by : Aditi Vohra Business, Entrepreneurship, Leadership, Parenting

Leadership vs. Parenting

If you are not a parent yet, you maybe ever so slightly intimidated by the title of this post. Leadership and parenting have more in common that anyone would imagine.

Let us start with the  fact that effective leaders are pros at nurturing talent. This is basic, right?! Further, they aim to help others become the best version of themselves. Take parenting now. Isn’t the above the crux of parenting as well?!

Not convinced, then, continue reading.

I became a parent on New Year’s Eve last year and I have also held multiple leadership positions in my career. Hence, you can trust me when I say that you require a certain level of maternal (or paternal) instinct when you are trying to motivate others or get them to go above and beyond the call of duty.

Consider these: 

Leaders get their people to believe in their innate abilities, often these abilities are hidden from the one possessing them as well. Effective parents help their kids do the same thing. They provide an environment where risk-taking ability is encouraged and rewarded. They make you feel secure enough to make mistakes rather than stand on the sidelines. 

Humans respond to appreciation / positive reinforcement better than punishment.  Successful leaders and effective parents use rewards and appreciation as tools to keep motivation alive and healthy.

A toddler can challenge you and so can a professional. They are equally capable of testing your patience and making you lose it when you shouldn’t. If you have mastered leadership (or parenting) you will be able to disciple them and establish clear boundaries to remind others that they need to respect you and not walk all over you. Accepting or turning a blind eye) to a disrespecting subordinate (or toddler) results in setting a precedent that affects everyone negatively over a period of time.

So, the next time you are stuck in a situation where you don’t seem to have a way out at all, sit back with a glass of wine (or any guilty pleasure of your choice) and think – what would I do if this were my child acting up?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

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by : Aditi Vohra Business, Business Trends

Intrapreneurship

Top result on Google for Intrapreneurship – Intrapreneurship is a system which allows an employee to act like an entrepreneur within an organisation. Intrapreneurs are self-motivated, proactive, and action-oriented people who have leadership skills and think outside the box.

To be completely honest, I came across this term only recently, as recently as a few months back. But, does that mean that this is a new concept?

Absolutely not.

After all, hasn’t the age-old corporate wisdom been all about encouraging enterprising professionals?! Haven’t we all been told that displaying initiative is a desirable quality for those looking to be on the radar of success?!

Intrapreneurship goes beyond taking complete responsibility for your actions. Accountability and a self-starter attitude are good places to start though. 

It is immensely important for leaders to encourage their staff to take managed risks and foster an entrepreneurial culture.

Intrapreneurs are naturally invested in the success of their business unit and the organisation that they are a part of. They are self-motivated and are most likely to go above and beyond their duty, even when no one is looking!

Various case-studies have shown that employees are way more productive and customer satisfaction is way higher when employees do not feel that their superiors are watching their every move, worse so with suspicion. Building an environment of trust goes a long way in increasing efficiency and effectiveness. Further, this holds true for entry level staff, mid-management as well as top management.

As employees grow and climb up the corporate ladder, so will their intrapreneurial ventures.

One of the most successful companies of our time, Amazon, values Risk Taking, Innovation and Speed – three common traits in most entrepreneurs.

A few years back, footwear giant Bata had converted a significant number of their stores into Franchise outlets by helping their store managers turn into entrepreneurs (franchisees). This move not only served to empower their employees but also made them fiercely loyal to the business. In an industry that is notorious for its high attrition levels, especially at the front-end, that is something for sure!

  

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by : Aditi Vohra Business, Entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship 101: SOPs – The Need for Documenting Processes and Plans

When you start a new venture, often it is easy, almost natural, to overlook documentation. You are a one-wo(man) army and there is no or minimal delegation. Moreover, the only real goal is to get revenue in and get your business rolling.

However, it is extremely crucial to document processes and create Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for everything that you are doing. SOPs are detailed and step-by-step descriptions of processes / functions, along with the names / designations of the responsible personnel. 

The important point here is that YOU SHOULD NOT WAIT TILL YOU HAVE A SIZEABLE BUSINESS TO START DOCUMENTING SOPs.

There are multiple benefits of having clearly defined and documented processes, including –
1. You are able to streamline processes and bring in higher efficiency, thereby giving yourself a huge productivity boost.

2. It becomes easy to delegate tasks when the goal and steps for the job are clear. 

3. Clear and measurable goals that have been written down and communicated make performance evaluation much easier and fair.

4. SOPs not only ease the journey of scaling up your business smoother but are also a mandatory for success when you are trying to grow. 

