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We have the pleasure of hosting Chris Wong, a licensed therapist, executive coach, and the mastermind behind Leadership Potential. Chris specializes in working with nonprofit leaders, aiding them in retaining and developing high-performing staff, and is an expert consultant for organizations striving to implement leadership development programs and strategic workforce plans.
Chris provides insights into his background and the unique approach he brings to leadership and organizational development. As the owner of Leadership Potential, Chris shares his passion for helping leaders navigate the complex landscape of modern workplaces.
We then dive into the core theme of Chris’s recent webinar, Be a Strategic Advisor: How to Lead without Formal Authority. Chris sheds light on the evolving expectations of the modern workforce and their influence on the design and delivery of learning and development programs. In a world where attention spans are diminishing, Chris sees an opportunity for leaner and more creative training programs that focus on supporting both learners and organizations.
Chris gives us a glimpse into his current projects, from building his company to collaborating on a book about using storytelling to lead organizational change. He also mentions an upcoming whitepaper, showcasing his commitment to staying at the forefront of leadership and development strategies.
Reflecting on his webinar with HRDQ-U, Chris highlights key takeaways for registrants, emphasizing the crucial role of social capital, expectation management, and immediate alignment with organizational goals for successful leaders.
In the latter part of the episode, we explore content-specific questions related to Chris’s webinar. From navigating workplace perceptions to addressing challenges with well-liked leaders, Chris provides actionable insights for leaders seeking to make a strategic impact without formal authority.
Don’t miss this episode full of wisdom and practical advice as we delve into the art of being a strategic advisor and leading without formal authority.
00:04
Welcome to this week’s episode of the HRDQ-U In Review podcast, where we bring you the latest insights and practical tools for enhancing soft skills training in your organization. This podcast is brought to you by HRDQU.com, and I’m your host, Sarah, Learning Events Manager at HRDQ-U. And today I’m thrilled to be joined by Chris Wong as we discuss the recent webinar Chris presented, Be a Strategic Advisor: How to Lead without Formal Authority.
00:32
During the webinar, Chris shared invaluable insights and strategic advice and demonstrated how individuals can effectively lead and influence. This interactive session resonated strongly with our audience, fostering a dynamic exchange of ideas and sparking thoughtful discussions on the key principles of strategic leadership. Welcome back, Chris. Thanks for joining me again on this podcast. Thanks for having me back. I always enjoy talking to you. oh
01:02
So Chris, I know you’ve been here before and but for any of our new listeners tuning in today, can you share a little bit about your background and what you do and how you got to where you’re at today? Absolutely. So I’m an executive coach and licensed therapist. I actually own my own business, Leadership Potential. And I actually got started as a licensed therapist, then moved into learning and development, evolved into leadership development, organizational development.
01:29
And I just started my own business this past August, just a few months ago. And I’m just primarily working with nonprofit leaders looking to increase retention, retain high-performing staff, and create high-performing cultures. And I just enjoy doing work that has an impact. Great. And, you know, how do you think that the evolving expectations and preferences of the modern workforce are influencing the way organizations design and deliver their learning and development program?
01:58
today.
02:01
You know, I think because I’ve done learning and development, I was uh a victim or just guilty of this uh shiny object syndrome where we I really loved doing gamification or I love micro learning and all this other stuff and because they were the biggest fads and they were shown to have, you know, good outcomes. And I think it’s important to recognize people are just more busy now and attention spans are declining, at least in, you know, Western countries. So I think
02:29
For me, my evolution is thinking that learning and development should be much more creative and agile and really get back to the basics really well of providing opportunities for people to learn, but also get feedback on how they’re doing and also create opportunities for people to learn in the flow of work, which is how people learn anything through failure, through trying something. And the more they can do it within the flow of their work or as close to the real life as possible, that’s better. And I think that’ll also help with the
02:58
the trend of uh cutting budgets or shrinking L &D budgets and trying to be more focused in the work we do, we can be. We just don’t have to necessarily have all these fancy features in order to get the work done. And it is so true. Our attendance spans have really dwindled. I was just talking the other day with someone about just even
03:18
you know, watching a television show, how back in the day you would watch a television show, a commercial would come on and you would go and do whatever you had to do in those moments. But now if we see a commercial or something like that, it becomes so frustrating to us because we’re just used to that immediate satisfaction. So I’m interested in understanding how do you navigate the balance between brevity and effectiveness in response to the changing preferences of the workforce and our attention spans?
