Live it - Lead IT

"Home Office, or Pan-Office?"

I’ve been reading a lot recently about doing home office. Because of the viral outbreak, many companies have started to explore the option of working from home. However, my thesis is this: nobody at the moment is doing home office! This thought stems from the Leadership Stars program, where we were very obviously talking about how we do this. There are several heads of IT in this program and we had conversations about how this works. It turns out (not really surprisingly) that the output of the people it’s far lower than what it was before!  

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"Three differences!"

I have three criteria which are, from my point of view, the differentiators between home office and what we do today. What we do are doing today I call “Pan-office,” or Pandemic office. I do not want anyone to call this home office because then otherwise, some people in six months time will come up with this crazy thesis and say “No, home office doesn’t work for us.”So what are the differences? The first is that home office is prepared. This means the company is prepared, the processes are prepared, the whole office itself is prepared. The companies know what they can give the employees in home office and the employee knows what to do in home office.This second differentiator is that home office is planned. I mean that I know my project requires deep work with no distractions. And I can do this best from home because there I can plan this. It’s naive to think that the people are at home. No, it’s the families who are at home! Kindergartens and schools are closed. Parents are kind of forced to do some home parenting, home learning or teaching at. People sit at home. They need to take care of the kids if they have them, they need to take care of the spouse if they have them, they need to take care of everything around.

"Relationship power keeps organizations alive!"

This is not home office in the in the way that we use the word in the middle of March 2020. I need to sit in a silent environment when I do my conference call. But sorry. There is no silent environment. And additionally, there’s the biggest differentiator: some of them are just simply afraid. Now we talk about trust! To trust the management that they will steer the ship through the cliffs and through the oceans. Some of them are scared because they don’t know if their company will survive. These are the three things that are so different from what we called home office and Pan-Office.

Stay in lead!OLAF KAPINSKI 🙂

Today’s topic is for those who have been leaders for a while now and think it’s time for becoming better! Whether it be about new habits or introducing some new tools, improving yourself is the best thing you can do.

"There are a variety of factors that are limiting their potential to change!"

I know many managers that have been doing this for a long time who want to change. But there are a variety of factors that are limiting their potential to change. One of these factors is that they don’t want to change because of other people. What does this mean? Think of a manager that knows she has room for improvement. When it comes to making a decision in the office and all eyes on her, she resorts to her old behavior again because she is to shy to do otherwise!  So we have three main obstacles to your success: One is vanity, the other is laziness, and the final one is cowardice. If you are an individual that realizes they have a room for improvement, you are already ahead of the curve! But change takes more energy, so make sure you know WHY you want to change. My first advice for your process of change is this: Don’t look at back at your past! Don’t judge your past mistakes and how you failed to change them. Focus on what you hope to you achieve with your new behavior? Another issue is that people care too much about what others think of them. People are paralyzed and don’t want to move because they’re worried about what others think. Don’t be that person! This is known as the middle finger approach, because its all about doing what you think is right and forgetting what anyone else thinks! Be self-confident, even a little bit arrogant. 

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"Many leaders are knowledge giants, but execution minions!"

The main idea of this podcast is Live It, Lead IT. You need to take control and live your life in order to enhance your own experiences. There is a saying that many leaders are knowledge giants, but execution minions. They know what to do but they don’t do it! So what can you do to change that? Number one, don’t overestimate what others think about you because the others are too busy thinking about themselves!

"Do not be afraid of change and shut off the autopilot!"

Number two even if they judge you, you don’t need to care at all (remember The Middle Finger Approach!) Even if everybody knows you as the grumpy guy with the grumpy face, come to the office with a smile! Forget your reputation. I like when leaders are self-confident enough to say, “Okay, here’s something that we will try out. Give it eight weeks, and if it doesn’t work then let’s throw it away.” Do not be afraid of change and shut off the autopilot if you want to chan...

Today we will continue the second part of the Well-being episode. The focus will be on movement and what you can do if you do not go to the gym. Tell me if this sounds familiar: You’re in the your early or mid-forties. The studies are out of the way, the career is on track. The house is paid, you have your wife and kids. You were fit and active in college but then life changed and got in the way.  But now you look in the mirror and don’t like what you see.

