7 Steps to Writing a Personal Development Plan

Many of you may have written your personal development plan (PDP) for this year at the end of last year.  Do you remember all of what you wrote?  Have you been tracking how you’ve been doing?  Has the plan been placed on the sidelines because there have been too many fires to put out?

Let’s whip out your PDP and see if there is a way to write it where you really do remember your goals and feel, not only inspired, but actually achieve them.

When I first started corporate coaching, many of the PDP’s I saw were littered with intangible or vague goals. For example, one client wrote that one of his PDP goals for that year was, “To become a better leader.”  While that goal sounds good on the surface, there is no way to clearly tell if they achieved that goal.  This is in part because they have not defined what they mean by “better leader.”

The other thing that I noticed is that several had too many PDP goals… one client had 11.  Most had at least 5.  When I asked them how many of their PDP goals they did achieve, the answers that came back were embarrassingly sad.  Most could not tell me all their goals.  When they looked up their PDP, the number hit was less than 25%.  I could completely relate to them as I have at different times in my life designed elaborate goals for myself.  If I was asked the same question, I would have been in a similar place.

So, how are you doing so far this year?  Are you on track?  How about your team?  Are they on track?  If you are, that’s great!  I would love to hear your thoughts as to what helped you and your team get there.

If you are like most out there, you have already forgotten your PDP or have only focused on one or two areas.  I would hate for you to feel bad or defeated.  If you’ve forgotten, I bet your team has as well.

To break this pattern, you just have to rewrite your PDP in a way that is tailored to your core.  If you do, you will find all the motivation you could ever want to achieve it.

How to Write a Personal Development Plan

Here is what has worked for me and many of the clients I have coached.  When writing your PDP goals you need to...

1. Know the most essential part of your role.

What is the most indispensable part of your role?

Whatever that is, go all-in on that part.  Does the way you spend your time reflect a focus on that most indispensable part?  You want to develop your main PDP goal around that area.

In my role as a coach, counselor, and corporate trainer, the most essential part of what I do it is to connect to my clients at a core level–to get to the heart of their concerns and address their issues.  If I whittled that down even further, I have noticed that if I nail what is at the core of their concerns, addressing the issues becomes a lot simpler.

2. Know your essential intent.

I have shared about the book Essentialism by McKeown in previous posts.  If you have not read Essentialism, I would highly recommend that you put that book at the top of your reading list. One concept in the book is that each of us has an essential intent, which has to do with what you were built for.  Look across your life... what do you naturally do better than others?  What are some themes that help you excel in your personal and professional life?  What accolades have you received? What do those accolades have in common?

When I was trying to figure out my essential intent, I asked my wife, friends, clients and mentors what they thought it was.  The most common response was that I get to the heart of the matter quickly.  That is, if a friend is talking about something, a client has an issue they want to address, or if a group wants me to deliver a workshop on a given topic, as they are speaking, I am listening for what is at the root of their words.  Then I repeat back to them what I sense the core is to make sure that I understand.  If I am off, then I keep listening and asking for clarification until I get it.

When we work from our essential intent, motivation comes easy.  We are in our strike zone and we typically feel more alive.  Therefore, finding your essential intent is, for lack of a better way to say it, essential.

3. Line up your essential intent with the most essential part of your role.

As you can see, I built a business around my essential intent.  How about you?  Does your role fit your essential intent?  If not, is there a way that your role could be tweaked so that it fits your essential intent?  If not, could it be a sign that you were not built to do what you are doing?  (If you want help discovering what you were built to do I have a rough draft of an e-book that my team is working on.  I would love insights to improve it so I would be happy to send it to you.)

Now look at your team.  Do you have the “right people on the bus?"  Are they in roles that allow their essential intent to shine?

If your essential intent and essential part of your role line up then great.  Now, how could you better align your essential intent with the most essential part of your role to maximize your time and efforts?

4. Make it tangible.

If I say my PDP goal is, “I want to get to the heart better,” then defining “better" would be the first step.  I would define “better" as having more moments where my clients say something to the effect of, “That’s it!” (implying what I said was the core of the issue).

Next, look for how your goal could happen.

Three options for improving the ability to get to the heart better are:

1. I could improve listening skills.
2. I could learn how to ask better questions.
3. I could also work on how I repeat back or paraphrase what I hear my clients say.