In order to create SOPs, you need to decide and describe the following –

  1. Function
  2. Objective of the function, preferably as a clear and measurable goal
  3. Steps in the actual process of performing that function
  4. Personnel responsible for completing and evaluating / approving each step

Given the current pandemic and the economic crisis that it has brought upon our economies, we cannot close this topic without taking a look at the potential benefits of SOPs in this scenario.

The current predicament is truly unprecedented. In order to stay afloat, nations, brands and businesses have to adapt to a changed world at lightning speed. Available time and resources have to be utilised, modified and re-aligned like never before. New standards of collaboration have to be set and achieved. 

We are all busy drawing up plans to survive and bounce back. At a time like the present, the significance of clear and timely communication cannot be over-emphasised. We can make the most brilliant plans, but, for those who are unable to share those plans with their teams and partners in an organised manner, the odds won’t be in favour of their success. 

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by : Aditi Vohra Business, Entrepreneurship, Leadership

Lessons in Leadership: Perseverance – The Most Important Trait in a Leader

I have always believed that leadership is all about showing the way through walking the talk. It is the most effective method of inspiring and motivating others.

In the light of our ongoing struggle to keep our lives and livelihoods during this pandemic, to do this, a leader must possess certain specific traits. These are – intelligence, courage, resourcefulness and above all, perseverance.

Pick yourself and dust yourself up EVERY time you fall and INSPIRE others to do the same. If the leader is down and out, hopelessness shall spread faster than a wildfire. Similarly, when people feel they are running out of options, sometimes, all they need to stop themselves from giving up is someone who can see the light at the end of the tunnel. 

Leading during the current time is akin to surviving and winning in a game where your goal and the setting changes every minute. There is a shroud of uncertainty unlike any other. We don’t have the answers yet. We are all challenged by the unknown.

However, often, exceptional leadership is demonstrated during these situations. These are the times that act as catalyst to bring out the best in those who were born to shine. Chasing difficult goals and not quitting are the hallmark of such stars. If you can prove your mettle now and bounce back, you truly are a rare breed; one in a million and meant for great things. 

More importantly, your endurance and resilience may be the  sole thread holding those who look upto you together.

Humans are social animals by definition and change-averse by default. We may have all the technology that we need to adjust and adapt to the #newnormal but we need something more to be able to actually use the resources at our disposal. 

So, how do leaders pick up the pieces everyday and start afresh every morning, while inspiring others to do the same. It is a tall order. Yes, it is. However, this is what separates the ordinary from the extra-ordinary.

Some of my tips that I have found to be effective while trying to tide over until times change and I’m no longer feeling bogged down are – 

  1. Know your priorities. Then, Define them. If your people are your priority, let them know. Further, design your KPIs and tasks to reflect the same goal. e.g. during the current pandemic and nationwide lockdown, we have changed our KPIs to achieve new goals – a. Re-skilling our teams, b.Focusing on mental health through constant engagement and communication c. planning and training for a bounce back.  
  2. #Celebrate your NEW wins. Reward and Recognise. Build Confidence. This is the only way to completely re-orient your own thinking and re-align your teams to do so as well. E.g. if your goal has changed from revenue to re-skilling, are you rewarding those who are able to excel at their new “targets”?
  3. Bring back #MondayBlues. WHAT? I mean, use  your Mondays well. Make sure people have a routine, a new routine for their Mondays, hopefully something you can all do together, even if it is a 30 minutes catch-up session with everyone.
  4. Communicate. There can’t be any confidence building in isolation, and I don’t mean physical isolation. #SocialDistancing is ONLY physical distancing. It is still possible to stay connected, thanks to the Zooms and Teams of the world. Read more here – Whatever doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger – Boosting Employee Morale During a Crisis

Stay Safe, Keep Inspiring.

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by : Aditi Vohra Entrepreneurship, Leadership

Whatever Doesn’t Kill You Makes You Stronger – Boosting Employee Morale During a Crisis

This is a pandemic. This is also the onset of a global recession.

This doom and gloom scenario is accompanied by all-time low employee morale (no surprises there!).

I started my Monday morning with a conference call with the sole agenda of re-assuring my core team that we were all in this together and that we will survive, Even though we don’t know exactly how things will pan out, we know that this too shall pass. That taking care of ourselves and our loved ones is the highest priority at this point.

When employers are thinking about the survival of the business, employees are also thinking about survival. It is easy to forget/ignore this simple fact, especially when we are faced with an unprecedented global crisis!

