English: Method for learning and education. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
For the past year, I have been transitioning from a full-time academic person to becoming a Leadership Development and Change Management Consultant with The Genysys Group. I traded teaching management and leadership to practicing it. The hardest part for me has been being my own information technology (IT) person. It was much easier to "call for help" when I had computer/printer issues. Now the IT person is ME.
Given the transition, it was necessary to update and redesign my website to reflect these changes. I am pleased to make this annoucement:
My new website will be launched NEXT WEEK!
Stay tuned. Feedback is welcome. Let me know what you think.
As most things these days, it will continue to evolve as my business evolves--as I evolve and grow. I am learning so much and I will continue to share what I am learning with readers.
As I said in a blog post this week, thanks for reading. Please share what you are learning by commenting. Time is valuable and precious. I am grateful that you feel my blog is worth reading, but it is a learning journey.
Recently I read an interesting article on the Harvard Business Review Blog (HRB) that pointed out how important reading is to leading. The reasons may seem clear, but here is a passage from the article:
The leadership benefits of reading are wide-ranging. Evidence suggests reading can improve intelligence and lead to innovation and insight. Some studies have shown, for example, that reading makes you smarter through "a larger vocabulary and more world knowledge in addition to the abstract reasoning skills." Reading — whether Wikipedia, Michael Lewis, or Aristotle — is one of the quickest ways to acquire and assimilate new information. Many business people claim that reading across fields is good for creativity. And leaders who can sample insights in other fields, such as sociology, the physical sciences, economics, or psychology, and apply them to their organizations are more likely to innovate and prosper.
Reading can also make you more effective in leading others. Reading increases verbal intelligence (PDF), making a leader a more adept and articulate communicator. Reading novels can improve empathy and understanding of social cues, allowing a leader to better work with and understand others — traits that author Anne Kreamer persuasively linked to increased organizational effectiveness, and to pay raises and promotions for the leaders who possessed these qualities. And any business person understands that heightened emotional intelligence will improve his or her leadership and management ability.
Reading can also be a way to decrease stress as it makes life more enjoyable.
While reading is important, it is on a downward trend. Again, according to the article:
The National Endowment for the Arts (PDF) has found that "[r]eading has declined among every group of adult Americans," and for the first time in American history, "less than half of the U.S. adult American population is reading literature." Literacy has been improving in countries like India and China, but that literacy may not translate into more or deeper reading.
The article outlines some way to boost reading, but it does not try to identify why people are reading less or reading less deeply. I think the reasons have to do with the trends we see in the media. We tend to listen to what we want to hear and not diverse opinions. We watch similar programs. And it is easier to watch movies and television, especially with 100s of channels available, than to read books. Although I read that more people are now reading books on e-readers than hard copies. But that does not mean more people are reading.
If you are a reader of my blog, thank you. I realize you have thousands of blogs, books, and magazines to read. Plus you have many things competing for your time. Blogging keeps me reading, thinking, and writing. For you to spend some of your precious time reading and/or commenting on my blog, I am grateful.
Thank you. Keep reading whatever inspires you. And I will do the same.
I was speaking to a group of executives a few weeks ago and they came to a consensus that they probably did not know the people with whom they work as well as they should. While they know it is important and they realize that leadership is more about relationships than position, they admitted to not spending the time they should on this important task.
When I started teaching in the 80s, the book In Search of Excellenceby Tom Peters and Robert Waterman had just come out about what made companies excellent. And one of the management themes that became popular out of the book was a concept called "Management by Walking Around" (MBWA). A very simple idea: Get out of your office and walk around and in the process--get to know the people who work there. Get to know all of them including the janitors and the chefs. I am calling this Leadership by Walking Around.
This sounds so simple, but I find that leaders don't take the time to do this. It is easier to stay in the office and use technology to communicate, but you don't get to know people on a personal level as well. I am part of a faith-based social justice group called AMOS (A Metropolitan Organizing Strategy). There are about 35 churches as members and I have enjoyed getting to know people in so many of the churches. We use a concept called One-on-One which means that we set up coffee times to meet with just one other person whom we don't know in order to build relationships. This method can be used in any setting such as getting to know all of the church members in your church or in any organization or class.
When I was a division chair, I used this strategy. I met with each person in my division one at a time to listen to their dreams and goals for the division. Then I compiled the list, identified themes, and presented the findings to the division as a whole. People are more likely to follow people they know and trust.
