CMD 021: 5 Ways To Be Kind With Data Visualization – Ann K. Emery

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CMD 018: How To Get What You Want Without Being A Jerk, with Dan Oblinger and Allan Tsang

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CMD 010: How To Lead By Listening Well

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How to Write a Professional Email: Make a positive impact with every email you send.

The post CMD 010: How To Lead By Listening Well appeared first on Greg Harrod.

You’re not alone.

Communicating well, especially in emails, is a fundamental career skill we all need but many struggle with.

But, you don’t need to keep struggling.

In this post, I’ll share my top 5 tips to write an effective professional email. You can apply one or all of them to improve every email you write.

And, you’ll learn how to serve your teammates by making a positive impact with every email you send.

My Top 5 tips to write a professional email

You’re looking for help so I’ll get right to the point. These are my top 5 tips to write a professional email.

You may be thinking that there’s a lot more that goes into writing an effective email than is covered in these five tips.

You’re right. I agree with you.

In fact, I’ve written much more on the topic of how to write a professional email. These top 5 tips are taken from a more comprehensive guide I created which includes a simple and complete start-to-finish process.

The guide will give you everything you need to create effective emails that get results.

So, if you’re the type who prefers to jump right into all the material, here’s what I recommend.

Get your copy of the free guide, How to Write a Professional Email

You can get your own copy of the full guide, How to Write a Professional Email: Make a positive impact with every email you send, right now.

No problem.

Just click this button and you’ll have an email in your inbox before you know it so you can download the guide immediately.

But, if you prefer to get your information a little at a time instead of all at once, I understand.

In fact, that’s why I wrote this post.

So, let’s get back to my Top 5 tips to write a professional email

Back to the Top 5 tips

With this post, I want you to have techniques you can apply immediately with the next email you write. You’ll get actions you can take before you download the guide.

And, don’t worry.

If you read these tips and decide you want to learn more, you can always download the free guide later.

So, let’s get to the first tip which focuses on how we think. In particular, this tip deals with our mindset about emails and how we write them.

1. Start with a mindset of service

We all know the importance of having the right mindset. It’s critical to our success in any endeavor.

And, I believe serving others is what leadership is all about.

This quote from John Maxwell captures the idea of servant leadership very well.

We can serve our teammates with every email we write

A mindset of serving others can be applied to everything we do as leaders. Including writing emails.

I consider starting with a mindset of service to be the most important tip I can offer to leaders who want to improve this ability to write an effective professional email.

This approach will positively impact everything else you do until you hit send. And, even after that. I go into important follow up actions in the full guide.

But, what does starting with a mindset of service look like when you write an email? Instead of me telling you my answer to that question, let me give you a few questions for you to consider so you can develop your own opinion.

Here are four questions to ask yourself before you write your next email.

Four questions to ask before you write an email.

As you think through your answers to these questions and the follow up questions they prompt, I’m confident your mindset will shift toward serving your team instead of just quickly shooting out an email without seriously considering your purpose or the consequences of the words you write.

The answers to the question above lead us to the second tip to use when you write a professional email: Determine what you are trying to say.

2. Determine what you are trying to say

You may be thinking that this isn’t much of a tip at all.

You’re about to write an email. Of course, you know what you want to say. Right?

Well, for me, I often think I know what I need to write. But, when I sit down and start to type out the words, I’m not so sure.

This may happen to you too.

If so, try asking yourself these three questions.

With these two tips, you’re well on your way to being ready to write an effective professional email.

You can stop there if you like. Doing just these few simple things will help you tremendously.

But, you have even more opportunity to improve with the remaining three tips which get a bit more tactical. They deal with best practices in writing mechanics and format.

I consider this third tip one of the most important because it covers what your email recipients see first, the subject line.

3. Create an effective subject line

Your teammates who receive the emails you send are going to see the subject line first. So, it’s critical to make the most of this element in every email you write.

As I said earlier, this tip gets into the mechanics of writing.

So, here are three practical guidelines I recommend you follow for the subject line of each professional email you write.

Example subject lines you can use to create your own.

To help you better visualize the three tips above, here are some example subject lines.

Feel free to copy one of them into the subject line of an email you’re writing now. Modify it to fit your style and situation to see what works for you.

The work you invested in applying the second tip really pays off when you implement this third tip.

Because you know precisely what you are trying to say in your email, you can communicate that message clearly and concisely in the subject line.

Similarly, the work required for the second step makes using this fourth tip much easier too.

4. Select your recipients thoughtfully

Since you followed tip 2, you are crystal clear on who you are seeking to serve with your email.

The clarity you created makes your job of selecting recipients quick and easy. And, if you apply this simple rule, it’s even easier.

A simple rule to use when selecting recipients for your email

Here’s the rule.

The benefit the person receives may come in many different forms such as an assignment to complete a task or awareness of topic. But, somehow the email will help your teammate do their job.

That’s pretty simple, and maybe a little obvious. But, take a look at your inbox and see how many of your coworkers are following that rule.

I expect not enough of them.

But, when you follow this rule, you teammates will know you’re looking out for them when they review the emails in their inbox.

And, they will appreciate your decision.

Your choice of recipients is another opportunity to serve

Most of us receive far too many emails we don’t need to get. They clutter our inboxes and our minds. And, they waste our mental energy and our precious time.

You can serve your teammates by being thoughtful when selecting the recipients of each email you write and send.

I am convinced we can all positively impact our organizations and our teammates through the emails we write and send. Choosing to not send an email to a teammate who doesn’t need it is a perfect example of applying a mindset of service.

Use the address fields strategically

Once you decide who should receive your email, you can serve those teammates further by using the address fields strategically.

Here are some guidelines to follow as you add recipients to your email. These apply to nearly every field and industry and all types organizations.

Many of my colleagues first read emails that include them in the To field. Later, when and if they have time, they read those they are copied on.

Your coworkers likely follow this same pattern. So, keep this in mind as you strategically choose who goes in which address field.

You’ve selected your recipients and only those who need to read your email will receive it. Those teammates are the people you have the opportunity to serve through your email.

And, you have the opportunity for yourself too.

The email you write can distinguish you as leader when you apply this last tip.

5. Get to the point. Immediately.

Being able to communicate well is a fundamental career skill every leader needs to hone and master. Communicating clearly and concisely is critical in all forms of verbal and written content. This includes the emails you write.

Just like you, your teammates who get your emails don’t want to spend extra time trying to figure out what you’re trying to say.

Because you followed tip 2 and took the time to get clear on your message, you know what you want to say. Now you just need to write it down in the email body.

And, before you start typing, you should consider how they are going to be reading your email.

Use a layout that makes reading easy for your recipients

I’m sure you’ve heard of The Golden Rule: Treat others as you would like to be treated.

Tip 5 is an application of that wise advice. Write your emails in way you would like others to use when they write emails to you.

Following these three guidelines will produce an email format you and your recipients will appreciate.

Use the Pyramid Principle to structure your message

You may remember the Pyramid Principle from my post, How To Deliver Results With Your Business Email. Do This First. There I cover the benefits of using structured communication in more detail.

This image may look familiar.

The graphic captures the essence of tip 5.

When writing an email, make your most important point first then add detail only as needed.

This last tip seems simple but it takes practice. Keep at it and try to use structured communication with every email you write.

Your teammates will notice and see a difference compared to most emails they receive.

Lead well by applying these 5 tips to every email you write.

There’s so much more that goes into writing effective professional emails. But, these five tips give you a good place to start.

Just by applying these five tips you will demonstrate to your teammates you are committed to helping them be successful in delivering the results the organization needs.

Learn more with a free guide – How to Write a Professional Email

If you read this far and found these five tips helpful, you might also like the free guide, How to Write a Professional Email: Make a positive impact with every email you send.

This guide includes many more tips and a complete start-to-finish process for creating effective emails that get results.

It’s completely free and I would love for you to have a copy.

I hope these tips and the free guide equip you to lead well and increase your positive influence in your organization.

Let’s lead with kindness and confidence.

Greg

Discussion Questions

• What tips for writing an effective, professional email would you add to this Top 5 list?

• What tip in this post was most useful for you?

If you found this post helpful, please use the social media buttons below to share it with others. And, remember to share your thoughts in the comments section so we can learn together.

About the Author – Learn more about Greg

Click here to download the free guide.