I had a client say that part of his role is that he needs to make speeches from time to time.  He hated public speaking but truly was in the right role for his essential intent.  The problem he had with delivering speeches was his nervousness.  So, he set a goal of “not getting obviously nervous when he presented."  This is not a tangible goal.  How would someone observe that he achieved it?  So we broke down the signs that showed that he was nervous which included:

1. Shaking hands
2. Becoming tongue-tied
3. Forgetfulness

When asked which of those would he want to focus on he said, “Definitely my hands shaking.  That starts the downhill spiral for me.”  So that was the tangible goal we set.

5. Create a S.M.A.R.T. goal.

As you may have seen elsewhere, the acronym S.M.A.R.T. stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Time-bound.  As I look at mine, one way I can get to the heart faster is by improving my listening skills.  So my S.M.A.R.T. goal for this year is:

“By December 31, 2016, I want to have implemented 2 better listening principles or techniques to such a degree that 3 longer-term clients say I have improved my listening skills.”  Obviously, I will let them know I am looking to improve my listening skills and would welcome their feedback at the end of the year.

6. If there is another thing your company is insisting that you work on then make that the other S.M.A.R.T. goal.

In many of the companies I coach for, the leader who brought me in already has ideas as to what they want to see their direct reports work on.  I encourage those leaders to look at the most essential part of their direct report’s role and to choose a goal that helps improve that one area.  I also ask them how they would know that goal is accomplished.  Then I suggest we bring the direct report into the conversation so all of us can turn that goal into a S.M.A.R.T. goal.

7. Ask how they want to be held accountable for those two goals.

What is implied in the above points is that killer PDP’s have one or two areas to work on for that year.  If your direct reports make significant progress in just one or two areas you will notice much higher engagement.  You will notice that they love their work more.  You will sense the confidence in them grow and the desire to have new challenges increase.  They will also value you immensely.

Now when it comes to accountability, they may not need as much.  But draw them into the process so that the accountability fits their personality and style.

Developing a killer PDP will turn those who are meant to be on your team into highly engaged and productive people who genuinely want to exceed expectations.  Your job as their leader would be to create an environment where they can flourish.

Ryan C. Bailey is an Executive Coach who helps business leaders develop in-demand high performing teams.

MBTI Bite: Three Tips for Working with P's

Many of the P’s (Perceivers in Myers-Briggs) I know have a duality about them.  On the one hand, they feel like they are a mess: they can’t seem to “get organized” or finish what they start.  On the other hand, when they are in their element and have room to just be, they can chill or be the life of the party.  They love that part of themselves, and those of us who are J’s (Judgers) love watching it. (Okay, to be completely real, we are envious of it.)

The P’s whom I have coached in corporate America mistakenly believe they need to hide their "P qualities” for fear that those qualities will hold them back from climbing as high as they desire.  However, nothing could be further from the truth.  They actually need to leverage those qualities, and we who are J’s can help them.

If you are working with a P, there are three tips for drawing out the best in them.

1. Set plenty of mini-deadlines ahead of the true deadline – P’s tend to work in bursts.  A burst magically appears about an hour before the deadline is due.  The amount of creativity which P’s show and the work they get done in that last hour is amazing.  J’s who are working with P’s or managing them often feel like the P’s are driving them nuts.  They wish P’s were more methodical.  If you are collaborating with a P, break down the project into multiple parts, then set clear and hard deadlines for each of the parts.  Make sure that you give yourself enough time at the end to refine the work that is being completed because P’s often wish they had “a little more time” to correct some of the pieces.  By leaving time to refine, you can both work on sharpening it.  You will appreciate the ingenuity a P brings to each part of the project.
2. Don’t suffocate them with a rigid schedule – J’s like to be scheduled.  P’s like to be open-ended.  Many companies I work with have so many meetings that a P tends to feel suffocated.  The calendar is full, which works against their natural desire to be flexible.  If you want a P in a meeting, please make sure the meeting is essential.  All of us need space to think, plan, and review.  P’s also need open-ended space, where they can draw out their gifts for the good of all.  Granted, the higher they climb, the harder it will be to find open-ended space.  However, I would encourage P’s to carve out at least a two-hour, non-negotiated block in their week for free thinking.  Ideally it should be more, but even with that much, they will accomplish so much more than without it.
3. Feed P’s with knowledge, wisdom and tips and watch them brilliantly mix and match them at the right moments – P’s know how to wing it.  The sharp ones are able to pull from multiple sources in order to wing it well.  They can adjust on the fly and come up with brilliant ideas that seem so well-thought-out, you would think they had been thinking on it for hours.  What P’s often need in order to nail this gift is more knowledge, wisdom, and tips.  If they are N’s (iNtuitives), they could accomplish this through reading the first and last paragraphs of an article and scanning the rest.  If they are S’s (Sensors), they typically they want details.  I would suggest they become thought leaders in the most essential part of their role.  If they set aside even 30 minutes per day to accumulate more knowledge, wisdom and tips, you will see it pay off dividends in meetings where their wing-it skills are praised.

