learned today

I learned two things today....

First, it's that one of my daughters, who is suffering a wound of the heart, is a really strong person.   Anyone can lead (life) when times are easy.  It takes courage, endurance, and faith to lead (life) when things have come crashing down.  She is a wonderful woman, and I am exceedingly proud of her, including her endurance.  Enduring, even in pain, is a form of strength. 

The second thing I learned is that fake latex-like stuff for Hallowe'en makeup can be made with simple home ingredients.  2T each of water, gelatin, and glycerin.  Heat in microwave about 20 secs.  Cool slightly and apply.  Then scratch up the center (makes a "wound edge") and colour with food colouring.

Here's a first trial with my friend, Les.  He is a wacky artist.

ASK YOU ANYTHING

There's one thing I've learned about honest speech.  As a leader, I often have to talk about: what we are doing...with a business unit...what the future looks like...what happened yesterday...you name it.  Invite the partners you lead to ASK YOU ANYTHING.  When they ask, publicly thank them for asking.

Tell them that when they ASK YOU ANYTHING, they'll generally get one of four answers:

1. "Yes, that's true because...."  (In which case, because they had to ask, I need to communicate MORE)
2. "No, that's not true because...." (In which case, I AGAIN have to communicate more; otherwise, they wouldn't have had to ask)
3. "I don't know."  (Find out and get back to them)
4. "I can't talk about that right now."  (I tell them that this is a rare answer...only a few times per year, then illustrate when it might be used.  I say, "For example, if it concerned a disciplinary action involving someone, it wouldn't be appropriate to discuss.  Or, if there were ongoing sensitive negotiations with an outside entity.")

This amount of transparency is healthy and reassures people.  To be really honest and transparent you must also be vulnerable--to showing your ignorance and to acknowledging when you haven't communicated well enough.  As you model honesty, questions are asked earlier and so rumors die out easily; also, problems surface more easily, ideas get kicked around in a wider circle.

adiabatic & anisotropic

Five key abilities in a high-EQ leader:

1. to quickly reduce stress (one's own, and that of others)
2. to recognize and manage your own emotions
3. to connect with others using nonverbals
4. to use humour and play to deal with challenges
5. to resolve conflicts positively and with confidence 

New names for people we work with:

Innovators are yellow on the right. 
Early adopters are red on the right
Average person is blue
Laggards are red on the left
Paid assassins are yellow on the left 

Ever wonder why Jack Welch wanted to eliminate the bottom 10% every so often?  

(I just like the sounds of "adiabatic" and "anisotropic")
 

Hijacked

This is from Seth Godin's blog.  I liked it, so thought I'd repost.  I disagree that management is all about power and control.  There is truth in the old saying that "Management is doing things right, and leadership is doing the right things."  Still,  Godin makes a good point about scarcity of leaders.

The difference between management and leadership

Managers work to get their employees to do what they did yesterday, but a little faster and a little cheaper.

Leaders, on the other hand, know where they'd like to go, but understand that they can't get there without their tribe, without giving those they lead the tools to make something happen.

Managers want authority. Leaders take responsibility.

We need both. But we have to be careful not to confuse them. And it helps to remember that leaders are scarce and thus more valuable."

To further refine this....
"Management" is handling and improving processes (speed, quality control, etc.) and is about tactics.
"Leading" is about sharing vision, showing the way, setting strategy.
"Being the leader" is about authority.


There is no shortage of those who would "be the leader," but very few actually want to "lead."  
Jesus did, after all, call us his "sheep."  He wasn't paying us a compliment.

t-c-s-h

According to the Gallup organization, after surveying many thousands of people, followers have these four needs from those who lead them:

• Trust
• Compassion
• Stability
• Hope

Trust--you trust me, and I can trust you.
Compassion--you know me, my specific situations, you care about me as a person
Stability--things won't change
Hope--things will change

The last two seem contradictory, but aren't.  Stability is that things don't change rapidly, suddenly, for no apparent reason.  Hope is the hope that things WILL change, that we won't always be stuck where we are, that progress happens.

The 4-R model of transformational leadership (from Mcloskey).

1. Relationships
2. Roles
3. Responsibilities
4. Results

They are numbered the right sequence.  

When making a transition in career (say, a big promotion), there are some things you can do to increase your chances of success.

• Make the mental break from your old role.  
• Accelerate your learning about the organization
• Diagnose the business situation accurately.  Is your role part of a turnaround? Starting up new service line(s)?  What?
• Secure some early wins
• Manage your boss' expectations of you.  Develop your relationship with your new boss, and make sure he/she is never blindsided by what you're doing.  Overcommunication means you can't make decisions on your own, and undercommunication leaves your boss out of the loop.  Strike the right balance.
• Assess alignment between strategy and structure of the organization.  Make structure serve strategy
• Build your team!  Re-recruit any stars on the team.  Early on, listen, listen, listen.  Build your relationships.  When you have an accurate and extensive knowledge of the players, then you can move people along who don't belong on the team.  Don't come in with a grand plan right away, start moving people around and making large decisions; it'll cost you in the long run.
• Create coalitions with those outside your direct lines of control.  Ask yourself, "What relationships do I need to be successful in this role?"

small is the new big

Many small hallway conversations make large leadership.  After a hundred small acts, you can make a large act (if the situation demands).  It's rarely necessary to start leading with a "big speech" articulating how you're going to do things.  There are occasions it's necessary--mostly if you're taking over a highly dysfunctional team and already have the political will and firepower for the inevitable dismissals.  Short of that, start by a few dozen conversations.  Then a hundred.  Then more.  In these conversations you can also provide clarity and direction and correction.

engage-ment

There go the people.
I must follow them for I am their leader.
Alexandre Ledru-Rollin

Engaging people is easy.  All you have to do is spend time with them.  Listen.  Offer some help, or at least helpful analysis.  Fix something.  Laugh with them.  Share a challenging vision of the future.  Understand the attraction of the current situation, and the fear of the (better) future.  the barriers to change, increase the awareness of the pain of the present, allow ownership, show your own vulnerabilities, own your mistakes....  That's all you have to do!  See?  Easy!

So easy that every leader does it.  Every. Day.  Always.  Right?  Obviously not.  That's where "show your own vulnerabilities" comes in. 

Come alongside those you lead.  You'll make fewer mistakes because, after time, those you lead will actually tell you things, will let you know about problems, and stop shielding you from the truth.  You have to CONNECT!     

"The real leader has no need to lead--
he is content to point the way."
Henry Miller

Gotta tell ya...Henry Miller was a great playwright, but he didn't know much about leadership.  Did he, in fact, ever lead anything of substance?  Any Henry Miller scholars out there?  [Still, he shows a common error: "I'm really good at something, so I'm really good at lots of things."]  Sorry, Henry, but leadership is not passive; you don't just tell people "go that-a-way," stand back, and call it leading.  Oh...and another thing: a good leader is never "content," Henry.

The leadership path is a journey of self-exploration, better self-understanding, and learning.  All kinds of stuff ya gotta learn--technology, law, math, process engineering, innovation techniques, how to have difficult conversations and handle tough situations.  But first and always, nosce te impsum.  (Know thyself.) You must draw wisdom from many different sources.  Using only a few sources of wisdom is...unwise.