TouchPoints Book (Part-2)
Use Your Heart
Some leaders say “business is business, don’t take it personally”. But both the authors of this book believe that to be successful, you must care deeply for those who work with you. When you think from your heart, you are able to make better decisions, build stronger connections and establish your authority as a leader.
To take some decisions you have to study the data and analyze the numbers. But smart choice is not always the right choice. Believe in yourself and stick to your principles. You will be able to take the right decision only by thinking carefully with both heart and mind.
John is a vice president in supply chain of a multinational company. Only four months had passed since he joined this position when a factory employee died suddenly. That employee had a serious illness but he died due to an accident at work.
After the accident, John held a virtual meeting with the CEO of the company and the VP of the insurance department. The insurance agent advised that because the employee was already seriously ill, the company could avoid paying $1 million to his family by avoiding the accident.
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Before becoming VP of Supply Chain, John was a factory manager himself. He said that if they take this decision, then the current factory manager will have to look the employees in the eye and stick to his decision.
This manager used to go to church every Sunday where the employee’s wife also came who knew that his insurance worth $1 million had been rejected. John said “We should give them the money” and the CFO also thought his decision was right.
The news about John’s decision spread to other factories also. From that day onwards, whenever John came to visit the site, the employees would thank him. By following his heart, John won people’s trust and achieved a positive touchpoint that quickly spread.
Following your heart doesn’t mean being soft or always taking sides, it does mean that you’re aware of how a decision can affect everyone involved. Here are 3 questions to help you think about a situation and make a decision from your heart –
The first question is “Why did I choose to become a leader?” Some leaders focus on what they get from their position, such as a high salary or greater influence. But they do not know exactly what they can give to others.
Purpose means knowing why you are taking on more responsibility, working longer hours, and attending so many meetings. This is to make sure that you are doing what you really want to do.
What is your dream? What is your calling i.e. your heart’s desire? Leaders who know their purpose care about their people. He talks about his employees and knows how to improve each one of them. He has big plans to make his team strong.
The second question is “What is my code?” You must have some principles that you believe in. That means when you follow them you feel good and when you break them you feel bad. The test of your principles comes when you face a challenge, such as someone betraying you or being unfair to you.
It is possible that due to the greed for success, you may feel right in taking a short cut or choosing an easier path. Or maybe you want to achieve things in the wrong way. But keep in mind that your principles will influence your team and company. Therefore you have to set a good example.
Now comes the third question “How well do I actually apply my point?” To truly apply your words means to put your principles into practice. You have to demonstrate what you say in every touchpoint. For example, if you talk about honesty, then you have to behave really honestly with people so that they can trust you.
Follow what you are telling others. Mark your calendar and set aside a few hours to practice it. If you want, you can also take 360 degree feedback from your employees, colleagues and seniors.
As a leader, the biggest challenge you will face is that if you are in a higher position, you will never get true feedback. That’s why you need a trusted advisor who can help you stay humble and see the truth.
Use Your Hands
Touchpoints deals with real people and real issues in real time. This is why a leader must be skilled or capable which can be developed only through practice.
One thing Edgar, who is a general manager with 2500 employees under him, has learned is that there is never a day that goes by when he thinks he could have done better. When they get satisfaction in their work, they do not get it at home. It’s difficult to be skilled at every touchpoint, but good leaders are always striving to do better.
Every touchpoint revolves around communication. The word “communication” comes from the Latin term “communis” which means something that is common. Therefore, communication means sharing information about where you are now, where you want to go and how you will reach there.
Therefore, for communication, it is important to listen carefully and express your views clearly. Your communication should be good because what you say or do affects many people.
One day Edgar was working on some important issues and preparing a presentation for the CEO. He asked Carol, the innovation team leader, to handle the new growth plan. Edgar knew this assignment would prove to be a challenge for Carol but she could do it.
Just before 5pm, Carol came to Edgar’s office to discuss the plan. He thought Carol might have some ideas to discuss, but Edgar was disappointed to find that the ideas had made no progress. He was feeling a lot of frustration and irritation because he wanted Carol to figure everything out on her own.
“Looks like we’re a long way from our goal and I don’t have time to deal with it right now,” Edgar said. As soon as he said this, he saw disappointment on Carol’s face and felt great remorse for the words he had said.
She had come to him hoping for help but he had disappointed her. The tone in which Edgar spoke to Carol had also shaken her confidence. He apologized to Carol that night and the next morning, but Edgar knew it would take some time to regain Carol’s confidence.
Another way to become skilled at touchpoints is to build relationships. You have to look beyond a person’s position or status and know that person for who he really is. You should take time to talk to your employees and learn about them.
A common mistake is to think that what motivates you will motivate others too. You need to know what other people value so that you can get their commitment and influence them to reach team goals.
Mark is the leader of the Asia Pacific region of a multinational company. The facilitator of an offsite workshop asked everyone on Mark’s team what motivates them, and he was surprised by the answers.
Mark got motivation from achieving sales targets and higher earnings. He said he doesn’t know why his team members come to work every day.
After this workshop, Mark made it a routine to ask “purposeful open questions” to his employees. They shared what they like best about leadership and asked others why they love their jobs. From these questions, Mark got an idea of what challenge or assignment would be best to give to each of his team members.
As a leader, you have to maintain transparency about yourself. Let people know why you became a leader and tell them about the principles you follow. Discuss openly the challenges you face and see how your team members can help you in this.
This may all seem uncomfortable and strange at first but believe in yourself, this is what will bind you into a stronger relationship with your team. You can practice this by sharing your purpose and principles with people close to you or a trusted advisor.
