Seven Tips to Better One-on-One Communication in Your Public School System

Clear communication is one of the key result areas that allows your staff and employees to successfully perform at their job. My recommendation is that you invest in your team by taking the time to communicate with them more effectively.

Here are 7 things you can do to enhance your one-on-one communication process with them.

1. Stop finishing the other person’s sentences. Marshall Goldsmith reminds us that this approach does nothing to help your employees and managers think for themselves.

2. After a team member shares with you some great revelation they have discovered, don’t say “I knew that.” All that does it extinguish the flames of excitement for their learning process.

3. When others praise you, just say “Thank you”. Don’t deny or talk down or trade the compliment. By simply receiving the compliment, you give the person giving it, a chance to feel the power of giving something special.

4. Stop using the word “no”. Instead, give people options. They may not be able to do something a certain way, but usually there are other possibilities that could be considered.

5. Stop using the word “but” or “however”, and start using the word “and”. When you do this, it prevents you from negating what the person is saying and allows them to be more open minded to what you suggest instead.

6. Don’t allow yourself to “multi task” when you are communicating with another person. Keep your eyes on that person and not your computer or the paperwork in front of you.

7. Stop trying to impress your subordinates with how smart you are. Just because you are the boss does not mean you are always right, nor does it mean you have all the answers.

By taking the time to communicate in a more focused and proactive fashion with your staff, you will be creating the kind of work environment that is destined to improve both the productivity of you and your team.

Here is your assignment, should you decide to accept it. Pick 3 items from the seven suggestions listed above and use them for five days.  Evaluate the results and decide for yourself whether or not they are worth using on a regular basis. I have a hunch you will be glad you did.

Tom Borg is president of Tom Borg Consulting, LLC. He is public schools consultant, trainer and author. He can be reached at 734.404-5909  or visit his website at: www.tomborgconsulting.com

Partnering with Your Business Community

Watch and learn from this Michigan Association of School Administrators (MASA) video/webinar program entitled "Partnering with Your Business Community". In it we discuss how to develop a working relationship with your business community that will allow your school district to develop this very valuable resource. http://vimeo.com/53118773

For more information on how Tom Borg Consulting can help your public school retain more students, call our office at 734-4040-5909 or visit our website at:
www.TomBorgConsulting.com

Moments of Truth in Your Public School

Any time your students and parents come into contact with any aspect of your school system, however remote and thereby has an opportunity to form an impression it is called a "Moment of Truth".
-Jan Carlzon

So what are some of the moments of truth in your school system? They could be everything from how the telephone is or is not answered to a visit to your website to the appearance of your school buses. To get a better idea, hold a meeting and ask for some examples of the moments of truth.  Take an inventory and assess how they can be improved. By doing so it could help your school district retain a substantial number of students.



For more ideas how we can help you change your service culture in your school district please contact our office at 734-404-5909 or email us at tomborg@tomborgconsulting.com

How to Help Your Employees be More Powerful and Productive

One of the best ways to make sure your get the most productivity out of your staff is to hire the very best people you can find. Once you find those outstanding people, invest in them.

Most school superintendents and principals would agree that the physical equipment in their school system must be maintained. If they neglect this must do activity, it can get very expensive to repair that equipment. The successful organizations recognize this and budget for this activity accordingly.

The same goes for the people in your school system. The fact of the matter is that they are much more valuable than your equipment. Why? Because as you invest in them, they can become even more capable of performing in their position. This in turn  can make your organization more successful and profitable. One way you can invest in your team is by taking the time to communicate with them more effectively.

Here are 7 things you can do to enhance your one-on-one communication process with them.

1. Stop finishing the other person’s sentences. Marshall Goldsmith reminds us that this approach does nothing to help your employees and managers think for themselves.

2. After a team member shares with you some great revelation they have discovered, don’t say “I knew that.” All that does it extinguish the flames of excitement for their learning process.

3. When others praise you, just say “Thank you”. Don’t deny or talk down or trade the compliment. By simply receiving the compliment, you give the person giving it, a chance to feel the power of giving something special.

4. Stop using the word “no”. Instead, give people options. They may not be able to do something a certain way, but usually there are other possibilities that could be considered.

5. Stop using the word “but” or “however”, and start using the word “and”. When you do this, it prevents you from negating what the person is saying and allows them to be more open minded to what you suggest instead.

