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The Communication Paradigm |
When we examine individual and team satisfaction versus individual or group performance, most studies indicate that workplace satisfaction is more commonly associated with a friendly communication style and higher performance is reflective of a dominant style. However, over-reliance on a single technique will create team problems – both interpersonal and standards-based. Knowing when to employ each type cannot be delivered through a single event; moreover, it requires long-term work, study and increasing numbers of experiential situations from which to learn. Remember: leadership is a verb – it is something discovered in action then demonstrated in its application.
A concept contrary to the military leadership standard is creating high-performing teams and output whilst maintaining high satisfaction levels in the group by adopting a supportive communications method. By achieving this, you are well on your way to greatness – it is the basis for a considerable number of research studies, so well done you.
One concept that helps achieve the performance-satisfaction paradox is knowledge-sharing during leadership events, defined as the mutual exchange of tacit knowledge and collaboratively creating new knowledge. This method is divergent to standard hierarchical leadership traits, especially transactional leadership, where the leader delivers orders and expects ultimate and immediate compliance (a style which can and should be used under stressful or chaotic conditions – but should never become the default position).
Suppose you are more extroverted in your communication style, adopting a more agreeable method. In that case, you are more likely to have a team who share increasingly more knowledge with you, inversely empowering you through their tacit knowledge, and increase team satisfaction by empowering your subordinates to offer free thought and expertise. When we look at Maxwell’s leadership model, you will begin to see your team and associates move through the levels from one to two.
Depending on position and role, what is arguably more complicated is fostering the environment for your subordinates to move from level two onwards through three, four and five. We can already establish that by being in. a leadership position, your team are intrinsically at Maxwell’s Level 1 – they follow you because they have to. By creating high performance and maintaining relative satisfaction levels, your team will progress to level two. Now, they follow you because they want to.
The difficulty mentioned previously is managing your team effectively to increase the team’s performance (not yours and not theirs) and maintain satisfaction. You will naturally encounter resistance to change as you are amending the established way of working and demanding more from your workforce. A crucial element is maintaining an optimistic mindset in all you set your team (even if standards have been historically poor); once the results from the task, project or whatever else you have set the team (or been directed to set) have been demonstrated you need to communicate this accurately to your team.
If the event has been performed well, even if not to your standard (but to an acceptable standard), you must deliver praise. Never apply the carrot and stick methodology! This method is a dated and poor way to increase team performance and is used by poor managers and ineffective leaders – if you do, make sure the last time you used it is the last time you use it. What you need is for your team to progress through to Maxwell’s level three, to see positive results, see fruitful outcomes, and, to a lesser extent, deliver stable output (understanding the differences between output and outcome); this creates an increased atmosphere of collaboration with intent and vitally, stronger teamwork. Your team will witness the transformation of your character into a more conscious leader who understands the team’s needs rather than themselves or the individual. You have increased your influence and, crucially, your credibility; now, your team are pushing at Maxwell’s Level Four.
Communication is an essential leadership skill; without it, your team is lost, your managers do not understand your direction, and your peers will lose confidence in your credibility as a leader. You must excel in communicating effectively; the success of your entire team depends on it.
Poor or ineffective communication will lead to poor performance, ever-decreasing morale, and ultimately a toxic atmosphere where your team will resent you, resent the team construct, and seek leadership from elsewhere. This external assurance may take the guise of a colleague of the equivalent position of authority (i.e. the same rank) or from organic assets such as more junior team members under your command. If this happens, you must acknowledge that you have failed - but you can regain trust, regain authority and regain confidence, all through communicating more effectively.
As a leader, you must inspire, deliver vision, adapt and implement change and empower those around and under you. The single most powerful tool you have in your arsenal is communication. There are several crucial communication skills you must acquire:
Ability to adapt your style
According to modern research, different communication style is cited as the most frequent cause of poor inter-team communication. These differences lead to increased stress, lack of clarity on priorities and other significant issues.
Identifying your leadership style is essential to understanding how you’re perceived by your team, colleagues, peers, and higher managers in your interactions with them.
An example: A clear vision for achieving success and aligning the team is attributed to an authoritative leadership style. While this is a practical approach for many leaders, others who seek more autonomy may feel ineffective.
Every single one of your team member’s motivations will be different; having the ability to tailor your style of communication is critical to delivering influence and achieving your organisational goals – remember, Maxwell’s tenet: Leadership is influence, that is it.
Being an active listener
Knowing when to talk and when to listen is a fundamental standard of influential leaders. Your team will respond better when they know you value their input by asking their opinions, seeking innovative methods to achieve the task and getting them to deliver feedback. When they do these things, you need to engage with the conversation actively, offer questions directly to their statements and let them know that you genuinely want the answers, and ask them to elaborate, take notes, and quiz them on their experiences.
You should avoid interrupting them - you are listening to them, not interviewing them for their next role. Maintain your focus on your team members and what they are saying. Eliminate distractions - select “do not disturb” on Outlook, put your phone on silent and in a drawer, put your desk phone on “do not disturb” (#5).