So how do you build trust?
You need to get to know people and everyone has a story they want to tell. When you walk around, look at their offices, cubicles, or work spaces. Most people decorate them with items, photos, objects that reflect what is important to them. These items are part of their personal stories. They are proud of what they display.
This is a perfect place to start. As you walk around:
Ask them questions.
Show an interest in what is important to them.
Listen to what they tell you.
Use that information to build relationships.
I read once that if you were appointed as the new leader and walked into the room, the most important questions people want answered are:
Who is this person?
Why should I follow them?
I hope you are asking yourself: How well does my team know me?
How do you know?
So now is the time to get out of your office and start walking around. Get to know the people on a deeper level. If you are the leader and you don't have an office (such as Chair of a Board or President of an organization), plan a One-on-One meeting with everyone. Take them to coffee with no agenda other than to get to know them and to listen.
Let me know how this goes. I think it is the best use of time in order to build a team to accomplish goals. Now is the time for LBWA.
After I blogged about the movie, "The Way," I received the nicest email from a man in Michigan. He wanted me to know his story and part of his journey. He and his wife are planning and training to walk El Camino next year. He gave me permission to share parts of his letter anonymously with my readers as a way to further educate people about "the walk." Below are the sections I decided to share because of the resources he mentions.
Thank you for letting me share parts of the letter. He and I will continue to talk about this because of my interest and I want to hear more about the journey.
El Camino de Santiago has become a part of our lives. We talk about it constantly. We are brushing up on our Spanish. We have built the next 16 months of our lives around it. Our library has a section dedicated to it as does our clothes closet, our shoe rack, and our computer files. We have both used variations of El Camino de Santiago or The Way as passwords. We have even caught our kids referring to coming events and future plans as being before the Camino or after the Camino.
Shortly after we declared our intentions to our children, our son gifted us with A Pilgram's Guide to the Camino de Santiago by John Brierley (the one you mentioned) and his wife gave us Rick Steves’ Spain by, of course, Rick Steves, the guy who got the whole thing started.
I have read several from my list. To date, my favorites have been I’m Off Then: Losing and Finding Myself on the Camino de Santiago by Hape Kerkeling, Fumbling: A Pilgrimage Tale of Love, Grief, and Spiritual Renewal on the Camino de Santiago by Kerry Egan, and The Way is Made by Walking: A Pilgrimage Along the Camino de Santiago by Paul Boers. I have quoted from Fumbling more than any other in my journal. (Kerry Egan has a Kathleen Norris/Anne Lamott quality to her writing.)
This is a poem from my journal that I am sharing.
Pilgrim By Enya
Pilgrim, how you journey On the road you chose To find out why the winds die And where the stories go.
All days come from one day That much you must know, You cannot change what's over But only where you go.
One way leads to diamonds, One way leads to gold, Another leads you only To everything you're told.
In your heart you wonder Which of these is true; The road that leads to nowhere, The road that leads to you.
Will you find the answer In all you say and do? Will you find the answer In you?
Each heart is a pilgrim, Each one wants to know The reason why the winds die And where the stories go.
Pilgrim, in your journey You may travel far, For pilgrim it's a long way To find out who you are...
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Walking El Camino de Santiago is on my bucket list.
As a reader, I like to share interesting things that I read. The article by David Brooks titled "The Credit Illusion" was a thought provoking read about the phases of life. When I read articles such as this, I wish I could write that well--think that well. When I said that to my husband, his response was, "That is why he writes for The New York Times."
While I encourage you to read the whole article, a few of the statements include:
You should regard yourself as the sole author of all of your future achievements and as the grateful beneficiary of all your past successes.
As you go through life, you should pass through different phases in thinking about how much credit you deserve. You should start your life with the illusion that you are completely in control of what you do. You should finish life with the recognition that, all in all, you got better than you deserved.
The credit illusion that Brooks talks about reminds me of the metaphor Jim Collins uses in his book Good to Great called "the window and the mirror." When good things happen, we should look out the window to give credit. When bad things happen, we should look in the mirror to see what we might have done differently. Yet, it is human nature to want to do the exact opposite. So we have to be careful about doing the right thing.
Another perspective of life phases comes from the movie City Slickers with Billy Crystal. Below is a clip that I use in sage-ing workshops or classes on the second half of life. Honestly, I think it is so funny. And the more years of life experience I gain, I think there is more truth to it than I did when I was younger.