All personality types are equal.  None are better than the others. We need to leverage each other’s natural gifts in order to accomplish the greater good.

Chew on This: How do you need to adjust for the P’s who are on your team?

Ryan C. Bailey is an Executive Coach who helps business leaders develop in-demand high performing teams.

9 Ways to Increase Your Motivation and Engagement

I am working with a group comprised of eight teams.  Prior to the current head of the group taking over two years ago, their engagement scores were deplorable.  Three teams ranked their engagement at 0%.  None of the rest scored higher than a 60 percent.

When the current head came on, she noticed that some of the team leads were not the greatest fit.  She replaced them and began to work hard to increase engagement.  She gave her time to help them heal from the previous head, who happened to be quite toxic.  She created incentives and showed the group how to work toward excellence.  The current head is sharp, strategic and knows how to connect to people.  She also temporarily threw work/life balance out the window in order to get her team to a better place.

With the latest engagement survey results in three of the teams, we are now at 100 percent!  The next highest had an 87 percent.  There were the three teams who now rank between 35 and 60 percent, and still one team scored 0.

My Observations

As I observed the entire group in action, it was noticeable that some in the group were fully motivated and others were just existing.  They wanted to do the bare minimum to get by.  When the group leader and I talked about it, she said that despite the changes she has made and ways in which she has tried to gain engagement, there was “lip-service movement”.  In other words, no action was taken to increase their own engagement.

The results of lack of engagement are palpable.  It is like the little yeast that goes through the whole dough.  Those who are fully engaged have to fight the demoralizing impact of that yeast.  Moreover, those who are not engaged are not as fulfilled as they could be.  This impacts, group culture, productivity, and the opportunities the team pursues.

Now the current head may need to replace more people.  She is trying to give them a shot at turning things around.  She asked if I would deliver a workshop on internal motivation.  This blog presents the 9 ways to increase your motivation that we discussed in the workshop.

Whether you find yourself with high or low motivation, I hope these steps will help you go even higher.

Even if you personally have low engagement, these steps will help you grow so that you can spend your hours at work in a much healthier way.

Increase Motivation and Become Full Engaged

1. Set a Clear Vision of What you Want.  What do you want out of life?  What is your end?  Do you have a clear vision of where you are ultimately heading in this life?  If not, take the time to crystallize it.  If you don’t know how to do this, email info@ryancbailey.com and I will send you free workbook called, "Call & Design."  It gives you eight proprietary exercises that will help you discover what you are called to do and how you are designed to do it.  The exercises are a lot of fun and have gotten great results for clients over the last 10 years.
2. Focus on What is Essential.  What is the most essential part of your role?  As the book Essentialism by Greg McKeown describes so well, if you go all in on that essential role, not only will your engagement go up, but you will also reach excellence in your role
3. Investing + Sacrificing = Full Commitment & Greater Love.  Do you want to love something more?  Do you want to love someone more?  All you have to do is keep finding ways to invest in it and sacrifice for it.  If you find yourself struggling with engagement, it could be in part because you have not fully committed to your role.  Those who are fully committed enjoy their lives more.
4. Repeat What You Did in the Past that Led You to be Fully Engaged. Think to the past.  When have you been fully engaged?  What led you to be fully engaged during those times?  Look for what is in common in those times and apply those things to your current circumstance.
5. Address What Has De-Motivated You. What has led you to lack motivation?  Are you coming out of a tough time?  Do you need to heal?  Is your environment toxic?  Whatever it is... address it.  If it doesn’t feel safe going directly to your boss, look for ways to forgive in order to relieve the burden of bitterness.  If the situation is truly toxic it may be time for a change in role.
6. Use Positive Re-Frame. The words you choose convey the beliefs that are hidden in your heart.  If you use victim language ("There is nothing I can do,” “It's hopeless," etc.), you are reinforcing the belief.  Fight the belief by moving into a positive frame of mind ("I will find three options that will make things better for me in this role.")
7. Make it Fun.  In a previous blog I wrote about how I hate paperwork but yet I have to do it.  So I created a “Paperwork Playlist” and filled it with songs that I enjoy listening to.  The catch was that I could only listen to the songs when I was doing paperwork.  I am happy to report that my big box of paperwork is now empty.  I had more fun completing the paperwork than I ever have before.  What’s your version of making it fun?
8. Master Your Role. Those who master their roles truly excel and enjoy their work.  Their engagement is high.  Remember number 2 above: "Focus on what is essential." Nail that piece and then continue to advance excellence throughout your role.  The more you go for excellence the higher your engagement and motivation will be.
9. Become Indispensable. If someone wanted to replace you with a far better version of you, what would they look for?  These are the characteristics that you should be looking to move toward.  Doing so will increase your motivation and get you fully engaged.