Clear
When communicating with your team, be specific. Define the desired results of the work strand or initiatives you ask of them. What does done look like? How do they know when they have achieved or satisfied the outcome? If goals fail to be met consistently, the first step is to examine your communication method; if needed, simplify and clarify your message further, or ask your team members how you can explain things better for them. Your statements should be based on the ABC of communications: Accuracy, Brevity and Clarity.
The clearer you are, the less confusion will arise with priorities. Your team should know precisely what the end-state is and will be more productive in their journey of getting there.
Transparent
In a recent survey, more than a third of senior managers, executives and employees said they “hardly ever know” what’s happening in their organisations. Transparency goes a long way to breaking down the communication walls and ensuring your staff and team understand the bigger picture.
Fostering trust and creating an environment conducive to empowerment is crucial and achieved by speaking openly about your team’s strengths and opportunities, weaknesses and threats. Empowered staff will share ideas, collaborate more smoothly, and achieve shared goals with less intensive resource usage. Acknowledging mistakes made, either by yourself, your team or the organisation, will increase innovation and provide the environment for better learning, then implementing lessons to remove those mistakes from the future.
Empathy
Empathy has been rated as the single top leadership skill required to deliver success in the modern world. Being adept at understanding your team member’s emotions and affective experiences, the more they will feel valued, and productivity will increase. Nearly every respondent to a survey stated it was important for their leaders to show empathy, yet most of them said they felt undervalued in the workplace. If you want to build a stronger, more productive team, you must improve your empathetic communication.
Body language
An overwhelming proportion of communication is transmitted through non-verbal cues. Understanding how to carry yourself, react, and convey the right message is delivered through body position. Adopting closed body indicators, such as folded arms or facial disinterest, will not inspire or impart influence. Instead, open body gestures such as the ball or box method for the hands, the maintenance of eye contact and agreement nodding when receiving responses are all approaches to conveying trust, building rapport and showing genuine signs of interest.
Implementing Feedback
The ability to grow as a leader, build trust amongst your team and peers, and develop team members stems from receiving feedback after a work event. Critically, implementing the feedback you receive maintains confidence that you, as their leader, can follow through. You cannot fix or implement comments straight away, but by being open to your team, they will understand that they’re being listened to. Update the team on progress made, and they will value your perspective
Asking open-ended questions
You need to become well-versed in asking open-ended questions to understand your team’s motivation, thoughts, and goals. One common acronym in use across the business world and within leadership development circles is TED; this stands for:
• Tell me more
• Explain what you mean
• Define that term or concept for me
Mastering the TED concept will stimulate your team’s thought, criticality, and analysis. Your team will have increased clarity of their task and the success factors required to deliver through the increase in challenging thought
A concept contrary to the military leadership standard is creating high-performing teams and output whilst maintaining high satisfaction levels in the group by adopting a supportive communications method. By achieving this, you are well on your way to greatness – it is the basis for a considerable number of research studies, so well done you.
One concept that helps achieve the performance-satisfaction paradox is knowledge-sharing during leadership events, defined as the mutual exchange of tacit knowledge and collaboratively creating new knowledge. This method is divergent to standard hierarchical leadership traits, especially transactional leadership, where the leader delivers orders and expects ultimate and immediate compliance (a style which can and should be used under stressful or chaotic conditions – but should never become the default position).
Suppose you are more extroverted in your communication style, adopting a more agreeable method. In that case, you are more likely to have a team who share increasingly more knowledge with you, inversely empowering you through their tacit knowledge, and increase team satisfaction by empowering your subordinates to offer free thought and expertise. When we look at Maxwell’s leadership model, you will begin to see your team and associates move through the levels from one to two.
Depending on position and role, what is arguably more complicated is fostering the environment for your subordinates to move from level two onwards through three, four and five. We can already establish that by being in. a leadership position, your team are intrinsically at Maxwell’s Level 1 – they follow you because they have to. By creating high performance and maintaining relative satisfaction levels, your team will progress to level two. Now, they follow you because they want to.
The difficulty mentioned previously is managing your team effectively to increase the team’s performance (not yours and not theirs) and maintain satisfaction. You will naturally encounter resistance to change as you are amending the established way of working and demanding more from your workforce. A crucial element is maintaining an optimistic mindset in all you set your team (even if standards have been historically poor); once the results from the task, project or whatever else you have set the team (or been directed to set) have been demonstrated you need to communicate this accurately to your team.
If the event has been performed well, even if not to your standard (but to an acceptable standard), you must deliver praise. Never apply the carrot and stick methodology! This method is a dated and poor way to increase team performance and is used by poor managers and ineffective leaders – if you do, make sure the last time you used it is the last time you use it. What you need is for your team to progress through to Maxwell’s level three, to see positive results, see fruitful outcomes, and, to a lesser extent, deliver stable output (understanding the differences between output and outcome); this creates an increased atmosphere of collaboration with intent and vitally, stronger teamwork. Your team will witness the transformation of your character into a more conscious leader who understands the team’s needs rather than themselves or the individual. You have increased your influence and, crucially, your credibility; now, your team are pushing at Maxwell’s Level Four.
