Leadership

These 5 Keywords Are the Key to Goal Achievement with SLII®

/ Ken Blanchard

This month we are excited to celebrate the release of the modernized SLII®, the update to our best-selling leadership development training program. We’ve always worked to keep SLII® relevant for today’s leaders, and this latest revision is no exception.

One of my favorite new modules in SLII® is about managers and direct reports sharing a new “shorthand” language of leadership using just five keywords, enabling them to have quick, effective conversations on the go. This is something that Vicki Halsey, our VP of applied learning, has been sharing in keynotes for years. I’m glad it has officially made its way into the program!

These days, leaders aren’t always able to sit down and have a detailed conversation with a direct report who might be struggling with a goal. Communication is more likely to happen via text: “Are you busy? I’ve got a problem.”

But when both people know the language of SLII®, they can use five keywords and have an efficient “shorthand” conversation about development levels, leadership styles, and fast solutions. The keywords are Goal, Competence, Commitment, Direction, and Support.

  • As you might guess, the keyword Goal is about the specific, trackable outcome the direct report is working toward. The Goal is the objective that needs to be addressed in the conversation.
  • The keyword Competence is about the team member’s skills and ability to achieve the Goal. Leaders can use this word in conversation to determine whether the person needs more supervision or is able to work on their own.
  • The keyword Commitment refers to both confidence and motivation. This word will come up in discussion regarding the person’s motivation on the Goal and helps the leader detect and address a possible lack of confidence or enthusiasm in the direct report.
  • Direction is the specific instruction or guidance given to a direct report, in an amount that varies depending on the person’s development level on a specific Goal. In conversation, this keyword helps leaders determine the amount of close supervision and assistance they need to give the team member for their current level of development.
  • Support, similar to direction, refers to a specific style of leadership given to a team member that matches their development level on their current Goal. Support involves the leader encouraging and providing information and other resources to help the direct report feel confident and empowered to achieve the Goal.

Leaders and team members who use this common “shorthand” language of SLII® are able to have a quick and productive conversation to diagnose the person’s Competence and Commitment on their Goal so that the leader can give the correct amount of Direction and Support, smooth out or eliminate the struggle, and cheer on the direct report toward Goal achievement.   

I think SLII® is such a wonderful way to lead people, and even after 45 years, it just keeps getting better and better!

Celebrating 45 Years of Leadership Development

/ Ken Blanchard

This October Blanchard is celebrating the 45th anniversary of our creation as a company in 1979. What a privilege it has been these past four-and-a-half decades to serve so many extraordinary clients, and to empower so many people to sharpen their skills and lead with love!

Blanchard’s Beginnings

Like many of the best things in life, the origin of our company came about through serendipity. In the late 1970s I was on sabbatical from my professorship at the University of Massacusetts, working on the revised edition of Management of Orgaizational Behavior, the textbook I had written with Paul Hersey. During that time I was invited to speak about leadership at a Young Presidents Organization (YPO) event in Hawaii.

My sessions at the event were so popular that at the end of the conference, several of the YPO members came forward and asked me what I was planning to do next. I told them that I would be heading back to Amerst, Massachusetts, to teach.

“You’re crazy!” they said. “When you’re hot, you’re hot. You should start your own company.”

My wife, Margie, and several of our professor friends back at the University of Massachusetts had dreamed of taking what we were teaching and starting a business, but our talk had always been just that: a dream.

“Margie and I can’t even balance our own checkbook,” I said to the YPO members. “How are we going to start a company?”

“We’ll help you,” they said.

And that’s exactly what happened. Five of the YPO presidents became our advisory group and helped us start the company.

In the beginning Margie and I had just a half-dozen associates. During those early days, the eight of us traveled from city to city to conduct all our training face-to-face. There were no cell phones; there was no Zoom. Training occurred classroom by classroom. It required a lot of travel, but we were fueled by our enthusiasm to teach leaders to empower and motivate their people.

The Changing Landscape of Leadership Development

Today Blanchard has more than 200 employees, with offices around the world in more than 40 countries. While we still do classroom training and in-person workshops, our delivery methods now include online and virtual courses, assessments, coaching, and learning reinforcement tools.

Technology has changed the landscape of leadership development. I’m a big fan of the way it has expanded our ability to make a difference in the lives of others. Today we can provide our clients with the training that works best for them, whether it’s face-to-face peer interaction or online self-paced learning.

Back in the old days, I was traveling so often to do training that I’d fall asleep in the airport. I confess I used to nap stretched across the airport gate, to make sure I didn’t miss my flight! One of the things I appreciate most about technology is that it allows me to deliver talks around the world without having to get on an airplane. I also love being able to see the faces of our 200+ associates on Zoom during our all-employee meetings.

