The first of the year inspires us to reach toward our hopes and dreams. Where will we be a year from now - what will be accomplished, what will have changed, how satisfied will we be that we have lived as we want to?
Idealism provides motivation. It is a great asset, a source of energy for day-to-day activities. Healthy idealists can let go and shift focus when outcomes differ from expectations, finding other ways to move forward.
A strategy I use to maintain idealism and motivation is to make little, ongoing choices that add up to better life balance. Our mindsets are held in place by our habits of thought and expression. When we consciously adjust our "syntax" we are applying our personal power to move toward our more idealistic worldview.
Today I caught myself writing an email reply that answered more than was asked. I didn't need to volunteer more information. One word would do the job. Making similar choices this year will save me time and extraneous stress.
It was an adjustment in my personal "anticipate and solve every problem" syntax.
When my coaching clients try out a slight change and hear the difference, such as changing "but" to "and," or practicing a gracious way to say no to a request, the positive results offer immediate reinforcement.
We can keep depositing credits into our "change the world": account, sometimes with little noticeable effect, sometimes turning a whole negative situation into a positive one.
I'll still set audacious goals and aim for new frontiers of improving communication on a larger scale. When I can see, hear, and feel results today, I am motivated to stay on course.
As you head toward your goals and ideals for 2011, what communication practices do you want to embed in your personal syntax? What specific action can you take today to move forward on that path?
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Balance: Where's Your Sweet Spot?
Most of us want to live our lives in a harmonious flow, not underachieving or overdoing. Balancing our goals, the demands of others, what we have to do and what we want to do, is our own personal recipe for satisfaction -- or dissatisfaction. It's good to find the 'sweet spot' - the right amount of give and take - to keep ourselves in balance.
We strive for that flow in our day-to-day management of time and priorities. With so much to attend to each day, we have to make a conscious effort to make time to step out and re-balance. That may mean talking with a friend or advisor. It may mean taking a walk or meditating to hear our own inner voice and feel our center.
Balance is a dynamic process, guided by our inner compass of what is important. When in balance, we thrive. We are able to meet our own needs and be responsive to others.
We are thrown off balance when we buy into these myths:
I can (should) make others happy.
Others can (should) make me happy.
The way we get hooked is when these faulty expectations are not met. For instance, we get exhausted by saying yes to make someone happy. We get depressed or angry when others aren't doing what we want them to. We can go into a spiral of dissatisfaction.
We begin to make a case inside our minds. Either we, or they, are at fault.
Whenever I find myself in an internal dialogue of justification - "She was unreasonable in what she asked; she should know better; it's not my fault..." - it's a good clue that I am already out of balance. When I wake up and observe myself in that conversation, it's an opportunity to go back and see where I lost track of my own values. That will bring me back into balance a lot faster than finally settling whose fault it was.
Of course it does matter how our actions affect other people. People who succeed at relationships AND results are those who balance FOCUS - i.e. keeping your eye on the goal - with FLEXIBILITY - i.e. taking the current situation and other people's perceptions into account.
At work, sometimes we go off balance with too much focus on our goal and not enough input from others. Sometimes we go off balance with too much flexibility: consulting everyone and not forwarding the action. Consider how implicit beliefs about making each other happy or unhappy may be creating an imbalance.
Actions that create balance take the form of clear requests and agreements. Asking and saying yes or no are skills to cultivate in personal life as well as in business.
The way we know that we have found the right balance for ourselves is that it feels sweet!
We strive for that flow in our day-to-day management of time and priorities. With so much to attend to each day, we have to make a conscious effort to make time to step out and re-balance. That may mean talking with a friend or advisor. It may mean taking a walk or meditating to hear our own inner voice and feel our center.
Balance is a dynamic process, guided by our inner compass of what is important. When in balance, we thrive. We are able to meet our own needs and be responsive to others.
We are thrown off balance when we buy into these myths:
I can (should) make others happy.
Others can (should) make me happy.
The way we get hooked is when these faulty expectations are not met. For instance, we get exhausted by saying yes to make someone happy. We get depressed or angry when others aren't doing what we want them to. We can go into a spiral of dissatisfaction.
We begin to make a case inside our minds. Either we, or they, are at fault.