How to Write a Professional Email: Make a positive impact with every email you send.

The post Top 5 Tips To Write A Professional Email appeared first on Greg Harrod.

If you’re like me, you often find it challenging to keep everyone in a meeting focused on what you’re trying to accomplish.

I’ve found creating structure for the meeting with a simple document helps me lead meetings that participants often appreciate and usually find valuable.

And, I’d like to help you do the same.

In this post, I’ll do two things to help you learn to use structure to effectively lead meetings with your team, too.

We’ll start with the simple, seven step process.

7 steps to use structure to lead an effective meeting

I’ve broken the process I’ve used to lead meetings throughout my career into these seven steps.

I’ve used these seven simple steps to lead thousands of meetings and I’ve found the process to be helpful for me and for those who participated in the meetings I led. I hope you find them useful as well.

First, let’s talk about the initial step in preparing to lead an effective meeting, planning ahead.

1. Plan ahead

While the rest of these steps to lead an effective meeting may be done in a different order, this one must come first. If you want to successfully lead an effective meeting, you must plan ahead.

Unprepared leaders lead painful, ineffective meetings

We’ve all experienced the agony of sitting through a meeting led by someone who is not prepared. When the meeting starts, it quickly becomes obvious the person who brought everyone together doesn’t have a plan.

The conversation drifts all over the place. With the discussion jumping from topic to topic, it’s hard to know when to say something or what to say to add value.

Finally, after what seems like an eternity, the end time of the meeting arrives. But, no one is sure if you’re actually done. Because it wasn’t clear why you were even there in the first place.

Who cares? You’ve got an excuse to leave and you can finally escape. Blessed relief from the pain has arrived.

Am I exaggerating? Not much.

Unplanned, unstructured meetings occur countless times a day in organizations around the world. And, the person leading a meeting like this takes a hit to his or her reputation.

An unprepared leader is to blame

When we’re in a meeting led by an unprepared leader, we easily recognize why the meeting is ineffective. Typically no one says anything, but everyone knows who is responsible.

The unprepared leader is the one to blame. The person who asked everyone to come together for a meeting is responsible.

Scheduling a meeting and not being prepared to lead it effectively is a proven way to quickly lose the respect of your teammates.

Leaders who have not invested time getting ready prior to bringing a team together waste everyone’s time. And, we all know time is a precious resource in every organization.

But, good leaders think differently.

Good leaders view themselves as stewards of their teammates’ time

Throughout my career, I encouraged my teams to have the mindset of a steward when scheduling and leading meetings.

If you’re not familiar with the term, a steward is a person who is entrusted with the responsibility (and privilege) of managing another person’s resources.

This was our perspective.

If we schedule a meeting, we are responsible for planning and leading it to maximize the use of each participant’s time. It is up to each of us, when leading meetings, to ensure that every minute of the meeting is a valuable investment of time for each person there.

I encourage you to take this same approach.

Invest the time to prepare for every meeting

To earn and keep the respect of your teammates, I encourage you to schedule time on your calendar to prepare for every meeting you convene.

It doesn’t have to be a lot of time. Especially once you get the hang of the process I’m going to lay out in these next six steps.

The investment you make prior to the meeting will bring a great return by using your team’s time efficiently and boosting their morale.

So, that wraps up the first, and perhaps the most important, step of this process, planning ahead to prepare for the meeting.

Now let’s move to the second step of the process, creating a document to guide the meeting.

2. Create a document to guide the meeting

Creating a document to use as a guide when you lead a meeting is beneficial and important for three reasons.

What format should I use for the document?

The format you use for the meeting guide document is really up to you. You may like spreadsheets. Or, a word processing tool may be your preference. Any format other than “in my head” can be used. You can even use pen and paper if you like.

The key is to collect and capture your thoughts in a document before the meeting begins.

I love using Microsoft OneNote to document meetings. I’ll be using a OneNote document as an example.

Microsoft OneNote example

To guide our discussion I created this simple meeting guide document in OneNote.

I know it’s hard to read, but don’t worry. I’ll zoom in and highlight specific sections as we discuss them. And, the next section is part of step 3 of our process for using structure to lead an effective meeting.

We’ve got our meeting document ready so let’s use it to capture the meeting topics.

3. Identify the topics

You can see in this example meeting, there are three topics to be covered.

It may seem simplistic and obvious for me to suggest the person leading a meeting needs to state the topics to be covered.

However, in my experience, many leaders are not sure themselves of what needs to be discussed in a meeting until they invest the time to plan and prepare.

This is certainly true for me.

Once you’ve done the work to identify the topics, you can use the meeting guide document to capture and clearly communicate these topics to the meeting participants.

Communicating the topics should be done with two separate and distinct components, a topic label and a topic description.

Label and describe the topics

Create visual separation between the topics

Use numbers and visual elements such as highlighting and horizontal lines to create separation between the topics.

This technique amplifies the power of using the distinct, separated topics to manage the discussions as you lead the meeting.

Add details for each topic

You’ve labeled the topic and described it briefly. Now add the details that are important for this particular meeting.

Include action items and decisions and format the text to ensure they stand out from other meeting notes.

Include space for notes

As I noted earlier and in a previous post, taking notes during a meeting is important. In this meeting guide, create a section for this purpose.

Follow a template

There are many ways to implement these techniques and I recommend you use the methods that work best for you.

Once you settle on a format you like, create a template and use it for efficiency and consistency.

Here’s an example of a template I use regularly. You can see how it brings together the various techniques I described.

Now that you’re clear on the topics and communicated them clearly in your meeting document, you can move to the next step of the process.

Let’s talk about an agenda for the meeting.

4. Budget the time

Every effective meeting needs some sort of agenda. And, an agenda includes at least two things. Topics and time.

By getting clear on the topics including what points need to be discussed, you’ve made the task of creating an agenda much easier.

Review the topics and key points you want to cover and budget out the time you have available. Topics with many items will need more time. Others can be covered quickly. You may also need to lengthen or shorten the duration of the meeting accordingly.

Be disciplined and intentional when budgeting the meeting time.

Don’t make it too long just to fit a calendar suggestion of an hour, for instance. If you have 35 minutes worth of work to do, schedule the meeting to be 35 minutes long.

But, if you find you have too much material to cover in a reasonable amount of time, consider scheduling multiple meetings.

Be sure to leave time at the end of the meeting to review action items and owners. This blog post, Ask “Who Needs to Do What by When?” Drive Results! gives you tips on how to do this.

You now have topics for the meeting and an agenda, you are well prepared to lead the meeting. There are just a few more steps to take.

The next step is to decide who needs to be there.

5. Select the participants

You are now far more prepared than most meeting leaders to determine who needs to be in the meeting you are going to lead.

Many people who schedule meetings don’t think critically about who should attend.

With the meeting structure you’ve designed in your guide document, you can intentionally invite specific team members with clarity and purpose. And, you know how much of their time you are asking them to invest.

As you review your guide, consider who needs to be present to do the work you’ve outlined. Those are the people you should ask to attend. Keep the group at the right number of participants to effectively complete the purpose of the meeting in the time you have allocated.

The most effective meetings include only those who need to be there.

So, you’re done, right? Ready to send out a meeting invitation?

Not quite. There’s one more step.

6. Optimize the meeting structure

This step is one that will allow you to distinguish yourself as a servant leader in your organization. It’s not required, but it will definitely set you apart as a meeting leader.

If you’re made it this far and completed the five previous steps, you’ve done a lot of work to prepare for the meeting you are going to lead. In fact, you’ve already done far more than the majority of people who schedule and lead meetings.

But, I would encourage you to invest just a little more time for your own benefit and the benefit of those who will attend your meeting.

Here’s what I recommend.

Take a moment to visualize yourself leading the meeting you have designed. Walk through it in your mind. And, honestly consider how it’s really going to go once you and your teammates are in the room or online.

Ask yourself these five questions.

After answering these questions, you may be satisfied and ready to take the next step. Or, you may want to tweak your meeting document slightly.

If you want to make changes, repeat the previous steps until you’re confident to proceed.

Then, take the final step.

7. Share the meeting document

I realize I didn’t highlight an obvious step. As the meeting leader you need to schedule the meeting and invite participants to attend.

When you sent a meeting invitation, I encourage you to include the meeting document you created. This lets people know what to expect and prepare so they can engage and contribute.

