Tags: communication | managing

A couple of recent “communication kerfuffles” have me thinking about how I could have handled the situations differently and how lack of good communication can hamper a firm’s growth. By handling these situations differently, I wonder how I could or should have communicated or responded for additional clarification so the situations didn’t result in such an ambiguous state. When there is a lack of clarity of next steps or follow-up between the communicating parties, time is wasted as both parties often don’t move forward (or are able to move forward as quickly) on tasks, projects, or goals as a cohesive team.

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I helped form and am the coach of a 16U girl’s club fastpitch softball team.  In our welcome letter (email) sent out to players selected to play on the team, we outlined the payment schedule.  Since it is fairly expensive to play on the team, we created a payment schedule…one amount due up front last fall, another amount due by the end of the year, and another amount due when registering this spring.  Seemed easy and reasonable and that it was communicated clearly to the parents.  Somehow, between last fall and the beginning of the season, the parents had forgotten (or disregarded) the payment schedule.  Numerous emails and phone calls have had to be made to get each player registered and receive the scheduled payments.  Poor communication and follow-up resulted in a lot of extra work to get things cleared up and back on track.  We will do things differently next season!

Another example of poor communication happened recently in my business. In one of my consulting engagements, I had completed the work I agreed upon for the client.  The client had mentioned other projects they had and I had expressed interest in working on them after I had completed what I was working on for them and other clients.  They agreed that we could wait to proceed on these future engagements. A few weeks later, I contacted the client regarding the other projects that were previously mentioned. The projects were never mentioned and the response was almost like they never existed. It is entirely possible that the company had a change of plans, I get that.  What I don’t get is the lack of communication when plans change.

We all have run into similar situations with clients, business partners, family and friends.  

I believe one of the worst things that results from poor communication is that one (or both) parties are left not knowing what the next steps are or should be. If someone is unsure what the next steps or follow-up from the communication should be, they will likely do something unintended. Most people would rather “know where they stand” even if they receive bad news than not knowing where they stand.   Uncertainty results in frustration from both parties.

Do a Google search  for “Good Communication” or “Communication Skills” or something similar and you will get dozens of pages of results. Below are some recommendations from experts to communicate more clearly as well as some of my own suggestions from prior experiences.

Things we all should consider to reduce unclear, ambiguous, and confusing communication and the frustration that results:

·         Be attentive (listen closely)-  Make sure both sides are clear on expectations/next steps/outcomes/follow-up needed or required.

·         Be an “active” listener-  Listen  to what is being said with no agenda. Do not think of your response until after the other person has finished speaking.

·         Focus on the person you are communicating with- Maintain eye contact. Smile, look the other person in the eyes and show interest in what they are saying.  Don’t get distracted by what is going on around you (email, phone, etc).  Have you ever been talking with someone and they seem more interested in their phone and email than they do talking with you?

·         Slow down when communicating- In the age of multi-tasking and getting more done in less time, we are often in a hurry.  Slowing down during the communication process will result in less confusion and frustration later on.  This is particularly true when communicating via text, email, or voicemail.

·         Speak clearly and use the right words, tone, and body language. Think of the message you want to convey before your words come out.

·         Read the entire written communication- When communicating in writing, particularly via email, make sure to read the entire email. What needs to be responded to or followed up on is often at the end of the email.  Over the years, I have noticed that the message receiver has not answered my question(s) fully or only answered one of the multiple questions or issues addressed. We are becoming used to communicating in 140 characters or less. Our attention span seems to be getting shorter!

·         Get to your point- If you are long-winded in your written or verbal communication, your message can get lost.   Be direct and honest.  Everyone is busy, don’t waste people’s time.

·         Ask questions and seek clarification if you do not understand the message.  This will help assure both parties that there is no confusion.

·         Say what you will do and do what you say-  Be true to your word.  We all have had people say they will do something and then not deliver on what they say.  Your credibility depends on your word.

The results of poor communication to your business can be many.  However, if you follow these suggestions, you will experience less confusion and ambiguity, have confidence that your business is moving forward (things are getting done), and be more assured that everyone on the team is “on the same page.”

Build your business wisely.

Tags: document management system

This Website Is For Financial Professionals Only

Tags: business planning | goals | strategic planning

Since we are fast approaching another quarter-end in a little over a month, it is a good time to look at whether you are on target to accomplish the goals you set for your business this year.  Being able to hit these yearly goals depends entirely on what you are doing on a shorter-term basis, daily, weekly, and every 90-days.  Here are some considerations when working on your 90-day priorities.

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Accomplishing your longer-term goals (3, 5, 10 years) requires breaking these down into one year and 90 day short-term goals which I will refer to as priorities.  From that, prioritize your weekly and daily tasks and projects to accomplish your 90-day priorities.  Sounds easy, right?  It’s not.  It takes a huge investment of discipline, patience, and focus for you and your staff to continuously work these 90-day objectives.  Discipline is needed to continuously work on your 90-day priorities, patience is needed to not set overly improbable expectations, and focus is needed to concentrate and work on your firm’s priorities.  If you work these 90-day priorities, you will see marked progress toward your longer-term goals.

Setting and continuously working these 90-day objectives is important for the following reasons:

• Identifies what you need to accomplish to help reach the firm’s goals.
• Prioritizes and provides focus on your tasks and projects.
• Establishes agreement between employee and supervisor regarding individual and department 90-day tasks and priorities. Everyone is “on the same page.”
• Provides accountability for each employee in the firm.

