This combination presents participants with a chance to learn new ideas, new information, and knowledge, from combined wisdom of both the facilitator and the real life experiences of other participants.

Many business people are well aware of the fact that the void between “knowing” and “knowing how too” and the void between “intentions” and “action” are often wide gaps to traverse.

They are also aware of the fact that time deprivation and isolation are challenges to be met head on.

An appropriate metaphor regarding the benefits of workshops and coaching is The Great Wall of China. It was developed with the intention to keep invading armies and evil out of China, however as we now know the wall actually served to isolate China and prevented world intelligence from entering China.

This has inadvertently happened to a lot of businesses. They have built a wall themselves, and as a consequence encounter a wide variety of problems and frustrations, often referred to as the ceiling of complexity!

To successfully meet these and other challenges head on many people are utilising a process of accountability for growth, stimulated and managed by workshops and coaching.

In its fundamental nature, coaching is designed to drive individual growth (personally and professionally) to exceed expectations.

Change is often driven by either discontent and or desire for improvement. Performance coaching pushes people and businesses to go beyond present levels of performance, challenges beliefs of what is possible and focuses on improvement. Coaching provides a basis to: -

• Build a solid personal foundation and self-confidence
• Develop their personal vision and uncover their value priorities
• Think strategically and inspire shared vision, mission and values
• Design appropriate goals, strategies, tactics and action plans
• Enhance their management and leadership skills
• Identify and build a series of proven winning strategies
• Analyse and rectify self-defeating behaviours
• Elicit high commitment to personal change and development.

Being coached is in itself a challenge as it stretches experience, inviting participants to draw on and develop hidden personal resources and qualities. It is an exciting, stimulating journey of self-renewal, discovery and development, opening up new opportunities for personal fulfilment and professional achievement.

Any self discerning business person or parent knows that it is not what you know that counts but rather “what you learn after you know it all” that really counts.

Established in 1996 Effective Planning Solutions P/L is a respected and trusted industry partner working with a diverse range of corporate and business clients. Specialising in performance management, change management, work/life balance, leadership, coaching and cultural change we have assisted our many clients to achieve significant growth and improvement.

For more information regarding coaching programs and workshops in Melbourne please visit http://www.epsolutions.com.au or call 1800 776789

There is also a wealth of other free information on the site to help you run your business and your life more effectively.

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The word rejuvenation is derived from Latin meaning to revitalise, revive, refresh and exhilarate. In the realm of parachuting this procedure is considered vital as it enhances self-protection and preservation by minimising the potential costs and consequences of using a faulty parachute.

When this principle is applied to personal and professional life (rejuvenation) it helps to establish a basis upon which people can focus, think and consider improvements in both professional performance and personal satisfaction. It creates a basis for a quantum leap.

Research from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, “Workplace issues 2006’ indicated that a vast majority of people operating in today’s, electronically connected knowledge world want more time, particularly for rejuvenation, fun, focus and personal pursuits. This presents a paradox of some magnitude. The paradox is that whilst individuals would like more time – the truth is that they have all the time that there is available to be had!

Two points are worth noting.

One is that in a 24 hour electronically connected global economy where reported cases of stress, conflict, anxiety and burnout continue to spiral, the need for, and importance of time to engage in rejuvenation activities is absolutely vital.

The other point is that if you want more time - you have to take it. Nobody can ever give you more time than you have, but they can take it away… if you let them.

Hence whilst “Think Parachutes” may be an abstract theme, it is a signal that you can record in your calendar every sixty to ninety days to breath, to think, to engage in nature, to rejuvenate and to focus.

Taking time for self is not a crime.

No one on their death bed has ever regretted NOT spending more time at the office!

Think time -“Think Parachutes”

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The challenge of managing stars and leading entrepreneurs in companies is similar in many ways to the challenge of coaching in team sports. Both leader and coach need to encourage peak performance through an attitude of success, inspired by vision and maintained through perseverance. Combined with smart risk-taking - they need to inspire stars to “go for it” and forge a strong bond between the star and the team.

How do we define entrepreneurship?

The answers to this question from numerous sources are amazingly consistent and straightforward - “entrepreneurs build businesses.”

Entrepreneur qualities
The most important qualities of an entrepreneur are:

• clarity of vision
• confidence
• connection with the team
• passion

Star athletes and entrepreneurs have clarity of vision and purpose. They are capable of seeing the future, seeing the goal line. They imagine, quite vividly the possibilities, and cut through complexity. They see adversity as a challenge and problems as opportunities. That doesn’t mean it’s easy, not by a long shot. But, their clarity of vision and intensity of focus means very little of their effort is wasted and makes it look almost “easy” to someone sitting on the sideline.

