Leading with Impact

Impact, not intention, is what counts. You may have the kindest, most fair intention, but stress and perception makes
the difference in how your words and actions are taken. Now more than ever you want to pay attention to how youre
affecting others at work. This is not a time to give yourself a pass when your stress gets in the way of others
success. These days people are stressed because of the challenge of keeping their business afloat, keeping a ob or
even taking advantage of opportunities made available in this economy. !ith your own self discipline, you can make
the difference between a workplace where people feel supported or stressed. "upport doesnt mean anything goes
and its all fine, it means people have the discipline and organi#ation to solve problems and make plans without
blaming, it means contributors are fostered and those who arent an asset get to make other career choices.
Theres a se$uence in being stressed and worried. %eople tend to pressure others to be more productive. Your
intention is to improve performance and profitability. The impact may be to come down on people so they respond in
kind or hide from you. They become so stressed they dont perform well, which makes you tighten the screws even
more. This se$uence turns into a cycle that spirals down until everyone is miserable.
If your intention is to increase accountability and improve performance try these ideas&
'. Tell employees(team what your obective is ) why youre doing it *Im asking you to give me specific sales
targets including name, appointment time, estimated sales amount because we need to be very careful
about our margins now+ The impact is they understand you and the situation, they dont wonder about your
motivation.
,. -sk for ways they can help. e/plain why a suggestion wont work or that you will try it for a specific period of
time. *!ere all in this together, so lets think about how we can all be successful and get through+ The
impact is they have a sense of being included and have some control over their work, e/tremely motivational
for people.
0. -sk people to tell each other if stress is too much so each can have a little grace ) *Im really uptight about
how things are going so if I seem abrupt, please forgive me+ The impact is everyone knows its difficult and
they can help each other, not back1bite.
2. 3ive people *and yourself+ time out ) dont contaminate others with negativity. - workgroup can agree to this
ahead of time. The impact is you have a way to keep each other more positive.
4. "et a time for a review of work and stick to it. *Im an/ious about this, lets look at this every other day at 2
pm+ the impact is you are not a nag and micromanager, youre trying to bring everyone along. If youre not
intentional about follow1up, rules and policies will become a symbol of poor management. !ithout follow1
through cynicism creeps into the workplace and youre in worse shape than you were before.
5. 6o not be sarcastic. If youre concerned, say so, making snide remarks is a cheap laugh. The impact of
sarcasm is to create defensiveness in others.
There is a temptation is to make rules, policies, and essentially force people to conform to what you think should be
done. 7any studies tell us the least effective way to change behavior is to unilaterally tell someone what to do.
The other temptation is to ustify outbursts *raised voice, etc+ because people need it. -ny display of anger or
frustration should be very calculated, if at all. The impact is people seem to work hard at first, but then become afraid
and hunker down. It doesnt create an e/pansive, imaginative, creative, well performing workforce.
Your impact on others makes the difference between people wanting to work with and for you and people having to. If
your stress makes you want to blame people instead of problem solve, take a minute ) take an hour ) and get back
to being the self you want to be.
!e may think were fine and others are touchy or ust dont get it. -sk a trusted colleague if youre coming across
as you intend, and dont shoot the messenger. 8ne in$uiry recently revealed managers doing an e/cellent ob
direction setting and following through. -nother in$uiry revealed several people were impacted by a managers
stressful outbursts. 9oth valuable feedback. If you know how you impact others, you can manage it much more
effectively.
: ;unell <aught, %h6, =7=