Many leaders of meetings don’t take this step. Often it’s because they don’t prepare prior to the meeting. And, sometimes, it’s because the don’t want to relinquish control and be transparent with their plan for the meeting. Be aware of these common barriers and work to overcome them.

This is the seventh and final step to use structure to lead an effective meetings.

In the introduction, I promised to not only give you a process to follow. I also told you I would explain why structure makes a meeting more effective. So, let’s move to that topic now.

Why structure makes a meeting more effective

As I’ve explained, I have used this structure I’ve described and the meeting guide document to lead thousands of meetings. So, I know it works.

In addition, I have learned recently from two leadership experts some of the reasons why structure is so effective when used to lead meetings.

The first expert is someone I quote often in my posts.

A structured meeting shows your teammates the future

In a previous post, “Are You Above Or Below The Line? How To Know And What To Do About It.” I shared wisdom from Michael Bungay Stanier’s book, “The Advice Trap: Be Humble, Stay Curious, & Change the Way You Lead Forever.”

I shared his TERA technique to create a more psychologically safe space for our teams and keep them engaged.

Meeting structure is a direct application of the E in TERA. The E stands for Expectation as Stanier’s explains in his book.

The meeting structure you create and capture in a document shows your teammates what to expect. This calms their brains by showing them the future.

And, by sharing the meeting guide with them before the meeting, they can not only prepare for the upcoming session, but they will also feel more psychological safe as they anticipate joining together as a team.

Additionally, using the same document during the meeting provides familiarity and consistency which brings further reassurance.

These steps help your teammates engage more deeply and be more creativity.

Structure helps your teammates thrive by providing them with security. And, it does more than that. It helps them understand you better.

A structured meeting helps you make sense to others

When you’re leading a meeting, you definitely want to communicate clearly. You want the people in the meeting to understand what you’re saying.

In other words, you want to make sense to others. That’s the term Tom Henschel of Essential Communications used in a recent podcast episode.

Tom is a veteran executive leadership coach who grooms senior leaders and executive teams. He is an internationally recognized expert in the field of workplace communications. He knows what he’s talking about.

Tom had a conversation with Dave Stachowiak on Dave’s Coaching for Leaders podcast (which I highly recommend). They discussed the common challenge of making sense to others when communicating, including when leading meetings.

Tom explained why using structure when communicating helps both the sender, you in this case as the meeting leader. And, the receiver, those attending your meeting. And, he gives interesting insight into the benefit of clear, precise transitions.

The lessons in this episode are applicable when creating structure for your meetings and for every type of communication. You can access the episode by clicking the image below.

This podcast encouraged me to continue to use structure when leading meetings and incorporate it into other forms of communication as well. I hope it does the same for you.

That completes this section on why structure makes a meeting more effective. So, let’s summarize what we’ve covered in this post.

It’s time to put structure into action as you lead meetings

You’ve now got a seven step process to use structure to lead an effective meeting. And, you know why this structure makes a meeting more effective.

Are you ready to apply these lessons to the next meeting you lead? I encourage you to give it a try.

I’m confident the people who attend the next meeting you lead will recognize and appreciate the benefit of the structure you introduce.

Let’s lead with kindness and confidence.

Greg

Discussion Questions

• How do you introduce structure into the meetings you lead?

• Which of the seven steps listed above do you find most valuable?

I’m curious to learn more about how you prepare for and lead meetings. Please share your tips and tricks and teach me and others what you know.

About the Author – Learn more about Greg

Click here to download the free guide.

How to Write a Professional Email: Make a positive impact with every email you send.

The post How To Use Structure To Effectively Lead Meetings appeared first on Greg Harrod.

Those are the three words I find myself using over and over when I ask a question.

Frankly, I can’t remember when I learned this phrase. Of course, it’s not original to me and is commonly used by organizations seeking to innovate.

The phrase has been widely discussed and analyzed so there is an abundance of material available on the topic. In fact, “How might we” is represented by the acronym HMW in many articles and publications.

When a phrase has its own acronym, it’s clearly not a new idea. This article in the Harvard Business Review traces the roots of this question introduction back to the 1970’s at Procter & Gamble.

“How might we” has been around as long as I have. It’s been tested and proven as an effective and powerful way to start a question with teams of all sizes in a variety of organizations.

These three words work to unlock the creativity of teams.

Here are a few of my thoughts on why this three-word combination should be in every leader’s vocabulary.

Effective leaders ask questions

The fact that “How might we” starts a question is in itself powerful.

Asking questions when leading others is almost always more effective for getting results than telling others what to do or how to do it.

In his book, “The Advice Trap: Be Humble, Stay Curious, & Change the Way You Lead Forever.” Michael Bungay Stanier encourages all leaders to stay curious longer to get the most from your teams.

And, asking questions instead of giving advice is one of the best ways to stay curious.

In my blog post “How To Ask Powerful Questions – Getting Started” I share 32 questions you can use with your teams. These questions help your teammates contribute more and add value to your organization.

Any question beginning with “How might we” is a good addition to that list. Using these three words to begin a question to your team can make a tremendous difference in how they receive your question and in how they respond.

The specific three words, How, Might, and We are important. Each add their own value in the phrase.

Consider the word, “how”.

How can’t be answer with a yes or a no

The word “how” ranks near the top of the list of ways to start a powerful question. “Why” and “what” are up there too. These words require a thoughtful response because they can’t be answered with a “yes” or a “no”.

In a previous post, I introduced the guide titled “The Art of Powerful Questions: Catalyzing Insight, Innovation, and Action” written by Eric E. Vogt, Juanita Brown, and David Isaacs. It is available through The World Cafe’ and other locations online.

In this valuable resource the authors write this.

“The linguistic construction of a question can make a critical difference in either opening our minds or narrowing the possibilities we can consider.”

The word “how” opens our minds.

A meaningful reply to a question beginning with “how” must include an explanation of a process or actions. An answer might explain steps to take and who would take those steps.

And, an important assumption is built into a question beginning with “How might we”.

“How might we” suggests a solution to the problem or opportunity described in the rest of the question exists.

Just by using the word “how” to ask your team a question such as “How might we address this challenge?” or “How might we capitalize on that opportunity?” you are positively impacting their mindset.

You are bolstering their creative confidence by suggesting to them an answer does exist.

A solution is out there. Somewhere. The team just needs to work together to explore options. To discover what is possible by applying their individual and collective creativity.

Through their individual and collective work, they can apply their talent and skills and find solutions.

The word “how” sparks innovation.

And, the second word in the powerful phrase “How might we” stokes their creative fire.

Might is a mighty word

The word “might” in this context can unleash the power of creativity from your team. It sets the tone for innovative and collaborative thinking.

The “might” in “How might we” brings a positive approach and builds mental momentum for your team. It is fuel to feed the flames kindled by using the word “how”.

One definition of “might” describes power. While, this is indirectly applicable, it’s not grammatically correct.

But, the appropriate definition also captures the power in this simple word.

Optimism

This definition of the word “might” highlights its positive and encouraging energy.

Might – used to express possibility

This description of “might” is optimistic as well as encouraging.

Like the word “how”, it acknowledges the possibility that a solution exists to the problem you are trying to solve. It communicates there is potential to make progress on the challenge before you. The improvements you want to see could exist.

You and your team don’t have certainty and clarity on how things will change just yet. But, “might” suggests at some point in the future you could.

It instills hope in the future without demanding a solution right now.

In contrast, using the word “should” implies there is one right answer. The team’s mission is to find that one and only one solution to the problem not to explore and discuss a variety of ways to make progress. As a result, the creativity flames are quenched.

“Might” encourages teammates to suggest ideas that might not be good ideas. They could even be bad suggestions and need an experiment to learn more.

In fact, the word “might” invites experimentation.

By asking “How might we…” you set the expectation that a person’s response may or may not work. But, you still want to hear their idea. And, you want the entire team to hear what they are thinking.

Sharing an idea with the rest of the team when you haven’t thought through it completely can be intimidating.

As a leader you can reduce the fear factor for your teammates, by encouraging them to “rent an idea” when sharing and experimenting with initial thoughts about how to address challenges and solve problems.

Renting an idea

I learned the phrase “renting an idea” from my training at The Kansas Leadership Center. The concept is simple.

You are only “renting” an idea and not “owning” it.

