Shooting your Troubles
I’m ready for my close up
One of the reasons I find this coaching/mentoring thing so fascinating is that it has a bit of everything, it’s like a great multi genre movie, lots of drama, comedy, tragedy (sometimes). It’s got detective deduction, lots of psychological cliff hangers and at its core an issue that needs solving.
We are told that we as individuals are complex, that everything that has ever happened to us forms the basis for who we are, and this form of development continues as we grow guiding us on this circuitous route through our lives.
It follows then that our businesses are also a product of that, and not just our development as agency leaders but that of all the people we work with both inside and outside the business.
It’s all Chaos!
Our businesses are a great big mess of experiences, dreams, fears, dissonance, bias, and that is why there has to be an absolute goal that guides everyone in that business to behave in a certain way above all others no matter what anyone is feeling that day. If not there is chaos if not in full flow then waiting to happen.
Chaos is not always fire and rage and confusion it can also be quiet and insidious and creeping, and this is what I see most of all in embryo or in full flight in the businesses I speak to.
So, what do you do to address this ‘chaos’ when it is not apparent to the people who have so much invested in the business around them? How do you give them the tools to turn chaos into Harmony?
Helping businesses is not always about ‘problems’ per se. People love to categorise things but as you’ll know if life is sometimes an indivisible mix of sadness and joy or what we categorise as good and bad. Sometimes its knowing how to work with that combination that gets the best results.
Four things that help with Chaos
Sorry, what’s that?
Active listening is probably the greatest tool you can have in your toolbox as an adviser. The more time you spend really actively listening to what people are saying, the more understanding you have of their real situation.
I guess what this means is not so much just hearing what they’re saying but what lies behind those words, what are the internal reasons for what they’re saying, the looks they’re giving, the body language their exhibiting.
So, you are listening with all your senses in order to try and understand what is at the core of the business and the challenges it, and its leaders, face.
Location, location, location
I like if possible to have the first meeting with my client outside the agency. Somewhere where they can at least physically escape from their ‘baby’ in order to relax and talk candidly. Running a business is a relationship of sorts and you’d be surprised at just how many business owners feel bad talking ill of the business while in HQ.
It’s usually at this meeting that we try to look at the obvious needs and I start to get a feeling for the person I’m going to work with and their challenges.
It’s just as important to have the next meeting in the office. To feel the energy, observe the culture, get some time with the people who get up in the morning to come and help fulfil the business goals. All the time watching, always watching.
Your Mission (if you choose to accept it)
When I ask, ‘What is your mission as a business?’ the responses are often from one of two grandiose camps… Saving the World or Making History.
Both are a key part of what makes the founder tick but not necessarily what drives the business forward– the business needs a defined purpose that is not vague or personal but one that has clear tangible deliverables and defined and realistic time frames.
I would ask leaders and their teams to really think about what their business is looking to achieve, what they offer that no one else can, how can they wrap that into a non-ambiguous clearly achievable set of actions to complete that mission – and then find a new mission for the business. Which leads to…
The One Page Pitch
You should really be actioning this as part of your pitch protocol to clients but the same holds true for you….who are you? Who do you help? What problem do you solve/what job do you do for them? Answer those things in a succinct, clear, and of course creative way and you have a very strong position from which to proceed!
If you’d like to talk about any of the fun things above or if you’d like to focus on one in particular or just something a bit more general id be delighted to talk with you. Just book an intro chat <HERE> and we can see what trouble we can get into together!
Oh and while were having fun if you can tell me which Pixar films I’ve referenced in this article you’ll go into a draw to win a free FOCUS SESSION worth £250 +VAT