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Transcript

8 Ways to Deal With Uncertainty At Work (For You & Your Team) · Enhance.training

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: How well do you deal with uncertainty at work?
• 0:03
  SPEAKER_00: Humans hate uncertainty.
• 0:05
  SPEAKER_00: Our brains are wired to see uncertainty as a threat and push us to take action to survive that threat.
• 0:11
  SPEAKER_00: Research has proven that humans in general would rather experience pain than face uncertainty.
• 0:18
  SPEAKER_00: That is how much our brains want to avoid uncertainty.
• 0:21
  SPEAKER_00: Uncertainty itself is not really the problem.
• 0:24
  SPEAKER_00: Our reactions to uncertainty usually cause ourselves problems we could do without.
• 0:29
  SPEAKER_00: Most of us experience reactions to uncertainty as feelings of anxiety, stress and fear.
• 0:35
  SPEAKER_00: Too much of these emotions too often, and our health is going to start suffering.
• 0:40
  SPEAKER_00: I've worked in and led teams in business situations with high levels of uncertainty.
• 0:45
  SPEAKER_00: For example, in business turnarounds where the business survival was very much at risk, and in businesses growing at over 100% per year.
• 0:53
  SPEAKER_00: I absolutely know the importance of learning to mentally cope with high levels of uncertainty and remain personally productive.
• 1:00
  SPEAKER_00: I'm sharing four ways to deal with uncertainty at work at a personal level and four ways to help your team deal with uncertainty at work.
• 1:09
  SPEAKER_00: The impact of uncertainty on teams is also very detrimental.
• 1:13
  SPEAKER_00: Think about the distraction caused by a group of individuals worrying about the future.
• 1:18
  SPEAKER_00: Reducing uncertainty as much as possible and reducing team members' reaction to uncertainty is vital to keep the team productive and delivering.
• 1:27
  SPEAKER_00: We will start with what to do at a personal level and talk about four ways to deal with uncertainty at work.
• 1:34
  SPEAKER_00: These are the four approaches that I found very useful.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_00: Firstly, accept a level of change and uncertainty.
• 1:41
  SPEAKER_00: Secondly, worry about what you can control and not about what you can't control.
• 1:46
  SPEAKER_00: Third, focus on the present.
• 1:48
  SPEAKER_00: And fourth, create contingencies and action plans.
• 1:52
  SPEAKER_00: Firstly, our work environments are always changing.
• 1:55
  SPEAKER_00: They have to be because the marketplace and your business's competitors are always changing.
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_00: Therefore, any business needs to adapt to these changes to survive and thrive.
• 2:05
  SPEAKER_00: It is when the pace of change at work increases to levels that we're not used to that triggers our personal reactions to uncertainty.
• 2:13
  SPEAKER_00: Work on your self-awareness and in particular work out what you fear or what insecurities are triggered in situations with a lot of change.
• 2:21
  SPEAKER_00: This can really help you manage your anxiety, stress and fear reactions.
• 2:25
  SPEAKER_00: It is like knowing about a hot button.
• 2:28
  SPEAKER_00: When you know someone is pressing it, you can choose how to react.
• 2:32
  SPEAKER_00: If you don't realize you have this hot button, you just react, usually badly.
• 2:37
  SPEAKER_00: Secondly, to deal with uncertainty at work, worry about what you can control and try very hard to let go and not worry about what you can't control.
• 2:46
  SPEAKER_00: This is easy to say and not so easy to do.
• 2:49
  SPEAKER_00: Separate all the areas that you are thinking about and worrying about into what you can directly control, what you influence, and what you have little or no influence or control over.
• 3:00
  SPEAKER_00: Work on what you can control and influence, let go of and stop worrying about everything else.
• 3:06
  SPEAKER_00: Worrying about it will not change the outcome of the situation.
• 3:09
  SPEAKER_00: Stopping worrying about what you can't control will massively help your mental state and your reactions to uncertainty.
• 3:17
  SPEAKER_00: Third, to deal with uncertainty at work, focus on the present.
• 3:21
  SPEAKER_00: Keep yourself in the here and now.
• 3:23
  SPEAKER_00: Focus on what task, activity or project you can work on right now.
• 3:28
  SPEAKER_00: Create a clear-to-do list of tasks and activities that contribute to a good result for you, the team and the business, and then work down that list.
• 3:36
  SPEAKER_00: Try your best not to think about areas of uncertainty.
• 3:40
  SPEAKER_00: Keeping yourself busy with what you can do takes your mind off the future and reduces your negative reactions to uncertainty.
• 3:48
  SPEAKER_00: Fourth, to deal with uncertainty, create contingencies and action plans.
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_00: Ask the what will I do if questions rather than the what if questions.
• 3:59
  SPEAKER_00: This mental change moves you from worrying about what might happen to planning what you will do if certain situations happen.
• 4:07
  SPEAKER_00: Planning your steps and taking those steps if a situation happens is 100% within your control.
• 4:14
  SPEAKER_00: This change reduces your uncertainty and is a very positive step to deal with uncertainty at work.
• 4:20
  SPEAKER_00: These four ways to deal with uncertainty at work will help you personally.
• 4:24
  SPEAKER_00: Next, we're going to talk about how you can help your team cope with high levels of uncertainty, which helps keep the team performance high in periods of uncertainty at work.
