Many of us are beginning to make preparations for the first blizzard of the winter season. Our thoughts will soon shift to completing the steps required to successfully navigate the potentially adverse weather. Without giving some thought to our approach we are subject to consistently being late and possibly missing opportunities or worse yet, encountering an adverse situation by having an accident while driving too fast for conditions. Some people enjoy the snow and the weather conditions it brings. Like me, others simply tolerate the fact that dealing with the snow comes with the decision to live in certain geographical areas. This analogy reminds me of the times when I had to shift my thinking on other topics. Specifically I had to mature as a professional and learn to shift from toleration to thriving regardless of situations at work with either my peers or boss.

The ability to turn adverse situations into opportunities eventually became a skill, yet I must admit I initially made a lot of unnecessary mistakes. In reflection, I now realize that if I had taken more time to think and plan my approach rather than jumping right into a conflict, I would have had even better success with building more effective relationships. Additionally, recognizing an adverse situation long before it gets out of control is another valuable skill I learned to manage to ensure opportunities were continued to be extended. I was able to have a successful career as a result.

I now have a passion for helping other professionals reach their career goals. If you would like to talk with me about a current adverse situation you are experiencing, give me a call.

Effective leaders understand the need to always be flexible when seeking the opportunity to demonstrate leadership. Too often we only think of demonstrating effective leadership when we are in a positive environment. Negative situations require an even more strategic approach to demonstrating leadership. When you find yourself in a tough situation at work, you have several options:

1. Ignore the situation and hope for the best.
2. Continue to make the situation worse by making poor choices with your approach.
3. Make a conscious decision to turn the situation into as positive an experience as possible.

If you choose option three and want to work towards making things better, I have the following recommendations:

• Take accountability for being a part of the solution. If you played a role in the negative situation, own up to your mistakes by creating a solution to best rectify the problem.
• Be open to change occurring at any moment. Adverse work situations typically occur because the people involved get use to one way of doing things and wind up missing opportunities.
• Seek to improve your listening skills. Make a conscious effort to focus on ensuring you are really hearing the other person’s perspective before you respond.
• Be aware of your communication style at all times. Remember that in order to influence others and get them to accept your ideas; you must have a strong awareness of how you are being perceived as a result of how you state your message.
• Create opportunities for others to succeed. Effective leaders recognize the importance of having a support team. Helping others reach their goals will ensure that when adverse times occur, you will have others backing you up.

Finally, I would be remiss in not making a final point about turning adverse situations into opportunities. As an effective leader, you must always be in control of your emotions when adverse situations occur. It is never acceptable to lose your professionalism and let it all hang out no matter how tempting or deserved it may be.

If you are finding yourself caught up in a bad situation, give me a call. We can explore and determine the options that will allow you to successfully reach your goals.

In 2006 I will be presenting fee- based teleclasses under the header of “Demonstrating Effective Leadership in Today’s Competitive Workplace”. I will be sending you a short survey soon to determine your preference for the timing of the teleclasses. Please respond so I can use your feedback to present the information in a manner that will be most beneficial to you. Thank you for your continued support of my work. Keep Leading!

Deborah Chambers Chima is passionate about assisting her clients with achieving their professional goals. Prior to launching her consulting and coaching firm, she achieved an award winning, twenty four year tenure in corporate management in the retail industry, in both international and domestic markets. Her clients appreciate her attention to detail and her desire to assist others in improving their productivity.

To learn more about Deborah, please visit her website at www.chambersconsult.com.