Dealing with “Deadlocks”

In our professional & personal life, we may have come across times when nothing seems to be working! As said, life has it s good and bad times. Even though we may have a very positive mind to console ourselves that bad times do not last and will fade away. we boost our energies and try to move forward, we still find more obstacles and challenges, which hurt us or slow us down. Sometimes we feel stuck - like a “deadlock”.

Have you had any such experiences? If yes, how did you cope with it?

Any views and suggestions on what are the best approaches towards such a situation?
Appreciate your views and thanks in advance,
Sujatha

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Being conflicted or caught for a while frequently follows setbacks or bad outcomes. The cycle is typically a rewind loop that mentally relives the bad situation with a variety of “would have”, “could have”, “should haves”.

The key to breaking out is to recognize that the past is over, and only what you are doing right now in the present counts. If the indecision stems instead from a potential future decision or action, the key is the same: ask yourself what you are literally doing right now, and what you should do instead. Use the present to make a difference in the outcome of the past or the future.

A good example is writer’s block. Without fail, simply forcing yourself to start writing a sentence—any sentence—will break the block. You can crumple up the paper—or hit delete—and the sentence is gone, but the momentum takes over and words begin to flow. I’m told that Tiger Woods attributes much of his success to focusing his entire attention on the stroke that he is making right now, not reliving the missed putt of the prior hole or worrying about the fact that another player is three strokes ahead and the match might go to him later in the round. He stands over the ball and reminds himself that in this situation his stance should be a certain way, his grip, etc., then let’s the muscle memory take over and makes the shot as he has a hundred or thousand times before.

- Robert Dolezal

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For me, a deadlock occurs when the existing options, information, thoughts don’t present any clear way forward. When this happens, the only solution is to get more options, information or thoughts. In recent times there have been two ways I’ve tried to do this when I reached a deadlock about what I wanted to do with my life. I’ve just chosen one option and proceeded down it. This turned out to be a very painful option - but it ultimately presented me with new choices (though not necessarily better ones). The second way, and the way I recommend is, I sort out more information. I talked (and continue to talk) to lots of different people (including a consellor). I asked questions about about life, what they thought life was, who they thought themselves to be, what was important to them, who they were, who they thought I was etc, etc, etc.
- David Collett

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In the West, our culture trains us to seek black/white, right/wrong, either/or solutions. This predisposes us to attack an issue/problem/challenge/”deadblock” with just more people, money, resources, etc. Shelby Foote in Ken Burn’s CIVIL WAR documentary said that the reason there were so many casualties in Civil War battles was that the technology (the rifles) had changed but the tactics had not. The rifles were much more accurate than those used in the Revolutionary War but the tactics of frontal charges didn’t. Hence, large numbers of dead and wounded in each battle.

In our day to day lives, we face much of the same thing. The “technology” for problem-solving has changed but our habits, our preferences, our strategies and tactics have not. We keep doing the same thing over and over and expect different results. This was Einstein’s definition of insanity.

Rather than backing up at a deadblock and then attacking front on with harder force, try using an “Akkido” approach. Let the deadblock be. Like MacArthur in the Pacific, “island hop” past the barrier and do an end run, flanking movement, or reverse. The seemingly insurmountable deadblock will often die its own death by being ignored or rendered into a lower priority.

- Jerry Linnins
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Sujatha:
I try very hard not to allow ‘deadlock’ or ‘road blocks’ keep me from moving forward, It’s a mindset that seems to work for me. Sometimes thinking too hard about something will only strengthen the ‘deadlock’ situation. Life is full of choices, so I just make one and move forward. If it turns out to be the wrong choice, I’ll find out about it soon enough and have an opportunity to change direction and correct my course. Sometimes going in a direction that you are not all that sure of will reveal many new perspectives from which to determine your future course and destination.

- Terri L Maurer
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Hi Sujatha,

Life is a lesson which we learn along the way. I would suggest you think back to the time you were a very very young child, things were not always easy BUT we knew they were possible! That is the important part “WE KNEW”

For the child learning to walk! The challenge of standing, balancing, taking the first step – the pitfalls – yeah were actually REAL – you Fell and had to get up. All around there was encouragement! People would always help and they also knew it was possible. We had role models to see & copy. Basically – decide what you want, see the value in having it and if there is pain or suffering – deal with it as you know they say “No pain no gain” There are no “good or bad” there are Just times and it often depends on our perspective how we Judge them – so don’t judge. Live in the now, in the moment – Give thanks that you Have an opportunity to Take part! Remember – we do not live forever! Nike express it will with “Just do it”

- Danny Small
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Hi Sujatha,

One can give an endless gyan over how to overcome “deadlocks”. But, its not an easy one as one may assume it to be!!
My suggestion would be this –

• When you are in a “dead lock” situation, the first thing to check is your capability and suitability(after measuring the needs of the situation) to handle the problem in hand.
• Next, determine the time you would take to solve the problem.
• If you think it is going to take a lot of time to solve or not possible to solve the problem, identify people who would be able to help you. Scream for help right away.
• Take a judgmental call on who would be able to help you better based on instincts.
  I just want to add something which might be of help - “Use people to solve people problems. How you use them and what you do is up to you.”

- Raghuraman Anantharamakrishnan
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These situations are commonplace
Sometimes it takes a change in my path, getting out and doing something different for a while. Sometimes it takes finding my way outside the box, trying something so radical it could never work, just to see where the thought process goes.

- Robert Fornal

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Here are three I use with reliable success:

1. Ask the person who is most resistant: What will satisfy you? This helps me get to the heart of the difficulty.

2. If they say “nothing will satisfy them, I usually will vigorously agree with them that the situation is impossible, that nothing will work, and we should all quit. The trick is to say this with sincerity, not sarcasm. The person who is causing the deadlock often is what Gestalt psychologists used to call “grounded in resistance” and they will often flip positions - just to be against what I am saying!

3. I back off and try to find some way to set up a success with the person, even something small. I either look for commonality in some personal realm or find something the parties can agree upon - anything that will help them (and me) experience a positive result. Once I solved a deadlock when I found out the other person loved the same baseball team I did (Chicago Cubs, of course).
Hope this helps...

In addition, in the world of professional negotiation, there are lots of proven techniques; I like to browse through professional sales magazines for practical tips.

Pat Wagner

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Sujatha

The underlying assumption of your question is that you are always supposed to be progressing. This is not necessarily so. In the process of creation, there is an incubation period when it seems that nothing is happening. That is the period in which one must tolerate ambiguity and unpredictability - and I might add - keep one’s eyes wide open, because that is when the simplest and quietest moments of genius often present themselves. Bearing in mind a simple premise, “If you always do what you’ve always done, you always get what you always got,” attempt to find quiet rest during a period of what you perceive to be deadlock. Put yourself in an environment where you feel safe and comfortable. Take a break and don’t think about the deadlock. Re-orient your thinking to a neutral, non-judgmental position, and a new and highly viable alternative may appear. But, give it time.

- Leri M. Thomas
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I know it’s over used, but look at the situation like a game of chess. Take solace in moves to comes and plan, plan, plan, plan your way out.
When in these situations I like to find ways that draw my opponent towards me. That may consist of developing services or products that I know will draw a resistant party’s interest. Or it may mean working more with a competitor and letting the word blow down wind. The key to cracking any tight situation however is planning.

- Nathan Schultz
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As soon as I overcome an obstacle, God throws another one at me. I cope through yoga and the understanding that the one who got me through the last one will get me through the next one.
That “one” being the same who threw the first.

- Howard Halpem

How do you deal with ungrateful people?

Asked by Dr. Earl R. Smith II

Earl,

The great Epic Bhagwat Gita, states, "Do good to people but do not expect results. Do your duty and leave the rest unto God. Do not expect anything in return. That is the theory of Karma". When you expect results, and it is not favorable, then it just hurts you. Moreover, I believe we do something good for other, since we want to do good and not to gain popularity. I can share the beautiful poem by Mother Teresa, which seems to be very apt here:

"People are often unreasonable, illogical, and self centered; Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, People may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives; Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies; Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you; Be honest and frank anyway.

What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight; Build anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous; Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow; Do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have, at it may never be enough; Give the world the best you've anyway.

You see, in the final analysis it is between you and God; It was never between you and them anyway"

Best Regards,
Sujatha Das

Does anyone know how to lead an icebreaker for a meeting where people make the different rhythmic sounds of a rainstorm?

