many Canadians have never been asked! We take so many aspects of our lives in Canada for granted.

Let's Test Your Knowledge of Canada

If you were to apply for Canadian Citizenship...

You would be asked questions on subjects such as:

The rights and responsibilities of a citizen
Canadian social and cultural history (for example, which three Aboriginal groups are recognized in the Constitution)
Canadian politics (for example, the names of the leaders of the major political parties) and
Canadian physical and political geography (for example, how many provinces there are and the names of their capital cities).

The book, A Look at Canada, would help you study for the test. Ask for a copy at your local library, or read it here:
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/resources/publications/look/index.asp

Ready? Take the Sample Quiz....

To take a sample quiz, courtesy of the CBC, click on http://www.cbc.ca/news/becomingcanadian/self_citizen_quiz.html

Another version:

APNA Toronto, go here: http://www.apnatoronto.com/canadian-citizenship-quiz.html

En francais:

http://www.torontopubliclibrary.ca/mul_ser_citizenship_fr_test.jsp

CELEBRATE YOUR CITIZENSHIP!

After passing the test, repeat this oath:

THE OATH OF CITIZENSHIP

"From this day forward, I pledge my loyalty and allegiance to Canada and Her Majesty Elizabeth the Second, Queen of Canada. I promise to respect our country's rights and freedoms, to defend out democratic values, to faithfully observe our laws and fulfil my duties and obligations as a Canadian citizen."

What does Canadian citizenship mean?

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/resources/publications/look/look-03.asp

Canadian values include freedom, respect for cultural differences and a commitment to social justice.

We are proud of the fact that we are a peaceful nation. In fact, Canadians act as peacekeepers in many countries around the world.
Canada is a large country with a small population.

We have developed a unique federal style of government that is based on compromise and co-existence.

We value our democracy, and every citizen is encouraged to do his or her share.

Our laws are based on our democratic values.

Canadian values include:

Equality—We respect everyone’s rights.

Everyone has the right to speak out and express ideas that others might disagree with.

Governments must treat everyone with equal dignity and respect—two other fundamental Canadian values.
Respect for cultural differences—

We try to understand and appreciate the cultures, customs and traditions of all Canadians, whether they were born in Canada or came here from another country.

Freedom—As Canadians, we enjoy basic freedoms, such as freedom of thought, freedom of speech, freedom of religion and freedom of peaceful assembly.
Peace—We are proud of our non-violent society and our international role as peacekeepers.
Law and order—We respect democratic decision making and the “rule of law.”

We promote due process so that the courts and the police treat everyone fairly and reasonably.

We ensure that our elected governments remain accountable to Canadians.

As you reflect on these values, ask yourself which responsibilities you will take on when you become - or have always been - a Canadian citizen.

Happy Canada Day!

100 Day Plan for Leaders: Duck

2009-06-24T07:29:00.019-04:00

100 Day Plan for Leaders: Duck!

Background: How The 100 Day Plan Evolved*

Let me take a round-about, concept based journey to the real point of this week’s column. First, I’d like to share the inside track of how my blog themes emerge. If you’re interested in how innovative thinking happens - especially for leaders - then this background portion may be extremely useful for you.

How the Process of Writing Blog Articles Begins

My side-kick photographer notices "the usual" but snaps the unusual photo. He sends an unsolicited image to stir up the imagination of the creative writer (me). The end result? The innovative intersection of ideas which results in the weekly MagOhZine column.

My husband Richard is the photographer who fires up my writing.

I never know which picture he's going to send as this week's theme.

My challenge is to allow the story to unfold from the image.

As a speaker specializing in "Strategies to Think Ahead", I need to keep my mind sharp and my brain flexible. Coherent. Concise. My clients expect me to guide them to the place where "they get it". Most of the leaders I work with, aren't familiar with the intimate details of how their brains get locked into familiar patterns and expectations. They need to experience as well as learn the theory of creativity, innovation and influencing change in their organizations.

My weekly musings and writings based on pictures, are just one example of how creative thought works in real life. I simulate and stimulate my own thinking style on a regular basis. Creativity isn’t a one shot activity. How could I expect others to do the same, if I don't take the lead?

The Process

So here’s the process (in short form) of how we build the theme and the content for each article. Notice how the photo is the initial inspiration - the metaphor that serves as the foundation for the final outcome.

a. This week’s image: "Duck enjoying shower on a hot day"
b. Research (What do I know about ducks?)
c. Reflection (What do ducks and leaders have in common?)
d. Intersection of multiple ideas (What is the key question: what else happens in 100 days?)
e. Hatch: (Intersection of ideas: 100 Day Plan Duck! for Leaders?)
f. Experiment: Write draft 1 or 2 or 3...
g. Laugh! (If it's not amusing or titillating, start again.)
h. Action Plan: (Write, edit, write, edit more.)
i. Remarks - comments - thanks!

The Process at the Intersection Phase

And that's how we get to the inner workings of how I write this column. Let’s take this a few steps further.

Final Steps...

Title: The 100 Day Plan for Leaders: Duck!

Subtitle: The intersection of Duck Maturity and Leadership Thinking

The research says:

Ducks incubate for up to 30 days. Hatch.
Ducks mature - reach that independent stage - in another 70 days or so.
Total? 100 Days...

In 100 days, the egg incubates, hatches, and learns to be independent.

And so...

If LEADERS could strategically

incubate a concept and a few ideas,

reflect for 30 days, and

move to right action for another 70:

in 100 days, real change could begin, and could also be measured.

My best leadership advice?

Always think in 100 day blocks of time.

The "How To" of the 100 Day Plan: Duck!

(a) Take the time to reflect. Incubate. Don't rush. Then hatch the central core of the plan. (Let the duckling of an idea emerge slowly from its shell. Savor the first glimpse of surroundings, new environment.)

(b) Work on the action plan - who else, what else, how? Research. Connect the intersections of unlikely ideas. Write it all down.

(c) Set up the standards and measurements, loosely at first

(d) Be aware of the "red flag" moments - do not discard what is niggling...find the texture and context of the part that doesn't seem to fit. Source the danger - get out of the nest. This could be the best part!

(e) Look ahead to the 100 day deadline (duck line) and back to measure your growth as you go. Daily. Take notes.

(f) Start the next 100 days.

Ready to Start Your 100 Days?

If Canada Day (July 1) marks Day 1, then Canadian Thanksgiving could be the 100 Day closure point.

What could you and your team accomplish during this 100 point continuum of thinking and actions?

If ducks can fly in 100 days, what innovations could you move toward if you follow the “flight plan”?

Let me know!

* P.S. BONUS TIP: If you think that this version is a repeat of yesterday's Feedblitz...think again! I purposely sent out the first draft yesterday in rough format.

Always leave time to review and refine the plan.

Don't leave your best thinking to Day 99...

Give yourself time to perfect the flight plan.

##
Maggie Chicoine is a professional speaker, master coach and writer specializing in “Strategies to Think Ahead”. She collaborates with her husband photographer, Richard, to develop innovative themes for her clients. Reach Maggie at maggiechicoine@gmail.com or 1 800 587 1767 (North America). Maggie’s column, The Tuesday File, appears weekly in www.lakesuperiornews.com.

Photo Credit: Richard Chicoine iCopyright 2009

1 800 587 1767 maggiechicoine@gmail.com

Ripple Effects

2009-06-17T08:02:00.005-04:00

Photo Credit: Richard Chicoine iCopyright 2009

Celebrating Leadership

With all the buzz about diversity, innovation, metrics and personality inventories in leadership literature, how does an emerging leader sort through the theory and determine her own style?

It’s a question that Canada’s 22 formal leadership programs are committed to answering, all in their own community based agendas.

In northern Ontario, for example, Leadership Thunder Bay terms it “immersion” in community leadership: let’s examine the nature and complexity of community and identify the leadership skills required for creating economic and social change.

In a ten month curriculum, two dozen participants discover the range intersections of their economy, institutions and neighbourhoods. Through experience and assessment, they develop high level skills and styles that are most effective in a variety of situations.

“Sometimes its smooth sailing with immediate ripple effects. At others, the conflicts and negotiations are real; that’s when the long term learning happens. Self confidence goes through the roof.”

One group of participants defined “community leadership” as this:

The Definition of Community Leadership
The capacity to see what needs to be done;
the courage to take the lead;
the ability to inspire others to action;
the willingness to break down barriers;
and
the fundamental ability to collaborate with others in the community
so that together, great results are achieved,
far greater than what one could do by one’s self.

I would like to personally congratulate and celebrate the commitment of all leadership program graduates across the country.

Behind their success are volunteers who create, govern
and plan these sessions.

Theirs is the ultimate succession plan for
community innovation and growth.
By leading the learning, and learning through leading, the dynamics in our communities evolve.

Thumbs WAY up for the graduates:
Class of 2008 - 2009 (www.leadershiptb.com)

Jacki Alto, Nishnawbe Aski Nation
Robert Berardi, St. Joseph’s Care Group
Brad Bonazzo, Investor’s Group
Tammy Chiodo, Confederation College
Kathleen Eaton, Superior Credit Union
Peter Evans, SunLife Financial
Catherine Hilgers, Confederation College
Stewart Kallio, Confederation College
Sarah Kerton, City of Thunder Bay
Nancy Kos, Bombardier
Nicole Landgraff, St. Joseph’s Care Group
Mike Lees, TbayTel
Kelly Litt, Thunder Bay Chamber of Commerce
Margie MacDonald, Confederation College
Nicole Maillette-Seller, Bombardier
Cathy Matthews, Workplace Safety Insurance Board
Michael Mehegan, Thunder Bay Hydro
Kristen Oliver, City of Thunder Bay
Tammy Orr, CNIB
Tracy Puurunen, St. Joseph’s Care Group
Sylvia Renaud, Thunder Bay Public Library
Rosanna Scaffeo, Lakehead University
Paul Wolfe, Thunder Bay Community Foundation

##

Maggie Chicoine is a professional speaker, master coach and lead facilitator of Leadership Thunder Bay. She specializes in Strategies to Think Ahead.

Go to: www.theideasculptor.com

The unofficial leadership blog is at www.xowhat.blogspot.com - check out the archives!

Leadership Thunder Bay: www.leadershiptb.com

Maggies leverage column, The Tuesday File, appears weekly in www.lakesuperiornews.com.

Reach Maggie at 1 800 587 1767, maggiechicoine@gmail.com or twitter @ideasculptor.

Photo Credit: Richard Chicoine, iCopyright 2009

NOT Another Meeting!

2009-06-09T08:29:00.003-04:00

Photo Credit: Richard Chicoine iCopyright 2009

Meeting Mania? Try These Tips!

Let’s try this scenario for a change in your meeting strategy. Tools needed: one iPhone or recording device. One maverick meeting attendee who is fed up with long, boring, useless, trivia and ego infested agendas.

Maverick transforms blackberry into a fly-on-the-wall, positioning himself unobtrusively at the board room door, or at the water cooler. Audio/video on: what are people really talking about - the strategic items that need to be actioned, or the way that another hour was eaten by the meeting monster?

If only the hallways could talk. Actually, they can, if only you’d ask.

Enough said about useless meetings.
I’d like to introduce three tips which might improve the function and format of your next discussion at the board room table.

Tip 1

Get quirky.

I recently heard the story about a CEO, who was bothered by fast-paced and sometimes, inappropriate decision making during staff meetings. The pace was harried, driven by a collective need to just get this done. He wanted to slow things down to a conversational pace. He believed that rushing through the agenda was creating a dysfunctional arena for strategic thinking. What did he do?

He left his blackberry behind, and began recording his notes using a historic device. He purchased a fountain pen. Now and again, he’d say, “Excuse me, I didn’t quite get that point written down. Would you repeat it please?”.

Meetings became calmer, and the CEO gained control. The culture changed.

Tip 2

Surprise.

If the gang consistently and unconsciously protects their own turf - “this is MY seat” - change locations and stay standing.

A mid-level supervisor discovered, quite by accident (conversation overheard in the ladies room) that her division’s one hour meetings were draining and boring. She changed the format, location and without fail timed the agenda to start on time and end on time: 15 minutes max. Now into week 38, she’s excited about their progress. The grumbling has stopped.

Tip 3

Build Meeting Skills.

Invest in formal “presentation” or “facilitation skills” training for everyone on your team.

It’s easy to criticize if you’ve never had to manage a group conflict, or sort through a complex problem with twenty silent participants and a couple of very vocal dissenters. When the shoe is on the other foot - or the control of the agenda is on your own plate - you will understand the skills required to move the meeting to a satisfactory conclusion. The added value is that the chair role can be transferred easily, and people speak up more often.

What’s your best strategy for enhanced meetings? Slowing down, speeding up, collective leadership?

Final Tip

Let me suggest that you bring this column to your next meeting. Ask the folks around the table two questions.

The first: “What can we do to engage everyone at our meetings?”

Next: “What do we do at every meeting that’s frustrating you?”.

Then do what the group has advised you to do. Take the lead and don’t judge their feedback even if you think that the suggestions and comments are too quirky, too slow, too fast or just too...

##

Maggie Chicoine’s company, The Idea Sculptor, specializes in “Strategies to Think Ahead.” Her weekly column, The Tuesday File, appears in www.lakesuperiornews.com. She posts to her MAGOHZINE blog on Tuesdays at www.theideasculptor.blogspot.com.

Maggie is a charter member of CAPS, a Master Coach (ICF) and professional writer (PWAC).

Reach her at twitter @ideasculptor or 1 800 587 1767.

Go With the Flow

2009-06-02T06:58:00.008-04:00

Photo Credit: Richard Chicoine iCopyright 2009

Overprepare & Then,

Go With The Flow

Look up....waay up....
What does it take to go fly a kite?
Let me take that one step further: what does it take to lead?

The answers are similar...

"Over-prepare and go with the flow"

Kites, as you may know, were a Chinese invention more than 2500 years ago. Silk sails, resilient bamboo frames and strong silk flying line were the ideal materials to constuct art works, often displaying mythological characters. Ingenious tails kept the kites flying forward.

Not just entertainment, warrior kites were designed as a sky-field battleground, with opponents cutting each others lines to show dominance.

Flying a kite...much like leadership. Think about it...

Let me guide you along as you use the metaphor of "flying a kite" to review your leadership style.

How resilient are you?

How sturdy and how flexible your frame?

What is your visible shape and form?

What colours do you fly?

How do you manage tension?

What's your Plan B when the wind disappears, storms hover and environmental conditions are not ideal?

Who is the enemy who cuts your line?

When did you last check the condition of your kite, your tieline?

Who is helping you to untangle the strings, keep you grounded as you prepare to fly?

How do you celebrate a perfect flight?

How much joy results from your leadership?

Is it work and play in harmony?

And finally, what is your purpose?

Metaphors are useful in linking new information to past knowledge. We can speak in metaphors, or we can "play" or "model" images and pictures in action. Go fly a kite - it's not all child's play.

When you feel the perfect balance of tension, the breeze lifting you and the pleasure of going with the flow, you might just understand leadership in a new way.

Overprepare, and then go with the flow.

Perhaps a good team building exercise?

________________________

Maggie Chicoine specializes in Strategies to Think Ahead.

Her MagOhZine appears every Tuesday (leverage day!) at http://www.theideasculptor.com/. Reach her at 1 800 587 1767 or email maggiechicoine@gmail.com

Keynotes. Facilitation. Coaching.

"with a twist of ingenuity"

Leadership in Community

2009-05-26T08:06:00.005-04:00

Photo Credit: Richard Chicoine iCopyright 2009

Leadership Horizons

"Soft focus is an important skill that can affect us metaphorically.
In other words, the way we see the future has everything to do with how well we can look up and see the expanded horizon before us." - Peter Kline

When is leadership, REAL Leadership?

Is Corporate / Business Leadership more respected or of higher importance than charitable / not for profit leadership? Should corporate leadership be more community minded?

I applaud Leadership Victoria for distributing their study on the many facets of leadership. Apparently, many hours were spent around their board room table in ROBUST discussions, prior to writing the final document. With their permission, here are exerpts from:

The Case for Community Leadership

Some years back, a book of stories appeared with the catchy title

What We Talk About When We Talk About Love.

The title is effective — and affecting — because, though "love" is a charged word we all use, and though people will claim to know love when they see or feel it, most struggle to define it. The title is memorable because, with quirky good humour, it touches on a contradictory human truth.

As with love, so with community leadership, and not only because capable community leaders are often passionate and sometimes quirky. Like love, community leadership is much talked about — cited as a solution for daunting community challenges, invoked as the cure for the loss of community cohesion and identity, sought by community boards to rescue organizations adrift.

In Canada’s community leadership network, volunteers in twenty-two communities have devoted their time, attention, and labour, probably their money, and no doubt their hearts to building and running community leadership development organizations.

And yet, what we talk about when we talk about community leadership remains elusive. Opinions diverge even among those in
community leadership organizations, though a shared anxiety infuses the differing views.

At one extreme are those who suspect, echoing Gertrude Stein, that "leadership is leadership is leadership."

The dark secret of the movement, they say, is that its matter is no different from that taught in other programs. A perceived leadership deficit crossing social, political, and economic sectors has spawned a global cottage industry of sorts, with consultants, business schools, specialized institutes, and personal development experts widely offering leadership training. According to this view, what community leadership programs provide simply mirrors the training provided in good leadership programs everywhere.

Those with the opposite view suspect that though community leadership possesses a distinct character, it is a mere junior version of "real" leadership — that being leadership in business.

For many people, leadership currently is exemplified by leaders like Jack Welch, Carly Fiorina, Richard Branson, or Steve Jobs — the figuratively broad-shouldered, square-jawed, decisive heroes of the business press.
Ubiquitously profiled in popular management literature, business leadership has become for many the paragon of leadership everywhere, overshadowing even political, religious, and military leadership as an aspirational ideal.

And according to this view, all that community leadership can ever hope to do, really, is aspire.

What are we talking about when we talk about community leadership?

A more pointed question to have asked is, how do different organizational and social circumstances make different demands on and elicit different practices from leaders?

As noted, it is the character of the led that drives the character of leadership in particular contexts. People act and are motivated differently in the community at large and in community organizations than they do and are in businesses. It is not necessarily the case that the people are different people. More often than not they are the same people in a different situation, both the leaders and others.

It is telling in this regard that, very often, community leaders are also business leaders.

We often hear it stated that community organizations ought to become more businesslike, usually meaning that they need to be managed in a more orderly and structured fashion and led with a kind of abrupt decisiveness that some people seem to imagine is typical of business.

It’s true enough that many community organizations
could be managed better. Particularly as community organizations grow and become more complex and highly structured, the genius of business leadership in maintaining large-scale, distributed task focus becomes more relevant, to take just one example.

But by the same token we could say that business ought to become more community-like. It is easy to think of situations in which the experience of effective community leaders is directly relevant to challenges faced by business — in the leadership of change, for example, in which the risk of job loss or transformation injects huge emotion into employees’ relationships with the organization; or in the leadership of the millennial generation, who, as HR departments are learning, are demanding a healthy dose of meaning in their jobs; or in the leadership of innovation teams or groups of knowledge workers, which are often structured almost as flat coalitions of professional equals; or in brand development based on community values; or in the leadership of community relations, in which businesses aim to engage the public and its concerns.

In many ways, the lessons of community leadership are as relevant to business as those of business leadership are to communities.
It is not case then that "leadership is leadership is leadership,"
but rather that
"leaders are leaders are leaders"
and that those with the inclination, training, experience, and skills to exercise leadership will probably do so capably, wherever they find themselves — in communities, in business, in government, or in the military, rising to the demands as occasion and context dictate.

We should expect therefore that the experience they garner in one sector not only adds to their depth as leaders, but is transferable to any other context in which they have the opportunity to exert their skills.
How individual leaders typically draw on the fundamental behavioural skillset to exercise leadership in various situations is what we call their "leadership style."

Community leadership starts with the creation of a passionate consensus for action. Through social entrepreneurship it builds the necessary organizational vehicles and programs. In articulating a vision of public good, it generates the broad support for issues that makes progress possible. In collaborative endeavour, it moves the agenda forward. And no doubt in engaging the public with a vision of innovative, collaborative purpose, it sets the stage for yet another small group of people to sit up, take notice, and decide to act together on a matter of shared concern that they feel is important.

