What could the Military Wives Choir and Business Have in Common?

The answer to “What could they have in common…” is easy : Leadership, Engagement, Teamwork, Outstanding Performance and Sustainability … and you don’t even need to sing!

What do they have in common? Well that all depends…

The Background

Imagine the hustle and bustle of a military garrison prior to deployment to one of the most dangerous environments in the world; Helmand Province, Afghanistan where UK troops are part of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) tasked with providing support to the Afghan Government in its fight against insurgents. The reality of that commitment meant that British service men and women were being killed and seriously injured during every 6-month tour of deployment.

Left back home to keep “business as usual” are the wives and partners of those deployed. They knew that some of them would more than likely lose their partners or have to deal with them if they suffered a life changing injury. The bleakness of the coming months, living with constant fear of the knock on the door bringing bad news, yet having to live a normal life for the sake of the children. The strain is immense.

The choirmaster

Then onto the scene comes Gareth Malone, choirmaster. A slightly built man when compared with the robust build of the Royal Marine Commandos’ he now found himself amongst, yet with an energy that belies his statue.

Now Gareth had come to prominence with his BBC programme “The Choir”. He felt that the success from that could be replicated and took on the challenge to work with the wives and partners of the marines who were about to be deployed from the Royal Marine Base Chivenor. He was so driven he reached out and also included the ladies from the Plymouth base.

And his feelings proved right! This outstanding success culminating in the Military Wives Choir performing at the Remembrance Service held at the Royal Albert Hall where they bought the nation to tears with the song, ‘Wherever You Are’. A song written specially for them from extracts of correspondence between the choir and their spouses in Afghanistan.

The Challenge

Gareth’s passion for music and singing undoubtedly helped those wives and partners through their difficult time and beyond. He is undoubtedly flamboyant, expressive and sensitive. He is thoughtful and highly aware of the needs of others, and with a strong belief that singing bonds people, he entered Chivenor to meet the wives and partners. He gently explained to them his purpose of building a choir and his enthusiasm gradually overcome the ‘I can’t sing’ attitude of those present. He persuaded some to try singing in front of the group that for many was terrifying, yet they did it. He identified some of those ladies for his new choir. Others joined in later either from his charismatic presence or the noise and excitement generated by the regular choir rehearsals.

He led them gently from starting with songs they knew into a more challenging repertoire. He got the choir to sing in front of their partners, in a local shopping mall and at Sandhurst Military Academy. Confidence grew, they made mistakes and they persevered. At times they felt they could not do it yet with gentle encouragement from Gareth both as a group and at times as individuals they have became a national treasure and there are now about 24 military wives choirs from bases all over the country.

During a recent BBC programme Gareth said,

“It’s the biggest thing these ladies have ever done.”

So how was it achieved?

Could businesses use a similar approach to improve their products or service? (With the singing bit, replaced by the business purpose)

First – what did he actually do? Leadership & Engagement

Gareth’s passion, in this case for music and singing, is his personal driver. His belief that singing is beneficial to everyone, it brings people together and that we can all sing, albeit some better than others, sits behind a ‘can do’ attitude. With the Military Wives he had a very clear purpose, namely to give them something they could all do whilst at a low ebb that would benefit them individually, collectively and make their spouses feel very proud of them.

Next, he had to share that purpose, to give them a reason to take part and to give them a clear direction. He achieved this through his personal driver that inspired the wives into realising that through practice and perseverance not only could they sing but also that their singing would improve. He involved them by asking them questions, giving them choices so that they became engaged. They took on personal responsibility, which meant that not only did they practice, but also turned up for practice on time, even though on some occasions it was with their children. They practised individually and collectively and when required, Gareth provided that additional support needed at the time, together with praise for their effort.

Ultimately, not only did he empower them, he became an intricate part of the team that led to them all producing the song ‘Wherever you are’. A song that was made up of personal statements the wives and partners shared with their loved ones so that it had a huge emotional aspect that Gareth entwined into the finished song.

The moment the soloist sung the first line of the song at the Royal Albert Hall in November 2011 the nation knew that the Military Wives Choir had excelled all expectations. The choir sung with an emotional clarity that ebbed and flowed in perfect harmony and as the last note sounded, left the nation in tears.

How does Gareth’s approach compare with many businesses today?

Unfortunately, it doesn’t as much as it should. We could use another BBC programme as an example – The Apprentice. We all know it’s for our entertainment and accept that we only see a snapshot of what really takes place.

However, imagine businesses where the staff are constantly verbally abused and threatened continually with being fired, where every member of the team is only out to feather their own nest and will do anything to put down their colleagues. Where most candidates appear to be deluded about their own abilities and what drives them is selfishness. Know any that fit that description?

Unfortunately, many of these features do still exist in organisations today. Command and control is still present in many businesses and positional power often dominates. Control is further extended through the use of systems and processes that cause people to conform to them instead of working within the real and dynamic context that the business is in.