Asked by Dr. Shaun Jamison

Dr. Shaun,

I have not done this myself anywhere, but remember reading it somewhere. Not sure where I read it, but had written down on my notes on Ice Breakers. "Follow these actions (when put together, they sound like a rainstorm): Rub hands together, snap fingers, clap hands, slap thighs, stomp feet, slap thighs, clap hands, snap fingers, rub hands, rest hands on lap." Not sure whether this is exactly what you are looking for, but thought it may help.

Best Regards,
Sujatha Das

What do you do to get unstuck?

Asked by Dr. Shaun Jamison

Dr. Shaun,

These are some of the things I practice, when I get stuck: a) Take a short break and do not think of it. May be have a cup of coffee and then return with a clear mind, sometimes it helps. b) Talk to a friend who may be an expert. c) Research on the Internet or Consult some books, which may spark and idea.

Regards,
Sujatha Das

What will make you feel Successful? If you aim to be as great as I do everyone will know you either by name or the work you have done. Do you agree wi

Asked by C J Deguara

Good Day!

I think if I am able to help someone or provide support mentally or at work or in some way make a person happy, I would truly feel satisfied. Recognition need not come from others. If one feels within oneself, that " I have done something good today or achieved something today", that in itself is a biggest achievement. The self-confidence, the positive energies to do more good, and the drive to be more happier comes from within.

Regards,
Sujatha

Which "secret" lesson has had the greatest impact on your life?

Asked by Terry Bean

Terry,

"Think positive and do good, God will take care of the rest" - this has been the secret lesson taught to me while I was young and it has helped me all though!

Regards,
Sujatha

Competency model: how does it work in your organization?

Asked by Sergey Karandin

Sergey,

To answer your queries by points:

1. Organizations may choose to derive from various Competency Models that may be in the Industry.
   The best way to go about will be (a) to identify the different roles within the organization and the possible career paths (eg., defining of a Competency Landscape for units). (b) Then draw up a Competency Matrix (details on the role, responsibilities - Primary / Secondary, The Skills and Knowledge Required, be it Domain, Technical, Behavioral, Management, the Qualifications, Experience and a Competency Rating that the organization would deem fit. This should also cover details such as Basic, Advanced, Expert or Role Model for instance within the Skills and Knowledge for addressing various Levels within a role.
2. After developing the Competency Matrix, Validation can be done based on the existing information being filled in by employees and identifying the gaps to enable training or performance enhancements.
3. It is a good practice to perform informal appraisals every quarter (to enable the monitoring and growth of an individual based on Goals defined) and conducting a formal appraisal at the end of the year. I hope this helps.

Regards,
Sujatha Das

What are (or have been) the biggest obstacles for change initiatives in your organization and why?

Asked by Eric Knauf

Eric,

The major challenges I personally feel from my past experience are:
a) Support & Commitment from the Senior Management
b) Tools, Infrastructure and Resource Constraints
c) Communication For any change initiative, it is of prime importance to have pro-activeness, commitment and a drive from all towards achieving the goals.

When a change is proposed, if the buy-in and commitment is set in, a lot can be achieved in terms of constraints. Once the commitment is there, the next thing is Resources and Tools, which enable in supporting the change initiative. But most importantly, Communication if not done well, makes the worst impact. The best of communicators can also be misunderstood and this is the key factor to be addressed in the right manner. Hope this helps.

Regards,
Sujatha

What would you say are the best ways for researching Customer Experience? How useful is the customer experience strategy?

Asked by C J Deguara

CJ,

I think many members have provided valuable suggestions here. I do agree with all those who have mentioned about asking the Customer about their experiences. But before this one additional step I can think of is also researching on the competitors of the Customer. The industry wide experiences and the competitors of the Customer will enable you to probe more into specific areas that you may wish to know about. You may also come across some points that they would not have thought through well, which can come of aid to you in your selection of candidate profile that you are looking for. Some of the research sites like Forrester will also provide you good articles on how well the customer is perceived or even about the industry. Hope this helps,

Regards,
Sujatha

What role do you think risk and risk management plays in the modern enterprise?

Asked by Brook Walker

Brook,

According to me, risks are to be viewed in a holistic manner and not separately as Strategic and Operational. Risk Management involves recognition of risks, Risk Assessment, Developing strategies to Manage Risks, and Mitigation using resources. The increase in cost of risk and compliance activities are leading enterprises to integrate compliance and risk management into a comprehensive risk management function, which addresses all sort of risks, and which will enable organization to increase their business efficiency. Integrating Strategic and Operational risks brings forth a large potential synergy in terms of risk identification and assessment and also with respect to adopting appropriate responses, aligned to business strategy in addressing them. Therefore I would not separate this into two.

Best Regards,
Sujatha

Who is the most committed person you know?

Asked by Steven Howard

Steven,

The most committed person I have known in my professional life has been one of the Leaders I worked with in my early years of career, well known as G N Mathur (fondly called as GNM). His patience, perseverance, ability to connect to all regardless of their age or experience, the smiling face who had an answer to every one's problem and his organized way of working (complete balance of personal and professional work), the timely results and follow-ups and information sharing....I could just go on and on....were all factors, which made me see his commitment levels so high. All around him, always saw him as a true leader who, "Walked the Talk". Ever encouraging and creating a high self-esteem in all the employees, the way every person looked and spoke high of him, through out his career and even today (after his retirement) speaks volumes about him. I guess the only reason I can see what made him commit so much was probably his good nature to "Do good for people and do your work well". The effect that people had for him can be summarised in statements like, "We are here in this organization, since he is there", "I wish I could be like him", "Where does he get the answers for all queries and his patience to resolve conflicts?" et al... I sincerely admire him and wish I could imbibe some of the things that he did for us, to make us believe that we can do wonders and we had the capability to grow high. Several lessons taught through subtle experiences and observing his own way of working has brought major impacts in my own perspectives as it stands today and I am happy about it. I have seen him very balanced and therefore I think it is in the mind and control of one's own self that we are able to provide time for all activities. We on our own should be able to draw a line of what we can do, what we want to do and what we are doing. Hope this helped.

Best Regards,
Sujatha

In the next decade, the most powerful way for companies to train their employees would be?

Asked by Shweta Kapoor

Shweta,

I will not choose one from the options, since I strongly believe there are many factors like content, the audience, the depth of the topic, et al, which actually makes one decide the methodology of delivery. Each of them have their pros and cons and mostly a blended mode provides us with better options. For example, for learning of tools or product, we may use an e-learning methodology, but a complete effectiveness will be made only if this is supplemented with a facilitator's presence to pre-brief this before the commencement, and de-brief on doubts, clarifications etc at the end. I have practically implemented some of these and has seen that many a times one particular delivery does not give the results we really aim for. I often used to say, it is easy to teach driving via simulations, but after learning if you provide the person a car and ask him/her to drive, the results may not be what we look forward for. Therefore, depending on the competency, skills and knowledge that needs to be acquired organizations may choose multiple, or all of these but deliver them in a blended manner. Each one of the methodology mentioned by you have its advantages and disadvantages. This is my personal view, so it is difficult for me to opt one. I am sure you will get a lot of response to this interesting query!

Good Luck,
Sujatha

How do you deal with people who are chronically unprepared?

Asked by Dr. Earl R. Smith II

Earl,
I agree with Robert that this is un-excusable. If the are people who are chronically unprepared, and are not changing after providing coaching, then it is best to re look whether it is worth having them in a team, since it affects team work and morale. This behavior to me arises from the fact that they do not want to accept responsibility or be accountable of what they do. Probably coming out of an environment where they never had to do it. These people probably, do not understand the value of time, work or are not serious about what they do. If the situation is that, the person(s) cannot be removed but have to be managed, then one of the best way to handle is providing them tasks and direction and expectations around the deliverable with timelines, rather than looking forward for their participation. Hope this helps.

Regards,
Sujatha

Corporate Meetings: What needs to happen after the event?

Asked by Andrew Wilcox

Andrew,
My view would be the following:

1. To post information on Intranet or relevant space (both a high level summary and details) wherein all the people can go back and refer.
2. To have a common email address or facility for people to post their further queries, clarifications, doubts if they have any.
3. Frequent follow-ups to check for queries and answer them
4. Depending on the action item and the time frame decided, another follow-up meeting to discuss the results or status of action points.