That’s what we talk about when we talk about community leadership.

If you are a leader - in whatever capacity - please send me your comments (anonymously) about Community Leadership. I'd love to have a ROBUST discussion with as many of you as possible. (Your comments are not published.)

- Maggiechicoine@gmail.com

Reprinted with permission Prepared for Leadership Victoria by Mitchell Temkin Principal, Associatus Consulting mtemkin@associatus.ca

Leaders: Time to Wash Your Windows

2009-05-19T07:38:00.004-04:00

The Essential Leadership Question

What if every leader spent 2 minutes a day asking themselves one essential question. What would that all important question be?

Let me share the back story before we get to The Big Ask.

At a leadership event last week, the final presenter summarized the key messages of The Five Temptations of a CEO by Patrick Lencioni. He noted that this fable is an easy read, but, as all things which seem simple at the outset, the complexity surfaces in the urge to reflect on personal experiences related to the content. Reflection is fundamental leadership tool which unfortunately, takes a back seat to the daily grind.

Lencioni suggests that higher level leaders make authentic, consistent choices. He advises leaders to:

1. Choose results over status

2. Choose accountability over popularity

3. Choose clarity over certainty

4. Choose productive conflict over harmony

5. Choose trust over invulnerability

Results. Accountability. Clarity. Productive conflict. Trust.

Easy enough, but how do leaders really know that these are the standards they set for themselves: consistently, over time, authentically and passionately?

How do the people who follow them, repeat the mantra?

I could name a hundred leaders who fall into the category of “not” making these choices.

They have egos that drown out the potential of employee engagement in important projects.

Their need to be recognized by the community at large overshadows the white lies that cover up their accountability for financial decisions.

They do not listen to the part time staff person who deals with customers’ complaints, because “those people” with the gripes are only the minority. They let teams fall further into dysfunction because the surface story of the organization is covered in smiles and conflict is taboo.

They rarely say, “I was wrong” or “you are right”.

These leaders are stuck in their own blind spots. They might find more opportunities to wash their windows

- to really see the world around them.

On the other hand, I’ve been led by some of the best of the best.

Because of their leadership, I’m a better follower as well as a better leader. They’ve let me face the fire and go for “impossible” results;

held me to task when I offered excuses;

asked for the what and the how and the who instead of allowing a poorly executed strategy to be the starting point.

They have given permission for us to disagree, to engage in a productive conflict but more importantly, they have taught others to negotiate well and communicate clearly.

They have encouraged everyone to make mistakes, admit failures, discover breaking points, as well as to ask for help and support.

These leaders recognize their blind spots, and move toward self-discovery habitually.

So, possibly there is one essential question, if asked often enough, that would change how leaders lead.

Let me suggest this one as The Big Ask:

“Why should anyone be led by me?”

I’d like to leave that, with you.

##

Maggie Chicoine specializes in “Strategies to Think Ahead”.

Maggie posts her MagOhZine blog weekly at www.theideasculptor.com

Her popular column, The Tuesday File, appears in www.lakesuperior.com regularly. Maggie is an experienced professional speaker, master of ceremonies and master coach as well as Lead Facilitator for Leadership Thunder Bay.

Twitter her @ ideasculptor or contact at 1 800 587 1767 or maggiechicoine@gmail.com

Comments more than welcome! I'll donate a loonie for every comment to a local charitable organization. Unless authorized, your comments will not be published.

Sandcastles (Not) In the Air

2009-05-11T07:50:00.012-04:00

Leaders: Sand Castle Sculpting Lessons

As much as I believe that psychological assessments of skills and behaviors are valuable, I'd like to propose an additional leverage point for leaders interested in honing their innovation skills. Take a pail and shovel to the nearest beach. You'll learn about function, design, skill sets - including your challenges - and the right tools for innovation. Sculpting that sand castle can be great for your leadership health.

The ancient Egyptians designed scale models of pyramids using sand and water. From grains of sand, gigantic marvels were born. These miniature architectural experiments would contribute to the scale, efficiency and effectivness of their final blueprints. Metaphorically speaking, taking the "sand castles in the air" and in their minds to an actual, physical representation allowed the Egyptian pyramid builders/leaders to "do the right things, in the right way, for the right reasons, at the right time, with the right people". Let me add: "using the right skills and the right tools" to the list. This "right action" is also the bottom line for any leadership role.

Paul Saffo, a futurist based at Standford University has developed 4 rules to fuel tomorrow's innovation. As you read these rules, imagine applying them to sculpting in sand and allowing your skills to expand with your imagination. Think about the strategic tools which would increase your abilities and lead to an outstanding structure.

Rule #1: Uncertainty is possibility. Uncertainty is opportunity. And you don't want to get surprised by missing an important opportunity.

Rule #2: Some of the greatest dangers for an innovator who is able to identify future trends is to mistake a clear view for a short distance, to be too early, and to think that things are going to arrive more quickly than they actually are.

Rule #3: Don't let your hope about what will happen interfere with your judgment of what you think could happen.

Rule #4: The essence of executive wisdom is the ability to make the right decision based on incomplete information. The sooner you can be comfortable that you have the right decision with less information, the faster you can move over your competition.

Source: Paul Saffo, BigThink

Your Leverage Point

I could easily draw some quick comparisons to waves destroying your structures, just as the economy has washed away resources globally. Perhaps "getting down to business" should be "getting away from business" to start with a new pile of sand, a bucket of salt water, some old spoons and a carving knife.

Shouldn't "play" be part of your business strategy? You might learn more than you expected...history (aka ancient Egypt) has proven that point.

Maggie Chicoine, The Idea Sculptor, specializes in "Strategies to Think Ahead". Her column, "The Tuesday File" appears in www.lakesuperior.com weekly. Maggie is a respected leadership professional, keynote speaker, writer and Master Coach. Reach her at 1 800 587 1767. Twitter @ideasculptor.

AmBIGuity for Leaders

2009-05-05T07:09:00.006-04:00

Photo Credit: Richard Chicoine iCopyright

Fear of Ambiguity

It's easy enough not to notice the opportunity to innovate - to ignore the possibilities. Our daily routines determine our most common direction and pace. We can easily ignore the obvious. That's a dangerous leadership trait.
As leaders, how can you become more aware of circumstances which will spur on unlikely intersections of ideas and help others to get over the fear of "change", for example?

This week's photo - the Snow Rose - illustrates the potential of "intersections" of thoughts. The question at the root of the experiment: "What would happen if... " (And yes, there was snow in our backyard in northern Ontario on the first of May!)

Leaders need to see the possible in the impossible and help others leap through the fear of the unknown.

In his book, ICONOCLAST, Gregory Berns says:

"Fear of the unknown, or ambiguity, is a funny thing. It is not a specific event event such as an electric shock or the pain experienced from the criticism of an unempathetic supervisor. Ambiguity stems from lack of knowledge. It looms over the psyche like a dark cloud on the horizon. Some people are better at dealing with ambiguity than others, but when fear of the unknown bubbles to the surface, it is universally experienced in the same way."

What to do? Re-direct your fear of ambiguity. ASK! Read. Discuss. Experiment - play. Find the "intersections" and lather yourself up with ambiguity.

There's a biological reason behind this theory.

As a leader, you have to find the knowledge and then stimulate your own - and everyone's - "amygdala". That's the brain's critical processing centre, an almond shaped structure critical for processing emotions. Amygdala's have a long memory, and they can be trained!

The practical application for you? Play with intersections of ideas... create an ambience for your team, where it's safe to throw half baked ideas up for discussion. Engage and appreciate mavericks for their natural attempts to change the status quo. And dare I say it, love your amygdala!

For more on ideas for leadership: go to www.theideasculptor.com MagOhZine blog. Click on Archives. Cheers!

Who Is In Shanghai?

2009-04-27T07:07:00.004-04:00

Excellence...Innovation...People...Leadership

"It is the foremost task - and responsibility - of our generation to

re-imagine

our enterprises and institutions, public and private." - Tom Peters

Innovation expert, Tom Peters is in Shanghai this week. LTB can participate...his 4 slide shows are on line, and I think you'll enjoy clicking through them. Short on time? Choose the Innovation Slides, in keeping with our next month's theme.

"Whoever tries the most stuff, and screws the most stuff up and most rapidly launches the next try, wins. Failures are not to be tolerated. They are to be celebrated!"

http://www.tompeters.com/

Excellence
Innovation
People
Leadership

Enjoy "thinking weird"... it can lead to your tipping point goal!

Stuck? Check out I-deAZ

2009-04-15T07:40:00.006-04:00

Need a better idea?

You may not even realize that you are stuck. Most people don't until there's a crisis, or a tough decision to be made.

As a Master Coach, I've discovered that with a gentle kickstart along with some guidance and guidelines, you can find the solutions you're looking for. The answers might be right there, but because you're not in sync with the 'how to' - you might miss an opportunity or opening.

Take this week's picture, for example. We were enjoying a slow stroll along the boardwalk in Canal Park, Duluth MN. Most of our focus was on the icy horizon of Lake Superior. That was the obvious scene we were looking to photograph. With a creative "I" in the "ready state", we noticed a refuse container. An ordinary, functional object, n'est pas? By bending down, and shooting through the space, we found another way to view the world. Interesting!

So, how do you tune in to the creative "I"?

In the next 26 weeks, I'll be posting "I-deA-Z" - ideas from A to Z to hone your thinking and problem solving skills. Hope you enjoy this crzy new series!

This week's "I DO": look for an ordinary object and see it from a different perspective.

Whatcha Missing?

2009-04-08T07:20:00.007-04:00

Nice Photo!

Have you noticed how many people are (a) racing along the streets and alleyways (b) plugged in (c) oblivious to other people (d) unaware of landscapes (e) ignoring architecture (f) in a zone all by themselves...

Stop!! Yes...YOU!

Nice photo... Stop...take a closer look at the photo.

See the symmetry? The detail of old/new/old/new... the lives lived? The artist's touch?

We could easily have just walked by this alleyway in Canal Park, the historic landmark in Duluth Minnesota. But carrying a camera has a way of making the mundane much more interesting. What caught my eye was the view through the walkway to the hillside. The connecting piece between buildings. And then, the wonky window above.

At eye level, even the disposal bins had a certain je ne sais quoi about them, adding a hint of everyday to a truly magnificent composition. Kind of come-by-chance architecture? Gaze at the fire escapes for a bit. What balance...

No one joined us on that cold spring day to stand and stare at an alley. We were ignored. Life went on. One dad chatted on a cell phone and hauled his 3 year old across the street by one arm. Another couple seemed to be hanging around, coffees in hand, ipods plugged in. The view was completely ours. They missed it.

My point is that we're scanning information instead of reading...seeing but not registering...dare I say, existing rather than living? Whizzing by not understanding why?

Stop the rush...................................hush............................................

Einstein's Mother At Your Meeting

2009-04-02T08:26:00.004-04:00

Real Questions for Real Meetings

Bored at meetings?

Here’s a challenge for you. Count the number of questions that are asked around the table. Divide the questions into three categories:

1. The grade six grammar “open probes”, starting with the W’s
2. The questions that end in “yes” or “no” answers
3. And the summary type questions, such as “so what you’re saying is....?”

If you’d like to be even more ambitious, record who asked the question. Did everyone have a turn? Who took over the meeting? How meaningful were the questions in moving the dialogue forward to an end result?

My point is, meetings cost money. A lot of money. Add up the salaries of everyone at the table, the cost of the room, the coffees and lunches, the mileage and even the time it takes to write and distribute agendas and reports. Is this investment worth the result?

If you’re already thinking, “No, it’s a simple waste of time”, then you might consider the role of questions in transforming the essence of your meeting.
At times, the obvious question just needs to be asked. Typically, decision making is based on assumptions. Assumptions can lead to flawed solutions. Questions clarify. A good example is Lois Lane, who never did ask Superman if he knew Clark Kent.

Apparently, Albert Einstein’s mother Pauline asked her little dyslexic genius, “What good questions did you ask today?”. She’s the kind of meeting participant I’d like to have at the next strategic planning event.

Questions, carefully designed, can bring out the best in people. Questions are at the heart of employee engagement: commitment, truth, integrity and innovation. They are the foundation of dialogue, especially when they are aimed at gathering more information.

Try “Tell me about...” as a substitute for “who, what, when, where, how”. Eliminate “why”. Why? People get defensive instantly.

If your organization is considering the cost of coffee as a potential budget item to eliminate, there’s a better solution.

Look to the structure and dynamics of your meetings, specifically how your conversations happen. Who is asking what?

Ask each other what’s important, and better still, what’s most important? The right questions will lead to the right people, making the right decisions, for the right reasons, at the right time. Albert Einstein’s mother seemed to be onto something, didn’t she!

##
Maggie Chicoine is a Master Coach, experienced facilitator and professional writer. She can help you to design meetings that are effective, efficient and fun. She guarantees that no one sleeps! Follow Maggie on Twitter @ ideasculptor.

The Tuesday File appears in LakeSuperiorNews.com weekly. Reach her at 1 800 587 1767 or www.theideasculptor.com

Power & Pressure

2009-03-23T08:35:00.009-04:00

The Power and Pressure of Leadership

When things go wrong, we learn. We learn that assumptions lead to a variety of decisions and disappointments. We learn that communication isn’t as easy as we want it to be. We learn that even experienced leaders make off-hand comments that can blow up into major issues. Take Barrack Obama, for instance.

Jay Leno asked Obama about his bowling prowess, or lack thereof. That was the popular joke during the campaign. Obama proudly said he recently bowled a 129, and as Leno was mocking it, Obama joined in and compared it to the Special Olympics. "It's like -- it was like Special Olympics, or something."

Sure enough, we understand how the media works in North America. As does the White House. Spokesman Bill Burton released a statement aboard Air Force One after the show aired:

"The president made an offhand remark making fun of his own bowling that was in no way intended to disparage the Special Olympics. He thinks that the Special Olympics are a wonderful program that gives an opportunity to shine to people with disabilities from around the world."

Most leaders don't have media spokespeople to smooth the cuts.

Leadership Moments Count

"It's just a joke. Give him a break!"

The real message, though? Those little leadership moments DO matter.
Symbols count. Words count. What someone finds funny counts, too.
In a positive way, Michelle Obama shows that she knows the power of simple, influential moments. Lately, she's been on the national news almost daily as she promotes reading, taking personal responsibility, and now, gardening.

And among those who lately showed that they didn't "get" the power of a symbol are the long line of auto executives who asked for taxpayer handouts yet admitted before Congress that they had each flown a private jet to the handout proceedings. Also missing the point about the great power of leadership actions, decisions, words are the executives of taxpayer-propped-up banks who did not understand the taxpayer anger that large bonuses would invoke.

Leadership moments count...the words, the symbols, the jokes.

If you want the leadership spotlight, you get both: the power and the pressure.

The president is in a high-attention job. It's a cage, even. It's gilded, certainly, but it's a cage, nonetheless.

And among the things that go with the job he has, or any leadership job, for that matter, are an expectation that he won't perpetuate stereotypes, whatever they are, and an expectation that he will lead by positive example.

In planned statements and actions, and the "mindless" moments, too.
The mentally and physically challenged have feelings, the same as anyone else does. They're trying to maintain their dignity in a world that quickly reaches for the "R" word ("retard") to put people down.

Leadership means knowing the power and value of the spontaneous actions, reactions and words one uses.

It may take education, exposure to the real lives of the people someone makes fun of in an oh so simple "joke."

In this particular case, maybe President Obama should spend a day as a Special Olympics coach. Or work for a day with the handicapped in a sheltered workshop. Or volunteer for a day in one of the homes for the profoundly retarded that any state has to care for those who, by accident of birth, or illness, or by accident, itself, would never have asked for the circumstances they have, will never live lives completely on their own.
We all have moments we regret, a simple comment we didn't really mean. And yet...

If we are in leadership positions, we must remember, those simple moments count. And they are so very powerful.
Thanks to Source: http://www.jgrichardsresults.com/

Remember this, when sending emails with brusque subject lines -
"I'm Frustrated! " - or conversing with your colleagues in a coffee shop about what’s not working out. Someone may be listening, or reading, or assuming.

Your words could be sharp as ice. Cutting. Cruel. Memorable.

Leadership is 24/7... The power and the pressure are ALWAYS on.

Rants Have Their Purpose

2009-03-14T14:23:00.005-04:00

Chatter? Nope, RANT!

When Re-Imagine, Tom Peter’s revolutionary epic about the new business order was released in 2003, I thought I’d gone to heaven. Finally, a respected management guru who had the courage to Rant, and the power to Rave about what was happening in organizations. I applauded his rants about radical leadership and raved about his 20 ways to self-destruct.

The love affair with the unconventional Peters must have died along the way, because I, like many others, forgot about ranting and raving while just trying to survive the chaos. Perhaps it is the state of the economy, or a chance encounter with a frustrated Executive Director, that inspired me to re-pull Re-Imagine off the shelf, and peruse its technicolor wisdom one more time. In the six years since publication, are the words and advice still relevant?

Peters said, “Buckle Up - We’re In For A Bumpy Ride”. He was referring to white collar employment, and continued, “The Transformation may be Ugly And Painful. But it’s on, with Unimaginable Fury.” He says we’ve become “cubicle slaves”. He declares: “Imagine a world where work matters, where Dilbert is denied, where we learn something new every day and brag about what we do.”

Did we pay attention? Well, not really, did we?

All too often, employees who rant are silenced through the power of compliance with outdated rules. We haven’t heard their wisdom, because it’s traded in coffee shops and in the back corners of the parking lot, not in meeting rooms where new plans are formed.

When leaders ask for input, they receive sarcasm, partial answers or comments that test the trust factor instead of what's in the hearts and minds of employees. All of this leads to fractured decision making and a cycle of non-compliance, union grievances and wasted energy. Perhaps even corporate demise.

Leaders who direct Strategic Planning Processes, forge ahead without checking assumptions and values across the board. They often forget about the customer’s perspective, leaving the front line details to the wizardry of the marketing department to squeeze the relationship into shape.

As Peters writes, “A lot of people work for Harley-Davidson. The good news...none of them are so silly as to believe that they make “motorcycles”. What? They make experiences. The Rebel Lifestyle.”

Now that’s checking assumptions!

So it was an amazing wake up call, to hear the leader of a not for profit organization rant the other day. She said “Why would mental health organizations insist on calling people “consumers”. They are NOT consuming anything!”

It’s all about how we name our purpose, our strategy, and our clients. What we say, and more importantly, what we ask, drives our direction.

Spring Rant Challenge 2009

Since we are entering a season of change, a literal spring of renewal, I’d like to challenge you to express your organizational rants. Alter your perspective with each rant, and write in the “imagine if” turnaround. It's the second part of the rant - the turnaround - that needs our ultimate attention.

For example, one of my favourite rants is about pot-holed corporate parking lots: what does this broken state of affairs say about how you treat your customers and staff? Do you really give a darn?

Imagine if the pride you take in your work was perfectly mirrored in the physical environment. What if the dollars you spend on preventative maintenance showed up in customer and staff satisfaction? What would Walt Disney do?

It’s about values, assumptions and listening to the frustrations and rants at all levels. Amazing what part time summer students notice!

Rant on Tom Peters. Join in, leaders and frustrated workers. Rant on. Let’s get some change happening!

PS You Are Invited:

Send me your RANTS + Imagine If's - I will post them anonymously.

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Maggie Chicoine is a professional writer, keynote speaker and master coach specializing in Strategies to Think Ahead. She is known for her twists of ingenuity and innovative approaches to corporate and personal renewal. Reach Maggie at 1 800 587 1767 or www.theideasculptor.com.

Simple Strategy Best for Survival

2009-03-09T09:30:00.006-04:00

Simplify Your Chaos

Unstable as the economy might be right now - let’s describe it as purple jello jiggling on a bed of hot rocks - business owners hold the fundamental keys to their own survival. These are the cornerstones of strategy, so well figured that customers will intuitively understand what the business stands for and what the relationship will be.

If you haven’t re-designed your cornerstones lately, let me prod you along. Like many others, you may be suffering from system overload.

Do two things to spark your thinking:

1. scan social media for ideas in your industry, and then,

2. go on a fieldtrip to a totally unrelated company. Look for the subtle underpinnings of their success.