Entrepreneurs see the world differently. They see possibilities … they see what can be, they see the goal line and push across it.

Another attribute of star athletes and entrepreneurs is that they share confidence, optimism, and perseverance to keep working toward defined goals, no matter what the odds. A very distinct and defining characteristic of entrepreneurs is that entrepreneurs try to do hard things. They have setbacks and failures along the way, but they’re confident and optimistic that they WILL succeed, even when surrounded by those who don’t believe - which is often the case in large institutions. They refuse to be susceptible to the negative influences of other people. This can be construed as a kind of optimistic risk-taking, as people will generally oppose those who do not conform. Particularly in large organisations where the expectations come from shareholders, analysts, and employees, where there’s a lot people who really, when tested don’t give a dam if the game is won or lost.

The third attribute shared by entrepreneurs and sports stars is that they are very good at seeing, and making, “connections.” Entrepreneurs connect a product idea with a value proposition that fills a market need. It’s this connection to the real world, not a pie in the sky idea that turns concepts into powerful new businesses
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Entrepreneurs and athletes intuitively believe that they can do anything they set their mind to - but they can’t do it alone. They need the rest of the team, a coach, and a solid plan to be their best.

Raw talent is never enough. Even in individual sports and small start-up companies, the standout winners are connected to a lifeline, a solid support system. Despite the fact that entrepreneurship is often identified as an individual trait, the most successful individuals understand the critical importance of teams.
The last, and perhaps the most important quality for success - whether on the playing field or in the marketplace - is passion. That’s why conventional wisdom is challenged as, “Entrepreneurship is not about the product … it’s about the passion.

A great idea, product, concept, or talent is necessary for winning but not sufficient. Stars need passion, no matter what arena they perform in.

The great dancer and choreographer, Martha Graham said, “Great dancers are not great because of their technique. They are great because of their passion.”
Passion is the fire that makes stars and entrepreneurs push harder and farther despite the odds. And, passion is contagious - it inspires others.

The choices are; you can have a job or you can have a mission. If you are going to join a company that’s on a mission, you really need to be passionate about it, otherwise, it’s just too much work and it won’t be fun. So, passion is probably the single most important criteria to look for when inviting people into your team.

Fostering entrepreneurs

Leaders of companies - and coaches of teams - can do several things to create the right climate for these success factors and to make organisations places where stars want to be because they believe it will make the most of their talent and effort. We need to reward stars commensurate with their achievement and talent.

But we need to hold them accountable to play by the same rules as everyone else in the organisation. This means differential rewards but consistent standards of behaviour and accountability. If you don’t reward stars, if we don’t offer sufficient opportunities for personal development, recognise and acknowledge their extra effort and achievement, they will go work for someone else who will.

Even if they stay for a while, they won’t be inspired or have the incentive to do their best if they’re not appropriately rewarded. No matter how creative and productive stars are, they should not be permitted to flaunt the rules and values of the organisation. Nothing will ruin team morale faster than if other employees or players see certain people given complete freedom to skip practice, abuse co-workers, and behave counter to the organisation’s stated values.

In addition to rewarding stars, leaders can foster a winning environment by running a good “front office.” A good front office supports stars and provides them with a solid infrastructure, so they can focus on what they do best.

There’s still another thing we can do - we can create a culture of belonging that binds stars to the organisation. Stars and entrepreneurs are rugged, talented individuals but they are still social creatures. And they will be happier and more successful when they feel a strong psychic connection to their company or team. A strong team culture can be an important part of the overall reward package and serve as a kind of “golden handcuffs” binding stars to the team. Without a strong team or corporate culture, stars will think like free-agents and will be ready to jump ship at the first offer.

A passion for results - but not at the expense of performance

Leaders must be aware of the distinction between performance and results. Performance generates results but consists of many components including actions, behaviours, skill, attitude, values, beliefs and vision. We want people to be passionate about results but not at the expense of other people within the team.

There are many situations where appropriate performance breeches occur. Too many to mention here, however an example might be dodging responsibilities or voicing derogative comments about other team members. Both are examples of what can deflate team morale and adversely impact on productivity. Situations where leadership was needed but unfortunately neglected. Examples of why teams need to establish a “Code of Conduct” through a process of collaboration and consensus, where all players, share equally the responsibility to ensure the code is adhered to and maintained.
For more information contact :- info@epsolutions.com.au

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Of course, like most of us, I had been brought up on the popular belief that the secret of success is hard work. This presented a paradox as I had seen many people work hard without succeeding, whilst others succeed without working hard. That convinced me that hard work was not the real secret even though in most cases it might be one of the requirements.

