The Exclusive Online Magazine for Administrative Professionals

March2015

FEATURES:Personal Branding: A Complete Manual10 Tips for Spring Cleaning Your Messy Desk6 Reasons for Feeling Unappreciated at Work and What You Can Do

AdminAdvantage

Five Fears Preventing Continuous Improvement

2

10 Tips for Spring Cleaning Your Messy Desk15

CONTENTSof March ‘15

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6 Reasons for Feeling Unappreciated at Work and What You Can Do

20

Have you seen?13

Five Fears Preventing Continuous Improvement24

Personal Branding: A Complete Manual6

15

24

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6

Personal Branding: A Complete Manualby Lungisa Sonqishe 

6

One thing for sure, we all have a personal brand. You have a personal

brand and you have been sharing this brand with everyone that you

have ever come in contact with. The way you choose to portray

yourself is your personal brand. Now, the question is do you agree

with this brand? Is it a true representation of who you are?

WORKSMART

6

7 MARCH 2015

WHAT IS A BRAND?

Your brand is what people say about you when

you’re not in the room” - Jeff Bezos, Founder of

Amazon

Actually a brand is absolutely anything, the mere

fact that you know that one thing is not the

other, is branding. Therefore a brand is a

name, an idea, design, symbols, attributes,

reputation and quality that differentiate

one feature from another. That is why

Apple’s identity

is different from

Samsung’s,

even though

they sell,

essentially, the

same idea.

Same ideas, but different methods of presenting

them. That’s what makes the each one unique.

WHAT ABOUT PERSONAl BRANDINg?

“All of us need to understand the importance of

branding. We are CEOs of our own companies:

Me Inc. To be in business today, our most

important job is to be head marketer for the

brand called You.” - Tom Peters

It is the same concept, the only difference is

that it is now on a personal scale. Your personal

name is your brand name. You look different

from everyone else, therefore your appearance

is your brand design. You have different parents,

fingerprints, values, personality, voice, qualities,

perception and elements than everyone else.

Therefore, you are unique.

This is what personal branding is about, being

WORKSMART

7 MARCH 2015

8

your original authentic self and presenting

yourself as such. You do not see Apple and

Samsung showcasing their brands in a similar

manner, even though they are essentially selling

the same idea.

You too might have the same qualifications,

experience and you might even have gone to the

same learning institution as the candidate you are

competing for the job with. Who then gets the

job? It is all up to your personal brand.

“Personal branding is about managing your name

- even if you don’t own a business - in a world

of misinformation, disinformation, and semi-

permanent Google records. Going on a date?

Chances are that your “blind” date has Googled

your name. Going to a job interview? Ditto.” -

Tim Ferriss

Why is a great personal brand important for your

career?

Top tips:

CVs or resumes are no longer enough. In fact, I

predict that in the years to come, resumes, as we

know them today will cease to exist.

Be consistent in the manner you sell your brand.

Showcase your talent and become a leader in

your area of expertise.

SEll YOUR UNIqUE PROMISE. Communicate your true values, principles, ethics

and integrity effectively and consistently.

Focusing on these strategies will help you get, not

just any job, but a job that is best suited for you.

How is that? Because the manner in which you

communicate your brand is specific and unique to

you. And you might have the exact qualifications

with your job competitor, however your attributes

would be different. This way, you are not a

duplicate of another, as that can be viewed as

boring and predictable. Furthermore, this strategy

allows you to attract the right employer that

appreciates and values your brand promise.

So what would make your brand stand-out?

What makes you different from anyone else? And

why is it crucial to build your personal brand?

This guide will help you build an authentic and

marketable personal brand. Listed below are

the tips to help you be unique in the face of

competition.

lOOkINg AT YOUR STRENgTHS This is an important factor in personal branding.

It is not an idea only centered on your own

perceptions, but also of those who know you well.

Those with a solid personal brand, know who

they are and what they want in life. In fact, they

are crystal clear on that. This is where you get to

understand and describe your unique selling points.

In order to help you with this important task, I have

compiled several questions for you to help keep

you focus on identifying your true strengths:

1. What was/were the highlight/s of my career,

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9 MARCH 2015 9

and why am I so proud of these moments?