As you start to employ some of these steps, you should see your motivation and engagement improve.

Looking forward to hearing how it goes for you!

Chew on This: Which step will you start with to advance your engagement?

Ryan C. Bailey is an Executive Coach who helps business leaders develop in-demand high performing teams.

Listen to Your Heart, It's Your Core Driver

Think of those a part of your business for a second.  Can you imagine what it would be like to know what truly drives your employees?  I will tell you a secret…it is not money.  If they were to answer with “money,” I would encourage you to dig a bit further and ask, “What does money represent to you?”  Then listen carefully.  You are close to hearing what the true driver is.  Look for the principle.  Look for something that applies, not just at work, but across the board; something that drives most of their decisions.

You will probably also discover that this core driver at times is used appropriately and at other times it is used inappropriately.  If your employee has an over-desire to a core driver, they will be a slave to it.  It will truly master them and unfortunately will lead to destructive ends.

If they have this core driver in proper balance, then you will find an employee who is in a healthier place and gives gifts in keeping with that core driver.

The Six Categories of Core Drivers

Over the years, I have found that the true drivers can be broken down into six categories.  The acronym for remembering these true drivers is S.L.A.V.E.S.

S.L.A.V.E.S. stands for:

1. S ecurity
2. L ove
3. A cceptance
4. V alue
5. E njoyment
6. S ignificance

Find ways to motivate them according to the core driver they value.  For example, if they have an over-desire toward acceptance, you can still motivate them through showing them acceptance, but be sure to point them toward the balance of it.  You can say something to the effect of, “I am so glad you are here.  You are one of us.  I want you to feel at ease and rest and know that you belong.”

If you sense they are over-working to maintain that level of acceptance, then reassure them by saying, “I am concerned about how much you are working.  I wonder how long you can keep this pace up.  I would hate for you to burn out or to be less effective when you really need to be at your best.”

Discover what the core driver is by asking them or yourself:

• What does X represent to them/me? (Above it was “money”)
• When have I seen an inordinate emotion from them/myself?  Which of the six core drivers was at play when that happened?
• What do they repeatedly talk about?  What does that represent to them?
• When they/I make a mistake or screw up somehow, what do they/I most fear losing?

Chew On This: What is your core driver?


Ryan C. Bailey is an Executive Coach who helps business leaders develop in-demand high performing teams.

MBTI Bite: 3 Tips for Working With "Sensors" ("S" in Myers-Briggs)

When I was first getting into executive coaching, I could not tell the difference between Myers-Briggs preference types.  I began working with a client who was a high “S” (“Sensor" in Myers-Briggs language).  Sensors are typically concrete.  They love details and facts.  They often search for all available data before making decisions.  They also tend to be literal in their language.

I am a high “N” (“iNtuitive").  Us N’s tend to love the big picture.  We are fascinated by ideas and new possibilities.  We typically tune out when a “ton of details” are being discussed.  We are known for seeing patterns and principles behind the data and jumping to conclusions.  While we may be much more accurate than not, at times we do jump to the wrong conclusion.

Based on the descriptions above, how do you think our first meeting went?  

You guessed it.  He was going on and on with details and facts.  I wanted to “cut to the chase.”  I interrupted at times.  I tried to steer to conclusions sooner than he wanted.

He did not feel like I heard him.  I did not feel like we made much progress in that meeting since we did not complete his stated goal for that first meeting.  I am fairly sure he had doubts as to how well we would work together.  I was confused as to how communicate with him.