Communication is an essential leadership skill; without it, your team is lost, your managers do not understand your direction, and your peers will lose confidence in your credibility as a leader. You must excel in communicating effectively; the success of your entire team depends on it.
Poor or ineffective communication will lead to poor performance, ever-decreasing morale, and ultimately a toxic atmosphere where your team will resent you, resent the team construct, and seek leadership from elsewhere. This external assurance may take the guise of a colleague of the equivalent position of authority (i.e. the same rank) or from organic assets such as more junior team members under your command. If this happens, you must acknowledge that you have failed - but you can regain trust, regain authority and regain confidence, all through communicating more effectively.
As a leader, you must inspire, deliver vision, adapt and implement change and empower those around and under you. The single most powerful tool you have in your arsenal is communication. There are several crucial communication skills you must acquire:
Ability to adapt your style
According to modern research, different communication style is cited as the most frequent cause of poor inter-team communication. These differences lead to increased stress, lack of clarity on priorities and other significant issues.
Identifying your leadership style is essential to understanding how you’re perceived by your team, colleagues, peers, and higher managers in your interactions with them.
An example: A clear vision for achieving success and aligning the team is attributed to an authoritative leadership style. While this is a practical approach for many leaders, others who seek more autonomy may feel ineffective.
Every single one of your team member’s motivations will be different; having the ability to tailor your style of communication is critical to delivering influence and achieving your organisational goals – remember, Maxwell’s tenet: Leadership is influence, that is it.
Being an active listener
Knowing when to talk and when to listen is a fundamental standard of influential leaders. Your team will respond better when they know you value their input by asking their opinions, seeking innovative methods to achieve the task and getting them to deliver feedback. When they do these things, you need to engage with the conversation actively, offer questions directly to their statements and let them know that you genuinely want the answers, and ask them to elaborate, take notes, and quiz them on their experiences.
You should avoid interrupting them - you are listening to them, not interviewing them for their next role. Maintain your focus on your team members and what they are saying. Eliminate distractions - select “do not disturb” on Outlook, put your phone on silent and in a drawer, put your desk phone on “do not disturb” (#5).
Clear
When communicating with your team, be specific. Define the desired results of the work strand or initiatives you ask of them. What does done look like? How do they know when they have achieved or satisfied the outcome? If goals fail to be met consistently, the first step is to examine your communication method; if needed, simplify and clarify your message further, or ask your team members how you can explain things better for them. Your statements should be based on the ABC of communications: Accuracy, Brevity and Clarity.
The clearer you are, the less confusion will arise with priorities. Your team should know precisely what the end-state is and will be more productive in their journey of getting there.
Transparent
In a recent survey, more than a third of senior managers, executives and employees said they “hardly ever know” what’s happening in their organisations. Transparency goes a long way to breaking down the communication walls and ensuring your staff and team understand the bigger picture.
Fostering trust and creating an environment conducive to empowerment is crucial and achieved by speaking openly about your team’s strengths and opportunities, weaknesses and threats. Empowered staff will share ideas, collaborate more smoothly, and achieve shared goals with less intensive resource usage. Acknowledging mistakes made, either by yourself, your team or the organisation, will increase innovation and provide the environment for better learning, then implementing lessons to remove those mistakes from the future.
Empathy
Empathy has been rated as the single top leadership skill required to deliver success in the modern world. Being adept at understanding your team member’s emotions and affective experiences, the more they will feel valued, and productivity will increase. Nearly every respondent to a survey stated it was important for their leaders to show empathy, yet most of them said they felt undervalued in the workplace. If you want to build a stronger, more productive team, you must improve your empathetic communication.
Body language
An overwhelming proportion of communication is transmitted through non-verbal cues. Understanding how to carry yourself, react, and convey the right message is delivered through body position. Adopting closed body indicators, such as folded arms or facial disinterest, will not inspire or impart influence. Instead, open body gestures such as the ball or box method for the hands, the maintenance of eye contact and agreement nodding when receiving responses are all approaches to conveying trust, building rapport and showing genuine signs of interest.
Implementing Feedback
The ability to grow as a leader, build trust amongst your team and peers, and develop team members stems from receiving feedback after a work event. Critically, implementing the feedback you receive maintains confidence that you, as their leader, can follow through. You cannot fix or implement comments straight away, but by being open to your team, they will understand that they’re being listened to. Update the team on progress made, and they will value your perspective
Asking open-ended questions
You need to become well-versed in asking open-ended questions to understand your team’s motivation, thoughts, and goals. One common acronym in use across the business world and within leadership development circles is TED; this stands for:
• Tell me more
• Explain what you mean
• Define that term or concept for me
Mastering the TED concept will stimulate your team’s thought, criticality, and analysis. Your team will have increased clarity of their task and the success factors required to deliver through the increase in challenging thought