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Posts tagged ‘Personal Development’

Sep 16

Leadership legacy

Beginning with President Reagan, each U.S. President has left a private letter in the Oval Office for the incoming President on inauguration day. In the Leadership and Coaching course that we’re teaching, a student wrote an interesting post integrating this idea with organizational leadership. Here is the post, shared with permission:

Something the other day reminded me of the White House tradition of outgoing presidents leaving a letter in the oval office for their successor. As we lead from any level in an organization, I had to ask myself: What would this tradition look like at other levels of leadership? What would I write and leave behind for somebody taking over my role?

It didn’t take long to come up with an answer – now that I’ve thought of it, I can’t “not” do it. So, today I will begin a “working” letter that I will keep updated until I have the opportunity to pass it on. I want to leave behind a narrative about each member of my team … with a twist. It’s going to be 100% positive. Strengths only. I want to highlight successes, great moments, memories, and wins that each person has been a part of. Go to him for this, and go to her for that. I want any future leader of my team to have a feel for what is best about each person.

As far as the negatives and weaknesses, that can and will surface on its own energy (not to mention personnel records). I prefer that anyone taking my role discover those attributes without my input and bias. Who knows, maybe in a transition some leaves will be turned. Why bring up attributes that have potentially met their end?

What’s in your letter to your successor?

Aug 29

Things we know well

According to NHTSA, 52% of vehicle accidents happen within one mile of home; 99% happen within 50 miles of home. I would argue that it is due to the quality of our attention. Whether we’re driving, typing on the computer, or playing an instrument, our skills learned through repetition become automatic.

When I see a niece or nephew for the first time in a year, I’m surprised at the changes they’re making. I say, “Wow, you’re growing up!” But with kids I see on a daily basis, growth is more easily measured at birthdays or when suddenly the kid is as tall as I am. Whether watching kids grow or noticing whether we’re clicking “Yes” or “Ok,” a familiar environment diminishes our awareness of change.

When skills become automatic and awareness diminishes, it is easier to make mistakes. Accidents happen. We have a fender bender. We delete the wrong file. How can we decrease the amount of unintentional mistakes and accidents?

One method is to create a checklist and use it. If you can, build in “undo” options  that allow you to go back a step or two. If you can’t go back, build additional options into the decision tree that allow either correction or lessened impact of the error. Encourage a buddy system, where coworkers or friends double-check decisions as you go through the checklist. Be present as you perform skills and as you run to the grocery store.

What other strategies do you use to increase your present moment awareness?

P.S. The photo is of the sky reflecting on the hood of the truck.

Excellence is a habit

Aug 25

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A vision is not a destination

Last weekend, Jon and I visited the Osa and Martin Johnson Museum in Chanute, Kansas. They were explorers who used photography and early video equipment as a part of their experiences. They were not photographers and videographers who went exploring.

The difference? My observation is that too often organizations overlay a vision on what they are already doing. The vision is seen as defining the straight line from the present to a desire future. It assumes that managers can outline a strategy and action steps to reach the future. The vision is held up as a map for certainty and survival. The vision is the destination, the promised land.

For Osa and Martin Johnson, the vision was exploring – having adventures. As they encountered people and cultures, they wrote, photographed, and filmed. But above all they explored and interacted, often immersing themselves in cultures for years at a time. From the vision and intention to adventure, relationships and business opportunities emerged. From the intention to adventure, supporting methods and processes emerged. The vision was about a life-long intention, not the details of the next destination.

What is your vision, your life-long intention? What is the vision and intention of your organization?

Aug 2

Off the grid

I’ve been “off the grid” for a few days. It was enforced by being in several National Parks, including Glacier and Yellowstone. Places with no internet service and no cellular service. Places where there is no dopamine rush to the brain from the instant gratification of looking up an answer to a question, checking email, or immediately calling someone with information.

The feeling of calmness that came from disconnecting from the digital world is starting to fade as the demands of life appear again. But the time to think, to really “be” with family, and to stand in awe of the natural world brought renewal and new ideas.

As I was catching back up with the blogs I follow, I discovered Daniel Pink’s recent post: The Genius Hour: How 60 minutes a week can electrify your job. He writes about the power of taking one hour a week for improving skills or seeking out new ideas. The credit union in the story makes it happen by putting it on the schedule, having the boss pitch in, and getting the ideas implemented and skills used. Pink includes links to articles about Google’s innovation time and Atlassian’s Fedex Days.

