Systems - a cure or a curse?

 

For growing companies, having systems and processes in place is vital to support scaling up and to maintain quality. The growing organisation needs to stay aligned. However systems can also be what holds you down as you try to achieve high performance. Systems can lead to bureaucracy, resistance to change and doing for the sake of doing. To manage an organisation effectively, a leader must understand how to use systems and how to avoid the pitfalls. 

This and other tips in my book Every Employee an Entrepreneur: 

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• Amazon Kindle e-book

Must you start on time?

Let's say you are conducting a meeting. A few attendees are late. Do you start the meeting on time? You probably should. Why penalise the people who show up on time, right? But what if some of the latecomers are important decision makers who need to be in the discussion? Wouldn't it be a waste of energy to repeat the same topics after they arrive? What if the boss is a late? Would you start without him?

Punctuality is a culture to be instilled. In a working environment, it is basic respect and professionalism. What message do you send to your customers when your organisation cannot even be consistently punctual?

I have been in an organisation where everyone is early at meetings by 5 minutes. No meetings start late. In fact they tend to start early once everyone is in the room. They also tend to be efficient and end early. I have also seen organisations where attendees don't show up and only ask their secretaries to inform the group after the meeting start time has passed.

What kind of organisation culture do you want to build?

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What hiking taught me - say good morning

 

As I make the hike up the hill, I see a few hikers walking towards me, already on the way back. The leading hiker greets me good morning. I look up and smile. I echo good morning. He nods, smiles and continues on his way. The next few hikers behind him smile and tip their heads. I do the same. I walk further. I meet two hikers who look particularly tired. I cheerfully say good morning. Slightly taken aback, they smile and say good morning. I bet the next time they meet another hiker they will say good morning too. Good mornings are contagious. 

Make good mornings a habit. It brightens the day of the people you speak to. It brightens YOUR day. 

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Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

If you have not heard of this movie starring Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet, watch it without reading or learning anything about it. It is a story well told. I watched it without any expectations and truly enjoyed it. I was horrified when I later watched the trailer, which revealed some important (to me) spoilers. I can understand why the marketing department decided to make the trailer this way, but had I watched it, it would have diminished the joy of discovering the story myself. This is a movie that makes you think about and appreciate your relationships. 

Would you allow company romance?

 

This is a tricky question. On one hand, when there is office romance, how do we ensure decisions made are not biased by the relationship? Even when they are not, how do we ensure they are not PERCEIVED to be biased? Is separating the couple to different departments sufficient? Is it even the right thing to do, since it may force them onto career paths they may not have chosen otherwise? On the other hand, some of the happiest couples I know are from office romances. Should a company have the right to interfere in employees' personal affairs? 

What's your take? 

People are easy to understand

 

We sometimes find it hard to understand people mainly because we are not able to set aside our own egos and accept others as who they are. We tend to see things only from own our positions. If we are able to put ourselves into the other party's shoes, we will be able to empathise much better. Being able to empathise is a very powerful tool. It is how we are able to truly communicate and build trust. 

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If you want a change in outcome, you have to make a change in your actions

 

How often do people wish to be richer, healthier, smarter and having better relationships, but are not willing to change themselves or their daily habits? If you do not change your actions, why are you expecting a different result? 

If you want to be healthier, are you ready to cut down unhealthy food and exercise more, on a daily basis? If you want to learn a new instrument, are you ready to allocate a few hours every week practising? If you want to get more business are you ready to spend more effort on marketing and networking? If you want better relationships, are you ready to make time for your friends and loved ones? 

It's a simple deal. When you are willing to sow, you will harvest eventually. 

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