Cost control breaks down to one singular element. Focus on the little things, as those are the things that can add up to large costs. This may be in the form of process and/or personnel. Let’s take a look at personnel. One daily hour of unproductive employee time across the company equals a huge loss. Sadly, one hour a day is below the norm (three is the norm) of what is being wasted. Of course productive hours range from personality type to job type but on average if you read an article Eric Barker wrote for his Wired Magazine column the following stands: People work an average of 45 hours a week; (U.S.: 45 hours a week; 16 hours are considered unproductive) People spend 5.6 hours each week in meetings (U.S.: 5.5 hours; 71% feel meetings aren’t productive) Women had a higher average productivity score U.S.: women, 70%; men, 68% Barker wrote in the U.S., workers attribute these unproductive hours to procrastination, 42%; lack of team communication, 39%; ineffective meetings, 34%. The good news is, the dynamic is correctable.
What Management Model Are You Using?
So often we take time to set goals, plan, develop missions, etc. However, we often overlook a major component. The ‘how’ of implementation. Regardless of the size of your business/organization, participative approaches to management are important to consider.Are you evaluating how each/your participative management approach(s) works? Do you annually or better yet quarterly consider its particular output, strengths, costs and potential tweaks. Are you utilizing one of the stronger participative approaches, “high-involvement management” involving employees financially and psychologically? Or maybe modeling a more integrative management approaches to involve people at all levels of an organization? Whether you are using participative management or another type of management, the important factors to remember are the approach you use is directly linked to your productivity, or lack thereof, and cost/cost savings. Given that, it is worth evaluating your tools regularly.
High Performance Culture
A high performance culture looks like what? If you aren’t sure, you may want to first create one for yourself before expecting an entire corporate or organizational culture to have it. If you aren’t sure if you have a high performance culture, most likely you don’t. You can find a million different models of it, some general, some specific, so take a moment and check them out to start your own internal, personal high performance culture then tackle the organization’s.
Whatever It Is It Is Relevant If It Is Yours
Maybe your dream is more engaged/productive employees (see https://thehappypath.wordpress.com/2013/10/14/13-of-employees-worldwide-are-engaged/ for some fairly dismal statistics). Maybe it is to increase productivity while decreasing costs. Maybe it is a stronger management team, or even to move up or possibly out of the company/organization you are in. Whatever your dream goals are right now they are relevant. They are relevant to you, even if they are not relevant to anyone else. The bridge is in communicating the metrics and importance, as well as the pay off. Whether you need to communicate it to yourself or others to make it happen is another blog post altogether.
No Excuses
There are two steps to living a “no excuses” life and working/winning your goals. Step 1: No excuses from yourself. Excuses are different from reasons. Make sure you tow the line and prioritize your dreams over your excuses. Step 2: Quit excusing others bad behavior. Surround yourself with those who support and contribute to what your goals are, not provide excuses on why they can’t (or won’t.) Find a way or make your way, either way, eliminate excuses. You can have forward movement and results or you can have stagnation and excuses. Your choice.
I’ve been training some folks lately and it is always a great reminder when training someone new and sensing their apprehension that we all need to continuously check ourselves to make sure we continue to march forward with our amazing lives and not shrink back when we feel unsure. Often a training situation leaves trainees feeling a bit uneasy and unsure of themselves. I like to share with them that the only guarantee of not making a mistake equates to not trying at all…which ironically will circle them back into mistake-land anyway. So next time you are thinking, “I’m not sure” remember the word mistake has an undeserved negative connotation. Making a mistake, when you are trying to learn, is the path to growth and knowledge.
Draw The Line
I’ve always tried to live being so busy improving myself that I have no time to criticize others. A practice I highly recommend. Even so, while I can do my best to control my thoughts and verbal output, I can’t control others. Along those lines I share the following which I believe to be quintessential advice to anyone no matter what you are doing and/or where you are in life. Enjoy! “Avoid head trash. Don’t be a garbage can for anything that does not feed your intellect, stimulate your imagination, or make you a more compassionate peaceful person. Refuse to open your mind to other people’s trash.” ~ Les Brown
What is true?
What is your truth? Hint, I asked for “your truth” not someone’s version of what you should be or think or feel. Not how you feel you should respond to others or how you feel pressured to respond to others. Defining “your truth” serves you and the world in two ways. One, it helps you weed out what and who really doesn’t fit into and/or on your path/in your orbit. For example if your boss’s belief system and reality is different than yours, that is okay, respect it, but begin to find a place that fits you and your beliefs. This may mean making some sacrifices in other areas, etc., but if it is your truth and path, I promise you that you won’t mind. Secondly, defining your truth is a reality check. If you say you believe the best type of person or situation, place or thing that is great, but it is also a reminder that “your truth” is not the truth of everyone around you, around the world and it certainly isn’t universal. All this is to say, when you speak and walk the walk of your truth you will end up among others like you making your life a pleasant journey. To do otherwise equates to the simple analogy of a square peg in a round hole. Management alert…if you are a manager, or leader you must be very cognizant that while you are leading others, your truth must be for the good of the many, not the few (as in you and your opinions alone.) Your truth must be in line with the organization’s mission. Of course it isn’t as easy as it sounds. To truly live fully you need to remain open to others and their thoughts, feelings, etc. While you have your own belief system, perhaps you may still learn some great new things along the way.
Taking Control…Don’t
We have the propensity to want to take control of things. The important thing to remember is there is a difference in between control and contribution. Taking control can often lead to stagnation of a project. Letting go of control allows a project to move further faster as there is more energy and input. If the project fails to move without you controlling it the next question becomes ‘is it your priority, or do you need to lay it down and walk away’. Just a side note…controlling and leadership most certainly are not the same thing. If you are a leader, you most likely are contributing and not controlling.