2. What was the most fulfilling task or project I

have ever worked on, and why was it fulfilling?

3. What role do I always play in group tasks, and

how do others in the group view me?

4. How do I overcome the most challenging

obstacles? What tools do I use?

5. What do I enjoy doing the most (business or

leisure)

6. If I were to talk to someone about the subject

that I enjoy the most, what would it be?

7. If I were to accomplish something of great

significance to me, and there would be no obstacles

of any kind to stand in your way, what would it be?

8. Now, try to think of 10 one-word descriptions

of your strengths e.g. creative, compassionate

and so on

9. Choose people who know you, your friends,

family and colleagues and ask them to each give

you their insight of what your strengths are. After

doing that compare your lists with theirs. Share

your list with them and see if they perceive you

the same way as you view yourself.

“Emphasize your strengths on your CV, in your

cover letters and in your interviews. It may sound

obvious, but you’d be surprised how many

people simply list everything they’ve ever done.

Convey your passion and link your strengths to

measure results. Employers and interviewers love

concrete data” - Marcus Buckingham

Now that you know what your strengths are, use

them. Utilize them as part of your strategic plan

in your daily activities as well as with prospective

employers. Let the right target audience know

these gifts. Communicate them effectively using

every relevant resource available to you. You can

use your CV to highlight your strengths, online

profiles and you must unquestionably have a

personal website as your digital CV. Just remember

your values and ethics when communicating to

your audience. This will set you apart.

kNOW YOUR lIMITATIONS We all have weaknesses, but it is not always easy

to acknowledge them. It is in your best interest to

be completely honest with your self about what

your limitations are or you will put yourself on

the spot for major disappointments. Remember

that a weakness is anything from being utterly

uninterested about anything in life to having

limited skills to do anything of interest.

“My attitude is that if you push me towards

something that you think is a weakness, then I

will turn that perceived weakness into strength” -

Michael Jordan

Let’s help you identify these weaknesses:

1. Which aspects of my career/ education that I

like the least, and why?

2. Am I someone who believes completely that I

deserve more and better?

3. Do I become debilitated by the thought of having

to perform certain tasks? What sort of tasks?

4. What were the low points in my career, and why?

5. In a group situation, which role/s do I like

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10

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10

the least?

6. What was the least fruitful task/project I have

ever worked on, and why did it fail?

7. In the face of obstacles, what makes me give up?

8. What is the most uninspiring subject to talk

about for me?

9. What do I think are my 10 weaknesses? Be

honest with yourself.

10. As on question 9 in strengths, only substitute

weakness for strength.

Do not waste your time with weaknesses that do

not hinder your professional goals. Establish what

limitations you can turn into strengths in order to

jump-start your career. Learn the skills that will

help you progress. Put yourself in uncomfortable

networking situations if you need people skills

for example. Remember to mainly focus on

weaknesses that hold you back from achieving

your potential.

Top tip: Your strengths are what gives you an

edge and it is crucial that you use them to your

advantage.

VAlUES Knowing what your values are, is knowing who

you are and what you stand for. Having strong

values, help you establish and navigate your

thoughts so that they are in synergy with your

passion and essence. In other words, before you

involve yourself in anything at all, ask yourself, “is

this in sync with my values and what I stand for?”

Values are essentially a set of principles that you

live by. They define the codes that determine

your personality, attitude, actions, reactions and

so on. Look at it this way; perhaps the reason

you are unhappy at work is because your values

are not allied with what you do. Having values,

therefore, is standing-up for what you believe in.

It is crucial to align who you are with what you

engage yourself in.

“Love is the expression of one’s values, the

greatest reward you can earn for the moral

qualities you have achieved in your character and

person, the emotional price paid by one person

for the joy he or she receives from the virtues of

another.” - Ayn Rand

DEFINE YOUR VAlUES There are a number of places in the internet that

have great resources on how to establish your

values for your personal brand. These are in a

form of a list of adjectives that describes your

values. Find a list most suited for you and by a

process of elimination, choose the top 5 words

that rings true to you and who you are. Establish

why you chose these particular words and define

what they mean to you. Use them to build your

personal mission statement and hold yourself

accountable if you are not respecting your

values. These values should be communicated

in your CV, website, social media platforms and

blog posts.