It was this realisation that led me to set out on a voyage of discovery to discover the secret, if in fact one existed. My voyage carried me through biographies and autobiographies and all sorts of dissertations on success and the lives of successful people. I finally reached a point at which I realised that the secret I was trying to discover lay not only in what people did, but also in what made them do it.

I further realised that the secret for which I was searching must not only apply to every definition of success, but it must apply to everyone who had ever been successful. In short, I was looking for the common denominator of success. And because that is exactly what I was looking for, that is exactly what I found.

The common denominator of success is so big, so powerful, and so vitally important to your future and mine that I am just going to “lay it on the line” in words of few syllables, so simple that everyone can understand.

“The common denominator of success - the secret of success of every person who has ever been successful - lies in the fact that they formed the habit of doing things that others do not like to do”.

It is just as true as it sounds and it is just as simple as it seems. You can hold it up to the light, you can put acid on it, and you can kick it around until it’s worn out, but when you are all through with it, it will still be the common denominator of success.

The secret of success lies in forming the habit of doing things that most people do not like to do. So let us start the boiling-down process by determining what are the things that most people do not like to do. The things that people do not like to do are the very things that all human beings, including successful people, naturally do not like to do. In other words, we’ve got to realise right from the start that success is something achieved by the minority of people, and therefore almost considered unnatural. Due to the fact that it is achieved by a minority it is not some thing that can be achieved by following natural likes and dislikes, nor by being guided by our natural preferences and prejudices.

First and foremost remember that people are controlled by habit, just as machines are controlled by momentum and that habit is nothing more or less, than momentum translated from the concrete into the abstract. Every single qualification for success is acquired through habit. People form habits and habits form futures. If you do not conscientiously and deliberately form good habits, then unconsciously you will form bad ones. You are the kind of person you are, not because of who you are but what you do. You have formed the habit of being that kind of person and the only way you can change is through forming new habits.
The emphasis is therefore based on two facts one is habit the other is change. Any perceived change based on a resolution or spur of the moment decision will not deliver the desired outcomes. to change. However any promise to yourself, which is not worth a tinker’s damn until you have formed the habit of making it and keeping it. Moreover, you will not form the habit of making it and keeping it unless right at the start you link it with a definite purpose that can be accomplished by keeping it. In other words, any resolution or decision you make today has to be made again tomorrow, and the next day, and the next, and the next, and so on. And it not only has to be made each day, but it has to be kept each day for if you miss one day in the making or keeping of it, you’ve got to go back and begin all over again. But if you continue the process of making it each morning and keeping it each day, you will finally wake up some morning a different person in a different world, and you will wonder what has happened to you and the world you used to live in.

In making your purpose practical, be careful not to make it logical. Make it a purpose of the sentimental or emotional type. Needs are logical whilst wants and desires are sentimental and emotional. Your needs will push you just so far, but when your needs are satisfied, they will stop pushing you. If, however, your purpose is in terms of wants or desires, then your wants and desires will keep pushing you along after your needs are satisfied and until your wants and desires are fulfilled.

Never ever forget that whilst you may succeed beyond your fondest hopes and your greatest expectations; you will never succeed beyond the purpose to which you are willing to surrender. Furthermore, you will not be complete until you have formed the habit of doing the things that others do not like to do.

For further information regarding this subject e-mail: - info@epsolutions.com.au

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Based on the principles associated with cause and affect, Lifedge will enable you to focus on changing specific results by examining the driving forces and or restraining forces (strengths and weaknesses) that exist in performance.

The Diagnostic

Lifedge presents you with a series of questions related to professional and personal life. Focusing on ten key success factors for each area Lifedge will present you with a snapshot of your professional and personal life. The results of your input will be prioritised from highest to lowest. This will be instrumental in assisting you to focus on specific development opportunities to improve outcomes.

Remedial Strategies

Strategic Focusing Principles containing specific action plans are presented in accordance with each identified area considered as a priority.  For example if time management is scored the lowest – it becomes your highest priority to remedy. All strategies are designed to act as remedies for specific situations. Naturally the strategies do not carry a guarantee as individual commitment, skill and application will be a significant factor in your overall accomplishment. For those that understand how a structured support and accountability program can help drive development and achievement - EPS has a range of coaching programs to assist. For more information regarding individual coaching programs and group workshops please send your request to info@epsolutions.com.au

Coaching and Group Workshops

Individual Coaching
Every great sports person and every business legend that has ever been, have one thing in common – they are surrounded by coaches and support staff. For them and for others, coaching is a basis to maintain focus and accountability on specific actions, necessary for success. It is a basis for maintaining objectivity and a way of getting ideas from a third party who shares a strong desire for success. In short, a coach is a “silent partner”.