Even if there are no specific action items, it is still good to do a pulse check after a specific time period to see the reactions or seek views and suggestions from the people.

Regards,

Sujatha

What will archaeologists uncover about our society in 5000 years?

Asked by Dan Ogden

Dan,

An Interesting question... Even if we were to record, with the Natural calamities due to Global warming, the never ending wars and terrorism that exist today, probably God alone knows what will be left behind in future! As I view it personally, if there are any ways and means for the future generation not to get exposed to the negativity that is existing all around, and if there was a way of instilling positive energies into them, to make them more constructive and productive for good, it would be better! It is a fact that good and bad co-exist and it is also required to understand and learn from experiences and to be able to sustain goodness. But even though technology has advanced, and so is all other fields, people have awareness, are educated and literate, it seems strange that we are not being able to use the intellect to preserve the goodness and avoid doing wrong things. Simplicity, Truth, Integrity, Compassion, Trust are all wading away from relationships. If there is a some means to stop all these and show the future generation a positive world, that in itself I feel will be a great achievement for our society. I may have digressed from the core topic, but when I think of records that go into the history as past events, we seem to have more on the negative side than positive! Was just thinking will we want a generation to know how we have not been able to preserve a good, healthy and positive environment for them?

Regards,
Sujatha

Why is common sense uncommon?

Asked by Salil Agrawal

Salil,

One of the dictionary definition for common sense states, "Sound judgment not based on specialized knowledge; native good judgment." Common sense therefore is what people in common would agree: that which they "sense" in common as their common natural understanding. It relates to the knowledge and experience most people have, or are believed to have by the person using the term. We feel it is hard to find common sense, because most of us force ourselves to think in a logical and analytical way, which may not be in line with the natural thinking. Common sense is sometimes regarded as an impediment to abstract and even logical thinking, especially where human intuition often conflicts with probably correct or experimentally verified results.

Regards,
Sujatha

What is Enlightenment?

Asked by Bjorn Martinoff

Bjorn,

Enlightenment is one's natural state of being when the mind is not clinging to anything. It is our emergence from our self-imposed immaturity. A spiritual awakening, which transforms our lives and perceptions. To site the meaning from the famous The Bhagavad Gita, "Fundamentally, the Bhagavad Gita proposes that true enlightenment comes from growing beyond identification with the ego, the little self, and that one must identify with the truth of the immortal Self, the soul or Atman, the ultimate divine consciousness. Through detaching from the personal ego, the yogi, or follower of a particular path of yoga, is able to transcend his mortality and attachment for the material world and see the infinite." To gain the ability of what our life is really all about is always bigger than what our mind can imagine. Something inside us is awake and is continuously motivated, inspired, and realizing we are a magical being who is manifesting the life that we visualize. Enlightenment is a dramatic shift in our everyday paradigm. It is about empowering others and ourselves to discover that inner peace is our most natural state. This inner peace breeds the greatest self-confidence and transformation in our energies and perspectives. It is the most effortless, easy, and essential core of who we are. Enlightenment is about reaching out to others with a great compassion and acceptance, no matter how negative they are. It may sound very difficult, but with constant practice, patience and perseverance, we can achieve this.

Regards,
Sujatha

Using LinkedIn: Why answer questions, and should every question have a "Best Answer"?

Asked by Dan Ogden

Dan,

A Good question! This is my perspective on your query. To answer the first part of the question, as to "Why answer questions", I look at it as sharing my perspective to a query, which I feel I can address. There are many which I would have liked to address and may not have an answer, which to me is a take away for more reading and learning about it. It enriches my knowledge to learn from others perspectives too. So I do not answer a question thinking will my answer be chosen as a Good answer or a Best Answer. My motivation of answering comes from the fact that I am able to address a query. To address the second part, "Should every question have a Best Answer",- why not? It is good to know how best your answer has helped the questioner to either get an answer which he/she is looking forward for, or trying to deliberate and understand views. I must say that many of the questions I have asked till date, I have wonderful answers from all respondents and it is a tough task to even choose or vote Best answers. Sometimes, the respondent may be in total disagreement with what you may have asked, but it is really good to see another perspective, that one may have not even thought about. But personally I do not view it as a caveat for gauging just the knowledge of a person, since I believe it is not easy to respond many times and I respect each person's ideas, thoughts, suggestions, views and experiences. The choice to me is from how best the respondent has been able to address the points to a given query with clarity and rationale. In all, I really enjoy asking queries and answering since I view this as an enrichment to my brain and knowledge. Topics and deliberations done well just enables one to see various perceptions, which in turn helps one to decide very clearly on critical occasions.

Regards,

Sujatha

Can human lives have noble purpose?

Asked by Arjan Haring

I have not done any study of the theories you have mentioned, but here is my perspective: When a person is truly happy and fulfilled, it is shown in his expressions, ways of dealing with people et al. Mostly the signs of happiness that we get to see in others are the results and not the cause for the happiness. If we learn to live every day as it comes, every moment with gratitude, wonder, love and kindness, we would be happy with actually looking for a reason to be happy. This makes it more meaningful since happiness comes from within. Smile, and there will be much to smile about. Be thankful, and there will be plenty of reasons for being thankful. Once we make happiness conditional, then we are limiting it and driving it away from us. I believe in the statement, "Do good to the world and the Good will come back to you". We actually feel more happy at the end of the day, when we see our customers or colleagues being happy at the small things we do. It is the smile that they return that makes us feel satisfied. If the good times never ended, they would cease to be so good. Without change, without growth, without challenge, life would become stale and empty. So we should also take care in life not to feel sad or apprehensive that the good will come to an end. So fear of loss of happiness will never make us happy, rather we should learn to live the moment. When we learn to be happy at all times, we understand that the essence of happiness is always with us. Life changes every moment and change is the only constant thing and blessing. It teaches us a lot. Set aside the complaints, excuses, conditions and demands, and make a place for happiness in your world. Be happy, and you'll discover a whole new level of life's richness. So I feel that humans can live noble and with all positive intent, which makes their life more fulfilled and satisfied. Positive energies only spread goodness and it always helps in making this world a better place to live!

Regards,
Sujatha

Relationship of KM with other functions in an organization

Asked by Shahnawaz Khan

Hi Shahnawaz,

Great question! I am in full agreement to the last sentence you have written on Knowledge Management being a cross-functional discipline and needs to focused separately and with due importance. The fact that KM has a lot of integral points of coordination with other functions does make the judgement of whether it is to be aligned or viewed separately a difficult proposition to organizations. Let us look at Knowledge Management in stages: The first stage is ensuring creation of repositories, classification of artifacts for ease of people looking for information and therefore many look at Information Technology as one place where it should reside. The second stage mainly focuses on Knowledge sharing - creation of COI's - Communities of Interest and COP's Communities of Practices, Competency Development et al, which essentially means that Learning & Development plays a key focus and importance. So Training, Research and HR are possible places of alignment for few organizations. Stage 3 and 4 becomes more critical where in there is the "Re-Use of Knowledge that is captured and Virtual Teaming, respectively. Since all these require processes to ensure everything runs smooth, a natural way of looking at it is alignment with Quality, which most organizations follow. Ideally, to me, this should be viewed separately and given its due importance looking at the facts that Competency development, Processes for ensuring smooth functioning, Tools for enabling Information Mining, Storage and reuse, virtual team work, et al, are all critical components of KM, it is good to partner with other functions and work independently as a function towards building a good flow of information and subject matter experts within the organization.

Regards,

Sujatha

What is the difference between being a "workaholic" and being passionately in love with what you do?

Asked by Yvette Dubel

A Workaholic is someone who is addicted to work. These people do not have time for anything else. Even if they have the intent to spent time with near and dear ones, they can easily be influenced and taken away by the work. Whereas, those who are passionately in love with what they do, can also draw a line in what they deliver. Their focus will be to do whatever they do in the best possible manner. They take time out in breaks, may even try to gain knowledge and expertise or be innovative or becreative with things around...have keen observation and looking for something new and better options. This is my personal view.

Regards,

Sujatha

What is the difference between customer and client?

Asked by Betrand Yella

Betrand,

In Quality parlance, a Customer is someone you interact with very closely -may be an Internal customer (same team members, inter groups, intra groups) etc or External customer (who may be even a business colleague or partner from different geography with whom you work with a sometimes deliver results). Client is normally referred to the end-use who actually uses the product or services. When there is no intermediate delivery that we do, we may just have an internal customer and an external customer alone.