Imagine a competency profiling process that prevents people joining a choir until they have reached a standard set within the system. This is a complete antipathy to inspiring people to use their own natural abilities, all unique, to the best of that ability so that they become self-motived and take on personal responsibility.

The impact of over controlling is an uninspired and disengaged workforce and according to the Gallup survey of 2013, 83% of people at work in the UK fall into this disengaged group. It’s 87% globally!

How can we replicate Gareth’s approach in business?

What you need to do is simple, but it may be difficult for you to do it.

Stop or reduce those personal behaviours together with those systems and processes that demand compliance and conformity unless they add value directly or indirectly to the business. Such controlling behaviours or systems are wasteful and costly in terms of time, effort and money and reduce or destroy personal commitment.

They create organisations where people function, do not think and are often treated by leaders as zombies. People lose their sense of purpose and develop ‘Can’t Do’ and ‘Won’t Do’ attitudes resulting in avoidance or blocking behaviours. None of this was or is in Gareth’s world.

Over-emphasis on systems and processes generates and supports rigid behaviours that focus on stabilisation rather than enables people to operate in the dynamic and often uncertain complexity of the real world.

We describe “Behavioural Waste”as

involving all forms of behaviour that can be usefully removed or reduced, which prevent us from achieving our purpose and which reduce our effectiveness or the effectiveness of other people.

Organisations need to replace this rigidity with Growth Behaviours that are the result of a ‘Can Do’ attitude that enables a person to operate in an increasingly complex and highly demanding world; to deliver the purpose of the organisation by translating context reality into creative and different solutions, and practical actions.

Gareth’s leadership inspires, engages and empowers. Under his leadership the performance was outstanding, more choirs have been created and it is sustainable.

What difference would it make if organisations and its leaders created a culture that operates this way?

Is it like that where you work?

There is always a choice, and as always it’s yours.

To find out more about how it can work for you email growth@mindfitltd.com

Sources:

Mindset – Carol Dweek
Self-efficacy – Albert Bandura
Flow – Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Learned Helplessness – Martin Seligman
Mind Fit for Success – Graham Williams

A Leadership & Engagement article

Attitude is Everything – New Self Assessment App

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I’ve made up My Mind – Don’t confuse Me with the Facts

Decision Making or Delusional

We all like to believe we make decisions with the best knowledge available and that we are good decision makers. But we also make decisions based on experience, gut feel, or instinct. But do we know they are the best decisions?

“I had asked the audience if any of them were bad drivers. The answer was – no. I asked them if they had made any small driving errors whilst coming to the event. The answer was – no. I asked them if they had noticed other drivers making errors. The answer was – oh yes!”

Are they delusional?

The Reality

What makes us deny to ourselves the reality of a situation? We all make minor misjudgements whilst driving such as coming up to a junction too fast, breaking hard just before the speed trap, driving too close to the vehicle in front or being distracted whilst using a mobile phone. If challenged we get very defensive and we create an internal narrative to ourself that justifies what we did and how totally in control we are.

Isn’t this nonsense?

And it can easily lead to people behaving in an aggressive manner. If we were focused on what we were doing we wouldn’t make basic mistakes. In fact if really focused we would actually keep improving as that is how people get good at things in sport or leadership or personal performance at work.

Any facts?

In the 1950s two USA Ivy League University football teams competed in a gruelling game which resulted in research being conducted into how opposing fans saw the game, particularly in relation to their opponents “blatantly unsportsmanlike play”.

The fans were able to wax lyrical as to what the opposition team’s players did, which included infringements of the rules and severe fouls whilst their team were portrayed as victims. The research however showed that neither team were innocent and the number of infringements was about the same. The fans however did not believe it. This deluded view is probably mirrored every week on sports terraces throughout the world and probably why statistics have become such a feature in analysing any game.

Just another Gap

We ignore the reality, including our own misdemeanours, and loath being challenged which is why people tend to get very aggressive, verbally or physically.

You see most of us we make sense of our lives through narratives of what we see and experience. We tell internal stories to justify our behaviours or decisions. We assume we are intelligent or bright, capable and rational. We believe we are in control albeit at times we may have doubts about our abilities and may be cynical about other people or events; yet we believe we are the masters of our own destiny. Are we just deluding ourselves?

Delusional

Most of us associate being delusional with people suffering from psychological disorders such as schizophrenia, dementia and bipolar disorder or caused by traumatic brain injury. However, delusional is defined as

a belief held with strong conviction despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary.

Self-delusional

is allowing ourself to believe something as true when it is not. So it may be more common than we think.

Delusional? Test it for yourself. How often do we delude ourself? Daily?

How many times in a day do we just accept information in a newspaper, on TV or gossip from people as being true?
How often do we think about the source of information and seek out evidence to confirm or not the ‘facts’?
How much time do we waste pursuing processes, systems and methods that absorb time, effort and money, which are wasteful?
What stops us doing a reality check to discover what is really going on?
Why do we procrastinate so much by putting in time and effort to avoid or block things that should and needs doing?
How do we justify it to others and ourself?