03:47
Yeah, I think part of it is getting better at the storytelling aspect and engaging people’s just brain chemistry because most of us if we hear a movie or sorry, if we watch a movie, we’re gonna watch it even if it’s like an hour, an hour and a half if it’s interesting to us. If it’s not, we’re just gonna walk away. We’re gonna do something else. So there’s still certainly something to be said for if something’s engaging enough, it’ll capture our attention. So
04:14
I think the ideas of even e-learning that are just slides and people read the slides to you, I think that’s gone out of favor already for lots of people. But the more we can move away from that and create engaging content for people, and it’s becoming cheaper for everybody to do it and easier for people to access it. So it’s not just for people with large budgets. Like a lot of people can access it very readily and easily. I think that’s the key is how do you create engaging stories that people will follow and
04:43
gets their brain engaged and focused on what you’re doing. And you know, Chris, what current projects are you working on that you’re excited about that are in your pipeline? You know, to keep the trend, I’m working on a book actually with a friend and a colleague around how leaders can use storytelling to lead change in their organizations. Because I think that’s because both of us love storytelling. He’s actually a filmmaker and an author and we love neuroscience. And that’s that’s exactly the key theme is how do we use storytelling
05:13
to really engage people, you know, from my webinars, you’ve been to a few of my webinars or produce them. And like, I always start with a story. I never start with just, this is me, this is what I do, this is how I’ve gotten here. I always start with a story because that’s what people respond to, that’s what our brains respond to. I’m also just building my company, just continue to get out there and do the work. Well, that’s really exciting. You’ll have to keep us informed on when your book is published so that…
05:40
We can that out and share that out with the audience there as well. Yeah. And that is true with your webinar events, you always start off with a story about something personal, which I think is extremely captivating to the audience and it definitely draws them in and makes them engaged for sure. And so with the webinar that we recently did on being a strategic advisor and how you can lead without formal authority, can you share what the key takeaways were for our registrants at that event?
06:08
Yeah, the biggest takeaways are that even though it’s a common theme in HR and L &D teams where we’re always on the sidelines and because we serve the organization, we don’t necessarily always get the biggest headcount of people because operations, know, rightfully so, they need to do the work. Right, operations is the largest headcount, so they get the vast majority of resources.
06:34
So everybody else has to learn how to become a better consultant and advisor and a partner to everybody, to the rest of the organization, because there’s lots of competing priorities. And this is the theme of the white paper was these three main themes of how do you do that is you got to build valuable social capital and relationships across the organization. Leaders have to trust you. They have to know who you are and what you’re about. Second, you have to be able to manage expectations well.
07:03
of what you want from them, but also you have to manage expectations of that you are a valuable and incredible source. And so you have to be, you have to believe in the value that you bring to the table, that you know what you’re doing. You’re the subject matter expert in this, whatever thing you’re doing. So be confident in that value. And then also the biggest misstep I often see is you got to be aligned with your organization’s goals from day one. It’s not, it’s not enough to create a programming or create an initiative.
07:33
and then backtrack it into why it’s going to help. Start from what the strategic priorities are and then build around that. And that will make more sense and it’ll make it so much easier to get buy-in from day one. And we pulled the common themes from this webinar event. So have a couple of questions here from the audience of just the questions that they had, the comments that they had. And so we’ll go into a little bit more.
07:59
about that today. And this first question here is, you know, how can I change the perception of what is said about me in spaces that is preventing me from growing within the organization? and this is something that happened to me, as that’s the story I told you, this happened to me exactly. So first off, I would say is you need to find somebody who can be on your side, somebody who’s willing to be a mentor to you and give you that honest feedback.
08:26
about what’s going on because you need to assess what is the story that’s being told about you. Because you don’t really know right now, if you haven’t asked, you’re just kind of assuming based on your interactions, what you think the story is. it’s important to find that out. And then once you find, you know, three, four people who you trust, then you just build on that and say, what are some behaviors I can use to start changing that perception? And then go back to them on a regular basis.
08:53
How is this working? Am I getting better at this? Am I getting worse at this? Do I need to do something different? But it’s essentially trying to find allies who are willing to give you that feedback and have that visibility. And they’re able to kind of mentor you or coach you so that you can slowly change that perception. But at end of the day, you can never really force anybody to think differently of you. And first impressions are so important, really. So it’s hard, but it can be done.