English: Jim Collins (James C. Collins), an American business consultant, author of "Built to Last" and "Good to Great". (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
In June, I had the opportunity to hear Jim Collins in person. He is on the road promoting his new book Great by Choice. While he covered several topics that interest me, I appreciated what he said about creativity:
"To be human is to be creative. Don’t need to learn to be creative. It is natural and abundant, but the discipline is not natural. Need to unlearn things that get in the way of creativity. Marrying the two is key."
I was curious so I asked an artist friend of mine, Tilly, for her opinion. She teaches art and is an artist by training. In fact, Tilly is one of the most creative people I know. She can make something out of nothing. She is innovative and resourceful and I often turn to her for ideas. This is what Tilly had to say:
"I think Jim Collins is spot on. If you look at research on the developmental stages of children as they relate to artistic expression, it's amazing how we invent, intuit, express, and create. Yet, at the onset of puberty, our minds stiffen up as we become worried about judgement. Disciplines is such an important part. You have to be able to do the work, and it is hard to make yourself sit to do the work. It takes practices, just as an athlete builds muscles, skills and endurance, artists and creative people have to do the same."
As you watch the Olympics for the next two weeks, imagine the time, effort, discipline, and money allocated toward the goal of being an Olympian. Leaders should take notice that leadership is a skill to practice, get feedback, and work to become better.
In my leadeship courses, I have students engage in a creativity activity--something that they believe enriches their lives. I want them to practice it enough so they can tell the activity makes a difference. I believe it is important to be creative, curious, and interested. When we are curious, we tend to be less judgemental. We want to find solutions and new ways of doing things.
What do you do for creativity?
Do you do it enough?
If not, when will you have more time than you have right now?
I used to be the church organist when I was in high school. In fact, I was a BAD church organist. If I did not know the notes, I just skipped them. But the quality of the organ was not much better than my playing. And I was paid $5 a Sunday and never got a raise in the four years! But taking piano lessons is on my list. I am hoping to start again this fall.
A recent and close to home incident was a perfect example of the dark side (shadow) of the ego taking over a leader's life. Russell Wasendorf, commodities broker and philanthropist, tried to commit suicide as his company was crumbling around him because of his unethical behaviors and decisions. But he was unsuccessful in killing himself because an employee rescued him! Wasenforf outlined in his suicide note exactly what he did to take the company down and why he did it. You can read most of the suicide note, but he admits to all of his wrong doing.
Another irony in the story is the fact that Wasendorf was beloved in the city because of his very generous gifts to the community. He had received awards for his good deeds. People loved him so that the employee who "saved" him throught he was doing the right thing.
This is a telling paragraph in his note:
“I had no access to additional capital and I was forced into a difficult decision: Should I go out of business or cheat? I guess my ego was too big to admit failure. So, I cheated. I falsified the very core of the financial documents of PFG.”
Wasendorf admits that his ego took over and was too big to fail. As he was giving money away in the community and people loved him (doing the right things), he was cheating in order to do it (for the wrong reasons). He was basking in the glory of being a "big fish" and willing to take his company down and the people who worked in his businesses.
Interesting how he was not successful in killing himself and now he has to live the rest of his life with the consequences of his actions. The ego is so powerful and we need to make sure that our egos are healthy and not out to destroy us and others.
With the ego comes power and we have witnessed so many leaders let their egos make them think they are invincible and entitled--that they can get away with whatever they want. First there was Madoff and now Wasendorf and many in between.
How do you keep the ego in balance?
How can we prevent the ego from taking over--hurting ourselves and others?
I like to say that if we do the right things for the right reasons, things seem to work out. And I think this is relevant to the decisions we make regarding jobs, spouses, friends ...
In so many cases, I believe "less is more." So today I am sharing a one minute clip on the power of words. As leaders and as people, what we say and how we say it influences others and how they respond to us. I will let the video tell the story.
It reminds me that I need to pay attention to what I say and how I say it. This is also about the power of perspective. Remember to take time to "look at the view."
WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 08: U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (R) and U.S. first lady Michelle Obama (L) pose for photographs with International Women of Courage Awards winner and Deputy Attorney General for Special Investigations against Organized Crime Marisela Morales Ibañez of Mexico at the Department of State March 8, 2011 in Washington, DC. The award were given on the 100th anniversary of International Womens' Day to 10 women recognized for their 'courage and leadership as they fight for social justice, human rights and the advancement of women.' (Image credit: Getty Images via @daylife)
A friend of mine came over for dinner and we got talking about leadership. He described a great leader whom he wants me to interview for my Sage Study. Then we spent the rest of the night talking about why there are so many bad leaders. Based on my research, he asked me what I thought and this is what I shared with him. After the conversation, I thought I would put it out there to see what you think.
Most people don't do the needed inner or interior work needed to overcome our demons or what is called the "dark side" or "shadow." When we don't do this, we don't understand our weaknesses. Our pride, insecurities, and defensiveness gets in the way. We lack the emotional maturity needed to overcome these obstacles.
Likewise, when we do the interior work, we know our weaknesses and are secure enough to surround ourselves with people who complement us. They have strengths that make us stronger especially as teams. We are confident enough to demonstrate vulnerability which allows others to connect with us. In fact, my friend said he is inspired and motivated by people who are authentic and admit their mistakes.
We are matryoshka dolls (Russian nesting dolls), human beings consisting of layers. It is hard to peel back the layers in order to learn who we are and what is important to us. We learn early in life to put up our guard, to not show all of our cards, to wear masks, to play the game, to fake it until we make it. All of these practices are a disguise.
We are sent messages in school at all levels to be strong and to not show our vulnerabilities. If we are in a leadership role, we are supposed to know the answers. Yet, we know that it is impossible for us to have the answers by ourselves in this complex and interconnected world in which we work and live.
In the larger culture in which we live, the trend in leadership has been toward the hero leader who is charismatic and placed on a pedestal by followers. They are charismatic, but lack character. They have style, but lack substance. They are high profiled, but lack integrity and depth. The dark side of this model is leaders’ fear of showing vulnerability by displaying any weakness, imperfection, or insecurity. Often these fears are masked in excessive pride that expresses itself as arrogance, a sense of entitlement, difficulty accepting responsibility for mistakes, and addiction to perfection. When these fears are not addressed, it is often difficult to accept imperfections in others. Both fear and pride lead to actions that are defensive and offensive, and often result in anger, impatience, and intolerance.
In fact, I concluded that vulnerabilty is a strength!
If you want to become a more effective leader and a person others want to follow, take the time to learn about yourself and what contributes to bad leadership. I advocate picking out people you admire and then trying to be like them.
Would you follow yourself?
Becoming a person others want to follow is a life-long journey. Start now.
LONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 08: Andy Murray's coach Ivan Lendl attendd the Gentlemen's Singles final match between Roger Federer of Switzerland and Andy Murray of Great Britain on day thirteen of the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on July 8, 2012 in London, England. (Image credit: Getty Images via @daylife)
While I watch very little television, I was caught up in watching Wimbledon. If you saw any of the tournament and listened to the commentators, you heard them talk about how Andy Murray is now being coached by Ivan Lendl (several time Wimbledon champion himself). Roger Federer switched coaches also and is not being coached by Paul Annacone. Murray did make history and wanted to make more history as the first British male in 76 years to be the winner, but it was not meant to be.
But the focus of the commentators was on how much Murray has improved--stepped up his game especially now that Lendl is his coach. There was also a long article in Sports Illustrated about this new relationship to help Murray win big tournaments. During the first set, Murray was on fire and I thought Federer was going to lose this when it was his match to lose given his past history of winning grand slams.
What struck me is how professionals at the top of their game realize the value of hiring coaches to help them get even better. This is true in many sports, but particularly individual sports such as golf and tennis. Tiger has a coach as do most of the others. If part of their game is not up to par, they eagerly hire a coach who can provide insights, strategies, and wisdom on how to improve.
I often define a leader as someone who influences the lives of others and this includes parents. If leadership is our profession, then we should want to be at the top of our game and willing to get feedback to be the best at what we do. Executive coaches, leadership coaches, and even therapists help us become better leaders--better people.
Executive coaching and leadership development is becoming more common, but it should be the norm. Usually the higher people rise within organizations, the less feedback they often get and the less honest. It can be sugar coated so that people are told what they want to hear. Hiring an objective coach who can give feedback to improve our performance, helps to make us professionals.
I always find it curious that this is common sense in athletics. Players don't hesitate to find someone who can help them get to the top.
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