PASSION Have passion for what you do! That is the biggest

11 MARCH 2015

WORKSMART

secret. It might seem difficult to reconcile the idea

of passion and work. However, do establish that

which you enjoy doing. That which gives you joy.

Furthermore, consider topics that fascinate you,

that keep you inspired and wanting more.

If you are still confused about what your passion

might be, think about a time when you could not

wait to do something or read about something.

Think about the time you could not wait to get

out of bed, and about the things that moved you

to tears. Don’t forget the projects that made feel

creative and had you filled with ideas. When you

feel stimulated and motivated to do something,

then you are passionate about it.

Ask yourself:

What do I really like about my current job?

If I were to volunteer, which charity would you

choose? Why?

What do you spend most of your time doing?

“There is no passion to be found playing small-in

settling for a life that is less than the one you are

capable of living.” - Nelson Mandela

Your job related interests should be in more or

less of the following areas:

• Research

• Problem solving

• Analyzing

• Planning

• Managing

• Planning

• Mentoring

• Creating

• Counselling

• Coaching

• Writing

• Other ways of communication

• Listening

• Negotiating and many more

ATTRIBUTES What words would you use to describe yourself?

Also consider the words that others might use to

describe you. Deliberate on the following words

without limiting yourself; creative, thoughtful,

MARCH 2015

1212

My name is Lungisa Sonqishe, I am a Personal

Brand, Career & Life Coach. I am based in Cape

Town, South Africa.

My website is http://www.eleven11.co.za

I am known for my creative imagination,

inspiring nature and assertiveness. I take joy

in sharing and acquiring knowledge. Personal

Branding and Life Coaching are my areas of

specialty.

Please visit my website to find out more http://

www.eleven11.co.za

WORKSMART

visionary, ambitious, resourceful, risk-taker,

negotiator, ethical, connected, compassionate,

animated, worldly, diplomatic and so on. Find

attributes that best describes your personality and

use them to communicate your brand essence.

POSITIONINg Once you are clear about your values, attributes

and passion, it’s time to now position yourself.

What does that mean exactly? It is simply means

that you should consider how others perceive

you based on your strengths, values, mission,

attributes and passion. Remember, this is about

authenticity. In the place of work, you have to be

consistent about who you say you are.

Create a positioning statement. This statement

you can use during interviews as it is more

powerful and fresh than going on about your

monotonous career past. It captures your

essence and uniqueness.

TARgET AUDIENCE At this point you should have everything you

need in order to attract the right audience. You

must first determine the industry in which you

wish to work, then search for ideal organizations

you wish to work for. Conduct an extensive

research on these organizations and establish

what problems they are faced with; you might

be a match for them based on your unique

strengths, values, passions and attributes.

With your homework done, create a personal

brand strategy using the keywords in job

descriptions to attract their attention. After all,

they want to hire good talent and someone that

matches their standards. However, remember to

never give everything you have, reserve some of

your good selling points for the interview.

In conclusion

“In Social Media the “squeaky wheel” gets the oil.

You have to put yourself out there, to find people

who will relate or even debate with you, depending

on what you are looking for.” - Jessica Northey

Remember to stay true and be consistent with

your personal brand. All the elements discussed

in this article should be communicated effectively

in the digital media. You should remember that in

this age of information and technology, you have

the power to make or break yourself. Utilize the

platforms that are now available to communicate

your personal brand successfully.

13 MARCH 2015

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HAVE YOU SEEN?

15 MARCH 2015

10 Tips for Spring Cleaning Your Messy Deskby Robert Hosking, OfficeTeam

Take a look at your desk. What do you see? Does the workspace look like a page from

an IKEA catalog, or are there scattered papers, stacks of forgotten folders, a half-eaten

muffin and a wilting plant ruining your feng shui?

WORKSMART

15 MARCH 2015

16

A messy desk isn’t necessarily a bad thing,

suggests a recent OfficeTeam survey of human

resources managers (http://officeteam.rhi.

mediaroom.com/2015-01-20-What-A-Messy-

Desk-Says-About-You). About six in 10 (59

percent) of respondents said they don’t judge

a worker whose workspace is cluttered. Nine

percent even think it’s a sign of creativity — à la

Albert Einstein, who famously said, “If a cluttered

desk is a sign of a cluttered mind, of what, then,

is an empty desk a sign?”