EPS delivers a range of programs based on individual needs. Coaching sessions are set based on individual and business priorities. Sessions can be weekly, fortnightly or monthly and continue for a predetermined period of time to ensure objectives are achieved.

Business Building Workshops
EPS conducts a series of Business Building Workshops for a range of industries. Workshops are conducted quarterly and are supported with a series of one on one coaching sessions to drive workshop outcomes, actions and objectives. In one eight-hour day per quarter, you will:

• Construct and review a detailed three year vision regarding your business and your life
• Review key points within your business and marketing plans
• Do exercises that force you to think differently and more strategically about your business
• Develop and implement a range of strategic focusing principles
• Create a ninety day plan of action
• Share and receive insights with peers from other industries
• Review progress and plan for the next ninety day period in your business
• Focus entirely on improving your business and your life, away from the office

Workshops include strategic exercises on a range of topics including Business Planning, Achieving a Quantum Leap in Personal Growth and Development, Managing for the Maximum, Productivity Analysis, Change Management and Creativity. For a complete list of topics and dates please send your request to info@epsolutions.com.au

Move to the first part of the diagnostic. CLICK HERE

For assistance call 1800 77 6789 or email diagnostic@epsolutions.com.au

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Despite the fact that almost every individual and almost every business talks about human asset development - few actually do anything about it! Something that has seen individual development planning become one of the weakest links in Australian business.

The subject of individual development planning invites a variety of opinions and debate however we should look at some of the changes that have changed the way we used to go about development. Firstly, development planning has shifted from a corporate responsibility to an individual responsibility. Secondly, development is now a bona fide necessity not could or should do luxury. Thirdly, the rate of change has continued to increase every year - a fact that makes development a must. Standing still has never been an option and it never will be.

Some contributing facts are microchip technology and the job market. Micro chip technology has changed the way human beings live, work, play and communicate. Courtesy of microchip technology companies are reinventing themselves every three to five years, meaning that people have to reinvent themselves to keep pace. Whilst job security is still a basic psychological need for personal security, the once proclaimed, secure and or normal jobs are disappearing at an alarming rate as the world continues to experience accelerated and unprecedented change. As a result people must develop, personally and professionally, even if only to remain current.

People must change and they must be prepared to accept the responsibility for personal futures and personal development and not wait for an unidentified somebody to come to their rescue. The realities are that today is what we have, this is it, No one is coming to toast promote or rescue us and that in the end despite wanting people to care about our futures - we do it because we care - nobody else ever does as much as we do!

This is it: - all you have available to you, to perform at your absolute peak is today. It makes little difference what happened in the past, as you don’t live in the past and despite the urge to cast longing glances into the past, one can never go back. All you have is now - whether you like it or not - this is it.

Nobody’s coming: - there is no unidentified person, knight in shining armor or saving grace coming to help promote or advance you. You choose to make it happen or you can choose to let it happen - either way you choose. In the past you may have had a great boss a good mentor; but when you reflect on your achievements you will discover that you made it on your own. Nobody did it for you and nobody will do it for you in the future. Nobody is coming.

Nobody Cares: - Despite the fact that we would like to think that others are concerned for us and our future, the truth - the harsh truth, is that nobody will ever care as much as you! Whether you make it in the business world or merely skate through is your personal choice - however, don’t ever believe that your destiny is in the hands of others. Every decision that you make is your decision and whether people care or not, is largely irrelevant. You do what you do because you care, you have your personal desires and you have your own set personal expectations. Remember this is it - nobody is coming and nobody cares!

At first these are difficult to accept however there is a time that you come to learn that people are neither for you, nor against you. They are too busy and too consumed with thinking about themselves. You learn that no matter how hard you try to please people, there are people in this world who are not going to love you. A lesson that at first is somewhat troubling, and then really quite relaxing.

The New Dimension

As technology continues to change the world and life, the rules for work are also changing. Expectations of employers are increasing, consumers are more demanding, and competition has exploded as international borders collapse, courtesy of an electronically connected global economy. All of this has contributed to people being judged by a new measure, a new dimension.

This new measure has little to do with what we were told was important at school. It is not based on how smart we are what qualifications or expertise we have, but rather is based on how well we manage ourselves and interact with others. This new yardstick, ‘emotional intelligence’ is increasingly important in corporate decisions regarding who will be hired, who will not, who will be retained, who will not, who will be recommended for promotion and who will not.

To a large extent technical know-how and academic ability are taken for granted. Most companies assume that if people apply for a role they have the necessary academic ability to do the job. What they are more interested in is how you will fit into the team - how you will handle difficult situations and what a personal qualities you possess. Qualities such as initiative, empathy, adaptability, persuasiveness and positive mind set. They are interested in how you handle confrontation and manage conflict, how you manage and accept change and your ability to deal with challenges and adversity.