Hope this helps,

Sujatha

I have a leadership question.

I have a leadership question. Is there a conflict between your role as a manager to deliver, today vs. your role as a team leader, with responsibilities to coach your team? What do you do if they cannot deliver today? Do you do it yourself, or what?

Asked by Michael Mocatta

Michael, In my personal opinion there should not be a conflict if one is aware and prepared for the scenario. For example, when I had to develop groups in some of the organizations which were start up, I was expected to deliver and also coach my team, as and when they joined. We probably need to strategize well and make preparations well ahead which are necessary to ensure that our time and priorities do not fall apart and we are able to balance this dual roles. It may involve a lot of stretching and pressure initially, but it is well paid off very soon, once the team is ready to take charge of activities on their own.
Regards,
Sujatha

What makes a great Keynote Address?

Asked by Vince Thompson

Vince,
To me, a Keynote should address, simple messages, addressing a wider audience, but definitely should leave a "thought-provoking" impact. For topics that I am interested in, I would love to hear from the author and will certainly appreciate a speech to give me more perspectives which are first-hand experiences. Good Luck with your new book.
Regards,
Sujatha

Is there a difference between living and existing?

Asked by Heather (Weinman) Prabish

Heather,
Good question! Existence may mean that we are here, but not really enjoying life and seeing the different hues of life. Mere existence do not make a difference, where as Living means that we are present and involved in every second.

We enrich ourselves with every aspect of life, every emotions and relationships. I can recall the phrase, "live and enjoy the moment" - the word live cannot be replaced by exist which essentially means that there is no life in it. What exists is the left over of life, the thoughts, the ideas, et al.

Hope this helps.
Regards,
Sujatha

What person has had the greatest impact on your life and why?

Asked by Dawn Harbinson

Dawn,

It is a fact that more than one person may have impacts in life and that too at various stages in life. It is difficult for me to quantify and qualify this into "greatest" since each of them where very crucial at that specific time.

• My mother, who gave birth to me and taught me to smile and do all those things that will make me become a good person is the first and foremost impact in my life.
• My dad, whose ever continuing blessing and support at all times, valuable guidance and friendship to see things in the right perspective, motivation to face the world with courage and determination even in times of difficulty, and reminding constantly of the Almighty blessings impacts me every moment even today.
• There were lots of learned, expereinced and knowledgable collegues who mentored and guided me thorugh out the past 15 years, which has a great impact on my way of working and relationships.
• My husband, whose never-ending love, support and friendships (to the extent that we even fight so badly as kids and then again we become the best of friends) will always remain a major impact in life. I have learned to life in a competitive world only because of him. He has always come up with excellent deliberations and points which I beg to differ as usual, but made me thinking all through.
• Last but not the least, my darling daughter, the greatest blessing to me, is my on-going tutor, guide and mentor. I am not sure, how wonderfully she makes me see the world through her eyes and thoughts and every time, I get to see a new world! thanks for the wonderful posting.

Regards,

Sujatha

Considering successful couples you know, what do you think are the most important behaviors that makes them so?

Asked by Shmaya David

Shmaya, When 2 individuals come together into a bond, there is certainly love, mutual respect and a trust factor which binds them. At the same time, each individual is like a unique shining gem, having their own specific characteristics, likes and dislikes, priorities, et al. As we say, "Opposite poles attract" and sometimes we find these uniqueness are more at times. They may share some of their interests, no doubt. Yet, if couples have to succeed, they definitely share a beautiful friendship, which makes them "give and take" without thinking "what is in it for me?". They provide mental and moral support to each other by respecting and ensuring they give a "space" for each other.

It is very important for every person to understand the needs of an individual since they pass through a lot of emotions - be it happy, sad, anger, frustration, tensed et al. I think even above love, this trust, mutual understanding and friendship makes the relationship successful.

Regards,
Sujatha”

What makes "Compromise" difficult?

The definition of "Compromise" is that it is the art of devising an approach acceptable to all parties. I would like to hear of experiences where in compromise has been difficult.

• If you have experienced this in professional or personal life, what is it that makes it so difficult?
• What is the trade off?

Welcoming views on this.
Best Regards,
Sujatha Das

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Messages from Supriyo Das
"Compromise" is a bad word, in its positive sense. To meet the agreed upon objective between parties, in the event of a variance, either identify a "trade-off", or a "win-win situation" - or close the conversation / project / activity as "cannot proceed".
As an example, from the audit world, if the organization being audited fails to meet the criteria against which objective examination is being performed by the auditor - the auditor is free to stop the audit - one cannot proceed.
In the business world too, negotiations can reach a deadlock. Wait to see the circumstances that impact the decisions change - & when time is precious - no other solution is available, given that all decisions and possible solutions have been meticulously & rationally reviewed - drop the negotiations.
:) My humble two pence..
Supriyo

Messages from Phil Johnson

Business leaders need to create and encourage a culture that allows for opposing viewpoints on the way to reaching consensus decisions. By advocating dissenting viewpoints you can create a climate were ethical wrongdoing will not go unchallenged. It is important to invite dissent and debate within the decision making group. Individual status and position-based power needs to be eliminated during group discussions.

It is important to treat each other with trust and respect while working to keep the conflict constructive. There is great value locked inside corporate diversity. The consensus decision is the decision that everyone can and will support. When people within an organization are in consensus, their various tasks and activities automatically operate in alignment. Faster time-to-market and better resource utilization are just a few of the potential benefits. Authentic leaders can facilitate this type of conflict-consensus process so that synergistic results are achieved and no one gets left behind.
Phil Johnson, MBL Coach

Messages from Kevin Jackson
Compromise put simply is giving a little to get a little. The goal is to get what you need and not necessarily what you want. This is true for business and personal life, by the way.
For a business to be successful, leaders and team members need to learn how to engage in this beneficial behavior. Disagreements are inevitable. But unless both parties are comfortable, a "good" deal won't happen. Many bad ones happen this way, however.
Many times compromising is viewed as "losing", capitulating to the other person. If you are left feeling this way, then it is likely you feel that you have caved on a core belief or principle. This is indeed not satisfying your "need", since needs are basal, instinctive. We must feed our needs to be truly happy. "Want" is a whole other thing. Feeding a "want" can lend itself to a lack of compromise. We can't get everything we want. Hopefully most people learn this by age three. Compromise is a necessity, and doesn't have to be a dirty word.

Messages from Robert Dolezal

Interesting, your definition. Professional negotiators have another. It's the point where everyone at the table feels that they have given up too much to the other side, but are still willing to shake hands on the deal, verbage, sale, or treaty. In other words, a shared level of dissatisfaction. Lawyers use that definition when they settle a case, prosecutors when they plead out a case to get rid of it. The victims aren't happy, the guilty party isn't happy, but all agree to take the deal and move on.

Compromise means that multiple parties are settling for only their required results, not their wishes or wants. The only way to look at it is that you are moving a bit further toward your desired outcome.

A not-so-good example is Rupert Murdoch's purchase of The Wall Street Journal from the Bancroft family. He basically made an offer that he was unwilling to improve financially, then waited until the pressure of those members of the family, the board, and their advisors brought to force enough pressure on the holdouts to close the deal. That is a one-sided compromise, and that is the one that hurts the most. It meant that Rupert was willing to walk away from the deal rather than compromise. I'm sure there are some disgruntled parties left at the end.

Messages from Dr. Shaun Jamison

Not knowing what people actually want and need makes compromise difficult. Have a look at "Getting to Yes," which is a great book on principled negotiation. So often we are not clear about the issues so it's no surprise that it's hard to come to an agreement.

An additional issue is "worldview." It can be quite challenging to come to terms with folks who have an entirely different view of the world and reality. For example, one person might view matters from a single cause = single effect whereas someone else views matters as a complex web of interconnected events that influence each other. Imagine trying to come to an agreement about a complex issue with those two views represented.
For myself, I don't typically find compromise hard once I fully understand the issue and have educated the other person on my point of view. Sometimes it isn't necessary or advisable to compromise, however.
When I practiced law full-time I often heard the refrain "my client will never settle." They almost always did.
Shaun


Messages from Jerry Linnins

In practice, I think most of us fear "compromise" will be seen/felt/thought of as "settling" for something less than we perceive as optimal. It means giving up something, a loss. I once had a friend who claimed he didn't get married because he didn't want to "compromise to boring." He definitely saw marriage as a loss of all the color, the excitement, the energy of his single life. Many times in work, negotiation, or problem solving people take this attitude into the dialogue. Stephen Covey, in THE SEVEN HABITS OF HIGHLY EFFECTIVE PEOPLE and other writings, outlines the need for WIN-WIN or Walk Away solutions. Often, he claims, this takes us being able to craft the third alternative (an entirely new approach/solution) not necessarily a derivative of two conflicting approaches.