And, since you haven’t made the commitment to own it, you don’t feel compelled to defend the thought you’ve shared.

The phrase provides space for you and your teammates to suggest ideas they have not yet fully thought through and analyzed.

They can “rent” an idea and share it with the team before being convinced themselves of its value.

It is understood when renting an idea is that it may or may not be a good idea. You are not emotionally attached to what you’ve shared.

You are participating with your team to play with the idea. To critique and consider it. You can take what’s good about it, if anything, and leave what is not of value.

In my experience, I’ve rented and shared plenty of ideas that I later decided through dialogue with the team were not good ideas at all.

Combining the concept of “renting an idea” with the phrase “how might we” can produce highly valuable ideas from concepts that at first seems to have no value at all.

Using these two phrases together promotes innovation and collaboration.

This leads us to the third word of this powerful phrase. The powerful pronoun, “we”.

We are better together

When one teammate offers an idea, even a bad one, it stimulates creativity. Other members of the team can ponder this initial idea and add their own thoughts. They can bounce off this idea and continue the conversation.

“We” as team members are working together to consider possibilities and solutions. We’re building on each other’s ideas and encouraging one another to consider new perspectives.

In contrast to a question like “What are you going to do to fix this?” a question beginning with “How might we” brings people together instead of isolating them.

It encourages and emboldens them by reminding them they are not alone. It reassures them they are part of a team with members who support each other and want to learn from one another.

Diverse and inclusive teams perform better

The use of the term “we” in a question beginning with “How might we” also encourages diversity in thought. It invites others into the conversation so they are heard and included.

When teams are diverse and all members provide input, they consistently outperform teams that are less diverse. This has been my experience and this article from Gartner supports this position. The article also highlights another important point.

Creating an inclusive environment is the key to leveraging diversity.

So, by regularly asking “How might we” questions, you are building a culture of inclusion to unlock the potential of each unique individual on your team.

Every person can add value when seeking to solve problems and make progress on difficult challenges. As a leader you can help each of your teammates contribute.

It’s easy to get started

I hope you’re ready to try out these three powerful words with your teams. It’s not hard at all.

The next time you’re faced with a challenge in your organization, a regular situation for most leaders, just ask your team for input using a “How might we” question.

It could be as simple as asking, “How might we improve in this area?” or “How might we solve this problem?”

And then, let them respond. Even if there is awkward silence for a bit, don’t fill it. Leave time for your team to envision possibilities that “might” exist.

Let your team realize you really are inviting them to share their input. To express their ideas, even the rented ones. Reassure them you don’t know the one right answer or expect them to know it either.

Communicate through your “How might we” questions and your interaction with them that you sincerely want to hear what they have to say.

I’m confident your team will give you many valuable ideas, ideas you wouldn’t have thought of on your own.

And, I’m also sure the responses you hear to your question of “How might we…” will encourage you to ask questions starting with these three powerful words again and again.

Let’s lead with kindness and confidence.

Greg

Discussion Questions

• How might we learn from one another and share what works best for us?

• How might we train others on our teams to use these three simple words regularly?

I would love to read your answers to my “How might we” discussion questions in the comments. Please share so we can learn together.

About the Author – Learn more about Greg

Click here to download the free guide.

How to Write a Professional Email: Make a positive impact with every email you send.

The post Unlock Your Team’s Creativity With “How Might We” Questions appeared first on Greg Harrod.

You’ve heard this is something the best and most experienced leaders do.

But, maybe you don’t have years of experience leading people. Or, perhaps you’ve been in a leadership role for some time but don’t consider yourself skilled at asking powerful questions.

In fact, you’re not even sure how to ask a good question. Let alone a powerful one.

How can you get started?

I’ve got your answer in this post. And, it’s super easy.

A super easy, two-step suggestion to get started

How can you get started in your journey to learn how to ask powerful questions as a leader?

If you’re a regular reader of my blog, you know I try to keep things simple. And, today’s post will definitely stick with that approach.

Here’s my super easy, two-step suggestion.

Step 1- Find some powerful questions

Another thing you know about me if you’re a regular reader is that I don’t claim to have original thoughts.

I’m a firm believer that everything created by humans is built on what came before. I write about this in a previous post.

So, if you want to get started asking powerful questions, you don’t need to create these questions yourself.

Start by finding some powerful questions others are already using effectively.

Simple, right?

Where can you find these existing, powerful questions? I’ll get to that shortly. But, first let’s cover step 2.

It won’t take long.

Step 2 – Ask these powerful questions

Once you have these powerful questions others are already using, what do you do next?

Ask them.

That’s step 2. Just ask the powerful questions that others recommend.

Leading others well usually isn’t complex. It’s often quite simple. And, that’s the case with asking powerful questions.

Getting started developing the skill of asking good questions doesn’t require anything more than the willingness to try.

And, maybe a bit of courage. But, once you complete step 1 and have some example questions to ask, I’m confident you’ll be ready.

You can get started by borrowing questions from the coaching industry.

7 powerful questions from a coaching expert

Many would agree that Michael Bungay Stanier wrote the book on coaching. And, the book they are referring to is “The Coaching Habit: Say Less, Ask More, & Change the Way You Lead Forever”.

The Coaching Habit is the best-selling book on coaching this century. And, it contains a set of seven transformative questions coaches and leaders around the globe use every day.

These powerful questions are a great place to start as you work on your ability to ask great questions.

Great questions for all leaders, not just coaches

And, don’t worry. You don’t have to be a coach to use these questions.

They work well in just about any conversation in all types of settings.

Here’s what Bungay Stanier says about these seven essential questions in his outstanding follow up book, “The Advice Trap: Be Humble, Stay Curious, & Change the Way You Lead Forever.”

There’s no set script. You don’t have to ask them in a certain order. They work by themselves, or in any order.

Michael Bungay Stanier in The Advice Trap

Sounds easy to try, right?

It is. Super easy in fact.

So, what are these seven powerful questions?

Here are the questions and the author’s descriptions taken directly from The Advice Trap.

Seven Essential Questions from The Advice Trap

I said earlier that “Find some powerful questions” was Step 1 in this super easy, two-step method to get started asking powerful questions.

Now you have seven. That’s a pretty good start, huh?

With these proven questions, I’m confident you will have no trouble taking Step 2, which is “Ask these powerful questions.”

But, let’s not stop with seven questions.

I’d like to give you even more powerful questions to choose from.

In fact, you’re going to have a plethora of choices before we’re done.

3 sets of powerful questions

I first learned these questions during my courses at The Kansas Leadership Center a few years ago. Since then I’ve kept a copy in my notebook I use daily.

They are that good.

The Art of Powerful Questions

Is asking powerful questions an art?

I think it is. But, don’t let that intimidate you if you don’t consider yourself an artist.

These questions are taken from a short guide titled “The Art of Powerful Questions: Catalyzing Insight, Innovation, and Action” written by Eric E. Vogt, Juanita Brown, and David Isaacs. It is available through The World Cafe’ and other locations online.

I especially like how this guide groups these valuable questions according to their primary purpose. This structure makes these powerful questions even easier to use and immediately applicable to your specific situation.

The questions from this guide are so easy to use in fact, you may be considered an expert “asker of powerful questions” before you know it.

I say that based on my personal experience.

Let me tell you a quick story before I share the questions.

It’s easy to ask really good questions

“You ask really good questions.”

I’ve been told that many times in the past few years. And, my typical response is this.

“Thank You”. Then I hold up my notebook with my taped in photocopy of a handout I got from The Kansas Leadership Center and show them my secret.

Then, I add my own powerful question.

“Would you like me to make you a copy?”

As I said earlier, I don’t claim to have original ideas. I’m simply using and building on the work of those who have gone before me. And, you can do the same.

Follow my example and your teammates will be viewing you as an expert in the art of asking powerful questions soon too.

Questions for all seasons

My friends at the The Kansas Leadership Center consider these questions as tools for Appreciative Inquiry, as you can see on the handout in my notebook.

The authors of “The Art of Powerful Questions” call them “Questions for All Seasons”.

As that term applies, they can be used in a variety of settings. And, just like the Seven Essential Questions above, they are easy to use.

Here’s how the authors introduce these three sets of powerful questions.

Here is a series of generative questions that we and other colleagues have found useful to stimulate new knowledge and creative thinking in a wide variety of situations around the world. Look at these questions to stimulate your own thinking about questions related to your own specific situation. Play. Use your imagination.

