Well here we are in 2024, my 25th year of Power Projects. I’m not sure if it’s something in the water or I’m being a whole lot more visible these days, but 2024 has kicked off to a flying start.
I came back from leave earlier than usual to work with one senior leadership team; I have a number of new coaching clients; three new Exec teams to work with this quarter; and as you’re reading this, I’ll be working with my new major client on their A+NZ business before commencing work with the APAC team. All this and it’s mid Feb! These clients are each smack bang in the middle of an inflection point where their structure has changed, their growth targets are bold, and they need to ready themselves and their business to maximise the inflection. And I’m delighted to be part of this.
My word for the year is dedication.
Dedication to my clients, my business, my connection with others and my health and fitness. So far so good AND it is a juggle!
I saw a meme recently that said something like “Thank God it’s February. Now we can all go back to being who we were before January”. While I smiled (and possibly grimaced) while I thought about how my new years resolutions were going, it made me think about a conversation I’d had with a leader earlier that day. I’d worked with their team and they’d made some big shifts in how they were communicating, coming to faster decisions, having the right conversations and dealing with conflicts and now, a couple of months in, these new ways of being were already falling away. A bit like New Year commitments!
Like the meme suggests, the team seemed keen (possibly unconsciously) to go back to who they were before the offsite. Old habits and patterns are usually much stronger than new ones and without the structure to support the shifts we commit to, it’s hard for any of us to make changes. James Clear’s now famous quote “You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems” says it all. The system is the collection of daily habits and rituals that support the new you.
How are you going with your new habits and rituals this year?
I often encourage teams to refer to themselves as the ‘team we’re becoming’ as a reminder this new way of being will need attention if it is to be sustained. It’s an iterative process becoming a high performing team. It takes time, practice, positive reinforcement and it requires vigilance. It’s never set and forget and it’s also why I strongly encourage leaders and teams to commit to quarterly check in days.
Some of the habits and rituals you can introduce to ensure the change sticks:
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Add ‘how are we travelling against our expectations of each other’ to the team meeting agenda (weekly then move to monthly). What’s working well? What needs attention? If it’s been a while, perhaps its time to check do these expectations still serve us? What’s required of us now?
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Appoint accountability buddies for the big changes. Someone who will regularly ask are we doing what we said we’d do, and being how we committed to being?
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Call out the wins where you see the team or individuals operating in a way that is new for them.
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Ask yourself, how do I want to show up today? What are the things I want to do differently today, how do I want to be in this meeting?
And remember, it’s never too late to re-set!