This new measure predicts who is likely to become a star performer and who is prone to derailing. And no matter what field of work we are currently in, it measures traits that are crucial to our marketability for future jobs. A future controlled by speed, connectivity, complexity and ubiquity.

As social structures, technology, businesses and the evolution of a connected and competitive global economy continue to reshape and reinvent the world; people must ensure that they also change. They must strive to develop new skills and new behaviours supported by new paradigms. In other words, people must strive to re-invent themselves through personal development to remain competitive and to remain marketable.

Human Asset

Extensive research into human asset development discovered it as one of the weakest links in Australian business today. A subject that when after all is said and done - more is actually said than done. A particularly disturbing fact, given that world events; require people to develop, personally and professionally, intellectually and emotionally.

Rapid change has produced previously unrivalled tension and pressure on individuals, tension that is causing a total upheaval in concepts, values and beliefs, methods, processes and structures of the companies we once knew as inflexible and predictable. Developments responsible for creating new challenges for individuals and businesses, particularly those individuals entrusted with the responsibility of managing and leading people.

Despite our evidence proving conclusively that people need to change and that the best - known resource available to generate personal change is personal development, some fundamental and limiting issues still exist in individual development planning. The conventional approach to development planning is that, if time permits, at the conclusion of performance reviews, training and development needs are discussed. This approach was identified as one that was totally inadequate and lacked any genuine commitment to human asset development.

The Facts

More than two thousand people surveyed on the subject of personal development discussions with their employers revealed a number of shortcomings. Seventy-one percent of people labeled discussions as shallow, unsatisfactory and rarely if ever, delivering any notable or measurable outcomes. Essentially, respondents felt that discussions lacked any genuine commitment to the process of human asset development.

The second shortcoming was is that few people were taught the finer points of how to do it! It’s ironic that millions of corporate dollars are spent training managers on how to conduct selection interviews, how to read financial statements and how to run computer programs yet they (Companies) seemingly assume people know how to develop themselves and others in a purposeful, strategic and effective way. Not so.

The third outcome from the survey was that many people live on “Some Day Island” - someday I’ll get around to it. This was premised by the fact that most people are so obsessed with trying to cope with and make sense out of the present, that they lose sight of the fact that the majority of life will be lived in the future. A future of extended electronic connectivity and information over-load. A future where knowledge is power and development of intellectual and emotional intelligence is a must.

Rising Discontent

The most prevalent responses gathered from our survey across a range of industries were:

I. Seventy-four percent of people revealed a haphazard approach was exercised in development planning and failed to divide development into two distinct categories; “development required for improving current role” & “development required for progressing future careers”. This was identified as an approach that contained little objectivity, other than satisfying internal audit requirements.

II. More than fifty-five percent described their managers as ineffective at providing genuine assistance in formulating development plans. Comments included a distinct lack of know how, lack of creativity and standard topics such as time management and new software were regularly approved as development solutions. Cause and affect principles associated in performance were seldom if ever explored.

III. Making up the top three responses was crisis management, (a common event), when pressure to meet deadlines was intense, managers requested, (in some cases demanded), that all training and development programs be cancelled until the business returned too normal. Unfortunately, normal was never clear by definition, and hence training and development initiatives were again placed on the end of priority lists.

Perhaps the most disturbing and largely predominant fact revealed from research was that in many cases a reckless and neglectful attitude was evident. “Some day we’ll get around too it” was commonly referred to when development was discussed. Not only was this projected by majority of the companies but also by a large proportion of individuals.

Fading Loyalty

Individual personal development must be viewed by businesses, as a tangible and important resource for improving business outcomes. It must take priority at the top of, “things to do lists”. Not only on those of the people responsible for driving the business but also on those who will gain maximum advantage. The people.

It needs to be recognised that traditional employment relations have changed to the point where organisational career planning, has become an oxymoron. The facts are that a career is now an industry, a chosen field of endeavour and not an organisation. Companies all over the world are moving out of the loyalty business and can no longer be relied upon to “take care” of individual futures. Instead, the responsibility of companies today is to ensure staff receive competent and professional support in their endeavours to maximise, “human asset development”, as change will continue to modify the paradigm of a career.

Whether in finance, manufacturing, construction, design or technology, changing market conditions will determine skills, capabilities and individual emotional competencies needed. This together with the need to service existing clients and build sustainable relationships with new clients will be the future challenge as individuals are selected according to skills and competencies, not how long they have been with the organisation or what they did in the past. Today is a new day and loyalty, (as unfortunate as it may be), will not play a part.