Keep the channels of communication open. Let your teams know that you may not have all the answers yet but you are trying to do right by the business and all stakeholders, including employees. Let them be a part of the process. Boosting employee morale is not an after-thought; it must be a part of the survival plan. I’m creating my schedule for the next 3 weeks in such a way that I have at least one video call with a minimum of one of my teams every single day, starting now. (Context – our revenue is zero these days as all malls are shut and there is no new merchandise flowing in)

A wonderful thing that is happening right now is that a lot of companies are trying out virtual team-building exercises. These initiatives are also targeted at creating opportunities for employees to unwind and take a breather in this high-stress scenario.

We can take this one step ahead and use the time for imparting skill-building training to staff.

BTW, my team is having cocktails on Friday night and jam to the tunes of our sorrows and joys. Are you joining in? 

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by : Aditi Vohra Entrepreneurship, Leadership

Crisis Management for MSMEs

I was watching the documentary Pandemic on Netflix and realised that although healthcare workers had expected an outbreak like COVID-19, businesses weren’t as prepared to deal with this crisis.

The current pandemic has challenged us all in different ways but these strange and challenging times are extra tough on medium and small businesses. A few reasons or specific challenges, mostly pertaining to limited resources, behind this are –

  1. Heavy dependence on limited workforce
  2. Low automation
  3. Minimal working capital
  4. Low or no cash reserves

Add to this the cut-down in discretionary spending and an almost certain global recession. Making money is going to get tougher. Consumer sentiment is low, markets around the world have crashed so this is not unexpected.

I had recently read that Amazon has cut orders for non-essential goods and won’t be stocking those the way it used to. (And this is one of those companies that are likely to benefit the most from self-quarantine and the on-going lockdowns.)

Let us look at Social Distancing. It is a wonderful concept and clearly the need of the hour. However, for a medium or small business owner, this is a nightmare. Consider point 1 above – often employees are required to multitask and having even one person MIA can shake the entire system. These are practical concerns for at least 95% small businesses.

One of the things I had mentioned in my post on the current Work-from-trend last week was the will of the employees to make the WFH system successful and being self-disciplined. You can read more about it here – Myth – You can work from home and still be productive. This post was from an employee’s perspective however, this time we are exploring the employer or business owner’s woes.

Some of the industries that are likely to be hit the worst are –

  1. Travel and Tourism (hello, travel bans from governments and corporates = hit on leisure + business travel)
  2. Fashion (times are tough, you only want to spend on what is absolutely necessary a.k.a. save on that new bag, hoard groceries, medicines etc.); there is still an opportunity for online sales, both mono-brand websites/apps and marketplaces
  3. Education, Fitness, Restaurants, Cinema – though e-versions of these can still prosper if the offering is well thought through and serves the needs of the right audience

Keeping all of the above in mind, below are my recommendations/things that I have found to be helpful while trying to navigate economic storms –

  1. For any self-managed system to be productive, we need some seriously lucrative rewards and a strong desire to earn those rewards. This needs to be combined with a severe penalty system as well; High gains and Severe pains.
  2. Communication is key. Managers need to be in constant communication with their teams to ensure priorities are well-defined and expectations clear.
  3. Controlling costs is most important. All expenses related to marketing campaigns should be reviewed and scrutinised. Multiple organisations have put travel on hold, a judicious decision not just from a medical perspective but from an economic one as well. Just like budging for your household, you need to budget for your business and when resources are limited and income is reduced, you need to reduce the flab. Cut unnecessary expenses, review the smallest amounts and look for opportunities for saving money. Question yourself, can we survive without certain expenses that have become luxuries in tough times? The additional telephone or internet connections, local travel expenses, etc. etc. In situations like the current COVID-19 pandemic, businesses come under pressure. This is the time when you need to re-negotiate costs and payment terms with your suppliers, re-look at rental agreements, any other payments like royalties etc. Cash-flows are strained at all levels of the supply chain, it is of utmost importance to save as much cash as possible. 
  4. Further to point C, employee costs also become an area of concern during times of crisis. Lay-offs and pink slips are quick to jump to mind when you think of employee costs. The recession of 2008 was marked by this in a big way. This time, however, employers in are aggressively looking at alternatives to this. One trend is that of unpaid leaves for employees. Also, voluntary salary cuts for senior management are coming to the fore. These trends are definitely positive signs for the economy, from a long term perspective. The current pandemic and the global recession shall have lasting effects and one thing is for sure, businesses that survive shall become lean and more efficient.

Happy reading, Stay safe.