A mentor who was well-versed in Myers-Briggs helped me understand my client a lot better.

There were three tips my mentor and I came up with during our meeting that I want to share with you in case it helps you with what you do.

What To Do When You See the Signs That You Are Working with a Sensor 

1. Send out an agenda ahead of your meetings with them. When creating an agenda for an “S,” especially a high S, make sure that it leaves plenty of room for the exploration of facts and details.  If the person you are meeting likes to plan and be prepared, they will often start to gather the facts ahead of time and will start to sift through them on their own.  If you tend to tune out when there are too many details, turn on your curiosity.  Say to yourself, “I want to understand how he comes to conclusions.”  There may be times when you need to set a limit to the amount of exploration, but allow yourself to understand them.


2. Start with the highest priority item. Even if you set an agenda that has plenty of room for the exploration of details, you may find you don’t get through all the items on the agenda.  Often times the first item on the agenda gets the most amount of time.  Then each successive item gets less and less time as the meeting winds down.  Some items could get postponed.  Therefore, always start with the most important item.


3. Make things tangible.  Get practical with Sensors as soon as you can.  Sensors take things in through their five senses.  Leverage that.  Show them charts and drawings.  If there are videos or audio recordings that can be used in a meeting, use them.  Be specific.  Say what you mean.  Mean what you say.

If you practice adjusting your style to another it will go a long way toward building a great relationship.

Chew On This: Which stakeholders are High S’s?  Choose one.  How will you adjust your communication style when you engage them?

Ryan C. Bailey is an Executive Coach who helps business leaders develop in-demand high performing teams.

7 Steps to Becoming a Better Listener

Have you ever had someone really listen to you?  I don’t mean half-heartedly listening, but rather when someone truly wants to understand what you are saying, what you are not saying, and captures your perception better than you expressed it.

The first time I remember experiencing this type of listening was a tremendous experience.  The professor was fully present with me.  It felt like I was the only one that mattered to her even though she had a class to start lecturing.  In just a couple of minutes I felt valued, understood, and I felt important.  I was energized by the exchange.  I felt confident.  I knew I was trusted.  I became fully engaged and was grateful.  That led to me wanting to make her proud and to really excel in her class.

Have you ever had someone who you could tell wasn’t fully listening to you, but was only listening to reply to you?  Of course you have.  This is the norm.  At times when I am with someone who is listening to reply, I feel like they value time or being right more than me.  I often feel like the person doesn’t really get what I am saying or get me.  This usually leads to an increase in misunderstanding, which then leads to a lot of wasted time.  Sometimes these misunderstandings lead to conflict, lingering resentments, and lower engagement.

You can supercharge your team by just becoming a better listener.

So how do we truly listen to understand?  When a direct report speaks to you:

1. Rephrase what you have heard them say or what they did not say.  Ask “Am I off?” Once they are done speaking, don’t reply yet.  Instead capture what they said in a single sentence and then follow it with the phrase, “Am I off?”  So, one way of saying this is: “Jack, let me make sure I understand what you have been saying.  You have shared....  Am I off?”
2. Listen for what is not being said.  Ask them what the repeated phrases mean to them.  Also, look out for something they are they afraid to acknowledge or say.  Ask them about that, “It seems like you are struggling with _________.  Am I off?”  If you are wrong, the “Am I off?" phrase helps them to know that you are really trying to understand them.
3. Turn on empathy. Empathy fosters connection.  It also leads to you understanding them better.  This helps you to really capture what they are perceiving.
4. Turn on your curiosity.  When we become curious, we allow ourselves to fully focus on what they have to say.  Set the goal to being able to capture their perception and give it back to them before you reply.  This shows them that you value them.
5. Listen for what is said. What words or phrases do they repeat?
6. Ask clarifying questions to make sure that you really want to get what they are sharing with you. If they share something that isn’t really clear, ask them about it.
7. Don’t reply until you have heard them say something to the effect of “You get me.”  Often you will know that they felt heard when you see them smile.

Chew On This: What benefits would you gain by becoming a better listener?

If you have any questions feel free to email me at  ryan@ryancbailey.com or call (404) 421-8120.

Ryan C. Bailey is an Executive Coach who helps business leaders develop in-demand high performing teams.

Leadership: What's Personality Got To Do With It?

How well do you know your employees?  Do you get how they are wired?  If you understood how they were wired, how would it impact the way they serve one another, your clients, the company as a whole?