The Super Kupers

Let me introduce you to an award-winning, family owned firm in Thunder Bay, Ontario. Campgrounds are not typical role models for entrepreneurial savvy, but this innovative enterprise is highly regarded in the industry, and by its customers.

KOA Kampground owners Kristie and Michael Kuper (that’s “super” with a “k”), have a solid grasp of their basic foundations. They both virtually burst with stories after 11 years of upgrades and imaginative additions to what was once just a typical northern Ontario tent site.

The couple purchased the business from Kristie’s parents, and decided that adding features and events could bring more campers to stay longer on the grounds. Of the 94 acres, over 40 are carefully groomed for 200 sites. Tall pines, poplar and birch trees shade ample spaces with the usual access to hydro, water and a picnic table. But that’s where the similarity to their competition ends.

Michael points to the tons of natural amethyst rock which highlight the 18 hole mini golf course built around a fountain and waterfall. “This amethyst is local, from one of the mines up the highway. It was hand picked, and I laid it all myself, stone by stone.”

In fact, Michael and a team of teenage workers are vigilant about the condition of the grounds. No litter, groomed paths for walking and biking, shipshape fire-pits and a constant eye for anything that needs repair - from hinges on washroom doors to fresh tanks of propane to keep the hot water in the gazebo kitchen running – means that complaints are few and compliments are plentiful.

Campers don’t even need to haul their own shelter. The seven Kamping Kabins are in themselves, works of log art. Meticulously constructed, they feature a double bed and a fabulous set of pine bunkbeds, much to the delight of kids who often assume that this playhouse has been built just for them. If you look carefully, you’ll find wooden hinges and a Scandinavian style pulley lock on the door. Even the porch swing has been hung with perfect balance ratios.

Their definitive approach to the business and managing their staff has brought them numerous awards. Kristie emphasizes, that they regard KOA standards as their minimum. The Thunder Bay site has been rated by Woodall’s in the top 5% of North American RV parks with an impressive 5 out of 5 in both facilities and recreation. Trailer Life gave them 8.5/9/8.5 ratings. Yet the Kupers both emphasized with great pride, that the Founder’s Award, voted on by the campers themselves, is the most meaningful honour they have received to date.

I’m not surprised that the Kupers are so highly regarded. They review and revise their business plan with three simple cornerstones to guide them. Passion (and hard work) drives their focus on:

1. “Camper” Customers - relationships, stress free natural experiences
2. Cleanliness - consistent with safety
3. Innovation - more than a typical campground

No social media can take the place of a weekend with the Kupers, observing what they do and how they do it. Ask the cyclists from France, or the guy in the pup tent to comment on their camping experience, and the response is a unanimous “great!”.

When times are tough, like they are now, simplify the chaos. Do your e-social research but subtract the superfluous. Then take the time to explore an unlikely example of excellence right in your own neighbourhood. Reduce the thought clutter even further to three clear points. Stick passionately to the plan.

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Maggie Chicoine is a professional member of the Professional Writer’s Association of Canada, a charter Director of the Canadian Association of Professional Speakers and a Master Coach. Maggie is one of Northern Ontario Business’ Most Influential Women. An accomplished entrepreneur, she specializes in “strategies to think ahead”. Reach her at 1 800 587 1767 or http://www.theideasculptor.com/

Goodness Greatness Generosity

2009-03-02T07:32:00.013-05:00

In Honour of Our

George Burns

who passed away March 1, 2009

Never Enough

Sometimes I know the words to say,

Give thanks for all you've done.

But then they fly up and away,

As quickly as they come.

The one who makes such sacrifices,

To always put us first.

Who lets us test our broken wings,

In spite of how it hurts.

What way is there to thank you

For your heart, your sweat, your tears,

For ten thousand little things you've done,

For oh so many years.

Are there any words for this?

I find this question tough,

Anything I want to say,

Just doesn't seem enough.

Author unknown.

Hope?

2009-02-23T06:54:00.007-05:00

Word on the Street: Listen Up Leaders!

At the Top:
A CEO makes media headlines while negotiating and dealing with financial crises. Cut here, change there, check the bottom line and cancel the free coffee pot. Leaders busy working 24/7 to salvage the plan could easily ignore the day to day slide into poverty and homelessness that is inching into ordinary working families.

At the Bottom:
So what’s the word on the street? Front line folks are doing their best to hide their personal circumstances from their co-workers and clients. The folks who used to bring bags of groceries to foodbanks are now standing in line at the soup kitchen.

Life as usual, is now life as unusual.

“These dramatic changes have come unexpectedly and rapidly. Anecdotal information from food bank operators reflects more working poor are seeking assistance and many of the people coming to food banks are there for the first time. The very people who used to donate to food banks are now coming for assistance.” So says the Executive Director of a northern food bank organization.

When Mary tells her story, she asks for anonymity. Mary is a single professional photographer, whose work has been highlighted in magazines, with rave reviews positioning her as one of the up and coming artists to watch. She was once a manager in a forest products company, and fortunately was able to fall back on her part time entrepreneurial venture when she was laid off indefinitely. The layoff was permanent.

Mary moved into an unheated shack at the edge of a northern Ontario community. The pipes froze in December, so she hauls water for bathing and cooking. She slips into the truck stop to take a shower before an important photo shoot. No-one knows her circumstance, but it’s becoming increasingly difficult to not crack under the pressure.

Hazel and Jim, on the other hand, have never been rich. Hazel arrived home on the bus last week, and told her husband that her supervisor had reprimanded her for coming in late so often. Hazel could not admit that they had sold the car, and now she was relying on public transportation to get to work. The schedule just does not jive with her work hours. Her supervisor had made it clear, that he would not accept any excuses. She feels trapped by circumstances out of her control. Jim’s temper flares at the injustice. Their arguments are heating up.

The bottom line is that all organizations need to reorganize more than their financial systems. This recession is about more than money. Its about people. About Community. About reworking the plan.

Strategic planning is a braid of three base elements: Product + Process + People. People are at the core: without them, nothing happens. There are no transactions, no transformation.

Some companies “get this” more than others. Take the Salvation Army as an example.

Did you know that from the beginning, the Salvation Army was willing to run counter to the conventional wisdom of most organizations, including other religious organizations?

From the book, “Leadership Secrets of the Salvation Army” (Robert A. Watson & Ben Brown with special thanks to Peter Legge):

“We have always brought a message of inclusion and compassion to people used to being excluded and judged.”

Excluded and judged. What can leaders do, to make sure that people are not excluded and judged? How can they support and help employees save face under dire circumstances?

The obvious answer might be an Employee Assistance Program, with anonymous access to services that bridge the gap or help move people forward. For companies and entrepreneurs without EAP, the solution is to prepare a plan with their employee’s input and feedback. Honesty, respect and trust go a long way.

Leaders can watch for changes in patterns and behaviors on the job. Insurmountable barriers bring invitations to fail at each step.

Questions, questions and more questions

How is the economy affecting the people who work for us? What is festering in the ranks?

Who seems to be absent more often? More stressed? More intolerant? What are we assuming and what don’t we know that we need to know?

As a consultant, I’m recommending that leaders start by asking really good questions; that they take the time to walk around and listen to hear the word on the street; that they bring compassion into their vocabulary. It’s time for extraordinary measures, and perhaps ordinary people need to be at the top of the list.

The Salvation Army believes that there is an antidote to poverty, homelessness, drug dependency, cynicism and despair.

“It’s about salvaging and nourishing hope. Hope is the antidote. And you don’t have to be homeless or addicted to drugs to know you need something to combat that poison.”

Yours in hope, until next Tuesday...when we check out the groceries and soup kitchens...

Maggie

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Maggie Chicoine is a professional writer, keynote speaker and master coach as well as the Lead Facilitator for Leadership Thunder Bay. Follow Maggie on Twitter: “ideasculptor”. Reach her for “strategies to think ahead” at 1 800 587 1767 or maggiechicoine@gmail.com.

Wondering and Wandering

2009-02-16T10:24:00.005-05:00

Are We Losing It?

"I was just wondering..."

"Well, no, no destination in mind, I'm just wandering around..."

How important is imagination these days? The corollory question is, does time rule our thinking? What's happening to the way we see the world, and how the world sees us?

This philosophical inquiry started as we were wandering along the 10 kilometers of one of the world's best walking beaches in Cuba. I happened to notice a deep set footprint, like no other I'd seen before. It's toes carved caves in the sand, it's heel broke the surface like an earthquake, and it left an imprint so unique that it could be identified by a 2 year old.

It's as if the universe had laid an egg in my mind through this stranger's walking pattern. After a few days of incubation, my own set of word play twins were born. One is named "wonder" and the other "wander". How does wander intersect with wonder, and in the long run, are we losing our respect for imagination?

Research!

In his recent book, The Medici Effect, author Frans Johansson states that word play is a way to reduce "associative barriers", which in turn enables the creative process.

Consider the following exercise: What words do you think of when you read the word, "Foot"? The most common response by far, is the word "shoe", followed by "hand, toe, leg".

By wandering, and wondering - using your relaxed mind to increase your capacity to imagine - and removing time limits, to do lists and direction from your wandering, you can increase your creative potential.

Simply stated, you don't have to walk the beach in Ensenachos to free your mind of preconceived ideas or to problem solve. Look for images, symbols, everyday patterns for the clues to spark your thinking as you walk aimlessly for an unlimited amount of time. Pay attention to the little things in nature. Stop.

Do you know this foot?

Whoever the footprint belongs to, thank you! Chances are your feet are usually on Canadian soil...you are male...you flew into Santa Clara Cuba recently...and you love the energy of a sunrise as much as we do!

Happy wandering and wondering. Let's nurture the power of imagination with our children. Let's not lose it!

See you next week, with more Imaginative research and random thoughts.

- Maggie

Leadership By Mantra

2009-02-09T10:35:00.006-05:00

"May you have warm words on a cold evening, a full moon on a dark night, and a smooth road all the way to your door." - Irish Blessing

Leadership By Mantra

The recent surge in layoffs and organizational restructuring, leads me to believe that leadership has new challenges at hand. The old mantra of “doing more with less” isn’t going to cut it with the front lines any more. CEO’s, managers and supervisors might consider asking the question, “What does it take to get along around here?”. If they listen closely, they might hear the clues which point to a characterization of their situation, from the people who are most familiar with the gaps, bottlenecks and opportunities. Listening for the everyday language and especially the mantras can lead to significant shifts in perspective.

Mantras, defined as “sounds, syllables, words, or group of words that are considered capable of creating transformation” are the keys to understanding an organization’s reality. What people state out loud, and repeat to one another, becomes one of the standards of organizational behavior. Glass half full? Say no more.

Remember “MBWA”, Management By Walking Around from the 1970’s? That mantra inspired leaders to pay attention to the human equation of the business by building personal relationships. Front line folks actually recognized the management staff. Let’s try "MBB" - Management By Blackberry. The relationship connection takes on a different meaning, because the process overtakes the relationship in the equation. The words are sent, the faces hide behind the e-screen.

Pay Attention To Mantras

During a recent strategic planning session, I logged a list of mantras which surfaced during the day. The team realized that many of these were closely related to their values. Subsequently they began to reframe how they talked about the future, and developed a revised vision. Here is their list, with minor editing:

- Bloom where you’re planted
- The crap is the flowers of tomorrow
- S*** or get off the pot
- Get it done
- Take lemons - make lemonade
- You get what you give
- We’re not going to be sinkable - never again
- Don’t put all your eggs in one basket
- I hate being locked into anything
- Need to sleep at night
- Practice what you preach
- All for 1, 1 for all
- Enthusiasm is a rare breed
- Present me with solutions
- Find a way
- No idea is wrong
- If you want to run with the wolves, then don’t pee with the puppies
- We become what we need to be
- Opportunity in difficulty
- Doesn’t matter, right or wrong
- Everyone is an expert at something

These mantras shed light on what needed to happen next for this organization. The decision at the end of the day was to move ahead with resilience, instead of preserving a vulnerable, victim-like stance. The shift they needed came from their mantras, the daily comments which are the invisible, yet obvious clues for leaders.

The Lesson for Leaders

Without the human equation, nothing exists. Process and product depend on people: employees, customers, suppliers. How each one sees the world through their own rose coloured glasses affects behavior. Those actions speak as loud as their words.

Isn’t it interesting, that the most common phrases are the ones that should not be ignored. Perhaps MBWA is an old mantra whose time has come again? What goes around comes around.

###
Maggie Chicoine is a professional level member of the Professional Writers’ Association of Canada, a charter member and director of the Canadian Association of Professional Speakers, and a Master Coach. Her column, The Tuesday File appears in www.lakesuperiornews.ca weekly. Reach her at 1 800 5817 1767 or www.theideasculptor.com

Stage Fright Part 2

2009-01-29T06:44:00.001-05:00

How to Write a Solid Introduction
(Part 2)

Suppose you were asked to introduce President Barack Obama at your organization’s special event. What would you do to prepare your introduction?

I’d be willing to bet, that “winging it” wouldn’t be in your vocabulary. You would find the time to do the research, contact his administrative assistant, collect important facts, and ask colleagues for their advice. You would make sure that the microphone on site works, and other logistics are handled professionally. You’d be so excited that you couldn’t sleep? Ten bucks says that you would be a great host for this special speaker!

Got you thinking?

All speakers, not just celebrities, require this kind of attention.

How to Write the Introduction

If you are the one who volunteers, or is volunteered, to introduce a speaker at an event, you might want to keep a copy of this column.

Scripting the introduction shouldn’t happen “on the spot”, nor should you be writing it on the back of a crumpled piece of paper like a grocery bill. I’ve developed a template that may help you in your preparation. Let me know if you find this useful.

The “Introduction” has three main elements, all beginning with “C”.

1. Character
2. Credentials
3. Connection

“Character” refers to the speaker as a person. Who are they? What is their personality? This opening portion is the “hook” for the audience.

“Credentials” refer to the qualifications of the presenter. What are the main points - not all the points - which apply directly to the audience’s understanding of the speaker as an expert on this subject?

“Connection” provides the presenter and subject link to the audience. What is the focus of the presentation and how does this affect the listeners? What can the audience look forward to hearing, seeing, doing and taking away from the time spent together?

Here’s an example of this template:

Our presenter, Maggie Chicoine (Chic Win’) claims that she is more than a seasoned speaker….she’s marinated!

Maggie’s company, The Idea Sculptor, was formed in 1986 and is based in Thunder Bay, Ontario. As a professional speaker, Master Coach and writer, Maggie’s clientele has a broad scope – from tribal chiefs in Ghana, Africa, to the boardrooms of Australia and the US, to Northern Ontario’s volunteer organizations and entrepreneurs. She delivers thought provoking and practical content with her trademark: “a twist of ingenuity”.

Maggie is a founding director of the Canadian Association of Professional Speakers, and one of Northern Ontario’s most influential women. She is the Lead Facilitator for Leadership Thunder Bay.

This evening, she is sharing her experience as a Master Coach with you. Maggie is the expert in knowing how to turn a bad situation into a solid path for our leaders at XYZ Corporation. Her examples are so relevant that her guarantee is: no one sleeps.

Please welcome.... Maggie.

Sixty seconds: Character. Credentials. Connection.
Applause.....

###

Maggie Chicoine is a skilled presenter who coaches members of the Canadian Association of Professional Speakers and the National Speakers’ Association (USA) in Master of Ceremonies skills. Reach her at 1 800 587 1767 or

How To Write A SOLID Introduction

2009-01-26T10:35:00.007-05:00

How to Write a Solid Introduction
(Part 2)
Part 1 appeared January 26, 2009...See the Archive at http://www.theideasculptor.blogspot.com/

Suppose you were asked to introduce President Barack Obama at your organization’s special event. What would you do to prepare your introduction?

I’d be willing to bet, that “winging it” wouldn’t be in your vocabulary. You would find the time to do the research, contact his administrative assistant, collect important facts, and ask colleagues for their advice. You would make sure that the microphone on site works, and other logistics are handled professionally. You’d be so excited that you couldn’t sleep? Ten bucks says that you would be a great host for this special speaker!

Got you thinking?

All speakers, not just celebrities, require this kind of attention.

How to Write the Introduction

If you are the one who volunteers, or is volunteered, to introduce a speaker at an event, you might want to keep a copy of this column.

Scripting the introduction shouldn’t happen “on the spot”, nor should you be writing it on the back of a crumpled piece of paper like a grocery bill. I’ve developed a template that may help you in your preparation. Let me know if you find this useful.

The “Introduction” has three main elements, all beginning with “C”.

1. Character
2. Credentials
3. Connection

“Character” refers to the speaker as a person. Who are they? What is their personality? This opening portion is the “hook” for the audience.

“Credentials” refer to the qualifications of the presenter. What are the main points - not all the points - which apply directly to the audience’s understanding of the speaker as an expert on this subject?

“Connection” provides the presenter and subject link to the audience. What is the focus of the presentation and how does this affect the listeners? What can the audience look forward to hearing, seeing, doing and taking away from the time spent together?

Here’s an example of this template: (Reminder: large font makes this easier to read when you are nervous or the lighting at the lecturn is dim...)

Our presenter, Maggie Chicoine (Chic Win’) claims that she is more than a seasoned speaker….she’s marinated!

Maggie’s company, The Idea Sculptor, was formed in 1986 and is based in Thunder Bay, Ontario. As a professional speaker, Master Coach and writer, Maggie’s clientele has a broad scope – from tribal chiefs in Ghana, Africa, to the boardrooms of Australia and the US, to Northern Ontario’s volunteer organizations and entrepreneurs. She always delivers thought provoking and practical content with her trademark: “a twist of ingenuity”.

Maggie is a founding director of the Canadian Association of Professional Speakers, and one of Northern Ontario’s most influential women. She is the Lead Facilitator for Leadership Thunder Bay.

This evening, she is sharing her experience as a Master Coach with you. Maggie is the expert in knowing ... how to turn a bad situation into a solid path for our leaders at XYZ Corporation. Her examples are so relevant that her guarantee is:... "no one sleeps".

Please welcome.... Maggie.

Sixty seconds:

Character. Credentials. Connection.

Maggie Chicoine is a skilled presenter who coaches members of the Canadian Association of Professional Speakers and the National Speakers’ Association (USA) in Master of Ceremonies skills. Reach her at 1 800 587 1767 or www.theideasculptor.com. Her column, The Tuesday File, appears at Lake Superior News - www.lakesuperiornews.com weekly.

Stage Fright?

2009-01-26T10:22:00.007-05:00

How Not To Introduce A Speaker

What three word phrase should be locked into the vault when introducing a speaker? Before I reveal the answer, let’s go behind the scenes.

Whether the event is a large convention or a small gathering of like-minded colleagues waiting for their CEO to deliver the annual report, the introducer has a responsibility to shine the light on the speaker. Allow me to repeat that last phrase: “shine the light on the speaker”.

The purpose of an introduction is to set the stage for the speaker’s presentation. The audience needs these opening words to warm up to the speaker, not the introducer. No matter how funny the joke may be, or how thrilling the experience could be, it’s the speaker who needs to be connected by a strong thread to the people filling the chairs.

What NOT to do as an introducer:

1. Scratch notes on the back of your grocery bill as you drive to the event.
2. Ignore the speaker’s bio, and just wing it
3. Talk about how much you personally also understand the subject at hand
4. Not bother to stand or use the microphone as you make your opening remarks
5. Tell jokes that everyone else also received in their emails
6. Arrive late enough that you do not have a chance to connect with the presenter
7. Let your own ego preside over the meeting

So, what should you do?

A. Prepare in advance. Ask the speaker for a bio, and then edit the information into your own language - the way you speak. If there’s a difficult multi-syllable word that trips you up, find a synonym. Transcribe your notes into a final copy, and print it out in 16 point font on card stock. Make a duplicate copy.
B. Ask the speaker for their own personalized introduction. Do not change it without their permission.
C. Arrive early for the event. Be the host of the presenter. This may seem like common sense, but the more welcome the speaker feels, the better their presentation to your group.
D. Get comfortable standing behind the lectern and using a microphone. Learn to manage the stress of speaking. Hire a coach, or take in Toastmasters.
E. Choose your humour wisely.
F. Get over yourself. Keep your ego in your pocket.

