leadership of a company

The Power Of Small

10th June 2015 by VParmar Leave a Comment

Last week I finally managed to cross a long time goal off my bucket list, when I took the skies in a plane.

I’m sure most people reading this will have had some kind of experience of flying on a jumbo jet but let me tell you being up there in a two seater semi acrobatic plane is a completely different experience.

It’s both exhilarating and a little terrifying at the same time. I mean, there just a few inches of plastic and fibre glass holding us up in the open air!

Whilst up in the clouds getting used the flight controls, my instructor asked me to turn the plane to the right and that’s when something happened that I wasn’t quiet expecting.

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No Pressure. No Diamonds.

4th December 2014 by VParmar Leave a Comment

Can I ask you a question? How do you deal with pressure?

Are you someone who thrives on pressure or are you someone who finds it difficult to deal with the stress and anxiety that it can bring?

Pressure can be a powerful tool to access your inner power and potential if channelled and managed in the right way, just like the process of how diamonds are formed. (No they do not come from coal!)

Check out the video below for my 5 top tips for dealing with pressure and uncovering your diamonds.

No time to watch the video and want the tips? You don’t know what you’re missing.

Vinay’s Top 5 Pressure Management Strategies.

#1 Take a break.

It might seem difficult to do but tearing yourself away from a big work project, demanding family or growing financial bills can be just the thing you need. When you give yourself permission to have some “me” time away from the thing thats causing pressure you could gain new perspective. Remember though this is ‘take a break from’ not ‘run away from’ so you still need to deal with whatever is causing the pressure.

#2 Exercise.

There is more and more compelling evidence to support the premise that exercise is good for your mind and not just your body. You don’t have to go to the gym or pump iron, just 20-minutes of activity such as a walk or dancing around in your PJs when you are feeling stressed has massive impact on your mood that can last for several hours.

#3 Smile and laugh.

The East teaches us that laughter is the best medicine. Our brains are wired with our emotions and facial expressions. When we are stressed, we tend to store tension in our bodies and much of that can be in our faces. Laughing helps relax those muscles, fire off natural anti depressants and feel good hormones.

#4 Friends with Benefits.

Remember the old adage “A problem shared is a problem halved”? Keeping stress and anxiety to yourself is like pushing a self destruct button. Instead of keeping everything in reach out to friends or family to share how you are feeling. Of course ensure it is not with someone who is directly involved with the situation causing the stress.

Oh and never ever share it on Facebook. This might sound old fashioned but pick up the phone and speak to someone.

#5 Chillax

Meditation is a powerful practice that can help relax you and bring stillness to your mind You don’t have to sit under a tree chanting Om or spend hours with your eyes shut. Meditation is the practice of being with yourself and clearing your mind of thoughts. By being with yourself and being still you can gain clarity, calmness and be more relaxed.

Environment is greater than will

24th November 2014 by VParmar Leave a Comment

“Dude, are you in Costa again? You should buy shares in that place.”

It’s not that I have some unhealthy love affair with coffee. Even though it is easy to be at this time of year, with all the novelty varieties unleashed upon us Praline Cappuccinos, Eggnog or Gingerbread lattes and a cheeky piece of gluten free christmas cake – what’s not to love?

But that is not why I spend a lot of time in coffee shops.

When you are soloprenuer like me, starring at the four walls of your home office can be like Superman being exposed to Kryptonite – It’s a slow painful death as you are sapped of your creativity and problem solving powers.

One of the lessons I’ve come to appreciate more than ever recently is “Environment is greater than will”

Will power, determination and tenacity will get you so far but what will really change your game is your environment.

Here are 5 strategies I’ve adopted for changing up my environment and firing up those creative juices with great effect :

1. The Great Outdoors.

There’s something about being with Mother Nature which connects with me with my inner creative marvel.

There’s a Lake near where I live that I often go for walks around when I am struggling with ideas. Just being out there with the fresh air and the water seems to quieten down that destructive mind chatter and brings out a sense of clarity.

It doesn’t have to be a Lake. The local park, fields or even a quick power walk around the block can be great.

2. Get Up. Stand Up.

During my corporate career I managed a lot of contact centres which included telesales teams. I noticed that the agents who performed best were almost always on their feet when talking to customers.

Standing up creates more energy than being hunched over a desk or slumped in a chair. When you stand your blood flow is better as is your ability to breathe which means your brain gets more of the good stuff.