Whatever label we may slap on the result, the process of "compromise" is essential to personal, team, and organizational success. And, it does not HAVE to be a bad thing.

Messages from François Coallier
Compromise is possible when there are already a lot of common grounds between parties. A good negotiation approach in such a situation is to first make visible what is already acceptable to both parties before trying to close the remaining issues.
Compromise means always a certain amount of give and take.
At the end, you get a situation were both parties are able to live with the resulting agreement, even if it is not 'ideal'. This situation may even be characterized as 'win-win'.
If there are no or few common grounds, or mutually incompatible strong positions - 'compromise' become difficult or impossible. This is when, for instance, it is better to walk away from a deal, or change jobs...
In other situations, other means - evidently legal and ethical - can be used to break the deadlock (hostiles bids, etc..). The result is not a compromise - since in such a situation there is a clear winner - and a looser.
Among nations, those other means can range from political and economical maneuvers to other means...


Messages from Howard Halpern

Compromise is difficult for people who expect to get what they want when they want it, i.e., they can't defer gratification. Compromise is not difficult for people who accept that they will not always get what they want when they want it. They understand fairness and wish to be fair. They wish to give, as well as take.
Compromise itself is trade-off: you get something you want, but you have to give something for it, as you should.
Compromise is not really the devising of anything. It is the enacting of the trade-off, the participation in the process of trading off, i.e., giving something to get something.
Although I do not emphasize it in my profile, I often act as a mediator. I help people get what they want by giving up something. I have helped members of married couples get along better. It is generally difficult because people don't seek help till things get really bad. In order to solve such problems, people often have to make character improvements, let alone personality change.
Character improvement is difficult at first because it requires people to go against their nature. The mind resists this. But once a person reaps the benefits of character development, that person is highly motivated to continue, because these benefits are highly rewarding. They are intrinsic, rather than extrinsic. There is no limit to what a person can achieve or acquire through the development of good character.
Links:
http://www.ToChange.com
http://www.DoChange.com


Messages from Mohamed Taher

Compromise with a headless, heedless supervisor?
Sounds (to me): Project impossible.
Compromise with a soulless companion?
Sounds (to me): Project unpredictable.

Messages from Alice de Sturler
The key is to be able to set ego and selfishness aside and to live up to your word. If we now do A then next time we'll do B. Stick to your word to do B and do it without complaining. That is the only way to build up a relationship based on mutual trust and respect. This counts for both your professional life as well as your private life.
Cheers, Alice

Messages from Robert Fornal
Compromise is one of those words ... I worked as a negotiator for a while and while I set up many compromises, it seemed best for both parties ... while the end result was often something less than one party wanted and more than the other expected. I saw both sides, but emotion seems to block the parties view of the overall picture.

Messages from Sheilah Etheridge

Life is all about compromise. I am always happy to compromise and see both sides to a situation providing my integrity is not affected. I will not compromise if it means losing my or reducing my morals and integrity.
Sheilah


Messages from Terrence Seamon

You've got to give something up, something you've been holding on to.
You may feel that giving in means that you look weak.

Messages from Steve Guine

Sujatha, I dislike compromise as it means that one party is giving something up. This may be the one ingredient that may make a project successful. This is a result of politics which is difficult to avoid. There are people in business that bring bring a "I must have my way" attitude to work. This destroys any hope of getting things done quickly and efficiently. As a result, projects are slow to finish, or fai.
I think that collaboration is the best way to do business. There is no give and take, and the process is pleasant for all involved.
Best, Steve Guine


Messages from Terri L Maurer

Sujatha: My professional organization was faced not just once, but twice, with a decision on whether or not to merge with another similar group serving the same general population. Neither time did we get to a point where complete agreement could be reached so that the merger could occur. Even when you can agree on the big issues, sometimes there are others where agreement cannot be reached. In our instance it came down to operational culture of the two groups. While we had a lot of similarities and in concept the idea of the merger was a good one, in the end, neither group could give up their ingrained culture. In reality, even if the two groups had merged, it is highly likely that in a very short time, another group or groups would have sprung up to satisfy something missing from the new, larger organization. In this case, there was no trade off except to back away from the discussions. It seems that the more parties involved in the discussions about any problem, the more difficult it is to arrive at compromise. There are simply too many obstacles to overcome and some people will never be satisfied unless they get 'all' of their personal issues resolved, instead of giving a little and getting a little. Just hard heads, I guess.


Messages from Tom Adam

I'm reminded of what a professor of mine discussed when I was in grad school pursuing a Master's in Counseling. The class was in group and family therapy, and he brought to our attention an interesting phenomenon, something he called "The Need to Prevail". It says, quite simply, than in interactions between several people they are each driven to prevail over the other(s), to get their way, whether it's a something as minor as what to watch on TV or in matters far more important to the relationship. Conflict arises as a result, since each person wants to prevail and not everyone can.
Compromise, it seems, would then run counter to this drive as it requires one to move away from prevailing. Putting one's ego aside and recognizing that yielding or changing does not equate to losing therefore becomes necessary if one is to move past these inevitable conflicts.



Messages from Kalyan Bandyopadhyay

Some years ago I read somewhere that successful compromises or trade-off's are those which resolve the 'origin' of the various positions rather than solve the ‘positions’. Illustratively, if someone wants a window open and another closed - a compromise can be reached when reasons for both these positions are understood - say, draft or wind for one person wanting to keep the window open and not wanting too much light is the reason for another person to keep it closed. In this case, an air conditioner or a ceiling fan can be compromise solution, which will be acceptable to both.
Hope this helps.


Messages from Ryan Turner

More than mere semantics, the difficulty stems from:
· perceptions among the purpose of parties convening in the first place;
· the amount and type of power or leverage each party feels they have (or deserve) and expects others to have (or deserve);
· the amount and quality of options available for consideration or discussion
They way I was taught to remember the distinctions among all this goes something as follows: We trade-off something tantalizing for something less tempting.
We compromise by conceding under constraint.
We negotiate to negate nonsense.

Messages from Mukund Toro

You asked the question at right time. Just recently I read about conflict management and resolution. Paraphrasing what I read. Compromise is basically a non-ideal solution. You give up something and get something. In return the other person too gives up something and gets something. Probably the process of giving up, leaves a residue, resulting into partial commitment.

Messages from Frank Gorrell

Dear Sujatha,
The word "compromise" tends to make people think of "weakness." In reality, what we are describing by compromise is a "win-win" scenario. However, many people think of negotiation as strictly "win-lose."
Best, Frank Gorrell, MSA, CPA

Messages from David Phillips
Compromise requires sacrificing ego in many forms and at many levels. Living in a society bound by the rule of law demands compromise many times daily. Working with others in any environment is much the same: in collaborating we constrain ourselves to the tasks at hand and bend ourselves to satisfy a group norm.

Messages from Thomas Dodds

Compromise is difficult when one party is forced to violate their conscience.

Messages from Jonah Hughes

Showing up at work is a compromise. Money makes it worthwhile. Somewhat.

Messages from Shweta Kapoor
Hi Sujatha,
Compromise is always difficult as no body would like to let go. So, I use the word negotiation as it has a positive energy to it. Once you think that its negotiation, I think half of the difficulty goes away as you know you could get something in return. For me, I am good at professional negotiations are easier than at personal ones. As there is always logic and analytical reasoning in professional ones.
Cheers, Shweta

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How do we deal with Organizational Procrastination?

There may have be occasions during our work life, when we come across some annoying or unpleasant tasks. We may have put off some of these tasks intentionally. Dealing with personal procrastination is one matter, but what are the possible ways of dealing with procrastination, if seen as an Organizational Pattern?
- Does any one have any experiences to share as to how you dealt with this?
- Any views on how to approach this?
Regards,
Sujatha Das
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Responses:

Messages from Frank Gorrell
Dear Sujatha,

About two years ago I was a finalist for three jobs. While all three were based in the Boston area, one had its headquarters in Oregon, and that was where the hiring manager was. Their "procrastination" was not what you seem to have in mind. They had to get three people east in order to meet me. (One could argue that it may have been swifter for them to pay my way west!)

