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Last week was an exciting week in Hyderabad, India. It included the typical day old meetings, team building dinners, equipment and hardware reviews and lesson after lesson of culture.

But this visit had very special meaning. For the last year, the drive from the hotel to the facility has been an exciting 75 minutes of twists, turns, pumps, jumps, transitions, traffic, construction, obstructions and general discomfort. No more. A number of new roads opened and a smooth ride resulted.

So what does this have to do with old habits you might ask? A few of these newly opened roads also have new sidewalks that are level, clean, unobstructed and unused. Everyone was still walking in the streets. I asked why and generally the answer revolved around the idea that sidewalks are generally not the cleanest and level of places to walk. But this case was different. The sidewalks were clear and ready to be used. It made me think of what old leadership habits we all have that are no longer relevant. Things we do from habit whose basis is gone.

What do you do from habit that you should stop? Have you caught yourself lately doing some no longer relevant?

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12 year old priority

A few weeks ago we talked about the “major league mentoring” Gloria James provided her son. While this story got a lot of comment, less famous moms are providing great advice to leaders all the time.

Gerry was trying to make a very difficult career decision. It was a common question of balancing career and work with family and health. In reality, the answer to the question is so simple. Family and health need to be in line or your career and work performance will never be maximized. Unfortunately, it is often hard to see the obvious and we need someone to help.

In Gerry’s case there were young boys and a wife all in need of his assistance. Once Gerry came to what I’ll call the obvious decision, I asked him what helped him come to the right conclusion. He said he sought the coaching and advice of many people he trusted, but the thoughts from his mother weighed heavily. Gerry’s said his mom only asked him, “What do you think I would have done when you were 12 years old and needed my help?” From that point forward, Gerry focused on the critical issues and is back to his career in a much more balanced manner.

Do you have that person you can depend on for honest guidance? Do you take the trust others give you to provide guidance as seriously as you should?

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Banana nut attitude

This was a good Sunday morning. I woke up to warm banana nut muffins and hot coffee. The muffins were made healthy, except perhaps for those little chocolate chips.

A few hours later, I went for my Sunday “long run” preparing for the New Haven 20K race in a few months. The first three miles went fine. I was a little full from those great muffins, but ok. Around mile five the muffins were becoming my enemy. In mile five I was mad at myself for having eaten more than one, wondering why my wife had made them, concerned my race preparation was going poorly and hoping I would make it home in one piece. Mile six made me walk for a bit.

While I was walking with these negative thoughts it occurred to me that it was really nice outdoors, there were plenty of other people walking the path with me and I had a whole Sunday off in front of me. Within a moment, my attitude changed and all was good. As leaders, we owe it to our people to help them see the bigger picture. We are not hiding the truth, but putting the situation in perspective. Within a moment, I changed mine and enjoyed what I was doing. I’ll do fine in the race in a few weeks (thank goodness I don’t run for a living!).

Have you caught your self-attitude in the past and “decided” to be satisfied? Do you believe satisfaction is a decision away?

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Watch out Gen Y – Delaney is coming

I got to hang out with my niece during a recent trip to California. Knowing I like music and live performances, Delaney wanted to share her favorite song with me. She ran and got her mom’s iPhone from the purse, surfed the icons and music directory and played “Delaney talks to Statutes” by Jimmy Buffet. The song was classic Jimmy Buffet but that was not the special thing.

After playing the song with a big smile, I asked Delaney if she could spell her name. She then surfed the icons on the iPhone again, found the keyboard and typed “Delaney.” So what you might say, but Delaney is THREE YEARS OLD and not capable of holding a pencil steady enough to write clearly. As leaders, if you think GenY’s are a different breed, just wait until Delaney and her friends enter the workforce. This is going to be something really special.

Another way of thinking about this lesson involves your personal skill set. Are you doing everything within your power to stay current and relevant? Do you learn the lessons the kids are teaching?

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What would your museum say?

