StandOut (15 page)

• You find it relatively easy to press the “clear” button and move on. Others don’t. They struggle to let go of past struggles and find certainty—and even clarity—from sifting through these struggles and finding the lessons. You may never truly understand this kind of thinking, but it does serve some people quite well. If you work with people who need to look back before they can look forward, learn to be patient with them.
Allow them the time to sift and reflect
. If you push on before they’ve had this reflection time, they’ll never be fully committed to your mission.

• You have more tolerance for ambiguity than most people. As such, others may mistrust your blithe reassurances about the future. These people need more from you than just “Trust me. It’ll be great.” First, they need a clear picture of why and how the platform they are standing on is burning—this will show them the necessity for action, now. And second, they will need a detailed description of what the platform onto which you are asking them to leap looks like and feels like.
Get good at providing people both of these pictures
.

• Possibility thinking comes so easily to you that to others it can sometimes look as though you haven’t thought through all the details of what needs to be done to make the possibility real. Or worse, that you haven’t appreciated how much effort it will take to execute this possibility. So, to avoid this misunderstanding, be sure to
acknowledge explicitly the time and effort required to pull off your grand scheme
. By doing this you’ll appear more substantive and at the same time more considerate.

How to Win As a Leader

Pioneer
: Your strength is your optimism. There are so many more ways in which things can go wrong than right. You inspire us to bet against this law of averages.

• You always have your head up, and this helps us focus. Why? Because we don’t fear being blindsided (by customers, competition, the economy). Keep us informed of what you see coming next and how you plan to capitalize on it or circumvent it.

• We love that you are an adventurer, that you take risks. It’s exciting for all of us to be swept along on the discovery. Paint as vivid a picture as you can of the “land of milk and honey.” Help us smell the milk and taste the honey. Tell us the stories. Show us the heroes of this New World. Use as much detail and dialogue as you can when telling your stories.

• You create momentum. Put some structure around that energy. Have a daily ritual of connecting with each department for a stand-up huddle before you get caught up in the day’s events. We love the opportunity to interact with you daily. The positivity you bring to these meetings, though they’re brief, sets us up for the day ahead.

• Bring your sense of play to work. You have boundless creativity and imagination. Bring new games or activities to your team meetings and we’ll never tire of attending. Your lighthearted playfulness is contagious and frees our own imaginations, spilling over into our interactions with our clients.

• While we love the adventurer in you, it’s not always exciting to be on the expedition. Sometimes it is just plain scary. You may have undying optimism that things will work out for the best, but we need reassurance. We need to feel secure. So always share your contingency plans with us. Play out a couple of what-if scenarios.

• You are sometimes so far ahead of us that we can’t even see you. Now and then stop, please. And let us catch up.

How to Win As a Manager

Pioneer
: Your strength is your faith in how much further I can go. With you as my manager I keep reaching for more.

• Your optimism is infectious. I can count on you to turn my pessimism into positivity. You’re not a Pollyanna; you give me concrete reasons to believe in better possibilities.

• You take risks with people. I like that you’re willing to add someone with unconventional strengths to the team. I know it’s because you want to push us to create something original. Just be sure you clearly explain how you see him contributing.

• Spontaneous recognition is a powerful practice to keep people engaged, and you’re a master. We never know where you’re going to strike next. Be specific about why you’re rewarding us and we’ll be sure to keep doing it.

• In our team meetings or during other activities, ensure we’re matched up with people we don’t normally work with. This simple step helps us connect across departments and increases our comfort in going to our counterparts when we need help during our regular workday.

• You experiment. You explore new territory. As a result, there’s never a dull moment when working with you. I love this; and at times I loathe it. Everyone needs a little certainty. Pepper your pioneering with some practicality.

• You won’t put up with inane processes that slow productivity. I love that you help clear the way ahead so that I can focus on getting my job done.

How to Win in Sales

Pioneer
: Your strength is your resiliency. You will take risks with your clients, show them what could be, and bounce back quickly whenever you run into trouble.

• Your optimism is infectious. You see possibilities for building business when obstacles have discouraged others. Your positive view can inject hope when the team is losing faith. Substantiate the viability of your view with facts and a concrete plan to deliver.