Another company took over two weeks tracking down references and prior employers -- including one supervisor from over a decade earlier! The third company received my resume, scheduled two interviews, checked my references, and made me an offer in eight (8) days! Guess where I'm working?

There are two conflicting adages: "He who hesitates is lost;" and "Look before you leap." However, I would suggest that looking only takes a few moments. Therefore, for a company to seek input from a boss I had ten years earlier was hardly worthwhile. The person that boss would possibly remember is not the person I am in the present. In fact, I'm not the person I was two years ago.

So, Sujatha, it seems that some organizations procrastinate because they have certain forms to fill out, phone calls to make, meetings to attend, etc. In the global business community the ability to act swiftly and smartly separates those companies that succeed and those that lose market share. Providing a procrastinating company with how many dollars can be lost will, one hopes, make sense.

Regards,
Frank Gorrell,

Messages from Gerald Lo:
Commitment can sometimes be a difficult prospect.

Our management wields such power, it may be difficult for some of us to accept that they, too, have bosses and may occasionally be reluctant to commit to a course of action owing to the possible consequences.

Recognizing that, I try to prepare scenarios corresponding to different courses. The proposed schedule and budget is the one I have been working toward, with an established milestone for a decision and the likely outcome from that approval.

If the decision is delayed, the consequences may be articulated. Usually, in my experience, the results from a delay do not seem to advance the schedule nor improve the budget.

Superiors do not, as a rule, appreciate the impression of being forced into a corner. Whether they request it or not, I have found that preparing alternate plans and contingencies in advance has been helpful. It seems to me to be instinctive to look around for other ways out, and anticipating those questions and being prepared to substantively address them has appeared to have worked well.

I once was asked by a CEO to design and construct an R&D laboratory to support a VP he planned to later hire. I've never worked on a project with any scientist where I was congratulated for having read read the mind of the owner and fully anticipated all requirements.

I prepared two schedules, one indicating full acceptance of the proposed plans and one showing a milestone of review and comment from the new Vice-President.

The CEO regarded the second schedule like it was a poisonous reptile, and refused to touch it. I felt like a man trying to serve a subpoena, and left it with him.

Months later, the new Vice President rejected the design.

There was much consternation and quite a bit of loud unpleasantness.

I referred the management team to both versions of the schedule, with their original dates. There ensued an uncomfortable silence.

Later that day, I got into my car to go home. An enormous SUV pulled up behind me, blocking my exit. The CEO's executive secretary, a long-suffering woman, stepped out and walked up to my window.

Puzzled, I greeted her.

"Listen, we just want you to know - that was absolutely the best thing we have seen in twenty years! You did great!"

Evidently, the ladies who are stationed outside the boardroom had been making book on the likely outcome, and the dark horse came through.


Messages from Dr. Shaun Jamison
Great question Sujatha !

#1. Be patient and realize that what may appear like procrastination is process. It takes time for ideas to gain acceptance and for resources to be marshaled. Going too quickly in some organizations can be a disaster. Gain an understanding of the ins and outs of your organization.

#2. Keep notes and follow up with people. Sometimes an organization needs a gentle (or not so gentle) reality check. Get time commitments from your partners in an organization and follow up with them. Deliver on your time commitments to be a good example. Make sure that people understand the stakes of any particular project or deliverable and the consequences for not delivering.

Shaun Jamison


Messages from Supriyo Das:
This is to be dealt top-down, since it has to do lots with an organization's culture - & culture cannot be driven bottom up or by middle level managers.

Senior management (CEO's, CTOs, CIOs, Presidents) etc, who demonstrate 'walking the talk' & 'talking the walk' through effective decision-making, create organizations, where procrastination is literally unknown.

In other situations, particularly where "consensus based decisions" is a norm, and in more than one ways, turn out to be a misunderstanding of "participatory culture", organizations or organizational units may be plagued with "decision crisis". The result is anywhere between slow decisions making to lost business.

There is no particular solution to this, since one cannot wait for God to come and help one-take decisions, where the sponsors of the business induct this systemic defect.

I would recommend, that if one's decision making agility, is perceived to be superior (in speed & quality), & has a history of delivering quick results to business in the past - the fastest decision one can take is to move on to another organization.
Do not procrastinate this decision. :)

Messages from Robert Fornal
Dealing with it ... I really do not have good information; keep pushing, but carefully and gently.

I was with a company that used a custom developed application that was almost a decade out of date. The cost of maintaining it over a 6 month period would have paid for 20 off-the-shelf or 4 complete replacement via custom development. On top of this issue, we later found out that this multi-user application crashed with more than one user connected ...

The frustration as a content developer was high and we kept pushing for replacement ... nothing more that could be done.

Messages from David P. Schofield
Is it procrastination or analysis paralysis? Change the context of the delivery, and if there is no movement, change it again. Something in the proposal is not compelling them to either go out on a limb or make a decision.

Messages from Jay Hamilton-Roth
I've often found that the business problem is that no one has championed "the way" to solve the problem. This person doesn't have to have the "right" answer, but often times, having a "way" will cause people to realize that if they don't speak up (or act), then the "way" will eventually become reality. Nothing gets people in action like the possibility of impending "pain".

Messages from Victoria Pynchon
Deadlines. If it weren't for deadlines, I'd never get anything done!

Messages from Marietta C. Baglieri
Spin Off Question: Is it always "Organizational Procrastination"? .. or sometimes just bad politics among other evils .. Even those of you outside of the U.S. must be aware of the latest news on BP and mercury they're dumping into Lake Michigan

Admittedly, some organizations are notorious for letting things go until something (or someone) forces them to take action .. this is one of many examples of an oil company "procrastinating" when A) they should already be complying and B) they've had more than enough time to sort it out ..

Frankly, why is it anyone's problem but their own how they accomplish it?

That's my example and I'll be interested to see what comments emerge ..
Links:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/services/newspaper/premium/printedition/Frida...

Messages from Shankar Vaddadi
Good Question Sujatha ! Organizational procrastination can have many manifestations, It could be the board that is avoiding it, it could be the management committee, it could be the CEO, it could be a management decision. Assuming that it is the ethos of the establishment, dealing with it is a subjective issue of the executive concerned.
Links:
http://ISSUE

Messages from Mohamed Taher
My 2 cent: I would see this as an example of individual or corporate behavior--(aka human and institutional, respectively)--all the same strategy, tactics, and attitude (to sum up)!!!
And, I quote from a blog's post:
Procrastination - putting things off - important things -- is simply a lack of execution.
Procrastination can kill a career, a relationship, an organization. [source: see the second link below]
Links:
http://www.chacocanyon.com/essays/gettingthingsdone.shtml
http://sixdisciplines.blogspot.com/2006/11/organizational-procrastination.h...

Messages from Tarek Foda
The sad thing about this, it demands a way of management that we all preach to stay away from, "The hands of steel". As a leader you have to do something about it, here comes the time when you have to show your teeth. Not a good way of management, I agree but; it might be the only way to go at this time. If it works then it is the way to go at such times.
The organization has a vision and a mission statement that have to be reached and fulfilled all the time. Someone has to make it happen; otherwise we will all sit down and watch TROY fall.

If you lift the box, the mice will run. Our obligation towards our organizations at certain times will make us the least likable team members, but you know what, once all settles down and the boat is sailing again, they will understand.

I hope this helps.
Tarek Foda

Messages from Lucy Garrick
Hi Sujatha:

First, know that procrastination is a normal response to fear of some kind.
There can be many reasons people are procrastinating. Until you understand all of them, you cannot get unstuck. Your issue is more complex than it appears. Having an objective view to the organizational system often brings credibility to the process needed to get things moving.

Organizational procrastination is a symptom not a result. To deal with it, you need to get underneath it. What is keeping people from moving forward? You may need a process for discovering the answer to that question that makes people feel what we call "psychologically safe." And there are likely more than one reason, and perhaps more than one solution.

Lucy Garrick

Messages from Mukund Toro
I have observed two reasons used for organisational procrastination generally.
One, wait for consensus. Since everyone concerned does not agree, you keep on debating and discussing. In essence after some time nothing new comes out of these meetings, you hear the same views again and again. What will work these cases is to not to look for consensus. Even 70% agreement is okay. May be less too.