The methodology of leadership development has evolved, too. We have found that rather than teaching a single course, the most comprehensive way to build people’s knowledge is to provide them with learning journeys—a series of experiences and activities that develop their skills over weeks or even months. This allows people to digest the information as they practice new skills. Because they are learning over time, participants retain what they’ve learned and apply their new tools in the real world.

We’ve confirmed that what really turbocharges learning is when people go through learning journeys with their peers. Learning together, team members can solve real problems. Cohorts share a common language for tackling issues. Putting team members through a learning journey is one of the best ways to break up work silos, increase engagement, and build productive relationships.

Looking Toward the Future

I sometimes joke with audiences that the only one who really likes change is a baby with a dirty diaper. But change is a necessity, because we live in a rapidly changing world. That’s why our company has always been proactive about looking toward the future.

In the 1980s my wife, Margie—who was president of the company at that time—established Blanchard’s Office of the Future to stay on the leading edge of leadership development. Today we call it the Blanchard Innovation Lab. This is where our best minds conduct research and development to meet the evolving needs of the workforce.

Now more than ever, our planet needs great leaders. I’m excited about the potential of our industry to have a tremendous positive impact on the world. I can’t see the future, but I’m confident that Blanchard will be at the forefront of that effort as we head toward our 50th anniversary.

Better Together: The Importance of Friends and Family

/ Ken Blanchard

In June’s blog I talked about the joys and rewards of connecting with people in your industry at business conferences like ATD. Today I want to focus on the priceless rewards of connecting with friends and family.

In this day and age, when so much of our connecting happens over Zoom and other digital platforms, it’s especially important to get together in the real world on a regular basis. That’s because seeing people in person creates genuine human connections that that you simply can’t have online.

It is a tradition in our family to spend time together during the summer in Skaneateles, New York. We are fortunate that my in-laws, the McKees, bought some property on Skaneateles Lake back in 1947. For more than 75 years, our friends and family members have gathered here to celebrate birthdays, prepare meals, take boat rides, and simply enjoy the slower pace of rural upstate New York.

The Benefits of Togetherness

 There’s a deeper purpose to our time in Skaneateles than just having a fun vacation. Summer in Skaneateles is a decades-old tradition that we have passed down to our children and grandchildren. It’s like a glue that binds the different generations of our family, strengthening our relationships with each other.

The time-honored ritual of coming to Skaneateles also provides structure to our lives. My wife, Margie—an accomplished photographer—takes pictures and creates a book for each summer. Looking through those books, we can appreciate the passage of time and the family rituals that bring meaning to our lives. When our kids and grandkids look at the books, they not only have fun memories, but they also understand their roots and feel a sense of belonging and continuity.

The Importance of Human Connection

I’m an uber-extravert, so being with others is essential to my mental and spiritual well-being. But even the most intraverted person needs to feel a sense of belonging. That’s because human beings are inherently social creatures. Our need to connect with each other is programmed in our DNA. Gathering with friends and family provides an environment where everyone—no matter what their personality type—can feel seen, heard, and valued.

When we spend time together—taking walks, sharing meals, playing sports, or celebrating milestones—we are making memories that anchor us in a sense of belonging and meaning. When life feels tough, we can tap into the reservoir of positive emotions created by good times we have shared with loved ones.

 The Healing Power of Togetherness

In times of crisis or sorrow, the support of friends and family becomes a lifeline. For example, I’ll never forget the outpouring of love Margie and I received after our house burned down in the California wildfires of 2007. We were in Florida at the time of the fire. When we returned to San Diego, people had gathered at the Blanchard headquarters to support us. Just seeing their faces provided tremendous comfort and resassured us that everything was going to be okay. People’s kind words and warm hugs during that difficult time alleviated our despair and made a big difference in our ability to cope.

Make Memories with Your Loved Ones

Finding meaning and purpose through work is important, but nothing compares to the joy and meaning you get from being together with friends and family. Our primary purpose on this earth is to love, which is why it’s so important to cherish and nurture our relationships. In the end, it is our connections with others that make life truly meaningful—so schedule time to make great memories with your friends and loved ones today!

Never, Never, Never Stop Learning

/ Ken Blanchard

Leading in today’s world can be a risky business. No matter how long someone has been at their organization or how secure they feel in their role, complacency can bring disaster. Leaders who aren’t continuously pursuing new learning will find their effectiveness in the workplace—and their personal satisfaction—diminishing. Why? Because, now more than ever, leaders who aren’t learning aren’t growing.

My favorite quote on this topic comes from the late, great Norman Vincent Peale: “Once you stop learning, you might as well lie down and let them throw dirt on you, because you’re already dead.”

Merely knowing how to do your job today doesn’t ensure you will be successful tomorrow. Keeping up with the rapidly changing global work environment is critical for leaders who want to help their organization, their team, and themselves remain successful. When a leader shows a lack of interest in advancements within their industry or signals they are content with the status quo, their influence quickly fades. There is a very real risk that leader will be replaced by someone with fresh ideas.