Organisations are full of people who fail to check out how effective or efficient they are yet who have an inflated opinion of themselves. They believe they are right, only they can make decisions, who see fault in others who they often blame and are often dismissive of those around them. They are blind to the reality and if given an opportunity to discover how they really behave and perform, perhaps through a 360-degree appraisal, they are often reluctant to take part as it may divulge a truth they do not want to discover. Fear of the truth is too scary.

Deluded or Delusional

Lord Sugar of “The Apprentice” fame often describes candidates in the programme as “being deluded”. When we get to the finals and get to hear the CVs of the successful few, we finally get to know what he’s known from the start!

Yet one of the biggest forms of collective delusional minds surely has to relate to Learning and Development (L&D). Topics such as leadership, personal performance, team working, cultural change, conflict resolution, motivation and empowerment have been the subject of intense input from L&D professionals for decades yet the reality is these topics remain major issue for organisations.

The reality is that the transfer of knowledge into different and sustainable workplace activities is poor. If knowledge input had worked these problems would not persist or as according to Gallup in 2013, some 83% of the workforce in the UK would not be disengaged. Globally it’s worse at 87% disengaged! So why not look at the evidence for the poor transfer of knowledge back into the workplace.

The flawed assumption

In 1975 Donald Kirkpatrick introduced his four levels for training evaluation.

Reaction – what participants thought and felt about the training.
Learning – the resulting increase in knowledge and/or skills, and change in attitudes.
Behaviour – transfer of knowledge, skills, and/or attitudes from classroom to the job.
Results – the final results that occurred because of attendance and participation in a training program.

What transpired is the assumption by training professionals that level 1 (reaction) led to level 2 (learning – new knowledge), which in turn led to level 3 (behavioural change) which ultimately led to level 4 (results in the work environment). This assumed each succeeding level is more informative and connected to its predecessors, as shown in the “Knowing–Doing” continuum below. Therefore, knowledge provided causes learning which can be tested. Learning causes changes in attitudes and behaviours, which results in the learner applying new knowledge in the workplace. The outcome for example, being improved performance, customer service or leadership.

Figure 1: From Knowing to Doing

Unfortunately, and largely ignored by a majority of learning professionals is the proven gap between the act or process of consuming learning in the form of knowledge and the performance of observable behavioural change.

So How Useful is the Kirkpatrick Model?

Firstly, it is important to understand what type of learning we are referring too. Technical training has a high level of transfer back into the workplace subject to the individual being given the opportunity to use it within a working context. However, it is in the area of what is described as “soft” skills including topics such as team working, leadership, engagement, change, performance management and stress where the real problem lies.

There are several key sources documenting the poor transfer of soft skills, research and practitioner observations.

Alliger & Janak (1986)– found a poor correlation between the four levels of Kirkpatrick. One level is not linked to the next and each is a separate entity.
Detterman & Steinberg (1993)– in their review of transferable training found 86% of people fail to action training.
Pfeffer & Sutton (2013)- reiterated the enigma and continued existence of the Knowing-Doing training gap.
Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick (2005)– acknowledged the need to examine the reasons for the “devastating disconnect between learning and behaviour”.
Bramley (2003)– comment on the supporting evidence for any transfer of learning into behavioural change being no better than due to random chance.

With Donald Kirkpatrick himself highlighting this major problem it is surprising that the Learning & Development profession have largely chosen to ignore it.

How to make it work

The solution is simple, split the knowledge – doing continuum into two halves. If the need is knowledge then seek that from the appropriate development professional. If attitudes and behaviours need to change to deliver the business imperative, then you need a different kind of professional.

First you have to look and accept the evidence.

We should stress that we completely support knowledge training if it is relevant and useable. Unless traditional L&D professionals and trainers acknowledge the Knowing–Doing gap and abandon their futile dependence upon knowledge input as the solution, organisations will continue to waste time, effort and money on something that has little effect and remain stuck with the continuing problem of poor leadership, underperformance and disengaged people.

Two Continuums

The reality is we are dealing with two continuums. All you need to do is identify which continuum is relevant at a moment in time and use the appropriate professional.

The First Step – get Mind Fit

Stop deluding ourselves by making connections where they don’t exist.

As ever we all have a choice. What’s yours?

Contact Mind Fit for next steps?

Graham Williams – The Mind Fit Journey

Graham Williams – The Mind Fit Journey^™ – where it all started

Graham Williams is “The architect of Mind Fit” and although the Mind Fit Process^™ was born in the late 1990’s its origins lie in a lifetime of doing things through trial and error with a belief that it could be done better. Graham says “like a child when first starting to walk, the challenge is massive, but we all break through the barriers and walk… when we get older we allow our experiences and beliefs to create our own barriers… Mind Fit helps you break through those barriers”

So here is Graham’s journey…

Before Mind Fit was born

In the 1980’s I was head of various technical skills, including driver training, search training with a UK police force, when one morning several furious instructors approached me over an article in a national paper that was highly critical on the technical aspect of police driver training, not the safety aspect. It transpired that Sir John Whitmore, a former racing driver, had written the article. I read it and thought it contained a lot of truths and he made several valid points. I wanted to know more so I contacted him.