Two, procrastination by going by conventions and well laid down processes. Like asking have we done this before? Will it fit in our process and culture? Will it work? What will work in these situations is just jumping into action.
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Thinking through Head (Brain) and Thinking through Heart. How do you think?

Asked by Sanjeev Himachali

Sanjeev,

This is a very interesting query. I guess all of us, do this sometime or the other, be it in personal or professional life. To address the specific points that you have highlighted:

How do you think?

I think in both ways depending on the scenario. May be, the quality background that I have, it has helped in self training myself to think objectively.

How much do you use, your heart and head in decision making process?

I use both, but in a balanced manner. While listening to someone or in trying to understand something, it is always good to first use your heart to be able to empathize. But having said that, one needs to then detach oneself from the scenario and think more objectively (using head) to analyze the situation and be able to take the right decision with complete rationale behind it. This is not very easy and I must admit I had tough times in trying to put this into practice few years back. But with patience and practice, one can do it. It enables to think clearly while taking decisions as well as we can also be satisfied that we were able to give a complete concentration in understanding through empathetic manner before trying rationality.

What helps you in taking right and honest decisions? Kindly share few examples.

I guess, I try to take time in decision making to ensure it is fair and just. I have had instances wherein one of my team member had multiple personal problems recurring one after the other and at the same point of time, she had critical deliverable and could not have afforded to keep away since her involvement was very deep and crucial. Although I gave a very patient listening and empathized with her problems every time, i did think of the customer and the importance of delivering on time and without compromising on quality. This made me look at every possible alternatives as well as the various risks that may be attached to it. After consolidating my points, I was able to discuss the impacts with my team member, work out the possibilities wherein, she could get a leverage on flexibility of working and the relevant requirements, at the same time, evolve an approach to ensure that we could deliver as per plans, without delay. It took time, no doubt, but helped a lot indeed.

Hope this helps.

Regards,

Sujatha

Can someone provide me with a checklist on how to audit a service provider? Also what are the key observations to be noted.

Asked by Alexander John

Alex,

One of the quick things you may want to do is depending on the service provider you may want to check out (search) on the Internet for samples. Many times you do get samples, which help you think and develop or customize according to your needs).

Regards,

Sujatha

What makes a "Good Question"?

While discussing about types of answers and questions with a friend, we deliberated upon "What makes a Good Question" Be it a Deliberation of a specific topic, a Group discussion, or a Problem-Solving exercises or Brainstorming, we all attempt in providing answers and suggestions. The thought came to my mind that "The right answer can be good, but often the right question can be better". In many cases, the right question which is specific may lead to a good answer as well. Any thoughts, views or suggestions?
Clarification added:I just wanted to clarify that this query was not restricted to Linkedin Questions. It was more generic for any situation.

Thanks,

Sujatha
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Responses Received:

Messages from Praveen PM:

The question itself is generic :) The 'goodness' or quality of the question should be assessed based on the context. Some thoughts on key aspects of a 'good question'! 1. High level focus - helps people think in a wide band, still maintaining the focus on core concept 2. Relevance - the question should have a purpose and relevance to some context. 3. Thought provoking - the question should trigger the thoughts of the thinker 4. Unbiased - If the question is for decision making, it should be unbiased and the person who tries to answer should not be persuaded by the inclination towards specific options or alternatives 5. Presention - Importance should be given to the way the question is put forward. If presented interestingly there shall be many takers 6. The language - effective use of key words and clarity of thought expressed through the best means 7. Simplicity - Understandable by all, unless meant for a specific group!

Messages from Tom Field :

A good question shares the same hallmarks as good journalism: * Accuracy * Clarity * Brevity Nothing sends me clicking elsewhere faster than a question that goes on for five paragraphs, and by the end I *still* don't really understand what the questioner wants to know. best, Tom

Messages from Dr. Shaun Jamison:
My answer assumes that you are looking for a question in the circumstances you described: Deliberation of a specific topic, a Group discussion, or a Problem-Solving excercise or Brainstorming. A good question allows for a good answer. A good question is stripped of judgment, assumed facts or outcomes. A good question is not a "set up" for an attack. A good question is short and understandable. A good question is typically stripped of heavy emotion. A good question is actually phrased as a question. A good question is one that is asked and then the question keeps silent until someone else answers. A good question is usually open ended and not multiple choice or true/false. A good question is related to the task at hand. A niave question can be a good question. A good question comes from curiosity. A good question makes you think before you respond. Shaun Jamison

Messages from Terrence Seamon

Your question is a good question: - it's short - it's open (vs closed) - it's intriguing - it invites

Messages from Scott Paul Goldman
Are we limiting this to Linkedin Q&A or is this a general questiion? In terms of linkedin, a good question ( for me ) has a few components: 1- it must be brief 2- it should grab my interest 3- it should compel me to answer 4- it should motivate me to view other responses 5- it should inspire me to learn more about the subject 6- it must be objective and not shaded in an attempt to derive an intended response 7- it should be a sincere question and one that others could benefit from 8- if it's about a dilemma, it should be stated in such a way that the author is TRULY interested in feedback and willing to take advice if practical 9- it should not be a waste of our time

Messages from Mamta Narang
All I know is a question tells the wisdom of the person and the answer tells us - 'How clever the person is?'

Messages from Lucy Morton-Haworth
A good question inspires poeple to think hard - something people generally don't know the answer to so invites discussion, opening minds to new ideas and things they may not usually think. It is informative and educational.

Messages from Gerald Lo

For me, a good question ought to be an actual question. I see some of the postings here appear not to be actual questions at all. I feel that the best questions are those which does not strongly betray how the questioner feels the answer should sound. There seem to be quite a few askers who appear to have made up their minds. Beyond these opinions of mine, I feel all questions are good. I don't know how to answer most of them.

Messages from Nishith Trivedi

Hi Sujatha, This in itself is a good question ;-) A question is defined by Wikipedia as "A question may be either a linguistic expression used to make a request for information, or else the request itself made by such an expression. This information is provided with an answer." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Question A good question would be one that would lead the deliberation / discussion/ exercise in the direction whereupon the learning quotient in the context of the subject would increase for all. It should lead to more possibilities than the stated intent of the question.

Messages from Gavin Park
Answers offer one way of providing a solution, whereas a good question can spawn several different answers. When asking a question, you need to think about what sort of answer you want to hear back. Make the person answering consider alternatives

Messages from Robert Fornal
A good question provokes thought ... often with a focus in one particular direction, keeping the answer providers on track.

Messages from Pankaj Shukla
Your question itself is a very good question!! I think any question which initiates the logical reasoning and different thoughts from different persons is a good question. There must be multiple logical answers to a good question. It is not necessary that may subscribe to the idea of the responder or not. Any question which may lead to healthy discussion is a good question. Any question which has possibly one answer is a bad question.

Messages from Ray Dassen

In the context of technical problem solving, I'd recommend the articles "How To Ask Questions The Smart Way" by Eric S. Raymond and Rick Moen and "How to Report Bugs Effectively", by Simon Tatham. Both address various aspects of what makes a good question / problem report, with an underlying theme of "put yourself in the recipient's shoes. In my experience, often with the good questions, it's not so much the questions themselves that are good, but the effort the asker takes to state the context they are raised in.
Links:
http://catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html
http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/bugs.html

Messages from William F DeVault
A good question shows the integrity of earnest curiosity, frames well the necessary answer(s) and is clear in both its point of enquiry and its intention. Good question example: This morning I noticed we have more employees driving to work than we have parking spaces available. What are some ways we could resolve this problem without forcing the employees to pay for parking in a public facility? Bad question example: What are we going to do about parking? I always advise job seekers to ask questions in their interviews, and to think about what they ask and how they ask it. I, for one, consider a good question as a stronger indication of a smart and engaged individual than how they answer my questions.

Messages from Jay Hamilton-Roth:

Another aspect of a "good question" is how much I care about the question (i.e., my emotional involvement). Do I have a background for understanding what is asked? Are answers to the questions something I care about? A "good question" draws me in, makes me want to think about it, and get involved in answering it.