"Now you look in the mirror and don’t like what you see."

Let’s start with the most basic form of exercise: walking! Walking is something that most of us do already each day. You can focus on increasing the frequency or the distance. Here in Europe, walking is a widespread and simple way to travel.  In order to start this fitness journey and kind of get some movement under you, try different types of walking. When I first started running, I had some issues with my feet and knees, so I started walking with two black sticks. A lot of people think walking is what the grandparents do after they have dinner! But who cares what others think? You can even start by parking your car further from your office. Or even better, buy yourself a dog and see how often you will need to take it outside! Even if you wear nice expensive leather shoes to the office, you can always walk a few hundred meters. Once you have gotten the hang of walking, the next step would be jogging and running, but only if you can do it comfortably. Take your time!If you want to get stronger without going to the gym then bodyweight exercises are great! These are exercise that you can do in your own living room at home! These are perfect for people who don’t like gyms. We all respond differently to different exercises and environments, and there are some people that just do not like going to the gym. Some great examples of bodyweight exercises are push-ups, sit-ups, and squats. You can do bodyweight exercises in nearly any environment: at home, out in the park, or even when you are traveling in a hotel.

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"There are some people that just do not like going to the gym!"

Whenever you start a fitness journey, pace yourself! It is a marathon, not a sprint. Many people jump into something, and they want to do it 100% from the first day. But if your body is not used to the exercies, you may end up injuring yourself and becoming discouraged. Build a base and then achieve your goals step by step. Your goal is not to do a six-week program and then go back to normal. You’re trying to change your lifestyle and that takes time and effort. Don’t compare yourself with anyone! If you keep comparing yourself to everybody else, you’re never going to be satisfied.   

"Whenever you start a fitness journey,

Usually I discuss things that you can’t really touch: your thoughts, your mindset, your communication style. Today we will talk about you and your body. Many of you listening to this can associate with this in terms of wanting to be more healthy. Unfortunately, either because you’re in the office or just not sure how to do it, you end up delaying it over and over. Today, I’ll give you a few tips on how to do improve your overall well-being. This is not a “gym-focused” episode, but more about things that can improve your quality of life outside of the gym.

"Your food can either give you energy or take energy away!"

Let’s begin with what you put into your body: your diet! Many people disregard the food they eat. Your food can either give you energy or take energy away. Think of the infamous post-lunch “carb coma.” After your big burger and fries or pizza, you get that little boost of energy from the elevation of your blood sugar. Then you just crash and you just want to take a nap. A more balanced diet is required: No sugar, no processed crap! Sugar is a part off society, at least in Western Europe but you must do your best to avoid this. Instead go for lighter foods that are easier to digest. Things like meat, salads, brown rice, fruits, vegetables, and nuts. Start slowly by transitioning to a healthy lunch on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and allowing a “cheat lunch” one or two days of the week. Before you know it that summer body will be ready!Now let’s talk about activities that you can do to burn more calories! Even if they may not seem like much, these calories you burn will add up. Instead of taking an elevator, take the stairs. To make it clear, you’re not going to the gym or running on purpose. But you can walk around the building after lunch. It helps you digest and gives you a little bit more energy. Unfortunately, I read that in Germany it becomes more and more of a habit for people to eat at their desk! This comes from wanting to reduce those eight hours of getting tortured in this fucked up office job into as little time as possible. Do not do this. Do yourself some good, give yourself a chance to relax and take a 30 minute break. There is a saying that sitting is the new smoking. Humans are meant to run and walk, not sit all day. Many studies have shown that physical activity, even a five minute walk, can boost your brains ability. As this podcast is from leaders and for leaders, make sure that you set a good example for your employees. You can inspire them!   

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"Humans are meant to run and walk, not sit all day!"

The third topic is mindfulness, be in the moment! Focus on what you’re doing, because if your mind is scattered in a million different places, you’re not going to be able to lead yourself, let alone lead your team.

Today’s topic has a catchy headline: don’t attend meetings! What do I mean by that? Nearly all of the managers I know complain about the sheer amount of meetings that they need to attend. If we are being honest, we know that the majority of these meetings are worth nothing. We go there because everybody else goes there. And we know that being in a meeting is about good company behavior.  This is where I will start with today’s episode. 

