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“Who was your model?” one of my students asked me after I had posed the same question to the class last week during “A Management Approach to Organizational Development” at the Zicklin School of Business.  We were discussing the topic of  “Motivation Concepts” and specifically “self-efficacy,” an individual’s belief that she is capable of performing a task.  One of the ways to develop self-efficacy is “vicarious modeling.”

 Vicarious modeling is a process during which you can gain self-confidence while watching others perform a task similar to the one you are doing.  Through observation, you can picture yourself performing that same way.

 “Prof. Ogletree,” was the answer I gave to my students.  Although I’ve had many good professional role models in my career, Charles J. Ogletree topped my list that evening.  Today, Ogletree is the Jesse Climenko Professor of Law and the Director of the Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race and Justice at Harvard Law School.  Former instructor of President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle when they attended Harvard, Prof. Ogletree is an esteemed and prolific writer and public speaker involved in sometimes controversial and embarrassing situations.  Yet, his style of conducting a college class has remained my model for almost twenty years.

 In 1990, I transitioned my master’s degree in early childhood education into a career as an Adjunct Faculty member in the City University System.  Sometime in the 1990’s, I watched a weekly program on PBS that featured Prof. Ogletree conducting a class of what were probably his law students.  I forget the name of the program but I can’t forget his “in the face” type of approach when educating his audience.  He sat down on a desk near his students, he called on everyone, and he relentlessly challenged the answers and the assumptions they offered.

 Watching Prof. Ogletree over a long time, I vicariously became him in not just college classrooms but corporate classrooms where I would teach employees how to use technology, manage workplace relationships, or engage in innovative exercises.

 During my “performance” each evening when I’m teaching students at Zicklin, I am “in their faces,” moving around the classroom to be physically close to individuals while challenging them to provide “stretch” answers that expand their horizons.  I call on every one of my almost 30 students in each session, requiring them to state their opinion on a topic, explain a concept, or come up with another idea on how to deal with a difficult employee.  I push them out of their comfort zones and they answer back with a willingness to be in-the-moment and to perform on the classroom stage.

 While watching Prof. Ogletree on TV, I incorporated his style into my training as an educator.  I felt capable of performing the role because I earned positive feedback from my students and on faculty evaluations.

 I love teaching and I thank Prof. Ogletree’s style of teaching during his shows on PBS for the vicarious modeling he provided.

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What Got You Here Won’t Get You There:  How Successful People Become Even More Successful! written by Marshall Goldsmith with Mark Reiter (Hyperion, 2007, 256 pgs.) contains practical wisdom from one of the world’s premier executive coaches and author on executive performance.

Since I just read Goldsmith and Reiter’s newest book:  Mojo:  How to Get It, How to Keep It, How to Get It Back If You Lose It  (Hyperion, 2009, 205 pages) and realized that before I write my review of that one, I wanted to post this entry. 

 Goldsmith’s methods for changing behavior are straightforward.  For instance, one of the 360 assessments he uses consists of gathering feedback on an executive’s behavior from meaningful colleagues and constituencies.  The client is asked to listen carefully to how others experience his behavior, formulate ways to improve interactions, give thanks for the feedback, apologize where needed, and practice feed-forward.

There are other parts of his book that I will highlight in future posts, but I want to focuse on the group exercise in feed-forward that Goldsmith conducted at a meeting I attended of the New York City Chapter of the International Coach Foundation.  I also used this exercise during one of the management classes I teach at the Zicklin School of Business at Baruch College.  In both cases, I found the exercise to be a worthwhile endeavor.

Here’s how the feed-forward process works.

1.  Identify one behavior you want to change in your life.  The behavior change should bring about a positive difference in your life.

2.  Describe the behavior you want to change in a one-on-one dialogue with someone:  a spouse, child, best friend, or coworker—or in the case of the ICF-NYC meeting, a perfect stranger would do.

3.  Ask that person for two suggestions for the future that might help you achieve a positive change in your selected behavior.

4.  Listen attentively to the suggestions.  Take notes if you like.  Your only ground rule:  You are not allowed to judge, rate, or critique the suggestions in any way.  And you are not even to say anything positive such as, “That’s a good idea.”  The only response you’re permitted is, “Thank you.” 

You can then repeat the process with someone else—until you have a good sample of ideas to improve your behavior.

One book that I found very helpful—especially for those at the beginning of your careers—was one written by Goldsmith—and other well-known executives.  The book is Learning Journeys: Top Management Experts Share Hard-Earned Lessons on Becoming Great Mentors and Leaders by Marshall Goldsmith (Davies-Black Publishing, 2000).  Read a chapter at a time, do the exercises, and reflect on how you can be a better leader.

If you practice feed-forward, let me know how effective it was  by sending an e-mail to Leigh@ltr-nyc.com

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A leader’s position carries with it responsibility to inspire followers and use power wisely.  It also includes teaching others to jump barriers and give up their silo thinking in order to explore new possibilities.