Messages from David Phillips
Let me dig back into my neurological archives to the days when I taught high school.... A good question will call the respondent to assess various options as responses, then articulate the relative merit of each option, along with the reasoning to support that appraisal. Responses, in turn, reflect more than simple rote learning, basic comprehension, or even synthesis of ideas--they display the higher-ordered skill of evaluation.

Messages from Mohamed Taher
You are on the right spot. If you get attention from many in the Linkedin, within a couple of hours, then you have a Good Question. If there are no responses --whatever is the subject and issue, you know other wise.

Messages from Mykel de Willigen
Most people focus on creating solutions, there's a tendency to forget to ask what is the problem, are we solving the true cause of this problem. Solutions to the wrong problem seem to create progress, but usually end up creating more and bigger problems.

Messages from Marietta C. Baglieri :
A good question, in my estimation, is one that actually "provokes" the thought process .. in order to formulate an answer .. Marietta

Messages from Sandeep Balaji:

I see that you have gotten a lot of cool responses. A question is a set-up at digging out either qualitative or quantitative information to fill in a missing block in your thought process. Essentially the root of all questions are defined/undefined problems :-) I hope you don't ask me another question! Thanks and Regards, Sandeep

Messages from Tarek Foda
Sujatha Foe me there is nothing called a bad question. Every question is good in its own way because it helps people to understand what they inquiring about. Understanding levels differ from one person to another; that make questions that might be related come in different forms. Knowing that makes everyone understand that there is no bad question.

Messages from Brad Federman
I believe the best types of questions are non leading or assuming. They raise our level of thinking. They force us to examine our bias and thought process. They ask us to think of "What if..."

Messages from Dan Ogden:
A "Good Question" inspires. Whether the question is technical or solution-driven in nature, or hypothical, or rhetorical, a "Good Question" gives the potential answerer all the needed information in such a way as to motivate him or her to answer to the best of their ability, whether that is expressed in a dissertation on the subject or merely a wisecrack (I've been known for providing both, I'd like to think). Quoting from "The Matrix": It's the question that drives us. A "Good" one does this, better.

Messages from Danny Small:

A good question would be similiar to what a child would ask - they have a desire to know information which will help them grow and progress. sometimes the question can be really simple - how many answers has your question been given already? In mentoring or coaching, we want the people to go past their boundaries - to see more than they previously thought possible. for me, every question is good as it lets me know the person is seeking to find something else. Regards Danny

Messages from Sergio Coelho:

A good question should make me think! :) Regards, Sergio

Messages from Bryan Entzminger:

A good answer provides enough context that answers will be relevant but not so much that creativity will be constrained and generally need to be asked in somewhat concrete or action terms, which makes them easier to conceptualize.

Messages from Tomas Hoffmann:
All questions are the good ones. Sometimes people feel ashamed of asking something because they may sound stupid to their colleges. My one experience has shown me that if those people do not ask those little questions they may not get the whole idea, damaging the outcome of the project. Consequently, managers, leaders and colleges should pay attention to this kind of “stupid” question, and not laugh about it. Asking questions helps human beings to understand each other. If we do not use this tool, it will be harder to build a context where everyone knows what the other means. Questions help us to communicate, and communication is the key to success.

Messages from Jermina Menon:
Sujata, you've hit the nail on the head. The right question is more important than the right answer. If you have the right question, chances of hitting upon the right answer are obviously quite high. And honestly it’s so often – at work one tries to solve something that is seen but does not understand why it happened – and that is possibly where the right question is hiding too! (Sometimes this happens in personal life too!)

Messages from Frank Gorrell:
Dear Sujatha, I believe there are two means to the end of a good question. One is that it is topical, i.e., relates to events or practices occurring now. The other is that it is a question that many people would like to ask. Naturally, asking any question to ensure understanding is a good question, at least from the questioner's side. Regards, Frank Gorrell, MSA, CPA

Messages from Ana Nobre Rebelo Gonçalves:
Sometimes, when you put a question and the other person exclaims : "Good question!", that means he's trying to gain some time to pick up an answer...and that the question was really good. When I direct brainstorming meetings, I keep on wondering : what are you going to ask me that leads my thinking to broad solutions and alternatives? Ask me something that enhances my basis for a decision. Put some questions that can help evaluate the best solution. Good questions are supposed to do this.

Messages from Mukund Toro:

Just wanted to add to what other respondents have said. Good question is also respondent centric. A good questioner will have a fair idea of the respondent's level of engagement, prior knowledge and information. A good question should lead to a discussion which benefits both the questioner and the respondent.

Messages from Jonah Hughes:
There are no bad questions; therefore, there are no good questions.
Links:
http://www.anonymousjr.com/

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My Comments:

A good question, which is to the point, specific, thought provoking, and well presented can evoke excellent responses.

How can my company go green and save money?

Asked by Liz Cable

Liz, To add to many of the good suggestions mentioned here, I would also say a company who establishes good, realistic processes and religiously follows them also adds to saving money.

Following processes helps us analyze how we are doing and where we can improve upon based on the metrics collated and improving on the process is certainly cost saving.

Regards,
Sujatha

What is opinion on value of Project Management Institute's PMP Certification?

Asked by Joe Herlihy

Joe,

Any certification is a "good to have" and certainly "adds value to one's learning's and knowledge" as many have already said. But the expertise in the area comes only when one starts applying the concepts learned. Many a time, reality will teach us better ways of approach which are not stated directly in these. Having said that I would like to add one thing about some of the certifications like PMP:

1. For some people, it gives a boost to their careers since their peers may be certified.
2. For some the expectation of the organization where they work or the customers may demand the same whatever the scenario maybe, some of these certifications have a concept of CPE (Continual Practice Education) which actually ensures that the person just does not qualify in exams alone but need to ensure that they do sufficient work in the area and provide proof to maintain these.

In a way, it makes us really work into the concepts and practice them well. So the choice is ours based on the needs. This is my perception and I hope it helps...

Regards,

Sujatha

Why do you network on Linkedin?

Asked by Chuck Zdrojowy

Chuck,
I find this professional networking very enriching. Not only is one able to connect up with past colleagues, friends, or classmates, but also it is great to gain more friendship with people who share your interests, get into interesting conversations and deliberations on topics one like etc. To me, it is very important to interact with people and I love conversing on topics I have some knowledge.

It is a great experience, to share what little you may know of and to learn and gain a lot from others views, thoughts and experiences. Makes me reflect on some of my own thoughts on varied areas. Above all, the whole world seems to have come into one place....you get to know so many people, across the globe and its just wonderful!

Regards,
Sujatha

How to balance standards and standardization with customization?

Asked by Coleen Rutledge Davis

Coleen,

"Process" is like a common language that helps people to work together in a synchronized manner. When we define Process, instead of re-inventing the wheel, we refer to the Industry Standards. Standardization helps us in delivering quality deliverable to our customer's satisfaction. Defined processes helps us in measuring the data which is collated and taking corrective actions and improving our way of functioning.

Having said this, here are some points to the bulleted points you mentioned:

a. Factors you considered in making standardization decisions:

First and foremost we look at the industry we are in and the Best practices or standards that are available to us. Then we look at the organizational needs and requirements, also keeping in mind the geography where in we do the business. Depending on all these factors, we choose whether we want Internal processes defined for organizational improvements or whether we need to look at Certifications / Assessments.

b. Will standardization makes sense for a small business?

Business may any time grow big and it is always sensible to have standardization across people who work together. It only creates a foundation for better delivery and service.

c. How can standardization be presented in a positive manner?

By involving our stakeholders and showing them the benefits of standardization is the best manner for a positive approach

d. When and how standardization poses operational problems?

The maximum challenge is during the beginning stages of defining the processes. We need to not only get the buy in from all people within the organization, but also involve them in defining, creating awareness and implementing and monitoring of the process. To get commitment from people is the first challenge since it is time consuming in the beginning stages. If a good amount of awareness and benefits that can be reaped later is visible to all, this challenge can be addressed very easily.

e. How much standardization is appropriate for small business?

This has a dependency on the complexity, knowledge and skills of people within the organization. If the work is complex, it is good to detail. If the people are all expert level, the less amount of detailing is enough. If freshers or less experienced people are involved then it makes sense to keep process very simple.

f. Should standardization levels be varied by customer or context?

The process can be made very generic and cut across any context and customer of the work is similar. The variations can be documented separately. But if the variations are many, then separate processes or standardizations make more sense. These are more of my personal opinion.

Hope this helps.

Regards,

Sujatha