Sending somebody a thank you e-mail, can improve your productivity by 31%!!

Last week's blog focused on the "what" of "positive psychology", which is revolutionising the way that scientists look at the human brain. The scientific data that the researchers in this field have come up with proves conclusively that your brain performs significantly better when it is in a positive state, rather than in a negative neutral or stressed state. This week I want to take a look at the "how".

I think most of us have probably been brought up believing that life requires of us that we work hard, initially to attain some form of education, we then apply the knowledge that we have gained through that education to some form of commercial venture, and if we work long and hard enough, we will then achieve success. Achieving the success then makes us happy.  The field of positive psychology is now saying that this theory is actually fack to bront (back to front), and from a scientific perspective it is therefore not only backwards, but also broken. What happens in reality is that every time your brain has a success, you change the goalpost of what success looks like. If you achieved good grades, you must now get better grades; if you have a good job, you must now get a better job; if you achieve your sales target, you must now achieve a higher sales target, and so on and so on. As a society, we have pushed happiness over the cognitive horizon, and by doing so ended up in a situation that if happiness is on the other side of success, your brain will never get there!

Most of us have had the unpleasant experience of working really hard to attain a particular goal, believing all the time that this particular goal will make us happy and "fulfilled", only to find that once we have achieved the goal, the deliverable in no way meets up to the expectation. It is almost the reality of a dog chasing a car, and actually catching it! Now that he's got it, what is he supposed to do with it? And it all stems from the belief that if we are successful, then we will be happy.

The science is now proving that our brains actually work in the opposite direction. If we can raise our level of positivity in the present situation, our brain will experience what is now being called a "happiness advantage". What this means is that your brain in a positive frame performs significantly better than when it is negative, neutral or stressed. So if we can find a way of becoming positive in the present situation, our brains will work even more successfully and we will be able to work harder, faster, and more intelligently! How we can do this is actually simpler than you would think.

You can train your brain to become more positive in an average of 2 minutes per day, and if you do that consecutively for at least 21 days in a row, you can effectively "rewire" your brain. This will allow your brain to work more optimistically and thereby, more successfully. So here are a couple of things that take less than 2 minutes a day that have been proven to work: –

1. Be grateful – write down 3 new things that you are grateful for every day for 21 days in a row. At the end of the 21-day period your brain retains a pattern of scanning the world for positive things first, rather than the negatives
2. Journal – journaling about at the least one positive experience that you've had in the last 24 hours allows your brain to relive that experience. Reliving the experience puts your brain into a positive frame of mind
3. Exercise – exercising helps to teach your brain that your behavior matters! Positive behavior results in a positive frame of mind.
4. Practice a spiritual discipline – prayer, or meditation, focuses the brain on the task at hand, which allows it to reverse the attention deficit that we create by fooling ourselves that multitasking is a good thing.
5. Be kind – random, or intentional acts of kindness will also create a positive frame of mind. Make a daily habit of sending a positive email, praising or thanking somebody in your support network, before you attend to any other email.

All of these activities work to train your brain, in exactly the same way as you would train your body. Doing them for 21 days in a row allows you to reverse the formula for happiness and success, and once you get them in the right order, you will reap the benefits of the happiness advantage.

If you need some specific help in terms of a current issue that you are dealing with, feel free to drop us a line through our Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn feeds, or hop on over to www.version8.com.au, and use our Contact page. And as usual, leave us a comment on your experience of this situation below, or on our Facebook page.

That “Apple a day” advice we all got may actually have had a real scientific effect on your Doctor’s ability!

I have recently become mildly addicted to a certain subsection of TED talks, focused mainly on performance and human development. Whilst feeding my addiction recently I came across a genuinely hilarious talk by Shawn Achor entitled "The Happy Secret To Better Work", which, if you enjoy this blog, I would seriously, suggest you, take the 12 minutes and 9 seconds to watch. And if you're going to watch it, you probably want to do that now before you read the rest of this blog and I spoil it for you!

