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If you are in or running a disfunctional team, maybe it is a simple as people do not know who is the boss? Not an unusual situation but one that needs to be quickly and consciously resolved. Here I share my experience with this in the fire service and what can be learnt from it. 
One of the things the Fire Service does exceptionally well is make it clear not only that there must be a boss but also who that person is. In an emergency situation, control needs to be quickly put in place and priority given to the tasks needing to be completed. Your OIC (officer in charge) might be your best friend at the weekend but on the Fire Ground he is boss, and you do as instructed immediately and without question. Every Fire Service uses similar methods to make it clear who is in control on a Fire Ground, from the color and markings on helmets, clearly marked vests, right down to where people sit on the truck. If you ride in the front passenger seat you had better be prepared to take responsibility when you get off the truck ... simple.What happens when simple rules are ignored? One day a couple of years ago we responded to a head-on motor vehicle accident. Unfortunately no officer was available and we were a crew of four firefighters of the same rank. On arrival the place was a mess with serious injuries in both cars, traffic backed up and members of the public trying to be helpful but in the way. We all jumped into action doing what we thought the best use of our skills, but without a clear boss. The guy in the front hadn't demanded control and we hadn't expected it. Fortunately things didn't go too badly, but it certainly became clear, as other services arrived, such as Ambulance, Police and additional Fire Trucks that we were not in control. Everyone was looking for status updates, starting with "Who's the Boss?", and we didn't know. In business things are no different, there needs to be a boss, and there should be no question who that person is. An organization needs someone steering the ship, allocating the resources and establishing priority. Something to think about: How is that going in your organization? What's going well and what needs to change? Please share your thoughts below. What is leadership to you, and do you agree there needs to be a boss? 
One of the things the Fire Service does exceptionally well is make it clear not only that there must be a boss but also who that person is. In an emergency situation, control needs to be quickly put in place and priority given to the tasks needing to be completed. Your OIC (officer in charge) might be your best friend at the weekend but on the Fire Ground he is boss, and you do as instructed immediately and without question. Every Fire Service uses similar methods to make it clear who is in control on a Fire Ground, from the color and markings on helmets, clearly marked vests, right down to where people sit on the truck. If you ride in the front passenger seat you had better be prepared to take responsibility when you get off the truck ... simple.What happens when simple rules are ignored? One day a couple of years ago we responded to a head-on motor vehicle accident. Unfortunately no officer was available and we were a crew of four firefighters of the same rank. On arrival the place was a mess with serious injuries in both cars, traffic backed up and members of the public trying to be helpful but in the way. We all jumped into action doing what we thought the best use of our skills, but without a clear boss. The guy in the front hadn't demanded control and we hadn't expected it. Fortunately things didn't go too badly, but it certainly became clear, as other services arrived, such as Ambulance, Police and additional Fire Trucks that we were not in control. Everyone was looking for status updates, starting with "Who's the Boss?", and we didn't know. In business things are no different, there needs to be a boss, and there should be no question who that person is. An organization needs someone steering the ship, allocating the resources and establishing priority. Something to think about: How is that going in your organization? What's going well and what needs to change? Please share your thoughts below. What is leadership to you, and do you agree there needs to be a boss? 
There is a saying "Get in Line, Stay in Line", basically it means if your start something keep at it until the end. Some people however give up just before the finish line. Below I share what we can learn from Kids when it comes to persistence in negotiation, once you start don't stop. Does No really mean no?