In Great Leaders GROW, a book I wrote with Mark Miller, we showed how the best leaders make a conscious decision to grow throughout their careers and their lives. We focused on four key practices:

  • Gain knowledge about yourself, your colleagues, your industry, and leadership in general. This can be done through self-help or business books, websites, blogs, networking with industry partners or friendly meetups with co-workers.
  • Reach out to others and share your learnings. Use your expertise to become someone’s mentor—a rewarding experience for both mentor and mentee. Lead a seminar or speak at a conference on a topic you know inside and out.
  • Open your world. Think outside the box. Find a mentor of a different generation and learn from each other. Volunteer in your community. Attend a training event on a topic you’d like to know more about. Learn a foreign language.
  • Walk toward wisdom. The pursuit of wisdom never ends, regardless of age. Ask family, friends, and colleagues for feedback on how you are doing in various areas of your life and work. Learn from others’ experiences as you move forward in your learning.

Whether for professional or personal development, learning keeps mind and skills sharp. Opportunities for learning are endless and all around. Make time to read books and articles, watch videos, and listen to podcasts. Talk with peers or work with a mentor outside your normal work circle. Sign up for an online course or a workshop at your company. Or join an association or a special interest group.

In fact, a great way for you to learn more about leadership best practices and innovations is to join me at the Blanchard Leadership Summit, coming up on October 8-10, 2024 in Dana Point, California. It’s an annual two-day event where our clients make presentations about how their companies are making a difference in the world. There will be 24 learning sessions divided into three different tracks: Strategy, Design, and Delivery. You’ll be able to network with other leaders and the learning opportunities will be fabulous. Click here for more information. Hope to see you there!

I love this quote by author Brian Herbert: “The capacity to learn is a gift; the ability to learn is a skill; the willingness to learn is a choice.” So never, never, never stop learning and growing. Great leaders make lifelong learning a conscious choice and a continuous journey. Make learning a habit, and you’ll enjoy the benefits of becoming a leader for life!

Connecting with the Training Community at ATD

/ Ken Blanchard

One of the joys of being in the leadership training business is belonging to a wonderful community of people and organizations dedicated to helping others achieve their full potential by improving their knowledge, skills, and abilities at work. A great place to network with this community is at the annual conference of the Association for Talent Development (ATD).

If you are interested in learning more about ATD, think about joining a local chapter, and be sure to attend the conference in 2025. We’ll see you there!

When I first began attending the conference it was a much smaller affair, with maybe a few dozen participants who were all from the United States. Back in those days it was called the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD). They had to change the name as the organization grew and gained international members. Today the conference attracts exhibitors from more than 120 countries around the world and features celebrity keynoters, like this year’s Matthew McConaughey and Venus Williams.

The conference welcomes talent development managers, trainers, instructional designers, performance consultants, frontline managers, and workplace learning professionals from organizations of all sizes and industry sectors—and it’s a blast!

This year about 30 of my Blanchard colleagues and I attended the ATD conference in the fun city of New Orleans, Louisiana. My son, Scott, and I gave a talk based on content for our forthcoming book, It’s Always the Leader. As part of the presentation, Scott dug up forty-year-old videos of me from the 1980s, when I first began talking about timeless principles like Catching People Doing Things Right and Praising Progress, Not Perfection. The audience got a big kick out those vintage videos from the days when I had hair! We were deeply touched when everyone gave us a standing ovation.   

Another fun aspect of the conference was sitting with my coauthor, Randy Conley, and signing copies of The Simple Truths of Leadership and The Simple Truths of Leadership Playbook. We autographed about 150 copies each day, and were delighted to talk briefly with each person who bought a book.                                                

The people we talked with shared our enthusiasm for the conference. We all agreed that ATD is a fantastic place to meet new friends, reconnect with old collegues, and stay abreast of changes in our industry. Whether you’re listening to a keynoter, attending an informative panel discussion, or simply walking around the conference floor to see all the innovations and resources that are available to learning professionals, attending the conference is time well spent.

The Power of Connection

Being at the conference reminded me about the importance of connection and community. No matter what field you are in, you will benefit by tapping into the wider community of practitioners in your profession.

If you’re not already a member, think about joining a membership organization in your industry. Membership organizations are terrific places to meet potential clients, partners, mentors, and industry peers. These connections often lead to new business opportunities and collaborations.

Also consider attending a business conference in your field, like ATD. This is where you can spot trends and keep up-to-date with the latest developments in your profession. Seeing the products, services, and technologies showcased by vendors and exhibitors can help you brainstorm new ideas and solutions for your own business. If you have the budget for it, consider becoming an exhibitor. It’s a great way to increase your company’s visibility.

I always come home from ATD filled with renewed energy and enthusiasm for our work. It’s inspiring to know that we belong to a community that is contributing to the greater good by developing people’s potential.