After the US Coast Guard flag ceremony while driving through the back roads of Connecticut looking for the two big casinos, we stumbled upon the “John Bishop Museum.” Build in 1810; it was far ahead of its time in terms of building techniques.

Think about this concept. What would be in a museum dedicated to you? What if someone secretly watched over everything you did, then collected the stories and artifacts and assembled them into the museum of your life for all to see? What would the museum say about you? What would your life stand for? Would the good supersede the not so good?

The idea of having your personal museum was originally brought to my attention by John Strelecky in his best seller “Big Five for Life.” The concept makes you think about your priorities.

Would you want to visit your own museum? Would others?

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Major league mentoring

Thursday morning started out pretty much as normal for Gloria. She woke, had breakfast and read the paper. Perhaps she watched the news or a morning TV show like millions of Americans. When her son called, it was not a surprise.

But this was not going to be a typical day. Her son was making an important career decision and she was about to be asked her opinion. Many of us in leadership are asked by junior colleagues our opinion about career decisions. Generally, we do our best to provide honest and credible advice. Gloria did the same. She coached her son to make the decision that would most make him happy. To take the path that best meets your needs. Gloria’s advice gave her son the freedom to make a very significant change.

Gloria James had no idea the reaction Lebron’s decision would create. Her advice was sound and the rest is history.

Have you ever been asked for career guidance and under estimated the result? How did you react?

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Lost and Found

I hope all our LiaV community that celebrate the July 4th Independence Day did so safely.

We certainly did and have a leadership lesson from it. The evening of the 4th was spent at Waveny Park in New Canaan for the fireworks display. It was your quintessential New England small town event. There were lots of families, food and blankets laid out in the park.

As we walked around, I noticed this child wondering aimlessly alone. The kid was probably about 2 years old and there was definitely no one watching her. This seemed a little odd to me so I pointed it out to my wife. Barbara went immediately into action, catching up with the child, attempting to talk to her and taking her by the hand to the nearest police officer. It was interesting how much different we each reacted in the same situation. I noticed something unusual and pointed it out. Barbara analyzed the situation, found it to be unacceptable and took action. It was an interesting leadership lesson. Observations are easy. Taking action is harder.

Have you ever observed a serious situation where someone else took action? What was it that held you back?

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“Leadership” double-speak

“Aren’t leaders supposed to coach and teach?”

I’ve been authoring posts about practical leadership concepts and observations for a many years. I aim to be entertaining enough to keep your interest and educational enough that you learn. Leaders must be teachers, coaches, people developers, visionaries, risk takers, role models and decision makers.

The last point here is critical for today’s thought. Leaders must be able to make the tough decisions. There is a sensitive balance in determining whether a team member needs coaching and development or more serious action taken. Generally this is a delicate skill learned over many years. I’ve learned over time that often when I get frustrated over something not being completed to an acceptable standard, it is a teaching opportunity. What if after many missed commitments and several coaching opportunities an individual actually goes on the offense and says, “Aren’t leaders supposed to coach and teach?” This would clearly be a misinterpretation of what LiaV is about.

The risk of stating your leadership theory in public is it can then be turned back on you. It is a risk I have been willing to take.

Have your coaching words ever been taken out of context and used back on you? How did you resolve the situation?

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Rules of the road

Cruising North on CT Route 7 on Saturday morning was a blast (except for a little rain). Terry, Joe and I were motorcycling to the Rhinebeck Grand National Super Meet at the Dutchess County Fairgrounds in Rhinebeck, NY. One of the benefits of a country road motorcycle ride is the time to think and reflect.

I did not solve any worldly problems, but it did occur to me that many of the rules of the road for motorcyclists are the same as those for work teammates and leaders. Here are a few of them:

- Arrive on time and ready to go.
- Know the laws and abide by them.
- Keep a safe distance between riders.
- Be prepared for the unexpected.
- Point out road hazards to those that follow you.
- Continuously monitor the situation and react accordingly.
- Be courteous and tolerant of other riders and traffic.
- Remain focused. Safety first.
- Never leave a rider behind.
- It’s all about having a good time.

