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Establishing S.M.A.R.T. and S.M.A.R.T.E.R. Goals

August 5th, 2010 . Posted in Academic Transitions, career, planning, procrastination | 28 Comments »
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Set and achieve your goals

"Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending." - Carl Bard

August, when most colleges and universities are about to resume classes, is a great time to think about goals, before the classes and institutional goals that must be met in the fall semester ramp up. This is the time to think clearly about what you really want to get accomplished next, because goal setting is an iterative process.  As soon as you’ve met one, you are likely moving on to something bigger and better.

Successful schools and individuals rely on goals to stay focused on what they want to accomplish, and help motivate the process of moving forward.  A clear vision of what you want to achieve is a major determinant in achieving success in any area of your life. Great goals combined with S.M.A.R.T and S.M.A.R.T.E.R. goals will inspire you to do your best, not beat yourself up for a failure to achieve them.  Shoot for the stars and you may land on the moon.

Great goals must contain certain elements to be effective:  They are outcome focused, in line with your personal values, stated in a positive manner, and are self-directed.  If you know why you want to do something, you are 90% of the way there. When a goal aligns with your values, the easier it will be for you to do the work to accomplish it.  (People do accomplish goals that are not aligned with their personal values, but it is harder, and frequently leaves them with a bad aftertaste.)  Stating goals positively, such as “I will have one article written by the end of this year” is better than “I want to stop procrastinating on writing an article.”   And finally, the goal must be within your own control to accomplish.  Saying you “want a promotion” puts the onus on someone else.  Instead, you can say, “I want more responsibility” and take on some committee work so the outcome may result in supporting your case for tenure.

Next, an accomplishable goal must be S.M.A.R.T. or even S.M.A.R.T.E.R. The first known use of the term S.M.A.R.T. occurred in the November 1981 issue of Management Review by George T. Doran.   The most commonly accepted terms in the mnemonic are:

Specific-The more specific a goal is, the better.  It answers the question “Who and what is involved?” “I want to be more productive,” is too vague to provide a clear picture of success.  “I will work on my writing projects regularly,” is better.

Measurable-In order to track your progress, and know when the goal has been attained, it must be quantifiable. An example of a goal that is specific and measurable is, “I will write 20 pages.”

Attainable-It is important to establish a goal that will stretch you but which can be reasonably met.  If your goal is to write 20 pages by the end of the first month of classes, it is probably not realistic, and you will be doomed to fail.  Failure to achieve goals is demotivating and deflating. You want to identify both the requirements and constraints around your goal.

Relevant-Your goals should be important to you.  This answers the question, “Why do I want this?”  If your Chair is nagging you to write an article, you are less likely to achieve this than if you want to write it because you feel you have something important to share with the world.

Time-bound-Deadlines are useful. They provide a sense of urgency and help keep you focused, with the added advantage of letting you know how close you are to achieving your goal. “I will write 20 pages,” becomes “I will write 20 pages by the end of this year.” If you have written 10 pages by October 31st, you know are halfway there.

Two other letters are sometimes added to S.M.A.R.T., to make the mnemonic S.M.A.R.T.E.R. They are: Evaluate and Reassess.  These are necessary steps for reviewing any project to determine if the goals are moving toward the desired outcome, or need to be changed in light of new information. This is where the question, “What’s next?” can be answered.  Have you gotten significant new data that needs to be incorporated? Think about how much of what you have written already may have change.

Setting great goals is one of the most effective tools individuals and higher education institutions can use to achieve success.   Making goals S.M.A.R.T.E.R. helps close the gap between vision and reality.

Teaching across generations: 5 things to know about the Millennials

July 7th, 2010 . Posted in Academic Transitions, Communication, career, planning | 9 Comments »

Photo by Ro_nya (2010)

Photo by Ro_nya (2010) We live, not by things, but by the meanings of things. It is needful to transmit the passwords from generation to generation.

There is a great deal of discussion around whether or not naming certain generations is valid. If you look at academic models, there is plenty of literature supporting both points of view. With two daughters in this generation, I  do see some generational differences.  The names bestowed on the various generations capture some essence of the generation that the rest of us intuitively agree upon, such as the Silent Generation, the Greatest Generation, Baby Boomers, Gen X and Millennials, and I find these distinctions helpful.