As businesses grow, you as a leader cannot do everything on your own.  You must delegate to other people, which requires working with various personality types.  This can be a good thing.  Hopefully those who report to you have a variety of personality types that can benefit the company.  The more diverse the personality types, the better; they can catch blind spots, they have a wide variety of strengths benefiting the company, and more growth can happen for all.

However, different personality types can also present challenges.  For example, there can be more conflict than you are comfortable with as people misunderstand why other personality types communicate the way they do or work the way they do.  Some can seem frustrated or stressed by an assignment while others are energized by the same assignment.

Most leaders use the one style they feel most comfortable using or the style they believe will be most effective.  Some employees respond and others don’t. This leads to spending time and energy trying to bring up those who are lagging or to higher turnover in the hopes of finding more motivated employees.  Without realizing it, these leaders may be working harder than they need to be.

Quick Fix to Help Understand Differing Personalities

Want a simple fix that really works?

Administer the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI).  It is the most-used assessment across the globe with over 2 million taking it every year.  It only takes ten minutes to complete, yet the results are powerfully long lasting.

You will gain insight and understanding on how each of your employees is wired and you will quickly learn:

• How to work successfully with each of your employees
• How to motivate them
• How to avoid frustrating them
• What pitfalls they need to work on
• What the warning signs are when they are stressed out
• What they look like when their stress has reached a chronic level

Think of how this would impact your leadership.  You would know how to adjust your style to empower those who work with you.

Using Myer-Briggs Personality Test in Hiring Process

Now let’s take it a step further.  What if you used this as part of your hiring process?  Among the other things you do to determine if someone is a good fit, the MBTI can also help you find the right personality type for the current needs of your company.

Leadership is about bringing different personalities to work successfully together to reach a vision.  When leaders understand how those different personalities are wired, they are more than well on their way to achieving their greatest goals with less effort than they have done so in the past.

Chew On This: How would knowing the way each of your employees is wired impact 2016?
 How would each of them knowing how the others are wired impact your company?

If you have any questions feel free to email me at  ryan@ryancbailey.com or call (404) 421-8120.

Ryan C. Bailey is an Executive Coach who helps business leaders develop in-demand high performing teams.

A Tip to Boost Empathy

Empathy is a critical component in developing high-performing teams and organizational culture that others want to work in.

Empathy–the ability to understand and share the feelings of another is a skill.  Some personality types are gifted with strong degrees of empathy (i.e. ENFJ, INFJ, ENFP, INFP), and others are gifted in different areas.

If you struggle to be empathetic, here is a tip that has helped my clients to super-charge their ability to empathize.  According to the Discrete Emotion Theory, there are 6 basic emotions:

• Anger
• Disgust
• Fear
• Happiness
• Sadness
• Surprise

Tell yourself stories of times when you felt each of these emotions.  Since these six exist in varying degrees, it may be easier for you to pick times when you felt these emotions more intensely.  As you tell yourself the story you should sense yourself feeling that particular emotion in the present.  If you are not then you are not giving yourself enough details of that story.  So really get into it.

Practice telling yourself those stories until you can feel those emotions in the present.  Let yourself get a little freaked out by how much you can influence your own emotions in this way.  The more you practice, the faster you can experience the emotion in the present.

Now, when a colleague, direct report, etc. is talking to you, identify what the emotion is that they are feeling.  You can do that by listening to what emotive terms they use (i.e. "I felt hurt;" "I was enraged;" "I was thrilled;" etc.).  You can also test it by saying something like, “It sounds like you were angry.  Am I off?”  The “Am I off?” is important because it shows you want to understand them.  If you are off, they are less likely to be offended or to feel like you don’t value them.

When you hear the emotive term, silently start to tell yourself a story of when you felt what the other felt.  If you’ve practiced, you will feel the emotion they are expressing pretty quickly.  Because the other person senses that you feel what they feel their connection to you will grow.

They will feel like you genuinely get them.

Chew On This: Think of a time when you were absolutely cracking up with laughter.  Describe the story until you are laughing in the present.

If you have any questions feel free to email me at  ryan@ryancbailey.com or call (404) 421-8120.

Ryan C. Bailey is an Executive Coach who helps business leaders develop in-demand high performing teams.