"You're there for achieving, not for sleeping in meetings!"

Don’t attend meetings means to focus. You are not there to waste your time in useless meetings, playing around with your IT gadgets and hoping to survive the day and then go home. You end up being exhausted and have no idea what you achieved today. So the question is always, what did you achieve? I mean, you’re there for achieving, not for sleeping in meetings. What I see in meetings is very often there is this invite in Outlook or whatever, and it only has a headline. There is no explanation for why am I invited to this meeting? What is the expected outcome of that meeting. What is the criteria? When can we finish this meeting?We must rethink this. Usually we invite for an hour and after an hour, this meeting is over. This is an absolutely wrong approach .You invite for an hour in order to have an hour block, but  if I invite three people to make this decision, then I clarify in the invite, “You are invited because this is the decision that we need to make.” You can put in this information and as soon as the decisions is made, the meeting is over. If you don’t know what you want to achieve in that meeting, there is no point. If you have only one exit criteria, which is the time, this is a stupid thing. My recommendation is do not go to meetings where you don’t understand why you are there. Be smart, this is a career podcast. We talk about your growth; if your boss has no clue at all and he’s just inviting people randomly, then you have to because otherwise he will be judging you. Let’s talk about meetings with invites from peers or those below you, where you can say “OK, no, I won’t attend.” Do not attend meetings where you don’t understand why you are invited and what you have to prepare. When is this type of meeting ever a successful meeting?   

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"Do not, after hearing this podcast, cancel all of your meetings tomorrow!"

Now of course you must do this slowly. Do not, after hearing this podcast, cancel all of your meetings tomorrow. Educate the people around you that you’re only attending, when they convinced you that your time this well invested there. You’re not going there like a brainless snail. I know this is what the majority of managers do because it’s the habit. In my last company,

In today’s episode we’re talking about the little landmines that are waiting for new managers. When you take that step and become a new leader, there are many things that you need to watch out for. This applies to us all because no one is perfect! If you think you are, then this podcast is not for you. We are today specifically talking about young leaders; not young of age, but young of duty.

"When you are promoted you should be focusing in your new position, not on your old one!"

The most common mistake I see when people get their first promotion is that they don’t step away from their old job. When you are promoted you should be focusing in your new position, not on your old one! My advice for is that when your boss comes to you and asks if you want to take over the responsibility of that team, the first question should be, “And who will take my old position?” Usually the best person on a team gets promoted; however I mentioned in an earlier episode how these characteristics do not always translate to competent leadership. Then next point I would make is especially for leaders of a younger age.  There is a tendency to do hip things just because they’re hip. Make sure that you take the feedback of your team, those individuals who have been there for a long time. Don’t decide to just blindly go with your proposal and then disregard everything because “they’re old so they don’t know any better.” Learn to distinguish between people using their experience to advise you and people being lazy. Regarding proposals, you do not need to wait half a year to implement something. Find the right balance to make decisions from day one when in a new company. They hired you to make an action but make it reasonable action!

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"Delegation is giving up control, and many people are afraid of that!"

The next mistake I often see is new leaders tend to not delegate appropriately to avoid losing control. Delegation is giving up control, and many people are afraid of that. If you delegate with appropriate care it can improve the effectivity of your team! The final mistake I often see new leaders make is that they do not know what makes them successful. Most people take over a certain department and only have a slight idea of what the head of such a department needs to do.

"Understand what your customers want!"

The most important thing for every leader is to understand what your customers want. In an organization that means you need to understand what your boss wants you to do!  Many new leaders put all their focus on running their team and do not pay enough attention to their superiors. It is imperative that as a leader you know what your bosses want without the...

Today’s topic is based on something that I think we all want! Many of my clients ask me, “Olaf, how can I not work anymore? I want to be free and on the beach doing nothing! What can I do to make this dream a reality?” Well, my answer is always the same: unless you win the lottery or suddenly inherit millions of euros, this is not a reality. And this is not what you should be aiming for if you want to be successful.