Setting and working these 90-day objectives should become a way of life in your organization. That way, everyone is speaking the same language and is focusing on the same things.  Each staff member will have different 90-day objectives, but together, accomplishing these objectives leads to attaining the larger firm-wide goal(s).

A few other things to consider in mind when identifying, creating, prioritizing, and working your longer-term goals and 90-day objectives.

• Put the goals and priorities in writing- this has proven to be an effective way of attaining longer-term goals. If the goals are in writing (documented) you will be reminded of and visualizing your goals, and therefore, more likely to accomplish them.
• Make goals action-oriented- When documenting the goals, use terms (verbs) like Complete, Finalize, Create, Develop, Prepare, Conduct, Analyze, Write, etc.
• Keep the list of goals between 4-7, depending on how time-intensive and involved these objectives will be.  If you try to do more than this number, you will only dilute your focus and accomplish less. Stay focused on a few to accomplish more.
• Prioritized the goals- The most important task or project needing to be completed to accomplish the objective should be first on the list. Continuously identify and prioritize each of your tasks and projects.
• Use a time deadline.  If you say “Goal X needs to be completed by June 30^th” (or whatever date) it creates more urgency.  Since these are 90-day objectives, new ones should be set every 90 days. March 31^st, June 30^th, September 30^th, and December 31^st work well for financial advisory firms since we are used to these dates from a markets and reporting perspective.
• Make them S.M.A.R.T.- You have likely heard this acronym with variations in the terms used. When you and your staff are creating goals, make sure they are S.M.A.R.T..  Are your goals…

• SPECIFIC- It has to be easily understood. A good rule for whether the goal is specific is…if someone outside the firm can read the goal and understand it, it is probably specific.
• MEASURABLE (and MOTIVATIONAL)- You need to be able to measure the goal. How many? How much?
• ATTAINABLE (or ACHIEVABLE and ACTIONABLE)- Don’t try to accomplish more than is possible in the 90-days.  You want to stretch yourself and your employees without setting unrealistic expectations.
• REALISTIC (and RELEVANT)- Your team needs to believe that the goal is attainable or you won’t be able to hold them accountable for reaching it.
• TIMELY (or TIME-BOUND)- Set a reasonable date for completion. By when? This helps create a sense of urgency.

Effectively executing our longer-term plan requires continually measuring progress toward our goals, creating a timeline, and holding each staff member accountable. Think in terms of 90-day chunks.

To be effective managers of our businesses, we need to continually monitor and work on our priorities and goals. This requires us to be disciplined, patient and focused.

Build your business wisely.

I've been reflecting on what's important in my business and personal life. Part of this reflection comes from contemplating my business--what direction to take it and how to make it better. Part of it was prompted by the recent tragedies in the news.  Time often seems to move too fast and things happen that are outside of our control.

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To achieve our goals, it's important to remember to manage our time effectively and focus on what's really important, on tasks that move us closer to achieving a longer-term goals.

Borrowing from Dr. Stephen Covey, try this exercise: imagine having a bucket of tiny pebbles, dozens of small rocks, and a small number of big rocks.  The rocks represent all the things you need to accomplish and the bucket represents time and resources.  

All of the pebbles and rocks can fit in the bucket, but only when placed in the proper order.  If you put the big rocks in first, you can fit the remaining smaller rocks and pebbles around the big rocks. But if you put the pebbles and smaller rocks in the bucket first, you won’t be able to fit the big rocks in.

This little exercise shows why it's important to focus on the big rocks first, on the important tasks to reach your goals.

It's easy to get distracted by little things.  We're all so easily tempted to responding to non-critical emails, schedule or attend unimportant meetings. We're all so easily distracted by clients who habitually take too much of our time. It's so easy to let people drop-in for a visit and hijack the day, or to get caught up with Facebook, LinkedIn, or surfing the Web. Such distractions leave less time time to work on tasks and projects that are important to reaching  short- and long-term goals.  The little things, th pebbles pull us off course, when the big rocks are what should get attention.

The big rocks are the three to five most important things you and your staff need to accomplish in a given period of time.  They represent those tasks and projects that are critically important to the firm’s growth and success as opposed to things that we may perceive as important but are often just “time thieves.” 

The big rocks are priorities. They provide the focus and drive the tasks and projects each employee works on and keep the firm from drifting off course.  When they become the focus of everyone in the firm, the rocks also become the main topic of conversation at meetings and employee reviews.  A few of these would include:  “Are we on track to reaching the big rocks?” “If not, why?”  “What course of action do we need to change or add?” “Did my employee reach their big rocks during the year?”

Review your big rocks twice a week. On Monday, identify what needs to get done during the week.  On Friday, review your (your staff’s) progress during the week to see if you are staying on course.

The “rocks” analogy is not only applicable to working on business but also on our personal issues. Spend time on the big rocks including… family, faith, health, friends, education, supporting a cause, making a difference in the lives of others.

This analogy is equally applicable to the lives of your clients. I’m sure some of them struggle with these same challenges and it can help them focus on what is most important to them.  It might also start a dialog between you and your clients regarding what is important to them and help develop a deeper client-advisor relationship.  If you know what their big rocks are, you can incorporate them into their overall financial plan.

Build your business wisely, live your life wiser.

If you would like to see Dr. Covey demonstrate the analogy, Google “Stephen Covey Big Rocks.”  There are a few different versions posted.