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Learn to Love Your Performance Review and Up Your Game

Have a performance reviewing coming up? The first step is to take a plain and simple DEEP BREATH: just RELAX. Performance reviews aren’t bad – they are AWESOME. WHY? They are pure, unadulterated opportunities for you to learn and grow. If you really want to crush your goals and up your career game, you have to change your mindset. Here’s how to love them and see them for the true opportunity they are. Use our tips to get the most out of your performance review:

Take a Breath and Receive the Feedback

Instead of getting nervous, wound up, defensive or even angry, take a breath and really set your mindset to engage and listen to what they’re saying. Receive, breathe in and absorb the feedback. If you understand it as one-on-one coaching and training, you can take the BS emotion out of it and really hear what they want you to do to own your success. Even the positive feedback is something you need to really hear and digest. Continuing to double down on your strengths while implementing the ideas your boss has for you to learn and grow is how you will continuously up your game at work. 

Make It About Them

Once you’ve taken that breath, received the feedback, and removed the emotion from it, it’s time to make it about them. What does that mean? It means you need to serve your audience, the reviewer, and cement your relationship. What does your boss really need and want from you? Why is it important that they get it? When you can understand where THEY ARE coming from, you can really see that the feedback they’re giving you is really to help you grow and become better. We call it WIFThem. What is in it for them?  If you understand that, you create greater trust and connection masterfully. If you can do that, they will want to help you even more along the way. That is what you want – more help and support. Which brings me to my next point…

Believe They’ve Got Your Back

Your boss truly does want you to succeed. They’ve got your back. They’ve invested time and money into training you. They want you to be part of their company. They want you to deliver more output, to be happy, to make their job easier, to help them be seamless. If they are smart, they will take it seriously. Serious grooming and training require serious and real feedback that may be hard to digest. Nonetheless, you’re aligned with them. It’s in your interest and theirs for you to be better. By the way, having someone’s back isn’t about blowing smoke up your ____ and telling you how great you are. It’s about supporting you and helping you realize your potential. Having honest, authentic conversations and being transparent about where you can do better. That’s having your back!  If you can understand how to give and take feedback, your game will be better than the rest. So how to make it better? Use this one simple tip…

Ask Great Questions

Now that you’ve accepted and internalized the feedback, you must go deeper and use curiosity to level up. Learn the single best communication tool: how to ask great questions. This is your opportunity to go deep and create trust by showing you understand, respect and value their feedback. Demonstrate that you hear what they’re saying and that you really want to understand so you can implement. So summarize or repeat what you heard and then double down on asking great questions like: what can I do to help you become more successful? Are there any books I could read? Where could I learn additional skills that might help? Can I help with the team? How do I better serve you, etc?  Speaking of serving….

Deliver and Create Impact

This last step happens after the performance review is done, AND it’s one of the most important steps to loving a performance review. After the performance review, it’s time to start delivering and creating impact based on the feedback. Take what you’ve heard and learned and use that to coach yourself to take things to the next level. If you can implement and execute on what you were told would help, you will create massive value for your boss and you will strengthen their trust in you. You will demonstrate that you’re someone who can not only receive feedback but execute. That is why we love performance reviews. Where else do you get to learn, bond and then deliver exactly what they need?

Need some help to up your career game, change your mindset around your upcoming performance review, or help with communication? Or need a little guidance to really implement the feedback you’ve received? Our one-on-one coaching provides you with the personalized, on-demand support you need to quickly level up in your career and life. Click here to reach out to us about getting started. 

 

8-Step Framework for Success: Execute “The Purposeful Comeback” for Your Organization

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With 2020 officially behind us, it’s time to focus on the opportunity of 2021! The workplace has a good, albeit flexible handle on the fact that we must provide new skills for employees, teams and cultures to meet the demand of the future. Let’s go 2021!

Remote, socially distanced, outside or in lock down, businesses and their leaders are ready to make up for lost time and navigate the future. The theme with which we are all approaching our comeback is a combination of gratitude, caring, people, community and impact for others.

Both individually and organizationally we are craving, wanting, needing, planning and orchestrating “The Purposeful Comeback.” It’s a framework to create next generation leadership that will see our organizations into the future. Mastering “The Purposeful Comeback” roadmap and tools below will help you create real and lasting success, growth, business results, and engagement for your people and workplace culture.

