Sustainable Success Agility: I am seeing that word and hearing it, agility, connected to everything from Harvard Business Review articles* to the World Bank*, more important now than ever. (articles links below) You have to be able to quickly change and adapt your approach, your systems to stay on the leading edge as you adjust to shifts in customer demands; community, business and even family environments. Hi Marilyn O’Hearne here today with Weekly Wisdom, talking about Three Steps to Sustainable Success Agility in our VUCCA, rapidly changing world (Volatile Uncertain Culturally Complex Ambiguous).
How do you and your organization develop sustainable success agility for quadruple bottom line success?Quadruple bottom? That is People, Planet, Profit and Purpose or future orientation. When you invest in people with that purpose, future orientation, you increase profit sustainably.***(article links below) When you invest in planet you contribute to sustaining our planet for future generations.
I invite you to practice these three sustainable success agility steps. I wish I could say that they are simple but actually each one of them could easily be and are topics of books and programs. We know culture is one of the greatest ingredients for success and takes time and attention to understand cultural differences, their impact, and build one that works for you, your organization and your stakeholders. When you take the following steps, you will shift your culture for greater positive impact, as my leadership, team, mentor coaching and coaching supervision clients have discovered.
1.The first is to develop a culture of continuous improvement and development. Even if you are in business on your own or you do not have a business or organization, this is still something that you can practice.
- Try out new perspectives and approaches; experiment with different things. We know that keeps our brains sharp. I invite you to do that. Listen to different media and challenge your own perceptions and engage in respectful conversations with people who are not of the same mindset or have different viewpoints than you.
- That is number one: developing a culture of continuous improvement and development. One of my leadership coaching clients I’ll refer to as John, who is committed to continuous development, was stuck on how to resolve a staff issue. Our coaching provided the different perspectives he needed to resolve the issue, shifting from a “this was my hiring mistake issue” to a “fit” perspective, leading to the best possible outcome for all concerned, including external partners and stakeholders.
2.Number two: it is easier to make this shift when you are centered. I invite you to practice becoming more aware and present. Some people use the word mindful. When you do that you are tapping into your resourcefulness and creativity (rather than being flooded and triggered) and you are ready for whatever is next. Doug Silsbee, in his Presence book, said that if you practice centering ten times a day it will change your life. It has for me. It is a very simple practice you can do in a minute or two. You may refer to a brief “Centering for Effectiveness” video mid-page on the Interviews, Reviews and Contributions page of my website. My coaching client John found our coaching provided needed time to pause, step back to view the big picture and reflect.
3.And finally number three is to ask, “What will bring the greatest positive impact now and in the future on you, your team, your organization, the wider system and stakeholders?” I encourage you to ask that question as you are looking at what what you want to improve, how you want to develop, and what your are your next steps towards achieving your vision. I ask this in Leadership and Team coaching as well as Coaching SUPERvision sessions. It helps our brains stay focused on sustainable success agility and be energized by our future vision as well as a system perspective rather than individual (blame).
Considering an Executive, Team or Mentor coaching or coaching supervision partner for your sustainable success agility? I invite you to apply for an Unlock Potential strategy session through my website
Stay tuned until next week for more keys to Unlocking Potential, Prosperity and Peace!
To our success! because we are in this together.
Thank you.
Marilyn O’Hearne, MSW, MCC, LLC CQ, ICF Master Certified Coach
www.marilynoh.com marilyn@
https://www.linkedin.com/in/cqcoachmentormarilynohearne/
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PS For additional agility ideas as you do your Year End check in (stay tuned for that!0, check out our Saying Yes, Saying No for Greater Agility & Success post
- HPR 4 Things That Set Successful CEOs Apart https://hbr.org/2017/05/what-sets-successful-ceos-apart
- World Bank CEO Lays Out Her Vision for an Agile Bank https://www.devex.com/news/the-world-bank-s-new-ceo-kristalina-georgieva-lays-out-her-vision-for-an-agile-bank-90068
“We need institutions to be agile and adaptable to change.”— Kristalina Georgieva, World Bank CEO
* Maximize Shareholder Value by Investing in People
* Investing in Your Employees is the Smartest Decision You can Make