The generational names spring from the characteristics associated with that group of people as they “come of age” or reach the place of adulthood in our society and culture, grouped together according to the years when they were born. The Millennials, also referred to as Gen Y, Echoboomers, Gen Next and even the Google Generation, were born 1982-2000 and now number roughly 76 million. These 20-somethings are literally the “next up” to enter our graduate schools and ultimately become academic colleagues.

Authors William Strauss and Neil Howe, who wrote “Millennials Rising: The Next Great Generation” (2000), probably have been the most influential in defining the term because they say members of the generation themselves coined the term millennials. As a group, “millennials are more numerous, more affluent, better educated, and more ethnically diverse” than previous generations, they write.  Their own ethnic diversity means race is less of an issue than for older generations.

Here’s a summary of some of the admittedly generalized characteristics of this generation:

1. Millennials want to make a difference in the world, for work to have “meaning.” Nine out of 10 interviewed for the book “The M-Factor” (2010) by Lynne Lancaster and David Stillman said this was “the most important factor” in their lives. As seekers, this generation will look for the right university program to match the right career path for themselves.

2. 20-somethings want a stimulating environment where they can express their passions, and they collaborate well because they have had much experience with learning this way in their childhood, from day care, to school, to soccer teams.  They want to work well with others, and this may be an area where multigenerational “learning groups” can help each other. Millennials learn by doing, and can teach technology uses to others.  Let them teach their older graduate school colleagues how to use technology, and everyone will be happier for it.

3. They want to use their tech savvy to communicate via Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and any other social media you can think of, and they discuss their work and ideas. This demand for interactivity can be a boon to institutions seeking to publicize themselves and also can be used to recruit and retain graduate students and new professors that expect to conduct job searches on the web. This same tech savvy is why Millennials tend not to recognize national borders as conversations are conducted across geographic boundaries, and will be more than happy to collaborate with their international peers.

4. Millennials “want to be heard” and will create innovative solutions if allowed. They want praise for a “job well done,” and a sincere “thank you” goes a very long way to building their loyalty. They want flexible schedules and a family life as well as a career. This is good news for higher education institutions recruiting new professors as one of the chief advantages that many scholars see for themselves is the ability to shape their own schedule and have some control over when, and how much, they work.

5. The down side: Some researchers see too much emphasis on the individual who needs to be validated and feel good because they were overprotected as children. Jean M. Twenge titled her book “Generation Me: Why Today’s Young Americans Are More Confident, Assertive, Entitled — and More Miserable Than Ever” (2006) and coined the term “Gen Me” to describe them. Jane Healy and Neil Postman in separate books have argued that despite the technological connectivity and community the generation seems to crave, the connections are superficial and do not lend themselves to critical thinking and reflective, thoughtful learning.  This may impact the depth of scholarly articles in the future.

It also is not at all clear at this stage how the Millennials will compete or what education areas they will choose.  Will they be interested in building and staying in an institution they see as making a difference, or will they be about “gaming” the system to their own advantage? Explaining the “why” behind the how or what may be one of the most important lessons to be learned both in teaching this generation and bringing them along on academic career path.

Here is an interesting podcast from

Beautiful Brain

Featuring an interview with Todd Sacktor about the maintenance of long-term memories in the brain: here

Things you cannot—and can—control

June 4th, 2010 . Posted in Academic Transitions, career, planning | No Comments »
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Photo by J. Berlin.

Now that we have come to the end of the semester at most colleges and our young people have processed through commencement  (including my youngest daughter!) on their way to life outside the school environment, a little common sense advice seems in order.  No matter where you work, or what you do, there are things you can control, and things you cannot.  It’s good to get a handle on the ones you cannot, so you do not spend unnecessary brain power and body energy stressing about them.  This also frees you up to handle the things that are actually within your own control and makes your life easier.

