Just Seven Things

Exploring why and how we do what we do, and how we can do it better

Archive for the category “Leadership”

01 Jul 2008

Goal Setting makes things less Scary

I’ve just come back from our six-monthly strategy away days with the Madgex shareholders. Now these are always good events. We get through a lot of stuff very productively.

This session was particularly productive because since we have tightened the focus of our mission to be the global leaders in job board software and services, our ‘flamenco dancing’ of innovation and creativity has significantly step-changed for the better.

Over the last two days we agreed a set of targets for the five years from 1.2.9. We’re into our fourth year of targets set four years ago which we’ve achieved in each of the years. Now this next set of targets should have ‘filled us with the fear’. We’re talking triple-digit millions. Yet it didn’t.

The reason why I think that it didn’t is that we’ve taken the time to plan the scenarios and imagine what it would be like. We’ve done the sales capacity modelling. We’ve got a big A3 map full of our ideas. We’ve allocated responsibilities and modelled in our heads what it will feel like when we’ve got there.

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Posted in Business, Focus, Leadership, Management, Vision and Goal Setting and tagged , , , , | Leave a comment
27 Jun 2008
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Improving Capacity to see New Possibilities

I delivered the first part of the Madgex ideas and learnings session on the Behaviours of Leaders and Managers today.

I think it went well. I’d concentrated on researching and distilling down from a top down view the ‘best’ behaviours of managers and leaders. The bit that really ended up interesting me as I researched in more depth was quite a lot of the writing within the topic of ‘insight’ as a key leadership trait.

The obvious elements of insight obviously weren’t surprising: self awareness and an understanding of others are hugely important.

However, Andrew Leigh and Michael Maynard’s thinking and observations around ‘seeing or perceptions of situations’ in particular really struck a cord.

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Posted in Business, Leadership, Management, NLP and tagged , ,
18 Jun 2008

The Why of Story Telling

Why is story telling so important? What is the equivalent of the nature vs. nurture analysis when applied to story telling?

I can see that through the ages, and particularly prior to the written word or books, stories/ myths/ legends were the ways in which human and cultural knowledge and history was passed through the ages.

I can see that it had practical uses that served its purposes. Whether providing warning of dangers or advising of best practices. Or merely for entertainment.

But why is it still so powerful? Companies are advised to tell their story. Brand advisers and advertising executives go back through the annals of the corporate histories to find the stories and put them central to the brand or product messaging. And it works. As an individual you engage with that company or product because of an historical or projected story that it weaves.

Client pitches or proposals invariably have a section for the story of the company. The ‘About’ sections of corporate websites are heavily trafficked as people strive to found the company in place, time and events.

Leaders are now advised to find their story too. It helps provide a hook into the real person rather than the faceless executive; both for their company and the people who work for it, and the media.

What is it in our nature that that requires this comfort? Is it a ‘knowing’ and ‘trust’ thing? Does somebody or something’s story enable us to create a fuller map of that individual or corporate? Something that we can then work on and from in building a relationship into the future.

Whatever it is, it’s powerful and without it you’re missing out.

Posted in Business, Communication, Leadership and tagged | Leave a comment

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