Thursday Thought – Where are the World Leaders?

Posted on May 31, 2012 by WeMoveTogether

Note: Each Thursday I will post a little something to inspire us to finish the week strong. These Thursday Thoughts will be a quote, piece of music, artwork, or inspirational video. Congratulations, you made it over the hump and let’s finish the week together.

What is inspiration? Each Thursday I post something uplifting and positive to urge us all to finish the week strong. I do not feel like it this week. I continue to read Eric Greitens book, “The Heart and the Fist” about man’s inhumanity to man and how one person decided to turn his back on an easy life to become a warrior, a US Navy SEAL to live his life mission and help those who can not help themselves. Eric worked on many relief missions around the world and eventually concluded that we need “the fist” and use force when necessary to truly help those in dire need.

Today we watch the news and hear about the horrors in Syria, the latest example of such profound inhumanity. Where are the world leaders during this time? Leadership has no higher calling.

The philosopher John Stuart Mill wrote:

War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse. The person who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself.

Reasons Stop Mattering

Posted on May 29, 2012 by WeMoveTogether

There is a great story about growing responsibility as a leader from Steve Jobs of Apple. He told a story, often apparently, to all new Vice Presidents at Apple. It concerned the janitor who cleaned Steve’s office each day. At one point Steve noticed that his trash bin in his office was not emptied each day. After several days of trash building up Steve, working late, saw the janitor. Steve asked why his trash bin was not being emptied. The janitor answered right away that the lock for Steve’s office was changed and nobody gave him the new key. The janitor had a reason. Steve got the man a new key and the problem was solved.

Steve’s parable, a true story or not, said that reasons matters when you are the janitor. Reasons do not matter anymore when you are a Vice President. As a leader we need to be careful not to search for reasons why something is not working. Leaders search for and establish means to accomplish goals. If the goal is not doable, then the leader works with others to establish new goals. A leader needs to stay clear of “but” as an answer to why something failed.

Leadership is not easy. One needs dedication and creativity to find solutions to issues. I have been there in my career. I remember telling my superiors all the “buts”. I had reasons to explain why I failed. I have learned that Steve Job’s parable is crucial for leaders, at least those who want to break through and reach that point where they lead a team and themselves to success even under difficult circumstances. The essence of Leadership … a process to influence success even under the most challenging circumstances.

Steve Jobs himself would finish his story of the Janitor and the Vice President by quoting the master himself, Yoda from Star Wars:

“Do or do not. There is no try.”

Strength and Compassion

Posted on May 28, 2012 by WeMoveTogether

Today is Memorial Day in the United States. My writing today is a continuation from my last post about Eric Greitens a US Navy SEAL and humanitarian. I am reading his book titled, “The Heart and the Fist“. Between time with my family and BBQ this weekend I can not get enough of his story. I have perfected the technique of holding my Nook reader in one hand and turning chicken on the grill using my other hand.

By age 21 Eric already spent time on humanitarian missions in both Bosnia and Rwanda. It was the mid 1990′s when both countries experienced horrific violence as their people turned against each other. Eric serves as an example of why compassion for others is such an important trait for leaders. This compassion drives him forward to succeed in everything he approaches.

Eric had an epiphany while in Rwanda that humanitarian efforts are not enough. We need to focus on protecting those people who can not protect themselves against war and violence. This thinking led Eric to join the Navy and become a Navy SEAL (amazing accomplishment on its own). He reached the point of strength combined with compassion.

Here are Eric’s own words to reflect on today, Memorial Day, as we honor those who choose to serve and protect us all.

Yet the basic fact remains: we live in a world marked by violence, and if we want to protect others, we sometimes have to be willing to fight. We all understand at the most basic level that caring requires strength as well as compassion.

A Navy SEAL’s Wise Advice to Graduates

Posted on May 25, 2012 by WeMoveTogether

I recently read an article written by William J. Bennett who monitors the list of University commencement speakers each year. He is reviewing the trend on the chosen speakers and the message of these speakers. It is a terrific idea Mr. Bennett has here as it can tell us so much about where society stands (at least here in the United States).

The article focused on what he calls, “one of the most original choices” for a commencement speaker. The speaker in question is US Navy SEAL Eric Greitens who spoke at Tufts University this year. Eric is indeed a Navy SEAL and a Rhodes scholar and humanitarian. His message as presented in Mr. Bennett’s article spoke to me and my mission with this blog. Eric through his actions is We Move Together personified. Let me explain through Eric’s own commentary during the commencement speech.

Challenging the new graduates is a standard approach at commencement ceremonies. Eric follows along to challenge, but his message is different. Typically the speaker tells students to “follow your passion” or “dream big”. As Mr. Bennett points out in the article, higher education has turned from “selflessness to self-obsession”.

Eric’ message concerns “sacrifice, to serve one’s country and to live magnanimously”. He calls for the students to “think above and beyond their own dreams and desires … to serve a purpose larger than myself”. Eric recognizes the higher order of leadership … of Servant Leadership. It is not about me. It is about you and us. We Move Together.

