“PUC-ELI SPEAK TO LEAD”

PUC-ELI TRAINING TEAM PROGRAM By Nget Sokla Executive Director, PUC ELI Fellow, Executive Leadership Studies PUC-ELI embarks on organizing and developing its Training Team, aimed to develop leadership skills of trainees for life through personality and character building, creative and critical as well as lateral thinking, interpersonal and cross-cultural communication, practical and theoretical knowledge on leadership issues and trends and career preparation and readiness. The core philosophy of the team training program for leaders (youth empowerment for education, young professionals and business and NGO executives) is “To Lead by Example” vis-à-vis LEAD NOW, ACT NOW. This essence is hinged on pragmatic strategies to be successful, responsible and responsive team leaders. Incidentally, research shows that the greatest asset in leading teams and managing projects is not found in technical tools and procedures but in skillfully relating to people, to the trainees in this case. In other words, it is skillfully managing human relationships and interactions in order to successfully lead teams. PUC-ELI Training Team Program is predicated on key guidelines to help improve trainee’s ability to lead. 1) Don’t criticize or complain about people. The surest way to demotivate people is to constantly criticize them or complain about them. If they make a mistake, put it in perspective with the things they constantly do well. Accentuate the positive and utilize mistakes as opportunities for continued improvement. This leads us to our next item. 2) Praise improvement, even minor improvements. Psychologists discovered long ago that when you positively reinforce a desired behavior, people are far more likely to repeat that behavior. Most people want to do the right thing, which means you will find far more success in leading a team if you focus on using positive reinforcement rather than negative actions like threats and fear tactics. 3) Give honest and sincere praise and appreciation. All people deeply desire significance. One of the easiest ways you can help fulfill desire that is by offering honest and sincere praise and appreciation whenever possible. This is probably one of the greatest motivational methods you can ever employ. 4) Encourage other people to talk and be a good active listener. People want to be heard, really heard, and not patronized. Oftentimes, instead of listening to someone in a conversation, people are really just waiting for an opportunity to speak. If this is an area where you struggle, one trick is to say “What I understand you’re saying is…” By repeating what you understand the other person to be saying, it forces you to really listen to what they are saying. And as a side benefit, it reinforces to the speaker that you truly are listening to them and respect what they have to say. 5) Be genuinely interested in other people and make them feel important. Everyone’s favorite primary subject is themselves, its human nature. Social media at large and the “selfie” testify to this fact. Nobody likes to feel ignored and unappreciated, including you (see item 3). So go ahead and make an effort to be interested in people and you will win their gratitude and by extension a cooperative attitude. 6) Be sensitive to people’s pride and let them save face. The simple fact is that all people are prideful creatures. If you call them out on being wrong about something and make them look bad in front of others, they’ll fight you to the bitter end. But if you can offer criticism or disagreement in a manner that allows them to save face, they’ll be much more willing to cooperate and work with you. 7) Be respectful of other people’s ideas and opinions. Try to see things from their point of view. When you try to understand another person’s point of view you may find that you learn something. But even if you don’t, you will still find it much easier to respect the people with whom you disagree. If you are wrong, be honest and humble enough to admit it. Sit down for a moment, are you ready for this? You are not perfect, you are not always right; you can and do make mistakes. One of the greatest personality traits you can develop is that of humility. We all make mistakes, and rather than deny and repeat those mistakes, wise people admit their failures and learn from experience. In doing this the wise person is able to grow and continually get better. If you’re honest and humble enough to own up to your mistake, apologize to those affected, and work to avoid repeating your mistake; you will gain the respect of those you work with. 8 ) Set a high bar for people and let them know you believe in their ability to succeed. 9) Set Clear Goals. Goal setting theory teaches us that goals are the primary drivers of the intensity and persistence of effort. Both for you, and the team you intend to lead. Goals organize and direct our attention by necessity. They require us to regulate our efforts. They increase our persistence. And they encourage strategy and planning. 10) Follow the greatest leadership rule ever given. If you wish to be a great leader, make it your focus to serve those whom you would lead. There are a lot of people that want the power, prestige and pay that comes along with leadership positions, but few want to do what it takes to actually be a good and effective leader. Great leadership isn’t about bossing people around; it’s about inspiring and guiding people towards a common goal for everyone’s benefit. Build your team up, give them credit for their work, praise their efforts and reward them when they succeed. There is a saying that states “Be the change that you want to see”, we can adapt that to this discussion by saying “Be the leader that you would want to lead you.” Why team leadership training? Although teams can be a strength in today’s business world, many team leaders will confess that, at times, a team can become a source of challenges, inefficiencies, and conflicts. Team leaders have the tremendous responsibility of balancing people issues with task issues and are often charged with working through a wide range of challenges. • Defining or refreshing a team’s direction or strategy. • Enhancing trust and improving communication within the team. • Managing team member differences, interpersonal issues, or ill feelings between team members. • Clearly defining mission critical processes or systems to enhance productivity. • Reducing silos and barriers across teams in the organization. • More effectively allocating resources and energy in order to focus on the right priorities and opportunities. • Building consensus and greater levels of ownership for decisions and plans. • Enhancing trust and improving communication within the team. At the same time, team leaders must continue to identify and respond to opportunities to build on and enhance the team’s success. With so many challenges, it takes a confident and skilled leader to ensure that a team stays productive and focused on the task at hand. PUC-ELI "Commitment to Moral Leadership" “Empowering Leaders, Empowering Organizations”