When Two Departments Collide

What is it like for you when you know two of your departments are clashing?  What’s it like watching the waste, turnover, and disengagement?  What have you tried to do to bring unity to the company?  Have you grown frustrated?  Have you become resigned that it will just be that way?

You are not alone.

Workplace conflict across departments is common and, unfortunately, extremely costly.  Often times the way leaders try to resolve these inter-departmental issues is by focusing on the present situation instead of focusing on the interpersonal dynamics.

For example, let’s say a marketing department comes up with a slick campaign that requires a little more budget, but the finance department won’t release the funds. Maybe a leader would come in and just try to resolve the issue by seeing what the options are for finding the funds from less important projects or by trying to reduce the campaign.  Whatever solution is found, one department is likely to be disappointed.

Instead of focusing on the present situation, focus on the heart.  Get each department to clearly articulate what their core drivers are.

Discover Core Drivers

One way to discover the core drivers is by asking marketing what the slick campaign represents to them.  Ask finance what the holding of the funds represents to them.

At first they may think that what you are asking for is obvious to all, but ask them to really get to the core.  Listen for values that can’t be further reduced.

So, for example, the core is not about making more money or staying on budget.  The core is about something deeper.

An acronym that I use to help me know when a team has gotten to the bottom of it is the acronym “SLAVES.”  It stands for:

• Security
• Love
• Acceptance
• Value
• Enjoyment
• Significance

Listen for a tailored message that encompasses one of these six core drivers.  Make sure both departments understand each other’s core drivers.

Have each of them spell out what it means to them when the core driver is achieved.

Now, once you know what the core driver is, address the problem from that perspective.

Conflict Resolution

If achieving high levels of enjoyment is what drives marketing, then have marketing AND finance partner together to see how else this high enjoyment can be achieved.

If finance wants security, have both finance AND marketing work on solutions for they can achieve greater security for finance.

Both working together to generate solutions on behalf of the other will lead them to learn how to use their differing skills, personalities, and drives for each other’s benefit.  This will bring unity.

At the end of the day, destructive workplace conflict is a people issue more than a philosophical issue.  When people are united and know they have each other’s best interest at heart, constructive conflict can help to generate the best possible solutions for all.  High performing teams know what that is like.

To resolve destructive conflict quickly, define what the core drivers are.  Then have those in conflict partner together to find ways to meet those core drivers for one another.

Chew On This:

• What is your core driver?


If you have any questions feel free to email me at  ryan@ryancbailey.com or call (404) 421-8120.

Ryan C. Bailey is an Executive Coach who helps business leaders develop in-demand high performing teams.

Delegation Has to Start Somewhere

Is it hard for you to delegate? Does it sound like more of a chore to try and deal out tasks to others rather than to just get it done yourself?

If you answered yes, your reasoning is probably valid. It would take too much time to teach someone what you already know how to do. And, what if they mess up and do the task incorrectly? Then it will take even more time to fix. 

While these things may be true, this isn't a healthy outlook.

No matter how large or small your company is, you're probably surrounded by employees. While each employee has duties that they are responsible for in order to help make the company run efficiently, they are there to help you as well. You hired them and created their position, therefore you can edit their job descriptions.

As a business owner, it may be tempting to pile many of the to-do's on your plate. But, this will lead to burnout and a stress-filled life.

I realize that there only certain things that you as the CEO can do. And, this is a prime reason why delegation is important. Here are some quick rules to start delegating more consistently:

1.  Track your time for a week to determine the ongoing responsibilities that you deal with yourself.
2.  Review these responsibilities and only keep on your list the things that no one else can do or can be trained to do. This should not be a long list.
3.  Add the remainder to a delegation list.
4.  Prioritize the delegation list. Start with the items that take the most time and are frequent. This will justify training someone else to do it or taking the time to plan out the delegation and review the work.
5.  Begin delegating the top 5 things on the list.

Remember to delegate responsibility with the tasks. The person needs to understand the big picture and have the authority to get the job done.

In the long run, delegating helps you and empowers your team. This will provide more bandwidth for your company as whole and allow you to grow.

Delegating to your employees displays your confidence in them to handle the given responsibilities. This builds a community of trust between you and your team.

But, the trade off is to clear up your daily agenda in order for you to be more effective as a leader and to build trust between you and your employees.

If you have any questions feel free to email me at  ryan@ryancbailey.com or call (404) 421-8120.

Ryan C. Bailey is an Executive Coach who helps business leaders develop in-demand high performing teams.