Since I can’t live in the National Parks, I will remember that one hour a week can make a difference. And, I’m considering ideas from How Genius Works about how to best use that hour .

What would you do with one hour a week to dedicate to mastering a skill or learning something new? What difference would it make in your organization if each person had one hour to dedicate?

Jul 22

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Idea for reflection – 32

I am enough of an artist
to draw freely upon my imagination.

Imagination is more important
than knowledge.

Knowledge is limited.
Imagination encircles the world.
– Albert Einstein

Spontaneity
Improving your brainstorming sessions

Jul 14

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Meetings and other wrecks

One-third of all wrecks happen within one mile of home. My theory is that when we are close to home, we are blinded by the familiar. We drive without attention, saying, “I don’t recall the details of getting home.”

Routine meetings and conversations often suffer the same fate. One Monday morning team meeting looks much like the one last week. The video of the town hall with the CEO could be transplanted from one quarter to the next. The strategic planning session mirrors the one from last year, and the year before . . . .

David Whyte’s poem, Sometimes, says, “… stop what you are doing right now, / and stop what you are becoming while you do it ….” My intention is to being noticing more of the immediate world around me, when I’m driving and when I’m in meetings.

When is the last time you made the effort to hold a meeting or conversation that went beyond the familiar, the ordinary? What are the questions that trouble you and won’t go away? What is on your stop doing list?

May 9

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Idea for reflection – 31

Thinking is easy, acting is difficult, and to put one’s thoughts into action is the most difficult thing in the world.
   – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Through the window
Idea for reflection – 30

Apr 30

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Through the window

The window has forty
panes, forty clarities
variously wrinkled, streaked
with dried rain, smudged,
…
The window is a form
of consciousness, pattern
of formed sense
through which to look
into the wild
that is a pattern too,
bearing along the
shapes of the mind
…
The windy day
on one of the panes
a blown seed, caught
in a cobweb, beats and beats.

  – Wendell Berry, excerpted from Window Poems 3

Idea for reflection – 30
Can imagination be taught?

Apr 18

2 Comments

Mutually assured distraction

One of the questions I am frequently asked in workshops is, “How do we deal with people emailing and texting in our meetings or presentations or training sessions?” This is not easy to answer, especially when the person using the smart phone is above you in the organization. Using smartphones 24/7 to text, email, or use social networks happens constantly – and not just at work. It happens at lunch with colleagues and friends. It happens when I’m on a walk in the evening with Jon. It happens (illegally in Kansas) while people are driving.

It is a scientific fact that we cannot multi-task. We can only do one thing at a time. The more we jump from task-to-task, the lower our productivity and quality of work becomes. And yet we allow our meetings and personal conversations to be constantly interrupted – distracted by the technology at hand.

One workplace strategy is to use ground rules in meetings. One of the ground rules might be: Show respect by giving full attention to our discussion; if you have to take a call or email, excuse yourself from the meeting. In classrooms, I state that I expect students to give their full attention to the dialogue and activities; if they have to take an emergency call, I ask them to leave the classroom. During time with family and friends, I often choose to turn my phone to vibrate or off, which allows me to focus on the experience we are creating and sharing.

When any of us choose to allow constant interruptions of conversations, activities, and even decision-making processes, we are chosing to function at levels that undermine our goals and relationships. We are practicing “mutually assured distraction.”

Apr 7

Where do we start?

Less than 7% of the Eastern Screech Owls in the United States live in Kansas. Discovering a rather unusual visitor requires dedicated observation on our part and support from friends who watch for his arrival. But his regular return requires the right resources (temperature, hollow tree, water and food, etc.) and trust as people walk past his home and take his picture.

I recently wrote about building a better boss. One of the resulting questions that has prompted an ongoing conversation between Jon and I is, “Where can our organization start building?”

Organizational environments are as complex as natural ones that support the life of this owl – someone would argue more complex because they include people. Yet we return each day to our work and the opportunity to start anew.

The place to start is always with yourself. Here are some questions that I ask our coaching clients that will jumpstart your thinking:

  • Have you identified your personal values and vision?
  • How do these fit with the values and vision of your organization? Of your team or work group? (Note: organization and team values might be somewhat different!)
  • Do you trust others in your organization and do they trust you?
  • What are the top three things that you want to focus on for learning and growth in the next six months?

Starting with leading and managing yourself lays a foundation for successfully leading and managing others. In an age of immersive connections, the first question is, “Are you connected to yourself?”

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