Whenever I find myself in an internal dialogue of justification - "She was unreasonable in what she asked; she should know better; it's not my fault..." - it's a good clue that I am already out of balance. When I wake up and observe myself in that conversation, it's an opportunity to go back and see where I lost track of my own values. That will bring me back into balance a lot faster than finally settling whose fault it was.
Of course it does matter how our actions affect other people. People who succeed at relationships AND results are those who balance FOCUS - i.e. keeping your eye on the goal - with FLEXIBILITY - i.e. taking the current situation and other people's perceptions into account.
At work, sometimes we go off balance with too much focus on our goal and not enough input from others. Sometimes we go off balance with too much flexibility: consulting everyone and not forwarding the action. Consider how implicit beliefs about making each other happy or unhappy may be creating an imbalance.
Actions that create balance take the form of clear requests and agreements. Asking and saying yes or no are skills to cultivate in personal life as well as in business.
The way we know that we have found the right balance for ourselves is that it feels sweet!
Monday, November 29, 2010
"That's Not What I Meant!"
Impact - Not Intent - Is What Matters
Most of the time, we really don't want to irritate or upset the people with whom we communicate. Misunderstandings and hurt feelings happen anyway, and we have our own personal syntax that shows up in how we respond to them.
In a conversation at O'Reilly Media's Web 2.0 Summit last week, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg spoke about how they are managing privacy and user control issues as Facebook becomes nearly ubiquitous. It provided an interesting angle on the impact of our communications on other people.
On Facebook or any electronic messaging system, you make judgments about who will want to receive what messages. The Web 2.0 Summit discussion focused on who gets to control 'opting in.'
If your friend wants to send you something - or put you into a group where any group member can send you something - the friend is gauging what you want to receive.
This weekend I received about 20 messages in a language I don't speak, because a friend included me in a group of mostly Croatian psychologists. It was a curiosity, not a nuisance, to me, illustrating the ripples we send across our global network. If it multiplied I would for sure be opting out!
On Facebook, we can opt out, often without letting the sender know. We may have to set controls in order to keep some sanity in our inboxes. Our friends may or may not know whether or how their messages are received.
At a personal level, when we are communicating face-to-face or voice-to-voice, we are gauging our listener's interests and state of mind as we express ourselves. People may opt out and we can probably tell when they do!
Whatever our intention, sometimes others will respond in an unexpected and possibly unhappy way. It's part of being
human that we can't always gauge how our listener will take something.
A big differentiator of mature communicators is being accountable not just for your intention, but for the impact on the other person.
A friend confided in me about a breakdown in a new dating relationship. When the guy insisted she had confirmed a date that was only tentative in her mind, she checked with a third party who heard the conversation to ensure that she remembered it correctly. Even though she was right, he hadn't heard it that way.
Surely, if he consistently hears something she hasn't said, she may want to opt out altogether. In the short term, what is important is the impact, not her intention.
Being right in this case would just continue a dispute that is probably unnecessary. Right and wrong are pretty much irrelevant in misunderstandings. What's relevant is to clear it up going forward, not going backward.
As you spend time with people you know well this week, you may want to be especially aware of your impact. If you hear yourself beginning to defend your intention, "That's not what I meant," consider reframing and putting your attention on what the other person received. That is what will determine how the communication proceeds from there.
To get the ball rolling, a gentle, "What did you hear me say?" (NOT accusatory, please) can tell you what the meaning of your communication was for the other person.
For good communication, it's impact, not intention, that matters.
Most of the time, we really don't want to irritate or upset the people with whom we communicate. Misunderstandings and hurt feelings happen anyway, and we have our own personal syntax that shows up in how we respond to them.
In a conversation at O'Reilly Media's Web 2.0 Summit last week, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg spoke about how they are managing privacy and user control issues as Facebook becomes nearly ubiquitous. It provided an interesting angle on the impact of our communications on other people.
On Facebook or any electronic messaging system, you make judgments about who will want to receive what messages. The Web 2.0 Summit discussion focused on who gets to control 'opting in.'
If your friend wants to send you something - or put you into a group where any group member can send you something - the friend is gauging what you want to receive.
This weekend I received about 20 messages in a language I don't speak, because a friend included me in a group of mostly Croatian psychologists. It was a curiosity, not a nuisance, to me, illustrating the ripples we send across our global network. If it multiplied I would for sure be opting out!
