What’s coming soon for HU Tools and can I have some Coaching tips?
Many new topics are coming soon - this post has a glimpse into the near future of upcoming content and some tips on coaching, as well as, some HU-related happenings . As the primary author on this site, I am very excited about developing and sharing helpful resources with you. It is amazing to see the list of site members growing and growing. Feel free to sign up so you don't miss a post - soon members will find even more value for joining - free prizes (awesome HU books) coming to some lucky members - more to follow on this through member email. A hint - the first member to submit a blog post for me to publish will be happy they did!!!
The Institute of Nuclear Power Operators hosted an annual Human Performance Conference in Baltimore during the second week of September where many nuclear professionals presented on Human Performance aspects of “Coaching.” What I thought resonated well was the forethought to bring in competent First Line Supervisors to explain how they do it and some lessons learned along the way.
Some First Line Supervisor presentation tips from the conference:
- Act as if you are the most observed person on station. This reminds you to constantly display expected behaviors and attitudes.
- When coaching, a method would be to get the subject to answer 3 questions “yes,” prior to delivering the coaching. This helps to establish respect and rapport.
- Almost all organizations have periodic leadership team meetings. Imagine at the end of the meeting having all levels of leadership leave and only first lines stay behind. This is the opportunity to share what’s on their minds, the processes or people they are having problems with, and it gives the most integral level of leadership an opportunity to build trust with each other and mentor individuals who may be lacking in a particular area.
- Promote the “What would you do if your kids were watching?” message.
The amazing Kevin Lee
One particular speaker at the HU Conference, Kevin Lee (a long-time nuclear mechanic and very dynamic personality), blew us away with refreshing affective passion and gave me permission to edit his speech audio and use it in the podcast. In commercial nuclear power we strive to improve trust throughout the organization and Kevin’s speech personifies an example of what can happen when a non-coaching situation is handled poorly. Kevin gives us wisdom in a way that makes you think and even sometimes laugh at the cumbersome processes we manage and implement daily wherever we work.
Human Performance Teams and 2014
While at the conference I had an opportunity to participate with the STARS Nuclear Human Performance Team, and the Advanced Human Performance INPO Training Team. Both teams are actively doing great work. For nuclear power INPO-08-004 is still the guiding document for how we codify and grade human errors and events, and efforts are being made by all STARS nuclear stations to standardize some of the lower threshold errors coding for more accurate comparisons. If you look closely, there are a lot of things coming within the next year that will change how Human Performance looks in the nuclear industry, fighting back against cumulative effects, and fighting back against wasting time by treating low-risk activities as high-risk. I predict in Human Performance we will be tired of hearing the phrase graded approach by the end of 2014, because that is what we need to do with our programs to stop overusing tools and decreasing their effectiveness.
College happenings
During the 4th week of September, I have been fortunate to give a presentation to a class full of Southern Illinois University first-termers in Workforce Education Development regarding Human Performance training development, projects, and some trainer tools, tips and tricks of the craft. Two other speakers at the college, John Abel and Jeremiah Miller presented the impact that SIU continues to have on their lives and where they are working and what they are currently working on. (Thank you Dr. Plessman for setting it up)
Daniel Pink and Amy Cuddy – Names you should know
Immediately after presenting at SIU, I was blessed to attend a City Managers conference in Boston where Daniel Pink and Amy Cuddy were keynote speakers. Amy gave a wonderful presentation on Body Language and power posing, and Daniel explained the research in his new insightful book, “To Sell is Human.” I briefly spoke with Daniel twice after his breakout session. Daniel Pink’s presentation and interview combine for some great podcast content coming soon!
Excuses, excuses, excuses
I haven’t gone this long without a post since the blog started in May, but it’s mainly because so much has been happening, including my first vacation days of 2013. Multiple posts will be dedicated to each of these recent happenings, including candid interviews of a Registered Nurse, a Nuclear Plant Operator in training, and a Hair Studio Salon Owner. While on vacation, I also caught up with a Professional Magician friend of mine and we had a great conversation challenging each other to talk about life-hacks we’ve learned since the last time we saw each other. Some truly inspiring ideas were discovered and will make it into an upcoming post. I am a large believer that professional Magicians constantly use Human Performance Tools and are prepared for their job, similarly to how a nuclear professional prepares for theirs. I am really looking forward to that podcast interview coming up.
Send your articles in
As always, if you are interested in sending in a blog post, simply email the content to this site – I will help you format it, determine any links you want to include and where and post it giving you author credit. Thank you for your patience, and your interest in Human Performance and this blog.