Normal jobs as they were once called, those based on a forty hour week and lasting for almost forty years are gone, a fact that is challenging traditional and primary definitions of security…that of “having a job”. As a result individuals must take literal responsibility for personal futures. They must take responsibility for planning and implementing development initiatives as a basis for creating a personal competitive edge and securing a future for themselves and their families.

A number of important essentials are necessary to make development purposeful and effective, none however, are more important than personal beliefs and values. Ordinarily, people who express little value or belief in development are ineffective in driving individual development. They have a tendency to interfere and resist development, based on a perception that training and development is a waste of time. They fail to recognise that by definition development is an evolutionary process, necessary for all growth, progress and change.

For information regarding individual development planning e-mail info@epsolutions.com.au

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Confrontation in its simplest definition is a difference of opinion that presents itself as an issue and needs to either solved or resolved. Particularly when change is occurring, as change is responsible for creating many of the complexities associated with modern life. The speed of change and the impact that it can have on life and business has introduced numerous challenges and situations where more and more people discover they have issues. Issues that need to be dealt with and either resolved or solved in order to enhance professional productivity personal satisfaction and reduce anxiety.

This necessitates developing and exercising the skill of inviting people to deal, and managing conflict. Premier skills that when applied lead to effective confrontation and management of conflict. As paradox, complexity and change continue to shape life, inviting people to deal will become a means of reducing anxiety and stress

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The art of inviting people to deal with you and managing any associated conflict involves implementing a series of steps that allow for objectivity to be maintained and acknowledging the controlling influences associated with emotional intelligence.

Whilst dealing primarily with conflict resolution and problem solving this section provides a number of other skills necessary in managing change, controlling stress and achieving success. Emotionally intelligent skills including defusing defence, advanced listening, concise language, negotiation, honesty, probing and the ability to remain focused.

These skills are detailed in the sections that follow, and again in the section dealing with strategic performance principles at the rear of this manual.

At this juncture we intend to deal specifically with confrontation, inviting people to deal on issues and managing conflict. This is an area of personal and professional performance recognised by thousands of people as a skill that they would like to develop. Due to the vast numbers of people who identify this as an area of improvement, we intend to go through a series of steps and provide a framework for effectively confronting issues. A skill used extensively in dealing with and managing dysfunctional behaviours associated with change, behaviours commonly known as resistance and interference.

The first step in effectively dealing with issues is to be clear on exactly what is the issue. Without clarity issues can become clouded and objectivity totally lost. The second step is to construct an invitation that reveals intentions, feelings and motivation for the invitation to deal. The third step is to remain focused on the issue and recognise; emotions can be introduced when dealing with sensitive issues and can change the plain from logical to emotional. This leads to the last and perhaps most important step. Deciding if the issue is a problem or a conflict. This is important due to the fact that a problem issue is solved by identifying logical solutions, whilst conflicts are emotionally based issues and need to be resolved. We will elaborate further on this point, however irrespective of which area the issue resides; each requires working through a series of defined steps to achieve success.

An invitation to deal with an issue is like any form of invitation; it is offered and can be either accepted or rejected. It is important to remember that when inviting someone to deal, you cannot demand or force people to accept. Therefore it is imperative to remember that confrontation cannot be forced.

To deal effectively with issues, whether they are problems or conflicts requires effective communication, consisting of three components, assertion, response and versatility. In communication an assertion is made, a response is given and versatility is applied to both the assertion and response. In this context, inviting people to deal is a premier response skill. When preparing for confrontation it is important to remember that confrontation is inviting another person (or persons) to deal with a specific issue. Whilst it is possible that a number of peripheral issues may exist, the most effective way to confront is to target one issue at a time. Usually one issue will be paramount and could in fact be the catalyst to other issues. The following information is designed to allow you to plan the interaction and consider reactions and or behaviours of other people or persons.

Step 1. When confronting issues begin with an “I message”. That is a statement incorporating your motivation for wanting to have the conversation and providing the other party with an insight as to how you feel regarding a particular issue.

Example “John the reason I want tot talk to you is that I am extremely concerned, worried, frustrated, etc, about what is happening in relation to: - (……………issue………….) State the issue specifically and concisely, (eight words or less).

Remember that whilst confrontation and managing difficult interactions revolve around a set of skills and competencies related to emotional intelligence it involves more than just the generic meaning of communication. It involves advanced skills such as advanced listening, concise and honest language, defusing defence, negotiation, probing and the ability to focus. Focus is paramount because people who refuse to accept ownership often try to introduce unrelated or other issues. When this occurs, acknowledge that you have heard them and that you will be happy to address them after you have solved or resolved the issue that you have raised.