On Facebook, we can opt out, often without letting the sender know. We may have to set controls in order to keep some sanity in our inboxes. Our friends may or may not know whether or how their messages are received.
At a personal level, when we are communicating face-to-face or voice-to-voice, we are gauging our listener's interests and state of mind as we express ourselves. People may opt out and we can probably tell when they do!
Whatever our intention, sometimes others will respond in an unexpected and possibly unhappy way. It's part of being
human that we can't always gauge how our listener will take something.
A big differentiator of mature communicators is being accountable not just for your intention, but for the impact on the other person.
A friend confided in me about a breakdown in a new dating relationship. When the guy insisted she had confirmed a date that was only tentative in her mind, she checked with a third party who heard the conversation to ensure that she remembered it correctly. Even though she was right, he hadn't heard it that way.
Surely, if he consistently hears something she hasn't said, she may want to opt out altogether. In the short term, what is important is the impact, not her intention.
Being right in this case would just continue a dispute that is probably unnecessary. Right and wrong are pretty much irrelevant in misunderstandings. What's relevant is to clear it up going forward, not going backward.
As you spend time with people you know well this week, you may want to be especially aware of your impact. If you hear yourself beginning to defend your intention, "That's not what I meant," consider reframing and putting your attention on what the other person received. That is what will determine how the communication proceeds from there.
To get the ball rolling, a gentle, "What did you hear me say?" (NOT accusatory, please) can tell you what the meaning of your communication was for the other person.
For good communication, it's impact, not intention, that matters.
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Communicators' Rule No. 1
What is the biggest obstacle we face when we are dealing with a communication breakdown? Whether it's the spouse not doing XYZ when they said they would, the boss who isn't hearing how overloaded we are, or the customer being difficult, we can be blocked by the "common cold" of communication: making someone wrong.
In our own thinking, we document our side of the case and its reasonableness. Of course we are right. That means the other person must be wrong. What is up with them?
Discussions intended to prove our position and clear everything up - just speaking my truth, you know - don't have a high rate of success.
Years ago I learned from master teacher David Crump, in his famous Essential Experience Workshop, to remember Rule No. 1.
It is simply, "No one is made wrong."
This was especially challenging for people who were tapping into anger and disappointment from their childhoods, or people who were certain that if the other person in their life would just change, things would be fine. When we heard stories that would lead us to judge someone as hopelessly and maybe harmfully wrong, David would suggest that we all "take a bath in Rule No. 1."
Sitting with the intention to make no one wrong eventually produced a deeper, different way of resolving the issue. Often it led to a healing that had seemed impossible.
Most of the time, we run more subtle versions of making people wrong. It's an easy trap to fall into when something is not working out according to expectations - or when we are not clear ourselves or are afraid of speaking up.
Even more insidious is how we make ourselves wrong. "No one is made wrong" includes us.
Three things to keep in mind about this right-wrong bias:
1. It always has a cost. Whatever your argument, whatever your "rightness" in the situation, being right will come at the cost of someone being wrong. That will come back to bite you one way or another.
2. You do not need to give up your position, your choices, or your perceptions. Knowing that the other person has different perceptions doesn't mean that one is right and one is wrong.
3. Getting hooked is an opportunity to learn. When you find yourself stewing or feeling old familiar feelings, use the opportunity to catch the thread of one of your own old stories: how you are a victim or how other people don't measure up. By yourself or with a skillful friend or therapist, follow the thread and release energy that has been bound up in that story.
As a communicator, the first and perhaps most helpful thing you can do in communication breakdowns is to invoke Rule No. 1. The process of adopting it may take a little while. Once people get there, there is room for everyone to be heard. Forward motion becomes more likely.
This is a good time of year to bring Rule No. 1 into our conscious awareness, as shorter days, family gatherings, and work demands may all bring up sensitive feelings and interpersonal pressures.
While you're feeling buoyant and anticipating the coming months, set yourself a reminder that when things start to get touchy, no one - including yourself - will be made wrong. It's quite possible that this will lead to a new level of mutual understanding.
In our own thinking, we document our side of the case and its reasonableness. Of course we are right. That means the other person must be wrong. What is up with them?
