As I’ve said before, the best way to do anything is to KISS* it.

Now comes more proof, via Peter Bregman at Harvard Biz. He talks first about losing weight, but then illustrates the principle with a couple of business examples.

“Typically, people overwhelm themselves with tasks in their eagerness to make a change successfully. But that’s a mistake. Instead, they should take the time up front to figure out the one and only thing that will have the highest impact and then focus 100% of their effort on that one thing.”

Got that? Just one thing. One.

And once you focus your people (or yourself) on that one thing don’t go changing or adding or modifying it—directly or in some sneaky manner.

Not only is that unfair, but you will lose the benefit of the original thing because it won’t happen. Worse, trust levels will plummet, your people will be frustrated and you could end up going down instead of up.

This also means not listening to all the well-meaning advice you’ll get once you embark on your course or giving up at the first bump in your path.

Knowing what the right one thing is requires you to do good analysis, not just a casual once-over or going with your gut feel; either of those is likely to lead to disaster.

So the next time you need to do something, KISS it:

1. Analyze the situation.
2. Determine the one thing that offers the greatest return.
3. Fully communicate it to your people (or yourself).
4. Don’t mess with it after you commit.
5. Prepare to be blown away by the results.

*Keep It Simple, Stupid

Image credit: DRB62 on flickr

What do you talk about in your life?

What do you go to bed thinking about; what dominates your dreams; what do you ponder during the day?

Your aches and pains; the gray hair you found; the new outfit you bought, but aren’t sure is right? Do you dwell on the words or email that may be a slight—or maybe not? The colleague you’re not sure likes you; the boss who seems OK, but…?

It’s more than a matter of the glass being half full or half empty.

Like the dog that worries a bone, constantly thinking and talking about anything focuses you on it; prioritizes it and makes it paramount until it dominates all other thoughts.

Focus works in both directions—it can launch you to the heights or toss you into a dungeon of doom—taking your friends with you.

Most importantly…

Focus is a choice.

Choose wisely.

Image credit: LilGoldWmn on sxc.hu

Image credit: duchesssa CC license

Great interview and insights in an article from HBS Working Knowledge regarding gender differences in Wall Street stars. Even if you’re not a recognized star or that’s not your field I guarantee that the information will be useful.

Why? Because the things that make the difference between women’s success and male failure apply to all.

According to HBS professor Boris Groysberg, “Women tend to do better after a move for two reasons.

One is that they are more invested in external than in in-house relationships. There are four main reasons why star women maintain external focus: uneasy in-house relationships, poor mentorship, neglect by colleagues, and a vulnerable position in the labor market. External focus makes them more “portable” in terms of making a positive move, but can cause problems if they want to progress within their own organization, because you need a solid internal network and good political capital to get things done in organizations. Anyone who focuses mostly on external relationships will not have that.”

Think about it. Forgetting the star function, external focus is death on retention, guaranteeing low loyalty and high turnover.

And as to managers creating women-friendly environments, Groysberg says, “The consequence of that is when these managers leave, the female-friendly environments disappear.”

One way to make everyone a star is to encourage your people to build their external relationships while providing a culture that facilitates the in-house relationships that make people want to stay.

What do you do to give your people both?