“What kind of service can I provide? What kind of positive difference can I make in the lives of others? If you work every day to live an answer to that question, then you will be stronger.”

It is Memorial Day weekend here in the United States. It is a time for us to reflect on and thank the men and women who serve our country through the military both past and present. I for one will do just that this weekend including reading more about Eric Greitens, a man who personifies WeMoveTogether.

Here are some links to learn more:

CNN Article by William Bennett

Eric Greitens Website

Thursday Thought – Two Minutes of Inspiration

Posted on May 24, 2012 by WeMoveTogether

This short two-minute video is fun. Maybe you have seen it before. So many of my favorite movie heroes teamed together to inspire. Watch it for fun and it is okay if you get a bit inspired too.

The Beautiful Game

Posted on May 22, 2012 by WeMoveTogether

While I was raised in California I support a team across the world in London, The Chelsea Football Club of the English Premier League. You may know that Chelsea just won the Champions League title this past Saturday in Munich against the favored home team, Bayern Munich. For folks in the States, Chelsea just won the Super Bowl. Throughout their regular season, Chelsea did not play exceptionally well. Yet, out of adversity they pulled it together and persevered as a team to the end. On a personal level I am very happy. On a professional level I find lessons here for us as leaders. Chelsea football and their run to the top club in Europe this year serves as a great example for all of us, sport fan or not.

The season started with much hope as Andre Villas-Boas joined Chelsea as the new manager. It all fell apart as the season progressed. The biggest mistake for the new boss? He alienated and poorly communicated with the established veteran players on the team. Many of us have stepped up to lead a new team. We know to build relationships with the team members especially the experienced team leaders in the group. For Chelsea the new manager did such a poor job of communicating that the team results suffered and eventually the ownership fired the new coach, less than one season into his tenure.

The man who took charge to finish the season was Roberto Di Matteo. He quickly sought out the experienced team members and brought them back into the fold. From all reports he communicated well with his team and brought back a positive energy. Chelsea began to win again. Outside observers said over and over that Chelsea was lucky and good fortune was smiling on them. If you allow me to say, we can create our own good luck by how well we treat our team members, communicate with them, and focus on our joint success.

Di Matteo also knew the strengths and weaknesses of his team. In a nutshell, Chelsea could not play the open-field attacking game against the top clubs and expect to win. Their strength was defense and taking advantage of that one opening to counterattack. They did it to perfection. For us as leaders understanding our team strengths and leveraging them is critical. We need to recognize our team weaknesses too and decide on how best to resolve any shortcomings.

It was a magically end to a crazy season for my team Chelsea. The interim manager, who I hope they hire full-time, in his own quiet way demonstrated such strong leadership. His team followed his lead and became closer, more united, and flat-out believed. Such a team yours or mine, moving together, can move mountains.

I Need A Shovel

Posted on May 19, 2012 by WeMoveTogether

I search for some depth in my career.

Oh, I have breadth. I am a modern business manager. I have experienced a wide range of responsibilities with very separate and different groups reporting to me. I was there to understand just enough to keep it all rolling well. I had (and have) terrific management and staff working for me with strong specific skills and related experience. They have depth. Indeed I would need a good shovel and lots of time to catch them. Yes, I do recognize that my role requires my breadth of responsibility. Nonetheless, at times I do yearn to be that expert, on that one topic, that everyone comes to see for advice.

I have prepared well for my career of breadth. A funny story from college. A few months after graduation I went back to school to get my official diploma. I could not wait to open the envelope and see the diploma. To my surprise there was a small ribbon attached to the diploma stating, “Distinction in General Scholarship”. Say what? I went back and asked the clerk what it means. Without missing a beat he said, “It means you had no clue on what to study here so you studied everything”. Alas, my future management career with all the breadth that comes with it was born.

I worked in Human Resources for 10 years – a classic area for breadth vs. depth or as they call it, being a “Generalist” vs. a “Specialist”. We had a few specialists, but being a generalist was the way to go. As the training person I dug deep (wait, nevermind) into being a generalist. Confession time … I taught some classes where I was just one book ahead of the class. No depth. This disconnect lead me to seek a position in operations. While I have learned much, I have really added more breadth and not depth to my career. I have very good folks with strong depth of experience and ability working for me. I admire their depth as I see it in action each day.

Why a yearning for depth? One of the aspects of my leadership style is to provide the sense of authorship for my group. Each person should be able to step back and look at their work with pride. “I created that.” “I am the author.” I follow that this is a basic human trait – to create and be an author. It does not need to be high art; it may be processing the daily invoices. As leaders how can we design the process to allow the employee to gain a sense of ownership and in a way, authorship? As the more senior leader I am not immune to wanting this level of depth.

But I do have depth. I tilt my head and look at my responsibilities from a new angle. From this side view breadth becomes depth. My knowledge, my experience, my responsibilities from this new perspective is my depth. Yea, I still want that shovel and yearn to dig, but I would just take that shovel and hand to someone else and encourage her to dig.