 

1. Winning Mindset and Energy

Companies don’t outperform their leadership and the same is true of teams. Creating a purposeful comeback in 2021 starts first with focusing on leadership using integrated purpose as the path to organizational success. We as individuals must show up every day as our best self. That means putting on your oxygen mask first – you can’t help anyone if you don’t first help yourself.

Mindset:

Your mindset really, really matters. Everyone from Marcus Aurelius to the Buddha to Victor Frankl and lately the best, Mel Robbins, has shown us how important thoughts and beliefs are in creating success for ourselves and others. To stage “The Purposeful Comeback” in 2021 we must cultivate a mindset that is positive, self-aware, growth-minded (see Carol Dweck’s phenomenal book, Mindset), and other-focused. Changing our mindset is about changing that talk track in our head.

Physical Energy:

We know that moving your body daily has a positive effect on the mind. Studies have shown that “exercise improves brain function, structure, and connectivity. These brain improvements are directly linked to improved learning, memory, and cognitive function.” Showing up as a leader in 2021 starts with taking care of the temple and setting aside time for the essentials: exercise and nutrition, adequate sleep, and recharging. We must make them a daily habit.

 

2. The Audience is the Hero of Any Story You Tell…So Make Them One!

Want to become a real purposeful leader? Figure out how to create meaningful followers.   Create meaningful followers through this simple basic tool: learn how to build relationships from the inside out. First, with yourself and then with others.

You know the Golden Rule: do unto others as you would have done unto you. But do you know and understand the Platinum Rule?

The Platinum Rule says this: treat others how they want to be treated. It’s other-focused and becoming other-focused is what you need to really succeed in the year ahead. Putting the focus on treating others how they want to be treated will help you build stronger relationships and relationships are the key to success. Make them the hero because they are! Use these two principles to help you:

-Remember WIFTHEM: This is an acronym for “What’s in it for them.” In every interaction, positive or negative, you must consider what the other person wants and how they are looking to benefit.

-Consider the Action: What action do you want your audience to take that can and will benefit them? This action will benefit you, too, of course.

 

3. Know Thyself to Help Others

Impact is created by working from the inside out. If you want to help others you must Know Thyself. If you don’t know or understand yourself, you’re almost guaranteed to get it wrong with others.

So, how do you start? First, just START. We teach the following framework to our clients inside our new on-demand coaching product, Hooga. Knowing yourself comes from really understanding and being able to articulate the following four core concepts about yourself:

  • Strengths
  • Values, Passions, and Skills
  • Brand
  • Story

This is the value you bring to others and the world. Getting really clear on this allows you to demonstrate your value to your peers, team, and clients.

 

4. What’s Your Story?


Humans have always told stories. From huddling around a fire to hieroglyphics to books to the vlogs, blogs, and podcasts of today, we have an innate desire to share our own stories and discover those of others. Storytelling allows you to captivate an audience, shape thoughts, and communicate purpose and value.

What do you do? Why do you do it? What impact do you create? Why does it matter to you, to your client, to the world?

Remember, your story is not a script. It’s not static or boring. It recognizes the audience and what’s important to them, then captivates them through the use of humor, drama, and narrative arcs. Want to learn to create impact? Then become your own best storyteller.

 

5. The New ABC’s “Always Be Connecting”: Bridge the Gap

We all come to the workplace with different life experiences, skills, and values. We come from different generations, cultures, and backgrounds. We are driven by the need for human interaction, to belong, to be part of a community. We are better together, and we know that (more on that in a second), yet technology, socioeconomic disparity, and generational differences easily divide us.

To seize the opportunity of 2021, we have to find a way to bridge the gap between us so we can pull together and connect. COVID-19 and remote work certainly hasn’t made this any easier. It’s also forced us to acknowledge the diversity (or lack thereof) in our workplaces and community. 64% of applicants say that they consider diversity and inclusion when considering a job, yet only 55% of people think their organizations have policies to promote it. Even more troubling, 90% of them say they’re not treated with respect at work, discriminated against, and even harassed.

This means it’s even more important that we make this the year we figure it out once and for all. Learn how to connect pure and simple. There are so many ways. Just one way we devised is our B.R.I.D.G.E. the Gap system, an integrated six-step plan that will help you unleash the potential of your employees and your workplace.