For those of you who haven't left (or for those of you who have been and come back, thanks by the way!) the talk starts with a story about Shawn's childhood that involves his sister falling off a top bunk bed and landing on all-fours, whilst she had a broken arm that he was intrinsically involved in her getting the week before. He manages to stop her exploding into painful crying by convincing her that her landing on all fours is not normal human behaviour, and therefore she must be a unicorn. This reminded me of a process that Karla and I used very effectively with our children, and subsequently with our grandchildren, whenever they fall, particularly on a hard surface. This simply involves us assuring them very positively that they have caused no damage to the surface that they have just impacted significantly, and therefore, everything is all right and there is no need to cry. At the time that we started it, it was a desperate attempt to head off the normal wailing and gnashing of teeth that accompanies these early learning experiences, and we had no idea that there is actually science that explains why it works! And that, Jedi warriors, is what this blog is all about.

Science is now calling this phenomenon "positive psychology" and it is revolutionising the way that scientists look at the human brain. What has now been scientifically proven is that it is not actual reality that shapes us, but rather the way in which you view that reality, ultimately determines how you see the world. And how you see the world, directly determines how you interact with it, which is what we call "behaviour". And behaviour, directly affects your performance. And by now I think you can see where this is going! If we can change the way in which you view the reality that is happening around you, we can change your attitude, and that change in attitude will directly affect your behaviour, and thereby, your performance. Changing your performance, results in a change in every single social and business outcome that you are involved in, which helps you to Be Outstanding and live a full spectrum life!

So because I want you to watch the TED talk, I'm simply going to summarise the scientific principle of the talk and let you enjoy the rest of it: –

1. 90% of your long-term happiness is determined by the way your brain processes the world around you.
2. If we can change your worldview, you will develop a new formula for happiness and success.
3. Your new formula will have a direct effect on your reality.

The way this plays out in the real world for example, is that your IQ determines only 25% of job successes. Your optimism levels, your social support structure, and your ability to view stress as an opportunity and challenge, instead of as a threat predict the remaining 75%. And the discussion on stress is probably an entire blog all on its own.

The scientific data shows that your brain performs significantly better when it is in a positive state, compared to when it is negative, neutral or stressed. This phenomenon is called the "Happiness Advantage" and it causes your intelligence, creativity, and energy levels to rise, which in turn, improves every single business outcome. Your positive brain is 31% more productive than your negative, neutral or stressed brain; you will be on average 37% better at sales, and doctors are 19% faster and more accurate at coming up with a correct diagnosis when they are positive instead of negative, neutral or stressed. So, make sure you keep your doctor happy!

Having used this blog to give you the "what", we are going to bring this starship in for a landing now, and next week, I'll cover a bit more of the "how".

If you can't wait that long, or you need some specific help in terms of a current issue that you are dealing with, feel free to drop us a line through our Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn feeds, or hop on over to www.version8.com.au, and use our Contact page. And as usual, leave us a comment on your experience of this situation below, or on our Facebook page.

Did you know that confirming who’s responsible is probably the most fundamental element of any Change Management process?

Last week we looked at defining your specific Change Management Objectives in order to be able to clearly define the benefits of the proposed change(s). During this process it is important that you work closely with team leaders from other teams and departments in the business, that will also be affected by the proposed change, such as project managers, other unit managers and the HR department. This interaction needs to primarily answer the question "who's responsible for…?" – "Who's responsible for" – defining the re--training plan; changing job descriptions; checking implications of current employment contracts; identifying change agents?

No two change processes are the same, and therefore, the activities and people responsible will vary depending on how the current change is initiated. Knowing who is responsible, what activities are required, the objectives to be met, and how things are organised in your particular situation, will allow you to determine how you will work with other people in order to implement the change, and what activities will fall within your area of responsibility.

In this blog I want to concentrate on Change Management Activities that will apply in most cases in order to give you some practical "checklist" items to look out for. Although the full range of possible activities is too broad to cover here, your primary task is to work out what will be most effective in helping you meet the challenges created by the proposed change, and then how to collaborate with other people and projects, in order to achieve your defined objectives. What you are really trying to do is to identify the tasks that are nonnegotiable in order to give the proposed change the greatest opportunity to succeed. 