A few years ago when I was at a friend’s apartment, I noticed that her dog, a big German Shepard that stood maybe 24” high, was confined to the living room by a piece of wood placed at each doorway.  The barrier was only 18” inches high – a height the dog could have walked or jumped over with ease.

I knew this because my dog Emelie, a mix of Border collie and Samoyed raised exploring beaches and mountain paths, easily jumped the piece of wood.  In fact, she roamed all over the house, jumping or knocking down the barrier if it got in her way.  The other dog, who only got out to a small yard three times a day, looked at Emelie, whined, and after a couple of times testing her freedom and being disciplined for doing so, was too afraid to venture forth into risking another jump.

An executive coaching client recently commented to me that she values my creative input because her staff can’t see or won’t speak up about the ‘possibilities’ of a situation.  She is a ‘roamer’ but her staff uses what I call ‘silo thinking’ – confining their perspective to a narrow column of influence.   A silo is a structure used to store materials, in this picture it is grain on a farm.

Grain silos on a farm

Silo thinking in followers means that instead of looking out to the horizon, employees see the walls of the job description, the risks of speaking up, and the fear of going out of their comfort zones to explore unknown territory.  They’ll share ideas with peers but won’t speak up at meetings or with their managers.

The influence of their corporate climate, consequences of making a mistake in front of others, and their own ‘mental training’ are just some reasons for their ‘silo’ thinking.  It could be age – never being asked before for creative ideas – or conditioning over the years by being told what to do, how to do it, and when to do it instead of being empowered to individualize their work.  Or the fact that people don’t want to expand for fear of the repercussions of what new activities they might be asked to participant in or that they would have to move out of their usual role to take on leadership themselves of an initiative.

My client consistently strives to inspire, model creative thinking, and provide opportunities for staff input.  She is persistent in efforts to overcome her staff’s ‘silo thinking’ and resistance to jump barriers.  However, with each subtle shift in behavior from individuals, my client gains confidence to continue her efforts to engage her staff in barrier jumping behavior.

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What role does social media play in your job search?  Do you have a strategic plan for how you want to build your online presence by using the most popular social media sites?

On Wednesday, October 21, from 8:00-9:00 p.m. EDT, I will be speaking on the topic of  “Social Media and Your Job Search:  A Strategic Approach” with my long-time colleague and good friend Jane Cranston, executive career coach and author of “Great Job in Tough Times” and tele-seminar series leader.

While Jane moderates and contributes her wisdom, I will guide you through understanding the role social media plays in your job search, specifically addressing these topics:

• A strategy for creating your online professional presence.
• The basics of:

              LinkedIn:  Business attire

              Twitter:  Business casual

              Facebook:  Work/life balance

             YouTube:  A great video is worth a thousand clicks

• Managing your career with social media

If you’re sitting in front of a computer with Internet access during this call, that’s great.  We’ll show you some live examples.  If you’re not able to be in front of a computer, don’t worry.  We’ll talk you through the examples.

To register for this tele-seminar, please go to Jane’s website Great Job in Tough Times.  Aren’t available to be on the tele-seminar next Wednesday evening?  Register anyway so that you will have access to listen to the recorded session at your convenience.

It will be my pleasure to join Jane next Wednesday to talk about, “Social Media and Your Job Search” and share with listeners what we collectively know can help you in your job search.

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MGT 3300:  “A Management Approach to Organizational Behavior” is one of eight courses that Tameka Vasquez included in her article on “Courses that feed your brain” published on October 5, 2009, in The Ticker, Baruch College‘s student newspaper.

Ms. Vasquez says that students “find themselves especially attentive, although it is required for most of them.”

My students taking MGT 3300 are attentive, engaged, and eager to learn as much as they can.   One student had to very reluctantly withdraw from the class after he found out he would not get credit for taking the class since it was outside his major.  He complimented me on being ”humble and cooperative”—words that I will remember.

“I love your lectures” wrote one of my students included in an e-mail to me.  “I love this class,” commented another student who is being challenged to demonstrate her public speaking abilities.

It’s rewarding as a member of the faculty at the Zicklin School of Business within Baruch College to hear these words.  What is more rewarding is to see the growth of my students on their diet of ”brain food.”

Why are students so engaged?  The topics resonant with their own experiences of working at retail shops, financial services companies, pharmacies, food stores, etc.  Topics, as Ms. Vasquez points out, which include ”individual attributes, workforce diversity, motivation, leadership, organizational culture and organizational change.”  Topics that students know learning these will benefit them on every part of their career path.

Mine is an interactive class.  The technology in the classroom is limited to a PC, a projector and access to the internet that I use.  The interactivity comes from conversations, comments, interchanges of ideas.

There are 31 students in my class but during each one-hour fifteen-minute session I call on each person at least once.  I want to hear their voices, I want to understand what they know and think about a topic, I want to share my relevant experiences and I want to learn from their experiences.

 A diet of “brain food” is good for us all.