 

We cannot do it alone. You know that and I know that. Yet the greatest dysfunction of teams persists in our workplaces today. For some organizations, getting their teams to work together efficiently and in harmony is one of their greatest challenges.

Solving the team divide starts by focusing on and ensuring these principles are present in your workplace:

6. It’s Better Together: Teams

  • Do your people feel safe enough to share their ideas, true opinions, and feelings?
  • Is your workplace culture one that empowers, connects, and inspires?
  • Are your employees engaged and connected to the purpose and impact of their work?
  • Is everyone on the team working in alignment with the team’s values?
  • Is there a culture of trust in your workplace?
  • Do people communicate with each other effectively, openly, and often.
  • Do you empower accountability? Do you ask great questions?
  • Got a strategic vision or plan and is it shared universally?

 

7. Make Culture Last: Sustainability

In order to drive and sustain “The Purposeful Comeback,” you need to do the work and then create a system. An integrated system to sustain culture and engagement is necessary for our organizations.

Your system will need different parts, so ask yourself what that system would look like in your organization and what it should include. We recommend having systems to create and sustain purpose, to grow the next generation of leaders and develop their skills, to share in a purposeful vision and story and that all employees be able to articulate it and their own value, and to further coach employees to be their best, work from the inside out, and deliver on the organization’s core values.  Start now by devising your system.

 

8. Pay it Forward: Cultivating Disciples

Seizing the opportunity of 2021 and creating “The Purposeful Comeback” is about looking to the future of your organization. What comes next? Who will lead in five years? In ten? How will you continue to evolve and stay relevant in a changing world?

Create those next generation leaders (your disciples) from within. Get clear on your purpose, define it, live it, and then empower your people to buy into that purpose. When you can do that, then you’ll become known to clients, the market, and even potential employees. Look at all the top companies of today. Most were once unknown operations working out of someone’s garage. They got really clear on their purpose, wove it into the fabric of everything they do, and then the world caught on and embraced them.

You can do the same in your organization. You have all the tools you need. Start now with this roadmap to cultivating your Purposeful Comeback in 2021 and if we can help, please reach out. You control what happens to you, your team, and your organization this year. Start now to make it the best year yet and maximize your impact!

The 6 Simple Ways to Pump Up Your Career or Business for Success in 2021

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2021 is here. The time of year where we pledge to take the lessons from the past twelve months to make ourselves better has officially arrived. Even though, between us, making ourselves better is every friggin’ day for types like us.

2020 and the COVID-19 pandemic shit show has changed absolutely everything about our lives forever. From the way we work, to the way we celebrate our holidays, and, most of all our lens for purpose-based behavior. So, looking for ways to reinvent your relevance, to pump up your career or business, and to create the impact and success you were meant to have in 2020?  Let’s go….

Focus on developing your skills with these 6 Simple Ways to Crush It in 2021. Know them, understand them, internalize them, and reach out to us for help implementing. We’ve got your back!

1. Create Good Habits

Good habits for you are foundational. You can’t make a difference or impact anyone else if you don’t take care of yourself first.

Good habits can slide, however, so it’s time to bring them back in the New Year! If your habits were a little lacking in 2020, now is the time to really commit and change your life.

Good habits look different for every person. Do what works for you.

At a minimum, they should include some daily commitment in each of these key areas: health, fitness, relationships, reflection, and growth. Want examples? Here are some keystone habits you might consider adding to your daily routine this year:

–Exercise for 30-60 minutes every day.  Or just move for a set period daily!!!!

– Eat With Awareness: Be cognizant of what you eat and how it makes you feel.

–Meditate Daily.

–Focus on Gratitude.

–Connect With Others Who Lift You Up Daily: face-to-face or on the phone/Zoom with one person every day.

–Learn and Grow: Spend fifteen minutes each day reading or listening to a podcast for self-development.

The list goes on from there. Need more ideas? Reach out to us anytime and we can suggest some micro changes you can make to your daily habits.

2. Know and Understand the Power of Relationships

Good and healthy relationships matter! They are the single most important life/work skill. So, work on them. Follow your ABC’s: Always Be Connecting. The most successful people in the world know, understand, and practice this. However, we generally suck at cultivating new relationships and strengthening our existing ones. COVID-19 and social distancing definitely has not made this any easier.