The outcome was that I met Sir John at Bisham Abbey, a National Sports Centre, where I was introduced to a team of performance coaches including David Hemery, a gold medal Olympic Hurdler and David Whitaker, an Olympic coach who had worked with the GB team which won a gold medal for hockey in the Seoul Olympics. Later I was also lucky to be involved with Tim Gallwey of “inner game” fame.

I participated in their approach to coaching, which was extremely enlightening.

I took their approach back into my police job, which later led to police services not only offering a more flexible approach to driving, but also to leadership in the police force.

Joining John Whitmore’s Coaching Team

I retired from the police in the mid 1990’s, and entered the world of consultancy. I was developed as a performance coach and in due course worked with Sir John and the team delivering coaching mostly to blue chip companies. The team held regular meetings and during one of these Sir John expressed concern that coaching was not having the impact it should. I’m a curious individual so I volunteered with one other coach to explore what was going on. Because we had access to a wide database, we were able to interview a large number of people who had undergone coaching. We initially looked into three major private companies from manufacturing, a high street bank and an airline.

Why did Coaching fall short?

The result found that the majority of participants:

thought coaching was far better than training

it made sense

they had learnt how to deliver what was required and had a plan

All of this initially sounded promising until it transpired that most felt they were too busy to do anything different and they did not have time to implement their agreed actions.

So although the coaching had been successful to a point it was failing to translate into:

behavioural change

tangible and measureable results

return-on-investment for the organisation

Not surprising then that Sir John questioned the very core purpose of coaching – unlocking people’s potential to increase performance. Later, I was able to confirm the same findings when we performed similar reviews in the public sector. Most people learnt but few took action and hence didn’t deliver improved results.

This discovery was the very start of a 16-year journey of research and application that is still ongoing today.

Mind Fit – the birth

It was apparent that although we are all complex individuals, a majority of people at work follow set patterns of behaviours:

two negative

one positive

These patterns fall broadly into line with later research by many but particularly by Gallup on “engagement at work”. Their latest survey in 2013 put 83% of people in the UK in the disengaged category, which is where underperformance, poor leadership, conflict, and large amounts of wasted time, effort and money takes place. Some of the disengaged were passive and would do the job but with little enthusiasm, whilst some were actively disengaged and avoided or blocked any initiative to improve behaviours and performance.

Today, these three patterns of attitudes and behaviours can be found on the Mind Fit Map^®. One negative state represents ‘Can’t do’ or helpless people who are easily overwhelmed and ignore or avoid, consciously or unconsciously, doing tasks where they can. Dr Martin Seligman, who today is one of the leading lights in the world of positive psychology term this groups behaviour as stemming from “Learned Helplessness^®”. The interesting part of that term is that his research, carried out over several years deemed it “Learned” behaviour and he suggested at the time it could be “Un-Learned”. Today our programmes demonstrate that is indeed the case. The other negative state is “Learned Defensiveness^®“ or ‘Won’t do’ defensive people who tend to over control and block anything, which is new or does not benefit them.

Both negative attitudes and behaviours lead to a lot of wasted time, effort and money. Collectively we call this ‘Behavioural Waste^™’ and have found that up to 50% of people-time at work does not focus on what is business essential and instead are involved in activities, that are unproductive and lead nowhere, many of which have become engrained in the culture and stubbornly resistant to change. Some activities consume a large amount of time and energy and can often be found in systems or processes.

The one positive group are ‘Can do’ people (Learned Powerfulness®) who have a sense of who they are, have a clear purpose and are driven to be successful in whatever they do. Such people demonstrate growth behaviours and consistently seek to improve performance whatever their context – business, education, sport or life. However, because they are a minority group they are continually thwarted by negative people. Many of these negative people may well believe that they are doing a good job but never check if it works.

I tried a variety of approaches to move ‘Can’t and Won’t do’ people to become ‘Can do’ and discovered that the key for success for people and organisations is to work with attitudes and behaviours first. This may sound a major task because it is about people changing. However, over time the key components of the Mind Fit Process^™ has evolved, been simplified and although we have a wide range of programmes the core and first step is now put into place in one day – Mind Fit Foundation Programme^™ – followed by support as people take action. This greatly improves the return on investment and creates a solid foundation to build upon with more advanced and client specific programmes.

It’s why we call the Mind Fit Foundation Programme^™ as the prequel to training.

Mind Fit Today

We anticipate over 80% positive change in behaviours following our Mind Fit Foundation Programme^™. Compare this with an acknowledged “less than 20% transfer from knowledge training”, which mainly focuses on learning and not behavioural change or tangible results. One of the major problems is that trainers, including many coaches are locked into learning and as Donald Kirkpatrick of ‘evaluation of training’ fame said, “There is a devastating disconnect between learning and behaviours”, which is why soft skills training and a lot of coaching does not have the impact it should.