But before you think Einstein and this

survey endorse leaving your cubicle in

chaos, consider the rest of the respondents:

One-third question the professionalism of

employees who maintain a sloppy workspace.

After all, if the desk is disorganized, doesn’t

that mean the worker is disorganized, too?

This is not exactly the trait an administrative

professional wants to project.

Whichever side of the survey fence you’re on,

it doesn’t hurt to take some time and do a little

spring cleaning. It might even make you more

effective at your job. Here are 10 tips for how to

organize your desk.

1. Toss the trash. Getting rid of what you don’t

need is a good place to start spring cleaning.

Throw out used paper cups, food wrappers, scrap

paper, outdated Post-it notes, dried-out pens,

broken rubber bands, old name badges and that

lanyard from a conference five years ago. Be

ruthless: You don’t really need all those ketchup

and soy sauce packets and plastic utensils. Pitch

them or put them in the break room.

2. Manage your paper. One of the hardest things

for administrative professionals to deal with is

all the letters, reports, brochures, catalogs and

other paper clutter that hit your desk every day.

Besides a trash can, your workstation should

WORKSMART

17 MARCH 2015

have a recycling bin and a shredder within arm’s

reach. Go through the piles and recycle or shred

whatever you can. The remaining documents go

in “to do,” “to read” or “to file” trays. But don’t

just let the papers sit there for weeks at a time.

Resolve to empty each tray before the day is

over. A tickler file can also help put paper in its

rightful place.

3. Go paperless. Cut down on all the paper

pushing by thinking twice before printing and

going digital whenever possible. Subscribe to

paperless statements and e-magazines. Scan

or photograph receipts, important letters and

other documents, and create homes for them on

your computer; the originals can be shredded.

Take advantage of mobile apps to reduce

paper waste and be more efficient. Don’t let

networking opportunities fall through by losing

business cards on your messy desk. Enter all

the information on your smartphone using either

the native Contacts tool or an app like Evernote

Hello or CloudCards.

4. Rethink photos and knickknacks. While it’s

nice to display a few pictures and vacation

souvenirs, remember that the office is not home.

This is especially true if your desk is where you

welcome clients, visitors and vendors. Your

decorations should be meaningful but tasteful.

Photos of your family or pet are fine, as is cool

artwork, but don’t bring in anything juvenile,

edgy or overly personal. Your cubicle should not

look like a dorm room.

5. Make the desktop prime real estate. To organize

your desk, think about your work habits. The

surface should hold just what you use often:

your computer, phone, lamp, pens, file organizer,

pads of paper and so on. Put occasional

supplies, such as flash drives and the label

maker, in drawers. The more uncluttered space

WORKSMART

18

WORKSMART

18

Robert Hosking is executive director of

OfficeTeam, the nation’s leading staffing

service specializing in the temporary

placement of highly skilled administrative

and office support professionals.

OfficeTeam has more than 300 locations

worldwide and offers online job search

services at www.officeteam.com. Connect

with us on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter,

Google+ and the OfficeTeam blog.

you have on your desktop, the less you’ll have

to move things around when you need to spread

out a project.

6. Keep it neat by your feet. Your desk may be tidy

on top, but how does it look underneath? It’s not a

storage area, so clear out the stacks of files, boxes,

books and magazines there, too. Tame the tangle of

cables and power cords with ties and clips.

7. Deep clean your messy desk. The janitorial staff

empties trash and vacuums the floor, but they

don’t usually touch your equipment. This means

your desk, computer screen, keyboard and

phone are probably dusty and grimy. Get some

disposable dusting cloths and antiseptic wipes,

and every month or so really wipe down all the

surfaces. A small computer vacuum can get out all

the crumbs that have fallen into your keyboard.

8. Do some digital organizing. While you’re tidying

your messy desk, don’t forget the computer. If

you’re like some administrative professionals, your

desktop screen is covered with miscellaneous

files. Create topical folders and organize your

electronic space. If you don’t need something,

drag it to the trash or archive it. As for emails,

don’t be a hoarder. Delete it if you don’t need it.