The Art of Powerful Questions

Did you catch the last two sentences?

Be creative and get started

“Play. Use your imagination.”

I promised you this post would give you a super easy way to get started asking powerful questions.

How much easier could it be than to “play” and “use your imagination” using these example questions?

And, with these 25 powerful questions grouped into three categories, it’s even easier to begin experimenting and applying them as you lead.

25 Powerful Questions from The Art of Powerful Questions

Aren’t these truly powerful questions? Every time I read them I am energized and inspired to use them whenever I can.

If you agree and are excited to put them into practice too, you can. You are now fully equipped and ready to get started.

You are ready to get started

You now have a super easy, two-step suggestion to get started asking powerful questions.

Remember the two steps?

And, you’ve got 32 powerful questions that coaching and leadership experts have proven to be effective.

Step 1 complete.

All that’s left is Step 2.

And, taking this next step is up to you.

Take Step 2 – Ask these powerful questions

If you want to be a better leader, a kind and confident leader who helps your team get results, I encourage you to take Step 2.

Just pick one or two questions that sound natural to you. Something you can hear yourself saying in normal conversations you have with your teammates.

Then, just ask the question.

You’ll be glad you did.

And, you will likely be amazed at the positive impact you will have on your teams and your organizations.

Let’s lead with kindness and confidence.

Greg

PS – Photo credit goes to https://www.wocintechchat.com/, an amazing collection of photos of Women in Technology. I encourage you to check it out.

Discussion Questions

• Out of these 32 powerful questions, which do you like and plan to use with your team?

• What powerful questions would you suggest others try?

I’m curious to hear about your experience using these questions in your organizations. Please share your comments so we can learn together.

About the Author – Learn more about Greg

Click here to download the free guide.

How to Write a Professional Email: Make a positive impact with every email you send.

The post How To Ask Powerful Questions – Getting Started appeared first on Greg Harrod.

Immediately.

This advice may seem obvious, but in my experience, it’s rare.

Do you want to help your teammates deliver the results your organization needs?

Start by applying these simple techniques to communicate clearly and concisely in every email you write.

No time to waste

Your team is busy. They have important things to do and no time to waste. The same is true for you.

That’s my assumption at least, based on my experience and the experience of nearly every colleague I speak with.

Your team is likely no different. They don’t have time to spend reading poorly written emails.

They have work to do. Results to deliver for the organization.

And, with every email you send, you can help your teammates do what they really need to be doing. You can make them more efficient and effective with their time.

Here’s how.

Start with the subject

The best place to start when writing a business email to drive results is the subject.

Why the subject?

The subject is the second thing the reader sees

Whether your teammate gets your email on their phone or on a computer, they will most likely see your name first and then the subject line.

Email programs are configured by default to show the user the most important information first.

The designers who create these tools know email readers want the answer to this question.

Who is sending me a message and what do they want?

Again, that seems obvious.

But, how many emails do you receive with a subject that communicates basically no useful information.

Too many people fail to use this valuable component of an email message. They waste or misuse the subject line of their emails.

Don’t let his happen to you.

State your purpose in the subject line

You are sending an email to someone because you want to achieve a particular result. That is why you are investing your time to write the message.

You are writing for a purpose.

So, put the purpose of the email in the subject line.

Ask yourself this question.

“What am I trying to achieve with the words I am writing?”

Or, to say it a different way,

“Why am I writing this email?”

That answer should be included in the subject line.

Do you want someone to do something? Does someone need to know information you have?

When you’ve answered these questions, you’ll be ready to enter meaningful content in the subject line.

But, there are some things to keep in mind.

Subject line structure

It’s important to state your purpose in the subject line if you want your business email to deliver results.

But, the reality is the subject line doesn’t allow enough room for all the information you need to communicate.

Here are some tips you can use to make the most of the limited space.

5 tips for effective subject lines

1. Summarize your purpose

The entire purpose of your email will probably not fit in the subject line. All the action items from a meeting, for instance, don’t belong there. A summary like “Action Items from 2/2 Team Meeting”, however, is useful for your readers.

2. Call attention to your purpose within the subject

Using parentheses or brackets around your email’s purpose will draw your reader’s attention to what they need to know.

3. Keep the subject length short but still effective

The length of the subject line is really up to you.

Strive to keep it as short as possible while still effectively communicating your message.

Here’s a good guideline.

Use no more than 9 words or 60 characters in the subject line.

4. Consider your reader’s email tools and preferences

Think about what might work the best for the people getting your emails.

Are they generally reading your emails on their computers or their mobile devices? What length of subject works best for you?

Your coworkers probably have similar preferences if you’re using the same email tools and settings.

5. Avoid acronyms

FYI, I recommend avoiding acronyms in general. And, this applies to email subject lines too.

I’ve spent way too much time trying to decipher an acronym from a well-intentioned coworker who was actually trying to save me time.

It didn’t work.

Unless all the recipients of your email are completely familiar with an acronym, don’t use it.

This will save your teammates time and mental energy.

So, what do these 5 tips look like in real life? Let’s take a look at a few examples.

Effective subject line examples

Once you’ve created a subject to drive results through the business email you’re writing, next focus on the body of the email.

As you’ve done in the subject line, you should get to the point quickly. But not too quickly.

Don’t skip the greeting

To get results with your business email, it is important to communicate your message immediately. But you don’t want to be abrupt.

There is actually something more important than getting results with your email. Actually, someone not something.

The person reading your email is more valuable than the message you are communicating to them.

Here’s a phrase I try to live by.

“People are more important than projects.”

So, before you immediately jump to the work part of your email, greet the person (or people) you are writing to.

After all, you wouldn’t barge into someone’s office and immediately tell them to do something without saying hello would you?

The same applies for email.

In my post, “3 Simple Tips For Polite And Effective Email” I explain how you can care for the recipients of your email through the greeting. It sets the tone for the rest of your message.

And, without a proper greeting, your email may inadvertently deenergize your teammate and cause them to not want to do what you need them to do. And, an email like that won’t deliver the results you’re after.

So, apply the lessons from that post to craft an effective greeting. Then, immediately after that greeting, get right to your reason for sending the email.

Begin with what’s most important

When writing emails to get results, this is a critical point to remember.

Begin your email message with what is essential for the reader to know.

The bottom line doesn’t go at the bottom

Sure, your readers will benefit from background information and explanations of the content. But, what do they absolutely need to know?

In other words, what’s the bottom line?

And, ironically, the bottom line shouldn’t go at the bottom of your email.

The bottom line should be at the beginning of your email message.

And, if you are into acronyms, you’ve got a couple of good options to remember this important point.

Pick an acronym – BLUF or BLOT

Both of these acronyms are easy to remember and reinforce the importance of starting with the purpose of your email.

BLUF and BLOT are simple reminders to put the most important information first. Then, add details to support your request and give context in the rest of the email body.

This communication approach is taught, along with the BLUF acronym, in the United States military. The U.S. Air Force communications handbook, The Tongue and Quill, is a valuable resource if you’d like to learn more. And, it’s free.

Whether you like BLUF or BLOT, the approach is the same. Both are built on the Minto Pyramid Principle.

Pyramid Principle communication

Barbara Minto created this well-known and highly effective framework for writing and presenting ideas. It applies to emails and all types of communication.

This image from an interesting article in which Minto explains the origin of the Pyramid Principle captures the concept well.

Since this concept was published in the 1980’s, communicators in all types of industries, in organizations of all sizes have followed this approach.

It’s effective when communicating in any way including email.

The point of the Pyramid Principle is to get to the point. At the very beginning.

Getting to the point in your business email will get results

Getting to the point immediately in your emails will help your teammates be clear on what you are asking of them.

They will know exactly why you are sending them an email. And, they will know this by reading only the subject line and the initial section of the body.

Those who read your emails written using these tips will avoid wasting time trying to figure out what they need to do or how they need to respond.

They can invest their energy into doing meaningful work and delivering results.

Of course there is much more to creating an effective business email. But, writing an meaningful subject line and then delivering the critical information at the very beginning is a great way to start.

Your emails that follow these guidelines demonstrate you are a leader who can communicate well.

Every email you write is an opportunity to lead

Email may not seem like a powerful leadership tool, but it is.

And, everyone can send an email, not just leaders in a formal position of authority.