Finally, let me share the words that make most professional speakers wince.

“Without”
“Further”
“Ado...”

Please, no more further ado’s. You can substitute: “We are excited to hear from... please welcome...”. Try: “And now, Ms....”.

Then turn to the speaker, and get eye contact. Smile. Shakes hands, a sign of a warm, sincere welcome which puts your presenter in the limelight once more.

Sit back, enjoy.

Next week: Part 2 “How to write an introduction.”

- ### -

Maggie Chicoine is a professional speaker and charter member of the Canadian Association of Professional Speakers. Maggie coaches people who are terrified to speak - and creates ease and eloquence for everyone at the podium.

She is also a professional member of PWAC, ICF and IAFF. Reach her at 1 800 587 1767 or www.theideasculptor.com

Legends to Think About

2009-01-19T07:56:00.007-05:00

Is Talking Story A Lost Art?

It was a bright, sunny Sunday, temperature close to 35 below. I happened to notice a spectacular stand of mountain ash trees by the side of the road. My photographer husband Richard and I weren't very far from home, so we must have driven past this spot at least 20 times since the last snowfall. Neither one of us had noticed these trees, or how beautifully they were dressed.

It would have been easier to head for the warmth of the fireplace, but I urged Rick to stop. We trudged through the snowbank to take a closer look. The clusters of berries were topped off with a dollop of snow, perfectly balanced and quite spectacular. The lighting was perfect for a great photo to add to our northern Ontario collection.

For once, the camera was not in the car. "Tomorrow, we'll come back for the shot." Tomorrow? Why not now? Do it now.

How often do we pay attention in a sorta-kinda-way? In fact, we talked about the legend of the mountain ash berries and neither of us could get it right. You know, when there are lots of berries - that means that it's going to be a severe winter?

Three important points here:

1. Stop! The mundane everyday sightings are important in our lives. Stop the rush...hush. Show our children how to appreciate peaceful.... quiet.....wonderfully ordinary but spectacular things.

2. When you have the opportunity to capture a memory, do it now.

3. Dig into the real story. Legends are the vehicles for building community and culture. Northwestern Ontario is a treasure chest of history and legend, yet when we have to remember the details, much of the richness is lost. Skimming and scanning...not good enough...

The photos captured the scenery, but they needed the story. Curiosity finally got the better of me, so I researched the Legend of the Mountain Ash Berries. Enjoy!

The mountain ash berry legend is closely connected to Northwestern Ontario. The legend is that the more berries on the tree, the more severe the winter will be.

Many years ago during a harsh winter, even before the land became known as Canada, birds and animals lay dying in the snow. Ojibwa hunters realized that this could also happen to their peoples, so they offered prayers to the great Manitou. The Great Spirit answered them. They were instructed to take one drop of blood from every dead bird and small animal; they were to smear the blood on a tree that meant life and death to the people. As the Mountain Ash was the tree that was used to make their bows and arrows, they chose it and began to follow the advice of the Great Spirit.

In the morning, the trees were heavy with red berries. The birds and animals that had survived were happily feeding themselves. The Indians danced into the night, giving thanks to Manitou. Manitou, in return, gave his promise that he would create abundance with the mountain ash berries whenever winter burdened the lives of any creatures.

Source: www.firstpeople.us

May you enjoy the re-discovery of local legends and folklore, the peace of the woods and hills, the power of great spirits and the laughter of others as you "talk story".

From the beautiful northern bush,

Maggie and Rick

PS For more photos and stories, check out "Sleep Around Lake Superior" at http://www.lakesuperiornews.com/ and this blog's archives!

From the Mouths of Presidents

2009-01-12T13:54:00.005-05:00

For centuries, people have gathered under the full moon to tell stories. This is where culture and wisdom are transferred and transformed, generation to generation. This is how are young learn about the power of laughter to glue communities together. This is why our spirits soar.

Why Leaders Must Ask Good Questions

“Mistakes? When things don’t go according to plan, is that a mistake?” - President Bush at his final press conference, January 12, 2009:

Well, Mr. President, that is a good question. And it’s one that many leaders should be asking during staff meetings.

Being brave enough to speak the truth isn’t nearly as important as having the courage to ask the questions. Leaders who are consistently willing to listen, face people eye to eye and then follow up with more questions - to get the rest of the story - are the ones who create momentum for their business. They know that what isn’t said on the front lines is a source of crucial data. Underlying factors that aren’t allowed to surface can contribute to low morale, waivering commitment and frequent turnover. So when things don’t go according to plan, perhaps the mistake is the leader’s, in not asking really good questions.

The theory that is attributed to probing, listening and reflecting, is called “Appreciative Inquiry”. “AI” in its simplest form, is a branch of “Facilitation Skills”. It is most useful when an organization, or an individual is involved in creating or stimulating change.

“I can answer the question. But am I bright enough to ask it?” – James Lee Byars

At the project level, AI contributes to buy-in and productivity. In its most complex practice, AI leads the strategic process to create positive transformations in organizational culture and behavior.

At all levels, it is the search for the best in people.

AI as a methodology leads us to “guiding principles” by understanding behaviour, crafting significant questions, and appreciating and respecting varying points of view.

Every human system is diverse. Some areas function well, contributing life, vitality, effectiveness and success to the organization. Rarely do organizations consciously plan for gaps, bottlenecks and inefficiencies.

When the system breaks down – as it inevitably will (Chaos? Turnovers? Mergers? Changes in Leadership?) how is the revitalization handled? How does the system communicate? What happens when mistakes are made, or when the plan does not unfold the way we assumed that it would?

Founder of the methodology, David Cooperrider, explains: “In AI, the arduous task of intervention (problem solving, conflict resolution, etc.) is replaced by the speed of imagination and innovation. Instead of negativity, criticism and spiraling diagnosis, there is discovery, dream and design.

According to AI philosophy, human systems grow in the direction of what they persistently ask questions about.”

Whether your leadership position is presidential in scope, or you are on the executive of a non-profit organization, think about the questions you ask, especially when times are tough, mistakes are made, or there are changes to be made. Remember that your network behaves as you – the leader – behaves.

When your actions speak louder than words, when you show respect by listening to the stories and a non-judgmental attitude when a problem needs attention, you will set the stage for more good questions to be asked, and to discover what people really care about.

Power Patterns

2009-01-06T06:19:00.005-05:00

This scene is more than the typical walk through the woods on a winters eve. Take a moment to discern the patterns in the pines. The inherent structure of the trees, the boughs, the needles remain intact - and visible - despite the unexpected screen of snow. The foundations of leadership are much the same... core competencies are not easily hidden. Who we are speaks louder than our words.

Is Power An Illusion?

What is it about the combination of power and leadership that incites an instant response right from gut level? This morning I posted a quick Twitter question and within minutes received pitches from managers and workers, entrepreneurs and students about their experiences with powerful leaders. Some used, let’s say, strong language.

My thinking about the illusion of power was inspired by a research paper released this week by the Stanford Graduate School of Business under the title: “Illusory Control: A Generative Force Behind Power’s Far-Reaching Effects”. The experiments that were conducted are a fascinating read about what motivates people to take action.

The bottom line is that acquiring a position of power – even through role play – motivates people to action. When participants viewed themselves as more prominent and more influential in a situation, they were inspired to take more risks and tackle goals with added confidence.

“Taking on a formal position of power – be it managerial, political or cultural – gives people the illusion they have more control over their organization and their world.”

The study goes on to say: “In the best-case scenarios, this can lead to achieving unimaginable accomplishments. In the worst, it can lead to poor decision making and devastating losses.”

In my own limited Twitter experiment, I asked for the three most important “competencies” of powerful leaders. Core competencies are the skills, tasks, behaviors and attitudes required to do the job. Competence can be measured quite easily by observing what someone says they will do versus what they actually do, resulting in a match/gap ratio. The responses from 99 different sources (on January 5, 2009) included these top 7 competencies:

- Trust
- Compassion and empathy
- Passion

- Ego – let it GO
- Listen to what your people say
- Keeping secrets makes leaders stink
- Don’t feed us crap. Tell us what is going on

My totally subjective analysis? The illusion of power plays an important role in organizations. For example, let’s look at “trust” with the lens of “Ego-less-ness”, or “listening to what employees are saying”, or “Keeping secrets”, or “Telling people what is going on”. How does the leader walk the talk when trust is the issue? How does trust get turned around?

The Stanford study concludes that “An illusion of power and control may lead to its own demise”.

What I’m hearing from the global ranks, is that leaders need to be constantly on the alert for their own illusions of grandeur, their perceptions of their position within their organizations, and what is not said. I would be interested in future research to study the effects of the illusion of power over time and whether they are moderated as the leader builds experience.

Any thoughts? Please comment!

###

Maggie Chicoine is a professional level member of the Professional Writers’ Association of Canada, and the Canadian Association of Professional Speakers. Her column, The Tuesday File, appears weekly in LakeSuperiorNews.com. Northern Ontario Business also features her column: Just Do This, Straight Talk for Entrepreneurs.

Reach her at 1 800 587 1767 or maggiechicoine@gmail.com or twitter “Ideasculptor”.

The full PDF of the Stanford Graduate School of Business study is located at https://gsbapps.stanford.edu/researchpapers/library/RP2009.pdf . Authors: Nathanael J. Fast, Debroah, H. Gruenfeld, Niro Sivanathan, and Adam D. Galinsky,”

Best Photo 2008

2008-12-31T07:14:00.003-05:00

A New Year, A New Sunrise, A New Day. Photo by Richard Chicoine. iCopyright 2008

Grand Marais, Minnesota. From the series: "Sleep Around Lake Superior" by Richard and Maggie Chicoine. http://www.lakesuperiornews.com/

A New Year...A New Sunrise...A New Day

"For last year's words belong to last year's language. And next year's words await another voice. And to make an end is to make a beginning."~T.S. Eliot

"One resolution I have made, and try always to keep, is this: To rise above the little things." ~John Burroughs

"We spend January 1 walking through our lives, room by room, drawing up a list of work to be done, cracks to be patched. Maybe this year, to balance the list, we ought to walk through the rooms of our lives... not looking for flaws, but for potential." ~Ellen Goodman

"We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves. The book is called Opportunity and its first chapter is New Year's Day." ~Edith Lovejoy Pierce

2009: Welcome!

- Maggie and Rick

Blessings!

2008-12-22T07:44:00.004-05:00

Blessings!

Father – Mother – God – Universal Power

Deep peace of the shining stars to you,
Which stay invisible till darkness falls
And discloses their pure and shining presence
Beaming down compassion on our turning world.
Deep peace of the shining stars to you.

Deep peace of the watching shepherds to you,
Of unpretentious folk, who, watching and waiting
Spend long hours out on the hillside
Expecting in simplicity some Coming of the Lord.
Deep peace of the watching shepherds to you!

Deep peace of the Son of Peace to you,
Who, swift as the wave and pervasive as the air,
Quiet as the earth and shining like a star,
Breathes into us His Peace and His Spirit.
Deep peace of the Son of Peace to you!

Mary Rogers, adapted from the Gaelic

Grandfather, Great Spirit
All over the world the faces of living ones
Are alike.
With tenderness they have come up. Look upon your children that they may
Face the winds and walk the good road to the Day of Quiet.
Grandfather, Great Spirit
Fill us with the light
Give us the strength to understand, and the eyes to see.
Teach us to walk the soft Earth as relatives to all that live.

Sioux Prayer

GoodNight God

I hope that you are having a good time being the world.
I like the world very much.
I’m glad you made the plants
And trees survive.
I like how God feels around everyone in the world.
God, I am very happy that I live on you.
Your arms clasp around the world.

Danu Baxter, Age 4 and a half

“Where God is, there is love, and where there is love, there always is an openness to serve.”

Mother Teresa

Leaders: Show Up

2008-12-18T07:29:00.005-05:00

Are You Really Showing Up?

Your organization is a reflection of what you tolerate. In the spirit of the season, let me recommend 5 leadership checkpoints - what is it that you tolerate? - for showing up.

1. Show Up On the Front Lines. I remember a College President standing at the bus stop chatting with students. She left her car behind that day, so that she could connect with the real reason she had the job. Brilliant! Take time to lead by putting your feet and face on the front lines.

2. Show Up for Your Commitments. When a CEO is socially responsible, he is often asked to take on the President’s role in not for profit organizations. I remember a respected Executive who called monthly meetings of the Board, and then did not show up himself, believing that the senior team would make good decisions. Make sure trust flows in both directions.

3. Show Up Intellectually. A leader’s behavior sends multiple messages. I remember a Senior Team retreat, which the manager had called to discuss “how we make decisions around here”. He spent the better part of the afternoon on his blackberry, nodding and interjecting at appropriate moments in the discussion. Two of the attendees handed in their resignations soon after. There’s a difference between what you say you should do, and what you do. People notice.

4. Show Up Emotionally. When staff makes a mistake, back them up and work through the learning opportunity with them. I remember a vice president who continues to support an employee who failed to see the long term effects of a decision. The incident became the turning point for this young man, who is now in a leadership position himself. A little compassion and positive reinforcement goes a long way.

5. Show Up With Passion. If the leader is the only passionate voice in the place, it’s time to check the pulse of the organization. I remember a strong leader who took her zeal so seriously, that she drowned out the voices of people who worked for her. Staff were two or three steps removed from the heart beat, frustrated that their input didn’t seem to matter. Passion can be contagious, if there’s a place for everyone around the table.

Shifts in global thinking are a signal to every leader. Listen, and you’ll hear the wake-up call. We can’t keep doing what we’ve been doing when the economy, environment and social changes are in a state of whiplash.

I’m a strong advocate for taking time to reflect and resolve to make small personal changes that make a big difference in the way others relate to you as a leader. 2009 should be the time to show up for yourself – first.

- 30 –

Maggie Chicoine is a Master Coach, professional speaker, facilitator and writer. She is the Lead Facilitator for Leadership Thunder Bay. Her weekly column will return in 2009. Reach Maggie at 1 800 587 1767 or www.theideasculptor.com

How To Love A Lonely Planet

2008-12-08T07:49:00.005-05:00

Or
Why Falling In Love with What You Do Is Good For Business!

David Wells exudes the energetic silence of a boundless explorer. His finger points beyond the smooth rocky shore to the horizon of Lake Superior: “Look from left to right,” he says. “You can actually see the curvature of the earth from here.” He is right. Rock Island Lodge is at the edge of infinity.

The Lodge is home base for Naturally Superior Adventures, an award winning eco-adventure company founded by Wells in 1994. Situated at the junction of the Michipicoten and Magpie Rivers, about 6 miles south of Wawa, Ontario, the property embraces the shores of the Big Water, Lake Superior. Luxurious in its simplicity, and consciously designed to appeal to all the senses, Rock Island is its own 7 acres of secluded lonely planet.

Wells seems to have found the business formula which matches his own personal passions. “I was trained as a forester and ended up here as the Business Manager on the Michipicoten Reserve. Michipicoten, means Big Bluffs in Ojibwe”, he explains. “The intrigue of nature is at its max around here. The contrast of the landscape, from endless hills to vast watery horizons, is enough to create an ancient ache in the pit of your stomach. This is a prime spot.”

He’s felt that way, it seems, from day one. “Paddling from Marathon, we rested on some rocks. I realized that possibly I was the very first person in the history of time to be there. On this shoreline, I could find spear heads and pictographs that other white people had never seen before. It was an amazing, life changing experience.”

Falling In Love With Where You Are Is Good For Business

It’s the kind of altered headspace that Wells and his extremely skilled staff want to create for their worldwide client base. Wells has focussed his business model on his own inner passions – nature, art, risk, history, excellence and a love of Lake Superior.

His clientele is different from the usual Circle Tour road trip types. “We appeal to personal desires for lifetime achievement, individuals who want to reach ultimate goals. They are trophy hunters of sorts. Boomers want to collect experiences, good or bad, but not mediocre. We give them a really good presentation, meaning top quality gear and excellent training. Maybe they had a bad experience on the water thirty years ago. It’s important to spend 20 minutes to find out what makes them tick, and then teach the skills.”

Clients are seeking adventure, usually in a kayak. Expert Guides offer courses that range from watercraft skills to storm watching packages for photographing the gales of November. In all of this natural silence, with the potential of regaining the soul’s inner quiet there is also the potent possibility of engaging in the thrill of a lifetime - simultaneously.

Finding the Niche

“My first business plan didn’t work. I didn’t know myself then.” Wells says, “We finally found our niche: “Silent Sports”. Kayaks are the heart of the company. People were asking to stay here, so we added four voyageur themed rooms with large windows and without telephones. We include a hearty breakfast. I like the kind of people who are our customers: hikers, sailors, photographers, musicians, artists, folks who like to watch storms, get married on the beach, or spend a night in a tepee.”

Employees are obviously top notch characters. Subservience doesn’t cut it. They have to have opinions.

“We have amazing staff. We don’t give them a policy manual. They need to be performers, and lead actors, especially when we take a group out for a week on the Big Water. They have to understand weather patterns and respect the lake with its craggy, wild shorelines. It’s dangerous if you don’t know what you are doing. They must know first aid and safety procedures, but more importantly, our guides must be pro-active and people friendly, with a grasp on group dynamics.”

Wells claims that Lake Superior’s offerings are becoming better known in the global travel market. “We were written up in The Lonely Planet Travel Guide. We won a Tourism Pinnacle Award this year, and National Geographic honoured us as one of the top ten kayak outfitters in the world. I tell people that this is comparable to places like Greenland, but the difference is, you can drive here. We’re innovative and sophisticated, yet affordable. We promote eco-tourism and ecological diversity in everything we do, and also donate 1% of our revenues to the Lake Superior Conservancy and Watershed Council. We are very much part of the Wawa community.”

Wells never tires of watching the water ebb and flow. “Back in 1994, I invested in the most expensive piece of property anywhere around Wawa. I think have horseshoes. I am where I like to be, and where Lake Superior wants me to be.”

Entrepreneurs Take Note

David Wells shares some important insights during this interview.

To find your niche in business, search for what you naturally love. What makes your heart sing? What do you never tire of doing? Where in the world is the spot that is yours infinitely?

Answer these, and you’ve found your niche strategy.

- 30 -

Maggie Chicoine is a professional member of the Professional Writer’s Association of Canada, the Canadian Association of Professional Speakers and a Master Coach. She specializes in strategies to think ahead. Reach her at 1 800 587 1767 or http://www.theideasculptor.com/

Canadian Leaders

2008-11-27T07:36:00.004-05:00

Are Canadian Leaders Really Invisible?
By Maggie Chicoine

“From teaching leadership in Canada, I am almost always disappointed that most Canadians have such a hard time identifying Canadian leaders they admire.

I invite you to try the following test. Test yourself first and then try it with your friends and colleagues. List 10 well-known Canadian recording artists, 10 well-known Canadian athletes, and 10 well-known Canadian leaders you admire. Time yourself or ask someone to time you. You have one minute for each list.

Almost all of the people who take this test do a significantly better job of identifying Canadian recording artists and athletes than identifying Canadian leaders they admire. This reinforces my premise that Canadians under-acknowledge, under-appreciate and under-recognize our home-grown leaders.” – Dr. Brad McRae, CSP, ALDI

You’ve just been introduced to “The 7 Strategies of Master Leaders” by Dr. Brad McRae Director of the Atlantic Leadership Development Institute.

In this text, Dr. McRae presents interviews with significant Canadian leaders ranging from corporations to government agencies and community organizations. The stories punctuate 7 key strategies for leveraging leadership skills. Surprisingly, even the crustiest and most experienced can learn from this book. For new leaders, this should become their “bible” for the journey. Finally, a current, Canadian context for learning to lead will be available in 2009.

Before you click over to try to purchase the 7 Strategies, let me warn you that Dr. McRae continues to edit the material, and has confidentially released it into the hands of Leadership Thunder Bay’s class of 2008 – 2009. This is an organization which promises an “immersion” into community leadership over 10 months, and which has already graduated over 100 alumni from the corporate, governmental and volunteer sectors.

Why did Dr. McRae let the cat out of the bag?

Leadership theory refers to transparency and trust. What better way to know if his Canadian work on leadership stands the scrutiny of 23 curious and ambitious participants? With their input, editing and keen attitudes toward life long learning, 7 Strategies is being molded by the very people it aims to support. In the process, they are learning about themselves and more importantly, discovering role models which have been invisible on the Canadian landscape.