This will give you confidence that you can talk openly with your team members. This will mean that soon those people will start trusting you and will also respect you. Your strong connection with people will help you get through difficult times.
Mastering the Touch
There are 4 magic words you can use in your touchpoints. You can make a habit of asking “Can I help you?” These magic words will shift your focus from “what you want” to “what your people need.” By asking, “Can I help you?”, you become willing to listen to others’ problems, opinions, and ideas.
Then comes what is called the touchpoint triad. After asking “How can I help you?”, you should listen carefully to what the other person needs and try to understand the situation clearly.
For example, we will take Craig who is a school principal. His office looks like a train station. Students and teachers keep coming in and out every 10 minutes. Despite being so busy, Craig gives complete attention to every person within these 10 minutes. He listens to them well and asks if they need any advice or want to hear their decision on any matter.
If Craig is doing something important, he tells people in advance that they should not be disturbed and people also understand because they know that he will give equal time to everyone later.
The next step in the triad is to frame the issue. This means summarizing the key points of the issue and asking whether you have understood them properly. Framing the issue means clarifying the issue and making sure that everyone involved understands what needs to be done.
Larry is a vice president of a Fortune 500 company. Whereas Chuck is the team leader of Consumer Insights who has to give presentations. Chuck walked into Larry’s office and asked him “Where do I start?”
Larry asked Chuck to frame the issue with complete honesty and hope. They should mention the positive things happening in the company as well as the negative things. In this situation, Chuck needed a little more clarity as to what he should do.
In many cases, a team member may need confidence and commitment to perform the task. You need to connect their passions and strengths to the purpose of the assignment. Convince them that their participation is important and that they can complete their task.
The final step of the touchpoint triad is to move the agenda forward. This means taking action and making progress. Find out whether your team member needs your decision or advice on any matter. See if they need to connect with someone or send an email.
Generally people are afraid to take action or decide something because they are afraid of failing or making a mistake. In this case, you will have to tell them what harm can happen by not taking action.
You have to help them understand that there is no perfect timing. They will have to take the best decision from the resources available at that moment and move forward.
Sameer is a specialist in a management consulting firm. He had a meeting with Justin, an employee who had not performed well for the past three months. Justin had got this new position a few days ago but the latest assignments were indicating that he was not the right candidate for the job.
Sameer told that Justin was given a chance to improve his performance in the last 3 months. They said “You can go back to your old role where you were performing well or we can help you find a new job with another company. How can we help you take a decision?”
In this situation, Sameer guided Justin to take action.
When someone comes to you with a problem, ask “How can I help you?” Later, when you find the person, you can follow up by asking, “Did you get the job done?” This way the problem will not get bigger because it will already be solved.
And finally you can ask yourself “How can I perform even better tomorrow?” In this way you will be able to perfect your touchpoints and emerge as a better leader with time.
Mastering the Touch
There are 4 magic words you can use in your touchpoints. You can make a habit of asking “Can I help you?” These magic words will shift your focus from “what you want” to “what your people need.” By asking, “Can I help you?”, you become willing to listen to others’ problems, opinions, and ideas.
Then comes what is called the touchpoint triad. After asking “How can I help you?”, you should listen carefully to what the other person needs and try to understand the situation clearly.
For example, we will take Craig who is a school principal. His office looks like a train station. Students and teachers keep coming in and out every 10 minutes. Despite being so busy, Craig gives complete attention to every person within these 10 minutes. He listens to them well and asks if they need any advice or want to hear their decision on any matter.
If Craig is doing something important, he tells people in advance that they should not be disturbed and people also understand because they know that he will give equal time to everyone later.
The next step in the triad is to frame the issue. This means summarizing the key points of the issue and asking whether you have understood them properly. Framing the issue means clarifying the issue and making sure that everyone involved understands what needs to be done.
Larry is a vice president of a Fortune 500 company. Whereas Chuck is the team leader of Consumer Insights who has to give presentations. Chuck walked into Larry’s office and asked him “Where do I start?”
Larry asked Chuck to frame the issue with complete honesty and hope. They should mention the positive things happening in the company as well as the negative things. In this situation, Chuck needed a little more clarity as to what he should do.
In many cases, a team member may need confidence and commitment to perform the task. You need to connect their passions and strengths to the purpose of the assignment. Convince them that their participation is important and that they can complete their task.
The final step of the touchpoint triad is to move the agenda forward. This means taking action and making progress. Find out whether your team member needs your decision or advice on any matter. See if they need to connect with someone or send an email.
Generally people are afraid to take action or decide something because they are afraid of failing or making a mistake. In this case, you will have to tell them what harm can happen by not taking action.
You have to help them understand that there is no perfect timing. They will have to take the best decision from the resources available at that moment and move forward.
Sameer is a specialist in a management consulting firm. He had a meeting with Justin, an employee who had not performed well for the past three months. Justin had got this new position a few days ago but the latest assignments were indicating that he was not the right candidate for the job.
Sameer told that Justin was given a chance to improve his performance in the last 3 months. They said “You can go back to your old role where you were performing well or we can help you find a new job with another company. How can we help you take a decision?”
In this situation, Sameer guided Justin to take action.
When someone comes to you with a problem, ask “How can I help you?” Later, when you find the person, you can follow up by asking, “Did you get the job done?” This way the problem will not get bigger because it will already be solved.
And finally you can ask yourself “How can I perform even better tomorrow?” In this way you will be able to perfect your touchpoints and emerge as a better leader with time.
Anyway, see you again with the powerful explanation of the new movie.