While you’re putting electronic files in order, make

sure you’re regularly backing up your computer.

9. Bring in spring. Now that your messy desk is

tidier, freshen up the space with a potted plant

or cut flowers. Bringing the outdoors indoors

adds life to your workstation, and communing

with nature could help lighten your mood on

days when your energy is a bit low.

10. Clean up before you clock out. It’s almost quitting

time, and you can’t wait to get home or meet

friends for an after-work drink. But not so fast. To

keep your desk from falling back into disarray, tidy

up every day before you leave. Throw out trash,

brush off the crumbs and wash out your coffee

mug. Put folders in their designated places and

supplies back in the drawer. You have a morning

routine; make straightening up your workspace an

afternoon habit.

You work hard as an administrative professional.

With all you have to juggle, it’s understandable

that your work area might become a bit

chaotic. But with some spring cleaning and

organizational tweaks, you can tame your messy

desk and get even more done.

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20

6 Reasons for Feeling Unappreciated at Work and What You Can Doby Steven Simon, Ph.D. 

How many times have I heard “they just don’t appreciate what I do” or

“no one acknowledges how important we are to this organization”? You

may recognize these words because you may feel this way yourself. It’s

a degrading feeling that makes you angry and frustrated. If it’s chronic,

you may be complaining a lot or looking to go elsewhere. So, what does this mean?

Feeling lack of appreciation at work is a perception that who you are and what you

do is not acknowledged as being important. In reality you may be appreciated but

not know it, you may know you’re appreciated but don’t think you’re appreciated

enough... or you may really not be appreciated!

CAREER

20

21 MARCH 2015 21

So let’s examine some reasons you may feel

unappreciated at work and what you can do:

•Theworkyoudoisnotascriticaltothe

organization as you may think. That is you do a

great job, but the focus of the organization is on

other work. For example, if you do IT support

and things are going along well, you may not

hear much acknowledgement. The company is

focused on its products and external customers

so that’s where the interest lies. I once worked in

an agency where the product of my counseling

unit was difficult to measure and was a very

small part of total services offered. It was hard to

find recognition no matter how well we thought

we performed. In situations like these, where

the work is either not mission centered or is not

viewed as high priority most recognition may

need to come from peers, a supervisor, and

directly from the customer. If you don’t have

peer/team or supervisor support then internal

and/or external customer appreciation becomes

critical. Internal customers are people inside the

organization who depend on your work, such as

those in another department or even your boss.

External customers are those who you serve

outside the organization. So what can you do?

Whether you work alone or in a unit with limited

peer or supervisory support, it never hurts to

focus on getting feedback from customers.

This serves multiple purposes. First, you can

get good information about the extent to which

customers are satisfied and if not, why. Second,

you can modify what you do to better meet

CAREER

MARCH 2015

22

customer needs. In both instances you may feel

the effects of customer appreciation and if not,

you will know why and hopefully what to change.

•Managersorleadersdon’treallyunderstand

what you do and direct customer feedback is

limited. This is most likely when you are the only

person in a specialized support role or when

the type or complexity of the work you do is not

understood. For example, if your job focuses on

social network marketing or public relations, it

may be difficult for others to know exactly what

you do with your time. The work you do doesn’t

often cause a positive “splash”, your immediate

bottom line results like increased sales, are not

readily measured, and clients or the public are

not likely to be smothering you with love. So

what do you do? In this case, educating the right

people is most important. The key to effective

educating is relationship building with those that

can benefit from what you do; then keeping

what you do and the results REGULARLY in the

communication mix and on the front burner.

•Theperceptionbyothersabouthowwellyoudo

your job or your contribution to the general good

may be different from yours. When it comes to

receiving appreciation, it’s the external observers

that count... managers, coworkers, professional

colleagues, customers, and sometimes the

public. You may think you’re working hard or

harder than anyone else or doing a better job,

but if others don’t or at least acknowledge your

value, you won’t get appreciation. Worse yet

is others perceiving you as a problem creator

rather than a problem solver. Sometimes

personality conflicts, team competition, or

politics may influence how you are perceived.

