"I Don't Know"

How long has it been since you told your teammates "I don't know"? Often, we think that leadership is always having the answers and always knowing what to do. But, what about those times when you really don't have a clue how to handle something? Recently in a planning meeting I had a complete mental block. I couldn't think creatively and felt like my brain just shut down. My first thoughts were "I can't do this, I have to LEAD, I have to know the answers, I don't want to seem incompetent".

What kind of leader are you if you can't be real with those around you?

The people you work with aren't looking for a leader who has all the right answers and has it all together. They are looking for a leader they can relate to. And imperfect people can relate to imperfect leaders. So, next time you don't know...be brave...just take a deep breath and say it..."I DON'T KNOW".

Here's a great article I wanted to pass along from Mark Steven's blog. Hope you enjoy!

I watched an interview recently with Ted Turner, the odd-ball genius who built a media empire, married a movie star and owns more land than anyone else in North America.

He is one of the rare ones who speaks insanity and exceptional insight in the space of a single sound bite. As an example of the latter, he recounted his father’s advice that he should aspire to something so big in his life, that it would be near impossible to accomplish it. That way, he would always have a burning goal to drive his ambitions.

With that epiphany alone, he knew something most don’t. In my business and personal life, I have had the priviledge of meeting and working with a number of truly exceptional people. Gates, Icahn, Clark Clifford, Bloomberg, Treasury Secretary William Simon. All have known a set of facts, and live by them, that I believe, taken together, make exceptional people, exceptional.

Here is what they know:

* Life is short and long. Too short to worry about how long you will live. Long enough to accomplish great feats.
* Whatever you are doing well, you aren’t doing well enough. It is precisely those initiatives you are truly skilled at, that provide the greatest pathway to exceptionalism.
* It is always stupid to hold a grudge. It is always smart to have a dream.
* You must face your worst fears and in the process turn them into adventures.
* Risk is an essential element of businesses well-built and lives well-lived.
* Whenever you feel that everything is in place, the planets are aligned, all is good–the chess pieces will move while you are sleeping and you will need to address a scenario you least expected.
* A great education is a lifelong process that truly begins when the school years are over.
* You have less than 10 genuine friends.
* A sense of wonderment is among life’s most valuable assets.
* You cannot get “big” thinking small and you can’t ever think “too big”.
* You need to be your own best advisor. All of the others will disappoint you.
* What matters infinitely more than what you know, is what you don’t know.
* Ninety percent of what others tell you, the “facts” they present to you, are not true.
* In order to become a good skiier, you must be willing to fall. And fall often.
* Hope does spring eternal. And usually disappoints.
* “Why” is the most important word in the dictionary.

Their financial, scientific, artistic skills and talents–what they are best known for–is not as important as “What They Know”.

Mark Stevens
CEO

Expectations

At this point in my life, I'm having to do alot of public speaking. Every week, soon to be twice a week, I get to stand before about 60 people and speak. Other than singing or showing up in your underwear, public speaking is probably one of the most dreaded activities that most people face. Why is that? Everyone's looking at you. You're heart is racing and you just want to go and hide somewhere....but you don't want them to know you're scared....so you focus on not looking scared....but NO I need to concentrate on what I'm saying...OH did that guy just yawn....they all just wish I would shut up...did I remember to zip my pants when I went to the bathroom....and you get the point. So, let's take the worst case scenario and say that ALL of this stuff is true...they DO want you to just shut up. So what? Someone thought enough about what you had to say to ask you to speak....so WHAT?

It's no difference in leadership. You have expectations. You're teammates have expectations. The people above you have expectations. You can either meet them, exceed them, or fall flat on your face. SO WHAT?! You have influence for a reason. So don't be crippled by the fear that controls 98% of average people. Remember these words........SO WHAT!?!

Velvet Hammer

I had a situation come up this past week on my team that could have been potentially ugly. We had a big meeting planned and one person didn't show up, or even bother to call and excuse themselves. I sat through about the first 5 minutes of the meeting and was a little irked, but then I had a light bulb moment. I thought: I will take VERY detailed notes for him and then email the notes and a short "I appreciate you" note after the meeting. I proceeded to take notes, being sure to jot down everything that might be important to my fellow team member. Then, when I got home I typed my notes into a quick email with a short "I appreciate you" note attached to the top and sent it out. I had a very nice email the next morning where he expressed gratitude for me thinking about him, and he informed me that he had hurt his foot and had to go the hospital which caused him to miss the meeting. Here's what I took away from this experience:

1 - The situation HAD to be dealt with. -- being passive isn't an option in leadership.
2 - I could have just simply sent an email and asked "where were you?" and I would've gotten an answer back...but I would have missed an opportunity to add value to one of my teammates.
3 - Don't jump the gun. -- I was frustrated for nothing. if I had popped off and vented that frustration I would've risked losing alot of influence with him and others.