"You will eventually get bored sitting on the beach all day doing nothing!"

Now before you start crying and giving up on your dream, this requires a bit of explanation. We all want a “non-job.” I’m going to go into what exactly a non-job is: it’s something that you do that doesn’t feel like work. Note that I did not say no work at all, but something that doesn’t feel like work! A non-job is different for each person based on what they are passionate about. Now remember that this should have some money-making potential. For example, I love to barbecue! But my non-job is more about developing new courses for the leadership stars program. I could do this all day! I usually bring this issue up with clients I coach, and the men come up with something in the realm of beer and bitches. On average most people do not have a non-job idea. They hate working at their 9-5 job, but if I gave them 12 million euros what would they do? Beer and bitches on the beach for a few weekends then what? You will eventually get bored, and this is what most people do not realize. There misconception of either suffering in an office job you hate or sitting on the beach doing nothing.

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"The really successful people are not content with just one stream of income!"

I believe instead of choosing one end of the spectrum or another, you should aim for something more moderate. Even the people that are millionaires and billionaires do not sit around doing nothing. In fact, I would say they work harder than the average person. The really successful people are not content with just one stream of income. Your goal should be modified to end up on the beach doing something that you love! Trust me, if you sit on the beach doing nothing for three months you will get bored! Live a life that you do not need a vacation from.

"Live a life that you do not need a vacation from!"

You can do this by investing in yourself. Go work your 9 to 5 office job for the company, but then start something that you’re passionate about and maybe get another stream of income in. Maybe it doesn’t make any money but at least it will give you joy. We live in a golden age of information spread and opportunity. Don’t limit yourself because if you’re not taking advantage of that,

Today’s topic will be about conflict resolution in the workplace! Unfortunately, conflict is common whenever there are people together. This episode will delve into various psychological solutions for common workplace conflicts. Most conflicts fall into two categories: personal and professional. Professional conflicts have the potential to be much more stressful there’s a lot more at stake in terms of affecting your livelihood and ability to make money.

"Conflicts can be solved by improvising, adapting and overcoming."

These conflicts can either be with a manager, a colleague, or a subordinate. Let’s start with conflicts with a boss. We discussed in an earlier episode about changing your boss…you cannot! These conflicts can be solved by improvising, adapting and overcoming. When there is a disagreement between you and your boss, the best option is to overcome the problem in a productive manner. For instance, if your boss gives too many assignments, instead of complaining or not completing them, try to ask them to give you a clear priority. Be part of the solution, not the problem! In most situations with your boss, disagreements can be avoided if you deal with the issue by keeping a cool head. When your boss is just an asshole, and is rude, then the only solution is to reframe it in your head. Reframing is a useful tool in which one changes the way they think about a situation. You can frame everything in a positive or a negative way.

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"It's much harder to take your ego out of the equation when the other person is not signing your paycheck!"

As for conflicts with your colleagues, they are a bit different because there is no clear hierarchy as there is with your boss. You are both on the same level. It’s a lot more difficult to resolve a conflict when it’s someone that’s on your level, because it’s much harder to take your ego out of the equation when the other person is not signing your paycheck! Remember that you’re there to do a job and it doesn’t help anyone if you have a conflict with a colleague. And you need to frame that in your mind when you have an issue with somebody else. Do your best to solve the problem, whether personal or professional, as early as possible. Invite them for a coffee and find out the problem. If it is something you have control over, solve the issue before it interferes with your ability to do your job. If it is something you cannot change then reframe it and move on.

"You control the environment and command your space!"

And finally, we will discuss conflicts with those that you manage. As a manager need to sense what’s going on and if you sense there’s a problem,

Today’s topic is an interesting question for a majority of the people in the business world. What exactly are the requirements for someone to become a leader? I’ll begin with the definition of the word leader. A leader is somebody that has responsibility for others, we can also use the terms leader and manager interchangeably.

"As a leader you need a solid understanding of the profession."