6. Don’t allow yourself to “multi task” when you are communicating with another person. Keep your eyes on that person and not your computer or the paperwork in front of you.

7. Stop trying to impress your subordinates with how smart you are. Just because you are the boss does not mean you are always right, nor does it mean you have all the answers.

By taking the time to communicate in a more focused and proactive fashion with your staff, you will be creating the kind of work environment that is destined to improve both the productivity of you and your team.

Here is your assignment, should you decide to accept it. Pick 3 items from the seven suggestions listed above and use them for five days.  Evaluate the results and decide for yourself whether or not they are worth using on a regular basis. I have a hunch you will be glad you did.


For more ideas on how Tom Borg Consulting LLC can assist your public school system develop its' staff, and retain more students,  call our office at 734-404-5909 or email us at: tomborg@tomborgconsulting.com

4 Questions to Guide Your School District's Next Strategic Planning Session

Each year every superintendent and his or her team need to invest the time in strategic planning.

Like a space shuttle headed to the moon, constant course corrections need to take place. A strategic planning session can help to tweak the direction and focus of your school district.

Here are 4 main questions with sub questions to ask your team that will guide your next strategic planning session.

1. Where are you now? How are you positioned in the academic market place? What are your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats?

2. How did you get here? What decisions and actions have led your school district to where it is now?

3. Where do you want your school district to be in the next 3 to 5 years? What kind of standards must you meet? How do you want your value to be perceived in the community?

4. How will you and your team get there? What are the strategies you will implement? Who are the people you need on your team? Who do you need to add or deploy? Which programs and external consultants do you need to get there?

When done properly, your annual strategic planning session can keep your school district on course and effectively deal with the challenges it will inevitably face.

Tom Borg Consulting, LLC works with schools systems that are having issues with retaining students and community support.
For additional information on how we can help your team with its next strategic planning session please contact our office at 734-404-5909.

Ten Tips on Dealing with Change in Your School District

Here are 10 tips to help you deal with change more effectively.

1. Don’t be surprised by trouble.
2. Don’t act like a “clenched fist”.
3. Allow for renewal on a regular basis.
4. Find something to be cheerful about when you are unhappy.
5. Accept what you cannot change.
6. Remember to live one day at a time. If that is too difficult try one hour at a
time.
7. Count your blessings.
8. Don’t forget that based on the law of averages only 8% of the things we worry
about are worth being concerned about and taking action.
9. Remember the saying “This too, shall pass”.
10. Expect you will have control over your future and then take action.

For more information on Tom Borg Consulting, LLC and our services please contact our office at 734-404-59096 or visit our website at: www.TomBorgConsulting.com

Communicating Clearly with Your Staff-Public Schools, MI

If you are a superintendent or principal, it is critical that you use as many tools as possible to help you communicate effectively. Most people will criticize things they don’t understand.  In order for you to be convincing, you must keep your communication tools as sharp as possible.

 One of the best ways to verbally convey ideas that may need some explanation, is to use something called an analogy. An analogy is taking something that is familiar and comparing it to something that is not familiar. By taking this approach, it allows the listener to bridge the gap between something they are already accustomed to, to something they are not. Using an analogy can be the difference between having the person or group you are talking to agree or not agree with you.

For example, if you were trying to explain what the office paper shredder does, you could use an analogy of how a cheese shredder works. A cheese shredder takes a block of cheese and slices it into tiny fragments. The office paper shredder does the same, only it takes paper and cuts it up into very small pieces

Another example is, if you were trying to explain how easy it is to accomplish a major project. You could use the analogy of how a large bundle of twigs cannot be broken in half as a bundle, but when taken apart, each twig could be easily broken. It is similar to how you can break a major project down into small enough tasks that would allow the person to easily complete them one at a time. By taking this approach, the entire project would gradually be completed.

Using an analogy to communicate your ideas can help you gain the understanding and support you need to communicate your ideas effectively.

Tom Borg of TomConsulting, LLC.  located in Canton, MI. works with public school superintendents and principals to help them keep the support of the parents of their students and keep student retention consistent.. You can contact him email him at tomborg@tomborgconsulting.com  visit his website at www.TomBorgConsulting.com or call him at 734-404-5909.