Step 2. Confrontation is an invitation to another person or persons to deal with a specific issue and because it is an invitation it should conclude with a question. For example your question might be; where do you stand on this? How do you see it? What do you suggest is done to rectify the situation? I’m interested as to how you see it? Remember that when asking a question the dot represents a signal to stop talking and wait for a reply.

Step 3. After the invitation is delivered listen carefully as to whether ownership is accepted or whether the invitation is denied. Samples of such denials are fighting, taking flight or attempting to totally ignore the situation. Fighting is a behavioural response and might involve blaming, screaming, crying and accusing other people. Taking flight is when people acknowledge in part that there is an issue but that they have no time to discuss the matter. Ignoring is a tactic used by people who try to intellectually minimise the issue by saying something like “I can’t believe that you are so concerned about such a petty issue.” This is a blatant attempt to minimise the severity of the matter and because issues, like beauty are often in the eye of the beholder they cannot be discounted as unimportant.

Step 4. If ownership is not taken or the invitation is declined - the next step is to again confront by issuing another invitation but not on the original issue. The invitation or confrontation is now centred on a new issue, the apparent lack of ownership. Example, “So that I can understand the situation, are you saying that you take no responsibility for (issue).?” or “Let me be absolutely clear on this - you are saying that you are unwilling to accept that this matter has anything to do with you whatsoever?”

Again the importance of maintaining focus is imperative as confrontation is about an issue not a person and therefore defensive behaviour must be addressed immediately. (Refer to defusing defence.)

Step 5. If ownership is taken or accepted decide whether the issue is a problem or a conflict. The critical point of difference here is that a problem can be solved through logic and rationale whereas a conflict is something that contains high emotion and therefore is not solved but rather resolved. Remember that logical and emotional communication are worlds apart and will never produce a desirable outcome when one person is emotional and the other is endeavouring to be logical. Another important factor to be aware of here is that problems when the logical path is exhausted have the potential to escalate to conflicts - seldom if ever will a conflict turn into a problem.

Step 6. Once the issue is accepted and identified as either a problem or a conflict the following steps can be implemented to achieve a satisfactory outcome.

For further information and action page to confront with confidence email: - info@epsolutions.com.au

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The most important aspect to finding a cure for time sickness is to firstly admit that you suffer from it. Once this seemingly self-defeating admission is made, the next step is to identify causes and set about implementing preventative measures to eliminate such causes. The alternative is to allow the time- related affliction to impact on personal and professional health and cause long term damage to numerous aspects of life and physical health.

As a universal resource time is experienced as global scarcity. It cannot be stored, bought borrowed or mortgaged. Even if we do not to use it, it disappears at an alarming rate.

Cause1 - The Belief That Effort And Results Are Directly Proportional

In business, effort is too often confused with result. The sales manager who overflows with charm when talking to customers and, after closing a sale, takes the rest of the day off to celebrate is regarded as lazy but lucky, not as a talented sales executive. When asked the reason for their success, entrepreneurs are fond of saying, ‘A lot of hard work’. Sounds good, doesn’t it? It plays well at home, too, to families who have been ignored for years. But if great entrepreneurs were to answer the question honestly, most would probably list such factors, as a finely tuned sense of timing, the ability to recognise opportunity, friends in the right places, an occasional moral lapse, and luck. May the judges forgive me, but hard work by itself is not enough. To say it is possible to establish a successful business just by arriving early and staying late is like saying that every postman can be Kerry Packer. There is a prevailing conviction that sweat is obligatory, and with each new drop an executive moves a little closer to financial heaven, a little further towards owning the right to convey the, “how hard I work story”. Have you ever noticed that despite how much you love the story, others have trouble staying awake?

Cause 2 - The Gospel That The Quantity Of Work Is More Important Than The Quality Of Work.

This is a variation on the same theme. Early in the century Max Weber recognised that the Protestant ethic of hard work had permeated the business world. It is even more of a factor today. Executives feel pressure from their bosses to outwork colleagues and build their image and career. By this reasoning, having a heart attack because of work leads to true glory, keeling over at the office is even better and death places you amongst The Elite. Perceptions are, people who manage their time are often suspecting. And if they go to the theatre, don’t carry a briefcase home, spend weekends with family, and sometimes even pick the kids up from school, are seen as people who have already descended into an advanced state of indolence. The executive who judges his contribution in hours will find himself muttering things like: ‘Well, we all know how unfair it was that they didn’t promote me. Everyone knows I’m here at eight in the morning and eight in the evening.’ Or I am working so hard at the moment my family needs to make an appointment to see me.

Cause 3 - Things Are A Little Uncertain At The Moment. I’ll Just Have To Work Harder.

