MOJO – How to get it, how to keep it

First, what’s MOJO.

Its that positive spirit toward what we are doing now that starts from the inside and radiates to the outside.

I don’t like acronyms and if you hang around GEN Ys, you get that alot.

FOMO, YOLO

So when I saw a title like MOJO, especially after a colleague used that work, I had to pick up this book.

MOJO by my favourite coach Marshall Goldsmith, whose “What got you here won’t get you there”. Like his previous book, Goldsmith is an executive coach for senior executives and his examples reveal many of such insights with Scorecards and questionnaires and frameworks.

Mind the GAP
There’s a gap between how you see yourself and how others see you.
We sometimes underestimate our great moments and overestimate the impact of our bad moments.

Does anyone ever really change from leadership sessions?
In true Peter Drucker style, Goldsmith answers through a survey of 250,000 respondents.
Very few people achieve positive, lasting change without on-going follow-up.

Unless they know at the end of the day that someone is going to measure if they’re doing what they promised to do, most people fall prey to inertia. (Known as “Hawthorne effect”).

Hence, try the reputation questionnaire

1. Name six “great” personal moments in the last 12 months at work. (You can consult your calendar and family, but Goldsmith says you can’t ask colleagues. In my opinion, if you can’t even name it, then what’s happened to your personal appraisal.. uh oh.)
2. What made these moments “great”?
3. In what way, if any, did these moments resemble one another?
4. Can you identify the personal quality embodied in that resemblance? Can you give it a name?  For example, if you cite two “great” moments when you went out of your way to help a colleague with advice, you would label that personal quality as “generosity” – which feeds into a reputation for being “generous”
5. On a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the most well known, how well known are these “great” moments to people you work with?
6. On a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the most agreement, how much would the people you work with, agree with the personal qualities described in your answer to question#4.
7. Name six “bad” personal moments in the last twelve months
8. What made these moments “bad”?
9. What did they have in common?
10. Can you identify the personal quality they had in common? Can you give it a name? For example, if two “bad” moments involve episodes where you lost your temper, the personal quality could be labeled as “hot-headed”
11. On a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the most well known, how well known are these “bad” moments to other people you work with?
12. On a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the most agreement, how much would the people you work with, agree with the personal qualities described in your answer to question #10.
13. Which answer, to question #4 or #10, is most likely your current reputation, or is it both?

If you work for a corporation, this is a useful guide to prepare for the yearly performance appraisal or performance management. Then compare it with the company values. Are you being effective or just busy.   How much do others appreciate what you’re doing?

Useful too, for interviews to get your next job

For those of us, working for ourselves, i.e. entrepreneurs or creatives. Very effective to think about the Brand or the Reputation you’re creating for #Brand You.

I’ve a rude wake-up call.

Consistency and Discipline though, is necessary.
If you’re known as a sarcastic boss, you have to bite your tongue for a long time.
Ask yourself: “Is it worth it?”

• How much long-term benefit or meaning did I experience form this activity?
• How much short-term satisfaction or happiness did I experience form this activity?

Change how you approach the same activity. It does not have to be with inertia.

For instance, if you’re about to attend a one-hour, mandatory meeting, your mindset is that the meeting will be a boring waste of time.

You have two options:

Option A: Attend the meeting and be miserable.
Option B: Make the meeting more meaningful and enjoyable. Observe your colleagues more closely or create a new idea to inspire others.

(Download the MOJO Meter)  http://debisilber.com/mojo-meter/

People don’t care what you know, but they know when you care. – John Maxwell