Of course, once someone is on the Mind Fit Journey^™, we would also expect them to be hungry and absorb any new learning and knowledge they need to fulfil their potential. It’s why we call Mind Fit the ‘prequel to training’ and an organisation can then see a real return on investment.

The Mind Fit Process^™ is at the cutting edge of people development and performance, which is why we have attracted some of the best people around. Our growing team includes a university professor to senior policeman and recruitment specialist through to, oil company boss, triple jump Olympian, golf professional, social and digital media specialist and advertising agency owner and many other specialists. They have two key things in common: they get on famously and they all have winning minds!

Want to take the Mind Fit Challenge?

See the website or email us at growth@mindfitltd.com for more details.

What Two Words To Avoid?

What Two Words to Avoid … when you play golf, business…?

A golfing legend, the great Sam Snead could not resist using the longest word in golf – ‘IF’.

When presenting, Tony Westwood our Mind Fit Golf director is known to often ask

“How many times do we hear the word ‘IF’ being used by golfers about a shot or a putt?”

And he asks it because using or even thinking about the word ‘IF’ in any negative way will become a habit and an excuse for golfers to fail. And who wants to fail?

Use of the word ‘IF’ is not restricted or monopolised by golfers – we hear the ‘IF’ word a lot in all sports and business and mostly as in golf in a very negative way. “If only I’d listened…”, “If you did your job we wouldn’t be in this mess…”, “If only the bank would listen…”, “if we had more time or more people we could…” and many more with the same flavour.

Tony also says

“another word we hear a lot on the golf course is ‘always’. If you always say you do something then you are giving yourself an instruction to gather evidence to prove you always do something.

Be careful what you say as you are always there and always listening.”

Again golf doesn’t have the monopoly on ‘always’ – the well trodden business adage used to be “if you always do what you’ve always done, you always get what you’ve always got” – but as those who survived the recent recession will know that has all changed! But how many have noticed? Now things are improving maybe some have fallen into old habits?

Even though you may not know it, complexity theory is always at work in your world, as the theory states that it’s the smallest of things that can have a big impact. But it doesn’t tell you what the smallest things are. However, what you say, small words like ‘If’ and ‘always’ will determine your attitude and behaviour and that will affect your performance whether positive or negative, it is your choice!

Of course there is a different interpretation of ‘IF’ that’s character building and inspirational, but how many people think that way? It’s not perfect but it’s a step in the right direction, so why not take the choice to do so… and read the following or further down you can listen to it.

If — by RUDYARD KIPLING

If you can keep your head when all about you

Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,

If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,

But make allowance for their doubting too;

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,

Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies,

Or being hated, don’t give way to hating,

And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream—and not make dreams your master;

If you can think—and not make thoughts your aim;

If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster

And treat those two impostors just the same;

If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken

Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,

Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,

And stoop and build ’em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings

And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,

And lose, and start again at your beginnings

And never breathe a word about your loss;

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew

To serve your turn long after they are gone,

And so hold on when there is nothing in you

Except the Will which says to them: ‘Hold on!’

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,

Or walk with Kings—nor lose the common touch,

If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,

If all men count with you, but none too much;

If you can fill the unforgiving minute

With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,

Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,

And—which is more—you’ll be a Man, my son!

Source: A Choice of Kipling’s Verse (1943)

If you prefer to listen here’s a Youtube version with some interesting images.

As ever – it is your choice.

(If you were Mind Fit then you wouldn’t be concerned about using any words …. but most people are Mind UnFit most of the time)

Has your organisation a DRA mindset?

What is a DRA mindset?

It’s being highly aware in different and dynamic contexts; able and ready to take relevant and appropriate action to minimise risk in whatever you are doing – it’s what’s called a Dynamic Risk Assessment mindset.

A DRA mindset is nothing new. It has been common practice where potential loss of life and injuries are a constant threat as in the military or emergency services. The good news is that through focused practice, including some live situations, people can improve their DRA mindset in their context so it has real meaning.

When normally dealing with Risk Assessment through HSE, HR and the like the tendency is to run for the rulebook and find the policy. If a policy doesn’t exist or does not ‘fit’ the situation, the panic is to create it and then tell everyone it exists, ready for the next time something happens. Rulebook evolvement is driven through a series of knee jerk reactions instead of a dynamic mind using a dynamic assessment in different situations.

We all have a DRA mindset

Risk is an everyday occurrence in any business from product or service based industries whether in banking, financial services, manufacturing, construction, retail… in fact anywhere.

Going for a walk, getting on a train or driving a car are common risks that individually we take for granted and yet mostly these trips are undertaken safely. So what is it that changes when it comes to other daily issues where a DRA mindset is required?

