So I am sitting here doing what I do (when I sit here) and just in front of me moving quickly from left to right across the ledge is a little tiny ant. If I was sitting here doing what I do at a picnic the little thing would have gone quite unnoticed. He (I am assuming he) would have been in his natural environment (at least as defined by me).  But here’s the thing. I work from home and home and ants are antithetical. At least as defined by me.

My office sits towards the back of the house. A small room filled with windows on all three sides. It is very light and breezy and easy to keep an eye on my nosey neighbors when I feel so inclined as to return the favor. But it is on the second floor. The second floor.  How he got here is beyond me and WHY he is here is way beyond. I don’t know much about them but ants strike me as ground creatures. They live in the ground, they walk around on the ground, they eat stuff off the ground or at the very least eat stuff on my first floor kitchen floor on those occasions where invasion has been successful; but, the second floor?

I am thinking that there may be something wrong with him; a little bug psychosis. It made me a little antsy. Don’t you have to be a little crazy to stare straight up at something a thousand times taller than you and come to the conclusion that climbing it in hopes of finding something to eat is a good idea? It would be like me climbing up the outside of the Empire State Building because I had heard at some point in my past that there might be some guy with a cracker in his pocket standing on the observation deck. That is not sound thinking.

Maybe it’s not about food. Maybe he’s desperate. Maybe he’s a jumper. Maybe he stole the G4.  I opened my window and looked down the two stories expecting to see a small gathering of several dozen ants chanting “Jump! Jump!”  (Wow, they look like ants from way up here . . .).  I was all ready with the little finger flick thing (oh come on now, I couldn’t spend my entire afternoon waiting for him to make a decision) but saw nothing really and sat back down.

It then dawned on me that I really do know nothing about ants. Just a bunch of non critical observations along with some assumptions and a decayed memory of faded facts from some old 70’s Animal Kingdom television show. I was in no real position to judge the motivations (and/or instincts) of one of god’s creatures. He knew what he was doing. He saw his purpose. He was built for this and was doing it, my understandings and questions not withstanding.

How many times have we done the same with one of our own? “Why is he here”? “What was she thinking”? “Why are we doing this”? “That thinking has no place here”? “The neighborhood is changing”.  “I can’t”. Those preconceptions, generalizations and sloppy cognitive record keeping that limit each of us, whether said by us or others, discourage and in fact prevent everything that is possible on the second story ledge. Not suppose to be there! Who said so?

At work, at home and at play we need to learn more and judge less. Help others see where the possibilities are. Walk with them on Purpose. Help others reach their second story.

Jim

www.thepeopleacademyinc.com

http://www.linkedin.com/in/jimreece 

A recent survey conducted by Inscape Publishing, Inc. was highlighted in a recent edition of Training Magazine (July/August 2009 issue)

The survey was looking at what type of courses would increase their effectiveness at work. Not surprisingly, leadership skills was the number one response, but “Conflict Resolution” training was the number two answer!

According to the article, “What was surprising was the No. 2 slot: dealing with conflict or difficult people (chosen by 53 percent). Hot button topics such as innovative thinking and critical thinking were rated only slightly higher than perennial favorites such and time and stress management.”

I was especially interested that out of the top ten answers, the People Academy, Inc, had modules addressing all of them, with the exception of technical training. Nine out of ten. Not too shabby. Basically that means that everyone out there in business can use The People Academy, Inc’s information to make a positive impact in their workplace.

That didn’t surprise me really, but I thought the categories in the survey were really interesting. It seems there are so many commonalities in the challenges we face as we (literally) go about our business.

But negotiation, communication and conflict resolution are as much a part of our personal lives as they are our business lives. Raising four children certainly taught me the value of conflict resolution, and communication skills made conflict resolution less necessary (or not as often anyway).

Coaching really amounts to helping people with all aspects of their lives. It’s not like the skills we learn and teach are compartmentalized. That’s one of the best parts of learning people skills.

Source of quote: Training Magazine

Our recent selection of the next President of the United States, Barak Obama made history. This historic moment is, regardless of your politics, is one of hopeful transformation. This transition period is defined by hope and a new way of doing business. Friends of ours from all over the world have expressed a very personal exuberance at the possibilities.

And what is coaching if not helping another see the possibilities. Now is the time to reenergize and refocus. Capture the spirit of hope and engage your clients in ‘the possible”. The Coaching Institute and The People Academy are committed to the transformation and are putting our resources together again in the spirit of your success.

Whether you are the internal champion in your home or your organization one thing has remained consistent - coaching skills are needed more than ever in every environment.

What does good look like? What is blocking your power to produce? What do you own? What is possible? Does it all connect with what I set out to do? Where is the evidence? DOES ANY OF THIS THINKING APPLY TO YOU?

Would asking the right questions, listening; really hearing and engaging help you with the above? Would those skills have stopped an argument before it happened? Helped a team mate? Helped your department? Helped your family?

It is not about life coaching, business coaching, wellness coaching. It is about performance coaching; getting to good; hope realized.

WHAT DOES GOOD LOOK LIKE FOR THE COACHING INDUSTRY – FOR YOU - NOW AND IN THE FUTURE?

Jim

http://www.linkedin.com/in/jimreece