Discussions intended to prove our position and clear everything up - just speaking my truth, you know - don't have a high rate of success.
Years ago I learned from master teacher David Crump, in his famous Essential Experience Workshop, to remember Rule No. 1.
It is simply, "No one is made wrong."
This was especially challenging for people who were tapping into anger and disappointment from their childhoods, or people who were certain that if the other person in their life would just change, things would be fine. When we heard stories that would lead us to judge someone as hopelessly and maybe harmfully wrong, David would suggest that we all "take a bath in Rule No. 1."
Sitting with the intention to make no one wrong eventually produced a deeper, different way of resolving the issue. Often it led to a healing that had seemed impossible.
Most of the time, we run more subtle versions of making people wrong. It's an easy trap to fall into when something is not working out according to expectations - or when we are not clear ourselves or are afraid of speaking up.
Even more insidious is how we make ourselves wrong. "No one is made wrong" includes us.
Three things to keep in mind about this right-wrong bias:
1. It always has a cost. Whatever your argument, whatever your "rightness" in the situation, being right will come at the cost of someone being wrong. That will come back to bite you one way or another.
2. You do not need to give up your position, your choices, or your perceptions. Knowing that the other person has different perceptions doesn't mean that one is right and one is wrong.
3. Getting hooked is an opportunity to learn. When you find yourself stewing or feeling old familiar feelings, use the opportunity to catch the thread of one of your own old stories: how you are a victim or how other people don't measure up. By yourself or with a skillful friend or therapist, follow the thread and release energy that has been bound up in that story.
As a communicator, the first and perhaps most helpful thing you can do in communication breakdowns is to invoke Rule No. 1. The process of adopting it may take a little while. Once people get there, there is room for everyone to be heard. Forward motion becomes more likely.
This is a good time of year to bring Rule No. 1 into our conscious awareness, as shorter days, family gatherings, and work demands may all bring up sensitive feelings and interpersonal pressures.
While you're feeling buoyant and anticipating the coming months, set yourself a reminder that when things start to get touchy, no one - including yourself - will be made wrong. It's quite possible that this will lead to a new level of mutual understanding.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
What Can Communication Coaching Do For You?
Especially at work, what we communicate is who we are. As leaders and co-workers, we enhance or detract from the success of our enterprise with the communication competence we demonstrate. This is a skill set that has to grow to keep pace with complexity.
Working with a communication coach is a high-leverage way to accomplish several objectives at once:
-dedicating time and focus to this crucial area of your work life
-learning new skills tailored to your style and your goals
-and, perhaps most important, having an observer who can give you feedback and a place to test your thinking.
Many well-known C-level executives and other leaders rely on coaches, particularly to prepare for communication situations. If you want to reduce the stress and optimize your traction in communicating, it is likely that your HR folks or your department's budget can provide funds for coaching.
No longer seen as remedial, communication coaching is fuel for career advancement and business success. For entrepreneurs, the return on investment is easy to measure through direct results.
Some criteria for selecting a communication coach:
- they make a clear contract for a number of sessions and / or a measurable outcome
- they do not have a conflicting relationship with you, i.e. they are not your boss or your best friend
- they are able to explain their approach, the communication models or assessments they use, and how this is applicable to your goals
-they will have an introductory conversation with you to determine best fit.
One of the criteria for choosing a coach is what you can learn from him or her. Coaches who are skilled with communication models help you put them into practice on a daily basis.
We all have blind spots, or simply preferences that don't match up with those of co-workers or customers. Coaching can help prevent breakdowns or help us learn from them. An extra benefit is getting a reality check from a trusted advisor. Priceless.
We live in an amazingly complex world and an information-rich environment. The more intelligence you bring to it, the more you gain. Communication coaching helps you focus on what matters most to reach your goals. If you're ready, let's talk!
Working with a communication coach is a high-leverage way to accomplish several objectives at once:
-dedicating time and focus to this crucial area of your work life
-learning new skills tailored to your style and your goals
-and, perhaps most important, having an observer who can give you feedback and a place to test your thinking.
Many well-known C-level executives and other leaders rely on coaches, particularly to prepare for communication situations. If you want to reduce the stress and optimize your traction in communicating, it is likely that your HR folks or your department's budget can provide funds for coaching.