Anyone can lead using email

Do you want to have a positive impact on your team and your organization, but aren’t sure how to make a difference because you aren’t a formal leader?

Start by making a commitment to write high quality emails.

Invest thought and time to serve your teammates with every email you send.

Serve your teammates with the emails you send them

Writing emails that have useful subject lines and get to the point quickly without being abrupt equip your teammates to be successful.

A thoughtful greeting between the subject and the “bottom line” message shows you care about the recipient as a person and you want to encourage and energize them with every word you use.

By applying these simple tips, you can care for your team with each email you send and drive the results your organization needs.

Your email will help your team use their time efficiently and effectively through clear, concise communication. And that’s good leadership.

I encourage you to take your email writing seriously. Invest time to perfect this powerful tool in your career toolbox.

Don’t miss the opportunity to lead with kindness and confidence with every email you write.

Let’s lead with kindness and confidence.

Greg

P.S. – If you like these email tips, you’ll want a copy of the free guide, How to Write a Professional Email.

Discussion Questions

• What techniques do you use to create effective subject lines?

• How do you apply the Pyramid Principle in communicating with your team?

I’m interested to know how you put these techniques into practice in the emails you write. Please share your experiences in the comments section so we can learn together.

About the Author – Learn more about Greg

Click here to download the free guide.

How to Write a Professional Email: Make a positive impact with every email you send.

The post How To Deliver Results With Your Business Email. Do This First. appeared first on Greg Harrod.

And, if polite doesn’t seem important when it comes to writing emails, let me tell you a story that I hope changes your mind.

Mark’s story

This is a true story about a friend I’ll call Mark.

Mark is a fantastic worker. He is highly talented and always eager to help others. Mark likes helping people in general and he especially likes supporting his teammates.

People continually recognize Mark’s outstanding work and they go to him for guidance and support.

Most of the time, when they want help, Mark’s teammates send him an email.

And, those emails. They can be a problem.

Tone is important

In a private conversation Mark confided in me. He told me the emails he was getting from his coworkers were a bit discouraging.

It wasn’t the content of the email that was dragging him down. It was the way they were worded. The tone the senders used.

And, the discouragement started with the greeting.

Mark admitted it might just be him. Maybe no one else felt this way.

But to him, when he opened an email and the very first word was just his name, “Mark”, it felt cold and harsh.

And, often, the discouragement from the email got worse as he kept reading.

It wasn’t just the greeting that bummed Mark out.

There was more that bothered him.

Command language

Even after Mark got past the abrupt start of the emails, he was still faced with language that made it more difficult for him to do what was being requested of him.

Well, actually, that was the problem.

The people who were asking Mark for help weren’t requesting. They were commanding.

And, that was hard for Mark. Not because Mark doesn’t like being told what to do by those in authority. Mark isn’t that type of person. These commands made it more challenging for Mark to provide support to those who sent the email, because he didn’t report to them.

This wasn’t Mark’s manager who was telling him what to do. These were Mark’s peers and colleagues.

So, what did Mark do when he received these emails with a cold, abrupt greeting that transitioned quickly to demands for support?

Mark did what they asked. Because that was part of his job.

That’s the kind of person Mark is.

But, it did impact him. And not in a positive way.

Mark is not a complainer

Before you view Mark as a person who lets himself be bullied through rude and harsh emails, let me clarify.

Technically, there really wasn’t any thing wrong with the language Mark’s teammates were using to communicate. They were professional and to the point.

And, Mark wasn’t griping.

Mark isn’t a complainer. He isn’t one who is easily offended. In fact, I consider Mark to be an Ideal Team Player to borrow Patrick Lencioni’s term. (Click here for more Ideal Team Player resources.)

He is gracious and kind and serves others with compassion.

Mark took responsibility and ownership for how he was feeling when he read these emails. He acknowledged that maybe his interpretation of the greeting was his issue based on his culture and previous experience.

Or, perhaps he was just being too sensitive.

That’s why Mark was confiding in me.

He was concerned that his morale and his productivity were being negatively affected by these emails. And, Mark didn’t want that.

As we discussed his situation, including his reaction to the emails he received, Mark gave me some valuable insight. Insight that I have strived to implement in every email I’ve written since Mark shared his experience with me.

Mark helped me and now I want to help you with these easy tips to use in every email you write so they are more polite and effective.

3 Simple Tips For Polite And Effective Email

Mark’s conversation with me gave me tremendous insight into just how impactful each email we send to a team member can be. I’ve summarized what Mark shared with me in three simple tips.

You can easily apply each of these immediately. They are easy and they can make a big difference in the attitudes of your teammates.

1. Start with a polite greeting

I’ve got to admit, Mark got my attention with this one.

It honestly never occurred to me that someone might respond differently to a professional email that started with a more friendly greeting than one that just started with the person’s name.

Throughout my career, I’ve sent thousands of emails to individual coworkers and the greeting was the person’s name and a comma. “Mark,” “Serena,” “Angie,”. Name. Comma. That’s it.

I had no idea that this was perceived as abrupt and cold by some.

Until Mark told me how it made him feel. And, I’m sure he’s not the only one.

So now I sprinkle in a variety of introductions. Here are a few examples you might want to try.

Pick what works for you and your situation

Some of these might be a good fit for your personal style. Others may not.

Personally I wouldn’t use all of these examples. Especially that last one.

Your culture and organizational norms should influence your choice of greetings. This is an excellent opportunity to apply a Diversity and Inclusion mindset and consider the perspective of the recipient of your email.

Be willing to experiment

There may be some greetings on this list that may not seem professional enough for you. I would encourage you to consider if “professional” might be interpreted as rigid, stuffy, and overly formal by some on your team.

Perhaps you could experiment with using some of the greetings that make you a little uncomfortable and get feedback from teammates you trust.

You may find your use of less formal greetings introduces an increased level of humanity to your communication and sparks greater engagement from some of your teammates.

After my conversation with Mark, I’ve used several greetings that didn’t feel comfortable to me. I’ve experimented and tried different approaches.

I’m doing my best to apply my own advice I gave in the post, “The Most Important Thing To Get Right With Emails.”

It’s not easy to remember that I should be seeking to serve others, not myself, with each email I send. But, I’m trying.

By making each email more polite and effective, I am doing what I can to better support my team.

What about the punctuation?

And, just curious.

How many of you were bothered by the assortment of punctuations I included in the example greetings?

Until I wrote this post, I struggled to know how to properly punctuate an email greeting. As I did my research for this post, I found this helpful article, “Email Salutations: Formal or Informal? Comma or Colon?” by Kathleen Watson.

Here’s what she wrote.

That little gem of knowledge is going to save me a few seconds with each email I write. I no longer have to hesitate when I start typing an email. And, I love saving time.

So, with this first tip and the bonus punctuation guidance, you’re all set to make every email you write even more polite and, therefore, more effective.

Next, we need to consider the language we use when requesting support from a teammate.

2. Ask don’t tell

In general, I consider an approach of asking to be more effective than telling any time I would like someone to do a task for me.

Let’s be honest. Right or wrong, no one really likes to be told what to do.

We’re all more likely to do something for someone if they ask us.

And, the reality is only those who are in a formal position of authority over us have the power to tell us what to do.

So, it is important we remember to ask, not tell, others what we would like them to help us with when we send an email request.

Mark told me that a simple change of the language of a request for support to actually be a request and not a command would have made a world of difference to him.

Did Mark still fulfill the request / command? Did he do the work that needed to be done?

Yes.

But, was Mark as productive as he could have been?

No. He was investing mental energy trying to have the right attitude while doing the work.

He was burning calories that could have been invested doing the task with more creativity in less time.

A simple change of the phrase would have made a big difference to Mark.

Consider this simple example.

The “tell” approach

Mark,

I need this done by tomorrow afternoon.

It’s clear, concise, and straight to the point. But, it’s a command not a request.

Here’s another approach.

The “ask” approach

Hi, Mark.

Could you do this by tomorrow afternoon?

This request is actually a request. Like it should be in most cases.

Back to punctuation

A simple check you can apply when you’re emailing someone a request for help is to look at the punctuation you use.

If the sentence you write in your email to request support ends with a period, it’s not a request. It’s a command.

And, an email commanding your teammate to do something is not very polite and won’t be very effective.

Make sure you end your requests for support with a question mark if it’s really a request.