Here’s an extract from an experienced professional in Construction Design and Management Regulations (CDM)

Working people struggle to get their heads around all the plethora of policy, procedure and protocol in their working environment; worrying about whether they have ticked some box, read some instruction, may have missed some instruction … what, in simple terms, can be regarded as a ‘procedural overload’.

The overload can actually divert and turn some away from the true focus of what they should be doing and thinking about to keep both themselves and those around them safe from harm. Over worrying of risk-averse situations, ‘real safety’ appreciation (not simply the ‘paper-chase’ of safety!) is diminished considerably.

… then let’s consider DYNAMIC RISK ASSESSMENT …

In its simplest form a Dynamic Risk Assessment is done by all of us many times a day without really thinking, for example when driving the car or crossing the road. Providing staff with DRA skills allows them to make informed and practical decisions in the face of rapidly changing or uncertain environments. When applied, employees who use their ability, knowledge, training and experience to make informed risk decisions in situations where standard and often rigid protocols do not fit, then a practical culture of Dynamic Risk Assessment will evolve. This can cross-pollinate those parts of the business where process protocols exist and dominates yet may not work in changing circumstances. DRA is situationally driven rather than procedural driven and is a proven solution.

In its purest form, DRA has been used by the emergency services, such as the police, paramedics and fire and rescue, for many years with split second decisions made in high-risk situations. These are capable people able to operate in the sure and certain understanding they have all the component knowledge, skills and ability – the complete mindset – to manage their work so that their employers and colleagues can rely on their proven qualities.

Dynamic Risk Assessment is an essential component of successful safety management in:

Organisations for client facing staff in front-line services and enforcement officers

Business service organisations where staff have to visit sites with complex or unknown hazards

Highly hazardous workplace such as found in explosive atmospheres around the petro-chemical sector where a wrong decision can have potentially catastrophic fatal consequences.

But the techniques learned can be deployed equally well in customer service environments such as in hospitality and retail where a high level of awareness is critical to a successful and happy customer journey.

Applying a Dynamic Risk Assessment culture will make workplaces much safer.

… a business, where people understand dynamic situations and base risk control actions on information only available at the time, will lead to a culture of better safety management … of course, written policies, procedures and protocols around their working environment set out the cultural aims and objectives. However the application of the detail in those written components requires a situational DRA mindset – and empowered employees is key!

David F Jones FCIOB FASI MRICS M-CDM-C, Chartered Surveyor ~ CDM Consultant & Trainer

Creating a Dynamic Risk Assessment Culture

If you want to develop a Dynamic Risk Assessment culture across your organisation the first step is to change the mindset to accept the concept of what dynamic would mean.

The next step is simple; develop ‘can do’ attitudes and ‘winning minds’.

Of course, you can always take the risk and continue to do what you’re currently doing.

The choice, as ever, is yours.

Find out more email us here

No Clear Purpose? Would you say No?

A colleague and a fellow director of Mind Fit is also a Professor of Innovation and is regularly requested to present on innovation related subjects to variety of institutes, public and private sector organisations.

One such recent request was for a programme to be delivered on Knowledge Management. You might have had similar experiences, but how many would say no?

To read Victor’s story click here: What would you do if theres no clear purpose – say no

Have you noticed the Holes in Your Cheese?

We believe we’re great at judging and assessing other people’s personality and attitude as we know them and know how they operate, which buttons to press and which one’s not to press.

Current research suggests we only have to look at someone to make up our mind if we’re going to like them. We probably know that already as we have all met someone new when networking and sized them up before the first word is uttered.

For those that manage a team, we know who’s good under pressure, the best performers, the ones with the safe pair of hands, the better team players and those that are OK but just functioning, or present but not setting the world alight.

After all, this is your world, your experience, your judgement and all this is filed somewhere in the space in the 5 inches between your ears – commonly referred to as your brain. You’ll have formed a picture or a map of each one. Because you have created it and you’re right of course that picture will probably look like the outside of the cheese above. Smooth with no holes, graining or cracks. A smooth and colourful veneer.

However, when you slice through it, suddenly the picture changes. There are lots of holes, some large, some small, a few cracks and some graining that all remain hidden. If you were to take time and carefully ask each person you will find some frailties and insecurities, the holes, and they’ll probably know they exist, as they are after all only human. But this is your world and your judgement and you know these people so it’s still a smooth, unblemished shiny surface.

Now what about you?

How well do you know yourself? Are you the smooth shiny, unblemished surface – calm under pressure, confident, a team player, good thinker and leader, or have you any holes or gaps you’re patching up, maybe ignoring or don’t even know they exist? All of these will be impacting negatively on your performance and that of your team causing behaviours that are wasteful in terms of time, effort and money – collectively this “behavioural waste” you have actually chosen to ignore. Yes, it’s a choice, your choice.

How about filling the holes in your cheese?

None of us are perfect and we all have holes. They’ve matured over time through your beliefs and experiences and some not worth worrying about but others will stop you performing at your best. Filling your holes may take time, but it’s easier than you might think.