 

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by : Aditi Vohra Business, Leadership

Lessons in Leadership: Role of Empathy

I have an employee, for the sake of maintaining confidentiality, I shall refer to her as Ms. Rita here. Rita is a highly appreciated sales manager and consistently delivers on her targets. She drives her team to perform and is also quite adept at selling herself. Her admirable qualities include high self-motivation that keeps her energetic and enthusiastic on the floor. 

What may you ask is the problem then? 

Rita is responsible for managing a team of eight. In the last one and a half years that we have been working together, I have received multiple complaints regarding Rita’s rude behavior with her team.

The combination of being performance-oriented and short-tempered makes her a difficult boss and someone who is constantly hard on her team. Although she also makes it a point to reward her top performers on a regular basis, her team has the highest level of dissatisfaction in the business and we have had to swap them with staff from other teams numerous times. 

The level of dissent against Rita is so high that her team members often tend to back-answer and misbehave with her. These instances obviously put a lot of pressure on her as well as on her position as a leader is challenged regularly.

Sales profiles usually come with some pressures and managed stress is also good for driving performance. However, Rita comes across as a person who completely lacks empathy towards her team.

The failure to elicit loyalty has also led to her failure to develop a strong second-in-charge. This is also an impediment to Rita’s promotion. Most other staff are against working with her and she doesn’t have a strong contender to fill her shoes either. 

It is a well-known fact that empathy is a core leadership skill. Further, the issues mentioned above are common in teams where the leader fails to understand the feelings and aspirations of her team. 

I want to share this case here so all young leaders can remind themselves that soft skills matter as much (and sometimes more) than simply meeting key business goals. Also, if you want to grow as a leader, you need to develop other leaders and position them for success. 

So, what can be done to learn to empathize with others?

Empathy is a natural trait and as such its degree varies from human to human and situation to situation. If you are naturally empathic, however, your mental state is stressed or you are suffering from a physical ailment, you’ll find it difficult to empathize with others. 

The silver lining is that we have the capability to condition our minds to think first and then act (or speak) instead of dismissing another person’s idea or feelings. 

Your success is measured through the success of your followers. This is the only way in which you can elevate yourself from a “MANAGER” to a “LEADER”. 

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by : Aditi Vohra Business, Business Trends

Myth – You can work from home and still be productive

Businesses are evolving, employees are changing and employers are changing as well. As we see a start-up culture picking up pace globally, we are also seeing more and more people with mobile offices, i.e. phone and a laptop.

With WHO declaring the Coronavirus pandemic, we have a global crisis at hand.

From an economic and business vantage point, a recession seems impending.

The efforts to contain (prevent) the spread of the disease by organizations and governments and parallel efforts to cut costs by employers have led to more and more people working from home.

Personally, I have been working from home for a few months now (as a new mother who also has a business to run, maternity leave and a 6-month break were never really options).

So, how can you be effective (productive) while working from home? or can you be productive while working from home?

The answer is YES.

But, like everything worth its salt, this is not easy.

Below are some of the tips that I swear by when it comes to making the most of my time when working remotely –

A. Self-Discipline is key. Having a proper routine and sticking to it every single day is extremely crucial and for me, this is what can make or break you when you are trying to make WFM successful.

While different things work for different individuals, a morning routine involving getting up at the same time every day, showering, dressing up, putting on some make-up, having a good breakfast etc., is almost compulsory for a productive day. This also allows me to slot family time and “me time” in the morning and evening.

Since WFH allows for increased flexibility so, you need not stick to a 9 to 6 work-day schedule. It can be 11 to 8 or 12 to 9 or 6 to 3pm as well, allowing you to best utilize those times of the day (or night) when you are highly alert and hence, most productive.

Also, I find it extremely helpful to plan my day or review the plan for the day first thing in the morning. While you plan your day, ensure that you schedule sufficient no. of breaks as well.

B. Minimize distractions. When you are at home, especially with a new baby (as in my case), distractions are everywhere. I have found having a desk and setting work hours to be very helpful to stay focused. I ensured that I have a proper desk/workspace to use and do not use my dining table or worse still, my bed.

Further, make sure you communicate your work timings to your family as well so they are aware that you are working. It is very important to separate work timings and personal timings. In my case, 9:30 am to 7 pm are working hours and I spend most of that time at my desk. 

C. Be mindful of distractions. Social media (youtube, Facebook, Instagram)  hours need to be limited. Strictly. The same goes for online shopping and Netflix.

Basically, you need to follow your work-place etiquette. Ensure that you are not spending time on anything that would keep you from achieving your goal(s) for the day.