09:21
And how would you approach a situation where a leader who is very well liked um is unwilling to take suggestions for staff productivity issues because he has allowed it to go on for so long or is unwilling to accept change or modify things and adapt? Yeah. I think one of the key principles to think about is you can’t coach an uncoachable person. So if they are wholly
09:49
refusing to listen to any feedback or advice or being willing to change themselves, there’s not much you’re to be able to do to change it. Now you can approach the conversation and see is there a pain point that they are recognizing? So maybe they are unwilling to change things, but do they see that there is a problem? Is there a problem with staff productivity in their eyes? Or do they see like it’s within the range of acceptable outcomes for them? say, ah, know, it’s that productivity is down, but
10:18
It’s still within an okay range. I don’t really care about other issues. You’re also not going to change that. However, if they’re seeing the problem, then you can start exploring more why they don’t want to change that problem or what they want to do to fix that problem. Are they unwilling to change things because they’re just change fatigue? There’s just been so many changes and they’re scared of losing any more staff, which has happened. You know, they care about their staff. They don’t want to change anything. And they want their staff to like them and they don’t want to overburden them.
10:47
which happens a lot. it’s taking the time to explore what’s going on underneath the surface. Do they recognize a problem and are they willing to, and what do they see as a source of that problem and why they’re unwilling to change? And how do you push back against someone who is above you? I always say it’s the magic of asking good questions.
11:12
It’s over magic and the bravery of asking good questions. You have to be brave in asking the question. But if you’re able to ask the question, a good question that’s open-ended and really curious about what’s going on for them, it’s no different than any kind of conflict resolution or negotiation. It’s just harder because they’re seen as having more power than you. So it makes it a little bit harder in your own mind. So it’s about asking good questions, about seeing yourself as equal to them in that sense.
11:41
of emotionally, we’re two people trying to solve a problem. And do they recognize a problem and then bring up your concerns and ask them if they see a concern with the way things are going. you know, you talked about this a bit too during the webinar event, you know, what if a company’s strategic plan is just too complex and it’s hard to understand?
12:03
Yeah, I’ve talked about it where people uh either have two complex strategic plans, companies have two complex strategic plan, it’s just unclear what the plan actually is, even if it’s simplified, like three priorities. So if it’s overly complex, you got to start and go back to the senior leaders who created this plan and say, what are you hoping to achieve? And what’s their timeline? Because even if it is overly complex, maybe they have a timeline in their minds that they haven’t
12:32
properly communicated. There’s seven different initiatives, but they do recognize they’re only going to achieve the first two in these first two years, and then they’ll move on to the other two. It’s more like a seven-year plan as opposed to a three-year plan, which is a little bit more reasonable, but you won’t know that until you ask them. And then from there, it’s really just guiding the conversation, helping them make sure they understand between quality.
12:57
between time and resources. You can’t have all three at the same time. You can only have two at most. So you can have high quality work on time, but you’ll have to throw a lot of resources at it. Or if you’re not willing to budge on resources, then you’ll have to sacrifice either time or quality of that, of the outcome. And this was another question that we had come from our audience during the event and it’s about credit. And I think it’s something that is probably frustrating for many people in the workspace.
13:27
You what if someone takes credit for your ideas? How do you handle that? Yeah, I think about it in a two step phase is first is how important is it that you get credit for that idea? I think that’s the first thing is, is it super important that you get credit for it? And who’s getting the credit, you know, or in what context is it like they’re getting accolades and awards and a presidential medal for freedom because of this idea? And you want that?
13:57
credit or are you more happy to just have the, as long as your boss knows that it happens and you’re getting kind of compensated for it, then it’s all good. So that’s the first thing is thinking about, you know, how important is it that you get credit for that? And the second, if it’s that important to you, you got to go to that, talk to that person, have that conversation about what’s going on. Talk to your own boss about kind of what’s happening. Make sure they know that you had that idea.
14:25
And then just, you’re gonna have to talk to that person directly and figure out what are we gonna do about this? presumably that person will need to continue to have ideas and continue to deliver. If they’ve been given accolades, people will continue to look to them for ideas. And you’re the person that gave them that idea. So what’s gonna happen there? How are they gonna continue supporting these ideas if they didn’t have it in the first place? Yeah, it seems like the overarching theme of this is just really being…
14:54
you know, a good communicator having open communication and being willing to have those conversations that maybe make you feel a little bit uncomfortable. But if you keep it respectful and um clear and concise, that seems to be the key ticket there. Absolutely. I think that’s the key in everything is having open dialogue and being willing to talk and building truly human relationships with the people around us.