So here’s the invitation.

Spend an evening with Dr. Brad McRae on Thursday January 15 2009 in Thunder Bay, Ontario. His topic, based on the book, is “Live Your Legacy”, don’t just Leave Your Legacy. Tickets only $50.00 with dinner.

Registration is open on line now at http://www.leadershiptb.com/.

Dr. McRae, CSP, is a platinum level presenter, and author of several best selling Canadian books.

Maggie Chicoine is a professional speaker, Master Coach, and lead facilitator for Leadership Thunder Bay. She specializes in Strategies to Think Ahead. Maggie is a founding Director of the Canadian Association of Professional Speakers, member of the International Coach Federation and Professional Writers’ Association of Canada. She is the Lead Facilitator of Leadership Thunder Bay. Reach her at 1 800 587 1767 or www.theideasculptor.com.

FYI

2008-11-24T08:27:00.005-05:00

PMS Is Not What You Think

Have you noticed that we’re all speaking in short forms? The online dictionary of abbreviations lists 662,000 short forms of words in 11 categories, including one of “modern slang”. I couldn’t resist. I had to peek.

LOL’s most common interpretation is Laughing Out Loud or Lots of Love, but its meaning has spread to Little Old Lady and Loser of Love. What about OOO? Out Of Office. How about SEX? That’s Software Exchange, or Shipment Exception Code. WTF is a Waste Treatment Facility. Let’s just combine all of that and what do we get? OOO – SEX - WTF!

The point is, that communication is speeding up. Everythins is a blur. When did it become easier to message someone across the room instead of walking 20 steps to talk? Or instant dial? There’s a problem or two building up. It scares the SOOM: something out of me.

There’s a whole new consulting industry emerging from team communication dysfunctions. Emails are one of the hottest problem areas in many organizations. What people write may not be what the other person “reads”. Relationships and teams easily fall apart and time is wasted in correcting assumptions and misinterpretations. People get P.O.’d by the tone of your “voice” when the intention of the message loses its true meaning.

Fact and feeling are closely related, just like IQ and EQ – the intellectual quotient and emotional quotient. Short-cuts in communication also cut productivity, efficiency and effectiveness - when the workforce is anonymous. Abbreviated phrases have transformed into ETS: Electronic Translation Systems and the translations may be far less the perfect. SOS!

PMS in my vocabulary means, Preventative Maintenance Systems. Yes, I acknowledge the other common female connection, as well as Please Make Snacks and Psammomatous Melanotic Schwannoma.

The point of stopping to study our acronyms, is to take a moment to reflect on what it takes to “get along around here”. In our efforts to save time, to condense our lives into cubicles of acronyms, when do we schedule our own PMS? It’s OK for industry and manufacturing to shut down for maintenance. What about Preventative Maintenance for our “people systems”? What about catching up on red tape and organizing tools? Cleaning out that inbox? Talking to real people about real opportunities and what everyone is thinking? Leading by walking around instead of hitting "send"?

PMS means we take the time to celebrate achievements and partial successes, or to bury failed projects.

Take a good look at industries which excel in the world’s competitive marketplace. Bombardier, for example, puts “People First”, and then quality, responsiveness and cost. Does this sequence make sense for your work and leadership?

Warning: If people are condensed into faceless acronyms in your workplace, it’s time to change.

Maggie Chicoine is a professional speaker, master coach and team facilitator specializing in Strategies to Think Ahead. Reach her at 1 800 587 1767 or www.theideasculptor.com

Think NOW - NEAR - FAR

2008-11-18T11:11:00.002-05:00

Thinking About Time Matters

I have not yet met a single person who is the perfect time management role model. So you may as well give in to the frustration, and come to terms with the fact that you – yes you – are probably not going to be the champion of the clock. That said, all I have to do is to observe you for 24 hours and watch your clock and your compass in action. Your future may be more predictable than you think!

The actions that you take today, the “now”, are inevitable in the “near and far” as well. That’s especially true if you are talking about your intentions, and have not totally committed to changed behaviors.

Time can be categorized in three ways: in the now, today, this minute. Near can be defined as in the next week, or the next month: it’s your choice. And “far” can refer to this quarter, this year or the next 3years: again, it’s up to you.

Think about these three time lines as you read the ten tips.

Time Tips: Top Ten

1. Think in “Prime Time”
Your prime time is your best time of day, your best day of the week and most preferred season. According to studies, Tuesdays are the highest productivity days for most people; that is, you have the most leverage and energy. I run out of steam at approximately 4 pm and my best time is early morning. That simply means that I schedule my highest output projects and meetings before noon, and my stroll around the block for late afternoon.

2. Bunch and Do It Routinely

It’s not good enough to try to eliminate time wasters. Think time savers instead. Here’s some examples:
· Establish a “24 hour rule”. Return all calls within 24 hours BUT
· Return messages before 10 am. Then let your voice mail take care of the calls until the next day.
· Take care of all emails only after 3 pm. Log off until tomorrow at 3. Resist the temptation to constantly check your mail.
· Schedule as many meetings (not on Mondays, best on Tuesdays) as you can for one day, and none for another. Start at 15 past hour: most people won’t be late.)
· Take an hour on Friday or the weekend to get your next week organized

3. There’s time magic in “Routine”

· Always write concise email subject lines that are easier to track back
· Always enter footnotes on all documents with dates and author
· Mistakes eat up time. Pay attention to detail now. “If you don’t have time to do it right, when will you have time to do it again?”

4. Schedule everything in 1 calendar, including personal appointments
· When you schedule a start time, also schedule an end time.
· About that flurry of family activity, block off your own “me” time as your family time.
· Agree to keep meetings to specific time limits: negotiate and stick to it.
· Block in “follow-up time” after meetings. Don’t leave the tasks you have agreed to complete until panic time just before the next meeting.
· Make all personal and family appointments for same day, or first thing in the morning before professionals get behind and leave you wasting your time.

5. Be proactive. Control interruptions

If a colleague is constantly knocking on your door, how do you stop interruptions? One manager made a deal with her staff to place a stuffed monkey on the corner of her desk. The monkey was her signal for, “come back later. I’m working!”.

What signals are you sending that you’re now the martyr at the office or at home?

6. Leverage your maximum benefits

There are three basic questions for 3 long lists:

What’s important?

What’s really important?

What’s MOST important?

7. Choose to say “no” if the request does not support your near and far.

· Don’t just say “Maybe” because you’re uncomfortable saying “NO”. Don’t get defensive.
· Stay firm. Be calm.
· Keep the story short. You don’t need to make up excuses. Just say “No”.

8. Anger, frustration, conflict and nattering all consume time…
Enough said!

9. Maintain a healthy support system and keep these people in your loop.

· Ask for help when you need it.
· Give help generously without strings attached.
· Reciprocity saves time.
· Talk about your goals and your progress.
· Be a role model for new employees, and your children

10. You have a clock and a compass.

How will you keep them in alignment, nourished and functioning?
Instead of looking for answers, find the questions that will leverage your thinking. It’s not just about how you use your now, but the direction that you commit to for the near and far time zones.

The challenge for you is to actually change your intentions into actions. Go back and review this article. Make notes and start “now”.

Chances are good, that tomorrow, you just won’t have the time.

- 30 –

Maggie Chicoine is a professional speaker and Master Coach. She specializes in strategies to get ahead. Reach her at 1 800 587 1767.

Eleven Eleven: Take Eleven

2008-11-10T09:22:00.007-05:00

Photo Credit: Floating Window by Richard Chicoine. iCopyright 2008

Eleven Eleven: Please Take Eleven

What would it take to find eleven minutes on Remembrance Day to write to our troops?

I was inspired to create this message by a client's comments about a meeting at 11 am on November 11. She remarked that she's not about to go to the war memorial to stand in the rain... at which point, I suggested an afternoon appointment.

My thoughts were instantly transported to the women and men in our armed forces, who were exposed to extreme conditions, life-threatening circumstances, and who put themselves on the line for world peace.

Isn't it our responsibility to take a few moments of our own busy lives to remember their contributions to our quality of life in Canada? Could we do more than just pause for the sound of trumpets at 11 am?

Yes we can.

Morale By Message Board

Whether you choose a handwritten note, a few words on the message board, or the commitment to send cards for the holiday season, Tuesday the 11th is THE day to put your good intentions into action.

The men and women of the Canadian Forces have demonstrated time and again that they will rise to any challenge. Let your Canadian Forces members know you appreciate their service by sending a message using this monitored message board.

http://www.forces.gc.ca/site/Community/Messageboard/index_e.asp

Canada Post offers a FREE service for mail sent to our Troops at:

Any Canadian Forces Member,

PO Box 5058 Stn Forces Belleville ON K8N 5W6

Christmas Shopping?

Buy official "Support Our Troops" merchandise: The only "Support Our Troops" merchandise sanctioned by the Canadian Forces, includes ball caps, t-shirts, car and fridge magnets, cling vinyl window decals, bracelets, lapel pins, and more. Order these and other items online at CANEX. All proceeds from the sales of CFPSA "Support Our Troops" items are reinvested directly into morale and welfare programs for CF members and their families.

What else can you and your family do on the 11th?

~ Invite a Veteran to dinner or visit & bring dessert

~ Click onto the message board

~ Send a card to the family of military personnel

~ Ask your children and grandchildren to make cards to send to Belleville's distribution centre (note the Christmas greeting deadline)

~ Send this blog to your family and friends & encourage them to use the links to send messages to our troops

~ Wear your poppies proudly

Most of all, appreciate.... Canada is a sweet spot...

Mark Your Calendar: Tuesday!

2008-11-05T09:12:00.003-05:00

"Tuesday's Child is Full of Grace"
Photo Credit: Richard Chicoine, All Rights Reserved 08

Why Choose Tuesday?

If you’re looking for leverage, the day called “Tuesday” is your sweet spot. Tuesday is the gateway to a multitude of advantages. As the old saying goes, “It’s all in the timing.”

Productivity fluctuates during the week, so it’s no surprise that Fridays rate as the least productive day for most people in the workforce. The end of the week translates into not only a less professional wardrobe, but also a more casual attitude. Mondays, on the other hand, have taken on a “gung ho” style, with meetings and more meetings filling up organizational agendas. It’s a day when most employees are tired by the end of their shift.

In an independent study conducted by Accountemps, nearly half of Executives who were surveyed said employees hit peak performance on Tuesdays. If you consciously consider social marketing trends, Tuesdays have become a day for promotions, discounts and consumer attractions. Rental videos were among the first products to be heavily promoted as a Tuesday special. If you’re on a budget, Tuesday is the day to treat the family to a discounted meal (all you can eat ribs!), or to a movie. In short, Tuesday is THE day.

Have you noticed that elections fall on Super Tuesdays? Important announcements are arranged for Tuesday media conferences?

So how can you take advantage of the Tuesday Leverage Point?

* If you have an important meeting, a decision to make, a position to negotiate, schedule it on a Tuesday.

* If you want to save money on an outing, check out the Tuesday specials.

* If you’d like to finish an important project, or catch up on the backlog, block off the whole day as your most productive and prolific day.

* If you need to energize your team with a new project, launch it on a Tuesday.

Think Tuesday, Think “Leverage” to get ahead.

- 30-

Maggie Chicoine’s column, “The Tuesday File” addresses strategies to get ahead. A specialist in strategic systems thinking, Maggie is a dynamic keynote speaker, Master Coach and writer. Reach her at 1 800 587 1767.

Calling Leaders

2008-10-27T18:13:00.003-04:00

If Leadership is a Calling, Then Why Don’t I Hear Me?

Leadership isn’t a title. It’s not a job. It’s a calling.

Leadership doesn’t attach to demographics.

Young. Old.

Male. Female.

Urban. Rural.

Rich. Poor.

Abraham Lincoln said, “Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.”

Leadership IS character. Character births passion, and vision. Leadership is speaking the truth – consistently, and visibly. It’s knowing when to race ahead, back off… let go… reflect on the multi-dimensionality of issues. It’s about tactics, strategy and synchronicity. In fact, it's all of those “ies”, like idiosyncrasies and ideologies.

Leadership is deep character...
Leadership is about being humble while being powerful. It’s mostly the pull, and sometimes the push. It’s about looking up and not being intimidated by an artificial ceiling that no-one but “me” erected. It’s about shouting loudly for what is right, and for quietly acknowledging the efforts of others even when.... it's doing the right thing, at the right time, in the right way, for the right reasons. It's being aware of doing it right - or wrong - ethically. It's knowing what you really stand for, at the deepest root.

Leadership is deepest when...

There's time to reflect. Leadership is about musings, like this one, inspired by the intriguing variety of pebbles and stones on the shore... in the big waters... of Lake Superior. When the waves roll in, the questions are carried ashore. Why do rocks, like leaders and followers, all have the same potential, but only one creates a gentle ripple that affects its surroundings?

“Sometimes a leader emerges from among equals, a man whose natural charisma, stability, and sense of purpose make everyone turn to him, just as office plants turn toward the window. There’s something special there, and everybody recognizes it, even if no one can put a finger on it.” – David Zinczenko, Editor, Mens Health Magazine

Stupid = Smart, Doesn't It?

2008-10-20T10:47:00.007-04:00

Who? Me? Stupid?

With the driving forces of the economy and politics at the forefront of our minds, we should be slapping yellow and black dummy stickers on our foreheads. It’s time to admit that we are a little more stupid than we’ve been lead to believe.

Now, that’s not an insult.

It’s a reality.

In our drive for conscious consumerism and instant communication, it’s been easy to be smart, to be global and to be in touch with a quick click. We’ve taken ease for granted. We’ve slipped into bad grammar, abbreviated spelling and hieroglyphic instant messaging. We have evolved into a society that is so smart, that it is stupid.

Research conducted into the increasing speed of knowledge by organizations such as the Tagore-Einstein Foundation, states:

“It is one of the most important and intellectual tasks of our time to develop skills to perceive current phenomena in their global and historic correlation”. What does that mean? Translation: we need new “smart” skills to deal with an innovation based world culture.

Whole brain thinkers, like Ned Herrmann of the Whole Brain Institute have said that our greatest strength becomes our greatest weakness. The assumption that we can carry all knowledge, and transfer that knowledge to decision making, leads not only to personal disasters, but global shake-ups like the ones we have seen in the past few weeks.

How do we develop new smart skills? Take time to simplify what we know are the facts in our own lives. How do we take time to simplify?

The first step: we must stop. Analyze. Come to grips about our own personal realities in context.

The second step: Look back. Research past trends. Sort what we know into new categories. Determine what is really important and most important from an ethical standpoint.

The third step: Look forward. What ultimately makes sense in this situation? What needs to be renegotiated? Who holds the best smart advice we can find?

Finding the new smart skills, means that “reflection” should be added to all leadership job descriptions. Time out from the pressure leads to attention to intricate detail as well as setting and measuring standards.

The hardest question to answer just might be: “What are we holding onto that keeps us from moving forward?”

I invite you to send me your reflections/answers. Click on "comments" below.

The Coach says: the more curious you are, the more you dig and sit back to think about what's bubbling to the surface, the smarter and wiser you will be...appreciate "stupidity" for its role in "smartness".

Maggie Chicoine is a Master Coach and professional speaker, specializing in Strategic Systems Thinking and Innovative Leadership for organizations and their people. Her Keynotes are lively, provocative, and always laced with a twist of ingenuity. 1 800 587 1767.

Permission to reprint? Click on iCopyright to your right.

Where are you going?

2008-10-17T16:23:00.002-04:00

Are you taking the middle of the road all the time?

My old Greek mentor has a way about him. He'd rather take me for a walk than schedule a meeting in a coffee shop. Whenever I needed to figure things out, I could count on a good long walk around the block.

Taking a "volta", a stroll, is a way of seeing life, and its complexities through a natural lens. He's taught me well, and it's a method I recommend often to people who are stuck or worried.

In fact, this seems so easy that many people might dismiss its usefulness.

Let me show you the way.

Stop what you're doing, and don't feel guilty about taking 30 minutes just for you.
Walk for 15 minutes without any particular destination in mind.
Stroll, don't run. Resist the urge to hurry.
Do not think about what is worrying you, or the problem you're trying to solve.
DO think about what you are noticing around you, especially the smallest details. Pick up a fallen leaf. Really look at it. Smell it. Listen. Look UP.
Turn around, start strolling back, and let the answers come to you. Relax. Breathe!
Repeat the next day.

You see, reflection is an admirable practice.

We are so busy doing, that we forget to just "be". That's what taking a volta...a stroll... helps us to do. Be.

So if you're trying to make some changes - if you'd like to be more adventurous, take more risks, get out from the middle of the road decision-making, walk the paths first. Your courage naturally builds on its own when you take your sweet time reflecting.

Be. Then go and do.

Maggie Chicoine is a professional speaker and Master Coach.

What Is the Leadership Test?

2008-10-06T10:23:00.005-04:00

The Leadership Test

Whether you’re living in the mudflats of Alaska or the urban forests of Northern Ontario, you are the target of political messages this month. With opposing perspectives about the meaning of patriotism in the United States and Canada, and promises of change blowing in the winds on both sides of the border, what better time to reflect about your own leadership style? What are the challenges on your personal campaign’s scorecard?

Impressions of a leader’s influence can me measured in many ways. More often than not, it’s the perception of ethics and the discernment of the communication which can sway followers away from or toward the cause. It’s how leaders calibrate their intentions, design meetings and come to terms with the juxtaposition of vision, passion and reality, that add up to what we call a “reputation”.

Take Nelson Mandela and his lifetime of service, including 27 years behind bars where, he says, “my greatest deprivation was spent without hearing a baby cry or holding a child’s hand.” Time Magazine (July 21, 2008) featured his 8 Secrets of Leadership, well worth the read. The questions below are based on his responses.

As the media continues to reveal the truth behind the candidates for highest level powers in North America, I urge you to consider your own capacity and capability in leadership, no matter how seasoned or inexperienced you may be at the moment.

How Do Leaders Change?

Using the Key Leadership Skills of "Reflection" and "Appreciative Inquiry", set time aside to consider the following "self test".

Question 1: How do you define courage? Is it the absence of fear or inspiring others, and yourself to move beyond it?

Question 2: How do you measure the distance between you as a leader and your followers? Who and what might you be leaving behind?

Question 3: What are the advantages and dangers of leading from the back, and inspiring others to believe that they are in front?

Question 4: Who is your enemy, and what is their favourite sport? What tactic could attack you in your blindspot?

Question 5: Who are your friends and how close do you keep them? How do you keep your rivals even closer?

Question 6: What does appearance have to do with leadership? Which facial expressions convey your leadership abilities (plus and minus)?

Question 7: Do you operate in black and white or grey zones? What are the consequences?

Question 8: Is it okay to quit? When is the right time to quit? Is quitting part of your strategic plan?

Ultimately, it’s tempting to watch the political antics and then judge candidates than it is to be one yourself. It’s also easier to judge you, as the leader of a corporation, government department or a community organization. Two pieces of information are equally important: what people tell you, and what they do NOT tell you.

These nuances can be compiled into your personal reservoir of experiences, if you are paying attention and making notes along the way. Leadership isn’t learned through reading books, although lifelong learning is certainly an important function. Leadership development, attending the school of hard knocks as well as taking time to celebrate victories, connects you to the people around you no matter where in the world your board room chair may be located.

As a leader, you can’t hide in the mudflats, or in the bushes, no matter how far north or south you might be. Know what you stand for. What you will fight for. And determine the fine line that defines your Personal Leadership Code of Ethics.

Author Maggie Chicoine, originally published as The Tuesday File in LakeSuperiorNews.com. www.theideasculptor.com All Rights Reserved.

Ask for permission to reprint from iCopyright.

Tweaking Your Creativity

2008-09-29T14:24:00.007-04:00

"Keep A Close Eye on Your Candidates"

Tweaking Your Creativity

Want to know the secret about the way this blog is created?

We’ve received comments about the great photos that have been posted as the visual component of each Tuesday’s headlines. You might think that I find a photo to match the theme for posting. That’s traditional thinking…

At the Mag-OH!-Zine, we try to match our way of working with what we say we do for our clients. “A Twist of Ingenuity” is the un-status-quo… so the blog gets written from the belly up.