Take the story of Penny

Penny was a middle manager in her company and very vocal during the first day of the workshop programme. She was highly intelligent and had a very broad base of knowledge in a variety of areas. She was always happy to speak out and give her opinion, and was keen to emphasise her intellectual abilities. She had a slight air of ‘knowing it all’ about her.

During the day, we noticed that some of her colleagues didn’t seem to be enjoying her interjections. By the end of the day, people were rolling their eyes whenever she spoke and one even let out a heavy sigh. We tried to start a dialogue within the group and the man admitted that he found Penny’s persistent need to expound on every theory she had read about frustrating and controlling. Penny was visibly upset and came to see us after the day had ended.

Penny told us that she had had a troubled personal life for many years, and had undergone many different types of counselling and therapy in the hope of finding some inner peace. She said that these endeavours hadn’t particularly helped, and in fact had left her more confused than ever, with a head full of facts, figures and theories about personal development. She resented the amount of money she had spent over the years, and wanted to feel that she had some knowledge to contribute. She also told us that academic achievement was highly prized in her family, whereas a more emotional, spontaneous attitude was frowned upon.

We thanked Penny for being so frank, and suggested that perhaps, on the second day, she should be a little freer to just take in what was happening around her, and not be so concerned with playing the ‘expert’ in the group. Part of natural learning is intuitive and we can learn much from simply observing and listening to those around us. Penny took our advice, and the next day she was a much quieter presence. Over the next few weeks, with our support, Penny learned a greater sense of self-awareness and through personal effort succeeded in controlling her urge to intellectually dominate the people around her all the time. We cannot claim to have solved her personal issues, but she was certainly a more popular and trusted figure in the office, which had a direct impact on her happiness and productivity at work.

Penny’s story is not that uncommon, and even though she was trying to file the holes in her cheese, her focus wasn’t on the right issue – her behavioural waste hadn’t been clarified, found or acknowledged and acted upon.

So, how holey is your cheese?

Small holes or large holes don’t matter as both can limit or reduce your performance. Sometimes the small ones can be more damaging. But whatever your answer to the question, we know you can fill the holes permanently, but only if you want to.

It’s always a choice – but only if you believe it. If you don’t believe you have a choice maybe it’s you that needs to start to change your mindset?

If you want to find out how you can fill the holes in your cheese, just contact us.

Board Announcement – New Mind Fit Coach

Mind Fit Ltd announces the appointment of Michelle Griffith Robinson as Mind Fit Coach with effect of July 1st 2014. Neville Gaunt, CEO of Mind Fit Ltd said

As we gear up to launch our new Coaching Division we’re delighted that Michelle has agreed to be a key member of the Mind Fit Team. She has a passion to help people excel and brings an energetic and highly motivated style to help young adults, business people and others outperform their expectations. Michelle will help us to expand into new markets and the global marketplace so we can further demonstrate and our proposition that everyone is talented.

The Mind Fit process evolved in the late 1990s when Graham Williams, the architect of Mind Fit was working with Sir John Whitmore, David Hemery the Olympian and their team. Graham said “Although what we now offer is very different, in other respects by Michelle’s addition to the team, Mind Fit is going back to grass roots!” Michelle said

Throughout my career and as an Olympian a winning mindset has been a pre-requisite to success. Since retiring from athletics in 2006, I have used numerous coaching skills learnt along the way, establishing myself as a well recognised Personal trainer, Motivational speaker and Mentor; presently working as a mentor for The Dame Kelly Holmes Trust, and playing an integral part of getting peoples lives ‘back on track’. With Mind Fit I have found an organisation that can quickly develop and sustain a can do attitude in anyone. I’m delighted to be given the opportunity to play a key part in Mind Fit’s development.

Mind Fit – developing can do people with winning minds.

Editors Notes

Michelle Griffith Robinson – is a former Olympic Triple Jumper who competed for over two decades retiring after the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne in 2006. During her illustrious career she competed in Olympic Games, World and European Championships and was the first woman in the Commonwealth to jump more than 14 metres. Michelle invites everyone to share her motto of “Dream big and don’t be scared to give anything a go.” She is a personal trainer, public speaker, mentor and Mind Fit Coach and Developer.

Mind Fit – developing ‘can do’ attitudes with ‘winning minds’. Mind Fit programmes focus on people and performance, so they can be the best they can be wherever they operate – school, business, sports, social or life.

Contact: – Neville Gaunt 02071 486 187, Neville@mindfitltd.com

Michelle Griffith Robinson, Michelle@mindfitltd.com

Board Announcement – New Joint Venture Agreement Mind Fit and SSI – NeuroTracker

New Joint Venture Agreement

Mind Fit and SSI – NeuroTracker

Mind Fit Ltd announces a Joint Venture agreement with Sports Science Innovations Ltd (SSI) to promote NeuroTracker into the UK market.

The integration of these two technologies provides a very powerful solution to present day training demands in business, sports and education.

What is NeuroTracker?