15:20
as hard as I might be at times. Yeah, absolutely. And before we wrap up our conversation today, Chris, where can listeners go to connect with you and learn more about your work? Yes. So the best place to follow me is LinkedIn. You can find me, Chris Wong, LMHC. That’s where I’m most active. I post there the most and comment and respond there pretty well. You can always email me at myleadershippotential@gmail.com. And then I do have a website, but it’s actually being currently revamped, so it’s not going to be up.
15:50
quite yet, but it’s myleadershippotential.com. So you can also check me out there. You can look at it now, but there won’t be anything to say. And if you haven’t had the chance to watch the webinar, make sure that you click the link in the description below to check that out. All of the information will be there as well as information about how you can connect with Chris. And thank you so much, Chris, for your time today.
16:14
Yeah. Thank you. Love being here. And thank you all for tuning into this week’s episode. We hope you enjoy listening to the HRDQ-U In Review podcast available on all major streaming platforms. If you did enjoy today’s episode, make sure to give us a follow and leave us a review. Thank you all for tuning into this week’s episode of the HRDQ-U In Review podcast brought to you by HRDQU.com.
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We have the pleasure of hosting Chris Wong, a licensed therapist, executive coach, and the mastermind behind Leadership Potential. Chris specializes in working with nonprofit leaders, aiding them in retaining and developing high-performing staff, and is an expert consultant for organizations striving to implement leadership development programs and strategic workforce plans.
Chris provides insights into his background and the unique approach he brings to leadership and organizational development. As the owner of Leadership Potential, Chris shares his passion for helping leaders navigate the complex landscape of modern workplaces.
We then dive into the core theme of Chris’s recent webinar, Be a Strategic Advisor: How to Lead without Formal Authority. Chris sheds light on the evolving expectations of the modern workforce and their influence on the design and delivery of learning and development programs. In a world where attention spans are diminishing, Chris sees an opportunity for leaner and more creative training programs that focus on supporting both learners and organizations.
Chris gives us a glimpse into his current projects, from building his company to collaborating on a book about using storytelling to lead organizational change. He also mentions an upcoming whitepaper, showcasing his commitment to staying at the forefront of leadership and development strategies.
Reflecting on his webinar with HRDQ-U, Chris highlights key takeaways for registrants, emphasizing the crucial role of social capital, expectation management, and immediate alignment with organizational goals for successful leaders.
In the latter part of the episode, we explore content-specific questions related to Chris’s webinar. From navigating workplace perceptions to addressing challenges with well-liked leaders, Chris provides actionable insights for leaders seeking to make a strategic impact without formal authority.
Don’t miss this episode full of wisdom and practical advice as we delve into the art of being a strategic advisor and leading without formal authority.
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Gain actionable strategies for leaders to be truly seen as strategic advisors among executive leaders. In a time when learning and HR budgets are being trimmed, this is even more important to justify the business need.
Chris Wong
Chris Wong is a licensed therapist, certified executive coach, and Founder/Owner of Leadership Potential, where he helps leaders develop confident communication skills in challenging situations and relationships. Chris has helped countless professionals navigate complex situations with confidence and achieve exceptional results. He has worked in the nonprofit space, creating and implementing leadership and organizational development initiatives to foster a strong leadership pipeline within the organization.
Certified as an executive coach, he works with human service nonprofit executives to create engaged and human-centric workforces so they can focus on the impact they want to have. This includes helping leaders navigate difficult conversations, resolve conflicts, create high-performing cultures, enhance productivity, and cultivate an inclusive and equitable work environment. Chris’s expertise spans diverse areas, including leadership development, strategic planning, leading change, and diversity, equity, and inclusion.
I work with small to mid-sized HR and business leaders to help them get out of the weeds and get more strategic in their roles. I offer coaching, training, and consultation, and help leaders get things done.
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Buy at HRDQstore.comThe HRDQ-U In Review Podcast, brought to you by HRDQU.com, brings you the latest insights and practical tools for enhancing soft-skills training in your organization. As a learning community for trainers, coaches, consultants, managers, and anyone passionate about performance improvement, we interview subject matter experts and thought leaders from recent webinars they presented with us to take a deeper dive into the content they shared and answer all your questions. Join us as we explore new ideas and industry trends, share success stories, and discuss challenges faced by professionals.
The HRDQ-U In Review Podcast is intended for HR and training professionals, organizational development practitioners, and anyone interested in improving workplace performance and productivity.
New episodes of HRDQ-U In Review are released every week.
The length of the episodes varies, but they typically range from 15-30 minutes.
The podcast covers a wide range of topics related to HR and organizational development, including leadership development, team building, communication skills, conflict resolution, employee engagement, and more.
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