The genius behind the photos is my sweetie, Rick / aka Richard Chicoine who snaps a bunch of images during the week and then chooses his favourite for the blog. It's a secret he keeps until Monday morning, when he sends me a photo – ready to go – totally his choice. The challenge for me is to tweak my creative juices and let the image do my writing for me.

What? Quoi?

Example: If it’s a “seagull on a fence post”, what relevant message can we convey to you, the reader?

Idea 1: The seagull theory of meeting management – supposedly an aboriginal metaphor from the west coast of Canada, used as a "rule of engagement". Don’t drop anything (wet and white) on your colleagues during an agenda item. Well, from what I’ve witnessed around the Board Room table, this works in theory... but I have cleaned up some messes!

Idea 2: With a focus on the “eye” of the seagull - I chose one key aspect of the image - and with the current political scene hot and heavy in the United States, and much more polite in Canada, how about “Keeping an eye on the Candidates”? This theme could lead into a dialogue about a variety of issues, leadership styles, ethics and comedic relief.

If you’re interested, Idea 2 won out, and was written for Leadership Thunder Bay's Class of 2008; you might want to click into http://xowhat.blogspot.com/ for the post titled: "Reading for More than the Rhetoric". I included a variety of links into the vast virtual world of pre-election bantering.

The bonus, as I was researching, was to discover the first televised debate between Nixon and Kennedy in 1960. Not much phrasing between democrats and republicans seems to have changed! And of course, I had to post an eye on Saturday Night Live’s Palin/Clinton podium exchange as well as Canadian Content and "She-lections" info.

Your Turn

If you’d like to try this technique for sharpening your creative wits, this is how you start:

1. Ask a friend to tear a photo out of a magazine, or choose one out of the photo album – or send you a digital. One image only. NO CHOICE!

2. and then let the image tell its story. Choose one aspect, one impression, one take-off idea that links in any way at all to the picture. Then write - don't judge, generate - for a block of time (eg 16 minutes). Don't scrap anything - keep generating - let loose -

3. Do some research. Find examples to link with your writing/thinking.

4. Time out....til tomorrow...

5. Edit. Re-write. Read your work out loud to someone.

Imagination is becoming a lost art – and even the folks who claim that they can’t write – will find that the exercise is “interesting”.

The theory? Your right brain kicks in with the image…your left brain writes the script. Your right brain tells the story…your left brain fills in the analysis and facts.

Send me your post - picture and writing - via the "comments" below, and give me permission to post. (I do not post comments automatically.) I will send you feedback.

Give it a try! Take a look at the archives and see if you can link the photo to my decisions about content.

And remember to read to A-Z column on the right side for more inspiration and activity.

TTFN,
Maggie and Rick

Jumping Off A Cliff?

2008-09-22T15:15:00.005-04:00

Jumping Off A Cliff?

Read this first!

Now that might sound like a strange goal to the average person, but not when you’re an adventure freak. People who find a thrill in planning for extreme quests aren’t that different from the laid back couch potatoes who shift from one day to the next. What do they have in common?

Let me explain. As a Coach, I’ve been exposed to the ups and downs of lifestyles that range from

daredevil to

hibernating cranks.

Regardless of the choices made, there are times when goal setting – and following through – become essential. Usually, a crisis, either self-imposed or circumstantial, pushes people to understand their patterns from a new perspective. Their reactions can create a flurry or a frenzy of renewed thinking, or a denial and procrastination at the other extreme.

Don't wait for the inevitable crisis. Life's way too short.

I suggest the following and it’s not new thinking. In fact, this plan was inspired by the campaign to always check your smoke alarm batteries when the seasons change at the equinox or the solstice. Maybe we could call this, testing our own alarm systems.

Do this before your life falls apart and when jumping off a cliff might look like the best of the best option.

How to Check Your Own Systems

A. Look Back at the last quarter:

On the first day of autumn, winter, spring and summer, review what has happened in your life. What’s been positive? What hasn’t worked out well? What was unexpected and how did you react? What have you been promising yourself but haven’t fit in to your lifestyle? What are the leftovers for the coming quarter?

B. Look Ahead to the next quarter:

What do you want your life to be like in the next quarter? What needs to change? Who do you need to spend time with? How will you start tomorrow?

Writing notes or blogging help to frame your thinking. What gets written, gets measured – at the start of each new season. If you’re going to jump off that cliff before December 20th, do it with a purpose, and ask a friend to take your photo mid-air. Make a plan.

My grandmother always said, “You can’t have a good life without a lot of good days!”. Good days happen every season, especially if you look back, and look ahead. She was right, don’t you think?

Giant Cans

2008-09-14T10:24:00.006-04:00

It's about finding the bones: the funny bone and the wish bone.

We're back...and it's been a long story over the summer. My brain has been blocked up since my mother's passing in August, and the creative words have not bubbled up at all. Until now.

This past weekend, the Leadership Thunder Bay Class of 2008- 2009 held their opening retreat - advance - at Sleeping Giant Provincial Park. As the lead facilitator, I encouraged our emerging leaders to look for the unusual, reflect, scrutinize natural systems and ask for resources to dismantle ceilings of assumptions which can hold us back.

As a tribute to their journey for innovation as Leaders in our community, I'm posting this unusual picture of the Sleeping Giant. Our photo of "Giant Cans", was taken on one of our photojournalism walks while I was in "recovery mode" last month. Fresh air soothes the soul and puts life back into a zany perspective. Photocredit as always to Richard Chicoine.

"Giant Cans" was a spur of the moment thought, inspired by a large bosom passing us by on the breakwall. Laughter is truly the glue of all relationships! I could feel my funny bone getting back in line.

A day trip to the Sleeping Giant also inspired the column about Wish Bones, which has been published in the "Country Register" in a number of states, and in the original Ontario edition (September 2008).

Two artistic and entrepreneurial buddies asked me to tag along in the back seat for a drive to the Sibley peninsula. After a fabulous lunch at Karen's Kitchen (worth the drive) and pie at the Silver Islet Tea Room (the best!) we got to talking about presents we've received over the years. My friend mentioned her gift of a wishbone, and I promised to write the story - with some artistic licence!

For your reading pleasure, let me present:

Beware the Wishbone

“It’s the thought that counts, isn’t it?”

My best friend Martha is no contortionist, but she’s pretty good at lying flat on the floor with her legs slung up on the couch. When she gets this comfy after dinner, I know her well enough to expect a confessional. She didn’t let me down.

“Hey”, she said. “Did you ever get a really dud gift for your birthday?”.

With that casual little question, Martha had just opened Pandora’s Box. That’s all I needed to spill the beans, to finally let the disappointments escape from my inner sanctuary. Lousy presents? I had a list a mile long. The tears were long gone, but the memories lingered.

“Promise you won’t laugh? Here goes… should we start with the worst of the worst?”, I asked. She gave me the thumbs up and wiggled her toes.

My top three pathetic presents:

Number 1: A brown paper lunch bag with a 6 inch jar of lard-like face cream, presented by my father as if he had just given me a string of real pearls. At 12, I am woman. Hear me roar. Obviously, this was the present to commemorate a right of passage.

Number 2: A Readers’ Digest Classical Music Collection, a Christmas gift. All I really wanted was the Hit Parade’s “Connie Francis’ Where the Boys Are.” I was 13. A romantic teen, ready to be swept off my feet, not lulled into sleep by the Blue Danube Waltz.

Number 3: Matching sets of vacuum cleaner bags. Yes, wrapped individually. You are laughing! This was the perfect gift for a newly married couple. Obviously, my parents never outgrew their practical side. We were both speechless. Maybe that’s why I still hate vacuuming.

Martha’s turn to bare all. She said:

Number 1: A mashed potato scented candle, from a considerate friend to help me overcome my cravings for carbs while on a high protein diet. I would have preferred a beef scented tealight, thanks much!

Number 2: A jug of Evening in Paris perfume, which could have asphyxiated a family of skunks in the shed. Even though I dumped the contents, I kept the rich indigo blue bottle for years. My aunt really believed that her gift for my graduation was perfect.

Number 3: A turkey wishbone. I AM STILL TICKED at my sister for this one! How could anyone think that a tag on the bone that said, “Happy Birthday! Make Your Own Wish” could make this tacky present into something meaningful. Give me a break! My sister wrapped it in gold foil with a gorgeous ribbon and I thought for sure she had invested in those little gold earrings I had been talking about for months!”

So ended the lists. But not the chatter.

We talked about how emotional we’d been; how a good intention had been misinterpreted, and how long the grudges could last. I admitted to Martha, that I would have loved to receive that wishbone instead of the vacuum cleaner bags. She thought that the tub of lard was a wonderful intention, even though she agreed that my dad didn’t have a lot of class. I countered defensively, telling her that dad only ever went shopping once in his life without my mom, and that day was “the day”. In that light, dad’s gesture took on a special glow.

We laughed. We chewed over the details. This whole conversation meandered into a magical gift in and of its own.

The Wonder of Gifting

We realized, that when you wrap something – anything – in a haven of caring, appreciation and love – and surrender it to another person without expectation, it becomes a precious gift. Whether or not the choice suits our tastes – like the canary yellow golf shirt and matching socks that my husband received on his 13th birthday – is irrelevant in the long run.

We were reminded that day to revive gracious appreciation in our lives. We also realized that letting go of our own treasured secrets helped to strengthen our relationship. When there’s nothing to hide, nothing to guess or gossip about, trust can only grow.

As Martha whispered on her way out the door, “Having you as a friend is like carrying a wishbone around in my heart all the time. Thanks!”

- 30 –

Maggie Chicoine is a professional speaker, Master Coach and writer. Her first love is the stage, her passion is the page and both are infused with a twist of ingenuity. Maggie can he reached at http://www.theideasculptor.com/ or 1 800 587 1767.

Do Dinosaurs Dine?

2008-07-20T07:34:00.002-04:00

“Papi?” Innocence personified in a 3 year old’s enquiring eyes, Brandon asked the same question again, as if Papi could guess what was swirling around in his little sweet head.

“Papi? Do Dinosaurs ever dine at the dining room table, or do they just go out in the woods for food?”

Ah, the treasure chest of thoughts in a growing boy’s mind. Brandon had been immersed in playing with his collection of dinosaurs, when we called him upstairs for dinner. He was slow to show up at the table, since he had taken over the basement as his very own pretend “apartment”. He owned it now, paid his rent in hugs and smiles on weekends. He loved that big wide open space free of adults and rules.

We heard his grrrowls as he came up the stairs. He announced that a green, purple and orange ichthyosaur would join us for dinner. Brandon made sure that his guest had a plate, cutlery, a glass for apple juice and an extra cloth napkin, perfectly folded and placed beside the salad, especially for Ichy. Dinosaurs, we know, love their greens!

The Rights of Rituals

We’re an old fashioned couple, Papi and I. Even before Brandon was old enough to sit properly at the table, we started to talk about the importance of “dining”, not just eating to fill up.

Dining, we always say, is time together as family. Dining means that all bums have to be on their seats, recognizing that little bodies turn on a dime and hands reach for the pickle dish. Dining means taking time for grace and blessing, and perhaps squeezing a little “I love you” into the hands we are holding. Dining means that we pause for a “hush” before the rush of passing the potatoes and inhaling the bar-b-cued chicken. Dining as a family, we tell him, is a celebration, as splendid as the good china and beautiful tablecloth that lay as its back drop.

The etiquette lessons aside, which will be introduced when both Brandon and the dinosaur are really ready, our intention is to take a breather in good company. Our lives have become so fragmented, hurried and harried, that we take those moments for granted. Families seem to have lost their anchors, and we consciously refuse to become part of the statistics.

Research reports from the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University assert that families eat only 3 or 4 meals together per week. Gobbling sacks of take out munchies in the car, or eating together watching television count as “family meals”. This food court mentality at home kills conversations and connections. Yet, there is hope. Dining, says the study, gets better with practice.

Coincidentally, when Ichy the Dino joined Brandon at the table, we had prepared a “camp site” salad suitable for the wildest guest. With romaine as the base of grass and leaves, celery sticks became benches, beets and oranges turned into a campfire, with pretzel sticks crisscrossed as logs. Magically, bits of jujubes and raisins turned into frogs and bugs, not just in our imaginations. We had something special to giggle about that was as important for a three year old as it was for the adults. We lingered.

Yes, we do make a fuss about our “dining”. Yes, I set the table early in the morning and worry about groceries at the last minute. Yes, I do iron tablecloths and napkins, usually late at night. Yes, we share the cooking. Yes, we love potluck for the meal. YES, there is PIE, and more pie. Yes, guests and dinosaurs are more than welcome.

And no, Brandon is not yet ready to be the Maitre-D.

Originally published in The Country Register, Ontario Edition and syndicated across Canada and the United States. All Rights Reserved. For reprints, contact maggiechicoine@gmail.com

Maggie Chicoine, The Idea Sculptor, is a professional Keynote Speaker, Master Coach, Facilitator and writer best known for twisting theory with ingenuity. She tells great stories! Book her to speak at your event at 1 800 587 1767 or subscribe to her blog at www.theideasculptor.com.

Time OUT! and About the Lake

2008-07-20T07:18:00.003-04:00

Summer is a Time to Let Your Head Rest!

Yes, we are on the road again. I'll be back to the regular blog on August 15. Until then, go to http://www.lakesuperiornews.info/ to follow our route.

We - that's the photographer Rick - and I - are searching for exceptional lodgings around the shores of Lake Superior. We'll be in Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota - after bringing you reviews about places tucked into the quiet and rocky shores in Northwestern Ontario.

These places are treasures that you might not know about! We were recently at KOA in Thunder Bay - what an impressive place to leave your stress behind. A bit further up the road (east) is Red Rock: the Executive Retreat for the mill has been opened up to the public as Quebec Lodge, a B&B, and corporate retreat. Ginger and Ray of Nipigon River Adventures will also be featured in Northern Ontario Business Magazine.

Go just across the border to Grand Marais, MN to hang out in the Harbour. The photo is from the very decadent spa of Cobblestone Cove - a step outside to the beach. What a great condo with a gourmet kitchen to rent for a week of family time!

But first, I'll post a story about Dining with Dinosaurs that is published as a syndicated column at The Country Register.

Enjoy!

- Maggie

Photo Credit: Richard Chicoine

Charge! Wait!!

2008-07-14T14:12:00.007-04:00

Charge! Wait!

Remember to Strategically Think Ahead

Have you ever noticed that entrepreneurs seem to just charge ahead, like a couple of puppies off their leash in a secluded meadow?

“It never would have occurred to me,” says Ginger Randle, “that a business plan and networking would be so important. I thought that entrepreneurship was easy - just go for it and customers would buy in.”

Ginger sits casually on her kitchen counter at Quebec Lodge in Red Rock, Ontario. She’s reflecting on the businesses she and her partner, Ray Rivard have started in a little town hit hard by the demise of the lumber industry in Northwestern Ontario. It’s not a life she would have imagined 5 years ago.

Ray and Ginger recently completed negotiations with Norampac to revitalize a historic log cabin overlooking Lake Superior’s islands. With the consummate gestures of a seasoned fisherman, Ray explains that his recent acquisition is even better than breaking the standing record for speckled trout caught in the Nipigon River a hundred years ago.

His words and laughter signal the deep satisfaction of an entrepreneur who has ultimately found his calling.

Guests stepping into the warmth of the expansive lobby of this historic log cabin easily echo his excitement. The lighting in the two storey high entrance highlights the workmanship and architectural imagination of master craftsmen. Today’s log construction seems to only imitate the original craftsmanship of a by gone era. Designed originally as an exclusive retreat for Pulp and Paper Executives in the 1940’s, who obviously were wined and dined in luxury and comfort, the lodge is finally open to the public as a corporate retreat, B&B and home base for fishing and hunting expeditions on the Nipigon River.

Ginger admits that her expertise in lodge management is limited. She’s riding an entrepreneurial learning curve that takes her dream and refocuses it into a reality, with surprises built into the ever-changing business plan. She and Ray joke about kicking around ideas late in the evening around their firepit. “Before you know it, we’re in trouble with another new idea!”

That’s how the GROW clothing line for women who hunt got started. This stylish camou design is in the developmental phase. Randle is researching a competitive price point with consistent quality before production can start in earnest. She’s hoping that Cabella’s will carry her exclusive line. “I didn’t think that starting two businesses at the same time would be this hard!” she says with the passion of a true entrepreneur.

3 Tips to Remember while You Charge Ahead

As a woman new to the world of business, Ginger Randle’s experience so far has taught her that:

1. Who you know is more important than what you know. Ginger finally got over her shyness and learned to connect with people. She’s evolved into a natural networker whose enthusiasm infuses the conversation.

2. Ask for Help. Get over the stereotype about mentors being crusty old people who are not approachable! When you need advice, develop a relationship with an expert. Ginger raves about IT guru Andrew Brown from PC Medic in Thunder Bay, and a number of other connections who have expanded her entrepreneurial know how.

3. Dream Big - in 5 year stages. Make it happen. By researching and partnering, she discovered that she was eligible as a Red Lake Band status member to receive a grant from ABC - Aboriginal Business Canada. She sees the opportunities, but knows that it’s important to let go of some ideas too.

4. Bonus Tip: Follow Up and Follow Through. Stay on top of the contacts, the promises, the planning folder. There’s nothing like being overwhelmed by a huge TO DO list. Your guests can feel your stress levels.

Don't leave details to the last minute, even if that means you have to learn how to be an early bird. Get out of bed. Follow up.

If you are still within the 3 year boundary of starting your business, take a moment over the summer season to review your work habits, standards and measurements and your “happiness factor”.

It's easy to get into the charge ahead mode in business. If you’re running at full speed…STOP for a moment and smell the wild flowers. (Do I dare say this? Unleash your inner puppy!)

Stop, strategically think ahead and get a good night’s sleep!

PS

When you are driving the Circle Route around Lake Superior, Quebec Lodge is a short 100 km drive from Thunder Bay, Ontario. Located in Red Rock, the Lodge offers B&B, full meal, group lodge rentals and guided fishing and hunting tours. www.nipigonriveradventures.com

Maggie Chicoine is a professional speaker, facilitator, Master Coach and writer. The Idea Sculptor specializes in “Strategies to Think Ahead.”. Reach her at http://www.ideasculptor.com/ or 1 800 587 1767.

Photo Credits: Richard Chicoine
All Rights Reserved

Watch for the publication of Superior Secrets: A Good Night’s Sleep featuring exceptional properties on the shores of Lake Superior: Ontario, Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota. You can read more http://www.lakesuperiornews.info/

Good News for Hard Rock Thinkers

2008-07-08T09:17:00.003-04:00

The Complaint (Free) Department

Do you know any “Complaint Specialists”? You don’t have to be a psychologist to diagnose the symptoms. Venting. Negative phrasing. Finger pointing. Blame. For a complainer, this type of communication just seems to be normal.

And cognitive scientists agree! Your brain grows cells in your areas of specialty and focus. Dr. Ellen Weber, director of the MITA Brain Based Centre illustrates the point through MRI evidence. She says, “The areas in the brain that control the fingers, tongue and lips are larger in flute players. An accountant who works with numbers every day has a larger representation in the area of the brain that controls math ability.”

You continue to grow positive or negative connections whether you are 17 or 71. Age does not matter.

You can re-wire your brain into more positive or more toxic modes: take your pick.

The 21 Day C-Challenge

In a previous column, I challenged readers to track their levels of complaining for 21 days. Habitual behaviors can be changed with conscious effort in only three weeks. So, if I’m going to suggest it, I’m going to try it. Our household took on the C-Challenge, starting July 1.

Within the first 24 hours, my personal attempt to forego venting and finger pointing failed. In fact, I messed up within the first 2 hours. With a long sigh, I said, “I am so sick and tired of moving my make-up in and out of this bathroom. When are you going to finish the renovations already!”. The irritation in my own voice signaled the cue instantly; I heard myself loud and clear. All I could do was to laugh and say,

“#$)*%@ - this isn’t easy!”.

My husband lasted longer. At the 4 hour mark, his frustration with his new digital camera equipment got the better of him. Even though he’s a really easy going retired guy, technology always gets his grrrrr factor going. His brain has been trained to react. We are both suffering from rock hard brain-itis? Not so...