Few excuses are as convincing as the ‘we’re-just-going-through-a ………………………..Fill in the blank: change at the top, restructure, lay-offs, expansion, a few changes, a new product release, etc. Almost any change can be an excuse for poor time management, yet to allow such events to shape one’s working day and life is to forfeit ownership for control and the choices we make.

REMEDIAL PRACTICES FOR OVERCOMING TIME SICKNESS

1. Begin at the end. Set a certain hour at which to leave the office and obey it blindly. For example some chose 7pm who previously had worked until midnight. If you normally work until 7pm, move your leaving time to 5.30 or 6.00. If you take work home at weekends, establish a 60 - day program to halt this insidious practice.

2. Sift through that stack of papers on your desk and decide which are most important. (Deciding that everything is equally important is cheating. Start again.) Spend several hours, or even a whole day, if that’s what it takes, discovering what’s in that pile. Begin with the most difficult, complex, or time-consuming documents. In other words, go through the pile in order of importance, not appearance. You won’t get a false sense of accomplishment that way. As you go through it, divide the papers into three categories:

• Red Items = Priority items, which require your personal attention and represent matters of indisputable importance. Don’t put more than five items in this category.
• Blue Item = Items that can be handled only by you but can wait. At first this category seems the most enjoyable, because so much appears to fit into it, however think long and hard about whether you are really the only one who can deal with a particular item. Whether your colleagues or assistants are over worked should not weigh in your decision. The truth is that control of time is an exercise in selfishness. Ask yourself: ‘Is it possible that someone else could do this task at least 70 per cent as well as I could?’ If the answer is yes let them. Load them up with everything that falls into that category. By the way if you do have the luxury of an assistant - ask them what they beleive they could do that you are currently doing. You will be suprised how clever people realyy are!
• Yellow Items = Items you think would be good to look at but never quite get around to. These include newspapers and magazines, lengthy reports, copies of emails, etc etc - you get the idea. We’ve all grown accustomed to receiving vast quantities of information. As a defence, we tend to read a little of everything - whetherwe need to or not. This is among the most serious causes of time illness.

The key to time management is self-esteem. You must maintain it even though you may not be as well informed about some essentially meaningless report or arcane issue as your associates. You must be prepared to go to a meeting and endure comments such as, ‘You mean you didn’t read “Short-Cuts to a Better Future” in the latest Dream Lovers’ News?’ Better to suffer the humiliation of saying you didn’t and ask someone to please be kind enough to summarise it than to read all the articles that cross your desk. Legions of executives believe they will be regarded as ill-informed dunces if they let their subscriptions lapse to The Age, The Financial Review, Business Australia, BRW, assorted local papers, and financial newsletters. Remember that publication’s work hard to convey their indispensability. (Don’t let too many succeed.)

Due to (what else?) lack of time, magazines and newspapers can build up on the desk or table, in what is often referred to as the must read later stack. When periodicals arrive, they are carefully added to the pile. Finally a feeling of depression results every time the pile is seen as people grow concerned about all the information that has not been absorbed. Finally, the pile collapses and that is the cue, you have waited for finally the magazines are scanned and or are given the dignified burial they deserved, when they first arrived.

Studies into time management suggest that the ratio of useless to relevant reading material is about 20 to 1. With that in mind, our advice is: - Reduce the literary inflow to a maximum of two newspapers a day, two monthly magazines, and two publications in a specialised field. Start being proud of not being aware of everything. Get off distribution lists. The reward will be an opportunity to engage in that under-appreciated occupation, contemplation. Aristotles once said ‘THINKING REQUIRES LEISURE TIME.’ If you are not in possession of leisure time, you can’t be thinking all that much.

For information regarding cures for time sickness e-mail - info@epsolutions.com.au

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Our philosophy and passion have positioned us as an organisation totally dedicated and committed to professional, creative, high impact human asset development. Through creative design, innovative delivery and online administration, EPS introduces professionals to a range of strategic thinking principles, measurements and actions to achieve identifiable change. Our Methodology is supported by an evolving set of principles, methods, techniques and knowledge. Typically we target and achieve improvements in effectiveness, service and efficiency between 30% to 50%.

Our philosophy and conviction is based on four basic principles: -

• The changes we are experiencing at work and globally, are random and not part of a pattern
• When cause and affect principles are understood minor changes can make the biggest difference
• A world of discontinuous change – requires new strategic thinking
• Standing still in a dynamic market has, and never will be an option

Our professional standards and reputation for excellence has been achieved by administering a process encompassing research, analysis, training, administration and a comprehensive strategic coaching structure. Together with our creative and innovative resources and diagnostic processes we are a genuine silent partner to our clients.

A sample of our clients include: -

FOR BUSINESSES OF ALL SIZES - IT’S A MATTER OF CHOICE…

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