STEP 2: Seek answers to these questions from stakeholders: a.What kind of company do we want to become? b. What reputation would we have? c.What contribution would we make? d.Would our services, products expand? e.Would our customer base change? f.How would our people work together? g.What values would we embody?

It is very challenging to craft a good vision statement. It must reflect present actions while representing desired future. It must factor in existing competencies while identifying what’s missing and how to overcome any limitations.

As you can see from above questions, company and team values are foundation for a solid vision statement. Values are standards and principles upon which behaviors and decisions are made. A true value is not something we are willing to compromise. Values affect our actions and choices. They establish how we expect to be treated and how we treat our customers and employees.

“If employees know what their organization stands for, what standards they are to uphold, then they are much more likely to make decisions that support those standards. They are also more likely to feel as if they are an important part of organization. They are motivated because life in organization has meaning for them.” Deal & Kennedy –Corporate Cultures, 1982

I highly recommend that a thoughtful value process be conducted before writing a vision statement. Every employee in your company already has a set of values that they live by. Values are very intrinsic and personal. If you can hold some meaningful dialog about values, you begin to see where employee priorities lie. By aligning employee and company values, you build an environment that is congruent. You build loyalty. We all want to work in places that reflect our personal values. For example, a perfectionist engineer who values high quality and thoroughness will soon feel discouraged, demotivated, and become unproductive working for someone who values quantity above all else.

Peters and Waterman (1982) say “Figure out your value system. Decide what your company stands for. Every excellent company we studied takes process of value shaping seriously.”

STEP 3: Hold Company Wide Values Discussions. a.Design an appropriate list of values (at least 30) b.Distribute to all personnel to prioritize c.Identify top priority values d.Train leaders in facilitation skills or use an outside facilitator e.Hold team discussions to define importance of top values f.Executives & employees discuss behavioral expectations g.Gain consensus of company code of behavior

Each leader and each team needs to define their own expectations. How will they put their values into play? What procedures can they agree to? How will they distribute responsibilities? How will meetings be conducted? What will be lines of communication? How do problems get resolved?

The results of a recent survey of American managers shows that clearly articulated organizational values do make a significant difference in lives of employees, as well as in performance. Values are bedrock of all company cultures. Working globally, values become even more important to understand and respect. Paying attention to values, discussing them, honoring them can build teams and prevent unnecessary conflict.

Successful teams create and adopt their own codes of behavior or team expectations. In next issue, I’ll outline how teams can best accomplish this.

Remember, to create a vision for your business or team, try four primary steps outlined in this article. Conduct your internal and external environmental scan, gain consensus on organizational values through a meaningful process, assess your stakeholders, and utilize a thorough process to respond to key visioning questions.

Ask, “Is it worth it?” Pick your battles. Is situation really worth fighting for. Some are, some aren’t. Is it worth losing control over, looking foolish, being inappropriate?

Are you in charge, or are you giving up your power? If you are letting someone else make you angry, you are giving them power. Assert your own power and take control. If you can’t calm down and speak without emotion, take a few moments to write down your thoughts. Read aloud what is appropriate for situation.

Admit that anger is an issue and take charge by keeping an “anger” journal and seek some support and coaching. To truly learn to control your emotions, write down every incident that triggers your frustration or impatience. Spend a few minutes at end of your workday to do this. Keep journal for 2-3 weeks. You will become acutely aware of what triggers your reactions. This gives you power to choose new more constructive reactions.

Whether you use internal resources or seek outside help, taking first step is usually hardest.

When I was hired to coach Jason, I asked him to follow these steps. After he kept an anger journal for 2 weeks, he could see that stimuli that triggered his impatience was when his staff “interrupted” him about things that could really wait. He not only learned to curb his impatience, but he scheduled regular one-on-one time with his reports. He asked that they save their questions for meetings. He also made himself available for staff time every day from 4-5. Staff learned to be more sensitive to his needs as he showed a willingness to be more available to help them.

The president of Michael’s company asked me to work with Michael on his “moods.” Michael admitted that his life was totally out of balance. He admitted that his wife and two children were very frustrated with his work schedule. He said he loved work and getting things done, but was feeling strain and not really having fun. Besides keeping a log of his “frustrations,” we also examined his weekly schedule. He was able to cut back on some hours, hire a needed assistant, and commit to taking some of his vacation days. Within 6 months, he got his life back into some balance. He is still a workaholic, but he is better at setting some limits. He is no longer expressing his anger inappropriately in workplace.

In coaching Mina, we concluded that she does not have patience to manage staff. We were able to put her into a position as an individual contributor, minimizing her time with others. We gave her examples of how negatively her behavior and attitude were impacting staff, and she improved temporarily. However, when not closely supervised, Mina would lash out again. The company’s insistence on her improving seemed to be motivator for her to take a job with another company. Maybe fresh start was better for all involved.

Remember, when you coach your staff, some are always more receptive than others. To control anger, person has to have desire to change.

Master these steps yourself, then coach your staff to do same. We can only teach what we can model. Use discipline to practice and master these steps, then you can guide your staff to control their emotions.

The best leaders are those who can handle stress and crisis well. How we do under pressure is how our success is ultimately judged.