We started again.

Seven days into the C-Challenge, we are learning about the underlying importance of “mindfulness”, paying attention to our patterns and relationships in the “now”. Mindfulness requires that we let go of our judgments and criticisms and concentrate instead, on generating choices of expression.

We have come to realize that a partner in this C-Challenge is crucial. We catch each other’s phrasing about simple, everyday events like the weather. Instead of grumbling about the rainy forecast, I choose to say nothing. Rather than expressing irritation about technology, we both search for answers on the help site.

We’re taking the nomad lifestyle – I no mad at you, you no mad at me – to the extreme, and laughing more. Our brains are loving it!

Join us? Try the C-Challenge for 21 days and let us know how it goes.

Comments on this blog are not shared unless you specifically ask for publication. All requests for coaching are held confidential.

We want to hear from you! Click on COMMENT, or better still, subscribe to a weekly feed. Click on "Subscribe" now.

Maggie Chicoine is a Master Coach, Facilitator, Professional Speaker and Writer based in Thunder Bay, Ontario Canada. She is a regular columnist for Lake Superior News and The Country Register.

Reach her at 1 800 687 1767 or http://www.theideasculptor.com/ or maggiechicoine@gmail.com. “Experience speaks…with a twist of ingenuity”

Watch for her new series: Superior Secrets – A Good Night’s Sleep featuring exceptional properties on the shores of Lake Superior.

Photos by Richard Chicoine.

It's HAPPY Canada Day!

2008-06-30T08:03:00.004-04:00

Complaining About Canada

Canadians like to hug their mug of coffee at timmies and complain. I enjoy eavesdropping on these conversations, and boy do I get an earful now and again. What city council should – or shouldn’t do. What that neighbour should do about his fence. What our troops should be doing in Afghanistan. It’s all very interesting. And very funny.

When we listen to everyday language, we find out that many people are stuck on complaining. Kvetching. B*tching. Every second sentence points to griping about something. Yip. Yup.

My grandmother told me, and told me, and told me, “You can’t have a good life without a lot of good days”. She never complained, or so it seemed to me when I was a kid. Gossip did not pass her lips, so I just took it for granted that this is how the world should work. We should live like nomads: I no mad at you and you no mad at me!

Then I started to hang out in coffee shops. There were a lot more people complaining, and not many people like my grandma. The things they belly-ached about! In the long run, who cares if Billy didn’t eat his cornflakes, and Betty got a tattoo. Didn’t these people understand that how they view the world through their words, affects the life that they actually live?

It’s all about the Psychology of Happiness, or the flip side, the Science of Complaining. Complaining is a lot like bad breath. We don’t notice our own halitosis, but we sure get the signal from someone else’s mouth!

The Reverend Bill Bowen took the complaint department to task. In 2006, he challenged his congregation in Kansas City MO, to live 21 days complaint free, to not be the ouch looking for a hurt. That's 504 consecutive hours without a reference to discontent, pain or grief.

To help monitor their progress in changing their communication habit, Rev. Bowen gave each person a purple elastic bracelet with some simple directions.

Every time they heard themselves complaining, they were to switch the bracelet to the other wrist. The idea spread, and now over 5 million bracelets have been distributed in more than 80 countries. I wish my grandmother had thought of this!

Why am I saying, “Stop Complaining Already” on Canada Day?

It’s personal. I admit that my grandmother’s influence guides my life, and I’d like to live in a more positive Canada. I’d like to join you for a cup of coffee and see the bright side. I want us to raise our children to take positive leadership roles in our communities, to support the under-dogs and see hope and potential.

Most of all, I want to influence lives to be happy, by having one good (Canada Day) after another.

The Canada Day Challenge

If you're up to the challenge - 21 days no kvetching - let me know!

I'll post your comments if you give me permission. Ready? Get an elastic band from the bunch of broccoli in the fridge. Keep it on your wrist for 504 hours starting July 1. Tell your family what you are doing. Tell me too.

Go Canada!

PS Enter your email to subscribe. Your address is never shared.

Your Face LEAKS

2008-06-24T08:40:00.004-04:00

Your Mind Shows On Your Face

"The human mind is a lot like the human egg, and the human egg has a shut-off device. When one sperm gets in, it shuts down so the next one can't get in. The human mind has a big tendency of the same sort.” - Charlie Munger

Your face leaks. Whatever you might be thinking shows up as the raise of an eyebrow or the furl of your lip. Reading facial “body language” gives you the most clues about the intricacies of character.

What’s in a face?

Think about an imaginary line that connects in a square, eyebrow to eyebrow, cheek to cheek and forehead to chin. That’s the key space captured by cartoonists and portrait photographers. Let’s just say that your personality lives there. It’s home base.

The lines and wrinkles that have formed over the years, are proof of who you are and what you have been thinking. Your unique character is visible to the world from across a football field. Split second impressions which slip across your face thousands of times a day, are instantly interpreted – or misinterpreted by friends and strangers through their own rose coloured glasses.

So when your mind shuts off, or judges someone or something, your face leaks those thoughts, even if you don’t say a word out loud.

Facts About Your Face

Among the findings of Professor Dacher Keltner Ph.D. at the University of Berkley, California:

· There are six basic expressions: happiness, anger, fear, disgust, surprise and calm

· With just 44 muscles, nerves and blood vessels threaded through a scaffolding of bone and cartilage, all layered over by supple skin, the face can twist into 5000 expressions, from an outward grin to a faint sneer.

· There is a distinct difference between feigned and real expression, and in the biological responses produced.

· Smiling eyes can actually pull the face into a smile through the zygomatic muscles.

· We send and read signals at lightening speed and over great distances. The lift of an eyebrow, which lasts a sixth of a second, can register surprise or displeasure even at a distance of 150 feet.

· Smiles are so important to communication that we can see them more clearly than any other expression at a distance of over 300 feet (the length of a football field)

· Facial expressions are largely universal. Babies are programmed to read faces; it is genetic and evolutionary.

· When a female baby hears a loud noise or gets anxious, she wants to make eye contact.

· When a male baby hears a loud noise or gets anxious, he will react by looking around, in a fight or flight response.

· Culture and experience can dull our ability to display and interpret emotions. Abused children may not correctly interpret facial expressions for example.

Let me issue a WARNING:

“Displays of emotion are only half of the equation. How they are interpreted is the other half.”

We are all quite good at reading the obvious signals, but we need to remember that reading faces is complicated. Shortcuts and snap judgments can lead to misinterpretation. Keep the whole conversation in mind before jumping to conclusions.

As a Master Coach, I’ve found that many of my clients aren’t aware of the signals they send, especially when they are subconsciously judging a comment. Eyebrows, eye movements, the tilt of your head can destroy a career opportunity during an interview. A welcoming nod, understanding smile or a kind signal of reassurance can change the mood of a stalled negotiation.

Take a closer look at the distinctive character of faces. They are fascinating. Pay attention to what your mind is telling you. What signals are you sending in return?

This is a study that can keep you amused for a lifetime.

Maggie Chicoine is a professional speaker, facilitator, writer and Master Coach. She specializes in Strategic Systems Thinking. “Experience Speaks…with a twist of ingenuity.”

Reach her at 1 800 587 1767 or www.theideasculptor.com

New Column! “Superior Secrets: A Good Place to Sleep Series”, featuring exceptional lodgings on the shores of Lake Superior.

Maggie and her photographer husband Richard hit the highways this summer in search of fab accommodations in Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Ontario’s north shore: antique rich B&B’s, magnificent garden Inns and condos a step away from cobblestone beaches.

Photo Credit: Richard Chicoine at Egli's Sheep Farm, Dryden Ontario Canada

The Man/Woman Paycheque Myth: Is It A Myth?

2008-06-17T11:40:00.008-04:00

Gender Alert: How to Negotiate Your Raise

Equal experience. Equal qualifications. The reality? Jack negotiates a higher salary and benefit package than Jill. The compensation gap between men and women is not a myth.

Gender stereotyping is still alive and well, according to a working paper published by Harvard Business School in May 2008.

The authors contend that “men are generally perceived to have an advantage in negotiations over women because they are expected to be more effective at asserting their self-interest and claiming value for themselves, whereas women are expected to act in a more yielding and agreeable and less effective manner in terms of individual performance.”

Stereotypes make attempting to negotiate for higher compensation “a more socially risky endeavor for women than for men, because people not only expect that women will be more agreeable”.

They go on to say, that “male evaluators were significantly less inclined to work with a woman who initiated compensation negotiations as compared to one who did not, because they found her overly demanding and lacking in niceness.”

In other studies, research on expectations for salaries, the entitlement effect, shows that women tend to report lower career entry and career peak financial compensation than men. In general, “pre-negotiation expectations are highly predictive of negotiation outcomes”.

3 Tips for Effective $ Negotiations

1. Do your homework. (Don't just sit there looking like a lame duck - wait, it's a swan!)

Research the range in your field, and determine your own set point of expectations for annual salary and benefits.

Do not negotiate an hourly rate.

Think in terms of “value” to the employer, and

What you need to balance with others in your household.

2. Learn

key negotiation skills and

communication techniques, so that you are not caught off guard.

Practice!

3. With the assistance of a Master Coach, for example,

get feedback about your thinking style, including

a personal inventory of your facial movements,

body language, and

voice inflections.

The Bottom Line?

If you want it, you have to ask for it. Negotiate well. Leverage brilliantly. Amen.

Now, how can I help you? Do this now:

Click on email subscribe for weekly tips on leverage. We do not share your address. Even though "ideas du jour" are posted daily in the list, you can expect 1 leverage email each week through RSS feedblitz.

Send in a comment or a question - no strings attached. I'm your Coach on Call, and will respond to you personally, not publically.

Sign up for a workshop or coaching to increase your skills and your comfort levels in negotiating. Yes, you can, no matter how shy you might be at the moment. http://www.theideasculptor.com/ or 1 800 587 1767 in North America

(Source: Webgrrls: “Gender in Job Negotiations: A Two Level Game, H Riley Bowles and K.L. McGinn 2008)

Leadership Special Post

2008-06-11T16:45:00.003-04:00

Leaders en Route in North

It’s 15 days of “brain forming” by 15 members of the Governor General’s Leadership Conference.

The first stop in their northern exploratory tour was in Thunder Bay, en route to Sault Ste Marie, Sudbury and North Bay, Ontario later this week.

The Governor General's Canadian Leadership Conference brings together 230 of Canada's future leaders from business, labour, government, NGOs, education and the cultural sector for a unique two-week experience aimed at broadening their perspectives on work, leadership, their communities, and their country.

Members of the Conference are Canadian citizens from different regions of Canada, different perspectives and different careers. All members share one thing in common: they are high potential individuals expected to achieve senior leadership positions in their organizations and communities.

Margaret Wanlin, Thunder Bay Facilitator arranged a unique collaborative meeting between Leadership Thunder Bay and the Governor General’s group at the Thunder Bay Art Gallery on Tuesday June 10, 2008.

In a fast paced and often humorous dialogue, the two groups compared perceptions and realities about the demographics of the city, commenting on economic, social and cultural issues.

Recognizing the geographic challenges (a spread out fusion of two former municipalities over vast stretches of land, as well as isolation from other larger centres), the visitors remarked about obvious developmental challenges.

A participant from British Columbia, for example, questioned the Art Gallery about its awkward location on the fringes of Confederation College property, which in itself is isolated from other attractions. “How can you build critical mass in your economy, when everything is so far apart in this city?”

An outspoken entrepreneur from Quebec commented about his perceptions of a “culture of entitlement”, where big business and government fuel the economy. He spoke about a perceived lack of entrepreneurship, specifically of businesses with 10 to 24 employees.

“This gap is crucial to growth in the economy. Here, it seems to be missing entirely. But, the new knowledge-based economy that is starting up, particularly the molecular medicine research operation, will fuel businesses which supply new industries, so there’s hope.”

A municipal employee noted that entrepreneurship is indeed, flourishing, with some global initiatives in the works.

A participant from Newfoundland was most curious about the influx of First Nations families from reserves in the north. She was pleased to hear that the City’s strategic plan includes an Aboriginal Liaison Office to work inclusively with aboriginal peoples.

The Conference concludes in Ottawa, Ontario, where reports from each of the study groups will be presented to the Right Honourable Michaelle Jean. The Conference celebrates its 25th Anniversary this year.

To read participant blogs, and for more information about the program, see www.leadershipcanada.ca

Maggie Chicoine is passionate about facilitating the Leadership Thunder Bay Class of 2008-2009. For more information, go to www.leadershiptb.com.

What You See?

2008-06-10T09:22:00.007-04:00

Leadership Lens
Photo Credit: Richard Chicoine at Hecla Oasis Resort

I’m wondering what the 15 participants of the Governor General’s Leadership Conference will say about our City after their visit?

You know the old saying, “You can’t see what’s right in front of your nose”. It’s so obvious it’s invisible? We naturally become oblivious to the character of our cities and neighbourhoods. It’s like looking through a frosted window and not even noticing a new addition to the same old patterns.

So it will be interesting to interview a few of the 230 Executive Leaders from across Canada who are touring a variety of places in the country as part of their leadership experience. Canada, apparently, has the potential to have a leadership crisis because of the changing baby boomer demographic. It’s programs like this, initiated by the Governor General, which inspire a new generation of leaders.

This year’s theme: “Leadership and Community”

“The theme of the conference, “Leadership and Community,” is close to my heart. Our capacity to build the kind of society in which we all wish to live depends on the involvement of everyone. Our success, however, demands effective, committed leadership in business, government, unions and all other sectors of our country.

“Effective leaders understand that Canada can succeed only by building strong communities in which we all have the opportunity to flourish and help create a better country and world. Each action toward this goal is immensely important. Leaders understand we must fight against the indifference that is so common nowadays.”
Michaelle Jean
Governor General of Canada
More information at www.leadershipcanada.ca

Leadership Thunder Bay, which recently graduated its 5th class of leaders, has the opportunity to meet colleagues from the Governor General's Conference, for an informal dialogue about challenges and opportunities.

I will be listening closely for the depth of the discussion, and the commitment from our local representatives to move issues forward. Ideas are a dime a dozen.

Action, strategic action, collaborative action, gets the results. Let's support our upcoming leaders with strong voices, hearty appreciation and relevant mentoring.

- Your Coach on Call,

Maggie

1 800 587 1767

COMMENTS?

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Show Up! MBWA part 2

2008-05-30T07:06:00.003-04:00

Leaders Must Show Up

Chaos at your office? Your staff takes its best clues about how work gets done “around here” from the folks who are leading the way. You’re stressed? They’re even more stressed.

In the previous column, I suggested that you use the “Management by Walking Around” model, developed by Ken Blanchard a few decades ago. Simplicity still works, especially when your systems are overloaded.

Only do this if you want to reduce your chaos factor.

Here are the top 10 tips for walking around, taking the time to talk about what’s happening on the front lines.
Show Up! Plain and simple. Show Up. Make this your mantra.
MBWA isn’t an event. Don’t take a clipboard or your laptop for notes. Get to know people and their jobs – the upsides and downsides – at a personal level.
Meet people on their own turf. Naturally.
Praise in public. Give feedback in private.
Build bridges between departments. Does “sales” know – really know – what production does?
Listen twice as much as you talk. Learn “appreciative inquiry”.
Roll up your sleeves and pitch in.
Find out what rumors are circulating. Give the facts, address the feelings.
Appreciation takes no time, and costs nothing. Praise is valuable and memorable.
Play, have fun. Teams that laugh together, create results beyond the paper statistics.

I suggest that for the next week, track the amount of time as well as the key conversation points you have with your staff. You might be surprised at how little actual relationship time you are investing.

Relationships are the heart of any leadership and organizational transaction. Build some walk around time into your system for all of your leaders. Show up. Just show up.

Want to know more about Appreciative Inquiry? MBWA? Send me an email, call or post a comment! I'll do a walk about with you.

Ever Heard of MBWA?

2008-05-26T08:47:00.006-04:00

The Leader’s Guide to Shutting Down

Conversations clam up when Sam da Boss walks into the room,.

All hands suddenly get busy when Toni the Supervisor comes around the corner.

There's people in the room but the bleachers are empty!

Leaders, take note: your people are sending you clues! What’s up with you not noticing?

Back in the old days before acronyms became the norm, there was a leadership mantra, called MBWA: “Management by Walking Around”. Sounds simple, doesn’t it?

In essence, MBWA is about you as a leader paying attention to the little things that your staff do during their shift.

To pay attention, you need to get out there.

To get out there, you need to simply your own systems so that you have the time to build relationships, and correct the little things before they blow up into big things.

It’s about taking a positive, proactive and personal approach with people, so that your systems operate smoothly.

Put another way, it’s like that leaky faucet you are ignoring. You hear the drip, day after day, but don’t have time to fix it right now.

Wake Up Call

I am suggesting that MBWA leverages your organization and the results show up in black and white on your bottom line.

If you want to know what really goes on, day to day, go take a casual, relaxed walk and look for the obvious – the routine which has become invisible in your eyes. Look for what people are doing well. Pat them on the back; low time investment, zero financial cost, huge payback!

I could give you a long list of how to do MBWA right now, but I’m assuming that all you need is a gentle wake up call.

Pay attention to what happens in your staff meetings: if you talk more than anyone else, you’re failing at MBWA.

If you’re staff say there are no rumours floating around, you are out of the loop.

If your middle managers don’t remember their 6 top goals for this month without looking through the policy manuals, you’re failing at MBWA.

If your front line staff can’t tell you who your 6 best customers are, you need to send me an email and ask for the “HOW TO DO MBWA” list. Consider me your Coach on Call. I’ll gladly share that with you, and guide you through your first walkabout.

PS Check out the archives and the whole Idea Du Jour List.

Questions? Need help? Send a comment or email. Replies are confidential!

Photo Credit: Richard Chicoine

Tell Your Story, Dump Your Baggage

2008-05-24T09:56:00.006-04:00

Forget Me Knots

“Still, in a way, nobody sees a flower, really, it is so small, we haven’t the time, and to see it takes time, like to have a friend takes time.” - Georgia O’Keefe

Turning a knot into a turning point, takes time. How much of your lifetime are your devoting to growing forget me "knots"? Yes, this play on words involving perennials, has a message. (By the way, the flower in the picture is not a tulip, as some men would argue.)

We've all had friends who tell us to “get over it”. “Let it go.” “Just get on with it already.” Easier said than done, right?

To truly move ahead, you have to do a personal inventory. What’s the stuff you just can’t let go of? Here's the biggest clue. Which stories do you tell, over and over again, almost with the same wording every time someone is willing to listen?

So that’s the first clue. Your Stories.

Listen to your own stories, especially the ones you could tell strangers as well as family. You will hear the regrets, the frustration, the anger bursting through in your words, and your voice. Things that were never totally resolved, that hang on like weeds in your soul.

As a Coach, I hear the angst in the voice, and stories repeated session after session. The following is a true story told by a small business owner. I have made minor edits to her verbatim account, which will appear in "Creative Confessions" later this year.

As you read, pick out the phrases that tell you she has lots of unresolved baggage.

“I’d say that I have a lifelong history of low self esteem and low self worth, letting everybody else but me determine who I was and who I should be and how I should be. I thought that I should be somebody that makes other people happy, doesn’t rock the boat, and it would depend on the kind of situation I was in, friendship wise as to who I portrayed.

I was somebody that would tell you what I thought you wanted to hear. So that I did not rock the boat. As opposed to somebody who would tell you what you needed to hear, and deal with the waves.

As I look back my strongest and happiest time was when my marriage ended, I had this total fu attitude and lots of people were attracted to me. And then probably because of my history of low self esteem I got into a friendship that I thought was good and got me back into a cycle of telling you wanted to hear and what you wanted me to be.

Its ironic because I really didn’t think that being happy would be so hard, because that’s what I ever really wanted and it’s cost me friendships.

There were some communication glitches (in this friendship), we’ll call them, but had there been good communication we wouldn’t’ have had a problem. I suppose there may have been a problem but it might not have escalated, because with honesty and openness and communication… that’s speculation.

I had not been true to myself, there was a lot of situations that felt uncomfortable to me, because do unto others would have them do unto you, I didn’t think that someone would screw somebody over because I would never screw somebody over. It became apparent that this was a mind game, and because of my past history of abusive first marriage full of mind games, I realized how I let myself fall back into that pattern.