And, unless you have formal authority over the recipient of your email, your request for support should be just that. A request.

So, remember.

Use a question mark when emailing a teammate to ask them for support.

Ask even when you don’t have to

I suggest that even when you do have formal authority over a person, it is still better to ask not tell.

Here’s why.

First, requests are better received than commands as I noted earlier. But, more importantly, you give the person who reports to you the opportunity to have a conversation with you so you are better informed of the ramifications of them fulfilling your request.

Asking creates an opportunity for dialogue and learning

Let’s go back to the simple example from earlier. You might send Mark this request for assistance.

The ask

Hi, Mark.

Could you do this by tomorrow afternoon?

Here are some possible replies you might receive to this request.

The replies

Hi, Greg.

I can definitely do that by tomorrow afternoon, but I’ll need to miss the team meeting tomorrow morning.

Is that okay?

Hello, Greg.

I think I can do that by tomorrow afternoon but it will likely require a couple of hours of overtime.

Is this worth the added cost or would finishing it the next morning be acceptable?

Hello, Greg.

Tomorrow afternoon will work if I delay the Thompkins project work slightly.

Is that the right priority?

Each of these replies helps you to be better informed and understand the consequences of Mark fulfilling your request.

A command instead of a request would have prevented you from receiving valuable input in each of these scenarios.

Many people, like Mark, might not feel the freedom to respond to a command with anything other than a confirmation they will do what you told them to do.

And, often doing exactly what you told them to do is not a good thing.

A command may not get you what you need

By sending a command in an email, you might get the results you asked for, but not what you and your team really need.

You have talented, smart people on your team. Asking, instead of telling, them to do something provides them the freedom to share what they know with you.

No leader knows everything. We all need to invite our teammates to make us and our organizations better.

There are exceptions, but when it comes to requesting support in an email, I almost always recommend following the “Ask. Don’t Tell.” approach.

Now for the final tip. It’s one we all know. And, all need to be reminded of occasionally.

3. Use please and thank you

We’ve all been taught this since we were little kids. And, it applies to everyone at every age in every situation.

We should always be polite.

It’s good to say “please”. And, “thank you”.

Being polite brings benefits

Not only is saying please and thank you the right thing to do if we want to be kind confident leaders, but it also produces better results.

Consider this simple request to Mark from earlier.

Good

Hi, Mark.

Could you do this by tomorrow afternoon?

This request is not completely rude, but it’s not exactly polite either.

For Mark, it wasn’t positive or even neutral. It was a negative. The request was better than a command, but it was still deenergizing. Demotivating.

Mark told me that a simple please and thank you would have made all the difference to him. And, Mark is not alone.

For most people, something like this is a big improvement.

Better

Hi, Mark.

Could you please do this by tomorrow afternoon?

Thank you.

3 words can make a big difference

The addition of three words, “please” and “thank you”, would have completely changed Mark’s perspective.

This slight change of tone would have made the email much more polite and, therefore, more effective.

I expect this is true for our teammates we email to seek their assistance too. It’s true for me.

How about you?

Are you more motivated and energized to say yes when others ask you to do something and include “please”?

I believe this is true in emails as much as it is in person.

And, when someone says “thank you” after you’ve done something for them, are you more likely to want to help them another time?

I know I am.

It is amazing how much impact these three little words can have.

This tip is easy to apply. But, it’s also easy to forget.

So, I’m sharing it with you because Mark helped me remember just how important it is to be polite with every email we write.

Try these tips to support the Marks on your team

So, what do you think?

Are these tips you want to start using in your emails? Or, is it not worth the time to think about being more polite and courteous?

If you don’t think it’s important, I want you to take a moment to consider if you have a “Mark” on your team.

Is there someone who is a high-level performer and doesn’t complain?

What if you could help your Mark be even more productivity just by being a bit more thoughtful with the words you use in your emails to him?

Wouldn’t that be worth it?

And, along with increasing his productivity, you’ll also boost his morale and attitude with each polite and effective email he gets from you. That’s a very good return on your investment.

Now imagine if you have not one but two Marks on your team. Or maybe even a dozen.

The positive impact you could have on your organization just by being polite and courteous as you write your emails is massive.

I encourage you to give it a try starting today. Put these simple tips into action and see what leading with kindness and confidence in this way might do for your team and your organization.

Let’s lead with kindness and confidence.

Greg

P.S. – If you like these email tips, you’ll want a copy of the free guide, How to Write a Professional Email.

Discussion Questions

• What do you think of Mark’s story? Was he being too sensitive or was his insight valuable to you?

• How do you create polite and effective email? What works for you?

I’m interested to learn even more ways we can positively impact people in our organizations through polite and effective email. Please share your best tips in the comments section so we can all improve.

About the Author – Learn more about Greg

Click here to download the free guide.

How to Write a Professional Email: Make a positive impact with every email you send.

The post 3 Simple Tips For Polite And Effective Email appeared first on Greg Harrod.

The answer for me is “Not as often as I would like”.

If that’s the way you feel too, I’d like to help.

In this post, I share some easy things I do regularly to encourage creators who help me through the things they produce.

And here’s the good news, these techniques don’t take much time at all. Yet they can have a powerful positive impact on the people who do creative work you love.

But, is taking time to encourage the creators who give us all sorts of amazing creations really that important?

Here’s a scenario to think about to help you answer that question for yourself.

But first, let me save you some time

If you don’t have time to read this full post, I understand. Your time is precious.

So, I summarized the message of this post in this graphic.

Now, back to that scenario to help us decide if encouraging creators is worth our time.

Here today. Gone tomorrow.

Has this ever happened to you?

You find a new restaurant and you absolutely love the food. The atmosphere is perfect too. This place is incredible.

So you go a few times. And each experience is amazing.

But, you don’t ever get around to giving them a review on social media. And you forget to tell your friends about this place even though it’s one of your favorites.

It’s one of your favorite restaurants, but you don’t really go there anymore. You want to. But you don’t.

Until one day you remember just how awesome this place is. So you go back.

Only to find them closed for business with a sad sign in the window telling the story.

Tragic, right?

Brick and mortar and online creators need our support

This sad story of your favorite restaurant that didn’t make it, could be replaced with a similar tale of your favorite creator.

The entrepreneur and chef who created those delicacies you enjoyed and dreamed of, but rarely bought. They were creators who needed more support from you and others to stay financially healthy.

And, while all creators don’t earn a living through their creative work, they all need support.

We interact with some creators through their physical stores and businesses. Some are on our teams and we work with them face-to-face or virtually every day. Others are people we know only through internet relationships.

This myriad of creators around us makes our lives better.

It is critically important for us to encourage the creators whose work benefits us by showing them our appreciation.

Thankfully, it’s super easy to get started.

Start with a Creator Appreciation Mindset to encourage creators

In the blog post, “How To Build A Creator Appreciation Mindset With 5 Simple Steps“, l outline five simple steps to build a Creator Appreciation Mindset.

If you read the previous section and thought, “I don’t know any ‘creators’. I don’t work with creative types.”, I encourage you to read that post. I’m confident you have countless creators in your life. And many on your current teams.

To summarize my earlier post, here are the five steps to get you started with the right mindset to appreciate and encourage creators.

5 simple steps to build a Creator Appreciation Mindset

Now that we’re equipped with our Creator Appreciation Mindset, let’s put it to use. Let’s make encouraging creators and showing them appreciation a normal part of our regular activities.

How we communicate appreciation

What makes you feel appreciated and encouraged? It’s different for everyone, but I believe this to be true for every creator.

Knowing your work has been seen and made a positive difference in someone’s life is an encouragement.

If you’ve invested time and energy into creating something, especially something you have created to help others, you are encouraged when you know someone has actually seen it. And, you are even more encouraged when you know someone has received benefit from what you’ve made.

That’s a pretty simple concept. And, it’s the foundation for this easy approach to encourage creators.

8 easy ways to encourage online creators

In this post, I’m going to use online creators as the example. However, we can apply these principles to encourage creators in every area of our lives. I’ll leave it to you and your own creativity to find ways to do that.

1. Consume their creation

This is the easiest way to encourage a creator. We consume what they have created.

Listening to a podcast. Reading a blog post. Watching a video. A creator has made these things and we have benefitted from them.

And, this encourages the creator. But, in a very impersonal and general way.