Some of these would include: –

1. Identify what successful change looks like. There needs to be agreement on what the indicators of success are, in order that they can be measured and reported on regularly.
2. Identify the impact of the change. Make sure that a thorough assessment of the impact of the change on the organisation's structure, and its people, is carried out.
3. Identify communication timings and methodology. How and when will changes be communicated, and who will deliver the change communications?
4. Identify the reasons for change. Make sure that there is a clear understanding and expression of the reasons for the change, and help the relevant sponsor to communicate this.
5. Identify everybody involved. Make sure that everybody who is either involved or affected by the change understands the process of the change.
6. Identify the involvement and activities of the change sponsors. What do you need them to do in order to facilitate the change process?
7. Identify the stakeholders. Who are they, and what kind of involvement, sponsorship, and communication will be required with them?
8. Identify the "change agents". Who are the people who need to be included in early change activities such as design, testing, and problem solving, so that they can act as ambassadors for the change?
9. Identify support processes. Make sure that everybody involved or affected, has easy access to help and support in case of upheaval and uncertainty.
10. Identify training needs. Change will often require up-skilling, or retraining, and the timing, sequencing and methodology of this will need to be planned.

Keep in mind that this is not an exhaustive list, and these are simply some of the more typical change management activities. Your specific situation may require different, or additional activities, and some of the above may not fall within the scope of your particular area of responsibility, within the change process taking place in your organisation. The point that I am making is that you need to coordinate activities with all of the other people involved, and plan carefully.

So, as we bring this spaceship into land, let me remind you that we defined change management as the discipline required to ensure that change is implemented smoothly, and with lasting benefits. This is only achievable if you consider the wider impact of the change on your organisation as a whole, and specifically on the people within the organisation. Every single change initiative that you are involved in, in any way, will have its own unique objectives and activities, and all of these need to be effectively coordinated. As a manager, or leader of that change, your role is to make the journey towards new ways of working, and interacting, as smooth as possible.

If you are about to head into, or maybe are already in, a season of change and you are not 100% sure that you have all the bases covered we’d love to help you. Check out the “Square Wheels” section of www.version8.com.au and drop us a line to set up a no obligation chat.

Protect your career from ending up as a smoking ruin by defining you Change Management Objectives up front!

Change management is a very broad subject, and the way change is managed (or not) will differ significantly, from one organization to another and from one project to another. Organizations and consultants will often propose formal change management “systems” that often bring with them templates, toolkits, checklists and outline plans of what steps are needed to manage change successfully.

As a Team Leader or Manager the question is not “if”, but rather “when” you will need to manage change, and you will very soon realise that change is truly a constant of management! So, when it happens, irrespective of whether or not you subscribe to a particular change management system, the first question is always what change management really means in your particular situation. We discussed in the previous blog on this subject that change management focuses on people, and our working definition identified that it is about ensuring change is thoroughly, smoothly and lastingly implemented, in order to realise the benefits associated with the change. If there is no benefit, then it is change for change sake, which is usually an expensive and counter productive exercise.

In order to define the benefits clearly in your situation, you must dig down further to define your specific Change Management Objective(s), and that is the main focus of this blog.

These will usually include the following:

1.    Patronage: Make sure there is an obvious and active patron for the change at a senior executive level within your organization, and engage this patron to help you achieve the desired outcomes.

2.    Commitment: Gaining commitment up front for the changes from those involved and affected, directly or indirectly, is a non-negotiable in any change process. You ignore this one at your peril as many absolutely valid changes (and sometimes careers) end up in smoking ruin due to internal sabotage.

3.    Engagement: Engaging the right people in each of the affected departments, or even processes, in the design and implementation of change, will make sure the right changes are made, at the right time, for the right reasons.

4.    Effects: An accurate assessment of the effects of the change early on will enable the potential of negative consequences to be identified and addressed. Identifying how the changes will affect people, is the most critical part of this process, and this must be done before any changes are implemented.

5.    Consultation: Involving everyone who is affected by the proposed changes in the discussions on the effects and implementation of the change, will help immensely with 2,3 and 4 above.

6.    Preparation: Get people ready to adapt to, and implement the changes, by ensuring they have the right information, training and help. There is no such thing as over-communication, when it comes to change.

And that, Jedi Warriors, gives you enough to chew on for today. We will continue next week and give you some more practical pointers to help you sail through the change management labyrinth with inter-galactic ease.

If you are about to head into, or maybe are already in, a season of change and you are not 100% sure that you have all the bases covered we’d love to help you. Check out the “Square Wheels” section of www.version8.com.au and drop us a line to set up a no obligation chat.