Some companies have taken this further and adopted standing only meetings to keep the focus and energy high.

Next time you find yourself feeling frustrated by a lack of ideas, get up out of that chair and stand tall!

3. People Power.

I draw my energy from being around people. My worst nightmare is solitary confinement.

I’ve always worked in large office spaces and had big teams around me so it kind of makes sense that I enjoyed success there.

Now those big office days are behind me, I choose to work in coffee shops, urban spaces and hotels whenever I can. I don’t even need to talk to anyone, just the buzz of people around me provides me energy.

Try breaking up your day and spend and hour or two in a busy environment.

4. Playtime

In recent years cool brands like Google have added games rooms to their office space. Fusball tables, Pool tables, video games and even slides are not uncommon place.

There is method to their madness. Playing games puts us back in a child like state and when were we most creative? Correct.

You might not have a games room but you can bring games into your environment. For example on of my business friends has a pack of Super Hero Top Trumps in his bag which come out whenever we are working together and we hot a mental blockade.

Get back to the 7 year old you and tap into that creative engine.

5. Must be the music.

Music is a powerful tool in influencing your mood. We all have favourite songs that remind us of the good times.

Some retail outlets have found that they can influence the buying behaviour of customers based on the BPM of the music they select in store.

Make a list of your top ten feel good track in a playlist or CD. When you’re feeling suck or unproductive, crank up the volume.

Judge and Jury

5th November 2014 by VParmar Leave a Comment

“He is just one of those people…always complaining and never grateful!!!!” said the angry voice.

I was a on training heading into the City Centre and there was a phone conversation taking place a couple of rows behind me. I didn’t know the girl but I couldn’t help but think to myself that whoever she was talking about was now condemned to being treated as “always complaining and never grateful”.

In our interactions with people we make snap judgements all the time. We decide within seconds what other person is like and we put them in a category along with other people we have labelled the same. (You are probably making some judgement about me right now)

It’s not wrong or right. It’s a natural human thing to do.

What can become a problem though is when that initial judgement becomes a filter through which you observe that person. That judgement can become label that presupposes what that person is going to be like before you’ve even started any conversations. It’s like an post-it note you’ve placed on their heads.

As leaders (yes that’s right you are a leader!) it’s our job to connect with people not just communicate. In order to connect with people fully we must be able to catch ourselves when we are in ‘label’ mode, otherwise we will never truly be able to make that all important connection.

Earlier this week Channel 4 aired a programme called “Make Leicester British” which was a kind of social experiment where people from diverse backgrounds were put together under one roof. The group included immigrants and asylum seekers, as well as past economic migrants and some from the indigenous population.

There were number of labels which came to the surface and got in the way of people really connecting. ( If you in the UK and would like to watch it here)

Most interesting for me though, was how the programme highlighted the number of labels held against the asylum seekers and immigrants in particular.

Sweeping statements were made about what kind of people they were and how they had ‘all’ come over to Britain for benefits or to “milk” the system.

Now it might be true of some, but all? If we judge all by the actions of a few, how does that bring people together?

I’m reminded of a quote by Mahatma Gandhi :

“Humanity is like an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty.”

I’ve got some further thoughts on this concept which you see in the video below.

I’d love you hear your comments, experiences and even challenges. Please comment below!

What makes a strong leader?

6th October 2014 by VParmar Leave a Comment

Last week I was invited to share my thoughts with Danny Kelly on BBC Radio WM about leadership following a YouGov survey which revealed that 59% of respondents felt that Ed Miliband appeared ‘weak.’

I shared 3 key attributes which I feel are key attributes of great leaders : 1) The ability to engage, 2) having a commanding physiology and 3) being prepared to be vulnerable.

You can listen to the whole interview (8 mins) below.

There are other traits which I believe make a strong leader and add to what I said in the interview.

I’m taken back to a book I read many years ago that had a profound effect on me and shaped the way I developed as a leader.

Steven R. Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People has been a permanent fixture in my book collection for many years. Below I have outlined my adaptation of five of his key principles that I believe translate into practical behaviours for strong leaders.

#1. Be Proactive.

The strong leader is always on the front foot understanding that they cannot control everything around them. They know that they are not defined by their circumstances or conditions but rather they are defined by how they respond in situations.

The weak leader is caught on the back foot. They believe that they are helpless, a victim of circumstance and that the solution to the problem always lies with someone or something else.