However, be careful about dismissing the

possibility that your performance could be

better or that you could improve as a team

player. Negative perceptions often take a long

time to change, so expect peer and manager

responses to your efforts at change to be slow.

This situation also carries the risk of alienation or

job loss, so sometimes it’s worth considering the

options for changing jobs or organizations and

getting a new start.

•Theorganizationcultureoryourmanagerdoesn’t

nurtureorsufficientlyrewardpositives. For example

if the underlying approach is “management by

exception”, you may get routine performance

feedback mainly when you do something wrong,

or at least that’s what you remember most. If the

culture or a supervisor who doesn’t frequently

recognize or reward is the problem, then it may

CAREER

23 MARCH 2015

be necessary to ask for feedback on work you

have done particularly well. Some managers

and supervisors are slower to give unsolicited

recognition or praise than others, and some rarely

do. Asking for feedback can have a counteracting

effect if you are perceived as doing good work

but rarely informed.

•Youfeelunder-compensatedorunder-promoted

for all you do. Although many people feel under

paid, the question is whether you really are.

Base salary can represent the norm for your

occupation which may be low in reference

to your perceived value of what you do, e.g.,

school teachers... or you may be paid according

to company pay schedules and policy. This isn’t

an appreciation issue, unless you are paid less

than those standards dictate. However, pay

changes, e.g., a bonus or salary increase, and

promotions can represent appreciation. If you

don’t make partner in the firm and a colleague

does, you will feel under-appreciated if you

think your contribution was better. Relationship

building with supervisors, openly discussing

concerns and understanding the organization’s

compensation rules are important in dealing

with these issues. In some instances, if the facts

confirm chronic unfair treatment, it may be best

to look for a job elsewhere.

•Youtendtofeelunappreciatedgenerally. If this

occurs in your personal life, has been going

on for a long time, and has resulted in general

unhappiness, it may carry over to your feelings

about appreciation at work. Unhappiness or

depression can have a blunting effect on positive

things that happen. So, even when appreciation

is expressed to you at work you may not notice

or downplay it. If this is happening it may be

worthwhile to seek professional counseling to

help improve your overall life satisfaction.

Chances are that your feelings about lack of

appreciation are due to some combination of

the above. However, sometimes even minor

changes that you make can have a broad

impact on all of the causes. In fact, some people

find that something as simple as expressing

appreciation more to others actually increases

reciprocal expressions of appreciation. That is,

appreciation may be catching! So, be honest

with yourself, identify the reasons you are not

perceiving appreciation, make a few changes,

and see what happens!

Dr. Simon provides career assistance to

women and men in mid and late career,

periods when many workers are looking to

make changes for greater meaning in life.

Feeling lack of appreciation in a career or

job can hasten the desire to make a career

change. Visit us at http://www.hsoutcomes.

com for a free consultation to discuss your

career issues and to use our high quality

self-help resources.

CAREER

24

Five Fears Preventing Continuous Improvementby Joakim Ahlström

Do you have the courage to confront your fears?

If you don’t they will subconsciously influence

your decisions and actions. These five fears are

particularly important to acknowledge if you want

to succeed with continuous improvement:

1. Fear of power loss

2. Fear of regret

3. Fear of losing face

4. Fear of falling behind

5. Fear of losing friends

When these fears are prevalent, openness and

creativity are replaced by ‘watching your back’

and ‘looking good,’ and when those drive you,

you will never truly succeed.

Fear #1 preventing CI – Fear of power loss

Do you have the courage to distribute decision-

making power and ability in your organization or

are you afraid your colleagues will prove to be at

least as capable as you are?

Driven by fear of losing it, managers will hold on

to power by centralizing decision-making and

hoarding information. When this is the case the

majority will never be given an honest chance to

contribute to continuous improvement.

The courageous know that true power is gained

by sharing knowledge, not hoarding it. Only the

courageous can access the full power of their

organization, because only when you let go of

your fear of losing power will you be able to launch

a way of working with continuous improvement

where everyone is empowered to engage.

Fear #2 preventing CI – Fear of regret

TRAINING

25 MARCH 2015

TRAINING

Do you have the courage to let go of your point

of view or are you afraid that taking another

perspective will make your previous choices

appear less than optimal?

