Be Unconventional

Break the rules to develop great teams

Conventional wisdom in management and leadership often leads managers astray, resulting in missed opportunities to grow people or, worse, repelling great talent from the organization. Conventional wisdom is easier, but not better. It’s easy to believe each person possesses unlimited potential. It’s easy to think fixing weaknesses is the path to greatness. It’s easy to treat everyone the same to avoid charges of favouritism. The truth is the best managers break the rules of conventional wisdom.

One element of conventional wisdom I hear often is that “happy employees are productive employees.” The reality is productive workers are happier. They are happier because they are more productive. They feel the fulfilment that comes with pursuing excellence and knowing they’re bringing value to their organization. As leaders, we must learn and appreciate that a person’s happiness is not our responsibility. It is, however, our duty to create the conditions in which the people we manage will grow and succeed. So, how do we create the conditions of higher performance?

The single greatest motivator is the feeling of daily progress: knowing you are better today than you were yesterday. Leaders must own the development of their team, and I offer a simple three-step framework to accomplish this.

1. SET CLEAR GOALS

Taking the time to learn the personal and professional goals of team members gives leaders a greater awareness of what genuinely matters to each person. The best leaders artfully marry personal and professional passions with business objectives.

Goal-setting should be a collaborative process. You know the opportunities, but it’s the people on your team who are learning and growing. Constructive goals share three characteristics:

• A clear behaviour or result to achieve

• A way to measure quality

• A deadline to achieve the goal

Here’s an example: by December 31 (deadline), I will achieve my CHS designation (result) with a combined mark of 85% or higher (quality measure).

Conventional wisdom says you need a SMART goal. Some managers tell their people that impressive and well-targeted goals are not in the right format (not SMART enough). This is counterproductive. Instead, clarify the behaviour to master or result to achieve, decide how to measure quality, and set a deadline.

When leaders know their team members’ goals, they can inquire about those goals and offer resources to support them. They should also give team members flexibility to pursue goals in the way they want.

2. BUILD DEVELOPMENT PLANS

As a leader, you’ll likely be expected to coach on goals you haven’t accomplished and skills that are not your personal strengths. The good news is that you do not need to have done something yourself to lead team members toward achieving it. What you need is a process.

Start by taking a few minutes together to brainstorm resources. Encourage a firm commitment to two or three ideas. Team members should have significant input in choosing resources because they will be the ones doing the work.

Next, create just the first few weeks of the plan. Like the goal, steps should include a behaviour and a deadline. For example, steps for someone who wants to improve public speaking skills may include:

• By July 15, email me a receipt for your order of the book Talk Like TED

• By July 21, send me registration confirmation for your local Toastmasters

• At our July 30 one-on-one, share with me what you’ve learned from the first three chapters of Talk Like TED

Here’s something that surprises many managers: we’re not going to plan for six or more months. It takes too long, we don’t know enough, and things will change many times between now and then.

3. TRACK PROGRESS AND PUSH FOR MORE

Because you’ve set a clear goal and built a plan with milestones, accountability and follow-up are expected. In this part of the process, you’re getting regular updates in the form of task completion emails or confirmation and debriefs during your one-on-ones. Since you’re only planning two to three weeks at a time, you can easily course-correct if someone falls behind. When someone is tracking ahead, or it becomes apparent a goal is too conservative, your opportunity to lead really shines through. This is the moment to challenge your team member to push for more and increase the goal.

Build A Productive And Happy Team

Fully supporting each person’s goals deepens connections, builds resilient relationships, and creates unbreakable bonds. Other forms of encouragement pale in comparison. With the backing of their leader, team members will come to believe they can do anything.

Great managers and leaders are needed in our industry. People join organizations for many reasons, but the biggest factor in how long they stay and how productive they are is the relationship they have with their manager or leader. Creating a culture of development and support is the most effective way to amplify the strengths of your team and your organization.

Chapter News

2022 PETER W. NEWTON AWARD

Les Zacharias is a financial advisor of significant accomplishment, and it shows through his dedication to his clients and his community. He not only takes an active role as a member of Advocis, but he has also served as a board member for the Vancouver, Kootenay, and Thompson Okanagan chapters. Les is actively working to bridge the gap between the Kootenay and Thompson Okanagan chapters while helping to bring quality education to our members as part of the Greater BC chapter collaboration.

Peter W. Newton was a longtime career agent for Canada Life, who for many years was the only Canada Life agent in Kelowna. He was motivated by his love of people and genuine desire to help them, and Advocis Thompson Okanagan is proud to continue presenting this award in his memory.

SUPPORTING ADOPT-A-TEEN

Advocis Edmonton has a multi-year relationship, actively supported by our members, with community partners at Christmas Bureau of Edmonton. Specifically, members support the Adopt-A-Teen program, which provides gifts to less-fortunate teens aged 13 to 17. In 2022, Advocis Edmonton raised $12,345 at its annual Christmas Luncheon in support of Adopt-A-Teen. The Chapter Board was also pleased to contribute time over the holiday season to the Edmonton Food Bank. Thank you to all who attended and contributed!

Fighting Cystic Fibrosis

Atits recent Christmas Gala, Advocis Golden Triangle was pleased to support Cystic Fibrosis Canada with a $3,000 donation of proceeds from the chapter’s 2022 Charity Golf Tournament.

Atlantic Wealth Summit

Presented by Advocis New Brunswick and Advocis PEI, the 2023 Atlantic Wealth Summit brought together more than 100 advisors to hear a wide variety of presentations from speakers across the industry over an enjoyable two days of connection and conversation. Requests from attendees to continue the event on an annual basis have been pouring in, and both chapters are looking forward to even more successful collaborations in the future to provide members with exceptional programming.