Some children left to their own free will, can out last an adult in a verbal argument or negotiation. Kids are built with the extraordinary ability to stay focused on the goal and be so much more persistent than we can be bothered being. This hyper negotiation can happen angrily during a tantrum or seductively as the child pursues the idea of a new bike. Parents tend to have three strategies to deal with this#1 - Ignore it, hoping it will go way. But you get what you tolerate ... NOT GOOD #2 - Diversion: This is good in that, if you can distract a child, it often allows the child to let go long enough to forget the goal ... Effective. #3 - Dominate them: Basically where you try to assert yourself against the child and make it do what you want. Often aggressive, and in some situations violent. This isn't a game and it's not a negotiation ... Basically it's my way or the highway. Why is it that we treat our children like wild horses and over the years do all that we can to break them? In the interests of our sanity, peace and quiet, but most importantly the approval of our peers, we effectively crush a child's spirit. You must do all you can to keep that energy and persistence alive, to nurture it – it should be our goal to mould and direct it, not break it. The same thing applies with employees. When you employ people they should bring something new to the table. It can be frustrating at times but you need to keep their energy alive and celebrate the challenges. In Seth's book The Dip he talks about the need for persistence through tough times. Why, if this skill is so important as an adult, would we not celebrate and encourage it in our children. Anything else only has short term gains. How do you handle the "persistent" employee in your business? Which of the three techniques above do you use? How is that serving you? Could you try something else? To read the stories in this series so farclick here
Some children left to their own free will, can out last an adult in a verbal argument or negotiation. Kids are built with the extraordinary ability to stay focused on the goal and be so much more persistent than we can be bothered being. This hyper negotiation can happen angrily during a tantrum or seductively as the child pursues the idea of a new bike. Parents tend to have three strategies to deal with this#1 - Ignore it, hoping it will go way. But you get what you tolerate ... NOT GOOD #2 - Diversion: This is good in that, if you can distract a child, it often allows the child to let go long enough to forget the goal ... Effective. #3 - Dominate them: Basically where you try to assert yourself against the child and make it do what you want. Often aggressive, and in some situations violent. This isn't a game and it's not a negotiation ... Basically it's my way or the highway. Why is it that we treat our children like wild horses and over the years do all that we can to break them? In the interests of our sanity, peace and quiet, but most importantly the approval of our peers, we effectively crush a child's spirit. You must do all you can to keep that energy and persistence alive, to nurture it – it should be our goal to mould and direct it, not break it. The same thing applies with employees. When you employ people they should bring something new to the table. It can be frustrating at times but you need to keep their energy alive and celebrate the challenges. In Seth's book The Dip he talks about the need for persistence through tough times. Why, if this skill is so important as an adult, would we not celebrate and encourage it in our children. Anything else only has short term gains. How do you handle the "persistent" employee in your business? Which of the three techniques above do you use? How is that serving you? Could you try something else? To read the stories in this series so farclick hereIs it possible there is something to be learned from the Fire Service when it comes to handling customer complaints? I strongly believe so and share that learning here. 
Scenario: Imagine a car accident on a busy highway, multiple serious injuries and heavy traffic. You know there will be lots of screaming and emotion, and this really is a life and death situation for the people involved. The Question is ... What would you do? The amateur care giver rushes in looking for the sickest person, gets caught up in the emotion and most likely gets themselves injured or killed in the process. Not good and they are just making things worse. In the Fire Service as professionals we give attention in this order: #1 Yourself. You can't help anyone if you get hurt. #2 Your crew. You need to watch each others' backs. Safety first. #3 The public. Don't let the situation get worse. #4 The patient. This person is already injured. This doesn't need to take long, and it's not without empathy, but it is the order of business. IMHO handling customer complaints needs to be done on the same basis.#1 You need to be true to yourself and your own integrity; don't promise what doesn't feel right. With an irate customer you need to either withdraw or manage them to a point that the conversation isn't abusive. Look after yourself first. That may sound a bit rough, so let me be clear. Faced with an irate customer the first thing you must do is dampen the flames by making it very clear that you empathise, feel their pain and will work to fix the problem. Until you're in rapport the conversation will go nowhere. But that's not how it works in the Fire Service, and it's not the same thing as agreeing with the client. #2 Look after your team. You can not under any circumstances deflect the anger from yourself by directing it at other members of the team. Your relationship with your colleagues, and the reputation of the company needs to be healthy past this one incident. If you have their back, they will have yours. Also, taking it on the chin is good for the spirit and shows everyone we're in this together. #3 What ever you do, don't compromise the good of the company long term just to make this problem go away. So many companies get into trouble by introducing policy after policy as the result of issues to "work around them" instead of taking the time to put things right. #4 With these things in place, look after the customer. The person first and then the situation. Do this with urgency, control, empathy and show them you care. I hate complaints in our company, but we all know they happen. It's how you handle them that counts. Most people are not used to being looked after properly and being heard. Show them your company is different. As with the firefighters, be a professional at handling complaints and you will get control more easily and this might just be the time you make a friend for life. I wrote another post last month called "Why do people find customer service so hard", or to read the other stories in this series: click here Enjoy, and let me know what you think below. Please read my Firefighters disclaimer