Put simply it trains your brain to improve on quicker response, focus, attention and awareness.
It is an innovative perceptual cognitive enhancement training system developed by world renowned Neurophysicist Professor Jocelyn Faubert at the University of Montreal. Originally designed to improve those suffering from ADHD and Alzheimers, it now has a wide range of clients from business, professional sports, medical rehab (injuries, concussion, healthy aging), schools, learning centres, universities, hospitals and even the US Armed Forces.
The brain is very malleable and this is known as “Neuroplasticity” (the ability of the brain to adapt to new demands). Neuroplasticity exists throughout the general population and is present in the young and old. NeuroTracker uses unique Neuro-physics methodology to train perceptual-cognitive processes in order to;
• Enhance Focus
• Enhance Attention and Awareness
• Boost decision-making under pressure

Through instant-feedback training and induced Neuroplasticity that NeuroTracker creates within its programs, individuals will be aware of and improve their sustained attention, avoiding lapses and distractions. This will have a direct effect on everyday function, driving business, sports or any other performance.

Graham Williams, Architect and Development Director of Mind Fit said “NeuroTracker is a simple to use product that raises people’s awareness. As any good coach will tell you, raising awareness is a key factor to improving performance and is the basis of Mind Fit’s feedback loop – awareness, control, focus and feedback. The evidence, research and the versatility of NeuroTracker means people anywhere in business, sports and education can all benefit through regular use. It is a great product and provides a compelling combined offer for our customers with a meaningful ROI.”

What the Sports Experts say:
“I think NeuroTracker is a genuine breakthrough. It’s a proven science technology that trains fundamental mental skills with rapid gains, and the results unlock a wealth of new performance data.” Leonard Zaichkowsky, Ph.D. Director of Sports Science, Vancouver Canucks, Canada
“The players felt the impact of training NeuroTracker on their overall performance…an improvement in their concentration, their sensitivity to information in their peripheral vision, and for increased reactivity.” French Federation of Rugby / Stade Toulousain, France
“NeuroTracker led to an improvement in most visual skills, as well as some transference to sports performance, we believe that the training of perceptual-cognitive skills can enhance athletic performance.” The Car Olympic Training Centre Barcelona, Spain
“I have observed elite performers embrace NeuroTracker and experience incomparable improvement in their situational awareness during competition. I believe it provides a training stimulus akin to players being ‘in the zone’. A programme capable of improving any individual’s awareness, cognition, focus, concentration and performance is immediately worthy of anyone’s attention” Peter Friar MSc MCSP, BSc (Hons), HPC, Sports Performance Specialist. UK

Who is using it?

Used by the likes of Manchester United FC, Southampton FC, West Ham FC, Leicester Tigers RUFC in the Sports arena, Anna Freud Centre dealing with ADHD and Anti Social Behaviour, Golden Care in community care projects. Other organisations will soon find out how NeuroTracker can benefit their operation by helping people improve performance.

Tony Tracey MD of SSI said “We’re delighted to be working with Mind Fit as they have a process that is unique. Until now, our focus has been on professionals in all sports however recently we have ventured into ADHD/Anti Social/Community Care and Military areas of interest. Working with Mind Fit will widen our audience and give organisations the opportunity to experience the power of this combined approach. ”

Do you want to know what we can do for your business?

Contact us on the numbers below if you would like more info or book a demonstration – and quote this article to take advantage of the launch offer.

Mind Fit – making common sense, common practice.

Editors Notes

Watch it in action here!

How NeuroTracker works
On a 3D screen you will see 8 stationary yellow balls. 4 change to orange for a few seconds and then change back to yellow. Your task is to track the 4 (that were orange) as they then move and circulate in the 3D immersion for approx 15 seconds and then stop and are then numbered from 1 to 8. At the end you choose the 4 numbered balls you believe were orange and the result is then revealed. If correct the next test speeds up and if incorrect the speed slows down. This is repeated 20 times within one session and 15-20 sessions will establish a base line for the subject being tested.

At first you sit down to start the tests and as you move up the ranking you then perform the tests standing up and then, later on, introduce other skill variables to increase the rate of Neuroplasticity being created . At every level the balls can speed up or slow down so you find your optimum performance level.

In its common form NeuroTracker comes with either a large (or medium sized) plasma 3D TV or head mounted display, dedicated PC plus software programmes, a “Kinect” motion detection system.

It’s aimed at organizations who will buy it as a training package. But if it comes to your organization, whatever your business sector, you will know that it will improve your performance in whatever you are doing.

Company Information
Sports Science Innovations Ltd is a leading distributor and installer of the latest, most technologically advanced sports training devices. It is the UK and Ireland licensed distributor of NeuroTracker.

Mind Fit – develop ‘can do’ attitudes with ‘winning minds’. Mind Fit programmes focus on people and performance, so they can be the best they can be wherever they operate – school, business, sports, social or life.
Graham Williams, joint founder of Mind Fit, was part of a skydiving team and through that worked with performance coaches including David Hemery and Sir John Whitmore in the 1990’s.