• 4:35
  SPEAKER_00: My name is Jess Coles, and if you're new here, Enhanced.training shares people management expertise, resources, and courses teaching you how to build high performing teams.
• 4:45
  SPEAKER_00: Learn more about developing the mindset, behaviours, and skills needed to build high performing teams by visiting Enhanced.training and take a look at the performance improvement our Management Skills Accelerator course offers you and managers in your team.
• 5:00
  SPEAKER_00: So here are four ways to help your team deal with uncertainty at work.
• 5:05
  SPEAKER_00: Your team's performance, motivation and happiness will drop with increased uncertainty.
• 5:11
  SPEAKER_00: When individuals on the team are worrying about what is happening next, they are not focusing on what they need to do right now to keep the team delivering.
• 5:20
  SPEAKER_00: As a manager, the four ways to help your team deal with uncertainty I think you must action are firstly overcommunicate right now.
• 5:28
  SPEAKER_00: Secondly, keep talking about direction and expectations.
• 5:32
  SPEAKER_00: Third, help the team develop new skills and opportunities, and fourth, be open and honest about what is happening.
• 5:38
  SPEAKER_00: When your team is facing uncertainty, an essential step to counter uncertainty is to start overcommunicating.
• 5:45
  SPEAKER_00: Book in extra team meetings, have a one-on-one meeting each week with your reports, send out update emails.
• 5:53
  SPEAKER_00: At least double the amount of communication that you do to your team.
• 5:57
  SPEAKER_00: The more your team knows about what is happening, the less uncertainty they will feel.
• 6:02
  SPEAKER_00: The more reassurance you can provide, the more opportunities you give them to talk through their fears, the more you create a team approach with everyone supporting each other, the more productive, motivated, and happy your team will be.
• 6:14
  SPEAKER_00: Overcommunicate to reduce uncertainty.
• 6:18
  SPEAKER_00: Secondly, to deal with uncertainty in your team, keep talking about direction and expectations.
• 6:24
  SPEAKER_00: Keep your messaging consistent.
• 6:26
  SPEAKER_00: Keep your team moving in the same direction.
• 6:28
  SPEAKER_00: Keep the expectations the same.
• 6:31
  SPEAKER_00: Keep repeating until your team gets bored of hearing your message.
• 6:35
  SPEAKER_00: Creating certainty in team direction and expectations reduces the impact of uncertainty elsewhere.
• 6:42
  SPEAKER_00: Thirdly, to help the team deal with uncertainty, help the team develop new skills and create new opportunities for them to learn.
• 6:50
  SPEAKER_00: This is part of helping the individual create contingencies and action plans as we discussed earlier.
• 6:55
  SPEAKER_00: For teams that need decision making, solution building and teamworking skills to improve what the team delivers, making the time to teach, coach and mentor others in these skills is very valuable for teams as well as the individuals in the team.
• 7:09
  SPEAKER_00: Better skills mean higher team performance and better job security and desirability on a personal level.
• 7:16
  SPEAKER_00: Fourth, building and maintaining trust is a big factor to help the team deal with uncertainty.
• 7:22
  SPEAKER_00: A great way to build trust and reduce uncertainty is to be open and honest about the situation with the team.
• 7:28
  SPEAKER_00: It is better they hear what is actually happening than rely on the rumour mill for information which we all know can be wildly inaccurate.
• 7:36
  SPEAKER_00: Talk about the positives and present the negatives in a positive light.
• 7:39
  SPEAKER_00: Being open and honest is a very important action to reduce uncertainty at work.
• 7:45
  SPEAKER_00: There is a lot you can do to reduce the uncertainty a team feels and the distractions created by uncertainty.
• 7:51
  SPEAKER_00: All of the actions we have been through are largely in your control.
• 7:55
  SPEAKER_00: Do help your team reduce uncertainty by providing certainty wherever you can, and by communicating a lot in an open and honest way.
• 8:05
  SPEAKER_00: So, in summary, dealing with uncertainty at work is important for our own mental and physical health.
• 8:10
  SPEAKER_00: It is just as important to help our teams reduce uncertainty and its effects on team motivation and performance.
• 8:18
  SPEAKER_00: As a quick reminder, here are the eight ways to deal with uncertainty at work.
• 8:22
  SPEAKER_00: The four to use for your personal well-being are firstly accept a level of change and uncertainty.
• 8:28
  SPEAKER_00: Secondly, worry about what you can control and not what you can't control.
• 8:33
  SPEAKER_00: Third, focus on the present.
• 8:35
  SPEAKER_00: Fourth, create contingencies and action plans.
• 8:39
  SPEAKER_00: And to help your team deal with uncertainty, firstly overcommunicate right now.
• 8:44
  SPEAKER_00: Secondly, keep talking about direction and expectations.
• 8:48
  SPEAKER_00: Third, help the team develop new skills and opportunities.
• 8:51
  SPEAKER_00: And fourth, be open and honest about what is happening.
• 8:55
  SPEAKER_00: If you have any questions, please email me at support at enhance.training and I'll get back to you.
• 9:01
  SPEAKER_00: Don't forget to take a look at the additional resources in the podcast description or visit us at enhance.
• 9:08
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks very much for listening, and I look forward to speaking to you again soon.