Scenario: Imagine a car accident on a busy highway, multiple serious injuries and heavy traffic. You know there will be lots of screaming and emotion, and this really is a life and death situation for the people involved. The Question is ... What would you do? The amateur care giver rushes in looking for the sickest person, gets caught up in the emotion and most likely gets themselves injured or killed in the process. Not good and they are just making things worse. In the Fire Service as professionals we give attention in this order: #1 Yourself. You can't help anyone if you get hurt. #2 Your crew. You need to watch each others' backs. Safety first. #3 The public. Don't let the situation get worse. #4 The patient. This person is already injured. This doesn't need to take long, and it's not without empathy, but it is the order of business. IMHO handling customer complaints needs to be done on the same basis.#1 You need to be true to yourself and your own integrity; don't promise what doesn't feel right. With an irate customer you need to either withdraw or manage them to a point that the conversation isn't abusive. Look after yourself first. That may sound a bit rough, so let me be clear. Faced with an irate customer the first thing you must do is dampen the flames by making it very clear that you empathise, feel their pain and will work to fix the problem. Until you're in rapport the conversation will go nowhere. But that's not how it works in the Fire Service, and it's not the same thing as agreeing with the client. #2 Look after your team. You can not under any circumstances deflect the anger from yourself by directing it at other members of the team. Your relationship with your colleagues, and the reputation of the company needs to be healthy past this one incident. If you have their back, they will have yours. Also, taking it on the chin is good for the spirit and shows everyone we're in this together. #3 What ever you do, don't compromise the good of the company long term just to make this problem go away. So many companies get into trouble by introducing policy after policy as the result of issues to "work around them" instead of taking the time to put things right. #4 With these things in place, look after the customer. The person first and then the situation. Do this with urgency, control, empathy and show them you care. I hate complaints in our company, but we all know they happen. It's how you handle them that counts. Most people are not used to being looked after properly and being heard. Show them your company is different. As with the firefighters, be a professional at handling complaints and you will get control more easily and this might just be the time you make a friend for life. I wrote another post last month called "Why do people find customer service so hard", or to read the other stories in this series: click here Enjoy, and let me know what you think below. Please read my Firefighters disclaimerFor god sake ... if you are going to be in business have some courage. Without it you will die. 
Firefighters are the people running into a fire when everyone else is running out. They're being brave and courageous, but that's not the same as saying they aren't scared. Whenever you go on a call you never know what you're going to get until you're there. Will this be a false alarm or the big one? Adrenaline runs for a reason and that is to prepare you for the job ahead. A healthy amount of fear keeps you safe. As I am sure you have heard before ... Courage isn't not being scared, it's being scared but doing it anyway. Nothing could be more true in business. Successful people have a plan, and a healthy amount of fear, but do it anyway. Less successful people spend all their time preparing; they worry about loosing the house but in the end do nothing. They attempt to remove all risk, but that isn't possible, and dare I say it, doing nothing has its own risk. My question to you is ... What one thing should you do tomorrow that just needs you to go for it?
Firefighters are the people running into a fire when everyone else is running out. They're being brave and courageous, but that's not the same as saying they aren't scared. Whenever you go on a call you never know what you're going to get until you're there. Will this be a false alarm or the big one? Adrenaline runs for a reason and that is to prepare you for the job ahead. A healthy amount of fear keeps you safe. As I am sure you have heard before ... Courage isn't not being scared, it's being scared but doing it anyway. Nothing could be more true in business. Successful people have a plan, and a healthy amount of fear, but do it anyway. Less successful people spend all their time preparing; they worry about loosing the house but in the end do nothing. They attempt to remove all risk, but that isn't possible, and dare I say it, doing nothing has its own risk. My question to you is ... What one thing should you do tomorrow that just needs you to go for it?
Does marriage have a lot to answer for? Hmm, good question. Personally I don't think so, but it does bring its own set of challenges. My belief is that relationships, whether with family, friends or lovers, "ebb and flow", a bit like the tide, and this means they need constant attention and will change over time. Like everyone, Sonya and my relationship has had its high points, but also some low ones. Currently things are absolutely wonderful and the low points long forgotten. The interesting thing, however, is, at their 'worst' relationships have the opportunity to become their 'best'. Why? Well, because you have nothing more to lose. - why not say what hasn't been said before? - why not deal with the issues that have been bothering you? Often the things we fight about are not the things that are really the issue; they are just a symptom of a much deeper issue. The question is, do you have the courage to say what needs to be said, and the strength to listen? I was reminded this morning of a number of mentoring situations where I have been asked to give guidance to a small business in serious trouble. It is amazing how almost always the fundament issue comes down to a conflict between the owners, or the owner and their spouse. It isn't that the business isn't viable but that there is a difference of opinion between the couple, or that they each have a very different tolerance for risk. When asked by some close friends to help them review a business they wanted to buy, I spent more time convincing them that they needed some "rules of engagement" than that they needed a good plan. I knew they were extremely capable and the business would come naturally; I just needed to make sure they both were clear on their own "risk profile" and how the long hours of work would impact on their lives. If you are having issues in your business, are there issues at home that need to be resolved before you can prosper? Maybe you need to spend some time reassuring your spouse that things will be ok, or just possibly you need to suck up a little pride and admit you need some help. At the end of the day you also need to know, who is going to be the boss Just my 2 cents worth on this beautiful morning. What are your thoughts?