Tweet

Less is Often More

Guest post by: Sylvia Lafair

Article Overview: I just got off the phone with the CEO of a company who was steaming mad, not at me fortunately, at his senior V.P. who had just made a really, really stupid mistake. I have been coaching this man and know him quite well. However, one of the lessons he has yet to learn is when to "zip it". He thinks, and we have talked about this, that because he is the head honcho he can say whatever he wants whenever he wants and there will be no repercussions.

Less is Often More

I just got off the phone with the CEO of a company who was steaming mad, not at me fortunately, at his senior V.P. who had just made a really, really stupid mistake.

I have been coaching this man and know him quite well. However, one of the lessons he has yet to learn is when to "zip it". He thinks, and we have talked about this, that because he is the head honcho he can say whatever he wants whenever he wants and there will be no repercussions.

At least, in the eighteen years at the helm of his entrepreneurial company, that has been the M.O. Yet, a recent 360 feedback that I went over with him showed the annoyance and dissatisfaction with his very wordy ways. Someone had even called him "tsunami mouth".

So, here we were chatting away, or at least so he thought. He just kept going on and on about how upset he was feeling, about the sense of betrayal at the poor judgment of his second in command.

Time, as we know, is money and he was hemorrhaging a ton of cash. I finally did what needed to be done; jumpe4d in with a pattern interrupt.

I offer this to you when someone is covering the same territory over and over and over and....you know what I mean. I said in a louder than usual voice with clear intent to change the direction of the discourse, I said one simple word, "STOP".

This word has a power all its own, in every language on the planet. It means danger, reassess, wrong direction; it means "shut up".

And then I asked him the best accountability question on the planet. "What is your intention?"

That got his attention.

My next sentences to him were said more slowly than I usually talk. I did this on purpose. I wanted him to slow down with me. Good decisions are rarely made in anger. Best decisions are thoughtful and put attention on intention.

We have a coaching call scheduled for later today. He has homework. He needs to connect the dots of his anger, disappointment, concern, with the actual situation that happened. Then I will ask him questions to help direct him to a purposeful and clear way of responding to this V.P. rather than merely reaming him out as he was want to do.

Coaching has a way of getting underneath the extreme emotional reactions that so often lead us to destroy the positives in work relationships. This is especially true with our unique brand of Pattern Aware coaching that helps look at the underbelly of the upsets and put them in perspective to have a successful outcome.

Related Articles

Article Tags: ceo, emotional, pattern, reactions, repercussions, vp



Related Forum Posts


Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

Rumor Has It

Ten Reasons to take Notes during Sales Meetings

TOP Level Selling

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.