• When barriers block your progress, you are willing to step out of your comfort zone to take a risk to win. Your willingness to experiment leads you to offer me creative solutions that your competitors may miss.

• You will tend to iterate—“Let’s try this. Alright, that didn’t work. Let’s try this instead”—as you work to architect a solution for me. While I appreciate this constant movement forward, I will need you to define a deadline when you and I can commit to a version or approach that we are going to stick to. I do need some stability.

• Before you communicate your vision to me of what your solution will deliver, seek perspective from a practical team member to shape your message. You will be more likely to win me over when you acknowledge the potential obstacles and explain how together we can overcome them.

• Break tradition. Rather than rewarding only the leader of a top account with a gift, divvy up the budget and spend some dollars on the other people who’re working hard for you. The investment of recognizing the people who’re doing the work directly for you will bear immediate and lasting returns.

• Tell me true stories of how your risk-taking has paid off in the past. I need solid evidence to bring back to the decision-makers if I’m not one of them. Always give me cover.

How to Win in Client Service

Pioneer
: Your strength is your confidence that things will work out.

• You start by saying, “I can solve this,” which immediately allays my anxiety. Give me two concrete reasons why you are so confident.

• You are resilient. If you run into a dead end, you immediately double back and discover a new route. You just won’t give up. While I appreciate your tenacity, I don’t necessarily need to see it in action. Set a time and method to follow up with me. Save my time.

• You are knowledgeable. You align yourself with products that you believe will be around for the long run. Show some of your research to reassure me that I haven’t invested in something that is going to be defunct in a year . . . or, if you think it is, tell me how I won’t wind up looking stupid.

• You know the shortcuts. I rely on you to find the quick and easy way to get things done. Depending on the product or situation, it may be very important for me to learn the shortcut too. Ask me if I’m interested in understanding how you find and take these shortcuts.

• The effort of calling me or e-mailing me personally when your team has or hasn’t met my expectations is genuinely appreciated and often unexpected. Reassure me of what you are going to do to ensure my expectations are exceeded next time around, and I’ll assure you there will
be
a next time. My loyalty to your brand has a lot to do with this level of personal connection.

• Keep me abreast of changes in my industry. While I may already be aware of them, it’s nice to know that someone else out there is watching out for me and wants me to be successful too.

PROVIDER

The Definition

You begin by asking,
“Is everyone okay?”
You are acutely aware of others’ emotional states, particularly if you sense they are feeling hurt or slighted. You are instinctively inclusive, always looking for ways to draw others into the circle and make them feel wanted, heard, and appreciated. You pay close attention to the differences between people, each person’s likes, dislikes, and foibles.
It’s the only way to attend to their feelings
, you think.

You are protective of other people and will get angry or upset if you see behavior that is cavalier or dismissive of people’s feelings. You are an intensely loyal and forgiving friend, but you are no pushover. Although your circle is large, it does have a perimeter and if someone’s behavior offends you, you will exile them beyond the perimeter. But this exile will not last because in your heart you believe everyone can be understood, everyone can be redeemed, everyone can, in the end, be forgiven. At home and work, many will come to trust you and rely on you. You are their safe harbor, a consistently supportive presence in a world that doesn’t care. And they love you for it.

You, at Your Most Powerful

• You sense other people’s feelings. You feel it is your responsibility to recognize these feelings, give them a voice, and act on them.

• You are nonjudgmental and are gifted at creating a safe space in which other people’s ideas and feelings can be heard. Around you, people share more because they let their guard down. Ideas, solutions, experiments—all these happen more frequently around you.

• You listen very well, and you retain the important details of the person you are listening to. And so around you, others feel heard and recognized.

• You gain other people’s trust. They know that you will keep their interests in mind—and keep their confidences.
You have my back
, they think.
You will look out for me
. You are the glue that holds the team together.

• You are also the grease. Everything speeds up around you. Why? Because trust is an accelerant.

• You become a passionate defender of the perspectives of others. You may not be able to make the tough call for yourself, but so long as the “ask” is for someone else you are quite courageous. You get your strength from other people’s needs and feelings and from making sure other people’s needs are being met. You are at your most powerful when you do this.