I hear this question often from many of my clients who are uncertain of their own abilities. One might say that different industries have different requirements for leadership. I disagree! In fact, my thesis is that the requirements of leadership are industry-independent. This is not to say, for example, that a police sergeant can jump into a grocery store and manage it! As a leader you need a solid understanding of the profession. There is only one profession in which someone that has no clue about a certain industry can end up as a leader; and that is politics! You see politicians jumping from one department to another all the time. Coming back to our earlier example, a person who is a good leader in the police department and the person who is a good leader in the grocery store do the same thing in the leadership aspect. I’ll also add that I believe leadership is an art and profession by itself. It this is something that you can learn and improve. Many people do not see it this way which is why it’s difficult for many to describe what makes a good or bad leader. The majority of HR departments cannot explain what successful leadership is!

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"Unfortunately we often see promotion based on profession!"

This is why we see promotion based on profession, meaning the police officer or grocery sales person that performs the best becomes the manager, despite their job description changing dramatically. Now this manager must deal with the internal aspects of the company, not with clients he is accustomed to. He will need to manage schedules, resolve work conflicts, implement company policies and so on. The ability and the knowledge that you bring with you come into play, but there is more varied responsibility.

"If you hate people, don't become a leader!"

One of the main criteria you must fulfil to be a  successful manager is that you must like people! I mentioned earlier that leadership is a skill and can be learned, but I am not sure someone can learn empathy. If you hate people, don’t become a leader. As you transition away from dealing with customers to dealing with your employees, remember that customers are temporary. Your employees are permanent. This means that your customers leave after you complete your job but you see your employees every day!

You know how it is. This thing with technology, when it’s just desperate. We only become truly effective when we can use the technology to our advantage. One thing that keeps coming back to me in this process is the subject of video telephony. And I must say, I’m really a fan of it. For the simple reason that in the meantime not only the auditory but also the visual channel is operated. For one thing, it’s more fun, and for another, it allows you to work in a completely different way. Here are 10 practical tips to make your next video call a success.1. Camera alignmentYou should not aim your camera too high or too low. If your image appears in the middle of the screen, it is perfect! Just test beforehand whether your camera is correctly aligned so that people don’t look up your nose from below or upside down.2. Lighting conditionsIt happens again and again that people sit in front of the window during the call. Unfortunately, this is not a good idea, because it dazzles the camera and the person you are talking to cannot see you. When you are in the office, make sure the lighting conditions are as natural as possible. The light should come from the front, but at the same time not cast any shadows on your face.3. Place the laptopThis point could be especially important for videos from the home office. Place the laptop on a (desk) table. There is nothing worse when your computer is wobbling on its knees. Also, in this position the camera is much too deep and may film right into your nostrils.4th place for important thingsThink about sufficient space. You want to work professionally and therefore you may simply need space for working materials or to take notes.5. PreparationsMaybe you use video calls for your One-on-One’s. Prepare your calls like you would prepare all your meetings. Unfortunately, I have experienced video calls myself, which were much more unprofessional than what would ever happen on the phone.6. BackgroundThe background may be presentable. Although you can hold your video conference wherever you want, it is still nicer to sit in front of a neutral wall than to present last night’s kitchen chaos to the person opposite. Also, your background should not be moving, it is distracting. And if you want to do it professionally, you can get a folding green screen and change the background with an appropriate program.7. Mobile phone offTrivial, but important. Nothing disturbs a conference anymore if one or more participants are distracted by mobile phones, e-mails or other things. “Staying on task” is just as important in a call as in any other call, so that the conference leads to the desired success.8. mastering background noiseEspecially in open-plan offices it can get loud. This is then simply not a suitable place for video calls. If possible, find a quiet corner, close doors and windows and reduce the surrounding noise. You can also use stands that absorb noise from outside.9. Talk quieter and use a headsetMost integrated microphones are better than you think. Better start quietly, because often this is sufficient. You don’t have to shout and the person you’re talking to doesn’t have to turn the sound down. If you do need a little louder, you can always adjust the settings on your computer. Otherwise, headsets are also highly recommended. They allow you to speak very quietly. For one thing, you don’t hear the noise around you as strongly and you can hear the person you are talking to very well.10. speaking slowlyWith video calls you are welcome to speak a little more clearly than usual. You can see your partner, but he or she cannot understand you as well as if you were actually sitting opposite him or her.