From time to time I hear people asking, “Why

didn’t we do this earlier?” To me, the question

has a simple answer: “Because you didn’t know

then what you know now.” Your decision to

change is in fact a sign of learning that should

be celebrated and not a reason for regret. 

When fear of regret becomes overwhelming

you will defend the perspective that makes your

previous choices seem rational. Unfortunately,

by defending your history you also prevent

yourself from creating a better future.

The courageous accept what is and let go of what

was to create the future they desire. Only the

courageous can change their perspective without

fear of regret, since they know that they have done

and will do the best of they can in every situation.

Without fear of regret you will go from defending

your own viewpoint to sharing each other’s

perspective, and only then will you learn from each

other and give yourselves optimal conditions for

creating the future you truly desire.

Fear #3 preventing CI – Fear of losing face

Do you have the courage to stop window

dressing and point out the purposeless activities

you see or are you afraid of being put in the

naughty corner?

In the short tale “The Emperor’s New Clothes,” two

weavers promise an Emperor a new suit of clothes

that is invisible to those unfit for their positions,

stupid, or incompetent. When the Emperor

parades before his subjects in his new clothes, it

takes the untainted mind of a child to point out the

obvious fact that the emperor is naked. When you

see the kind of behavior the tale illustrates in an

organization, you know that fear of losing face is in

the air. When it is, you will hear a lot of talk about

following routines and preparing for audits, but not

as much about shared purposes and customer

needs. This is a sign that the original intention of

things has been lost and that you have started

doing them for their own sake.

The courageous know that the truth may hurt

for a while but a lie hurts forever. Only the

courageous dare to ask questions such as: “Why

are we measuring this?” “What is the purpose of

this meeting?” and “How does this improve our

performance?” When you’re not afraid to lose

face you can stop unnecessary window dressing

activities and spend your energy on important

improvement initiatives instead.

Fear #4 preventing CI – Fear of falling behind

Do you have the courage to take time to reflect

and try to find a smarter way or are you afraid

that will make you fall behind?

Recently a friend only half-jokingly told me that the

best way to get some time to think at his workplace

was to walk quickly through their big office space.

26

Joakim Ahlstöm is the author of How to

Succeed with Continuous Improvement: A

Primer for Becoming the Best in the World,

available at Amazon; for more info, visit

http://www.SucceedwithCI.com.

TRAINING

If he did, people would assume he was in a hurry

to an important meeting and would not throw a

pointless assignment at him. If the fear of falling

behind is widespread in an organization, the

main focus will be to do as much as possible as

quickly as possible. What you do is secondary.

In this environment a pile of papers on your

desk and a lot of unanswered emails are almost

considered status symbols. They show that you

have a lot to do and that people should leave

you alone.

The courageous know that even if they win

the rat race they are still just rats. Only the

courageous will be able to see that running does

you no good if you are heading in the wrong

direction. When you let go of your fear of falling

behind, you will be able to stop focusing on

short term productivity and spend some time on

the strategic initiatives you ‘never had the time

address because of all the firefighting.’ That’s

when your improvement work can become the

growth strategy it is supposed to be.

Fear #5 preventing CI – Fear of losing friends

Do you have the courage to hold your

colleagues accountable or are you afraid to ruin

your artificially cheerful relationship?

In organizations where fear of losing friends is

in the air, people are afraid of expecting too

much of each other. Instead they tiptoe around

one another to avoid ruining the friendly but

artificially blithesome atmosphere.

The courageous address people’s desire to utilize

their full potential. Only the courageous realize that

true friendship is about expecting the very best

of one another rather than allowing each other to

be lesser versions of ourselves. When you let go

of your fear of losing friends you can start helping

your colleagues to utilize their full potential and

their strengths. The effect will be improved results,

people who grow and superficial friendships

turning into deep and mutual trust.

Fear will either stop you or strengthen you

Without the courage to confront these five fears,

you will never get down to the true root cause of

many of your problems, and they will stay with

you and forever prevent you from succeeding.

Remember that your fears, like vampires, will

lose their power when they are exposed to

the light. The courage to talk openly about

these five fears will be rewarded with true

power, satisfaction, recognition, peace of

mind, rewarding relationships and, last but not

least, a foundation for truly succeeding with

continuous improvement.