If motorcycle rules of the road are so applicable to work teams, I would guess the same is true for many other team based events.

Where other than work do you gain guidance for good teamwork from?

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The big forgive

Many friends and colleagues have asked me the leadership lesson to be learned from the “imperfect game” thrown by Detroit Tigers pitcher Armando Galarraga. It was clear from the video replay that veteran umpire Jim Joyce blew the call at first base causing Galarraga to miss a chance at baseball greatness by throwing a perfect game (MSF – that would be 27 consecutive outs).

The problem was I could not find the lesson. Joyce immediately stepped up and took full responsibility for the error and apologized. The media made mania out of the “theft” to no avail. Baseball’s commissioner confirmed the umpire’s field decision would not be reversed. It all seemed cut and dry until a colleague from Bangalore emailed me the ESPN phone interview with Armando Galarraga. Baseball immortality was stolen from this guy and he completely forgave the umpire and said he could have made the same error given the high level of intensity at the moment.

I can only hope to act the with the same dignity when my chance at greatest is taken from me. His maturity and ability to forgive should be a lesson for all leaders.

Have you ever made a significant error and you boss forgive you? How did you feel?


http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/columns/story?columnist=crasnick_jerry&id=5245331

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Who’s party is this anyway?

At dinner the other evening, a friend told us about the New Canaan, CT Memorial Day parade. We asked how big it was and she said, “Big.” Coming from Southern California, this could mean hours long.

We packed up our chairs, a small cooler and walked into town. We should have known being that New Canaan has 14,000 residents and Huntington Beach has 400,000 our definition of big was likely incorrect. The parade was about 45 minutes long and included veteran organizations, community volunteer services, youth groups (many with American Indian names) and fire trucks.

Walking back, I reflected on the fact that the Veterans were first and were the most recognized. They were the parade. The others were for fun. As a leader it made me think about how often we are invited to participate in events and the importance in preparing. I was at a high level meeting the other day and another leader introduced a new team member as “having a master’s degree from Syracuse or someplace.” That certainly minimized the accomplishment.

How to you ensure you are prepared and recognize the right accomplishments?

PS – Thank you to all our LiaV veterans.

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Another Switzerland

Coming from very large families and generally staying out of the fray of disputes has granted our home the status of Switzerland. It is a neutral place where all baggage is left behind and good time can be had by all.

This weekend we attended the graduation ceremony for my nephew from the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA) in North Adams. MA. It was a nice celebration in the gymnasium of the Trailblazers. As with most graduations, the bleachers were full of family and friends. In our case, my nephew’s father drove up for the event from Tennessee and participated in the graduation party thrown by my sister. While I’m always neutral, it was fantastic to see everyone drop their differences for the sake of a significant achievement and celebration.

It made me think about the environments we create for our people as leaders. Do our teams think of us as Switzerland? Do we foster environments that bring people of different thoughts and opinions together, or drive them apart?

What do you do to foster an environment of inclusion and safety?

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It’s Payback Time

Take yourself back to mid 2008 for just a moment. The great recession was in full bloom. Friends and relatives were losing their jobs. Hours were being cut back. Company 401K match contributions were being canceled. Insurance co-payments were being raised. Pensions were being eliminated. Employees were putting up with it all because they had to.

Fast forward to time now. While unemployment remains around 10%, companies have started to hire. Consumers have started to buy. Industrial orders have increased. The word “career” has crept back into our vocabulary. My college nephew even got a summer internship.

Why did companies and management do all those things over the past few years? Because they could! Employees did not have a choice. The power in this relationship is about to shift and employees are going to remember those decisions. While the definition of compensation may have changed, the way teammates were treated during hard times will not be forgotten. It’s payback time. Those unilateral decisions over the last two years are going to be paid back over the next ten years through attrition as teammates get options again.