D. Account for the time you have saved, aka, commute time, and allocate it for something that would hone your skills or help acquire a new skill altogether. Spending quality time with my son, working on my blog to post more often and learning photoshop are the goals that I have set for myself.

You can be as productive as you REALLY wish to be. Most barriers/distractions can be controlled or managed. Moreover, with organizations evolving to accommodate a “new” workforce that is more and more mobile, your only limitation is your ability to work hard. If you are able to take initiative, opportunities are aplenty.

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by : Aditi Vohra Book Reviews

The Subtle Art of Not Giving A Fuck

In the words of author Mark Manson, this book is counterintuitive.

The book shares a crisp view of life and while not everything that the author shares are ground-breaking or new, it certainly is presented in a new and more age(digital)-relevant manner.

This is possible one of the reasons a lot of millennials and gen-z should find the content relatable. 

What does NOT GIVING A FUCK mean? One of the first and most important lessons that the author talks about is that not giving a fuck is not the same as not caring at all. In fact, it means actually caring by way of choosing what to care about and what to ignore. We have all heard the age-old anecdote – Trying to make everyone happy would lead to making no one happy.  You need to pick your battles. This is exactly what the author is saying as well. When you care about everything or even when you pretend to not care about anything at all, you actually care a lot about everything. 

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by : Aditi Vohra Business, Entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship 101: What is stopping you from taking the plunge

I have struggled with this for a long time, seriously long time! The answer was always simple, it is fear!

For the longest time, one of the biggest things that kept me from going on my own was the innate fear that made me think about failure even before I had even started.  Over a period of time, I realized that I’m not the only one who suffered from this dreaded “disease”.

Articulating this widespread fear isn’t the most difficult thing though. It can be-

  • Fear of Failure– One of the biggest reasons that hold potential entrepreneurs back is the fear of failing. Honestly, how many of you have asked yourself these questions on a regular basis – What if I failed? What if I cannot achieve what I plan to achieve? I know I have! In fact, this question won’t ever leave you, even when you have achieved way more than what you originally set out to. Read more here – Entrepreneurship 101: Stop feeling like you are a “FAILURE”
  • Fear of Inadequacy- For aspiring entrepreneurs, the fear of inadequacy isn’t just about their capability but also about resources, e.g. feeling that you don’t have enough capital, the right software or equipment, the required skills etc. etc. I had once heard a very successful first-generation retail entrepreneur mention that Capital is never the limitation, only vision is. This is an absolute truth. We are only limited by our imagination and nothing else. Age-old anecdotes like where there is a will, there is a way, really are true! I truly believe that the biggest reason different people achieve different levels of success in the same amount of time is that they believed that they could only achieve what they achieved. Not more, not less.
  • Fear of Judgement- This is related to point no.2, we humans not only judge ourselves all the time but also care way too much about the opinions of others. Most of the time, these are people that we don’t actually care about otherwise and yet, we end up giving hell of a lot about how they perceive us. Unfortunately, this happens in every aspect of life, not just with bold career choices. In India, there is a story that we were told as kids that I find relevant here. In short, a merchant and his son went to the market with their merchandise loaded on the back of their donkey. passers-by commented that they were torturing the donkey by putting all their load on his back so they removed the goods and started carrying the goods by themselves. Then, people started laughing at them and saying that they were fools to carry all the load and not utilize their donkey. In the end, they understood that others are going to say something harsh and judge them no matter what so they may as well use their resource to their convenience. Simply put, we really need to figure out what works best for your situation instead of letting the opinions of others decide the course of your life.
  • Fear of Losing Security-As I’m growing older, I’ realizing that the sooner you take the plunge, the better (easier) it is. The simple reason for that is that age makes you extremely scared about losing the security that comes with a limited but steady income. We become afraid of being unable to fulfill our responsibilities and end up living a mediocre life, full of discontentment. However, if you are not living up to your potential, you’ll never be fully satisfied with your life. One judicious way of overcoming this hurdle, adopted by many entrepreneurs, is to start a hustle on the side and keep your safety net till your business attains scale and becomes a true revenue generation medium for you (or achieves the goal that you had set for it).

In the end, if any of my readers could relate with even one of the above-mentioned points, I would urge them to simply STOP PROCRASTINATING AND START ACTING. Failure is the greatest teacher in this world, I failed at setting up my business at 26 but I learnt everything about what not to do when you start your own venture. Contrary to my expectations, this experience gave me confidence that I can be extremely successful and is one of my biggest assets now that I have decided to become an entrepreneur again.

I will share my journey and my learnings in future posts but for now, as Nike says JUST DO IT!

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