I confronted her about it, she lied and said that she never said that and doesn’t appreciate the gossip. And later on that night her husband phoned, and confronted me about confronting her and told me that he was with her the whole time and she had never said that, and asked if I was calling them both f’ing liars? So I left voicemail messages that I would pick up my stuff, and even with 2 vehicles in the driveway there was no answer at the door. The next day I had a message on the machine asking me not to go to her house again. The next day there was a fax with a notice of trespass against me, that I was not allowed on her property.”

Living in the NOW:

“Let your story go”

“Move away from your knots”

"Quite often I find in life that you go back into relationships whether they are healthy or not. And I thought I had made great strides, but I did not realize that I was still carrying baggage with me, which I why I got into these business relationships and friendships over the years.

Being self employed is a very long tough rewarding challenging exciting draining energizing journey that’s not for wimps. Neither is growing old, as my mom always tells me. Be prepared for lots of ups and lots of downs. I was thinking about how people come into your life for a reason, season and a lifetime. So I was thinking about my friend and smiled and said hi when I saw her years later, and she turned her head and walked past me.

So I was thinking the other day that I realized the reason was to teach me how it feels to be true to yourself and stand up for your own integrity and how much it can cost to do that. It was a 28 year friendship, but I wouldn’t change it."

Forget Me Nots as the Option

Legend says, that the tiny blue, pink and white perennials called Forget Me Nots (MFK) symbolize faith and enduring love.

Give yourself a bouquet, just as lovers did in medieval times.

Apparently, a knight and his lady were walking along the side of a river. He picked a posy of flowers, but because of the weight of his armour he fell into the river. As he was drowning he threw the posy to his loved one and shouted "Forget-me-not". This is a flower connected with romance and tragic fate. It was often worn by ladies as a sign of faithfulness and enduring love

When your story becomes part of your past, your language changes. You speak mostly in the “now”. You are able to take the memory and enjoy the turnaround. You live what you have learned.

As our entrepreneur finishes her story, think about what your own ending should be, once you've moved past your knots.

“I know I’m growing. Things don’t hang on, to shit, hurt and anger. I let go and let god. And I look for the lesson in everything because there is one. Sometimes its difficult but sometimes its not, you have to take it all.

Learn to slow down, I’ve been doing exceptionally well managing stress, I’m allergic to it, so now I just take a couple of deep breaths and tell myself that all I can do is the best I can do. One step at a time instead of looking at the whole buffet of tasks, just take one serving. It’s a lot easier.”

This week's assignment from your Coach on Call:

Listen to your own story. Edit. Release. Move on.

If you need to bounce this concept, just call or leave a comment. All responses are individual. I do not publish any comments.

- Maggie

Photo Credit this week: Joni Sharkey

Leadership Special Post

2008-05-20T09:39:00.005-04:00

Inspired Advice

What if you could find the solution to a problem by combining two contrasting ideas?

A key responsibility in leadership is digging up answers for situations that emerge from bottlenecks and gaps in the system. Traditional problem solving techniques may overlook an approach that not only analyzes the situation, but becomes a source of inspiration and innovation for the whole team.

Explore the Intersections

Experienced leaders know that there is a point of intersection that merges seemingly unrelated concepts. By combining contrasting thoughts, exploring random arrangements and sequences, ground breaking explanations may emerge. Prepare to be surprised.

This answers why solutions often come from sources that don’t seem to be related to the task at hand. And why innovative companies hire mavericks to shake up the thinking around the board room table.

So what’s the point?

In my work as a Coach and Facilitator, I find leaders who don’t take advantage of intersectional opportunities. Talented leaders are unintentionally stuck in ruts. Teams become uninspired. Brilliant ideas at meetings are ignored, and most often not voiced. The systems in these organizations lack influence, the power to be heard.

Being innovative is risky business, especially when fear takes over the fun.

However, when people are ready for an ingenious approach, they hop on board easily. The first clue to readiness is laughter. If your meetings are housed in silence, you know that the clout of imagination has left the building.

Give people permission to play, connect and use their intuition. Allow everyone to combine fields and disciplines in random ways in search of a solution that works in reality. Instead of judging, generate.

A Leadership Intersection Example

What if you could be taught relevant leadership skills from an unlikely, unrelated profession? Let’s criss-cross “horse whisperer” with “dog whisperer” and “baby whisperer” as an example. I am recommending time spent wisely watching the National Geographic Channel.

Horse Sense

Training a wild horse can be an arduous and daunting task. Horse whisperers have learned, that their best approach is to pitch the official methodologies and instead, pay attention to feelings. They recognize that many of the problems with animal behaviors are a result of the way that they are handled. Patience and a genuine desire to communicate bring about a stronger relationship. That’s where you make it or break it.

Author of “The Horse Whisperer”, Nicholas Evans, says, “I truly believe that one of our problems as a species is that we have lost our animal nature and have come to think we are superior to all other species. We have stepped out of the circle of life and have come to believe that our highly developed rational/intellectual sense is the only one that matters. In so doing, we have lost use of our other senses (our common sense, especially).”

Dog Days

Dog whisperers find that unruly canines need structure and discipline. A calm, assertive approach leads to submission, which is not cowering, but a respect for leadership.

As Cesar Millan, a professional dog whisperer stresses, “being leader of the pack does not imply strong punishment and corrections but an assertive, confident approach where the dog recognizes your leadership.”

Baby Wisdom

Sheyne Rowley, the Australian Baby Whisperer, emphasizes a safe and secure environment, room for independence with guidance, and a routine for managing transitions. Babies have questions, and they become frustrated when they cannot communicate their needs. Behavior problems signal that something is wrong and the ripple effects the whole family. “When mama and baby ain’t happy, nobody’s happy.”

Whispering Leadership

When we intersect the three unrelated “whisperers”, and extract the leverage for leadership, we learn that:

* The stronger your authentic relationships, the more leverage you create
* Intuitive listening is crucial in the mix
* Individualized approaches maximize the whole team’s performance
* Frustration and behaviorial problems are signals within the system: do you hear the cry?
* Your leadership can’t be assumed. How are you positioning the role?

Just Do This:

I encourage you to hunt for leadership techniques from a wide variety of resources.

But even more of a priority is to ask your own team for feedback. Let them assess your style, and use the opportunity to deepen your relationship with each person. Let them find the unexpected connections. Let them whisper to you.

Maggie Chicoine is a professional Coach, Speaker and writer based in Thunder Bay Ontario Canada. “Experience Speaks, with a twist of ingenuity”

Reach her at 1 800 587 1767 or http://www.theideasculptor.com/

Reprint this article? Email for permission. maggiechicoine@gmail.com

Opposites Attract

2008-05-13T09:03:00.005-04:00

Most people don’t enter a relationship carrying a spreadsheet. The phrase, “opposites attract” might explain any unsettling differences in viewpoints and behaviors.

The same principle applies when comparing the extremes of a continuum, a line that connects two polarities. Lets look at the concept of “opposites attract” in another context: the scope of being “resilient” and “vulnerable”.

When you think about being resilient, you might describe yourself as being flexible, bouncing back, stretching when the need arises. What about the definition of vulnerability? Weak, defenseless, exposed: the flip underside world of losing, sucking wind, disappointment and failure.

“Who me? Vulnerable? No way. Things will get better. No, I’m not sleeping all that well right now, but I’ll work it out. Don’t worry. I’m not feeling vulnerable!”

Hear the denial?

On the other hand, resiliency brings self-respect, pride and honour to the table. “Wow, I handled that situation well! I’ll never fall into that trap again. I learned a lot from the experience!”

Being vulnerable, and being resilient are the two bookends of a continuum. At one end, vulnerability exposes our challenges, frailties and humanness. At the other, resiliency brings hope, value, strength and influence into our lives. A strong thread connects the two states of being, pulling and pushing as experiences and situations come your way.

Why Vulnerability Is Good For You

The more you can learn about resilience, the easier it is to admit to being vulnerable. Don’t think of the “V” word as “all or nothing”. Consider instead, that you may be having problems with finances, but your relationships are solid. Your career might be changing tracks, but your zest for learning shows huge potential. Your caregiving responsibilities may not leave time for vacations, but your health is at an all time high.

Resilience means that you can shift when you need to. You can ask for help. You can dig up new resources and deal with the unexpected without falling apart. You can find the valve to release the pressure.

Admit to being vulnerable at times.

Resilience is Learned

Start by figuring out your priorities. If they haven’t changed in the last 10 years, it’s time to do some updating, cleaning out your personal closet of lifestyle choices.

Ask yourself, what are the milestones you expect to reach before too long?
What do you commit yourself to doing?
What are the gaps and the bottlenecks?
What can you do “now” to make sure that you have an elastic band type plan for when things might get tough?

Resilience is proactive, and preventative.

Who do you know who is the poster child of resilience? Take them out for coffee, and ask about how they’ve handled difficulties and obstacles. Get the inside track; give them credit for their good advice; and use the best of the best from multiple sources.

Usually, resilience is found right in front of your nose. Ask yourself the right questions, and you might discover an extra ounce of insight that’s been invisible, until now.

Your coach on call, no strings attached,
Maggie

! Click on the Archives
! Send a comment - your questions are not published. I respond individually.

Now? Near? Far?

2008-05-07T10:21:00.003-04:00

Strategy?

Think NOW,

NEAR,

FAR

View Points
If you want to build a ship, then don't drum up men to gather wood, give orders, and divide the work. Rather, teach them to yearn for the far and endless sea.” - Antoine de Saint-Exupery

Your point of view determines how you will move toward your plan of action. Easy, you say?

When I’m in the role of “traffic cop” during intense and sometimes heated discussions in a strategy session, I hear comments such as, “you just don’t understand what it’s like to be on the front lines”. Leaders become frustrated when the staff does not understand the balancing act of bigger picture decisions, such as the financial implications of expansion. The disconnect, if it stays “off the table”, can create long term problems in relationships. And relationships, as we all know, are the center of any organization.

One way to address the varying points of view in the situation, is to think about the outcomes from a time continuum.

“NOW” is the present and a few weeks ahead. What needs to happen? What should we watch out for?

“NEAR” is a few months into the future. What are the questions that will bring us from right now to the next quarter? Notice, I didn’t ask for answers! Start with the questions – all of the ones that are important from all aspects – and then move to the “right answers”.

“FAR” is the timing for long term strategy. A year or two down the line.

When you think about time as a continuum, the “far” always moves to “near”, and “near” to “now”. What do you see on the horizon?

Work backwards, again with questions. What do you have to start “now” to make sure that “far” is the desired outcome?

My one word of caution?

Simplify! From complexity, comes simplicity. Strategic plans often sit on shelves and collect dust and guilt. The best of strategy comes alive when it’s meaningful to the people who must carry it out today. The timing of “far” will arrive when “now” is a priority. Chunk down the plan. Live it.

NB: When you are stuck, you might need an unbiased facilitator to take you through the beginning of the process.

And remember: this Coach is on call...no strings attached. All you have to do is "ask"!

- Maggie
1 800 587 1767
PS Read the archives!

Applause for Volunteers!

2008-04-28T07:03:00.009-04:00

Hang onto the multiple hats you may be wearing as a volunteer. There’s been a shift in the landscape of the voluntary world, and it’s a reason to celebrate.

What Makes You Happy?

The volunteer experience contributes directly to a person’s happiness quotient.

According to Dr. Martin’s Seligman’s research on Authentic Happiness, there are 3 distinct kinds of happiness: The Pleasant Life (pleasures), the Good Life (engagement) and the Meaningful Life, which reflects the need to belong and serve what is larger and more worthwhile than the self’s pleasures and desires. Seligman states that the combination of all three types of happiness creates “A Full Life”. Involvement with community and philanthropical organizations contributes positively to an individual’s quality of life. That in itself, should encourage more people to throw their hat in the ring.

A Shift in Trends

According to the 2004 Canada Survey on Giving Volunteering and Participating (CSGVP), Canadians make an enormous contribution to our way of life. Almost 12 million individuals volunteered their time to charities or organizations and contributed almost 2 billion volunteer hours.

Did you know that 11% of volunteers do three quarters of the work? Volunteer Canada provides the following shift in trends:

The “new” volunteer is young and geared toward career enhancing opportunities.

New Canadians also want to develop work experience and practice language skills.

Seniors, and the zoomer generation have less time for volunteering, but may be interested in global travel combinations with a voluntary component.

People with disabilities find volunteering a meaningful way to participate in community life.

There’s also another version of volunteering: the “Volun-tolds”. Mandatory school based field work and social service orders require supervised hours of community action.

In the past, volunteers sacrificed for the good of the cause, without specific rewards. Contracts now ensure that the arrangement is mutually beneficial. “What’s in it for me?” has become a consideration for the time, effort and financial investment in the opportunity to help an organization.

The professional manager and the Board of Directors is more concerned with issues of risk and liability and transparency than ever before.

Funding agencies are demanding professionalism in evaluation and output measurements, putting additional pressure on both administrative accountability and volunteer involvement.

National Volunteer Week (April 27 to May 3)

Despite the downtrend in the number of volunteers, those who are actively engaged in the community cite high satisfaction with their involvement.

“Much of what we take for granted is delivered to us by volunteers – community health care, arts and culture, green space maintenance, disaster relief, volunteer firefighting, minor sports, the list is endless,” says Ruth MacKenzie, president of Volunteer Canada. “The work of volunteering is essential to our communities, to our social fabric. This year’s campaign theme, “Volunteers. From compassion to action.” encompasses the inspiration that drives volunteers as they donate their time, energy and skills to better their communities and their country.”

What Can YOU do to Say Thank You?

Perhaps this week, National Volunteer Week should have more of a personal touch.

If you are not a volunteer, serve someone who is. Create an opportunity to individually thank a volunteer you know.

Take a coach out to lunch.

Bring a pot of coffee to your local volunteer fire department as they prepare for the fire season ahead.

Submit a letter to the editor thanking your high school “volun-told” team for their contributions to your business.

Run an errand for the senior who drives cancer patients to their appointments. And while you’re at it, ask them about their happiness factor.

One person’s happiness multiplies with appreciation. Let’s take the time to individually recognize and thank the 12 million volunteers who contribute to the quality of our lives in Canada. Make someone happy....

- Cheers from Your Coach on Call!

Maggie

PS Thanks to the volunteers who visit my mother at Roseview. The time you spend with her lights up her life!

3 Classic Mistakes

2008-04-22T08:10:00.004-04:00

Hiring Summer Staff?
3 Classic Mistakes

My friend Jo is in the process of hiring summer staff for her business.

Last year’s crew totally frustrated her.

She says, “I had wonderful opportunities for 5 young people, and I could only give a positive reference for one of them by the end of the summer. They didn’t show up, but worse than that, they didn’t call in. They didn’t seem to notice that the pamphlet racks were empty. And they ate their lunch on the job, leaving crumbs and empty cans on the counter. What gives with kids these days?”.

Here’s what I told Jo. (Print this article for future reference or forward it to a colleague today.)

Classic Mistake # 1: Assuming that the job applicants understand the scope of their job, and how they contribute to your business.

The job description that you post on the web or through your summer employment office is important. The way that you word your ad, and how you describe your business is the starting point of the hiring process. Don’t assume anything.

Classic Mistake #2: Delegating the interview process.

Take charge of the “system” yourself. It’s worth the time.

If you are expecting your staff to pay attention to detail, then that should be reflected in the resume. Coffee stains and incorrectly addressed envelopes should be a clue to investigate personal habits more closely. Is spelling important on the job? What about math skills at the till?

When you call for the interview appointment, how does the potential employee react on the telephone? Do they even remember applying with your firm? How do they sound? This is the first part of the interview: take notes.

Classic Mistake #3: Haphazard orientation, or “do it yourself” training.

The more you plan the first week on the job, and spend time with each employee, the better the fit in the long run. You are not just training them for the job, you’re building relationships and the culture of the team.

Go through the manuals with your employee, and pay attention to their learning style. How does each individual absorb information? Hands-on? Reading first? Listening to you?

True Story!
Believe it or not, I know an employer who neglected to tell their full time staff that a new person was joining the organization. When she showed up on Monday morning, the receptionist assumed that she was a client waiting for an appointment with her superior, and left her sitting in the waiting room for over an hour. This created a backlash that lasted for weeks, starting with rumors circulating during lunch hour, and a negative start for the latest team member.

To sum it up:

If, as an employer, you are serious about your customer service mandate, then treat your casual employees as the most important clients you’ve ever had. You are setting up the ripple effect of positive influence from the inside out. Word of mouth about “the best summer job I’ve ever had” has the potential of lasting for decades. You can’t buy better advertising.

Remember, leverage your human resources! They are your most important assets...the money will follow.

Your Coach on Call - no strings attached,

Maggie

1 800 587 1767

Need a trainer or a design for your team?

CLICK HERE: http://www.theideasculptor.com/

PS Read "Leverage Tuesdays" at Lake Superior News and "Creative Confessions" at the Country Register (Canada and USA)

RETRO-per-SPECTIVE

2008-04-15T07:39:00.003-04:00

RETRO Per SPECTIVE

It’s all in how you see the situation. Are you moving forward or hanging onto inner conflicts from years ago? Are you really in charge or is someone else driving your buggy?

This past week’s Ideas Du Jour (on your right) featured the letter “O”! If you happen to be wrestling with issues related to Other people, Old arguments, Opposition at work, Over the top screaming fits, then scroll way down to number One on the list. Take some time to reflect on the ideas that jump out at you. And then concentrate on the “O’s”. JWSD = just write stuff down.

This Mennonite Buggy photo, a creation of our resident photographer, is an example of the power of intersections as inspiration. The visual brought to mind the details of an ugly situation at work a few years ago. Even though I loved my job and the people, I was stressed, frustrated, over-worked and hassled by a boss whose leadership style was “Command and Control”. You know, my way or the highway.

Often, solutions come to us in dreams, if we are paying attention! A very vivid picture which told the story of that working environment, surfaced in my imagination.

My supervisor was in charge of the chariot, whip in hand, and I was one of the lead horses. Every time I wanted to change paths, to find a shortcut on another road, I was reigned in. And pulled back. Told to stop. Not go there. Not to ask questions.

You know what happens next, don’t you?

Use your own retrospective to get your life in alignment. You can listen to your heart-song, draw out the bits that are keeping you up at night, find the “OH!” and then take action, you won’t have to worry about the buggies.

If you need a coach to configure your inner GPS, all you have to do is ask. No strings attached!

- Maggie

Water in Fascinating Forms

2008-04-09T11:52:00.006-04:00

LOOK HERE!

Finding the solution to a problem is a phenomenum best explained by the old cliche, "it's right in front of your nose". Another way to express the same concept is "what's most obvious is most invisible". You can leverage your thinking...

Spring is the ideal timing for learning to observe the most obvious problem-solving techniques offered by mother nature. Your brain works best on oxygen, so:

1. Spend time outside. In the morning. In the evening. When the light changes, so does your perspective. Photographers use this technique to create mood, highlight detail and find focus.

2. Zoom in on the details. Seeing the "big picture" takes little effort. Finding the intricate intersections takes concentration.

To learn how to gather detailed imagery, and use it for problem solving, try this easy exercise. Fold a white 8 x 10 sheet of paper in half, and then half again. Tear a chunk out of the middle fold. This gives you a "hole" with uneven edges. Take the paper outside with you, and place it on the ground or on a branch. Get comfortable, and close. Take a look at the details that emerge, and the connections which emerge. Take your time....

Water is an excellent source of inspiration: ice, snow, fog, melting droplets on leaves, debris floating by... translate into solutions for your real life stuck spots. Observing natural systems is a skill you can cultivate. It's so obvious, that it's invisible!

3. Play! Goofing off allows your thinking to take off in unexpected directions. Adding kids = more leverage!

Want to know more? Read through the "Ideas du Jour", right from Point # 1 on January 1 to today... but allow your mind to bounce off the suggestions. (I'll be writing a chapter about EACH post! Lots to think about, lots to learn: right?)

Spring cheers, from your Coach on Call,

Maggie

http://www.theideasculptor.com/

PS If you're enjoying the images on this blog, the credit goes to our official photographer, Richard Chicoine.