Did you and your company play the game for the long term or take advantage of the temporary shift in power over?

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“If it’s not a good time, it’s a good story”

The last three weeks have been interesting global travels. The Poland and Czech Republic front end of the trip was rescheduled due to the volcanic ash cloud emitted from Iceland. The team was successful swapping all our events into virtual forums and we never missed a beat.

The China leg had the typical airplane delays. But, for the first time since I’ve been traveling internationally, a scheduled delay was canceled and the plane left on time. This really screwed up my quick rearrangements! The transition to India was relatively seamless. Of course that was when my traveling colleague lost her voice. She could only nod and smile for two days. That was when she wrote on a piece of paper, “If it’s not a good time, it’s a good story.” I thought this was a pretty positive perspective.

How do you keep a positive attitude during the worst of travels?

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Is PowerPoint the enemy?

Think of the last time you were completely bored in a PowerPoint presentation. If you are like me, your pulse lowers, your eyes glaze over, you think about other things and perhaps you do your email on the “crackberry.” Back in January 2009, I did a two part blog series on this topic entitled “The Heart Rate Test (Story-time Part I)” and “Death by Viewgraph…NOT (Story-time Part II).”

Last week a colleague emailed me an article from the New York Times (26 April 2010) entitled “We Have Met the Enemy and He Is PowerPoint“ by Elisabeth Bumiller. It discussed the use of PowerPoint in the military and how it does not properly articulate the message to leadership. While the article does present the topic in a fair manner, I do not agree PowerPoint is the issue. It is the user that over uses the tool to avoid really engaging. The presentations you give are far more than the charts presented. You need to understand your audience and their motivations. You need to appeal to all of the audience’s senses and make them be a part of the session.

Is PowerPoint running a “muck” in your organization? What have you done to correct it?

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Respecting Babe’s House

We went to the New York Yankees – Texas Rangers game this weekend in the new Yankee Stadium in the Bronx. Yep – home of the Bronx Bombers. The House that Babe built. Wait a minute. We were in the new stadium and walked by the demolished remains of the old stadium that Babe built in 1923.

I will say up front that I understand many people have an affinity to the old stadium and the many important things happened there. That as a given, I thought the designers and builders of the new stadium did an outstanding job respecting the past and incorporating it into the design while providing a world class, modern sporting venue.

It made me think that evening about what a leader’s role is when they follow a legend into the position. It is likely the team loved your predecessor and they were not looking for someone new. In a situation like this, it would seem the best approach would be the same as the new Yankee Stadium. Incorporate the history and best elements of the past, speak well about what was and the future that will be, and go boldly to a new place.

What lessons can you share about following a great leader into a position?

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Unwanted milestones

LiaV (Leadership is a Verb) reached a couple interesting new milestones in the past weeks. Unlike the competition last year where we placed 2nd in the “Best Leadership Blogs of 2009,” we were informed that an independent researcher identified LiaV as in “Top 150 Management & Leadership Blogs. It is an ordered list, created using statistics from Google PageRank, Bing, Alexa, Technorati, Twitter Grader, PostRank and FeedBurner.” I guess this is ok enough.

The second category we achieved was the arrival of multiple public relations firms volunteering to send me free copies of their client’s recently released books to read and blog about. First, LiaV is not for sale or influence. You can bank on the fact that the posts you will read on LiaV are original, uninfluenced and simply the way I observe the world.

All in all, these were unwanted milestones and ones you achieved more than me based on your hits and comments. I respectfully declined each of the offers, but suspect they will continue.

What would you do with these if you were me?

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Boomer 61, Gen X 59

I know a few of you cringe when I use a sports analogy, but having attended last night’s NCAA Final Four in Indianapolis you are about to read one.