All the best and let’s keep moving together.

Thursday Thought – Stuck in a Moment

Posted on May 17, 2012 by WeMoveTogether

Note: Each Thursday I will post a little something to inspire us to finish the week strong. These posts will be either a quote, piece of music, artwork, or inspirational video. Congratulations, you made it over the hump and let’s finish the week together.

This is freaking brilliant. Bono and The Edge. Listen to this song.

The Passion. The Joy. The Hope.

Today may be difficult. Stay the course. Tomorrow is a new day.

And if the night runs over

And if the day won’t last

And if your way should falter

Along on this stony pass

It’s just a moment

This time will pass

Can you hear me in the back of the room?

Posted on May 15, 2012 by WeMoveTogether

It happened again. We had a full department meeting and as people showed up many, if not most, scoped out seats in the back rows of the large, theater style meeting room. Several staff and the leadership team sat up front. What a view from where I stood at the podium. I saw people in the first several rows. I looked at empty space in the middle rows. I saw standing room only in the rear of the room. Before I started the meeting I did a sound check with the microphone. I looked to the back of the room to find someone to ask if they could hear me. My problem was I saw too many folks to ask – it seems nearly everyone was sitting in the back of the room.

What a failure. As leaders we truly want our full department to connect with each other and recognize our common purpose. We do such important work for our organization. Our staff are vital to our success. Management spends more time than the staff would ever know focusing on how to improve our work environment (hey, it ain’t too bad now). When we pull together a full department meeting we expect the staff to join the party and sit closer to the action. To be involved. Sadly, it does not always happen.

I study and focus on how to build a fully engaged and meaningful workplace. After meetings as I experienced today, I truly wonder if most employees want such a fully involved and meaningful workplace. As a leader I will not give up. I will support those who want to engage and be part of the community. Yea, a community. That is what we are with all the good and bad that comes with a community of people. We are gathered for a common purpose and I will not forget.

I look back on my career and how I started in the back of the room and how I made the decision to move to the front of the room. The problem is not necessarily sitting in the back of the room. It is that dead space between the front and the back of the room. As a presenter at the front of the room it saps your energy. In all honesty, I was off my game today during the presentation. I should have fought through it, but seeing my audience, my community of people, so disconnected in where they chose to sit drained my enthusiasm.

Where do we go from here? I wrote a recent post titled, Step into the Circle. To the extent you have control over the set up of your meeting room – DO IT. Set up the chairs to get close to all your audience. Simply do not give your audience a choice. They will sit close to you and each other. Yea, you are somewhat forcing the issue, but if you have control over how the room is set up, please do so.

What is the ultimate leadership action? Bring this behavior to the surface. At my next meeting I will directly talk about this disconnect. I have to believe that most people will respond well. For those who do not … well, now I know. A leader should not get stuck in the trap of focusing too much on those who choose to not connect and be part of the community. As a leader focus on those who choose to ba part of the community. Hey, it is a beautiful thing when a person decides to change behavior for the better. You are the leader; help and support them.

My next meeting will be different. I am a leader and I am committed to pushing for a better community of people who want to pull together as a full team. A tough challenge, but that is what a leader does. I am not alone – We Move Together.

Leadership Lessons From My Mother

Posted on May 13, 2012 by WeMoveTogether

A big shout out to all the Moms out there … HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!

As I think of my own mother I find even to this day she is a role model for me. I can easily connect leadership and what my mother has taught me over the years. So-called experts in leadership are everywhere, right? We search them out. We read their books. We say “aha” when we read their wise words. Always someone out there, smarter and wiser than ourselves. All along though maybe we need to look closer to home. My mother was my first teacher and taught me well. Here are a few leadership lessons from my mother.

Mom remains curious and is always learning. She is retired now for years and maybe should be fully set in her ways. My mother though is still learning and curious about the world around her. She thinks deeply. She finds interesting articles on the internet and sends them my way. She reads a variety of books and still displays wonder of the world around her. Mom wants to have deep discussions on new and interesting topics. That is a strong leadership trait, remain curious and continuously learn.
Mom does not follow dogma. Of course she has her beliefs, but she has never been so rigid in her beliefs that she can not listen to folks with different points of view. My mother has reinvented herself several times in her life. Good for her and a lesson for leaders everywhere.
Mom follows her creative passions. Unlike anyone else I know my Mother has convinced me that everyone is an artist. Our art may not be obvious, but it is there. I have seen great artistic expression from my mother. She is a painter, sculptor and has created a line of jewelry that holds deep spiritual meaning. My creative artistic expression is my writing and if I do say, my approach to business at times. A leader needs to find that creative, artistic voice and share it with the world. That expression will only help influence others and move us forward.
Mom remains positive. The best of mom’s everywhere is such positive energy. During hard times my mother generally remains positive and reminds me and others that it will be okay. As leaders we can struggle to remain positive in the face of difficult times. Listen to mom, it will be okay.

Thanks Mom, Love You and keep moving forward.

WeMoveTogether

The Language of Organizational Life