So when the next problem arises on your team, stop and ask yourself "how can I handle this AND gain influence with my team?" There is always a way!

A Little More...

Along the lines with yesterday's post, I wanted to pass along something interesting I came across on the internet:

At 211 degrees, water is hot.
At 212 degrees, it boils.
And with boiling water, comes steam.
And with steam, you can power a train.

All that separates the two is ONE DEGREE! With hot water, you can make oatmeal. With boiling water, you can transport just about anything just about anywhere. One degree makes such a huge difference!

So, what's that small "one degree" change that you can make RIGHT NOW! Remember, small change doesn't always bring about small results.

YOUR NEXT STEP COULD CHANGE EVERYTHING!!!

taken from www.givemore.com

Little Big Things

I've been reading a book called "The Tipping Point" by Malcolm Gladwell. (Actually, I've been listening to the audio book version). If you are a leader in any capacity, then I highly recommend this book to you. We as humans are trained to expect gradual cause and effect to take place. We have an understanding that "Rome wasn't built in a day". But, as he points out in the book, there is an epidemic change that takes place in one dramatic moment. This drastic change is brought about not by huge actions, but by very small adjustments. Our minds have a hard time expecting these kinds of results, but they are all through history...as he points out in his book. I don't forsee that I will endorse many books or media through this blog...but I felt like I should share this one! Enjoy.

Greeter-Ship

We say that you never get a second chance to make a first impression. I agree with that statement in the big scheme of things. You never get to meet someone for the first time...twice. But look at it with me on a day-to-day basis. Allow me to explain:

What is your first impression of your spouse every morning? How about that employee that always comes dragging in at the last minute with that look that says "I wish this place would burn down"? What first impression are you giving every morning?

You never get a second chance to start your day out right. If you walk into work with a sour attitude, you just hindered the whole day's productivity. Everything from your appearance to how you greet the people around you...it all makes a HUGE difference. So grab that cup of coffee, get you favorite thing for breakfast, and make the first impression that will get you the results you want! Have a great day.

Stay In The Proper Lane

I'm back from the holidays...thank God. I wanted to share a quick story of something that happened to me recently. On the way home from Subway with my family, I saw that dreaded sight in my rear view mirror....blue lights! I quickly glanced at my speedometer, thinking maybe I was speeding...but I was okay on speed. So I pulled over to the side of the road and awaited the not-so-friendly officer. Instead of coming to the door, he yelled "GET OUT OF THE CAR!", so I got out and went to the back of my car to see what the problem was. Now, you have to know me to appreciate this situation...I've never had a drink of alcohol in my LIFE, and I've definitely never abused drugs. After calling in my driving record and seeing a perfectly clean record, the officer informed me that he pulled me over because of FAILURE TO MAINTAIN MY LANE. He says my tire touched the white line, and then I swerved and touched the yellow line, and then back to the white line...so he wanted to check me out to make sure I wasn't intoxicated. I was amazed because I thought I was right in the middle of the road, but I said "sorry" and got back in my car to go home. And here's where it got interesting...

On re-entering my vehicle, I told my wife and sister-in-law that the officer said I was swerving out of my lane. They both said "Oh yeah, you were. We noticed back up the road about a mile ago." They noticed but they didn't say anything about it. I believe leadership is like a bus (or a Jeep Wrangler in this case)...you are driving and you have passengers riding with you. They are there to support your vision and help you carry it out...but they are also there to help you "stay in the proper lane". In this case they didn't say anything, but how often do your people try to help bring adjustment only for you to shut them down? Maybe you can learn from my mistakes!

Here are a few questions I've asked myself after this incident:

Does my team have the right to challenge or help adjust me?
If you have created a safe atmosphere and culture where they can express themselves freely, your teammates can be a huge source of ideas and solutions.

Does my team have the ability to ask me the tough questions?
Maybe they've never been taught how to express themselves. Note: Some of your best input will come through some people indirectly. They may make a joke about something that is really important to them to get your attention. They also may tell you about how someone else is doing something as a subtle way of introducing a new idea to you. Just be sensitive, you may have to pay attention at first.

Would I even listen to them if they did speak up?
Don't wait til it's too late to make adjustments. Listen to the people riding with you NOW!