Here are five tips about what you cannot control, followed by what you can do:

1. Weather: There will be days when the weather dictates what you can and cannot do.  Storms ground airplanes, bridges wash out, and high winds knock out power lines. Frustration and anger aren’t going to change the outcome.  Do what you can to rearrange your schedule, then, let it go. Be prepared for the inevitable delays.  If you are traveling, take a good book, your laptop, and a charged cell phone, so that you can use those inevitable delays productively.

2. Traffic: Getting to work on time and ready to start the workday is certainly important, but sometimes even the best laid plans come to naught.  Your normal commute may be 45 minutes by bus or car, and you left your home base in plenty of time, but, whoops, there’s a wreck at a major intersection. It’s not going to help to sit in traffic fuming and spewing out obscene words.  Breathe, and let it go.  Besides, don’t you think the person involved in the wreck might be having a worse day than you are?

3. Equipment failure: From airlines to office equipment, it always seems that the machines break down when you most need them to work.  The copier gives out when you are running a 30 copies of a report due tomorrow; the computer suddenly boots you out of a document you had nearly perfected; the car refuses to start when you have exactly twenty minutes to get to an appointment.  Again, railing away at the machinery will not help.  Instead, choose how to handle the situation: is there someone you can call for help?  Another place to make copies?  Move your mind away from fear of the problem into creating a solution.  It’s more likely to get resolved, and you’ll feel better, too.

4. The economy: Yes, we are in a recession.  Yes, it may be hard to get the perfect job.  But, remember, everyone had to start somewhere.  There are still plenty of stories about people who started at the bottom and learned all there was to know and later became a leader in their field. In this day and age, it is estimated that the new college graduate will have 8-9 different jobs, and 4-5 different careers. Own your own labor, and your attitude toward it.  If you are happy with the work you have, happiness will spill over into other areas of your life.

5. Other people’s life choices: According to the US Department of Labor, work is the place we are most likely to actually interact with people of another race or culture in the globalized world. It is not going to help to criticize your colleagues about their choice of life partner, their culture, their parenting styles, their spending habits, or their work ethic. You are only in charge of you, your own attitudes, and beliefs. Listen and learn, understand what emotions may be behind the words, and make good choices for yourself with greater awareness.

One caveat: If you are working with someone you believe is doing something illegal, you want to either report the situation immediately to someone with higher authority, or get out of the situation as quickly as possible.

If you look at this list, the biggest commonality around what you can control is your own attitude.  It’s clear that this is something within anyone’s control, no matter where they are on the career path.

5 Tips for Effective Communication

May 4th, 2010 . Posted in Academic Transitions, Communication, planning | No Comments »
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In all people I see myself,
none more and not a one
barleycorn less,
And the good and bad I say
of myself I say of them.
—Walt Whitman,
Song of Myself, Part 20

(Photo by M. Landells, 2010)

“The problem with communication is the illusion that it has been accomplished,” said George Bernard Shaw. “We send from 100 to 300 messages a day [but] we hear only half of what is said to us, understand only half of that, believe only half of that, and remember only half of that,” writes Kathy Walker, Kansas State University.  That’s because 90% of our communication about emotions and relationships is done without words through speech, gestures, facial expressions, and posture.

Communication through speech is uniquely human. We have every communication tool you can think of at our fingertips today, using the internet for Sykpe, Twitter, Facebook and email, and still have difficulty truly communicating with each other.  Much of what we call communication today is actually a one-sided conversation.

Good communication takes place one interactive conversation at a time.

We need effective communication to share our thoughts, feelings, or ideas. If we are part of a company or an educational institution, we need to understand and share the mission of the organization to succeed. True communication is necessary for a diverse group of people to make good decisions for the future.

Here are five tips to help you communicate more effectively in any situation:

1. Identify the purpose of the conversation. Why were you having a conversation?  Were you expressing frustration or making a correction?  Or, were you trying to help instead? In What Got You Here Won’t Get You There (2007), Marshall Goldsmith suggests: “Judge less, help more.”

2. Listen with intention.  Listening with intention is also referred to as “active listening.” Give the person speaking your full attention. Concentrate on allowing them to speak without interruptions.

3. Acknowledge thoughts and feelings first. Emotions are fundamental to humans in making decisions, so they are a key component of communication.  If the emotions are not acknowledged, clear thinking may be blocked.