For example, imagine the performance of a team is suffering. The strong leader will look at themselves first and ask “what is it that I could do differently to help improve the situation?” They will step forward, accept responsibility and become part of the solution.

The weak leader will see the problem elsewhere and seek to apportion blame, declaring that it is others that need to change in order to improve things. They will step back, absolve themselves from any responsibility and believe that the solution exists outside of themselves.

#2. Begin with the end in mind.

The strong leader has a clear vision and makes daily decisions consistent with travelling in that direction.

The weak leader’s decision making is moment to moment. They are a random collection of choices that may or may not help achieve what they want.

The strong leader knows that establishing the end game first is critical to overall success. They understand that if they know where they want to be, then they can make better choices day to day moving towards what they want rather than away from it.

For example, imagine you are leading within an organisation and are asked to identify cost savings. It would be easy to look down your departmental budget and pick out the big numbers to slash. This might win you some ground in the short term but what if those things that were cut are crucial to the long term success of your business? What if the very things that win you points now are the cause of your demise later?

#3. Put first things first.

Strong leaders focus on the ‘must’ do tasks whereas weak leaders focus on the ‘nice to do’ things.

Where as begin with the end in mind was about the mental preparation and creation, putting first things first is about the physical creation.

In a constantly ‘on’ world you can easily find yourself being busy doing things all day, but are they the right things? Are they the most urgent or important? Or are you doing them because you like to do them?

Take email as an example. Do you respond to every message pretty much as soon as it comes in? Does the ‘ding’ of email arriving suddenly jolt you into action?

Of course there are urgent emails and messages which need an instant reply and I bet if you really think about it there are very few that actually need that level of immediate response in reality.

What are big important things you should be doing instead? The things which will move you closer to your objective?

If you don’t have a clear end game then how can you know what is and what isn’t urgent?

#4. Seek fist to understand and then to be understood.

The strong leader listens…really listens, the weak leader simply hears what is being said.

Most people think they are good listeners but in reality they can still be much better.

In words of William Stringfellow –

“Listening is a rare happening among human beings. You cannot listen to the word another is speaking if you are preoccupied with your own appearance or impressing another, or trying to decide what you are going to say when the other person stops speaking”

When weak leaders listen, they cannot wait for their turn to speak. They are eager to get their views across and say things like “I understand where you are coming from but…” or “I agree with that but…”

Strong Leaders hold the intention to fully understand before they respond. They are totally present in the conversation and have no compulsion to jump in a share their view. Their purpose is not to agree or disagree, but understand fully the other point of view before deciding how they respond.

#5. Sharpen the saw.

Strong leaders are consistent practitioners, weak leaders are dabblers in what is flavour of the month.

If you took an inventory of all of the things you know, all the knowledge you’ve gained from courses and books how long would the list be? If you were then asked exactly how much of it you consistently practice, how much shorter would your list be?

The strong leader knows that practice is a constant discipline which enables your skills to remain sharp and effective. If Tiger Woods, Roger Federer or Michael Jordan only practised their skills during game time, they wouldn’t have been half as good as they were. The investment in constant practice is what helped them to step up their performance in live situations.

Similarly, if you only practice listening in a conflict situation are you really going to be an effective listener? If you only put first things first on occasion how can you expect you plans to work?

The full 7 habits are a great simple set of principles of life and business but the biggest lesson I learned about strong leadership is this….

Strong leaders do not wait for permission, need titles or require followers. Strong leaders lead themselves first knowing that it is their actions which will inspire others to follow them.

What do you think makes a strong leader? Please leave comments below.

If you need help with becoming a stronger leader or developing the leadership skills of your people then check out Vinspired Coaching or give me a call.

You can’t see the whole picture when you are inside the frame!

26th September 2014 by VParmar 1 Comment

No matter how intelligent, resourceful or confident you are, there will come a point in your life, business or career when you are simply stumped by a problem.

The harder you try the more frustrated you get and the further away you seem from a solution.

The thing is often we focus so much on the problem, that we fail to see the solution.

I saw a great quote from Les Brown which I think sums up this conundrum well – “You can’t see the whole picture when you inside the frame!”

Here is a quick video of me explaining how that all hangs together.

If you’ve enjoyed this video blog please leave your comments or share with others!

I love answering questions and providing coaching for business and life success.

So if you have something you would like my view on then drop line or comment with your question below.