Focus Your Priorities On Your Strengths

David ScurlockLearning and Organizational

Development Leader

Working knowledge and experience in the design, development and implementation of learning solutions.

Experience providing strategic alignmentand direction supported with execution.

Experience managing, motivating teams.

Pragmatic understanding and experience within business environments.

Visionary; Passionate; Servant Leader

Conference Board Research Group 2009 employee survey

Franklin Covey Focus: Achieving Your Highest Priorities

Development Dimension International Behavior-based interviewing

Now Discover Your Strengths Marcus Buckingham and Donald Clifton

Job satisfaction falls to lowest levels in 22 years! 61% satisfy in 1987 49% in 2008 45% today

Find work interesting 70% in 1987 60% in 2008 51% today

Employee’s feel secure in their positions 59% in 1987 47% in 2008 43% today

Fewer workers consider job interesting

Incomes have not kept up with inflation

Health cost continue to increase as percentage of income

Not UrgentUrgentIm

port

ant

Not

Impo

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DeceptionDeception

NecessityNecessity Balance and ProductivityBalance and Productivity

Waste and ExcessWaste and Excess

* From Franklin Covey “Focus Achieving Your Highest Priorities

Not UrgentUrgentIm

port

ant

Not

Impo

rtan

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* From Franklin Covey “Focus Achieving Your Highest Priorities

Manage Focus

AvoidMinimize

• Crises• Pressing problems• Dead-line driven

• Preparation• Prevention• Planning• Relationship building• Re-creation• Values Clarification

• Needless Interruptions• Unimportant meetings, calls, e-mails• Other people’s minor issues

• Trivia, busywork• Time wasters• Escape activities

Not UrgentUrgentIm

port

ant

Not

Impo

rtan

t

DeceptionDeception

NecessityNecessity Balance and ProductivityBalance and Productivity

Waste and ExcessWaste and Excess

* From Franklin Covey “Focus Achieving Your Highest Priorities

Manage Focus

AvoidMinimize

1. I spend much of my time on important activities that demand my immediate attention, such as crises, pressing problems, and deadline driven projects. 2. I feel I am constantly addressing issues that are important to others, but not to me. 3. I invest time regularly in relationship building and self-renewal. 4. I feel I am always “putting out fires” and working in a crisis mode. 5. I spend much of my time on activities that demand my immediate attention but have little relevance to my top priorities (e.g., needless interruptions, unimportant meetings, noncritical phone calls and e-mail). 6. I feel I am on top of things because of careful preparation and planning. 7. I spend much of my time on busywork, junk mail, excessive TV, Internet trivia, games, etc. 8. I feel I waste a lot of time. 9. Other people’s demands keep me from moving forward on critical goals and objectives. 10. I look forward and act on issues now, so they don’t become crises in the future. 11. I constantly feel “under the gun” to get important things done. 12. I rush around all day, but I do little that contributes to my organization’s most important priorities. 13. I am often required to come in at the last minute and help with key projects. 14. I spend my weekend in “recovery” from the workweek, with little time in meaningful activities. 15. I begin each week with a clear plan to achieve my highest priorities. 16. I often find that I have wasted several hours in front of the television or surfing the Internet.

www.fcprofiles.com/focus

* Developmental Dimensions International

Part of the Job

Not part of the Job

A. Annoying B. Motivating

C. Happy to Avoid D. Things I Miss

B + C = ____

A + D = ____

When Satisfied/Dissatisfied

What was Satisfying/Dissatisfying

* Developmental Dimension International

• SSituation

• TTask

• AAction

• RResult

Marcus Buckingham & Donald Clifton Gallup study of over 2 million people Focus on your strength’s not weakness “At work do you have the opportunity to

do what you do best”? Only 20% felt they did!

Longer with same organization and higher up traditional career ladder less likely to feel that way

Each person can learn to be competent in almost anything.

Each person’s greatest room for growth is in their areas of greatest weakness or opportunities.

“It’s not that we don’t have enough strengths… we fail to use the ones we have.”

“Identify your strength’s and organize your life so that these strengths can be applied.” Recurring patterns of behavior that can be

developed into genuine and productive strengths

Don’t ignore weakness just don’t spend a lot of time fixing them!

Taken from: Now Discover Your Strengths, Buckingham & Clifton

Talents- naturally recurring patterns of thoughts, feelings or behaviors that can be applied productively.

Knowledge- facts and lessons learned, experience.

Skills- steps of an activity. Provides structure to experience and knowledge.

Can be acquired or learnedCan be acquired or learned

steps

experience

Naturally recurring

Spontaneous reactions, top-of-mind reactions to situations you encounter.

Yearning, rapid learning, satisfaction

Motivational Fit

Unconscious Incompetent

Conscious Incompetent

Conscious Competent

Unconscious Competent

We know what we are attempting

Strengths reside in this area

Don’t know we don’t know

Know we don’t know

Do it naturally

Apply knowledge and skills

Awareness

Developed Talents

“Hidden” Talents

Live “above the line” Important (urgent and not urgent) Assess where you are today

www.fcprofiles.com/focus

What is your “Motivational Fit”? What part of previous jobs/roles did you find

motivating? What previous jobs/roles did you find

annoying?

What are your “STARS” Think about your achievements and successes

Write down and become comfortable with communicating : Situations Task Action Results

Identify your talents, then gather knowledge and develop skills that result in creating and enhancing your strengths.

David Scurlock