Coach K (Coach Mike Krzyzewski of Duke University) is a 63 year old boomer that teaches classic basketball fundamentals. His team came out for pre-game warm-ups all wearing the exact same attire, doing the consistent team drills and acting very disciplined. He has now won four national championships and is a legend. Coach Brad (Coach Brad Stevens of Butler University) is a 33 year old Gen X that is on his second career (he started in corporate America in advertising for Eli Lilly). He understands basketball and really grasps how to build teams. His team participated in pre-game warm-ups dressed in all varieties of Butler wear, preparing in their individual ways, many wearing iPods and enjoying the moment.

While I’m probably more “old school” when it comes to sports fundamentals, I was reminded last night how important it is to adjust my believes as a leader based on who I am leading. While Coach K won, Coach Brad gave Duke more of a game than anyone thought they would. Teaching is one thing, but building a cohesive team is often more than simply providing direction. Sometimes you have to bend and let the team do some of “their” thing.

Have you needed to make adjustments to your leadership style to effectively lead Gen Y’s? What did you do differently?

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Have you clarified your expectations?

In November 2009, I shared a story about the downfall of not clarifying your expectations as a leader. The post was about Tim and was titled “Where is this new place that we are going?” I thought I would share the actual publication I produced. Have you clearly articulated your expectation? How do you react to the ones below?

JPB Expectations for team members (8 Nov 2009)

Leadership - Leadership is a verb, not a position. Everyone has a responsibility to lead.

Talent - Build world class teams of multi-functional, culturally diverse, multi-lingual talent. Develop/hire people more capable than ourselves. “A’s hire B’s. B’s hire C’s.”

Trust - Be honest. Don’t blame. Build the team. Help each other succeed.

Dependability - “Do what you say, when you say you will do it.” Over-deliver on commitments.

Virtual - Develop and demonstrate excellence in leading virtual teams. Master technology and improve people skills daily. Virtual is 10% technology and 90% people. “A successful virtual team is a geographically dispersed team that thinks and acts as if they were in one place.”

Relationships - Supplier and customer relationships are valued and proactively maintained. “Our performance is that of our supplier/teammates.”

Consistent - Predictable performance, rhythm, reviews, reports and meetings are valued. People can plan on our results.

Innovation - Continuous improvement is valued and lean is our toolbox.

Fact Based - Measure everything important using Malcolm Baldrige metric criteria. Have S.M.A.R.T. goals (Specific, Measureable, Achievable, Relevant & Time Phased). Make decisions based on a healthy balance of facts and intuition.

Standard Work - Once agreed, standard tools and templates are to be used. They save time and confusion. Improvements should be coordinated and deployed.

Recognition - Reward great results in a timely manner. Say “thank you.” Coach each other. Everyone should recognize everyone.

Have Fun - We are fortunate to be able to work on these amazing assignments. Everyone deserves to enjoy what they do. If someone is not having fun, help them find something they will enjoy doing.

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Amazing what you don’t need

Did you know that a full 50 gallon water heater can last for five brief hot showers and a few shaves without refill? Did you know that in a time of need, a standard window screen can be slipped into slots cut into a couple short of 2x4’s to create a fireplace screen? Did you know if you keep a fair amount of ice in your freezer that it will keep your food frozen for many days if you don’t open the door during a power outage?

Many of you know that I’m in the first year of our “Connecticut Adventura” (or as a SoCal friend calls it, living in the “upper right”). If you saw the news last weekend, many parts of Fairfield County CT was heavily hit by the storm and lost power. New Canaan lost power to over 56% of households. It was interesting at first, a pain later on and just life by the third and fourth day. There was a generator sign in the center of town providing residents with updates. It mostly said that schools remained closed.

What does this have to do with leadership? I was reminded how much we have we really do not need. America is a consumer nation. While power is something we do need, I was able to solve each of the challenges presented once I thought about it. I imagine the same is true in the workplace. We need to provide our teams with the tools to accomplish their jobs in an efficient manner. Some nice to haves are important. Too many are not required.

What types of things have you found fall into the “excess” category?

PS – Maybe later in the week I’ll share my staple inventory blog post.

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