It assumes the creator is paying attention to metrics like downloads, impressions, and all the other statistics that tell online creators that someone, somewhere is consuming their creation.

Of course, it’s the starting point of encouraging a creator. You have to experience the creation before you know if you like it.

And, online creators are encouraged by positive metrics. So, by all means, keep consuming content from creators you appreciate.

But, while consuming does indirectly inform the creator that their work has been seen, it doesn’t communicate to them that they’ve made a positive difference in your life.

So, if you really want to encourage a creator, don’t stop there.

2. React

This next level action to encourage a creator really couldn’t be easier.

All the social media platforms and websites give us the tools to react to a creation we like with the touch of a thumb. Or, an index finger for old guys like me.

We have an ever increasing set of options to express how a creation makes us feel.

These are good. But, I think we would all admit to hitting the “Like” option after only briefly skimming some online content. We don’t really know what the article says, but the person is our friend and we want to support them.

We’ve done it. All creators have done it.

So, everybody knows the level of encouragement a reaction provides. Some, but not much.

Providing a reaction is good, but we can do better.

3. Make a personal comment

We all know how encouraging it is to receive a personal comment from someone about the work we’ve done.

Whether they are spoken or written. On a computer keyboard or with a pen. Personal comments are encouraging.

We can step up our level of encouragement for online (and in person) creators simply by making even a generic comment more personal.

Even the most basic words of encouragement are strengthened with a simple personal touch.

We can take our encouragement from good to better with something as basic as this.

Good

Nice post.

Better

Nice post, Lana. I appreciate you sharing your thoughts.

Adding just a few more words and the creator’s name can make a big difference.

Maybe you actually took time to read the article. Maybe you didn’t. But either way, the creator, Lana in this case, knows you saw her create something. She recognizes you appreciate her courageous act to share her thoughts with others.

I have to expect Lana is encouraged.

Are you starting to see the pattern?

Let’s take it up another notch.

4. Make a personal comment with depth

Continuing with the example of Lana’s post on social media.

Let’s assume you did read her full post. And, what Lana had to say helped you.

How encouraged might Lana be with a comment like this?

Even Better

Nice post, Lana. I appreciate you sharing your thoughts. Your last suggestion on how to support a struggling coworker was especially helpful. I plan to try that with one of my teammates later today. Thank you.

Lana now knows what she’s created may actually help someone, which was the reason she wrote the post in the first place.

In addition to accomplishing her goal of writing, you have now encouraged Lana to continue on to create even more useful content to help even more people.

5. Share the creator’s work

This step doesn’t take much time at all, but it does take a bit of courage.

To encourage an online creator, share their work.

Why does this take courage? Because by sharing, you are to some degree endorsing the creator’s work. You are attaching yourself to the message and communicating your values.

Even by sharing a video you think is funny, you are saying to those in your network that the content created and captured in the video is humorous to you .

Sharing what a creator has made is a powerful technique to encourage a creator.

By doing this you are communicating to them that you appreciate and agree with their creation so much you are willing to personally endorse it.

And, of course, social media platforms give us tools to share the creations of others in seconds.

If you’re following my pattern, and I’m sure you are, you know what I’m going to recommend. Don’t stop with sharing.

Take your encouragement to an even higher level.

6. Share the creator’s work with a personal comment

To boost the encouragement of a creator, add your personal comments describing why you are sharing what you’re sharing. And, tag the creator to ensure they hear the positive things you say about their work.

You can add a lot of input or just a few words. The positive impact to the creator comes because they know you’ve seen their work and have proof (your words) that they have made a positive difference in your life.

And, the impact they have had on you is so great that you want to share it with others.

7. Send a personal message to the creator

As I’ve already described in the previous steps, social media platforms provide powerful tools to enable us to encourage creators.

The internet gives us the ability to communicate directly (or through an assistant) with almost anyone. Including the creators we want to encourage.

Did you read a book you found helpful? You can likely find the author’s website with a way to send them a note there.

No way to contact them through their website?

Then, you can probably send them a direct message on Twitter.

Not on Twitter? Try LinkedIn.

Still no luck finding a way to send the creator a personal note of encouragement?

Leave them a review on Amazon. They will likely read it, especially if it’s positive and they are just getting started. Or a member of their staff will share it with them.

We all know how rare and precious positive comments can be compared to the constant flow of negative feedback.

By taking the time to send a positive note of encouragement to a creator, you will encourage them and give them the support they need to endure the onslaught of negative comments they are likely receiving.

8. Send a detailed personal message to the creator

I’m sure you guessed this one already.

When you send a personal note, make it detailed and meaningful.

The more thoughtful and specific the praise, the more encouraging it will be.

The same is true for critical comments. Creators are often encouraged even by negative feedback if it’s based on sound reasoning. To know someone examined your work enough to develop a contrary view, is an encouragement for serious creators committed to their work.

Get started and do what you can

You may be thinking to yourself that this all sounds great, but it is going to take a lot of time.

But, it doesn’t have to. Some of these techniques take more thought, effort, and time than others. But, they can all have a positive impact on the creators you want to encourage. You can decide how much time you have to invest and choose what works best for you.

The key is to just get started.

Here’s what I suggest.

Put these techniques into practice today – 10 minutes or less

Remember Step 3 of the 5 simple steps to build a Creator Appreciation Mindset earlier. Step 3 is “Record creations as you encounter them”.

If you’ve been doing this and the other four steps, you’ve identified at least a few creations that have impacted your life recently. And, you know the creators of those works.

So why not encourage them?

You’ve already consumed what they’ve created. Let them know that.

Pick just one of the techniques above and try it out. If you only have time to react to a social media post, do that. Are you available and ready to send a personal note of encouragement this afternoon? Go for it.

Limit yourself to investing 10 minutes to encourage a creator today and see what you can do.

My experience

In my experience, it’s easier than you think. And, it might be just as encouraging to you as it is to the creator you are seeking to encourage. Maybe even more.

I’ve been working to improve in this area. I’ve reached out to many creators and continue to do so. I have found the time to be a worthwhile investment. I trust I have encouraged some of the creators I admire. But I know I have been encouraged personally through the process.

I encourage you to give it a try and see if the same is true for you.

Creating and encouraging creators is personal

As I wrap up this post, I’d like you to notice how many times I used the word “personal” in explaining how to encourage creators.

That was intentional because the act of creating is personal.

Creators are sharing part of themselves when they share their work. This takes courage and vulnerability.

And, I’m not just talking about the musician on stage performing for their fans.

When someone shares their thoughts in a social media post or a blog article or even in an email, that person is creating and revealing something about who they are to their audience.

The act of creating and sharing our creations, regardless of the form, is deeply personal whether we realize it or not.

That’s why the most meaningful encouragement for creators is input that is personal. Authentic words from real people who benefit from their work.

By providing feedback that includes our own views and opinions, we are sharing part of ourselves with the other person. We are being vulnerable and courageous and demonstrating a level of trust of the creator we are seeking to encourage.

Creators get that. They understand because we are speaking their language.

We are sharing a common bond of “putting ourselves out there” to help someone else. To positively impact the life of someone else.

In fact, in providing our feedback to creators we are ourselves creating.

We are further demonstrating the reality that creators are all around us. And, in fact, we are revealing that we are creators ourselves. Simply by taking these simple steps to encourage other creators.

So, with this in mind, let’s continue to create and encourage the many creators in our lives.

A final note – Creators are worth investing in

I started this post, by comparing the support of creators with that of local businesses striving to keep their doors open. Whether the creators you want to encourage are in your local communities running businesses to feed themselves and their families or doing the same with their online platforms, they need our support.

If you have the means and opportunity to invest not just your words of encouragement but also your dollars with them, I encourage you to do so.

Most creators don’t do what they do for the money. But, all creators have expenses.

Help them, if you can, continue to do what they do so you and others can keep benefitting from their creations.

Let’s lead with kindness and confidence.

Greg

Discussion Questions

• If you are a creator, what encourages you the most?

• Which techniques will you try to encourage the creators you admire and appreciate?

I’m interested to know how you put this into practice in your life. Please share your experiences in the comments section so we can learn together.

About the Author – Learn more about Greg

Click here to download the free guide.

How to Write a Professional Email: Make a positive impact with every email you send.

The post 8 Easy Ways To Encourage The Creators You Appreciate appeared first on Greg Harrod.