No longer seen as remedial, communication coaching is fuel for career advancement and business success. For entrepreneurs, the return on investment is easy to measure through direct results.
Some criteria for selecting a communication coach:
- they make a clear contract for a number of sessions and / or a measurable outcome
- they do not have a conflicting relationship with you, i.e. they are not your boss or your best friend
- they are able to explain their approach, the communication models or assessments they use, and how this is applicable to your goals
-they will have an introductory conversation with you to determine best fit.
One of the criteria for choosing a coach is what you can learn from him or her. Coaches who are skilled with communication models help you put them into practice on a daily basis.
We all have blind spots, or simply preferences that don't match up with those of co-workers or customers. Coaching can help prevent breakdowns or help us learn from them. An extra benefit is getting a reality check from a trusted advisor. Priceless.
We live in an amazingly complex world and an information-rich environment. The more intelligence you bring to it, the more you gain. Communication coaching helps you focus on what matters most to reach your goals. If you're ready, let's talk!
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
What is Syntax About and What's On Our Website
Our Premise is that...
...our ability to communicate effectively with one other is the most crucial priority in today's global workplace.
By observing the behavior of successful individuals, teams, and organizations, we recognize habits and behavior patterns that constitute the SYNTAX, or structure, of success.
These are organized into five skill areas in a framework that serves as a common language, an organizational foundation for reaching goals and bridging differences.
The purpose of Syntax is to spread understanding and behavioral skill in the foundations of effective communication in efficient, easily learnable ways. To do this, we offer services and educational products to large and small enterprises and to facilitators, coaches, and consultants.
The sources on which Syntax is based include
Neurolinguistic Programming,
Fernando Flores' work on conversations and action,
Transactional Analysis,
Appreciative Inquiry,
Human Performance Technology,
and over twenty years of introducing Syntax to professionals in organizations.
Many of our assumptions are explained and demonstrated throughout our website at www.syntx.com. Feel free to browse for yourself, and come back often to catch handy hints and good ideas.
...our ability to communicate effectively with one other is the most crucial priority in today's global workplace.
By observing the behavior of successful individuals, teams, and organizations, we recognize habits and behavior patterns that constitute the SYNTAX, or structure, of success.
These are organized into five skill areas in a framework that serves as a common language, an organizational foundation for reaching goals and bridging differences.
The purpose of Syntax is to spread understanding and behavioral skill in the foundations of effective communication in efficient, easily learnable ways. To do this, we offer services and educational products to large and small enterprises and to facilitators, coaches, and consultants.
The sources on which Syntax is based include
Neurolinguistic Programming,
Fernando Flores' work on conversations and action,
Transactional Analysis,
Appreciative Inquiry,
Human Performance Technology,
and over twenty years of introducing Syntax to professionals in organizations.
Many of our assumptions are explained and demonstrated throughout our website at www.syntx.com. Feel free to browse for yourself, and come back often to catch handy hints and good ideas.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
After sending out the latest SYNTAX Messenger, about a turning point toward positive organizations, I saw this site at Twitter. An example of organizational wellness and wisdom.
"hope140
At Twitter, one thing that drives us is our desire to make a lasting impact as a company. Being a force for good is at the heart of that mission. Looking outside the walls of Twitter HQ we see lots of good stuff happening all the time, which invokes an incredible sense of hope that keeps us going.
The open exchange of information is just beginning to become an everyday part of how the world communicates. As folks like you spread positive knowledge through the platform, we'll be collecting it and highlighting good social movements that you might want to get involved in. So drop in every once in a while to see what's happening."
I think that's a very cool mobilization of the power - not directly financial - of a modern social information company.
"hope140
At Twitter, one thing that drives us is our desire to make a lasting impact as a company. Being a force for good is at the heart of that mission. Looking outside the walls of Twitter HQ we see lots of good stuff happening all the time, which invokes an incredible sense of hope that keeps us going.
The open exchange of information is just beginning to become an everyday part of how the world communicates. As folks like you spread positive knowledge through the platform, we'll be collecting it and highlighting good social movements that you might want to get involved in. So drop in every once in a while to see what's happening."
I think that's a very cool mobilization of the power - not directly financial - of a modern social information company.
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