Great communication is one of the critical components of relationship-building. You can probably think of a few examples from your own life where poor or miscommunication contributed to hurt feelings, anger, and even relationship damage. This is why it’s so important we learn to communicate at a high level. We published a recent blog all about communication – click here to check it out and learn some new tools for success.

If we want to succeed in 2021, we have to put aside our excuses and commit to learning this critical skill. Don’t forget – one of the most important relationships is the one you have with yourself. This year, go deep with others AND yourself to create impact.

3. Understand and Leverage Your Strengths

If you’ve been through our Strengths & Story workshop or coached with us, you know we start by helping you identify your strengths. One of our favorite tools is StrengthsFinder, though that isn’t the only way to get a handle on what you bring to the table. Your friends, family, peers, and bosses can all help you identify the areas where you naturally shine.

Come up with a list of your 3-5 top strengths and then audit your life by asking a series of questions:

– How are you already using your strengths to your advantage?

– What areas of your job or career are a mismatch for your strengths?

– How can you do more of what you’re good at in the future?

To be successful in 2021, lean in to your strengths, what makes you uniquely great, and be able to articulate them. Knowing, understanding and explaining how to really leverage your strengths will help you help others. In turn, this will help get you exactly where you want to go, whether it’s a promotion, new job, or new business.

4.Know Your Values, Passions, and Skills

In our book, Chasing Relevance, we presented a simple equation:

Strengths + (Skills + Passions + Values) = Your Value to Others

Once you’ve identified your strengths, it’s time to focus in on identifying your values, passions, and skills. These four things together constitute the value you can bring to others. When you know and can communicate that value, you can create more impact, more success, and play a bigger game.

Start right here and now by learning the difference between values, passions, and skills and brainstorming a short list for each.

-A Skill is something we have that others would value or that gives value to others. A Skill is something learned, developed, or honed, rather than a natural predisposition.

-Passions are those things that make your heart sing, that light you the hell up. These are usually easier to identify and often found by considering the answer to this question: what would you do if money didn’t matter?

-Values are your real deal principles or standards of behavior. These are NOT the things you value like family, friends, and security. Your Values are your personal code or way of being.

5. Develop a Personal Brand

You might not think of it this way, but you have a personal brand and story. Just like a corporate brand, your personal brand says something about you. When people work with you, speak with you, interact with you, they have certain expectations of what that experience will be like. Just like how we look at the Apple logo and think quality, sophistication, and leading-edge technology, people look at us and form opinions of our brand.

The good news is, just like a corporate brand, you have control over your personal brand and story. You get to choose who you want to be and how you want to be perceived by the world. You just need to then deliver on that promise every single time.

After the rough year we had in 2020, you might be ready to reinvent and refresh your personal brand and image for 2021. We can help! Reach out to us to learn more about our on-demand coaching product, Hooga. It includes a great module all about finding and living your personal brand.

6. Learn How to Tell a Connective Story

In this hard and scary year that disconnected us from our teams, peers, clients, friends, and family, we learned the value of connection. Being able to form connection with others quickly, no matter the medium, is one of the most critical skills for our success in 2021.

At launchbox, we teach our clients how to tell their or their company’s connective story. A connective story is one that communicates your own value to others in a way that demonstrates the impact you can make for them. Think of it as an answer to the age-old interview question, “Why should I hire you?” While we might not be job hunting and going on interviews, every single conversation we have with others is built around versions of that same question. “Why should I listen to you?” “Why should I trust you?” “Why should I continue working with you?” Connective stories answer these unspoken questions. They also allow space for the other person to feel heard. Being able to listen and absorb feedback is as important, if not more important, than what you actually say.

After reading through this list, you might find that you’re doing okay in a few areas while lagging behind in others. Or maybe you’re struggling in all six areas.  That’s fine. Just start!!!!  Start from where you are and make a commitment right now to doing something about it. If you want tomorrow to be different than today, then you need to be different.

We want to help get you there. It is what we do. From personalized coaching, team training, leadership development, to on-demand training with Hooga, we can help you make this your best year yet.

Go ahead, test us. We’ve got your back with these 6 Simple Rules to Coach Yourself to Success.