4. Test your interpretation. Ask clarifying questions to make sure you understand.  Try paraphrasing and reflecting back to the speaker using “I” statements such as, “I think you are frustrated with this situation.”

5. Deliver an effective message.  In a dialogue, the other side of listening is speaking. Whether you are the supervisor or the employee, it is necessary to agree on what the actual issue is before it can be addressed. This requires that you are clear about the outcome you want (that the project, book, or strategy document needs to be finished on time and on budget). Brainstorming options is essential here.

Effective communication is a learned skill that anyone can master. A true conversation involves both speaking AND listening. Healthy organizations and healthy relationships develop one conversation at a time.

Five Actions to Promote Collegiality

April 7th, 2010 . Posted in Academic Transitions | 5 Comments »
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Photo by D. Breezy (2010)

I turn away and shut the door, and on the stair
Wonder how many times I could have proved my worth
In something that all others understand or share…
–From Meditations In Time Of Civil War by William Butler Yeats (1923)

Five Actions to Promote Collegiality

Collegiality is on my mind this month.  Maybe because of all the vitriolic rhetoric we Americans are being subjected to on the nightly news. Or maybe because I know of two people turned down for tenure this spring whose academic record was sound, but reading between the lines, there was a judgment that the person had failed to be “collegial.”

Collegiality is simply the relationship between colleagues. Colleagues are those explicitly united in a common purpose. In a good department, colleagues respect each other’s abilities and have a sense of shared responsibilities, from teaching to providing public forums for students and faculty to share new research in their area of expertise.

A key component of success within the department and the higher education institution as a whole is the department chair. The chair can promote or impair collegiality.  Faculty members are people, too, and some are a delight to be around, and some are difficult, or as many psychologists like to say today, “challenging.” Promoting collegiality requires several components:

·       A willingness to find the middle (compromise) ground
·       A willingness to give and take, rather than engage in power struggles
·       Including all faculty in major decisions while de-emphasizing status differences
·       Sharing information, and clarifying performance expectations

A healthy department invites expression, exploration, inquiry, and mutual trust. On the other side, there are the dysfunctional departments where bad behavior is tolerated or brushed aside, and there goes real communication and true solutions to problems.

Jacqueline Waggoner, an assistant professor of education at the University of Portland, describes three types of  “difficult colleagues” in Teaching Careers: The people who think their needs are the most important, the bullies who have temper tantrums, and the conflict avoidant who make excuses and never get their assigned work done.   What’s a colleague to do?

Try these five actions:
1.     Model positive communication behavior, and do not allow anyone to get away with making negative statements about anyone else.  Focus the discussion on the topic at hand, not the individual.  Do not ignore hurtful comments: it leaves other people feeling unprotected. Worse, it provides tacit permission for the behavior to continue.
2.     Remember you can only control your own reactions, and not what someone else says.  Practice detachment, and try to see some value in the suggestions comments, even if your initial reaction is to disagree.  You may be surprised at the areas where you do actually agree on a solution.
3.     Decide how important this decision really is.  If it is a small decision, let it go.  If it’s a big one, it probably needs more time or information for consideration. Consider postponing the discussion.
4.     Keep your sense of humor.  Smile. Even better, laugh. This can both relieve tension and really put things in perspective.  It feels good and it’s good for you.
5.     Celebrate success. After a successful meeting or interaction, acknowledge it. Schedule a department lunch or happy hour just for fun, and make sure everyone feels welcome. It will allow you to know people outside of the professional situation, and foster understanding. This builds a solid relationship for facing the next difficult situation.


Need help promoting collegiality?
Contact me at:
CoachHillary
@www.TransitioningYourLife.com
to set up a 30-45 minute complimentary session.

As my free gift to you, go to my website to download my
Special Report: Visioning and Goal Setting.

Ask the Coach A free monthly group call is available through Stress and Success in Higher Education. If you would like to ask an acacemic coach a specific question, or would like 10-15 minutes of laser coaching on a specific topic, please register for the April 15th session by emailing:
CoachHillary
@www.TransitioningYourLife.com

If you found the information in this blog helpful, please forward it to your colleagues.

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